I put the question out there, ‘what’s the biggest challenge in your business,’ and someone commented that it is finding people that possess leadership qualities.

That got me to thinking to when I started out in the business. Was I already a leader?

Surely if leaders are born then that must be the case. Hmmm well I had lots of jobs and always did quite well in them.

I was promoted to roles such as ‘Supervisor,’ so I suppose that makes for some leadership qualities but and this is a big BUT, there were quite a few supervisor types I’ve met along the way who just followed the company system but would never dream of starting up their own company.

They weren’t showing much in the way of leadership skills. To be a good Supervisor you need to be able to get on with people and to be able to take a little heat when things go wrong.

So is that leadership then? I’m not sure. It sounds more like being a good employee to me. What do you think?

In Network Marketing we talk a lot about leaders. ‘Looking for leaders,’ is the way we often approach our prospecting.

The thing is this. To be successful in Network Marketing you need to follow the ‘system.’ This means that even if you have amazing leadership skills you need to use them to inspire your people to follow a system that is already in place.

Let’s say you find a leader. He or she has huge influence and effortlessly enrols people into the organisation. If they are a typical leader the chances are that they will start to question everything immediately! With leadership often comes big ego.

Now you have a leader but also a headache. Lots of leaders don’t want to follow other people’s systems. They want to make their own.

Now if they are highly intelligent and have the skills to do so then they will learn the business and create their own system (which to be successful will anyway need to closely resemble the systems already working in the business!)

If they don’t take time to learn the business and try to create their own system then they will probably fail and say ‘this doesn’t work.’

So it seems to me that unless we’re talking about someone who already has a record of success in the business, we’re probably better to focus on prospecting people who have good people skills and have a desire to be independent but are willing to learn the system.

So don’t despair if you don’t know loads of ‘leaders,’ yet. As you become one you will attract more of them. It’s just the way it is. In the meantime focus on people who are ready to make a change and have some good energy and enthusiasm about them. In this business you also need to be a good follower and when you start you have no one to lead but yourself anyway!

Next time we’ll talk about why following a system is a must and why being a creative entrepreneur is not enough to be successful in Network Marketing no matter what you might be reading on the internet!

Check in with your comments below and let me know what you think.

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If you haven’t caught the last couple of blogs about the ‘recession mindset’ for prosperity in MLM, and last week’s tips for attracting professionals to you online then you may want to flick back and read up so you can get the most out of today’s post.

So on to systems and tools that you can use for this very purpose. As the approach to positioning your MLM in this new economy probably needs tweaking to be more effective, so do the tools and materials that you use for introducing them to your business.

The key to online network marketing is to know your MLM niche. Now I’m not going to recommend you go and study niches for months on end and start writing letters to your ideal prospects… but you do need to have a serious think about who you want to attract!

If you try to attract everybody with your MLM online funnel you will often end up attracting nobody!

It depends how you want to play it but let’s imagine that you want to attract some of these high quality candidates from the corporate world who are now coming online in droves to figure out how the heck they can get some security into their life, now their job isn’t looking so stable.

Here are some questions you can ask yourself for starters:

What would they be looking for i.e.; what might they type into google or yahoo?

Where might they hang out online?

Which professional groups or forums may they be a member of?

What sort of interests might they have?

What sort of candidate will be a really good fit for your team?

What sort of candidate will resonate with your MLM product or service?

How can you attract their attention using the materials you have for your MLM?

Next Steps:

Do you see how you can start to connect with the people you want to connect with by putting in a bit of thought here?

The easiest niche to attract is one that you have something in common with so if you were in the corporate world many moons ago, or indeed still are, then you can imagine how these people feel.

Take a little time to explore that and when you develop online content such as a Squidoo Lens, Hub Page, Blog Post, Article or Video make sure you are talking to this ideal prospect of yours. If you know someone in real life who matches your criteria then pretend to be talking to them. (No – Actually go talk to them – what am I thinking?!)

Anyway you get the idea I guess.

