“Tim, how do I motivate my M.L.M downline?”
I am asked this question frequently. Let’s get clear on what is meant by the question - How do I motivate my M.L.M downline? It means, “What can I do to get them to produce more?”
Does anything work?
This is one of my favorite subjects because it’s so misunderstood. Historically people have tried the most asinine things in an attempt to “motivate” human beings. Slavery and threatening of life, rallies and hype-driven events, even people running across hot coals. The US Navy has done many different experiments to try to get men to produce more. They’ve tested whether men who go out drinking together produce more. They’ve put men who hated each other together and men who were best friends together to see which would produce more.
None of these have worked…for very long. People can come out of a Tony Robbins event super excited and “motivated.” But after a day or two - maybe even a week - they’re back to their previous production level.
I might as well go ahead and let the cat out of the bag because he’s practically ripping the bag open at this point. YOU CAN’T MOTIVATE YOUR M.L.M DOWNLINE! But you can get them to produce more. Which is what you really want FOR them and FROM them anyway.
To get your downline to DO more, to get them to exhibit confidence, cheerfulness, and discipline requires you to do two things…GET THEM EFFECTIVE AT WHAT THEY DO with good M.L.M training and make it in their interest to do it. The US Navy concluded that when production was high, more production occurred.
Effective M.L.M training is the only thing that truly works
So for you - trying to get your downline to produce more - or produce anything - you must train them. You might be saying, “But I train my people every Saturday! I give them a training manual. I do conference calls.” I realize you may have been working very hard at training your downline. But, the test of effective M.L.M training is not whether you conduct training. It’s whether the student can do it! NOTHING ELSE.
List of what to train your downline
Here’s how and what I recommend you train your downline on.
- How to establish goals
- How and what to know to be effective (most of which is on this list)
- How to promote
- What to say to people when they make phone calls
- How to set appointments
- How to present the M.L.M business or products
- How to sell the M.L.M business or products
- How to sponsor people (the correct procedures and sequence)
- How to train new distributors
To get your downline to produce and produce more, you need to get them effective in each one of these areas. When they can do each of these things, they will be motivated because they are effective. They WILL produce because they feel ABLE to produce.
Bomb squad trained me
I did not just come up with this M.L.M success system overnight. I worked it up and down until it worked. I got the concept from something I learned in the bomb squad.
Before my network marketing career, I was in the US Navy Underwater Bomb Squad. Only one man is allowed to go work on a live bomb. No sense in blowing two bomb-techs up because of one man’s mistake! When we headed down to work on the bomb, we took a piece of plexiglass and a grease pencil. When we were getting ready to do the first step of defusing the bomb we would:
a) Write what we were going to do.
b) Do the item.
c) Check it off as being done.
Then go to step two. Write it down, do it, then check it off. The reason we did this exact sequence is because if the bomb blew up, the other bomb squad techs knew that very valuable information was written on that piece of plexiglass. When they retrieved the plexiglass they would see that item 1 and 2 were okay to do. But item 3 upset the bomb - don’t do that step!
The items written on that Plexiglas became our “Standard Operating Procedures.” Obviously leaving out that last step that upset the bomb! It was our sequence of defusing that bomb when we faced it again. I applied the same principles to network marketing and the above list of activities. These activities are the only activities that make money in network marketing.
Be a great coach
As a coach, if you have your distributor keep a record of how many times he/she does each activity you can coach the exact item that THAT distributor is having a problem with. If you don’t use this list and try to coach - you’re coaching on what you think the group needs. Or you’re coaching a “pet” category of your own. I’ve observed closely new distributors. They don’t “engage” into the business until they feel confident in what to say to their prospects. Therefore, they need to know how to do items 1-5 before you have them on the phone. See, it doesn’t make sense to know how to do New Distributor Training before they know how to set appointments. I’ve known lots of distributors who’ve quit that still know the compensation plan. I know plenty of failed distributors who know how to train a new distributor who have never sponsored anyone.
I don’t know a lot of distributors who have quit who can set appointments and have the prospect show up. My point is, to really have M.L.M success you need to first train your distributors to be able to invite, and then train them how to present, and then train them how to train.
