Training your downline. What does that take? How much time should you spend training your downline members? Shouldn't they have the motivation to learn on their own?
When you deal with taking on the responsibilities of making sure your downline has all the opportunities necessary to be successful in his/her business, you make upline leaders quake in their boots. We are all told that we are getting into network marketing so that we can make lots of money with an automated system that means you don't have to work again. The problem with this kind of sponsoring is that no one really learns enough to be really successful. Just successful enough to stay in but not succeessful enough to reach the mountain top. Oh, there are those rare ones who make it because of their own skills and tenacity but the greatest number just drift from year to year and company to company. This is, in my opinion, the dark underbelly of network marketing.
A networker who is working with integrity knows that he has a responsibility to those he brings into their organization. Their success is, at least at the beginning, the responsibility of the sponsor. The sponsor is the one who knows what the answers are or at least where to find them. The sponsor is the motivator, the mentor, the leader, and the principle trainer for his/her downline. If someone is just sponsoring and not helping those they sponsor, they are doing those sponsored, their company, and themselves a huge diservice.
Integrity demands more of the sponsor. It demands that one only sponsor those they have time to train. It demands that until a new distributor is on his feet the sponsor has a responsibility to continue to train and work with him/her. To turn your back on someone you promised to help is a lack of integrity.
Building a solid business with integrity is simple but it is not easy. Do you have what it takes to set aside quick profits for long term success? You can only do it if you have integrity.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Happy Memorial Day
For those of you who live in the US, I just wanted to say enjoy your Memorial Day. It is a great holiday and when we have troops in harms way, it means more. Have a great day and God bless.
Dave
Dave
Friday, May 23, 2008
Two Things of Note
There are two things of note that I want to let you know:
1. I have made my choice about which Network Marketing company to join as I re-enter the industry. You are more than welcome to check it out and let me know what you think.
2. I have started a forum called MLM with Integrity and would like to ask all of you who read this blog to join us as we attempt to re-direct the momentum of this great industry back to the area of integrity. Come help teach and counsel networkers on the benefits of building organizations with integrity.
I am conviced that we can take this great industry back from the wolves, spammers, and other forms of deceivers. Integrity in the marketplace is the answer. Let's answer the call!
1. I have made my choice about which Network Marketing company to join as I re-enter the industry. You are more than welcome to check it out and let me know what you think.
2. I have started a forum called MLM with Integrity and would like to ask all of you who read this blog to join us as we attempt to re-direct the momentum of this great industry back to the area of integrity. Come help teach and counsel networkers on the benefits of building organizations with integrity.
I am conviced that we can take this great industry back from the wolves, spammers, and other forms of deceivers. Integrity in the marketplace is the answer. Let's answer the call!
Thursday, May 22, 2008
What is integrity?
Integrity is making sure that your business practices are designed to do what is best for your customers, your downline, and you.(In that order!) When you are bombarded every day by people sending you to websites that teach you that you do not have to do anything but to throw some ads up on free internet sites and you will become a millionaire, that is not integrity.
In the industry this is calling "churning and burning." It involves suckering people into your program by telling them that they don't have to do anything to make boat loads of money. When the truth is every worthwhile business takes time, work, and money. To teach otherwise is simply being dishonest.
It doesn't matter which company you work for, if you don't treat your customers or your downline right it will cost you big time! If you try to tell people that they don't have to work to make money, it will cost you in the end. If you don't make clear all the ways you are going to make money from your customers or your downline, you will pay a price.
It is never right to deceive your customers or your downline. They need to be brought up to speed as quickly as they can understand and they need to know what you know. If you are building your business any other way than the way you are teaching your downline, you are not working in integrity and you will eventually loose them. And, by the way, it is always harder to rebuild solid downline than to keep them loyal to you by dealing with them with integrity from the start.
So ... make sure that you treat your customers and your downline the way you would want them to treat you!
In the industry this is calling "churning and burning." It involves suckering people into your program by telling them that they don't have to do anything to make boat loads of money. When the truth is every worthwhile business takes time, work, and money. To teach otherwise is simply being dishonest.
It doesn't matter which company you work for, if you don't treat your customers or your downline right it will cost you big time! If you try to tell people that they don't have to work to make money, it will cost you in the end. If you don't make clear all the ways you are going to make money from your customers or your downline, you will pay a price.
It is never right to deceive your customers or your downline. They need to be brought up to speed as quickly as they can understand and they need to know what you know. If you are building your business any other way than the way you are teaching your downline, you are not working in integrity and you will eventually loose them. And, by the way, it is always harder to rebuild solid downline than to keep them loyal to you by dealing with them with integrity from the start.
So ... make sure that you treat your customers and your downline the way you would want them to treat you!
