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I think most of us learned our lessons and going to keep the specials hush hush until they are ready to be told!! ;) ... But demo's should know tomorrow but it is up to your demo to tell you the specials I think!!! ;)
I think most of us learned our lessons and going to keep the specials hush hush until they are ready to be told!! ;) ... But demo's should know tomorrow but it is up to your demo to tell you the specials I think!!! ;)
Ok apparently there was an issue with specials being told that I am not aware of but please please rethink not saying anything (not you personally but demos in general) I think that many of us like to plan ahead and personally part of why I love this board is getting to find out info early. It helps me spend my money wisely. I don't want to have to pester my demo if I can just find it online.
__________________ My avatar is my adorable niece, she makes me smile, thought she might make you smile too!!
Demo's are going to keep the specials a secret on this board so your own personal demo can have the exitement of telling you herself. That's half the fun, don't spoil is for her!
Demo's are going to keep the specials a secret on this board so your own personal demo can have the exitement of telling you herself. That's half the fun, don't spoil is for her
That works IF the demo tells you/customers in timely manner.....one emailed me with the March special around March 5 and all I could think was that I had known about the special since JANUARY---why wasn't she more up-to-date? I didn't order through her, I used someone who told me about it in plenty of time to plan my budget. And yes, I got all the ones on special, precisely because I knew that far in advance what was going on sale. Just my two cents.............
My demo is great but she works full time and might not get to it FIRST thing in the morning. :lol: I always want to know Right away. I guess I will have to work on that patience virtue thing.
BTW I didn't know there were two Julia S's on here!
My demo sent me an e-mail about the March special about 7 days into the month....fortunately, I had attended a party the middle of Feb. and was informed of the upcoming specials then.
As it turned out, I put in an order at the Feb party to qualify for one SAB set and then planned another larger order to go in to my regular demo during March. If I hadn't found out early about the special, I would have ordered more at my friends party and then my regular demo would have only gotten an order for one set that I wanted from the March special.
I think it behooves a demo to tell her customers as soon as possible about upcoming specials so that they can plan their stamp budget around it.
Susy
I have a WONDERFUL demo!! But she works Full-time, 3 kids, and a DH that hates the biz. She can only check the comp, on Sat's. So I keep her up to speed by what I read here. Plus I like to know ahead of time so that I can budget my habit. Just my 2 cents.
Ginger
My demo is also swamped - she's a very busy mom and has other things to deal with, too. I found out about the half off sets here and gave her my order last week. When I called she said "I've been meaning to call you..." So please reconsider about posting specials here, okay maybe not in the first five days or so - don't want to spoil the fun of the demos who contact their customers. But if you find out on the 15th, perhaps it could be posted here on the 22. That way it won't spoil anyone's fun but it'll let the rest of us SU customers know what's up in time to juggle the next month's budget. And letting us know is actually helpful to other demos. I know since I've started checking SCS out I've ordered a LOT more things than I ever planned to when I first contacted the local demo. And I'll be ordering even more over the next few months - my wish list is huge! I agree with the other comments- it really helps to be able to plan purchases in advance and budget accordingly.
That works IF the demo tells you/customers in timely manner.....one emailed me with the March special around March 5 and all I could think was that I had known about the special since JANUARY---why wasn't she more up-to-date? I didn't order through her, I used someone who told me about it in plenty of time to plan my budget. And yes, I got all the ones on special, precisely because I knew that far in advance what was going on sale. Just my two cents.............
Wow! You knew the March special in Jan??? Although demos knew there was going to be a 50% off special in March... we didn't know which sets would be included, except Sincere Salutations. So, if you knew in Jan. you must have a good source!
Stampin' Up generally announces their specials to demos about 2 weeks in advance. That gives us a couple of weeks to get samples together and let our customers know about the special.
We don't even know if Stampin' Up is going to have a special in April yet. But of course I'm hoping they do!
My demo still has not told us about the March specials. I am sure she is waiting until 10 club. Wrong move. I ordered from one of the demos on this very board and she got my $200 for the group of orders I sent from my friends. I am just a little annoyed with all the secrecy and codes lately around here. If it is a secret don't tantalize. Either tell or keep quiet.
