preferable way to go for everyone. Some people distinctly prefer to get
started in the cold market first. This can be more difficult in some ways (for
example, you may have less credibility with people you don’t know than
with those you do), but some of us are simply more comfortable there—
and that’s okay! In fact, sometimes cutting your teeth in the cold market
and getting some success under your belt is exactly what will then enable
you to feel more secure approaching the people you know and doing so
with more conviction.
I’ve always been a phone prospector. Put me on the phone and I can
talk to anyone I’ve never spoken to before without fear or intimidation.
But drop me off at the mall and ask me to meet people—and at the end
of an hour I’ll be wanting to quit the business. Don’t get me wrong; it’s
not that I’m unfriendly or a recluse. I just know what I like and what I’m
good at.
I had an eye-opening experience years ago when I recruited a dynamic
woman who was keen to build her business. I trained her to do what I
do: call people on the phone. A week into her business, she called and told
me she realized that she had made a mistake; this wasn’t going to work
for her.
We got together to talk about it. In conversation, I learned that she felt
opposite from the way I felt: The thought of having to pick up the phone and
talk to people was more than she could bear. In fact, she was someone who
wanted to go to the mall and just see who turned up!
We discussed how to do that and what else she could do to get her out
and meeting more people face-to-face. Her business started growing almost
immediately—and I learned a huge lesson that has served me very well ever
since: We’re all better getting started in those areas and using those methods
with which we already feel comfortable. What works best for you may not
work best for your new distributor!
Ask your new distributors (and for that matter, ask yourself this, too),
what kinds of things can you see yourself doing to start talking to people
about your business? Listen carefully to their answers and help them make a
plan based on those responses. Eventually you’ll want to get out of your com-
fort zone, but starting there can be very helpful. For many people, just start-
ing a business is enough out of the comfort zone, so it’s good to have a way to
start it that’s not so scary or intimidating.
There are only two choices: talking to people you know, or talking to
strangers. From there, the question is how to go about contacting people in
either group. Being somewhat of a cold market expert, I’m going to focus on
mostly on cold marketing methods. For talking to people you know, I’ll refer
you back to your sponsor or upline to help you come up with your top 10 list
and work on how to best approach them.
Heating Up Your Cold Market 209