Emily Seagren’s Top 8 Tips for Marketing Avon Online – Selling, Recruiting, and Leadership
Online marketing can be very exciting for seasoned Avon Reps who have online marketing experience but can also be very frustrating for online marketing beginners who are trying to find their way in the technological, social media frenzy that has become the new social outlet for busy professionals, parents, and people in today’s society. In my opinion, one of the most exciting parts of building an online Avon business is once you put in the work, your efforts keep working for you through search engine listings and social media searches.
In fact, sometimes technology can help you build your business faster automatically than you would ever possibly be able to do manually. And once your website catches on, the excitement and results build. Believe me, it can be a frustrating and long road to get to this point but once you do, it is definitely worth it!
As an Avon Representative who has probably taken some of the most extreme outside-of-the-box approaches to building a big business, one of the areas I have found myself to be successful in is Selling Avon Online, building an online team of Avon Representatives, and connecting and training my Avon team online. Here are the most important marketing activities I do to market my Avon business online (in my opinion):
Ideas for Building your Avon Business Online
1. Write Blogs: This is the #1 activity that keeps my websites in the top links of Google and other top Search Engines. Content is King – Keep your blog active by writing new posts monthly, weekly, or even daily but do not sacrifice quality for quantity. I try to rotate the types of posts I write for a variety of content and to appeal to the largest possible audience:
a) Promotional – Avon free shipping, new Avon campaign, Avon sales, Avon coupon codes, etc.
b) Recruiting – I like to write posts answering some of the questions someone who is thinking about selling Avon might be asking. I get ideas for keywords to use from Wordtracker or by “Googling” sell Avon or something similar to see the “Searches related to” at the bottom of the page.
c) Product – Avon has thousands of products for you to blog about and practice your writing skills. They are also coming out with new products every two weeks so I’m not sure how you could ever run out of content to write about. If you are a beginner blogger, start by writing posts about Avon products and work on your way from there to start writing more creative posts.
d) Leadership – When I post something for my team, I also try to post it on my blog because you never know what people are searching for online. Write about Avon incentives, recognition, selling tips, and recruiting techniques. Help your team plus find a following of other Avon reps who are looking for help. By helping other Avon Reps, it will build your credibility and make your website popular in the search engines.
e) Industry News – Other ideas for blog posts would be industry news including makeup tips, beauty news, customer reviews, magazine features of Avon products, etc. Be creative…the more of a variety you post, the larger audience you should reach.
When I write a blog post on WordPress, the link automatically posts to LinkedIn. I choose to pay for the WordPress blog I have created and use BlueHost to host the website. There were a few options I wanted that were not available on the free version of WordPress but as always, work within your means and your budget. After writing the blog, I post the link on Facebook (which automatically posts on Twitter), GooglePlus, and Pinterest. I also add it to the queue of automated posts on Buffer. Here is a video and article with tips on Selling Avon Online: http://www.makeupmarketingonline.com/sell-avon-online-blogs/
2. Mail out catalogs to your Avon eCustomers. Check out Campaign Mailer and Consultant Depot if you don’t want to do the mailings yourself. It has actually been more cost efficient for me to pay for this service rather than mail them myself. I mail out Avon Catalogs to anyone who has placed an order in the past month on my website. Last year I was mailing catalogs to 30 – 50 customers per campaign and now I’m mailing to 80 – 120 customers per campaign. If you don’t have eCustomers yet, ask around to see who would like to be added to your mailing list. Be sure your automated emails are turned on in your web office, sign up on your own Avon website as a customer to get the corporate offers so you can tell your customers about them, check the email office for upcoming promos, and look on www.retailmenot.com for current offers. I talk about what a difference mailing catalogs has made in my online sales in this article and video, “How to Sell Avon Online“: http://www.makeupmarketingonline.com/how-to-sell-avon-online/
3. Include an incentive for customers to shop on your Avon website. Take advantage of the Avon Free Shipping Offers and Avon promotional discounts for online shopping. I love the offers that promote big orders like “20% off your purchase of $50 or more.” You can tell your customers about these codes by using labels on the front of your Avon Campaign Books, in your signature on your emails and online forums, on your business cards, in email responses from online inquiries, on your social media websites, and on the front page of your Avon eRep website. Here is a video on Marketing Avon Free Shipping Offers: http://youtu.be/rlYjnt99-Vs
4. Customize your Avon website. There are three things I find Avon customers get excited about in particular: 1) the start of a new Avon Campaign, 2) new Avon products, and 3) Avon sales. Take advantage of the Avon Campaign Schedule. Update your Avon website at the start of every Avon campaign so your customers know when new specials and new Avon products have been introduced. You can also update the widgets on your Avon website so your content is always fresh. I like to keep Twitter as one of the widgets on my front page since I am posting new tweets at least daily. I also like to have the Avon opportunity link and Avon email newsletter signup as featured widgets. Adding new Avon Representatives to my team is a constant focus as is adding new potential customers to my email list which is why I especially like to have those two widgets on my front page. Here is an article and video on How to Post the Avon Catalog on your Website: http://www.makeupmarketingonline.com/post-avon-catalog-website/
5. Promote your Avon business on Social Media. Whether you have jumped on board the Social Media train yet or not, it is the way people are communicating in today’s economy and will only become increasingly popular in our Avon businesses. So if this is going to be one of the primary ways of doing business and the way people are going to spend their free time in the future, you might as well get a head start on this form of selling and recruiting for your network marketing online business. Here are my favorite Social Media websites for promoting Avon: Facebook, Pinterest, GooglePlus, YouTube, and LinkedIn.
