It sounds like a real cliche: a forty-something, stay-at-home mother of two, selling Avon to earn a few extra dollars. But sometimes being a cliche isn't as "cliche" as it seems.
When I first sold Avon over twelve years ago, my first-born was just a toddler and was the type of child who needed to constantly be in motion; so walking around the neighborhood dropping off Avon books was a great way to keep him moving. I was so focused on taking care of him (he was and is my sun, moon, and stars) that I didn't put too much time or care into Avon beyond those drop-offs and selling to family and friends. This time around it is a whole different ball-game!
That toddler is now 15 and has a little sister who is 10. Although they are in school all day, and don't need my constant attention when they are home, I still want to be available to them at all times. Due to their conflicting school schedules, I can only be away from the house from 9:30am to 1:30pm- not a lot of jobs out there with those hours! I have worked as a cafeteria aide for the last four years, but that just wasn't giving me any personal satisfaction and I have been feeling a real need to do more than open milk containers and tie shoes (not that there's anything wrong with that!).....and along came Avon again.
Avon can be so much more than passing out books to your mom and your neighbors; if you take it seriously and approach it as running your own business, the possibilities are limitless. And I'm not just talking about financial gain, but also about the personal fulfillment that comes from being able to use skills that for a lot of mom's are going untapped and/or unrewarded.
To be a serious Avon Lady you need to be organized, creative, persistent, good at marketing, budgeting, and financial planning. You need to be able to communicate well with people, understand their needs, and be able to deliver the service they are looking for (sound familiar, moms? we all do this everyday, right?). If you are ambitious, you can make fundraising presentations, as well as recruit, manage, and train other Avon Reps. You can work independently and sell products online or you can go all out and do a marketing blitz everywhere you go. .If you are a techno-mom-geek you can use your skills to print flyers, make coupons, start a facebook page, write a blog...It's all up to you!
So that's why I'm excited about selling Avon again. I get to take things that I do as a mom everyday and bring them to the next level. I get to be a business woman, but on my own terms. And I get to use great products that make me feel good about myself and that I can feel good about sharing with others...but we'll leave that for another blog!
No comments:
Post a Comment