Financial freedom - the freedom to QUIT working and stay quit
This blog is about financial freedom. How to generate passive income which gives you the freedom to have the life of your dreams. It is about being able to fire your boss, have the freedom not to work and to do whatever you want to. A concept alien to 99% of the world today.
What do I mean about financial freedom. I mean the ability to NOT WORK for 12 months of the year EVERY YEAR and STILL have cash flow. I mean having a life of wellbeing and health and HAPPINESS. I mean having freedom - the AMWAY way.
Let me tell you a story. I'm sure most of my readers have all in some way or other been impacted by this company, whether from signing up to be in business for themselves or been recruited to it or been sold goods from people in the business.
I became an Amway business owner several years after having tried it 2 other times in the past - Once in the 80s when the company was in its infancy, again about a decade later, at a time when my career was taking off and I wasn't interested in anything other than the love of my life and major passion - my career. I can relate to the experiences that so many of you have had. But that is why I feel it is so important to write this story.
I am a very successful physician and business owner. I make a six-figure salary and command the respect of my peers. I conduct seminars on Health, Nutrition and Wellness and have a small consulting business in Health and Wellness. I have a house on the beach and vacations with my kids are spent skiing, rock climbing, caving. I have every imaginable letter after my name educationally, and i am proud to say that I AM AN AMWAY BUSINESS OWNER. Why you might wonder do I say this...the simple answer is...PASSIVE INCOME.
A couple of years ago, I encountered a colleague who had started up as an Amway independent business owner. She invited me to a preview...I muttered and groaned but as a friend, I decided to humor her and go with her to the business preview.
It turned out to be the best thing I'd ever done...
The company I was now looking at was a company that had come into it's own and grown and learnt from its mistakes. The business model was impeccable, the training and support it gave to its members was unparalleled and the product range and range of services was unbelievable.
I signed up as an independent business owner and have been utilizing my business connections ever since with GREAT SATISFACTION!!! The success I achieved as an independent business owner and the support I received to achieve those goals from others in the business was unlike ANY other place I'd ever worked and the experience has been phenomenal. My first realization that I was going to be financially FREE came when I received my $40K bonus check. Imagine getting a $40K check in the mail for working 15h a month aside from my regular career. That was almost 15% of my current income from my career in which I work in excess of 100hrs A WEEK - (including nights and weekends) AND CANT WALK AWAY FROM without losing ALL my income and God forbid, I get sick. As the checks have gotten larger, I am close to realizing my goal of early retirement from medicine and the luxury of concentrating on my consulting business. I have gained passive lifetime income and this journey has only taken 2 years.
Being someone who is a cynic at heart and also very left-brained in my behavior (being a scientist/researcher and business person ), I set out to try to find out what the problem was and to try to understand why it is so difficult to teach these concepts to people. I looked at the differences between the Amway model and other businesses and I discovered several KEY CONCEPTs that I condensed into a series of lessons which I discuss here today. Today, I am so passionate about this business that my son who is in Uni and wants to become a plastic surgeon is an AMWAY IBO. I will tell you why. He is looking at spending the next 15 years without an income, training to work in a career that will demand he work over 100h a week. Lots of prestige but can he walk away from that job and still make that income??? Can he travel for 4 months without worrying about losing his income and lifestyle in that career? And what of the time to be spent in training - 4 years of college, 4 years of med school and 5-7 years in training to become a plastic surgeon...what is he going to live on??? How does he recapture all that lost opportunity for generating an income...and what of the uncertain future for physicians today - a world of lawsuits, mistrust and ever more onerous regulation...
I know you are all patiently waiting to comment, so let me explain what to me is the fundamental problem that I see with Amway - BAD PRESS and BAD HISTORY...it is interesting that anytime I talk to anyone about it, the first thing they say is that ..."that is not Amway is it?" So I ask them, "What is Amway to you?" - Inevitably, they tell me what I already know about the experiences of 20-odd years ago...most often, once I sit down with them and explain about the "NEW" Amway, they are sold...and my business is BOOMING!!! I am on-track and next year I expect to be able to quit practicing medicine and concentrate on my passion - my consulting business in Health and Nutrition and getting my pilot's license and buying myself a plane. The boat has already been ordered using PASSIVE INCOME.
So let me tell you a few facts about the "New Amway".
