This collection brings together leading scholars and practitioners with a variety of interests as related to women entrepreneurs. Taking a unique scholarly-practice approach, Crittenden builds an enticing story around several key variables that influence go-to-market strategies for women entrepreneurs.

The Power of Direct Selling. Direct selling is not an industry per se nor is it merely a go-to-market business model and channel to reach consumers. It is bigger than any of this – direct selling is people. The ability for people with entrepreneurial spirit to build a successful business, whether it be from the ground up or by representing a company’s product, is at the heart of direct selling and it is people who made (and continue to make) direct selling the successful marketplace that it is today. The direct selling marketplace is comprised of mission-driven and socially responsible companies offering a wide variety of product and services, and the list of direct selling companies is abundant with entrepreneurs who built their businesses by utilizing an independent salesforce channel to market and sell their products or services directly to consumers. Possibly one of the most prominent of these entrepreneurs is Mary Kay Ash, a legend as a glass-ceiling breaker and a woman who built a very successful business with a go-to-market strategy of direct selling. Unlike Mary Kay Ash, however, not all aspiring business owners are willing/able to invest their savings and time on a start-up business. These micro-entrepreneurs desire to have the economic and social benefits of managing their own businesses but do not want the startup costs and demands associated with traditional business planning. As such, becoming a direct selling distributor offers a low-risk, low-cost pathway to micro-entrepreneurship. The traditional barriers to small business ownership are removed when a micro-entrepreneur builds a direct selling business that is backed by established brands. These established brands, several of which are featured in this book, offer the micro-entrepreneurs quality products, business training, and technological resources to achieve a self-determined metric of success. Framed within the context of entrepreneurship and an historical overview of the long-term sustainability of this business model, this book is intended for practitioners who want to read about the breadth and depth of direct selling. Importantly, this book provides considerable depth in terms of three particular issues associated with direct selling: Compensation, Ethics & compliance, and Global reach. For scholars, this book is built on a strong foundation of valid and reliable research endeavors. The authors have published research on direct selling in high quality, reputable and peer-reviewed academic and practitioner journals. Thus, this book can add foundationally to the research efforts of academics who are conducting research in a wide variety of topics (such as sales, women empowerment, business strategy, ethics, distribution models, gig economy, and global entry – to name a few), as well as to members of the press who want reliable and valid content upon which to build their stories. The book’s content is also particularly informative for policymakers at the local, state, national, and international levels. For students, reading this book will offer a variety of insights, particularly related to the intricacies of channel selection and design. Direct Selling: A Global and Social Business Model is a collective project from eight academics and practitioners who have dedicated much of their careers to understanding direct selling as both a go-to-market strategy and a channel of distribution and to capturing the people who are the foundation of direct selling. The pages of this book bring together a wealth of research and knowledge that can inform a broad spectrum of constituents about the economic and social benefits of direct selling, while also providing detail and clarity on key issues related to direct selling as a sustainable business model.

The first of its series, Empowering Women With Words: Life-Changing Conversations will engage you with diverse stories, each brimming with insights, life lessons, and personal revelations. Fifteen women from different walks of life came together and inspired one another with their tales of courage, strength, resilience, perseverance, and faith. These women now share their powerful and relatable narratives, full of transformation and growth, for the benefit of women worldwide. Their vibrant, real-life stories appeal to modern women of all ages. Enjoy your discovery as each author takes you on an inspiring, surprising, encouraging, and ultimately empowering journey.

With catchphrases like “smart economics” and “the business case for gender equality,” global corporations are increasingly involved in gender and development politics in the Global South. This book focuses on an emblematic example of this tendency to interrogate the proposed win-win relationship between corporate profit opportunities and the economic advancement of women in marginalized economic positions. The Coca-Cola Company’s 5by20 program has won broad recognition for its global reach and ambitious goal: to economically empower five million female micro-entrepreneurs across its supply chain before the end of 2020. Based on situated engagements with program implementers and participants in Mexico and South Africa, the study moves beyond the unequivocally positive effects conveyed by the program’s rhetoric. It examines the appropriation of social values to strengthen the brand; the use of self-help psychology to enhance entrepreneurial conduct and exempt weak economic results; and the recasting of women’s precarious labor in terms of entrepreneurship – which conceals structural causes of poverty and impediments of sustainable business development. Providing unique insights into the premises and effects of corporate solutions to gender inequality in the Global South, the book contributes to debates on the relations between neoliberal capitalist expansion and feminist emancipatory endeavors.

LET'S HAVE A SALES PARTY provides a complete step-by-step guide on how to make money and have fun by selling your products or services at a party. It offers tips for both newcomer and old-timers seeking to expand the business. The book includes tips on how to: - choose your product and company, - develop your sales pitch, - recruit prospects for your party, - plan a great party, - increase your sales, - expand your business by creating a sales organization. - use advertising and PR to find hosts and customers - develop a presentation and a marketing campaign, - find a host, choose a location, and plan the menu, - master a solid sales pitch and take orders, - get referrals, confirm orders, and manage deliveries, - avoid scams and choose a reputable company. Plus, it includes a directory of major party plan companies.

“Nicole Feliciano is all things #Boss. Most importantly, she is an inspiration to all moms looking to reinvent their careers.” —Sarah Michelle Gellar, actress, CCO and mom Learn how to be a super mom and a great business woman in a step-by-step guide to developing, incubating, and marketing your business without taking the joy out of family life with kids—being an active parent while succeeding as a woman business entrepreneur. Where Sophia Amoruso’s #GirlBoss left off for young millennials breaking into the business world, Mom Boss picks up and continues the mission for all the entrepreneurial moms out there. Mom Boss proves that being successful isn’t about degrees or sacrifices, it’s about balance and power. It’s where instinct meets intelligence. Every mom has it in her to be a badass business woman. Nicole Feliciano—the founder and CEO of Momtrends Media, which provides busy women with a daily dose of style—charts the course for building a successful career without sacrificing being a great mom. Mom Boss includes: Tips on how to develop, incubate, and market your business without taking the joy out of family life Valuable self-assessment exercises Step-by-step advice, inspiration, and tried and true business and personal tips Insights into how to be a successful and happy businesswoman and mom “If you have that feeling that maybe there is a Mom Boss in you but you’re just not sure where to start, then this is a must read . . . this is a great first step to turn your dreams into reality.” —Rosie Pope, CEO, designer, mom