10 WAYS TO MAKE REAL MONEYFROM YOUR NETWORK

MARKETING/DIRECT SALESBUSINESS

Melodieann WhiteleySmart About Stuff

Expand beyond your circleAt a certain point in your network marketing career –after a week, a month, or a year or so – you will haveexhausted your immediate circle.  You’ve hit up all theladies in your church group; you’ve worked yourneighbors, and your kids’ teachers tell you that thoughthey love what you sold them, they really don’t needanything right now – nor do they want to host anotherparty for you.  And no, they don't want to join yourteam.  You’re stuck.

Look for “friends of friends,” orFind “strangers.”

Instead of waiting for your current customers to run out of whatever you’ve soldthem or suddenly decide that yes, they want to join you, and right now!, you’vegot to break out of your small circle of influence.  You need to push through tothat next level to reach people you haven’t tapped before.  There are two mainways to do this:1.2.

Let’s talk about the first method – getting referrals. You may think that allyour friends know the same people, and to a certain extent, that’s true.  Theladies at your church all know each other, your neighbors all know each other,the teachers at school all know each other.  But I bet you know at least fivepeople they don’t… and vice-versa. So how do you get to these people? You ask. Ask your neighbor, ask yourcollege roommate, ask your spouse's co-workers...ask everyone you know tomake introductions to people in their circle. You can also use tools like Facebook and LinkedIn, which make this very easy, asyou can see who your connections are connected with. The key is to see eachperson in your current network as a bridge leading to many more circles. Allyou have to do is cross that bridge.

Assume the best. If you approach each interaction expecting that theother person will be interested, or at least polite, you anxiety will droptremendously. Take the pressure off. You can make interaction scarier by convincingyourself that if the other person shuts you down, you'll die. Instead,minimize the encounter. Inviting them to hear more about yourproducts or business isn't a life or death situation. Play the numbers. Many companies can give you a good sense of howmany "no" answers you can expect to receive before you get a "yes". Each time you approach a new person, remind yourself that it's a wineither way. If they say "yes", hurray! If they say "no", you're one stepcloser to your yes.

Now let's talk about strangers. If you want to make more money, youhave to sell more and recruit people to your team. And to do that, youneed to talk to more people about your business and what you sell! It's assimple - and as easy - as that. Sure it can be a little anxiety-producing. Here are some ways to make it easier to talk to strangers. 1.

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Expanding outside your limited circle doesn't take a particular skill ortalent; it just takes commitment. Resolve to get introduced to one newperson a day, and to discover another new friend on your own. If you dothat each and every day, each week you'll add 14 people to your circle - andover the course of a year, you network will have grown by over 750individuals!

Go Online

Yes, you are probably already very familiar with theinternet. Otherwise you would not be reading this report. But are you using it as a recruiting tool? The internet isone of the biggest tools you can leverage for your networkmarketing or direct sales success. Where else can youhave push-button access to over a billion people - andmostly for free? The internet removes time andgeographic boundaries, and allows you to reachindividuals you never would have had access to. If you'renot using the internet as a sales and lead generationchannel, you're making a huge mistake.

Most network marketing and direct sales companies have already realized thatthe future of their business is online, and they provide tons of resources toenable web-based sales and prospecting. If your company offers these tools,set everyting else aside (including this report) and get up and running RIGHTNOW. Go claim your slice of the internet immediately, and then come back andfinish reading. If your company doesn't offer a complete suite of online salestools, it might be time to look for another company! Now the problem with company tools is that every other rep is using the exactsame ones. That can make it difficult to stand out from the crowd. If you reallywant to build your business, it's possible to brand yourself separately from allthe other reps in your company and set yourself apart. Here's how: 1. First check out your company's online sales and lead-generation policy. Youmay find out that you are not allowed to create your own website, or that thereare other restrictions. It's better to find those out now instead of building yourown site, only to find out you've violated your business agreement.2. Start small. You don't have to take over the entire internet in a day! Trycreating a simple site where you can interact with existing customers and teammembers. You can always build, but if you try to take on too much at once, youcan easily become overwhelmed.

