The Truth in Network Marketing

Crossing the Bridge on Your Journey to Success

Phil Benson

• Publisher: G&D Media
• Year: 2019
• Print ISBN: 9781722502966
• eBook ISBN: 9781722524012
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Business General
• Index: Business

NETWORK MARKETING, IF DONE CORRECTLY, IS THE BEST BUSINESS MODEL THAT WILL PRODUCE A WIN-WIN SITUATION FOR ALL THOSE INVOLVED.

 The author has a talent for explaining the complicated and misunderstood field of network marketing in a way that even those new to the business as well as those who have been in it for years can benefit from.

Phil understands that success in network marketing is a journey not a sprint. It is about developing leaders who in turn develop leaders. Finally, success in network marketing is about growing as a person and understanding what one must do to achieve their goals.

In this book there is a wealth of information for all involved in network marketing that can be the missing piece to your success.

• Learn the truth behind lies
• Discover how to build your business
• Master the skill of energy leadership

"I have known Phil Benson for many years. If he is writing a book about this subject, you can count on it being real, valuable, and perhaps life-changing. I would not delay in reading it and sharing it with your most valued distributors and prospects." -Dan McCormick, 37-year network marketer and multimillion-dollar earner

CHAPTER ONE

The Truth Behind the Lies

I am a strong believer in network marketing. As I said, I have been associated with the industry for over twenty-five years, both as a user of products and a builder of teams. But I’m bothered by the tendency to exaggerate and even lie to entice people to try NM.

There is no need to resort to untruths. This industry has been around for well over sixty years and has grown into one that provides many people with a vehicle to a secure future. But many have turned away from it because they perceive it to be run by people out for their own success alone, who are doing and saying anything to get others involved.

These lies are not told by everyone in the industry, but those who do tell them overshadow and hurt the integrity of those building their business the right way. When people are led down the wrong path and leave the industry, they often generalize that everyone is wronged the way they were. This perception must be changed. The only way to do that is for all participants in the business model to be truthful.

Below is a look at several of the lies told to new and prospective distributors as well as the corresponding truths and what could be said to present a positive and truthful picture to a person interested or beginning in NM.

Lie 1.

“If I can do it, you can do it,” “If John can do it, you can do it,” or “If Mary can do it, you can do it.”

The Truth

A prospect looking at a network-marketing opportunity will hear these statements more times than any other. Why? Because NM is all about promoting the dream and teasing people into believing that if someone else did it, you can too. I am not saying that the person cannot do it, but the real question that should be asked when someone says, “If I can do it, you can do it,” is, “So tell me what it took for you do it. How long did it take; how much support did you have? Were you new to NM when you started, or did you have experience?”

A great deal goes into why someone made it in NM. It is unfair and misleading to compare one person’s success to another’s. It’s like saying that John made it to the major leagues in baseball, so you can also. Sure, the opportunity is there, but do you have the skills to carry you to the big leagues? Is the desire the same and the work ethic the same?

There is a story about two men who opened barbershops across the street from each other. When they opened, both had the opportunity to be successful. But one became a success while the other closed. Why would that happen? Both were in the same town, started at the same time, and had success as their goal. Obviously the man who survived had the necessary tools to be successful. He was personable, skilled in cutting hair, and able to manage his business professionally, and he understood his market and had the drive to do what it took. The other did not.

When speaking to a prospect, is it fair to say, “If John can do it, you can do it,” without telling the prospect what John did to succeed? Was he an experienced network marketer? Did he already have the skills needed to build a successful team? Did he understand what leadership knowledge he’d need? These are just a few of the skills and experience one needs to be successful.

The Lie Corrected

Here is a conversation that would better serve the prospect. Network marketer Bob to prospect Bill: “Bill, see John over there? He has become successful in NM, just as you can. But he worked hard, he learned the skills, he committed to reach his goals, and basically he did whatever it took to become successful. Bill, if you commit to do what it takes to be successful as John did, and if you keep at it, the opportunity is there for you.”

One of the biggest mistakes a network marketer can make is to paint false hopes and dreams. Be honest, be truthful, and build your business with integrity. Lying to someone will only make it harder for that person to succeed. Their belief system will be compromised. and overcoming their false assumptions will be more difficult.

Lie 2.

“This is a ground-floor opportunity; it is the best time to get involved.”

The Truth

I have been involved with two companies seriously and have taken a look at several others. At every introductory meeting I’ve gone to, someone has always said, “This is a ground-floor opportunity; it is the best time to get involved.” Why would one company say this when it had been started ten years earlier, and why would another say it after it had been a going business fifteen years? I did hear the statement at two newly established companies, which could argue that they were indeed ground-floor opportunities. But that is debatable also.

What exactly is a ground-floor opportunity? There are several ways to analyze that claim. It could mean the company is brand-new and is just starting to build its base of leaders, so now would be the perfect time to get involved. It could also mean that the company is offering a breakthrough product; thus this is a ground-floor opportunity to promote it. Another scenario would be that the company has been around a while but has not established its field leadership, so now could be a ground-floor opportunity to get involved with growing the leadership.

