Network Marketing Tricks

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Forums are a great way to drive traffic to your lead capture page and generate leads for your Network Marketing business, but there are lots of other methods too.  Here are a few simple ones to get you on the right path.

Classifieds and Free-ads

As the names suggest, these are the web equivalents of their offline counterparts.  A quick search on Google will show up hundreds of possible sites to choose from.  Some will require you to pay for commercial advertising, but there are many which are entirely free, although for legal reasons you may have to register as a business user.  As with offline adverts the key is to be short and sweet.  Keep your advert to the point, just a teaser, and direct them to your site.  Giving a contact telephone number in your advert can help attract more prospects.  While most will choose not to use it, simply having it there makes your advert look more trustworthy and less likely to be an ‘Internet scam’.

Blog comments

Most blogs (weB-LOGS), allow users to post comments.  If done correctly this can give you some good links back to your own site.  When you find a blog which you like, and is likely to be read by your target audience, click on the comment button at the bottom of the post and leave a ‘valuable’ comment.  The key word there is valuable.  Don’t spam, if you don’t have anything useful to write then don’t post a comment, but if you can spare a few moments and give some positive and useful feedback on the blog, which adds value to the page, then your comment will be welcomed.  Most blogs are set up so that you can enter the URL of your own site which is linked to from your name.  If a visitor reads your comment and finds it useful or interesting, there is a good chance they will click to find out more about you and your business.

eBay

Historically, trying to advertise a Network Marketing business on eBay was very difficult.  eBay rules state that auction listings are not for advertising, and outbound links are banned.  However, a fairly recent addition to eBay are local classified listings.   Instead of a regular auction, or ‘buy it now’ listing, eBay now allow businesses to advertise as classifieds which show up at the bottom of regular search results.  Pricing is fixed and paid for a month in advance at a very reasonable price.  This feature is very new and currently not being used by many people although I’m sure it will become more popular as more people find out about it.  There is a second way to advertise on eBay while abiding to their rules.  If you are a regular buyer or seller you can have your own page called a ME page.  This is supposed to be used to tell your buyers about your business, what you’re selling on eBay, what your shipping costs are etc. but it does allow outbound links.  Make sure you have an advert for your Network marketing business, and a link to your lead capture site on there otherwise you could be missing some valuable clicks.

Social Networking

Unless you’ve had your head in a paper bag for the last couple of years you’ll have come across the social networking sites.  MySpace, Facebook, Bebo and the rest may get a grilling in the media and promoted as a great way of wasting time for spotty teenagers, but the fact is they are a great tool for promoting your business.  By their very nature they make it very easy to make new contacts, communicate with them, and spread the word about your business.  An in depth look at how best to use them for our purposes goes beyond the scope of this post and will have to wait for another day, but if you’ve overlooked them until now be sure to check them out.  Facebook alone appears to have grown out of nowhere and is currently ranked as the 7th most popular site in the world according to Alexa so make sure some of those users are clicking through to your site!

The Internet really has changed the face of Network Marketing forever.  While come companies have been a little slow on the take-up, there can be no doubt that the Internet has made many aspects of this business, not least lead generation, much quicker and easier.  We really now all part of a global community and i’s just as easy to prospect and recruit people in another country as in your own town.  Technologies such as email, IM, VoIP, and of course the web mean that communication, even crossing language barriers, is quick, cheap and simple.  Almost every aspect of MLM has become easier due to Internet technologies but it’s lead generation that I want to focus on here.

The first point I want to make is that the Internet is not a replacement for traditional lead generation techniques, it’s not a ‘magic bullet’.  Restricting your activities to the online realm is only to place limitations on the growth of your business.  Think of online lead generation as just another ‘rod in the pond’, albeit one capable of catching a lot of fish.   Use the Internet in tandem with all of the other forms on MLM lead generation so ensure your success and massive growth.

The first thing you’ll need is a website.  It doesn’t have to be anything fancy, just a simple ‘lead capture’ page with a form your visitors can fill out to receive information will suffice, although you do want it hosted on your own domain.  Since the cost of domain registration has dropped so low over the past 5 years there really is no reason not to have one.  Something short and simple is the order of the day although a bit of brainstorming will be required to find something suitable.  With billions of dot coms already registered you’ll need a bit of lateral thinking to come up with a catchy name.  There are loads of online utilities to help with the process, and you can also check expired domains which can often offer some great domain ideas.

