Today, I want to talk about the MLM fundamentals. These are basic skills or tasks you must master to build a large, long-term network marketing business.
I’ve been in this industry a long time now and I’ve studied hundreds of successful distributors. The one common theme I find with them is that they focus on the fundamentals. They keep things simple and they focus on the basic tasks and activities that propel their business forward.
A fundamental is a central or primary rule or principle on which something is based.
In my own words, I like to think of a fundamental as a basic “building block” or “essential task” you must focus on to build your network marketing business.
For example, the fundamentals for a defense in football are:
- Alignment
- Tackling
- Block Destruction
- Pursuit
- Creating Turnovers
Some of the fundamentals in basketball are:
- Shooting
- Dribbling
- Passing
- Rebounding
- Footwork
- Defense
The most successful sports teams focus on the fundamentals. The coaches of these teams realize it’s hard to master the big things until you master the little things. More importantly, the “big things” are normally nothing more than a collective group of small things. Once you master the fundamentals in something, everything else will fall into place.
Top 5 MLM Fundamentals
When it comes to our amazing industry, there are only a few basic MLM fundamentals you need to understand and master. As I see it, there are five basic MLM fundamentals in network marketing which include (1) lead generation, (2) closing, (3) follow up, (4) launching new reps, and (5) promoting events.
In the paragraphs below, I will cover each MLM fundamental in greater detail.
# 1: Lead Generation
Without leads, you won’t be in business long. One of the primary reasons so many people quit network marketing is they think they don’t have enough people to talk with.
Once you learn how to generate an endless supply of fresh leads, the business becomes fun. You are no longer emotionally attached to what people say, think, or do with the business, because you always have someone else to talk with.
There are thousands of ways to generate leads. What I suggest you do is find 2-3 lead generation strategies that make sense to you and focus on those exclusively. Don’t spread yourself thin and try too many strategies at once.
Some of my favorite lead generation strategies include Craigslist, postcards, YouTube videos, flyers, blogging, email signatures, LinkedIn, and social media. Once you pick your 2-3 strategies (max) you want to use, head on over to YouTube and learn everything you can about those strategies. Buy books about those lead generation strategies. Be a student of those strategies and implement what you learn. Within a short period of time you can master those lead generation strategies.
Later on down the road, you can add more lead generation strategies to your marketing mix.
I’ve combined the skill of INVITING with lead generation, because someone doesn’t really become a lead until they have been INVITED to watch a presentation. Once you have leads and prospects you must know how to invite them to listen/watch a presentation that explains your products, services, or business opportunity.
The key to “inviting” prospects successfully is to use the curiosity approach, ask questions, be in a hurry, and confirm a time for the appointment. Keep it short and simple and don’t say too much. Remember, your job is to sell the appointment and then let the appointment sell your prospect on the business or products.
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# 2: Closing
Closing is a critical skill. If you can’t learn to help your prospects transition from a prospect to a buyer or distributor, you won’t be in business long. This is where most reps mess up. They can get someone to watch a presentation, but they fumble with closing the deal.
Keep in mind, closing is not about pressure or hype. It’s about leading people to a favorable decision that benefits them.
Here are a few of my favorite closing scripts.
What questions do you need me to answer before we get you started today?
Or…
It sounds like this opportunity would be a great fit for you. How about we take two minutes and set up your account and place your initial order right now? How does that sound?
Once you ask your closing question, it is PARAMOUNT that you do not say anything else. Sit there in silence until your prospect responds, even if you sit there for 30-minutes staring at each other.
As you practice, you will improve. Find a good mentor and utilize the three-way close until you learn how to do it yourself. Let your upline or coach close your prospects for you in the beginning.
There are also lots of books, YouTube videos, training courses, and seminars about closing. This is one subject worth mastering.
# 3: Follow Up
The money is in the follow up. How many times have you heard that before? It’s so true. This is one of the most important MLM fundamentals on this list. The best network marketers are really good at following up with people.
Smart networkers realize that most people need at least seven to twenty exposures and follow-ups before they commit and buy. Very few prospects sign up or buy on the spot.
Learning how to follow up effectively, without begging or chasing people is a very valuable skill to have.
