Archive for Direct Sales
Downline Abandonment Is A Horrible Thing.
Posted by: | CommentsDownline Abandonment Is A Horrible Thing.
By: Alice Coaxum
Down line abandonment is a horrible thing. Unfortunately, it’s all too common in the network marketing industry, using the old bait and switch tactic just to make a little money.
This occurs when you highlight the benefits of your business, like how much money you can make, the ranks you can reach and how great the products are in order to get someone else to join your business and you don’t follow through on helping them to be prepared to start their own business. Especially if you promised them the sun, moon, stars, fancy cars and gourmet meals.
So many people in network marketing and direct sales don’t realize that it’s not so much about the number of people that you bring into the business but about the number of people that you actually retain in your business.
People who are frustrated, not making any money, who are not pointed in the right direction by the ones who recruited them or someone else above them on the team, so they can begin to build a real business of their own instead of just building their upline’s only wind up quitting.
When you recruit somebody with only dollar signs in mind, without any thought whatsoever to their well being and success in their business, you are cheating them and yourself. It’s obvious how you are cheating them but it might not be so obvious as to how you are cheating yourself.
Its more unlikely that they’ll successfully build the business with no help or direction and it is more likely that they will quit. How is that helping you? If you have to constantly find new people without ever holding on to any of those that you have recruited or sponsored, how do you expect to grow your business.
In the past I have been a victim of abandonment. I paid to join the company and $500 twice to upgrade because they took the upgrade and my downline from me because I didn’t properly understand what was required of me. I had to jump through hoops to get paid, in fact they owe me money, and is one of the main reasons I thought I’d never be involved in that type of business again.
When they merged with a certain company all my respect for them went out of the window. I opted not to join them after really thinking about it. The compensation plan as well as the products disappeared and we were to now embrace the rules, compensation and products of the new company. No thanks!
I never in a million years thought, I who am already growing several businesses of my own would ever get back into network marketing and become an Independent Beachbody Coach. I get more support now from my team and not just my direct upline than I ever got put together from any company I have ever been in.
Don’t promise someone the sun, moon and stars if you don’t even plan to be around after they electronically sign their contract with the network marketing company that you are involved with. Some people will choose not to take your call or answer your messages and emails after they’ve convinced you to sign up and you are now income to them. It’s not fair or right.
Don’t treat someone in a way that you don’t want to be treated. If your upline treated you that way, don’t turn around and do it to someone else. Honestly, if you aren’t in a position to help someone get started, you’re not in a position to build a downline. Point blank! This doesn’t mean you have to do everything for them or babysit them. Become an expert pointer. Point them in the right direction. Share what you know so both of you can grow.
I think that there should be a rule in network marketing that stipulates if you don’t attempt to put your downline on the right path, you should lose them. Why should you benefit from what they do if you can’t even show them where to start or answer a question if necessary. Teach them how to look for answers by pointing them in the right direction. Everyone doesn’t know all that you know. Reach out to your upline if you can’t help them but don’t leave them hanging because they will move on and leave you and that doesn’t benefit you.
The crass method of recruiting them and leaving them is not only highly unfair to the one you are sponsoring but also very unproductive for your business. Teaching your downline the right way to build their business in turn builds your business. That’s what a smart business person does. They build their business. Helping someone else to learn how to build theirs, can help build yours. It’s that simple.
If you teach your downline how to get started and stay in contact with them so you can offer further guidance down the line, even it’s just pointing where they can learn this or that and why they should because you don’t have to be an expert, they can do the same for their downline. This helps them to earn in their business, makes them want to stay and build the business and of course this helps you to earn in your business. It’s win-win for everyone.
If you want a strong team a successful people duplicating actions that bring real results, you have to teach and train those that you bring into your network marketing business. Set them on the right path. You not only have a moral obligation because they trusted you enough to pay money to join your team and buy into your dream which they now share with you, you also have an obligation to your own business.
It’s not just the right thing to do, it’s the smart thing to do. Help your team to be strong and you’ll build a long lasting and successful business. Skimp on helping your dowline teammates that you bring in and your business will never flourish.
