We all may have heard the harsh truth about the failure rate in business. For Network Marketing success, the odds are the same – a whopping 90%.
Better than 100% right? (I know. I’m not a comedian.)
Balancing work life, family life and business life can be a challenge.
Often times newbie Network Marketers walk into an opportunity completely unaware of the change in mindset, habits in thinking, feeling and doing that are necessary to becoming successful.
Not to mention the sacrifice that comes with the territory of success. There is a price to pay.
Now, we are not talking about selling your soul or having a business at the expense of relationships with friends and family or a business at the expense of personal fulfillment or integrity.
But we are talking about something called delayed gratification. Anything worth while and worth building will take time.
And then there are the skills, some being familiar and others not so familiar. Not just learn these sets of skills rather master them in order to become a network marketing star. (Provided that is what you want)
If a several six figure or seven figure income is not what you are looking for then let yourself off the hook. You can take a deep sigh of relief here. The rest of this article is still for you though.
Growing into a leader and running a team may seem daunting. Heck you may not even see yourself in this role yet. Don’t sell yourself short. You may be a leader in the making. You just don’t know it.
It all can seem a little… much. That’s if, and we say IF, you let it.
We are not here to complain and whine. We are here, dare we say, to look at this challenge square in the eye and embrace it with everything we have. Why? That’s precisely it. Our Why dictates it.
Here are 4 Tips to Creating Favorable Odds For Your Network Marketing Success
Tip #1: Define Your Strengths from the Beginning.
What are you naturally good at? Write it down. There are no right or wrong answers. Give yourself the chance to celebrate your strengths and recognize them. We encourage you to do this now. It will benefit you to understand this about yourself. We will explain more a little later…
If you are having a hard time figuring this out, ask people around you what they think your natural talents are. We also suggest reading “Managing Oneself” by Peter Drucker.
One of our first mentors told us that, Network Marketers are professional promoters, inviters and event planners.
Along our journey we learned there are other “job descriptions” to add to the list. Network Marketers are also story tellers, public speakers, leaders and teachers.
I thought it was interesting and it almost seemed so simple, too simple. Actually, it is true.
Think about it. The essence of network marketing is promoting a product or service to your local market (with an opportunity attached to it).
Usually the “market” is interpreted as meaning our friends and families. Although, with the advent of the internet the term “market” has evolved.
- We invite people we know to our houses or to a coffee shop (or a webinar) to see what we have to offer.
- We promote events to our team members.
- We invite our prospects to three way calls or to take a look at an exposure, be it a video or a sample of a product, etc.
- We may be the host of a hotel meeting in our local areas and therefore step into the role of event planning. (There is a lot to hosting a hotel meeting by the way.)
Remember that list of strengths we asked you to make earlier?
- Are you a really good people person?
- Are you a really good speaker?
- Do you have experience coaching teams or teaching people how to do something?
You get the point.
Once you define what you are great at doing, you will come from a place of power and authenticity in your business. Furthermore, you will know where you fit best within the Network Marketing business model. This is a key concept here. Please take note.
If you are not that great at closing the sale or speaking in front of people, don’t worry. Always know you have a place, a “fit”, in Network Marketing.
This brings us to our next tip…
Tip #2: Understand that Network Marketing is a Team Sport.
Remember that Network Marketing is big business. Few people understand this and instead, approach their business like a hobby.
If you are familiar with Robert Kiyosaki’s book on the Cashflow Quadrant, you may remember his description of the S and B quadrants.
S = Stands for superhuman (where one has to know it all) or S as in small business (where one wears all the hats in a business from dishwasher, to waiter, to cook).
If you have not read this book, we highly recommend you do. It’s an eye opener.
B = Stands for big business where the owner does not expect to be everything to everyone. Wouldn’t that be exhausting anyway? Rather, they assemble a team that come together as parts that make up the whole. The B quadrant also focuses on systems.
So if you know your strength is not public speaking, by all means work on that. But at the same time, look for someone to join your team who is a great public speaker and also needs the opportunity you have. It should be a good fit.
We get paid to help each other succeed is it not so? It is good to consider closely what each team member’s strengths are. Then see how each one can help the other where they are weak.
