How is Sparkhub different from Direct Sales On Demand?

Since many of you may know me from the Direct Sales On Demand (DSOD) method and program, you may be wondering: why the switch to Sparkhub? What does it offer that DSOD doesn't?

The short answer? Sparkhub offers everything DSOD did in terms of training, templates, and support...but goes much, much farther.

While DSOD revolutionized direct sales for many, it turned out to be only the beginning of a movement that has evolved into something even more powerful. So, I want to share what motivated us to expand into software, and what it means for you.

The beginning of the On Demand method

Let me tell you a story.

Before 2020, I was a self-described online party failure. (Just what you want to hear from the creator of your event software, right? But bear with me.)

After a few not-worth-the-effort Facebook events, I just shrugged and said, "Meh, no biggie. Who needs online events? I'm an in-person kind of gal! Gathering, sharing snacks, hugging each other, breathing each other's air...that's my jam!"

Okay, not so much the "breathing each other's air" part, but you can see where this is going: March 2020 hit, and my attitude needed to change.

While I could have tried doing #allthethings to make my Facebook events shine, I decided instead to tinker. (It's just what I do.) And the best thing to come out of the pandemic for me was the creation of a revolutionary new way to run a direct sales party: On Demand.

My favorite mug, from my teammate, Trisha

We get our news, music, movies, and more on demand, after all. Why not do the same for our guests, with our party content?

The only barrier was this: most direct sellers don't have their own website to put together an engaging presentation like I was envisioning. But Canva offered a solution with their free websites, and so DSOD was born. I ran my own events On Demand, my hosts and guests loved it, and other direct sellers wanted to do the same. So I created training.

In the DSOD program,

• I taught my On Demand method, which covered how to use a "party page" (aka Canva website), guest texting strategy, and host coaching to reach customers without relying on an in-sync component (in person, Zoom, Sqweee, FB Live, etc.) or a Facebook group. 
• I showed how to cobble together various tools - Canva, Google Forms, Google Sheets, texting, etc. - to achieve this strategy. (Hold that thought.)
• I included an entire course on Canva Websites.
• I built up a template library so direct sellers from various companies would have plug-and-play Canva Websites to use.
• My design team supported those wanting to avoid the DIY approach by offering a done-for-you design add-on.

Within a year and a half of launching, we neared 2,000 students in the program, most of whom were referred by others who just had to share!

But while I could have just continued on that path, I felt the urge to tinker again.

Because here's the thing. While DSOD shows how to cobble together tools available in 2020 to create an On Demand experience, at the end of the day, it still felt a bit...cobbled together. Which was consistent with what we as direct sellers have been doing for forever: using tools not truly created for us, the best we can.

Have we gotten used to that being the norm? Sure. But that doesn't mean we don't deserve better tools.

Those offering On Demand parties still had to create a new signup page each time. Had to communicate the guest list to their host. Had to clone a Party Page (Canva site) and edit info on it. Had to babysit signups and send texts. Had to communicate a to-do list to their hosts that wasn't interactive. Had to communicate clunky "copy this" sample wording with their invitation instructions. It was as streamlined as 2020 allowed, but I knew we could do better, because so many of these steps could be handled with software...it just didn't exist (yet).

Meanwhile, my philosophy was shifting: I saw that the strategies that enabled On Demand experiences...were needed for ALL direct sales parties. After all, not every potential customer invited to a Facebook party uses Facebook. Not every potential customer invited to an in-person or Zoom gathering can come. And they deserve better than just being sent to your company website. They deserve to meet you, to access your unique introduction to your company, to hear from you so they can reach out and enjoy your excellent customer service.

 In other words...

• My 2020 messaging was, "You can party without an in-sync or Facebook component. Learn how to run On Demand parties as an alternative party style!"
• But my 2022 messaging is much more powerful: "Every event benefits from an umbrella strategy, the Spark Strategy, which includes a Party Page and guest texting to ensure everyone is connected. On top of that, you can sprinkle in other components if you want (Facebook group, in-sync gathering, etc.) - or you can skip those and just have guests access you and your info On Demand. The Spark Strategy will help ensure no one falls through the cracks, and that your host is supported!"

The Spark Strategy

The Spark Strategy aligns with the On Demand Method, but is broader, because I emphasize the importance of supporting every style of party with it. It's your path to the modern way of direct selling, where every guest, every host, and every consultant is cared for, entertained, engaged, organized, and inspired to take action.

Swipe or tap through the slides below to see how the Spark Strategy means more revenue-generating engagement in less time - all powered by Sparkhub and Project Broadcast. 

Does that sound like a lot? The Spark Strategy would feel like a lot to execute - if you didn't have access to powerful software specifically engineered to meet your needs. Fortunately, that's exactly what we did in creating Sparkhub.

So, back to the story: it just so happens that I'm married to a software developer with expertise in web apps and databases (swoon, amiright?). So my conversations with Jon started centering on what the direct sales world is lacking, and dreams of how we could fill a need far beyond teaching one individual method, as I had been doing in DSOD.

It was time to kick things up a notch, and (very) long story short, we launched Sparkhub in April 2022 to help direct sellers run not just On Demand events, but all events, using software to pull together all the details. Software that, unlike the ones we had "cobbled together" previously, is laser-focused on the direct seller's every need when it comes to running events, start to finish.

How does Sparkhub compare to DSOD?

Take a look and see. As proud as I am of DSOD, I know Sparkhub has far more to offer you! My team and I took everything that resonated with you in DSOD, handcrafted the best tool to make it happen with ease, and packaged it with training, templates, and support to give you a never-before-seen resource. And we have no shortage of ideas to make it better and better with time!

(Click here to view full-screen including text)

What does this mean for the DSOD program?

While I will continue to support DSOD indefinitely, I'm now encouraging people to try Sparkhub instead, since I know it is even better as an evolution of the original DSOD concept! Over time, I'll transition the DSOD website further to point people to Sparkhub. After all, the training and templates include what you get in DSOD, plus you get superior software, and a year of Sparkhub access costs less than DSOD!