The World is Your Playing Field

Tape: Contacting

Speakers: Charlie & Ann Durso

Stock Number: BWW191 (2 Part Message)

Recording Type: Teaching (Contacting)

Brief Review:

This is a tape to learn how to capitalize on situations where you can meet people to find out if they are interested in making extra money. Charlie first talks about types of lists and then tells how the majority of your business is going to be from cold contacts. He brings up people from the audience to tell about what they did to cold contact people.

About the format: This is the first teaching tape I did, so it is organized differently. I have started to pay closer attention to Quixtar Rules violations this week. That part will be added under a new topic. For this week, such things are included under the comments. Watch out for MLMers seeking to recruit you! Here are some of there tips:

Motivational Aspects:

Contacting is one of the most important parts of building your business

Quixtar is in more than 80 countries and “people are the raw materials for your business.”

8 out of Charlie’s 10 Platinum’s are from cold contacts!

Teaching Points:

3 types of lists:

A List – Relatives and friends; those that are very close to you

B List – Acquaintances; associates; service providers

C List – “Cold Contacts”; strangers

It is the cold contacts that do not know about “the skeletons in your closet” that are the ones you are going to build the business with.

Always show your friends and relatives first, then learn how to cold contact.

A medical salesman tells about his favorite way to contact: He sees people in places such as a grocery store and “mosey up along side them” and he says they look familiar, he asks a few questions about where they live or work, then he says, “That’s very interesting, because I happen to own my own business and I work with a lot of people in your type of profession. You seem to have some very good people skills, very positive attitude, and I’m putting together some business teams for my business, and your exactly the type of person that I am looking for…Do you keep your options open to make some extra money?” He says “‘I think I got a card’ and I make believe that…I have a card, maybe I don’t. ‘Do you happen to have a card on you?’” and he gets one. He also will make sure there is a non-work number on the card. [There is a problem here. This person just taught people to lie. That person was not familiar to him at all and he pretended he was. Let us get this one on the table: If the person was so ‘familiar’ why did he not address this business opportunity at a more appropriate place rather than in the grocery store. The next lie is during the card exchange. I know this game, as this is the area that I studied in the business more than most other people. The reason he flounders with looking for a card is because if the IBO gives a card, the prospect will not bother and will promise to call, but he will not in most cases. Also, the IBO wants a home number so that he does not want to battle a gatekeeper at work, let alone, most calls will be made at a Sunday night team calling, when the prospect will not be in the office. There is a very curious bible verse that speaks of not letting people take you captive with deception…it is so fitting here. Colossians 2:8]

A hairstylist in the Rochester, NY area gives this contacting tip: You first need to clearly define your dream and develop the mentality that you will not be denied, then you need to become genuinely interested in people. People struggle with lack of time and lack of money and this person claims that this business is the cure-all for both issues. He talks to everyone everywhere. He contacts the people that are nice and polite. On those people, he uses FORM, an old business acronym for Family, Occupation, Recreation, and Message or Money. He asks if they are open to make extra money and tells them to be ready to talk when he calls. [At least this person is direct in his approach, though I still believe he is a bit off base. Is he genuinely interested in other people if he is testing them for their politness so he can contact them? I don’t think so. Genuinely interested in someone is talking with someone without any motivation at all. It is clear that the motivation is getting these people in the business.]

An Executive Retail Recruiter gives us her contacting success: She talked to her optometrist about how busy it was and confirmed that getting things done around the house was a challenge. The IBO contacted on the basis of getting products that she is already buying shipped right to the home and making extra money all the while. She scheduled the appointment right there.”

An orthodontist shares his contacting approaches…this person has “Four dental practices and I contact in each one.” Contacts are made through parents, friends, patient themselves. “The professional can gear the conversation where he wants because the ears are on you.” The contact is made after the visit, or right at the end of the visit because he does not like to mix both. [WOW…I could talk a lot about how unethical this is, but I will refrain and leave you to your imagination. I will, however, suggest you check out this link.]

