MLM - Another Point of View

I love some of the products offered by many of the multi-level marketing or networking companies. Selling a great product at a reasonable price is the basic idea behind any successful business idea. But sometimes I see MLM marketers caught up in the growth of their down-line and less enthusiastic about their products.

To create excitement about a product or service you are selling it is absolutely necessary for you to believe in the outcome of using that product. You need to be sure and totally convinced that the price is consistent with the results expected. And YOU should be willing to use and promote how the product impacted your own life and the lives of others you know.

There are things that you can do to rise to the top of the MLM world, if you understand and believe in the paragraph above. First of all, if you are selling products, be sure to have sufficient inventory on hand to meet your customer's needs. In this world of instant gratification, not many are willing to wait for you to fulfill their orders.

Secondly, today's consumers are not willing to pay your shipping costs. They may do it the first time or maybe a couple of times, but if the customer wants to continue to use the product they will find alternative sources where shipping is included.

Remember that most consumers know how to use the internet and most MLM products are widely available with a quick search at lower prices on the web and most all will include the shipping. Understand your competition is not necessarily the other MLM sellers in your area, but the internet.

A word about downline - people will want to be a part of an exciting, cost effective, successful product/service. When you are convinced that your product/service is the best and the pricing is reasonable that excitement will be contagious and others will want to join in.

Most MLM marketers are their own worst enemy. The FEW successful ones have learned to love their products and transfer that enthusiasm to others that want to be a part of the program.

Find a product or service you can use, believe in, that works for you and you are not be embarrassed to promote and sell to others and you may find yourself one of the successes in a tough, but potentially rewarding business.

Print Ads Big Enough To See

Businesses and professionals spend a lot of money on newspapers, shoppers and specialized magazines. Many times the ad salesperson, in hopes of making a sale, does not share enough information about the requirements to make an ad work.

I always ask buyers, "what attracts your attention to read an ad" and "what could you do to make your ad easier to read and understand"? Many will step back as they look at their own ad and start to see things that should be changed in order to get the most results from their investment.

One thing that always comes up is the size of the print. Usually headlines of an ad are readable but many of the features and finer points are in very small print. So small in fact that a truly interested party may be required to get their reading glasses just to read it. And the usual result is that the truly interested reader is not in a position to "get their glasses" and move on to the more readable ad.

Real estate agents are usually the guilty parties on this rule. In order to list the maximum number of properties in their ad, they reduce the print and pictures so small they are virtually unreadable to a large segment of the population. And part of their ploy is to create a phone call from the interested party. However, it should be noted that studies have shown that many would be interested parties simply move on to the next ad.

So when you place your ads, stand back and inspect them closely. Be sure it's an ad that would capture your attention AND if it did you would be able to glean the details of the offer with a quick glance - without your glasses.

It's a shame that so many print advertising dollars are wasted because of poor quality ads. Ads that don't attract or keep readers attention.

Your Customer - Your Best Marketing Tool

Each time I call the customer service department of large companies I hear the same phrase that is part of their script: "Is there anything else I can help you with today?" I know this is the script and I know they really don't mean it. These customer service representatives have scripts they follow AND they're being timed on the efficiency of each call. Basically, they're trained to attempt to resolve your issues and get the next call as quickly as possible. That's how big companies see everything.

However, when I call or go into a local business sometimes they seemed rushed to many other things. Maybe the small business owners could take a lesson from the large companies and always attempt to provide more than the customer has requested, even though the large corporations customer service rep probably didn't mean it.

The next time you answer a call or wait on a customer in your business, stop just as you finish the sale, look the customer in the eye and in all sincerity ask "is there anything else I could help you with, today?" Then remind the customer that if they are happy with the service/products you've provided to please refer a friend AND come or call back again.

We customers appreciate someone who has shown a genuine interest in our patronage. And believe me, customers will return and will recommend their friends when they feel that connection with the business.

It's in the business owners best interest to show a genuine interest in your customer. The rewards will be great and continuing.

Sluggish Sales?

Why are sales sluggish? Are your sales and marketing efforts what they should be? Do you (and your sales staff) know where to find leads and potential customers? And if so, what are you doing to reach them? Most consumers and businesses make purchases because THEY seek out the company, not because the company came looking for them.

It's a shame that potential customers are buying your product everyday and would be buying the product from YOU if they knew you were there and knew you had good prices and good service. But no ones bothered to tell them.

When they looked on the internet your website was far from impressive. There were no contact emails for the sales department and no individual phone numbers, only the main office number. Links were broken and some of the pricing was outdated.

Create a presence in brick and mortar and on the internet that has no rival. Make your business the cleanest, most well-lit and welcoming in the neighborhood. And make your internet site the easiest to use and most informative. Your web site can be your cheapest and best sales person.

Do the things it takes to succeed, don't moan and groan about the economy if you're falling short in your business management.