Monday, May 19, 2008
Upline Help
As I have spent the last couple weeks trying to decide where I will go with my re-entry into the network marketing industry, I have thought alot about who my upline might be. I believe as important as it is for you to choose the right company, it is also important for you to choose the right upline.
I will use two examples to explain my point. I get emails all the time from people who are in network marketing. I look at companies that interest me and for the move on. I move on because in the auto-responder emails and communications from those who would be my sponsor a lot is said about how much they plan to help me on my way. You hear the phrase, "in business for yourself but not by yourself" often.
Since I decided to re-enter network marketing I have been narrowing down the field of possible companies. The way that I have done this is by seeing which of these people who have said how much they are commited to the growth of my business really mean it. I believe an active and passionate upline can make or break your business.
In the first example, the potential upline sent me to a beautifully created website and I walked through the information there. Of course I had to leave my name, phone number, email and the best time to call. I did receive a great "auto-responder" message thanking me for being at their site. However, in the email they said that they would be calling me shortly to see if I had any questions that they could answer. Well, it has been over a week now and the only thing I have gotten from this person is another email about joining them in yet another business. No phone call no answered questions, just another "opportunity" to consider.
The second example is similar to the first in one respect. I found a personal site of this potential sponsor and went there to look around. I had to give my name, email address, phone number and the best time to call. The business that he was promoting on that site was not going to work for me but I did continue to accept his emails while I looked around some more. One thing about his emails that surprised me was that they each concluded with a line about asking him questions along with his real phone number.
Yesterday I looked at an email from him and was going to unsubscribe because his product required too high an entrance fee. What I read though was an opportunity to look at another company that he was going to launch his downline in on Wednesday. Again, he gave some usual stuff (sites to visit, a couple videos to watch, etc.) and he said if I had any questions to call him. Well, I had questions and called. To my surprise, he called back within a couple hours and through the course of our conversation answered all the questions I had and within just a few minutes after I hung up with him I was in his downline.
That is what I mean when I say upline help. He was ready to help me today and told me that he would be available whenever I needed him (except on Sundays). I never met him before today but I expect to have a long term relationship with him going forward. He made himself valuable to me and that's what a good upline sponsor will always be!
I will use two examples to explain my point. I get emails all the time from people who are in network marketing. I look at companies that interest me and for the move on. I move on because in the auto-responder emails and communications from those who would be my sponsor a lot is said about how much they plan to help me on my way. You hear the phrase, "in business for yourself but not by yourself" often.
Since I decided to re-enter network marketing I have been narrowing down the field of possible companies. The way that I have done this is by seeing which of these people who have said how much they are commited to the growth of my business really mean it. I believe an active and passionate upline can make or break your business.
In the first example, the potential upline sent me to a beautifully created website and I walked through the information there. Of course I had to leave my name, phone number, email and the best time to call. I did receive a great "auto-responder" message thanking me for being at their site. However, in the email they said that they would be calling me shortly to see if I had any questions that they could answer. Well, it has been over a week now and the only thing I have gotten from this person is another email about joining them in yet another business. No phone call no answered questions, just another "opportunity" to consider.
The second example is similar to the first in one respect. I found a personal site of this potential sponsor and went there to look around. I had to give my name, email address, phone number and the best time to call. The business that he was promoting on that site was not going to work for me but I did continue to accept his emails while I looked around some more. One thing about his emails that surprised me was that they each concluded with a line about asking him questions along with his real phone number.
Yesterday I looked at an email from him and was going to unsubscribe because his product required too high an entrance fee. What I read though was an opportunity to look at another company that he was going to launch his downline in on Wednesday. Again, he gave some usual stuff (sites to visit, a couple videos to watch, etc.) and he said if I had any questions to call him. Well, I had questions and called. To my surprise, he called back within a couple hours and through the course of our conversation answered all the questions I had and within just a few minutes after I hung up with him I was in his downline.
That is what I mean when I say upline help. He was ready to help me today and told me that he would be available whenever I needed him (except on Sundays). I never met him before today but I expect to have a long term relationship with him going forward. He made himself valuable to me and that's what a good upline sponsor will always be!
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Products that sell
One of my big keys to a good network marketing business is knowing that I have a product line that would sell to the general public. If you can't get anyone to buy your product at retail then do you really have a business?
Many network marketing companies sell products that for the most part are way over priced and could not sell in any other retail environment. These companies will tell you that they are passing on the savings from not advertising to the distributor in the form of bonuses and yet they price the product at 20-50% higher than other comperable products in the retail stores.
I can hear the die-hards saying, "But you don't understand the products we sell are of such high quality that they have to cost more. Besides, if someone wanted to buy them at a discount they could just become a "preferred customer" or wholesale distributor and get the products for the same price I do!" That sounds good in theory, however how many retail businesses could stay in business if they sold everything to their customers at the same price they paid for it? You see, if your product can't be sold at a fair price for a fair profit then what you have is a buying club, not a legitimate business.