>>Wow! You knew the March special in Jan??? Although demos knew there was going to be a 50% off special in March... we didn't know which sets would be included, except Sincere Salutations. So, if you knew in Jan. you must have a good source!<<
I should have clarified-- I knew of the special, but not which sets except Sincere Salutations. Found out in Feb which sets, through SCS. But the demo I spoke of told me NOTHING until around Mar 5.
Have to reiterate what dot2dot said-- I think it is works against you to keep things a secret-- it backfires, and customers find someone who WILL keep them informed.
I agree with dot2dot. I am a demo and I know that my customers appreciate being in the loop. I even let them ( my diehard stamp campers) see samples that are in my SS magazine. They are all awesome customers and have been loyal for over three years.
Letting your customers know in advance helps build excitement and keeps them thinking of what they will want when.
__________________ I put my heart and my soul into my work, and have lost my mind in the process. - Vincent Van Gogh
The issue is not when to tell your customers...it is when EVERYONE HERE finds out! Ok as a demo, the moment I find out a special, I share it with my customers... I feel it is very important to keep them in the loop! However, the information is not released to we demos until the 15th or sometimes a bit later...
If your demo is not telling you as soon as she knows, my advice is ask her why, and then let her know you are not satisfied with her not telling you and if you find out from others you will be more prone to order from them than her....
I know that as a demo I would want my customers to let me know if they were at all dissatisfied with me...so I suggest you call your demo and ask her to let you know as soon as she knows what Aprils specials are!
If you are not happy with when you are finding out about specials talk to your demo. Each demo runs her biz under their own speed. They may not even know that they are getting the info later to you than you would like. Making our customers happy is a priority to most - if not all - of us.
__________________ "Friends are the sweetest things," said Pooh,... "even sweeter than honey." ** A scrapbooker lives here... with her memory makers **
My demo still has not told us about the March specials. I am sure she is waiting until 10 club. Wrong move. I ordered from one of the demos on this very board and she got my $200 for the group of orders I sent from my friends. I am just a little annoyed with all the secrecy and codes lately around here. If it is a secret don't tantalize. Either tell or keep quiet.
Well said Dot. If you don't want us to know don't post teaser's on the general boards!! It's not very nice!!
I really don't see any reason for secrecy on upcoming specials! It's not like the customers can do anything but get more excited and plan their budget ahead of time.
So if you have some good customers, you should tell them!
Party Lite shows you their "next month" specials in the previous month, to inspire you to host a party. Duh, it works!!!
And you know, if one demo tells her customers, they can all get on here and tell us, without any demo saying a word!!!
Sorry, my former demo (now upline) used to tease us about stuff like the minis and make a big deal out of feeling superior and it really turned me off. :(
__________________ Kathy Wrose "Fun must be always." - Tomas Hertl, San Jose Sharks "It was fun." - Kirk, Star Trek: Generations
I guess I cannot figure out what is to be gained with playing the secrecy game. What is the benefit to those here who keep alluding to it but then refuse to tell when asked?
I don't understand what the big deal is! It's just a monthly special. I would think that you would want your customers to know about it and if I didn't have the time to let them know then I don't think I would mind someone else doing it. Now if they were trying to entice my customers to order from them or something like that, then it's different. It's just a special...like others are saying it helps them plan ahead, which keeps them happy and I think that's what we all want...happy customers!
I guess I cannot figure out what is to be gained with playing the secrecy game. What is the benefit to those here who keep alluding to it but then refuse to tell when asked?
No one here knows anything yet! And like I stated earlier, if your demo doesn't tell you ASAP let her know that you would like to know when she finds out so you can plan and budget accordingly! I know I love my customers to know so that they can plan, and budget because as much as I want to see my business grow, I do not want my customers to lose out in anyway. I feel that keeping up with my customers and sending that email as well as posting it to my SU site is my way of helping my customers be good stewards of what they have! Like yesterday I had a customer email me an order...she had no idea I had a "website special" yet because I just got my site, so I told her about my deal and she was able to take advantage of it...however, I could have not mentioned it and she would have been nonethewiser, but you know what? She knows I am looking out for her best interest...not just my own pocketbook!
So please again, rather than debate it here, drop an email to your demo, let her know you would like to know what the upcoming specials are and ask her to let you know as soon as she knows.
Happy Stamping to all of you!!!
