Many successful business owner can tell you that to be successful, it’s all about building relationships with your customers. The internet has become a primary means to begin building a relationship and to target market segments where everyone is using social media tools now, knowing that Twitter and Facebook exist is not enough. The differencMe maker will be good ideas!

“The value of a network grows in proportion to the square of the number of users.” – Metcalf’s Law

In an increasingly noisy world, we are all becoming more immune and even resistant to messages and information from others.

Go back a generation or two and you’ll find most business/personal transactions were done on a handshake with someone you knew or got to know through someone you knew. Your route to success today is still tied to your roots… the relationships you have built in your life, on trust.

A Network is a group or system of related or connected parts. The action form of Network is Networking — the exchange of information or services among individuals, groups, or institutions.

Both the Network and Networking are important.

Most people are familiar with the principle of Six Degrees of Separation, where it has been proven that almost all human beings are no more than six people or contacts apart. But without an intentional strategy to build your network or to be involved in networking, Six Degrees of Separation is only a mathematical principle with little or no intrinsic value.

Think about it. Who do you prefer to do business with and provide referrals for? The usual answer is people you already know. The key is to get to personally know and connect with even more individuals. The more people you are directly connected with, the more people you will have inside your network — and also waiting just six contacts away from you.

The art of building a valuable network is strategic in nature — it does not happen by accident.

Successful networking is built on trust. Essentially, it is more about giving than getting. Inexperienced networkers have the attitude of what can I get from this group or person when, in fact, the opposite mental set must be present to build a long-term network. Yes, we must be strategic with the individuals and groups with whom we connect, but we must have in our heart: what can we give or contribute, not what can we take.

Networking is also about quality, not quantity. It took me several years to learn not to be anxious or frantic when attending networking events or opportunities. I used to try to meet as many people as possible. With that approach, I met everyone but really knew no one.

Building relationships takes time and effort. This holds true in the networking world. I have found that if I go to an event or attend some type of networking opportunity and connect (not meet) with just one or two individuals, my time has been well invested. The challenge is that today’s society wants us to think that the fast and the furious win the race. When building a network, being focused and intentional is far more productive.

Networking is a principle that usually defies logic or predictability. Many of us will try to determine in advance who and what will come out of a specific network or contacts. My experience is the exact opposite. Your successful contact, connections, and contracts will usually come from where you least expect them. The best examples of this are the true stories each of us has lived.

Here is an example. In 1989 I joined the National Speakers Association (NSA) and attended my first national convention in Dallas, Texas. Admittedly it was an intimidating event; I met Zig Ziglar, Cavett Robert, and other luminaries from the speaking industry. On the first day, I met fellow Canadian speaker Brian Lee and we became friends. The next year at the NSA National Conference in Atlanta, Brian introduced me to his friend Patti, a trainer who lived in Atlanta. Patti and I also became friends.

Here is where the story reveals the power of a network. Two years later (1992), Patti called me, — all excited. “Ken, I have just met this person here in Atlanta who is looking for trainers for a large project in Canada. I gave Jim your name. Here is his information . . .”

I called Jim the next day and soon thereafter, we met. Jim and his committee selected me to work with them. That single contact referred by Patti resulted in a contract with a Fortune 100 company that, over 10 years, was worth over $10 million dollars to our firm. Never could I have anticipated or predicted that sequence of events. I also wonder where I would be without that single contact made with Brian Lee over 15 years ago.

No matter what your need, focus, or interest, there is almost always an association, network, or group of like-minded individuals. Find out who and where these groups meet. Use the Internet to search for these groups; they range from obvious business organizations to associations for Parents with ADHD Children to thousands of other groups.

I encourage you that whenever possible, be part of a live event. The impact and quality of a person-to-person interaction cannot be replaced by phone calls or email.

Be intentional, be strategic, be giving, and watch what happens. You will be amazed at the power of networking. Remember the old cliché — success is not about what you know, but who you know!