FACT 1 - Amway is a 6 billion dollar company that has been in business over 30 years now and is expected to exceed 20 billion by the year 2010 in revenues.
FACT 2 - The Amway business model is studied in business school as THE MODEL for direct marketing businesses.
FACT 3 - The VAST number of products and services available from Amway today rival MOST major corporate brands. They have unique products among the TOP 5 in trend industries in the market today in Nutrition, Beauty, Household detergents, and THE #1 Branded Air and Water purifiers on the market today. Their Nutriway brand nutritional supplements have been 70 years on the market and are in the TOP 3 of nutritional supplements in the market today. Their Artistry beauty products are ranked with Lancome and Estee Lauder among the TOP 5 worldwide brands. I invite ANYONE to try to find better laundry and bath/kitchen cleansers on the market today than their SA-8 detergent and LOC product range which in addition to being the most cost effective cleansers I have found TO DATE, are environmentally friendly. They have a make up range from Eddie Funkhouser and jewelry by Emma Page, to name a few of their products.
FACT 4 - Using their training system developed over the last 10 years, IBOs are CERTAIN to achieve an income over 100K Within 3 YEARS and this has been proven many times over...irrespective of background, education and training. I have met farmers with NO EDUCATION, living UNBELIEVABLE lifestyles in this business.
FACT 5 - The Amway business model has actually condensed several components of the way MAJOR corporations do business into a streamlined model...The difference - They utilize only direct marketing as a way to do business and it is THIS DIFFERENCE which makes doing business the AMWAY way so unique.
FACT 6 - They choose not to spend money in advertising, preferring instead to reward successful IBOs with lavish trips and whopping checks - in essence incentivizing their IBOS to achieve high earnings. Imagine getting 3 all expenses paid trips per year to the most exotic locations including first class tickets for the whole family, staying at 5-star hotels, meeting celebrities, IN ADDITION TO getting stupendous bonus checks for achieving a certain level of business. How many businesses today do that for achieving business goals.
FACT 7 - Unlike in major corporations or successful businesses, once an IBO builds an Amway empire, the income generated from the business is COMPLETELY PASSIVE income that requires NO FURTHER EFFORT to continue to generate income AND can be walked away from but keeps generating income.
FACT 8 - The business can be willed to offspring who will continue to reap the benefits of their parents efforts without lifting a finger in the business if they choose not to.
So, if this business is so good, what has led to such a negative general opinion of the Amway business opportunity and why are there so many people who have had such bad experiences with this company...First of all, I will tell you what has been wrong in the past and what is RIGHT with the company today.
20+ years ago when Amway started. They began, as most US companies do with a small product range - the detergent/soap. They liked the direct marketing model and borrowing a well known idea from sales, did their recruiting via networking.
1. For anyone who has worked in telemarketing, sales, financial services or real estate, you will recognize the idea. Get a list of people who may be candidates for your product/service, start with warm prospects and then go on to colder prospects...SELL, SELL, SELL and use your network to get new prospects to generate more sales. Many of you work in such companies today for a salary. Back then as an Amway distributor, you had to buy the product and try to move it...most of us hit up friends and family until everyone was sick and tired of hearing from us. The product wasn't that different from other products on the market and family got very tired of having to buy the "Amway soap" to support our fledgling attempts at self employment. And you were on your own to develop that network. Your recruiter was so busy trying to develop his network, you got no support. Enthusiasm fizzled and disappointment became commonplace. Does this sound familiar to anyone!!!
2. Marketing had not been impacted by the Internet revolution. People bought at retail outlets. Buying wholesale was an idea ahead of its time. Since then, the Internet has come into its own. Online sales are routine. Companies like Costco and Sam's are utilizing the buying power of conglomerate concept to purchase in bulk returning value to consumers. People are buying from far off places and SELLING is undergoing a revolution. Back then, people felt exploited, they felt they had to buy something they didn't want or risk disappointing you. Suddenly, you became a pariah to family...how traumatic!
3. Do any of you own a business. Do you tell family and friends about the business and try to convince them to utilize your service or product instead of your competitors? Most of my business as a physician comes from friends, business associates, and referrals from satisfied patients. That is the SAME idea behind the Amway dreaded list of friends & family. To learn how to approach clients, it is easier to fumble in front of people who care about you...you learn slowly to handle rejections and perfect your selling style. You learn what works and doesnt and learn how to do it right BEFORE expanding your network to a colder, less gentle general population. But the simple fact is ALL SALES is done on the basis of lists. Amway is not unique.
