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It is touted that the number one skill for any entrepreneur or business owner is the ability to sell. So which sales dog breed are you? Are you able to sell? Regardless of whether we’re in the industrial age or the e-commence era, there is one skill that everyone has to master - Sales! Why is this? This is because sales = income.
Yet, many people fail financially. Not because they do not have great ideas or even good work ethic. But typically because they:
- don’t know how to
- refuse to
- are afraid to
- don’t think it is important to know how to sell
Anybody can sell but only if you are trained properly. According to Blair Singer (Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad Sales Advisor), salespeople and dogs train the same way. Consider this;a dog comes up to you, drops a stick at your foot a hundred times, take any rejection in the world still drops the stick at your foot hoping that you’ll throw it for them.
Good training is also the sole reason why great dogs can hunt. Just like how great salespeople are able to size up their prospects, discern who is interested in buying and who is not, and close the deal successfully.
Based on this principle, Blair developed a unique profiling system that compares the different breeds of dogs to the different types of sales personalities.

Pitbull
The most aggressive and probably the most stereotyped salesperson is the Pit Bull. They will attack with a ferocity, aggression, and tenacity that is both awe-inspiring and terrifying. All they need is a pant cuff to latch on to and they NEVER let go. Their intensity is rivaled only by their lack of fear. They are the classic thick-skinned, aggressive salesperson. Closing and objection handling is breakfast for this champion. The Pitbull’s success comes from sheer power and fearlessness. They will make more calls, field more rejections, and keep on selling than any other breed – even when they should really back off. They have a high closing ratio with clients who want someone who will take charge, but often leave a mess for support staff to figure out and clean up. When in doubt, do something, do anything! Focus on actions that put you in front of people. Pit bulls are pioneers and ready to break in a new territory. This is one breed where the numbers game can be leveraged.
Golden Retriever
Everyone’s favorite is the Golden Retriever. The typical Retriever sells by providing extraordinary customer service and they will go to great lengths to grant favors for their customers. The wise Retriever is successful because they know that by continually taking care of prospects, clients, and members of their team, customers will keep coming back and the referrals will flow. Long-term service is the key. To the retriever, customer service is everything, and they often need to be reminded to sell what they are giving. Their sales pitch’s strength is the amazing specific value they offer. Always be the first to give. This giving comes naturally, and small offerings early in the process tip the scales in their favor. Their best prospects for new business are often their existing clients. Retrievers need to be coached to up-sell and cross-sell their additional services.
Poodle
Poodles are highly intelligent and highly conscious of their appearance. They always look good and will never consider getting their paws dirty over chasing some stupid stick into the river and into the mud (the show dog). They know the latest trends and are incredibly well connected. In fact, they probably have the most extensive and exclusive network of any of the breeds! Poodles also love to speak in front of groups and be the center of attention. And it is this natural ability to articulate a message that makes Poodles large sums of money. Their sales pitch’s strength is their classic style. And they often gravitate to the sale of big-ticket items. Learn to speak well to groups, practice as often as you can. Poodles can be the most effective marketing dogs. They like to be the order-taker, and by marketing their own brand, they will keep prospects coming to them.
Chihuahua
Chihuahuas are technical wizards (may fool you by their small size). Their product knowledge and understanding of processes is astounding. When they have a point to be made, they are insistent about driving their point home. Don’t ever get a Chihuahua started on a subject they are passionate about. They won’t just talk, they will shout, scream, rant, and rave a mile a minute. Prospects can only be amazed and impressed with the incredible exhibition of passion, emotion, and technical detail. Whilst the Chihuahua is not always the best lap dog, it’s the breed you want on your team when digging up data and putting together vital presentations. With boundless energy, Chihuahuas can pull off all-nighters better than any other breed. Let prospects know what you have learned related to their needs. In this day of high-tech and fast changes, product and process knowledge are often critical to both the close and account management. This breed needs to be looking, listening, reading, and taking notes.
Bassett Hound
The classic of all classics is the faithful Bassett Hound (dependable, laid back salesperson). This companion will stick by you through thick and thin. You may try to chase this dog away, yet it would always come back. When they sell, they have that distinctively humble approach that is designed to drive an arrow deep into your heart. If their pathetic look doesn’t get you and begging doesn’t work, beware! You may be about to experience Plan B – the picture of their family and stories about having to pay for braces, bicycles, and ballet classes! They will do anything to solicit your sympathy and their favorite word is “Please?” – “Please buy from me”, or “Please give me an answer today”. And their tenacity paired with how they “look you in the eye” is the key to their close. Master the art of building rapport. This breed intertwines relationships and transactions like an art. With their dependability, consistency, and integrity, they need to get in front of people to “look them in the eye” whenever possible. 
Do you see yourself or see your salespeople here? How can you leverage your strengths and manage your weaknesses to become a top-performing salesperson?
As a salesperson, you need to identify and understand first your own breed, and then the breeds of those around you. Armed with this knowledge, you can learn to leverage your own strengths and personalities as well as those of your team.
While the book is fun and engaging, it also dives deep into the personal development issues that block a person’s ability to generate income and how to overcome them. The book is perfect for first time salespeople, individuals who are uncomfortable with the notion of "selling”, those who need to train others to sell and those who want to simply get better quicker.

