Paperly Signs a Letter of Intent with CVSL

Earlier today, Paperly and CVSL Inc. announced they have signed a letter of intent for Paperly to become part of CVSL’s family of direct selling companies.  The press release can be found at http://paperly.com/press/cvsl-signs-letter-intent-paperly/.

CVSL (stock symbol: CVSL) is a publicly traded, parent organization of some of the best-known direct selling brands including Longaberger, Tomboy Tools, Your Inspiration at Home and Agel.

The reasons for Paperly to join CVSL are overwhelming, including:

• A strong commitment to retaining Paperly’s brand and management. Paperly’s name, products and culture will be retained and improved upon. Truly, the impact to Consultants, Hostesses and customers will be negligible in the short-term. However, in the long-term, there will be significant improvements at Paperly, all-the-while retaining the core values and competencies of Paperly.
• Paperly will now have access to capital that might have been otherwise unimaginable. I can imagine deploying this capital towards better technology, improved operations and critical hiring.
• The deal will provide Consultants an opportunity to participate as owners (i.e. shareholders) of CVSL, a publicly traded company. This is above and beyond Paperly’s existing Commission & Career Plan. More details will be coming soon as to how this might work, but I am very excited about this possibility.
• There will likely be Consultant benefits to being a sister brand with the other CVSL companies. Paperly Consultants will not be required to carry any other product lines (unless you want to!) but perhaps, in the not-too-distant future, you could purchase other sister products at a discount.
• And finally, Paperly can leverage the managerial expertise and operational capacity of CVSL. I have successfully built 3 entrepreneurial businesses, but never one in direct selling. CVSL has an “idea team” comprised of direct selling experts that I can tap into whenever I wish. I am very excited to access this treasure chest of intellectual horsepower. 

All that said, I want to again be 100% clear: Paperly will continue to operate as a stand-alone entity. Our name, our brand, our values, our culture, our products, our Comp Plan, our training and support, our employees – everything! – will remain the same. There will be no mixing of sales forces or product lines. Truly, the only change will be that Paperly now has a successful, experienced, well-capitalized ally in our corner. To me, it’s an unbeatable combination.

In conclusion, being part of CVSL means a stronger Paperly. It means more access to more resources. It means Consultants and Paperly’s employees can be owners of our company. In total, it means Paperly will be able to achieve its mission of being a world-class direct selling company. The future is incredibly bright!

- Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly

Paperly Conference: Recognizing Outstanding Consultant Performance

Paperly recently concluded its 2nd ever National Conference. So many new ideas, products and processes were discussed. It was an absolutely fabulous experience.

One of the most important parts of Conference was to recognize outstanding Consultant performance. Below is a listing of those Consultants who earned well-deserved awards, and below the listing are the slides that were used during Conference to further elaborate on why each Consultant earned their reward.

• Claire, Connie & Peg: Winner of free Disney theme park tickets
• Amy: Star Performance Award
• Mariana: Sales & Leadership Award
• Claire: Standard of Teamwork Award
• Connie: Above and Beyond Award
• Karen: Paperly Ambassador Award
• Peg: Pillar of Consistency Award
• Jennifer: Bright Ideas Award

I cannot say enough times how proud I am of each of these Consultants. I truly cannot wait to see what amazing things they accomplish with their Paperly business in 2013-14 and beyond.

- Jay Rudman, Founder & CEO, Paperly

Paperly Recognized for its Ethical Business Practices for the 3rd Year in a Row

I am so proud to announce that Paperly, the leading direct seller of personalized stationery and gifts, was was again recognized by the Direct Selling Association (www.dsa.org) at its 2013 Annual Meeting for its participation in the DSA’s Code of Ethics Communication Initiative. The recognition was based on activities completed by Paperly from March 2012 through March 2013 and was Paperly’s 3rd year in a row for being bestowed.

Created in 2008 to give special credit to companies that particularly prize ethical business practices, the Code of Ethics Communication Initiative recognizes companies that fulfill the necessary criteria. Paperly’s efforts included, among other activities:

• Linking to the DSA’s Code of Ethics from every page of Paperly.com’s website
• Linking to DSA’s consumer site (www.directselling411.com) from Paperly.com
• Educating Paperly’s Consultants on the DSA’s Code
• Including the Code in Paperly’s “Policies & Procedures” manual

I am so proud that Paperly continues to be recognized for its ethical business practices. When you join a direct selling organization, you are putting your name and reputation behind that company.  Fortunately, Paperly has proven again and again that it is a business you can trust.

