Being “inclusive” in business is loosely defined as appealing to the low-income market. Rather than excluding the poor sector, inclusive business operators find ways to sell to them. The income gap can be severe, depending on which part of the world you are operating in, but in network marketing, some of the poorest people have transformed into business tycoons.
According to the Wall Street Journal, there are more than four billion people around the world who live in poverty. Companies have struggled for years to turn them into customers, but they don't have two of the vital characteristics required to have a profitable consumer market:
Because a consumer market is a lifestyle built around product(s), companies must incite new lifestyles among poor consumers. They must make the idea of paying money for the products seem natural, and they must induce consumers to fit those goods into their long-held routines.
But what if the company had something more to offer than products? What if the company had an opportunity to help poor consumers earn money? The reality is that in low-income areas, there is a much more dire need for a viable income opportunity than in more affluent areas.
Rod Nichols in Entrepreneur magazine writes, “If you talk with the top income earners in network marketing, they'll all say that prospecting is the key to success. It's just like prospecting for diamonds: Diamonds are very valuable, so you don't have to find very many of them to become wealthy. In network marketing, it's the same—all you have to do is find a few real, live diamonds. So how do you do that?
“First, let's examine what a network marketing diamond looks like. Quite often, they'll surprise you. My friend Collette was a single mom with five children. She had no education beyond high school, was working as a part-time secretary and had a mountain of debt. On the outside, Collette didn't seem like a diamond, but she had a big reason to succeed—she was the sole supporter for her five kids. The first quality of a diamond is a big purpose, or a ‘why.’”
The inclusive marketplace has a big “why” because low-income earners can barely make ends meet. They might not have the higher education that affords white-collar job opportunities. They might not have the physical strength or know-how to work a steady blue-collar job. But in network marketing, neither college degrees nor brute strength are required. The sense of ownership that network marketing brings will help ensure that interest in the company's product(s) will be widespread and sustained. In network marketing, the IBO is not only the messenger about product and opportunity but also the living example of how it can work and lead to an improved lifestyle.
LifePharm understands that life is precious. Our IBOs do not tell prospects that our products will alleviate their hardships, but instead, stress how the products will make their lives healthier and therefore more pleasant. The heart-rending stories that some of our successful IBOs tell—of digging themselves out of poverty—with the LifePharm opportunity—are inspiring, motivating and inclusive of one and all.