Direct Sellers Friend from the Field - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Direct Sellers Friend from the Field - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career The direct selling industry has been around for a very long time, and it continues to be an excellent way to sell products. It’s because consumers buy from people they know and trust, and direct sellers mainly rely on the relationships they build with their customers through parties and personal interactions. Word of mouth marketing continues to be the best way to promote a brand’s products and services. Advertisements have slowly lost their impact because they’re basically broadcasting information that the audience could either absorb or reject, and this is not how consumers nowadays are choosing to buy products and services. They’re a lot smarter now, asking their friends and family for recommendations, doing their research online and off, and this is why direct selling continues to be an effective way to sell since it relies on word of mouth. Getting started as a direct seller isn’t difficult, but becoming a successful one is where the challenge is. You’re off to a great start if you really like and use the products, and you genuinely want others to benefit from the products as well. But it’s also a great idea to learn from those who are already established and who have direct experience in the field. These are the people who really know what it takes to go out there, throw a party, do a sales pitch, and have experienced both triumphs and disappointments as a direct seller. Being taken under the wing of someone who really knows the ropes can be very helpful for those who are just beginning at direct selling. Though the company gives you all the products and information you need to get out there and sell, someone with field experience will be able to guide you through the steps to really becoming a successful direct seller. Here are some tips to help you find that friend from the field. Start networking Successful entrepreneurs and business owners know the importance of networking in business. You can’t just establish a business and hope that it works out. You have to find people who can help you, who can lead you to prospects and customers who can get your business off the ground, and who’ll spread the word about your brand. You can go online and off to find that person with direct experience on the field. In the off-line world, you can join local groups and communities where you may be able to meet the person you’re looking for. You may even be surprised to find out that you have acquaintances who already fit the bill. Online, there are so many resources you can utilize. You can use social networking sites to search for people within your connections. LinkedIn, for example, is a great way to find fellow direct sellers who have excellent field experience. Since you’re able to see the second and third degree connections within your network, you may find exactly who you’re looking for and ask for an introduction from the people you’re connected to. Look within your company Your company can actually be the best resource for you to find that person who has excellent field experience with direct selling. You can ask your company directly about who they can recommend to guide you in establishing your direct selling business, someone who has lots of field experience and has infinite practical information to impart. Your company should definitely be willing to help you out since it will also help them in the long run. The advantage of this is that you’ll have someone who really knows the ins and outs of selling the same products you do, so they’d already have lots of strategies up their sleeve. The insights and lessons you can learn from this person will surely be invaluable in your career. As a direct seller, you need to utilize all the resources available to you so that you can have a successful business. Your company can only do so much by providing you the tools and information of the trade, so you also have to exert a lot of effort into really learning the ropes and methods of selling and getting leads and prospects. This is why finding that friend from the field would really be extremely useful for your career. Knowledge and talent can get you started, but it is experience that really separates the amateur from the professional. With the guidance of someone with field experience, you can really have first-hand view of what it’s like to be a direct seller, because only those who’ve been there will really be able to get you over the hurdles and help you succeed. Author: Maria Elena Duron, is managing editor of the Personal Branding Blog, CEO (chief engagement officer) of buzz2bucks.com â€" a word of mouth marketing firm and Director of Client Communities of Momentum Factor-focused on the direct selling industry.   She helps create connection, credibility, community and cha-ching through mobile marketing and social commerce around your brand. She is co-founder of #brandchat a weekly twitter chat focused on every aspect of branding.