Regards,
Jay Rudman, Founder & CEO, Paperly (www.Paperly.com)

Paperly: Product Innovation

Paperly had the great fortune of being the only 2x ETHOS Award winner in 2012 for product innovation.

In 2012, Paperly won for its personalized iPhone cases and cutting boards.  In 2013, Paperly submitted 2 new product innovation entries: personalized platters and iPad cases. Unfortunately, Paperly did not earn awards for either entry.  However, I thought you may enjoy snippets of each entry.  Below, I'm highlighting Paperly's personalized platters.  In a later blog post, I'll highlight our iPad cases.

Personalized Platters

All of Paperly’s products are one-of-a-kind creations; however, no product provides greater versatility than our personalized platter. This versatility – along with its reasonable price ($39.95) – helped the platter become one of Paperly’s most popular products in 2012. Paperly’s platter measures 14” x 10” and can mix and match designs, colors, fonts, names, logos and photos. The ability to create a beautiful, hyper-customized platter to the exact specifications of the customer at an incredible price is a true “game changer”. The platter has quickly become a top 5 most popular of Paperly's. Given Paperly’s keen focus on personalized products, and its belief that hyper-customization is ideal for the at-home party model, the platter is the perfect fit for Paperly’s existing product mix.

With Paperly's platters, customers may choose from any of our 25 designs, 24 colors and 24 fonts, in addition to adding a name or favorite quote. The outcome is truly a one-of-a-kind creation, as illustrated below.

Paperly’s Consultants and customers quickly realized they could create platters perfect for any holiday by matching certain colors and quotes. For example, red, white and blue stripes are perfect for Independence Day. Or an orange and black platter personalized with “Boo” makes the ideal serving platter for Halloween treats.

Paperly’s platters also proved to be a fabulous way to memorialize a favorite vacation or a family reunion.

One of the most popular uses of Paperly’s platter was to mix and match colors to showcase a fan’s favorite team on game day.

As shown in the photos above, Paperly’s platters are the epitome of hyper-customization. Each platter combines designs, colors, fonts, names, logos and photos to create never seen before, one-of-a-kind products. The ability to create a beautiful product to the exact specifications of the customer at an incredibly reasonable price is a true “game changer”. Given Paperly’s keen focus on personalized products, and its belief that hyper-customization is ideal for the at-home party model, the platter is the perfect fit for its existing product mix. Paperly cannot wait to see how its customers personalize its platters in 2013.

Congratulations to Longaberger for winning this product category.  Next year, we'll come back strong and hopefully win!

Regards,
Jay Rudman, Founder & CEO, Paperly (www.Paperly.com)

Paperly: Time to Shine

Last year's theme to Paperly's Conference was:

Being the "new kid on the direct selling block", Paperly challenged attendees to think and dream big about their Paperly business.  Through a lot of hard work over the past 12+ months, Paperly has risen far beyond thinking big... now it is Paperly's Time to Shine.

Like a rising sun, Paperly's business is rising and ready to shine.  At our upcoming National Conference  (which in a not-too-small coincidence will be held in Florida, the Sunshine State), we will work side-by-side with our Consultants to help elevate their Paperly businesses to the next level.

Paperly has a great team, amazing products, fabulous incentives and so much more. We are on the brink greatness. Now is truly the Time to Shine.

Regards,
Jay Rudman, Founder & CEO, Paperly (www.Paperly.com)

Mother's Day Gifts from Paperly

Paperly's Founder & CEO, Jay Rudman, highlights a few personalized gifts perfect for Mother's Day including cutting boards, platters, iPad cases and stationery:

To see Paperly's entire list of Top 10 Gifts for Mother's Day, visit http://www.paperly.com/pdf/Paperly_Top_10_Mothers_Day.pdf

Now comes the hard part... choosing just one.  Don't worry, I'm sure your Mom is wonderful enough that she deserves them all!

Regards,
Jay Rudman, Founder & CEO, Paperly (www.Paperly.com)

Paperly's 15% Off Sale Through April 30, 2013

Paperly's Founder & CEO, Jay Rudman, announces a 15% sale on select items through April 30, 2013:

To learn more, visit http://www.paperly.com/pdf/Paperly_Sale_April2013.pdf

Regards,

Jay Rudman, Founder & CEO, Paperly (www.Paperly.com)

March 21 is Absolutely Incredible Kid Day

I am so proud to announce that Paperly is partnering with Camp Fire to support its annual event, Absolutely Incredible Kid Day® (AIKD).  Celebrated this year on March 21, AIKD is an annual call to action for adults to write letters of love and support to America’s children. Knowing how uniquely special a handwritten note is, Paperly’s goal for AIKD is it to help Camp Fire ensure that every child receives a special letter.  Here's how...

