Greetings Fellow MLM'ers/Affiliates,
Do you find that you don't have enough good prospects to talk to as you're growing your business? Even if your warm market yields a stream of prospects, you still need an endless supply of names. So, if you've ever felt that growing your business would be more fun by tapping into an unlimited reserve, it's not a dream. You can talk to many people interested in your business and your products!
Some of the most frequently asked questions that I get are:
Do leads work?
How do you find quality leads?
What are the different types of leads?
Should I pay a lot for leads?
Today, we're going to solve the problem of leads, turning your biggest liability into a real business asset.
Today, you're going to learn how you can have an endless stream of people, hearing more about your product, service, or opportunity.
There is no doubt that leads work.
The reason that many people in network marketing are taught to chase their 'warm' market is natural. 1) It sounds easy, 2)It's a way of positioning the top guys instantly, 3) It's a way of opening channels otherwise remaining closed, 4) It's something that worked very well a long time ago. But with the advent of Internet Marketing, times are changing. Think back to the 1940's when people knew their neighbors, including all of the other people in their neighborhood. Nowadays, most people don't even know the person next door or the family living 2 apartments down the street. So, many of us find we're living in a very different society than we did 50 years ago.
Worry no more. The Internet is here to level the playing field, even if you still enjoy offline marketing.
If you're looking to grow a huge 'monster business', you will probably have to venture outside of your friends and family to acquire decent clients and/or business builders. And..., finding targeted leads are a viable way to accomplish this goal.
You should be forewarned -- all leads stink.
I'm not saying that leads don't work...because they do. You see, there's a mythological notion our brains like to conjur, easily thinking that there's some sort of 'magical lead' sitting around the house. We tend to hope and pray today will be the the day that we'll contact such a person, offering our ideal product or service. But..., there's no such lead, happy as that notion may sound. If you know where they are, then clue me in because I'm still looking.
That fact stated, finding targeted leads beats chasing friends and family hands down. You must have an endless supply of leads for a new business..., and lead lists fill the need.
There are 3 different types of leads. Today, I'll cover 2 of them so that you understand the main differences, aiming to preserve your cash flow.
The first type of lead is what's known as a Demographic Lead. A demographic lead is separated based on a very large, general demographic data. For example, if you were marketing a health and wellness product that helped to reduce joint pain, you might target people over age 50, since they typically have high occurrences of joint pain, arthritis, and more.
If you were marketing a product like a benefits savings package, then you might choose to target young married couples between ages 35 - 45, since they are one of the main groups of people now being hammered by this credit crunch.
You can specify that you want demographic leads of people carrying a certain credit score, or you can specify that you want demographic leads of people who earn over a certain dollar figure, in annual income known as per capita income. You can specify that these leads come from a precise geographic location, preferrably residing within the area of 50 miles nearest where you live.
The important thing to understand is that demographic leads are:
1. The most general (and least targeted) type of lead, and
2. It's the cheapest type of lead available.
Demographic leads apply best to products that aren't very niche such as benefits packages, identity theft services, insurance, etc.
The 2nd type of lead is what's known as a Response Lead. A response lead is a lead who responds to something specific. For example, that individual might fill out a questionnaire or request more information about a product or a service. A response lead is much more targeted than a demographic lead because that person must take some sort of an action to become a response lead. You know that this person must hold a specific interest in whatever they are responding to. If you get a low response rate, it's most likely because you tried to match Red '57 Chevy buyers to 2009 Black SUV buyers. You see?
Offering another example --
...of a response lead would cover a marketing situation where the inquiring mind wants free information on a Nordic Track or Bowflex. The fact is that this person may respond to a commercial or call the company requesting more information on what's involved. That inquiry means this person must have a high interest in what the Nordic Track or Bowflex can do, as product benefits and values are listed.
Here's the neat part.
You can get targeted response leads for whatever it is that you are marketing!
If you were marketing a Telecom service, you could get targeted response leads where these folks responded previously to some sort of ad for a discounted phone service. If you were marketing a weight loss product, you can get response leads recently inquiring about a weight loss program.
Pretty neat!
**Special Note**
Opportunity-Seeking Leads are the toughest leads to dial, said with care. The intention here is not to scold you for making a decision you felt was needed but to tell you that these types of leads are usually re-sold over and over again, to a point where... if you contact these folks, you'll find out these people were dialed long before you've called them, telling you then to fly a kite. I've been there so you're not alone if you've sometimes hit a 'screaming prospect'.
Opportunity-seeking leads are Pseudo-Response Leads, meaning that the marketed message used to generate this type of lead results in a huge variety of mixed responses. That means these responses weren't specifically matched to the marketed message. These leads are generated using a gun shot approach -- wide spread pattern, with few holes in the target itself. A poorly-written survey will get you a poor result so the next best thing to do with these leads is to use them as fire-starters on a cold winter's night.
When you are "lead shopping", you want to focus on listing the benefits of your product or service.
If you want to lead with your company's income opportunity, please refer to my next post where I mention something about this challenge. It's not an optimal way to introduce your product or service because people will usually run when they 'hear an offer' right up front. We've all been bombarded with offers. No one likes to be pitched.
If you lead with the benefits of your product, you'll draw people to you on the basis of a set of specifically-matched needs..., matching the product/service values to a checklist of desired items your audience wants most (work from home, generate extra monthly income, work on a part-time basis, ...matching periodontal gum disease with a vitamin pack addressing that problem directly.
So the big question is: WHERE DO YOU GET LEADS?
Well, there are many different places to find leads.
One way you can get them is through lead brokers. If you do a Google search right now for "leads", you'll see a ton of different companies pop up. You can buy leads from many different sources, but here are some guidelines to go by:
1. Be Cheap - never pay more than 20 cents per lead. Usually, try to keep your cost between 5 and 10 cents. Also, you want to start with very small batches. Remember, if you are dealing with a lead broker, their job is to make you broker. Sometimes brokers will have a minimum order or batch of, say, 10,000 leads. If they do, then keep shopping. You want to start with very small batches of leads, no more than a couple-hundred-at-a-time.
2. Avoid Data-Managers - These will be the people on the first few pages of your search results. I personally don't recommend you conduct business with a data-vendor or data-manager, for the simple reason that you may be regarded as a "small fry" in their eyes. They typically sell millions of leads each month, so if you come knockin' at their door asking to buy a few hundred leads..., you may not be viewed as a legitimate business in their eyes.
The real "lead brokers" are located on the back pages of your google searches. They're cheap buggers so they're not going to try to compete with the big data-vendors for the first page of Google rankings. Interview a small brokerage company and build a relationship with a "mom and pop" type of lead firm that will respect small orders, treating you as a person.
3. Don't Go For Your First Offer - Shop around for leads. You'll get many different offers. The goal is to not get the absolute cheapest leads, but rather, find a broker that you can build a business relationship with, finding someone who will back you up and stand behind what they're selling. I'd rather pay a lead broker with integrity twice what I'd pay per lead, over say associating with a lead broker who won't care two figs about my business. Just like anything else, success with your business endeavor depends largely on the quality relationships you develop.
So now you know about 2 different types of leads, plus their inherent differences, where to get them, and what to pay for them. Hopefully, 2008 is shaping up to be a good year for your business. Check out my next post for the 3rd type of lead!
Nurturing Your Success Using Proven Marketing Means,
Barbara
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