The Lie Corrected

Ground-floor opportunity is a catchphrase that’s been used in the network-marketing industry since the beginning. It is the core of bringing the dream of success to its prospects. When you hear the phrase, you immediately believe that this company is offering you the perfect chance to hit a home run. The problem is that ground-floor opportunity rarely means an opportunity that’s truly special, that no one else has heard about.

When I started hearing the phrase, I began looking into each company that used it to see if indeed there was a special opportunity with unique timing or unique products. In most cases, it was just a phrase used to hype the opportunity.

In my eyes, for a company to be a true groundfloor opportunity, several things have to be in place. First, the company’s corporate leaders have to have network-marketing experience. Second, the product has to be unique and tested and has to appeal to the whole population. Third, the company has to be able to expand globally in a few years. Finally, the company has to have been in business at least three years and is beginning to have a track record of growth.

Each year many new companies a year enter the NM arena. I can guarantee you that 99 percent will use the phrase “ground-floor opportunity.” Why? Because they want to entice prospects with the chance to be the first to join. Here is a hard fact: over 90 percent of first-time companies will fail by their second year, if not their first. The odds of being the first in a new company are slim. Most companies have master distributors, who bring their leaders, who bring their teams to the company. Thus the average prospect will not experience a true ground-floor opportunity. That does not mean they won’t succeed. More about that later.

How do we correct the language and meaning of “this is a ground-floor opportunity, and this is the best time to get involved”? Do away with the promotional language completely. Replace it with fact. Change the language, and be honest with the prospect. Why not say, “The opportunity with our company is special. Yes, it is a new company, but we are just beginning to grow, and we are looking for people who want to work hard and take advantage of this new opportunity”? Or, if the pitch is for the product, “Our company has a unique product with the potential to establish itself as a leader in its field.”

For a company to establish itself and be around for the long term, it has to lead with integrity and promote itself with honest facts, not hype. Companies will call themselves “ground-floor” after twenty years, because they have “only” a million distributors in a world population of seven billion. But the fact is, only a small number of people will get involved.

When I started out with my first company, the one with which I had the most success, my mentor told me not to get involved with an NM company until it had been in business for three to five years. He understood that the risks with a new company were huge. If it survived, it would go through growing pains that could slow down your success and test your patience. Little did I know it, but the first company I was involved with had entered the United States six years earlier. The second had been established fifteen years before I got involved. I was able to get to the top ranks in both companies.

Your success in network marketing has nothing to do with “ground-floor opportunities.” Your success comes from the commitment and hard work you put into your decision to grow your business.

Lie 3.

“I signed up just three months ago, and I am already at the Diamond level.”

The Truth

Mention to people how quickly you can get to the top, and the more excited they become. That is the nature of this business. Promote, promote, and promote some more. The best way to promote is to tell people they can reach their dream quickly. “I signed up just three months ago, and I am already a Diamond.” Sounds good, and no doubt will excite the new prospect.

What are the scenarios behind this statement? Let’s take a look at what the truth could be. For me personally, it took five years at my first company to reach the Diamond level. It was not easy, it took a lot of work, and I had to truly become a student of the business before I achieved that level. Granted, it was my first experience in NM, but in most instances, it is the same for the new prospect. So how do you reach that rank in three months?

First, it probably never happened and the distributor is exaggerating (which, as we’ve established, happens a lot in NM). Second, if indeed the rank was reached in three months, there’s a chance the distributor brought his whole organization from another company with him. This is a frequent occurrence as distributors with large organizations move from one company to the next. In many instances, a company will pay him to move with his people and then promote him to a top rank and allow him to reap the benefits from the compensation plan. So in reality he’s reached the Diamond level in three months with help from the company, not by starting from scratch—as 99 percent of new distributors must do.

In the rare case that this statement is true, you could be dealing with a very experienced network marketer, who was able to get a couple of experienced people to join his team, and together they moved quickly. Along the way they might have found that one person who had a huge group and was looking for a new home to bring his people to. Thus, if all the chips fall in the right place and the timing is perfect, maybe, just maybe, someone can reach the Diamond level in three months.

The Lie Corrected

This is an easy lie to correct: Don’t mention it to a new prospect. It is not going to happen. Why get your prospect’s hopes up, knowing that in three months they will be deflated and you will have to energize them all over again? Take the hype out of this game. Be honest with the prospect.

If you are going to say that you reached the Diamond level in three months or that Bob did it, give the prospect all the facts. Let him know it was a unique situation in that he brought his whole group with him. Or that he was a very experienced network marketer, moved fast, and found a couple of others who moved fast with him. If an inexperienced marketer got really lucky and found a superstar right away, let your prospect know that this is how he achieved the Diamond rank so fast.

There is much to learn to become an accomplished distribut...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Foreword
• Preface
• Introduction: In the Beginning
• Chapter One: The Truth behind the Lies
• Chapter Two: Discovering How to Build Your Business
• Chapter Three: Personal Growth: Energy Leadership
• Chapter Four: What Next?
• About the Author