Throughout March, Paperly will automatically send each of its purchasing guests at no additional cost:

• 3 specially designed flat notes titled "You are an absolutely incredible kid!"
• 3 pre-addressed envelopes
• A "how to" guide for writing and mailing the letters
• A primer on Camp Fire and Absolutely Incredible Kid Day

AIKD Packet from Paperly

Paperly’s notes will be mailed to Camp Fire, who will then distribute the letters as they deem appropriate. We envision helping hundreds, if not thousands of kids through this letter writing campaign.

Both Paperly and Camp Fire feel strongly that letter writing on AIKD – or any day for that matter – can make a huge difference in a child’s life.  Children need positive reinforcement and a handwritten letter can deliver personal, tangible and long-lasting words of encouragement.

Although 2013 is Paperly’s first year directly supporting Absolutely Incredible Kid Day, we hope to make this an annual campaign. You can read more about Paperly's involvement in AIKD at www.paperly.com/paperly-press-2013-02-AIKD.asp. Hope you decide to join this wonderful initiative.

Regards,
Jay Rudman, Founder & CEO, Paperly (www.Paperly.com)

Direct Selling is Not a Pyramid Scheme

A lot of attention has recently been focused on Bill Ackman's claim that Herbalife is a pyramid scheme. The arguments for and against are fervent. Just this past Sunday (February 10, 2013), my local paper, the Chicago Tribune, ran the following story at the top of their business section: "Legitimate Multilevel Marketing or Illegal Pyramid Scheme?" As the Founder and CEO of Paperly, the leading direct seller of personalized stationery & gifts, I feel it's vitally important to state emphatically - direct selling is not a pyramid scheme.  There are many reasons why, but in my opinion, here's the most important...

Direct Selling is Entrepreneurialism at its Best

Direct sellers invest minimally to start their business.  For their relatively paltry investment, they receive an enormous amount of marketing materials, samples, technology, training and support.  They then have the freedom to start and grow their business to the best of their abilities.

Absolutely, positively yes - most never become millionaires. But that doesn't mean the hundreds, perhaps thousands of dollars they earn each month isn't life changing. Maybe its the first time ever they've contributed to the monthly mortgage. Or maybe their earnings go towards their first ever Disney family vacation. Whatever the dollar amount, it's often meaningful to the vast majority of direct sellers.

And just because everyone doesn't instantly become a millionaire when they start their direct selling business doesn't mean the system is inherently flawed. It's the same system that every other small business owner operates within. Most fail. But we praise entrepreneurs in American society because we love and honor success based on hard work. The same holds true for direct sellers. They have to work hard. They have to take risks. They have to occasionally be lucky. But they are no different than any other small business operators and they should be exalted, not disparaged.

Direct selling is about selling to customers, not to distributors. Paperly follows a "party plan" model, which means our Consultants asks others to host friends and family members at their homes so they can experience firsthand the products Paperly offers. Successful Paperly Consultants sell more - it's that simple. Paperly eliminates all the headaches associated with operating a small business such as inventory management, website maintenance, accounting and monthly promotions. Instead, Consultants are merely asked to share the products Paperly offers with those they care the most about. Again, this is classic entrepreneurialism, nothing more, nothing less.

It's a shame that direct selling has received a bad reputation, because it truly is an amazing entrepreneurial engine. In 2012, it helped 16 million American generate $30 billion in domestic sales. That is not an illusion.  That is not a scheme. That is nothing more than an incredible entrepreneur success story... and I am proud to be a part of it.

- Jay Rudman, Founder & CEO, Paperly (www.Paperly.com)
The leading direct seller of personalized stationery & gifts

Paperly Milestones

A new year is always a good time to reflect on past accomplishments. Fortunately, Paperly has accomplished a lot since its inception. Below are just a few highlights:

2008: Launched with 6 Consultants
After spending 12-18 months germinating the idea, we finally launched Paperly... very, very softly.  We invited 6 friends & family members to join as Consultants. Why only 6? Because we did not have an ordering system, a multi-level compensation plan, or even a fulfillment partner. We first had to ensure the business model worked - and boy did it ever! We quickly went from 6 Consultants to 36 to 125 to 300+.

2010: Direct Selling Association Member
Of the thousands of direct selling companies, only around 200 in the United States pass muster with the Direct Selling Association. The application is an arduous 12 month task. That said, Paperly knew it was the "new kid on the block" and needed the DSA's "stamp of approval" in order to distance itself from other fly-by-night businesses. In 2010, Paperly earned membership into the DSA and has retained its membership every year since.