Action Steps to Help You Increase the Value of Your Network

1. First you must acknowledge that your network and networking are highly influencing your success level.
2. Building a true network of value does not happen by accident.
3. Become intentional and strategic about your network and networking activities. Determine how you want your network to look and who should be in it. Define its reason or benefit.
4. Find out where the individuals you want to target are already meeting or if they are already part of a network.
5. Be clear about your objectives and purpose.
6. Always, always, always focus on what you can give — not take — from the network. Think of what you can offer or contribute; let people know about it.
7. Become likeable, confident, interesting, and attractive.
8. Think quality, not quantity.
9. Stay connected on a regular basis in some form or another — by letter, email, phone, or in person.
10. Be willing to let go. Sometimes you might think an individual or organization fits your purpose, passion, and direction but if that is really not the case, acknowledge that you might create more mutually beneficial relationships elsewhere. Because none of us has unlimited time, we must prioritize our networking and networks.
11. Have fun, enjoy, and let the process unfold. Don’t try to control it — just be in it.

Until next time, keep “Living On Purpose.”

Ken Keis

Ken Keis is an internationally known author, speaker, consultant, & President of CRG. Many professionals herald CRG as the # 1 global resource center for Personal/Professional Development. For information on CRG Resources, please visit crgleader.com For information on Ken’s Training and Speaking Programs, please visit kenkeis.com

I think the main thing about social networking is if you do not master this one area then forget it you won’t be successful. It is probably the most powerful area of marketing and advertising which is…

Tip #1

That’s right you guessed it the headline. You can do posts on the best most highest social networking sites and get no where if you have a lousy headline. Your headline is everthing it is the first thing people see in any kind of advertising or marketing campaign. Weak headlines equal no hits believe me I know. I found out the hard way. Your headline should lead the reader to the next step and that is clicking on your link for the rest of what you have to say.

Tip #2

The second thing I found out in social networking was not using your main website or blog link unless it is a capture page. Using a link to a specific page in your site gives you more of an authority with search engines rankings. Instead of sending people to the main home page link send them to a subpage within your site like this In the matrix of search engine rankings the engine spiders your specific link which can help get your site up the search engine faster. You want to make sure the specific link has your main keywords which helps your whole site climb the search engine. For example on my blog this link has been at the top of google for a few months now:

Tip #3

Make sure when you post something it is something people are looking for and something meaningful. Not just a bunch of garbage. You want people to keep clicking on your headlines knowing that they will be reading something of value. You don’t want to be an outcast within the social networking community. Each website is it’s own community and you want to be a welcome guest not someone people avoid. These are just a few tips I recommend following although I am sure there are others. The next question is what social networking sites do you submit to? I have put together a complete list 456 networking sites.

Ron Randall 256 Social sites and 187 video networking sites all in one place. You won’t find a list like this anywhere else. You can have instant access to this list, no email required.

But why has one who has never been involved in network marketing seem to endorse it as a good business model? Some may claim that this is a hypocritical endorsement, but in reality, Kiyosaki’s findings are founded on solid business building principles and are hence, are valid observations.

To understand what he means by a perfect business, you must understand the background of the E, S, B, I quadrant.

E stands for employee, where you are under legal employment working for an employer getting a payroll. Kiyosaki claims that most employees are stuck in a rat race, where the employee constantly working to pay off his debts to the government, the taxation institutes as well as the banks. He finds that there is little freedom and to exit from the rat race, you must progress into the different quadrants.

S stands for small business. He quips that it stands for solo businessman as well where in order to do things right, you gotta do it yourself! This quadrant of businessmen rarely leverages on others because they not only have the responsibilities of a business owner, they often need to double up as the worker and sales rep, the customer service rep and sometimes, even the delivery guy!

B is the quadrant Kiyosaki wants to get people into where you run a BIG business by leveraging on people ‘under’ you.

Lastly, the ‘I’ quadrant is where big business investors wind up. They use their money to earn MORE money. Kiyosaki describes the network marketing business model as the perfect business simply because he believes that you can easily jump from the ‘E’ quadrant directly into the ‘B’ quadrant without going through the hardships of the ‘S’ quadrant.

When you start a network marketing business, the most important skills you will learn are business skills. Skills such as managing people, understanding the needs of your customer, how to invest your time and money wisely and lots of self-improvement, mindset changing awareness that will take your business skills to the next level.

The most important aspect about being in a network marketing business is that you get to learn all these business skills at a very low investment (a couple of dollars to a few hundred dollars worth of product investment), the guidance and believe of a mentoring upline, and all the time in the world for someone to develop those business skills. After all, not everyone’s attitudes are alike. A network marketing business will help you to build those skills even if you are a slow learner – because you don’t have to worry about huge rental or inventory costs unlike a traditional business in the S or B quadrant.

