Are you shocked?? Stunned? Horrified?? Let me guess – this is something your uplines have been teaching you? “Overcoming objections”. And you know what, it’s not their fault. They don’t know any different. At least they are duplicating. But what they are duplicating is 1990s style of doing Network Marketing. Which actually did work just fine back then. But not today. You see people are much, much more informed now than what they have ever been before and you just can’t bullshit people anymore with the “what you mean by that Sam?” or “well how much time do you have Tom” or the best one “so how serious are you really about earning more money Sally?” It’s all complete rubbish and people just won’t fall for this anymore. So don’t be like everyone else.
For those of you who have been reading my blogs and listening to my trainings for a while will know that I have a love/hate relationship with scripts. I certainly believe in giving people a format to follow, but PLEASE, PLEASE people – don’t ever read a script to someone. It is so amateur and robotic and if you think for a single second that people won’t know you are reading a script, you are sorely mistaken. I’ve personally read scripts to thousands of people over the years and guess what worked better? Being myself. That’s right – not fake, not reading, not pretending to be some high ranking multi-millionaire MLMer from the U.S. – no. Being myself is what has gotten my message out there way more than reading a script ever did. And the exact same applies to objections.
Firstly, let’s look at what objections really mean. You see people mistake the entire notion and get it so very backwards. People are not saying no to you, they are saying no to themselves. And I have to tell you, it is NOT your job to convince them of anything at all. Period. In most cases, people want to make it look like they know stuff. When they tell you “that’s a pyramid Scam David, you’re going to end up in gaol.” What they are really telling you is that they have a massive ego and don’t want to look stupid. You are talking to their inner scared little child who doesn’t want to look like they don’t know a thing or two and you are intimidating them with something they have absolutely no clue about. Now sure you can go about explaining what a pyramid is to them, or ask them what they mean by that (and they will inevitably tell you some crap about all the people at the top making all the money and signing up your friends and family blah, blah, blah), or you can tell them what Network Marketing really is and how great it is, but guess what??? They are NOT listening and they probably don’t care. You seriously think that by answering and so-called ‘overcoming’ their objection is actually going to make them sign up with you and/or buy your product??? Of course it won’t. Unless you are a brain surgeon who can give them an instant front end lobotomy. But I am guessing you are not. You simply cannot change a person’s mind who thinks that way in an instant. You are simply wasting your breath. Their ONLY aim is to go look good and that is all about ego. How well do you think they will do in business? Probably not, right? So next them. I usually just say to this one, “no worries at all. It’s been great getting to know you, hope you find what you’re looking for. Have a great day.” And move on. Quickly. Do not waste one single second of your time trying to convince, explain, show them etc etc. It’s like trying to turn someone who has been a Collingwood Football Club supporter for the last 30 years into following Greater Western Sydney. It ain’t going to happen so just forget about them and move on. Quit trying to change their mind. You just won’t. No-one will.
So I’ve started on the types of objections we all get. The one about pyramids we all get. The other two most common objections we hear are “I don’t have the money” or “I don’t have the time”. Once again, if you look at what is behind the objection, it makes it so much easier to work through it instead of having to ‘overcome’ it. The thing is if they are telling you they need an opportunity to make more money and they don’t have any, then what they are really saying is that it isn’t an priority to them at this particular point in time. They are not desperate enough. Trust me, if they saw the opportunity, they were enthused, inspired and excited and desperate enough, they would find the money. They would be resourceful. It is NOT our job to talk them through this. Don’t be arrogant and ask them things like “well how much money do you have Rob?” That is completely none of your business and totally inappropriate to ask. If you ask “well Rob when will you have the money?” clearly they are going to respond with “probably never – that’s why I need to make some”. The biggest gift here is that they clearly have no idea, so move on. They are J.O.B. mentality. Just tell them confidently “well Rob when you have the money, I’ll be here to show you how to get more”. It’s called “takeaway marketing” (exactly as I responded to the pyramid scam objection). If you take something away from someone that is of value to them, they will come running back. People don’t like to think that someone has given up on them either. A lot of the time I will get people saying something like “hang on a second Fiona, I’m not saying I don’t want to do this, I’m just saying (and they usually end up repeating their objection). It’s hilarious! The thing is if Rob’s daughter was dying of cancer and he needed to come up with $10k to save her life, he would move heaven and earth to find the $10k. And he is quibbling over a $200 investment and you are trying to convince him to find it??? Why????? Don’t go there. It is not your job to do a life coaching session with these people to ‘support’ them in setting priorities and helping them with their budgeting. You are here to support people to build a business – for those who see it. Let’s face it, you only want to work with people who ‘get’ it and are enthusiastic, don’t you?
Let me tell you something about convincing people by ‘overcoming’ their objections. If you have to convince them to find $200 to get started, then you’ll have to convince them to do the initial training. Then you’ll have to convince them to get on the monthly webinars. Then you’ll have to convince them to duplicate your efforts. Then you’ll have to convince them to re-order again next month. Sound like too much work? That’s because IT IS!! I used to have healthy debates with my upline years ago about this because she truly believed it was our job to teach people personal development. I disagree. No it is not. You can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make it drink. You can present the opportunity. Most won’t get it. Most won’t see it. But it’s the handful that will, those are the ones you are looking for. And sorry to say but those people are around 3% of the population so yes – it will be a pretty trying time finding these people. Your job is to hold firm and demonstrate you have the deal – you have what they really want.
And herein lies the challenge in working your Network Marketing business. These people who give you objections can quite literally turn you sideways. If you let them. I release all people with love. I think it’s a truly wonderful thing that our business isn’t for everyone. Let’s face it, we need teachers and lawyers and politicians and Housekeepers and Nurses etc to keep our world spinning. We are merely looking for the small group of people that are like us. And the way to enrol them is not to convince them, answer them back, manipulate them, belittle them, sell them or worse still, argue with them. Keep it simple. They will either get it or they won’t. Leave it at that. It’s perfectly okay to ask them a question to clarify what exactly they are saying so you can both be on the same page. Sometimes people can need a bit of a helpful holding hand and it will become obvious to you. You cannot possibly address every single conversation and/or objection with a script. That’s not being human and you are not truly caring about that person and what they are looking for nor really listening to what they are saying. You are focussed on reading the script to them and it may not even be relevant to what they just said! Really be there for them. Listen to their concerns. Ask questions to clarify. But if they are so stuck on us being illegal and they have no money or time, then most likely they also have no idea and you won’t want to work with them anyway. Harsh – yes. But this is business – it’s not personal. I’ve “nexted” many people I know and hey! No hard feelings at all. It’s all good. Release with love. Don’t get caught up in their limitation thinking. You never know when someone may call you and ready to get started. You know where you are going and what you are doing and why and believe me, that is way more powerful and attractive than anything else. The right ones will be drawn to you like a magnet. Just keep sifting.