Direct Sales Recruiting: Tips from Trick Or Treaters

New twitter bud, Ann Vertel, made a blog post today that I had to comment back on.

As I thought more and more about it. I figured I could blow this bad boy up into a full blown post of my own. So here it is:

Ann writes that if you look at kids that trick or treat, they don't get all worked up about which houses don't have their lights on. The direct sales correlation is that we as direct selling consultants shouldn't get worked up over the people that don't want to participate in or business - either by booking buying or recruiting. In essence, they've "turned off their house lights" and we shouldn't take it personally - just move on to the next house and collect our goodies elsewhere.

But as I thought more about the correlation to Halloween, there's even more you can cull from this:

1. Those parents at the curb.
On your first Halloween, a trusted adult probably walked the whole neighborhood with you, holding your hand, walking you right up to the door and showing you exactly how to say the magic words that opened the door to candy paradise. As we mature in our business and "get better at trick or treating", these parents and adults stand at the curb, so we don't look "uncool".

You've either been one or had one - a leader that guides you down the path, watches your actions, and helps you be the best you can be. On your first few attempts at working your business, they might have even held your hand and walked you straight up to the door - even did the knocking for you. They're not doing the work for us. But they've got their watchful eye on us, helping us along the path to the next door, giving us tips on how to make the next house even better than the last. Don't be ungrateful, but don't expect them to do the work for you. If you want the goodies - you've got to get the training (from your leaders) - then you've got to say the words to get them!

2. Those "Candy Grabbers"
Every Halloween has it's share of killjoys that run around the 'hood snatching the bags of little kids. Those bullies get their kicks takin' candy from babies and making mischief on Hallow's Eve. Do the other kids stop going from house to house? Naah. Do the homeowners stop passing out the goodies? Of course not!

Whether we want to admit it or not, there's a crowd of people in direct sales that gives the industry a bad name - but it doesn't mean that everyone is going to give up and go home. On the contrary. I know for myself that when I was confronted with a bully on Halloween night, I just went back and tried double hard to recover my losses. Now that I'm older and wiser, I know there are plenty more neighborhood to visit when searching for direct sales gold.

3. Sorting the Goodies from the Maple Buns
Oh how I hated the Maple Bun as a kid. We'd trade those things away as fast as we got them - if we could. We took notes each year about which houses had the best candy, and which ones weren't worth the trek up the long driveway for the tiny little maple bun they'd drop in your bag with a toothy grin. Mom would, of course, check out each wrapper to ensure safety and collect her obligatory fee for so doing.

As network marketers, we have to do our own sorting. Some "goodies" will be great additions to our team, and others will start out looking good, but you'll find the wrapper's not all there. And of course, you'll end up with a Maple Bun or two, but realize that the better you get at identifying the King Size candy from the Maple Buns, the easier the sorting becomes. The only way to get good is to keep practicing.

So this festive holiday, as you're standing at the curb with the little tykes, perhaps do some trick or treating of your own. I frequently pass out free samples to the moms as we're trekking the 'hood together. It allows us to strike up conversations while we shiver in the cold with our little trolls, princesses, and ninjas. Do they all book a party or join my team? Nope. And we all just keep moving on to the next house.