Everywhere I look today, I see individuals in network marketing that are being taught to call themselves a consultant. Why do they do it?

One of my former downline members who now calls himself a consult was terminated for plagerism of the companies training material.

I guess he thought, taking articles written by someone else, attaching his name to them, posting them all over the internet qualified him as a network marketing consultant.

I was listening to the news today, they where talking about how the government is proposing licensing of tax preparers.

While this maybe nothing more then another tax revenue base, it should make people feel a little more at ease, if they require some kind of training. But, in network marketing it seems anyone can call themselves what every they want, with no repercussions.

The individual in question, I know very well, I also know he always had an ulterior motive in just about everything he did. Whether this type of behavior is right or wrong, that is for you to decide, let your conscious be the guide.

At least he does not call himself a certified network marketing consultant.

If we look-up consultant in the dictionary it refers to: A person who provides expert advice professionally.

Paying people to write about you, does not qualify you as an expert either, it comes from actions and demonstrated knowledge.

If a network marketing consultant tells you that you can’t build a business by buying network marketing leads, it just proves they are not expert!

What they are really saying to you is I can’t do it, and I don’t want you to surpass my in skill level.

So anytime you see someone calling themselves a network marketing consultant take it for what it’s worth!

Beware of false profits, in network marketing especially when it comes to coaching.

Today many claim to be just that, simply because someone said they should give themselves that title.

It goes back to latest scam to hit the internet perceived credibility. If you say it enough times it must be true. There are a great many people within this industry I do respect, then there are those that are plain scammers.

The problem is someone new to the industry, just does not have a clue on what is truthful, and what is deception.

A true coach can assist you in building your network marketing business, whether it is warm market, cold market, leads etc…

The sad fact is even a very successful up-line may not be qualified to be a network marketing coach. While they maybe a great communicator, great prospector, and a great motivator it may not make them a coach.

Today we have network marketers that will coach you on how to become successful using social media, web sites etc… What’s wrong with this is they may have just started a few weeks before you did, does that make them a coach?

Reality is there are far more qualified experts in these fields already, with proven track records. The newest breed of so-called coaches are there to entice you into their business ventures, violating a code of ethics.

Everyday I see challenges come across my desk like:

• I don’t know how to communicate with the cold market without being seen as a threat.
• Lack of training and inactive downline.
• I don’t know how to sponsor and teach my team to duplicate.
• Knowing how to market successfully.
• How to motivate my downline to assume leadership roles.
• How to reach prospects looking for my kind of network marketing company and products.
• How do I deal with a lead that swears they never requested anything!

There are thousands more like that, problems that people just like you, face everyday. The majority of the time, you just need training, but not just any training. What you need is proven training that has been market tested over the years not just a few weeks.

Which is why as a network marketer, I’ve recommended Leaders Club’s Certified Network Marketing Coaching Program! Check it out a make a few comparisons, after all don’t trust your training – coaching to just anyone!

I was doing a little light reading the other day, when I came across a post that essentially said “personal responsibility” was not essential to your success. The author indicated it was a good thing “personal responsibility” but not a sufficient thing for big success.

The author referenced, top network marketing people that bumped into someone and that was what was responsible for their success. In all fairness not knowing all the details, I still find that hard to believe.

It could be that it was their leadership and belief in an individual that drove them to even greater success then they would have otherwise attained.

If you’re under the belief that if “I could only find the right people,” I would be more successful you could be waiting all your life looking for them. It is our own personal action and responsibility that will determine our success or failure in this industry, especially when view by others. This is just one of the many reasons people fail in network marketing!

Think about it for a minute, when it comes to customers or downline retention whose responsibility is it? If I fail to follow-up with them and they leave is it right that I blame someone else, while failing to look at my own shortcomings for not taking responsibility for my own actions?

Often things are outside of our control, or in other words outside our circle of influence. I remember getting phone calls after the election results where in from people wanting to quit their business, to just give up on their dreams.

In an election all we can do is vote our conscience, if we don’t get the results we where hoping for, all is not lost. A good friend of mine “Steve” sent me a book, maybe he felt I needed it. It is a very quick read at only 115 pages.

Yet in these pages, it really drove home how we respond to changing world. The book is called:

QBQ!
The Question Behind The Question

Practicing Personal Accountability At Work and in Life.

What to Really Ask Yourself
to
Eliminate Blame, Complaining, and Procrastination.

You can find this hard cover book at Amazon, Just do a search for QBQ.

