Do you qualify your list? Usually when we get started in our network marketing business, what’s the first thing they say to do? Make a list of all the people that you know, right? Some new reps may think they don’t know anyone. They do know people, but sometimes they’re thinking I don’t know anyone who I think is going to do this business. So they “pre-judge” their contacts.
As you are putting down all the names of people you know, and you’re going to your address book, the PTA roster, the soccer club, the church directory, the Rotary Club, the Junior League, the Mother’s Day out program, etc., they all need to go in one new list designated as your working “capital” for your business. The next step is you need to qualify your list. You’re going to have all different kinds of people on this list. You’re going to have people that are very successful and maybe some not so much. You will have people that are in different places in life, so to be efficient, You want to qualify your list.
These are some of the things you can use to qualify your list and start with the best people first.
5 Ways to Qualify Your List
Are They Business Minded?
Who on that list is business minded? That is someone who is entrepreneurial and maybe they’re doing a couple of side projects or jobs right now alongside their full-time job. They could be someone who has a business already. This could be that person that is always busy hustling, finding ways to make money. Maybe they’ve been in network marketing before and had success. Someone who is NOT business minded may not do well “thinking outside the box” or initiating tasks without having a boss to tell them what to do. A person’s occupation does not necessarily reflect if they are business minded or not, but you may be able to qualify your list in this way and think about what they may do in their spare time or what groups or organizations they may belong to.
Are They Money-Motivated?
There are a lot of people out there that are absolutely happy where they are. They are happy to go to their job and come home and watch football or Dancing with the Stars. They’re absolutely thrilled to do nothing on their weekend but watch movies and hang out. When given the opportunity to better their financial situation, they may say “nah, I’m good.” That’s not the person who is money motivated. Money motivated people, when they hear about an opportunity to make more money, may say yes without even knowing what it is yet because their minds are “open” to opportunities to make money. As I qualify my list, I prefer a “yes” answer to the question if they’re open. If they ask me “what is it?”, then I know they’re really not that money-motivated so probably not the best fit for my team. If you’re looking at your list, think about that person that might
- have fast-tracked to a promotion at their job
- have moved from one company to another in sales in a few years, always increasing their income
- drives a nice car, wears expensive clothes, and/or owns a nice home
These people are probably money-motivated and when you show them the potential, they could be “all in” with your opportunity.
Are they cash liquid?
Almost everyone I’m probably speaking to has an investment in their network marketing business to get started. If someone is “cash liquid”, they may have the money in their pocket, have some money in the bank, or can find room on a credit card. There are some very successful people that at one time or another, found themselves temporarily broke. Don’t count these people out if they’re on your list and you know they may not have cash flow right now because if they’ve got these other qualities, they’ll find a way because they’ve been successful with money in the past. The opposite of broke is “broke-minded”, which is much more difficult to work with. Broke minded is a condition of the mindset and they don’t think about ways to make money. They are typically not money motivated and they’ll want to stay home and watch Dancing with the Stars with the non-business minded contacts. They think about all the ways that something can fail or how things might go wrong. I’ve spoken to prospects that were barely making it and they were worried that the income from a business like this would take away their government assistance. If you have anyone on your list like that, they’re broke minded and not necessarily a good fit.
Will They Give You Some “Face Time”?
In this post, we’re talking about how to qualify your list of your warm market, so this is someone that actually will give you a few minutes of their time because they know you, like you and trust you. That’s someone that you call and say “I’ve started a side project and it may or may not be for you, but will you give me 15 minutes? I’d love to show you what I’m doing.” They say yes, just because they know you. You’ve got a relationship. You’ve got credibility, and you’re friends. You’re well enough acquainted that they’re going to give you a minute. That’s what we mean by giving you “face time” or doing you a favor.
Do They Have Influence?
One of the biggest things that people do when they start to qualify their list is they think about the people that need this business. They don’t think about the people that are already successful, that know a lot of people and that are busy. Those are the people that have influence. The people that are out and about doing things. They’re known in their community. They may be involved in 5 different activities outside their job or their business and they are well connected. That is someone with influence.
Someone with influence will more likely take a look at your business if you approach them in the right way. They see an opportunity and they have a lot of people they can connect you with. Even if they tell you it’s not for them, they’re more likely to refer you to people because they see an opportunity for others. They’re happy for you too because they’re successful. They’re doing something they love and happy for you that you’ve found something that you can be successful with as well. These contacts on your list are a higher caliber of prospect for you.
With a person of influence, sometimes it’s better to meet with them face to face. Ask them if they will they meet you for coffee? I would encourage you to talk to these people first, not last. When new reps qualify their list, they sometimes think “I don’t want to bother that person right now. They’re really busy.” In reality, you want to try to get on their calender as soon as you can and share with them what you’re up to. Don’t try to do lunch or dinner though because that may take up too much of their valuable time. Make it very simple for the very successful people because you want to show them this is easy to share, either for them or who they might connect you with.
When you start contacting the prospects on your list that have at least 4 or 5 of these qualities FIRST, it’s going to help you go further faster in your business, create your first success story, and help you recruit better quality prospects right away!
Did you enjoy this post on how to qualify your list? Did you get some value? Let me know by leaving me a comment below and
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Elizabeth Oliva’s Network Marketing Blog
Call me: 469-224-7898
Email me: elizabeth@elizabetholiva.com
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