Although Facebook used to be the biggest referral source from my Social Media profiles, Facebook is making it harder and harder to get noticed without paying for advertising. Therefore, Pinterest is starting to take over as my favorite “go-to” Social Media website. However, I still think you should have a presence on all of the websites mentioned above. I absolutely love the new Social Media Center Avon just recently re-introduced! Be sure to check this out every campaign and share the featured apps and / or links daily. Log on to yourAvon.com – click on web office – click on the Social Media Center (second pink box from the left on the top row). Share the featured apps, featured posts, featured videos, and my links. Try to post daily on each of your social media profiles.
To increase post views, use the hashtag with keywords on your Facebook posts, Twitter, Pinterest, and GooglePlus. When using hashtags, think of categories your post would fit into…for example: if I was writing, “Glimmersticks are on sale for $2.99 each in campaign 24. Shop this Avon sale online at http://eseagren.avonrepresentative.com.” The hashtags I might use with that post would be: #makeup, #eyeliner, and #avon. The hashtags are a way for people to search for status updates by keywords on certain social media websites.
There are common ways to build up your social media profiles on each site:
1) Build your network. Connect with other users – try to connect with 3 – 10 new people on each website daily or weekly (whichever your schedule can accommodate) – find people you have something in common with or have common friends (ex: moms, Avon Reps, alumnis from your schools, network marketing professionals, work from home moms, etc.) Do you think it’s a coincidence that many people have about the same amount of followers as they follow? No, they work at building their network and connecting with new people. You can also connect with others and get to know people by joining networking groups and creating your own networking groups. Participate in this groups often making friendships by commenting on other’s posts and creating your own topics. Be a source of helpful information.
2) Keep content fresh and post different types of posts to appeal to the largest audience. Photos grab people’s attention. Whether it’s Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or GooglePlus…you can post different types of updates: status updates, links, photos, videos, offers, etc. By posting photos often, you are keeping the Avon brand on the top of people’s minds, informing customers of the latest and greatest products Avon has to offer, and keeping your page interesting and fresh. Keep an eye on your statistics to see which types of posts get the most feedback and the most views so you have an idea of what’s working and what isn’t. Also on all social media websites, keeping any sort of activity going is pertinent whether that’s connecting with new people, posting updates, adding photos, creating events, etc. Here is an article and video on tracking performance: Sell Avon Online Part 2: Tracking your Performance
Here are some great places to find photos to use for marketing your Avon biz online. Remember if you are sharing links for Avon products to online shoppers, use the share buttons at the bottom of each product page on your own Avon website – do not copy and paste from the toolbar or you may accidentally send them to Avon’s corporate website or a different rep’s page. Also, be sure to read the most up-to-date Avon Advertising Rules & Guidelines to ensure the images you are using are acceptable. Please use your best judgement…I am not in the position to be able to tell you what is and isn’t allowed so decide for yourself according to the rules:
- Avon emails – find images in the emails Avon sends to customers (receive these when you sign up as a customer on your own website).
- On your Avon website under the different headers (ex: Anew, Makeup Studio, SkinSoSoft, Mark, What’s New, Makeup, Skin Care, Bath & Body, Fragrance, etc.)
- Under More Ways to Shop on your Avon Website (Best Sellers, Top Rated, Special Offers, Virtual Makeover, Blogger Boutique, and Shop the eBrochure)
- Social Media Center – Log on to yourAvon.com – click on web office – click on the Social Media Center (second pink box from the left on the top row).
- Avon Product’s Corporate Websites: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr.
- From the Online Avon What’s New Books (ex: http://youravon.com/static/catalog/2014/18/en/whatsnew/p1.html – change the campaign number (in this case change 18 to the campaign you’d like to see after 2014/ in the website address) to see other campaigns. Remember to only share public info from the Demo Books as some of it is only for Avon Reps).
