We talked about leads in an earlier post. Today I want to address the problem with “Warm Market” strategies.

In order to be successful with them, one has to have a

Circle of Influence

Boy, are those loaded words!! Although we learned in geometry that any three points determine a circle, a circle of influence really requires MANY more persons to be considered a circle. And what does “influence” mean? According to Webster’s Dictionary, it’s the “power to affect others.”

So to have a circle of influence, you would have many friends and family with whom you have the power to affect. That takes a certain personality type: not just a social butterfly, but an influential person who is “more than just an acquaintance” with many people.

Loners like me, a “sweet Southern girl” who does weird things like acting, enjoys playing computer games, or chatting to online friends, or reading a book (not romance, either, but horror, or fantasy, or science fiction! Oooo! Real girls just don’t do that!), just will not have a “Circle of Influence” here among the Old South. Which is what my warm market consisted of.

I grew up in a small town in a somewhat “sheltered” household. Because of that sheltered upbringing, I’ve always found it difficult to make friends of more than a hand full of people at a time. Oh, yes, I’m out-going, and am not afraid to be on stage in any situation. But making real friends is unusual for me. So, if you are one, count yourself lucky!

That means I have no Circle of Influence.

Now, I know it’s not just in the South, but you get my point that only certain personality types will do well with the warm market strategies. So we’re left with buying leads. I don’t care what anybody says, that’s a very slow way to build. You’re calling people who don’t know you, so there’s no way you have “influence” with any of them.

The problem is obvious.

Does this describe you? Does it describe someone you’ve tried to work with? Every time you call and ask how big their “list” is they say some small number. It’s never bigger than 10 or 20. (LOL, you’re lucky if it’s as high as 20!!)

Don’t get mad at the people you’re working with who have this problem.

They’re not scared to call everyone they know. They just know that they have no influence with them, so the call will be pointless. They’ve probably never called these people before in their lives. If they do now, the person they’re calling will know there’s a purpose behind the call.

Don’t put them in that icky situation! Teach them to attract prospects naturally. Teach them how to find the people who are seeking them.

We’ll talk about how to do this soon…

Why did I start doing this blog? Because quite a few of my friends and business associates convinced me that I have something to say, and that the way that I write is engaging. In other words, they made the suggestion, then I found reasons to justify the efforts.

This blog will mostly be about Network Marketing and related topics. Since it belongs to me, it might contain other completely unrelated topics. Your feedback will help me know in which topics you’re most interested. It will also let me know whether or not those friends and business associates lied!

Don’t look for political correctness, in my writings. I don’t believe in it. For example, pronouns will be “he” or “she” depending on my mood (but consistent within the context), and I will point fingers. I can at least guarantee that my posts will be mostly grammatically correct, usually contain proper sentence structure, and usually use proper punctuation. It’s hard to believe that an Alabama redneck could be so snobbish about such things, but I am. Both – an Alabama redneck and a grammar/writing snob.

I’m a work-at-home mom of one, an entrepreneur specializing in coaching others to succeed more easily than myself. If you’re looking for, or struggling with your Plan B, request a no-strings-attached, free <a href=”http://www.danniellewood.com/consultation.html”>consultation</a>.

Ok, that’s my hello. You’ll be hearing from me again…

Danni