Don't stop mining!

by: Dioni Morales, Director of Stylist Services

Many years ago, after finding only a little bit of gold, a mining company decided to stop mining the gold and sell their equipment to another company. The new company hired a geologist who used his skills to help the miners find a great deal of gold just three feet away from where the old company had stopped mining.  The new company went on to make millions of dollars. Many times we give up right when we are about to find our Gold.

I heard this story and had shared it with you before but I want to dissect it a bit.

* Don't stop mining: Some people start a business with a lot of hopes and excitement, they do a few parties, talk to a few people, make a little bit of money and that's it! Then they all of a sudden stop booking parties, talking to people about the opportunity, and working the business. They just STOP altogether. And worse, they then come to the conclusion that this business just doesn't work. 

* We are your "geologists". With Vessel, you have a National Training Director, whose sole purpose is to train and guide you to achieve success in your Vessel business. I am also here to help you comprehend in detail the compensation plan, keep your sales reports up to date, etc. We offer weekly trainings and annual conventions. And even our founders are very accesible to help you in any way.

* Make sure you get to that Gold: We actually have a rank called Gold Stylist, but we don't want you to stop there. We know that you can get to Sapphire and continue on to Diamond. How do you get there? You don't give up. You just keep mining - but mining smart. Learn from others, do what your "geologists" tell you to do, and you WILL get there.

You would never say that Universities don't work because you went for just one semester, or didn't study hard enough, or do all you had to do to graduate. So you cannot say that this industry doesn't work just because you did not do what it takes to get to the top, to graduate, to get to Gold or in Vessel's case, to get to Diamond.

Work hard, but work smart. With Vessel we will show you how!! 

Why Should You Go to Convention?

I know Tracy has talked before about how going to her first direct sales convention changed her life, and I'm sure she'll be telling the story again between now and the time of Vessel's Convention.  It's very powerful, but it's her story so I'll let her tell it. 

I have been involved with direct sales for almost 25 years, and I personally know the inspiration, bonding and impact it has on those who attend.  From small intimate groups to huge crowds, direct sales conventions all have one thing in common - they Pump. You. Up!

I decided to see what other industry professionals had to say about the wisdom of attending convention.  And to them, it IS a matter of wisdom.  Several quoted industry statistics (as has Tracy) showing that convention attendees make more money from their direct sales business than do their non-attending colleagues. 

Here are a few more quotes:

"I find it no wonder that statistics show those who regularly attend their direct selling meetings tend to have higher sales and are more successful in their recruiting efforts.  So my question is this: if you are currently involved in such a company and have not attended a training or meeting, what are you waiting for?  Are you already making enough from your business?  Do you understand what is necessary for your business to be a success?  Are you already an expert on your product line and/or compensation plan?  If you answer no to any of those three questions, then you need to get to a meeting more than ever." 
Rosemarie Kahn

"...I'll admit: with my many, many years in the direct sales industry, I've been there, done that, and would even say I've seen it all at annual convention ... Even with that history, I would implore you: "Get thee to your company's annual meeting."  Why?  Because it's not just boas and tiaras (as nice as those can be...).  Need to charge it and make up the difference with extra sales in the fall?  Need to bunk up to 6 people to a room?  Need to drive 10 hours in the car?  Doesn't matter.  Just do what it takes to get there.  If you're not committed enough to attend convention, I'll go out on a limb and say you should probably just go ahead and resign.  It's THAT important to your business."
Martha McBride

"In fact, I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that you can't afford NOT to go to National Conference if you want to make money with your business.  It's where you network with your colleagues, get a fresh batch of enthusiasm, get trained, get up-close with the latest products, and get to know your company execs... Don't cheat yourself.  Get to National Conference.  It's worth every penny."
Jennifer Fong


And finally, this article from Direct Sales Talk:

REASONS YOU NEED TO ATTEND YOUR ANNUAL DIRECT SALES CONFERENCE

Every year most direct sales businesses offer conferences for you to attend.  Most of the time they are nowhere near your home, and while it may be a budget stretcher for you, it is one expense you really need to incur.  No whining or excuses.  Book the room and pay for the conference ticket.  I don't care what it takes, but you should do it!

