Category: Sell Avon

How Avon Representatives Can Earn More Money

Pamela Murphy, AVON Independent Sales Representative

Hi there, and welcome to my blog!

Maybe you’re a new Avon Representative, or maybe you’ve been around for a while, and you want to know how to up your earnings.

Maybe you’re thinking about becoming an Avon Representative and wondering how much money you can earn.

I’m going to show you some of the ways you can use incentives to “stack” earnings upon earnings. (Note: this post is accurate as of November 2022. Earnings levels and incentives subject to change at any time.)

First: Your Commission

Your commission is the base earnings you will receive anytime you place an order or have online sales. New Representatives and Contenders with under $5,000 in annual sales earn 25% on Beauty & Jewelry, 20% on Fashion & Home Products. Keep in mind that your campaign sales must be at least $40 in order to earn commission. (A campaign is two weeks long.) These percentages increase as you reach sales milestones – Premier, President’s Club, Honor Society, Rose Circle, and so on. Here is a table showing the first few levels:

Take Advantage of First-Order Gifts

If you’re new, you’ll want to place your first order right away to take advantage of some free gift offers.

Special Gift for My New Team Members

If you join my team, Pammy’s Fearless Foxes, and place an order of $100 or more in the first or second campaign after joining, I will personally send you a gift of at least $50 worth of full-size products, plus a bag of samples to help you get your business started. This offer is good through Campaign 28 (January 3, 2023).

Avon’s Welcome Gift

When you place your first order from your “back office” of any size, you’ll receive a FREE full-size skin care product from Avon. You can use this yourself, sell it, or use as a gift.

Are you sold yet? Click here to learn more, there’s no obligation! Still on the fence? Read on!

AvonNEXT Incentive

This incentive is for all Contender and Premier-level Representatives, and goes through Campaign 28 (January 3, 2023). If you are a Contender/New Representative, when you place a $150 order in a campaign, you’ll receive a code for FREE SHIPPING on your next campaign order. Premier-level Representatives earn the code when they place a $400 order. The code MUST be used in the next consecutive campaign, and you cannot earn two campaigns in a row. So, you can earn in Campaign 25 for free shipping in Campaign 26, earn in Campaign 27 for free shipping in Campaign 28, and so forth.

Blast Through 2022 Incentive

Through Campaign 28 (January 3, 2023), New Representatives in their first eight campaigns can earn an extra 5% commission on your Beauty sales when you sell $100 or more (Beauty items only) during a campaign. The extra commission will be paid in a lump sum at the close of the campaign.

When you reach $500 in cumulative sales, you can also start earning FREE product collections!

Join Avon Now

New Representative LG Sweepstakes

Avon is sweetening the deal to become an Avon Representative! All new Representatives who sign up starting from Campaign 24 and place a first order of ANY size will be entered in our newest sweepstakes for a chance to win a FREE pair of LG TONE Free T60Q Earbuds!

You Make Life Beautiful Incentive

This incentive is for all Avon Representatives and goes through Campaign 28 (January 3, 2023).

Show your support for a friend or community member with a care package of beautiful essentials from Avon. For every $200+ order you place (cumulative to all orders in a campaign) you’ll earn two Make Life Beautiful kits FREE, one to keep and one to gift — for the holidays, as a thank-you or to show your support for a friend or anyone who could use some extra care. More than ever in this season of giving, Avon wants to support you making life beautiful, one gift at a time!

Destination Avon Trips

It’s a little late to earn this year’s Destination Avon trip to Cancun, Mexico, but it’s just in time to get started on earning the Destination Avon 2023 trip (to be announced)! You will have the entire year to meet your goal, and be headed off to a fabulous vacation spot in Spring 2024!

Avon Perks

As an Avon Representative, you’ll have exclusive access to hundreds of discounts from all types of retailers through the Avon Perks program – everything from movie tickets to travel to groceries to new cars. AND great discounts on LG-branded electronics and appliances too!

Sign Me Up!

Avon Leadership Program

If you want to make even more money, or even make Avon your career, the Leadership Program will help you get there. Recruit people to join your Avon team, and you will earn a percentage of everything they sell on top of your own sales commissions. The more your team grows, the more your bank account grows!

Sign Up Now and Get Started!

