How to Build YOUR Business with RADICAL INTEGRITY!
by guest author Dante Maure
WELCOME TO NETWORK MARKETING FANTASY THEATER!
In today's episode we visit with Freddy Fastbuck and Harry Hopeful. Freddy's just about ready to close a presentation with his wide-eyed prospect. Let's see how things are going....
Freddy Fastbuck (grinning):
“… so you see, when you get 5, and they get their 5, then you have 25, who get 5, giving you 125! Can you guess just HOW much MONEY you'll be making when this progresses down to your seventh level? Pretty amazing, huh Harry?”
Harry Hopeful (with dollar signs dancing in his head):
"Golly, Freddy it IS pretty amazing, and you're certain that this is completely legal?”
Freddy Fastbuck (laughing):
"Would I be doing this if it wasn't? Listen to what the Harvard Business School has said about choosing an MLM Company… (reads a few passages). How's that for credibility! Ok – here's where you sign the application, just press HARD.”
There you have it, folks. Yet another individual ready to embark upon the road to riches with their very own business.
And now a word from our sponsor:
NETWORK MARKETING REALITY!
Fast forward 90 days, and not only is Harry far from making any significant amount of money in his business, but he has gone on to warn his remaining friends and family about the scam he was "roped into" by Fastbucks.
To make matters even worse, he reads in the paper a public statement from the Harvard Business School clearly stating that they have never published any reports about the viability of the Network Marketing model.
Guess what?
Yet another new Anti-MLM evangelist is born…
And all because of recruiting methods which were bankrupt of any kind of INTEGRITY.
What does it mean to build a Network Marketing business WITH integrity?
Let's take a look…
In an industry where a 90% drop-out rate is the accepted standard, a man by the name of Frank Keefer reports a 100% success rate in helping his recruits earn at least $100,000 in their first year. (For those who don't know, Frank is the CEO of Network Marketing Lifestyles magazine)
The way in which he claims to have accomplished this astounding feat was through intensively screening the individuals whom he sponsors. He lets his prospects know, up front, that he may not be willing to work with them unless they can demonstrate the minimum skills required to grow a successful business.
This type of approach often used by recruiters is referred to as "posturing". Basically, it can be seen as a psychological tactic intended to give the impression that the sponsor has what the prospect wants, then increasing desire by making the prospect work for it.
Note that this technique is called "posturing", and for 99% of the Networkers out there, it is only that, a posture.
Please understand that THE KEY to how Frank Keefer accomplished this unprecedented degree of success is this…
HE WASN'T POSTURING.
Frank Keefer says he is more than willing to TURN DOWN a prospect if he doesn't believe wholeheartedly that they have a chance to succeed in this business.
This is one approach to recruiting which models a very high degree of integrity.
I can almost feel the seething legions of "THIS IS A NUMBERS GAME!" recruiters ready to roast me, but please suspend your fiery judgement long enough for me to plead my case.
The Network Marketing credo is:
"YOU CAN ONLY SUCCEED BY HELPING OTHERS SUCCEED"
The beauty of our industry is that just about anybody CAN succeed. Unfortunately though, many WON'T.
I am not an advocate of "disqualifying" prospects based on personal bias or success stereotypes. Far too many people have already proven that many of these molds don't fit in our business.
Despite this, there are many things which can point towards nearly inevitable failure, as well as suggest the potential for greatness.
1. ASK WHAT YOUR PROSPECT'S ASPIRATIONS ARE.
- If they can't even imagine themselves being successful, then they probably won't be.
2. ESTABLISH WHETHER THEY HAVE LONG TERM VISION.
- If they're looking only to "get rich quick" it is doubtful they will have the commitment to follow through long enough to build a serious organization, let alone support and train one.
3. FIND OUT IF THEY HAVE A SINCERE DESIRE TO DO WHAT IT TAKES TO SUCCEED.
- If they have proven themselves to be successful in past endeavors of any kind, great! If not, don't disqualify them. Our industry abounds with rags to riches stories. Yet, all of these stories of achievement have at least one common quality at their heart, which is:
AN INDIVIDUAL WITH A DESIRE AND WILLINGNESS TO MAKE A CHANGE IN THEIR LIFE.
If you ask why someone is looking for a change, and the response largely places blame on circumstances, or other people, LOOK ELSEWHERE.
There will always be circumstances which CAN keep people from success. ACHIEVERS are often those who are capable of ACOMPLISHING under the very same circumstances which hold others back!
One of the single most important things to consider is the intention with which you approach your prospect.
Are you desperate enough to sign up anyone willing to sell their car, pets, or relatives in order to cover their sign up fee?
(Heck, sign up the DOG! Here Spot, press HARD.)
Or, are you truly interested in helping a person achieve their wildest hopes, and dreams?
There's not a legitimate MLM program out there whose "fast pay" can compensate me fast enough to endlessly recruit, in an effort to stay ahead of the AMAZING DISAPPEARING DOWNLINE. It's like panning for gold with a huge hole in the pan.
If you were opening a new conventional business and needed a responsible store manager, how would you go about finding one? Would you just hire the first ten people that showed an interest, spend your time training them all, and wait to see which of the ten had what it takes?
That's ridiculous!
When faced with the dismal attrition statistics in Network Marketing, the savvy sponsor is always quick to point out that only 1 out of 10 businesses in the traditional market ever make it, just like MLM.
Great! Do you think an intelligent investor in traditional business would simply invest in the first 10 businesses which came knocking?
No real businessperson would ever consider doing such a thing. I know you've heard it before, but this time really let it sink in.
The people who make it BIG in Network Marketing TREAT THEIR BUSINESS LIKE A BUSINESS.
Network Marketing is supposed to be about LEVERAGE, right?>>>>>>>>>>>BANG!!! <<<<<<<<<<<
That was the sound of the door slamming shut behind 9 of the 10 recruits you just spent two months sponsoring and training.
How's that for leverage?
The real travesty is that the AMAZING DISAPPEARING DOWNLINE isn't a decaying, inanimate object. It's made up of individuals just like you and me with grand hopes and dreams, who inevitably don't find the promised road to easy riches.
What happens then?
One more MLM casualty is out there propagating the very disreputable name which our industry has on the street.
The aspect of recruiting that absolutely IS a "numbers game" is the sheer number of people who need to be approached before finding a prospect open to a Network Marketing business opportunity.
Why?
Maybe as a result of the sheer numbers of the MLM Walking Wounded who were sponsored without integrity.
While there are many who have amassed a fortune using the numbers approach, there is still the nine tenths of their downline who barely made a dime.
Do you really want to spend your time looking for the "Heavy Hitter" who is going to make you successful, despite the failure of your remaining downline?
Given the choice, wouldn't you rather achieve your planned Rise To Glory by helping EVERY ONE of your recruits to be successful? It's a revolutionary concept, and an even more revolutionary practice.
The surest way to serve yourself, is to be of service.
Frank Keefer Did It, I'm Committed To It.…How About YOU?
Warmest Regards,
Dante Maure
Co-Moderator of The MLM EmPowerment Forum
Editor of Zen and The Art Of MLM E-zineP.S. I recommend reading the UPLINE.COM archived article written by Frank Keefer in the Nov./Dec. 98 issue.
E-mail dante@tiki.net
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