Skim The Cream
You'll likely start prospecting for new
distributors by making a list of all the people you
know, however casually. Now, it doesn't really make
sense to take a list of 100 people and go through it
alphabetically.
Instead, you should start with your most likely
prospects. Once you have a few distributors in your
downline, you can go on down the rest of your prospect
list while the distributors you've already recruited
are out in the field working for you, selling products
and signing up more people.
So you need a plan for going through your prospect
list. Start with the prospects who relate well to
other people. You know who they are -- they show up at
a party and are immediately surrounded by a group of
others. They're the people who spend a lot of time on
the phone, who always are having lunch with their
friends, who engage in weekly card games, etc.
After these "people-oriented" prospects, your next
targets should be the people who have been most
successful in their careers. Now, this may seem odd to
you -- surely a physician or a top corporate executive
wouldn't be interested in selling vitamins or water
filters.
Don't believe that. For one thing, many
professionals and executives are ready to get off the
treadmill. They're looking for an opportunity that
will allow them to be in charge, where they'll have
flexibility they don't have right now.
Also, the most successful professionals and
executives have spent years achieving their current
stature. In all likelihood, they'll reach retirement
age fairly soon. So they may be looking for a venture
in which they can learn the ropes now, in preparation
for a more active role after retirement.
Moreover, successful people are most likely to
succeed in MLM. They have contacts, they have
experience, they have ability, they have drive.
Wouldn't you like to have a team of winners in your
downline, rather than people who have spent their lives
jumping from one thing to another, never succeeding at
any of them?
After you've mined this level, go for people in
situations conducive to their becoming MLM
distributors. Look for retirees, people who have been
laid off, homemakers with young children, etc.
When you've run through all of these people, you
can go on to the rest of your distributor list.
Chances are you won't have to, because you'll never get
that far down on your list.
Why not? Because you should ask people who turn
you down for three referrals. Following up on those
names will keep you busy.
At the same time, ask people who turn you down if
they'll purchase at least a small amount of your
product. Many people will feel guilty about turning
down your offer to work as a distributor, so they'll
buy something from you. Every sale helps, of course.
More than that, if you really have a good product,
you'll have a satisfied customer who may reorder, in
larger amounts, and who may reconsider your offer to
become a distributor.
When you run down the list, don't neglect those
people who live in the next county, the next state,
even across the country. You can prospect them by
phone -- call Saturday or Sunday to hold down the phone
charges. Then you can mail them the necessary samples
and literature. Today, with fax machines and
conference calls and overnight express service, you can
maintain a downline in Oregon even if you live in
Georgia.