Your business will be LIVE within five minutes! Become a Representative today and start selling during the Holiday season to get those big orders and take advantage of all the incentives going on right now. It’s FREE to sign up! Or, you can opt for the Starter Kit worth over $130 for a small signup fee of $30.

Still have questions? Send me a message and I’ll get right back to you!

Your Side Hustle is Waiting…What Are YOU Waiting For?

Pamela Murphy, AVON Independent Sales Representative

Are you looking to earn some extra cash for the holidays? The time to get started is NOW! And it couldn’t be easier, because you can join Avon completely FREE, for a limited time! Read on to see what you’ll get.

You will make the right choice with Avon – a company that has been empowering women (and a few good men) since 1886! How many direct sales companies can say that? And how many direct sales companies can offer you all of this:

  • Sign up for ZERO dollars! Or, sign up for just $30 and get a starter kit valued up to $137! (no starter kit with free signup)
  • NO minimum orders required
  • NO inventory required
  • NO assigned territory
  • FREE online store that is open immediately
  • FREE training and team support
  • Great incentive programs to earn cash, prizes, and all-expense-paid vacations
  • Earn even MORE by building your own team and getting leadership checks!
  • It’s YOUR business to run how it fits into YOUR life!
Become a Representative

You will be part of the Avon Family – and we are a family of sisters and brothers who nurture each other and cheer each other’s successes. You are never alone as an Avon Representative, and I will be here to help and guide you along the way.

Your earnings are based on your level of achievement:

Achievement LevelBeautyFashion & Home
Contender (< $5,000 annual sales) with $40+ campaign sales25%20%
Premier ($5,000+ annual sales)30%20%
President’s Club ($10,000+ annual sales)40%25%

Right now, you can join the team with any one of these options:

  • $0 free sign-up with no starter kit (perfect if you want to do online-only).
  • A contribution of as little as $5 to the American Cancer Society.
  • Or, choose the $30 starter collection packed with best-selling products and brochures.

Speaking of FREE….all new Representatives get serious rewards with their first order!

Here are the details:

  • A FREE full-size Isa Knox LXNEW Clinical Booster Moisture Lock ($40 value) with your first order of any size.
  • When your first order is $60+, you’ll get a $10 credit towards your second campaign.
  • Place a first order of $100+ during Campaign 19 (August 17-30, 2022), and I will personally send you $50 in FREE PRODUCTS and a bubble mailer full of samples to help you gain new customers.
  • Join before September 27, 2022, and participate in the Summer Blast Incentive where you can earn an extra 5% on cumulative Beauty sales of $100 or more in your first 8 campaigns. (Extra earnings paid at the end of the campaign.)
  • Through Campaign 26 (December 6, 2022), earn FREE SHIPPING on your next order when you place a $150 order.

Isn’t it time you started your side hustle? Click here to go straight to the signup page!

Become a Representative

Yes, You Can Earn Incentives With Avon!

Pamela Murphy, AVON Independent Sales Representative

Imagine my surprise when I logged in to my Avon account this morning and found this beauty in my cart!

This was an incentive called Make(up) Your Way to Free Gifts. In order to earn it, you had to be one of the top 2,000 makeup sellers in Campaigns 12 through 14, 2022, and placed makeup orders in each of the three campaigns. Now, I’ve earned a lot of incentives with Avon, but with roughly 200,000 Representatives in the United States, I did not expect to be in the top one percent in makeup sales!

And just look at this thing! It’s HUGE! I thought it was going to be a makeup case you could put in your suitcase – but NO. This is practically a suitcase itself! It’s a professional, briefcase-sized display case for products and supplies, and I can carry it while making deliveries so I can demo products and carry my free goodies I give out to customers as appreciation gifts. Oh, and it even has a strap on the back so you can hook it to your wheeled suitcase and take it on vacation. It can hold all of your beauty products, as well as rolled-up socks, undies, etc.

Hard work and consistency pay off. I am by no means a top-selling Avon Representative – far from it. But I do work hard on my business, and I treat it like a business (not a hobby). You get out of something what you put into it.

My efforts have earned me three vacation trips and thousands of dollars in free products and gift cards, in addition to my commissions for selling the products and residual commissions for my team’s sales. There are new incentives being offered all the time, too.