2011: Picked by Inc.com as "The New Guard of Direct Selling"
Paperly had the very good fortune of being highlighted by Inc.com as "The New Guard of Direct Selling". Considering 2 other companies mentioned - J. Hilburn and Stella & Dot - have developed well-known brands, Paperly feels strongly about the path it is on.

2011 & 2012: Recognized by the DSA for Ethical Standards
As mentioned above, only ~200 companies in the United States are members of the DSA. And of those 200, less than 25% have been recognized for their participation in the DSA's Code of Ethics Communication Initiative. Amazingly, Paperly has been recognized 2 years in a row... and plans to earn recognition again in 2013.

2012: Won 2 Product Innovation Awards
On 2012, Paperly became the only 2x winner of the DSA's prestigious ETHOS Awards for Product Innovation. Paperly won for its personalized iPhone cases and its personalized cutting boards.

And this is just a taste of Paperly's accomplishments. We could also highlight our first President's Council, Future Leaders Program, National Conference and much, much more. Please, if you wish to learn more about Paperly and its successes, I recommend you attend a Paperly Opportunity Event. The no cost, no obligation, 30-minute call provides a further glimpse into Paperly's past, present and future. Registration is required: http://www.paperly.com/info. Hope to talk with you then!

- Jay Rudman, CEO/Co-Founder, Paperly

Recipe for a Successful Paperly Consultant

My daughter and I recently finished a book titled "Stir It Up!" by Ramin Ganeshram, published by Scholastic Press.  (Yes, my 11 year old, 6th grade daughter still lets me read to her and I love it!  Aren't I the luckiest dad around?)  Briefly, the story is about a teenager whose dream is to become a chef.  Ingeniously, the author sprinkles throughout the book life lessons disguised as recipes. I've taken the liberty of including one below, called "Recipe for Ambition", which I thought could easily be re-titled, "What Makes for a Successful Paperly Consultant". (Hopefully I won't get in any trouble for photocopying a page of the book ;)

To me, the author perfectly outlines the key ingredients to success: desire, hope, moxie and well-laid plans.  I believe all 4 need to be in the mix for success to occur.  However, the 1 ingredient most often missed is moxie, which is described as energy, courage and determination.  It's not easy being a Paperly entrepreneur. You have to absorb some "no" before you get to "yes". But if you exhibit energy, courage and determination - otherwise known as moxie - I'm convinced you can be wildly successful running your Paperly business.

After reading the recipe below, I'd love to hear your ideas as to what you believe is necessary to be successful in whatever you choose as your profession. Thanks in advance for your thoughts!

- Jay Rudman, CEO/Co-Founder, Paperly

The Paperly Story: Fall/Winter 2012-13 catalog

Paperly is preparing to release its Fall/Winter 2012-13 catalog. I am so excited! As part of that release, I have the honor and privilege of expressing my thoughts on the inside cover. I am especially proud of this catalog's theme because I believe it's time for Paperly to take its rightful place as a leader in the direct selling industry. After reading this catalog's preamble (see below), I welcome your feedback.