It is touted that the number one skill for any entrepreneur or business owner is the ability to sell. So which sales dog breed are you? Are you able to sell? Regardless of whether we’re in the industrial age or the e-commence era, there is one skill that everyone has to master - Sales! Why is this? This is because sales = income.
Yet, many people fail financially. Not because they do not have great ideas or even good work ethic. But typically because they:
- don’t know how to
- refuse to
- are afraid to
- don’t think it is important to know how to sell
Anybody can sell but only if you are trained properly. According to Blair Singer (Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad Sales Advisor), salespeople and dogs train the same way. Consider this;a dog comes up to you, drops a stick at your foot a hundred times, take any rejection in the world still drops the stick at your foot hoping that you’ll throw it for them.
Good training is also the sole reason why great dogs can hunt. Just like how great salespeople are able to size up their prospects, discern who is interested in buying and who is not, and close the deal successfully.
Based on this principle, Blair developed a unique profiling system that compares the different breeds of dogs to the different types of sales personalities.

Pitbull
The most aggressive and probably the most stereotyped salesperson is the Pit Bull. They will attack with a ferocity, aggression, and tenacity that is both awe-inspiring and terrifying. All they need is a pant cuff to latch on to and they NEVER let go. Their intensity is rivaled only by their lack of fear. They are the classic thick-skinned, aggressive salesperson. Closing and objection handling is breakfast for this champion. The Pitbull’s success comes from sheer power and fearlessness. They will make more calls, field more rejections, and keep on selling than any other breed – even when they should really back off. They have a high closing ratio with clients who want someone who will take charge, but often leave a mess for support staff to figure out and clean up. When in doubt, do something, do anything! Focus on actions that put you in front of people. Pit bulls are pioneers and ready to break in a new territory. This is one breed where the numbers game can be leveraged.
Golden Retriever
Everyone’s favorite is the Golden Retriever. The typical Retriever sells by providing extraordinary customer service and they will go to great lengths to grant favors for their customers. The wise Retriever is successful because they know that by continually taking care of prospects, clients, and members of their team, customers will keep coming back and the referrals will flow. Long-term service is the key. To the retriever, customer service is everything, and they often need to be reminded to sell what they are giving. Their sales pitch’s strength is the amazing specific value they offer. Always be the first to give. This giving comes naturally, and small offerings early in the process tip the scales in their favor. Their best prospects for new business are often their existing clients. Retrievers need to be coached to up-sell and cross-sell their additional services.
Poodle
Poodles are highly intelligent and highly conscious of their appearance. They always look good and will never consider getting their paws dirty over chasing some stupid stick into the river and into the mud (the show dog). They know the latest trends and are incredibly well connected. In fact, they probably have the most extensive and exclusive network of any of the breeds! Poodles also love to speak in front of groups and be the center of attention. And it is this natural ability to articulate a message that makes Poodles large sums of money. Their sales pitch’s strength is their classic style. And they often gravitate to the sale of big-ticket items. Learn to speak well to groups, practice as often as you can. Poodles can be the most effective marketing dogs. They like to be the order-taker, and by marketing their own brand, they will keep prospects coming to them.
Chihuahua