If you would like to learn more about the rewards for being an Avon Representative, feel free to contact me directly using the form below, or click here to go straight to the signup page where you’ll find all the info. It’s completely free to join (or you can choose to receive a starter kit for $30), and there’s no obligation ever! No minimum purchase, no sales quotas, no territories. You can even run your business completely online if you so choose. Many reps do.

As your Mentor, I’ll be here to help you get started, answer your questions, and guide you along the way. You’re never alone as an Avon Representative.

Whether you’re looking for additional income due to the rising cost of literally everything, saving for retirement, kids’ education, or a new car, or even just getting a 25% discount on your most-loved beauty and household products, Avon is there for you. And so am I!

#avonrepresentative #becomeanavonrep #thebestsidegig #workfromhome #sellbeautyonline

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Free Printable Avon Order Forms

Free Printable Avon Order Forms

Pamela Murphy, AVON Independent Sales Representative

If you’ve been an Avon Representative for a while, you probably miss the little receipt books we used to be able to order for free. If you’re a new Rep, you’ve probably never had these books.

I’ve noticed that there are several people selling the receipt books on eBay for ridiculous prices. PLEASE do not buy them! These people are Avon Representatives who ordered a lot of books when they saw they were being discontinued, and they are gouging other Avon Representatives for them. That’s just wrong!

Of course, you can use the invoicing tool on Avon.com to print your own customer invoices. But some of you may not have a printer, or you run your business from your smartphone. Or, like me, you just find the process cumbersome. Plus, it uses up your paper and toner, a whole page for each customer’s order.

I am old school. I like writing the forms up as I take the order, so the invoice is already done when the order arrives. Besides, I carry a good deal of inventory because I do vendor shows, so many times a customer orders something I have in stock, which is kind of a pain to add to the online invoicing tool.

So, I created a duplicate of the original order forms in Excel. They are four to a page, and I am sharing them with you so you can use them too. I will add the PDF below, as well as the Excel file in case you want to make changes or add your own information.

Here is the PDF version:

PDF Avon Order FormDownload Your Free Copy Here

And here is the Excel file:

Excel Avon Order FormDownload Your Free Copy Here

That’s it! Now all you have to do is save it to your computer, print as many as you need, and cut them up.

You’re welcome!

#avonreceiptbooks #avonorderforms

Avon and Taxes

Avon and Taxes

Pamela Murphy, AVON Independent Sales Representative

(This post has been updated as of January 21, 2023.)

Full Disclosure: I am NOT a tax professional. But I did minor in accounting and took a few tax courses in college, and I have an MBA. I have also been an Avon Representative for the past six years, and have had another sole proprietorship business for 14 years.

In this post, I will attempt to shed some light on what new Avon Representatives need to start thinking about to save themselves a lot of anxiety at the end of the year.

During the first few months of every year, I see many Avon Representatives asking questions about taxes in our Facebook groups. And I see a lot of wrong answers being given by other Representatives. I’m going to give general common-sense advice here, but you need to consult a tax professional with specific questions about your business and taxes. My aim is just to get you thinking ahead so you’ve got it all together when tax time comes.

Rule No. 1: Do NOT wait until the end of the year to start thinking about taxes!

Why? Because you should begin keeping records on Day One. The day you sign up to be an Avon Representative is when you should start keeping records. Get into this habit NOW. As a business owner, you are responsible for keeping accurate records of your business transactions. It is not Avon’s responsibility. Whether you use QuickBooks, a spreadsheet, a notebook, or a shoebox, you need to keep track of every cent that goes in or out of your business. Yes, it’s extra work now. But think about trying to re-create everything you did for a whole year next February. Believe me, you will be glad you did. No one is going to help you if you didn’t keep records.

“Overkill” is my middle name. I actually keep a detailed Excel spreadsheet, and I record everything in Quicken as well because I use Quicken for all my personal finances and both businesses. But the spreadsheet I use for each business has everything for that business together, and it’s easy to analyze without pulling reports from Quicken. I record my transactions in both places literally as soon as they occur or as soon as I get home. But you do you. As long as you keep records and can retrieve them when needed, you’re in good shape.

Here are some of the things you need to keep detailed records of:

Income:

  • Face-to-face sales income
  • Online (direct delivery) sales commission
  • Leadership earnings
  • Incentives earned (cash bonuses, and the value of prizes, trips, etc.)