3. Host a virtual party or a business opportunity presentation. This can bedone via ZOOM or other similar tools. You can record a video and download itto a Facebook group or business page. You can host an event on your websitewhere guests can ask questions and place orders. The possibilities arevirtually endless.4. Keep in contact. A blog where you post regular tips, specials, and otherinformation and resources related to your business is a great way to getpeople coming back for more. Become an expert in your field, and you'll bethe one they turn to when they need to buy or are looking to join a successfulteam.5.  Recruit team members. Provide a brief overview of your company andcreate a contact form for anyone interested in learning more about youropportunity. Just remember - the same principles of customer service, integrity, andhonesty work as well - if not better - in a virtual world as they do offline. It'sjust a new channel, one you can't afford to miss out on.

Never Close The Doors to Your

Business

If you want to be a success in network marketing ordirect sales, your business must always be open. That means you're ready to sell or recruitwhenever and wherever.

View each person you meet as a potential customer or team member.That means each person you meet will either buy from you, join yourteam, or introduce you to someone who will. If you don't ask, you'remissing out somewhere down the road. Find a way to break the time barriers. Having an online presence willallow you to take sales and find prospects (and make money) even whenyou're asleep. Build an email list and use capture pages to get contactinformation from prospects. Create a Facebook group for your teamwhere they can invite prospects to learn more about the company. Create a business page with links to your products and order forms. Set up and autoresponder so prospects get a reply from you as soon asthey submit their information. Layer your activities. If you're holding a class or party, invite someonefrom your downline to attend with you. This allows them to see howyou interact with customers and prospects as well as lets them hear theproduct and company information one more time. Reinforcement! Be a walking advertisement for your business. I don't mean wearing at-shirt that proclaims "I lost 40 lbs. in six weeks. Ask me how!" Althoughthat is an option. I mean using the products from top to bottom. Thefirst thing a skeptic will ask you is, "Do you use the products?" You doNOT want to have to answer, "Well...no."

You're in business, so if your eyes are open, your business is open. Ideally,your business is open 24/7. Here's what this means when it comes tonetwork marketing and direct sales. 1.

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5. Don't be embarrassed by what you do. Sometimes we feelembarrassed because we are in network marketing or direct sales. Thisusually occurs because we know that some companies andrepresentatives give our industry a bad rap. But how are you going tochange the public's perception of this business if you don't let them knowwhat you do? Never be embarrassed by your profession. If you truly areashamed, it's time to find a new company - or a new profession. Being constantly "on" can be tough and draining. However, you don'talways have to be selling or recruiting; you just need to be ready to dobusiness. Hopefully these five suggestions can help you expand yourbusiness hours without burning you out.

Market Constantly Now I want to talk  about  ways to be constantlymarketing yourself so the sales and prospects cometo you. For the purposes of this discussion, we'llconsider marketing separate from the act of actuallyselling your products or enrolling a rep.

Add your business tag line to every email. Most email programs make iteasy to add automatic signatures. Distribute business cards prodigiously. Post them to public bulletinboards at libraries, bookstores, laundromats, and gyms. Leave them withreceptionists at the hair salon or barber shop. Hand them out at events. Iknow some people thing business cards are outdated. I assure you theyare not. See each business card as a little bird winging its way to theperson who needs it most. Talk about what you do - in a positive manner. No one wants to hearabout your business troubles. Complaining is especially destructive if youplan to ask if someone would be interested in doing what you do. Theywould have to be crazy to say yes! Put it on your car. Mary Kay reps who were lucky enough to drive thecoveted pink Cadillac almost all have a story of someone flagging themdown on the highway or following them into a parking lot to see if theyhad their favorite lipstick in stock. If it worked for them, it can work foryou. Add a bumper sticker or window cling advertising your business.

There are ways that you can promote your business and products withoutpushing your offerings down other people's throats. In fact, the "hard sell" israrely successful; and when it is, more often than not the customer orprospect resents being "forced." For a long-lived business, you will needhappy, repeat customers and a strong, dedicated team. That's why luringthem to you in and ethical and relaxed manner is essential to your businesssuccess. We call this "attraction marketing." Here are five ways to marketyour business without being pushy. 1.

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5. Get online. I talked earlier in more detail about creating a websiteto market your business. Now I want to encourage you to find ways topromote yourself and your business online. Write articles, blog aboutyour area of expertise, create videos, and post regularly to Facebookand other social media sites. Each one of these efforts is a trail ofbreadcrumbs leading back to you. You make think that your parent company does plenty of advertisingand marketing, and that may be true. While you can't match theirmillion-dollar budgets, you don't need to. Besides, their efforts aren'tnecessarily leading prospects to you. You need to be responsible formarketing and branding yourself. There are dozens of low- or no-costoptions that will bring hungry customers and business opportunityseekers right to you.

