People are using the Internet for communication, for entertainment, for referencing, and conducting business as well. The Internet gives people the ability to search out precisely the information, the products, the services they need, quickly and easily.
Unlike television, the Internet provides information on demand; you can find what you want, whenever you want it.
Unlike newspapers or magazines, the Internet is a constantly updated source of information; literally minute-by-minute.
Unlike any kind of mass media, the Internet is interactive, and personal.
Which methods of communication below have you used during the past month?
- Face-to-face conversation
- Handwritten letter or card
- Phone call
- Text message
- Instant message
- Video chat
- Social networking
Never have there been so many options for keeping in touch, each one with its advantages and disadvantages. Consider a few examples:
FACE-TO-FACE CONVERSATION
Advantage: Includes all the subtle nuances of facial expression, tone of voice, and gestures.
Disadvantage: Both parties must be available to talk.
HANDWRITTEN LETTER OR CARD
Advantage: Warm and personal.
Disadvantage: Takes time to write, and days to reach the recipient.
Advantage: Can be composed, and delivered quickly.
Disadvantage: Emotion is often lacking—or easy to misinterpret.
SOCIAL NETWORKING
Enter social networking, which some say is the best way to keep in touch. Hundreds of social networks exist, and the most popular one—Facebook. Facebook passed 2.7 billion monthly active users, 2.65 billion mobile users, and 1.59 million daily users. “If Facebook were a country,” says Time magazine, “it would be the third largest, behind only China and India.” What are social networks, and why have they become so popular?
A social network is a Website that allows users to share information with a selected group of friends.
Why not use the phone? Again, too time-consuming—especially since you have to call one person at a time, and some will not be at home or available to talk when you are. What about an e-mail? No one answers e-mails anymore, and even if they do, getting a reply can take weeks. On a social network, you can just post a comment about what you are doing, and your friends can post comments about their day. You are all updated as soon as you log on. It’s that easy!
Not that social networking is all idle chitchat. For example, when a disaster strikes—such as the earthquake and tsunami that devastated parts of Japan on March 11, 2011—many turned to social networks to find out about the welfare of their loved ones.
Clearly, social networking has its advantages.
These days in Network Marketing, customers, and prospects demand to be thoroughly informed about the products, and services they buy. People don’t want meaningless hype — they want solid, factual information before making a purchasing decision.
When marketing on the Internet, small Network Marketing businesses actually have an advantage over the big marketers, because the Internet is a people-to-people medium.
Imagine having your advertising interact with each of your prospects, and your presentation personalized to their particular needs.
Imagine attracting customers from around the world without spending a dime on postage, or long distance phone charges.
Imagine distributing a full color catalog without any printing, or shipping costs, and updating every existing copy whenever you add a new product.
Imagine being able to tell as much — or as little — of your story as your customer, and prospect wants to hear.
Imagine getting a complete, up-to-the-minute product catalog in the hands of anyone who requests it — instantly and automatically.
The Internet makes all this — and much, much more — possible, and it’s here, in place, generating business today. The Internet is such a compelling medium that Network Marketers are flocking to it in great numbers.
THE EXPLOSIVE GROWTH of the Internet is changing the rules of marketing. That is good news for individual Network Marketers, because it levels the playing field. You have just as much access to the millions of people on the Internet. Throughout the world, it is estimated that there are over 50 million network marketing distributors.
To succeed in this new environment, you need to understand some key trends that have emerged, and then develop your marketing strategies accordingly.
Consider this:
The first trend is information overload.
The Internet is vast, and contains more information than anyone can possibly comprehend, and it’s growing at an ever-increasing, geometric rate! That’s on top of all the other info-sources we’re exposed to constantly. People are becoming overwhelmed by the information around them. It is called information overload. If you are not careful you can use up your entire working day by surfing the Internet, and accomplish absolutely nothing.
The key in making use of the Internet successfully is to make your information easily accessible, understandable and valuable.
As the amount of information on the Internet continues to grow, this kind of approach will not be optional — it will be essential. Network Marketers who make product information easily accessible, and usable will attract a loyal following.
Try this:
The Internet makes it possible for you to deliver a customized presentation, based on the unique situation of your specific prospect. For example, software can easily be developed that allows your team to receive instantly a customized, online business opportunity presentation based on their answers to questions about themselves such as their age, the type of lifestyle they lead, the type of job they have now, number of hours they are willing to devote, and whether they like selling. The opportunities for such an approach are limitless.
People relate to, and retain information much better if they are able to interact with it. The need for fast response is one more trend being fueled by the Internet. People online are used to getting information instantly. If someone e-mails a question about your program, you must be ready to reply immediately.
When using the Internet, be sure that your message conveys quality information, and substance such as factual product details, related generic information, useful tips, and hints related to your product or your business opportunity, and other well-organized, relevant information. People aren’t going to come to your Web site just to be sold something. They want to LEARN something, and they are there for the VALUE that you present.
It’s important that your online marketing information also be dynamic. You must provide new material on a regular basis. No one comes back very often to a Website that never changes its substance. So continue to provide interesting, and up-to-date information that your team, and prospects can make use of in their businesses.
Your online presence must be dynamic in another way as well. You must make an ongoing effort to attract people to your site. This involves good old-fashioned Network Marketing, and prospecting, which can be done faster and more extensively online.
What you should know:
View Internet Marketing as a business opportunity presentation.
A well-designed Internet web site is like an opportunity meeting that your prospects can attend in the comfort of their own homes. They can stay, and spend as much time as they want, get their questions answered, and explore your business opportunity on their own terms, without feeling the least bit intimidated.
As you can see, the potential of the Internet is enormous. Make wise use of it!
REPLACE FEAR WITH CURIOSITY Courage Changes Everything.
