Create A Cash Flow Show

What is the cash flow Funnel ?

I was at a seminar today that was boring as hell. Many of the attendees got up and left. Actually, I had expected it to be the best one of the entire day because the speaker was a professional that I had heard of previously. I didn’t walk out because I have learned in the past that you never know when you are going to hear something that will change your life. That did not happen to me today, although I did get the inspiration for this post.

Funnel is a Sales Concept

This professional speaker was talking about overcoming fears of networking and developing leads. She spoke to the audience as if we were in kindergarten and dwelt continuously on how to overcome your fear of starting conversations with strangers. One thing that she did bring up though is the funnel. She did not elaborate on it much, so I am sure that the concept went over the heads of most of the attendees. I have frequently thought that the funnel should be taught in our field more often. The funnel is a sales concept that in itself can be a key to success in any sales business. Direct sales and network marketing are no exception. When you understand the funnel concept, you will understand a system of creating cash flow.

Business as a funnel

Think of your business as a funnel. The more leads you put into your funnel the more business comes out the bottom. Massive efforts will lead to massive results. When you think of each lead as being a grain of salt or spices that you are pouring into the top of the funnel and as they come out the bottom they are business or cash flow. The more spices/leads you put into the big part of the funnel, the more that will trickle out the bottom. The concept is simple, yet not always easy.

A Funnel has a really wide part and a narrow part. Many sales people go for the close, or the show, or the opportunity first. That scares people off. Using the funnel, you draw your business deeper into the funnel gradually, so that they begin to create desire for your product or services. Your business funnel is very broad at the top where your lead has only a little or no commitment, risk or interest in your services. As the leads travel deeper into the funnel they become more committed to you and become hosts, sales reps, company leaders or higher value customers. When we go for the close, ask them to host a show before they understand your product line, or ask them to be a consultant before they are sold on your product, you are pushing them into the small whole at the bottom of the funnel in reverse. Understanding the funnel concept will go a long way to improve your results. Allow your leads to voluntarily climb into the funnel because you attract them to you, then drawing them in gradually, will produce incredible cash flow results. The more you put into the top, the more you will get out the bottom. The key to success in any sales business is massive quantity of leads in the funnel. When your funnel is full, you will never be scared that you do not have enough business!

Cash Flow Funnel

Take a minute now print out this Cash Flow Funnel. Now let’s diagram YOUR business funnel. The Cash Flow Funnel

The way you get people in the funnel is to offer them something they want. As they voluntarily jump into the funnel they will then go deeper into your services, one step at a time. Write in the top section what is your first contact and how you get them into the funnel. The wide part of the funnel is the point of first contact and the more you put in the top, the more you will get out the bottom. The top is the first step or point of contact. It could and should be many things. How you get people into your funnel will be unique to your business. It could be a opportunity to enter a prize drawing at a fair. It could be an attendee at a luncheon at which you are a speaker, or it could be someone you met at the mall who was interested in a catalog. An individual who asked to be put on your newsletter list would be another first contact to start to fill your funnel. The more that goes into the top of the funnel, will give you more out the bottom. How you get them into the funnel is unlimited and unique. Once in the funnel they begin to drop down to a deeper level. Take a minute to jot down several ways you will bring leads into your funnel.

What is the next ring?

The next step may be to buy a product or to attend a show. It could be just a small item. Then the next level a bit deeper in your funnel may be a larger product or the opportunity to host a show, followed by the business opportunity, then the opportunity to be a leader. As they drop through the various levels of the funnel, they will enjoy our services and or product and voluntarily move to the next level, purchasing more expensive products and becoming more interested in the higher end services and creating more cash flow for you.

Creating varying levels in your funnel will allow people to sift through and out the bottom. The more you put in the top the more you will get out out the bottom. Some of your grains of  spices/leads will skip some sections of the funnel. Others will get stuck and never drop to the next level, and others will fly through all levels at the speed of light, voluntarily. The key is to keep the funnel full, so that some spices/leads are always falling out the bottom.

There are three lessons in this article.

1. Don’t leave a crummy seminar before you hear the inspiration that will change your life.
2. Don’t go for the close before you have developed the leads and sifted thought them.
3. Fill your funnel because the more you put in the top, the more will come out the bottom.

The funnel will create desire and committed customers and sales representatives. Putting massive quantities of spices/leads into the funnel will lead to massive spices and leads coming into your business.

I am constantly amazed at how many consultants ask me for party games. I guess because I never played games at my shows, I just do not understand the attraction. FUN is the single most important thing for the success of your shows. If a party game in your direct selling show creates FUN then by all means play the games. My guests and hosts certainly had fun at the shows. One easy way to determine the FUN level of your shows is to see how many shows you schedule at your shows. When people have FUN you will have a full calendar. Making sure that you are organized enough to relax at he show is essential to you having FUN. When you have FUN then your guests will have FUN and they will invite you to their house. Games can be the answer to FUN, or they can be considered a drudgery by the guests. Do not assume that a game is always the answer to FUN. If you are playing show games, and having a hard time scheduling shows, then maybe you have to reconsider the effectiveness of the game, or whether your hosts and guests are enjoying the games.

