Multi-level Marketing Master Tips Learn the secrets of MLM experts so you can follow in their footsteps.
By Rod Nichols
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Multi-level marketing is amazing. During my more than 30 years of working, it's the only form of business I've found that offers a level playing field. In other words, anyone can become successful in this industry. And the best part is that others have already blazed the trail to success, so you just have to look at what they've done and follow suit. There are things you'll hear over and over again as the principles to success in MLM. Here are the top five:
1. Be coachable. MLM is a business of duplication. Those who've already been successful will share their secrets to success, and all you need to do is listen and then do what they tell you. Unfortunately, I wasn't very coachable in the beginning. I was successful in traditional business and figured I could do the same things and be successful in network marketing. Boy, was I wrong! Because I didn't listen to my upline leaders, I didn't make any money at first. Successful MLMers have been there, done that--and have the paycheck to prove it--so be coachable, and duplicate their success.
2. Develop your dreams, goals and objectives. Studies have shown that very few people have written dreams and goals, yet those who do achieve high levels of success. Identify your dreams first. As yourself, if time and money weren't inhibitors, what would your life look like? Describe your dream house in great detail. Likewise, get a mental image of your dream cars, vacations, wardrobe, lifestyle and so on.
From those dreams, develop your goals. A dream is the big picture, and goals are the steps that will get you to your dreams. For example, let's say your dream car is a Mercedes SL65 with a cost of $225,000 and a monthly payment of around $3,800. What are the steps you need to take to achieve that dream? An increase in your income might be necessary, so your goal would be to increase your monthly income to, let's say, $10,000.
Next, you break your goals down into bite-size objectives (in our example above, this would be the things necessary to increase your monthly income to $10,000). Each day, you should review your dreams, goals and objectives in order to determine your daily activities.
3. Work. Network marketing has probably produced more millionaires than any other industry, and although each of those people built their businesses with different companies and using different methods, they all did one thing--work. MLM isn't a get-rich-quick scheme; you'll only get rich through hard work.
One of the main differences I see in those who fail vs. those who succeed is their level of work. Most people who've failed treated their MLM businesses like a hobby, working whenever they had some spare time. The top income earners, on the other hand, work at their businesses every day.
Let's say that after a thorough evaluation of your schedule, you can only devote 10 hours a week to your business. Take a daily planner and block out those available time slots. Remember, work isn't filing, checking e-mail or surfing the web. Work in MLM is prospecting, presenting, following up, registering new associates, training and support.
In the beginning, you should spend 90 percent of your time on prospecting, presenting, following up and signing up new people. As your network builds, you can devote more time to training and support. But never, ever stop prospecting, or your business will die.
4. Be consistently persistent. Most network marketers give up too early. They expect to make $10,000 their first month, and when they don't, they quit. But it takes time to build an MLM business. You're going to have to contact a lot of people, give many presentations and endure a great deal of rejection. However, it's the person who is consistently persistent who will succeed.
If you're duplicating a successful system, the only thing separating you from success is time. When things are looking dark, keep going. Make one more call. Talk with one more person. Follow up one more time. If you're with the right company, you should never give up because you'll eventually be successful.
5. Make a million friends. The advice that made the biggest impact on my success in network marketing was to go out with the idea of making a million friends instead of a million dollars. You can only be successful in network marketing if you help others become successful. So go out and find some new friends who you can help become successful in your business. Forget about your wants and needs, and serve these friends instead. This concept is called "servant leadership"--you lead by serving those you lead. The more friends you make and serve, the greater your success in network marketing.
These five principles of success are just the start. I'm sure that your sponsor and upline leaders have their own list, so make sure you ask them how they became successful. And finally, realize this: It's one thing to have this knowledge--and a whole different thing to actually do what you've learned. So be a doer, and watch your business and income skyrocket.