Expenses:

  • Inventory purchased for resale
  • Business tools (including brochures, bags, samples, labels, copier paper and toner, business cards, etc.)
  • Shipping fees for your orders
  • Postage for items mailed, brochures mailed, thank-you notes, etc.
  • Fees charged to you by Square, PayPal, Venmo, etc., if you use these services
  • Advertising costs (including vendor show fees)
  • Business travel and meals (to attend Avon Convention, meetings, etc.)
  • Mileage for your car when you make deliveries (you’ll also need to write down your beginning and ending mileage for the year)

Basically, everything related to your Avon business needs to be recorded and documented. You can use accounting software like Quicken, a spreadsheet, or even a notebook. Just make sure to record all transactions as soon as possible after they occur. Here is an Excel spreadsheet template that you can use to start your own. I have left a few transactions in there so you can see how I keep track. Click on the link below the screenshot to download it.

avon-income-expense-templateClick to Download the Template

Rule No. 2: You are a Business Owner – Not an Employee

This means, you do NOT get a W-2 form from Avon. You MAY get a 1099 form if you meet certain criteria, such as purchasing $5,000 worth of merchandise in the year and/or having leadership earnings or bonuses. Avon does not withhold any taxes from your income.

But, regardless of whether or not you receive a 1099 form, you must file an income tax return if your net earnings from self-employment were $400 or more (in 2021). If your net earnings from self-employment were less than $400, you may still have to file an income tax return if you meet any other filing requirement listed in the Form 1040 instructions.

If you have kept a detailed spreadsheet throughout the year, all you need to do is total all your columns and take everything to your tax professional, or if you’re doing your own taxes (kudos to you), plug the numbers into the appropriate lines on Schedule C and voilà! Easy peasy. If you’re using tax software such as H&R Block or TurboTax, it will walk you right through all of this.

Rule No. 3: Don’t rely on your Avon invoices for tax information

Avon has no idea why you’re buying products. Maybe they’re for your own personal use, or for giving as gifts to family or friends. Your invoice is basically just a list of what you ordered. You need to go through each invoice and mark off which items were personal purchases, subtracting them from your inventory spend.

As far as deductible expenses, see that list of expenses above? Most of them are not on your invoice. Did you buy supplies to make holiday baskets at Dollar Tree? Do you send thank-you notes to online customers? Save those receipts and record them! Get into the habit NOW, and you won’t be panicking later.

End of rant. I wish you the very best with your new business!

How to Get 20-25% Off All Your AVON Orders

Do you LOVE Avon products like I do? Do you browse through each brochure, turning down the pages of the items that you want to order? Are you a frequent buyer?

Avon products are easy to love, for sure! From the core skin care, bath, body, and makeup products, to the on-trend fashion, the beautiful jewelry, the alluring fragrances, and the new line of household cleaning products, what’s not to love? It’s practically a whole department store at your fingertips and on your device.

Do you want to know a secret? You can SAVE 20 to 25 percent off of every Avon purchase by becoming a Personal Shopper! Just think about this: say you order $100 every three months or so. That’s $400 a year, plus any applicable state sales tax. (We will ignore sales tax for the purposes of this scenario since every state is different.) If you’re ordering online, you get free shipping on your $100 orders, so bottom line is you’re paying $400.

As a Personal Shopper, you will enjoy 25% off all beauty and jewelry, and 20% off all fashion and home. Let’s say your purchases are all skin care and makeup, so your discount will be 25%. Each order now costs you $75 plus $8 shipping, or $83. Your total for four $100 orders is now $332. You have saved $68! Of course, the more you shop, the greater your savings. You can put that savings toward something else, or sock it away for a new car or the kiddos’ education.

Become a Personal Shopper

When you sign up as a Personal Shopper, you are actually becoming an Avon Representative. BUT, you have no obligation whatsoever to sell to other people. If you want to, that’s great! You can sell to friends and family and make enough to pay for your purchases, or you can take it further and earn an income. But you don’t have to! It can be your little secret.

Right now, for a limited time, you can join Avon for FREE! Or, you can join for $30 and get a starter kit worth $137. You can also choose to join for a small donation to the American Cancer Society.

