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Ever smiling, cheerfully talking to everyone she knows, with her well-coiffed hair and impeccable make up, the local direct sales lady who came calling at your door was practically perfect in every way.
She made friends where ever she went, was constantly chatting on the phone, booking appointments, hosting parties, and above all, making lots of sales with the greatest of ease…
And I was nothing like her.
Nor were many of my friends.
For people like us, nothing could strike fear in our hearts like the thought of having to call someone to set up an appointment or book a home party. Going to a stranger’s home to sell stuff to people you don’t know?
No way. Never. Not in a million years.
So for many years, the world of direct sales was exclusively the domain of the outgoing extrovert.
Not Anymore!
With the explosion of the internet and social media, the realm of network marketing and direct sales is now wide open to introverts.
Now with online marketing, introverts can be wildly successful, and even surpass extroverts.
Not only can introverts now be a part of this amazing business model, but they bring many unique advantages to the table that extroverts may lack:
1. They May be less pushy and more patient
In general, introverts tend to be less aggressive or “pushy”.
In the sales world, you are taught to close that sale right NOW!
If that potential customer doesn’t buy now, they may never buy. In the online world, the rules are a little different.
Sure, creating a sense of urgency can certainly help, but just because someone doesn’t buy now, doesn’t mean they might not buy later.
Being pressured to buy right away can even turn some people off, and this where the less pushy introvert can—over time—beat out a more aggressive extrovert.
2. They may be more thoughtful
Introverts also tend to take more time thinking through options, rather than going with a gut feeling as to what seems best.
This can often lead to finding better and more efficient means of creating sales and growing a business than a more spontaneous person would.
3. They may be more understanding of others and their concerns
In the online world, it’s much easier to offend through having our written words misunderstood.
Extra care often needs to be taken to consider the concerns of others, a subtlety for which introverts are often better suited.
This can lead to the formation of great relationships with customers, bloggers, and others which help the introvert succeed at business.
4. They may communicate more effectively through email.
What was once a weakness is now a strength. The introvert’s reluctance to make phone calls now becomes an asset, as they naturally want to communicate more through email—proven to be the optimal form of communication in business.
Business Introvert Style
So how exactly does one go about running an introvert- friendly business? The key is to utilize less in-person methods of advertising and selling. Below are just a few of the proven methods that are working now:
Social Media:
Social media is a great way to spread the word about your product, and more importantly, develop a relationship with your target market.
People buy from those they know, like, and trust, and social media is a great way for people to get to know you. Facebook parties are also a fun and effective way to market your product.
One of my favorite social media platforms right now is Pinterest. If you have a product or blog posts that lend themselves well to photos, then Pinterest is a place you definitely want to be!
Facebook Advertising:
This is one of the most exciting new opportunities on the internet! The ability to micro-target your ideal customer is unparalleled!!!
Who is your ideal customer? Who needs what you offer? Who has a problem that you can solve? Now you can reach out to them directly, and specifically address their needs and concerns!
What makes Facebook ads so great is you can pinpoint the exact kind of person who would be interested in your product.
Once you narrow down who it is exactly who wants what you have to sell, and you find an ad that works, all you have to do is click button and you're making money.
Facebook ads can generate passive income
Sure, you do have to pay for advertising, but if I told you that if you gave me $10 I would give you $100 in return, how many ten dollar bills would you give me? Probably all of them!
Even if you only got $50, or $20, or $15 in return for every $10 you spent, this is still a great deal than catapult your business, and done correctly, Facebook Ads can definitely give you a huge return on investment.
Creating effective Facebook Ads is not easy, though. If you're interested in Facebook ads, you should definitely look into signing up for Elite Marketing Pro. Our family cannot recommend them enough!
They provide you with hours and hours of training and support, and can help you learn exactly what you need to know to run successful Facebook Ads.
Email Marketing
An email list is the foundation of any online business, and again, is a super-introvert-friendly marketing strategy.
All your fans on social media don't really belong to you. You can't control what Facebook or the other social media outlets will change next.
If you build your own email list, you own that information, and can communicate with your audience any time you want.
Of course, don't use your list to be constantly pushing a sales message...instead, provide value to your audience.
Give. Give. And give some more!
Help your audience with their problems.
Care about them. Once they know, like, and trust you, then they will listen to what you have to say about your product.
