Lots of people I sponsor come on board wanting to promote their new MLM network marketing business online.
You can be successful promoting your opportunity through online MLM methods, but there are some things you should avoid doing and others you must do for this to work.
Not long after I graduated from college and got a job, I was introduced to network marketing. It was with an opportunity that was well known at the time. Everything was done locally, as this was before the Internet really took off with websites, blogs, multimedia, the whole bit.
I was intrigued by the MLM business model, because it was a way to build a residual income and earn time and financial freedom. My “career” was in outside sales for an industrial supply house, and I didn’t like it. I wanted to explore other income options, and create a more secure future.
So, I signed up with this opportunity and jumped in hoping for the best. As it turned out, though, I didn’t like MLM at all. We were taught to approach our friends and relatives and try to persuade them to attend a local meeting. If they asked the name of the opportunity or company, we were supposed to avoid revealing that if at all possible. You’ve probably heard stories about this. That just wasn’t how I wanted to build a business.
I dropped out of that opportunity, but remained positive about the potential of the network marketing business model. I kept my eye out for something different and better.
About two years later, I was introduced to a company called “Watkins”. The products had a really good reputation, and all the feedback I got was good, so I teamed up with some other entrepreneurs who wanted to build the business online. We were some of the early pioneers of online MLM, and didn’t even realize it at the time.
This was before websites and blogs…the early 1990′s…we had text based services with message boards, like CompuServe and Prodigy. Anyway, we figured out “attraction marketing” and became valued members of various home business forums and message boards. By being contributors who were obviously interested in being part of the community, we got to know people. Over time, many of them were looking for ways to make money from home and approached us because they felt we were professionals, not just MLM opportunity peddlers.
Okay, at the beginning of this post I said there are some things you shouldn’t do, and some things you must do, to make online MLM work.
Prospecting and Sponsoring Online – What You Should Avoid
If you want to really be successful in sponsoring people on the Internet, you can’t rely on automated systems to do ALL the work for you. This is network marketing, and it is a people business. You must make real connections with people and begin building working relationships with those who become strong prospects and perhaps ultimately business associates.
Automated online MLM prospecting systems can do wonders. They help sort, qualify, provide details about your opportunity, and present you on the other side with truly interested prospects. Other than an occasional followup, that is where their job ends.
Prospecting and Sponsoring Online – What You Must Do
Our Watkins Summit Group team has an automated information system that provides details about our opportunity. Everything flows smoothly and sometime people sign up before I ever talk to them. However, this isn’t the norm and you can’t just sit back and expect this to happen.
With ANY online prospecting or sponsoring system, it’s important to take your prospect’s contact information and make every effort to have a live conversation. If you rely on the systems to do all the prospecting, sponsoring, and support you might enroll a few people but your business will never grow like it should nor reach the potential it has.
Online MLM works. It is a complement to your offline networking efforts. The secret to making it effective and useful is taking your prospects offline and having real conversations and developing real relationships.
Think of everything you do online as developing and capturing leads. Then, focus on bringing those leads from the Internet to the phone (if you can’t meet in person) and develop the relationship from there. This is what makes the difference.
About Eldon
