I recently polled my Facebook friends to see what their reaction is when they notice one of their friends has been bit by the network marketing bug. I wanted to see if they are generally supportive of their friends entrepreneur spirit or if it makes them want to run far, far away. I got a mixed reaction, but it was mostly negative. I know from my personal experience, even though I’m in network marketing myself, I tend to cringe. You may not have spoken to a friend in years and all of a sudden they want to be your best friend now that they have this new shiny product they want you to buy.

So what is the biggest mistake people make when they get into network marketing?

SELLING!!!

For the love of all that is good and holy stop selling!! You may think you have the best product on the market. You may be part of the best team out there. But your desperate posts of stock photos with your latest sales and desperate pleas to have people join your team so you can reach your next goal have GOT TO STOP. Be real and honest right here and right now. Are those posts really working for you? Based on the lack of likes and comments I see on them I would say that would be a big fat NO. I may sound a little harsh right now, but I promise you it’s for your own good. If you continue with the salesy posts you will burn out and your will burn out fast. And in the mean time you are chasing your friends away.

So how are you supposed to sell if you can’t sell to people? A good start is by being genuine and be yourself. Don’t join a network market and become that product. Stay true to yourself. Tell your story and how the products have helped you and your family.  If they really have help you then you will have a story to tell.

Another thing you can do is start genuinely building relationships. Don’t just send a message to an old friend with the whole “Hey, how’s it goin’? Long time no see!” and then immediately follow it up with “So I have this thing you would just LOVE!!”. Actually build your relationships and most importantly build trust. Believe me, your friends see right through what you are doing when they get those messages. You’re not trying to be their friend. You’re just trying to reach a quota. Am I right, or am I right?

Another way to sell without selling is to give, give, give. What can you provide to your friends and family to build trust with you before they become a customer? A tutorial, a free challenge, some tips. Think creatively. There are so many tools out there right now to help you with this.