10 reasons prospects don't buy

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10 REASONS

Prospects Walk Out of a GREAT

Presentation or Party Without Buying Anything

or Joining Your Team !!

By MJ Durkin

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Introduction !I have counseled thousands of Network-Marketers, Direct Sellers and Party Plan Reps on how to sell. Actually it was my clients’ questions, over the years, that prompted me to seek out and master how to sell in a group setting. First of all I had to learn how to do it myself. I had to get over my own “head-trash” about asking people to buy. I had to get comfortable “closing” without feeling like I was being pushy and obnoxious. I had to learn to deal with the uncomfortable looks that I would get from a few of the prospects in a group presentation when they realized that I was going to ask them to buy. And I had to ingrain in my head and my heart that I wasn’t doing something “to” my client but that I was doing something “for” them.

!This E-Book and the subsequent training course that I’ve developed is a manifestation of the heartfelt questions and the frustrations I have heard from hundreds of my own clients who have asked the same questions in many different forms. Let me tell you about a phone call that I had with a young woman who contacted me just a few months ago to illustrate. Here is the step by step conversation: !

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Network-Marketer: “MJ I’m totally freaking out! I’ve got two more weeks left in the month and if I don’t hit my volume goal I’m not going to qualify for my next promotion. This is my third month and if I don’t promote I have to start all over again. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong. Help!” !MJ: “Okay, Erica (I’ll call her Erica) what exactly is happening – or not happening? !Erica: “Well, I’m doing a great job of getting my friends and family to host for me. I’ve got my teammates filling their living rooms with prospects as well. And I do a great party (presentation, workshop, spa night etc.) and people love the samples and the demonstration but I just can’t get anyone to make decisions. The other night I had 10 ladies in the room and it was fun and they loved it – and they all walked out with buying hardly anything! And no one, not even ONE asked about joining my team! THIS HAPPENS TO ME AND TO MY TEAMMATES ALL THE TIME! If I don’t fix this and figure this out I’m not going to promote and ALL of my teammates are going to quit. What am I doing wrong MJ?” !MJ: “Okay, Erica the first thing you need to do is to calm down, and fix your inner game and change your “story” about closing in a group. Then we are going to start implementing some strategies and techniques that can

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help you “close” 90% of the prospects at your parties. Here’s what you’re going to do…” !I’ve heard a version of this conversation from over one-thousand Network-Marketers and Direct Sellers! !Does this conversation sound familiar to you? Have you heard this from your teammates? Does it apply to you? !If 90% of the prospects that were at your parties were buying or joining would your volume, title and bonus check look a lot different? !If I can fix this for you would you agree that the information would be totally valuable? Well, this E-Book is all about getting a start on solving the problem. To start fixing the problem we’ve got to understand “why” the problem occurs. !So let’s get into the “10 Reasons Your Prospects Walk Out of a Great Presentation or Party Without Buying Anything or Joining Your Team: !!

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!# 1. Being Vague, Hesitant or Wishy-Washy

About the Next Step: !I’ve seen Network-Marketers and Direct Sellers do absolutely fun, engaging, and intellectually stimulating presentations, parties and demonstrations. I’ve seen them tell a great “why” story, be cute, funny and use examples about why they love their company’s products or services. I’ve heard them speak with great passion, show beautiful samples and have awesome Power Point slides to illustrate their product’s benefits as well as describe a lucrative bonus, compensation plan or the chance to earn a gorgeous luxury car. I’ve seen them get everyone in the room actively involved in a hands on demonstration that the prospects “ooh” and “ahh” over – and then I’ve seen them COMPLETELY SCREW IT UP! Yes, they completely screw it up by being vague about what the next step is. Prospects don’t know what to do next unless you TELL them or SHOW them what to do. I have seen great presenters end with something like this:

!“Well, we have several ways that you can take advantage of these products or of the business. You can purchase them at retail, you can purchase them at wholesale or you can become a teammate of ours and build a business with

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us. So thank you for coming and we hope to see you again soon.” !THAT’S NOT A CLOSE! !Prospects don’t know what the next step is if you don’t tell them. They may have been totally “wowed” by the personality of the presenter or totally “wowed” by the products and services that were demonstrated. They may be thinking that they want to buy and or they want to join. But if you don’t show them or tell them how to buy or join they are NOT going to run up to the front of the room and jump into your arms and say, !“Please sign me up. Please sell me everything in your catalog. Please, Please, Please don’t leave without getting my credit card number and placing my order!” !You cannot leave the “buying decisions” up to the prospect. You can’t expect them to “organically” come to a buying or joining conclusion. You can’t expect them to follow you into the kitchen or out into the parking lot asking you questions that indicate their level of interest. People don’t buy through osmosis! !Why do people buy?