Together all accomplish more that way.
Tip #3: Prioritize Approaching the Right People First.
While it is true Network Marketing is a “numbers game” and that when we make our list, we are not supposed to pre-judge anyone, it still does not mean we can’t work smart in our businesses.
It still would be wise to narrow down who you want to approach first. Why? The odds are in your favor to close sales. This means you make money early on in your business.
When you make money within your first, let’s say, 30 days, this raises belief within you that the business model works.
You will also find as you bring other distributors into your network and duplicate this, you will help that distributor believe that they can do it too.
So who would be best to approach first? Definitely folks you know who have done Network Marketing before, preferable those with a track record of success.
We have to understand those who are new to Network Marketing may have misconceptions about the profession and the business model. It is our responsibility to educate them. This takes time.
When we approach people who have Network Marketing experience, it makes the process of adding them to the network easier.
Entrepreneurs and traditional business owners are good to approach first because they already have the mindset. You will find that as you and your team add people to the network, there will be a need for regularly scheduled education on personal development and skill sets. Having people who have a business background will make your network stronger.
And then there are professions that are parallel to the product or service you are promoting. Let us explain. If you are promoting let’s say a skin care line, you may want to approach a make up artist you know, or a salon owner.
If you are promoting a health product, you may want to approach a chiropractor or a personal trainer. These products fit naturally within their professional life.
Who else to prioritize? Anyone who may need your product/service or opportunity. The key word here is need. Remember you are here to add value to people’s lives.
When you have something that will solve an issue or problem in someone’s life be it losing weight, getting rid of wrinkles, saving money on a bill, you become the hero. Those who need what you have would be great customers to add to your network, not to mention great referral sources for you future customers.
Leaders are also good to meet with. Who do you know that has a wide circle of influence? We’ll tell you a secret… it is the leaders in your organization that create the passive income Network Marketing offers.
Now leaders are both cultivated from within the ranks and others are already leaders that have joined your network.
Try to find the leaders and meet with them to show how your product/service and opportunity would be of benefit to them.
Tip #4: See Your Network Marketing Business as a System Early On.
If you are an analytical person, this will be very easy for you.
Knowing the steps from first contacting someone, to inviting, then presenting, following up, closing and getting them started correctly, then repeat is just one layer of the system to your business.
Remember in our profession, we build from event to event to event. This is also a part of the system. You may want to consider how the coffee shop meeting can feed into the mobilization of folks for another meeting taking place at a distributor’s house a few days from now. You get the point.
Consider how the multiple webinars and house meetings are set up to promote an upcoming hotel meeting within the region or the national or international gatherings your company holds on a yearly basis.
You see everything has its purpose.
These events are critical to your business because they provide social proof to all your team members including yourself that you all are a part of something much much bigger.
What is your system for keeping your folks plugged in for regular personal development and for skills training? Your upline should help you with this.
In closing…
You have at least a few skills under your belt already – life has taught you how to be a network marketer.
We have all heard this is not rocket science and it is not! The skills we need to learn do not require an investment of let’s say a college education.
Is it not true we have all invited someone to something? Invited a friend over to watch a movie or play a game. We invite our prospects to meet one on one or to an event all the time, do we not?
If you are a mother or father taking care of a family and are responsible for providing food, shelter, safety and education for your children, as a parent you are leading the family. Leadership skills are essential in Network Marketing.
Most likely your upline has already laid out a lot of the systems in place for building the network. You just have to plug in.
Always remember you have strengths to capitalize on. Focus on those strengths, work on the other skills you may not be so good at but by all means do not dwell on them.
Rather than spending so much energy on trying to improve on aspects you may not be very good at or do not like or have no interest in doing, find a person that has those skills to compliment you.
This is why you are going to succeed in Network Marketing. You have read this article and have gained a new perspective as CEO of your company. Keep up the great work!
- Looking at Your Network Marketing Business as a System. - March 16, 2017
- 4 Tips to Become Bulletproof in Your Business. - February 12, 2017
- Practice Handling Objections – Flash Cards - February 10, 2017
