Avon Hints and Tips (Part 3)

Aesop

Sorry to hear you feel that like Homemade, but you don't know her personal situation. I must admit at Xmas with all my customers depending on how much they has spent throughout the year I gave each one a xmas gift and a xmas card. They all got the same card but the gift differed from a free sample to a full size product, ie bubble bath.

I sometimes just drop the next book through my regular customer's door because I may not had an order for them or like recently, not ordered enough books.

However, I have one customer who never acknowledges her order, with a smile or any kind of pleasantry. She answers the door, no smile, I always smile and ask how she is, tell her that I have her order and the next book, if she wishes to order, when it is due by, and when it will be delivered. She knows how much the order is but never has the right change, always a £20 note, so I have to have change ready for her.

However, whenever I deliver her order, I always smile and ask how she is.

Maybe you get to know a little bit more about your Avon lady? If she has time to stop and have a quick chat with you? You might find out a bit more about her personal situation explaining why she is the way she is when she delivers her orders and her books.

denise38

I have 2 orders for mega impact lipstick camp 3. Flier from last order states double award sales for this on camp 3 . We receive award sales for the full price of £8. View subtotal shows lipstick to customer as £8 cost to us £3 and comm of £5 per lipstick. This not right they chargin us £3 for lipstick and we only getting £4 from the customer so we only getting £1 comm.NOT HAPPY more so because I pay tax and it shows I made £5 from the lipstick so I then have to pay tax on the £5. Anyone else see this or has anyone queried it. Do you think by the time order due next week it will sort itself out!!!!!!

Homemade_2

aureol212 wrote: »

Sorry to hear you feel that like Homemade, but you don't know her personal situation. I must admit at Xmas with all my customers depending on how much they has spent throughout the year I gave each one a xmas gift and a xmas card. They all got the same card but the gift differed from a free sample to a full size product, ie bubble bath.

I sometimes just drop the next book through my regular customer's door because I may not had an order for them or like recently, not ordered enough books.

However, I have one customer who never acknowledges her order, with a smile or any kind of pleasantry. She answers the door, no smile, I always smile and ask how she is, tell her that I have her order and the next book, if she wishes to order, when it is due by, and when it will be delivered. She knows how much the order is but never has the right change, always a £20 note, so I have to have change ready for her.

However, whenever I deliver her order, I always smile and ask how she is.

Maybe you get to know a little bit more about your Avon lady? If she has time to stop and have a quick chat with you? You might find out a bit more about her personal situation explaining why she is the way she is when she delivers her orders and her books.

I dont see her. She either writes on the form in the book or its her kids who come to the door.

You will always get customers who are rude however that doesnt mean that the Avon lady should not put in any effort for a regular customer.
If you have customers who order from you but not everytime, they might do if you gave them eye to eye contact when delivering a book.

I am not interested in her personal life. She has choosen to do a job which means she needs to come to my house. If she cant do that or cant be bothered, Im not sure why she would do it. Fair enough if I only ordered £1.50 every time, but I dont. Not once has she bothered to knock on my door and say "Hi, my name is Angela".

Yet she expects me to go out of my way to find change, be in on the day SHE wants me to be, not once but twice a campaign, to not be able to keep the book, to only have the book for 2 evenings......etc.

I dont think Sainsburys expect all that from me when I bother to go to their shop, so I really dont understand the selfish attitude.
Its things like that that does result in orders been canceled and customers been lost.
She hasnt turned up this week so I wont be ordering anymore.

Aesop

oh dear, Didn't realise you never actually see your Rep Homemade.

I know why my customers don't order every campaign. Some one like lady, her husband doesn't know she buys avon, so she has to put a little money aside each week to be able to put an order in at any time, that's fine with me, she orders when she wants things. Not a problem.

Other customers don't want to buy things every month, again not a problem. Sometimes I look through the book and don't want things. Yes, I would ideally like all my customers to order every time but in the real world this isn't always feasible.

Such a shame your Avon Lady hasn't actually made contact with you but as I say, you don't know her personal situation.

I do talk to my customers when delivering orders, they know me and my son, and we have a little chat about things, which is nice and one of the reasons I enjoy Avon so much.

lozza1985

I wouldn't necessarily be able to catch all of my customers in though when delivering brochures, as with working full time and it being shifts, I sometimes have to deliver brochures early in the morning/late evening - and of course not everyone is in, and I imagine not many of my customers would want me bothering them unless it is to deliver their order. Sometimes I don't deliver the orders depending on what shifts I am, so it is my partner delivering, but all of my customers know us as "richard & laura, their reps" (hes a rep also), so they know who he is lol.

I can understand your annoyance as she doesn't sound like a great rep - but potentially she could have an illness or something that is preventing her from doing the deliveries, which is why her kids are doing it? Or she could just be a crap rep!

echo

denise38 wrote: »

I have 2 orders for mega impact lipstick camp 3. Flier from last order states double award sales for this on camp 3 . We receive award sales for the full price of £8. View subtotal shows lipstick to customer as £8 cost to us £3 and comm of £5 per lipstick. This not right they chargin us £3 for lipstick and we only getting £4 from the customer so we only getting £1 comm.NOT HAPPY more so because I pay tax and it shows I made £5 from the lipstick so I then have to pay tax on the £5. Anyone else see this or has anyone queried it. Do you think by the time order due next week it will sort itself out!!!!!!

i have one order for the lippy ( unfortunately i didn't get a flyer telling me of sales on the full price untill i got C2 order-and my regulars had the books by then).

maybe i'm being thick but i can't see a problem with those figures.customer buys it for £4 but we get £5 comm

pugsley_h

Homemade wrote: »

I dont see her. She either writes on the form in the book or its her kids who come to the door.

