How I start each new Stampin' Up! Catalog Year

Stampin' Up! OnStage San Antonio, April 13

During April, I begin preparing for the release of the new Stampin' Up! catalog, which is generally released to customers June 1. This year, in April, Stampin' Up! plans to hold their OnStage events around the world to introduce Stampin' Up! demonstrators to what's coming up in this year's annual catalog. I've lost track of the number of Stampin' Up! Conventions, Leadership Events, and On Stage Events I've attended during my 12+ years as a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, but I'm always excited to attend because of the head-start it gives me in planning my business around the new catalog release.

Why am I telling you this?

Because only Demonstrators can attend these events, and right now -- during Sale-A-Bration -- is when many stampers sign up as new demonstrators so they can register and attend their local OnStage event.
Several locations, like Charlotte, NC and Minneapolis, MN were already nearing capacity in mid January. If you were thinking of becoming a Demonstrator and attending a local OnStage event, your local OnStage could sell out before you act.

Restaurants and boats along the San Antonio river walks

This year, Stampin' Up! is hosting Onstage Local Events in Atlantic City, NJ, Charlotte, NC; Minneapolis, MN; Salt Lake City, UT; San Antonio, TX and several international locations. I'm attending the Stampin' Up! OnStage Local San Antonio event. All local events are held April 13, with Stampin' Up! home office people and local people presenting and videos connections from other world-wide locations. I've attended earlier Stampin' Up! events in San Antonio. It is among one my my favorite locations for Stampin' Up! events, with beautiful river walks surrounding the Convention Center and downtown hotel and restaurant area as well as plenty of Texas history to keep the family occupied while you attend Stampin' Up! events, if you plan to make it a mini-vacation!

The canals and river walks around the Convention Center

I use OnStage to take stock of my performance during the past catalog year, set my goals for the new catalog products I plan to promote, prioritize which products I'm going to highlight in my classes and on my blog, and look for high-performing Stampin' Up! Demonstrators to socialize with to learn more about what's made their businesses successful.

During my early years as a Demonstrator, I was a hobby demonstrator and attended Stampin' Up! Conventions for the gifts and ideas -- prize patrols and registration bag gifts, the creative ideas, new product demonstrations, card swaps with other demonstrators, the display boards of new project ideas, and getting hands-on experience with new products.

As I've turned my hobby into a business, the hands-on samples, display board project ideas and ability to pre-order from the catalog before its release gives me a head-start on planning classes and social media campaigns with new catalog products. Also, during OnStage lunch and dinners, it's been so helpful to talk to other demonstrator friends and learn how they've become successful recruiting, working with their teams, used social media, and increased their productivity in preparing for their classes and events.

I love becoming a student (again!) at Stampin' Up! On Stage events. Its become a tradition to meet up with old friend and new and layout my roadmap for introducing new products, my class schedule, and my social media campaigns to help me achieve my goals for growth for the coming catalog year.

There's already a private Facebook site set up for Demonstrators who are registered for the Stampin' Up! OnStage San Antonio event, with lots of helpful advice about the event itself and the local area. In addition to the one-day Stampin' Up! event, other Demonstrators have planned social events, after parties, card swaps, shoe box swaps, business courses, and other fun activities you can sign up for if you plan to arrive in San Antonio early and want to make the most of your time while there. It's such an inspirational time, and depending on your level of involvement in this one-day event and any additional activities and swaps, it can set you up on a clear path for success in the next catalog year!

Is this the year you Join Stampin' Up! as a Demonstrator?

What's it like to be a Stampin' Up! demonstrator? It's great! Part of the fun of being a Stampin' Up! demonstrator is bringing people together to share creative experiences. Craft together with your friends. Or, you can teach them creative techniques and tips and share project ideas.

But I'm' not very creative...don't have time to be creative.
Stampin' Up! demonstrators can spend their time coming up with their own projects and designs, or use the wonderful card samples, demo videos, card kits, Paper Pumpkin kits created by the professional designers at Stampin' Up! to help them with creative ideas. Demonstrators have early access to videos and project ideas for how to use new stamp sets and products from Stampin' Up! before customers see them. Embed them in your social media posts or blog. Demonstrators also have exclusive access to Stampin' Connection, a Stampin' Up! forum, demonstrator-produced card ideas, demonstrator-only card swaps, how to use Stampin' Up! tools, business topics, and all sorts of interests that the thousands of Stampin' Up! demonstrators around the world are discussing and sharing with each other on Stampin' Connection forums.

I'm new to stamping. I'm not sure where to start.
Demonstrator's have access to Stampin' University, to help new and experienced demonstrators learn about Stampin' Up! products, how to hold classes, how to find customers, how to sell and recruit, and how to grow their business. These are also several Stampin' Up!-only Facebook sites for Demonstrators sharing project ideas for classes or introducing the new catalog to customers, or for Stampin' Up! demonstrators encouraging each other as they work towards the next promotion or next incentive trip.  You'll love the comradery of belonging to the Stampin' Up! family, and meeting face-to-face at local classes, and Stampin' Up! OnStage local events held twice a year in different cities throughout the USA.

I've been crafting for many years, but I'm a novice at holding classes and marketing my work.
Demonstrators, have access to live events and sophisticated tools for promoting new catalogs and new products, setting up a website, pre-designed artwork, project photos, videos, postcards and mailings to customers and prospects, mailing service for sending new catalog releases, a demonstrator listings on the Stampin' Up! store to attract local leads for you, mailing list management, calendar management and event registration management tools. In addition to Stampin' University, as your upline, I can help you get comfortable with these tools and help you get the most out of them. We can work face to face or remotely -- anywhere in the USA -- via video conferencing using Zoom on our laptops.

If you've thought about joining Stampin' Up! as either a hobby demonstrator -just for the 20% discount on your orders-- or if you've always wanted to start a fun, part-time business to earn a little extra money while having a ball with your crafty friends, you can join for $99 and pick $175 worth of merchandise from either the Occasions or the annual Stampin' Up! catalogs as your starter kit, between now and March 31. But don't delay if you plan to sign up for OnStage Local in April. Once you're a Demonstrator, you'll want to sign up before these events sell out.

Put together your wishlist of $175 worth of products--personalized with just what YOU want from the Stampin' Up! Annual Catalog or Occasions catalog. This becomes your starter kit. Host sets and Sale-A-Bration gifts are excluded.

You'll receive your Stampin' Up! Demonstrator number within 30 minutes of joining and you'll have access to the Demonstrator web site, Stampin' University, and StampinConnection.com to begin your journey immediately, while you're waiting for your Starter Kit order to arrive.

While you're waiting, visit the Events link on the Demonstrator Website and watch the video highlights from the November 2018 OnStage event including products from the Occasions catalog and Sale-A-Bration brochure and pick up valuable training tips and resources on current products. Then, take a look at the upcoming April 2019 OnStage Event links and think about joining me at OnStage San Antonio!

As a new demonstrator, you can build your hobby supplies with your 20% demonstrator discount. You can choose to be a hobby demonstrator, with no obligation to host workshops or sell products. Or, turn your hobby into a business and earn money depending on how much time you devote to it. Make enough to support your own purchases, or you can earn commissions on your sales to others; earn money when your recruit and your downline begins to purchase or sell; and earn additional money hosting classes, selling tutorials, selling cards and treat packaging at craft fairs or on Etsy. It's your decision. You take the lead. If you ever decide to drop, there's never a penalty. And you can join again, later.

Need help putting together your starter kit contents, or have a question about joining my team?  Contact me here , and we'll work through your starter kit contents together.

Want to know more? Visit my "Join the Fun" site.