Think about a coach of a sports team. It is that person’s job to train or tutor. So when we talk about hostess coaching, the same is true: to train or tutor the hostess to ensure the most favorable outcome resulting from her direct sales party. You are the consultant; you know this business. Yet the hostesses aren’t expected to be proficient in knowing all there is to know about home parties, else she’d probably be a consultant.

One thing is certain: Without hostess coaching, you should plan on few people showing up at the party, few sales, and few, if any, bookings. Interestingly, the consultants who don’t coach their hostesses have admitted that they don’t do so because they think they are ‘bothering’ their hostess. If we know that hostess coaching results in higher attendance, higher sales and more bookings, how could this possibly be considered bothering someone?

Instead of thinking of coaching as bothering your hostess, what is more accurate is that if you don’t coach her before her party, you are cheating her out of her rewards and benefits. No one wins with this mindset. You certainly don’t earn the commissions, and she doesn’t earn any free or discounted products. So then, what was the point in holding a party?

For those who have tried to coach your hostesses with little results, know that coaching doesn’t always work. You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make her drink. Still, just because your words may fall on deaf ears, doesn’t excuse you from attempting to coach your hostess. Train all of your hostesses the same each time; don’t take short cuts. The more opportunities you create to coach your hostesses, the better you’ll get and the easier it’ll become.

The guest list is crucial to the success of her party. Remind the hostess that frequently less than 10% of those invited will show. If she’d like 10 people at her party, she should plan to invite 100 people. That’s not difficult to do now with Facebook and Twitter. Equally as important is the following up with those who have not RSVP’d. In fact, most will not respond. Do not assume that no response means they don’t want to come. Your hostess should ask everyone who says they can’t make it if they would like to place an order.

Often more than any other factor, hostesses stress over snacks. This should be the least of their worries. Just tell her to keep it simple with something sweet, something salty and something to drink. If your hostess seems overly worked up about the food, offer to bring a batch of cookies and tell her you’ll even run the vacuum for her. Strongly encourage her not to obsess over her house and snacks. Really.

Close the party the night of the event or within a few days. Encourage the hostess to collect orders from those who can’t addend before the party, not after. This also encourages anyone who wants to place an order after it’s been closed out to host her own. If you absolutely cannot close it the same night, then make arrangements for the hostess to get you the remaining orders and money. Each time you need to make another trip to the hostess it eats into your profit margin – in both time and gas. Successful coaching increases attendance, sales and your paycheck!