One of the best skills you can develop if you want to succeed in network marketing is to learn how to get people to approach you about your products and business opportunity, rather than you chasing people. This is frequently referred to as “being the hunted, not the hunter.”
In order to do this, you have to know how to generate your own leads. When you have an endless flow of new leads contacting YOU every day about your products and business opportunity, you are in the driver’s seat. I personally would rather have two people contact me per day than cold call 100 people a day myself.
When people contact you first, the business becomes fun. You are in complete control. All you have to do is answer their questions and point people in the right direction. Your prospects have already shown that they are at least somewhat interested in what you have to offer and all you have to do is collect a decision and help them get started.
I really consider this to be million dollar advice. I learned this tip from Mike Dillard many years ago and it still holds true today.
Lead generation is an art form. While I have nothing against prospecting people, working your warm market, or talking to strangers, I also realize that those strategies won’t work for everyone reading this post (or everyone on your team). I also know that at some point you will work through your warm market and you will need to quickly find a way to get more leads, or else your business is doomed.
What I want to do in the rest of this post is just share a few different things you can do so people will contact you first, and initiate the conversation with you. Not all of these strategies will work for everyone, but it’s a good starting point to give you some creative ideas.
# 1 Blogging – This is how I build my business. I realize that most people won’t be willing to do the work that I have done to build a successful blog, but for some people this is a good option. When you have your own blog and you focus on educating people about a certain topic, you become an expert. Once people start to know, like and trust you, many will reach out to you and ask you about your products and business opportunity.
# 2 Facebook – There is definitely a right way and a wrong way to do Facebook. I think it’s best to be mysterious about what you do. You’re not hiding anything, but your goal is to draw people in, not push them away. You can do that by sharing interesting articles about the niche of your company and products, by sharing personal updates of your experience with the products (without mentioning the name of the products), by creating your own private Facebook group around a niche topic, and by posting photos of you using the company’s products (without showing the labels or mentioning the name. Just remember that no one likes to be sold on Facebook, Your job is to spark curiosity with your friends and fans and get them to reach out to you.
# 3 Drop Cards – Drop cards are a fun and inexpensive way to grow your network marketing business, and get people to contact you first. A drop card is nothing more than an advertising message on a piece of paper that is bigger than a business card but smaller than a postcard. It has a headline, a few bullet points and a call to action for people to call you or visit your website. You simply leave drop cards at different locations when you are out and about doing errands. Interested people will check out the website or give you a call to learn more.
# 4 YouTube Videos – YouTube is a great way to get more leads and get people to contact you first, if you do it the right way. To start, you should never mention the name of your company or products in your videos. Many companies prohibit this anyway. Instead, you want to educate people about a certain topic (for people in your target market) and have a call to action at the end of each video to have people email you, call you, or visit your capture page to learn more. You want to be an educator and become an expert on a particular topic. For instance, if you focus on weight loss products, you could make videos with tips for losing weight or document your weight loss story. Learn how to grow your business on YouTube.
# 5 Classified Ads – When done right, classified ads still work very well. However, there is a right way and a wrong way to do it. Read my post about my top classified ads. This would be my least recommended method on this page, but you could still try it. If you try this method, start really small and test out a few different newspapers or magazines to see which ones give you the best return on your investment.
# 6 Events – Events are powerful because people come to you! You can set up at a flea market, bazaar, health fair or other local community event and have thousands of people walk by and stop at your booth on one day. It’s like the best of both worlds. This is something so easy that anyone can do it!
Final Thoughts
The bottom line is that it’s much easier and much smarter to have people contact you first, especially if you have a hard time dealing with rejection or talking to strangers. When people contact you first, your business becomes fun! Follow any of the tips and strategies mentioned above and you should be well on your way.
What are your thoughts about getting people to contact you first? Leave a comment below and let us know what you think. I look forward to hearing from you.
Chuck Holmes
20+ Year Network Marketing Professional
Top Earner & Top Recruiter
Email: mrchuckholmes@gmail.com
P.S. Learn how to grow a successful network marketing business. Secret tips, training, and practical ideas. Free training delivered by email.
Mike Dillard rocks! I’ve enjoyed reading some of his tips through your site. Thank you for sharing his wisdom – and yours. If you’re in the driver’s seat, and people are approaching you about your product or service, it leads to a lot more positive thinking, too. Instead of getting 50 nos in a day, you’re hearing from people who want to know what your product or service is all about. I think that this leads to increased motivation, too.
I personally like to have people approach me because it makes me feel like I am one step closer to getting the type of people I am looking for. I’m not saying that the person will be the “team member of my dreams”, but depending on how they found me I know that they already have some knowledge of what I am looking for based on the highlights from my post. Finding that dream person will be 1 in a 100 but hopefully the people that contact me will be coachable.