Today it seems everyone is online. The estimated number of worldwide internet users was 1,966,514,816 on June 31, 2010. That makes the internet a wonderful place to meet more people.
But be patient – building on the internet takes time. The more online influence you already have, the faster you will grow. And for some, adding the internet alongside face-to-face activities will help them get started more quickly.
Below is a 7 step plan to help you prospect online:
1 – Get a web address so people can find you. Your name is the perfect web address. Just like I have www.LynnHuber.com, you can also create a web address for your name. If at all possible, use the .com version. If your name isn’t available, look for variations such as using initials to find a unique name. Another option would be to use a name that fits your business such as www.OnlineBeautyBiz.com. I have my personal Avon Blog at www.LoveMyBeautyBiz.com. However, it is always best to promote YOU as your brand, rather than the product you are selling. You can register your domain name at GoDaddy.
2 – Build your website at your new address. Now is the time to get creative. I know your company may provide a website for you and that is good. Company provided websites do have a purpose and are extremely helpful for your business. But you also want to have your own website to promote you and what you offer and to help you prospect online. You’ll find more details here on how to get hosting for your website and tools to use.
3 – Start promoting your Website. Send emails to everyone you know. Create a signature at the bottom of your email which links to your website and gets attached to every email you send out. This is the easiest step you can take to help you prospect online. How to do this depends on which email program you use, but if you go to the help files and search for signature, you should be able to find instructions for your particular program. There are many ways to promote your website. It’s a little much for this particular article but you’ll find other articles at www.LynnHuber.com which will help you with this.
4 – Manage your Contacts. You’ll want to setup an autoresponder to help you keep in touch with the contacts you meet when you prospect online. This is very easy to do with a service like AWeber. You can setup regular emails to go out at certain intervals to stay in touch with your contacts.
5 – Get personal with your contacts. Now it’s time to move your contact away from the internet and to your phone. Build a relationship with them either by phone or in person. This is where you can answer any questions they have and get to know each other. Assure your prospect that you are not going to pressure them, but rather you will just give them the information they need to make an informed decision. The ones who freely give you their phone number are more likely to be serious about joining your business.
7 – Be sure to follow-up. Most people who request information from you will eventually end up in your business, either as a customer or a distributor – but it will be on their time not yours. If they join your business that’s great. But if they’re not interested right now, find a way to stay in touch with them 3-4 times per year to enable you to stay front of mind. Then when they’re ready, it will be you they think of and your business they will join. You should have your AWeber account setup to “drip” on them by sending emails every couple of weeks or months throughout the year. Greeting cards are another great way to stay in touch. The most important thing is to create a system for follow-up and use it.
Bonus Step – Use Avon Social to build your business on Social Media. Avon hired Social Media Expert Scott Kramer last year to teach us how to market on Facebook, as well as to give us an amazing tool to help us do just that.
When you prospect online, you add one more way to meet people to expand your networking plan.
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