Now, let me tell you why it's so important that you go to your annual direct sales conference:

• The annual conference is the best place to get motivated - Need some motivation in your business?  Go to the annual conference.  There you will see lots of people just like you who are making a success of their direct sales business.  You can learn what they did to get where they are and what they're doing to stay on top!
• Incentives, incentives, incentives - Often companies will offer an incentive, like a discounted price or free registration to the conference if you reach a certain amount in sales and/or recruits (note: see Vessel's promotions here).  Setting your goals to reach these incentives will not only get you to the conference, but it will give your business a boost as well.  Think of all the shows you will be holding and all the sales you will be making to reach your goal. 
• The momentum you'll gain is priceless - When you get back from the annual conference, you'll be empowered with so much knowledge and motivation nothing will stop you from reaching your sales goals and gaining new recruits.  If you boosted your sales and recruits to reach a goal prior to going to the conference, you'll have all those shows to follow up on.  Your excitement will rub off on your new and potential recruits  They will want to sign up right away when they see how excited you are.
• The knowledge you'll learn is invaluable - Most annual conferences offer classes you can take while there.  These classes will teach you how to be more successful in your direct sales business.  The classes are usually taught by people at the top, who were once where you are right now.  They will teach you how to get to the next level of your business.
• The camaraderie is an experience all its own - Everyone attending the annual conference has something in common with you.  You will make new friends and possibly even meet a new mentor or role model.  There won't be a luncheon or banquet you will attend where you won't have something to talk about with someone else.
• It's great to meet others from all over the country - and learn how they approach and talk to their clients.  Ask what they do to gain business.

If you have been thinking about going to the annual conference but you just weren't sure about it, think about it no more.  Set your goals.  Make your plans.  And GO.  Do special sales or promotions to help pay for it, but whatever you do, just get there.  I promise you won't regret it.  You will come back with so much excitement, ideas and energy about your business, it will certainly flourish!  Now go sign up already! 


By the way, that last line was still a quote from the Direct Sales Talk article, but it bears repeating:

Now go sign up already!

To Your Success!

Susan

Summer ... Make it Sizzle for YOUR Business!

by Tracy Ralph, National Sales Director

 Let's face it..... 

You may be thinking your Vessel business will dry up this summer. On the contrary!  Summer actually can be the "hottest" time for parties!

It may just take a bit more creativity, but business is out there to be had. School is out, and moms are headed to the beach, parks, and picnics.  So what does this mean for you? Fun, parties and a good summer business.

JOIN THEM!  Book a park or beach party.  Gather moms together and meet at the park. Make a theme out of it; i.e., Picnic in the Park ... the Host supplies the picnic and you do the Vessel party in the park.

Consider other ideas for summer-themed parties:

 

1. Pool Party: Hold the party around a pool.  Get a small plastic play pool and fill it with ice and drinks. You might even have a swimsuit contest! (Or encourage people to wear one and be cool)
2. Pina Colada Party
3. Strawberry Daiquiri Party
4. Margarita Party
5. Build your own Sundaes: Host provides the ice cream and the guests bring toppings.
6. Wine & Cheese Party: Host serves wine and cheese.
7. Saturday Brunches: While the air is still cool, have a morning brunch or tea. Have guests bring their favorite recipe and sample to share.
8. Summer Sizzle: Have guests bring their favorite way to cool down to the party and let all judge whose idea is the coolest.
9. Summer Salads: Ask each guest to bring their favorite summer salad recipe to exchange, along with samples
10. Patio Party: Have a party outside on the patio.  Serve nice tall glasses of lemonade.
11. Garden Party: Have the show in someone's garden.  Have every guest wear their garden hat or big floppy hat.
12. June is Strawberry month ... serve strawberry shortcake!
13. Very Berry Party: Make berry desserts or berry topping for cheesecake or ice cream
14. Red, White, and Blue Party: Have everyone come dressed in their favorite patriotic outfit. Serve Red, White and Blue dessert. 

 When we change our thoughts from the typical indoor party, and move it outdoors, we have a lot to offer our Hosts.  Summer means fun, outside activity, and get togethers!  Why not "Get together with Vessel!"  How easy is that for the Host?  They are most likely planning a picnic in the park at some point anyway.  You just bring the jewelry and........boom, you have a party on your calendar!

 

What?  You don't have any parties on your calendar?  Great, book a party yourself at a park, and make it a picnic.  Call your friends, have them bring a lunch, let the kids play, and you are on a roll to building your summer business.

Remember that in the summer, more so than any other time of year, people want to have fun.  This makes for a great sizzling summer business!

 

How do we reward you? Let us count the ways!

The Vessel compensation plan is part of a motivation strategy - an approach designed to help our Stylists want to do the things necessary to succeed in their business. Our compensation plan focuses on five key behaviors that drive and build our Stylists' business, and that they are rewarded for doing.

BEHAVIOR: RETAILING
Build a strong retail culture with a solid Host and Customer base. Focus on strong booking success in every Party.
REWARD: PERSONAL EARNINGS
Earn money with your very first Party or Customer order. Immediately begin to earn 30% retail profit on your personal retail sales, with the opportunity to earn up to 40% retail profit with our Power Seller Bonus.

