In earlier years, the peddler would walk or ride their horse from door to door or if the landscape warranted: farm to farm. They sold all sorts of items from beauty products to hardware, and sometimes perfume and incense. Those salesmen who walked would carry their goods in trunks that weighed on their backs by some sort of harness or perhaps a leather strap. The more industrious or wealthy used wagons.
In today’s market there still continues a tradition of this type of direct selling. Many of these companies utilize new types of marketing and advertising such as home parties and even calling them “girls night out.” However, there are other companies who utilize a more traditional method and still emulate the door to door sales approach.
“While direct sales is still just a small proportion of total retail sales (1%)…that is still a figure in excess of $30 billion annually.”
While 1% doesn’t seem like a huge market share, you can still see by the $30 billion that the door to door sales industry is still very much alive and well.
The DSA, or Direct Selling Association, has seen a tremendous growth in the field of door to door sales. Companies like Mary Kay, Tupperware, Amway, and others have been gaining considerable ground in the market and doing a good job of emulating a positive customer service experience as well as an innovative, desired, and durable product.
You may ask why a company would want to engage in a door to door sales strategy. While the question may seem reasonable, the answer may also seem obvious.
Motivations for a door to door sales strategy
- Low Overhead: Most of the door to door sales representatives are given an opportunity to invest in a company’s product. This means that instead of paying them to wait for customers to come to them, they must take the initiative and find customers themselves. This leads to putting the burden of marketing and advertising on the shoulders of the salesperson. While this may seem underhanded, the benefits of pursuing customers has it’s monetary rewards as well.
- Taste, Touch, Test: If you’ve ever walked through a store, purchased an item, brought it home and then experienced buyer’s remorse, you know the value of being able to test a product before buying. The door to door sales industry gives customers the chance to try a product before making the monetary commitment
- Salesperson Enthusiasm: Have you ever tried a restaurant, solely on the recommendation of one of your friends? You now know the power of personal enthusiasm. If a door to door salesperson believes in a product, then they will exhibit that same passion to you. Along with a demonstration, their eagerness to sell a product to you comes with a desire to improve your life.
Many salespeople have utilized these strategies and have come away with some amazing testimonials of hard work, adventure and opportunity.
“Doris Christopher founded the Pampered Chef in the basement of her Chicago home in 1980. The stay-at-home mom had a simple idea: offer professional-quality kitchen equipment directly to consumers through in-home cooking demonstrations performed by a sales force of “kitchen consultants”. Let customers see how the product works, try it out, and taste the results.
Reportedly, Mr. Buffett’s company paid Doris Christopher a cool $900 million. Not bad for a former home economics teacher…”
A Rich Tradition of Door to Door Sales in America
Article Source: Door to Door Selling
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Author: CrewChief