As I read through this book, it brought back memories to my 27 years working in aviation. How at many times this book described not only my response but also those around me as well to a changing schedule.

We are all in business for a reason; you have to decide what that reason is. From watching years of mistakes, I learned a valuable lesson that many will never grasp. Word of mouth or referral marketing is one of the most effective method of growing your business, yet if your customers do not trust you, what are your chances of getting a new customer referred to you or keeping the ones you have?

Start taking responsibility by implementing your customer service – retention plan Today!

What is it that attracts any network marketer to a particular company? Is it the hype used to promote it, the money that someone else made in the company?

Often, this is the case. I really like to read other sites when they talk about how to choose a company and what to look for. Of course, they want to promote their own company, we all do.

There are of course, a few companies that really do not need any form of hype for a potential customer to see value in the product or service, this is the type of company you should be looking for.

A Network Marketing company exists for a variety of reasons mainly to move products and services, while helping distributors to build a secondary income or a full time primary income.

On occasion you will see a different companies products in a local retail outlet like WalMart, Costco or Sam’s club; for example. Of course, this really tends to make distributors mad as hell at first.

Yet, if you often look at the other side of the story there maybe good reason. If your product is a perishable product and your distributors are not moving enough stock, the company maybe in danger of losing thousands to millions of dollars as these products reach the end of their shelf life.

It could also be another way to get the product into more hands thereby generating more demand for the local distributors.

When evaluating a company as a network marketer, don’t just look at the company but evaluate the products and services.

Ok, I know I’ll get some hate mail over this but “Test it on your warm market,” have them take a look at the product or service! Get some honest feedback from an impartial observer.

Follow the link for even more information on What to Look for in a Network Marketing Company.

What is a “rabbit-trail?” It is a side-path, leading from the main path to an undetermined destination – at least that is my definition. So why am I even discussing this?

The other day I was having a conversation with a fellow network marketer. He had subscribed to a reputable training on how to expand his business when he decided to go another direction. I asked him why he was changing his course in mid-stream. His answer was, what he was doing is not working.

I asked him if he was implementing all of his current training recommendations and I discovered that he was only partially implementing his current training recommendations. So, why was he changing? He had lost confidence in what he was doing. What he did not understand, was he had gotten off-track, and started to go down a “rabbit-trail.”

We talked a bit; however, I realized he had made up his mind to abandon his proven primary path of training and take a “rabbit-trail” leading to an undetermined destination.

Sometimes we find it difficult to stay the course; however, it is far more dangerous to risk taking an unproven path that might bring success in a shorter period of time, than to remain on the well-trodden path that will take us to our desired destination.

How many times have I heard the statement – “Network marketing doesn’t work for me.” As a matter of fact, how many times have I felt that way? The fact of the matter is, network marketing will work for just about everyone, if that person understands how to put the pieces of a network marketing business together.

Puzzle Piece # 1 – Have a plan of action – Know how much effective action you need to take each day that will get you to your success goal.

Puzzle Piece # 2 - Execute your daily plan on a consistent basis.

Puzzle Piece # 3 - Have a monthly marketing budget to promote your business.

Puzzle Piece # 4 - Equip yourself with the proper tools necessary (contact management system. etc) to keep your business organized.

Puzzle Piece # 5 - Invest in education/training which will help advance you business.

and finally Puzzle Piece # 6 - Don’t quit!

When it comes to being an employee of a company or a entrepreneur what is the difference? Stop and really take a look at your place of employment, how many of the individuals employed there are really just passing time in order to get a pay check?

Lets face it as an employee our goal really has been to get the most pay for the least amount of work. This could be one of the major reasons that when we start a business, we are destined to fail before we ever get started?

Having an entrepreneurial spirit is a good place to start, but that is not all that it is going take to become successful. So why do so many people recommend to budding young entrepreneurs Network Marketing as the place to learn the essential sales, Leadership and business building skills?

Our school systems really do not teach us these essential skills yet. It’s not to say they never will teach these skills at some day in the future, I don’t think I’ll count on that. As a budding young entrepreneur you really must start planning your business and it’s growth from the very beginning putting the tools and systems you will need into place.

With the proper skills, foundation and systems put into place you are ensuring that your business will continue to flourish long into the future. Unfortunately most of us want everything to happen fast, often way to fast. This happens with businesses as well. When a business has not put the proper infrastructure in place something will suffer.

How many times have you complained about poor customer service, a terrible product that was rushed to market before it was ready? Is this how you want to grow your business? If your not happy with your companies training but in love with their products, there are alternatives you can seek out to help you find the network marketing success you deserve.

