Recently a close friend (who is a fairly new consultant for another direct selling company) had a serious problem with an operational aspect of working with her supplier (the wholesaler of her product) and it cost her some money.
Resolution to the problem was frustrating for her and she found herself caught up in some undue corporate bureaucracy -apparently some i's weren't dotted and some t's weren't crossed somewhere along the way but they were i's and t's that she hadn't been trained to be aware of prior to the issue.
It is my hope and belief that her particular issue will be resolved to her benefit as I know this company and some of the people in it and I have nothing but praise to say about them; they're a standup organization.
It caused me to reflect, though, about the ways that we, as leaders of our team members, should be using the freedom and flexibility that we experience in our business models to the direct benefit of our offspring consultants. Its literally the draw for our people to walk away from the corporate treadmill and join up with us: That the consultant will no longer be tied to a wasteful and senseless bureaucratic structure, that they will be their own masters and that they have every right to demand success from successful activities.
It doesn't matter how reasonable or unreasonable an operational request is when it comes to being of service to a dedicated and working consultant. I have thought that all of my professional career when working with some of the fantastic people that I have employed over the years -you just do it for them, whatever it is that they want you just make it happen: Pay them, provide, grease the wheels, pull the strings, just do it. Take care of business.
But here, in the direct selling industry, where we're actively promoting this great opportunity for people to be as successful as they are smart enough to be, its doubly critical that we respond with absolute vigor on the side of keeping the entanglement of operational minutiae out of the way of our determined marketers. The solution needs to be a phone call away to solve any issue when it comes to ordering, handling returns, processing payments or handling agreement details -any behind the scenes issues.
These people are out there in the field putting on a hell of a show. It is our responsibility as directors to make sure that the right props are in place when the curtains go up. And its not simply a matter of our integrity -as if that weren't enough- its literally a matter of our own ability to succeed. Our people need to do more than win here, they need to be so blown away by the service that we provide that they can't stand it not to tell every single person standing within earshot about how they should quit their job TODAY and get on board with this incredible company and this fabulous team.
When I'm in a group of professional affiliates or attending a networking mixer you have no idea how much I'm keeping my mouth shut -especially because you see me gabbing incessantly- because I just want to yell at everybody, "ARE YOU ALL FLIPPIN' IDIOTS? Do you realize how great my company is? Don't you even know that you don't have to be sad anymore?!!!..." But I somehow manage to refrain. THATS where you want your consultants to be and it happens because you make it so for them with the stipulation that if they do the work, you'll handle the rest.
So, take care of your people, people. IT PAYS!
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