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MLM Money 4 U |
The 10 Overlooked Online Sponsoring Sins
by Joshua Shafran
There are more than 10 sins, but these are the "biggies." They're in no
particular order and are interconnected with one another. I suggest you
print out and read this entire email through once. Then go back and
carefully study each sin again. Look at how one connects to another. They
will make more sense and have more impact on your online sponsoring
efforts when you see how they all interrelate. Ask yourself, how you can
apply the collective lesson here into your sponsoring efforts.
This might sound over-simplistic (the great ideas usually are) but make
sure you write down your ideas as they come to you. Write them down and
design a game plan to implement the top 3 to 5 over the next 21 days. If
you'll do that, you'll surprise yourself with the ideas you come up with
and how much more effective your every effort will become.
So, let's get to it. This week we will look at the first 5 and the next
issue will go over the next 5 sins.
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SIN #1: Fail To Capture Attention With A Benefit Centered Headline
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This is probably the most important part of your email or web-site. You've
got less than 3 seconds to capture your prospect's attention. If you
don't, they'll click to another website or
delete your email faster than car salesmen pounce on you at a dealership.
Headlines are the single most important factor in the success of your
marketing. Did you know you can take a salesletter (by salesletter I mean
your website, email, postcards, voicemail messages - any marketing
situation) and just change the headline and have it produce as much as 21
times better results? That means you can sponsor 21 times more people by
testing a few different headlines - and that's without changing anything
else!
So many websites have no headlines... or, worse yet, the head-lines are
selfish. They don't appeal to the reader. Ask yourself, "What are you
trying to accomplish with your site or in your email? Are you trying to
sponsor and find business builders? Or, are you looking for retail
customers?" Depending on what you're trying to accomplish, your headline
should offer
a specific benefit about that. Think about it.
Say you're looking for business builders... don't make the mistake of
using a headline like "The First And Only Wave 5 Company." That means
nothing and has no appeal whatsoever. Why would anyone keep reading?
Instead, you could use something like "Discover How To Fire Your Boss."
Why say, "Have You Ever Been Taken Advantage of?" when a headline like
"How You're Getting Taken To The Cleaners - And Don't Even Know It!"
builds enormous curiosity and promises the reader immediate benefit?
Instead of "Our Associates Get Paid Everyday"
use something like: "Click Here And Discover How You Can Earn A Full Time
Income In Only A Few Hours A Week." Or "How To Make Yourself A Fortune
Supplying Something That 43,567,453 People Desperately Want!" See how the
rewritten headlines build curiosity and directly addresses the prospect?
There's so much more to writing headlines - a ton more! Countless
marketing books have been written about how to write a compelling
headline. Two of the best are "Tested Advertising Methods" by John Caples
and "Cash Copy" by Dr. Jeffery Lant. Both are probably available at Barnes
and Noble or Borders Books. I highly recommend both.
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SIN #2: Way too much emphasis on "OUR company" - "OUR story"- "OUR
products" - Not enough about the PROSPECT.
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When you say "Our associates" or "Our company" or "Our compensation plan,"
you're talking about you. Your prospect has no interest in reading about
you. When you write of those things what you're really saying is "you
should read this because we are great." How many of us like to hear
someone talk about how great they are? Not many, right? Nothing
bores me and sends me running for cover faster, how about you?
Instead, your marketing should say "Here's what's in it for you if you
listen to me." (By the way, this is important in ANY sponsoring
conversation you ever have.) Your prospect WILL,
however, read every word of your website or email if it's all about them -
if it applies to... their life, their situation, their problems, their
wants and desires.
And, remember, the problems are probably the most motivating. Sometimes
(most times, in fact) people will come to your site not even be aware that
they have a problem (after all, they've been living with it for a while
and may have given up hope of ever solving it). Often times you've got to
remind them they have a problem and then they'll be open to hearing about
your solutions. Check out tip #1 at my website called "Give 'em a
headache, then make 'em ASK YOU for the aspirin" for more on this. Here's
the link to the site:
Give
'em a headache article
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SIN #3: No Seduction -- No Romance -- Too much "Yelling" at The prospect.
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Sponsoring is much like dating. It's about the fine art of seduction.
You've got to let it evolve.
I have an Aunt who discovered the man of her dreams was hiding inside
someone she thought she hated. At first she wouldn't even give him the
time of day, let alone go out on a date with him. Yet today they have been
happily married for decades. In fact,
they've got one of the best marriages around. So how did he win her over?
How did he go from a zero to a hero in her eyes?
He was patiently persistent - but not a pest. He could afford to be. You
see, he was CONFIDENT. He knew he had the goods. He knew that once my Aunt
got to know him, she'd fall in love with him. So he patiently built a
relationship with her over time. He never rushed or pushed her. He
gradually turned her around. Then she was willing to see what a great guy
he was.