An Environmental Salesman suggests: He has a goal to meet someone new every day. He often uses the ‘dumb question’ routine: “I may know the directions to the next place I am going, but if I am in a convenience store, I will ask them for directions, knowing where I’m going, just to break up some sort of a conversation.” He is interested in talking about anything they want to talk about. I find it curious that he does not count them, but he keeps track of them. “One of the main things that I believe is what we are doing is absolutely the right thing for them, and that’s all I’m trying to do.” [This person also has the affliction of lying, which is talked about above (A medical salesman…) He also has a cult mindset that the end justifies the means, which is why he lies to start a conversation with a stranger because he truly believes that he will help people. Sorry that the statistics tell otherwise.]

A forensic scientist shares his contacting approaches: He contacts at the gas pumps. He pulls up to a pump and checks if the person there is ‘quality’ and if not, he finds another pump. When he lands next to a quality person, he starts asking questions about the person. He gets an evening number so he is not calling people at their place of work. He will even book a meeting there at the pump. [It is sad that people will go out of their way to prospect people to get them in an MLM. Please, on behalf of the gasoline customers around the world: if you want me in your MLM, GIVE UP NOW, if you just want to talk…go for it; I don’t mind.]

A post office employee shares: This man leads with a product, XS energy drink. He says, “Hi, how you doing? How long have you worked here? You seem like a pretty sharp guy. I have a large distribution business, we have a new energy drink…we did 50 million our first seven months. I’m so excited, I can’t even keep up with distribution, would you be interested in making an extra $1500-2000 a month to help me distribute this product?” [This is a deceptive approach as well. The people think that he is delivering energy drinks to stores, etc, but that is not the case. In fact, did you know that there are many rules about how you can market these products? For example, if you want to market XS in a bar: It can not be sold as a carry out, it can not be sold in the can, it can not be mentioned by name on the menu. These are according to the corporation as of January 2004 when I personally called them about how I can market XS in a bar. Next, I would like to point out that making income claims as this person does is in violation of the Quixtar rules. It appears from this contact that the IBO is violating 7.1.2 (page D-32), 8.1.1, and 8.1.6 (page D-35).]

A senior executive for the federal government from Atlanta gives his suggestions: He uses XS as well. He gives prospects an XS and says, “I’ve got exclusive rights to this drink, and I’m looking for people that want to make some money. Do you keep your eyes open?” [We have some of the same problems as above, and also a new one: This IBO does not have exclusive rights to XS, Quixtar does. Since the IBO plan is not a franchise, it is not governed by the territorial restrictions. Therefore, you could have hundreds of people with the ‘exclusive rights’ to XS in a given town.]

An Electrician from Ohio suggests: It is about attitude, confidence, and timing. He contacted a waiter at the end of the meal with the usual looking for sharp energetic people like you to expand my business, are you looking?

Another person uses a nice and direct approach that I don’t have much problem with: Are you looking for extra money? If so, I will be calling a such and such time. He does, they do a 15 minute Qualifying Interview (a short version of the plan), if they like it, he asks for the time either then or later to show the full hour presentation.

Another liar: This person sees someone and strikes up a conversation. He talks about the other person and then says, “We just finished a business meeting and I think I am going to expand my business. I’m not sure where you would fit in, but I have an idea.” He also uses posture with the Open meeting saying that he might be able to work it in for the prospect to be a guest. [This IBO knows exactly where he wants this person, he is just being deceitful to make the prospect think that something real is in the mix.]

A software salesman breaks space and gets close to a person. He makes a comment and looks for a reaction. If he gets a reaction, he knows the person is a prospect. He breaks some conversation and then says that this person looks familiar (and then even states his justification as to why: he has been looking at this person for a few minutes, therefore he is familiar). He gets a number and tells the person that he is going to be out of town for a couple of weeks, and might forget to call the prospect and asks the prospect to call him back. If the person asks questions, send him over to your One Domain website.

Leave with your self-esteem intact.

“The only limit [to a persons income potential] is the limit they put on themselves that’s based upon the size of their dream. However, you got what they need.”

You also don’t need any one person. Charlie talks about a person that would not trust Charlie enough to give him a number, so he took his card back.