Leveraging Direct Selling’s Greatest Asset
Corporate social responsibility and advocacy are table stakes in today’s marketplace. Yet, companies of all kinds fall short on strategy in these areas. Direct selling companies possess the most potent of assets—independent sales forces and employee bases numbering in the tens of thousands—but often lack the know-how or motivation to effectively activate them as grassroots ambassadors who can inform, educate and advocate for their products, manufacturing processes, operations, independent sales forces, causes and missions and—most importantly—the direct selling industry itself.
Expanding traditional philanthropic social responsibility to include government relations and advocacy makes some C-Suite leaders fearful in this environment of FTC scrutiny. Instead, some companies choose to fly under the radar or keep a low profile until they need a favor from a legislator or council member. But that is less than ideal.
It’s ironic that companies within an industry so rooted in relationships would avoid building them with people who really can impact their businesses, their people and their industry for better or worse. But, perhaps, a deeper look into the nuts and bolts of grassroots advocacy could soften those fears and serve as an origin point to forging favorable reputations and long-term relationships with “the powers that be” at local, state and federal levels.
Make Friends When Times Are Good
“Organizations that are effective at grassroots advocacy embrace two philosophies. First is the notion that you make friends when times are good. “If you’re reaching out to elected officials for help when you need them, and it’s the very first time you’ve ever reached out—it’s way too late,” Crayton Webb, CEO at LuncefordWEBB Government Relations and Sunwest Communications explained.
Advocacy efforts at Mary Kay for instance, span the company’s history and reflect not only the company’s business interests but also, their “Go Give” philosophy and involvement in issues ranging from domestic violence to cancers affecting women.
“Our public affairs team is proactive in building relationships with elected officials and other policy makers. Before we might have to go to them with a specific issue, we educate them about the importance of sponsoring and passing legislation that would support the direct selling model, the independent contractor status of our sales force and the cosmetics industry,” Anne Crews, Vice President Public Affairs, Mary Kay shared.
But there are companies who adhere to a “head down” philosophy and choose not to engage in government affairs. They may not yet see the value or deem it too costly. Often, Webb said, “They are afraid if they reach out to a lawmaker or elected official that it paints a target on their back, but I couldn’t disagree more.”
According to Webb, growing companies should already be on the proverbial “radar,” and the goal should be to raise the company’s profile and enhance reputation. Webb along with his business partner, Michael Lunceford, counsel companies both inside the direct selling industry and out on effective government relations strategies and advocacy efforts. The two originally worked together on similar strategies at Mary Kay.
Some companies may not know which member of Congress or Senator represents their headquarters locale, nor have they invited them, state officials or county council members to tour their facilities. This is a missed opportunity to not only lay the groundwork for long-term relationships but to also give officials a chance to develop deeper understanding of the company and the industry by meeting employees and independent salesforce members.
From the politician’s perspective, they are able to take photos and post them on social media, which shows their constituents that they are out and about, whether it’s in their congressional or council district. In many ways, companies help elected officials by inviting them to ribbon cuttings, charitable events and other meet-and-greet opportunities.
Mary Kay has been gifted at building and tending government relationships this way for decades with their public affairs team facilitating group and one-on-one opportunities. Activities have included legislators and independent beauty consultants planting trees together for Keep Lewisville Beautiful, the home of their Texas manufacturing facility.
Recently, two independent sales directors arrived at Mary Kay headquarters in their pink Cadillacs to host a skincare class for a newly elected North Texas member of Congress. This isn’t the first lawmaker to accept that invitation and certainly won’t be the last to learn how to properly care for their skin, while gaining a deeper understanding of what it means to be an independent beauty consultant; work a direct selling business; and empower others through the business opportunity.
“Mary Kay independent beauty consultants are champions of the product and the opportunity. They are our greatest advocates. So, connecting Mary Kay independent beauty consultants with their lawmakers is a really impactful way to shape policy and also hold their elected officials accountable,” Crews explained.
A Positive Army to Deploy
And this leads to the second inherent belief necessary for effective grassroots advocacy and an ideal fit for direct selling—the idea that the most valuable asset, the thing that lawmakers care most about, are the people—the voters, the constituents—who live in their districts. For direct selling companies, this encompasses vast numbers of independent sales force members scattered across Senate, House, State Legislature and City Council districts nationwide.
A corporate lobbyist explaining the importance of an issue to a lawmaker rarely carries as much weight as a constituent, who lives in their district; voted for that lawmaker; maybe contributed $25 to their campaign, telling their story as a small business entrepreneur with a direct selling company and communicating why that lawmaker’s support matters. Multiply that story by tens of thousands within the direct selling channel’s independent sales force—that is the power of grassroots advocacy.
A robust government relations and advocacy program absolutely needs support from the C-Suite and the CEO, specifically, but it’s everyday people that bring authenticity and relatability to grassroots advocacy efforts.
“It’s very powerful to have someone from the C-Suite able to advocate on behalf of the company. It does not, however, replace the real people, the real men and women who live and work in an elected official’s district. They go hand-in-hand, and they are both very, very important,” Webb said.
It’s a sentiment shared by Crews. “We believe they have a definite impact on the lawmaker’s understanding of the Mary Kay business and the impact that potential legislation may have on that opportunity.”
The Right People. The Right Message.
It takes careful vetting by Mary Kay to identify individual sales force members to participate in state and federal industry lobby days or one-on-one meetings with lawmakers.
“We carefully orient them and advise them and educate them before we would ever set the meeting with their individual legislator, be it state or federal. Therefore, we believe we help them better communicate and inform lawmakers about potential unintended consequences of proposed laws,” Crews said.
Of course, the company also provides less formal, but similarly important advocacy opportunities for interested independent beauty consultants who wish to reach out by phone or email to their elected officials. They suggest a script to introduce themselves and to discuss their businesses and the issues at hand.
Webb recalls more than a decade ago, Mary Kay activated Colorado’s grassroots advocacy network to turn around a piece of cosmetics legislation that would have negatively impacted one of Mary Kay’s products. Independent beauty consultants called their state elected officials, particularly the state senator sponsoring the bill; they prevailed.
“Our public affairs team is very careful and selective about energizing, if you will, any grassroots effort. We want them to be able to live their daily lives, focus on their business, etc. But when called upon, our independent sales force members are enthusiastic about the chance to share their story with lawmakers and we believe the efforts have been effective,” Crews said.
“The focus of any sales organization is to keep your field selling, to not get them stymied or consternated or stalled out for fear of something that they can’t control to begin with,” Webb agreed.
But it’s short-sighted to believe this is truly a barrier to participating in grassroots advocacy, particularly, he added, “if you have an effective and surgical activation plan and are clearly communicating the risks of any kind of pending legislation, and what you need them to do or what you need them not to do.”
From the July/August 2024 issue of Direct Selling News magazine.