It's the same thing when you're sponsoring someone. I know this might come
as a surprise (not), but not everyone coming to your website (or reading
your email) is doing so with an open mind. In fact, it's a safe assumption
that (at least initially) they will doubt almost everything you say -
until you break down their walls of resistance (just like my Aunt).
Yet people still write the copy assuming that people get online saying to
themselves, "Maybe today is the day I will find someone to sponsor me into
that great network marketing company I've been dreaming about joining."
Unfortunately, most of your prospects will not be actively looking to join
an MLM. Most people have a negative impression of MLM and will only be
open to hear about it after you've seduced them into it. You've got to
romance them.
How do you do it? Lead with the emotional benefits they want for their
life, build some rapport with them, and stop clobbering them over the head
with meaningless platitudes like, "The Best Compensation Plan In The
Industry." Speak to their heart.
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SIN #4: Not understanding or using a USP
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Look at all the sites and oodles of email people send out trying to get
you to join their opportunity. Your prospects are completely saturated.
Not only that, most of that stuff says
exactly the same thing (plus or minus 1%). Your prospect is inundated with
tons of offers each claiming almost the same things. The bottom line is if
you're trying to compete with the
same message (plus or minus 1%) you'll sound like everyone else out there
competing for your prospect's attention. Prospects automatically tune out
thousands of these messages - it's a knee jerk reaction that they often
aren't even consciously aware of.
If you want to be effective, your sponsoring message has got to be
different. It has to be head and shoulders above all the other stuff out
there. You've got to stand out in the mind of
your prospect. You've got to have a USP. What's a USP? It stands for
"Unique Selling Proposition." It's more than just a competitive advantage.
What benefit(s) - SPECIFICALLY - will your prospect get by joining your
opportunity and downline that they can't get anywhere else? The
proposition must be something that your
competition can't, or doesn't, offer. And this proposition must be so
compelling that people feel a loss if they pass on it. It's got to be
irresistible. That's a USP.
This doesn't have to be about the company or the products, by the way. It
could have to do with the team and unique support system that your
organization may have developed. Often times which organization you join
or who your sponsor is, is more of a USP than anything else. A strong
sponsorship line is more important than the products, or even the
compensation plan.
Spend some time on this. Really think about it. Research what your
competition is doing (fortunately this is really easy) online... just do a
search engine search and visit as many sites
as it takes to get a feel for what you're up against.) It may take some
time, but it's time well spent. And it will allow you to leave your
competition in the dust.
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SIN #5: No Quid Pro Quo
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This is probably the most important key to online marketing. You've got to
provide value to the people surfing by your site. Why? Because people
don't go online with the intention of buying or of being sponsored. They
get online with the intention of LEARNING. The secret to online success is
to turn that yearning to learn into a desire for your USP.
How? It's easy. All you have to do is provide value... for free.
Take a look at my
website
I've gone out of my way to create as much value as I possibly
can. If you printed out the entire site, it would total over 50 pages of
FREE information. And every month I put all I can into my newsletter in
the hope of making it an indispensable tool
for all the subscribers.
Why do I do it? Quid Pro Quo. Value for value. If I take the first step
and PROVE my worth to you - for free - then you will be more inclined to
trust me. If you trust me, then we start to build a relationship based on
value and truth. And if you find value in my info, then you'll introduce
my website and home study course to everyone you know... which will
eventually translate
into more sales as everyone in your organization also finds value in being
associated with me. And, who knows, maybe you'll hire me to do a training
or to design a turnkey lead generation system for you or your company at
some point in the future.
See how it works? It all starts by creating value and proving your worth!
So brainstorm how you can create value for free to every prospect who
views your email or stops by your site. What can you do for them, even if
they never sponsor into your group or become a retail customer? (By the
way, whatever exchange of value you come up with can become your USP.)
This will create a ton of positive word of mouth referrals.
Trust me, it's an investment that pays off many, many times the costs of
implementing it. Plus, you'll feel good about yourself and the way you
conduct business, which gives you confidence. And that confidence is very
enrolling. People will want to be a part of your team.
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SIN #6: Too Much "COOL" - Not Enough Marketing
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I'm continually blown away by how many people create masterpiece sites and
never spend any time promoting them. They just put the site up and wonder
why they aren't generating any sales from it yet. Then (as if that's not
bad enough) they throw their hands in the air and exclaim the Internet
isn't effective. That's like opening a retail store in a zero population
area, never advertising it, and then getting mad when a customer never
walks through the doors.
