A Direct Sellers Holiday (cont'd)

Seems like my 10/21/11 post, "Direct Selling Only this Holiday Season" seems to have struck a chord. Thank you to everyone that has helped spread the word including:

• Jen Fong's blog piece titled, "Support Your Local Economy: Make it a Direct Selling Only Holiday"
• Kara Wardell's blog piece titled, "Update on the Small Business Christmas Challenge" - although I wish she had listed Paperly as one of her favorite companies ;)
• LinkedIn's "Home Party Plan - Direct Sales Group".  FYI, join the group if you're not already a member!

I even have feedback from the Direct Selling Association that they'll try to promote the idea as much as possible, although admittedly it might be a better 2012 initiative for them, given their need for more lead-time to get their PR machine moving forward.

I also have a number of direct selling executives who are willing to pledge and promote this initiative to their representatives.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

But (isn't there always a but).... now what?  How do we continue to gain momentum?  In my opinion, this is a grassroots effort.  We need every direct seller to commit or pledge that they'll try, whenever possible, to purchase their holiday gifts from other direct sellers.

So I ask you - what should such a pledge say?

Please send your ideas to jay@paperly.com. I'll compile your ideas into a "Direct Sellers Pledge" (clearly, it's a working title) and send it to you for distribution.

So again, what should our "Direct Sellers Pledge" say?

Thank you in advance for your ideas.

Regards,

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

"Direct Selling Only" this Holiday Season

Last year, American Express launched its inaugural Small Business Saturday. It took place the Saturday after Thanksgiving, traditionally a very busy shopping weekend, and its intent was to support the small businesses in our communities. I love the idea and plan to embrace it once again this year.  Please visit the Small Business Saturday website to get involved: http://smallbusinesssaturday.com.

Did you know that direct sellers constitute one of the largest groups of small business owners? Yes, it's true!  All those women and men selling personalized stationery and gifts, jewelry, purses and dozens of other products are truly the epitome of small business entrepreneurs.

Therefore, I propose we - as direct sellers - augment the "small business Saturday" concept with a "direct selling only" mentality this holiday season.  What does that mean?  Well, when possible I suggest all direct sellers complete their holiday shopping only from other direct sellers.  FYI, there are over 16 million direct sellers according to the Direct Selling Association.  (Check out the Direct Selling 411 website for other fun facts about direct selling.)

Can you imagine how beneficial it would be for all direct sellers, not to mention the economy as a whole, if we focused our purchases - especially our gift giving purchases - on other direct sellers exclusively.  Wow!

I'd love to get your thoughts on this idea.  Direct sellers - what do you think?  Is this possible?  I hope so, because I'd love for your 2011 holiday season to be your best ever.

I look forward to your feedback.

Regards,
Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly

Paperly: Thinking Big

Recently, Paperly announced we are hosting our first-ever national Consultant Conference in January 2012 in Atlanta, GA. More recently, we announced the theme of the Conference, "Think Big".

Why "Think Big"?  Well, until now, Paperly has been the new kid on the block.  We're *only* 3-4 years old, which in the direct selling world is still the infancy stage.

(A recent American Express article notes that most direct selling companies "...make little money in their first three years... (but) year four through eight, many companies experience explosive growth.")

With Conference approaching, Paperly is prepared to live-up to its billing of the leading direct seller of personalized stationery and gifts. After all, our credentials are growing daily, including DSA recognition for our ethical business practices as well as Inc Magazine declaring Paperly as the next guard of direct sellers.

Now is the time for Paperly to "Think Big".  True - we never wish to lose our family feel.  (I personally still answer the phone at the office at least half the time... and I hope to continue doing that for a long time to come!)  But Paperly needs to think about a BIGGER market presence, BIGGER Consultant teams leading to BIGGER commission checks, a BIGGER and improve product line and customer experience... basically BIGGER and better everything!

I personally cannot wait for Conference and all its benefits. You can learn more about how to attend at http://www.Paperly.com/paperly-press-2011-08-Conference.asp. I've already starting "Thinking Big".  How about you?

Regards,

Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly

Paperly's Future Leaders Program

In 2011, one of Paperly's top priorities has been to teach its Consultants how to grow their Paperly business via a rigorous Leadership and Development program. Thus, in early 2011, we led our first class through Paperly's inaugural Future Leaders Program. Four of Paperly's top performers graduated after undergoing a challenging four month program. Next month, I am excited that Paperly will graduate its second Future Leaders class. Congrats to all the grads.

So what is Paperly's Future Leaders Program (FLP)? The objective of the program is to help currently successful Consultants develop the skills and habits necessary to dramatically advance their Paperly business: i.e. more parties, higher sales and larger teams. In short, the FLP will teach Consultants a process, that when followed, should help them create consistently improved results.

Future Leaders are chosen because of their initial success as well as their strong desire to succeed with Paperly. Paperly commits significant time and effort to help Future Leaders become even more successful. In return, Paperly expects its Future Leaders to make an equivalent commitment, including:

• Attend all 4 monthly FLP calls.
• Attend all regularly scheduled, Consultant-only training calls on the 3rd Tuesday of each month.
• Conduct at least ___ parties per month. The number of parties is determined collectively by the group to ensure buy-in by all.
• Complete all homework assignments. 