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They buy because someone shows them how to take action. They buy because someone tells them what they should do next. They buy because someone gives them a clear path and a clear choice about how and why they should buy or join. !To start closing 90% of your prospects at the end of a presentation start being specific, tell them what they should do next and help them to make a great choice: to purchase your products or to join your team! !!

# 2. Saving the Prices of the Products or Services Until the Very End of the

Presentation: !You have to understand what’s going on inside your prospect’s mind. When they sit down at the presentation they are trying to figure out what is going on. They are trying to decide if they like and trust the presenter. They are trying to understand exactly why they were invited and why they are there. They are wondering if someone is going to ask them to buy or join something and they are wary about that. Their defenses are up a bit. (this is where the phrase, “their hand is on their wallet” came from.)

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But something magical starts to happen as the presentation goes on. The prospect starts warming up. They start liking some of what they are hearing. They start trusting the presenter. They may even start to enjoy the presentation. If they get actively involved in the demonstration and start trying things on or actually using the products on their body they may start to have a visceral experience – and they may like it! They may start to turn from being skeptical to becoming a believer! !Now make sure you understand this next process that goes on for them. They are hoping that the product that they are starting to like or believe in doesn’t cost that much. They are hoping against hope that the product will be offered to them at a very low price and some of them are even wanting you to offer the product completely FREE to them! They don’t know the price so they are wishing, and even though it’s just a wish, they hope that they can get the tremendous benefits of your product or business for a real deal. So they are thinking: !“Well these products or services seem really cool and I’d like to own them and I hope the price isn’t too high because I might actually want to buy some of this stuff.” !So after an hour or so of presenting, as people are looking at their watches or thinking that they’ve got to get home to put the kids to bed you hit them with the prices:

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!BAM! !And the price is higher than they expected. As a matter of fact, it’s a lot higher than they expected. And they are a bit surprised. They are shocked actually. !They haven’t had any time to let the price sink in so… !They say, !“This was really great. Thank you. Do you have a catalog or a price sheet that I can take with me? I need to think about what I want and I need to get home to my family. Thanks for the catalog, bye” !And they leave without buying, joining or asking any questions. !And you call them the next day and you start leaving voice mails and you start chasing them to try and get back in front of them again but… !Your opportunity is lost! You had them at the party and they loved the samples, the demonstration, your energy, your spirit and your “why” story but… !

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They were suffering from a form of “sticker shock” and they had no time to process the value vs. the price so they said, !“I need to think it over and I’ll get back to you.” !Has this happened to you? Have your prospects rushed out the door saying they loved the presentation and need to think about it or get back to you? Isn’t it discouraging? Don’t you hate it? !Waiting to show the prices at the end is one of the biggest reasons that prospects walk out the door without buying or joining. !You have to develop a way to start getting them comfortable with an “idea” of what the prices are without totally freaking them out! They’ve got to sit with those prices. You’ve got to let them settle in with what your great products and services really cost and let them get somewhat comfortable with the price before you ask them to place an order. We’ll cover a bit about how to do that in a future reason. In the meantime: !Give your prospects the prices at the beginning of the presentation and let those prices sink in. !

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# 3. Caring About What Others Think of You When You Ask Them to Buy

!This is a huge “inner game” (belief system, self-talk, mindset) issue. Being concerned that your prospects will be upset that you actually asked them to purchase something or that they consider joining you in your business destroys your sales at parties and kills your sponsoring (recruiting) efforts. !Your “need for approval” and NOT wanting to appear pushy prevents you from actually doing something “for” your prospects instead of doing something “to” them. !I’m assuming that you have absolute total confidence and belief in your products, services and opportunity. I’m assuming that you use many or most of the products and that they have made a huge personal difference for you in some way. !Worrying how others will perceive you and worrying that they won’t like you because you asked them to buy or join is a risk that you have to reconcile with as a Network-Marketing business owner. !YOU love your products and services don’t you? They’ve made a huge difference in your life haven’t they?

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So why would you hesitate to recommend them to a room full of your family, friends and neighbors? !Will you do anything that would harm your friends or family? Would you recommend bad products? Are you recommending a bad company? Are you associated with bad people that will take your friend’s money and hurt them in some way? !Of course not! !You are there to help. You’ve invited your closest friends and family because you believe in what you are doing and you want to HELP them in some way. !And I’m going to tell you something very important right now… !SOME OF THEM, A VERY SMALL PERCENTAGE OF THEM ARE GOING TO BE ANNOYED THAT Y O U T R I E D T O G E T T H E M T O B U Y SOMETHING or JOIN SOMETHING! !Even if you were trying to help them! And you had their best intentions at heart! !And I’m here to tell you that it is THEIR business if they want to be offended!