Did I mention the perks? When you place your first order, you’ll get a FREE belif Aqua Bomb ($42 value). And if your order is for $60 or more, you’ll also get a $10 credit toward your second order. You can also earn bonuses if you should decide to make it a business.

Have Questions?

Here are a few that come to mind. If you have questions that I’ve missed, please feel free to message me in the box below.

Q: What is a Personal Shopper?

A: Personal Shopper is one of the Five Types of Avon Representatives:

  1. Personal Shoppers – Sells to neighbors, friends, and relatives; and likes the idea of earning a little extra money and buying at a discount.
  2. Short-Term Representative – Sells for a short period of time with a goal in mind. Stops when the goal is reached.
  3. Hobby Representative – Loves Avon and wants to earn extra money when it’s convenient. May work a few campaigns here and there or may skip several campaigns entirely.
  4. Part-Time Representative – Wishes to make a specific monthly income to pay for ongoing expenses. May have a full-time job or other commitments.
  5. Career Representative – Consistently grows his or her business. Views Avon as a valuable career, knowing it can provide a full-time income. Pursues leadership while having a lot of fun.

Q: How do I become a Personal Shopper?

A; Easy! Simply click here and enter your information. It takes less than five minutes to sign up!

Q: How often do I have to place an order?

A: Technically, your account goes “inactive” if you go six campaigns without placing an order (a campaign lasts two weeks). BUT, your account is not closed. All you have to do to reactivate it is to log in and place an order. After a full year of inactivity, your account will be closed for good.

Q: How do I get my discount?

A: When you place your orders through your “back office” (AvonNow.com), your discount will be calculated at checkout and you will only pay the discounted amount, plus shipping. If you place your order through your e-store, you will pay the full amount as an online customer, and then your commission will be direct deposited into your bank account two days after it ships. (Note: you must be enrolled in direct deposit for this to happen).

Q: What’s the catch?

A: There’s no catch! Avon does not have any sales quotas or requirements to buy a certain amount every month, like some direct sales companies do. As long as your order is at least $40 in a campaign, you will receive your discount.

Q: Where do I start?

A: As soon as you sign up, I’ll be notified and I’ll send you lots of information about how to get started by email. You can also immediately start taking the New Representative courses in the Avon U Module, which just take a few minutes each and are extremely helpful. And, of course, you can call, text, or email me at any time for assistance. Once you place your first order, you’ll see how easy it is and wonder why you didn’t do it sooner!

Q: I have more questions!

No problem! Just send your questions to me with this form, and I’ll get right back to you.

Want to learn more about becoming an Avon Representative?

Click here!

Ready to sign up?

Click here!

Looking to buy Avon?

Shop the full Avon brochure here!

Your Best Sales Tool: The Iconic Avon Brochure

As an Avon Representative, you know that the most important thing for your business is that people KNOW you’re an Avon Representative. Building a business takes time, effort, consistency, and lots and lots of patience. I see so many new Representatives put out ten brochures for their first campaign, and then give up after they don’t get any orders from those ten brochures.

Well, there are a whole lot more than ten potential clients in the United States. If you’re going to give up after one try, how serious are you about owning a business? Did you know that most new businesses take a year or more before they turn a profit? The first year is about investing in your business to make it grow. And the best thing you can invest in as a new Avon Representative is your brochures.

Of course, you should be sharing your online store (estore) link and the digital brochure via social media, text, and email, but there are millions of people who still want to hold a glossy book in their hands and flip through it, turning down the pages of items they like and want to order. Those are the people we are talking about in this post.

You need to order brochures every campaign and get them into the hands of people. Order them two campaigns in advance so you have time to prepare them (this also helps avoid brochures being sold out), and order as many as you can afford. The more packs of ten you order, the cheaper they are per pack. Here is the current pricing as of September 2021:

PACKS BROCHURES COST EA. TOTAL
1 pack – 10 Brochures 64.9¢ $6.49
2 packs – 20 Brochures 48.9¢ $ 9.78
3 packs – 30 Brochures 41.8¢ $12.54
4 packs – 40 Brochures 37.6¢ $15.04
5 packs – 50 Brochures 33.0¢ $16.50

6 or more packs: $16.50 (for the first 5 packs) + $3.30 for each additional pack

Put your information on the back of the brochures. You can handwrite or use labels. I have a little Dymo 450 thermal label printer that has paid for itself many times over. It’s so simple to use and takes just a few seconds to create a new label and print out the exact quantity you need. Included on my labels are my name, phone number, email address, estore address, campaign dates, and Facebook page. I also include a small label with my QR code that goes straight to my estore. On the front of the brochure I’ll place labels pointing out special deals in the book or recruiting information.