Regards,

Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly

~~~~~~

Direct selling, which is the idea of independent Consultants sharing their passion for products via fun, at-home parties, has been a successful business model for generations. The Rockwellian image of "The Tupperware Party" evokes a strongly positive memory for most of us. While Paperly plans to follow a similar model of the past, we plan to lead the industry towards an exciting future.

Paperly’s products – personalized stationery & gifts – perfectly combines the consultative nature of at-home parties and today’s advanced technology to produce one-of-a-kind products exactly to the customer’s specifications within days of the order. Wow! Custom products delivered within days was unheard of before Paperly began, and now we’re doing it daily.

We started Paperly to enable those who love personalized products the opportunity to start a rewarding business. We also wanted to remind people that the personal note is alive and well. We remain true to these initial objectives, but now, we plan to change the world of direct selling. We invite you to join us. We’re confident you’ll enjoy the journey.

Paperly's Starter Kit: Different is Okay

Paperly's Starter Kit is different. Different can  sometimes feel good, but other times different can feel unsettling. I thought I'd take a moment to explain the rational behind Paperly's "different" Starter Kit.

The Past

Originally, Paperly's Starter Kit was $249. Wow! That was a big investment for a new Consultant. However, the Kit was full of samples, printouts of training & promotional materials, 2 different catalogs, etc. Unfortunately, the Kit was a big, heavy, cumbersome mishmash that didn't meet the needs of the Consultants for a number of different reasons:

• It was too expensive. The $249 price tag prevented too many from joining Paperly.
• The training & promotional materials were outdated almost as soon as they arrived on the new Consultant's doorstep. Paperly needed a more timely and accessible repository of documents.
• But most importantly, the samples were too generic. Sure, it's nice to receive a platter in a Floral design personalized with "Jane Doe". But what if the Consultant didn't like Florals?  Or didn't like the font we chose?  Or worse - what if her customers don't like Florals? Not surprisingly, the generic samples didn't generate the passion and enthusiasm from the new Consultants we had hoped.

We knew we had to make a change.  But equally as important, we knew we had to make Paperly different so that it would standout from the crowd.

The Present

In January 2012, Paperly launched its current Starter Kit and we believe it solves all 3 of the problems listed above: price, timeliness and passion.

• Paperly's Starter Kit is now only $99. We stripped away the extraneous pieces but retained everything critical for new Consultants to start and grow their Paperly business.
• Paperly's training & support documents are now available instantly online. As soon as a new Consultant enrolls, they can login to their Virtual Office and immediately begin reviewing critical training documents such as Paperly's "12-Week Roadmap to Success". Plus, we are no longer terrified of included an outdated promotion into the Kit; instead, it's always online and accurate.
• Most importantly, we removed many of the generic samples and instead began offering new Consultants "40% off for 40 Days".  Now Consultants can choose the exact product they want, in the exact design they want, with the exact personalization they want. We have found Consultants are 100x more passionate about a sample when it reflects their personal style.

We are confident the ability to personalize the Starter Kit with the exact products a new Consultant wants makes Paperly sufficiently different. Yes, sometimes it's unsettling to a new Consultant - i.e. "I now need to choose my samples?"  But all in all, we are VERY proud of Paperly's current Starter Kit.  And yet... in order to remain ahead of the curve, Paperly has further plans for what it offers new Consultants.

The Future

Paperly's Starter Kit needs to continue to evolve. The "40% off for 40 days" promotion has been a huge hit, so I expect to keep it.  And yet, I want to include additional samples into the Kit.  For example, it makes sense to include a Paperly-branded key chain or bag tag, doesn't it? And instead of single sheets of Paperly's notepads, we probably should include entire notepads, right?  Also, we could add some timeless promotional & training materials - such as Hostess Rewards, the Commission Plan, etc. - and not worry about these documents becoming extinct instantly.

In conclusion, I am confident Paperly's Starter Kit will always be a bit unique, but will always far exceed its primary purpose: To help Consultants start and build their Paperly business. In the end, I'm okay with being different.

- Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly

Marketing Lessons from a Lemonade Stand

You can learn a lot from a kid's lemonade stand. Please let me explain.

This weekend, my 11-year old daughter and 8-year old son wanted to set-up a lemonade stand. They were incredibly patient as we first created a grocery list (e.g. lemons, sugar, ice, poster board, etc.) then discussed how to pay for everything (i.e. we each "invested" ~$8 into the endeavor). It was so much fun talking with my children about how much to charge per glass, how big a glass we should use and whether or not we should add a mint leaf to each serving.

Skipping ahead in the story, we set-up the stand in a highly foot-trafficked area and were ready for our first customer, when WHAM, I learned my first marketing lesson:

Customer engagement is critical

As potential customers walked by, my children sat idly hoping someone would stop and purchase. Argh! I quickly explained that they needed to market their product.