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!YOU don’t offend anyone! !They offend themselves! And no matter how you approach them, 1% or 2% of your friends, family and neighbors are going to find a way to be offended instead of appreciating that you included them and invited them to take the journey with you. !Your approach doesn’t matter (if they are going to offend themselves) so you might as well invite them and you might as well say at the presentation, !“These are some products and packages that I recommend. I love them and you will love them too. I highly recommend that you purchase some of these products and see how great they are for yourself. And I also highly recommend that you ask me how you can join my team and learn how to make money and help people by recommending these products yourself. Let me show you how you can place your order or sign up to join my team…” !And if they get offended that’s their business. !If you want to become a 90% Closer you’ve got to stop worrying about what others think of you. !

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If you want to become a 90% Closer you’ve got to stop being so afraid of upsetting, annoying or offending people. !If you want to become a 90% Closer you’ve got to become a little (a lot) bolder! !If you want to start having profitable parties (and I mean like an increase of over 400% in the volume you are doing now) you’ve got to get a thicker skin, get over your need for approval and start recommending what you believe in! !There’s one opinion that you need of yourself – and that’s YOURS. That’s the only one you should care about! If you feel good about what you are doing then go ahead and do it – and don’t let anybody stop you or tell you that you were wrong for doing something that you loved doing! Invite your friends, family, neighbors and work associates to your parties, make them a great offer and for goodness sake, believe enough to ask them to purchase based on YOUR recommendation. You’ll be glad you did! !!

# 4. Handing Out Catalogs !

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Let me tell you, this one really gets Network-Marketers and Direct Sellers and Party Planner’s going! !I’ve seen more resistance to this one idea than almost anything else I say about the subject but let me tell what Catalogs do to your prospects: !They confuse them! !Most of your catalogs have tons of great products in them. Most of you are proud that your company has such a depth and selection. You’ve got separate product lines, products for Men, Women, Children and Babies etc. You should be proud! !Your company spends millions on printing and pictures to make your products and services look beautiful in your catalog – and I agree that they look great! !But they are hurting your sales! !Because… !Confused prospects don’t buy! !Confused prospects hesitate. They start getting afraid of making a mistake or buying too much. They can hear their parents in their head saying, “Don’t buy things you can’t

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afford, don’t get taken, read the fine print, always check with a lawyer before signing anything, and never pay retail.” !And when they see all the choices and they realize how much there is to buy they… !Start getting scared… !And they shut down. !And they start saying things like: !“I’ve got to get home to the kids so I’ll decide tomorrow…” !“I need to think about it. Call me in a couple of days.” !“I need to check with my spouse to see if it’s okay to spend or join.” !“You have beautiful things in your catalog. I’m really impressed but I’ve got to get going. I will definitely call you and let you know what I want.” !“I’m really interested but I can’t decide what I want. I’m going to go home and really go through your catalog and I’ll let you know. Thanks for inviting me.”

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!Another thing that happens when people have catalogs is that they use them to buy “onesy-twosies.” They do this so that they can fulfill their obligation and buy just a few things so that it looks like they are buying and that they are helping you out. But a prospect buying a couple of $30.00 bottles of _______ really doesn’t help you rank advance or get you to your next promotion does it? !And that’s one of the reasons that your volume is low at parties. It could be 4 times higher if you would stop handing out catalogs! And here’s why: !The way to help people to make choices, good ones and a lot of them is to start making them for them! !Yes, I’m not kidding! They need your help. And if you want to have a 400% increase in your volume sold at parties, you’re going to have to help guide your prospects to make some good decisions. One of my clients in MJ’s Personal Coaching Program the other day sent me this Facebook message. !“MJ, your “Closing Group Presentations” method is working! We had 13 guests at a grand opening party and sold $2,500 in volume. Previously at a party like that, we would have handed out catalogs and the most we would have sold would have been a $1,000 - and that would

