From Style Consultant to Social Pariah in 30 Days

Direct selling.  There I said it, that terrible dirty word.  I was approached a couple of years ago by some friends to get involved in a direct selling company (also known as referral marketing) and it made my skin crawl.  I was not about to engage in actively pushing products on my friends.  And worse yet, recruit others to do the same.  I did not want people to start avoiding me for fear that I would try to sell them something. Part of the problem at that time was that the product they were trying to sell did not provide me with any of the benefits that they were marketing.  It didn’t work for me and I didn’t really believe in it.  The thought of selling in general makes me queasy, but selling something I did not use myself?  Impossible.

When my friend back east started making overtures about the company that I am now working for (J.Hilburn), I had a similar reaction.  Ugh.  No way.  I nearly spit out the word “direct selling”.   After a fair amount of badgering, I ordered a shirt for my husband to see for myself what this was all about; I figured the worst-case scenario is that he had a new shirt.  I was skeptical and had low expectations.  Much to my surprise, I was genuinely impressed when the shirt arrived 3 weeks later.  It is made from a high quality, beautiful Italian fabric.  The craftsmanship is amazing and it fits him better than any other shirt he owns.  And the price was similar to what he paid for a shirt in a department store that wasn’t made to fit him.  Next, I ordered a pair of wool trousers.  I am fortunate that my husband enjoys and wears nice attire and doesn’t mind spending a little more money for quality.   The reality is that he wears his nice clothes for 5-10 years.  Men’s style doesn’t change quite as much as women’s.  They can wear the same slacks or sport coat many times over – they don’t worry about wearing the same outfit to a party where the same group saw their outfit two weekends ago.  The male brain does not work like this.  Anyway, I was dubious.  So I ventured upstairs to our closet and fetched a pair of his Italian wool trousers that he paid $400 for at Nordstrom.  I laid down the pants from Hilburn and compared them to his pants piece by piece.  The fabric quality was the same.  The stitching, reinforced construction around the waist, pockets, the lining - - all the same.  And these pants were only $180.  Hmmm.  They could be on to something here. 

My suspicious brain kept nagging at me.  How can this be?  And so I thought about what “direct selling” means.  Instead of spending millions of dollars to create a brand through advertising and maintaining a huge store front in a mall or Main Street – this company relies on me to spread the word for them and to bring products to the customer.  And if my clients are happy – they will tell their friends and the “brand” finds its own following – at a fraction of the cost that Ralph Lauren or Giorgio Armani spends.  In this particular business, most of the clothes are made to order – so there is no inventory carrying costs.  They don’t use headhunters to hire people.  They don’t provide benefits or car allowance or computers or even sales tools to their sales force.  All of this converts into huge savings that are passed on to the customer.  In our current economic state, this translates into smart business (in the last four years, the company has become the number one seller of dress shirts in the US – not bad considering this is the worst economy in 50 years).  In business, this is described as a win-win.  But for me, this has resulted in my worst nightmares coming true.

People who are my friends or maybe used to be my friends see me at a party and begin preparing for the worst.  “Oh no, she is going to try and sell me a shirt.” Trust me - I would rather be selling to strangers – surely the group of people I don’t know in Utah is much greater than the group I do know, but the reality is that I have to start somewhere to build an audience and brand awareness.  And so I am starting with people who trust me and know me  (or used to anyway).   However, I am not going to think less of you if you don’t buy clothes from me.  It will not change our relationship.  If you want to support Giorgio Armani or go bargain hunting at TJ Maxx, I could care less. 

DO NOT FEAR THE HABERDASHER (Many thanks to Nick who aptly dubbed me his personal haberdasher). If you ask me how my business is going, I will tell you, I might even say how impressed I am with the quality of the products.  Just as you might tell me that pharmaceutical sales are down or up this quarter.  But I’m not going to pull out my measuring tape and start throwing fabrics at you.  If you or your significant other are in need of apparel and you appreciate fine quality and first-class fit for a fair price – then I’m happy to meet with you outside of the social occasion to see if I can complement your current wardrobe.  I love fashion, and honestly it has been fun for me to help a guy (and sometimes his wife) choose unique fabrics and create pieces that work with clothes that he already owns.  When he emerges wearing the shirt and pants that fit him perfectly (that we designed together) and that he is able to wear with his other suits or existing clothing, I have a huge smile on my face.  I am a pleaser by nature; I do not tolerate discord well in any part of my life.  When I help someone, it makes me genuinely happy.  Some guys need a lot of help and others know exactly what they want – either way, I am delivering something that they need, and by the way, I am bringing all of this to them.  They don’t have to drive to SLC to one of two men’s clothing stores and navigate racks of garb to find something that may or may not fit.  And if for some reason it doesn’t work out?  I dispatch the item to the tailor and pay to have it fixed or I handle the return for them, and they get their money back.   The risk reward ratio is definitely in the customer’s favor.

So far in my marketing efforts I have emphasized the high quality, personalized service, amazing fit, at an affordable price value proposition.  What I realized is that I’m going about this all-wrong. The world is a different place.  Erotica has gone mainstream, Saturday Night Live is doing skits about moms with vibrators.  I need to engage customers at an emotional level to create desire.  I also must simplify my message.  And so, here is my new advertising campaign.  I welcome feedback.

Ladies – do you like it when your husband/boyfriend puts on a suit?  Does he look more powerful?  Do you enjoy looking at his booty when his pants highlight his tight glutes?  How about a shirt that reveals the contours of his chest and flat abs, while enhancing the color of his eyes?  Does it make you proud to be with him and more attracted to him when he dresses nicely?  (By the way, we do sell linen shirts and faded jeans too)

Guys – do you want to get laid more often?  Dress up.