Chihuahuas are technical wizards (may fool you by their small size). Their product knowledge and understanding of processes is astounding. When they have a point to be made, they are insistent about driving their point home. Don’t ever get a Chihuahua started on a subject they are passionate about. They won’t just talk, they will shout, scream, rant, and rave a mile a minute. Prospects can only be amazed and impressed with the incredible exhibition of passion, emotion, and technical detail. Whilst the Chihuahua is not always the best lap dog, it’s the breed you want on your team when digging up data and putting together vital presentations. With boundless energy, Chihuahuas can pull off all-nighters better than any other breed. Let prospects know what you have learned related to their needs. In this day of high-tech and fast changes, product and process knowledge are often critical to both the close and account management. This breed needs to be looking, listening, reading, and taking notes.
Bassett Hound
The classic of all classics is the faithful Bassett Hound (dependable, laid back salesperson). This companion will stick by you through thick and thin. You may try to chase this dog away, yet it would always come back. When they sell, they have that distinctively humble approach that is designed to drive an arrow deep into your heart. If their pathetic look doesn’t get you and begging doesn’t work, beware! You may be about to experience Plan B – the picture of their family and stories about having to pay for braces, bicycles, and ballet classes! They will do anything to solicit your sympathy and their favorite word is “Please?” – “Please buy from me”, or “Please give me an answer today”. And their tenacity paired with how they “look you in the eye” is the key to their close. Master the art of building rapport. This breed intertwines relationships and transactions like an art. With their dependability, consistency, and integrity, they need to get in front of people to “look them in the eye” whenever possible. 
Do you see yourself or see your salespeople here? How can you leverage your strengths and manage your weaknesses to become a top-performing salesperson?
As a salesperson, you need to identify and understand first your own breed, and then the breeds of those around you. Armed with this knowledge, you can learn to leverage your own strengths and personalities as well as those of your team.
While the book is fun and engaging, it also dives deep into the personal development issues that block a person’s ability to generate income and how to overcome them. The book is perfect for first time salespeople, individuals who are uncomfortable with the notion of "selling”, those who need to train others to sell and those who want to simply get better quicker.

Network Marketing has gained a lot of importance in the last decade.Now that you've made up your mind, congratulations. Now, how do you get started in network marketing? Once again, congratulations on joining network marketing who seek to achieve more and live a more fulfilling life.
What are some of the things to look out for when choosing a network marketing company? Do you just join any company because someone told you about it? Or because of the 'goodies' you've heard the company give? When you think of entering or starting any business venture, it is imperative to do your homework very well to determine the viability of that business and whether it is the right one for you.
From a personal perspective, I always advise prospective partners to look out for two main things: products/services and compensation plans. Truth be told, every network marketing company prides itself to have the best quality of products. However, its affordability is left to the prospective partner to determine, whether he or she can d business with them.
With the compensation plan, one needs to be careful by doing the due diligence of studying whichever one is employed by the company they want to join.
The acceptance of network marketing is seeing significant growth with an increasing number of network marketing companies operating globally across all continents. Their business models, structures, cultures, products/services, and payments vary considerably. It is therefore important to understand these variations. In other words, you need to take time and study the various compensation plans and their products/services.
In which of the products or services lies your passion. Whatever the reason, with so much choice, it is important that you do your homework very well and find the company that is right and suits you. And so, before you embark on this, there are certain questions you need to consider:
In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing. Theodore Roosevelt

