Using Twitter to Build Your Online Business

As a direct sales professional, my first taste of success came when I discovered the power of the internet. In less than 90 days, I built a national team in a party plan company and promoted to leadership for the first time after more than a decade in the industry.

Then came social media. Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn and YouTube created an entirely new landscape to reach prospects, build business, and grow my organization.

And I was scared out of my mind.

See, I didn’t “get” the concept of social media. I was socially awkward myself. Plus, with all the confusing rules that most companies have about “internet advertising” I couldn’t figure out a way to navigate the social media landscape without pulling out my hair.

First, I went to MySpace, but with so much spam, and “fake accounts” I couldn’t tell who was real and who was scamming me. So I left.

I set up my twitter account and started following people. I didn’t understand why people were talking about what they ate for breakfast. How’s that beneficial to business?

So then I went to facebook, where it seemed like everybody I knew was “hanging out”. But there were so many applications. People were “poking” me, asking me to be in their “mafia war” or help them work on their garden in “farmville”, and it was maddening. Then, I got sucked into one of those games myself, and found i was spending more time playing than I was building relationships.

And I was too scared to do video. In fact, if it weren’t for a contest that Mark Joyner put together, I probably would never had made a video in the first place. In fact, I didn’t even use a video camera in my first video, just a picture, my voice, and some music I wrote. I ended up with an honorable mention in the contest, and a little less fear about doing video.

But I still wasn’t keen on the idea, so back to twitter I went.

This time, I just watched for a bit. Trying to figure out who I really wanted to connect with. I figured that if I was just talking to myself, I wouldn’t be too productive. So I started following people I wanted to learn more from. I watched what they were doing, who they were talking to and what they were saying to generate followers.

It didn’t take long to figure out I was doing some things wrong – and a few things right. That first year, I earned more than $30,000 because of twitter. Plus, I made some great contacts and new friends. REAL friends, which surprised me. And while I still don’t have fifty gazillion followers on twitter, the relationships I have are high-quality, conversational and engaging. I actually know most of the folks I “follow back” on twitter, and that’s a good feeling. Here are some lessons learned that may help you use twitter to grow your own direct sales business.

Direct Sales Success: Offline Marketing Ideas

In most direct sales circles, I’m known as an online marketing coach. When you’re looking to build a web presence, get into social media or expand your reach online, I’m one of a few “go-to girls” in the Direct Sales industry. It’s how I got my start as a successful direct seller, and online marketing will always be part of my arsenal of marketing tools.

However, if you’re relying solely on marketing your business using online methods, you’re severely limiting yourself.

Sure, it’s possible to build a successful, nearly passive revenue stream using online marketing strategies and techniques. I’ve done it myself and helped hundreds of other people do the same. But it takes more time than it used to, and most direct sellers don’t have the patience or freedom to wait several months for the leads to start coming in.

Not only that, but you’re leaving good money on the table if you ignore offline marketing methods. Outside your regular shows or sales presentations, there are still a variety of effective means to market yourself and your products or services. Consider adding one (or more) of the following to your marketing mix:

You know WHAT to do – but what if you don’t WANT to do it?

Guest post by Teresa Romain

About a month ago, Lisa asked me if I would be willing to write a guest post or newsletter for her this month. I was honored to be asked and willingly agreed – promising I’d have it to her after the 15th.

This week I promised her I’d get it to her on Wednesday – which, in case you’re wondering – just happens to be the day I’m writing this. Why am I so late in getting started? Well – suffice it to say that the past 48 hours have NOT gone according to plan! To say that “life has happened” would be an understatement. And dealing with these “unexpected” – as well as my other responsibilities, coaching calls, etc. – has taken me MUCH longer than I had expected.

All of which leads me to say that, when it came to writing and getting this to Lisa today, I was REALLY tempted to say “I can’t,” “I don’t have time” or “it can wait until tomorrow – Lisa will understand”.

But the fact is that all of those messages that were going through my mind (and, I assume, have gone through yours at one time or another) weren’t REALLY what was going on.

Bottom line, I simply didn’t WANT to.

Article Marketing Online to Promote Your Direct Sales Business

by Janette Stoll

With the recent changes to Google’s algorithm and its impact on search engine rankings, writing a quality article, is becoming more important than ever.
In this article, I’m going to share how you can use article writing to effectively promote your home based business online.

Apart from using article writing as a free resource to attract leads to your site, it’s easy to get started, and enables your articles to be distributed across multiple platforms. This not only gives your business added-exposure, but also positions yourself as a knowledgeable consultant in your niche business.

There are numerous topics in your niche market that can be explored and turned into a well-crafted, original article by you. The key is to choose the topics where you have the most useful knowledge and stick to one topic. Make your writing informal and conversational.

One of the most important aspects of writing is getting your reader’s attention, which isn’t always easy, and inspires them to do something once they’re done reading.
With this in mind, here are some ideas to get your writing process started:

4 Pillars of Direct Sales Success

In all my years as a consultant, coach and trainer, the one thing I’ve NEVER heard anyone say is this:

“When I was a kid, I always dreamed of becoming a direct sales consultant.”

I’m still waiting for that day.

The reality is that nearly every single direct sales professional comes into this industry because it is a means to achieve something else.

• Paying for a child’s college education
• Getting out of debt
• Having some extra spending money, or to just make ends meet
• Earning a few vacations (all expenses paid, of course)

And yet few direct sellers understand that when they sign on the dotted line, they are actually going into business for themselves. You have just started your very own business! Now you have a whole new set of challenges:

Building a Team that Sticks

If you’re a direct seller focused on growing a sales organization, it can be very tempting to sign up anyone that can fog up a mirror.

After all, they’re grown ups and should be able to understand what they’re getting themselves into, right?

Not really.

In this age of info-overload. So many people skim the fine print, and just trust that you’ll provide all the pertinent details. Then, a few months later, when they’re barely treading water, they either get frustrated and start blaming you, or they silently drop off the face of the earth.

It doesn’t have to be that way for you or for them. Instead of signing up anyone with a pulse, focus instead on building a team that sticks. By that, I mean a team that produces consistently over time with relatively stable levels of business activity.

Wait! I hear you rolling your eyes at me. “It’s easier said than done!” you protest. My team is full of “tire kickers” and would-be “kit-nappers” that just haven’t given this business a fair shake.

Allow me to be curt for just a minute as I remind you that when you point your finger at your team, there are three more fingers pointing back at you: