Impacting Your Business – The Power of Networking

NETWORK MARKETING…. are no longer the dirty little words that they once were. Why? Because as people, we’ve come to the realization that it’s how we operate, it’s how we function and if those words were to somehow mean something bad, wouldn’t that mean that we as people were wrong in some kind of way?

When you really think about it, what ISN’T NETWORK MARKETING?

You see a good movie and tell three people….chances are if they see it and like it, they’ll tell more people.

You find a product that actually takes grease stains out of your laundry…..you tell someone, who in turn tells someone else.

Have you got a really good air conditioning guy, the best hair dresser in town, know of the best place your girlfriends can get their nails done?

Do you have the skinny on the best Chinese food place on the Northwest side, or have you found a fabulous new pizza joint?

How many others will you let know about all of these great deals?

If you’re a Mom, how many other Mom’s do you have to call to find out who a good pediatrician is? Chances are good that the same Pediatrician’s name could come up more than once.

I’m not sure how Network Marketing originally got it’s bum wrap, but I’m willing to bet that it was started by someone or someone’s in the advertising industry. I’m not pointing fingers, just admitting a hunch.

Historically, before print media and television, with the exception of the newspaper, if you decided to start your own business, how do you think the word spread about your operation, whether good or bad? If your business was run with integrity and hard work the chances are pretty good that your one satisfied customer turned into several other satisfied customers through word of mouth advertising or network marketing.

In business, direct selling a.k.a. Network marketing is the oldest most respected way of selling in the world. Why? Mainly because of  the power of selling directly to someone you know who trusts you and knows that there is a loyalty, a bond that they won’t get from the guy or gal’s whose flyer came in the mail last week. After all, they’ve known you for more than decade, call you on your birthday or spend Christmas with you every year.

Direct Selling or network marketing businesses also use what many successful traditional business owners use, leverage. Donald Trump, Robert Kiyosaki, Robert Allen, Warren Buffet  and John Long are a few names that you may recognize that use leverage.

What exactly is leverage? The easiest way to describe leverage is that…. everyone does a little to achieve a lot, or by duplicating or multiplying the efforts of many. Leverage can be used in many different forms, but it has the same basic principles. Here are some examples of businesses that use leverage:

THE MORTGAGE BROKER

A mortgage broker leverages or duplicates their efforts this way –

A broker has 10 loan officers working under them. If 1 loan officer can close 10 loans per month, the efforts are duplicated when 10 loan officers each close 10 loans per month, for a total of 100 loans closing each month, the broker has achieved time and money leverage. The mortgage broker didn’t have to spend all of their time trying to acquire and close 100 loans, but is still paid a small portion on each of the 100 closing loans.

THE FRANCHISE

A franchised restaurant (we’ll use McDonald’s) uses leverage by duplicating it’s efforts this way –

A restaurant franchise creator creates a system to efficiently cook and distribute food in a timely manner. Once they have worked out all the kinks and bugs and have been in existence for a certain length of time, they are allowed to apply for the right to distribute franchise rights of their “system” to the public or business investors for an initial franchise fee (in the case of McDonald’s at the time of this writing –franchise fees range from $750K - $1.9 million). Once the franchises are sold, the new franchise/business owner pays a percentage every month to the Franchise creator for the use of their “system” and their franchised name.

THE MUTUAL FUND

The mutual fund is a vehicle used to leverage money. Often times the company you work for will offer stock options in the form of a 401K mutual fund. This is simply picking low, medium or high risk stock investments and then contributing a portion of your (usually pre-taxed) payroll each week or month. The collective money input from the people working for your company creates a larger purchase power to buy more types of stock in the mutual fund.

DIRECT SALES/NETWORK MARKETING

Similar to the mortgage broker or the real estate broker, direct selling companies enlist independent representatives  to market their products and services. Independent representatives may then create teams of representatives to share time and money leverage and acquire more customers through those teams thereby creating larger income streams.

There are a plethora of different ways to acquire market share: traditional advertising can be costly and may not reach as many as you think it will; while networking or word of mouth advertising can give you the opportunity to provide people with more of a 3 - dimensional idea of what you and your company have to offer.

Copyright 2014 - Noelle Sangster/Sangster Entertainment LLC - All rights reserved

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There's only Comfort in your Comfort Zone

 Complacency - adjective - used here in a politically correct format. Because it’s synonym is Laziness. I hear you grumbling now.

