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From the Desk of the Editor
Welcome to the 39th issue of the MLM Woman Newsletter. This month we feature articles on:
Enjoy!
Linda Locke, Editor MLM Woman
Making a List, Checking It Twice By Kelly B. Kalcheim Network Marketing Tip of the Day
This technique is so simple, so basic that we wonder why everyone in Network Marketing isn't using it!
Create a "Road Map to Success" for the distributors in your company: A little-used but unbelievably powerful tool...the CHECKLIST!
To make your business 100% duplicatable, one of the easiest things you can do is give a "Checklist" to each of your new distributors (by Mail/email/fax) within 24 hours of their joining the Company.
The checklist should be very basic and specific. Have a date beside each step so it can be "checked off" when completed. When a new distributor signs up with you they are EXCITED...EAGER...and maybe a little OVERWHELMED with all the new and wonderful information about the Company.
New Distributors want to get BUSY building their business, but are not sure exactly where to start. What do they do first? By supplying them with a checklist you are providing them with specific first steps to take. You are building a foundation for them to use and to teach their new distributors to use...making it a completely "duplicatable system."
THE most important lesson you can teach a new distributor is to DUPLICATE what you're doing successfully. Make that a simple "formula" for success by supplying them with a checklist that enables them to track their actions and see their progress. When they see their progress, they will be encouraged and know that they're moving in the right direction....SUCCESS in their new business!
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS ( Some sample items for your checklist)
"If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them." - Henry David Thoreau
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Kelly B. Kalcheim is a former executive at MGM Studios, who has a history as a successful Network Marketer and published author. She wrote "Network Marketing Mastery" (being released this winter) and publishes the internet column "Network Marketing Tip of the Day," which Upline magazine calls "hands down, the best." For complete details visit: http://bultpruf.home.netcom.com/
The People Factor on the Internet By Wanda Loskot
In a world dominated by technology, it is easy to forget about the people factor. So often Internet success is measured by page impressions, clickthrough ratio, high placements in search engines...
Please, remember that here, in this highly technical world, you are always dealing with real people. People like you and me - with desires, ambitions, and habits. Real people. One person at a time.
I participated recently in the Internet Super Summit in LA - it was truly awesome gathering of Internet marketers, organized by Jay Abraham and the Netrageous team. One of the most dramatic moments was relating to that human factor. It was during Ken Evoy's presentation (in case you still don't know who Ken Evoy is - he is the author of "Make Your Site Sell" which is by now considered the best deal among the books on the topic of Internet marketing). He was talking about the necessity of focusing on visitors while building a website and he was illustrating it by guiding us through his own superb websites.
Ken's point was to be constantly aware how difficult it is to concentrate on visitors. Without seeing their eyes rolling up to the ceiling, without hearing their yawning and their fingers tapping the table, it is oh-so-easy to overlook when they become bored or impatient....
Please remember that people on the net have zero tolerance for being bored. And as brutal as it sounds, they have no interest in your product or service - they only want to read about themselves and how your product or service can solve their problems. Everything that is not focusing on them is boring and if something begins like a boring sentence, they skip it.
To illustrate how difficult it is to focus, Evoy announced that as he would explain how and why he designed specific web elements - he would talk about his visitors. And he challenged himself and the audience, promising that if anyone could catch him talking about himself or about his business instead of his visitors, he would pay $100 (he also asked Jay Abraham to double the stakes :-) And so he went on talking about effective web design...
Let me remind you that Ken Evoy knows how to concentrate on people. His websites are among the most glorious examples of visitor-focused content. And he himself is a very giving person -- as far from being self-absorbed as it goes. So, guess how long it took for someone to catch him talking about himself during that presentation? About 30 minutes... Just think. If Ken Evoy, the master himself, can lose focus of the most important thing during a two hour presentation - how likely is it that you can lose track of your audience?
To measure how well you are focusing on your audience, go to your website, brochure or another piece of communication that should be focused on your reader, and count how many times you use "me" and "mine" vs. "you" and "yours". You should use "you" at least three times as often as using "I" (and me, mine, our). Yes - three times as often! Some people advice using equal number of "Me" and "You" in text - no, no, no! This is not good advice. Equal number of "Me" and "You" will not put nearly enough focus on our reader. Even if you write about yourself, or about your company and your product, think about your visitors.
Concentrate on helping them get involved with whatever you talk about. Help them understand it. Educate, enlighten, entertain, inform - always by talking about them, not about you. It is so easy to forget about that "people factor" when we sit in front of our computers - designing, publishing, and writing.
