Views: 666
| 
Comments: 10 
Skip Months of Misdirection and Confusion,
Implement this Action Plan and Gain Traction Fast!
Top Ten 10 Stupid Things Network Marketers Do to Mess Up their Business
Written by Vicki Berry on May 24, 2009 6:35 am
1) Thinking MLM IS A “NUMBERS GAME”. No, it is a relationship game. While the numbers idea is true in the strictest sense, Direct Marketing/Sales is more a numbers game than MLM. You do not need to look for 99 NOs to get a YES. If you just think of prospects as numbers your future won't be as bright in MLM. Trust is the emotion of network marketing; You have to earn it by consistently doing what is best for your people. You need to be a Mentor with a Servant’s Heart. "A leader is not measured by how many followers they have, but how many followers they have inspired to lead."
2) Not Knowing their WHY - This is what fosters persistence and staying power, keeps you and your prospects focused on your goals and results in retention.
3) Recruit instead of Sponsor - If you Sell or Close someone into your business you will have to re-sell them every month to get them to do any work. This and recruit-recruit-recruit behavior causes you to end up with the wrong people into your business. Someone negative, unmotivated, or who has no ‘why’ will end up fostering dissent in your team. Your focus must be to your people, not on your personal profits. You want coachable people with strong desire and work ethic. They will tell you their ‘why’. Look for someone who is looking for you, it is not up to you to chase them down. A recruiter never knows their peoples’ ‘why’. Products come and go; companies come and go. but good relationships last forever.
4) Buying Leads / Not using a turn-key system for duplicating lead generation. You want a lead generation system that will bring in only the most qualified people into your group, and a simple marketing system that is inviting, non-threatening, informative, educational and fun. The more complex it is the less chance it has of fostering retention.
5) Not following up with prospects. Don't expect your leads to call you, they won't! Even if you have already called them once or twice. Continue to follow up!
6) Present themselves as an expert - Educating your prospects is fine, but overwhelming someone with information about your product and opportunity puts people off; they think they have to know all the details to succeed. But when if you offer a duplicatable system which provides all the information and resources that do not have to be memorized or recreated, they see possibilities.
7) Not understanding their compensation plan or policies and procedures - Be able to determine how many people you will need in your downline to create your target income. About 70% will be inactive. Know whether your company has the option of terminating your distributorship and for what reasons. Is it a renewable agreement which can changer? Be careful choosing a company whose hands in which you will be placing control of your residual income.
8) Lead with their product - yes you need an exceptional product but you need to understand and focus on people, helping others reach their dreams should be your top priority.
9) Leading with their Opportunity - ok for approaching sales people, but which are only 10% of the population; you have just eliminated 90% of the population! Focus on people and find out what their interests are, and work with those.
10) Indecision and lack of focus - Going after every next pre-launch, when 90% of network marketing companies fail in the first year. Some people spend 90% of their time looking for the PERFECT product when there are many exceptional, stellar, outstanding products. If you continue changing your decision, you will never reach your goals. And beginning with multiple streams of income may result in multiple streams of outgo and lack of focus. If you put all your talents knowledge, studying and training into creating a superb business model using a proven marketing and training system first, then spinning off in different directions may be more effective.
To find out more about how to avoid making these and other mistakes, check out Mentoring for Free.
About the Author: Vicki Berry
Member Since: 03/28/2009
I'm a Distributor For:: SISEL International, LLC
Other Company: Empower Network
Industry: No Industry Selected
Primary Web Site: http://MLMDreamSaver.com
I wish I Knew this 4 years ago
These are just Plan Stupid Mistakes. If we were opening a Business that cost a 200,000 to Start we would would of Made sure We did not make these mistakes. We would of hired a Business Mentor. Well MLM is no different if you want to Succeed You need to find someone who is Succeeding to day and Copy Them.
so number 11 is trying to do it alone.
Thank you Vicki. This will help alot of People
YOur friend for life
Juanita Waterman
Why do people make STUPID mistakes with their MLM?
Why do people make STUPID mistakes with their MLM? There are many reasons, (1) Someone told them these mistakes were actually good ideas [I've been told many times it's a numbers game] (2) They're uneducated [since I trusted my mentor I thought it was a numbers game] (3) Motivated by greed and getting to the finish line ASAP [kind of like hoping to have a turkey dinner but expecting to eat it frozen] (4) FEAR [Don't get me started] (5) Laziness. [I love this one because people will work harder at finding excuses than simply trying something different.] I could go on, but you get the point. Great article.
Thanks for spelling it out.
Best regards,
Doug Sparkes
Hi Vicki
1) Thinking MLM IS A “NUMBERS GAME” - no, it is a relationship game. Direct Marketing / Sales is a numbers game. Do not look for 99 NOs to get a YES.