1. What do you wish to get from network marketing?- Most people who start network marketing would wish or want their investments back, achieve some success, make some profits, all things being equal. Mostly, those who usually succeed have their reasons driving and pushing them through whatever pain and fears they may face. When your reasons are strong and compelling, they act as strong drivers. Likewise, weak reasons are not strong drivers. So clearly state your WHY.
2. What are you willing to sacrifice?- Is it your time, money, certain habits, and lifestyles? Decide how much time you are willing to dedicate to building your business each day. Cut down on the time you spend unnecessarily.
3. In which of the products or services does your passion lie?- By choosing something you believe in, your path to success is automatically going to be 100% easier. When you know where your passion lies, you won’t have to force yourself to work every day, you won’t have to force yourself to talk about it, you won’t have to force yourself to sell it, you won’t have to force yourself to get others involved, and you won’t have to force yourself to be motivated. You’ll love the results of what you are doing beyond just the money. Therefore, you will be motivated every day. One of the things about network marketing is that it is easy to find a product or service you believe in.
4. Who should you choose as a mentor?- After deciding on which products or services to do business with, you'll also need to choose a mentor. This could be the person who recruited you into network marketing in the first place or another successful network marketer in your area. Your mentor should be someone that teaches you how to do network marketing right. Someone that can teach you how to set up your business, how to establish yourself, how to network effectively, how to sell your product, and how to recruit others. If you don’t know anyone to be your mentor, you can always search for network marketing and network marketing mentors and coaches online. Visit their blogs, social profiles, and other sources of information about them online to determine if they are a good fit for you.
5. How should your business plan be like?- Business plans are not just for startups that need funding or multi-million dollar corporations. If you are starting or running any business, including a network marketing business, then you need a plan. Your business plan should include the following: a. Company Description – This section asks you to define what you do, what differentiates you from your competitors, and who your target customer is. You will get asked this a lot throughout your network marketing career, so it’s important. b. Market Analysis – Have you thoroughly researched network marketing and your potential customers? This section encourages you to research your industry, market, and competitors. c. Organization and Management – Are you going to be the lone star in your business, or do you have one or more partners? This section asks you to define each person in your business – how much they own, what their skills are, how long you have worked with them, etc. d. Service or Product Line – If you chose something you believe in, this part will be simple. This section asks you to get into the details of what you are selling, including how it will benefit your customers, what is the product lifecycle, and what the story is behind your product or service. e. Marketing and Sales – Have you decided how you plan to increase your revenue? This section asks what your business’s marketing and sales strategy is. f. Funding Request – You can skip this unless you need funding for your business. g. Financial Projections – How much do you think you can make from your network marketing business? This section asks you to outline your projected income and expenses. h. Executive Summary – This is a summary of the above information placed at the start of your business plan.
6. How important are training and meetings?- The company you are thinking of working with or have chosen to work with knows how to help you with the best way to become successful in that business. Thus, follow their training program and learn various tactics to form a successful customer base. Most of the good network marketing companies I believe have excellent training programs. This is where choosing a good leader is worth an effort. If you have a good leader, you will have a person to look upon, a mentor to help you grow, and a friend to celebrate small victories together! Therefore, you must make it a point to attend company training to learn and acquire the needed skills to succeed in the business.
7. Should you recruit more people and overlook quality?- When you are ready to start recruiting salespeople to work with you, remember that the goal should be quality, not quantity. You don’t want to spend a lot of time recruiting people that are just going to lose interest in a couple of weeks or people who are not interested in sales in the first place. Given this, take the time to get to know your prospects. Make sure they have the same goals and passions as you do. If you choose them as part of your sales team, take the time to train them properly so that you know when they go off. They will be ready to sell and ready to recruit additional quality members for your team.
The journey of a thousand mile indeed begins with a single step. Now that you have found some answers to the questions (not limited to the above mentioned), start putting plans to actions. In no time, you will start seeing the fruits of your effort. Network marketing is an excellent opportunity for people who want stable, ever-increasing income while being their bosses.

