How to Use Your MakeLifeEasy Image Management System - For Agents

• This topic describes one way to enter data. You and your agent may agree on a different way. See Data Entry - Who Does What for different ways to split the responsibility.
• For more information, see Choosing an Agent.

This topic has all the steps you need to use the MakeLifeEasy Image Management System. Here are a few notes before starting:

• This topic is for agents. If you're a client, use this topic.
• Agents should read and understand all topics related to clients' use of MakeLifeEasy. You should have a good understanding of how the application works for clients and how they use it. See the links at the bottom of this page.
• Here are a few new terms: A "need" is an item on your client's shopping list. An "asset" is anything your client owns. You "cover" a need when you buy an asset that fulfills the need. The need goes away until it becomes "uncovered" because the asset "wears out" or "expires". Then you must "cover" it again, with another asset.
• This topic describes one way to enter data. You and your client(s) may agree on different way. See Data Entry - Who Does What for different ways to split the responsibility.

Here are the basic steps for image management:

1. Initial Setup

You do these things once, when you start the program:

1. Create your account and profile,
   
2. Link up with your client(s), and/or
   
3. Set up your listing
   
4. Learn how to use MakeLifeEasy

2. When a New Client Requests Your Services

You do these things whenever a new client needs your services:

1. Contact the client and form your agreement
   
2. Perform your initial consultation
   
3. Define and enter the client's wardrobe needs
   
4. Perform a wardrobe audit for the client
   
5. Go on an initial shopping trip with the client

3. Periodically (about weekly)

You do these things as often as your client base requires:

1. Check and verify your clients' shopping lists
   
2. Check for clients needing a deep review
   
3. Get client approval for added services
   
4. Shop to fulfill clients' needs
   
5. Bill clients for services

4. When a "Shopping Opportunity" Occurs

You do these whenever you have a "special opportunity" to fulfill clients' needs:

1. Check and verify your clients' shopping lists
   
2. Get client approval to shop
   
3. Shop to fulfill clients' needs
   
4. Bill clients for services

5. When a Client's Profile Changes

1. Review updated profile and take needed action

6. If/When Your Own Profile Changes

1. Update your profile

That's It

That is the entire typical basic process for keeping your clients' wardrobes in peak performance. You and/or your clients may want to do things differently. That's your choice.

1. Initial Setup

You do these things once, when you start the program.

Create your account and profile

You do this from the MakeLifeEasy Image Management System home page. Click on "Join now" after the "Experts:" sign in.

Link up with your client(s)

How you link up with a new client depends on how the client contacts you:

1. If the client requested that you create an account, email them your member name after you create it (above). Then they can type in your member name and instantly be linked to you.
   
   
2. If the client chose you from our list of agents, you need do nothing. They will automatically be connected to you when they sign up.
   
   
3. (Coming soon) When you refer a client, they will automatically be connected to you when they sign up.

Once you create your profile, we will review it and work with you to display your bio on our list of preferred agents, if we mutually agree to do so. That way, new clients who have not been referred by another agent can select you as their agent.

Learn how to use MakeLifeEasy

You'll need an active account to do this. After your account is active, practice using MakeLifeEasy, starting with this topic.

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2. When a New Client Requests Your Services

You do these things whenever a new client needs your services:

Contact the client and form your agreement

You'll automatically receive an email whenever a new client requests your services in MakeLifeEasy. You should then contact the client and start an image consulting engagement with them, just as you would with any other client.

Unless you're providing remote consulting services, you'll typically meet with your client in person for the initial consultation, and perhaps from time to time for future consultations.

Perform your initial consultation

In general we assume that you will perform an initial consultation with your client, which would, in many cases, include defining the client's wardrobe needs and performing a wardrobe audit. In your initial consultation you would examine the client's profile and understand their needs and wants. The MakeLifeEasy Image Management System includes an online profile and a more extensive document file (In Microsoft Word format) that the client may fill out and send to you. In addition, you may gather you own profile information -- this is entirely up to you.

You'll form your consulting agreement with the client as you would for any other client, regardless of whether they use MakeLifeEasy.

NOTE that you must sign in to perform the operations described here.

To view a client's profile page:

1. Click on the "Clients" command to view your list of clients. All clients who have linked to you will be displayed in the list.
2. Click on the member name of a client. That client's profile page will pop up.
3. View that client's profile page.

To view a client's profile document:

1. Contact that client and ask them to email you a copy.

You must make a client your "current client" if you want to view or change their wardrobe data. In any of the operations below (adding needs, adding assets, updating lists, etc.) assure that you make the client in question your current client.

