In 1974 when I wrote the first edition of "Magic Methods of Recruiting Commission Salespeople™" (Pelican Press) I covered what was then a relatively new concept:
"MLM RECRUITING IS A SALES PROCESS"
That fact had somehow been lost on all the mlm management teams of the time. In fact, they worked very hard at tryingto convince their organizations that "selling" was unnecessary and that people would flock to their opportunity if only they learned about the "cutting-edge" new products the company had created.
Balderdash! ... Clear that junk out of your mind right now. If you don't approach sponsoring as a *selling process* you are doomed to long term failure. Period!
All the conventional tools of professional salesmanship apply to the recruiting process. In fact, given the overall importance of recruiting, to your ultimate success or failure as a mlm distributor, I will go so far as to say that if you are to excel in sponsoring new distributors to your network... you simply *must* develop a high level of understanding and expertise in professional sales.
Please note that I am not talking about high-pressure, beat them over the head selling techniques. If you have to pound your prospect into the sand to get him/her to sign up for your program... you are wasting a lot of time and energy for nothing. These types of sponsorship activities do not win long term converts... they make for begrudging failures who will only eat up your valuable time trying to train the non-trainable and teach the unteachable.
Consultative Recruiting™ involves gently leading the prospect to realize that by getting involved with your opportunity they will more rapidly achieve their greater goals of: financial independence, improved lifestyle, security, happiness, health & wellness, etc.
Consultative Recruiting™involves the top-level, persuasive techniques of great consultative salespeople. The techniques are basic to any good selling system:
1. Generate high quality, targeted, sales leads and an automated system for immediate personalized response to their interest or inquiry.
2. Questioning and Qualifying methods that expose the true underlying values, wishes, dreams, desires, and goals of your prospect.
3. Presenting your opportunity in its best possible light using tons of benefits that directly address your prospects concerns about:
5. Immediate immersion of the new distributor into a structured training and development program geared to build product knowledge, sales and marketing knowledge, procedural knowledge tied to individual goals and objectives, and... most importantly... a commitment to a written plan of action by the new distributor.
6 Automated systems in place for continuous follow-up should the prospect choose to "think it over". Remember ... The Money Is In The Follow-Up!
Even the most casual observer can see that this truly is a "Selling Process".
Many of the MLM guru's of the day have built a long string of euphemisms to explain this process so as to cloak the fact that it is really all about professional consultative selling.
I understand their concern. Most new network marketing recruits are not "selling types" and actually want nothing to do with selling.
They are normally part-timers interested in supplementing their income by a few hundred dollars a month. If we understand that... and it is imperative that we do if we are to succeed... then it tells us how to structure our sales approach to most clearly appeal to this norm.
Appeal to the prospects desire for a supplemental income of $300 to $700 per month. Show them how that extra $300 to $700 per month will help them achieve their larger goals in life... getting debt free, education for their children, improved lifestyle, building for retirement, etc.
Let him/her learn later that there is a bona fide opportunity to earn many thousands of dollars a month. Upon recognizing the very real possibility for serious income, the motivated ones will strike out on their own to achieve it.
I have developed a generalized MLM recruiting concept I call the 3E-SYSTEM™ that I will discuss more in Lesson # 2 of this free mini-course.
For now, go back and re-read this first lesson and adapt the mind-set that mlm recruiting is a professional consultative selling process. It will set the foundation for everything else we present in this free mini-course.
To read the full Recruiting Mini-Course by email autoresponder send any message to: RecruitingMiniCourse@royal-responder.com
Paridigm Shifts, Responsibility, & Network Marketing...
"...one of the marks of a paradigm shift is that what used to be considered peripheral, moves to center stage." (Thomas Kuhn)
Mlm And The Baby-boomer Generation...
One of the largest markets for wellness products, is targeted directly at the needs and concerns of the "baby boomer" generation.
Changes In Recruiting Practices For Network Marketers...
Three conditions now exist which will change the way we solicit and recruit new MLM downlines forever... ONE: The CanSpam Act will bring mass email based recruiting efforts to a screaming halt. The risk, frankly, of being accused of sending spam is just too great. Violators of the Act can be subject to stiff criminal penalties, which include fines and up to five years in prison. Civil damages can amount to as much as $250 per spam e-mail. Aggravated violations can cause civil damages to be tripled The dayswhen we could buy a list of thousands of "opt-in"business opportunity seekers, plug them into anautoresponder follow-up system, and wait for the systemto do its magic are drying up fast.
