Lately I have been shopping for a wood stove for my home. I know something about wood stoves, but not enough to make an informed decision. So what I needed first was information. The dealer I approached spent a great deal of time educating me about the different options and sharing stories about wood stoves. He told me what my next step was and gave me his card. He never tried to make a sale. I had an enjoyable and educational experience. I liked him; I trusted him; I’ll probably buy from him. Whether he knew it or not, he was practicing attraction marketing.

Give and Get

Attraction marketing focuses on gaining customers by giving them something they value or need. You know what they need by listening to their problems and asking questions. Then you match your resources with their needs. The stove salesman didn’t tell me about gas stoves, because I said I wanted a wood stove. He gave me information and brochures about wood stoves that might fit my situation. He carefully asked and answered questions.

Attraction marketing is based on the principle that the more you give the more you get. Every business has something of value to offer its customers. Hardware stores tell customers how to fix things. Online gardening sites offer ideas on garden planning. MLM opportunities provide tips on making money online. Whether you give articles, resources, tips, samples, or how-to videos, your goal is to help customers and prospects reach their goals.

Push and Pull

Think about attraction marketing in terms of push and pull. Until recently, marketing involved pushing people to make a purchase. Ads said, “Buy my product. It’s the best.” If you think about it, the act of pushing creates more distance between people. Attraction marketing, on the other hand, is about pulling. By listening to and responding to people’s needs, you draw them in, like a magnet. Pulling brings people together, creating relationships. At its most basic, attraction marketing is about building relationships.

E-commerce

Attraction marketing is well suited to e-commerce. Most people visit the Internet to find the information they need to solve a particular problem. Their primary objective is to get information, not to make a purchase. After you establish trust by providing valuable solutions you are in a position to market your business. Customers like to buy from people who help them.

MLM Opportunities

If you are marketing an MLM opportunity, your first task is to find out what prospects need. Make sure your communications and advertising address these needs, whether they want financial freedom, aim to work from home, or need a flexible work schedule, Ask prospects what they want to achieve, and then tell them how your MLM opportunity can help them reach their goals.

Mutual Benefit

Focus on what people want. Give them useful information related to their needs. Don’t focus on sales. Instead make every moment of contact helpful and enjoyable. With attraction marketing you help yourself by helping others. Your business will grow when you build mutually beneficial relationships between yourself and your customers.

No technology has changed the world of business quite like the Internet. Even though this amazing expertise and knowledge has only been in people’s homes for less than 15 years, it has changed the way people buy cars, homes, Christmas presents, and just about everything else. Companies these days spend millions on online marketing as more and more people put away magazines, newspapers, and even television in favor of the Internet.

The Internet is a terrific technology asset and marketing tool. Nearly everyone either has a computer or at least has access to a computer on a daily basis. The audience you will be able to reach through the Internet is incredibly magnified when compared to using only traditional marketing tools. Here are a few basic starter tips for anyone looking to start or expand a business using online marketing tools.

Speed With Honesty

A recent study shows that a webpage or banner ad has less than four seconds to grab the attention of a would-be customer. You want to make sure that what the banner ad reflects is your most important selling point.  Since the attention span of Internet skimmers can be so short, the words and/or graphics you display must convey to the person how important your site, product, or service could be to them.  This means that honesty really needs to be your best policy, because if you get the potential customer directed to your site, what they find there should be legitimate and accurate in order to keep them there and returning (not to mention that Google will like you better).

Easy-To-Remember URL

It is possible to use online marketing and not have a website to direct people to, but it isn’t a good idea. Every company in the world in this day and age of highly efficient technology should have some kind of permanent web presence. The trick is finding an easy-to-remember URL after all this time. Many of the good .com addresses are taken, but the my recommendation is to stay away from the .net, .tv, org., etc. People are used to the .com addresses and will be more responsive to them.  Also, the easier your URL is to remember, spell, etc., the better off your marketing campaign will be.

Security

If you have your own products to sell online, security is a technology feature that is in especially high demand today because, unfortunately, there is always going to be some unscrupulous persons looking for a way to get something for nothing.  You don’t want your site to become one of their targets.  Advertising security, and backing up that claim, needs to be a priority for any online marketing effort.  You want your customers to feel secure. Even though most credit cards now offer complete fraud protection, it is in your best interest to trumpet just how safe your site is.  Two of the most popular security enhancements that provide reputable logos to help your clients feel safe are VeriSign and HackerSafe.  Most services that offer shopping carts for your customers also provide security options.

Follow up

If you are lucky enough to turn an interested Internet web surfer into a buyer, you need to ensure you provide excellent service and that the customer’s experience is of the highest quality you can manage. Word-of-mouth is still the best advertising you can get, and you won’t get much in the way of word-of-mouth advertising unless you have customers using your business over and over again. It is important to follow up with emails, newsletters, phone calls, etc.  Find a good autoresponder, like Aweber or I-contact, and set it up to keep in contact with your customers weekly.

There is nothing in the world worse than finding yourself in a rut. It could be a rut formed by a routine that has become a little “too” routine or it could be caused by a lack of upward mobility at your workplace. If you have been considering starting your own online business and feel you don’t have the resources to accomplish that goal, think again.  It really doesn’t take a lot of capital to get started; it does take a lot of hard work and wherewithal to meet success head on.  It can also be one of the most rewarding experiences of your life.  Utilizing the Internet to help you obtain your goals, along with traditional forms of marketing, is a winning combination.