I am a demo and I send out a monthly mailer (actual snail mail) to my customers once a month. I include an invitation to stamp camp, a newsletter with updates on products, fundraisers and inspiration sheets on one side and the flyer for the specials in that month on the other. I hold my camps on the 2nd Saturday of each month and the Wednesday just before. I send out my mailers so that customers get them about a week before the Wednesday camp, so they'll have time add Stamp Camp in their schedule if they want to come. This means that sometimes my customers aren't informed about a special until the 5th of the month, depending on the dates of camps. Personally, I'd rather have the actual flyer to hold in my hands, than to get an e-mail about it. Of course I want to make my customers happy, and I'm not trying to keep the specials a secret. This is just how I choose to run my business, based on my personal preferences. I like to have a physical reminder of the special or event (in this case stamp camp), and hope that it will help customers remember things better. As someone else mentioned, demos don't find out about specials until the 15th, and sometimes it is later than that. As I recall, the free shipping from November 15th to December 31st last year was only announced on the 13th, just two days before it began. I had already collected a few 10 club orders before then, with the rest of them due on the 15th, but I gave refunds to all who had paid shipping before knowing about the special.
__________________ Remember, Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, but backwards and in high heels. -Faith Whittlesey
Kathy you are probably right!!! LOL :lol:
There may not be an April special!!! LOL
But listen, really there are lots of good demos out there...find one who cherishs you and takes good care of you...as a customer you deserve to be taken care of and felt important...afterall, what are we without our customers?
I believe that some demos didn't do that. They kept the shipping from parties that weekend or late the previous week. And then made the shipping seem like a December special to boost sales. :(
__________________ Kathy Wrose "Fun must be always." - Tomas Hertl, San Jose Sharks "It was fun." - Kirk, Star Trek: Generations
Okay I have the best idea about this suspenciful April special that some think should be kept a big secret from us. We all have different demos who run their business differently and have different lifestyles. So we cannot be certain why some get this kind of information to their customers right away and some don't. Mine doesn't even do a newsletter, but I don't hold that against her, she is great after all.
I see no reason not to post the specials here on this sight when they are found out. I mean we aren't just general public for Gods sake, we are Splitcoaststampers and we should take care of each other. And many have already pointed out nowing the upcoming special now doesn't stop us from spending money it helps us spend are money wisely and probably we spend more of it. I now for me it tends to make me spend more money, I wouldn't have boughten Sincere saluations but at the special price I sure will.
So my really great idea is that the first person that finds out what it is that cares about the rest of us, please post it right here, so we can all have blissful dreams about what we will be getting in the near future.
K
I am totally with Ksullivan. Knowing if they are any specials coming up sure helps me plan what to buy on each order. And I can guarantee you that my orders have been bigger because of the specials and due to all the wonderful work posted here. [/quote]
I'm a demo, and I just want to be clear about this so that people who AREN'T demos won't still think that we all know something they don't:
No one, as far as anyone will publicly admit, knows ANYTHING about any specials SU has planned for April. The reason for this: Demos have access to the next month's Stampin' Success magazine (the primary method SU communicates specials with us) online, on the 15th of the previous month. So, we can't access the online edition of the April SS until TOMORROW (2 hours, 20 minutes from now, as I write this!). (The magazine is also mailed to us at home, but most of us don't get the paper version until after the 1st of each month.)
In my opinion, I think MOST demos do what they can to make sure their customers know about upcoming specials. If yours doesn't do a good job at that, tell her. You're the customer, you should get the info you want, when you want it, so long as it's available to your demo. If you DON'T, find another demo!
Last month, there was a weird situation -- someone figured out how to access the online version of March Stampin' Success very early. So that way, people found out ahead of time about the March special. However, SU apparently found out about the "loophole" that allowed that, and they've closed it. That's why no one has any early info this month.
Also, because of last month, some demos were upset that OTHER demos let their customers know about specials early. So I think there is "heightened sensitivity" about the issue of sharing the monthly specials. So **that** is why you might find less discussion about the specials, until April 1.
I'd also like to point something out: If you're the kind of person who NEEEEDS to be the first person to know something (and I AM -- I'm in the newspaper business, in "real life," haha) ... and if you're wanting to know the specials every month ... SIGN UP!!! BECOME A DEMO!!! Being "in the know" as soon as possible each month is one big reason why I signed up. Last summer, I was nearly hyperventilating before I got the retired list from my demo. I knew I **had** to sign up, so I did, the very next month. So ... call your demo, sign up under her, or find a demo you'd love to have as an upline.