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have been on a good night. When you have a “closing sheet” and give people choices as packages they buy like crazy – it really works!” – Gratefully, Anne P., Baltimore, MD. !Take my advice on this one. Try leaving the catalogs in your bag near you in the presentation. Try to hold back on showing them right away. If you have to hand them out (because you just can’t stand not handing them out and your sponsor is making you) try waiting until someone is leaving without buying. Then hand the catalog out as a last ditch effort and let’s hope that they will call you in a couple of days – some people will. !In the meantime the change I want you to consider is to stop thinking Catalogs and start thinking: Packages! !(I feel like the guy in the movie The Graduate saying to Dustin Hoffman, “Plastics! That’s the future. Plastics!) ☺ !But I’m serious… !Packages! Start thinking Packages! !Write this one down, let it sink in and never forget it… !“Network-Marketers, Direct Sellers and Party Planner’s that sell products make a living but…

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! “Network-Marketers, Direct Sellers and Party Planner’s that sell packages build a life!” !In my own business when I was just selling books I made a living but when I started selling packages I increased my income 400% - and started building a real lifestyle. !Why shouldn’t your average party or group presentation be $3,000 instead of $600 or $800 which are the averages that I hear time and time again? Start doing the math. If you’ve got 10 parties a month going on somewhere in your downline or organization and you bump the average party to $3,000 you’re going to be doing at least $30,000 in volume. If you were averaging $6,000 to $8,000 a month before that’s a huge increase and it probably means… !You promote to the next level and… You get a much larger bonus check… !And more importantly, your teammates start promoting and making more money as well and… !Don’t you want them to succeed? Don’t you want success for them more than some of them want it for themselves? !

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Trust me on this one. Stop handing out catalogs and start selling packages! !!

# 5 – Expecting Prospects to Sell Themselves !Some of you do great presentations. I’m not kidding. I’ve seen some really engaging presentations. I’ve seen a lot of you in action at Opportunity Meetings, Product Demos, Parties, Wellness Events, Workshops, Grand Openings etc. !And you do a great meeting but… !You don’t CLOSE! When you get to the close you wimp out! You get scared. I can see it in your eyes, hear it in your voice and see it in your body language. I can see that you don’t want to offend anybody. I can see that you are concerned about what people will think of you if you ask them outright to buy… !And I know how you feel because I used to be the same way… !But I had to overcome my fear or I would have gone broke…

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!And I would have had to go get a job. And I just couldn’t do it. (Because like a lot of you, I’m unemployable!) ☺ !You have to understand something about your prospects: !•They won’t buy just because you do a great job of presenting. !•They won’t buy because your products or services are awesome or make sense.

•They won’t buy because they know, like and trust you. (ouch, that one hurts, doesn’t it?) !

•They won’t buy or join because of your great “why” story. (even if it was emotional and got everyone teary eyed) !

•They won’t buy or join because you were nice to them, interested in them and you built a relationship with them. !

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•They won’t buy because you found a need (or pain) of theirs and showed them how your product, service or opportunity would fill that need.

!!Prospects buy because YOU recommend that they buy! !I’m going to teach you one of the most important things that you will ever learn about selling and about your prospects. Do not miss this. It is huge: !Left to their own devices your prospects will do two things: !

1)They will do nothing or… !2)They will completely screw it up! !

That’s right. Your prospects don’t know what they are doing. You can’t depend on them to do the right thing – the thing that makes the most sense. Most of you give your prospects too much credit. !Your prospects need you to be a leader. If you don’t lead them they will hesitate and do nothing. They will convince themselves that they need to do research or that

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they need to think about it or that they need to do some comparison shopping. And they will do nothing…and they won’t call you back and place an order or read your article in Success Magazine or listen to your audio or be impressed that Robert Kiyosaki or Donald Trump endorse the industry and think that they should join. They will miss their chance and they will completely blow it or: !They will completely screw it up. They will get involved in some crazy start up that is a scam and they will buy a position in a company or send money to some off-shore account and they will lose a LOT of money and a LOT of time messing around with some deal that was never real in the first place. And they will be burned forever and you’ll never have a chance to get them back. Listen very carefully to what I’m about to say. Your prospect’s need a little push. They need encouragement. They are afraid of making a mistake or looking foolish so you’ve got to help them not miss the opportunity of a lifetime or miss out on the benefits from your great product or service. !You’ve got to make a RECOMMENDATION that they go ahead and purchase your products or join your team. They need your recommendation! They need you to lead them to make a decision that is going to be good for them. !

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Your prospects will NOT come to the conclusion that they should aggressively pursue you to purchase or join. They need you to prompt them. Don’t depend on your great presentation to get your prospects to take action. Don’t get all the way to the end of a group presentation doing a great job and then make the mistake of letting people sell themselves. !Learn how to CLOSE and how to ask everyone to buy! !!

