Leverage and duplication are the founding principles on which network marketing is based. Attrition and Apathy can effectively neutralize the power of Leverage and Duplication, and destroy any organization from the inside out. Effective leverage is entirely dependent on effective duplication.
I would say that the greatest challenge facing all Network Marketing companies is the failure of new distributors to fully engage in the business. It is not so much that they fail, many don’t even get started ! I know that it is a constant mystery to veterans of the industry why people would invest money in a starter kit, and then do absolutely nothing !!
Even the late, great Jim Rohn when asked the question would answer "That's just the way it is"
Even the late, great Jim Rohn when asked the question would answer "That's just the way it is"
I believe that the biggest reason that people drop out, or fail to get started in a network marketing business, is that whilst their sponsor did a superb job of selling them the opportunity, the people themselves did not BUY IN to the opportunity.
Some years ago an American university carried out a survey which concluded that success in business can be attributed to 15% Aptitude and 85% Attitude. And unfortunately whilst aptitude is something we can readily duplicate, attitude isn’t !!
ATTITUDE NOT APTITUDE DETERMINES ALTITUDE !!
Based on that survey developing and sharing a simple, easy to duplicate system contributes only 15% to the success of a business.
For years much of our industry has relied on “Attrition Marketing” – put simply “throw enough mud at the wall, and some will stick !! Whilst this principle might well work, it fails to take into account two things.
First, you finish up waist deep in the mud that didn’t stick ! Just as a disgruntled customer is a bad advertisement for our products, so a disgruntled ex-distributor is a bad advertisement for our opportunity.
Second, it costs time and money to recruit and train a distributor. Wouldn’t it make more sense to focus on retention ? How many conventional businesses out there cheerfully accept that 20% of the people do 80% of the work, or that 80% of the people they recruit never actually turn up for work.
One of the best pieces of advice that I was given when I first became involved in Networking nearly twenty years ago was :-
PROFESSIONALS SORT – AMATEURS CONVINCE
We are in the sorting business – not the convincing business.
That’s why I’m simply not interested in persuading people to join our team. Why ? Because if I spend time doing that, I know that I’m going to spend lots more valuable time trying to get them to actually do some work !!
I want to spend my time helping those who really want to build their businesses.
Network Marketing is a serious business, and I believe that it should be treated a such. I spent forty years in conventional businesses and whenever I interviewed for a position in my team I always looked for attitude first, not aptitude. I looked for people who wanted to do the job, and who were prepared put the effort in to learn the skills they needed.
The best definition of the purpose of a business, which applies to every industry I have ever worked in , is
“To attract, serve and retain customers”
Everyone working in a business has customers. There are two kinds of customer.
The External Customer
The external customer buys our product or service, and it is our job to attract, serve and retain that customer. Customer satisfaction is not enough We all expect as a minimum to receive a satisfactory product or service. Customer loyalty should be our aim.
The Internal Customer
As a business builder we have internal customers too, - our team - people who expect from us support, encouragement and training. Again satisfaction is not enough. Loyalty is what we are after.
Lets look at that purpose again …
“To attract, serve and retain customers”
To attract, serve and retain customers who will place regular repeat orders. Not just satisfied customers who will enthusiastically recommend the product to others – but loyal customers will recommend YOU as the person to buy the product from. !
Remember that you are not the only person in the world selling your products. Who is your competition ? It is the person who goes the extra five miles whilst you are patting yourself on the back for going the extra mile !
To attract, serve and retain distributors in your team, who, with your help and encouragement, will go on to build teams of their own.
Attraction Marketing is a whole, new way of building a business, and I’ll be looking at it in more detail in a future post.
Next week I’ll be looking at the three elements essential to building a balanced, sustainable business.
Mitakuye Oyasin
Mike P