4. Are there ANY of you who when you find a great product or service DOES NOT WANT to tell people you know? That was the idea behind "talking about the product". You talk about things you believe in. Would you buy a product from me I wouldn't use myself??? Would you utilize a service I don't use? If you are selling something you don't use, how do you expect people to believe in the product/service?
Does any of this sound familiar to you. This was what went wrong with Amway. People went out aggressively recruiting people to buy soap, sign up to Amway and there was nothing special, nothing unique to make people WANT to USE these products and this represented an additional purchase, a change in their usual buying habits. Amway distributors bought product to sell, they sold aggressively, focused ONLY on moving product, not meeting people's real needs and when they couldn't, were left with huge inventory they couldn't recover. Distributors had no support in trying to develop a network and struggled alone with the disappointments of trying to jumpstart the business in isolation. People's experiences and disappointments became the recurring theme and has been the shadow under which the company lived. Couple this with unscrupulous distributors recruiting aggressively using hard sell tactics and you had the formula for disappoinment - this is the experience of most people who did business under the old model.
As the years rolled on, Amway quietly grew and underwent a revolution. People who could handle the rejections and the deridement continued to sell the product and recruit people. Like Mary Kay, Avon and others, the company grew, evolved and made ordinary people wealthy. As they learnt what worked and what didn't, Amway modified the business, refining the direct selling model and perfecting it. The company, as it grew in sales revenue, bought out other companies, bringing a depth and breadth to its product range. It developed research labs, hired research scientists and put together a scientific advisory commitee in the major trend industries and committed itself to a SINGLE CONCEPT... whatever product it represented HAD TO BE THE BEST product out there and they were going to expand into the growth industries of the 21st century and beyond. They refined their marketing practices, training techniques and put procedures in place to protect IBOs from unscrupulous recruitment activities. Today, Amway has one of the BEST training programs in industry and its IBOs are very satisfied. Does that mean everyone who signs up is successful. Of course not! Is there any business that can guarantee success to EVERYONE...your efforts determine your success and don't let anyone tell you different. As a fledgling blogger, I was just reading a blog post today that recommended posting 6 times a day to be a successful blogger to achieve financial freedom...R U KIDDING??? You'll be lucky to get one blog from me a week. Are there people desperate enough for financial freedom to try...YES and they will have something to show for it.
The company guarantees you ONE THING and ONE THING only. If you are committed to their training program and follow it faithfully and do the steps as laid out, YOU WILL BE SUCCESSFUL. They have the product range, the quality to ensure that whichever niche you decide to specialize in, you will be able to confidently market your products KNOWING that your products will meet consumer expectations AND that its products will develop a faithful consumer base.
Recruitment is still the same...that is the nature of sales...you still start by making "THE LIST" and have to be willing to go out and seek new markets and sponsor new IBOs. So how is this different. Well, rather than the shotgun approach of trying to get "everyone" to sign up. You look for people who are looking for financial freedom and are willing to learn a new way of doing things. People who are happy in their current situation are not a candidate for this business. What Amway offers is a way to be free for people who are looking...no point recruiting any old body just to make an invisible quota. The truism that has proven itself again and again is that if you approach 15 people a month for a year, in 3 years, you will be free to NEVER WORK AGAIN - the 80-20 rule still applies. Can any of you in sales fields say the same in your business? Imagine as a stockbroker, real estate agent or insurance broker ONLY talking to 15 people a month and maintaining a 6 figure salary off for that work thereafter. As a physician, I see 40 people a day 5 days a week AND do 2 weekends on call in 4, just to stay afloat. Recruit quality committed people and don't waste your time trying to preach to people who don't want what you have to offer. If they cant see how this business can help them, you don't need to try to convince them...they won't do the work AND they will blame you AND the business when it doesnt work.
