The Curse Of The Attrition Marketing Vampire

Reviewing many network marketing opportunities over the past twenty years, has led me to a startling conclusion. Many of today’s apparently successful Network Marketing businesses are not built on success they are built on controlled failure. They not only accept failure as a possibility – failure is actually built into their plans. They call it playing the NUMBERS GAME.

When I think of the numbers game approach, I can’t help thinking about the trench warfare in the First World War. The Generals sitting in their tents, sipping port, and discussing clever strategies, whilst the enlisted men went “over the top”, hurling themselves at the enemy guns to gain a few hundred yards of ground. Their cunning plan ? Throw enough troops at the enemy trenches, and eventually some will get through.

Just like trench warfare, the numbers game has one major drawback – the casualties.

One key difference between trench warfare and the numbers game, is that whilst in trench warfare the casualties – for obvious reasons – remained largely silent, in the numbers game the casualties become increasing vocal.

They don’t blame themselves, they blame the product.

They don’t blame themselves, they blame the plan

They don’t blame themselves they blame the company.

They blame their upline. They blame their downline.

And most of all, they don’t blame themselves, they blame you !

Network Marketing is a people business, and to build a solid business you need to build genuine, solid personal relationships. Playing the numbers game with families, friends, work colleagues, in fact everyone on your “everyone I know” list, won’t help you build more personal relationships, but it could certainly help destroy quite a few.

And why make it difficult for ourselves ?

This business relies on the recommendations of satisfied loyal customers to endorse and buy its products, and just as an unhappy, dissatisfied customer is a bad advertisement for our product, so an unhappy, disgruntled ex-distributor is a bad advertisement for our opportunity.

Perhaps we might consider another way ?

I’m not saying that mine is the right way. I’m not saying mine is the only way. I’m not saying mine is a better way. I’m just saying mine is a different way.

It is a way that will not only allow me to achieve my goals, but will enable me to sleep soundly in my bed, and when I look in the mirror, not hate the person looking back.

It is a way developed over the past twenty years building, training and managing effective project teams for large and small businesses in many industries. It is a way developed out of necessity as the demands of our investors changed.

For years the Sales department was king, the investors were only interested in the sales figures, and so they played the numbers game. 


RECRUIT - RECRUIT – RECRUIT

SELL – SELL - SELL

Attrition Marketers are easy to recognise because just like vampires their mantra is

FRESH BLOOD IS LIFE BLOOD

But in recent years the investors have become more cost conscious. Now they are more interested in the real cost of obtaining a customer, and the cost of recruiting and training staff.

Now we have a new mantra :-RETAIN – RETAIN - RETAIN

The numbers game is a well trodden path. In the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson :-

“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”

Most people join a business like ours because they want to change their lives, but are they clear as to what that means ? Winston Churchill once wrote :-

“You make a living from what you get, but you make a life by what you give”

Building your FM business will take some EFFORT, but it needn’t be a struggle – not if you have a brilliant team out there to help you.

So how do you build a brilliant team ? How can you give your team the “E” Factor ?

Look out for my next post ......

"Forget the X Factor, give your team the "E" Factor ...