Previously I posted 2 articles on games. Go to the category at the show to see those games. If you plan to play games at your show, make sure that they are fun and also that they serve a purpose. Your show time is valuable. You only have so much time to accomplish your mission:

Your mission is:

Sell product
Schedule shows
Share the opportunity
Provide value to the participants

I say that FUN is the key to show success because FUN is a commodity that people put value on. When you establish value at your shows then your business will roll along forever. Here is a game that allows you to share the opportunity and also create desire for future shows and hopefully have some FUN too. You can even create an entire show theme around this game. Tell the host to tell the guests that we are taking a world tour at the show.

Around The World

A few days or a week before the show when you do your last call to the host ask her to call each guest to remind them of the show and also to bring a picture from her favorite trip or vacation. Encourage them to bring pictures from all over the world. Tell her that you have some small prizes to give out based on her friends’ pictures and vacations. This compels our host to actually make the last minute reminders and will increase your show attendance.

Creating a Buzz

Have the guests put their pictures on the table or other location so that everyone can look at them. This is fun in itself and will get the people mingling and talking as the pictures begin to arrive. During the show ask questions about the pictures. Did anyone bring a picture from Italy? Allow that guest to share briefly about the trip to Italy. Mixed in thoughout your show, not all at once, continue to ask questions about the world tour through pictures. Guest can tally their own points to earn your prizes.

• Did you get the trip for FREE?
• Was the picture taken in the last 6 months?
• Are there mountains in the picture?
• Is there a lake in the picture?
• Is there an ocean in the picture?
• Was the picture taken on an island?
• Did you travel by airplane?
• Is there a landmark in the picture?
• Is this a business trip?
• Did you take your kids?
• Are there any people in the picture?
• Is someone waving “hi” in the picture?
• Is someone in the picture riding a horse, camel, or elephant?
• Is it in a foreign country?
• Is anyone kissing or hugging in the picture?
• Was the picture taken on your honeymoon
• Did the person taking the picture accidentally get their finger(s) in front of the lens?

These are just sample questions. Create some questions of your own that lead into some of the information that you want to sprinkle into your shows. The travel game is a terrific game to talk about the opportunity to create income with your company. Before you think about which questions you are going to ask, decide what opportunity information you want to share, then as you ask the questions and receive the audience participation, sprinkle your opportunity information throughout the game. I do not recommend playing the game all at once. This will be throughout your whole show.

Here are some sprinkles that you may make following certain questions:

• Is there a landmark in the picture?

When I was in France with XYZ Company, they took all of us to the Eiffel Tower

• Did you take your kids?

Our company provides two trip choices, one for consultants with kids and another for those who prefer to travel without kids.

• Did you get the trip for FREE?

Some people get a paid vacation, I get a paid-for vacation each year with XYZ Company.

• Was the picture taken on your honey moon?

How would you like to take your husband on another honeymoon paid for with all your own money? The income you create with one show a week with XYZ Company will easily buy a luxury vacation.

Around the World

Around The World is a fun game. Guests may arrive at 6:00 and by 8:00 they are on the way home after experiencing the thrill of a tour of everyone else’s vacation. It is FUN, gives you a vehicle to share your opportunity and gives the guests at the show value for their time.Always be sure that your games give your show value. One thing that people will not do is allow you to bore them. If you are having a hard time scheduling shows, then look at the value you are providing to your guests and hosts. Party games in direct sales are good when they are FUN, serve a purpose for your mission and provide value to all in attendance.

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Direct Sales and Network Marketing

Direct sales and network marketing is one of the best income tax reduction strategies there is in the 21st century. Direct selling businesses open the door for income tax deductions. Did you ever notice that all rich people have a business? It is not because they are rich that they got a business, it is the other way around. They developed a business so that they could take advantage of certain tax benefits and that assisted them in gaining wealth. The home business is a legitimate income tax reduction program that the IRS has put into place. Anyone who owns a business has a legal income tax reduction package to utilize to their advantage. If you are an individual or family struggling financially, the quickest way to increase your cash flow without too much time commitment is to start a direct sales or network marketing business. The income generated from your new business will, of course, be helpful and the immediate income tax reduction will increase your cash flow substantially! (I am not a lawyer or accountant, and I am not giving you tax advice.)

For example. in a home business many of the things you are now spending money on will become an income tax deduction.