Choosing The Right Mission

In order to succeed at any business, online or otherwise, the product or service you provide should “matter” to you – you should care about it.  It is much easier to sell something you personally believe in.

Motivation

Once you get started with your new online business, you will discover it can take a lot of motivation to keep going on your own.  It is important to build a social network of like-minded business entrepreneurs.  Together, you can help keep each other motivated to reach success.  You also need a good “sounding board,” and other entrepreneurs who are going through the same things as you are a good source.  It is also helpful to have objective listeners who can give you feedback on your ideas and decisions from a different perspective.

Communication

Your communication skills will be crucial as you proceed in your new business.  The Internet brings a completely new realm of email, social networking, chatting, being a part of discussions in a forum, and so much more.  You will need to find ways to communicate that cover broad topics and range across a wide variety of interpretations from different people.  Each person has their own frame of reference for any set circumstance.  To communicate effectively, you must be able to break down and cross any barriers that might be presented online, as well as in person.

Focus

It’s easy when you’re first starting out to become overwhelmed with numerous details.  Plodding through all the necessary decisions you will need to make about your product, your web design, your web host, the content on your page, which security provider to choose, etc., don’t lose sight of your main focus – your ultimate goal.  Sometimes the important points can get lost in all the details.  Ensure you stay focused on your original passion and keep your vision clear to see your mission through to a successful conclusion.

Self-Esteem

Believe in yourself; believe in your product or service, and you will be a long way down the path to success.  Don’t allow feelings of low self-esteem to interfere with your drive for victory.  Self-esteem can be one of your most important aspects.  The way you see yourself reflects how you present yourself to the world, business or social, online or offline.

Set realistic goals for your business and yourself; that way, you have less chance of experiencing disappointment and you will have the spirit to keep moving forward.  When you reach one goal, set another and move toward it.  In this manner, you are almost assured of success for your dream.

With the new Presidential administration only 6 months in, there is already talk of what will happen when “the honeymoon ends.”  The fact is, in today’s information world, with instant access to world events, in real time, things that used to take a year, now happen in a month.  So, it got me thinking – if a new “superstar” like our new president can only be “the next great thing” for 8 or 9 months, what does that say about you and me.  More specifically, what does it say about how people see us in our business of networking and how we see ourselves.

It seems to me that if you’ve been in the networking industry for at least a year or two, and still remain, you’ve probably already realized that what got you into the business originally, probably is not what is keeping you there now.  Somewhere along the way, what you thought the business was going to be is not what it turned out to be – the honeymoon is over.  But fear not…this is the way it’s supposed to be.

You see, when you first started, what probably kept you going was inspiration and motivation from others – most likely, from people who came before you who were having great success in your company.  You fed off of their passion and their belief.  In essence, you borrowed it.  And, during the first phase of your business, this worked pretty well.  You were excited and passionate, and those you approached, at least some of them, fed off of your passion, and decided to join you – great!

But, then, something happened – the excitement started to wear off – after 2 years of the same weekly meetings, the same quarterly events, the same weekly training calls, etc. , your passion begin to fade.  Those successful people, who you now got to know personally, didn’t have the same effect on you any longer.  All of sudden, your passion and belief started to wane, and so did your business.  So now what?  Is it over?  Do you quit?

My answer to you is this – absolutely not!  You are going through a natural process – a necessary one.  Is it over? – no, it’s just beginning.  So where do you go from here? – you get educated.  Like the great Jim Rohn says, “Life change does not start with inspiration, it starts with education.” You can no longer sustain your business on motivation alone.  Rohn says, “If someone is an idiot, and you motivate him, now you have a motivated idiot.”

So, your job is start Phase 2 of your career – take the classes, read the books, listen to the CD’s, go to the seminars, read the blogs, buy the products, watch the videos – become a serious student of the industry.  Immerse yourself in as much information as you can find – the information is out there.  If you need help, find a mentor – someone ahead of you in the process who is willing to help you.  Stay focused and disciplined to learn your trade, because getting educated is preparing you for the next phase – the phase that takes you from amateur to professional.  To become a professional in network marketing, you must shift your focus away from your company and their products – you must focus on branding yourself and then helping others do the same.

Phase 3 of your career is sharing your knowledge and all that you have learned with others.  You can do this through personal training, social networking, blogging, etc.  What you will learn in this process is what others before you have known for some time – “teaching sells.”  You see, the old model of networking involved “pitching” and chasing prospects.  The true professional now uses what is called “attraction marketing”, which is to give value and thereby “attract” others to you.  What is so nice about this approach is that it changes the whole dynamic of your business – you become the “hunted” instead of the “hunter.”  You are the expert, and people are now coming to you for help.  This is a massive paradigm shift away from the way you were taught originally.  After you make this shift, however, you will never go back.

So, those of you out there who have experienced or are currently experiencing the “end of the honeymoon” in your network marketing career – congratulations!  You are moving to the next phase in your career and are well on your way to success.  Get your education, find a mentor, and start giving value to others.   Is it possible to make 100 times what you’re making now?– absolutely! – become 100 times more valuable to others.

If you’d like to find out more about making your transition a smooth one into the real of attraction marketing, your are always welcome to contact me, and I’ll be happy to get you started in the right direction.

Keep your head up, smile, and stay strong.