By Tim Sales
I’d like you to forget for a second that you’re in Network Marketing. What if you were starting any other kind of business like a retail store, a salon, or a construction company. Where would you get your customers? Your employees? How about business partners? Where would you find them?
In one or more of those categories a friend, acquaintance or family member might be the right fit, maybe not. Maybe they know someone who would be the right fit. Somehow it always works itself back to an acquaintance, a recommendation or a referral. In MLM, we called this your “warm market.”
Your warm market can be one of the greatest resources to your business. And dealing with family and friends can be a blessing or a curse, but if you want your family and friends to continue to respect you, give you referrals, be your customer, and possibly say “yes” to your opportunity, I recommend you follow these five simple tips this holiday season when faced head on with your warm market.
Rule #1 Hold your tongue. Don’t ever insult someone for his or her decision not to participate with you in your business. Don’t tell someone they’re stupid for not doing business with you, even if it is “the way you talk to your brother.” It’s unprofessional and out of place.
Rule #2 Be wise. “No” rarely means no. That same brother in three weeks or three years could lose his job. If you’ve made a fool out of yourself, not only will he not do the business, he will beat you to all of your friends and tell them about the “scam” you’re in. All of this because “you told him” how stupid he was. That’s not wise.
Rule #3 Deal with it. For over 10 years I’ve dealt with objections, concerns, past failures, bad experiences, and more – all of which have all taught me how to successfully handle these issues.
Just as an experienced dentist knows that treating teeth is the easy part and the hard part is dealing with the patient’s “baggage” – like the time the “other” dentist stuck a six-foot needle in their gum when they were 14 years old. “Dealing” with these issues is what “wins” the patient. Once the trust is established you’ve got them for life or until you decide to stop servicing their needs.
Rule #4 Yes or No. Some prospects take just one conversation to be won over and some prospects take 10 conversations. (Nine of those conversations resulted in a “No” answer even though “No” was never stated.) If you take the thought process as being that either the prospect says “Yes” or “No,” then you’ll miss the art of communication and networking.
Suppose your company has 20 products. If your prospect says “No,” find out what they are saying “No” to. Are they saying “No” to all 20 products? Are they saying “No” to “I don’t want to diversify my income?” No to ”I don’t know anyone who needs or wants any of your 20 products?” That’s a lot to say “No” to. I recommend that you find out exactly what your prospects are truly saying “No” to.
Rule #5 Don’t be a bug. Do not ever “bug” family and friends about your company. Sometimes Networkers get extremely focused, which is good, and it should never be suppressed. Focus is what creates “eliteness.” Just be disciplined as to what and who deserves that focus. If it’s a friend or family member who clearly isn’t interested, quit wasting time there and go get in front of people who do want to be a part of your business or a product consumer.
Your warm market is an important part of your business. Abuse it and pretty soon you’ll notice they don’t return your phone calls anymore. Keep these five rules in mind when you’re at holiday gatherings this year and you will see that you can have a successful business and keep the respect of your family and friends.
And there you have it – five rules to follow when working with your friends and family.
Much respect and admiration,
Tim Sales
For more in-depth information on this topic study the Professional Inviter lecture series by Tim Sales.
Tim Sales’ training is based on his personal success of building a down line of over 56,000 people while working full-time in the Navy. Instantly access Tim’s free eBook “How To Build A Huge MLM Business Working Part Time” and get a detailed map to help you plan your success in 2011! Visit www.firstclassmlmtools.com/ebook
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
This is great training for new distributors – before they have alienated their friends and family.
These rules apply to any prospect, really. Thanks for posting this.
With Thanksgiving coming up in the US, and the current state of the economy, you KNOW money (or lack of it) is going to be the talk at many family gatherings. These are great rules to remember when chatting with friends and family members. Thanks!
We are feel very honored to have been chosen for this tour by Tim Sales! As for this article, the warm market is always going to be a resource of people that when worked properly can bring huge dividends to your business as Tim says. Follow these 5 Rules carefully over the upcoming holiday season. Any business owner taps into his or her referral base because its just smart business. It is HOW you go about it, that makes all the difference. Ignoring it, or allowing these people to railroad you with strong opinions or objections, can be overcome with learning some simple techniques. Tim addresses this with his Professional Inviter.
Larry and Laura,
Thank you so much for hosting Tim for this week’s leg of his month long tour. You are just what this tour needed for a GREAT kick off!
LaTara
LaTara Ham-Ying recently posted..Day 9- Build Reader Relationship with Social Networking