As far as MLM systems and tools go it depends how you are placed with your MLM team. Some teams have great ‘third party tools’ (tools that deliver your MLM message instead of you!) but many don’t have anything that you would be proud to show to this type of prospect.

If you don’t have quality online videos and tools, you’ll probably need to develop some tools that talk to people in the voice of this economy. Get together with your team leaders and come up with a plan to create a system that will keep your team focussed on your MLM but give them the tools to be effective online with social sites like Facebook and Twitter.

As I mentioned in my 7 Pieces e-book if you don’t provide the tools for your team to get online they will find themselves in someone else’s list looking for solutions.

That’s okay if you know what’s going on and are using the system too, but in most cases you’ll have no idea where your team members are online unless you are leading them!

It doesn’t have to be that difficult. There is great training available online these days where you can learn exactly how to create fabulous and professional content geared towards whatever your want to promote.

Check out my free e-book, Attraction Marketing for MLM for more details of recommended training and resources, and/or if you want to set up your customized attraction marketing system for your MLM immediately without too much ‘geek speak’ then go here: MLM Online System

If you’ve been reading my blog for some time then you’ll know that I’m a fanatic about recommending you have an MLM funnel or MLM System where you can build your own list of prospects BUT stay focussed on your MLM so please bear that in mind when you make your plan as it will save you A LOT of time.

Affiliate marketing is great and you can make some really good money but unless your system leads into your MLM you won’t be getting anywhere fast with your MLM business!

Have a great day and if you found this post of value please share the love on the buttons below. I welcome your comments and remember that when you make a comment you get a lovely free ‘back link’ to your blog or website, which is like a vote for your site with google. All I ask is that you please make relevant comments that contribute to the blog.

Thank you and have a lovely weekend.

I just want to give you a few tips today for how to do it without pulling out your hair, grinding your teeth right down into your gums or snapping at any family members that may pass by your ‘work from home’ desk!

It doesn’t have to be so painful when you have a clear blueprint to follow so here’s some tips to start you off with a bang this month:

What to do and what not to do i.e.; what has or hasn’t worked well for me!

1) Don’t follow everybody who’s teaching online MLM all at the same time and try to learn from them all at once! You may end up very confused and not know which way to go because there are conflicting opinions about which systems to use.

2) Don’t try to apply Internet Marketing Strategies to your Internet Network Marketing and expect it to perform the same. It is very different and if you try to teach very complicated online stuff to your MLM team you may find them falling very quickly by the wayside. Another thing to beware of is that the guys teaching Internet Marketing often have no understanding of Network Marketing.

Tip: Find a good training platform that you can plug them into to learn social media and attraction marketing that is focused on using the Internet for Network Marketing.
You can tap into my favourite one here: Attraction Marketing System

3) Do find 1 or 2 online Network Marketers to learn from who are teaching AND practicing online MLM. Invest in your own education and apply what you learn. There is no other way to get good at this stuff!

4) Don’t expect to learn online MLM from traditional MLM gurus!

5) Do set up your own blog. I recommend self hosted WordPress as it’s easy to manage, free but for hosting and you OWN it. This means you have control over it and no one else can mess with your business!

6) Do create your own ‘online real estate.’ A blog is the cornerstone for this. You can also attract visitors to your blog with social media and article writing. This is known as your ‘web of content.’

7) Do set up a free report or e-book so you can attract people into your marketing funnel and build your own list. Do this YESTERDAY! It’s not a day too early!

8)Do create your own Attraction Marketing Blueprint or business plan and stick with it consistently. If you chop and change and don’t follow through you’ll get nowhere fast. This is usually a form of procrastination so be alert for it and don’t let yourself off the hook!

9) Do create your own capture pages. Ideally you’ll have an incredible value packed offer to entice your prospects into your list. This is all about branding you and getting the ‘attraction factor.’ People buy from and join those whom they know and trust.

10) Don’t forget about your MLM! That’s why you are setting up online. Build your funnel so that your MLM is integrated into it and you don’t get distracted with the affiliate programs.

