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Your palms are sweating and your heart is racing. You have that uneasy feeling in the pit of your stomach. Never has there been a tool that has caused more fear in the hearts of marketers than the telephone! These tips will help you not only surmount your fear, but empower you to use the phone as a powerful part of your marketing strategy.

Rule #1: Always “sell” value before price. Prospect will almost always ask “how much does it cost?” – This can be a buying signal but before you tell them how much it will cost be sure you have sold the value. If not it could be the end of the conversation. Tip: Before you send additional information, try this qualifying question, “When people request our free CD, I often discover that they are really not interested about making more money from home but are just curious about the CD. Is that the case here?” They will often respond with, “No, I’m really interested.” Chances are that they will act consistently with their response. This way you can spend your time and marketing dollars on those most interested in your offer. You might want to have some online backup material to provide to those who are just curious.

Rule #2: The majority of the time prospects will not call you. Some prospects will call you, but most won’t. If you want to become a member of those who carry a sign reading, “will work for food” wait for your prospects to call you! In MLM this applies especially to follow-up but also to step one prospecting. The bottom line is that if you don’t use the phone at some point in your marketing, either up front or after the prospect has shown interest, you simply won’t be able to build a long-term business. The reason most people fear the phone is because they fear the personal rejection that prospects can inflict. Everybody says not to take it personal.

Rule #3: When they don’t return your call, it doesn’t mean they aren’t interested. Veteran marketers know that lack of a call-back does not mean the prospect isn’t interested. It most often indicates a lack of time or attention. Marketers all too often assume that when a prospect doesn’t respond that they are not interested. But in the majority of cases it doesn’t mean that at all. What a lack of response most often means is that you haven’t made a connection to the prospect yet. The prospect simply does not yet understand or realize how your offer will make their life better. The art of marketing is of course, figuring this out. This does not mean that you should simply bombard your prospect with calls or any other marketing until you get a response. Use a little common sense and think about how you like to be sold. Yes, I said sold! MLM is selling no matter what the storybooks say. You are always selling yourself and your ideas so start to think about what attracts you to certain products and services and incorporate what you learn into your own marketing.

If a prospect says, “It’s best if I call you,” ask a couple of qualifying questions to see if you can call them on a specific date about their decision. If they still prefer to call you realize they have just told you “No” and let it go. People with certain personality styles avoid confrontation and rarely tell others no. They just hope to wear you down (most marketers give up by the third call) which is usually rather easy. Sometimes you just need to know when to stop wasting your time and move on. Never show your frustration or disappointment when prospects tell you “No”, either directly or indirectly. Keep them in your long-term follow-up with no more than two e-mails messages

Rule #4: If you dial a number and get voicemail, you WILL leave a message. You already dialed the number, don’t hang up when you get a machine! The message you leave should be a prepared “commercial” which will address one ‘pain’ your offer can resolve and one ‘gain’ it will provide. (Sample pain: lack of success in business. Sample gain: a continually growing source of income.) Leave your message in a clear voice and at a pace that makes it easy to understand. Request that the prospect return your call. (be sure to leave a number – toll-free if possible)

Rule #5: Know the purpose of your call. Our responsibility as marketers is to know our prospects. We should research our prospects needs and triggers. As part of this we also need to know the benefits of our offer and how they relate to the prospects needs. How you relate to the prospects is determined by the purpose of the call. Decide ahead of time if the purpose of your call is establish rapport, set a follow-up interview or to close a sale. This will help you keep on track with your objective. Tip: Understand your Pain-and-Gain position. How much have you researched your prospects? The more specific the ‘pain’ is to your prospect the more powerful the ‘gain’ will be. Identify what is hurting your prospect by not using your product/service or participating in the opportunity. Identify what the prospect will gain by using your product/service or participating in the opportunity. Try using a message template of “You know how? Well, what I do is?” Example: You know how you sometimes wish you didn’t have to go to work to make a good living? Well, what I do is help people build profitable businesses from their own homes that can in many cases replace a full-time income within 2 years working just around 10 hours a week. Example: You know how you feel like making 6 figures a year is out of your reach? Well, what I do is work with average people and teach them how to create an above average income. We have a unique system in place that can turn a few hours a week into an $8,000 to $10,000 per month income in just a couple of years.

Rule #6: Offer something for free in your message or first call. Offering your prospect something of value on the phone can be more effective than radio, magazine or direct-mail advertising with the same offer. A call can be as simple as, “Hello, I’m calling to see if your interested in earning $100,000 or more working from home and would like to receive a free tape that will explain in detail how you can do it. Call Robin at 1-800-555-5555. Thank you very much.

Rule #7: Leave three different messages at 3 to 7 day intervals. Don’t leave the same message more than once (you’re not a machine). Respect their time and give them a chance to respond.

Rule #8: A call is a performance. You’re an actor. You’re not boring or overbearing. Both can have serious consequences to your results.

Rule #9: Keep your energy high, your speed low. Fast does not equal energy. Some people talk fast because they are nervous, others because they feel it makes them sound excited. In reality it does neither. The only thing it does do is give your prospect the opportunity to miss something. Take two or three deep breaths before you call and stand up if you are feeling low. Use a mirror to watch your facial expressions and body language. Our mood is often expressed in our body language and is often transmitted in our voice by our volume and intonation. Even subtle aspects can be picked up by your prospect even if it’s subconsciously. Become aware of yourself and learn how to get into the right frame of mind for calling prospects.

Rule #10: Be prepared to talk to your prospect. Be prepared to deliver your full script in case you get to talk to the person. Voicemail is more common today and it’s harder to get a hold of prospects today than it was ten or fifteen years ago but sometimes you’ll have the opportunity to deliver your message. Be prepared for when you do.

Rule #11: Be consistent. Make calls every day on a regular schedule. This will help you develop the habit of calling. Getting the habit started is the hardest. Once you’re going, your own momentum will help motivate you to stay in action. If you’re cold calling shoot for two hours of calling per day. Schedule your time and make sure you stick to your schedule. This will help you build your consistency.

Final tip: Self-Talk, personal goals and a love of your product or service will motivate you to be successful in network marketing and in life.

Copyright (c) 2007 Robin Rushlo