Hosting a party
Parties are great fun and an informal way to get to know people as well as find new customers. Parties also enable the customers to see the products- much better than they can online. Additionally it provides a more personalised experience where you can portray your passion for the REAL AID campaign; this passion will result in success!
Invite your family, friends, work colleagues, customers and ask everyone to bring a friend, this way they will feel much more comfortable and you will gain more customers.
Why not try co-hosting a party with a friend. This can have two main advantages;
- a) The friend will bring more friends so you can spread the Real Aid message further and have a greater opportunity to sell more of the merchandise
b) The friend can help you manage your party, helping things to run more smoothly as they look after the guests while you sell.
At the Party
The most important thing is to share with your guests the reasons why you joined the fight for Real Aid and why you are passionate about spreading the word; so that others like you can feel good about their contribution to humanity!
While you are entertaining your guests at the party it would be practical to have a laptop or computer available to walkthrough the Real Aid website. This will help to explain any queries that people may have about the campaign. We recommend that you show the 10 minute video, which highlights what the campaign is about, how it works and what it aims to achieve. The video features many world luminaries and is a sure way to impress your guests! This will be a key supportive tool to help your guests connect to the Campaign and want to support by signing the on line letter and by purchasing merchandise and to raise awareness.
Through encouraging your guests to sign up to the ‘Dear World Leaders’ letter on-line at the party you will be adding more voices to the Real Aid campaign, strengthening its solidarity.
If hosting a party straight away seems a bit too daunting why not try a one to one appointment with a friend to tell them about the range on a more personal level and get some practice talking about the campaign and merchandise before hosting for more people. One-on-one appointments can be a useful tool to create a good customer base, maybe meet a customer for lunch and sell there and then.
At the end of your party or one on one, remember to ask your guests if they would like to attend another party or if they have any other friends that you can be put in contact with. This is a good trick to branch out from just the people you know, and are still friends.
Top tips for the perfect party
- Ask everyone in person, suggest that they bring a friend
2. Don’t do dinner parties, it’s too much hassle for you and would be distracting
3. Don’t worry about elaborate food and refreshments. Coffee, tea and biscuits are fine; or wine and cheese,
or soft drinks and snacks or you may prefer e.g. beer and popcorn
4. Make it fun, put your own stamp on the party
5. We do not suggest loud music as this may distract from the purpose of the party
6. Products should be laid out on a table on top of a table cloth, clearing either a coffee or dining table would be suitable
7. Bring your laptop to Show 10 minute video & walkthrough website (maybe helpful for customer queries) and for guest to sign the on-line letter
8. Ensure there are enough campaign materials printed out for the number of guests
9. Bring a copy of your selling etiquette, which is available on our website in the Activists Corner.
10. Bring a receipt book to keep track of the orders you have taken and for your accounts
11. Don’t forget to thanks all of your guest for coming to the event regardless of whether they bought products or signed the online letter,
this would create goodwill within their networks.
Party Themes
Everyone wants to have fun! Below is a list of some great party themes and ideas. Have fun with these ideas, but don’t be afraid to be adventurous and try your own.
One on One: To begin with why not try making appointments with your friends’ one on one to present in their house or yours to show them the range and tell them about the Real Aid cause. This would be a great way to practice and build confidence before engaging in larger parties and selling in public spaces.
Office Lunch Party: Do a party at work during the lunch break or after work in the pub
Sitter Party: If your guests have small children then organise a baby sitter to take care of the children, this is a great way to sell to parents undisturbed.
Nights to busy party: Saturday or Sunday morning, why not have a quick get together over brunch; breakfast, coffee or tea. In an hour or two the party will be over and you and your guests can have the rest of the day to yourselves!
Seasonal Party Themes:
St Patrick’s Day Party
Halloween Costume Party
Food Themes:
Wine & Cheese Party: Host serves wine and cheese. An all-time favourite!
Pizza Party: Host provides the basics & guests bring their favourite topping.
Meze/ Tapas Party: You could buy pre-prepared snacks from the supermarket to provide a Mediterranean theme.