Other items important in getting your downline to produce:
1. Ethical behavior. People will not follow (or produce for) someone who is unethical or dishonest.
2. Boldness. People will follow boldness because they like following in the footsteps of a bold leader. What does it take to be bold? You must be productive yourself. Let your MLM downline see you face your fears. Let them see you make phone calls, let them see you do presentations, let them see you standing there waiting for your guests.
3. Be interested in them. Show your people that you are interested in their goals. Put your front line’s goals on your refrigerator. Talk to them about their goals. This is where the “make it in their interest to do it” comes in.
4. Be the source of information. Always be up-to-date on the latest information. This means you stay connected to the company’s source of information. Also, teach your downline where your sources are - otherwise you will always be stuck with the job.
I think you can tell that I don’t agree with the philosophy of “leaders are found not made.” Train your M.L.M distributors to be effective and they will be self-motivated. This is very different from you trying to “pump them up,” which doesn’t work.
Tim Sales helps network marketers gain the confidence and skills to be an MLM success. Learn how to become a true network marketing professional and sign up for his free MLM training newsletter and listen to free training at www.brilliantexchange.com
What is the one thing that all successful netowrk marketers have in common? Persistence! All too often people give up too quickly, when right around the corner a sale awaits that could have been closed with one more call, email or other invitation to buy. Persistence can pay.
If you lack the gumption to keep forging ahead, for whatever reason: family crisis, seasonal depressions, too many irons in the fire, etc., reach out and get help. There is no need to go it alone! Stick with your plan and try to spice it up with these techniques:
Team up with another marketer and host a joint campaign together, splitting work and profits down the middle (or whatever percentage works best).
Look to your up-line for advice and helpful tips on how to close some sales, get more leads, etc.
Consider hiring a mentor or coach. Ask your company, friends and fellow business associates for recommendations. Conduct online searches in your industry. Coaches can often help you advance ahead much more quickly because they know what works and what doesn’t, and can lead you through the maze to get to the cheese more efficiently.
Keep hanging in there and while you’re at it, focus on some of the smaller things eating at you, worrying you. For example, if you need cash, pick up some quick moonlighting or other work off to the side, but don’t quit your day job. Search classified and magazine print ads plus keyword phrases online like, “work from home” and “business opportunities” and see what opportunities are out there in your budget. If you’re overworked, get help with housecleaning, auto maintenance, light office work, etc.
Take care of yourself! Make sure you’re eating the right good foods and cut back on junk foods. Get up from your computer every hour and DO something. Get and stay fit: exercise, read fitness ezines or print magazines once in awhile, take an exercise class. Healthier people think healthier thoughts and do healthier work. So get fit.
Do something for someone else. When you focus on someone else, you can often forget your own troubles, at least for awhile, and come back with fresh ideas. So get out and about. Volunteer. Find someone worse off than you or a beginner in your company who needs a hand. Give back and pull yourself up at the same time.
So hang in there! No wimps allowed. Persistence can pay off big time!
Carlos Scarpero is a blogger who writes about internet marketing and MLM. Visit his blog at www.itsaboutresults.com and discover new and innovative ways to promote yourself online.
According to some statistics, only 5 percent of home based businesses managed to generate the kinds of profits that are dangled in front of people to get them to join some kind of MLM system. This is mostly because MLM schemes are not about selling products but about creating massive down lines. The bigger the downline, the higher the profits.
The fact is that after exhausting the warm market (friends, acquaintances, etc.), most people have to resort to some sort of lead generation, finally making cold calls and repeatedly pressuring prospects into becoming paid members in the down line. Problem is that these members are not likely to do what you did and you are stuck one level deep with very few members.
A good solution to this problem is the Funded Sponsoring Franchise System. As a practice, it has been around for quite a while, before the Internet came along. It is only recently, thanks mostly to the confusion between legitimate MLM opportunities and the uncountable pyramid schemes offered, that professional MLM system owners realized that a lot of people were not being able to promote their home based MLM business due to misleading information or simply a lack of adequate marketing skills and tools.
In a very rough form, the Funded Sponsoring Franchise System is basically a business-in-a-box model. Companies that are serious about expanding their markets, do not wish to have affiliates who cannot make money because in the end, it is a loss to the companies. Professional MLM system providers now include a small model of their own business which basically means, This is what we did to succeed, this is how we did it, and here some easy steps for you to follow to make your home based business a success so that we all can profit from it.