There is so much more… I could go on! It’s enough for today though. I hope that helps to keep you on the straight and narrow! If you’d like to cut to the chase and get your own branded MLM Online System set up with a couple of clicks of the mouse go here for more details:
MLM Online System

p.s Any questions and I’ll be happy to help. You can find my contact details by signing up for more info here: MLM Online System

As more and more network marketers join us online the options they have for setting up their MLM business online are multiplying at the speed of light!

Today I’ll cover some of the advantages and drawbacks to the two main types of systems available so that those just setting up online can make an informed decision about how to go forward:

The Turnkey MLM system (Cookie-Cutter)

This is the most tempting on first look because it usually promises to do everything for you (soon it will be cooking your dinner!) I’ve bought into many a ‘system’ like this because it just seems so simple, and because I was lacking the skills I needed to set up my own customised system.

Benefits of the turnkey system:

Set up immediately for you so minimal effort from you (although of course you still need to market it!)

You can get into action quickly and not spend time setting up your website

Easy to get others in your downline set up also

May look very professional and impressive

Drawbacks:

It is owned by someone else who you may not even know so you have no control over it and no idea what the owner’s agenda is.

You could wake up tomorrow and find that the system is closing down, as has happened to me in the past.

Turnkey systems are available on a mass scale so before you know it – you are seeing thousands of identical sites all over the internet and all with an identical message.

The owner will no doubt be promoting their own MLM which is fair enough, so if you bring your team on board to use the system who knows where it may lead?

(There are some exceptions to this of course and you will need to do your due diligence)

The Customised MLM System ( My favourite)

Benefits of the customised MLM system:

You can create your own unique capture pages and websites which is much easier today than you may think.

You can set up customised sites for your team with their own branded capture page and auto-responder messages

You can make it available just to your team members if you want and of course you provide value and incentive to join you.

Your team members are empowered to own their own ‘list’ no matter what may happen with their MLM. (This builds security)

You can help them to get started immediately by providing this system thereby overcoming the usual technical issues and learning curve for newbies on the internet

Your team members can take it to the next level and create their own system or component parts if they wish to because that is what you’re teaching and empowering them to do with the customised system.

Therefore you can either join a working attraction marketing team using a system which is unique to your group, or you can create your own.

Drawbacks

Difficult to keep up with changing technology and training for your team members.

On a final note if you feel overwhelmed with all of this you are not alone! This is why the opportunity to establish yourself as a leader online has never been greater.

If you are fearful of creating your own system just remember that these skills are all learnable as long as you plug into a good training system and have patience with yourself as you learn.

The industry legends that are really well known for their ‘systems’ such as Randy Gage, (offline systems) Mike Dillard and Ann Sieg, (online systems) ruffled a lot of feathers when they began to preach their new message.

Do you think that when Randy Gage started branding himself with his ‘duplication’ message the leaders of the day all clapped their hands?

When Mike Dillard set up his systems did everyone say, ‘oh right okay let’s stop doing traditional MLM right now and follow Mike?’

And when Ann Sieg hit the big time… well we all know what happened there and she is still ruffling feathers now with her ‘anti old-school’ message and ’7 Lies.’.

So what’s my point?

Duplication is absolutely necessary to build your team but you can be the first one in your system if you want to be! There comes a time in MLM where you just have to say, ‘okay enough is enough. Now this is my time and I am going to be the leader and do things that make sense to me.’

For more details of what I recommend you provide to your team to be successful with attraction marketing check out this:

MLM Online System

After years of creating my own systems (and having all the headaches that go with it) I’ve finally found a system that is highly customisable for the advanced marketer but easy to set up and get started for the newbie online.

I’ve found that the level of training and technology required to market successfully online for MLM and provide websites for your team is just too complicated and time consuming to handle without a big web team and as this system is now completely generic it ticks all my boxes

Get more details and take your no risk trial here: MLM Online System

If you set up your system through this link I’ll be offering you free support so if you’ve got any questions just email or call me once you’ve signed up for more info.