The easiest and fastest way to grow your email list is by providing a "lead magnet". You have probably seen these before. The website or company offers you something free in exchange for your email. Not all lead magnets are created equal, though.
In order to know what kind of lead magnet to create, you first have to understand who your target audience is, and what their pain points are.
What do they struggle with? What problem can you solve for them? Figure that out, and then provide it for them in the form of a lead magnet.
Make your lead magnet so compelling that those in your target audience would lose sleep at night by NOT having it.
The best lead magnets are ones that solve a specific problem, and can be quickly consumed.
They could also be a resource guide, an mp3 interview, a video, a course, or really anything that you think would appeal to your target audience.
Influencer Marketing
In my opinion, this is THE BEST way to start growing a business online. It's introvert-friendly, but extroverts can definitely have success as well.
So, what is Influencer Marketing?
In a nutshell, it is simply when someone who has a influencer over a certain following of people promote your product for you.
Influencers are everywhere. They could be bloggers, Instagramers, YouTubers, Facebook Group Owners, small business owners, etc.
Anyone who has a loyal following who trusts them can be a potential Influencer you want to collaborate with...
And the best way I've found to collaborate with Influencers is to have them review your product, and then host a giveaway contest on their main platform (whether a blog or a social media site).
If an influencer has a large and loyal audience, their endorsement of your product can go a long way in helping your bottom line. Send them samples of your product so they can fall in love with it and gush about it to their fans!
Then have them host a giveaway for your product, which will generate even more excitement, sales, and team members!
However, long-term, the best thing you can do for your business is build your own brand with a blog of your own!
Having your own blog is the best long-term strategy
Having a "home base" for all your ventures and communications with your audience has now become a must in today's online marketing world.
Social media is great and vital, but you don't "own" your place there, or your fans, and the rules are constantly changing.
For example, it used to be that when you shared a blog post on your Facebook fan page, all your fans would see it. If you had 1,000 fans, all 1,000 fans would see your blog post.
Today, Facebook doesn't show your post to all of your fans, and you barely get a fraction of the same exposure. Overnight, you essentially lost your audience.
So Facebook Groups became the next biggest thing because everyone in a group would see whatever was posted...not anymore.
Pretty soon, Facebook is probably going to want you to buy ads to show your group posts to more of your group members.
But when you capture emails with your own blog, a space that you "own", no one can take that away from you.
Choose Your Label
So often, how a person is labeled is what they become.
According to “Labeling Theory,” labeling a person “smart” or “slow” can actually make a person so. What we believe about ourselves often becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy.
Don’t ever let a label hold you back from being successful, whether you are an “introvert” or an “extrovert.”
Just because something may not come naturally to you, doesn’t mean you can’t acquire that skill with practice.
All it takes is some determination and the intention to learn. We all have the means to grow, and to either become more “extroverted” or to take on the subtleties of an “introvert”.
Drop the labels holding you back
Drop the labels which lie to you and tell you that you can’t. Choose a new label which will lead to your success. Believe you can achieve, and you can find a way.
Have I convinced you?
Do you believe that introverts can be just as successful, and even surpass, extroverts in business?
You don't need to cold call, you don't need to do home parties, you don't need to bug friends and family, and you don't have to prospect a bunch of strangers in order to be successful.
In fact, the introvert-friendly methods of growing your business mentioned above are much more effective ways for growing your online business anyway.
If you want to get started building your business from home, without going against your introverted nature, then you should definitely get started with Influencer Marketing.
Grab my free guide below that will quickly outline my strategy for succeeding with Influencers.
Free Online Marketing Quickstart Guide
Discover how to get hundreds of leads for your network marketing business, increase sales and grow your team online without social media, Facebook parties, messaging strangers, or bugging friends and family.
This will be especially beneficial if you never want to do another vendor show or home party ever again!
I hope you found this post on, How Being An Introvert Can Give You An Advantage At Direct Sales, helpful!
Please feel free to share if you got value, and let me know in the comments below...
Do you consider yourself an introvert?
Do you think you can't succeed in business?
Or if you are already in business, how do you use those characteristics to your benefit?
Blessings!
Hi, I'm Paula Ramm
I’m a homeschooling mom of 7, living in the sunny state of Florida. I’ve been in direct sales for over 7 years and managed to build a multi-million dollar revenue-generating team of over 6,000 amazing consultants.
I love to help other ladies build their own thriving businesses from home, so they can spend more time with their families and be able to focus on the truly important things in life.