The key to an effective follow up is to be persistent and consistent, without using hype or pressure. Your job is to walk your prospect through a series of steps and follow ups so they can make an informed decision. Send them a postcard, invite them to a three-way call with your upline, get them to a live event, let them try a product sample, etc.
And whatever you do, remember your prospect is always watching you. Don’t quit the business. Many of your best prospects will watch you for several years BEFORE they decide to partner up with you or buy from you.
# 4: Launching New Reps
Launching new reps properly is of the utmost importance. It doesn’t matter how many people you sponsor; if you can’t get them to do anything, they won’t stick around long in the business.
The best way to help your new person is to help them sign up their first few people.
To do that, you want to put them through your getting started training, find out why they want to do the business, help them make their name’s list, and help them do their first two or three meetings. Of course, not everyone you sponsor will let you do these things with them. Perhaps 1 in 5 will. Make sure you help those 1 in 5 people get started right, so they don’t you don’t lose them.
# 5: Promoting Events
We are an event driven business. Events are the glue that keeps your business together. To be successful you must attend events and you must promote events like your life and success depend on it.
When it comes to promoting events, be the first one on your team to buy a ticket. Talk about the events with your team members. Have contests and incentives for people to get their event ticket.
The number of people you have at events is the most important important indicator of your business’s health.
Final Thoughts
If you want to be successful in network marketing, you need to MASTER these five basic MLM fundamentals. It won’t happen overnight, but if you take the time to be a student of your business, you would be amazed at what you could accomplish in just a few short years.
Remember to keep things simple. Don’t complicate this business. Stick to the MLM fundamentals and you will do very well. Over-complicate things and you will fail.
What do you think? What do you believe are the most important fundamentals in network marketing? Leave a comment below to share your thoughts. 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.
To truly commit yourself to these basics means being ok with yourself. I recommend that when a person wakes each morning, they speak positive affirmations to themselves. They should also exercise and eat a good breakfast. By doing these things, you will feel good about yourself which will make it easier to tackle these basic fundamentals. I also believe that dressing sharp helps a lot too.
All good points, Greg. Self talk is huge. I am a big fan of affirmations as well.
You know Chuck, out of all these basic fundamentals, I believe the most difficult one for most network marketers would be inviting. For some reason, many people get fearful when they find themselves in the position of inviting. I believe it is the fear of rejection. One of the first things I had to realize is: what harm will the word “no” do to me? It is just a simple word, but we as people seem to fear it more than most other things in life.
Rejection is a fact of life, and to be successful, we all need to realize there will be rejection. We need to just face it and deal with it head on. For every 10 nos we hear, odds are, we will get 1 yes. Keep our eyes and minds focused on getting through the nos and we will get the yes we seek.
Yes, inviting can be overwhelming to some people.
More people really just need to take the pressure off of themselves when it comes to tasks such as inviting or initiating conversations in general. I think people are thinking about how big that moment is for their business that they forget the simplicity of striking up a conversation, being genuine, and leading with the product.
The simpler we can make the business the better. You are right Diamond, most people do overthink this business. Success comes down to having natural conversations with people.
You have to have the boldness to go out there and converse with people. You cannot hide behind the internet or social media or the phone. Face to face contact is the best way to generate leads/prospects. And along the same lines is having the ability to give presentations without fear or hesitation. It is a skill that some people have to build while other people are naturally able to reach out and connect with others. But I have found that since I stepped out of my own comfort zone as a reserved person and been able to connect with people, I have had much success in generating leads and turning those prospects into actual business partners or team members.
Yes, you must have confidence. This is a people business. Even if you meet someone online, you still need to connect with them offline.
You know, sometimes we as humans can take something that is actually quite simple and make it super complicated. You did hit on a great subject in this post. We often called this all the KISS principle. Keep It Simple and Stupid.
I do believe that a network marketer does need to know how to show the plan. It is my opinion that after generating the leads and inviting the prospect, prospects may get “turned off” if they only watch a webinar or a video. I believe you will gain more respect from the prospects if you give the presentation.
Great post.
You need to keep it so simple that even a caveman could do it.