Network Marketing: Developing the Strategic Plan

In my last four columns, I discussed choosing the right network marketing company by looking at compensation and structure, evaluating the product line, doing due diligence, and using your upline coach and other support.

Other important factors will enter into your decision, but this group of criteria gives a framework for the decision. Most people join a network marketing company simply because some well-intentioned friend tells them about it. And unless that friend is a valued financial advisor, or a very experienced, successful networker, his or her recommendation may not be the best.

In this article, I use terms such as advisor, mentor, leader, upline sponsor, and coach. Don’t be confused: they all refer to any person who is able and willing to lead you to success.

A personal plan

After you’ve done the due diligence, asked the important questions, and decided on a company, you need a plan. From your upline coach, you should get some type of track to run on specific to that company, but the plan I’ll discuss in this article is more personal and generic.

Developing the strategic plan for success separates those who just work hard from those who work hard and smart and are top achievers. I have to admit a bias here: when I left the corporate world I was director of strategic planning in a large California corporation. You might think that what works in a company with billions of dollars in annual revenues does not apply to network marketing, but actually there are many similarities. A number of concepts and sequences are important regardless of the size or type of business.

Your own resolve will win the day

I can give you the framework of a great strategic plan, but your own resolve is what will win the day. Nothing can trump your commitment to your own goals, and nothing will stand in the way of people who really want something. So before you undertake the work—and it is work—of developing a viable plan, spend a few moments examining your resolve. Make sure your “reason why” is strong enough to sustain you when it gets rough—and it will get rough.

Right now you could be thinking, "Okay, she said it's 'work' and she said it will get ‘rough'—is it worth it?" That’s a very good question. From the perspective of a successful networker, it’s worth more than you can imagine to understand that your financial future is secure. In fact, “secure” is an understatement: our financial future is full of an abundance that we could not have possibly attained even with two very impressive resumes. Our lifestyle truly offers freedom: freedom from debt, freedom from limitations, freedom to be with family. It’s worth every effort it took to achieve. Don't doubt for a moment that it’s worth it.

Before you develop your plan

A few prerequisites:

• 1. Understand the compensation plan of your company. Be able to incorporate into your plan the volume and structural requirements that are key to your success. Go upline in your organization until you find a leader who can make this clear.
• 2. Make sure you have the tools you need. At a minimum, you’ll need business CDs, product information, and a web site. Rely on your sponsor to tell you about the primary tools that the company uses to introduce the business to new people.
• 3. Most important, go upline until you find the person who will conduct your 3-way calls with you. Interview that person. Find out how they like to proceed and when they are in the office. Ask yourself, “Am I comfortable putting my very best prospect on the phone with this person?"
• 4. With the right upline mentor, you're on the fast track.

Now we’re ready to plan

Start with the why. Write the top five reasons you have decided to build this business. Don't write, “To make more money”—write a specific amount and the reason you need that amount. “We want to develop an additional income of $4,000 a month so that Mary can retire from teaching and be home full-time with the kids.”

Set the goal. Now that you have the “why,” you need to translate the “why” into a goal. To learn what is possible within what period of time, rely only on people who have gone before you and have made the amount of money you are looking for. Do not solicit this information from people who haven’t done it: their advice will probably be unrealistic.

Beware of setting goals around the achievement of “titles.” Titles are often less important to income than is the volume your organization is producing. Again, look to a successful leader to guide the way.

Decide on interim goals. It is important to move your business forward by achieving incremental goals to show progress and momentum. Ask your advisor for good interim goals, in terms of income and title, for 90 days, six months, and one year.

In setting your goals, make sure you plan to move forward quickly. There is no strength in moving forward slowly—fast is more fun and a lot more lucrative.

(If you are a coach, make sure you’re not setting unrealistic expectations; they can be damaging. Assess the person's capability by the level of their desire and intent, the time the want to put into it, the quality of the warm market they bring to the table, and any previous network marketing background they have. And don't limit people by your own goals. I fully expect to coach people who will exceed my progress, and I look forward to that.)

Now you’re ready to decide how.

Performance goals and activity goals. Goals set around money and title are performance goals, important milestones that measure progress and allow us to see results. Performance goals are seldom achieved without clear-cut activity goals: what you do day-by-day that achieves the performance. This is where the rubber meets the road, so to speak. You can write your why, write your goals, and have it all clearly laid out, but unless you proceed to action, it's only words on paper. This is where your coach becomes extremely valuable. Most people don't have what it takes to hold their own feet to the fire; some do, and I admire those people greatly. But if you have a weekly check-in and your coach monitors what you are doing and what your progress has been, you have a higher likelihood of success.

Let’s examine what activity goals you should be setting. How many new contacts do you plan to make per week? How many packages of information do you intend to send out? How many emails do you intend to send? All of these activity goals are at the heart of your success. I call these "exposures.”

What does your calendar look like? Is it filled with calls, appointments, and meetings, or is it blank? This is the essence of success. The number of exposures that your business will require to grow will depend somewhat upon the business, but as a rule of thumb in networking, I tell people who are anxious to move forward quickly that a minimum of ten per week is required. And by ten exposures, I mean ten full presentations about your business. That could be ten individual appointments or ten new people attending a formal presentation.

Establish time parameters. Most people start network marketing businesses on a part-time basis, so it’s critical to clearly identify and put on your calendar when you will make your calls. Here’s a little time management trick: don't just get to it sporadically in your day as you have time; set aside at least two-hour increments on your calendar when you can work on initiation calls and follow-up calls without interruption from your office—even if your “office” is your back bedroom with the door closed. You need to work on your business at least 10 hours a week to be successful. That could mean three two-hour increments during the week and one four-hour session on Saturday. The important thing is that it becomes a priority in your life and it gets on your calendar.

In my next article, I’ll take the strategic plan into action: what should you do daily to achieve results? Remember that the road to success has two main components: a good plan, and good implementation. Success rarely comes without a balance of these.

 

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Contact Candy CandyW@TheNationalNetWorker.com or via TNNW Blog.