(Note to all direct sellers: This is analogous to a multi-vendor event where you sit behind your table and hope someone stops to chat. No!!! You need to stand in front of your table, smile, say hello to everyone who passes by, strike-up a conversation, ask them what product caught their eye, etc.)

To their credit, my children quickly took to the idea of "customer engagement" and started saying to each customer that walked by, "Lemonade, 50 cents." A few customers started buying, but I could tell from my children's faces, they weren't satisfied. WHAM, I learned my second marketing lesson.

The message is everything

Instead, of the boring and mundane "Lemonade, 50 cents", I suggested to my children they try a variety of message, a few of which I've listed below.

• Sensory: "Just made, fresh lemonade. Includes a sprig of mint, fresh from the Farmer’s Market."
• Value: "Quench your thirst on a hot day for only 50 cents. Refills only 25 cents."
• Emotional: "Buy lemonade and help 2 kids contribute to their college fund."

(Note to all direct sellers: Stop marketing your products as kitchenware, jewelry or stationery. Instead, market them as items that simplify, beautify or express gratitude. Moving away from function and towards sensory, value or emotion will go a long way to helping you market your business.)

To make a long story short, the lemonade stand was a huge hit! My kids nearly doubled their investment and learned a lot about business. But that was nothing compared to the marketing lessons I learned:

Customer engagement is critical &

messaging is everything

I'm curious if you have had an "a ha" marketing moment outside the walls of your office? If so, I'd love to hear about it. Thanks in advance for sharing. And thank you to my children for making me a better marketer.

- Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly

Paperly’s Core Values

This past week, I went through an interesting exercise to identify Paperly's Core Values. The business coach who guided me through this exercise, Neil Phillips, defines Core Values as follows:

"Your Core Values express [Paperly’s] company's character and non-negotiable principles. They are the elements of your culture that unite you and your employees. When you make the day-to-day decisions, you align your actions with these qualities. If you consistently adhere to these qualities, [Paperly] will eventually be known for these traits."

To get to Paperly’s Core Values, I first had to prioritize 120 words (such as Triumph, Comfort, Maintain, Socialize, etc.) as either a "1" indicating it might reflect a value of Paperly or a "3" suggesting the word does not appeal to me/Paperly in any way. If unsure about a word, I could mark it as a "2". I was also able to inject 20 of my own words that would be a "1" but didn't exist on the initial list.

Then, came the hard part...

• The next email from Neil asked me to delete everything that wasn't a "1" and then pare down the 1's so only 20 remained.
• After informing Neil that I had finished, he then asked me to narrow the list to only 10.

Gulp! All of a sudden, the easy became hard. How could I narrow down the list – which once again had started at 120 – down to only 10 words that represented Paperly's Core Values. Well, below is the list I decided upon, listed alphabetically. As you'll see, I cheated (and no, cheating is not a Paperly Core Value ;) I couldn't cut to 10, so I went with 11.

1. Brand
2. Creativity
3. Fun
4. Inspire
5. Integrity
6. Journey
7. Learn
8. Meaningful
9. Passion
10. Superior
11. Wealth 

I'd love your thoughts. Do you think these 11 words accurately reflect Paperly's Core Values? Remember, these need to encompass the business, its employees, contractors, Consultants, Hostesses, and customers... basically anyone that interacts with Paperly in most anyway. So again I ask, do you think these 11 words reflect Paperly's Core Values?

- Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly

Paperly in 5 Years

Today, Paperly is the leading direct seller of personalized stationery & gifts. It currently has ~250 Consultants located in 39 states selling uniquely-designed Paperly products primarily through at-home parties. Paperly has been recognized by Inc.com as "The Next Guard of Direct Selling" and has won 2 Product Innovation awards from the Direct Selling Association.

But where will Paperly be in 5 years? Below are 4 critical themes Paperly will focus on to ensure it remains an industry leader through 2017 and well beyond.

1. Hyper-Personalization, Hyper-Customization

All of Paperly’s products will continue to incorporate 5 key ingredients: personalization, inks, fonts, proprietary designs and blank substrates (e.g. flat notes, notepads, iPhone/iPad cases, platters, etc). When combined, these 5 ingredients can literally produce millions of one-of-a-kind products. Paperly believes hyper-personalization and hyper-customization drives hyper-satisfaction. It is this passion for Paperly’s products that will continue to drive Paperly’s success.

2. Technology Enabled Workflow
Within the next 5 years, a Paperly Consultant will carry nothing but an iPad and loose samples. Customers will browse through the loose samples and then, within minutes, create their personal product on the Consultant’s iPad. A typical conversation might be, “Sally, you like the Wildflower flat note? Here is what it would look like using your name, font #9 and pink ink. Oh, you like font #12 better? No problem, give me one second to make the switch. Do you like it now? Wonderful!” As soon as the “submit” button is pressed, the order is sent directly to Paperly’s production facility, and a few days later, is shipped directly to the customer.

3. A $100,000 Earner 