The Sale:
The host/co-host should ensure that the cash is collected for the items before parting with the goods purchased.
We do not encourage you to give credit to the people who are buying the goods as this could strain personal relationships.
Party Invite
In the Activists Corner of the website you will see an additional downloadable party invitation. You can print this out and distribute to potential guests with all the information on about the party you will be hosting.
When you are carrying out a party, you should keep a copy of this guide with you to assist your conversation and to help you introduce the Aid Activists product range, also providing prompts should you get stuck or be asked a difficult question.
Party Script
Introduce yourself to the customer
Welcome! (My name is) I am here to talk to you today about the continuing injustices of the global aid system and what we can together do about it to change it. You must agree with me when I say that poverty should not be here in our day and age and I guess you are fed up with aid wastages, as am I.
So today I would like to talk to you about the Real Aid Campaign, which has a rescue plan which sets out to raise over $100bn per year to overcome some of the biggest threats facing humanity; poverty and climate change.
My Story
I got involved with the Real Aid Campaign because I believe that the campaign is a uniquely powerful initiative to make the world a better place. Through improving aid distribution and the quantity of money directed towards aid we can fight poverty and climate change, ending the unjust aid system of today, providing an equal existence for all.
Being an Aid Activist is a fantastic opportunity to share the products of the Real Aid Campaign, whilst earning some extra money. The products help to raise awareness and money for the campaign, which are both essential for it to succeed. I am an independent seller in support of the campaign but I am not employed by or affiliated to them.
Has anyone hear about the Real Aid campaign?
To help explain the Real Aid Campaign I have brought along my laptop today to show you an introductory video explaining the campaign and the potential benefits. In the video the Co-founders; Renu Mehta & Sir James Mirrlees explain the principles behind the Model and highlight some of the catastrophic problems currently being allowed to continue.
– Play video –
Additional Information
We’ve already had some success with the UK government, raising £200m worth of aid and counting. This money is impacting over 100 million lives around the globe. See UK Success page under the ‘Country Wins?’ section of our website for more information.
There is also considerable support from celebrities such as; Sir Ben Kingsley, Stephen Fry, Vivienne Westwood, Simon Pegg as well as many others academics and world leaders.
Take feedback
Do you currently give to development charities?
Yes – That’s fantastic. The Real Aid Campaign through matching donations supports a lot of your favourite charities such as; WaterAid, UNICEF, Christian Aid, Trócaire, CAFOD, Sport Relief 2012, Sightsavers Save the Children and Islamic Relief.
No – Why not? Is it because you feel that the money you donate isn’t reaching the people on the ground? Ah! Well the Real Aid Campaign has a solution. By improving aid transparency, reporting back to donors of successes and introducing an independent index ranking development projects in terms of impact against cost. Donors will be able to see far more accurately where their money is being spent and the impact it is making on the ground.
How confident are you that your money is being well spent?
Ah ha! The Real Aid Campaign as you have seen in the video helps to increase donations by matching your donation doubling its effectiveness, as well as improving aid delivery and transparency by promoting the efficient programmes. Results will also be reported back to donors so that they can see the impact that their money is making on the ground.
Show Products
All of our products are ethically produced, our beret is unisex and we also have a number of action items; car stickers, Eco poncho, stickers. These items are relatively inexpensive but help to raise the profile of the campaign as they are out in the public eye.
The car sticker in particular is excellent, imagine how many people get stuck in traffic jams and how many people will see your car sticker saying ‘Real Aid’ or ‘I’m a Believer’ with the website address and be intrigued to find out more. This really is an excellent action item, with a small input by you and a massive raise in awareness for the campaign.
Pull out the price list
Bring out the price list with all of the items and show this to your guests. Remember to bring multiple copies or enough for the amount of guests you have.
Examples of things to say in the ask/close.
1) By purchasing any of these products money will go to powering the global call for Real Aid.
2) If you wear the products it will help to spread the campaign message and encourage others to take part.