Sounds nice doesn’t it?
What this entails for the owner of a home based MLM business is that all the time that you spent on making cold calls, convincing prospective down line members with long drawn out pitches about the greatness of your company and the uniqueness of your products, can be utilized elsewhere.
You no longer have to spend cash on purchasing leads or other marketing gimmicks that affiliate are usually having to do to break even. Your market need not be restricted, once you are out of all your warm-market prospects.
What the Funded Sponsoring Franchise System does is that it helps the average owner of a MLM home based business owner target already pre-qualified prospects that might be interested in working from home.
Think of it as a large automatic lead generation system that is running for you all the time. You can promote your website if your business is online or you can simply promote products as an affiliate. The biggest benefit of the Funded Sponsoring Franchise System, as compared to other
tools for affiliates, is that there is either little or, sometimes, absolutely no money that needs to be spent on advertising. After all, your little franchise is already funded.
Once this is made clear to all the prospective leads the system generates for you, it becomes easy to convert them, because who wouldn’t wish to own a MLM home based business if it can actually sell itself with just a little help now and then?
Any good Funded Sponsoring Franchise run by a truly professional company will involve a detailed outline of a business plan that can easily be replicated by anyone, even people with no marketing skills or experience, to establish a home based business. Another thing people participating in Funded Sponsoring Franchises learn quickly is that while it might make good sense to focus on one area of business to generate a home based income, in the initial period when someone first begins to dabble in this field it is safest to build multiple streams of income. This means a careful and prudent selection of several income generating programs.
There are many websites out there that provide training and information on home based businesses using the Funded Sponsoring Franchise System. One of the reasons why you need to spend so little out of pocket is that with multiple income streams you can reinvest the profits from one stream into promoting all the others at a very nominal cost. Following this simple principle, it is possible for anyone to build a substantial long-term residual income stream.
The training provided is not complicated or too technical, in fact it mostly consists of what you might call advice giving sessions in terms of audio clips, free leads, well paying affiliate programs, free websites, etc.
Most MLM home based businesses are failing because they simply do not know how to succeed. The Funded Sponsoring Franchise System is one of the few methods available that can guarantee a reasonable amount of success as the minimum.
Alvin Blacknall’s a successful network marketer that’s helping others achieve financial freedom. Discover how you can join a successful team of entrepreneurs.
www.cashflowinfinity.com
Thanks to email spamming, it is not likely that there are very many people on the Internet today who have not read some offer about a home based business opportunity or how to earn $1000 per week just by signing up for some affiliate program.
There also innumerable websites out there with success stories and scanned images of Stormpay and PayPal accounts loaded with some serious money and the people behind these stories will tell you to give them just $47 to join their revolutionary program and buy a Ferrari the next month.
So, the question is how to find the best home based business in network marketing?
While a cut and dry answer to this question is not possible, there are some very good precautions that can be taken to assure that the program you join isn’t just a ploy by some affiliate to get you into their down line and leave you at a loose end after that.
Before joining as an affiliate any program that will help you build your home based business, ask yourself whether the business you are helping to co-promote is run by an experienced and well established company or by a new company offering nothing new in terms of products besides packaging. There are many longstanding companies out there, including Blue Chip and Fortune 500 companies, that are slowly realizing that with the digital world shrinking and the real world getting more congested, it is good to have as many successful affiliates as possible.
So, the first criteria is that the company whose products you wish to sell, have a name that buyers are comfortable with in their specific market niche.
The second point is a bit tricky and should be tackled carefully. While some companies have been doing affiliate management for a long time, there will be others who are just starting in that regard. The differences are obvious. While a company that has been doing this for a while is more stable and has a more reliable history, it also means that you are placed fairly low in the down line tree. With a newer company, the chances of building a healthier down line much faster are greater, but then so is the risk of where the company will be next year.
Look into the details of the affiliate program. For example, can you build multiple down lines? Some programs offer the feature that if you sponsor, let us say, 10 paid affiliate members one level below you, then you are given bonus down line members, or a greater commission on every sale per member in your down line. Are there any such benefits?