Vicki,have you ever spent any time listening or reading Jim Rohn? He has an excellent story of the sower and the seed that he has adapted to MLM. His story (very much paraphrased) talks about sowing seeds and not to worry about the birds that come and eat some of the seeds you've planted etc. I can't do justice to his story and I won't try but the point of his story is to keep sowing your opportunity and not worry about the ones who don't say yes for whatever reason. His "sowing" story stated not so nicely is "MLM is a numbers game". You have to keep finding more and more people as many of them (as in his story) are going to fall by the wayside. The ones who win in this game are the ones who sow the most seeds (talk to the most people). If you sow 10 seeds (talk to 10 people) and I sow 100 (talk to 100 people) which one of us is going to be most successful? To show an example let's say we are going to get 90% that don't germinate. On that scenario, I'm going to land up with 10 and you are going to land up with 1. The similarities continue - Some of those seeds are going to grow but for whatever reason their desire is not strong enough and everything else takes priority. So I have 10 and you have 1 - I can afford to have someone too busy to work the opp. - can you? No, but my numbers are higher. Another one, the birds ate. (He bowed to the pressure from others that MLM is a scam and quits) I can afford to lose one - can you? No, but my numbers are higher. I could go on.
The point is - in MLM, success can be directly connected with numbers. The higher the number you can influence (See the GoGiver) the more successful you will be.
Whoever is telling you MLM is not a number's game is flat out wrong. You've got to sow a lot of seeds to get a bumper crop.
To your success,
Joyce Penner
Joyce
Why don't you join me I will never see you as a Number I will see you as a Real live Beautiful Miracle that you are. Who ever is telling you that you are a number is flat out wrong. You are a beautiful Mother and Family Person. So Join us and have some fun and lighten up.
Juanita Waterman
In response to Joyce comments on the sower...
Hey Joyce and everyone else,
What a great parable... The Parable of The Sower!
Joyce you make some valid points about being able to afford to lose a few prospects. Your number of prospects are higher. Superb point and well taken too. Simple math... we're talking numbers here in this example. You win some and you lose some, and you've thrown out a lot of seed.
But we're not talking about seeds and we're not talking about numbers, we're talking about people.
I like the Parable of The Sower. It talks about how the sower threw his seeds out and they just randomly landed. Some in stony ground, some in ground where it would be choked out by weeds, some was eaten by the birds, and some landed in good ground. Naturally, only that which landed in good ground did well.
I'm a gardener. I love to grow things... and when I do I care for my plants well because I want every single one of them to not just grow, but to thrive.
Because of this, I prepare an environment for them which is ideal for their needs. I think it's the same way with business. It's not the number of seeds you put out, it's the environment you create for that seed to germinate and that plant to thrive.
I can throw tons of seeds out helter skelter, and you're right, some would grow and many wouldn't. If instead I create an ideal environment for each one of my seeds (and I do) then I can almost guarantee that 100% of them will end up growing and thriving in the garden.
Growing a garden and having friends you want to be in business with and share your and their successes together with for a lifetime are very similar.
It's not about throwing out enough seed, it's all about creating an environment that each seed which you DO throw out can thrive in.
Just my two cents...
Peace and Abundance in all good things,
Randy Enman
Thanks for the comments!
Thanks for all the comments, all are truly appreciated!
Joyce, I supposed I should have said something to help the reader not miss my point there. You are right indeed that the more people you talk to you have more chance of someone joining your business. Of course I do take the initiative to mention my products or opportunity should the right occasion presents itself. But my point was to emphasize that it is a relationship business (edits pending :).
Until not long ago I had sewn plenty of seeds that weren't germinating. Being told 'no' and having friends and acquaintances avoid me because they ~feared~ I would continue to try to get them into business with me (eve though I would not) was painful and unnecessary. It is just a lot more natural focusing on relationships and not worrying about the numbers, letting people ask me about my business if they are interested.
Numbers or Relationships?
It's a paradox - we have to work the numbers to find enough people to not treat as numbers!
If we practise The Slight Edge and keep contacting as many people as possible every day, we'll be building long term relationships.
Bob and Anna
So True!
Thanks for the great information. Too often we forget that we are in a friendship building business.
Todd Bobal
Randy you said it just right
Randy, Thanks for bringing up the point that what you do when you 'sew your seeds' is so important. If you have taken the time to cultivate and prepare your soil you will have far more seeds germinate. Likewise, if you have cultivated your relationships, and trained properly anyone interested in this business, they will be far more likely to trust and respect you, then are more likely to join you, and even succeed themselves (thus not falling by the wayside).
Thanks for the enlightening comment!
Thats the difference between Old School and Higher Education
Like the old MLM parable of getting a hundred no's. Who want's to get a hundred no's for gosh sakes? The history of teaching that system is anchored in the results 98% have been getting all these years.