First Step Marketing

Every living being has a purpose, and it is the knowledge of that purpose that allows us to manifest the opportunities in the right place at the right time. Conversely, without knowledge of our specific purpose many of these opportunities will go unnoticed.

In our modern world fortunes are regularly spent on changing and improving methodologies, yet the majority of businesses continue to last less than one generation, and the majority of working people retire disillusioned and unfulfilled. Usually their enormous energy and potential is misdirected. Having an external objective is not the same as living a purpose that is internally driven. Read the rest of this entry »

Some networkers dread objections. That’s the wrong attitude! You should welcome objections (strange as it may seem) because, as long as the prospect is raising objections, she is interested in the product and networking. What she is really saying is: ‘If you can show me my objection is unfounded, I’ll join.’ And that’s a much better situation than the customer who simply walks away and is not interested.

Also, a question is not necessarily an objection. It can be a sincere desire to know more; a sign of interest.

Often the prospect has doubts and uncertainties about network marketing or the value of the products you are selling. She may genuinely need time to think it over because the whole concept is new. An objection means that you have not really sold the prospect the idea of network marketing. You have not dispelled the fear that she is making the wrong decision and that the benefits you promise will not materialise. Read the rest of this entry »

All business owners know what cash flow is—if not technically, then emotionally. Nevertheless, it’s worthwhile to approach this subject from the very beginning because it is key to business success. Some business school professors have even begun to impart to their students the latest thinking about cash flow: “Cash flow is more important than your mother.”

A useful way to think about cash flow is to view the business as a living organism. Cash is the nutrient that runs through its arteries and veins. The brain might be viewed as the product or service, the heart as the marketing, and the stomach as the finances, at which point it all begins to get a little messy. If you don’t have enough cash flow, though, rest assured that the living organism turns into a skeleton. , Read the rest of this entry »

Innovation has become so commonplace that scarcely any product survives long enough to age. New ideas and items are born obsolete. The cycle never stops. Accordingly, customers and suppliers alike grow dizzy in their futile pursuit of the next best thing.

Last year, consumers in the United States were inundated by roughly twenty-three thousand new packaged goods—about 450 per week. Revlon, Inc., alone introduced four hundred new items. Combine that with the thousands of other new consumer products that appeared, from computer advances to car models, and you get a sense of the plethora of choices, a flood that would have daunted Noah. Read the rest of this entry »

The second type of manager is keen to learn from market leaders. Astute observers, they have a penchant for analysis and methodology. You can visualize them taking copious notes, jotting down ideas, making checklists, and trying to decipher winning formulas. These managers reside equally among market-leading companies and their lagging competitors. Both design insightful strategies and plans for action. Yet the laggards have more trouble getting others within their organizations to adopt their plans. That even seasoned managers aren’t immune to this problem is evidenced in the number of well-considered plans and sound proposals that die prematurely because they are stonewalled by other departments, ignored by coworkers, or overshadowed by more prosaic routines. This situation is all too familiar to consultants whose well-crafted recommendations end up collecting dust because their clients were not adequately prepared for the changes the new plans entailed. Additionally, rookie MBAs face a rude awakening the first time their knowledge and bright ideas are not instantly acclaimed.

Whereas earlier the manager’s trouble was mobilizing employees, in this instance the obstacle is her or his inability to rally colleagues and bosses around the proposed solutions. If and when they overcome their resistance, excessive amounts of precious energy and time will have been lost. That they may shine methodically is irrelevant in this context because their direction and priorities aren’t aligned with those of the other people who have a stake in the outcome. Market leadership doesn’t bypass these managers because their plans lack specificity or rigor, but rather because they are not sharing the perspective held by the rest of the organization regarding exactly what needs to be done to win in the marketplace. Read the rest of this entry »