So ... if you are looking for a business with integrity, you should be looking for one that has an in demand product that does what it is supposed to do and that is fairly priced so that you can really sell it for a retail profit. Not everyone in the world wants to be a distributor and would much rather just be a customer that knows they are buying a good product at a good price.
Don't forget that integrity is an internal matter of the heart before it becomes a way of doing business! Live with integrity and you will be rewarded for it.
Many network marketing companies sell products that for the most part are way over priced and could not sell in any other retail environment. These companies will tell you that they are passing on the savings from not advertising to the distributor in the form of bonuses and yet they price the product at 20-50% higher than other comperable products in the retail stores.
I can hear the die-hards saying, "But you don't understand the products we sell are of such high quality that they have to cost more. Besides, if someone wanted to buy them at a discount they could just become a "preferred customer" or wholesale distributor and get the products for the same price I do!" That sounds good in theory, however how many retail businesses could stay in business if they sold everything to their customers at the same price they paid for it? You see, if your product can't be sold at a fair price for a fair profit then what you have is a buying club, not a legitimate business.
So ... if you are looking for a business with integrity, you should be looking for one that has an in demand product that does what it is supposed to do and that is fairly priced so that you can really sell it for a retail profit. Not everyone in the world wants to be a distributor and would much rather just be a customer that knows they are buying a good product at a good price.
Don't forget that integrity is an internal matter of the heart before it becomes a way of doing business! Live with integrity and you will be rewarded for it.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Good to be Back!
Sorry for being gone for a couple days. I was shocked on Monday to see that my blog that deals with integrity had been blocked as a potential spam site?!! I requested a review and am back now so its time to really get down to brass tacks.
When dealing with the subject of integrity and network marketing I think that the basics of our methods are where the seeds of integrity truly lie:
1. How do we find, recruit and sponsor new distributors to our downline. If we don't know or really care about the people we bring into the business, we are really doing them, us and the industry a disservice. To just "fill up the funnel" and see what shakes out is certainly the way networking is done today, but that doesn't mean that it is the best way. I personally believe that sponsoring people who will stay with you for years to come is better than churning and burning. (In my last organization I did not loose one person that I personally sponsored. All but one of them still receives checks today even though I sold out a couple years ago!)
2. How do we train our new distributors. Conference calls are great tools but little effective training really goes on in conference calls. I have a friend who set up a members only website that is filled with the latest training ideas, tools, etc. for his particular organization. He maintains that site at his expense for the benefit of his personally sponsored downline. Others can have access under certain conditions, but the site is primarily for his downline alone. That folks is integrity!
3. How do we promote the company and its products. Most networkers are only selling the dream and could care less whether there is any real value to the product the company is selling. They area in effect creating a network of product users rather than a network of small businesses. Real care needs to be given to the product and its value in the market place rather than just "selling the dream." 10-25 customers can keep a small business alive while the best distributors are located. Besides, its hard to tell someone that they are building a legitimate business when they couldn't sell their product to real customers.
So ... when you are promoting your current business or looking for a new company to work with look critically at these basics and see if you can maintain your integrity while promoting the opportunity.
When dealing with the subject of integrity and network marketing I think that the basics of our methods are where the seeds of integrity truly lie:
1. How do we find, recruit and sponsor new distributors to our downline. If we don't know or really care about the people we bring into the business, we are really doing them, us and the industry a disservice. To just "fill up the funnel" and see what shakes out is certainly the way networking is done today, but that doesn't mean that it is the best way. I personally believe that sponsoring people who will stay with you for years to come is better than churning and burning. (In my last organization I did not loose one person that I personally sponsored. All but one of them still receives checks today even though I sold out a couple years ago!)
2. How do we train our new distributors. Conference calls are great tools but little effective training really goes on in conference calls. I have a friend who set up a members only website that is filled with the latest training ideas, tools, etc. for his particular organization. He maintains that site at his expense for the benefit of his personally sponsored downline. Others can have access under certain conditions, but the site is primarily for his downline alone. That folks is integrity!
3. How do we promote the company and its products. Most networkers are only selling the dream and could care less whether there is any real value to the product the company is selling. They area in effect creating a network of product users rather than a network of small businesses. Real care needs to be given to the product and its value in the market place rather than just "selling the dream." 10-25 customers can keep a small business alive while the best distributors are located. Besides, its hard to tell someone that they are building a legitimate business when they couldn't sell their product to real customers.
So ... when you are promoting your current business or looking for a new company to work with look critically at these basics and see if you can maintain your integrity while promoting the opportunity.
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Why worry about integrity?
Why should you worry about integrity in your Network Marketing business? I think that the answer to that question speaks volumes. Many people on the forums and in blogs talk about the fact that making money from hungry buyers is all that business is about. This, in my opinion, is a very difficult position to take.
