How to Promote a Network Marketing Business
If you just clicked on the title of this article, you may have been expecting a long winded, drawn out analysis on the effectiveness of modern MLM marketing tools, and which are the best to use. Let me stop you right there, and inform you that in this article, we will be focusing on just one tool - friends and family. You see, there is a great amount of controversy surrounding the topic of family and business.
In general, if we form the equation family + business, and then ask people for words describing the resulting situation, most will use things such as "mess", "catastrophe", and "disaster". This is interesting, because in actual fact, friends and family fit in to the category of "warm contacts", and can be invaluable in your business efforts.
Of course, the topic of network marketing and MLM traditionally attracts controversy itself. Add to this friends and family, and I wouldn't blame you for thinking the worst. But as I have already said, you shouldn't rule out the involvement of people, just for the sake of it.
This leaves behind the question of: when is the right time is to involve them? Well, there are three major stages at which you could break the news about your new business venture to this unique group of people, and I have a theory of which one could be the best.
First up, could it be that the best time is at the point of initiation? That is, you inform all your friends and family the instant that you receive acknowledgement from the MLM company that you are now part of the sales team. To me, this is not the best time.
The chances are that everything will be very tender and new at this stage, and you yourself will be trying to learn the ropes. You will also be very busy - bogged down with all the reference material that the MLM company has supplied to you, etc.
This rules out the initiation stage. How about adopting a strategy of not telling your friends and family unless they specifically ask? This would certainly avoid any awkward situations, but once again, unless they specifically ask about your business, you're missing out on valuable leads.
Basically, these previous two suggestions are at the extremes of the timeline. Tell them right now, and don't ever tell them. If only there was something in between...
How could I get away with finishing there! Clearly, there are many in between points. The question now becomes, "what stage in between"? Well, if you ask me, I think it would be best to inform all your friends and family (at least the ones you feel comfortable with) after you have made a few sales of your own.
There are a number of reasons behind this. Firstly, it shows that this is not just a random idea plucked out of a hat that you ran along with. For many people, this is what business ideas turn in to. If you can prove and supply records of your recent sales, people are much more likely to take your proposition seriously, than if you rock on up to their door with nothing but a sales pitch.
Secondly, you will have a bit more time on your hands. If your friends are anything like mine, they want to know every tiny detail about the recent developments of your life. Hence, I set aside a good portion of time for this "extra" discussion that will eventuate as a result of my call or visit. This is time that you wouldn't have had at the beginning of your business.
Finally of course, it goes without saying that if you have already made a sale, you are much more likely to be able to convince others to buy too. You have proven to yourself that the products you are marketing can indeed sell, and hence it is only a matter of time before you find someone who is as interested as you first were when you discovered MLM and network marketing.