Use the products - it is your business...the more of your own business products you use, you get money back. It's a no brainer - why buy retail, I buy products from my business. As I said, I invite you to try to find better products...in fact, I haven't bought laundry detergent or dishwashing liquid in a year. The Amway concentrate products require so little amounts to use for cleaning that a 3kg box of detergent and a 1L bottle of dishwashing liquid has lasted my family 1 year. A tablespoon of the laundry detergent does a full laundry load and less than a teaspoon of the dishwashing liquid will do a full load of dirty dishes. Stains such as oil, grease, grass, blood come out EASILY. I use Nutriway supplements for my family - they are the best in the market - do your research www.Nutrilite.com The protein bars and weight loss supplements are unbelievable. Their Healthpointe program for weight loss will help you lose 10kg in 1 wk, 30kg in 4mos and more importantly, KEEP THE WEIGHT OFF. The program was licensed from a well known spa that celebrities go to and modified by Amway scientists using SOUND SCIENCE. I wholeheartedly recommend the products to friends, acquaintances and patients...They work, they are GREAT QUALITY and well worth the money. The Artistry range of skin care products are incredible. I have a brisk business in that alone as well as the supplements which I recommend wholeheartedly. I had a patient recently who had a major accident - a bulldozer fell on him. Incredibly, he survived but the damage to his head was immense and he lost his eyesight. He saw an ophthalmologist who told him the optic nerves had died and he was going to be 100% blind (he's 38). I recommended one of the Nutriway supplements..when he saw his ophthalmologist 2 months later, the nerves had regenerated slightly allowing him to have some vision. Today, he can live independently using that small amount of vision to get around and just got married. He still doesnt see perfectly but at least has some vision. Amway has nutritionists and naturopaths who can help advise you in recommending products to help people in this way.
The idea behind the new Amway marketing model is simple...rather than getting people to change their buying habits, Amway simply has products they use anyway. IBOs and new customers simply buy the same products they would buy from the retail store using their "anyway money" from Amway online with home delivery. No extra spending needed. With an iron-clad 90 day money back guarantee, if you decide you don't like the product, send it back irrespective of however much of it you have used and you get your money back, NO QUESTIONS ASKED...
How is the training done.. several ways...in addition to tapes/CDs/Books which teach a variety of skills and teach you to think and act using principles of successful people, frequent business previews and weekend seminars, at which intensive marketing training is given are held in most major cities worldwide. IBOs and their clients meet the top performers who help you develop your business and answer questions. You are not alone in developing your network of customers and sponsored IBOs. Everyone up the line from you is willing to help you sort out whatever difficulties you encounter in trying to grow your business. I have had people from well up the network fly 4h to come help me do presentations...(When was the last time you could call on your BOSS or CEO to help you close a sale or sit down with you to discuss what your difficulties were in trying to develop new leads?) This is FREE HELP. There is NO financial incentive and all they care about is developing your network so you can be achieve your goals. It is your business and if you are willing to work hard at it, they are willing to help you succeed.
I have been to many business meetings and I can say that I have never been to a meeting where I have met SO MANY PEOPLE interested and excited in helping me achieve MY GOALS and supportive of my small AND large successes as I have encountered at business previews and seminars through this company.
In addition, as an IBO, utilizing the buying power of the tens of thousands of IBOs worldwide, you can purchase pretty much ANY product at below market rates due to the BUYING POWER of the Amway corporation. I buy home and contents insurance at below market rates, my car rentals are done through the business, my hotel rates are 1/2 price, you can obtain mortgages, credit cards, auto loan financing through your business at negotiated rates below market price. You can buy broadband, telephone and cell phone services...the list is endless and the opportunities are unbelievable and you get money back for doing all this "anyway money" spending through the company.
The result!!! A 21st century business that can set you free and let you achieve your dreams, whatever they may be. Furthermore, if you are interested in health, nutrition, weight loss, beauty products, jewelry, if you want household products that exceed expectations, you cannot go wrong with Amway products and that is guaranteed.
There is no substitute for self education. If you are sick and tired of a life spent working, no time for your kids, stress over finances and ill health, I STRONGLY recommend looking again at Amway as a business opportunity. Forget what you've seen before, heard before, experienced before. Do anything else you want but I promise, no matter how busy you have, it will be the best 15h a month you have ever spent and I look forward to seeing you and hearing your story on one of our international events.
One caveat, make sure you join a good team...unscrupulous recruiters ARE DANGEROUS to the health of your business. Do the research and talk to me if you want more information...I will be happy to help you achieve your goals whether you sign up with me or someone else. At the very least, check out the website, buy some products. I guarantee you it will be the best money you have EVER SPENT.