As a relatively new direct selling company, Paperly's Consultants are just now beginning to earn beneficial, but not life-altering income.  Within 5 years, Paperly aims to have dozens (or perhaps hundreds) of Consultants earning at least six figures. To accomplish that goal, Paperly will identify its fast-rising superstars and train them for success. Paperly will also likely readdress its incentive programs (i.e. Fast Start, Paperly Dollars, Annual Conference, cruises/trips, Business Development Leaders, etc.) to ensure they are motivating the next generation of $100,000+ earners.

4. Improve the Entire Offering
Paperly needs to elevate the quality of its offering - not its products. Paperly’s products are printed using cutting-edge printing technology, so the quality of the product is truly not an issue. However, Paperly knows its needs to enhance its offering by reduce its error rates to negligible levels, further beautify its packaging, continue to reduce its production time, and deliver all its products in the same box at the same time directly to the recipient.

Paperly is 100% committed to achieving this 5-year plan. In fact, I am confident Paperly is already taking the right steps towards achieving all 4 of these objectives.  This 5 year vision will ensure that Paperly continues to dominate the personalized stationery & gift industry.

- Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly

Earn Back the Cost of Your Paperly Starter Kit

Here's a little secret: Become a Paperly Consultant in May and you can earn back the cost of your Starter Kit by the end of the month!

How?!

Actually, it's fairly easy. Paperly's May Hostess Promotion provides Hostesses with up to an additional $25 in free Credits, right?

www.Paperly.com/pdf/Paperly_Bonus_Hostess_Rewards_May2012.pdf

Well, Paperly's Starter Kit is only a $99 investment - shipping included (but not sales tax). Paperly's average party in 2011 was ~$450.  For the sake of argument, let's round up to $500. (After all, that $50 difference is just a set of 50 personalized flat or folded notes. I'm confident you can sell that one extra set!)  Anyway, with a $500 party, May's Hostesses earn $90 in free product.

So a $99 investment in Paperly's Starter Kit can yield $90 in free product for a near average party.  Hmmm....

Now let's say your first party as a new Paperly Consultant is your own. After all, it's fairly common to start your Paperly business with a "Kick Off Party" where you are the Hostess and you invite your close friends and family over to share Paperly's amazing products.  So now you are going to benefit from the $90 in free products. Again, hmmm....

So not to belabor the math, but a $99 investment turns into $90 in free products.

And this is before you even count the $30 Paperly gives you to spend at Paperly's Marketing Portal on personalized items of your choosing (e.g. business cards, postcards, signage, etc.) as well as the 40% off Paperly gives you within your first 40 days as a new Consultant to purchase personalized samples.

$90 in free products (on average), plus $30 in personalized marketing materials, plus 40% off personalized samples, plus training, plus a replicated website, plus a Virtual Office, plus loose samples, plus, plus, plus... 

Paperly's Loose Samples

As one of my favorite commercials in Chicago states, "it's the biggest no brainer in the history of no brainers".

I hope you too decide to earn back the cost your Starter Kit.  It's truly an amazing opportunity.

- Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly

The leading direct seller of personalized stationery & gifts

Paperly: A DSA Rising Star?

Recently, Paperly applied for the Direct Selling Association's Rising Star award. The award is designed to recognize up-and-coming direct selling companies that have dedicated themselves to achieving a high standard of excellence in business operations. The criteria includes being board-approved members of the DSA for more than a year but having been in business less than five years, showing a consistent pattern of growth and illustrating a commitment to the DSA’s Code of Ethics. I thought you might enjoy reading a synopsis of Paperly's application.

Personalization at Paperly’s Core

Although “paper” is rooted in its name, “personalization” is truly at the core of Paperly’s product line. Approximately 50% of Paperly’s products are traditional stationery items (e.g. flat/folded notes, notepads and memo sheets), while the remaining 50% is comprised of personalized hard goods.

Consistent & Continued Growth: Consultants

One measure of Paperly’s consistent growth is the number of Consultants it has added year-over-year. For example, from 2009 to 2010, Paperly's Consultant base jumped 94%. From 2010 to 2011, it increased 63%.  And in the first quarter of 2012 alone, Paperly has already enrolled nearly 70% of its full-year total from 2011.

Another measure of Paperly’s growth is the scope and geographic diversity of its Consultants. From 2009 to 2011, Paperly’s presence grew from 8 states to 28 states coast-to-coast (not to mention Paperly also has Consultants located in Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and overseas U.S. military bases). These numbers suggest there are no geographic biases to constrain Paperly’s future expansion.

Consistent & Continued Growth: Volume

Beyond its growth in Consultants and states, Paperly has also seen tremendous increases in revenue, orders and guests. For example, from 2010 to 2011, it saw its revenues increase by 49%, its orders increase by 58% and its number of ordering guests increase by 48%. Even with Paperly’s dramatic growth, its average commissionable party volume has remained unchanged at $439, a strong indicator of the consistency and staying power of Paperly’s party-based business.


Commitment to the DSA Code of Ethics

In 2011, Paperly was recognized for its participation in the DSA’s Code of Ethics Communication Initiative. (Paperly has applied for recognition again in 2012.) Paperly’s recognition was based, in part, on its linking Paperly.com to both DSA.org and DirectSelling411.com, training Paperly’s sales force about the Code and including the Code within its policies manual. As a further sign of its commitment to the Code, Paperly has participated in all DSA-sponsored Chief Responsibility Officer teleconferences.