Master the Art of Add-On Sales

You've heard it a hundred times. "Would you like frieswith that?" This is the add-on sale. An additional itemthat is added to the customer's order in addition to themain purchase.

Make it a related product. The add-on sale should be complementary tothe original purchase. Make it smaller. Add-ons are typically less expensive than the originalpurchase. This is not an upsell. That is a completely different scenario. Research has shown that if someone is buying a large item, then the costof the smaller item seems almost negligible in comparison. If someonehas bought a mascara for $27 and you ask them if they want a skin careset priced at $100, they're going to look at you like you're nuts. But in thereverse order, it makes sense. Make the offer at the right time. If you offer the add-on item before thecustomer has decided to purchase the original item, you may be seen astoo pushy. If you offer an additional item after they've already paid for theoriginal item, you've probably missed the boat. The sweet spot is whenthey've made up their minds to buy but haven't entered their credit cardinformation yet.

If you buy a barbecue, you may be asked if you need a grill brush or cover. Ifyou buy a cruise, you're asked about trip insurance or shore excursions. Thewaiter at your favorite restaurant will almost always ask if you want anappetizer to start or a look at the dessert menu. All add-on sales! These salespeople all know the truth. It's the first sale that's the hardest. Once the customer has agreed to buy, it's much easier to get a "yes" on anysubsequent purchase. But there are some guidelines to increase thelikelihood of making the add-on sale. 1.

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Offering a complementary item to  your customers should becomesecond nature to you. Sometimes it will work. Sometimes it won't. But each additional sales you achieve adds to your profit.

Take a Tip from the Grocery

Store Every week, thousands of grocery storesacross the country send out their storeflyers with some unbelievable deals.

The initial "loss leader" needs to be jaw-droppingly great. 10% or even25% is not going to cut it unless the total cost reduction is huge, or it's onan item that NEVER goes on sale. Reductions of at least 50% are usuallythe strongest lure. Choose an item that might be better used in conjunction with somethingelse. For example, reduce the price of eyeshadow to 50%, and thenencourage the purchase of a set of brushes and/or mascara.

When you see these unbelievable sales you may wonder how they makemoney selling at those prices. They answer is, they don't. These items arecalled "loss leaders." The store actually loses money on the sale. They are alure to pull shoppers into the store, knowing once they're there, they'll likelybuy enough other items to more than make up for the deficit from the saleitem. As mentioned earlier, the first "yes" is the toughest. Once someone hasgone through the hassle of driving to the store, standing in line, and paying,they may as well pick up a few more things to make the trip worthwhile. Thesame is true for your business. If you can get a customer to pull out thecredit card for an unbelievable deal, you have a good chance of expandingthe order. This is different from an add-on sale, because you're using a really low priceinitially to get the customer into your "store." So the related products youpresent don't need to follow the same guidelines they would for an add-onsale. Instead, keep these hints in mind: 1.

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3. Use add-on sales for loss leaders. The principles you learned aboutadd-on sales can be used for loss leaders too! The hot dogs are half off,but of course you need buns to go with them...4. Select a loss leader that ensures you repeat business. Refillable itemsare great because once the customer has invested in the original package,they've got it sitting in their home just begging to be refilled.5. Don't do it too often. A monthly special is great, as are seasonal sales. But if you offer too many loss leaders, or put things on sale too often,people will just wait for it to go to half-off before they buy. Grocery stores spend millions on analyzing customer behavior. Piggy-back on their research and use some of their strategies for your own.

Learn Your Products If you want your customers to exchange theirmoney for your products, then you had betterknow what it is you're selling.

Ask your upline or trainer what the most common questions are. Thenresearch the answers and practice them. Keep track of the questions you get. Keep a running list of the questionsyour customers ask, and write out answers. Great cheat sheet for you andtraining information for your downline. Read everything the company gives you. Say "I'll find out for you" instead of "I don't know." Then follow through! Educate others. Sometimes the best way to cement information in yourmind is through teaching others. When you learn a new fact, use it. Never stop learning. You never know it all. Put your knowledge to work. Explain why you're recommending aparticular product to a particular customer. Your customer will appreciatehow you make the link between the product information and theirsituation.

The more you know, the better you can tailor your pitch to your customer'sneeds, and the better you're able to recommend something that will actuallywork for that customer. Here's how to begin your product education. 1.

