“What is it?”
QUESTION: “It’s _________(your industry term), are you familiar with it?”
RESPONSE: “We have an arrangement with one of the leading shopping sites on the web, we send them customers, they send us cash.” or “We teach people how to make money through a home- managed business.”
FURTHER THOUGHT: If you hope to succeed in this business you should be able to answer this question in your sleep. No matter who you talk to this will be the #1 question you’ll hear, so be prepared with an answer that makes sense.
“Can you tell me more about it?”
QUESTION: “Absolutely, I already have some information I can loan you. What nights this week do you already have commitments?”
RESPONSE: “Absolutely, I have an outline of the compensation plan and I’ll bring it with me when I swing by.” or “I’d love to go into detail, but I’m only going to confuse you. I’m calling to invite you, the meeting is set up to inform you.”
FURTHER THOUGHT: If someone is stuck on this question, you can give them a short, concise description of your business that peaks a person’s interest. For example, “We have an arrangement with most of the fortune 500 companies where we send them customers and they send us cash. It’s a brand new concept that’s really growing, have you learned about it yet?” Always end with a question to regain control of the conversation.
“Is there a web site I can look at before we meet?”
QUESTION and RESPONSE: “Sure. There are plenty of web sites you can look at like Office Depot, Circuit City, and Barnes & Noble. What I’m going to show you is the profit arrangements we have with them.”
“How much money are you making?”
QUESTION: “How much would you like to make?” or “Isn’t it how much money you’re going to make that really matters to you?”
RESPONSE: “I just started my training and expect to replace my full- time income in ____ months.” or “Enough to keep me interested.” or “I’m just the talent scout, my senior associate is the one you want to talk to.”
“Is this a pyramid?”
QUESTION: “How do you mean?” or “A pyramid?”
RESPONSE: “Of course not. Pyramids are illegal.” or “Most of our partners are Fortune 500 companies. They wouldn’t be associated with an illegal pyramid.”
FURTHER THOUGHT: We have to understand first whether it’s the structure this person is concerned about or its legality. If she’s concerned about the business being structured like a pyramid, she can take a look at where she works. Is there a president, a CEO, and maybe a board of directors? Are there managers who report to them and people who report to those managers? Who makes all the money? And who really does most of the work? Do the people at the bottom all have the same opportunity to make as much money in that business as the president and CEO? What about the government? The church? Even a family has its pecking order. The difference is that in our business no one is “appointed” a position. Our compensation plan ensures the same equal opportunity for everyone and its structure is fluid. Profits are paid based on the size and number of businesses each IBO develops. In other words, we are paid on performance. Anyone has the ability to make more than the very top achiever at any time by developing a greater number of successful organizations.
“Is this Multi-level Marketing?”
QUESTION: “What’s your experience with Multi-level Marketing?”
RESPONSE: “This business resembles other affiliate programs on the web. We make money by referring business.” or “It’s called personal franchising.”
FURTHER THOUGHT: MLM Company A® is actually a gigantic web of on- line affiliates who pay commissions to IBOs for their purchases and referred purchases. This type of marketing where companies pay commissions for referring business their way is called “affiliate marketing.” Technically our business compensation plan is a multi- level marketing plan, but the term “multi-level” embraces too many other models that do not resemble our business in any way. Our edge is to reposition ourselves in the marketplace by drawing comparisons to other well-known companies like Visa®, American Airlines®, and Amazon.com® that participate in affiliate marketing.
“How do the product prices compare?”
QUESTION: “Compare to…?” or “Where do you shop?”
RESPONSE: “I shop regularly on the site and have found the prices to be competitive.” or “They wouldn’t be doing a billion dollars in sales if their prices were out of line.”
“Is this MLM Company A®?”
QUESTION: “What do you know about MLM Company A®?” or “Are you already registered?”
RESPONSE: “Our business team __________ contracts with MLM Company A® for product fulfillment, web development, and partner stores. But you will be working with me and ___________, not MLM Company A®.”
FURTHER THOUGHT: Your answer to this question depends on their answer to your question. It would be an error to assume that the question has a negative connotation to it. The person asking this question has a perception about MLM Company A® and you need to find out where he’s coming from in order to respond appropriately. A similar question that you may come across is, “Is this MLM Company A?” The i-commerce/ MLM Company A opportunity is not MLM Company A. It was launched in 1999 and is a brand new business model designed specifically for the Internet. The Parent Company of MLM Company A ®, Alticor®, is a $4.9 billion global enterprise and parent company to many other successful companies including MLM Company A®, Access Business Group, MLM Company A®, and several others. When MLM Company A® launched, it was made available to MLM Company A distributors who chose to move to a new business. Some took advantage of the opportunity and that is why some people mistakenly lump the two separate businesses together.