The Keen Marketer

John Gray of “Men Are From Mars and Women Are From Venus” personally sponsored Rhonda Collier into my business opportunity and she had some really good tips when it came to team work.

T: Together: Connecting with people and gathering the right minded people takes time .  You must be ready to listen to their needs and discover the person’s greatness, that is why we share our story together as a team so that this person can identify with others who have gone through the same thing.

E: Everyone: Everyone needs your product but not everyone may be open to the opportunity.  That is why followups are so important because you are supporting this person in their endeavor and using the team to further give support.

A: Achieves:  You are not in business by yourself.  There are others who have your interests at heart because if you succeed it helps them succeed.  It is always about helping others get to where they want to go as it is for your up-line to help you get where you want to go.

Tools such as 3-way calls and training ensure that the team is doing similar challenges so all are on the same page, ie dupllication.

M: More: This is where leverage is really clear.  As your team achieves more, the hours and time you have invested in doing your part the right way also gets multiplied by the others on your team doing the same actions as you.

More actions = more revenue back to you.

Everybody wins!

And don’t forget to have fun.  Do things you love to do and get together for events whether it’s a barbecue or a company event.  This keeps your team awake and vibrant.  Offer incentives and challenges.

We all want a lifestyle of freedom, health, support and greatness.  Using your team and being part of a team with this ideal will certainly get you where you want.

Being in network marketing is simple but when it comes to applying what we learn, there is a learning curve involved especially when understanding and learning how to use leverage.

We know that we will be leveraging other people’s time and efforts to benefit us and others in our team.  But how do you really do that effectively?

First of all, this is a business in which you are not alone. If your team is a great one, there will be daily training calls, weekly calls and even corporate calls to tap into.

It’s easy as one two three.

Just invite one person on a call each day.  This way they will be getting the training they need and you will have more time to prospect rather than be tied down with training calls to your team.  This is leveraging at its most simple.

The advantages of doing this are really clear.

Your associate will get the right training and tips they need to be successful, in the same manner you did yourself.  It is duplicable and offers flexilbity.

Using the 3-way call is another under-rated tool.

The more you learn to use the 3-way call, the more your business will explode.  Use it even with someone that is not interested in doing the business.  It will offer comfort to the product users and expose them to other people’s stories.

Remember that it is the story that sells.

If you are not comfortable with 3-way calling yet, then practice using the 24/7 replay line.  Just ask your prospect to listen to the message that you go and get for them.

What could be simpler?

It all boils down to you working in an environment that provides superior training that will allow all associates to be as successful as they wish depending on the energy they give their business.

No matter what, it is a recipe for success!

In network marketing, there are 2 income producing activities you should be doing.

1. get customers
2. recruit business partners

This is easier said then done, of course.  But here are a few tips that might take the edge off.

First of all you want to attract people to you and you do that by giving value.  Find out what that person need.

In order to do that, ask questions.  Your’e not a mind reader!  Once you know what they need then you can better identify if your product can help.  Hopefully it will do all it is supposed to do or why else are you promoting it in the first place?

Secondly, when you’re not looking for customers, you want to attract other networkers.  Why? Because you don’t have to sell them on the benefits of network marketing.

Now don’t get me wrong, there are inexperienced people who start network marketing every day and they do quite well in the long run, but they need more time and training than someone who has already tried it before, even if they might have been unsuccessful.

Short of finding other networkers, you can broaden your search to business owners, teachers, people in areas of influence that have a large circle of friends.

You can find them at the Chamber of Commerce meetings, BMI’s, at the Y, the list is basically endless and  don’t forget going online.

Find out what makes them tick and what you have to do to change or improve in yourself in order to attract more of them in your life.  If you need to get a haircut, update your wardrobe, etc, then do it.  How you look physically can be a turn on or turn off.

You can even think of writing an e-book and give out for free.

Make sure that you enumerate the many positive aspects of network marketing.  Some opportunities, like the one I am involved in, has no overhead, no stock, no boss, no geographic constraints, no specialized education and best of all no limit on income.

When recruiting networkers, lead with the business.  They know there is always a product attached, but they also know that the compensation plans can vary greatly as can training.

This post is by no means complete as to how to find either customers or prospect other networkers, but just remember that attraction is a most compelling tool that will bring you some of both.

“It’s easy! We do it for you.”

You go online and you’ll find tons of opportunities that guarantee outrageous money while they do all the work. Sounds too good to be true?

It usually is!

Pt Barnum always said “There’s a sucker born every day”. There will always be people who want to believe that getting rich is quick, easy and risk free. I may be prejudging here, but these people are lazy.

Network marketing is a unique business venture that appeals to many people but it is not easy. However, perseverance and hard work can bring financial success much quicker than any You will be selling your product but you are also selling people on the business model which can satisfy their financial goals for the future.

Thing is, the average person has mainly been exposed to the employee model and may not know a whole lot about having their own business.

They may not understand basic business principles. So coming across a “hands-off” system that can generate big bucks with no investment of time or effort and little money invested can be appealing to many.