Please comment on this post. I look forward to hearing from all of you. Wishing you well in your search for financial freedom. Live passionately and fearlessly...you have but one life and too soon, it ends!
What do I mean about financial freedom. I mean the ability to NOT WORK for 12 months of the year EVERY YEAR and STILL have cash flow. I mean having a life of wellbeing and health and HAPPINESS. I mean having freedom - the AMWAY way.
Let me tell you a story. I'm sure most of my readers have all in some way or other been impacted by this company, whether from signing up to be in business for themselves or been recruited to it or been sold goods from people in the business.
I became an Amway business owner several years after having tried it 2 other times in the past - Once in the 80s when the company was in its infancy, again about a decade later, at a time when my career was taking off and I wasn't interested in anything other than the love of my life and major passion - my career. I can relate to the experiences that so many of you have had. But that is why I feel it is so important to write this story.
I am a very successful physician and business owner. I make a six-figure salary and command the respect of my peers. I conduct seminars on Health, Nutrition and Wellness and have a small consulting business in Health and Wellness. I have a house on the beach and vacations with my kids are spent skiing, rock climbing, caving. I have every imaginable letter after my name educationally, and i am proud to say that I AM AN AMWAY BUSINESS OWNER. Why you might wonder do I say this...the simple answer is...PASSIVE INCOME.
A couple of years ago, I encountered a colleague who had started up as an Amway independent business owner. She invited me to a preview...I muttered and groaned but as a friend, I decided to humor her and go with her to the business preview.
It turned out to be the best thing I'd ever done...
The company I was now looking at was a company that had come into it's own and grown and learnt from its mistakes. The business model was impeccable, the training and support it gave to its members was unparalleled and the product range and range of services was unbelievable.
I signed up as an independent business owner and have been utilizing my business connections ever since with GREAT SATISFACTION!!! The success I achieved as an independent business owner and the support I received to achieve those goals from others in the business was unlike ANY other place I'd ever worked and the experience has been phenomenal. My first realization that I was going to be financially FREE came when I received my $40K bonus check. Imagine getting a $40K check in the mail for working 15h a month aside from my regular career. That was almost 15% of my current income from my career in which I work in excess of 100hrs A WEEK - (including nights and weekends) AND CANT WALK AWAY FROM without losing ALL my income and God forbid, I get sick. As the checks have gotten larger, I am close to realizing my goal of early retirement from medicine and the luxury of concentrating on my consulting business. I have gained passive lifetime income and this journey has only taken 2 years.
Being someone who is a cynic at heart and also very left-brained in my behavior (being a scientist/researcher and business person ), I set out to try to find out what the problem was and to try to understand why it is so difficult to teach these concepts to people. I looked at the differences between the Amway model and other businesses and I discovered several KEY CONCEPTs that I condensed into a series of lessons which I discuss here today. Today, I am so passionate about this business that my son who is in Uni and wants to become a plastic surgeon is an AMWAY IBO. I will tell you why. He is looking at spending the next 15 years without an income, training to work in a career that will demand he work over 100h a week. Lots of prestige but can he walk away from that job and still make that income??? Can he travel for 4 months without worrying about losing his income and lifestyle in that career? And what of the time to be spent in training - 4 years of college, 4 years of med school and 5-7 years in training to become a plastic surgeon...what is he going to live on??? How does he recapture all that lost opportunity for generating an income...and what of the uncertain future for physicians today - a world of lawsuits, mistrust and ever more onerous regulation...
I know you are all patiently waiting to comment, so let me explain what to me is the fundamental problem that I see with Amway - BAD PRESS and BAD HISTORY...it is interesting that anytime I talk to anyone about it, the first thing they say is that ..."that is not Amway is it?" So I ask them, "What is Amway to you?" - Inevitably, they tell me what I already know about the experiences of 20-odd years ago...most often, once I sit down with them and explain about the "NEW" Amway, they are sold...and my business is BOOMING!!! I am on-track and next year I expect to be able to quit practicing medicine and concentrate on my passion - my consulting business in Health and Nutrition and getting my pilot's license and buying myself a plane. The boat has already been ordered using PASSIVE INCOME.
So let me tell you a few facts about the "New Amway".
FACT 1 - Amway is a 6 billion dollar company that has been in business over 30 years now and is expected to exceed 20 billion by the year 2010 in revenues.