You Can Be A Great Direct Sales Consultant.
Posted by: | CommentsPicture your favorite direct sales consultant. What qualities immediately come to your mind when you think about this person? What makes you call her on the phone when you run out of your favorite product? Why do you continue to hold shows for her over and over instead of dealing with another consultant? How can you learn to be a consultant that is as good as or even better than, she or he is?
Below is a list of the five most important traits that one needs to in order to become a great direct sales consultant. Some of these may already be a part of your personality naturally and other traits you may have to work at. The goal is to not only to possess them, but to make them become second nature.
1. Honesty – First and foremost, a great consultant is honest. A successful consultant is honest in every area of her life. The consultant’s integrity shines through in everything she does. Her customers never feel “the wool being pulled over their eyes” by this type of consultant and they know that he or she will always tell the truth in every situation. No one likes being lied to or mislead. That is the best way to lose a customer or sponsored consultant.
2. In Depth Knowledge & Understanding of the Product – Product knowledge is a must for every great consultant. She must be able to answer questions that arise during shows or a consultation. If you don’t know your product, get to know it. Get some sample sizes if possible and try them out; feel it, touch it, smell it, taste it, read about it or whatever is appropriate in order for you to know about your product inside and out.
If you are asked a question about a new product that you don’t know the answer to yet, let the customer know that you will find out the answer for them. Do this in a timely manner. Don’t waste any time in getting the answer to your customer either. If you hesitate too long, you risk losing the customer’s confidence in you, not to mention potential sales! Remember for every consultant who doesn’t take care of their customer there is a consultant who will who is just waiting for you to drop the ball.
3. Manage Your Time Wisely – Time management is a skill every great consultant must possess. Everyone isn’t naturally good at managing their time and, if you trouble managing your time you can always take some courses or have someone that you know teach you how to manage your time effectively and wisely.
Time management is super important in direct sales because you need to be on time to your shows, when interviewing potential new recruits and so on. You need to know where you need to be or what you need to be doing. Missing an event or an important call because you’ve accidentally double booked your clients or thought that the phone call was to be on another day can cause others to lose their confidence in you and this can result in you losing their business.
4. Organizational Skills – A great consultant is one who is organized. This is a trait that can be learned by those who were not born with the gift of organization in their genes. Organization is really important no matter what type of business you are in because it helps you be more efficient.
You don’t want to appear in utter disarray to your customers. You want to readily be able to find things when you need them. If you have a show or a home party to go to you need to be there on time. Getting organized does take a little time, but once you get on track it actually saves you time!
If you find it difficult to get your things in order, find someone that can help you get organized. This can be a friend, family member or even a professional organizer. This person can help you with organizing your business files, products, brochures, customer files and receipts.
Getting yourself organized is the hardest part of the battle. It’s much easier to keep yourself organized once you get organized if you keep doing things the way you did to organize your things the first time. There is no point to becoming organized just to make a mess of everything again in a week or two. You need to have a strong commitment to staying organized.
5. Enthusiasm & Motivation – And the final trait that every great consultant will possess is excitement and motivation. Have you ever been to a show where the consultant was dull and boring? Did they make you want to buy anything? You don’t want potential customers losing interest and hoping that every sentence will be your last so they can leave the party or show without appearing rude.
Being excited about what you’re doing. Your excitement will bubble over into your show and to your guests and they will be more likely to buy from you if you appear happy and excited about what you’re doing. Think about what excited you about the company you are consultant for and what made you join it in the first place.
If you are not naturally outgoing, you can learn to overcome shyness by practicing being enthusiastic. You can learn to be enthusiastic about what you do. Think about what you do and what you sell. What really motivates you about the product, what do you love about it? Think about those things when you are showing the product and the enthusiasm will naturally come bubbling out.
As I said in number two, knowing your product is important and goes hand in hand with being excited about it. You can be a great consultant by learning these traits and putting them into practice until it becomes second nature to you. By doing so, your clients will trust and most likely will be loyal to you. This in turn will lead them to you over and over again when they need something. Not only that they will also rave about you to friends and family. Word of mouth is a powerful thing.
To your success,
Alice Coaxum
