Home Based Business Success is Never and Accident, part 2

In our previous discussion we examined how Home Business Success must be studied, much the same as in any other business or vocation. In this article we will discuss how success must be planned. No successful venture is ever entered into without a plan. Sports teams enter into a game with a game plan. Corporations enter into business with a business plan. Medical professionals develop a care plan for their patients. So why should it be any different when entering into a Home Business? As the saying goes, "failure to plan is planning to fail." How true. So how does one plan success?

First and foremost, you have to know your marketing plan, how your company goes about selling it's products and business opportunity. In order to work a plan you have to understand it. Your company and your upline will have a plan that is tried and proven. Learn it and follow it. As I said in my previous article on this subject, "don't try to reinvent the wheel." Your upline are successful for a reason. Find out how they did it, do what they did and you will succeed, as well. In other words, duplication. It works.

Next, you need to establish a budget. You need to know how much you can spend on advertising, office supplies, training materials, etc. Set a budget and stick to it. Keep a record of expenses and income. If you don't know how much you can afford to spend compared to how much you are spending, you will have no idea how much money you are really making. Also, because this is a business, most if not all of your expenses will be deductible. Find out what expenses are deductible and keep track of them for tax purposes. Save your receipts.

Another thing you must budget is your time. Decide how many hours per day, per week, you can devote to your business, and stick to it! Within this framework, you will have to allocate time for studying and training, calling prospects and following up with them. You will need time for record keeping and scheduling appointments. As your business grows you will need to spend time training your new people to duplicate your success. All of this is time consuming and you need to plan for it. And, very important, plan and schedule some down time and family time. You and your family will need it.

Next, you need to know how to talk to your prospects. If you know ahead of time what to say and how to say it, you will be much more comfortable talking to people. With the help of your Mentor and some pre-written scripts, practice first time prospecting calls and follow up calls until they become second nature. Practice handling objections, you will get them. Listen in on live calls with your mentor, then have him or her listen in as you do the talking and then have them give you feedback afterward.

A point worth mentioning here is the need to be prepared for rejection. Not everyone you talk to will be receptive. Count on it. Some of them will be downright rude. Also, be prepared for people in your business to drop out, some for valid reasons and some for poor ones. Some of them will even blame you for their failure. Be prepared to feel discouraged at times. It will happen. If you are prepared ahead of time for these setbacks, you won't be blind sided by them, and you will be able to deal with them.

Having said all of this, no plan is perfect and no plan can foresee all the obstacles you will encounter. You will have to be flexible and will need to make adjustments to your plan along the way. Don't be discouraged when this happens. If you have a framework to work within and have set some goals to strive for and if you keep your eye on the prize, your financial freedom, you can adjust your plan and keep right on going.

In summary, no business, your own Home Business or any other venture entered into haphazardly will ever succeed. Fail to plan and you are planning to fail. So, make a plan and follow it. Budget your money and your time. Know your company and your products. Practice your prospecting techniques until you have them down pat. Listen to and follow your mentor. Expect setbacks and obstacles and when they come adapt and adjust. Stay focused on your goal. Do these few things and you will be successful, I guarantee it.

This Business is About People

I read a great comment in The Work AT Home Forum just the other day. The discussion was about building a successful downline. There were lots of very good comments on the subject. But then I came across this one by Rob and Rayvin Nyte. Simply put, I was blown away! You will be too.

To Quote:

“I don’t like the word Downline. It’s too impersonal. These are people with families, hopes and dreams, with goals for the future, with people who love them. How much do you know about the people dowline from you? Do they have any pets, hobbies, aspirations? We don’t know of any better way to build a successful downline than to build the people who are in it (emphasis mine). Our mentor is right. He never tires of repeating to us, “Build people and you will build your business.” Those words have become a mantra for us. May they help you transform your people as they have helped us.”

You see, we are not in the MLM Business or the Health and Wellness Business. We are not in the Vacation and Travel Business. We are in The People Business! Forget that when dealing with potential customers and business partners and we begin to sound impersonal, pushy, like a salesman. Forget it when we are working with our downline and we lose the ability to lead. Relationships build a successful business, not your product or compensation plan. To quote that silly insurance commercial, “Human Beings, acting Humanly, Brilliant!” But it’s the truth. Treat people with compassion, dignity and respect, become genuinely interested in their needs and concerns, their hopes and aspirations, and they will reward you by purchasing your products. They will reward you by not just joining your opportunity, but by excelling and building your business. Why, because you have made it Their Business as well. You have created a true Joint Venture.

Success in your Home Business isn’t measured by how big a downline you can recruit, or how much product you can sell. It’s not even measured by how much money you make. Those are all important benchmarks, to be sure. But true success, the kind that will build a strong, viable long lasting and profitable business, lies in how well you build people. It lies in how well you are able to help other people succeed, achieve their dreams, live a better life, and so on. If you don’t own a copy of Tim Sales’ Professional Inviter series, I suggest you purchase a copy. I won't benefit one way or the other by your purchasing a copy, but then agan, I will. If we all endeavor to be more professional, more ethical, More Human, we will give this industry a much better image, and likely as not, we will all reap the benefits of that.

In his own insightful way, Tim teaches you how to get in touch, how to connect with your potential customers and business partners. He teaches you how to identify with them and their needs wants and concerns, and sometimes, their pain. You've heard the old addage, "People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care!" You can’t get around that one. It's just human nature. You have to know how to Invite people in such a way that they feel invited, not sold. They need to know you care and that you truly want to help them. You lead and build your organization, the same way. "Build People and they will build your business." Simple, but Powerful.

Mitch