FACT 2 - The Amway business model is studied in business school as THE MODEL for direct marketing businesses.
FACT 3 - The VAST number of products and services available from Amway today rival MOST major corporate brands. They have unique products among the TOP 5 in trend industries in the market today in Nutrition, Beauty, Household detergents, and THE #1 Branded Air and Water purifiers on the market today. Their Nutriway brand nutritional supplements have been 70 years on the market and are in the TOP 3 of nutritional supplements in the market today. Their Artistry beauty products are ranked with Lancome and Estee Lauder among the TOP 5 worldwide brands. I invite ANYONE to try to find better laundry and bath/kitchen cleansers on the market today than their SA-8 detergent and LOC product range which in addition to being the most cost effective cleansers I have found TO DATE, are environmentally friendly. They have a make up range from Eddie Funkhouser and jewelry by Emma Page, to name a few of their products.
FACT 4 - Using their training system developed over the last 10 years, IBOs are CERTAIN to achieve an income over 100K Within 3 YEARS and this has been proven many times over...irrespective of background, education and training. I have met farmers with NO EDUCATION, living UNBELIEVABLE lifestyles in this business.
FACT 5 - The Amway business model has actually condensed several components of the way MAJOR corporations do business into a streamlined model...The difference - They utilize only direct marketing as a way to do business and it is THIS DIFFERENCE which makes doing business the AMWAY way so unique.
FACT 6 - They choose not to spend money in advertising, preferring instead to reward successful IBOs with lavish trips and whopping checks - in essence incentivizing their IBOS to achieve high earnings. Imagine getting 3 all expenses paid trips per year to the most exotic locations including first class tickets for the whole family, staying at 5-star hotels, meeting celebrities, IN ADDITION TO getting stupendous bonus checks for achieving a certain level of business. How many businesses today do that for achieving business goals.
FACT 7 - Unlike in major corporations or successful businesses, once an IBO builds an Amway empire, the income generated from the business is COMPLETELY PASSIVE income that requires NO FURTHER EFFORT to continue to generate income AND can be walked away from but keeps generating income.
FACT 8 - The business can be willed to offspring who will continue to reap the benefits of their parents efforts without lifting a finger in the business if they choose not to.
So, if this business is so good, what has led to such a negative general opinion of the Amway business opportunity and why are there so many people who have had such bad experiences with this company...First of all, I will tell you what has been wrong in the past and what is RIGHT with the company today.
20+ years ago when Amway started. They began, as most US companies do with a small product range - the detergent/soap. They liked the direct marketing model and borrowing a well known idea from sales, did their recruiting via networking.
1. For anyone who has worked in telemarketing, sales, financial services or real estate, you will recognize the idea. Get a list of people who may be candidates for your product/service, start with warm prospects and then go on to colder prospects...SELL, SELL, SELL and use your network to get new prospects to generate more sales. Many of you work in such companies today for a salary. Back then as an Amway distributor, you had to buy the product and try to move it...most of us hit up friends and family until everyone was sick and tired of hearing from us. The product wasn't that different from other products on the market and family got very tired of having to buy the "Amway soap" to support our fledgling attempts at self employment. And you were on your own to develop that network. Your recruiter was so busy trying to develop his network, you got no support. Enthusiasm fizzled and disappointment became commonplace. Does this sound familiar to anyone!!!
2. Marketing had not been impacted by the Internet revolution. People bought at retail outlets. Buying wholesale was an idea ahead of its time. Since then, the Internet has come into its own. Online sales are routine. Companies like Costco and Sam's are utilizing the buying power of conglomerate concept to purchase in bulk returning value to consumers. People are buying from far off places and SELLING is undergoing a revolution. Back then, people felt exploited, they felt they had to buy something they didn't want or risk disappointing you. Suddenly, you became a pariah to family...how traumatic!
3. Do any of you own a business. Do you tell family and friends about the business and try to convince them to utilize your service or product instead of your competitors? Most of my business as a physician comes from friends, business associates, and referrals from satisfied patients. That is the SAME idea behind the Amway dreaded list of friends & family. To learn how to approach clients, it is easier to fumble in front of people who care about you...you learn slowly to handle rejections and perfect your selling style. You learn what works and doesnt and learn how to do it right BEFORE expanding your network to a colder, less gentle general population. But the simple fact is ALL SALES is done on the basis of lists. Amway is not unique.
