The Smooth Way To Prospect Strangers
BY BOB BURG
Let’s face it: nobody, basically nobody, wants to do
network marketing. They want the results that it can bring— wealth, time freedom,
a flexible life, closer families and more friendships. But there are barriers
standing between them and those results, and the biggest one is their own
reluctance to be recruited. It’s your job to get around that, to help people
get what they really want—perhaps in a way they had never expected.
So
how do you get past that reluctance and recruit them?
Well,
you don’t.
Put
all thoughts of recruiting completely out of your mind. Prospecting, too. You
see, the mistake most people make in this business is they go out to meet
people with their prospecting hats on. They might as well wear a tee-shirt that
says, “I am prospecting for you. Danger! Danger!”
That’s
the vibe you put out when you think you’re prospecting. People are going to
know what you’re up to, and they’re going to resist you. It’s just human
nature.
So
don’t think that way. Prospecting is not what you’re doing. You’re after
something bigger than a prospect. You’re after a relationship.
You’ve
probably heard a hundred times that business is all about relationships,
especially the sales business, and most especially network marketing. Your
products can be the best in the world. Your compensation plan can be great,
offering plenty of incentive. But the real value in any networking company lies
in its people.
Relationships
are so important in this business that I’d go so far as to say your products
are not your inventory. In fact, your products are not even your products.
They
are just commodities you buy and sell to collect your bonuses. The central
product you’re selling is a turn-key business that has a success system already
in place. And the real inventory in your business is people:
those
already in your organization, those you’re approaching for the first time, and
the names on your ‘hot” and “cold” lists.
Furthermore,
what matters most about this inventory is not so much its quantity but its
quality—the quality of the relationships you’ve built with these people over
time. I-low much these people like you and trust you, how ready they’ll be to
take your calls and respond to you because of the relationships you’ve
established with them or someone they know, is the key.
If
you want to succeed in network marketing, you need a particular skill: the
ability to meet people in a way that is not threatening to them or to you.
When you meet someone who might be good for your business, don’t start
by seeking a result—a recruit. Aim for a process: a conversation, preferably
one your new friend will enjoy even more than you do. You want the other person
to feel good about the conversation and about you. Only then will he or she
consider opening up to you and what you have to say.
The
truth is that in business we take action based on emotion. We accept advice
from those we like and trust. Only when we’re with such people do we open up
and make ourselves vulnerable to new ideas.
So
at the start of a conversation with someone new, stop thinking about two
things: your products and your plan. I know your products are probably life-
changing. Your opportunity is probably life- changing. It doesn’t matter.
Nothing much about you matters to them until they have bought into you
and the fact that you care about them. As Cavett Robert always said, “People
don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” Your new
acquaintance has to feel as though he knows you, likes you, and trusts you, and
that you want him to succeed. All that—after a brief conversation with a
stranger. Sound impossible? It happens all the time. Here’s how to make it
happen for you. Get people interested in you—by showing you’re interested in
them.
Do you know the best way to come across to someone as “fascinating”? Let
him talk about himself Most of us are fascinated with ourselves. So if you
listen attentively and encourage people to talk about that fascinating subject,
you become fascinating by association.
Do more than listen. Ask questions. I don’t mean Mike Wallace, Go Minutes-type, leading, aggressive questions
that feel like snares. I mean Feel Good questions— things that give a person a
chance to shine, to put his best foot forward. Consider the following:
YOU: Hello,
I’m X.
NEW FRIEND: I’m Ben Braddock.
YOU: Hi,
Ben. What do you do?
(To Americans, this is a perfectly polite thing to ask.)
BEN: I’m
in plastics. And you?
At this point—and this is key— after a brief answer, such as “I’m in
distribution” or “I’m in marketing. “you redirect the conversation. Now is not
the time to discuss network marketing. At this point, this person doesn’t care
about it. He doesn’t care about you, or me, or your network marketing business.
He cares about himself, and that’s okay. Work with that.
Here’s what you do instead:
Ben, how’d you get started in plastics? How long have you been at it?
I call that the “Movie of the Week” question, because everybody likes to
tell his story. We all like to be the movie of the week in somebody else’s
mind. And chances are you’re the first person to show such an interest in this
person’s life in a long time. How refreshing. He loosens up, starts the movie
rolling:
“Well it all began at my 21st birthday
party, back in r969 ... A friend of Mr. and Mrs. Robinson’s
said there was quite a future in it, so I
And so on. When Ben runs out of details, you move on to Feel Good
Question Number Two.
What do you enjoy most about what you do?
I know what you may be thinking here:
Shouldn’t I be doing the opposite-”stirring the pain,” finding out what
they hate most about what they do, so I can offer an alternative? Here is where
so many network marketers miss the boat. They meet somebody for the first time
and say something like:
“Wow, you must really be in a rut,” or:
“You must not make the kind of money you want,” or:
“Don’t you hate reporting to a boss?”
Stir Pain-No Gain!