Having the info early is one of the many benefits of being a demo.
I know as demo I don't keep any specials a secret from my customers. Yikes! I want them to know about the specials... and I know all the customers on scs want to know too. Like someone else said it's fun to get excited about the specials. I don't think there's any secrecy going on here. It's just that last month some people found out about the March special before demos were even suppose to know about the special and they posted it in the general forum. Some demos had customers calling them about the special when they hadn't even heard of it themselves.
And of course we don't even know if there's going to be a special in April. But I sure hope so!
Some of you don't seem to realize that there are demos out there who won't tell their customers anything until they have to.
If you've got one of those, it isn't going to help to send her an email. We're not all "good friends" with our demos either.
Kathy -- this makes me sad. If you're not happy with your demo, and if you don't think it would be any good to tell her that you're not happy ... why is she still your demo?
I don't have a big customer base. If I did (um, WHEN I DO ...), I'd send a newsletter out ASAP, each and every month, so that my customers CAN plan ahead. And I'm not the only demo who feels that way. Maybe you should find a demo who agrees.
I'm still with my idea the first kind hearted person that hears any interesting news on specials please post it for us that are not in the know.
And no I am not going to sign up to be a demo just to get this information first hand. We can't all be demos then there would be no customers. And I am not going to tell my demo how to run her business. And I am not going to look for another one, unless you were offering but we aren't in the same state so that wouldn't really work out for us.
Another reason it is nice to let us know about specials and what not early is I have to preplan my spending and save up in advance, you know limited spendable income.
I will be waiting for that kind hearted sharing kind of person, thank you in advance. By the way kind hearted person that will eventually spill the beens I don't care if you are a demo or a customer that is told I will take any news from any kind of source and I won't hold you to your informationg if it doesn't hold up.
I am having a problem with the idea that we dump demos over this. My demo has 3 small children and one of them is quite handicapped. She may not be in tune with MY time schedule. I will continue to order monthly from her at 10 club but I will order also from others. Some seem to be worried here that they may be unfair to another demo by telling the secret. On the other hand does it not seem a bit disingenuous to tell us to get rid of our demos in the next breath?
Having read the comments here and having been kept in the dark by demos in the past, I've come to the conclusion that it is best for the customer to give the order to the demo who best keeps them imformed of what's available and treats them like a valued customer.
In the past, I've had a sick loyalty to demos who are late getting orders in, don't bother sending out mini cattys, and don't inform me of sales that are taking place and take weeks to deliver an order after they have received it . (Yes, all of these things REALLY happened to me!) What never made sense to me is that I always had big parties of over $500! I finally ditched the last "dud" demo and let me tell you that it was not easy. To this day I don't think she knows she has been "fired". What, exactly, is a customer supposed to do in a situation like this?
I have a new demo and she has performed very well, but I am reluctant to book a party or do anything other than send orders via e-mail (she lives 60 miles away) for fear that she will turn into the "demo from Hell" that I have experienced in the past.
That's my experience; even though it's not pretty, it may serve as a lesson to new demos out there on how not to treat a customer.
Susy
Some seem to be worried here that they may be unfair to another demo by telling the secret. On the other hand does it not seem a bit disingenuous to tell us to get rid of our demos in the next breath?
I haven't read any messages from anyone, telling anyone to "get rid of" demos if you're happy with the job she's doing.
And if you're not happy with the job she's doing, and you just want to keep ordering from her for some other reason, that's cool, too.
But please don't get annoyed at OTHER demos if they don't give you the info you want, when you want it. Lots of demos have asked that they be allowed to give their customers the info on the specials themselves.
I don't get it. Why do they want to tell people themselves? Why does it hurt how we hear the info. If my friend tells me there is a sale at JoAnn versus getting a flyer in the mail, it comes down to the same thing. I am going to spend money. I just do not get why it has to come ONLY from one's demo. Some here may not even have a demo or live in a really small area where there is only one crummy demo who is not good to deal with. Again, what do YOU gain by keeping the secret?
April Specials yet?
