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Network Marketing I
Build Trust/Credibility And Visitors Will Approach You!
It's been interesting watching the Network Marketing industry try to figure out the Net.
You'd think that if any industry could figure out the networking power of the Net fast,
it would be this one.
Network Marketing is not "pyramids," which are strictly illegal. Network Marketing is a
viable business model that generates significant income for millions of people worldwide.
However, it tends to attract more than its share of get-rich-quick artists.
So pick your company carefully and seriously.
Yes, most Network Marketing companies and their associates did recognize the potential
offered by the Net (many predicted it would serve as the ultimate recruitment tool).
But they have, in large part, been unsuccessful in generating results of any kind --
either as sales, or as leads.
What Is Going Wrong?
No blame being designated to anyone below, of course. Network Marketing has long been an
offline venture, and the move to the online world has been a completely new experience.
MLM companies are not providing their associates with the ability to speak with a "unique"
voice (the key to any success on the Net). Actually, they suppress that voice due to legal
concerns -- valid concerns, I might add.
Network Marketing corporations are not providing their reps with the correct tools and
strategies to attract and win new leads and/or sales on the Net. For example...
They may provide "cookie cutter" Web sites -- each one identical to a million others.
Big deal, there's nothing special about each one and the Search Engines ignore them all,
compressing identical content out of existence.
They may provide online stores in their name. Great idea, but if it ends there, is it much
better than just filling in a form and faxing it?
Some even provide a small number of trained Webmasters who will build a site and maintain
it for thousands of dollars per year. What's the natural instinct of the high-rollers who
can afford it? Duplicate the site and give it to their downline. Result? Instant death as
the engines kick you out for spamming them with identical content.
And, of course, there are hundreds of scammy lead-selling companies that sell the same
lists of a million leads "for your downline." Hello? Think about that one. These don't
even deserve a second thought, yet they prey on the weak with remarkable success --
but only the lead-selling companies make money.
And then there are government issues for Network Marketers to worry about... what you can
say and what you can't say. So...
You're On Your Own
In the end, Network Marketers/Reps/Distributors are on their own when it comes to driving
traffic to their Web sites, and if they do, little comes from it. Most of these sites are
little more than a blatant sales pitch -- a page that sells the opportunity and the
products, and a page that asks for a name, an address, and a phone number.
Unfortunately, there's nothing online that annoys surfers more than a blatant sales pitch,
especially if it turns out to be an "MLM opportunity." There is a widespread bias against
this distribution model, so the approach needs to be a patient, quality, build-a-pipeline
one...
.... not a get-rick-quick one.
Site Build It! provides the ultimate solution for all these problems. The answer is so,
so obvious it almost hurts. But we have yet to see Network Marketers use the Net properly.
Before talking about the perfect online solution, let's talk about who succeeds in Network
Marketing offline...
Offline....
They are extroverted, ebullient people who can approach others easily and naturally
introduce them to the opportunities offered by their respective businesses. These folks
build large personal networks -- they execute what is called the "30 foot rule" effortlessly.
What is the "30 foot rule?"
Anyone within 30 feet is a potential prospect! They approach people in bank lines, talk to
their seatmates in airplanes, play golf as singles... they network like mad.
And more power to them, because they've made it work and work and built their own successful
businesses.
Unfortunately, most people can barely approach their own small network of friends and family...
what's called the "warm circle of contacts." They can barely gather enough courage to
approach their "warm circle" let alone that "30 foot circle of strangers." And that's a
critical reason why most fail...
The key, of course, to building significant revenues in Network Marketing is to build your
"downline" and to make personal sales.
Sales + Downline = Significant residual income
So the ambitious extrovert succeeds. But the vast majority fail, for a variety of reasons...
fear, lack of opportunity, shyness, etc. For example...
A stay-at-home spouse is immediately at a disadvantage -- no opportunity to network.
And so is any individual who is a) shy by nature, or b) finds "hard-selling" crass or offensive
(despite real passion for a company's products).
Online... You Can Turn The Tables
The Internet, though, provides the opportunity to change all that, to turn the tables
completely around.
The stay-at-home spouse can now have a world-wide circle of contacts!
And the shy, soft spoken one? She can speak with a booming voice!
Imagine the scenario where you did not have to tap on someone's shoulder at an airport?
Imagine, instead, that strangers from around the world tapped on your shoulder, thanking you
for great info and calling you or e-mailing you with questions.