To make a client your current client:

1. Click on the "Clients" command to view your list of clients. All clients who have linked to you will be displayed in the list.
2. Click on the member name of the client you want to make your current client. That client's Client Profile page will pop up.
3. Click on "Switch to this client" to make that client your current client.
4. Note that the member name of your current client shows up under your main menu.

Based on the client's profile and professional and personal goals, you will define the client's specific wardrobe needs, that is, the specific articles of clothing they should purchase and maintain in their wardrobe. Then you enter (type in) these needs in the client's MakeLifeEasy database.

You use your own expertise to define the needs, although MakeLifeEasy can provide some help. Specifically, MakeLifeEasy provides some sample wardrobes for general professional environments, and helps you to enter these into the database quickly and easily.

To view and enter sample wardrobes:

1. Make the client your current client (if you haven't already).
2. Click on "One client" under the "Wardrobe needs" command in your main menu.
3. When the "Wardrobe needs" page appears, click the "Add many needs" button at the bottom of the page to pop up a page that displays the many ways to enter needs.
4. Click on one of the links on that page to display a specific wardrobe need "kit" entry page (the "Wardrobe Need Kit" page).
5. Click on the "Help" button for further instructions on how to enter needs with that page.
6. Load needs with that page.
7. When you're finished, you can press "Go" on the "Wardrobe Needs" page to see that the needs are loaded.

NOTE: Some agents may prefer to do a wardrobe audit (see the next step) before determining a set of needs for the client. This may help to get a feel for the client. This can also help to identify existing assets around which you might want to form capsules, so you can enter some of the client's needs in the capsule format.

If you do choose to do the audit first, you should still enter needs in the database before you enter any assets, since this makes data entry easier.

Perform a wardrobe audit for the client

To perform a wardrobe audit, you or the client will print out the "Start up worksheet". To do this:

1. Make the client your current client (if you haven't already).
2. Click on "One client" under the "Wardrobe assets" command in your main menu.
3. When the "Wardrobe assets" page appears, click the "Start up worksheet" button at the bottom of the page to pop up a printable audit form.
4. Print out that form, follow the instructions, and use it to perform your wardrobe audit with the client.

Your own wardrobe audit form may be different. You may use the page instructions as a guideline only.

At the end of any audit, you will usually have a set of clothes to keep and a set to dispose of. The set of clothes to keep should be recorded in MakeLifeEasy. This is optional but recommended so that your shopping list will only show needs that are "uncovered" by any existing assets.

To record the clothes to keep (after a wardrobe audit):

1. Make the client your current client (if you haven't already).
2. Click on "One client" under the "Wardrobe assets" command in your main menu.
3. When the "Wardrobe Assets" page appears, click the "Add asset" button at the top of the page to pop up the "Add Wardrobe Asset" page.
4. Click on that page's "Help" button for further instructions on how to load assets with that page.
5. Use that page to load each asset that you plan to keep.

NOTE that you must assign each asset to cover a "need". If you loaded the initial set of needs as described above, you can usually pick a need from the list. If you can't find a need in the list, you can create one by pressing the "+" button next to the need list. But, you should ask yourself: "If I don't have a need for this asset, why am I loading it in the database? And why am I keeping it?" See the "Add Wardrobe Asset" page's help topic for more information.

Go on an initial shopping trip with the client

After entering the client's wardrobe needs and their starting set of assets, there will be a "gap": The difference between what they need and what they have. You shop to cover this "gap". Depending on the client's needs, urgency, budget, etc., your initial shopping trip may only cover some of this gap, and the rest may be filled later on subsequent shopping trips.

The assets that you've just purchased must be entered in the database. You must decide between yourselves who will enter these assets.

To enter these assets:

1. Make the client your current client (if you haven't already).
2. Click on "One client" under the "Wardrobe assets" command in your main menu.
3. When the "Wardrobe Assets" page appears, click the "Add asset" button at the top of the page to pop up the "Add Wardrobe Asset" page.
4. Click on that page's "Help" button for further instructions on how to load assets with that page.
5. Use that page to load each asset that you've just purchased.

Each time an asset is entered, the need is covered by that asset will be fulfilled for some time. That need will drop off of the "urgent" needs on that client's shopping list. What actually happens is that it drops way down on the shopping list since it is now "covered" by an asset with many "days left".

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3. Periodically (about weekly)

Your goal is to keep your clients' wardrobes in "peak performance". You do this by always keeping assets (articles of clothing) in their wardrobes that meet their needs. This helps your clients to achieve their professional and personal goals.

MakeLifeEasy provides a way for you to know what's happening in your clients' wardrobes; especially, which article needs are unfulfilled or will be unfulfilled in the near future.