Once your brochures are prepared, it’s time to get them out there before the campaign starts. If you’re not inclined to walk through neighborhoods and putting them on porches, I don’t blame you. But NEVER put them in or on a mailbox – it is a federal crime and could get you a fine.

Some Representatives do what is known as a “book toss” – where they drive through a neighborhood and literally toss brochures in clear plastic bags out their car window into people’s driveways. This works for some brave souls, but I personally shy away from doing it. Some people are not too happy with having to pick up what they consider trash in their driveway, and your contact info is right there. So I like to stick to letting people find me.

One thing I do is hang a basket of brochures on the back of my vehicle everywhere I go. The zipper bags fit brochures perfectly and keep them dry. I include recruiting information and an offer for online shoppers to receive a free gift in the mail. This has gotten me several clients.

You can also leave brochures at local businesses if they allow it. Think of all the places in your town:

  • Mom and Pop grocery stores
  • Beauty salons
  • Auto repair shops
  • Thrift shops
  • Tattoo parlors
  • Nail salons
  • Coffee shops
  • Diners
  • Doctors’ offices
  • Laundromats
  • Gas stations

You get the idea!

How to Reach Out-of-Area Clients

Do you have friends or family members who live out of state? I recommend using Campaign Mailer to get brochures to them. Campaign Mailer is a service run by an Independent Avon Sales Representative (not by Avon corporate) that uses bulk mail to save money on postage. Because they have such a high volume of brochures mailed every campaign, it is much, much cheaper to use their service than to purchase brochures and mail them yourself. If you take a brochure to the post office, it will be more than $3.00 to mail a single one. (Note: you cannot use Media Mail to send advertising material, and the post office is allowed to open and inspect anything mailed under Media Mail.)

With Campaign Mailer, the price varies based on the number of brochures sent and if you want flyers or samples included with them. But to mail a brochure by itself, it runs from $1.89 each for 1-9 brochures, to $1.39 each for 200+. That price includes the cost of the brochure itself, so you are saving quite a bit of money. I recently mailed out 140 brochures for $208.60 or $1.49 each. If I had mailed those at the post office, it would have been at least $500 between the cost of the brochures, envelopes, and postage.

You can also choose what date you want the brochures mailed by picking mail date A, B, C, D, E, or F. I use C or D, and my brochures arrive a few days before the beginning of the campaign.

Visit the Campaign Mailer Website

The point is, you want to get as many of your brochures into the hands of people as humanly possible. Any way you do that is fine, but do it! Your brochure is your store, and if nobody has them, your store is not open and people won’t shop. Order your brochures now, and think of all the places you can leave them. As you drive around town, more and more ideas will pop into your head. Think like a business owner! That is the key.

Not an Avon Representative Yet?

Want to learn more about becoming an Avon Representative?

Click here!

Ready to sign up?

Click here!

Looking to buy Avon?

Shop the full Avon brochure here!

A Few Tips & Tricks for New Avon Representatives

Welcome New Avon Representative!

When you’re just getting started, there is so much to learn, and it can become overwhelming. But no need to panic – just take your time, grab a notebook, and start learning. No business is built in a day, and yours will keep growing as long as you keep learning.

The first thing you want to do, of course, is get your account and your online store set up. Your upline can help you with that. If you don’t know who your upline is, simply go to Support at the top of your home page and click on Contact Avon Advisor. His or her name and contact info will be there. If you don’t have an advisor, no worries! I will be happy to help you out and answer any questions as well.

Then, you need to immediately start taking the courses on Avon U, beginning with the ones designated for New Representatives. There are hundreds of short courses out there, so you can do one or two when you have a few extra moments. The courses are super-helpful in learning the business quickly, and learning how to do the basic tasks like prospecting for customers and placing your order. As you learn, you can move up through the more advanced courses and prerecorded videos, download product one-pagers and other important documents, and more.