Big mistake. You’ve just met. Now isn’t the time to start inquiring
about someone’s deepest frustrations and disappointments. Remember that for
most people, their ego is their driving force. So if I don’t know you, and you
put me in a position to feel like a failure, I’m going to mentally cross my
arms in front of my chest and insist, “Oh no, everything’s great. I love what I
do.” I might even start to believe it-at least while you’re around. Ask
yourself If were a prospect, wouldn’t I much
rather meet someone who liked me and was open to my ideas, who wasn’t going to
make me defensive about my professional life? Absolutely!
So at this point, do not look for people’s dissatisfactions in life.
Look for the good points you can admire. This is good news for every network
marketer out there: you don’t have to be pushy or aggressive! Look to the
leaders in the network marketing industry. The people who are very, very
successful are people you just love to be around. Why? Because they make you
feel better about yourself when you’re with them. That’s true charisma.
How Could I Help Your Business?
Back to our conversation. Here’s what to do instead of “stirring the
pain.” It’s okay to give your New Friend an opening, in case he wants to vent a
little steam about his profession. But just a very small opening:
So, that industry has gone through some changes, hasn’t it? What’s the
most challenging part of what you do?
That’s as negative as you want to get. No matter what your New Friend
says about his job, the very next thing you say should be positive again-in
fact, it should be what I call the “one key question.” Here it is:
Ben, how would I know if somebody I’m talking to would be a good
prospect for you?
That’s right. Ask how could you help him with referrals in his current
business. Offer to help him make money with no benefit to yourself.
By
doing that, you’ve just separated yourself from pretty much everyone else he
has ever met, certainly in a business setting. Now you’re not just a new
contact-you’re a partner. That’s pretty much what he’s thinking as he hands you
ten business cards and asks you to keep one for yourself and give nine to your
friends. If he doesn’t offer his card, ask for it. Don’t give him yours-unless
and until he asks for it.
Bite Your Tongue, Bide Your Time
Okay,
now do you bring up your own business? No, there’s plenty of time for that
later. It’s usually better just to let the terrific impression you’ve made sink
in. Just bite your tongue and say goodbye with a warm smile. Then, do what no
one else ever does. Send a note, that very next day, thanking him for the
pleasant conversation. Believe me, you will be remembered.
On this simple, tasteful little note is printed your name, company logo,
your contact information-plus a small, very professional black and white photo
of you, a head shot. And then, in blue ink-the color which studies have shown
is most effective-you hand-write, neatly, some short greeting, such as: “Thank
you, Ben. It was certainly a pleasure meeting and speaking with you. If I can
ever refer business your way, I certainly will.” And then just sign your name.
No business card, no solicitation.
Put that in a regular number 10 envelopes, hand-write the person’s name
and address in blue ink, and hand-stamp it. This is a letter from a friend, not
junk mail.
Now, you have two choices at this point. If you re impatient, you can
call the person and set up an appointment. The odds of your getting the
appointment will be vastly better than if you had never gone through these
steps.
If you do call at this point-or whenever you do ultimately contact this
person for a pitch-here’s roughly how you should handle it:
Hi,
Ben. This is (your name) we met at that book signing~ (He’ll remember who you are,
because he was delighted by the conversation.) I just wanted to let you know
that I was very impressed with you, and I am in the midst of expanding a
business project with some other successful people. I’d like to get together
with you for a quick cup of coffee to run it by you.”
The chances are very good you’ll get that meeting.
Want even better odds~ Then be still more patient. Just continue
cultivating the relationship without bringing up your business. Send this
person additional correspondence. Scour the local newspaper for anything that
may be of interest to him. If “Ben” told you he collects antiques, and you see
something in the local paper-say a close-out sale at a antique shop-then you
clip it and send it to him with a little handwritten note.
Or even better, actually refer him something useful for his business.
Say he sells telephone systems, and you hear about a new office building going
up which is going to house small businesses-a perfect prospect for him. I’d
write Ben a little note that says “Heard through the grapevine a new office
building is going up on so-and- so highway. It will house exactly your type of
prospects. I did some checking and found out the agent’s number. You might want
to give her a call. Good luck.”
Try to position yourself as a center of influence for others. Set people
up in business with each other. When you hear about somebody who needs a
particular product or service, ask yourself immediately:
“Who’s
in my inventory of new prospects that I can refer him to?”
Everyone knows 250 People
This is the very best way to expand your network of friendly contacts.
Think about it:
everybody
you know, everyone you meet, also knows about 250 people. So every time you cultivate a relationship
with one new person, you have actually expanded your personal inventory
potential by 250 people-every single time.
Keep this up daily. In a short time, in a very non-threatening,
comfortable way, you’ll build an absolutely enormous inventory. That’s how you
succeed in a business like this, Every network marketing leader will agree
that’s the real key to building a huge and profitable organization. NML
The real inventory in this business is people—those in
your downline, and those who know and like you, that you might recruit someday.
Forget about “stirring people’s pain.” You’ll just
offend them. Instead, ask feel-good questions. Stir their joy instead.
Want someone to remember you? Send a personal note,
handwritten in blue ink, hand-addressed and stamped, just saying: “Thanks.”