The monthly FLP calls cover a range of topics, including but not limited to:

• Advanced Personal Selling
• Building Your Business by Building Your Team
• Leading and Developing Your Team

I am proud of the Future Leaders Program Paperly has put together. I know we have a long way to go to build a best-in-class leadership and development program, but I feel we're on the right path.  I am a big believer that Paperly will only go as far as its leaders take it. Therefore, i am committed to ensure training will remain a top priority in 2012.

- Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly

Paperly’s First-Ever National Consultant Conference

You might have seen, Paperly recently announced that it is hosting its first-ever national Consultant Conference in January 2012 in Atlanta, GA: http://www.Paperly.com/paperly-press-2011-08-Conference.asp. Personally, I am very excited to gather Paperly’s best: to share best practices, to brainstorm potential improvements, and best of all, to create life-long friendships.

Being Paperly’s first Conference, I readily admit, it’s a work-in-process. We’re fairly settled on our keynote speaker, which we hope to announce soon. We’re also working on a "brand" for the Conference… something that encapsulates the central message for Paperly in 2012. Again, we plan to announce that soon.

Beyond those announcements, we are committed to ensure two core activities occur at Conference:

1. Yes, it’s important that Paperly shares with the attendees its vision of the future. However, equally as important, Paperly will provide significant time and opportunity for Consultants themselves to share what is/isn’t working for them, to suggest changes that could dramatically improve their businesses, and to work in small groups to address some of Paperly’s greatest challenges. I know the true value of Conference will be this Consultant-to-Consultant sharing.
2. Equally as exciting, Paperly plans to launch at Conference its new "One Catalog" which will combine its two existing catalogs: Everyday Collection and Special Occasions. The "One Catalog" concept arose from Consultant feedback and will greatly reduce potential confusion as to which product comes from which catalog.

Again, more announcements will be forthcoming about Conference. In the meantime, we hope you register to attend. The fee is incredibly reasonable, especially since attendees can either pay their attendance fee in installments, or better yet, attend for free (see the last page of the announcement to learn how)! Additionally, and this shouldn’t be glossed over, everyone is invited to attend – Consultants, spouses/significant others, existing teammates and potential teammates. I feel it's important to be inclusive, because it's the Consultants’ support network that enables them to focus on Paperly. I cannot wait to thank all of them for their support.

I am so excited for Conference and I cannot wait to see you in Atlanta!

Regards,
Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly

Paperly: The Good Parts of a Sewer Back-up

This past Friday, Chicago experienced its worst one-day rainfall since records began being kept in 1857 - approximately 7 inches in a mere 3 hours. Given that Chicago's sewer system is over 100 years old, back-ups occurred almost everywhere, including Paperly's office.  My best guess, based on markings on the wall, is that 2-3 inches of water covered every square inch of floor.

The clean-up started immediately. Within 48 hours, every baseboard had been removed, carpets and padding were thrown away and heavy blowers and dehumidifiers were brought in to try and dry out the walls and floors (see videos #1-3 below).

So all this begs the question, as alluded to in the title of this blog entry, what could be good about a sewer back-up? Well, as seen in video #4, we've been forced to relocate the Paperly office to my kitchen table! Nothing builds camaraderie as tight quarters, right? Now, instead of screaming across the office when you have a question, you merely need to look-up.  Also, as you can imagine, we're spending a lot more time simply chatting about business and life. We're even taking turns making lunch... and eating it outside in the gorgeous sunshine (since the table is currently occupied ;)

Thus, although I wouldn't wish our flood experience on anyone, all-in-all it definitely has some upsides. I hope one day, we can look back and laugh. After all, what doesn't kill us only makes us stronger, right?!

Regards,
Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly

Video #1: The big blue round machines are industrial fans intended to dry the walls and floors. The tall silver box, shown at the end of the video, is one of four dehumidifiers. Note the pile of removed baseboards stacked unceremoniously on the floor.

Video #2: The concrete floor was carpeted, but it (and the pad) had to be removed so the floors could dry.

Video #3: Note how everything had to be up off the floor.  It's as if a hurricane roared through the office.  In fact, with ~40 blowers circulating air in the office, the deafening roars kind of sounds like a wind storm.

Video #4: The "Paperly War Room", also know as the Rudman's kitchen table.

TODAY Show: Does It Pay To Become a Direct Seller?

I love this video from the July 11, 2011 TODAY show about Direct Selling:

The video does a great job of highlighting the benefits of direct selling, including:

• Direct selling is a growing and robust industry.
• Direct selling is fun for the sellers and a fun way to shop for the customers.
• The average direct seller can contribute $200 per week to help with the grocery bills, the mortgage or even the family vacation.  (The PamperedChef rep in the video is earning $50,000!)

I also really like Jean Chatzky's perspective on the industry, because she strongly advocates using the Direct Selling Association to help find reputable companies.  (Doesn't hurt that Paperly was recently recognized by the DSA for its ethical business practices.)

Lastly, my favorite part of the video is at the very end when the two speakers suggest that direct selling is all about families and communities supporting at-home businesses. I couldn't agree more! In today's technology-laden world, where neighbors often don't know neighbors, I truly believe direct selling can help bring communities closer. Perhaps that, above all else, makes the direct selling industry worthwhile!

- Jay Rudman, CEO, Paperly