At one time or another, most of us in the network marketing industry have used the phrase, "Oh, this isn't selling; we're just sharing our product with others." I have to admit, when I joined my first MLM I was guilty as charged. The funny thing is, I've been in sales for over 20 years, so why in the world would I be afraid to tell it like it is? Because I know that just because I happen to love sales and marketing, not many other people have the same feelings of affection for my chosen profession.
Chapter 2 of Ann Sieg's e-book, "The 7 Great Lies of Network Marketing," covers the insidious lie that we're not selling, we're just sharing. The terminology seems to makes sense, right? After all, we're enjoying our product, we're seeing results, we have a fantastic home-based business opportunity, and we want to share it with all of our friends. What's the big deal?
The big deal is that we're not really sharing - we're selling. When a financial incentive is the cause for us to be talking about our fabulous product, the unbiased, third party opinion can be thrown out the window. It is NOT like recommending a great movie or an amazing restaurant to your friends. In those cases, you have no financial incentive to make those recommendations. The dynamics are completely different when a for-profit product is being endorsed, no matter how fantastic the product or service.
There are two main reasons why network marketers pretend that what we do is not selling. First, we understand that most people have no desire for a career in sales. They are not salespeople. They don't like salespeople, and they in no way want to be known as a salesperson. When we euphemize "selling" to make it "sharing" we take the edge off. It does sound better, doesn't it?
Second, we don't want people to know how hard it is to be successful in this industry. After all, if we told them "the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth," do you really think they would sign up? If they knew the blood, sweat and tears that would go into their quest for financial freedom, would they participate? Chances are good they would not. Because we want them to join our business, we choose not to tell them about the hard parts. Ok, we choose not to tell them very much about the struggles at all. Again, I was guilty as charged. What did this cost me? Wasted time, wasted effort, loss of some long-time friendships, and the desire to quit on an almost daily basis.
The devastating effects of this lie are two fold. Number one - because we're telling them it's not sales, we are not stressing the need for sales skills. This deficiency becomes apparent very quickly in their new MLM career. Because of this lie, new distributors are literally thrown to the wolves with no clue as to how to actually retail their products and/or services. They don't have the skills of a professional sales person, and they flounder miserably - until they develop the sales skills they need or they quit.
Number two is the false expectations that we have given them. By using the term "sharing," we make this business sound easy. Simple - yes. Easy? Heck NO! When reality does finally slap them in the face, the chance of keeping that distributor in our business is between slim and none. Why not let them know what to expect right off the bat, so they are prepared for the battles ahead? If the prospect decides that based on full knowledge that MLM is not for them, let them go. They will probably leave your organization anyway, so why invest the time and energy in someone that won't be with you for the long haul?
Also, just because someone is your friend, they are not obligated to buy from you. Sure, it would be nice if all of our friends and family financially supported us in every venture we got involved in, but when cold, hard cash is added to the equation, a whole new dynamic comes into play. How many more friends do you have to lose before you realize that many times friendship and business DO NOT mix? (Don't get me wrong, the few times that it does work, it's wonderful. However, that seems to be more the exception than the rule.)
As shown in Lie #1, "not everyone is your prospect," not every one of your friends is going to buy from you. You can "share" to your heart's content, but know that you truly are "selling" - like it or not. So with that, get the proper sales skills to sell your opportunity effectively and both you and your team will reap the rewards!
(By the way, if you're new to selling, the book "How I Raised Myself from Failure to Success in Selling" by Frank Bettger is a classic, and a great read. Enjoy!)
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