Keeping Your Direct Sales Warm Market Warm

Direct sales is a tricky business. When we join a direct sales company, our first customers and hostesses are usually people we already know – our friends and family. Our warm market. Then, we have to figure out how to keep our direct sales warm market warm — to stay in front of their face without being in their face.

And we have to invite them in a way that doesn't get all spammy, where they want to unfollow/unfriend/unlike because we're filling up their feeds with a bunch of promotional content.

You know, alienating our direct sales warm market by acting just like all the things people typically complain about direct sales for.

What Does it Mean to Keep Your Direct Sales Warm Market Warm

I saw a post earlier today that just irked me.

A consultant had been posting a series of promotional posts on her personal Facebook personal profile. Which, if you follow along with Facebook changes and policy updates, you know is against their rules. But this consultant clearly didn't care about the rules (or, I suppose, didn't know about the rules. But then again, not knowing wouldn't stop her account from getting banned).

And so she continued to pump out one promotional post after another after another.

Someone commented on one of her posts in a constructive way: referring to Facebook's rules and offering up real advice on how to promote her content more effectively than by flooding her personal timeline.

And do you think this consultant showed appreciation for the free advice?

Nope.

She replied (and I quote exactly) “well then unfriend me if you don’t like it.”

What?

That attitude is so dangerous! Especially for a direct seller — a career that is dependent on our relationships. It is literally telling your warm market that you don't respect them. And it will absolutely help you hit the edge of your warm market even faster and then have no one left to sell to.

And do you know what consultants who burn out their direct sales warm market tend to respond with after that?

• The market is saturated!
• No one likes {brand}!
• Facebook is suppressing my posts!
• Everyone is just anti-direct sales!

Blah, blah, woe-is-me-blah!

No, friend, you literally just pissed off everyone you know and told them to unfollow/unfriend/unlike your content.

So now Facebook isn't showing them your posts at all, and your reach has dwindled.

I'm currently reading “Jab Jab Jab Right Hook” by Gary Vaynerchuk, and he makes a key point: people come to social media for three main reasons: entertainment, relationships, and utility.

In order to effectively market any product, we as direct sellers have to become the entertainment, build the relationships, and offer up the utility.

We have to serve those three values first (Jab Jab Jab), then people will stay for the promotional message (Right Hook) that we want them to buy.

But if you blatantly disrespect your direct sales warm market? If you tell your friends and family to unfollow or unfriend you if they don't like what you're posting? Guess what?

They will.

And it won't take long before your direct sales warm market is no longer warm.

How do you Approach a Warm Market?

Its about relationships. Social selling is relationship based. If you drive your relationships away, your warm market will no longer be warm. So how do you approach your warm market?

For one, your social selling posts need to be done on a Facebook page or in a Facebook group. You can invite people to like your page or join your group, but you should give them a reason to do so, non-sales related. Are you talking about something that your friends and family would like to talk more about? Are you asking for opinions on a wearable option?

You can share the post (if public) and ask for your friends opinion. If its in your closed VIP group, you can take a screen shot and say that you're talking about xyz in your Facebook group and you'd love to get others opinion about it.

Relationships.

#EmpowerSocial