You've got to keep your eye on the ball. A great site does nothing if
nobody ever sees it. The world's greatest salesletter won't sponsor a soul
if no one reads it. Shuffling business cards or updating the site doesn't
make money... getting people in front of the sponsoring message does.
Sound simple? It is!
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SIN #7: No Third Party Stories For Credibility & No Fear Removal
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Here are two fundamental marketing facts that most understand but hardly
apply: 1) Anything you say directly in a sponsoring situation (written or
otherwise) is automatically suspect in your prospect's mind - but if a
third party makes the statement for you, your prospect almost always
accepts it as fact; and, 2) The more you remove the fear your prospect has
about taking a risk (i.e., sponsoring in), the more people will respond to
your offer.
So, make sure you never neglect the awesome selling power of testimonials
(real testimonials) in all your marketing efforts. They really drive home
your claims and make them believable. As for removing the fear, simply
brainstorm and test different better than risk-free offers. I've found a
very effective way of overcoming the fear of responding is to turn the
tables on the prospect. Let the prospect know you're very selective about
the people you work with. That not everyone qualifies, but they are
welcome to apply and see if they qualify... that you'll rush them a
complete info package so you can see if they are right for you and if this
is right for them. This usually will move people to action because people
generally want what they can't have.
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SIN #8: Not Walking A Mile In Their Shoes
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Your website or email message (any type of salesletter for that matter) is
the lowest pressure form of salesmanship there is. It's not interactive so
you have to make sure you answer all their questions and handle any
possible objections ahead of time. You don't have the luxury of
customizing your presentation for each specific prospect. Your prospect
will, at the click of a mouse, jump to another site or trash your message.
So you have to anticipate their every move and stay one step ahead.
One the most valuable things you can do is sit down and brainstorm all the
reasons you can think of why someone will NOT take you up on your offer.
If you were to look at your opportunity objectively, what would your
objections be? What concerns would you have? What questions would you have
if you were the prospect? Try to come up with 15 questions and write them
down. Then answer them one by one and incorporate them into the copy.
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SIN #9: Wasting Time Trying To Sell Non-Prospects
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Have you ever heard the saying "you can't say anything right to the wrong
person"? Many people waste so much time and energy trying to sponsor
non-prospects. This carries over to the way people design their online
sales messages. They try to address the masses instead of writing
specifically for the ideal prospect they'd like to sponsor. Done right,
your marketing should turn away as many people (if not more) than it
attracts. You don't want to waste time with unqualified people.
Who's your ideal prospect? Think about it. Get into your prospect. Who'd
be your fantasy new enrollee? Write directly to that one person and make
it a passionate personal letter just
to them. Remember, a prospect will NEVER be bored in print. So every word
you write should be exciting, relevant, and necessary to prove your
case... and never be boring.
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SIN #10: No Follow-Up
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It's online suicide! And the sad part is 999 in 1,000 don't even know they
are committing it. "What is it?" you ask. The number one online mistake is
failing to build a bonded relationship so that your prospect can trust
you, and believe in your opportunity.
Let me explain.
Trust and Rapport are two of the hardest things to create online. They
come from building a bonded relationship with your prospect. To
successfully sell or sponsor online, you've got to have a system that gets
your sales message in front of people, turns surfers into readers, readers
into friends, friends into believers, and finally, converts believers into
buyers.
In other words, before you can sell anybody, anything, you've got to get
them to like and respect you, (by proving you're trustworthy, reliable,
and believable), and, there must be
logical reasons for the prospect to do business with you.
"I already knew that, Joshua," you might be thinking. Well, here's
something that you may not have given much thought to-
This process takes time!
And this where most people fail. They set their business model around a
one time sponsoring effort, and leave the potential for future enrollments
behind while they move on. No follow-up, No relationship building over
time. Just wham, bam, sponsor in now
ma'am/man.
How long it takes to build enough of a relationship with your prospect for
them to sponsor in varies with the individual prospect. Some will trust
you immediately and sign up the first
time through. But most - the majority - will not! It takes time for them
to like and trust you. Some people are slow to believe, and require proof
over time. Their motto is, "Talk is cheap, prove it!"
That's why the richest and most savvy marketers in the world will follow
up with a prospect 7 to 10 times before giving up on them. They stay in
contact with them on a frequent basis, constantly reminding the prospect
of the benefits of doing business with them. They invest time and money in
the follow-up process because they came to the realization that 75%+ of
all their sales came after the 6th time they asked them to buy.
Follow-up is key.
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This article is part of the Training Course, "The Proven MLM Commission
Check Building Training Series - How to Make MORE Money in MLM Faster"
offered by Joshua Shafran of MLM Success Tips. You can receive this
*highly recommended* training course for FREE *right now* at
MLMSuccessTips.com
Copyright © by Joshua D. Shafran. All Rights Reserved.
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