Who's Your Target Market? Hint It's Probably Not The Guy At The 7-11
Like most, my first few attempts at network marketing failed miserably. Looking back, I now realize this is because of how I was taught. The most poisonous of the crap your upline tells has got to be that everybody is a prospect. This idea alone is probably responsible for more failures in this business than anything else. You want to lower your self-esteem a couple notches? Try using the 3-foot rule more than a few minutes. So if everybody is not your prospect, then who is? Many these days are focusing on people looking for home-based businesses, but is this really going far enough? My own experience with this has shown me that many people looking for legitimate home businesses consider network marketing taboo. I've seriously had people ask me, "Is this MLM?" When I say it is, more often than not, the line goes dead. They have their reasons, many of them valid, but that's a whole other subject. I've also encountered people who were looking for business opportunities who wanted nothing to do with selling. What? Show me one business that stays afloat without selling. Too many of these people believe the hype that's out there. You know, like "No selling involved?" This alone makes them less than ideal candidates to be considered a target market for network marketers. Who then? Who understands network marketing requires work and discipline? Who has made their names list, done business presentations for their families and friends and, because they were taught to find a way to snake their business opportunity into every conversation, now find themselves not being invited to family gatherings and such? Well, considering more than 95% of network marketers fail within three to four months, the answer should be somewhat obvious. The target market for network marketers is fellow network marketers. I'm not saying to persuade those in other companies to join your opportunity. More than likely, that would also end in frustration. However, with a 95% failure rate, there are a whole lot of people out there who believe in network marketing but haven't been given the proper support or training. This is where you come in. If you target these disillusioned, but motivated souls, you'll find a gold mine. By teaching them solid, no nonsense marketing techniques, many are likely to succeed, which translates into more success for you.
