Wake Up Now...(?)

I love this NPR radio program called THIS AMERICAN LIFE, with Ira Glass...

The show recently aired an interesting segment about network marketing (kinda), featuring a company(?) called Wake Up Now...

m.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/543/wake-up-now

One of the things that struck me, is the fact that the biggest problem with many networking companies may be... LACK OF CLARITY in the presentation!

Presentation of what? ...whatever.

It could be a product... it could be a service... it could be the real business opportunity. Whatever you have to offer... lack of clarity in your presentation will destroy you!

In the interest of clarity, let me say that I don't endorse Wake Up Now... and I don't speak against it. But look, whether you build Wake Up Now, or Amway, or whatever...

you better be CLEAR, you better be STRAIGHT-FORWARD... you better come correct with people.

Direct Sales 101...

I picked up two guys today, while I was driving with Uber.

We talked about our various enterprises... I sell Amway products, they sell telecom services. Since I also happened to have a book about direct sales... well, they asked for any advice i'd like to give.

I asked them what they liked about the services they offer. They said, "we don't like anything about the services we offer." (What?! ...Why are you selling that service then?!)

So, I asked them how they expected to be any good at selling something they didn't like. They said, "we could just lie to people about liking it, right?"............

So, here it goes... direct sales 101...

DON'T SELL WHAT YOU DON'T LIKE! ...ONLY SELL WHAT YOU DO LIKE! ...and

DON'T LIE TO FOLKS TO GET SALES...

Class Dismissed.

Sales Recommendation...

I just thought that I would mention...

our personal biggest sellers are the MEN'S HEALTH pack, and the WOMEN'S HEALTH pack. They are once-a-day supplement packs... they're easy to take... they're inexpensive...all of our customers buy them!

It's important, as far as sales are concerned, to find a specific product to market... something you personally like... and something that appeals to an audience.

You don't wanna try to sell everything... Amway has about 450 products! AND, they distribute a couple hundred thousand products thru their PARTNER STORES...

so find something specific.

If you're still researching Amway, check out the health packs here...


http://www.amway.com/shop/product/product.aspx/?itemno=105481&pwsID=saibusinessgroup

http://www.amway.com/shop/product/product.aspx/?itemno=105480&pwsID=saibusinessgroup

Remember, when it comes to sales... be specific!

We All Work for Money...

I drive with Uber part-time...

Most drivers have other gigs as well. But, whether you Uber, or Amway, or something else... what you do, you basically do for money..

A few months ago, I went to an amazing seminar about money...

The MASTER YOUR MONEY seminar, hosted by Dale Gibbons. With the seminar fee, I also got a book and the income-tracking software free. Here's a link to some free material from the book titled MASTER YOUR MONEY IN 7 DAYS...

http://www.masteryourmoney7.com

The key point of the book and the seminar... you gotta master what you already earn, BEFORE you can effectively earn more!

The free software alone is worth the cost of the seminar... or the book!

Check it out... and learn some simple ways to change your life!

Curiosity Approach...

In Amway speak, the curiosity approach is when an Amway business owner approaches another person about the opportunity, without mentioning the name Amway up front. It's a very common approach... and it may be one of the reasons  why Amway is perceived by some as a little bit sneaky or slick.

My mentor has always said, if I can have a confident approach... and I'm prepared to deal with the questions... then, by all means, tell folks that it's Amway!

But, my mentor also mentions some appropriate reasons maybe not to mention Amway up front...

First of all, let's face it... Amway has a bad reputation with many people. And, there are various reasons for this. But, sometimes, rather than focusing on the name, it may be better to first talk about the advantages or potentials of the company... that way, a person can see the good in the business, without the distraction of dealing with the 'bad' straight away. Then, after they see how Amway can benefit them, the interested one can have his concerns dealt with.

Another thing, some people really don't care about the name. They may not care what other people say about it... they wanna hear what's in this opportunity for them...

So, for them, Amway Schmamway!

What those folks want are the facts about what is available, what they can expect to accomplish, or how the product has value... and who cares what the name is!

One other important thing that many people miss... when you operate an Amway business, you're actually self-employed. You work for yourself, not really Amway... it's your thing!

So, if you are truly a business owner, in your own mind, why would you have to mention Amway up front... and why would your prospect need to hear Amway anyway. You might wanna start with the name of YOUR company (my Amway business is called SAI Business Group). And, your prospect is probably more interested in THEIR new business opportunity, not a particular brand name...

I believe the overall message is this... there is no right or wrong, per se, with either approach. Your honesty and candor is the thing! At any rate, the curiosity approach... and for that matter, the direct approach ("this is Amway")... will work very well, if you are knowledgeable and confident about what you are offering.

My First Recruit...

I remember the very first guy that I recruited as an Amway partner...

His name is jorge (he's from Cuba, but he pronounces his name 'george'). I was pretty new to the whole 'recruiting' thing...