I personally have been sponsored by these kinds of people. They send out a very convincing set of emails that indicate how much they care about their downline and how much they care about your success. After accepting their offer to come on board with them, you can only talk with them IF you listen in to their conference calls or if you sponsor and inordinate number of new distributors in a very short amount of time. If you just jump in and look for help, you kind of get shuffled around until you get discouraged and quit. Of course this justifies your upline's lack of support (at least in their minds).
A person of integrity feels some responsibility to those that they bring onto their team. This responsibility often requires extra time with someone to help them over the hump and become as successful as they want to be. Integrity means to do the things you promise, to be effective in your relationship building with your downline, and to give of yourself BEFORE your downline make you lots and lots of money.
While I know that there has to be a limit to the time and energy that you can spend on someone who does not want to work. Yet, until that time comes, we need to care for those we sponsor and take upon ourselves the responsibilities that will make those we sponsor successful. If we work hard to be men and women of integrity we will take our industry back from the wolves!
I personally have been sponsored by these kinds of people. They send out a very convincing set of emails that indicate how much they care about their downline and how much they care about your success. After accepting their offer to come on board with them, you can only talk with them IF you listen in to their conference calls or if you sponsor and inordinate number of new distributors in a very short amount of time. If you just jump in and look for help, you kind of get shuffled around until you get discouraged and quit. Of course this justifies your upline's lack of support (at least in their minds).
A person of integrity feels some responsibility to those that they bring onto their team. This responsibility often requires extra time with someone to help them over the hump and become as successful as they want to be. Integrity means to do the things you promise, to be effective in your relationship building with your downline, and to give of yourself BEFORE your downline make you lots and lots of money.
While I know that there has to be a limit to the time and energy that you can spend on someone who does not want to work. Yet, until that time comes, we need to care for those we sponsor and take upon ourselves the responsibilities that will make those we sponsor successful. If we work hard to be men and women of integrity we will take our industry back from the wolves!
Friday, May 9, 2008
New Blog, Old Concept
Network Marketing was originally designed to be a business model built on the concept of integrity. Every MLM company believed that it had a great product and that their product was best sold from person to person. It didn't matter if you were selling soap, nutritionals, legal services, or anything in between, networkers believed in their products and their companies without question.
Unfortunately (and fortunately at the same time) the internet came along and Network Marketing companies had a problem. With the opportunity to be a faceless distributor in a see of websites/companies, SOME leaders in the industry began to run things with little or no regard to integrity. Even worse new companies sprang up by the tens of thousands with only the thought of making a quick buck and then shuting down. Hundreds of thousands of people lost lots and lots of money. MLM's status as a powerful industry took it on the chin. Integrity seemed to go by the boards in favor of quick money.
Well as a died in the wool Networker, I left the industry that I loved to pursue other possible business opportunities. Every once in a while, though, the cry of the networker would wake me up at night and I would long again for the times when helping people make their dreams come true would haunt me for days. But as I would move forward and consider a company or two, the same bad feelings would strike me as I saw upline making money off the dreams of fresh downline with no real regard for their downlines long term success. Those bad vibes would keep me out again (at least for a while).
I am now looking again. I want to find three things in a company before I take the plunge:
1. I am looking for a company who has a real product sold at a reasonable price.
2. I am looking for a sponsorship team that cares more for the success of their downline than they do their own and are willing to put their money where their mouth is!
3. I am looking for people who want to work together in a "team-build" concept and that know that "the sum of the whole is always greater than the sum of the parts."
Builidng a business together in an arena we all love will bring integrity back to network marketing.
Unfortunately (and fortunately at the same time) the internet came along and Network Marketing companies had a problem. With the opportunity to be a faceless distributor in a see of websites/companies, SOME leaders in the industry began to run things with little or no regard to integrity. Even worse new companies sprang up by the tens of thousands with only the thought of making a quick buck and then shuting down. Hundreds of thousands of people lost lots and lots of money. MLM's status as a powerful industry took it on the chin. Integrity seemed to go by the boards in favor of quick money.
Well as a died in the wool Networker, I left the industry that I loved to pursue other possible business opportunities. Every once in a while, though, the cry of the networker would wake me up at night and I would long again for the times when helping people make their dreams come true would haunt me for days. But as I would move forward and consider a company or two, the same bad feelings would strike me as I saw upline making money off the dreams of fresh downline with no real regard for their downlines long term success. Those bad vibes would keep me out again (at least for a while).
I am now looking again. I want to find three things in a company before I take the plunge:
1. I am looking for a company who has a real product sold at a reasonable price.
2. I am looking for a sponsorship team that cares more for the success of their downline than they do their own and are willing to put their money where their mouth is!
3. I am looking for people who want to work together in a "team-build" concept and that know that "the sum of the whole is always greater than the sum of the parts."
Builidng a business together in an arena we all love will bring integrity back to network marketing.
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