# 6. Not Having an Order Form (Closing Sheet) that You Hand Out in the Beginning of the

Presentation. !If you’re NOT handing out an Order Form at the beginning of a presentation it’s probably NOT your fault. Many of us, including me were taught by all the sales gurus that we should build value first and always save the prices till the end. And after, only after the features, benefits and value were fully discussed, was it time to reveal the pricing. !But that’s WRONG! !Especially when you are selling in a group. !

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I’m going to highly recommend that you hand out an order form at the very beginning of the formal part of the presentation. It should have your retail prices on it. It should have a place where your prospect can write in a special price, the final price that you are going to charge that night. !And I want them staring at those retail prices! And I want them saying to themselves, “There’s no way in heck I’m paying those prices no matter how good the presentation is, no matter how charming the presenter is or no matter how good the products or services seem!” !I want you to push them all the way to the left side of “I’m not buying!” for several reasons: !

# 1. Most people don’t like extremes. When they take an extreme position to the left they can’t stay there. They’ll start to drift back to the middle heading toward the right side of “I’m definitely buying tonight.” Most people desire moderation in their decision making. The order form causes them to “get their back up” about the pricing but they can’t stay there. !#2. The order form helps them get over “sticker-shock.” It gives a chance for the prices to sink in. I recently went to look at buying a car for my youngest Son. When I saw the price of $26,000 I was outraged! I said

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to myself, “There’s no way I’m going to buy a car for that kind of price for a kid!” But I really didn’t know how much a car like that was going to cost. I was surprised but the car had some features that I really wanted my Son to have in a car. As I was discussing the prices with the Salesperson he immediately offered me a $2,500 dealer discount. That made me feel a lot better. Then I was able to negotiate another $2,500 off. Now, I was really feeling a lot better about the price. It was starting to sink in that this was actually a good deal. When I walked on the lot I took the extreme position that I was not buying a car at that price but two hours later I walked off the lot and had bought the car – and I felt really good about it! I just needed some time to get okay with what a good car like that cost. !#3. The order form gives the prospect a good idea of where this whole thing is going – and that’s a good thing! Now, they are starting to understand what is expected of them at the end of the presentation. Stephen Covey always said, “Begin with the end in mind” and that totally applies here. Now the prospect is starting to see what the “end game” is. There’s nothing vague about handing an order form to your prospects at the beginning of the presentation – they are starting to understand that you want them to buy. Now, they might be a little “put out” by it at first but the longer they sit with that order form the more comfortable they get with

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it. Do you think that it is good business to whip out the order form at the very end, hit them with the prices and expect them to be all warm and cozy and just start filling it out? Don’t you think they should have some time to let the idea of ordering, buying or joining sink in? You bet they should.

!And that’s what an order form does for them psychologically. !Not to mention that it gives you a great hands on tool to actually give them a way to buy. !Yes, the Order Form gives you a very visceral way to take them through the ordering or joining process. It is very clear and it is very black and white. You can refer to it and it can help you… !To actually move into your CLOSE which many of you are afraid to do and you will actually avoid having to do except that having them take out the form at the end gives you the perfect mechanism and reason the actually close them so… !You do! !

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Which is why you should always hand out an “Order Form” or a “Closing Sheet” at the beginning of a group presentation.

!# 7. Failure to Offer Packages

!Billionaires Steve Jobs and Mark Cuban both subscribed to this philosophy: “Prospects don’t know what they want. I never ask the prospects what they want. We figure out what they would want and then we offer it to them.” !You might think that your Network-Marketing, Direct Selling or Party Plan business is different but I really don’t think that it is. !If you’ve ever handed out Catalogs or asked your prospects to figure out what they wanted and watched them screw it up I’m sure you would agree with me! When left to their own devices I’ve seen prospects completely avoid the best discounts, pick the wrong products for them or hesitate because they were confused and buy someone else’s garbage products the next day that don’t even work! !Haven’t you seen this? !

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This is why you need to offer packages. Your packages should include many or all of the products you have been showing or demonstrating at your group presentation. Your packages should give people some great choices with some ascending prices and deeper discounts for purchasing larger quantities – in one shot! !If you sell products your packages should give your prospects several price points. !You should start off with your smallest package somewhere in the $150 to $300 range. Your medium package should be somewhere between $350 and $550. Your “I want it all” package should net somewhere around $700 to $800 or so. !If you offer services you want to make 3 distinct packages that your prospect can choose from. Sometimes with services this looks like a Silver, Gold or Diamond package that may increase in value or offer more benefits or discounts as the prospect chooses the higher levels. !When you offer packages you make the decision process clear and easy for your prospects. You give them a clear path. They now know what is expected of them so they actually know how to indicate their interest and they even have a “mechanism” that they can use to take physical action and order or join.

