The purpose of my next few blog posts is to explain why people fail in network marketing. These blog posts are obviously my personal opinions but they are based on the knowledge that I gained and the things that I saw as a corporate employee. It's amazing to watch distributors because the successful ones always do the same things and the unsuccessful ones always do the same things. Now, to be fair, I definitely think some mlms are better than others due to quality of product, structure of compensation plan, integrity of executive team, etc. so this blog is not completely comprehensive of everything you need to look for when it comes to building a successful home based mlm business but it does contain helpful hints and suggestions that will put you on the right path.
Mistake #1: NOT TREATING IT LIKE A REAL BUSINESS
This is probably the biggest mistake people make when they join any network marketing company. There is an assumption in this industry you can get rich quickly with very little work. I have seen so many people sign up as a distributor, not do a single thing, and then complain because over the last 3 months they've spent $500 and they're not rich yet. THAT IS CRAZY.
In what world do they live in? Can someone please point me in the direction of the company that allows you to open your own business, do nothing to build it, and become rich from it? Or even make a profit at all? Network marketing is an extremely simple business model but it takes real blood, sweat, and tears to be successful. People don't just magically fall into your lap and build your team for you. There are distributors in my current company making over $100k a month. Do you really think they just got lucky? No! They worked their tails off for what they've earned! But the difference between them and unsuccessful distributors is that they have always treated their business like a business. They knew it might take a few months before they started earning some decent commissions. They knew that it was going to take a lot of effort to reach the highest ranks of the company. They knew they would have to invest some money into their business (mlm is hands down the cheapest way to start your own business but it still takes SOME investment). They also knew they would have to work hard for at least 3-5 years before they started earning that rockstar paycheck....but that is the beauty of network marketing! If you work (and I mean truly discipline yourself and work) for 3-5 years in this industry you can reach financial freedom. Is 3-5 years super fast? Not really, but it's a lot faster than working 40 hours a week for 40 years in order to retire and live off of 40% of your previous income (if that). That is what people coming into this business need to understand but often don't. It's not a get rich quick scheme but it is a heck of a lot faster than the alternative. You need to work hard, you need to be patient, and you need to remember that this is a business so treat it like one. If you treat it like a business it will pay you like a business. If you treat it like a hobby it will pay you like a hobby.
Mistake #2: FOCUSING ON THE WRONG PEOPLE
One of the first books I read when I got involved in network marketing is called "The 45 Second Presentation" and it was written by a guy named Don Failla. In the book, Don explains that over his long and successful career in network marketing he noticed that people often spent way too much time on the wrong people. He gives a terrific example to explain this point. I'm paraphrasing here but he basically says that you are on a beach and you are waiting for some ships to come in. There is a Gold ship, a Silver ship, and an Empty ship. Assuming you get to keep the contents of the ship, which one are you going to help get to shore? The gold ship of course! Don explains that in this example these ships represent the people in your network marketing organization - regardless of whether or not you personally sponsored them. The Gold ships are the people that are excited, they're asking questions, they're positive, they have goals, they're making commitments, etc. The Silver ships are the people that are kind of in limbo. They're hopeful but maybe a little bit skeptical, they need a lot of coaching and helping but only sometimes ask for it, etc. The Empty ships are the people that are pretty negative, they have to be constantly reminded that this business model works, they rarely come to meetings or get on calls, etc. Now, Silver ships can be helped and upgraded to Gold ships but empty ships usually stay empty. However, for some reason, so many network marketers make the mistake of spending the majority of their time on their empty ships! They think that because the Gold ships are actually working that they'll be fine on their own so they focus their efforts elsewhere. THIS IS A MISTAKE. Focus on your Gold ships the most because they deserve it. They've earned your attention and they will be the ones to help you grow your business the fastest. Silver ships also deserve attention so work on upgrading them to Gold ship status. Once you have at least 5 Gold ships working on your team your organization will begin to grow very quickly.I would like to take this example a step further. Not only are there Gold, Silver, and Empty ships already in your organization but there are Gold, Silver, and Empty ships that represent prospects as well. It is a common thing for distributors to spend way too much time on empty ships while prospecting. What I mean by that is distributors often try so hard to get particular people in their organization just because they think they'll be amazing. This is usually due to that person's previous success in a particular career, their connections, etc. Let me give you a recent example: One of my good friends is very excited about network marketing and recently joined my team. He's got a little bit of a learning curve ahead of him but he's excited and he's working hard to build his organization (he's a Gold ship). He called me yesterday and was pretty frustrated because he had set an appointment with me and a woman from his work to meet and talk about our company/opportunity. Well, not surprisingly, this woman canceled on him at the last minute. This is the 3rd or 4th time this person has done this to him. When he called me he was wondering when he should set up another appointment with her. I explained the Gold, Silver, Empty ship concept to him and told him to let her know that the offer is on the table so she can reach out to him if she decides she's interested in learning more. In his mind this woman would be perfect because she knows lots of people, is well connected in the health and wellness industry, could use the money, etc. While all that may be true, if someone is that hard to work with now, can you imagine what a nightmare it will be to try and help them do anything after they've signed up? I'm not saying that people need to be jumping up and down with excitement when you first invite them to learn more about a business opportunity, but if they blow you off a number of times and show no interest then MOVE ON. Your time is precious and those are empty ships! They may come around later but only time will tell. Your top priority is finding Silver or Gold ships that are at least interested in some aspect of the company or are looking to make some type of change in their life. Don't force it on people. Invite everyone, but don't don't spend all your valuable time on empty ships when there are plenty of Silver and Gold ships out there.
Comments on my blog are always welcome. However, if you'd like to reach out to me privately my email address is kalfreedomgroup@gmail.com. Thanks for stopping by!