Of course, it goes without saying that you should read the fine print carefully. There is a very bad tendency in people to scroll through Terms of Service agreements and other policies or procedures and click the I Agree button. Please do not do this. You are starting a business, so be business like in everything you do. Read through every document carefully. Contact the company for clarification if required. One of the easiest ways to figure out whether an affiliate program is genuine or not, is that you can always contact the company directly and not merely through the upline member who sponsored you. Real companies have real addresses, phone numbers, and not just an email id.
If there is no phone number, do not become a member. Upline support, however, is also important in the initial stages. Think of the upline members as your marketing managers. They know more about the company and products (at least in the beginning) than you know and can answer your question. There should be a very good up line support system available.
Naturally, you will not want to sign up with a home based business opportunity that is offering products that are too common (believe it, you do not want to sell plastic spoons) or do not have a healthy market.
Finally, you should check what kind of marketing tools and lead generation systems are being provided to you. A lot of affiliate programs will sign you up for a nominal amount and then bill you for lead purchase, advertising revenues, and so forth. Do not fall for this ploy. Check everything before you pay.
Then there is the matter of building your downline. What kind of help is being provided there? There are many good companies out there offering Funded Sponsoring Franchises. The best idea is to go for those. If you find it difficult to locate such a program, then you should visit some sites offering information on Funded Sponsoring Franchise systems available and the companies offering them.
Remember that online business is not a regular task. Some amount of training is inevitably required and you are better off with a company with a long track record of successful affiliates.
So look for a home based business that has a low startup cost, excellent products, up line support, a real phone number, and a module to help you with lead generation and advertising.
Alvin Blacknall’s a successful network marketer that’s helping others achieve financial freedom. Discover how you can join a successful team of entrepreneurs.
www.cashflowinfinity.com
Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) home based businesses have very little to do with the selling of products. The very reason they are called MLMs is that those levels are what makes all the difference. The difficulty with MLM schemes and home based businesses is the building of as big of a downline as possible. Downline members are basically people who you refer to become part of the MLM sales team below you. These members then have to do the same, with more members in their downline, and each member in the downline at that level have to keep doing this before profits really begin to look like profits.
One way to find prospective downline members (or recruits) is lead generation. This is not as simple as it sounds and needs some amount of planning. Naturally, it is not going to be as easy as people seeing the advertisements about your home based businesses, its products and getting excited enough to sign up instantly. There are millions of MLM home based businesses out there with the same products and payouts. Most people considering joining an MLM scheme will have questions. At the very least, you should be able to answer all of these questions without repeatedly emailing backlinks to a FAQ page. To that end, you must familiarize yourself as much as possible with the MLM distributor, the products, and the compensation plan.
You have to have a comfort level with the knowledge about your own home based business so that when you talk to people it shows through. You might generate a ton of leads but if your answer is not satisfactory, chances are you will not convert most of those leads. Some sort of appointment calendar or planner should also be kept diligently so that follow-ups are not missed. It can take several callbacks before people will be willing to invest in your MLM home based business. You are basically selling, and selling can take convincing many times over.
So once, you know everything about your MLM home based business and you have the few basic sales tools in place it is time to start generating leads. To begin with, make a list of everyone you know, friends, acquaintances, relatives, anyone with a computer and an internet connection that could be a prospect. Start with these people. If you make mistakes in your sales pitch, they will forgive you and since their answers will be more candid, this will make good practice for later on. One important thing to do upon discovering that someone is not interested in your MLM business is to ask him or her for a few names of people who might be. This way you can build a healthy network of contacts. Sometimes they may hesitate to give you the names, so just ask politely for only the names of the people they feel they can give you without any trouble.
Start collecting business cards, email addresses, and phone numbers. This is for the purpose of making cold calls because you never really know who might be interested. Cold calling is one of the most difficult things to do for any fresh salesperson. It might be uncomfortable in the beginning but keep at it. All it needs is confidence. There is no trick to it. Then there are the MLM trade journals, another good lead generation source for home based businesses. People considering MLMs are already reading these journals. Sometimes it is a nice touch to include a press release, along with your advertisement. Naturally, the first rule of advertising is that your ad should be unlike all the others in order to get attention.