5, 10, 20 leads per day like that. Perfectly do-able. And best of all... they are calling you.
When folks call you, the dynamics are completely reversed. You're the expert. You're the person
who shares information. And they are the ones who initiated contact.
That's better than the best "diamond" can do... and the extroverted personality probably does
not have the patience to build what you can do, with Site Build
It! and the Web.
But it has to be done right. Here's how...
SBI!'s approach is perfect for a Network Marketer. For example, let's say that you're a 55 year
old male with a prostate problem, and you've just joined Melaleuca (a solidly run company).
You've read a lot about prostrate problems. Build a terrific site with a theme related to this.
Fill it with Keyword-Focused Content Pages (KFCPs) that SBI!'s Brainstormer will not only
suggest, but will also identify as most profitable.
You'll attract targeted free traffic from the SEs -- your own pre-qualified leads who come to
you, not the other way around.
The content credentializes you as a sharing, generous expert, by OVER
delivering quality
information in response to a SE query, about a problem that concerns your visitor.
What do you do now?
Get them to fill out a form for your free CD-ROM?
Send them with a link over to your online store to buy your anti-prostate products.
Get them to sign up for your Melaleuca business opportunity?
No, no, and no. All fatal.
Just as you were developing a warm and trusting connection, you ruined it all.
For example, "regular" people don't have CD-ROMs to offer. And despite the "warm and fuzzy"
feelings, your visitor is not ready to join a Network Marketing biz-opp. It all ends up
"smelling" like a pitch.
Here Are Some More "Do Nots"...
Do not duplicate pages already provided by your company. The kiss of death.
Adapt some of the content, if you like. But don't use it verbatim.
Do not even mention the company you represent or the products that you will try to sell...
do this later, once the person contacts you. Two reasons to delay...
1) It's too soon -- blatantly selling "MLM" products or recruiting your downline in an
aggressive fashion does not work on The Net, and it won't work with SBI! either,
even with all that traffic. It's just too soon to go for the sale.
2) You'll stay out of trouble with both your company and the government. Your company must
live by all sorts of government regulations and can't allow you to make all sorts of claims.
And the government won't allow you to do the same either. So don't.
What do you do instead? What do you do once you have someone on your site, reading your
content, building some trust and interest in you?
Be patient. Build a pipeline...
1) Encourage folks to call or e-mail you if they have any questions.
You'd be glad to answer them.
2) Naturally, build trust through the publication of a high quality newsletter.
And again, in your newsletter, invite them to call or e-mail if they have questions.
The daughter of SiteSell.com's president, Nori, gets 4-5 e-mails per day to her site...
and she and her dad do not encourage contact! Visitors have all kinds of questions
(most popular ones involve "good cheap villas, hotels, and/or restaurants").
This is already happening even though Nori has not had the time to build a ton of
content at her site, anguilla-beaches.com
And that's just Nori. So many SBI! sites generate amazing traffic. And you, as a Network
Marketer, have a far simpler job. Don't sell. Just PREsell and make your "Most Wanted
Response" very simple...
"Contact Me."
Imagine what you could do if you built just one page per day? In 2-3 months, you'd have
at least 5 real, warm leads contacting you.
These are not those cheesy "leads" sold by a lead-selling company. These are real human
beings who appreciate your content, who like you, and who want to know more.
From there, you'd go to 10, 20, leads... every day...
.... real people, very interested in what you are saying. What more could any Network
Marketer want?
Remember, Network Marketing has a bad image that you must overcome. So a Web site is
just too early, too cold, to overcome that bias. You must convert the cold, digital
contact of a Web site to a warmer one... e-mail or even better, phone.
Convert an online contact into a warmer one. Slowly and gently, use your company's
training to introduce your visitors to the products (and/or the opportunity, depending
on your goals), as they come to trust and know you.
We know we're wasting our time here, with the get-rich-quick folk, of whom we hope there
is no one reading this. This approach will work, but like anything in business,
it takes some work -- but once the pipeline starts to pour, it will be a steady producer
for you. And your "diamond" upline will start to wonder what's happening to you.
You don't have to tell her, of course! But do share with your downline.
Teaching them to use SBI! as well as you do, on themes of their choice, can only increase
your income dramatically.
Talk about "Win-Win-Win-Win"...
"Win" for you...
"Win" for your downline...
"Win" for your company...
