Can I tell you...?

Just a few weeks after Maddie was born, Bill and I were at a bookstore when a really nice guy commented on how cute Maddie was and asked how old she was. We got into a conversation with him, talking about lots of different things. He called his wife over and it seemed that we all had a lot in common. We even mentioned getting together for dinner sometime. We talked for about 20 minutes. Then came the clincher:

"Can I tell you about this great business opportunity I've discovered?"

They were trying to recruit us into some Amway-type sales program. We said we weren't interested, but afterwards Bill and I were actually pretty bothered/hurt by the whole thing. We thought we had made a connection with these people and they were just using us.

That has happened to each of us SO many times. By now it seems that any type of business like this would at least come up with a new sales strategy. I swear that each time someone has approached me about something like that, it has always included the line "Can I tell you about this great business opportunity I've discovered?"

I'm usually so turned off by this method of sales that I never even consider the product. For example, Josie has severe eczema and we've had to resort to using steroid creams almost every other day. There's only one brand of lotion that doesn't break her out and it hasn't been thick enough during these dry winter months. My mother-in-law has a friend who is a consultant and sells a line of skincare (I won't say the name) from her home. She kept telling my MIL about this lotion they have that does wonders for babies with eczema. My MIL ended up buying the intro pack and sending it to us. I was so skeptical. Okay, I was downright, without a doubt, completely convinced that it was all a waste. Josie is allergic to so many things found in other lotions (mineral oil, etc.) and this lotion has so many ingredients that I just didn't see it working. But Bill and I agreed to give it a try so we waited until a day when her skin was pretty clear. We put some on her leg just to test. No reaction. The next day we put some on both of her legs. No reaction. Well, actually there was a reaction: Her skin was completely clear and soft. It felt even better than each time we used the steroid creams. I still couldn't believe it so we kept putting it on each night and monitoring the results. No reaction from Josie either (she usually cries with the steroid creams because they burn when you first put them on the irritated skin). I'm not saying this is any kind of miracle cream since each child's skin is different, but you have no idea what it was like to hold my baby and feel her baby soft skin instead of rough patches. Seeing her go for days without constantly scratching was a relief as well.

And there are so many great products out there that are immediately rejected by people because of their sales strategies. When I was 18 I sold knives in this same way. Demonstrations in people's homes. Cut through a penny with the scissors. Cut through a rope with the steak knife. I was an awful salesman and managed only to get my family and friends of the family to buy them. But they were, and still are, GREAT knives. I bought a set for my mom back then and they are still like new. Honestly, they are the best knives I've ever used. Maybe someday I'll actually buy some for myself. If I can hunt down a sales consultant, that is.

Who's mom didn't have Tupperware parties when you were little? And Tupperware is great! They have some great products and really neat innovative ideas to solve kitchen annoyances. And Avon? I'm not a fan of the makeup, but c'mon, you can't beat the Skin So Soft in the summertime. Keeps those buggers away from you and the kids.

But here's the rub: Anyone reading this would probably think that I'm actually a consultant for one of these companies. See the problem? It can be a great product, but who's going to believe any good reviews you have when there are suspicions that you might be trying to sell it as well. There's just no sincerity in the marketing.