Most affiliate programs will have a hidden cost for those who don’t know better. That is the purchasing of MLM leads. The trouble is there are probably dozens of people out there with the same leads and the competition gets tougher. A lot of companies will have a list of emails and phone numbers for people who in the past might have shown interest in MLM opportunities. Purchasing leads for MLM home based businesses is finally a matter of how good you are at converting those leads.
There are a lot of people out there and a lot of websites that are in the business of nothing but selling leads. Therefore, before buying leads for a MLM home based business make sure that the leads are relevant and that a genuine company of good repute is providing them. A list of emails and names can be sold many times over, make sure you are getting fresh leads only. Do some background research on the company selling leads. The Do Not Call registry has phone numbers that you should not buy. Checking for those numbers is up to you. The company selling you the numbers is not required to do this.
Alvin Blacknall’s a successful network marketer that’s helping others achieve financial freedom. Discover how you can join a successful team of entrepreneurs.
www.cashingin4success.com
If you’re scared of public speaking, cold calling, or talking to strangers, then read on.
Diffusing live explosives can produce some enormous fears. But fear is not welcome while working on anything that blows up. It distracts one terribly. When I was in the U.S. Navy Underwater Bomb Squad I was fortunate to have a Master Blaster by the name of Master Chief Hufty teach me how to overcome fear.
Little did I know the number of times I would recall this lesson, nor did he realize he helped me become a better public speaker and an MLM success story. I would like to share this valuable lesson of how to overcome fear with you.
Master Chief Hufty was probably the smallest physical man I ever met. He stood about 4′3 and weighed around 95 pounds. Yet he is the largest man I’ve ever met. In the military when one achieves something praiseworthy he/she receives “medals” to be worn at formal events. In non-formal situations he/she substitutes ribbons for metals.
The ribbons go above the left shirt pocket and each ribbon is approximately one-half inch high and one inch long. Master Chief Hufty had so many rows of ribbons they actually went over his shoulder and started down his back. He was the most decorated soldier I’d ever seen! To be educated by him was a true honor.
One afternoon we were working on a bomb and I freaked out…I’d rather not detail that portion of the story. But, Master Chief Hufty disassembled fear for me. He broke it down into digestible and visible parts so that I could “see” it and define each section and thus, control it.
Since fear is a major problem for many MLM distributors, your MLM training needs to include how to overcome fear.
When we (you and me) encounter unpleasant or alarming conditions our mind becomes a stage of conflicting voices. Some would define this as the Fight or Flight theory. Parts of us want to fight whatever we fear, and other parts of us want to run (flight) from what we fear.
Master Chief Hufty called it “mind chatter.” Fear, especially sudden fear can cause the best in us to freeze. What is “freeze?” Freeze is stuck between fight and flight. If you neither fight nor flight you’re wasting your only asset - TIME.
To gain control of my thoughts again, Master Chief Hufty told me to repeat this sentence over and over, “First I do this, and then I do this, and then I do this.” By repeating this, I could slowly walk myself out of the “mind lock” by directing 100% of my attention to what I needed to do next.
Worst-case scenario for a bomb squad technician is obviously death. Dwelling on harmful outcomes only leads to that reality. Yikes!
Now let’s take a look at the fear of public speaking and how this relates to your MLM business. As a network marketer this could take the form of conference calls or MLM training and opportunity meetings. The fear is that you will look or sound stupid. What are the chances of delivering an intelligent presentation while mentally forecasting stupidity? Very low.
So what is the solution to fear of public speaking?
1. Be prepared. Know what you’re going to say. Never “wing-it.” Before diffusing my first live bomb, I spent copious hours studying the anatomy of explosives. I furthered the learning process by role playing for days with dummy bombs. In our platoon we lived by the phrase, “The more you bleed in training the less you bleed in combat.”
Bravery and success come from confidence in one’s own ability, not from placing oneself at risk. The same principle applies to MLM prospecting and public speaking. Study your materials, prepare your notes, role play what you will say into a tape recorder. When you stand up in front of people just think - “First I’ll say this, then I’ll say this.”
2. Don’t focus your attention on you. Focus your attention on your audience. If you’re scared, you’re thinking of you instead of your audience. Put 100% of your attention on your audience and what they most need to hear from you. Rarely does a speaker sound “stupid” if they’re focused on helping their audience.
