The MLM Duplication Fairy Tale: Part 1

Are you still training your down line to use your company’s generic duplication system?

You know the one. It kinda goes a little something like this:

“Just plug into our duplicatable system and you too will be an network marketing super star! That’s right, all you have to do is read a simple phone script, send out a canned email to get people to look at your replicated website, talk to your friends, family and associates like complete strangers and approach every living and breathing creature within arms length with your business opportunity. When you do that….poof….you will make that six figure income that you signed up for.”

And everyone lives happily ever after.

C’mon people! It even sounds like a fairy tale.

Ok, I won’t go as far as saying that a generic duplication system never works. It does…sometimes.

Having a system has worked for me but not because I read the script or sent the company composed email. It’s not even because of my replicated website or the flyers and DVDs that are available.

I’ll tell you why it worked but first let me share with you how I got to a better understanding.

When I first started in this industry, all I wanted was for someone to tell me what I needed to do so that I could go out there and do it. I was highly motivated especially since my bank account was approaching a negative status.

Unfortunately, I did not have a seasoned upline to coach me how to do it the right way. So I put all my trust and faith in the training manual and the archived training calls.

I read the training manual from cover to cover at least 4 times, memorized all the scripts and listened to at least 10 training calls. It was all too exciting!

I copied and pasted the sample email and sent it to my entire email list, including my daughter’s principal and my dentist’s receptionist.

An hour later….no responses.

My Self Talk: “Hmmmmmm, maybe my email didn’t actually get sent. Oh wait, yes, it got sent. Refresh the page, maybe? Nope…still nothing

I said a silent prayer and commenced to calling my “golden” list of 100 contacts and at about person #12, I realized that something was wrong.

First of all, no one was interested.

My Self Talk: “Okay, calm down…the manual told me that might happen.”

Second of all, I sounded like a complete fake.

My Self Talk: “Shirley, you sound like a robot who watched a bad late night infomercial…Cheeesssy!”

Don’t get me wrong, the rejection was hard to swallow but the fake and scripted personality was something that I could not stomach. It just wasn’t me.

Luckily, I remembered something I learned when I was 14 years old and cold calling people to purchase tickets for the circus that was coming to town.

Don’t laugh, someone had to represent the clowns.

Anyway, I only lasted two hours at that job but the person who “trained” me gave me one of the greatest pieces of advice to date.

He told me to read the script once and then put into my own words.

I realized that I had to use my own voice, my own words, my own style and my own story. I couldn’t be fake and try to copy my upline, leaders in the company or any so-called network marketing guru.

I had to put my own flavor into it.

It felt more natural and I felt more confident when I allowed my authentic self to take over the reigns. People could obviously sense the shift because my response rate improved dramatically and I got my first business partners. It took me a while to really get into a good flow but eventually it all became second nature.

So the duplication system does work….because I custom designed it to work for me and not against me.

There is no denying that it stems from my company’s duplication system but no doubt it is my very own system. I didn’t reinvent the wheel here. All I did was use the system to create an authentic representation of me and how I choose to do business.

I now use attraction marketing to grow my business because I love the process. Because of my attraction marketing training, I no longer beg people to look at my business opportunity. They actually contact me now. Attraction marketing is not something that my company teaches but I have learned to integrate it into my “system”.

I do want to say that I appreciate all the training that my company and others in the industry offer. The training can be valuable when applied authentically and earnestly.

You can use the generic duplication system and make a couple hundred dollars but if you really want to generate an income that will allow you to make major changes in your life, you have got to create a system that is all your own

I know that some people will probably disagree with me and choose to stick to their company’s “duplication system” without any adjustments.

No worries…it’s cool!

That’s the beauty of network marketing….you get to dictate how you will do your business.

Just remember to always do you and not a sad version of a fairy tale!

Yours in success!

Shirley Muhammad