4. Are there ANY of you who when you find a great product or service DOES NOT WANT to tell people you know? That was the idea behind "talking about the product". You talk about things you believe in. Would you buy a product from me I wouldn't use myself??? Would you utilize a service I don't use? If you are selling something you don't use, how do you expect people to believe in the product/service?
Does any of this sound familiar to you. This was what went wrong with Amway. People went out aggressively recruiting people to buy soap, sign up to Amway and there was nothing special, nothing unique to make people WANT to USE these products and this represented an additional purchase, a change in their usual buying habits. Amway distributors bought product to sell, they sold aggressively, focused ONLY on moving product, not meeting people's real needs and when they couldn't, were left with huge inventory they couldn't recover. Distributors had no support in trying to develop a network and struggled alone with the disappointments of trying to jumpstart the business in isolation. People's experiences and disappointments became the recurring theme and has been the shadow under which the company lived. Couple this with unscrupulous distributors recruiting aggressively using hard sell tactics and you had the formula for disappoinment - this is the experience of most people who did business under the old model.
As the years rolled on, Amway quietly grew and underwent a revolution. People who could handle the rejections and the deridement continued to sell the product and recruit people. Like Mary Kay, Avon and others, the company grew, evolved and made ordinary people wealthy. As they learnt what worked and what didn't, Amway modified the business, refining the direct selling model and perfecting it. The company, as it grew in sales revenue, bought out other companies, bringing a depth and breadth to its product range. It developed research labs, hired research scientists and put together a scientific advisory commitee in the major trend industries and committed itself to a SINGLE CONCEPT... whatever product it represented HAD TO BE THE BEST product out there and they were going to expand into the growth industries of the 21st century and beyond. They refined their marketing practices, training techniques and put procedures in place to protect IBOs from unscrupulous recruitment activities. Today, Amway has one of the BEST training programs in industry and its IBOs are very satisfied. Does that mean everyone who signs up is successful. Of course not! Is there any business that can guarantee success to EVERYONE...your efforts determine your success and don't let anyone tell you different. As a fledgling blogger, I was just reading a blog post today that recommended posting 6 times a day to be a successful blogger to achieve financial freedom...R U KIDDING??? You'll be lucky to get one blog from me a week. Are there people desperate enough for financial freedom to try...YES and they will have something to show for it.
The company guarantees you ONE THING and ONE THING only. If you are committed to their training program and follow it faithfully and do the steps as laid out, YOU WILL BE SUCCESSFUL. They have the product range, the quality to ensure that whichever niche you decide to specialize in, you will be able to confidently market your products KNOWING that your products will meet consumer expectations AND that its products will develop a faithful consumer base.
Recruitment is still the same...that is the nature of sales...you still start by making "THE LIST" and have to be willing to go out and seek new markets and sponsor new IBOs. So how is this different. Well, rather than the shotgun approach of trying to get "everyone" to sign up. You look for people who are looking for financial freedom and are willing to learn a new way of doing things. People who are happy in their current situation are not a candidate for this business. What Amway offers is a way to be free for people who are looking...no point recruiting any old body just to make an invisible quota. The truism that has proven itself again and again is that if you approach 15 people a month for a year, in 3 years, you will be free to NEVER WORK AGAIN - the 80-20 rule still applies. Can any of you in sales fields say the same in your business? Imagine as a stockbroker, real estate agent or insurance broker ONLY talking to 15 people a month and maintaining a 6 figure salary off for that work thereafter. As a physician, I see 40 people a day 5 days a week AND do 2 weekends on call in 4, just to stay afloat. Recruit quality committed people and don't waste your time trying to preach to people who don't want what you have to offer. If they cant see how this business can help them, you don't need to try to convince them...they won't do the work AND they will blame you AND the business when it doesnt work.
