This past Tuesday, October 17th, buried way back on page B10 of the Wall Street Journal, in the regular "Advertising" column, was news of major importance to all network marketers. The article was titled:
"Study Finds Ads Induce Few People to Buy"
According to the article, advertising is a $11.5 billion per year business in the U.S. And "a new study by Yankelovich Partners and Gannett's USA Weekend magazine of 1,000 consumers nationwide shows that only 25% of those questioned said a television ad would induce them to try a new product or brand. The news is worse for print media: Only 15% said a newspaper ad would entice them to buy, while 13% said a magazine ad would influence them."
Now, imagine for a moment that you're a brand manager who is spending $20 million a year on advertising. How would you react to the above news? For years, there have been more and more indications that traditional advertising is not working. Now, there is substantial proof.
There were other interesting findings in this study, titled "America Responds", which was released on Wednesday.
Celebrity endorsers did not fare very well. Only a tiny 3% of those questioned said that they would try a new product based on the recommendations of a celebrity. ONLY 3% ! ! ! And these "celebrities" are paid millions and millions every year, just to wear the right little insignia on their hats, sneakers, shirts and gear.
One interesting finding -- consumers said they would be most likely to try something new if they received a free sample. 73% of those questioned responded positively to free samples. (Perhaps this is something you should consider for your networking business.)
And here's the best news of all for network marketers. An overwhelming 63% of people surveyed said they would try something new based on "advice from a friend or relative."
Based on advice from a friend or relative! ! !
Well, now, isn't that interesting!
Think of it this way: You are 2100% more likely to convince your friends to try a new product than is superstar Michael Jordan.
That's pretty good odds. If 63% of your friends and relatives will try something based on your advice, then for every 8 of them you recommend your products to, 5 will try them!
There's just one catch. You can't go to them every other week with a different line of products. If you're going to be believed, then you must recommend things that you yourself believe in. You can't go jumping in and out of MLM companies just because some hot new product comes along. After about the second or third time around, they'll just start laughing at you. Then you'll be forced to get prospects by advertising in all those pulpy little magazines that you usually throw away on your way in from the mailbox.
I've seen this happen recently with certain people in my upline and others that I know. About 9 months ago, they all jumped on board with some hot new company that was going to "change the world". They got all their friends and downline into this new deal. And it has gone nowhere for them. Now they've found yet another "hot" new company and here they go again! But they've lost all their credibility. It is sad, because if they had just stayed with what they had, and continued to build it, they would be in great shape today. Instead, they're, quite frankly, desperate. Grabbing at anything that comes along.
So remember, as the study proves, network marketing has a tremendous advantage over all other kinds of marketing (with the possible exception of giving away free samples). Your friends and family will readily listen to you and act on your recommendations. However, with this advantage comes a responsibility. You don't get very many shots to make it right. So be absolutely sure that you're promoting something you can commit to for the long haul, with a company that will be around for years and years. Then you'll build a large, strong business that no one can take away from you.
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