Followups are Critical to your Success

Many people don't realize the crucial nature of the followup process. Lack of followup with prospects and new recruits may be a primary reason behind your failure to do better with MLM. Let's find out what you can do about it.

Marketing studies show that something like 80% of sales are made after the fifth contact with the prospect. Those same studies show that fewer than 20% of sales are made on the first contact. Those facts alone should convince you of the importance of doing followups.

Many affiliate program managers will tell you that the largest number of "dropouts" occur in the first few weeks of joining the program. A "dropout" might be somebody who actually resigns, or they may just forget about the program and not pursue their membership.

So how do we do those followups? I'd do them using the same method that you used to gain the contact in the first place. If your prospect was reached by phone, call them back and ask if they have any questions. If they were on a mailing or emailing list, make sure you are prepared to send them more than five (lots more!) communications, and make sure that you give them an address or phone number so they can contact you with questions.

You also need to follow up with your new members in your downline. Those first few weeks are critical, because it sets in their mind an attitude about whether or not you will be available and helpful. They may also need a little prodding to actually dive into the program materials and learn about what they can do with it.

Some people are probably reluctant to have too much contact with their recruits, or to offer too much help, for fear they'll end up indundated with calls and requests for help. Actually, it rarely works that way.

I'm reminding of a Psychology experiment that was well-publicized about twenty or thirty years ago. Participants in this study were put into a room where they were inundated with noise for a period of time. Half of them were given a "panic button" they could push to terminate the experiment, while the other half were not. The result was that the group that had the "panic button" available rated the experience as having been far less stressful, even though none of them ever actually pushed the button! The mere perception that they had some control and someone to turn to was sufficient to ease their stress.

Think about that experiment the next time you're reluctant to follow up with a prospect, or offer your assistance to anyone in your downline. Besides, you should welcome calls from your downline members and prospects. The prospects who call you are expressing serious interest, and the downline members who keep in touch are obviously serious about their business.

The other thing that's important to remember about following up with your downline is that your coaching of them will determine how they, in turn, coach their own downlines. The most successful MLM teams use a simple business system, and teach it to all their new recruits, so that there will be duplication of the method.