If you haven’t already done so, join some Facebook groups for Avon Representatives. There are many out there, just do a search. My favorite is Onward! No Matter What! with Molly Stone-Bibb. You do not need to be in Molly’s downline in order to join her group, but you do have to be an active Avon Representative.

There are lots of tips and tricks you will pick up along the way, either through the Avon videos or from other Representatives, but here are a few that I share with my new team members:

Campaigns

Each campaign lasts two weeks, from Wednesday to Tuesday at 5 p.m. Eastern Time. You can choose any day during this two-week period to be your regular order day – BUT I would advise you not to wait until the last day, in case of unforeseen circumstances like website disruptions or power outages. Personally, I give my brochures out early and place my first order for each campaign on the very first Wednesday. That way, I get my brochures and demos well in advance. This method also helps me avoid out-of-stocks on popular items like holiday décor and jewelry. Then, if there are additional customer orders, I place another order on the second Wednesday of the campaign. But you choose to do whatever works best for you and your customers.

Commission

The most important thing, right? How does commission work? Basically, your starting commission of 25% on beauty and jewelry and 20% on fashion and home starts when your total campaign sales are at least $40. That includes both your in-person sales and your direct delivery (online) sales. Campaign sales under $40 do not earn any commission, so you will want to make sure you have at least $40 in orders each campaign. This would include your brochures, sales tools, and any products you order for yourself. If you find your orders add up to a bit less than $40, add on an item for yourself. Here’s why: A $35 order earns zero commission, but a $40 order earns $10 (assuming it’s all beauty and jewelry). Add on a $10 item for yourself and you’ll get it free!

Products

Speaking of purchasing products for yourself, you are getting a huge discount so you need to be your best customer! When I see Representatives with no orders, I shake my head. Why would you buy your makeup, skin care, bath and body products, perfume, vitamins, deodorant, jewelry, casual clothing, toothpaste, shampoo and conditioner, laundry detergent, dish soap, stain remover, dog shampoo, household cleaning products, feminine hygiene products, etc., from Walmart and put more money in their pockets, when you can buy all of these things from YOURSELF? You not only get your discount, but your sales count towards reaching new sales levels like President’s Club and towards incentives like cash awards and free vacations! Every year, there is a trip to be earned. Last year, I earned a trip to Cap Cana, Dominican Republic, and this year, I am working towards a trip to the Big Island, Hawaii.

Buying and using your products not only earns you a discount and award sales, but it also makes you an expert in product knowledge. When customers ask about a product you’re using and you respond with your own experience, that makes you more credible in their eyes. Be a walking billboard for Avon! Use the skin care and makeup, wear the fragrances, jewelry, and clothing. I promise, it will pay off.

Brochures

Always order your brochures two campaigns in advance – i.e., when placing your Campaign 7 order, you will be ordering Campaign 9 brochures. Avon prints brochures six months in advance, so when they run out, they run out. Ordering early avoids out-of-stocks, and gives you extra time to prepare them for distribution.

If you can, get a label printer. I have a little Dymo LabelWriter 450 that prints on labels that come in rolls. It uses thermal printing so there is no ink to buy, and I have my labels on autoship from Amazon. I have found dozens of uses for that small but mighty machine in addition to putting my information on the back of brochures. When there is something I want to point out in the brochure, I’ll put another label on the front directing customers to the page. I’ve also made little square labels with my QR code on them that I can put on the brochures. You can also use Avery labels in a regular printer too. But the Dymo is so super-easy to use and worth every penny I paid for it.

Demo Products

To view/order demo products, go to Browse Products > View Brochure, and then choose the What’s New catalog to browse through. Click on an item to go to that item’s order page. You can order from What’s New for each of the next two campaigns – for instance, in Campaign 16 you can order demos for Campaign 17 and 18. Demos are priced at your discount rate – which for new Representatives is 25% on beauty and jewelry, 20% on fashion and home. Order demos to show your customers and get pre-orders, make samples from a full bottle, or just use them yourself so you can be an expert when talking about the new products. You may order up to two of each demo product.

