Two weeks after I joined my first network marketing company, my sponsor Frank came to my home to explain how the business worked.
Frank asked me to make a list of all the people that I knew and all the people that I had a relationship with. I was encouraged to list my family, friends, neighbors, and the people that I worked with and did business with. Frank called this list my “Warm Market.”
I had never heard the term before even though I was familiar with the concept.
Then Frank handed me a phone script, told me to call everyone on my list and tell them about our new business. This has been the proven formula for success in network marketing for years.
And while that still works, today the Internet and social networks provide a better and faster alternative.
Word of mouth recommendations from good friends can be very effective. Traditionally, that’s the way network marketing works, – you tell the people that you know, they tell the people that they know, and so on and so on.
Here are the reasons network marketers traditionally are encouraged to go to their Warm Market List when they start their business.
- Everyone knows a lot of people
- It’s always easier to talk to someone you know than it is to talk to strangers
- People are more likely to consider things recommended by their friends
- The people in your Warm Market like you and trust you.
- What you say to them has more credibility than when they hear the exact same thing from a stranger
Potentially, your Warm Market List would appear to be the first place to go when you’re looking for new customers or starting any kind of business. But sometimes, it isn’t always so.
The Reasons you may NOT want to go to your Warm Market
- You don’t want to sell to your friends
- You’re not ready to recommend something you’re not sure about.
- You don’t have any credibility with the people that you know.
- You’ve been in so many network marketing companies over the years and have burned through your friends.
- You want to talk to your friends after you’ve achieved some success in the business
If you CAN’T or WON’T talk about your business to the people that you know, you have to talk to strangers.
However, talking to strangers about your business can expose you to a great deal of rejection.
Network Marketing leaders routinely encourage their new recruits to get out of their comfort zone and smile when they get a ‘no thanks I’m not interested.’ “You have to go through one hundred “NO’s” to get a “YES” is what they teach. So every ‘NO’ is another step closer to a ‘YES’.
Like many people, I initially didn’t want to talk about my new business with the people that I knew. Initially, I didn’t know enough about the new company I was involved with, or the industry itself, to feel good about recommending it to my friends. I found it easier talking to strangers about my business than talking to the people that I knew. So I initially ignored my Warm Market List completely and looked for new people to talk to. I planned to go back to my Warm Market when I could show them how well I was doing.
The “Three Foot Rule” in network marketing is, If there is a person that’s breathing within three feet of you, they’re a prospect for your business.
So for the year of my network marketing career, like anyone without a warm market prospect list, I lived the Three Foot Rule. I would talk to strangers where ever I would find them. I would meet people at Chamber of Commerce functions, at social events, at the mall, standing in line at the supermarket, at art shows, and at the marina where I kept my sailboat.
I would sit in the center seat of an airplane whenever I flew so I would have two people to talk to during the flight. For seven months, I even networked “Happy Hour” at two upscale bars on Palm Beach and signed up the largest group of dysfunctional distributors in my company.
I ran ads in newspapers for five months to get customers. I spent thousands of dollars advertising, with minimal results. And at the end of my first year in network marketing, I had one hundred and fifty customers and business builders. Like many network marketers I had spent more money than I had made but was encouraged that my group would duplicate and grow.
My second year in network marketing was a different story. I made much more money than I spent because of a social network called America Online and the Internet. I would add thousands of people to my business as a result of the successful example of one of my new recruits who went online to build her business.
Cindy’s Story
Cindy was one of the few normal people I had met at “Happy Hour,” and enrolled in my business. When she told me that she was going to buy a computer so she could meet people to talk to about our business and products I was skeptical.
I laughed at her and suggested that she get psychiatric help. “It’s easy to meet people,” I told her.
It was easy for me to meet people when I was out and about, but it wasn’t easy for her.
Two weeks after she went on America Online to meet people, Cindy called me to tell me she was going to the home of someone she met online to talk about our business.
I was concerned about Karla’s safety and cautioned her about the potential dangers of meeting strange people Online. She agreed to call me fifteen minutes after arriving at her new prospects home. If I didn’t hear from her, I promised to call out the National Guard.
When my phone rang the day of the meeting, the man on the other end of the line was Cindy’s new online friend, Doug. Doug wanted to assure me that Cindy had arrived and was perfectly safe. Doug told me that he was very interested in getting involved with our business.
Doug turned out to be an amazing and accomplished individual. He had been very successful in the automotive industry and had retired to a large riverfront estate. He had two computers connected to the Internet all the time. Doug told me, “I’ve made many great friends on the Internet. After all, I met you two. Didn’t I?”
Doug knew more about network marketing than I did. He was very comfortable talking to his friends about it. And after enrolling in our business, Doug brought in eighteen of his friends who were also more familiar with network marketing than I was. For Doug, going to his Warm Market was easier than it was for me.
I was so impressed that Cindy could meet someone like Doug on America Online and the Internet that I went out and purchased my own personal computer. I figured if she could do it, I could do it too. Who wouldn’t want to meet someone like Doug?
In the next 18 months I would add thousands of people to my business from America Online as a result of the relationships I developed with complete strangers and the wonderful friends I made.
When Cindy enrolled a top earner from another company into our business he would bring thousands of people into our business with him. And Cindy became known as the Internet Queen.
In the end, I never did go to my Warm Market. I created a new Warm Market of friends on America Online.
When you compare the 36 million people available to talk to me on America Online back then with the 1.79 Billion people available to talk to today on Facebook today, it’s clear to see why more network marketers are building their business online.
The top earners in network marketing today will tell you that they owe their success to the social network Facebook. But they won’t tell you how they’re doing it unless you’re on their team.
Each month, in this section of The Network marketing Magazine, I’m going to tell you how they’re doing it and how you can do it too.
_____________________________________________________________
Don’t ever miss any great articles like this again
Become a 27%er Success Member and get on an incredible journey of growth!
Join Here!
Here is your first Growth Bonus….
Become a $97/year 27%er Success Member and receive one of the best lead generation programs available FOR FREE!
Endless Free Leads. We sell this program for $397 in our store, but you receive it for Free by becoming an annual member! Take advantage of this right away and pass this on to your team today!
Join Here!
How Facebook Can Replace Going to Your Warm Market! by Max Steingart
That’s because it was Max who first cracked the code to building your downline team by using social networks. His decades-long track record extends all the way back to the mid-1990’s using the old AOL Chatrooms, and he has pioneered every advancement since then. These days his focus is on LinkedIn and Facebook.
The list of famous top earners who use techniques they learned from Max reads like the “Who’s Who” in the network marketing hall of fame.
Max conducts multiple free educational webinars weekly. He offers a variety of low-cost, easily affordable training.
Most importantly, Max also provides personal one-on-one coaching for those who want to achieve maximum financial success as quickly as possible.
You can get a copy of Max’s breakthrough FREE EBOOK REPORT: “The Universal Profile Checklist” by going to this link: https://maxsteingart.com/profilechecklist/
- SOCIAL NETWORKS – IDEAL FOR RECRUITING NEW REPS & CUSTOMERS By Max Steingart - August 31, 2023
- HOW TO BUILD A LOYAL and PRODUCTIVE DOWNLINE TEAM In A World of Never-Ending Distractions! Max Steingart “The Father of Social Networking” - August 21, 2023
- WHAT IS GENUINE COACHING by Max Steingart “The Father of Social Networking” - July 30, 2023