You must earn the right to being a great public speaker. There are no natural public speakers. It takes practice, persistence and more practice to truly master the art of public speaking. If you will take the time to think through each step and learn how to bypass the mind chatter, you can improve your abilities to present a great conference call, conduct an electrifying MLM training seminar or host a successful opportunity meeting.
Tim Sales helps network marketers gain the confidence and skills to be an MLM success. Learn how to become a true network marketing professional and sign up for his free MLM training newsletter and listen to free training at www.brilliantexchange.com
Let’s start out with defining the word booby trap: a situation that catches one off guard; a pitfall; a hidden hazard.
The reason I chose “booby trap” is because the subjects I’m going to explain to you can in fact catch you off guard and be a hazard if you’re not knowledgeable about their existence.
There are three phases that one goes through as they advance (if they do) in their MLM business - each can be a booby trap to the individual.
Introverting
The first phase is what I call Introverting. Introverting is defined as: to direct your mind inward and examine or dwell on personal thoughts, feelings, and motives. (Encarta Dictionary)
So how can we use this definition in an MLM business? Normally introversion occurs in the very beginning of one’s career in network marketing. The indicators of someone introverting are when one is greatly concerned with what he or she LOOKS or SOUNDS like to others. When they’re studying or practicing scripts they’re so focused on the actual words that they don’t communicate the meaning or concept to the prospect. What they say sounds stupid - like they’re scared or uncomfortable. Their voice shakes and they sound very unsure of themselves - which communicates, “I don’t believe in what I’m doing” to the prospect.
See they’re not focused on the prospect - they’re focused on SAYING the right thing. Therefore the concept of what they’re saying doesn’t REACH the prospect.
So if you’re a new person and you are constantly thinking about what other people think about you - you must get past it. Here’s how to get past it:
1) Drill - which means repeat something over and over, what you’re going to say BEFORE you get in front of a live person.
2) Focus all your attention on the prospect.
3) Get into such a high activity that you don’t have time to focus on your fears.
When you confront what you fear enough times, you fear it no more. As you CONTINUE to do this, you will start focusing on DOING IT instead of worrying whether you CAN do it or not. Then something bizarre will happen. You’ll sponsor someone in your MLM business. And on that day you’ll realize you really CAN do it.
MLM distributors who do not get out of introversion end up trapped by it and either quit or don’t succeed. They are also the ones who say, “The M.L.M business just isn’t for me.” Or they will claim the WHOLE industry doesn’t work.
Every time I see or hear this I think, “Wow, should I send my bonus check back to the company - EVERY MONTH - because somebody says the industry doesn’t work?” Of course it works. But the first barrier you have to get past is what other people think of you.
Okay, so for this discussion, pretend that you actually get past yourself (introversion) and into activity. You start bringing people into your MLM business and you feel wonderful. You get real confident and it almost seems effortless to bring people into the business.
The people that are still in introversion are almost mesmerized by your abilities and want to know your “MLM success secret.” When they hear the secret they’re shocked that it’s the same old stuff. There is no secret. The primary difference is one is out-of-introversion and DOING IT and the other is still worried about what people might think and are “TRYING” to do it right.
Doing It All
The next trap I’ve called DOING IT ALL. The success of being able to sponsor people into your MLM business eventually becomes a booby trap as well - and it is very well concealed. The person has sponsored several people and has been praised so much by his or her peers for the ability to sponsor people that they identify themselves as “the person who can sponsor a lot of people.” Meaning their identity gets stuck to that one activity.
I’ve seen people sponsor 30, 50, 100 people and just keep on doing it. Waiting for someone to be as effective as they are. Occasionally one might sponsor someone who has gotten past introversion in another field, but normally not. The symptoms of DOING IT ALL are statements like:
- “None of my people are doing anything!”
- “How do I motivate my downline?”
- “I keep sponsoring duds.”
If this is you - you’ve watched very valuable, very capable people fall through the cracks. You’re adding people as fast as they’re dropping off the other end.
You are delusional to think you’re going to find someone who will get past introversion without your help! Stop it. You’re doing the industry a disservice because it generates a higher failure rate in the MLM industry. You’re doing yourself a disservice because it can be very disheartening to sponsor all these people thinking you’re going to be making a ton of money on them only to see them quit within a month or two.