• Cell phones: even shared family plans
• Magazines subscriptions or cable TV, depending on your company, can be considered as market research
• Mileage to and from general errands that you are doing for your family can be deductions provided you intersperse business errands and lead-collecting in with the daily activities. Imagine deducting 60-80% of all your miles traveled, at 39 cents a mile…. That will really add up quickly!
• Meals and entertainment out can also be deducted provided you talk business and ask for referrals from your friends.
• Are you taking vitamins? When you are in a vitamin network marketing company, the vitamins may be deductible.
• Do you buy groceries? In a food-related company, a good part of your grocery bill may be deductible for market research, even if your family is eating the food.
• Are you giving the kids an allowance? Are your kids ages 7-17? How would you like to pay them for errands around the house, or helpful things they do, then take those payments as an income tax reduction? You can take it a step further and put the money in the bank for them and use it to pay for their living needs, like clothes or sports equipment, etc.

(I am not an accountant nor am I giving you tax advice)

Are you starting to see why all rich people have a business? These are things you will always spend money on. When you have a network marketing business now they become income tax deductions. That alone will increase your cash flow, even if your business does not make money immediately.

(See the post called The Cash Flow Generator in the business category)

Income Tax Deduction - Home Office

Another income tax reduction strategy available to direct sales consultants is the home office deduction. It never ceases to amaze me how many people do not take advantage of this strategy. Even relatively large successful individuals say, “I do not want to send up a red flag.” Or “My accountant won’t let me because it is a red flag.” (I am not a lawyer or accountant, and I am not giving you tax advice.) The government does not create laws just to “catch” people and get them in trouble when someone uses the law as it is written. There are no flagpoles down at the IRS that employees run up red flags on when someone utilizes a rule or tax law correctly. Think about this. When you open a store at the mall or in a shopping center, you will buy toilet paper, floor cleaners, light bulbs, maybe put up a sign, and even wash the windows, take out the trash, pay rent or cut the grass. As a business owner you can deduct all of those from your taxes. This will not put up a red flag because these are business expenses. Everyone can understand that. In your home business, you still have all those expenses affiliated with your business. Only now they are a percentage of your home expenses. The home office deduction recognizes that as a home business owner, you can deduct a percentage of your electric, your gas, your garbage, your telephone, toilet paper, cleaning supplies, etc. This is the home office deduction.

There are steps you must take to be compliant with the IRS, which are not in the scope of this article. Most people think that they are required to show a profit periodically when in fact that is not so. (I am not a lawyer or accountant, and I am not giving you tax advice.) In order to be compliant with the IRS regulations you must:

• Have a business plan
• Generate activity
• Have documentation

The interesting part of those requirements is that they create a circle of success. When you have a plan, you generate activity and, when documented, the process creates income and deductions, which in turn gives you motivation to continue and creates cash flow. The business plan is updated yearly based on your successes and the cycle or circle of success continues.

This article, along with the previously posted article on Generating Cash Flow, could make an awesome opportunity tool. A little education goes a long way when you are focusing on growing a team. The past Generating Cash Flow article focused on network marketing as a business model, coupled with this one to generate immediate changes in a person’s tax requirements, becomes an terrific tool to share with potentials.

The Power-UP For Professional Results home study program includes a IRS-compliant business plan designed by a direct sales expert accountant. The business plan, along with the information on the CD, will set your business up with the necessary income tax reduction strategies. The business plan will give you the momentum to take the deductions you deserve. You will create the success circle of planning, activity and documentation that the IRS is looking for. (I am not a lawyer or accountant, and I am not giving you tax advice.)

All accountants are not direct sales-specific, and therefore may be discouraging you from maximum tax reduction strategies. If you are looking for a new direct sales specific accountant, just call me or drop me an email.

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How can you turn your network marketing or direct sales leads into cash sales? How do you manage your leads? How do you keep leads from getting cold? These are all questions I get on a regular basis. Before we start answering I though it might be good to define what a lead is.

Webster’s dictionary says that a lead is:

• Act as a guide
• To go as a a guide
• To play as the 1st card
• A direction of guidance
• The condition of being first
• A clue
• The opening words of a story

I found that to be interesting. Do you notice that all of the various definitions refer to the fact that a lead is only the beginning? One thing that I have always noticed is that many sales reps look at a lead as either a potential host or show or a potential consultant. Which one they see the potential being varies with the person standing in front of them at any given moment. I often find myself saying that when you look at a lead as the end result, you are limiting yourself. A lead is only the beginning of a relationship. This philosophy allows you to see more than what you may specifically be looking for at that given moment in your business. You may think that a lead would be a good business builder, when in fact they may be someone who can refer you to a business builder. Or maybe you are focused on increasing your calendar. A lead that you are attempting to date a show with could in fact be a bride to be who is looking for someone to set up a gift registry with, or maybe this person is just a product user. My point here is look at leads as the beginning, a clue, or the opening words of a story. Practice the 10-second rule which is to share for 10 seconds or less, then ask a question. This will enable you to figure out which one of your services each lead will fit. Check out the post on the 10-second rule by clicking here. When you look for shows that is all you will find. When you look for leads you will find far more.