BEHAVIOR: RECRUITING
Share the Vessel opportunity and begin building a Team.
REWARD: FAST START BONUS, TEAM BUILDING COMMISSIONS
Active Stylists or higher earn 5% on the sales of Level 1 recruits. Active Executive Stylists or higher earn 3% on the sales of Level 2 recruits. (During L1 and L2 recruit's enrollment month plus three full months.)

BEHAVIOR: BUILDING MANAGERS
Managers become experts at selling and recruiting, and teaching others to do the same. The ultimate goal of a Manager is to help others on their Team to become strong Managers. Managers mentor and lead by example. A strong Manager is a future Leader.
REWARD: ADVANCEMENT BONUSES, TEAM BUILDING COMMISSIONS
As your Team grows and you begin to move up in rank, you earn Advacement Bonuses: $150 for reaching Silver Stylist and $500 for reaching Sapphire Director. You receive Level 1-3 Bonuses of 2% to 7%, as well as a Team Volume Bonus of 2% on your entire Team's sales when you reach Sapphire Director.

BEHAVIOR: BUILDING LEADERS
Leaders Provide the strength that sustains and builds the business over time. For long term success there is no other way. A strong Leader develops new Managers and Leaders below them, helping and teaching them in turn to develop other Managers and Leaders. For a Leader to grow their business they must nurture this process continually. They must often work deeper in their downline, searching for rising stars and mentoring them to become great Leaders.
REWARD: MATCHING ADVANCEMENT BONUS, LEADERSHIP COMMISSIONS
When a Team member promotes to Sapphire Director for the first time, as the immediate upline Sapphire Director or higher, you receive a matching $500 advancement bonus. In addition to Personal Earnings and Team Building Commissions, a Leader receives commission on the generations, or teams led by Leaders in their downline. You receive 3% to 4% on four generations deep.

BEHAVIOR: RETENTION
The key to growth and success is retention. Experts agree that a new recruit needs $25 to $35 per hour to make it worth their time and keep them in the business. With Vessel, if you have a Party with $250 in retail sales (which is totally achievable with our Party average of over $500), you've earned a 30% retail profit of $75. If you spent two hours on that Party, you've eared $37.50 per hour. Now multiply this by your additional Parties and your Team members' Parties, and you see how your success and your Team's success leads to retention. 
REWARD: A solid base of PERSONAL EARNINGS, TEAM BUILDING COMMISSIONS, and LEADERSHIP COMMISSIONS
A great compensation plan like Vessel's balances the incentive between Personal Earnings, Team Building Commissions and Leadership Commissions.

Diamonds Need to be Willing to be Cut

by: Dioni Morales, Director of Stylists Services

For my last two blog posts, I've been talking about creating your "big" vision, as well as what is limiting your ability to create it.  So now that you have created that Big Vision, what is it that you are willing to do to achieve it?  What is the price that you're willing to pay?  The answer to these questions will be unique to each person, because we all have different situations in our lives. 

I will share the common/general things you should be prepared to do to get there:

1. Be patient. We are farmers.  We sow the seeds, and we water.... and we water....  Then all of a sudden, the seeds will sprout.

2. Work on yourself.  People join YOU.  People follow you, the leader, so you have to work on your leadership skills. You have to work harder on YOU than you do on your business.

3. Lead by example.  Be the hardest-working person in the room.  Your team is depending on you to lead them.

4. See the opportunity and take charge.  Vessel is a very new company.  There are many markets/cities that have no or very few Stylists.  Some will see this as a disadvantage.  YOU will see this as a great opportunity, and you will help others see it that way as well.

5. ALWAYS do the right thing.  As in life, good people will finish on top.

6. Honor your word.  A person is only as good as the word they keep.

7. Re-invent your business if needed.  If what you're doing is not working, come up with a new plan!  Don't be afraid to try new things.

8. Don't give up:  If you put an egg in an incubator, would you take the warming light off the egg right before it hatches?

9. Change your mindset.  Your mind is 80% of your result.  Make sure you have the right attitude and know exactly where you're going.

10.  Dust off and keep going.  Not everything is going to work out the way you planned.  As in life, not-so-good things will happen, and it's what you do after the fact that will define you and your business.

No one ever said it will be easy or will go perfectly smoothly.  However, it has been proven that the people who endure in this business will reap the rewards.  The persistent will soon live the life that they only dreamed of.  Vessel is your vehicle to get there!  But just like a diamond, you have to be willing to get cut to bring out your true beauty.  Stay the course, and soon you will be a Diamond with Vessel.

Vessel's Direct Hire and Leadership Referral Programs

Just recently, our first Direct Hire Leader joined Vessel.  Amy Neville brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to Vessel, and we are expecting great success from her.