You must train the people you sponsor. If you’re unwilling to make a leader out of the person you’re sponsoring - don’t sponsor them! It takes great patience to train people in network marketing. You have to sit through the pain of listening to them present - WARNING - don’t do this on an empty stomach. You want so badly to save them - you can’t…if you ever want to make a lot of money in MLM. Doing it for them only handicaps them. You cannot do it for them - you must train, train, train, and when you think they will never get it - you train some more.
They will get it when YOU get enough patience. By the way, don’t stop your training until you see that your distributors can properly train THEIR distributors. If you don’t do this step your MLM business will not move past the 3rd level. You won’t build a Christmas tree (better than saying pyramid :)…you’ll build a diamond. All your volume will be up in your first 2-3 levels.
Velvet Rut
The final trap is what I call the VELVET RUT. You’re making 3-7 thousand dollars a month and the thought of going back to recruiting again is daunting. The reason I call it the velvet rut is because you’re making just enough money to keep you in the game - so it’s kind of comfortable, but because you’re not making the money you’ve dreamed of it’s still a rut - therefore a trap. Go back to work and sponsor 3 or 4 more and build them into leaders. GET YOUR DREAM.
Tim Sales helps network marketers gain the confidence and skills to be an MLM success. Learn how to become a true network marketing professional and sign up for his free MLM training newsletter and listen to free training at www.brilliantexchange.com
If you are going to be successful in MLM or in any selling situation, then building rapport is essential. Building rapport with prospects is not something you are born with, but rather is a learned skill.
There are five major things that you need to focus on to build rapport.
The first essential skill is body language. You must learn to read body language. You can learn body language by checking out library books on the topic or by surfing the Internet for tips. You can also learn body language by simply paying attention when other people are around. Here are a few basics: eye contact is a must, avoidance can mean falsehood or mistrust with others. Keep arms in un-closed position, welcoming communication. Ditto with legs (don’t sit with arms and legs crossed as it can mean you are closed to the other person). Maintain a nice, friendly smile (not tight lips). And don’t get in the other person’s space or face. Keep at a comfortable distance.
The next thing you should do is to get in a casual mode.
Relate in a comfortable manner with the other person. For instance, don’t wear stiff new clothing and shoes that aren’t broken in and hurt your feet. This can affect your own comfort, making you less at ease, regardless of who your prospect is. You want to be able to talk, laugh and enjoy the other person’s company while you’re building a relationship. No one wants to focus on whether they are having a bad hair day!
The third skill for rapport building is using some finesse. You must learn how to handle conversations and activities in a cordial and friendly manner using tact. For example, if your prospect is lewd or otherwise obnoxious (maybe drunk at an after dinner event), learn how to skillfully acknowledge him or her briefly, then turn your focus in a productive direction to seek out communication with another prospect, without hurting the other person’s feelings, if possible. Sometimes etiquette books can help with this. Most often, though, look to the older and more experienced attendees in the room and follow their lead.
The next essental rapport building skill is handling conflict. You must learn how to handle difficult situations without falling apart at the seams.
Finally, you need to learn cooperation. Cooperating with and supporting one another should be a common goal with prospects. You’ll both be seeking referrals down the road and want to be able to stick together and support each other in a professional, businesslike manner.
As the saying goes, “Rome wasn’t built in a day.” Neither is rapport. Establishing and building relationships is a process. Mistakes will be made. By learning to get through rough spots, offering and accepting apologies and working things out, you’ll reap rapport.
Carlos Scarpero is a blogger who writes about internet marketing and MLM. Visit his blog at www.itsaboutresults.com and discover new and innovative ways to promote yourself online.
You don’t need big bucks to get big results with cheap advertising methods. In fact, some of the best methods are free. Let’s take a look at some popular inexpensive techniques and ideas.
ADVERTISING
You can’t get much cheaper than with free email accounts! Grab yours from hotmail.com, yahoo.com or gmail from Google.com. Or search “free email accounts.” Then place an ad in your signature file.