The act of defining marketing has remained one of the difficult things on this planet. Marketing has remained one of the most misunderstood business disciplines. While the general tasks of marketing are somewhat straightforward, defining marketing has been difficult. Often, it has assumed to be just one aspect of what it involves, such as advertising. Its full extent is often underestimated and misunderstood, largely by people in other areas of business.
However, marketing is a specialist activity that influences the success of any organization. Despite organizations becoming increasingly marketing-focused, some marketers often find wrong assumptions made about their role. This mistaken perception matters. Because many people in an organization are (wittingly or not) part of its marketing, or they are affected by it.
Marketing's effectiveness is largely influenced by a lot of factors. It is therefore important that marketing is not seen as an isolated function. It should be widely understood so that everyone can play their part, in order to make marketing effective in its role of "bringing in the business".
What is Marketing?
There is a myriad of definitions of marketing. According to the UK's Chartered Institute of Marketing, it is 'the management process responsible for identifying, anticipating, and satisfying customer requirement profitably'. American marketing guru, Philip Kotler, defined marketing as 'the business function that identifies current unfulfilled needs and wants, defines and measures their magnitude, determines which target markets the organization can best serve and decides on appropriate products, services, and programs to serve these markets. Thus marketing serves as a link between a society's needs and its pattern of industrial response'.
From these two definitions, the complexity involved is uncovered. It is therefore clear that marketing is more than just the 'marketing department'. Peter Drucker, a leading management thinker, however, was content to say: 'Marketing is looking at the business through the customers' eyes'. Indeed, everything stems from that.
Marketing can be said to begin even before production or manufacturing starts. And ends after delivering after-sales satisfaction. It must not be regarded merely as a business practice, but as a social institution. The specific role of marketing is to assist in identifying, satisfying, and retaining customers.
https://thepelinam.com/2020/05/14/towards-defining-marketing/

What is Network Marketing?

Network marketing is a network of people who have access to a range of products and services and distribute them through that network. It is a form of sales which eliminates wholesalers and retailers and delivers products and services directly to consumers. It involves two essential exercises: selling/sales and recruiting. Network marketing has been referred to by a myriad of names- direct marketing, direct selling, and most popularly multi-level marketing. All these refer to the same concept of selling. Network marketing will be exclusively used. The term "networking" best describes how the "marketing" is achieved.
Read also: https://thepelinam.com/2020/02/29/historical-overview-of-network-marketing/

Network marketing is a type of business model where independent distributors sell goods and services to an end consumer. It is very popular with people looking for a part-time job since it requires very little investment from their part. On the other hand, some businesses have adopted this model with great success as well.

The concept of network marketing works in this way: a company has a product or a service to sell. It finds distributors to sell the product and they, in turn, recruit more distributors to expand the network. These distributors get a sales commission on every product they sell and what the people they’ve recruited sell, too.

Network marketing is the distribution of products and services through a network of people, rather than through traditional supply chains. The philosophy behind network marketing is that, instead of these companies spending millions or billions of money in marketing and advertising their products through main-stream media, they simply reward people to distribute their products by referral, word-of-mouth.
So instead of operating from a shop, people have access to these products and services through the networks created. Over time, more people join and help extend and expand the network. The volume of products and services they distribute increases. Along the way, part of the profits on these products and services are paid to distributors. With time, the opportunity to create a regular income from a team of people using and selling these products becomes a reality.

Currently, there are well over twenty million (20m) people around the globe that are involved in network marketing. Also known as multi-level marketing or direct selling, this figure keeps increasing day-in-day-out. Most manufacturers, now see it as a viable and credible alternative for distributing their products and services. Reaching consumers directly through traditional retailing methods and/or outlets is not only difficult but also extremely costly.

Health supplements, cosmetics, cleaning products, cars, travels, etc are distributed using network marketing. Examples include Avon, Herbalife, Amway, Tupperware, Nu Skin, Forever Living, AIM, Longrich, World Ventures, etc

Technology, especially the internet has had a dramatic impact on the network marketing industry and is rapidly maturing. And most people who join now are now from professional backgrounds. Network marketing has certainly come of age. Many of the people involved are making a lot of money, for not a lot of work. These people did the hard work when they started. And now they enjoy the fruits of their labor, with a solid passive income stream and a residual income.

Previously, many people had perceived network marketing as something you do on the side to make extra cash. Part-time is still available. Most of the people fail. Because they fail to treat it as a real business right from the start. Could this be because of the relatively low start-up cost? Or a high degree of flexibility? That they treat it more as a hobby (even though it works for some people)?
Most people also make it happen. They manage to set up a great little business. This supplements their income. But for many others, their lack of conviction ultimately results in the business slowly fading into the background. And the words, "Network marketing simply is not for me" are uttered whenever the topic is raised. Materials, books, and products are left to gather dust on a shelf.