But if these systems did what they say they did, then why would they need you?

They wouldn’t! In a real network marketing business you are contributing a monthly investment in time, money and indispensable human interaction.

I am not saying that automated systems are bad. On the contrary, some are excellent but in the end it still is only half the equation and building a relationship with your clients and prospects is what will insure your success for the long term.

Personal interaction and mentoring is the glue that holds an organization together. When distributors hit those “rough spots” in their business, the coaching and advice that they receive from you or any other leader is what will keep them going.

You are really getting paid for managing an organization. Help your people succeed by developing leaders.

This, automation cannot do! It takes a human being to do this and that’s why you’ll never get paid for doing nothing.

Plus, all systems – no matter how automated they are – still require a human being to monitor and manage them.

Nothing runs on its own but don’t turn against having an automated system to help you in your prospecting. It can be the difference between achieving success the first year rather than 2 years down the line.

Get a grip people. If you’re in network marketing you’re in sales.

It’s always nicer to say that you are sharing though. At least I like to think of it that way but I do realize that underneath it’s sales.

So you’re a beginner and you were told to share with family and friends. Were you trained first?

If not, you are not being prepared properly and are being set-up for failure.

Sharing does sound less confrontational than selling and approaching your family and friends is less stressful, I admit that. But it gives a false impression of being easy. That’s one thing network marketing is not. It is simple but not easy.

The main reason people are told that it’s sharing is because everyone hates being sold to and sharing gives it a much cozier feeling, which can be ok if done right.

Although your role changes when there is monetary compensation involved, this should not deter you from tapping into your warm market.

Understanding this early may save you some sleepless night. But also understanding this should motivate you to learn effective sales skills.

Just recommending your products to people you know is not enough. You need to give them a good reason to buy from you.

Just because someone is your friend/relative does not mean they will or should spend their money with you.

It is not wrong to approach your warm market, in fact you should not need to go out of your warm market, but you have to give them strong enough reasons to buy your product rather than Joe Blow’s who lives next door.

You have to address their needs! Money is secondary to the help you can provide this person whether it is with a new product or even with the business opportunity attached to your product.

What does that person need in their life to improve it? And how can your product or business op address that need?

Good upline training will get you ready before you approach anyone in your warm market. If that is not the case, then find someone that will help you and be there at every step of the way.

It may very well be the best and the company may have a really good compensation plan but we’re forgetting the most important thing here: it’s not about the product, the plan or the company.

It’s really about how you’re going to market your product.

When investing in a house you focus on location –location-location. Your network marketing business should get the same focus except it should be marketing-marketing –marketing.

How many people dive in headfirst into one company or another just because it has the greatest product or the best comp plan only to wonder later why they aren’t making any money?

Your product may be the most wonderful one in the world but if you’re not using effective marketing, who will know about it and who will care?

Effective sales & marketing is bar-none the most important function of any business including network marketing.

Your sales and marketing system will determine your success or failure.

You need something in place that can produce the cash you need to cover your expenses of prospecting, training, conventions, etc. Your sales are your revenue and the driving force behind everything.

That’s why you need to be concerned about the strategies you’ll be using above all else.

A good marketing system is crucial. Some people see the difference immediately and some just don’t get it.

Don’t get me wrong, you may believe that your company is the best on all counts but so do many other networkers believe theirs is the best too.

What will differentiate them from you is your marketing strategy.

Therefore, the person who succeeds is not the one with the best company, but the one who can do the best job communicating the idea of their company and product.

Of course having the best product is great but if you think about it, how many millions of mediocre products are sold daily because of the great marketing?

If you’re lucky enough to have a company that focuses on creating marketing tools that will help you with your marketing strategy, then great. But such companies are few and far apart.

Your goal is to put the marketing back into network marketing.

How often do we hear that excuse or objection?

I shouldn’t be so harsh though because most of the time it’s probably true.

People are very busy and finding an hour here or there to do network marketing can be a challenge.

So what do you tell someone when they say they have no time to do this business?

First step is to explain what leverage is all about. We hear it often but do people really understand the concept?

Network marketing is not a conventional business. This is not exchanging two hours of work for two hours of pay.

Let’s say you find that you have only two hours a week to work your business.

Well, 2 hours at your real job will pay you what they are worth to your boss. Now two hours doing network marketing will leverage the time of all of your business partners (downline) and pay you much more than your hourly wage will.

That’s the magic of network marketing.

What you can do in 2 hours is multiplied greatly by the number of people under you doing the same thing.

What does this spell?

FREEDOM!

The bigger you become, the more hours you will be leveraging and getting paid for.

Once your contact understands the idea of leveraging, they may be more open to its possibilities and find 1 or 2 hours a week at first. As they start to earn on their leverage, they may soon find that 2 hours a week is just not enough.

A second component to the no time issue is to help them structure their time in order to see exactly what time can be spent on their business.

What happens in a case like this is that people find how scattered their day is to start off with and a good weekly plan can make all the difference in freeing up minutes here and there that can be used either for the business or to spend with family.