One day, I was coming home from work... I saw 'george' at the mailbox, sorting threw the junk mail, before going inside his home. I thought, at that moment, 'well, no time like the present!' So...

I walked over, shook his hand, and said, "hey jorge! I got something I wanna talk to you about!" He asked what it was. And I said, "I wanna talk to you about a business idea!"

"George's" reaction was, "what business you got? show me right now, mike!"

We went inside my apartment. I showed jorge 'the plan' on my new white, dry erase board... he took the marker from my hand, and re-showed me the same plan, just to make sure he had it right!

I confirmed jorge's understanding of things... and he joined me straight away! As I recall, the very same day, jorge gave me the money for 'the kit'...

And, that was it... my first recruit!

I've had a few more recruits since then... but 'george' was the one that kickstarted my belief. He was the one that made me think... 'you know, I think this Amway thing is gonna work out alright.'

Amway Quiz Answers...

Hey folks!

(Find The Quiz Questions Here...)

Here are the answers to the quiz questions (hope you didn't cheat!)...

1. 1959

2. False... it was $12 Billion!

3. 100

4. True

5. False... it's Avon.

6. Michigan... in Ada (outside Grand Rapids)

7. $40 Billion!... wow!

8. Liquid Organic Concentrate (later, Cleaner)

9. Orlando Magic

10. Amway... of course (their Nutrilite brand is about 3 times the size of Vitamin Shoppe!)

11. Clinique & Estee Lauder (along with Lancome and Shiseido)

12. low carb, zero sugar (and about 15 flavors!)

13. No... In Amway, you only get paid when you sell products, and when you help
       your team to sell products. You never get paid just to recruit someone.

14. Recruiting... Amway does not require you to recruit anyone to earn income.
       You can still earn money when you use and sell products.

Ok! Hope you had fun with it!!

Information Resources...

Hey folks!

In this post, I want to provide some additional resources. These will help you to continue your Amway research... and they will help you to learn the "success mindset"...

First of all, if you think you may be ready to get started, check out this post about your starter kit. It will show the cost of signing up. And, it gives an idea of how to use your starter kit to get your first customers...

Your Starter Kit & Your First Customers

To continue your research, check out the book... THE BUSINESS OF THE 21ST CENTURY, by Robert T. Kiyosaki. This is a great book for explaining the true value of a network marketing business like Amway. It focuses on network marketing in general, not any specific company. And, the author is not involved with network marketing. So, in this book, you will have a fair, neutral look into the industry...

I also recommend a book entitled... MASTER YOUR MONEY IN 7 DAYS, by Dale Gibbons. The book is not about Amway, or even network marketing. But, it is about a simple system for getting control of the money you already make. And, you have  to do that, if you want to master making more money with Amway.

Two other great books about success in general are... MENTOR: THE KID & THE CEO, by Tom Pace, and... 8 ATTRIBUTES OF GREAT ACHIEVERS (volume one), by Cameron C. Taylor.

Two really good CDs about network marketing are... RICH PLAN, POOR PLAN and THE PERFECT BUSINESS?, (←CLICK TO REQUEST A COPY) both by Robert T. Kiyosaki...

Finally, a couple of websites you can access are...

www.amway.com (the official company site)

showandtell.amway.com (crazy good site about the opportunity!)

And finally, check out this resource from the Federal Trade Commission...
FTC: Avoid Business Opportunity Scams

Remember, always ask questions... and insist on straightforward answers (even from the Amway guy).

Ok, there you go!

Welcome!

Hey folks!

I want to welcome you to the blog site for my book...
AMWAY: WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL!

(Check Out This Intro Video...)

I will be posting helpful information (I hope it's helpful!) for business owners, customers, and the newly interested. I also want to share some of my stories...

I remember what drew me to Amway... in a word, friendship!

A former co-worker and I had a really good relationship. He was a church-going Christian. I am a Christian of another variety... one of Jehovah's Witnesses. Needless to say, we had some discussions! But we also developed a real bond...

So, when he approached me about business, I said, "sure, I'll check it out!

I remember when we were driving to Dale's home (my co-worker), I actually said to my wife, "Alright. We'll go check this out. But, if it's anything like Amway, we're not getting in!" Well, it wasn't something like Amway... it WAS Amway!!

I always thought that Amway was a pyramid scheme. And I had no willingness to recruit other people into business. But, I did want to support Dale! So, I decided that we could join the business... we would buy the products at a discount (the products are great quality); we would sell a few products here and there; and as for recruiting a business team... well, we'll see.

So, we got started! We took a look at this thing... and got started... because of friendship. Eventually, Dale quit the business. But, by then, my wife and I had found our own reasons to have an Amway business: Amway is an efficient way to move into business ownership. Amway has an effective pattern for long-term business development... and it's alot of fun!

So, that's why we're here today!

There may be many reasons to start an Amway business... even friendship. And, there are also many reasons to build an Amway business. Sometimes, they are the same reasons... and sometimes they turn out to be quite different.