Well-Rounded Business Strategy

Paperly is proud of accomplishing the following milestones, each of which supports a pillar of its business strategy:


Training & Development

• Paperly conducted its first-ever National Consultant Conference in Atlanta. Approximately a dozen Consultants participated in the 3 day event.
• In 2011, Paperly graduated its first 2 classes of its Future Leaders Program. Class #3 began in February 2012.
• Paperly hosted 5 Consultants for 3 days at Home Office in June 2011 for its inaugural President’s Council. 

Marketing Toolkit

• Paperly’s replicated website, MyPaperly.com, enables its Consultants to accept online orders as well as manage their back office virtually.
• Paperly launched an e-newsletter service to enable its Consultants to connect with her/his customers on a consistent basis.
• Paperly’s Marketing Portal provides its Consultants company-branded, personalized marketing materials (i.e. business cards, postcards, banners, etc.) at discounted prices.

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Although there was more to the Rising Star application, these were the highlights.  I hope they've given you further insight into Paperly. I'm proud of the path Paperly has taken to date, and I cannot wait to show you what the future holds. I hope you decide to come along for the amazing journey ahead.

As always, if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to call or email me.

Regards,

Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly

Paperly's Field Trip to Personalization Mall

This past week, I had the good fortune of being invited to visit Personalization Mall (www.personalizationmall.com) in Burr Ridge, IL. I've always held PMall in the highest esteem. Their line of personalized products is enviably large, their online preview technology is best-in-class and their belief that "nothing says 'you're special' like a personalized gift" mimics Paperly's.

I learned so much from my visit; I wish I could share everything.  However, I would never wish to betray their confidences. So instead of delving into specifics, I wanted to share a few general, but important, observations:

1. Personalization is HUGE. PMall personalizes everything from picture frames to doormats... and everything in-between. They have proved that it's big business putting names on things.  Paperly's personalization model is built similarly, but using a completely different distribution model.  Theirs is online; Paperly's is via at-home parties.

2. Personalization is SCALABLE.  Just a few years ago, it would have been impossible to successfully conduct "mass personalization".  Today's technology has made it incredibly do-able.  PMall has proven you can do millions of personalized orders.  Paperly aims to do the same.

3. Personalization is SPECIAL.  Paperly is built on the belief that the handwritten note - and for that matter, a personalized gift - will be forever treasured. Turns out, PMall is built on the same principle.  In today's electronic world, both companies appreciate the power of making connections via personalized products.

I'm honored to share the same competitive space as Personalization Mall (even though we compete using vastly different distribution models). I thank them for the office visit.  It meant a lot to me.  I aspire to be as successful as PMall.  Given Paperly's unfaltering path towards personalization, I'm confident we'll be their equal sooner than later.

- Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly
The leading direct seller of personalized stationery & gifts

Paperly's Leap Day Promotion

On February 29th, Paperly launched its first-ever Leap Day Promotion: For 24 hours, Paperly's Starter Kit was marked down to only $29. (The regular price is $99).  Paperly's Kit has never been priced so low and may never be again... until Leap Day 2016.

Wow! What a response we received! In those 24 hours, Paperly enrolled 25 new Consultants. I was utterly speechless!

Now that I've had a bit to digest the impact of the promotion, I thought I'd share a few of my thoughts:

1. Demand is high. It's exciting to know there are so many who want to be Paperly Consultants. And why wouldn't they?  It's fun and energizing to be part of a fast-growing, direct selling company that sells one-of-a-kind, personalized paper and gift products.

2. Sometimes time is your friend.  Was $29 ridiculously inexpensive, and therefore, hard to pass up?  Absolutely. But personally, I think the 24-hour time limit was even more potent. Knowing that the deal was fleeting caused the on-rush. That's a good lesson for all of us to remember for future promotions.

3.  The Field trumps Home Office.  I purposely decided not to promote this limited-time offer through corporate. Instead, I asked Paperly's Consultants to use their marketing prowess to communicate the promotion to their potential teammates. Their efforts far exceeded my expectations (and abilities)! Facebook, blogs, email campaigns... you name it, the Field tried it and they were wildly successful! I believe 80-90% of the new Consultants enrolled because of a personal connection with an existing Consultant. I was so excited to see this number, because these new Consultants now have a friend and mentor to help kick-start their Paperly business.

Now that the promotion is over, our job is to train, educate, mentor and lead these new Consultants towards a wildly successful Paperly business.  And of course, I've got to put on my thinking cap as to what Paperly's next great promotion will be.  Any suggestions?

- Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly

The leading direct seller of personalized stationery and gifts