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!You’ll be amazed at what a simple and clear Order Form can do for your volume at group presentations! My clients in MJ’s Personal Coaching Program constantly report back to me that most people pick the middle package but that they are pleasantly and economically elated when two or three prospects pick the “I want it all” package for $800. If three prospects pick your VIP package that can really “pump up the volume” at your parties if you know what I mean! !By the way, offering packages helps to eliminate prospects buying “onesy-twosie” products just so they can say they bought something and then get out of there. !Aren’t you tired of doing all the work to make a party successful and then having people buy $30.00 worth of cleanser? Doesn’t that make you mad? Isn’t it a waste of your time, driving, gas, phone calls, invitations, dressing up, getting a sitter, not cleaning your house and having your spouse mad at you? !If you’re “mad as heck” and you’re “not going to take it anymore” then start offering packages and help your prospect buy from you or join your team. !!

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#8. Not Asking Your Prospects to Fill out Items or “Work” on the Order Form.

!You want your prospect comfortable. You want to get them comfortable with you, the products, your company, your leaders, your comp plan and YOUR ORDER FORM. Yes, your Order Form. !Selling in a group presentation is all about getting your prospects to drop their resistance. And if you want to get some resistance (remember, they can’t stay there) be sure to hand out an Order Form with a pen at the BEGINNING of the presentation – just to have some fun! I’ve seen prospects glance at it and quickly ditch the form and put it on the seat next to them like it just burned them! I’ve seen prospects glance at it with their nose in the air and peruse it with a definite air of disgust and then put it in their lap. I’ve seen people ignore everything else in the room and read EVERY part of the Form from top to bottom. I’ve seen people looking at the Form and I’ve seen their eyes widen and their mouth open in surprise like, “I don’t think so!” It’s hysterical. But the sales process is happening. You’ve got movement. You’ve got momentum and believe it or not it’s forward momentum! !I’m about to teach you one of the most powerful closing techniques that you will ever use in a group setting so don’t miss this:

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!Have your prospect take notes on the form. !Yes, have them take notes on the form. You can have them cross out prices, fill in special prices, ask them to write down payment plan information, star things, circle things etc. !Remember, you want your prospects to drop their resistance and get comfortable with your Order Form and with ordering. What better way to get them comfortable with the Order Form than having them write on it and use it as a worksheet? This is advanced selling psychology at work here and it’s effective! !After your prospect has been writing and working on the form the next logical step is to check one of the “Yes” boxes! Or at the very least if you are having them write on the Form they are used to it and they aren’t holding it away from them like it’s some smelly piece of garbage! !By the way I would recommend that you list the highest retail price that you can list for a package and then have a space for the “special” price or “tonight’s” price. It looks like this: !Retail Price: $575.66 Special Price: ________

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!This allows you to ask your prospects to cross out the retail price with their pen or marker and then write the discounted price in the section provided – and when they’re doing that they are writing on your order form and getting used to writing on the form. And you guessed it – they’ll be more comfortable checking off a YES box on the form. You can then add comments about how great the discount is or what percentage off it is or what an awesome deal this is. Remember, you’ve to encourage them buy! !Here’s another tip for making your form. Use “Yes” boxes. They look like this: !❑ Yes! I want the XYZ package to improve my overall health… !❑ Yes! I want the ABC package so that I can look younger and feel better… !❑ Yes! I want the “I want it all” package so I can experience all the products so that I can recommend them to my friends and family… !Contrary to popular belief your prospects do want to say, “YES!” Actually they do! It’s easier to say YES than it

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is to say NO in a group presentation. Make it easy for your prospect to say YES! !Have them write on the Form at various times during your presentation and especially when you are closing! !!# 9. Not Publicly Asking Your Participants What They

are Checking Off and Buying on the Form. !There’s too much subterfuge in your presentations! YOU know you are there to sell them. THEY know you are there to sell them. They know they are there to buy. But some of you are so scared to say it or acknowledge it. That’s why a lot of your “closing” is done in secret conversations in the kitchen or in the dining room. No one wants to talk about the “pink elephant” in the room. I asked one of my Personal Coaching Members recently if they actually asked any of the 11 prospects in the room to join her team and she said, “Well no, not outright. You know the invitation to join is kind of embedded in the presentation.” ! WHAT! It’s embedded in the presentation? That’s crazy. If you’re having issues getting people to join your team I think we just found out why. Prospects need to be asked to join and encouraged to join. You’ve got to recommend that they join. You’ve got to be a cheerleader and tell

