Saturday, November 26, 2011

Top Ten Things to expect once you have launched your business

Top Ten Things to expect once you have launched your business:

1. The first day that your product is officially for sale, you will feel like you are on cloud 9! Everyone will be congratulating you, you will be smiling from ear to ear and you will want to celebrate the fact that all of your hard work has paid off!

2. The next day will be like the day after Christmas. You will be totally bummed that your "official" launch date has passed.

3. Full speed ahead! You will be a selling machine!

4. Shockingly, you will hear your first "no." And believe me, it's a shock! After all, this is YOUR perfect invention and you were SURE everyone would absolutely LOVE it and HAVE to have it! But nope...not everything is for everyone.

5. After hearing that "no," this is where you will find out what you are made of. Will you go home and pout or will you shake it off and try, try again?

6. If you can not find someone to talk to about your product/business, you rather not talk at all. The only thing interesting to you in the first couple of weeks is your product, how it's selling, how BIG you are going to be, how you are marketing your product, etc. It's all about your Product X.

7. You get sick of yourself. You start to look at Product X like work and not just "your dream come true." After all, it's sales and sales IS hard work.

8. You become more realistic about what to expect out of your product and business. You now realize that launching your website did not equal instant sales and you are able to carry on conversations with family/friends about topics other than yourself.

9. The product you launch with will not be the product you sell in the end. Believe it or not (I did not), there will be something wrong with your product that you will have to spend money to fix. An over site or a glitch that you will have to correct but don't worry, if you took the advice of almost everyone that has created a product, you have launched in "your own backyard" and are able to quickly fix the problem. Happened to me. I promise, it will happen to you...if it hasn't already.

10. You are SO grateful that you "did your homework!" You read your books, did your research and paid attention to the valuable tips you've received along the way because NOW is when that all pays off. You are armed with a slew of information and that's a very powerful thing. You are in the trenches and working hard at selling your brilliant idea and you will not take "no" for an answer. You are a true Inventor and very proud of yourself because you are following your dream. Good for you!!!

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Wow! She was SO rude!

You're in Sales?

Put your "big girl pants" on and strap on that "tough skin" because you are going to need it. While you're at it, practice smiling through all of those "clever comebacks" you WISH you could say as you bite your tongue.

Case in point...I was in Tampa, hitting up a very popular Girls Boutique... I met one of the boutique owners...she loved SassaB. She asked me to come back tomorrow to meet with the other owner. She asked me to leave my samples. And I was "dismissed."

I left feeling pretty good and got my SassaB spinner ready for delivery the next day.

Here is how the next day turned out:

Me: Hi! I'm Tracy with SassaB! (I am walking towards the other boutique owner who is sitting down).

BO: (Boutique Owner) Not standing up, she said in a very "dead pan" voice, "Yes, I just saw your samples in the back."

Me: Great! (I'm still making my way to her in the back of the store since she is not standing up to greet me)

BO: Umm, I don't think so. (please re-read that and insert the voice you'd use talking to dirt)

Me: Oh! (I was surprised she was not interested in SassaB after the positive feedback I received from the other owner but I was also taken aback by how rudely she was speaking to me. And that she is still sitting down. And that the two ladies that are shopping in the store are now staring at me)

Me: Ok...(she is just sitting there looking at me and it feels like time is standing still) Can I have my samples please?

BO: You want them back??? (snarl while reading this, and have a "shocked" tone in your voice like I had just told you to crash your car into a brick building)

Me: You want them? (this is where I wish I had more sales experience)

BO: We may change our mind. (Deadpan, snarl)

Me: Sure! Thanks! Have a great day!

Ugh! That was awful! However, the more experienced I get in Sales, this entire scenario could happen again with absolutely no effect on me. And those shoppers that watched all of that unfold...I would like to think that they put down their merchandise and walked out not wanting to support a business that speaks to people like poo.

I got in my car, ready to leave Tampa and this experience behind me when I noticed another boutique four doors down. I walked in, the store owner LOVED SassaB, sold the spinner I had ready for the other boutique and walked out with a check in less than 5 minutes! That felt GREAT!!!

No matter how rude someone is or how many "No's" you get, there is always someone else waiting with a smile and a "Yes" so don't give up and don't let the "yucky" people get you down!

In sales and in life...

Monday, November 14, 2011

Inventors Showcase-TAGIE NOMINEES 11/13 by SPEAK YOUR SUCCESS | Blog Talk Radio


I had a blast interviewing some great, young entrepreneurs that are nominated for the Tagie Awards. Remember Flipoutz from Shark Tank? Listen to where they are now and hear my story about SassaB!

Inventors Showcase-TAGIE NOMINEES 11/13 by SPEAK YOUR SUCCESS | Blog Talk Radio

Saturday, November 5, 2011

What I've learned in 1 week of launching SassaB

It's been a whirlwind of a week!

Once upon a time, if I did not sleep well, I could catch a cat nap on the sofa. I went to the grocery store and sometimes the gym. Ok, not the gym but I would wear gym clothes with good intentions.

But...not now my friends...now I am a selling machine! And this is what I have learned in just one short (but long) week of selling SassaB.

* Be ready for change. Launch in your own backyard so that when you make changes, it won't be too late and you won't embarrass yourself (I embarrass easily).

* Do not undervalue your product. I did and I ended up getting "schooled" in the lesson of price points. Turns out I was selling SassaB TOO low and my margins were not right. Insert embarrassment here. Now SassaB is sold for a retail price of $8.99 and it has actually HELPED sales! One store ordered 60 units just because we were priced RIGHT for the market.

* Leave your ego in the car with your extra samples of product because sometimes, people are just not nice and it's going to sting. Example: There is a store in Dunedin that I thought would be a good fit for SassaB so when the store owner was rude to me and actually handed me my business card back, I wanted SO badly to give her a piece of my mind. Like, for example, "I don't NEED to sell SassaB in here, there are plenty of shops on Main Street and the fact that you are just basically a jerk, I not only will not sell you SassaB, I will no longer shop in here myself and I will tell all of my friends and family to never step foot in your store again." This lady was SO full of herself...I can't stand that. BUT...I simply smiled, took my card back and said "Thank You." And guess what? The next store took that EXACT same business card  and placed and order for 30 units. SO THERE mean lady. Teeheeehee....

* Don't get discouraged. After the incident with the mean lady, I wanted to go home and just promote online but if I had done that, I would not had gone on to sell 90 units that day. So stay strong!

* Stick to your guns. A store owner in Belleair wanted to carry SassaB on consignment. We had decided right in the beginning not to sell consignment (we just felt that we didn't need to and so far, we were correct). She wasn't happy about it and did not place an order however, we sold SassaB in two local stores in her area so...stick to your guns.

* Have fun, get excited and get sleep, you'll need it!

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Time to shop ~ SassaB is now for sale online!

We are excited to announce that you can now purchase SassaB Linkable Charms at www.SassaB.com!

SassaB Linkable Charms are perfect for Birthdays and just in time for the Holidays!

When you purchase, you will receive two SassaB packs with a total of four random linkable charms, a SassaB hair tie with link and a bobby pin with link ~ perfect for Creating Your Own Style and trading with your friends!

If you haven't already, stop by and "like" our SassaBLLC Facebook Fan Page at www.facebook.com/SassaBLLC

Thank you for supporting your fellow Inventor and don't forget to tell your friends!