Your client base may require very frequent attention (say daily) or infrequent attention (say monthly) depending on a number of factors, including:

• The number of clients you have in your database
• The size of your clients' wardrobes
• If the clients have needs that you have not yet fulfilled with assets (e.g. their monthly budget requires a slow wardrobe "buildup")
• How frequently your clients' wardrobes "turn over"; that is, how frequently items must be replenished due to wear, style changes, client preferences, etc.

You do these things as often as your client base requires:

Check and verify your clients' shopping lists

1. To view all your clients shopping lists bundled together into one big master list, click on "All clients" under the "Wardrobe needs" command in your main menu.
2. Click on the "Days left" column header to sort the list by "days left" if it's not already. This indicates how many days are left until the need must be replenished.
3. View the needs at the top of the list. These are the ones with the least "days left". Using this value depends on the situation and requires judgement. To see all needs that must be fulfilled this week, view all needs with less than 7 days left.
4. In many cases this "days left" value may be "off" and must be updated or confirmed. For example, if three clients have urgent needs (within the next 7 days), you may want to call or email them and make sure that their need data are correct. The client can do a quick wardrobe audit and adjust their urgent needs' "days left" if needed. Alternately, the client may tell you the status of the need(s) and request that you update the data.
5. Once these needs are confirmed as correct, you have this week's shopping list.

Certain clients may also need a "deep review", that is, a deep audit and cleaning of their closet. You can check the anniversary dates of your clients to see who those might be. If you find any, you can contact them and either ask them to do it themselves or offer to help.

To check a client's activate dates (these are usually the same as their anniversary dates):

1. Click on the "Clients" command in your main menu.
2. View the activate dates in the list of clients.

Services that you might provide periodically include:

• Meet the client(s) at a store, show, etc. to shop with them to replenish their needs.
• Pull items at a store and put them on hold for a client.
• Purchase items for a client.
• Perform a deep review (e.g. annual wardrobe re-audit) for a client.
• (other services you feel are appropriate)

As you should for any client, get approval to perform services for the client and agree on terms before proceeding. At least be sure you have an understanding. Of course, it is usually bad practice to extend credit to a client by purchasing on your own credit line(s). If you do purchase for a client, you should have prior access to their credit line, store account, etc.

Shop to fulfill clients' needs

Shop or perform the other services described above.

Bill clients for services

MakeLifeEasy currently provides no billing services for agents, although we may provide this for you in the future. For now, bill as you would for any of your services.

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4. When a "Shopping Opportunity" Occurs

You do these whenever you have a "special opportunity" to fulfill clients' needs. For example, say you have a special opportunity to shop for suits at a great trunk sale, and this opportunity only occurs twice a year.

Check and verify your clients' shopping lists

1. To view all your clients shopping lists bundled together into one big master list, click on "All clients" under the "Wardrobe needs" command in your main menu.
2. You may want to filter the list. In this example, you could filter for "Suits" only.
3. Click on the "Days left" column header to sort the list by "days left" if it's not already. This indicates how many days are left until the need must be replenished.
4. View the needs at the top of the list. These are the ones with the least "days left". Using this value depends on the situation and requires judgement. For example, since this opportunity to shop for suits won't happen again for the next six months (180 days), you can view all "Suits" needs that have less than 180 days left.
5. In many cases this "days left" value may be "off" and must be updated or confirmed. For example, if three clients need suits within the next 180 days, you may want to call or email them to let them know of the opportunity, and make sure that their need data are correct. The client can do a quick wardrobe audit and adjust their suits' "days left" if needed. Alternately, the client may tell you the status of the need(s) and request that you update the data.
6. Once these needs are confirmed as correct, you have a shopping list for these clients.

Similar to the above.

Shop to fulfill clients' needs

Similar to the above.

Bill clients for services

Similar to the above.

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5. When a Client's Profile Changes

A client's profile may change due to many factors, such as:

• a job, position, or career change
• a geographical relocation
• a weight gain or loss
• a coloring change (e.g. due to aging)

If a client changes their profile online, they will generally notify you. In this case you would review the profile changes with the client. If the changes require an extensive wardrobe change, you might need to perform functions similar to those in your initial consultation (above).

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6. If/When Your Own Profile Changes

Your own profile may change due to many factors, such as:

• a skills improvement (you may update your bio)
• a geographical relocation
• a status change (if you get too many clients, you may need to switch to a "Waitlist" status)

To update your profile:

1. Click on the "Profile" command in your main menu.
2. Make the necessary changes and press "OK: Save".

If you must make changes that you can't make on this page, please contact Image expert support.

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Additional Topics

• What Is The MakeLifeEasy Image Management System? - for Clients.
  
  
• How to... Use Your MakeLifeEasy Image Management System - for Clients.

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