Network Marketing Prospecting

Back in the olden days of network marketing, prospecting caused most of us a lot of grief. If it didn't cause you a lot of grief, it's either because A) You had a sales mentality and rhino-thick skin, or B) You were lying.

This was because of the methods that were available to us. Honestly, most people were not cut out for doing those kinds of things.

When I think of prospecting, the first thing that comes to mind is the old gold prospectors. I see them wading in a stream panning for gold, or maybe digging into a side of a mountain with a pick and shovel. Hard, hard work.

These guys had to sift through tons of worthless rocks, pebbles and sand in the hopes of finding just one or two gold nuggets.

Why did they do it? They had a dream, a goal. They knew that gold was not going to come knocking on their door. They had to go out and get it.

This is very similar to the old school network marketing methods. You had to tell people, everybody you could, about your company, products, etc. There was no way to target your market back then, so we just accepted and taught that everybody is a prospect.

Here's some of the stuff I actually did:

I made 2 to 3 trips to the grocery store every day, just to prospect. How many gold nuggets did I find that way? Zero

Whenever possible, I'd put flyers on cars. I remember sneaking around at 2 o'clock in the morning putting flyers on car windshields that were parked at apartment buildings. Gold nuggets? Zero.

The very first thing most companies tell you to do is to make a list of all the people you've ever spoken to, look them up, and pitch your business. I actually did this. You want to talk about uncomfortable? Gold nuggets? Zero.

Another method, probably the most popular, was calling prospects from a leads list. This list was typically a list of names and numbers of people who had requested more information about starting a home based business. I called dozens of these every day. I got hung up on, cussed out, and ignored. Gold nuggets? Zero.

So I started thinking to myself: Why am I not having any results? What am I doing wrong?

Not long after that I discovered that my upline was doing only marginally better than I was. The stuff he was teaching me wasn't even working for him. So, I knew there had to be a better way, only nobody was talking about it.

Instead, everybody I talked to told me the same thing: Just go out and talk to people, which was exactly what I was doing with zero results. This was insanity!

It wasn't until I discovered Internet marketing that it all started to fall into place. Ann Sieg's, Renegade Network Marketer opened my eyes to how things really were in the network marketing industry. Then I came upon Mike Dillard's Magnetic Sponsoring, and that book helped me grow my business to the next level.

Rather than prospecting, today it's more like fishing. With attraction marketing, instead of going out and finding people, you cast your line and watch them come to you.

Actually, you'll want to use several lines.

Fake It Til You Make It

As attraction marketers, we're taught to provide value to others, and to present ourselves as experts. How do you do this, however, if you're brand new to network marketing. I created a video, which you can access here, that explains one possible action you can take.

Why Personal Development Training Is So Essential

My Own Experience With Personal Development Training

The first time I listened to a Zig Ziglar CD I felt jazzed.

A natural, organic optimism came over me and I honestly can't say why. I wanted to do something to improve my situation. Even though I only remembered bits and pieces of Mr. Ziglar's speech, somehow I was motivated to take action.

So, what's the point of Personal Development Training? Is there something more to it than just making us feel good?

These are questions I asked myself when I heard a speaker talking about how our brains are like an empty glass. They'll accept whatever we pour into them. Unfortunately, we're exposed to dirty water every day, in the form of television, billboards, nasty people, etc.

How Do You Use It?

We can choose to let our glasses remain full of dirty water, or we can flush them out. We can hold our glasses full of dirty water under a stream of clean, clear water until the dirty is flushed away.

The true power in Personal Development Training comes from repetition. Just surrounding yourself with books, CD's, and videos can make a huge difference in your life.

This is similar to how we expose ourselves to negativity all day. If your television is on, you don't have to really pay attention to it for it to bring you down. The negativity is still there. You can still hear the tones of the people telling you about the fire that killed the family of three, or how the economy is on the brink of collapse.

Find Out For Yourself

But don't believe me. Do your own research and try this experiment:

For two weeks, do nothing while home except watch and listen to TV. Keep a journal and record how you feel, your attitudes, and interactions with others. Then go another two weeks playing nothing but Personal Development Training CD's and reading books, maintaining the same journal. Note the differences.

Also, keep in mind that all successful people who were not taught these skills at childhood took the time and energy to learn them as adults.