The Paradigm Shift in Network Marketing Lead Generation
It is said that leads are the life blood of any network marketing business, and if you want to stay in business for more than 90 days, you will need to learn or develop your own network marketing lead generation strategy.
If you’re new to the industry, your sponsor should be the first person to explain the importance of generating leads for your new business. Depending on how your sponsor was taught to generate leads, he or she will teach you. There are two schools of thought about how to do network marketing lead generation.
One where you are the hunter and go after family, friends, co-workers, community leaders, or anyone with a pulse who is willing to listen to you about your business opportunity. Using this method of generating leads, you’ll likely be asked to go home and make a list of at least 100 people you know to include family, friends, coworkers, community leaders, and anyone you have a relationship with. This is your “Warm Market” or people you know, trust, respect, and are willing to listen to what you have to say. What happens when you run out of people who are in your “warm market” and you’re still having a hard time sponsoring new people into your business?
They will probably tell you to buy leads, call them and talk to them about their business. The problem with buying leads is that you will have to do what is called “cold calling” where you pick up the phone and talk to someone who has already been called multiple times by different Network Marketers trying to pitch their business opportunity. Most opportunity prospects are sold at least four or five times to people like you who are told to buy prospects and quickly get tired and rude or asked to be removed from your list.
When chasing your family and friends or buying leads doesn’t work, you’ll probably be told about the “three-foot rule” where you talk to anyone who comes within three feet of you about your business opportunity. The problem with all of the above network marketing lead generation methods is that none of the people you talk to are qualified leads. Qualified prospects are people who are actively looking for a business opportunity and want to join a leader who will help them build their new business.
People have built their network marketing business using the above methods, but they are not for everyone, and if you are one of those people who cannot understand or are uncomfortable with building your business using lead generation methods above, there is another way to build your business.
The Paradigm Shift in Network Marketing Lead Generation
The second school of thought when it comes to lead generation is that you are hunted. This means that you position yourself as the leader or expert that those actively seeking a business opportunity seek by providing value in the marketplace. You do this by providing a free report or training on the topic they are looking for and you do this without any desire to receive anything in return.
People join people they know, trust, and respect, and you can only get this with people you’ve built a relationship with. The reason this didn’t work with your warm market is because they weren’t looking for a business opportunity, you introduced them to one because you had a relationship with them and they knew, trusted and respected you. There is a time to approach your “warm market”, but doing it when you are first starting out is not the best time.
Becoming a leader or expert involves knowing and determining your “target market.” Without knowing your target market, you will try to sell your product or service to people who don’t need or want your product or service. Since it’s all about network marketing lead generation, your target market could be other frustrated network marketers who are having trouble generating leads for their business.
Since all network marketers require leads for their business, all you have to do is offer a product or service that is the solution to their problem or the answer to their question. You present your offer in a place where they are looking (search engines, YouTube, Facebook, blog post, article marketing) and when you do it right, they will find you and come looking for you with wallet in hand ready to buy the product. or service you are offering. When you can generate leads for your business on demand and teach others how to generate leads for your business with the push of a button, you become the hunted instead of the hunter.