Be wary of buying into a system that promotes someone else, how many new business have you seen that promote their competition? If you’ve not read my article on this “Are You Branding Yourself or Someone Else?” I would suggest you do it now.

If you are just starting your research into network marketing here are a few suggestions, kind of a guideline before you commit to any company.

A. Start with a training program tailored to Network Marketing – Leadersclub. Learning the skills you will need requires a systematic approach taking you through a structured program.

B. Start putting your computer to use as a business computer by getting your email system setup and organized. All business have or should have a good CRM software setup.

C. Your own personal web site, this is essential to branding yourself, your company really doesn’t matter at this point in time. Web sites take work and I do mean work to become successful at it.

D. A company that can provide you with targeted leads for your business until you can supplement then with your own self generated leads.

E. A good auto-responder system preferably from a respected company, using a double opt-in form.This is just the start and really only a small portion of what you will eventually need to learn as new skills on your road to success in Network Marketing.

One of the biggest mistakes you can make is to spend your hard earned marketing budget to brand someone else’s name!

If you go through many of the online advertisements found on Yahoo, Google or Windows Live you’ll find numerous marketers making these same mistakes.

The are totally oblivious to the fact that they are in reality promoting the individual that created the system.The creators behind these systems are laughing all the way to the bank. They are getting you to spend your money to brand their name taking valuable profits that should rightfully belong to you right out of your pocket.

In Network Marketing people look for leaders to work with. Yes they do shop for a sponsor as well as a company. So ask yourself this important question in your marketing “Am I branding Myself or Someone Else?”

If you cannot prove to yourself beyond a shadow of doubt, that it is you that the prospective customer or downline member will remember, then it’s time to rethink your marketing strategy.

If your going to use someone else’s marketing material there are a few things you need to know!

A.) Start your own Web Site!

B.) Start Branding your name and you as a Leader!

C.) Learn to write your own material!

That last one, is what sets you apart from everyone else. You have a choice, become one of the heard or stand out from the crowd!

Analogies are a great way to look at things as they relate to our business. In prospecting the more we “practice”, the more we develop the required skills and yes the coordination that is required to succeed. Will we ever reach absolute perfection? No but our skill level will be proportionate to the practice and consistency we put into it.

Years ago after spending thousands of hours as a crewman flying in helicopters and HC-130’s as a navigator I decided to to get my pilots license. During those years I spent countless boring hours flying in circles around an airport taking off, landing, taking off, and landing repeatedly.

Most people would wonder why you would need all this practice. During those years I also flew in some of the Worst weather you could imagine. The Bering Sea in Alaska has weather that the rest of the world considers hurricanes, typhoons but they just call it a low pressure system. When these pilots would attempt to land at some remote airport, hundreds of miles from no where they needed all the skill they had developed through practice.

When I started learning to fly, my instructor did not turn me loose in the airplane. He did not say ok, you’ve watched, you’ve seen it done now go do it. It required practice to develop the skill level and coordination required to achieve success, in other words “Get the airplane back on the Ground in one Piece”.

After learning to fly, getting that coveted pilot’s license, I still went out and practiced to improve and continue to develop the skills I had acquired. One of the things I always did was to practice crosswind landings. The stronger the wind the better. You see anyone can land when the wind is calm, but when the wind is blowing 20 to 50 mph it takes skill and coordination that can only be developed through practice.

One of the toughest things you do in flying is a night landing with no aircraft lights. Your natural reaction is to focus on the beginning of the runway, “just like so many of us in our businesses” the place you want the aircraft to land. This always leads to an unpleasant arrival; the object is to keep your eye on the far end of the runway or in Network Marketing business it is your long range goal.

Do you ever become perfect? NO, but with the skill you have developed you will take the fear out of it. If it does not look right you can always add power and go around to try another landing. Each approach to a landing will be different; no two will ever be the same, just like in prospecting!

So what does having a pilot’s license really mean?

It’s a license to continue to learn, to practice and improve.

After all being in Network Marketing is so much like flying, a life long journey to improve ones skills. So practice, grow, learn and most of all enjoy the ride.

If your ready to stop spinning your wheels and Learn the techniques that the top sponsors use, then by all means Visit Leadersclub.

I conducted a survey recently to find out what are some of the challenges individuals have that are keeping them from moving forward in their business.

The results suggest coaching could help the majority of these individuals. Yet most people do not understand just what a coach or coaching is, or if it is even necessary.

More about what Network Marketing Coach / Coaching is