Complacency can come in many forms and apply to almost any situation on the face of the planet. The main cause of complacency from what I have personally seen and experienced, comes from getting good at what you do and forgetting to, ignoring or neglecting to become better….BAM! you’re in the comfort zone.

I’m fairly certain that everyone has heard some of these sayings “ No pain No gain,” “ No guts no glory.” “No risk no reward.” and if you haven’t heard them before my friends, you’re hearing them here today.

Ask yourself what in your life has earned itself a complacent spot, perhaps something that is easy for all of us to take for granted - our health, our retirement account, our a job. Let’s have a look at those few things for now.

Health -

How often do you pack your own lunch, swap a burger for a salad, drink water instead of soda? We know the statistics. We understand that the average women’s dress size has gone from a 12 to a 14 in just a few short years. We see the frustrating results of obesity, even wish we knew where we were spending all that darn money. And yet we continue to do the same thing’s over and over expecting different results or at least telling ourselves that we will eventually get a round to changing some of these habits…

Many of us sit in front of a computer all or part of the day. Let’s face it, we are in the information age and business is now literally done at the speed of thought.

How often do you get out and exercise, go workout at the gym, use that treadmill that has become your second closet (not pointing fingers but you know you hang clothes on it and you know who you are).

Some of us do get out and walk, some of us do go to the gym and some of us really do use the treadmill for it’s intended purpose; however, some of us say we’re going to do any and all of those things and they never seem to happen. We make excuses about not having enough time, not having the extra money to join a gym and many others…..you have invited it in….Complacency has entered your life.

Retirement -

Everyone from all walks of life that I have personally spoken to on this subject in the past thirty six  months agree  that there will be a very likely chance of the Social Security Administration being bankrupt over the next few years.

We talk, laugh and joke about “What Social Security?” or give it silly nick names like “ Social Insecurity.” We all have an awareness on some level of consciousness that what we have come to know in our lifetimes as social security, may not be available in next few years to supplement your retirement incomes and those of us that will receive it, can’t afford to take the pay cut. So, we scramble to the bank to talk to the banker about IRAs or ask the boss for the 401K program information, right? Hmm maybe, maybe not.

If you know that something’s not going to be there, isn’t it your responsibility of making sure you have what you’ll need when you need it?….Sure you know it and you will eventually do something about it too, but not today……one thing leads to another and….Complacency rents a room.

The Job - 

I’ll give this one a little bit of room because of the state of the economy. Although I do have to preface that by saying that I have been watching this begin to unfold for at least a decade. I’ll address the transition I’m referring to at a later date.

The job that you’ve been going to every single day for the past  twenty, ten, five or even one year can end at any given moment if it is losing momentum in the market place, you’ve made it through the first and second round of layoffs and you’re praying that there won’t be a third or if there is a third, you’re hoping that your name isn’t on the list.

Complacency in this situation is generally caused by fear of loss. i.e. “If I do nothing. Nothing will happen to me.” And you don’t know how right you are.

Jobs can be tricky, but the bottom line is that, you’re future is in, you hope, the capable hands of the person that you are working for; trust and faith have got be your theme song.

Now let’s talk about kicking complacency to the curb. As we’ve already assessed the only thing in your comfort zone is comfort - the only obstacle in your way is YOU.

People always say take ACTION - Action overcomes fear and while this is completely true, I have to say first let’s get aware - awareness of and an honest assessment of your situation will lead you to make a plan of ACTION.

Be Committed to taking Action on a consistent basis whether that  means daily, weekly or monthly - change your situation, by getting out of your comfort zone and your own way.

Be persistent - 80% of winning at anything is just showing up. Show up; be persistent.

My favorite line from a Disney movie called The Incredibles is “Luck Favors the Prepared”

Make it Happen!!

I wrote this piece a few years ago, before I left Arizona. It was a reminder of what I knew myself and anyone else on the planet, could  accomplish if we just set our minds to it. Getting out of the comfort zone isn't always easy, but when you do, the feeling of freedom is beyond words. Step out of your comfort zone and experience something new TODAY!!!

Copyright 2014 - Noelle Sangster/Sangster Entertainment LLC - All rights reserved

Noelle Sangster on Amazon

Noelle Sangster on Facebook

Noelle Sangster Worldwide

Adventures of a Writing Junkie Blog