Well, I got an email today from my friend Ann Sieg. And, folks, when Ann talks…I listen. So, she had another insightful and content-packed email that I wanted to share with all of you:
It’s been a little while since I’ve posted to the blog and whenever that happens I always get a lot of people asking me what the next big project is that we’re cooking up.
They insist there MUST be some master plan unfolding for worldwide internet domination, right??
I’ll admit, I have been somewhat “undercover” lately…
(And we DO have some “top secret” projects coming up that I think are going to change the game of network marketing…)
But it hasn’t been ALL work and no play
You see, we just wrapped up the final session of our Renegade Breakthrough Group Mentoring Program a couple weeks ago and one of the things I talked about was the need to “pause, reflect and refresh.”
Our team literally dumped EVERYTHING we’ve learned over the past few years about building a multi-million dollar business into this program.
And for many of the students who participated, it was the most intense and transformational experience of their lives.
I’ve never poured more into any program or course before and after we ended our last call my husband Brian and I took off for a relaxing 5 day retreat in Eureka Springs, Arkansas.
A lot of our friends were wondering if we’d head out to an island with palm trees somewhere, but I actually like to keep things pretty simple most of the time.
And that means a quiet, Victorian village hidden deep in the Ozark Mountains… with some of the best spas in the world
(And if you told me you never knew there were mountains in the Midwest you wouldn’t be the first one!)
While we were there I did some serious reflection on my own business and how my life has changed radically since I started online.
I thought about everything I’ve been able to accomplish over the past few years, all the incredible opportunities ahead, AND the areas I need to improve on.
I also thought a lot about YOU and some of the things that might be holding you back from making your dreams a reality.
Here’s one of the biggest things I see standing between many people and the success they’re looking for:
Themselves!
Sometimes building a business online can feel a lot like trying to drink water from a fire hydrant!
I mean, who can keep up with it all:
-Youtube
-Blogging
-Pay-per-click
-Lead capture pages
-Content creation
-Writing emails
-Copywriting
-Following up with prospectsMake no mistake about it: If you’re just getting started, you are going to need to spend time learning some of these new skills yourself.
And that’s OKAY.
Because you only need to do a FEW of them well in order to begin making money online.
But once your business starts growing and you’re ready to take it to the next level, you could become your own biggest limitation.
You see, despite the fact that I’ve become well known for creating marketing systems that attract prospects and customers…
The people who know me best know that I consider my TRUE talent to be TEAM BUILDING.
If you’ve read a few online sales letters you might have gotten the impression that building a team was outdated, right along with making a names list and passing out fliers
But the truth is, it’s more important today than ever and it’s a skill that ALL the “gurus” rely on.
Without exception.
The *NEW* Model Of Team Building
Now, when most network marketers think of building a team they think of building a downline.
This is one form of team building but it’s not the only way.
There’s a new model that’s developed because of the internet.
In the past, making money with network marketing meant having A LOT of people on your team (ie – your downline) all doing A LITTLE BIT of the same thing:
Talking to friends, inviting people to meetings, etc.
The idea was for each person to talk to just a couple new people every day about the business, thereby filling your funnel with hundreds and even thousands of prospects a month.
This is where the saying “1% of the efforts of 100 people rather than 100% of your own” became so popular.
What’s happened as a result of the internet though is that it’s now become possible for one person (or… a very small team of people working together) to do what used to take hundreds of distributors to do.
Faster, easier and cheaper.
Specialization Is The New “Duplication”
What’s also happened in this new internet model is that people are developing specialized business-building skills.
(Honing your business and marketing skills has ALWAYS been mandatory to success in network marketing, it’s just that with the internet there are more options)
Some people are highly skilled at traffic generation and creating content.
Others at writing persuasive ads.
Others at sponsoring and recruiting.
But the people who are profiting the most online are the ones who are collaborating and forming “partnerships” with others to grow their business together.
When I first started building my “home team” I needed someone to help me answer the phone and follow up with all the prospects that were calling me.
As I continued to grow I needed help managing my pay-per-click campaigns, and then someone to help me write more emails, and so on.
By doing so I was able to really focus on becoming good at one or two things, rather than a whole bunch of things.
This model of bringing a few key players together who specialize in different areas of business-building has not only proven to be more powerful…
But also more realistic and MORE duplicateable.
I’ve been forming partnerships like this, one at a time, for the last few years and I’ve watched our most successful students do the same.
Many of them have six and even seven figure businesses.
The good news is, building a team like this has never been easier thanks to the reach of the internet.