Once you have your domain and have a lead capture page hosted you’re ready to start driving traffic.   There ar a multitude of methods to do this but here are just a few of the easiest and cheapest to get you started:

Forums

Forums are online meeting places for people interested in a specific niche.  You’ll find thousands with a quick search on Google but we can narrow that number down to something a little more manageable by selecting ones which meet certain criteria.  Since forums tend to frown upon blatant advertising we’ll be using a signature line to promote our site.  Not all forums allow links in signatures so a quick browse of the site is in order.  If most of the posts have one or two lines at the bottom with external links to other sites then you’ll be able to add the same to your posts (although you may have to post a minimum number of times, or be a member for a number of weeks before you’re allowed to in order to prevent spam).  You’re also looking for a high volume of traffic.  See how many active members are posting on a daily basis.  There’s no point in spending your time posting messages if only half a dozen people will read them.

Once you have found a suitable forum the key to success is to join in, and become part of the community.  Answer questions, post questions, join in on discussions and opinion polls and generally become an asset to the site.  Over time visitors on the forums will begin to recognise and respect you as a knowledgeable and helpful member of the site and will therefore be more likely to click that link in your signature file.

A word of warning - it’s very easy to get led into an argument on a forum.  If the conversation starts leading in a direction you’re not comfortable with then stop posting.  Posts debating the pros and cons of Network Marketing, or specific MLM opportunities are very tempting to post on, but it’s very easy to be flamed and made to look like a fool or a desperado.  Nobody will click on your link if you sound unprofessional, aggressive or annoying and you will find that people with opposing opinions to your own will try and lure you into a heated discussion.  So be professional at all times and if someone annoys you don’t rise to the bait.

Tomorrow I’ll look at some other ways of driving traffic to your new website.

Traditionally advertising in the press has been a mainstay for generating MLM leads. While newspaper and magazine advertising is less popular now than it once was, due in no small part to the Internet, it is still a highly effective tool if used correctly. It almost goes without saying that press advertising is more costly on the wallet than on time so for newer distributors on a tight budget this might not be the best solution. For established distributors and team leaders however, newspapers can be a great way of increasing your leads.

Short and simple is the order of the day. One or two sentence lineage adverts tend to be more cost effective than larger boxed or column. Running several of these small adverts in several papers seems to generate more leads than a single large advert but experiment and see what works best in your area. Don’t limit yourself to the business opportunity or jobs section. While some papers will insist you advertise there, others are less restricting. Remember that many potential prospects will not be actively seeking employment or business opportunities and therefore will not even glance at those pages. They may well respond though if they see your advert in the motors or property section.

It’s difficult to give guidelines on price since this tends to vary considerably depending on the publication, area and circulation. One important point though is that discounts are normally available for longer bookings (such as 6 issues for the price of 5) and that prices can be negotiated with many papers. Find out when the last date is to place an advert for the next issue. The closer to that date you are, the more bargaining power you have. If all of the advertising spaces are not filled to capacity the paper will be forced to run their own adverts (such as “call to advertise here”) but would rather fill that space with a paying advert. Time it right and you may get a great deal.

The cost of advertising in the national press, bigger newspapers and magazines, can be prohibitively expensive especially for newer distributors. I highly suggest sticking to small local papers, and the ‘free ads’ style classifieds. Also don’t disregard school and local organisation papers which can be very inexpensive and a great source of extra leads. If the lure of the national press with millions of readers is too much for you then consider starting an advertising pool. Get together with some other leaders in your group and pay for an advert between you. You’ll need to advertise with a separate phone number, email or website so you can distinguish leads to be shared with the pool. This can be a great way to advertise in bigger publications without the financial risk. No matter where you advertise though remember the golden rule, test and measure. If you advert isn’t getting much response it’s either due to the copy (what the advert says) or the publication. Change one thing at a time and keep track of what works best. Continue to tweak until your conversion rate increases.