3) Similar to my recommendation on blog posts, be sure to rotate the types of status updates you post to appeal to the largest audience base. Like I mentioned with the blog posts, be sure to rotate what you post about. Here are some ideas for status updates: app from Social Media Center, recruiting video from Avon’s YouTube profile with information on how to sign up on your Avon team online, new Avon product post (go to your Avon website – click on Shop my Store – What’s New – click on each product category to see what’s new for that campaign in each department), Avon sales tips, Avon sale (remember to rotate from different product categories like: Makeup, Skincare, Fragrance, Bath & Body, etc. – try not to always post from the same product category)
Another option is to create a local ad on Facebook. Once you have a Facebook business page, you can advertise locally to a target audience of your choice…I tend to pick females ages 30 and over who are interested in beauty. You can create an ad for people to shop on your website or to sign up on your Avon team. To learn more about how to create the ad, go to the Facebook help center and search for “Create an Ad.” As always, be sure to check the up-to-date approved Avon Advertising and Marketing Guidelines that can be found on yourAvon.com before taking any of my advice to be sure your efforts fall within the guidelines.
Here are some articles and videos I’ve created to help you with your Avon online marketing efforts and specifically those relating to Social Media:
Follow me on Social Media for ideas on marketing your Avon biz online:
6. Be sure to link and list your Social Media profiles on all of your websites where possible so they are all connected. Don’t be Avon’s best kept secret! How are you going to build a big Avon business if some of your family and friends don’t even know you sell Avon? Decide what’s important to you. Is Avon a part of who you are and what you want to be? Then represent Avon proudly. You don’t always have to be pushing product and the Avon opportunity down people’s throats but you do want to bring it up casually and frequently. Take a look at your Facebook personal profile. Is it a true representation of who you are? Mine shows a mixture of family, friends, Avon, humor, emotions, and quotes…a good mixture of what my life is made of and the moments I experience. On your business profiles, represent Avon through more business-type posts like ads, promos, and offers. On your personal pages, talk about Avon as an experience. How does Avon incorporate into your personal life? How has Avon changed your life? And be sure to list all of your website addresses on each profile if there is space provided especially on your Avon website as shown in the picture on the top right of this article.
7. Promoting the Avon Opportunity online. Be creative when you are looking for new team members to sign up on your team. Don’t sound like a broken record and say the same thing over and over to try and recruit. Share ways on how your Avon business has helped you, talk about the rewards and incentives you’ve earned by being an Avon Representative, and look at who’s doing well on your current team to find out who might be good prospects to target (ex: how old are the reps on your team who are performing well? what city and state do they live in? do they work full-time or part-time?) When you get a good idea of who your top performing candidates are, it will give you a better idea of what types of people you want to try and get on your team. Sometimes it’s just a matter of getting excited about your own business. I know the times I recruit the most Avon Representatives are the times I am most excited about what’s happening with my own Avon business.
8. Your job as a leader isn’t over when your recruit signs the contract. One of the hardest and greatest parts about being in Avon leadership is you can’t force things to happen for your team members. You need to be your team’s biggest cheerleader. This is true for sports and it’s true for network marketing. One of the only ways you can really inspire your team to do more is by motivating them and showing them the way on how to be successful in their Avon business. Many of your team members will have different demographics than you (like age, ethnicity, family background, etc.), have different financial and personal backgrounds, and have various work experiences so it will take different approaches for different people. Many people become Avon Representatives because they don’t want a boss and don’t like to be told what to do so you have to find ways to inspire them and motivate them to build their own big businesses without doing it for them. Remember you can’t help people who don’t want to help themselves. You also need to be careful how much help you are willing to offer your team or they will become accustomed to your help and not learn how to recruit and build their team themselves. It’s okay to help and show them how but at some point, they will need to take over so their business will become sustainable. If your team is local, celebrate them in person or by mailing congratulatory cards or postcards. A few ways I like to recognize my team members are:
1) Through campaign recognition email newsletters recognizing top sellers and recruiters (ex: Avon Team Momentum Campaign 10 2014 Results).
2) Facebook Recognition (I have a Facebook group set up for our team where I recognize new members, top sellers, and top leaders) – it helps to tag people in these posts so they are notified of the post on Facebook within the group.
3) I also like to post congratulatory and welcome messages on people’s individual Facebook walls when they join our team or do a good job (encourage your team to talk about their business on Social Media – it also helps when you talk about it for them). Use images to help convey your message. Look for images on Google Images. On Google Images – type in the search box the message you would like to post (ex: if you’d like a birthday pic – type in happy birthday – to spice it up a little, type in something like “Happy Birthday Rockstar.” – the more specific you are, the better your results will come back).
Top Successful Avon Representatives to Follow
What better way to find out how to get to the top than by following those who are already doing it. Here are some of my favorite Avon Representatives to follow:
You can find other top Avon Representatives by reading “A View from the Top Vol. 1” and “A View from the Top Vol. 2.”
Makeup Marketing Online Training by Emily Seagren
Sell Avon Online Successfully
Avon Tips for Representatives
Makeup Marketing Online
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