Are you thinking about getting into network marketing? Whether you’ve been thinking about it for a while or were inspired recently by a conversation with a friend in the industry, you have questions and concerns about the venture. Sure, you like the idea of making money and being your own boss, but you don’t want to alienate the people you know or come off sounding too salesy. 

The good news is you can build a network marketing business you love without alienating your friends and loved ones. You can build a business based on love and the desire to help and serve everyone in your network and beyond. Network marketing is more than a way to earn money; it’s an opportunity to create a business you love while having the freedom to work for yourself. And, the best part? You can have more time to pursue your goals and interests, whether you wish to spend more time with loved ones or have more time for hobbies.

The benefits of network marketing

People become network marketers for many reasons. They want the freedom to work for themselves and set their own hours instead of spending more than eight hours a day in an office in a career they don’t enjoy or for a boss they don’t like. Or, they want to earn more money so they can have more expendable income or save for a rainy day. For some, they just love the products and services so much they feel they may as well get paid to sell them since they’re always talking about it anyway.

Whatever your reason, network marketing can help you reach your goals, whether you want to become a business owner, make more money, or tell the world about the products and services you love. 

Success takes time

Keep in mind that success doesn’t happen overnight. Sure, there are those network marketers who seem to succeed right away, amassing new people to their networks and building steady sales each month. They are a rarity. In reality, it takes time to build your business and a commitment to working on it nearly every day. However, in the end, the hard work will begin to pay off for each person you reach and help. Although there’s no magic formula for success, by putting in the work, making time for your business, and committing to your business and personal growth, you can begin to build the foundation for your network marketing business. Be patient and continue to grow yourself as much as you grow your business. 

Grow your network marketing business by nurturing your relationships

At the center of your network marketing business is the network itself. Initially, your network will consist of everyone you know, including family, friends, acquaintances, and neighbors. Over time, you’ll add other people you connect with from parents at your children’s school to people from church and the civic organizations you’re involved with. Regardless of how you know them, the advice is the same – focus on nurturing your relationships with them. 

Get to know them better by connecting with them consistently. And, when you connect, focus on listening. When they communicate with you listen for a need that you can fill. They ask you directly if your business can help; however, more often than not, they may mention something in passing. If your business can help, that’s great! However, if you know someone in your network who can help them, connect with them. 

Making connections

For example, let’s say someone in your network mentions they want to run a 10k this year. If your business is health and fitness-related, this is an opportunity for you to mention a product or service that can help them reach their running goals. Perhaps there’s a workout you love that helped you train for 5k or 10k. Or maybe there’s a nutritional supplement in your product line that has helped you feel more healthy and renewed your energy to train for your own health goals. If your business isn’t related to health and fitness, you can still help. 

Do you know someone in that industry who can help them? Offer to introduce them. Connecting people together is another service you provide, one that benefits you nearly as much as the people being introduced. The best part? You can show your network how to introduce people so that when you ask for an introduction to someone they know who can benefit from your network marketing business, they know what to do. 

Developing consistency

Consistency is key to building relationships and growing your network marketing business. Why? It builds trust. Even if you’ve known someone for years, it doesn’t mean that trust is automatic. Trust is something that builds over time as you get to know one another and as you do things that are trustworthy. One of those things is to do what you say you’re going to when you say you’re going to do it. This includes following up with them. If they asked about a product or service, follow up and tell them about yours. When they mention a problem that your business can help with, share how it can help. Or just check in with them occasionally to see how they’re doing.

Each time you reach out and connect with your network you’re building trust with them. Every time you follow up when you say you will, you’re encouraging them to trust you more. This nurtures your relationships with them and improves the chances that they’ll become strong advocates for your business. It also encourages them to introduce you to other great people like them who can benefit from your business. 

Improving yourself

When you work for yourself, you are the most important person in your business, especially if you’re in network marketing. Without you, there is no business. It’s important to focus on ways to build and improve your business skills so that you can offer the best version of yourself to your network and prospects. This includes committing to personal growth and development.

Boost your skills

Whether you’re new to business and sales or you’ve been doing in a long time in another capacity, you’ll always need to sharpen your skills and develop new ones. Consumers are always changing so the way you approach your customers now may be different from the past. Taking online training courses, like the ones offered by Teamzy, help to ensure your skills are always up to date. 

Surround yourself with positivity

Positive thinking helps keep your motivation high. Fill your mind with positivity, from books to podcasts to activities. And, don’t forget to surround yourself with positive people. Their attitude will help you stay positive too. 

Find a coach and/or mentor

Sometimes it helps to get the perspective of someone else. A coach can offer unbiased advice to help you with any challenges you may face. They’ll help you set goals and hold your feet to the fire when you need that extra bit of accountability. A mentor will share their experiences and life lessons with you so you can emulate their successes and avoid the challenges they faced. Your coach or mentor doesn’t have to have been in network marketing, although it’ll surely help if they have experience with it in some capacity. 

Lean into a system

A reliable system will help you manage your business more efficiently. For years, network marketers used index cards, color-coded notebooks, spreadsheets, and more to keep their business organized. However, for many, all that did was create more work for them. How can you serve others if you can’t remember where you put the notebook with their contact information?

Network marketing made easier and more fun!

That’s why we created Teamzy. We knew that there had to be a better, more effective way to keep a network organized while keeping track of all the other business-building tasks as well. Teamzy is more than a CRM, it’s a system to help you maintain a growing and updated network, set and track goals, set and track your business activities, and sharpen your skills. 

Simply upload your network and sort them into categories. Teamzy will let you know who to contact each day – all you have to do is sign in to your Dashboard. You don’t have to worry about anyone falling through the cracks. Teamzy uses an algorithm to make sure you’re consistently reaching out to everyone in your network in due time. Keep track of your activities and always know how close you are to reaching your goals. And, when you want to improve your skills, we have lots of video trainings to choose from. What are you waiting for? Visit Teamzy to learn more.