The facts indicate that what Robert Kiyosaki says is valid and true about network marketing indeed, being the perfect business.

“Dr. Robin”, the well known MLM Radio personality is and has built his “honorary” doctorate in the Network Marketing world and has had experience in numerous other network marketing companies. He is a nationally recognized expert in the network marketing business.Dr. Robin is the current host of his radio show, “Networking with the Blindguy” with up to 3.8 million listeners daily.http://drblindguy.com
This type of personal coaching is about being and doing your best-about time and goal management-about peak performance-about achieving higher levels of business or professional success. drblindguy@gmail.com

I will begin by assuming that you are willing to do what it takes to become successful no matter what MLM opportunity you choose. Too many people join a MLM company strictly on HYPE. Yes, you know exactly what I mean. You are approached by a friend or family member and they want you to attend a meeting with them either at their home or at a larger venue like a hotel meeting. You arrive and have a very smooth talking individual who is making some great money and they have this incredible story of how easy it is to accomplish what they did as long as you are coachable and can do exactly what they did because the company has a system that a 6 year old could follow. So, guess what most people do? Most get involved thinking they just won the lottery and believe that all of their money troubles are a thing of the past. This is hardly the case, as many soon realize and drift away in search of a free ride that will never come.

So, where did this individual go wrong? What is the Secret to having MLM success? I trust you are sitting down for this and you currently are not eating anything that you could choke on……
The secret is….Education, Hard Work, Desire, Passion, Commitment, etc, etc, etc.

That’s right, there is NO secret. It all boils down to the ingredients listed above. You have to work at it. That is why it is called NetWORK Marketing

However, there are a few things you might want to consider picking your MLM

1. The Management. Do they have a squeaky clean track record?
2. The financial backing of the company. Are they debt free?
3. How long has the company been in business? Any company in their first 5 years comes with a certain degree of risk.
4. The product line. Would you use it even if there was no business opportunity attached to it?
5. The compensation plan. If you don’t know anything about compensation plans then get a hold of someone who does. Do you have hoops and hurdles that you must get through in order to qualify to make money? Do you have to get a certain amount of volume before you get paid or do you get paid on the true dollar. Most companies have PV (personal volume), CV (commissionable volume), or some other way to disguise the fact that the company is taking money right off the top and you are not getting paid on the true dollar.

The real secret to having success with any MLM company is to treat your business……. like a business! This statement has been typed countless times by countless MLM professionals and it truly is the one and only secret in MLM.

I will expand upon more of ideas listed above in my next article. It will discuss how you can set up your business so that you will allow yourself a chance to succeed.

Are you looking for a MLM company that pays on the true dollar. One that has the lowest start up fee and has the lowest autoship in the industry? Go to http://www.stevehachey.com

What I find amazing is that day after day I continue to find people who have never made a purchase from a network marketing consultant. So, maybe the competition is not as stiff as you thought it was?

My suggestion is to stop competing and instead become unique. I’ll share a story. Last week a woman emailed me. She wanted information. She told me right up front she was talking to someone else also. This other person lived locally. While I sent a few emails back and forth with her, I knew I could not compete. The new recruit wanted to work with someone local. I could’ve tried to convince her otherwise, but why? Instead I invested my time being unique and doing what I do best, which is sharing my words with others. Wouldn’t you know it, along came an email from someone who liked my words and was interested in joining. That’s where I invested my time.

Very often I see classified ads that are just one ad after the other. There is nothing special or unique about these ads. Every person is competing with every other person there. Try something different. Try being the unique person. Instead of the same headlines as everyone else, try a headline that offers a free ebook or free report. You can easily find these online. Sometimes these reports or ebooks will cost you $5 or so. Just think, for a $5 investment you can start saying “contact me for a free ebook.” You are no longer competing with every other ad out there as I almost never see offers for free reports or free ebooks.

Change your thoughts to being unique instead of competing and see if you begin to get different results.

Audrey Okaneko has been in direct sales since 1983. She can be reached at audreyoka@cox.net or you can Become a Tupperware Consultant.