So easy to slip into the trap of creating stuff about us, about our products, about our business. Ken Evoy made another important point during that presentation. He said that once someone skips reading a sentence, it is easy for them to skip another sentence or bullet point, and then another one, until they stop reading.
The bottom line?
Make sure that you do everything you can, so that your audience keeps reading - if they stop reading, how will they ever be able to buy from you? And thank you for staying with me all the way to the end :-)
Wanda Loskot is a professional business coach - Are you ready to make more than "just a living" and get paid what you are really worth while doing what you LOVE? - Experience http://loska.com and read "Success Connection" - newsletter@loska.com
Advice from A-Z
Don't Let a Negative Family Mood Distract You from Your Work By Azriela Jaffe, copyright 2000
On a beautiful Spring day, as the temperature climbed over 50 degrees, I bundled up my baby Elijah, and took him for a walk in the neighborhood. This stroll felt particularly delightful, as it has been many days since the weather allowed us the privilege. Sometimes, as a writer and columnist, I play a mental game on such walks which I'd recommend for you.
You don't need to read this article or others like it for advice regarding the troubles in your life (although I appreciate that you do!). The messages you need to hear are all around you, if only you'll look, listen, and pay attention. When you are feeling blue, go for a walk and ask God, the universe, whomever or whatever you speak to, to show you an answer to your current concern. You'll often find the answer you need at that moment.
This morning, I asked for guidance to something that was weighing on my heart and distracting me from my work. As a sensitive woman, I am greatly influenced by my husband's and children's moods. No matter how I awaken in the morning, if my children are cranky, or my husband disgruntled about something, in a matter of moments, my mood can shift from cheery to troubled. Even when the complaints of those around me have nothing to do with me, I try to fix it, feel responsible for causing it, or just feel melancholy because those I love are feeling down.
Your sensitivity can be your greatest asset, but if you don't learn how to protect yourself from the moods of those around you, it can also cause you grief. If you are self-employed, and particularly if you work from home, you need to shift yourself back into a place of productivity and inner peace.
As I walked with Elijah, I looked around for a visual metaphor of how to respond differently to this tendency to get sucked into other's moods. Here's what the sky revealed to me today about this problem: I watched several airplanes crossing the sky, leaving their jet trails behind them to show you that sometime in the recent past they had passed through.
Now, imagine this common scene in your kitchen first thing in the morning. You awaken in a fairly decent mood, but for some reason, your spouse, despite his or her usual cup of coffee and perk-me-up-breakfast, is in a foul mood. Maybe he is dreading a pending meeting at work, or didn't get enough sleep or sex in the past few days. Perhaps she is troubled by a work deadline that is pressing or clingy kids are annoying her. Whatever it is, like the airplane, your spouse is leaving behind him or her a jet trail of negativity.
If you aren't careful, you'll be impacted by this mood, start a fight, or at the very least, feel frustrated and distracted as you start your day. Your mind will be focusing on the jet trail - the negativity - and several hours later, even after your spouse has long left the house, (and maybe even bounced back), you may still be focusing on it. Here are three visual metaphors to help you stay positive when others around you are not:
1) Picture the negativity as a trail of smoke or clouds coming out of the back of an airplane engine. Imagine it disappearing into the sky in just a few hours. Don't get hooked into the mood as if it's a permanent condition of the carrier. It's only a cloud that temporarily marks a beautiful sky. Let it dissipate around you.
2) Shift your focus to the larger sky that surrounds you and your loved ones. Instead of focusing on the jet trail, notice the sunshine, the blue sky, the birds, the delicate clouds, the beauty of your environment. Pay attention to the home you love, the garden you appreciate, the love in your relationship that gives you pleasure, that which gives you joy in your life. Focus on what you can count on, day in and day out, rather than what is temporal. If your spouse is grumpy one morning because he doesn't like his job, you can feel angry because of a momentary outburst, or you can appreciate his willingness to go to a job every day that he doesn't like, for the sake of supporting your family. His negative mood passes in a few hours, but his commitment to go to work every day does not.
3) When a loved one is expressing negativity, focus on the airplane - the person - not the clouds of smoke behind them. Remember what you love and appreciate about this person, their strength, beauty, reliability, loyalty, sensitivity, affection, intelligence, sense of humor, whatever you enjoy about living with this person. Shift your focus from the temporary negative mood spewing from them, to the bond of love between you that carries you reliably through life, like an airplane on its journey. This is what the sky taught me this morning about love and work. The next time you are in a funk, look up at the sky and ask it to guide you. You might be surprised at what it reveals!
