When You Get Spammed In Network Marketing

If you are in networking and if you have your name and email address available on the internet, I guarantee you will get spammed.

When you get these pieces of spam, you have several options. You have the option to hit the delete button. You have the option to report the offender to their email service. You have the option to report the offender to their company, or finally, you have the option to answer the spam.

I’ve tried all of the above. Hitting delete gets rid of the piece of email but it doesn’t stop the person from emailing you again and again. Or worse yet, it doesn’t stop the person from passing your name and email onto the next person as someone who “might be open to a new idea”

Reporting the offender to their email provider usually produces no result at all. Regardless of the email provider, I find that reports are ignored completely as I’ve often received numerous pieces of spam from the same person.

There are times, if you’re dealing with a reputable company, that reporting the offender to their company will produce results. Legitimate companies do not want their reputation tarnished by those who spam others.

I also like to sometimes hit reply. I have two goals in mind when hitting reply. One, I hope to help the offender know that what they’re doing violates TOS for companies and email providers but I also hope to engage in conversation and begin a relationship that may or may not lead to business for me down the road.

Depending on what the spam says, I’ll usually invite the offender to read one of my existing articles. I offer a brief overview of what the article is about and then I provide a direct link to the article.

I do not offer a link to my business. I simply try to offer something of value to the spammer. I’ve received many varied responses by doing this. Sometimes, I never hear from the person again. Sometimes I get an argument back, that my article is not correct or not something they agree with. I’m not looking to enter into a debate so I usually just hit delete at that point. Sometimes I get a thank you. This allows to me to make another effort at a relationship with the person. This of course is my preferred response.

I will NEVER respond to the email chain letters. This just isn’t the person I wish to enter into a conversation with. The spams I respond to are from those representing a legitimate company or those that have some measure of sincerity in them. If I get an email that says “I earned a million bucks last night”, I know this person isn’t being honest. I just hit delete.

I continually form new relationships, some that lead to business, some that don’t, just from hitting reply on spam I receive. Try this yourself. Respond to those emails that have a sense of sincerity to them. Point them to your own articles or blog that might be helpful to them. You’ll find over time that you’ll build unexpected relationships that often lead to additional business for you.

Audrey :)

Online Network Marketing – A Daily Checklist

If you are running an online network marketing business, there are several things you should be doing each and every day:

1. Updating your blog – I’ve recently started pre-scheduling posts one week at a time. This means I only write posts once per week, but I write four to six posts when I do write them.

2. Commenting on other blogs – I try to go out at least two or three times per week to comment on the blogs that I follow and subscribe to.

3. Social media updating – Those using the internet to promote their network marketing businesses should belong to one or two social media networks. Updating your pages, groups etc should be part of your daily routine. Facebook is actually my favorite. I invest a little bit of time each day reading my groups, commenting on photos and statuses and answering personal messages.

4. Reading articles and blogs associated with your market – Everyone sells a different product line. Find a few blogs that cater to what you’re selling. For example, if you sell home décor, find a few blogs from experts in interior design and read what they have to say. If you sell dietary supplements, find a few blogs on health and wellness and read what they are saying. Subscribe to Google alerts for a few keywords associated with what you sell and read the daily updates.

5. Contact leads and customers – I do my best to stay in touch with those who order from me and who have expressed an interest in selling my products. Every day, I check to see if I owe anyone a phone call or email. Often someone will say “contact me in a week.” I check my notes daily to see if I need to check back with anyone.

6. Check your company website – Companies update product information, incentives and special offers constantly. Check your company’s website each and every day for new information.

7. Network, network, network – Invest time each and every day getting to know new people. This can be incorporated into tasks you’re already doing. For example, find one new blog to follow and participate in. Or find one new “friend” on the social media network you belong to. Your business will grow through your relationships. Work hard on this one, meeting new people and letting them know who are.

These are just seven ideas on creating your own daily checklist of tasks you should be doing for your business. I find when it’s planned out and written down, I tend to be more successful in following through.

Audrey :)

Who Are You In Network Marketing?

When you consider how you’re known in the cyber world, it’s important to consider what name you use to present yourself to others.

I am a person who loves social media. Recently, I’ve been getting a slew of friend requests from company names versus people names. Each time I receive one of these requests, I hit “ignore.” I really don’t wish to be friends with ABC Company. I much prefer to be friends with a real person.