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them that they can do it, that they’d be great at it and that they should consider joining that night. That’s how you build a team fast. That’s how you get momentum and keep momentum going. !When you avoid asking people publicly what they are choosing on the form you lose the power of group selling psychology. People like to know what the others in the group are thinking or doing. People are influenced by what their peers do or think. !So why not ask everyone to buy in a group? Ask them to indicate what they are checking off on the form. If you can get a couple of prospects to raise their hands and say that they just checked off Package A then everyone who did not check off Package A is wondering, “Oh, they’re doing it. Wow. I didn’t expect that. Gee, she seems kind of sharp and she’s doing this? Maybe I’m missing something. Maybe they know something or see something that I don’t. Maybe I should consider buying or joining too!” !Why not get the group all moving in the same direction? – the direction of buying or joining! You’re either going to get negative momentum (non-buying) going or positive momentum (buying) going. It’s your choice. It’s going to go one way or the other. Why not give the “buying

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pendulum” a push in the direction of having EVERYONE choosing to buy or join or both. When you are describing the benefits of Package A, why you love that package and what some of YOUR favorites are just say boldly and confidently, “Now this package is perfect for those of you that just want to get started with some of our basic products and get a feel for how great our products are. If you just want a basic start I would highly recommend that you check off that Yes box. Okay I see a few of you checking off that box or thinking about it. How many of you just checked off package A? (and then physically raise your hand looking at everyone in the eyes looking for agreement and nodding affirmatively when you get acknowledgement) Awesome! That’s great. You’re going to love that package. It’s one of my favorites. Okay let’s look at the second package…” !Get the idea? It works! I’ve seen a whole room of hesitant buyers shift to almost the whole room buying, joining or asking about joining. !It takes some guts to ask people what their choices are publicly but if you get good at it you can literally start closing 90% of the room. !Ask people publicly what they are choosing and checking off on your form! You’ll promote to the next

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level and above – and you’ll get paid richly for your efforts. !

# 10. Not Making an Offer and GivingDiscounts and Bonuses.

!Your prospects need to be given incentives to buy so that they buy right away! Indecision, hesitation, fear of making a mistake and wanting to “think to it over” are the killers of your group presentations. !After your prospects have seen your presentation or participated in your demonstration they are usually impressed. They may even be pleasantly surprised that they are excited about receiving the benefits of your products or services. They may have a great feeling of trust of the presenter or the host. But they’ve got to justify that buying or joining makes sense, is a good deal or is worth it. !This is the point where you really need to HELP your prospect psychologically. And believe me when I tell you this. They really need your help. If they’ve been staring at your retail prices all night thinking, !“There’s no way in heck I’m going to pay those prices,” and you have them cross out $595.00 and write in the

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Special Price of $395.00 you HAVE helped them tremendously! Now, they’re thinking, “Well for $595.00 there’s no way I was going to do it but $395.00 seems like a great deal. That sure sounds better! That’s much more doable.” !And their psychological resistance to your offer drops. Actually it drops substantially! They couldn’t justify it before but now it’s starting to make sense. Remember this fact about psychological selling: !Your prospect buys emotionally and then justifies their buying decision with logic. !By pushing them to the left side of the “not-buying” side of the pendulum and keeping them there during the whole presentation you’ve created a bunch of resistance for your prospect that quite frankly they are looking to get some relief from. !When you say, !“Take that pen we handed out to you in the beginning and cross out that $595.00 price and write in the Special Price: $395.00,” you can almost hear the whole group exhale in relief! !

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It’s almost palpable. Your prospect feels better, relaxes, sees this buying decision now as something they can actually do and their resistance plummets. And you’re almost there but… !What I’m about to teach you is the MOST IMPORTANT THING IN THIS ENTIRE E-Book about Closing in a Group Presentation or closing at any time: !Your prospect must feel that they will LOSE something or PASS UP something good like a special price, a one-time discount or a bonus in order to take action and buy on the spot. !PLEASE LISTEN TO ME HERE. I just revealed a huge secret to you about closing and I’m hoping that you are not missing it so I have a question for you and I really want you to think hard about these next questions… Are you sick and tired of hearing: !“I’m really interested. Let me get back to you.” !“I need to do more research. Let me look over the catalog. Call me next week.” !“I’m not sure if I want to buy the products or join the business. Give me a week or so and give me a call.” !

