Tips For Developing Your Prospecting Skills
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Business > Marketing
Apr 25, 2007
Tips For Developing Your Prospecting Skills
Are your prospecting skills not up to par? Do you keep wondering why you are always getting rejected? Is it your business? Is it your products? Or is it you? Here's how to hone your prospecting skills to become a better prospector and take your Network Marketing business to new levels! The first thing you need to remember is that "Professionals Sort ... Amateurs Convince." People can sense desperation. Yes, even over the phone! If people sense that you are desperate and trying to convince them to join your business, they won't join! Think about it; would you join somebody who sounds like they are desperate? I highly doubt it, I know I wouldn't. You don't want everyone in your business either! You want people who are motivated and want something; people who are professional and trainable; people who are looking for change. Prospecting is a fine art and your skills need to be developed. Repetition is the key. In the beginning, your skill level will be low and you will need to make up for that with the numbers. What I mean is that you will need to speak with more people to get the same results. As your skills improve, you will get the same results while talking with less and less people. I'm not saying to talk with less people, just that it will take less people to obtain the same results. Prospecting is nothing more than communicating with people. It boils down to asking, listening and collecting. You have to ask questions. You want to ask questions that allow people to open up. This will prompt them to ask you "how" questions and "why" questions. "How" questions qualify for your time, "why" questions do not. The "why" is their reason, not yours. You can tell them "how" but not "why". Then you have to listen to the answers and collect the information! Listening is a skill that is almost never taught. It's about them, not you. Find out what they want. What is their "why?" Once you find their "why" you have found their hot button. This is what will motivate them. In order to find this, you must learn to listen! If somebody's "why" is not strong enough, they will either won't join (or buy) or they will and not produce, and then eventually quit telling you that "it doesn't work." This is not true. This just means it didn't work for them because they didn't have a strong enough reason to be doing it! Also, people will buy from, or join with, somebody who is a leader. You need to be a strong leader and believe in yourself. You need to send the message that you are the leader people are looking for. You've heard the statement "The fortune is in the follow-up." This is so true! But you have to distinguish who is worthy of your time and who is not and only follow-up with people who deserve your time. Keep in mind that follow-up doesn't mean begging, chasing or convincing. Follow-up means you get back in touch with people who are very serious about changing their lives. Do you think Donald Trump begs, chases and tries to convince people to do business with him. Not on your life and neither should you! People who have requested information and are interested in looking at it are worth your time. Don't follow-up with people who ask you to call them back in a week or so. Tell them to call you back when they are serious about changing their life. When making recruiting phone calls, it should take you no more than 30 seconds to find out if somebody is interested or not. Include your name, location and a little bit about why you are calling. For example: "Hi Mr. Prospect, my name is ______ and I'm just giving you a quick call from here in ______. Mr. Prospect, your name came across my desk as somebody interested in owning your own home business and I wanted to find out if that is still true." That's it. Don't say anything else until they give you an answer. All you are looking for here is a Yes or a No. If they tell you "No I'm not interested" or "Please take my name off your list" say "Thank you ... have a great day" and hang up. Don't waste your time! Move on to the next call on your list. Don't take it personally, they don't even know you! Maybe this just isn't the right person, or they are having a bad day, or this person simply isn't serious about changing their life. It has nothing to do with you personally! Move on. If they tell you something else that indicates they want to hear what you have to offer then proceed with your script or presentation. Make sure you ask questions, find their "why" and above all, listen! The decision on whether somebody joins your business with you is yours, not theirs. Maybe they are serious about changing their life, but you have an uneasy feeling with them, or you just don't "gel" with them. Don't waste your time. Tell them that they are not the person you are looking for and move on. It's your business. You decide who you work with and who you don't, nobody else. This is a hard concept for most people to grasp because they are trying to "go to the next level" in their company, or trying to be in the top 10 this month. Taking on everyone who says yes is not necessarily a good thing to do. Be selective and don't waste your time on people who do not deserve it. Prospecting is about sorting, not selling or convincing. "Professionals sort ... Amateurs convince." When it comes to talking with people, get a Yes or a No as quickly as possible and move forward from there. Prospecting is 80% listening and 20% asking questions. Make sure you follow-up with the right people and don't waste your time with the wrong ones. Following these tips and advice will set you well on your way to improving your prospecting skills. Remember that "practice makes perfect." Keep practicing and moving forward and your skills will naturally develop and get stronger. Don't get frustrated, simple discipline over a period of time will produce results.
Lou and Robin Bonaventura have been Professional Network Marketers for 4 years. They attribute much of their success to personal development and continual learning. Visit their Blog and Learning Centers for more insight into how personal development can benefit you.
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