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Knowing your products doesn't mean boring your customers with tons offacts and details in your presentation. It does mean pulling out theknowledge you need, when you need it. Make your customer's life better inssome way!

Maximize Your Existing Customers Selling to repeat customers is much more time-and effort-efficient than is getting newcustomers.

Ask for referrals. Both for customers and for new team members. Repeatcustomers obviously like your products and trust your business. Theyprobably wouldn't mind sharing their great find with their friends.Ask for feedback. If you have a loyal customer, leverage the relationship byasking for their opinion on your presentation, products, or competitors. You might want to offer a small discount or free product for theirassistance.Tell them about new stuff. Customers can fall into ruts, especially if theyare on autoship. It's up to you to give them a jolt. Let them know what'snew, different, or better.Offer preferred customer status. Many companies offer programsspecifically for their "preferred" or high-dollar-value customers. Takeadvantage of it. Otherwise, create your own. Send long-time customersspecial promotions, product announcements, and news and tips just forthem. It will make them feel special and give you another reason tocontact them every month.

Many network marketers and direct sales reps overlook existing customers asa source of sales and prospects. Here are some ways you can maximize yourprofits from your existing customers. 1.

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You existing customers are the backbone of your business. Spend timefinding ways to let them know they matter to you, and you'll find that yourefforts pay off handsomely.

Know Your Customer One of the benefits that you have over largebusinesses is the ability to get to  know yourcustomers on a more intimate level.

Make it authentic. It's obvious when someone is being nice to you only tomake a sale. Your interest in them has to come from a place of trueservice. Start a customer information file. Have a way to track your customers,what they order, as well as other pertinent information. At a minimum youshould know their family members' names, their birthday, and theircontact information, as well as their preferred means of contact (email,phone, text, etc). Contact them regularly. Your customers should hear from you a minimumof once a month. Email, phone calls, messenger, postcards...whateverworks for you. Depending on your business, you may find that a once-a-week schedule is preferable. Your schedule might look like this:

To really use that relationship to maximize your profits, you need to gobeyond first-name basis. You need to know them as a friend, and that takeswork. Here's how you can establish a relationship that pays big dividends. 1.

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Week One _ Phone callWeek Two - Emailed newsletter with tipsWeek Three - Postcard reminderWeek Four - Email announcement of special sales or new products Your customers are better than gold. Treat them that way, and you'll enjoythe benefits of a positive relationship, both personally and professionally.

Follow Up One of the biggest mistakes network marketersand direct sales reps make is failing to follow up -with leads, with new customers, with pastcustomers, and with inactive team members.

Following up with leads. You've got an inbox full of contact informationfrom your capture page or a promotion you posted. You send out ageneric informational email and ask them to contact you if interested. Now what? Well if your like most, you'll do nothing. But that one contactby itself may not be enough. You need to actually continue to contact thenames collected to convert them from a lead to a customer or businesspartner. Studies show it takes an average of 7 contacts before a personmakes up their mind. Don't be too aggressive. But do stay in touch. Following up with new customers. The time when a little extra effortcan make the biggest impact is right after a new customer has purchasedfrom you. They may be feeling a little unsure of their purchase andhearing from you at this vulnerable time will definitely reassure them thatthey made the right decision. Following up with past customers. Don't assume that your customerwill contact you directly when they run out of something or want to makeanother purchase. And don't assume they will order directly if that's anoption. Most people are lazy. More than one rep has lost a sale to themall or another rep because they weren't in front of the customer when are-order or replacement was needed! Following up with inactive team members. If you haven't seen anyaction from a team member for a while, don't assume everything is okay,or that they would contact you if they needed something, or that they havequit.

Treating transactions as isolated events rather than a chain of interactionsmeans you see these people as commodities, and they will view you the sameway. I'm going to address why you need to follow up with each of thesecategories. 1.

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Make the effort to phone them to see where they are. Are theyconfused about how to build their business? Do they need someencouragement or training? Are they unhappy with the business or theproducts? Did they lose your number? Whatever the situation, you'rebetter off hearing from them directly than letting them die a slow deathbecause you couldn't be bothered to get back in touch. And you mightjust save a team member! Following up - and following up when you say you will - is a critical partof good network marketing and direct sales. Many experts recommendthe three days - three weeks - three months approach, following up ateach of those intervals after the initial contact. While that's a good ruleof thumb, even better is working with your customers and teammembers and your unique business to do what's right from them andfor you.