So what is Direct Hire?

Direct Hire is for those experienced and knowledgeable direct sales professionals, like Amy, who (for whatever reason) are looking for a new direct sales "home," where they can build a new team.  Most importantly, they have demonstrated the ability to build large teams quickly.

There could be any number of reasons that they are leaving their prior company, but typically what this professional is looking for is: 1) a unique product; 2) a non-saturated market; and 3) a ground floor opportunity.  And, as you hopefully are well aware, Vessel has all three of these attributes. 

They are also looking for a good compensation plan that rewards their skills in sales and recruiting.  Vessel's plan was developed by the premiere compensation plan designer in the industry, and we believe it's one of the best plans in the industry.

When someone is brought in through the Direct Hire program, they are "given" the Vessel rank corresponding to what they had achieved at their prior company or companies.  However, they are also given very stringent goals in exchange for the title we give them from the start, and a limited timeframe in which to achieve these goals.  It is safe to say that we expect strong performance from our Direct Hires, and we reward them accordingly.  We interview them thoroughly to determine the extent of their actual experience and knowledge.  This program is definitely not for just anyone.

One of the huge benefits of this program is that if the Direct Hire Leader meets the goals in the timeframe given, they are ahead of the game in meeting the goal of becoming a Founders Club member by June 30, 2016.  But, as a reminder to ALL Vessel Stylists, everyone still has a chance of being included in the Founders Club.  Reach the rank of Ruby Director by June 30, 2016, and you're IN!  Being a member of the Founders Club is not only extremely prestigious (and you will forever be one of our VIPs), it is also about the ability to participate in a Founders Club bonus pool if you meet basic requirements. 

What does Vessel get out of the Direct Hire program?  First and foremost, we get professional, skilled network marketers who can help us continue to build upon the momentum we have created thus far, in as quick a manner as possible.  We gain access to the contacts these people have built over their career, as well as their leadership experience. 

The program also benefits current Vessel Stylists by providing more buzz and exposure to Vessel.  But here's a much more concrete way in which current Vessel Stylists can benefit from the Direct Hire program ... which is our Leadership Referral opportunity.  If you are a Vessel Stylist and you happen to know someone who might be a good fit for the Direct Hire program, refer them to us!  If we determine that they are, in fact, a good Direct Hire choice for Vessel, you will get 2% of that person's Team Volume forever!  If the new Direct Hire is an industry heavy hitter, that could be a tremendous amount of income to you ... all for simply referring the person on to us. 

Why Isn't My Business Working?

by Tracy Ralph, National Sales Director

You bought your Kit, and you had high expectations for your new business ... so why isn't it "working?"

This business works, but are you working your business?

One thing I have found from experience is that we need to put time into our business every day.

People go to college for 2-4 years - and sometimes much longer - to learn their "profession."  When you start a new job, there is a "training" period to learn how to do that job.  The same is true in direct sales.  It doesn't necessarily just happen when you buy the Kit.  You have to make it happen.

How much time are you putting into your business?  An hour a day? (The Power Hour tool is a must!)  Ten minutes a day?  Are you putting in busy time, or are you investing in time that will actually advance your business?  There is a difference!  What are you doing to learn this business and become a professional?

Here are some concrete steps you can take today and every day to increase your professionalism and invest time wisely in your business:

• Learn about your products

• Watch the party presentation video daily

• Be on the weekly training calls

• Are you on One on One coaching calls?

• Have you made a list of people to call to let them know you are in business?

• Are you calling the people on the list?

• Are you spending time daily on your business?  How much time?  15 minutes? A half hour? Are you implementing the Power Hour?

• Are you holding in home parties?  The Power is in the Party

• Are you sharing the opportunity with others?

• Are you consistent?

When I was in the field, I found this to either be the most frustrating business ...or the most amazing business.  It all depended on me and my ACTIONS.  When I was diligent about doing the 10 things listed above, my business soared.  I had fun and made money!  When I didn't apply them in my business, I was frustrated and  wanted to just "quit."   I have to tell you, I liked having fun and making money much better than being frustrated!  If you are not where you want to be in your business, the good news is that you can turn it around very quickly!

I want to challenge you to start working your business on a daily basis - and you will see dramatic results.

Be consistent with no excuses.  Notice how consistent you are in  showering, brushing your teeth, washing your hair every day, and paying bills, buying groceries and feeding your family every week?  It's the same with your business.  You will be amazed at what happens in your business when you are consistent every day and every week.

Make a calendar of the next 30 days, and at the top of the calendar write BE CONSISTENT.  If you stick to being consistent for 30 days - no excuses! - you will discover what is working in your business and thus be able to change your habits.

This business works - when you work the business.