Very often these anonymous requests come from people involved in network marketing. I do go to their profiles and I see they represent a network marketing company.

Sales and teams are built through personal relationships in network marketing. If you don’t even use your real name, how can you expect to build relationships?

I’m a strong supporter of introducing yourself to others and then, if and when the time is right, introducing your products to the new person in your life. When I get a friend request from a company name, whoever is behind the company is trying to introduce me to the product first.

Consider your own purchasing habits. How often do you buy items from an unknown source and through someone who doesn’t even use their real name?

If you use social media? as a form of exposure, attach your name. Attach your city and state. Let people know who you are.

If you use a blog as a form of exposure, once again, use your name. I can’t even count the amount of comments I’ve gotten on my blog from company names. I go to their profile and there is nothing personal about them. I have no idea who they are. I only know their company name. I click away. I want to meet and know people. I am not interested in learning about the company or the company’s products.

Consider who you are as you market and put your name out there in cyber space. How do you want to be known? Do you want people to know you as Company ABC, or do you want people to know you are a real person willing to be known?

Audrey :)

Growing a Team of Distributors

I wanted to share an article written by Lisa Willard. I have always enjoyed reading her words:

I just finished listening to one of our team coaching calls and as always, it got me to thinking and my wheels turning. As a home business owner and coach, my passion is growing a team of distributors. When a new member joins my team, it's really important to get them started on the right track. Here's a few highlights to start your new team members the "right" way.

1. Maximize the excitement. When someone first starts a new business, the excitement is huge and as their partner and coach help them plan the next few weeks to keep that excitement going. What's the best way to do that? Help them make some cash fast! My business has a retail end that allows you to make money day one. And when someone can make some extra money immediately, that is huge.

2. Keep in touch. You want to keep in touch with all of your team members. But you will want to have a plan for contacting your new people one on one at least for the first month. Get to know them. Know their goals. Know their dreams. Have fun!

3. Set up their monthly calendar. Help your new team member plan their first 30 days. Having a plan is one thing, but you must have action steps to go along with it. Whether it's planning home parties, or an open house, or simply sending out a "I have a new business" letter to friends and family, help your new partner plan those action steps.

4. Keep their goals in front. It's so important to have goals in this business. Write them down. Have your new team member share them. Once you have goals, plan your action steps accordingly.

5. Encourage Personal Development. This is so important. Personal development is a huge part to a successful home business. I have a great reading list for all of my new team members. It's so easy to let fear stop you in your business. The fear of rejection, the fear of failure, or even the fear of success. It's important to prepare your mind and to develop yourself into the leader you want to become.

6. Enjoy the journey of your growing team. This simply goes back to having fun! Some of my best friends have become the people I have met through my home business. And most of them live many miles away. It's important to laugh, smile and have fun with what you are doing!

Believe Success!

Lisa Willard
Network Marketing Success
Burn and Earn

~ ~ ~
Audrey :)

Fall Cleaning in Network Marketing

If you’re in network marketing, then you know products will change with the seasons.
With fall just around the corner, it’s time to clean out supplies and products that you had over the summer time.

We just moved and so I had the opportunity to clean out old supplies during the packing process. I threw out quite a few older items, creating fewer boxes to pack and unload on the other end.

So what should you save and what should you throw out with the change of seasons?

1. Throw out network marketing catalogs with wrong prices. Companies do change and update catalogs. If the prices have not increased, it’s ok to keep the catalogs and hand them out, but if prices have changed, toss the catalogs. When customers see a price, they want the item at the price in the catalog they’re looking at.

2. Throw out old policy and procedure guides. Network marketing companies update their policies and procedures regularly. Make sure that the copy you have is the most recent and accurate copy. If someone has a question, you don’t want to answer based on the policy five years ago.

3. Put aside discontinued products. While the product might be new and sellable, you don’t want to demo or show a product that can not be ordered by a customer. Either put the product into your personal collection or offer the product as a giveaway.

4. If you save company literature on conferences, get rid of old literature. Unless you’re holding onto it to create a scrapbook of a trip taken, get rid of old conference literature.

5. Most companies have incentives through out the year. Get rid of any old incentive information. You want to keep current incentive information at your fingertips, but old information no longer does you any good.

When we moved, I was amazed at how much older information I had. I was able to lighten our moving load quite a bit by cleaning out all of the old network marketing literature I had. Go through your shelves and see what you can discard and what should continue to be saved.

Audrey :)