Every body wins in this business especially if they are taught well through sound training.

Everyone’s a prospect! You may have come across that statement from a fellow networker or even your upline trainer.

To believe such a statement puts into practice the “3 foot rule” and the “when in doubt blurt it out” technique.

In these days of network marketing, you will be laughed at and rejected often.

Who likes to be rejected?  Not me!

So you may be new to the industry but it does not mean that you have to talk to everyone that comes within arms length. There is nothing more embarrassing than to go to a network marketing convention and see hundreds of associates approaching anything that walks and talks.

It makes me want to hide! It’s also these kinds of antics that have damaged the industry’s reputation almost beyond repair and what holds back a lot of people to even consider network marketing as a viable second income that could lead them to the freedom they really want in a shorter time than a 9 to 5 job ever will.

Now don’t get me wrong. I was once a newbie and I also didn’t know any better or I should say I was not taught any better.

I can remember a convention I attended in Florida about 14 years ago. Boy, when we hit Tampa, Tampa new we were there. Thank God I have since learned how to really do network marketing in an efficient and less intrusive way.

The plain old truth of the matter is that not everyone is your prospect!

Not everyone is looking to run their own business. There will always be some, and that really is the majority of people, who just want to have a no hassle, don’t bother me life. And that’s great? Don’t you need customers?

And there will always be some that despise the industry and see it as a scam. There is nothing you can do about that and as Jim Rohn says “Don’t even go there”.

Why waste your energy when there are others just waiting to hear about an opportunity that might change their lives?

Remember that your time is valuable and that people have to earn their time with you by showing an interest in what you’re offering and by asking questions.

It doesn’t matter if you think the person is the perfect prospect. Until they go out of their way to get more information, they really are just another bystander.

It’s not your job to convert anyone. Your job is to get the maximum returns possible for your time and efforts. How? By talking to people who is already on the same page as you or soon will be.

Sure you can cold call and try to prospect other networkers and you might get lucky after many rejections. I hate cold calling. It just makes me squirm inside.

There are much better ways to market and invest in a respectable marketing system that will find targeted prospects that want to hear what you have to say.

Who finds who first is what’s important. It positions you as the expert and you no longer have to feel as the hunter looking for prey.

You’ve gotta believe that your network marketing business will  make it big!

You mean to tell me that all I need is to really believe that my business will be successful and it will be?

I don’t think so.

Don’t get me wrong, believing in yourself is important but you don’t need a dream board to make that $40,000 per year at your day job, do you? Of course not!

It boils down to the tools you are using to be successful. You don’t use a shovel to dig a foundation, you get the backhoe. Well network marketing works on the same principle.

You need a system other than just word of mouth.

The right tools will bring you consistent, steady progress. Motivation will be the side-effect of a good marketing strategy.

Would not talking to highly qualified prospects every day be a good motivator?

But motivation hides behind shyness or lack of self-esteem when you have to personally go out there and find a prospect that would be interested in your offer.

Staring at your vision board or reading your goal statement to remind you of why you are doing this in the first place can get tedious.

It’s when you stop worrying about belief and apply yourself to learning about how to market your business that you will find the people you want for your business, because they will be searching you out and not the other way around.

Motivation Isn’t The Solution. It’s A Copout.

That’s what your upline will tell you when you get discouraged and are looking for answers. They just don’t know what else to say.

Instead they should be asking you what type of marketing strategy have you implemented. If they taught you how then this should never be an issue in the first place.

You cannot do without a good marketing system.

Internal drive will get you where you want and it’s the real results that will motivate you.

Yes, anyone can do network marketing, that’s true, but not quite.

You have special skills, right? So do I and so does every unique person on this earth. What this means is that not all network marketers will be created equal.

Not everyone can jump in cold turkey and get the same results that the experienced networker will get. Maybe a newbie who is highly placed in their day job decides to enter network marketing.

Being a top dog of a company, they are already making big bucks and certainly won’t be suffering the same financial stress most people experience as they struggle to pay their monthly bills. They will also have access to many other professionals who already trust and respect them.

Will your stay at home mom, secretary, student or bank teller be having the same kind of results as the person above?

Of course not!

Everyone is on a different time line and what determines how quickly and easily a person will have results all starts with the skill level they have.

Thankfully skills can be learned if the desire is there and someone who is unskilled should not be turned away.

You need to first identify their desire level. Sales skills can be learned by anyone.

There should be a multi-step qualification process. After you’ve seen that the prospect is serious about building a long-term business vs a quick buck opportunity the next question should be time available to build their business.

This business can be built on 8 to 10 hours a week, but a really serious prospect should be told that they will need at least 15.

As far as money goes, every company is different when it comes to the initial start up costs. However, the prospect will need an ongoing marketing budget. This is one tip not often suggested by an upline leader simply because they were never told in the first place.

It is absolutely mandatory if you wish to run your business at its full potential.

A marketing budget will insure a constant flow of fresh, qualified prospects.

How you generate these leads can be through your own advertising or buy them from people that do that as a business.

I prefer to generate my own. However, this is a topic for another day.