It is therefore imperative to know and remember the business you are going into. Note that the network marketing business has its idiosyncrasies and opportunities. They can be incredibly rewarding on many levels and as challenging as any mainstream business.

Network marketing has come of age. It is undeniable that it has become a way to entrepreneurship and independence for millions of people- Stephen Covey, author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.
Read also: https://www.franklincovey.com/the-7-habits/habit-4.html


https://thepelinam.com/2020/03/08/what-is-network-marketing/

Go Pro-7 Steps to Becoming a Network Marketing Professional

Go Pro-7 Steps to Becoming a Network Marketing Professional, has Eric Worre sharing his 7 great steps to achieving great success as a network marketer. These steps not only help network marketers, but everybody interested in becoming a successful entrepreneur.

Over twenty years ago at a company convention, Eric Worre had an "aha" moment that changed his life forever. At that event, he made the decision to Go Pro and become a Network Marketing expert. Since that time, he has focused on developing the skills to do just that. In doing so, Eric has touched and been touched by hundreds of thousands of people around the world. Now he shares his wisdom in a guide that will ignite your passion for this profession and hep you make the decision to Go Pro and create the life of your dreams.

In this definitive guidebook, you will learn how to:

Find prospects:

Ask anyone in network marketing and you'll be told the same thing: prospecting is critical, and involves selecting people who have a valid reason to succeed. Ask questions about their lives to discover their "why" motivators.

Invite them to your product or opportunity:

Put yourself in other person's shoes to see what would entice them to ask questions. Go Pro tip: strike a conversation instead of inundating them with 'all' your of knowledge.

Present your product or opportunity:

It all comes down to strategy, and successfully presenting your product to prospects requires pulling out all your best moves. Treat it like a book review: give them all the important details in a concise, engaging way. There are plenty of tactics for this, ranging from acting like you're in a hurry and stating, "I'm about to head out the door, but I wanted to chat with you really quick," to complimenting the person with, "You're someone who never misses out on an opportunity."

Follow up with your prospects:

Don't leave your perspective distributors to fend for themselves. Achieving success in network marketing is not easy at all. Give them the necessary tools need to climb to the top — you can gift or loan them Go Pro!

Help them become customers or distributors:

Which path do you envisage your prospects will take? To become a network marketing professional yourself, you need to have and guide them in the right direction. Ask questions that drive them to a fit conclusion.

Help them get started right:

An object in motion stays in motion, which makes kicking off your new distributors' career all the more important. First, you must congratulate them on making a decision, and throw light on all the opportunities they should look forward to. Then, set them up with all the appropriate products and information.

Grow your team by promoting events:

Encourage your new distributors to go to events that seek to educate and train entrepreneurs so they can fully dive into the network marketing experience.

https://thepelinam.com/2020/03/28/go-pro-7-steps-to-becoming-a-network-marketing-professional-eric-worre/

You joined network marketing for a reason......a more prosperous and fulfilling life, more time for yourself and family, money for retirement, beautiful house nice cars, exotic vacations, etc. However, many things get in the way of achieving these dreams (lack of business building training and support materials; not knowing how to present the opportunity or how to recruit successfully; your own daily habits or words, thoughts, actions and inactions.

If you want to be successful and prosperous in this industry, then you need to study the training tools, books and articles, as well as attend training meetings. You also need to have a daily self-development regime. By feeding your brain with healthy and positive influences , you will be programming yourself for great success and prosperity.
Ponder over this question: What at all is Network Marketing?

Starting right saves you so much challenge, anguish, grief and regrets. Believe in yourself and take action. Be consistent.
Follow me on this journey as we learn, relearn and unlearn the rubric of one of the most powerful industries making millionaires every now and then, the Network Marketing Industry or the Multi-Level Marketing.

"A friendship founded on business is better than a business founded on friendship." John D. Rockefeller

https://thepelinam.com/2020/02/29/introduction-to-network-marketing/