A Nightmare Only a Demo Would Have!!!

I have a class at 7 tonight & again at 6 tomorrow night, and woke up this morning from a horrible nightmare!!

First, I dreamt the class was being held in the dining room of my mom's old house on Madison Avenue (that's not the nightmare part - I liked that house!). I was running around trying to make sure the house was tidied up, when I looked at the clock and it said 7:35 - oh no!! I'm still cleaning, and my guests are also LATE!!

Then they start arriving, and I realize I don't have my cardstock cut!! I settle them into the dining room, and frantically run to the living room - where my supplies are scattered EVERYWHERE!   I am trying to find Whisper White and Very Vanilla cardstock to cut in half for the cards, and all I can find is non-Stampin' Up! cheap paper from the dollar store!! Oh no!! Meanwhile, my guests are rooting through my mom's fridge and finding all kinds of crazy things to eat and drink, totally messing up the dining room table!!

Yeesh.  No wonder I woke up with palpitations :)

Have you ever had a class scheduled, and found yourself still running around minutes before your customer-friends arrive, trying to finish prepping cardstock or supplies?  Yep, I have, too!  I've learned that it's MUCH more relaxing and fun to have things ready well before-hand

Tip 1:  Don't post a class on your DBWS if you don't have some idea of what you're going to present.  It's fun to see alot of classes scheduled on your "Events" calendar, but don't overwhelm yourself just because you want to fill those spaces

Tip 2:  I've been trying to plan my classes around a product I love & really enjoy and feel confident working with, or a card I've created that I  am really pleased with - one that came together easily and is simple enough for a beginner, yet elegant or pretty enough to impress even a veteran stamper.

Tip 3:  I especially like to find new ways to use an old standby product or a stamp set I know one or more of my customer-friends already has, because, while of course we want to up-sell other items, isn't it nice to teach them a new way to use an old favorite?  I want MY customer-friends to know and feel that I value their FRIENDSHIP first and foremost, and not "just" the sales they support my business with.

Tip 4:  As far as getting things ready, get your cards or projects designed and made well ahead of time.  That way, you can tweak what needs tweaked, and make sure you've got enough supplies on hand for each guest in case you need to place an order for supplies.  I like to have my projects done a weekend or two before, and get my cardstock cut at least two days ahead of time.  That way, I have the day of class to redd up the house (with my DD17's help, of course!).

Tip 5:  About two hours before class, I clear off the dining room table and set out the class supplies.  This gives me time to check everything over once more and make sure I didn't forget to put anything out (although that HAS happened, which is why "My Way" of doing business means classes in my home, so I don't have to go far to retrieve what I've forgotten :P).  Then I sit down, collect my thoughts, and relax before everyone arrives.  I also always have some drinks and small snacks for after we're done creating so we can spend some time chit-chatting when the stampin' part of the evening is over - like I said, these are NOT just customers, they're FRIENDS!

Anyway, those are my tips for a successful class!  Hope there's something here you can use in YOUR business . . .

That's it for now, my peeps!

Jeni