Set up an affordable website. Although free web hosting comes with ads, plenty of hosting companies offer it cheap to remove the banners. Set up an online portfolio and leads generating form to capture leads, then add this URL to all your marketing and communications.
Get a toll-free phone number and list it on all of your marketing materials and communications.
Joint ventures are a great way to team up and swap ads.
Set up an affiliate program and invite others to advertise for you in exchange for earning commission for each sale. If your company doesn’t have one or has their own version, test one of your own.
Check into ad cooperatives, joining up with others to promote jointly, like in your local newspapers.
Cheap classifieds can result in big sales. Search online and off for good deals. Many websites even offer free ads.
Use ad exchanges like Traffic Swarm where your website is shown in exchange for other websites being shown. Most of the people on these exchanges are involved with home based businesses and could be your perfect prospect.
Cold calling doesn’t cost much but long distance, and that can be found cheap nowadays. Many phone companies even offer unlimited flat rate long distance.
You could advertise on your vehicle with an inexpensive sign or vanity plate.
Your local charity or community club like Lions Club and Jaycess are always looking for help. Get involved with Toastmasters to improve your speaking skills. Volunteer to speak at events. These clubs are always on the lookout for good speakers.
Sign up to teach a course at online teaching sites and at local centers.
Sponsor a contest or fundraiser
Write and submit articles regularly to online directories about your products, services and industry. Submit them to offline media, too.
Set up a blog and keep a daily journal going online.
Get press releases out monthly via PRWeb.com and offline to targeted media that cover your industry.
Head to forums and chat rooms in your niche. Sign up for an account, learn their rules and regulations and gradually join the community.
Advertise through free give-aways like: ebooks, reports, manuals, software, trial memberships and downloadable graphics. Make sure your information is on them and even allow others to turn around and give these away for viral marketing.
Sell on eBay: an ebook or report or guide about your products or services. This is a cheap way to generate traffic to your site listed on your About Me page and listed in your sale items.
Carlos Scarpero is a blogger who writes about internet marketing and MLM. Visit his blog at www.itsaboutresults.com and discover new and innovative ways to promote yourself online.
As a website owner, what is the one essential ingredient that you will need for success? Traffic! One of the quickest, easiest, and cheapest ways to generate website traffic is by using a traffic exchange.
Traffic exchanges work on a barter system. Although the specifics vary, generally you surf for credits. Normally, you have to spend 20 seconds at each site that you visit. In exchange for this, the exchange company will post your ad for others to see. Your credits will normally come on a 3 to 1 or 4 to 1 basis, meaning that you need to surf four sites for every one that they will show. Many exchanges will also offer bonuses for referring friends, often several layers deep and those bonuses can add up quickly.
Most traffic exchanges have categories available where you can post your ad. This is a very nice feature as you will get targeted prospects that might be interested in your product or service.
While many of the traffic exchanges can produce great results, often times many people do not use them correctly and fail miserably. Here are some tips to help you get the most out of your traffic exchange experience.
The first thing you need to do is offer something for free. It doesn’t matter if it’s an ebook, a video or a sound clip. People are on the exchange because they have to be there, not because they want to be there. They are seeing pitch after pitch every 20 seconds and quickly put their credit card away. So, be different and be nice and send them a free gift for visiting your website.
The next thing you must do if you want to be successful is to collect your prospect’s email address. However, leave the selling for a later time. Your point of being on the exchange should be one thing and one thing only: getting subscribers.
Many people are using traffic exchanges to promote multi level marketing and affiliate programs. This can be a great way to recruit, but keep in mind that many programs will saturate quickly on the exchange. Always ditch the corporate opt in form and make your own. There are many products that will make creating your own opt in form a breeze.
Try to find a traffic exchange that allows you to run multiple ads so you can split test. Take advantage of this. Your responses will improve significantly.
The real key to making money with traffic exchages is by cross promoting the exchanges. There are several downline builders like Traffic Tornado that make downline building a breeze. Also, use the Firefox Browser and surf multiple exchanges at once. This will make it a lot easier to rack up credits in a hurry.
If you are serious about making money online, then traffic exchanges are welcome additions to your online arsenal.
Carlos Scarpero is a blogger who writes about internet marketing and MLM. Visit his blog at www.itsaboutresults.com and discover new and innovative ways to promote yourself online.