With the exception of a couple people, every single person on my team was someone I met online.
Of course these collaborative partnerships can be people in your downline.
But they don’t have to be.
Many people don’t realize it, but if you have a list and you’re building a relationship with them, you’re sitting on a goldmine of potential team members who could help you explode your business.
Remember:
90% Or More Of The Prospects On Your List Will Never
Be Interested In Your Network Marketing Opportunity
(That’s why it’s so important to offer them additional products like The Renegade Network Marketer and Renegade Professional to help you MONETIZE your marketing efforts)
They could however be VERY interested in becoming your business partner online.
We’re at a unique point in history where interest in building a home based business has NEVER been greater.
It’s just that there are many different ways to make money from home and not everyone is looking to build an MLM.
This does not mean you should limit yourself and miss out on the chance to do business with the rest of these people on your list.
Listen, you may not realize what you hold in your hands but 9 out every 10 businesses in the “real world” don’t know how to do this stuff (marketing!)
Offering someone the chance to partner up with you – someone who has learned how to attract prospects and customers to them – is one of the best opportunities that anyone could ever stumble upon.
Is it necessary to build a team like this to make money?
No.
Should it be part of your long term business plan?
Definitely.
In order to do this, there are a couple things you need to do:
#1. You Need To Create Your Own Unique Value In Order To Attract Star Players
Just like sponsoring people into your opportunity, you need to give people an answer to this question:
“Why should I work with you?”
Some of the best ways to do this are learning how to generate traffic, building a list, and creating content.
These are all things we walk you through click-by-click inside Renegade Professional.
If you’re not a member of Renegade Professional yet, you can get a free 30 day trial when you pick up a copy of The Renegade Network Marketer.
It’s all there waiting for you. All you have to do is follow along with the simple video tutorials.
Here are 12 other ideas for increasing your personal value to make yourself irresistible to prospects and potential business partners:
- Expertise: What you know
- Expert status: What you are KNOWN to know (there’s a BIG difference)
- Skill: What you do
- Productivity: What you get done
- Efficiency: HOW you get done what you get done
- Effectiveness: Opportunity selection and how well you do what you get done
- Organization/Multiplication: How you get things done by means other than manual labor (for example: creating content all by yourself or having others help you with it)
- Influence: What you can get others to do
- Relationships: Who you know
- Celebrity Status: How well you are known (by your target audience)
- Reputation: What others know about you
- Vision: What you see that others don’t
#2. You Need To Develop Leadership And Communication Skills
Most people who build a business online are hoping to avoid this part.
After all, it just doesn’t sound as glamorous as “generating hundreds of leads a day on Google”
You need both, but here’s the distinction:
If all you rely on are systems and formulas, you have a money-maker (a money-maker that could go away at any time).
But when you combine systems with people and leadership you have a real, long-term business.
This is true whether you’re using the internet or not.
What is leadership?
Essentially it’s listening to others, guiding them, and coaching them to help them tap into their full potential.
This could be a 1,000 people or it could be 3 people.
Obviously if you’re going to build a team you need to know how to do this.
But even if you’re NOT building a team – or never intend to – why should you develop these skills?
Because when you learn how to guide and coach others, you also learn how to guide and coach YOURSELF through business (and life).
This is crucial no matter how big you want to grow your income.
Who is teaching these skills online?
Surprisingly no one.
Which is why I encourage you to check out our Coaching Cognition program with Barbara Silva.
It takes most successful business owners years to become a master at networking and communicating effectively
with others.You can shortcut this learning curve dramatically with Barbara’s instruction.
Barbara is our coach of coaches at Renegade Professional and she’s going to be taking on more students soon.
This is a rare opportunity to learn how the most prominent leaders really increase their influence with others.
(And possibly even become a paid coach inside Renegade Professional)
To find out more about how to participate in this unique program, just head on over to the Renegade Professional News blog .
Study Mike Klingler’s article carefully on how to become more valuable to the people you do business with.
And be sure to watch the videos of others who have used coaching skills to rapidly accelerate their business growth.
To Your Success,
Ann Sieg
P.S. – Don’t forget to get on the pre-notification list too if you haven’t already, you’ll find the link on the same page.
This could be bigger than Renegade Professional itself.
(Shh! Don’t tell anyone I said that!)
Originally from an email I received from Ann Sieg. I am an affiliate for Ann Sieg and Renegade Professional, so if you choose purchase any product or service offered by Ann or Renegade Professional, I may be compensated. That being said, I do only recommend things that I have personally participated in and found to be valuable.