3) Wearing products will show your solidarity with those who will benefit from Real Aid.
4) Their involvement would help to bring about sweeping change enabling millions of more people to receive aid to get a good start in life.
Don’t sell, share. Share enthusiasm for the Real Aid Campaign and the benefits for the customer in getting involved. Enthusiasm is contagious and believable – they would want the same satisfaction that you exude!
Sign up guests to join Real Aid online petition
If posssible, (you’ll need a laptop) point the guests in the direction of the online petition. This is really important as the more people who have signed the petition the more impact we can have on governments, creating a larger voice of the people.
Thank the Host/hostess
I do hope you have enjoyed today’s Real Aid Campaign party, it has been lovely to meet you all and I look forward to seeing you all again soon.
Useful Information
Closing on objection/ Dealing with rejection
Throwing a party can provoke objection/ rejection. Knowing how to handle this in a professional manner is part of the job and your composure is key to maintaining a successful business. It is more likely that door to door selling will face a higher proportion of objection and rejection; however this training pack aims to provide you with some examples and an overview of responses to possible situations.
It is important to remain graceful and professional whilst people are objecting/ rejecting to your pitch, it will not only damage your personal reputation if you handle negative feedback irresponsibly, but it will also damage the reputation of the campaign overall and people will be less likely to connect with the campaign in the future.
Example Objections
I don’t think I can afford it right now.
Remind them how important the cause is. That any size purchase is benefiting the campaign, buying a badge for £3 or a car sticker for £2 will help spread the message of the campaign and raise its support base.
But it won’t change anything.
With your support, alongside many others already supporting the campaign we can change something. Something big! We’ve already had successes in the UK where an additional £200m has been raised for international development charities. With your help we can roll-out a global plan and reach an additional $100bn annually.
Terminology to avoid
Be clear on your facts; when quoting a statistic from the Sound Bites section of this pack or any other part of the pack, ensure you are 100% accurate, and avoid misquoting. For example; for every £1 in aid that the UK spends in Africa, we get about £2 back in trade.
If you said for every £1 in aid that we spend in Africa, we get £10 back in trade. This would be misleading the customer to believe that we gain substantially. The customer may also ask you to clarify or support where the statistics are coming from.
Key Points
- Show you understand the person’s situation, whatever their reaction.
- Ask twice, and not more, try to avoid being pushy or harassing someone into a sale.
- Listen to the customer
- Remain graceful in objection
- Be responsible; respectful to the campaign and your personal reputation.
Difficult Questions
- How are you involved with the organization? How did you get involved?
I am self-employed, working independently of the Real Aid Campaign promoting the campaign message through selling official merchandise. I got involved by purchasing an official Aid Activists starter kit, after going through the training resources I then began to sell the products at the Recommended Retail Price (RRP).
- What do you think are the most compelling reasons for supporting the organization?
This organisation has a solution to two of the world’s most pressing issues, climate change and poverty. It has a policy designed to create a fairer and equal system in which billions of people globally gain the opportunity to have a more equal and just existence.
- Why do you think the Real Aid will do a better job than the existing effort?
This is about building on the good work that already exists and scaling up that funding so making better use of the aid budget so we can minimise theft and corruption. The programmes have to be well chosen, serving development priorities, not defence or donor trade. The fund evaluates performance, reports results back to donors, as well as directly monitors the efficiency of the programmes to ensure all funds are used to their full potential.
- Do you earn a commission?
No. I bought the initial stock from the website; www.real-aid.org. I invest my money into the merchandise and then sell at the provided RRP prices. My profit margin is 50% of RRP.
- How does the campaign aim to raise an additional $100bn for international aid?
The campaign sets out to roll out the MM model. The model encourages governments to match our private contributions to organisations that we want to support. Alongside, this it effectively monitors programmes to ensure that aid donations are being used correctly and impacting the people who need it most. The campaign sets out to target 43 richer countries to adopt this model to help alleviate the extreme poverty felt by billions globally.
You can download a copy of the Party Script here to keep handy just in case you need it at your parties.