If you don't have a large customer base, consider sharing your open house with one or two other Independent Beauty Consultants. This way, you don't have to do everything yourself. Hold it at whomever's house is the best location for the event and you should see a steady flow of customers.

Send invitations to your existing customers either by email or regular mail. But don't stop there. Just like in your everyday business, you want to follow up. Make calls to the customers you've invited and ask if they're coming and what time you can expect them. And during the open house, if you're in a lull and there are no customers there, take action. Get on the phone and call people or text them!

So many people ask me, "Should I hold my open house before Thanksgiving or after?" I do both because I have a large customer base. But if you're holding only one open house, I suggest you have it before. By the time Thanksgiving has passed, people have already shopped. So you're missing out on a huge opportunity. Also, it gives you time to call the people who didn't make it, and you can still see them after Thanksgiving.

Try giving your customers open house options. They could either come in person, order online or place orders by phone or text. People lead such busy lives especially during the holidays. This gives them the opportunity to do business with you even if they don't have the time to stop by. Remember to put these options in your invitation!

To ensure a successful open house, I offer extra incentives to my customers who come early in the day. Think of them as the Early Bird Specials. Stores have been doing this for years, right? That's because people may have the intention of coming, but during the course of day, things get in the way. So give your customers a reason to come to your open house first. You could offer them a gift with purchase or even a discount, but I recommend it be based on the amount purchased.

Here's how I handle it. My customers who come between 8 and 10 a.m. receive a gift with purchase. And I have a different gift for four different amounts of purchase. For example, if they make a $40 purchase, I give them the GWP. If they purchase $80, they get the GWP plus another gift. And I go on from there. You can tailor this to fit your customer base, the time of your open house, or even your on-hand inventory. The key is to do something to ensure that your customers want to get there early!