Build Your Business In-Person (Without Leaving the House!)

You’ve likely seen those work at home business opportunity ads that entice you with the proposition that you can work in your pajamas from the comfort of your home, or work with your baby on your lap while you run a profitable business.

The thought of not having to do much adulting throughout the day appeals to most moms. Getting everyone dressed appropriately and heading out the door can be the hardest thing you do all day.

And if you have to leave the house for work, getting a sitter, having everything ready for her, and getting the house respectable enough for guests, can be a deal breaker.

Let’s face it, with kids, it’s often easier and more appealing to just not leave the house when you don’t have to.

And too often, what’s advertised as “work from home” actually means work mostly from home.

Especially if you’re with a direct sales, or network marketing, company, one of the biggest ways they promote building your business is through setting up meetings in hotel conference rooms and in your own home. (Ugh, suddenly leaving the house sounds easy compared to preparing for a hosting a group of strangers in your home!)

Real Life is Better, Yet Impractical

Truth is, the most effective way to build relationships with people is in person. Even if you have “Facebook friends” that you chat with all day, and type your deepest and darkest secrets to, that friendship will rise to a whole new level when you meet in person.

When you think about running your business, the ideal way to build the know, like, and trust relationship that leads to sales would be to meet with each of your prospects in person.

Of course, unless you’re selling a $10,000 product and only need a few customers, this isn’t realistic at all from a time management perspective.

And, since many businesses have a market that reaches outside your local area, it wouldn’t be very smart to limit yourself to only potential clients who are within easy driving distance.

The Seldom-Used, Highly Effective Alternative

Fortunately, there are many easy and highly effective options for doing the next best thing to an in-person meeting, which is meeting online through the use of video.

Talking to a client, potential client, or team member live and in realtime is the next best thing to being there. And will get your relationship to a deeper level of trust than communicating without the use of video.

Anyone can be pounding away on the computer keyboard, but you know exactly what you’re getting when you can see the other person’s mouth moving as you’re chatting.

Another big advantage of using live video chats is that it sets you apart from other business owners.

Live video chats are not the “easy” way, or the “lazy (wo)man’s” way to do business.

They require the extra steps of looking at least a little presentable, and being focused enough to hold a conversation rather than the editing and pausing involved in a non-video chat.

But if you’ll schedule video chats with clients and potential clients, they’ll remember you as the only one who took that extra step.

And half the battle of winning the sale in today’s competitive marketplace is standing out and being memorable.

One survey conducted by Accenture showed that 72% of consumers have switched brands due to not receiving a value-added, personalized experience with a company. 

Obviously, people crave and expect a personalized buying experience, and there’s no better way to do it than through video.

Easy Ways to Successfully Use Video

If you’re thinking you don’t have the technical knowledge to make this work, or the money to buy the expensive software you’ll need to install, let’s quickly wipe out those excuses by looking at free ways to do video chats that even your five year old could manage.

Note: There are many, many ways out there to video chat, but these are the best and the easiest, so there’s no need to get bogged down in all the options.

Zoom: This is really the number one way to connect through video.  There are paid plans, but there’s an excellent chance you’ll never need anything beyond the free plan.

Zoom is an app that you can install and use for unlimited one-on-one video chats. The quality is great and you can even record the chat if you want to refer back to it, or send the recording to your client if there’s information she needs for future reference.

You can also hold Zoom meetings of up to 100 people. The free plan limits meetings between three or more people to 40 minutes, which surely does us all a favor and cuts down on much of the time-wasting activity that goes on in meetings. 

Facebook Messenger: Want to jump on a quick call with someone who doesn’t have Zoom installed? Simply go to Facebook Messenger and click on the video icon.

If you’re not connected with the person on Facebook, give him your messenger link to help him easily find you. 

Your link is m.me/[insert your Facebook user name here].

Facebook is also a good tool to use when you want to communicate with a larger group of people. 

Just go “live” either on your Facebook profile or in a group you’ve created and added your intended audience to. 

The audience will be able to interact with you through comments, and then you can set up Messenger calls for those you want to connect with further.

Facebook Lives are automatically recorded and remain on your profile or in the group, so they’re a good tool to use if you want to get out information others can access at their convenience.

Skype: Skype is more old school, so you may find some people have it installed who don't have Zoom. 

Because it’s all about making it easy and comfortable for the customer, you can suggest that they install Zoom for ongoing communications, but they may find it easiest to first connect on Skype.

FaceTime: We often think of FaceTime as something for family and friends, so perhaps not as “professional” as you want to appear with clients.

But again, depending on your existing relationship with the other person, and what’s easiest and most comfortable for her, don’t hesitate to suggest “jumping on FaceTime real quick” when you think the human connection might make a difference.

Mentor Opportunities with Kids Party Characters

Clearly, there are a lot of moving parts to running a successful business in a time-efficient manner.

Many people find themselves spending more than 20 hours a week on a business and still not making consistent money.

The temptation is to quit, and claim that “it doesn’t work.” But the reality is, putting in the time and not seeing a return simply means you’re doing too many of the wrong things.

At Kids Party Characters, owner Cheryl Jacobs has been there and done that. And fortunately, she figured out what does work and how it is possible to have a business while you’re still actively involved in raising your kids.

Cheryl’s created a fun and rewarding opportunity with Kids Party Characters that allows you to start your business without all the headache and heartache of failing until you figure it out. 

With membership in Kids Party Characters, you get everything Cheryl’s used to turn Kids Party Characters into a six figure business, including the right to use our 200+ costumes, as well as access to our acting coach and casting director.

You’ll also get an exclusive territory in which to book parties, as well as step-by-step training from Cheryl on how to set up your business for success.

Book a free, no-pressure chat with Cheryl right here and she’ll walk you through the details and answer any questions you have about this family-friendly business opportunity.

Want to learn more about Kids Party Characters? Join us on Facebook for daily updates about our magical parties, as well as more tips on the most effective ways to build a successful business while raising a family.