Some sources of leads are:

• At your show
• Out and about (bulletin boards, kids’ friends and parents, people you meet, etc.)
• Public speaking events
• Fairs and expos
• Customer care calls
• Prize drawing slips
• Product user
• Past hosts, customers

The best system I have found to manage leads is not to manage them. That sounds silly, I know. I recommend that you do your best to date shows, close deals, and follow up on every lead within 24-48 hours of your initial contact. In this way you will keep the clutter down in your office, you will minimize your future work and you will be contacting/talking with leads who remember you and remember why they were actually interested in one of your services. Leads become cold when they no longer remember why on earth they said that they were interested in whatever it is you are offering.

When you meet leads at the show, I would recommend dating your appointments for new consultant interviews at the show. Date shows at the show. When you keep yourself focused on the fact that you are a successful business owner and are not in NEED of their business, than it will be easy to date shows at the show. In the Power Up For Professional Results CD set there are 3 CDs on word choices, and posturing yourself as a professional. This post is not long enough to go into all of the topics. Create A Cash Flow Show also has several segments on dating your appointments or shows at the show. Just like the dentist who schedules your next cleaning before you leave the office, you too can manage your calendar professionally at the show and then not allow leads to get cold. If, after a nice conversation, the potential customer, host, or sales rep says no they would rather not pick a date, but instead says “Would you call me in 3 weeks?” (or 6 months or whatever they say). A good answer might be: “You know, that is OK, it sounds like this really isn’t for you…. If you change your mind, why don’t you give me a call…” You are professional and not getting strung along from someone who just cannot say no.

There will be occasions to make calls from home whether you met the people at a show, fair, expo, public speaking engagement or at the mall. Make those calls within 24 hours of the meeting, while they are still connected to you. Practice the rule of 10 seconds (share for 10 seconds and ask a question) and take the lead through to completion. Then when you have leads that you have to track for the future, make sure that your system brings the leads to the top of the pile effortlessly when it is the appointed time.

Some examples of contact systems that work are:

• Rolling contact list
• Outlook Express
• Handheld data systems
• Your company’s software program
• And my favorite: a file box for index cards with a tab for each month and a tab numbered after each month 1-4. Talk to someone today, make a note, and drop the card behind the week number for the appropriate month for the call back.

Another system of eliminating cold leads is to ask the client if they want to be considered a lead. Say now, “Would you like for me to keep you on my call back list?” “Would you like me to put you on my newsletter list?” Which brings us to a very valuable tool for creating sales out of network marketing leads…. The monthly newsletter.

The monthly newsletter is without a doubt the most valuable of all continuous contact systems. If you have not done so yet, start your database for the newsletter ASAP. Just start with a couple contacts and start your monthly newsletter. Get a name and start sending out a newsletter that brings value to your customers. When you take the email of every guest at your shows, every product user, every contact, and just continuously add them into your address group, it will be a short time until you have hundreds if not thousands of LEADS in your data base. Send out your newsletter consistently with customer service related information and some marketing as well. You will generate sales from every newsletter you send out and you will also provide a service to your customers. Some will call you with issues with products, and others will think of you next time they have a need. When you put a system in place to keep the newsletter in front of your clients monthly it will turn your leads into sales, shows, and new consultants.

When your database starts to grow, you will not be able to manage it in your computer. At that point you will want an online data system. If you need more information on managing your address book, give me a call 717.751.2793 or go to Resources. Web Marketing Magic is a system of managing your data base using auto-responders.

One more important way to turn those leads into sales is through customer care calls. Customer care calls can be to every past customer you ever had. When you do customer care calls you will have an unlimited supply of leads. A customer care call is to provide customer care. Many sales reps don’t like customer care calls because they think they are pushy. Well, they are when you are focused on what you want. When you focus on the customer, practice the 10-second rule and use a good script that focuses on them and not your needs, then you will find the opportunities naturally that lead to warranty issues, product questions, shows, the business, sales or referrals. Those areas cannot be your only focus, because when you are focused on your needs you come across as needy and pushy. Customer care calls are for the customer. Here is a script that I find very effective with customer care calls. Script For Customer Service When you develop a system of 2-5 customer care calls per day (for the rest of your life) I can guarantee thatyou will never be hurting for business.

It’s a Philosophy

Make it your philosophy that everyone you come in contact with everyday is a lead. It is your job to figure out which of your many services they deserve or who they know who deserves your services. Create consistent systems that follow up on your leads in at timely manner and it will pay off in sales.