BEING PREPARED FOR NETWORKING

What Do You Take With You Every Day?

When I leave the house, I have a sign on the door leading to the garage with a list of all the things I must take with me:

1. Business cards: how many do I need for the event? Which cards (if I have more than one style that I use) am I taking? Do I have my business card holder in my purse? Do I have a table top holder filled with cards?

2. Flyers: do I have information sheets that I can hand to someone if they have a question about an event I have mentioned, or a benefit of my product, or how to contact me?

3. Samples: do I have samples or examples of my product that I can give to someone who asks? Or do I have examples of the product I am marketing, so people can actually see what they can expect to get?

4. Calendar: I always carry my calendar, so that I can make appointments to follow up with people I meet. If you have your appointment calendar in your phone or PDA, make sure you update it, or sync it with the calendar on your computer daily so it is always up to date.

5. Phone: Yes, I have actually gone off to an appointment without my cell phone. So, be sure to check that off your list before you leave the house.

6. Directions: do you have the address of the appointment you are going to? Have you a map, or directions, or a GPS unit that can help make sure you get to where you are going? Be sure to double check with the person you are meeting to see if there are any snags with getting there. One of the meetings I went to last fall was at someone's home, and both the online directions and GPS unit did not acomodate a closed-off street that made it really tricky to find. Unfortunately my hostess did not alert me to this possibility, and I didn't think to ask.

7. Food/Snacks: if you will be out all day, or past a mealtime, do you need to take some snacks with you? This ends up being an issue for me sometimes, so I usually pack a lunch if I am going to be gone from the house for an extended period.

8. Computer and Computer Accessories: Have you ever left the house with your laptop in its case, and when you got to your appointment realized you didn't have the cords you needed? That can put a real damper on a presentation.

9. Outfitting Your Car: One way to make sure you have what you need is to always carry a portable file or roll-around file in your car that has your materials and/or products. And be sure to put any portable display in the car before you leave for your appointment (see pictures).

When you are this organized your days and appointments will go smoother, but be sure at least once a week to go through your file and restock what you have given away.

Happy Networking.

Kaaren

PROSPECTING FOR SUCCESS

Systems for Success

Going through some old materials while cleaning out my library, I found Prospecting Systems for Success, a book published in 1981. Gordon Hawkins was an insurance agent who understood the necessity of continuing to talk to new prospects, no matter how successful you have become. My mentors who are truly successful tend to focus their training on just that principle. Keep talking to people.

In his little book, Hawkins proposed that success is more likely if you have a system to follow. As he says, "Prospecting has to be as automatic as breathing." Wow, there's a concept. Instead of looking at talking to people, or following up the way we anticipate going to the dentist to get a tooth pulled, how different would it be if we likened it to taking a deep breath? Breathing revitalizes our bodies, and clears our minds. Prospecting can serve the same purpose for our business.

Although many successful distributors will tell you they just apply the three foot rule to find prospects: if someone gets within three feet of you, they are fair game. Or how about the mirror test: if you can see they are breathing, go for it. That may work, but if you are going to spend the energy to tell someone about your business and products, wouldn't it make sense to see if they qualify? I have modified what Hawkins proposes as the absolute basics to know who is qualified:

1. Is the person willing and able to HEAR what you have to say?
2. Does the person have the MONEY to become your business partner, or buy your products?
3. Does the person NEED what you can provide with your business or products?
4. Is this someone you want to work with?

A few days ago, I followed up with someone I had met at a networking event. We met to share information in a congenial environment, but I knew in a matter of minutes this was not a good fit for my business. The prospect is a financial planner who immediately launched into how qualified they were, and in what investment instruments they liked to position clients. Fifteen minutes later, they came up for air. Although they qualified financially for my business and products, and they could certainly use our products, it turns out they they did not qualify as a good prospect. They were not willing to HEAR what I had to say. So I spoke politely about what I do, and thanked them for their time, and moved on. My follow up will simply be a thank-you note for meeting with me, but no need to go further.

The trick is to listen to our prospects: when someone says they can't afford it, believe them. Just because you know it would be good for them to join you in the business, doesn't mean they are willing to make the sacrifices necessary for it to happen. If you get a gut feeling this person can't hear you, or the objections they are raising speak to a lack of understanding about the value of your products, or this is someone you just don't want to work with, MOVE ON. If we don't waste time on folks who don't qualify, we can find the ones who will that much faster.

In my next post, we will talk about what Hawkins says is your Natural Market.

Kaaren

Think and Grow Rich

Ever since I started in Network Marketing, I have heard "Leaders are Readers."

Even though every company will tell you that there is a system, and if you just "work the system" all will be well, it isn't long before you realize you MUST learn more about your new profession. Yes, I said profession. Once we decide to start introducing people to Xango, or Monavie, or Arbonne, or Nuskin, or Mary Kay products, we are embarking on a new profession.

My training and profession for 30 years was in Medicine. And I got to the point, where I just couldn't fight the insurance companies, and the medical groups anymore. I had always built my practice on advocacy for patients, and it was getting more and more difficult for me to do my job. Every time I went to the clinic, I had to advocate for something a patient needed, and I was discouraged. I needed a change, a new direction and passion, and a different way to help people.

Fortuitusly, I was introduced to Network Marketing at a time when I was open to change, and to a nutritional company that seemed a good fit with my medical backgroud. I charged ahead. I got every bit of coaching I could, and I started reading, and studying. One of the classics that I came across early on is Think and Grow Rich. It was published for the first time in 1937. It is one that is mandatory reading for anyone who wants to be successful in our profession.

Napoleon Hill lays it out there, and states very clearly in Chapter 2, if you want to be successful there are a few principles that are essential:

1. Decide exactly how much money you want to earn
2. Decide what you will give up to achieve your goal
3. Establish a date when you will have the money
4. Plan for getting to your goal, and begin at once
5. Write out a clear consise statment of 1-4
6. Read your statement aloud morning and evening. See, feel and believe you have achieved your goal.

Recent books like The Secret are building on these same ideas in an updated form. It all comes back to this: know exactly what you want, know what you will give up to get it, write it down, take action, and see, feel and believe you have already achieved your goal.

Does this strike a chord with you? What is your impression of Think and Grow Rich?

Kaaren