About the Author:
Azriela Jaffe is a syndicated columnist and author of the New book "Starting from No: Ten Strategies to Overcome Your Fear of Rejection and Succeed in Business" and several other self-help books. She welcomes reader response and questions to PO Box 209, Bausman, PA 17504 or az@azriela.com. For free online newsletters for entrepreneurs, visit her Anchored Dreams website at: http://www.isquare.com/crlink.htm
10 Tips for Better Voice Mail By Kate Schultz
1. SPEAK SLOWLY, CLEARLY AND ENUNCIATE.
Speak directly into the phone. This action may seem obvious, but many people become distracted when speaking on the phone and do not speak directly into the receiver. Have you ever had to replay messages because you could not understand the call? Frustrating, isn't it?
2. KEEP IT SHORT AND SPECIFIC.
Voice mail messages are not appropriate channels of communication to chat or to explain detailed steps or instructions. Be direct. Give your answer first and then add explanations for clarity. Start your message with your name and phone number.
3. BE PREPARED AND PLAN AHEAD.
Every time you make a phone call, be prepared to leave a voice mail message. Before you make the call, take a few moments to review the purpose of your call. Your message should include:
4. REDUCE PHONE TAG GAMES.
If you are calling to reply to a question or inquiry with a simple answer, leave a message.
5. MAINTAIN AN EVEN AND GENTLE TONE.
When leaving repeated voice mail messages, keep your frustration and anger in check. If someone does not want to return your call, anger will not help your chances for a return call.
6. TURN OFF YOUR SPEAKER PHONE.
Speaker phones detract from a personal touch and increase static in the message.
7. LIMIT EACH MESSAGE TO ONE SUBJECT.
Your call may need to be forwarded to another person, and by keeping your message to one subject, the recipient is able to forward your message without any other, possibly inappropriate, content.
8. IDENTIFY YOURSELF.
Clearly identify yourself in your outgoing voice mail message. Include your name, department and company name.
9. WHEN WILL YOU BE BACK?
If you are out of the office, be sure to let your callers know when you will be returning calls. Let them know that you may be unavailable for a few hours. Always give the caller the option to talk to a real, live person.
10. IDENTIFY WHO TO CONTACT IN YOUR ABSENCE.
If you will be unavailable when you go on vacation, change your message, and tell your callers when you will be able to return their call, or who to contact during your absence.
Kate Schultz is the Publisher of E-ZineZ: the E-Zine about E-Zines. Visit E-ZineZ at http://www.e-zinez.com for how-to help for your email newsletter. To subscribe send an email to e-zinez@oaknetpub.com with SUBSCRIBE in the BODY.
Postcard Your Way to Profits By Sue Barrett
Offline advertising can often be overlooked and sometimes completely omitted from a marketing plan. That's a mistake for some, but it can be an opportunity for you to reach potential customers before your competition does. Sure, I'll admit that you can reach zillions of people by marketing on the internet. But contrary to my original belief, not everyone surfs the web 24 hours a day.
Besides saving you time and money, postcards are easy to create, convenient to use, offer fast message delivery and instant visibility. Postcards are an excellent opportunity for you to boost your sales and name recognition, while taking a break from the traditional (and sometimes boring) direct mail material.
Take a look at a few benefits:
1. Low Cost.
Overall, postcards are an inexpensive marketing tool. You can be creative and test-market on a small scale before committing to an entire marketing campaign. Do you market to a small area or highly-specialized market? Postcards are a inexpensive way to reach your target market and your target market only. Even with trade journals, you often spend money advertising to a significant number of people who will have either no interest in your product or service or never even see your ad.
2. Save time.
Once designed, postcards are quick and easy to address and mail out.
3. Fast.
Within a matter of days, you can have your message directly in the hands of an interested client.
4. Convenient.
Adjust mailings to fit your marketing schedule. Mail as many and as often as you want. You also can more easily make changes at the last minute.
5. Flexible.
Postcards can be used in a variety of different ways to promote your business
6. Instant visibility.
You don't have to depend on a prospect opening an envelope or having the time to read through a lengthy brochure.
7. Higher likelihood of being read.
Instead of hundreds of other magazine or newspaper ads, your postcard competes only with the day's mail.
8. No fancy equipment required.
You can easily outsource the design work, copy writing and printing. There are also resources that enable you to pull-off the creative development yourself and still come out with a professional-looking card.
There are lots of ways postcards can be used. They can broadcast a plethora of different messages for virtually any product, service or event. Before you get started, you'll want to take a look at all of your options and decide what works best for your business. Your marketing focus will fall into one of three main categories: prospecting for leads, building repeat sales or maintaining customer contact. First decide who you will be targeting.
