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How Women Recruit Through
Relationship Marketing
By Linda Locke
One of the major strengths that women have traditionally brought to their
network marketing business is their advanced social and people skills. The
current rage of "Relationship Marketing" just puts a new label on the tools
that women have always used to build their business.
Many people believe that network marketing is a "selling" business, but
women know that its really about sharing and building long-term
relationships that last. And successful women use these "sharing and caring"
skills as a major tool in the recruitment process.
The recruiting techniques that work best for women center around their
ability to develop long-term relationships with people in both business and
social settings. They do this by listening to prospects, asking questions,
sharing information, and finding out what the prospect wants from their
business and then helping them get it. The bottom line is that MLM is a
people and communication business and women shine in these areas.
Women use several "soft" methods of relationship marketing to make contact
with prospects that might be potential new recruits for their business. Many
of these methods may seem too slow and too time-consuming for many people to
take them seriously. But just like in Aesops fable "The Tortoise and the
Hare", its the slow and methodical tortoise that wins the race over the
frenetic and aggressive hare. And so it is in building a relationship.
Building Relationships
How do the successful networking women cultivate these relationships? There
are several relationship-based communication tools they use.
One is to be a product of the products. They tell their story. They share it
with others. (Women share things all the time. If they see a movie they
like, they tell people about it. If they discover a restaurant they like,
they tell others. If they discover a product they like, they tell others.
Its that simple.) They follow up. Once they share a product with someone,
they follow up. They know that if they wait by the phone for people to call
them, they will die a lonely person. They know that peoples lives are ruled
by inertia. They know they must take the first step and call their prospects
to ask how they liked the products.
Another communication based tool that women use is the FORM method. That
stands for Family, Occupation, Recreation, and Money. When they engage
people in conversation, they don't talk about their business right away,
they ask about:
Family: When they ask questions about family, they ask because they are
truly interested. And to find out if they like this person enough to work
with them. (After all, if they sign up in their business, they're stuck with
them.) They also ask questions about family to find out if they are likely
to be users of their company's product. (If you're selling high-tech
security devices and they live in a rural "leave the doors unlocked" small
town, they may not be prime prospects.) They also want to find out what
their dreams and goals are. Do they like where they live? Do they want to
move somewhere better? Would they like to quit their job and have more time
for family or stay home with their kids?
Occupation: Where do they work? (If they are an airline pilot, for example,
they might not be interested in getting travel discounts.) Do they like
their job? What is it they would really like to do, if they could?
Recreational Activities: What do they do for fun? Do they do it as often as
they'd like? If not, is it because of lack of time, or lack of money, or
both? If time and money were not limiting factors, what would they really
like to do?
Money: Do they make as much as they'd like? Do they work an extra job to
make more? How much more would they like to make? Have they ever thought
about starting a home-based business?
And why do they ask these questions? Well, because they are women and it
comes naturally to them. They find out lots of neat things about people they
talk to. They make new friends. They know that people like people who are
interested in them. And when they get the answers to these questions they
know exactly what to say when people ask them about their business.
In other words, they know exactly how to present their business so it will
be exciting to that person and fit their needs. They don't have to worry
about when to start talking about their business. Because people ask them
("Well, hey, tell me about yourself! What do you do?") The bottom line is
that if you have made a real connection, they'll want to know about you. And
because they are now a friend, people will listen to what they have to say.
And even if the person is truly not right for their business, at least they
have made a new friend, who may later refer them business.
Putting the Focus on the Prospects Point of View
Women tend to focus more on their prospects point of view. They talk about
the benefits of the business and solicit feedback from their prospects. They
don't let their own wants and needs get in the way. They don't use hard
sales techniques and closes. They let the prospect decide. They know that
they really cant "talk" someone into this business. The prospect has to want
it for themselves.
Getting Contacts through Networking
Women have always been consummate networkers. Its a skill they use every
day. They share information and referrals at business networking
organizations such as their local Toastmasters or Leads Club, social
organizations, religious organizations etc. When they start their business
they can just plug into their network and get the word out about what they
do. After all people like to do business with people they already know, like
and trust.
Do all women work their business this way? Of course not! No two people ever
build their business in the exact same way. But these methods take full
advantage of the many inherent strengths that women already possess.
Recruiting through relationships is not the quickest way to build a
business, and some people are more comfortable with traditional sales
oriented techniques that focus on faster growth.
But as many successful women network marketers (and now many men as well)
have found, building a business through relationships works best for
building a business that lasts.
Linda Locke is the editor of MLM Woman, a free monthly online newsletter for
women in network marketing http://www.mlmwoman.com You can contact Linda by
e-mail at: regent@west.net
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