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Bill

Network Marketers have been generating leads for decades. Long before the advent of the Internet, the tools of the trade in this industry were business cards, leaflets and posters. These days many people seem to have forgotten about these old staples but in fact they are just as useful now as they were 20 years ago. Like thousands of other people, I discovered Network Marketing form a business card and so I know the power of this type of lead generation activity. I never leave the house without cards in my pocket and I often feel like Hansel and Gretel leaving a paper trail everywhere I go. If you get into the habit of giving people your card, leaving cards on shop counters, in waiting rooms and phone boxes, even placing them on cars, you’ll soon notice a marked increase in the number of leads you’re generating. You might think this is ‘old hat’ and that such tactics are outdated in the information age. That type of thinking however, will mean you are missing out on a massive amount of exposure for your business.

Using leaflets, either to letterbox or hand out in the street, is another form of advertising which is in decline. Yes it takes time and effort, but the beauty is that anyone can do it regardless of skill or budget. That makes is highly duplicatable and therefore something that shouldn’t be overlooked. This type of advertising is also highly targeted to your local area. That means that appointments can be used rather than information packs and signups will be easier to coach due to your physical proximity. As Edward Ludbrook says you should “Think global, and act local”. Of course you want to build a team all over the country and even overseas but the easiest way to do that is to build a good foundation in your local area first.

Posters are another example which are often overlooked. You do need to be careful and check the laws in your area as posters on street furniture, and especially near main roads and junctions can attract the attention of the authorities who do fine in some areas, but they do work. People will pass and read your poster every day on the way to work, but never read the job section of the local paper. How many prospects are you missing if you limit yourself only to certain types of activity?

I was recently asked what the number one problem new people had in this business was, and how to avoid it. The answer is quite simply a lack of taking action. For some reason which I’ve never quite understood, some people will read the manual, write a weekly planner, go to meetings, organise their contacts, setup their computer, even redecorate the office - but never take action.

One of our team leaders once said to me, “A bad plan started today is better than a great plan started next week”. The thing is that new people joining this industry need to see results. They need to get sales and start networking in order to prove to themselves that a) the business works and b) they are capable of doing it!

Network Marketing really is a simple business, which just about anyone is capable of succeeding with - IF they take action. Over planning and over analysing too early in the business is just setting yourself up for a fall. The longer it takes to get started the less likely you are to walk out of the door, or pick up the phone and get stuck in.

The most successful people I’ve seen join this business are the ones who “Just do it”. They don’t read the manual, they don’t ask too many questions, they just start following the system they are taught and they see immediate results - and nothing is more motivating than results!

Last month a Kleeneze distributor in our upline’s team managed an outstanding £9,309.64 in personal retail sales from the catalogue, in just 4 weeks, doing Kleeneze part-time around his family and full time job! How is that possible? Simply because Jun Li didn’t over analyse, didn’t spend too much time planning and just did it… Jun Li admits his English isn’t very good, but that didn’t stop him. He started placing 100 catalogues every day before work, collecting them after work and doing deliveries at the weekends… and earned £3444.56 in 4 weeks for a part time business. That was personal retail alone, so imagine what he’ll be earning once he builds a team!

To read Jun’s story of how he achieved this click here

Was is hard work - you bet. Jun probably worked harder last month than most people reading this blog, including the author! However, it just goes to show that success is simply having the right attitude and following through with massive action. I’m sure we can all learn a lot from Jun and I wish him and his family all the best with his new business.

Kleeneze is different to every other Network Marketing business I know of.  Normally in Network Marketing a distributor pitches a product, and depending on the outcome of their sales pitch they then pitch the business opportunity.  With Kleeneze we can operate in a very different way, using the catalogues to drive the retail side of the business (which gives us much higher than usual average personal sales) and pitching the business opportunity to people who really have expressed an interest.

What that means is that for anyone whose only aim is to earn £200 - £400 extra per month in their spare time, they can do that purely on the basis of personal retail sales.  Since the catalogue does the selling (we really just collect and deliver orders) and it’s not a skilled job, anyone can do it regardless of background or ability.  However, for those wanting to earn more, change their lifestyle, or have a more secure longterm income, we need to look at sponsoring a team.