1. PROSPECTING: Finding New Customers
In prospecting, postcards are often used to qualify leads; the first step of the two-step sales approach. The second step involves following up with the most qualified leads and giving them more detailed information and making the sale. So here, the objective of the postcard is to get the customer to request more information (by phone, fax, e-mail or mail), so you can accumulate names to follow up with. To quickly qualify prospects, offer them (a) something valuable (b) for free, and (c) requires them act in order to receive.
2. RESELLING: Building Repeat Sales
Most marketers will agree that it's much easier and more cost effective to sell to a current customer than to find a new customer. Most successful businesses are built on repeat orders, but why stop at just a repeat order? Additional information or a simple suggestion can build Repeat orders, plus increase the amount of your customer's average purchase and the frequency at which he or she purchases from you. But don't stop with just one follow-up! Satisfied customers can be sold again and again as long as they are kept satisfied. There are all sorts of reason why your happy customers would want to hear from you. Here are just a few:
3. COMMUNICATIONS: Maintaining Client Contact
Even if you don't have a specific product you're promoting, you still want to keep in touch with your patrons to let them know you appreciate them and haven't forgotten about them. Get into your customer's mind and stay there! Contact them several times throughout the year, so that when they're ready to buy. they'll buy from you. Any change, addition, celebration, event or newsworthy information about your business is a reason to contact your customer. If you don't have anything new and exciting happening with your business, create something fast before you go out of business. So how can you maintain contact with your shoppers without being a nag? Postcards, of course! With a message and design that's positive, creative and interesting, you can add a little fun to someone's day. Once you've decided who your target market is and your reason for contacting them, you can develop your marketing message and design.
GETTING THEIR ATTENTION
Layout
As with any marketing medium, layout design and ad copy play an important role in the success of your postcards. Be creative, but remember a few simple basics so your customer understands your message and is motivated to purchase.
1. Don't waste space. White space is better than a bunch of words that clutter your message.
2. Headlines need to be well-positioned and thought-out. They'll make or break the success of your postcard.
3. Use graphics only if they have a purpose and contribute to the communication of your message.
4. In a series of postcards, use a consistent design so your cards are easily and quickly recognizable.
To qualify for the lower postcard postage rate within the U.S.A., the maximum postcard dimensions are 4 1/4" x 6". Anything larger will cost you more in postage, but may attract more attention and result in higher sales
Ad Copy
You may have the best product n the world, but how you present your offer can determine whether or not it sells. That's where your ad copy comes into play. Since space is limited, you need to be brief, specific, direct and clear in your message. Count to five, and your prospect is either intrigued by your offer, or throwing your postcard in the trash.
Four steps to reach your goal:
1. Get your prospect's attention. 2. Secure his or her interest. 3. Gain his or her belief in your product or service 4. Convince your prospect to act.
Sound challenging? It's actually easier than you may think. Focus on keeping the message simple and seeing it from the recipient's viewpoint. Here are some tips:
1. How to attract attention:
2. How to secure interest
3. How to get them to believe in you:
4. How to convince them to act:
WHO TO MAIL TO?
You basically have two options here. You can use a mailing list you already own (of current customers most likely) or you can purchase an outside list. A good mailing list is key to a successful mailing, so do some research when making this decision.
Some tips:
Leads that have shown interest in or purchased a product or service similar to what you are offering.
Cheap leads are usually not targeted and not pre-qualified.
Avoid lists that are out-of-date. This is not the place to be cutting costs. It will cost you more money and of course more time in the long run.
Start with list quantities practical for you to handle. Then, as you increase your mailings, you can save money with larger discounted orders.
PRINTING
Your business, offer and budget will help you determine whether you should go with a full-color glossy postcard or a simple black and white card. Both can be designed to look classy with a well-thought-out design, heavy cardstock and a professional printing job. If you have lots of different promotions, you can order discounted bulk postcards printed on one side only and still have the flexibility of changing your sales message on the other side.
If you are interested in instant gratification, visit the following website. You can easily design a professional-looking color postcard using one of their many pre-designed templates and place a print order at a discount price literally within minutes. Use their layout examples to spark your imagination. It's also an easy way to ease yourself into offline marketing - you can create it entirely online. http://www.homebusinesscenter.com/printing.html
Sue Barrett works for HomeBusinessCenter.com, which has helped hundreds of people successfully start their own home businesses since 1997. HomeBusinessCenter.com is an excellent resource for entrepreneurs who want to be successful in a home business: new home business ideas, simple how-to guides, easy-to-use marketing tools, small business financing, e-commerce help and lots more. For more information, visit www.homebusinesscenter.com or contact Sue at editor@homebusinesscenter.com
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