A common saying among salespeople is, “It’s all about relationships.” This holds true doubly for network marketers. Relationships are made up of feelings; feelings come from the heart, and in network marketing, how successful you are is highly dependent on how prospects and your team members feel about you.
No matter how good a product is or how enticing a business opportunity, your prospects are going to make their decisions based on how much they trust and believe you. Although logic and reason play parts in their decisions to buy or join, how they relate to you is even more important.
According to Organizational Wellness and Learning Systems (OWLS), there are five main types of business relationships. They are easily applied to network marketing:
- Transcriptive — Your customer uses the product like a commodity only and there is no actual commitment to a lifestyle change.
- Translational— You have some dialogue but only to clarify the scope of the product and/or opportunity.
- Transactive — As a result of the dialogue, you and the customer are making adjustments. This can mean adding to the product purchases or asking about becoming active in the business.
- Transformative — Change is happening, and there is a positive ripple effect in your relationship.
- Transcendence — You are a trusted partner in an ongoing relationship. You are the coach, mentor and sponsor in doing business, as well as a long-term friend.
Depending on your what level your relationship is at with your prospect/customer/team member, consider how you can take it to the next level. Here are some tips to keep the relationship mutually beneficial:
- Communicate the willingness to invest your time in the relationship and partnership. When possible, move beyond “transcribed” emails or social media. Don’t rush the interaction. If you can’t give and commit to the time, don’t start the conversation.
- Keep the thread going to show continuity. Others may not respond and you should not push it. If you have a genuine interest, stay in touch and when the right time is right, a prospect may turn into a customer and then become a team member.
- Find a personal connection. Your prospect/customer/team member is a person with life areas that extend beyond any business conversations. Show genuine curiosity about personal interests, career, family and life stressors. People want to be treated as whole beings, not commodities or a means to an end.
- There is a right time, right place, and right way to extend an invitation and have a conversation. Asking “when is a good time for you?” and “how much time do you want to spend?” and “are there any distractions that you might have?” conveys sensitivity.
- A core skill in motivational communication is being sensitive to the prospect/customer/team member’s readiness to change. This applies to knowing the stage of the relationship (as perceived by the other).
- When appropriate, one way to take things to a more advanced level is to nudge the prospect/customer/team member, especially if he/she is in a routine or habit that is just not working. This can be risky but, if the relationship is to evolve, it helps to introduce some degree of coaching and mentoring.
As you share LifePharm products and the income opportunity, keep in mind the various relationships you can develop, be patient in nurturing them along and grow your business incrementally.