And of course, we're glad to participate! :-)
Let's switch from prostate to heart (two of my favorite organs, I guess!)...
Suppose your company sells a complete line of powerful and innovative anti-oxidant blends
which have been proven to aid in the fight against heart disease. Instead of talking
directly about the product itself, search out keyword niche in the "heart disease" theme,
and do your best to present your visitor with a complete discussion of the "heart disease"
issue, OVER delivering on quality information.
Within your content pages, you will discuss both conventional and alternative remedies,
and ultimately, even what you are taking that has made a big difference in your life
(I trust you don't push stuff that does not work!).
Now, here's how to ruin it...
End your article with a direct link to your "cookie-cutter" recruitment or sales site.
That will leave 99% of visitors with a bad taste in their mouths...
"Oh, that's what this is about... a pitch!
Nope... instead, "make haste slowly." Write great articles and publish a fantastic e-zine.
Build trust and credibility. That must be your #1 priority. Take your time to get the
build going. And don't worry, you will get the opportunity to introduce your visitors and
subscribers to the opportunities your company offers...
.... When the time is right.
.... When they call you.
But... Rush things, "pitch" your visitors before you establish your credibility,
and you can bid farewell to 99.9% to them.
So Do It Right...
And your visitors will come knocking on your door. Isn't that a lot better (and easier
and less nerve-racking) than having to go knocking on their doors?
Naturally, once you've developed and perfected the above formula, share it with the
downline that you've built. Do not allow them to copy what you've done. You'll only ruin
your site's performance at the engines.
But do use one of Network Marketing's most important principles...
Replicate your knowledge.
Teach your downline to use SBI! as well as you do. But encourage them to pick a niche,
a theme, that turns them on and that relates to a part of your company's product line.
Like I said, if you accomplish this, you'll have a true...
Win-Win-Win-Win on your hands. :-)
Network Marketing II
Build Your Downline Without Worrying About
Building Your Downline!
Instinctively, most Network Marketers focus mainly on selling the "opportunity" --
that's because the real money in Network Marketing is achieved through the establishment
of a huge downline, and not in the sales of individual products. Since the online medium
is a "cold" one, and since many people are prejudiced against "MLMs," this approach
doesn't tend to work very well.
There is, however, a different and much more powerful and successful strategy.
Robert Harrison of GetHealthyAgain.com has been using it to great effect.
Robert delivers his visitors a ton of solid helpful information. It effectively PREsells
his company's products, and yet he never mentions his Network Marketing business or the
"opportunity" to his visitors. Extreme patience!
For most Network Marketers, the "opportunity" is the first and only proposition.
They "pitch" it way, way too soon. And as a result, they fail. But guess what?
Robert's patience pays off...
His articles serve as an effective introduction to his products which means that Robert
can justify spending significant dollars to drive Pay-Per-Click traffic to his site.
Once visitors are introduced to the products, and come to know and trust their
effectiveness and quality, they approach him wanting to know more about the company and
the opportunity. In other words, Robert has been building his downline without worrying
about building his downline!
Please note... When you visit Robert's site you'll see that pages have not been optimized
as much as possible. Robert could chop some of those pages into smaller ones, each one
tightly focused on a topic. The amount of high-quality content is mind-boggling but the
pages could be reorganized to take better advantage of the free traffic from the major
Search Engines. (But there's no sense in fixing something that ain't broke, right?)
Robert's major strategy has been to focus on delivering great content and buying loads of
Pay-Per-Click visitors. And it works! However, if you are just getting started,
or thinking of doing so, I'd suggest that you combine the strategies in articles Parts I
and II. Your Network Marketing business will soar!
Bottom line?
Robert focuses on OVERdelivering high-value content on health issues and related product
benefits. He ignores the impulse to aggressively build a downline, letting others
approach him instead. As a result, Robert has generated two sources of revenue...
1) through the sale of his company's products
2) through an expanded downline.
What a great way to bypass the stigma attached to Network
Marketing?
Be patient.
Skip the "opportunity" introduction process. Instead, become a provider of great content
and an advocate for your products. The rest follows...
... easy as pie!
Prospects will ask you! In the end, the net result is the same...
instead of you chasing prospects, warm and interested people (who appreciate what you
have provided) approach you. Robert's strategy is an alternative means to that same end,
nicely illustrating that there's more than one way to use SBI! to effectively build your
Network Marketing
business.
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