A couple of weeks ago, a super successful real estate broker, who’s also an Acupuncturist, called me to complain about an opportunity meeting he’d been to.
He had recently signed up with an NM company that markets little patches that simulate acupuncture, but without the needles. (Warning: I’m the business trainer for the company.)
Anyway, he reported that he’d gone to one of the meetings. There he saw lots of people with aches and pains, in wheelchairs, etc. who had come to get a pain fix with the product. They were doing a pain fix demo that night.
Fine, he said, that was great. But after that, they asked for folks who wanted to “make an explosion” and market the product. And no one raised their hand.
“What kind of stupid meeting is that?!” he asked me. “Nobody there who can help us recruit and build!”
I had to tell him the bad news. If people are invited to a “healing” meeting, who will come? Won’t they be the sick and ailing?
Why would he find any ‘warriors’ there (his word for recruiters)?
If you want sales hot shots, ASK for them to come to a meeting. Don’t ask for the sick and ailing.
What could be more simple than that?
Ask and you shall receive.
Oi vey.
Hi Kim,
That should have been a 'given.'
Same thing would happen if you did a meeting that is set up strictly as a 'product demonstration.' People would come to buy not to sell.
If you want 'warriors' you need to get them to an 'Opportunity Meeting' and show them the money.
Warriors are of a completely different mindset.
I found his reaction interesting. As you said it was a product meeting. A product meeting is not a recruiting meeting.
Instead of saying I can build some volume and earn a check he focused on that there was no one there who was jumping out of their wheelchairs to go make him some money.
If everyone in a downline would go and find 5 regular customers that could quickly become a 500% increase in income or more if promotions and bonuses get triggered.
At the end of the day MLM is a sales business and if you want to get paid product needs to to be sold.
It is a "bait and switch" marketing approach. An additional problem accompanies it: it is a wide spread practice!
Most meetings fail to make an "C" because the Purpose, Objectives and Process of the meeting are not known, not clear,or simply does not exist.
A proper meeting facilitator never fails to inform attendees of the:
1. Purpose of the meeting
2. Objectives of the meeting
3. The Meeting process
4. Meeting Ground rules
5. Roles of each group: the facilitator and recorder: meeting participants, and leader of the organization.
"Patch Demonstrations" and Recruiting new members" should be totally separate. The content and process, purpose, objectives etc., are simply not the same or vaguely elated to "Patching".
You definitely have to be careful what you focus on.
This shows that even a "a super successful real estate broker", when starting in a different line of work, also has a learning curve.
I guess…Confucious may reiterate…why invite a cricket to expect a butterfly!