Use the products - it is your business...the more of your own business products you use, you get money back. It's a no brainer - why buy retail, I buy products from my business. As I said, I invite you to try to find better products...in fact, I haven't bought laundry detergent or dishwashing liquid in a year. The Amway concentrate products require so little amounts to use for cleaning that a 3kg box of detergent and a 1L bottle of dishwashing liquid has lasted my family 1 year. A tablespoon of the laundry detergent does a full laundry load and less than a teaspoon of the dishwashing liquid will do a full load of dirty dishes. Stains such as oil, grease, grass, blood come out EASILY. I use Nutriway supplements for my family - they are the best in the market - do your research www.Nutrilite.com The protein bars and weight loss supplements are unbelievable. Their Healthpointe program for weight loss will help you lose 10kg in 1 wk, 30kg in 4mos and more importantly, KEEP THE WEIGHT OFF. The program was licensed from a well known spa that celebrities go to and modified by Amway scientists using SOUND SCIENCE. I wholeheartedly recommend the products to friends, acquaintances and patients...They work, they are GREAT QUALITY and well worth the money. The Artistry range of skin care products are incredible. I have a brisk business in that alone as well as the supplements which I recommend wholeheartedly. I had a patient recently who had a major accident - a bulldozer fell on him. Incredibly, he survived but the damage to his head was immense and he lost his eyesight. He saw an ophthalmologist who told him the optic nerves had died and he was going to be 100% blind (he's 38). I recommended one of the Nutriway supplements..when he saw his ophthalmologist 2 months later, the nerves had regenerated slightly allowing him to have some vision. Today, he can live independently using that small amount of vision to get around and just got married. He still doesnt see perfectly but at least has some vision. Amway has nutritionists and naturopaths who can help advise you in recommending products to help people in this way.
The idea behind the new Amway marketing model is simple...rather than getting people to change their buying habits, Amway simply has products they use anyway. IBOs and new customers simply buy the same products they would buy from the retail store using their "anyway money" from Amway online with home delivery. No extra spending needed. With an iron-clad 90 day money back guarantee, if you decide you don't like the product, send it back irrespective of however much of it you have used and you get your money back, NO QUESTIONS ASKED...
How is the training done.. several ways...in addition to tapes/CDs/Books which teach a variety of skills and teach you to think and act using principles of successful people, frequent business previews and weekend seminars, at which intensive marketing training is given are held in most major cities worldwide. IBOs and their clients meet the top performers who help you develop your business and answer questions. You are not alone in developing your network of customers and sponsored IBOs. Everyone up the line from you is willing to help you sort out whatever difficulties you encounter in trying to grow your business. I have had people from well up the network fly 4h to come help me do presentations...(When was the last time you could call on your BOSS or CEO to help you close a sale or sit down with you to discuss what your difficulties were in trying to develop new leads?) This is FREE HELP. There is NO financial incentive and all they care about is developing your network so you can be achieve your goals. It is your business and if you are willing to work hard at it, they are willing to help you succeed.
I have been to many business meetings and I can say that I have never been to a meeting where I have met SO MANY PEOPLE interested and excited in helping me achieve MY GOALS and supportive of my small AND large successes as I have encountered at business previews and seminars through this company.
In addition, as an IBO, utilizing the buying power of the tens of thousands of IBOs worldwide, you can purchase pretty much ANY product at below market rates due to the BUYING POWER of the Amway corporation. I buy home and contents insurance at below market rates, my car rentals are done through the business, my hotel rates are 1/2 price, you can obtain mortgages, credit cards, auto loan financing through your business at negotiated rates below market price. You can buy broadband, telephone and cell phone services...the list is endless and the opportunities are unbelievable and you get money back for doing all this "anyway money" spending through the company.
The result!!! A 21st century business that can set you free and let you achieve your dreams, whatever they may be. Furthermore, if you are interested in health, nutrition, weight loss, beauty products, jewelry, if you want household products that exceed expectations, you cannot go wrong with Amway products and that is guaranteed.
There is no substitute for self education. If you are sick and tired of a life spent working, no time for your kids, stress over finances and ill health, I STRONGLY recommend looking again at Amway as a business opportunity. Forget what you've seen before, heard before, experienced before. Do anything else you want but I promise, no matter how busy you have, it will be the best 15h a month you have ever spent and I look forward to seeing you and hearing your story on one of our international events.
One caveat, make sure you join a good team...unscrupulous recruiters ARE DANGEROUS to the health of your business. Do the research and talk to me if you want more information...I will be happy to help you achieve your goals whether you sign up with me or someone else. At the very least, check out the website, buy some products. I guarantee you it will be the best money you have EVER SPENT.
Please comment on this post. I look forward to hearing from all of you. Wishing you well in your search for financial freedom. Live passionately and fearlessly...you have but one life and too soon, it ends!
Comments
Great share, thanks for your time