You will always get customers who are rude however that doesnt mean that the Avon lady should not put in any effort for a regular customer.
If you have customers who order from you but not everytime, they might do if you gave them eye to eye contact when delivering a book.

I am not interested in her personal life. She has choosen to do a job which means she needs to come to my house. If she cant do that or cant be bothered, Im not sure why she would do it. Fair enough if I only ordered £1.50 every time, but I dont. Not once has she bothered to knock on my door and say "Hi, my name is Angela".

Yet she expects me to go out of my way to find change, be in on the day SHE wants me to be, not once but twice a campaign, to not be able to keep the book, to only have the book for 2 evenings......etc.

I dont think Sainsburys expect all that from me when I bother to go to their shop, so I really dont understand the selfish attitude.
Its things like that that does result in orders been canceled and customers been lost.
She hasnt turned up this week so I wont be ordering anymore.

You really have a downer on her don't you!

If I deliver an order to someone, I leave the book with them, and a week later I collect the book back - most of my customers leave them on the doorstep, but some forget. So sometimes, I do end up disturbing them twice.

A lot of reps re-use the book - that is why they need it back (because they cost us money). The right change does make things easier, as we are not shops and if everyone pays with a £20 it causes us problems. She may only leave the book with you for two nights as she may need to pass the book on to someone else the next day. Most reps try to deliver as many orders on the same evening or whatever, as it is difficult (and expensive if you use a car) to keep going back. Also, many reps have kids and jobs to fit things around.

Personally, I think that you are being harsh on her - for most reps, Avon is just a way to earn a few extra pennies for treats for the kids or whatever - unless you have got a fantastic round, then you don't earn very much at all. The whole point of Avon is that it can fit around our lives - rather than our lives fitting around Avon. If you don't like the way she does things, speak to her - if she won't (or can't) change things to suit you, then use the website, or try to get another rep. Sorry if that sounds harsh, but all of us do the best we can for very little thanks and money. Whatever we do will not be right for somebody - but unless people tell us, we don't know and can't change things. A lot of my customers would think that I was a complete wierdo if I knocked on the door just to give them a book, they would be annoyed that I hadn't just pushed it through the door (and so would I to be honest!). Most of my customers would prefer a text message or a note rather than being disturbed on the phone or in person. So, in a lot of your preferences, you seem to be quite unusual - but your rep will not know this unless you tell her

denise38

echo wrote: »

i have one order for the lippy ( unfortunately i didn't get a flyer telling me of sales on the full price untill i got C2 order-and my regulars had the books by then).

maybe i'm being thick but i can't see a problem with those figures.customer buys it for £4 but we get £5 comm

Echo we aren't getting £5 we are getting £4 from the customer and Avon are charging us £3. So we only getting £1 normal comm not double!!!!!
Also I pay tax so I pay tax not on the £1 I actually made but on £5 they said I made!!!!

JELLY_BE4N

Example.
C1, I get the book on Monday, and she writes on it that delivery is on x day. I place and order.
C2 arrives a week or so later......with a note on it saying C1 order will be delivered on Friday and can I have my money (x amount) and new order ready for then.

(These C2 books arrive in the box with the order, so why not just bring the order to me with the book? )

we have the books a campaign ahead so if shes given you campaign 2 she has campaign 3 delivered with campaign 1 order
i do give my customers the next book before i give them the order with notes on to say how much they owe when and what time i will be delivering and if there are any problems call/text me with a copy of there order
i have found this a better way personally with my customers (well when ive asked they have told me its better than a note as they just get thrown at least if its in the book they dont throw it away)

angelsmomma

Homemade wrote: »

No, she isnt giving me the book sooner. Not sure how you get that? She just gives it to me before I get the order.

Example.
C1, I get the book on Monday, and she writes on it that delivery is on x day. I place and order.
C2 arrives a week or so later......with a note on it saying C1 order will be delivered on Friday and can I have my money (x amount) and new order ready for then.

(These C2 books arrive in the box with the order, so why not just bring the order to me with the book? )

So I leave the book on my side until Friday and say to her when she comes "Heres the money for the last lot. Ill bring the book round when Ive finished with it and looked at what I have ordered"
If she is funny with me because she wants her book back then she can have it back, but then I wont order.

She does it every time. Half the time though it isnt ever her, its her kids. I dont get the new book delievered to me with a smile....she puts it through the box. I would just think that with a customer who orders a lot, she would be a bit more ............caring about her customers.

Seems like lots of other things in life at the moment though. She wants to get the money in the easiest way possible and isnt prepared to work at it.

I wish Avon ladies were how they used to be.

Its getting confusing. Ive just read through and its the fact that I dont get the order when she brings the book that is annoying. You confused me by saying 'books.' lol

I am so sorry you are feeling like this. I am so on your side. I can't believe that you are putting up with this. Tell your rep hat in future you want your book delivered after your order. If she wants to keep 25% of what you order she will. If not then tell her not to leave a book again and email avon to ask for a different rep to drop you a book as you are unhappy with the one you had.

I realise that I am going to be unpopular for saying this but I don't care. I am a rep and work really hard to fit in with my customers who after all pay my wages.

PS I really can't stand it when reps send their children to collect books. I have an 8 year old and would never send him as it is unprofessional.