Most people sponsor a friend, relative, colleague or customer for their first couple of team members, but to start sponsoring seriously a certain level of investment is required.  Here are the basic tools required to start building a business:

• Interactive Training System (ITS) - We use a voicemail system (ITS) extensively within the business and it makes a huge difference.  Not only do we use it for training, and keeping in contact with the team, we also use it as an answering service for people responding to adverts, leaving our time free to build the business.
• Business Cards - An absolute necessity for any serious networker.  Have a supply of cards everywhere you go, give them to everyone you meet and you’ll soon see the leads come flooding in.
• Badge - Make sure you wear a badge/button all the time.  People do read them and it’s an easy icebreaker to get into a conversation about the business.
• Computer - Not essential but extremely useful, a computer with Internet access will make running your Kleeneze business much easier, and it will open up options for online lead generation.
• Plan - They say a rough plan started today is better than a perfect plan started next week, but some sort of plan is required.  It won’t be perfect to begin with - but you can readjust it as needed with the help of your sponsor.  However basic it is, a plan is absolutely essential: Failure to plan, is planning to fail!

That’s it!  How many businesses can you start with so little?  Sure you could add another 50 items to this list, but they are all optional extras.  Some of them will make your life easier, some will help you build the business faster but the items above will get you off on the right foot and into a team leader role quickly so long as you follow your upline’s system and put the effort in.

Many people are uncomfortable about approaching their warm market.  Even though we know that contacting the people on your warmlist is the fastest and cheapest way to build the foundations of your network, many people refuse to do it.  If you’re one of them, the third party approach may be of use to you.

With a third party approach there is no fear of rejection, no resentment, no chance of the prospect feeling under pressure.  You simple ask them to take a look at the information and offer their opinion, or think if they know anyone who might be interested.  Not only are you not putting them under any pressure, if you ask their opinion you are also appealing to their ego.  People love to give opinions!

If even showing a DVD or info pack and asking for their opinion seems daunting to you, here are some very low key ways to let your warmlist know what you’re doing so they can ask for further information if they are interested.

• Email signatures.  Add a short signature to your outgoing emails advertising your business and send them a friendly email.
• Buttons/badges.  Wear a badge saying something like “Earn £££s Ask me how” and wait for them to comment or ask about it.
• Car sign.  Have a poster or sign on your car and wait for them to ask about it.
• Ask a favour.  How about mailing them a couple of postcards advertising your business and asking them to put them in the windows of local shops - they’ll be sure to read them first!
• Invite them to a party.  Why not invite them to a party or social gathering where you know you’ll bump into your sponsor and they will overhear your conversation?

The list is endless, but the simple fact is that if you don’t sponsor them, or at least let them know what you’re doing, they could join someone else’s team!  Don’t be a secret agent any more and start working your warm list!

There are mixed opinions on building networks on warm markets, but one thing is certain - using warm market contacts for prospects is the fastest and cheapest way to build the foundations of a business.  The Kleeneze brand-name is trusted and respected by over 70% of the UK population, so in a sense everyone is part of our ‘warm market’, but the term more specifically defines people we know, or people who know us.

Friends, relatives, neighbors, colleagues, associates, they all know us and trust us to some degree - that’s what makes them such valuable prospects.  Remember that old saying, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know?  Well in this business it couldn’t be more true.  Yes, you can advertise on the Internet, in Newspapers and hand out flyers in the street, but if you found a gold mine in your back yard would you advertise for miners, or tell your nearest and dearest first?

There are those opposed to building a business on warm market contacts.  I can see the argument put across in “How to build a giant heap” as it really shouldn’t, and doesn’t, matter how many people you know.  But the simple fact is that if you approach those you know first your business is likely to grow faster and bigger.

Soon after joining Kleeneze I sponsored both of my sisters.  One did very well, the other quit.   Warm market is not a magic wand, and it doesn’t guarantee they will do well.  However, work your warm list properly and you’ll build the foundations of your network very quickly.  Not only that, but those who join you and prosper will thank you for it for many years to come.  Tomorrow I’ll talk about techniques for approaching your warm market.