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“This looks really great and I have interest but I’m busy the next few weeks or months with my kids (charity events, vacation, moving, a job change, etc.) I can’t do anything until those things are out of the way. Call me in two-weeks. (two months, 6 months etc.) !AND THEN YOU CALL THEM AND THEY DON’T RETURN YOUR CALLS AND YOU CAN’T FIND THEM! !I mean when they were there that night at your presentation, demonstration or opp meeting they were so earnest and so sincere and you believed them, yes you really wanted to believe them and they went… !INTO THE NETWORK-MARKETING OR DIRECT SELLING WITNESS PROTECTION PROGRAM AND YOU COULD NEVER FIND THEM AGAIN! !Has this happened to you? Are you sick of it? Does it feel awful? Are you tired of living this way? Giving your ALL at a presentation and having people disrespect you this way doesn’t feel good? – does it? !Good. I’m sorry to have to get you in the “feeling” place of how bad this feels but I want you ready and willing to listen to this next part. !

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If you have offered them a discount you have lowered their resistance measurably but if you now offer them a bonus if they go ahead and make a decision on the spot… !They will have a very hard time saying, “No.” Actually if you offer a bonus it becomes almost impossible to hesitate and not take advantage of your offer… !So I recommend you offer them a bonus. Package up some of your flagship products or samples and put them in some attractive packaging like a gift basket. Have your gift baskets off to the side and if you’ve got 8 people at the party or presentation only display 4 of them on a table next to you or near you. So you say, !“And as a way to reward you for making a decision tonight and checking off certain boxes on the form I’ve got this beautiful gift basket for you (show the basket) and the products in here are valued at ________. You’ll love these bonus products. Some of my absolute favorites are in here like the ______ and the _______. So if you checked off the second or the third box you’ll get $200 off the retail price and another $70 off by getting the bonus gift basket, while they last, but remember that the bonus gift basket is my way of thanking you and appreciating you, rewarding you if you will for investing in our one of our packages tonight! By the way you don’t have to make

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a choice tonight but the gift basket isn’t available tomorrow, that’s just for tonight.” !I want you to understand that your prospect WILL TAKE ACTION and WILL MAKE A DECISION TO ACT IMMEDIATELY IF THEY THINK THEY WILL LOSE SOMETHING… !And I’ve seen prospects come running up to the front of the living room to hand in their “Order Forms.” I’ve seen them line up in a “check-out” line to make sure that they get their bonuses and discounts. !Wouldn’t you LOVE to have your prospects raising their hands as they are checking off what packages they want and wouldn’t it be a huge energy rush to see people running up to the front of the room to place their orders? Wouldn’t you like to see $3,000 to $6,000 parties instead of the ones you’re having right now? !That’s why you want to make sure you make an offer, give discounts and give bonuses EVERYTIME you do a presentation. _______________________________________________________________ !Well, that brings us the end of this E-Book. I hope you found this material helpful and useful. I tried to pack in as

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much education and value as I could. If you felt that this information was valuable please stay in touch with me through my various webinars and seminars that I hold from time to time. Also, if you have a comment about any of this material feel free to send me an email at [email protected]. I’d love to get your feedback. !To your continued success, MJ Durkin !PS: Can I make a recommendation? Go to my website www.mjdurkinseminars.com and scroll down and sign up for “MJ’s Daily Quote.” It’s free and every day we will send you an inspiring quote in your email that will help you in your business. ! A little bit about the author: !MJ Durkin’s entrepreneurial spirit led him to start a

business at age 26 that in a few short years was cash flowing over $1,000,000 a year. After selling at the kitchen table for 8 years MJ sold that business for a healthy profit and started a sales training and personal growth business that has helped thousands of people reach their sales and success goals.

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!MJ Durkin has been a keynote speaker and presenter for some of the world’s largest sales organizations sharing the stage with such speaking greats as Les Brown and Brian Tracy. He is the author of seven books including his book, Double Your Contacts, which has sold over 265,000 copies and over 485,000 of his audio programs have been purchased by Network-Marketers and Direct Sellers worldwide. !MJ Durkin is also the creator of Recommendation Selling™ a comprehensive selling system that teaches Network-Marketers, Direct Sellers and Party Plan Reps how to put names on a contact list, book an appointment with those prospects and then shows them how to “make a recommendation” and close the sale – 80% of the time! !He is the father of two sons, Corey and Tyler and lives in the Northern Hills of CT in a small New England town called New Milford and is engaged to the “Beautiful Bonnie” with a marriage eminent within the year. He is a teacher, educator, trainer and is known for his very direct, engaging speaking style and his emphasis on skills based and “how to” training. !To learn more about how MJ Durkin can help your team reach their goals you can call our corporate offices in CT at 860-799-6120.

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