SaveAround's Community Conversation

Now that you’ve worked on your list of principals at the area Middle Schools and Elementary Schools, you can work to maximize your summer months. Why are summer meetings and appointments good?

1. The daily schedule is much more relaxed with less stress. (think summer attire)
2. No classes to work around and most students aren’t on campus.
3. Early is best … most contacts will be around from 8:00 to noonish (after lunch might be
hit or miss unless they are involved in an afternoon activity, practice, or rehearsal)
4. Be flexible - summer is more casual, but hopefully productive.

One rep shared that “summertime is when I set up my January and I am meeting with principals”. If a school is already booked out for August and early Fall, then talk with the principal about January for the Principal’s Fund. PTA’s (sometimes known as parents to avoid) can get in a rut of doing things like they’ve always done before with no room for change. You also have a lot of turnover with PTA’s because those parents are around while their student is at the school. Once they move onto the next school, that parent and their commitment goes, too.

A couple of quick tips on how to talk to the Principal in May in hopes of getting that summer mtg:

~ I know you are super busy, but I wanted to see about setting up a meeting to talk once school is out.

~ I know you are covered up with a lot of year end things and I don’t want to interfere with those plans, but how does a quick meeting in mid June sound?

~ Do you text?

So in those few sentences you have accomplished these things:
~ Acknowledged that they are incredibly busy.
~ Confirmed that now is NOT the time to meet or talk.
~ Suggested that later IS the time to meet or talk.
~ Asked about texting in hopes of getting a cell phone contact #.

T-Minus 30 Days and Counting

Not only are we on the homestretch, we’ve rounded third base and are heading for home plate.

So in evaluating your Spring did you hit a homerun or did you get thrown out at first? All is not lost and while time is short, here are a few suggestions on how to maximize your remaining days in the month of May.

1. Confirm bookkeeper’s information as you closeout any groups that have run Spring ‘22

2. Close out all groups and send the invoice / Group Relations can assist with this request

3. Any last minute groups that you could run a one-hour Sprint with? Like tomorrow?

4. Continue to prospect for summer groups (sports teams, youth groups, camps, etc.)

5. Take some time to work on your hit list for Fall ‘22 (2023 school year). Clean up your

contacts, transfer any notes, and make sure you are ready to go come July/August.

6. Send thank you notes/emails to the groups that you worked with and re-sign if possible.

It’s very important to try and maximize your time and efforts in these final weeks of school. Most groups have completed their fundraising by now, but there may be a last minute need for something not originally planned or in the budget. Be available and ready to go!

Checks and Returned Books

PLEASE make sure that payments (checks) are mailed to the P.O. Box address. Some groups are including the payments with their box of returned books that go to the warehouse. In some cases, these check payments are lost, misassigned, or missed altogether because they are in a box of books in the warehouse and not picked up via the P.O. Box by the accounting team. When this happens the group will be delayed in closing out and that will also delay your commission being processed and paid in a timely manner.

ALL payments need to be mailed to P.O. Box 2399, Binghamton, NY 13902

ALL returned books need to go to the Warehouse address using the provided shipping label.
If you have questions, contact the Group Relations team (grouprelations@savearound.com).

Hopefully, you have made contact with your customers, and re-signs are rolling in for Fall 2022. One helpful tip is to be sure you have personal email and cell phone contact information for ALL of your customers. Those things certainly came in handy during the pandemic, and in some cases, the teachers and coaches may not have access to their school email accounts during the summer. Sometimes just a quick text during the summer can be helpful in paving the way for a meeting early in the school year to get the ball rolling for Fall season sales.

**PLEASE REMEMBER** Group Relations does not know to close out an account until you email GroupRelations@Savearound.com. Failure to alert Group Relations of a completed closeout form will delay receipt of your commission.

1. Mother’s Day is celebrated on the 2nd Sunday in May.

2. 152 million cards are sent for Mother’s Day - Hallmark says it is the 3rd largest card sending holiday annually.

3. Social activist Julia Ward Howe brought the idea of Mother’s Day after the Civil War. The current version was introduced by Anna Jarvis in the early 1900s.

4. Popular items for Mother’s Day include cards, gifts, and flowers. Other ideas might be breakfast in bed or an at-home spa treatment. The National Retail Federation states that $27 billion is spent on Mother’s Day Gifts.

5. In church attendance, Mother’s Day ranks 3rd behind Easter and Christmas.

6. Greeks and Romans celebrated honoring the Goddess Cybele celebrating great Mother Earth and the Goddess of Fertility along with Rhea - Mother of the Gods.

7. There are approximately 85 million moms in the United States.

8. Mother’s Day is the most popular day for phone calls.

9. 24% of Mom’s are raising their children alone without a spouse or partner.

10. President Woodrow Wilson signed the first Mother’s Day proclamation as a holiday that offered a chance to publicly express our love and reverence for the mothers of our country.