Sharing or Selling

If you are considering getting involved in a Relationship Marketing business, there are many things that you need to consider. Check out my post entitled “Finding the right Relationship Marketing Company.” 

When writing articles, I usually try to see things from the opposing opinions, however on this post I am going to be a little more transparent on my position regarding what I think gains quick traction in the market place.  

There is a lot of noise out there… 

on what is the best opportunity to get involved with. You will hear, “this is a ground floor opportunity” or “We have this new technology product” etc.

Though these are great things to consider, keep in mind that just because it may be ground floor doesn’t mean it’s going to be accepted by the market. The question that we need to ask is does the market need and want what we are offering?  A good way to test this might be to ask the question, is what we are offering the market a consumable product or service that people are already using. And does our product or service solve a problem or offer a benefit that the other companies in this space are not providing? 

There are many more questions one could ask regarding a product or service driven model. The two questions above are meant to get you on the right track. 

I am often asked my opinion on Referral Marketing companies that offer technology type products. Things like Cell phones, Internet services etc. Though they do fall into the category of products that people already use, they do have their challenges.

First and foremost, one needs to understand the distribution model that they are involved in.Refferal Marketing, (One of the many names) is typically made up of everyday people. They are your neighbors, friends, colleagues etc. In other words, they are not necessarily seasoned marketers or technically minded. 

Technology products are usually best left in the hands of seasoned sales people who have an interest and natural business acumen towards technology. 

If you are trying to build a sales team, then marketing a technology product would be fine. However, if your goal is to create fast growth with a large network of people, you would be more apt to find this with a product or service that people can explain very easily. The more training and explanation it takes to get your product into the market, the longer it’s going to take to gain traction.  The last thing to consider about a technology model is that technology is not only extremely competitive, but it can become obsolete very quickly. Things that typically took 10 years to develop are now happening in a couple of years. Every time there is a change, there is a new learning curve.  

Ask yourself the question. Can a brand new person who just joined your team talk about this product or service with confidence? Will the person they are sharing  with have a ton of questions that your new associate will not be able to confidently answer?

If you look at some of the fastest growing companies out there today, they have a product or service that is SIMPLE to share and already has market acceptance. In other words, people are already familiar with it or using it. Your job is simply to show them that you are offering a better solution or better value.

Here is a real bonus tip… 

If you can find a product that people are already using, then there is no need to SELL or educate them on the value of the product.

And the best test of all… Can Grandma talk to her friends about it?