Direct Sales Opportunity Review: Silpada Designs
Silpada Designs is a direct sales company that distributes sterling silver jewelry through independent representatives. It was founded by Bonnie Kelly and Teresa Walsh, and is based in Lenexa, KS.
Bonnie and Teresa met when their children were in school and they became room mothers for the same class. They quickly became friends and started brainstorming on creative ways to make money from home. After several attempts at home business, they knew they were on the right track when they began Silpada Designs, because it allowed them to be creative and work with what they love–jewelry!
Silpada arose from small beginnings: $25 saved back from a grocery fund, a line of jewelry Bonnie and Teresa designed and made themselves, and informal parties at friends’ houses. However, the shows were a hit. The Silpada Designs business opportuntiy began with hostesses and customers asking how they could get involved. They told Teresa and Bonnie, “It looks like you’re having so much fun!’
In 1997, Bonnie and Teresa simply couldn’t keep up with the popularity of the business by themselves. It was time for Silpada Designs to become available on a bigger scale. Silpada is now the most rapidly growing .925 Sterling Silver Home Show in the U.S.. It has a network of thousands of distributors spread out across the country, and its Home Shows are averaging $750 in sales.
If a Representative makes that $750 average, she can earn $450/wk simply by holding just two average Home Shows. Home Shows generally take only three to four hours of work. So for a really ambitious Representative working 16-20 hours and holding five shows a week, the annual income would by $54,000.
Based on that $750 average, a Representative can earn $450 a week by holding just two average Home Shows, with only six to eight hours of work involved. For a really ambitious Representative holding five shows and working 16-20 hours a week, the annual income would be $54,000!
Commission for Representatives is 30% on the retail value of products they sell. They do not have to wait for commissions to be returned by corporate, but obtain them immediately upon completing the transaction. Team builders earn commission on the sales of the recruits they sponsor, beginning with the first recruit.
Representatives earn 30% commission on retail sales. There is no waiting period or sales quota to meet in order to obtain commissions. Representatives can also earn commission on the sales of recruits they sponsor. This begins with the first recruit.
Silpada Designs are primarily sold at informal parties called “Home Shows”. The goal is that the parties are fun and laid back, just friends getting together to try on jewelry and buy what they like. Representatives are not required to make formal presentations.
Parties or ‘Home Shows’ are the primary method of distribution. Representatives are not required to make formal presentations at Home Shows. The atmosphere of a Silpada Designs Home Show is very informal, just friends getting together, trying on jewelry and buying what they like.
One shortcoming of the Silpada Designs business opportunity is that traditional recruitment tactics are still part of the training. The company encourages traditional mlm methods, such as pitching to relatives, neighbors and so forth. Many network marketers have found those types of methods to lead quickly to burn-out and discouragement, not to mention that their relatives, neighbors and bank tellers now avoid them!
The Internet has opened up new ways to generate leads without ever having to cold call or pester friends. Successful Internet marketers have prospects calling them, already sold on the product or business opportunity they offer. Nevertheless, Silpada Designs holds to the following policy:
NOTICE TO ALL ACTIVE INDEPENDENT SILPADA DESIGNS REPRESENTATIVES
According to the Silpada Designs Corporate Web Policy active Independent Silpada Designs Representatives are prohibited from listing on a business directory or other Web site using the company’s trademarked terms, including, but not limited to, “SILPADA” and “SILPADA DESIGNS”. As such, all active Independent Silpada Designs Representatives may not list on this Web site. Any such listing will be considered a violation of the Silpada Designs Corporate Web Policy and will be subject to all remedial actions.
According to the Silpada Designs Corporate Web Policy active Independent Silpada Designs Representatives are prohibited from listing on a business directory or other Web site using the company’s trademarked terms, including, but not limited to, “SILPADA” and “SILPADA DESIGNS”. As such, all active Independent Silpada Designs Representatives may not list on this Web site. Any such listing will be considered a violation of the Silpada Designs Corporate Web Policy and will be subject to all remedial actions.
However, prospective customers/distributors can use the corporate website to locate Representatives in their area.
Representatives receive a 50% discount on all Silpada Designs products.
The Silpada Designs business opportunity might not be for everyone, particularly those desiring to utilize internet marketing techniques. However, for jewelry aficionados, it could be a really fun way to earn extra income simply by wearing, sharing and talking about the things they love.
Filed under: MLM