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Carol and Garry Ford have been in the network marketing industry for 37 years and have earned over $5.5 million. They’ve been executive managers, distributors, and owners of companies both inside and outside MLM.

Gary has been in the direct selling industry since 1977. He served on the Board of Directors of the Canadian Direct Sellers Association for 12 years and chaired the DSA Board from 2004 to 2006. In 2009, he was awarded the Ivan P. Phelan Award, which is given to one individual each year for their lifetime of service to the direct selling industry. In 2012, he received the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Medal for his contributions to direct selling in Canada.

Carol was first introduced to direct selling in 1977. In just eight months, Carol’s team exceeded 500 distributors. As the years passed, Carol climbed the corporate ladder outside of direct selling, all while remaining involved as a distributor. In 1997, Carol combined her two loves, direct selling and corporate management, when she was hired as Canadian General Manager for a US-based company. Impressed with her productivity, the company promoted Carol to International VP Sales just 18 months later, making her responsible for all North America. Carol served in three similar executive roles before retiring from corporate in 2011. Carol now offers business coaching to small business owners and enjoys speaking and training for audiences of all sizes. Over the years, Carol has coached and trained thousands of people on achieving their desired lifestyle by building a business of their own.

-The Internet and Facebook

It’s about building relationships. People are following us, and then suddenly they respond with a question or show up at an event they saw on our Facebook. It’s been a bridge with people who wouldn't been there otherwise.

We do coaching and training. You need to be forever remembering what image you want to portray out there. Even if you’re thinking this is for my friends and family, you put something out there that's inappropriate and their perception of you changes. Be professional at all times, but be fun too, be interesting, something you did with a child or pet. Make yourself real so people can warm up to you. Then they’ll listen to the rest of what you want to share.

Obstacles Overcome

Carol: One of the biggest obstacles is learning to balance life. I used to claim I’m a recovering workaholic, but there's no recovering. It’s who I am. This industry can really get a grip on you. You want to give it 24-7 because you so love what you do, and you believe in the dream. But you have to remember to keep your life in balance. Things work out a lot better that way. You get the results you want, and you don't hurt your relationships. I was the vice president of a company and responsible for all their field in Canada and the US. There were months when I was away from home more than I was home. That definitely hurt our family. I missed out on important times with our kids, who were then young adults and married or about to be. I’ve missed grandchildren's birthdays because of that workaholism. It hurts relationships, and you have to repair relationships. I had to give up that amazing job because my life was totally out of balance. I had to go back home. I met Jim Lupkin then. I decided to partner with somebody in a cosmetic company. Having my own company enabled me to keep better control of my schedule, and I didn’t need to travel away from home as much. We did a lot of webinars and conference calls, which minimized my travel time. I got my life into balance while still enjoying this industry. family, and then they take on this additional business. Trying to keep all balls in the air can be quite a challenge. At networking events, I ask how well organized they are, how much more could they earn if they were better organized. We also do podcasts, blogs and webinars.

One of Carol's best friends is a gal she met at a mall event. It was a special day where small businesses had products and services on display in the mall. This gal was displaying her goods, as was Carol, promoting our business. This gal now works with me on our book distribution and with Carol on other aspects of our businesses. She has become a very dear friend of ours.

Don't push yourself on people. The best thing to do is be interested in them. Learn who they are, what they do and what are their concerns. Then, hopefully, you can offer suggestions to help them. We did a networking event where a young guy came up after I spoke. He was quite successful in the computer industry. I spoke for ten minutes on time management stuff so he came to see me about buying my book. I asked him, “Are you in network marketing?” He said, “No, but I need to know about time management.” He bought my book and asked if he could keep in touch. That’s the kind of thing we do to

meet new people.

Carol: Tying in with that is Zig Ziglar’s quote, “You can have whatever you want if you simply help enough people get what they want.” Find out what people want and help them get there.

Nurturing Relationships

Carol: Stay in contact with everyone you talk to. We put out newsletters. You have to have a follow-up system. Keep track of everyone you speak with. Many fall short by not following up properly. Who have you talked to last, when was that and when is your next time? Be systematic, but do it as a friend, not as a system where they feel like they’re just another number.

Sometimes it takes months or even years before these leads come to fruition, so it’s worth having a system and staying in touch regularly. For example, I met a person at a networking group, and we’d see each other on occasion at other events and just chat, but I would also email her stuff or make a call to see how she’s doing. Months down the road, after staying in contact, she called me and asked, “What are you doing now?

Because I’m looking for something different. Other business didn't work out, so tell me about yours.” She ended up signing on, but it took months before she was even receptive. You miss out if you don't follow up. There have been numerous examples like this, some even take years to come to fruition. But I believe if you stay in touch, build a nice relationship with them and keep piquing them on occasion with something in line with their interests, eventually they come onboard, as a customer or business partner.

Gary: You have to avoid pushing harder or faster than they’re prepared to accept.

Find out where they are, what they need, and respond to that. Just like a coachee sets the agenda, the coach helps them reach their goals.

In network marketing, I see people mess that up all the time. They fire-hose people. In my last corporate role, I was a CEO in Canada of a nutritional supplement company. It was a good earnings opportunity for Associates, great products, and we frequently ran into people who were so eager to promote the products or the business opportunity that they just didn't listen to the prospect. They’d try to sell them products when they wanted an opportunity. They sold opportunity when they wanted products. We see it all the time.

People are not listening, and they’re pushing their own agenda on the prospect. Is it any wonder that some of these people start avoiding their calls?

Get more from Carol and Garry at coachingyourdownline.com and carolford.net.