Beauty Buzz

Be sure to read the Beauty Buzz email that you get every Monday. That’s where you’ll learn the latest happenings and important updates. Also, follow the Avon USA Representatives page on Facebook! Almost every day, there are free live-training sessions offered on new products, selling techniques, social media, etc. You can check the Calendar on AvonNow for all upcoming trainings.

Be Patient!

Rome wasn’t built in a day. Avon is not a get-rich-quick scheme, but I guarantee you that hard work and consistency will pay off!! Remember that any new business takes a good solid year to get off the ground. Invest in your brochures, samples, and demos; be consistent with promoting your online store, and become a walking billboard. When the compliments roll in, it’s your cue to talk about how much you love Avon products! Your enthusiasm and personality are what sells.

Not a Representative Yet?

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Winds Change. You Can Capsize, or Adjust Your Sails. Your Choice.

One of my favorite quotes is “The only thing constant is change.” Another is “Whether you think you can or you think you can’t, you’re right.”

Lately, I’ve been watching some Avon Representatives in the Facebook groups losing their minds over small changes the company has recently announced in order to save money and streamline operations, as well as the discontinuation of some products that are not selling well.

Sure, these are small inconveniences, and you may have to smooth some ruffled feathers of your customers. But if you’re not going to move forward with your company, guess what? You are going to be left behind. Stop complaining, and figure out how you’re going to deal with it. Whining is not attractive and you’re not doing yourself any favors. You are a business owner, and if you want your business to survive and thrive, you have to be positive, be professional, and keep moving forward.

Take a look at the Avon Lady in the picture. Do you wear a suit, gloves, and a hat to call on your customers? If nothing ever changed, that’s what you would be doing. If you want “old Avon” back, exactly which decade would you like Avon to return to? The 1880s? The 1950s? The 1970s?

Look at the products behind our 1960s Avon Lady. How many of these are still around? I’ll bet Skin So Soft is the only one. Seriously, would you buy these products today? Things change! Products are discontinued every day, by every company in the world, and new, better products are introduced. And the world keeps turning.

In 1969, around the time of the above picture, I was starting high school. Here’s what my life was like:

  • Our telephone hung on the kitchen wall and had a 20 foot cord so I could take it inside the hall closet to talk to my boyfriend.
  • We got three channels on our television with a rooftop antenna, and we had to get up and walk over to the TV to change the channel and then mess with the antenna to get it to come in without “snow.”
  • Girls were still not allowed to wear pants to school (not until 1970). And even then, no jeans.
  • Everyone smoked, in restaurants, on airplanes, and even in hospital rooms.
  • There were no smart phones, no computers. You did your research in the library. With BOOKS. If the school library didn’t have it, you had to get your parents to take you to the town library. Papers were written on notebook paper or typed with a typewriter. Side note: my typing teacher, Mrs. Lockhart, used to hit our fingers with her ruler when we made a typing mistake.
  • Teachers regularly spanked children with wooden paddles.
  • Babies rode in car seats like this and it was considered safe:

What if nothing ever changed??? Is 1969 where you would want to be right now? Think about it.

I know it’s not fun when products are discontinued that your customers love. But you can put a positive spin on it by saying something like, “You know, I get it, and I’m sorry it’s being discontinued. But you know what? I heard that they’re coming out with something even better that I think you’ll love.” Be genuine, empathic, and helpful. Look for another solution for them. Your business is more about solving problems than about selling products. Whatever you say, never show negativity towards the company with your customers. You are a Representative of the company; the face of the company. Your attitude is everything.

Whether you think you can or you think you can’t, you’re right.

-Henry Ford

One of the Facebook reps lamented, “What about reps who don’t have computers?” Okay, I have to ask, how are they placing their orders? Avon hasn’t accepted paper purchase orders for a few years. If they don’t have a computer, they must be using a smartphone or tablet. What business isn’t these days? It would be very difficult, if not impossible, for an Avon rep to do business without internet access.

And if small things like this are going to make or break you, maybe you just aren’t cut out to be a business owner and you should just stick to working for someone else so they can make money. If you’re a true entrepreneur, you will find a way to make it work. “Nevertheless, she persevered.”

Another one of my favorite quotes: “You can’t change the direction of the wind, but you can adjust your sails.”

Sail on!

Want to learn more about becoming an Avon Representative?

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Ready to sign up?

Click here!

Looking to buy Avon?

Shop the full Avon brochure here!