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How exactly does the old mlm method for building a network marketing business compare to the new and why is the new better?

cute-baby

Coming from zero success in an old network marketing model of face to face prospecting…

I was pretty shocked to discover a new set of tools that you can have success with and feed your spirit rather than destroy it with hundreds of face to face rejections.

The old model of network marketing required you to have a really thick skin. You needed to be able to handle rejection after rejection without losing your spirit to succeed.

While this in theory works for a small number of people the reality is that a lot of people just can’t endure that.

The old model is quite a bit like telling a 2 year old baby to go get a job, and make a living. What if you told this cute little lady to go out and get a job?

The fact of the matter is the baby will focus on the wrong things. Playing in the leaves is a great way for children to pass the time, and to a two year old it is a lot more inviting than getting a job.

In truth a child this small would never get a job and likely die if they are left to fend for themselves.

The old way of network marketing is a lot like that. When  person is ready (grown up) they have the strength to start building a thick skin. But until, then they will just focus on playing in the leaves until they are old enough to understand the meaning, value, and power of network marketing.

So what is the solution to this problem and how can we have fun resolving it?

Before I answer that lets talk about what a “adult” network marketer needs to do in order to have success.

Network marketing is comprised of doing many repetitive tasks. (The way they are done can be the difference between total burn out or complete elation.)

You do things like:

  1. Find places that prospects gather. (Capture a Lead)
  2. Show your prospects you have something they want. (Demonstrate Value)
  3. Train them to do the same. (Be A Patient Teacher)
  4. Begin the process again. (Be A Hard Worker)

In a nutshell this process happens over and over.

And to be honest the old way of doing this sucks!

Let me contrast how these were done in the past and how they get done online.

  1. Find places that prospects gather. The old way was to just bug every person who came close enough to touch. Or flier parking lots or do some other “high energy low return” task.

    The new method for doing this is much different. The new method is to teach people online. Using blogs, Squidoo, social networks and social bookmarks.

    The old method usually worked one time. IE: You did work and once it touched someone and that person said no, you had to begin the process all over again.The new method works for you day after day month after month. The new method of network marketing online much more closely follows the MLM paradigm of “do the work once” and let it work for you.

    How exactly? Well in the old method you spoke with someone. When they finally said no all your work would come to nothing.

    But, online you can put information in place that people can use. And hundreds of people can see it.

    And the best part? When people do come to you from it they are warm. They have already opened their mind to what you have to say.

  2. The old way to show your prospects you had something they want was to just pitch everything with a pulse. Sell Sell Sell! Usually 1 on 1 or in a group of a few people.The new way is to create content that will help people solve their problems or increase their understanding.

    Then get it in front of enough people to have a positive impact on the group.

    This translates directly into sales for you if you’re the source of the good material.

  3. Again the old model of training was to get your team to buy a bunch of expensive training putting them into high levels of negative cash flow instantly.Didn’t they come in to make more money not less right? The new way allows you to train them online, for free… you do something and then teach them to do it too.

    You can do this by creating educational content for them or leverage the stuff your up-line has already made (if you’re up-line is working their MLM the new way.)

  4. The old way of beginning the process again really meant that you were starting all over from scratch.You have a prospect that has said no to your offer, or said yes but isn’t really doing anything to build with you. (Because they didn’t want it to begin with, but you managed to sell them on the idea.)

    And you have to start all over again to find someone else to do the same thing with.

    The new way is much better in this regard. Every time you plant a seed online (an article, blog post, audio, video, etc… etc…) it will continue to yield new fruit in the form of visitors and leads. A flier, business card, or pitching someone in the line at the grocery store won’t be available to people 24 hours a day 7 days a week forever will it?

    Anything you do online is!

In short the reason the new way of prospecting for network marketers online is so much more valuable is because it catches people when they are ready and you are ready.

In the old model you were ready but not everyone you talked to was ready (even if they needed what you have to offer.)

Over-all the new model is much more powerful because it saves you time, and the method of creating visibility builds momentum over time along with your business opportunity.

So the solution to our baby problem stated above is to apply online marketing leverage to your business opportunity leverage. It serves us in at least 2 ways.

  1. It allows us to learn about our industry as we offer information to others about it. (Helping us to “grow up” and really understand the material we need to understand in order to defend our position as network marketers. This is actually what we need to grow that thick skin.)
  2. It creates an asset for us that will attract people who will want to work with us.

This was a piece of the puzzle that was missing in our industry for a long time.

Related posts:

  1. Top 3 Arguments Against Network Marketing.
  2. Rapid Network Marketing Business Growth.
  3. Customer Language or Network Marketing Lingo?
  4. Email Marketing With Aweber
  5. What MLM Marketing And Online Marketing Have In Common