The discussion about warm market versus cold market recruiting continued on the forum. As I watched folks weigh in on the subject, I had to add my 37 cents. I'm sure it's not the last word on the subject:

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I've always been amused (confused?) by the dichotomy between the statements, "your list is the best place to start" and "friends and family will probably give you the hardest time". Napoleon Hill said something along the lines of, "the biggest cause of failure is people listening to the opinions of friends and family".

And yet. . .

1. I started building my business in the warm market
2. My organization starts in their warm market
3. We are extremely successful

Key point: We don't alienate our warm market because we don't "convince" we "educate". We let people know what we do and invite them to get more information. [Note, several who said they didn't use/teach warm market did so because they had lost friends, had bad experiences, etc. Others said that's because they were taught to do it wrong--and that's why their friends ran from them.]

There is a thread here about "why newbies don't work their lists". I haven't read it, but I suspect the consensus is that they are afraid of what their friends will think of them. It's fear. Their friends will laugh at them, try to talk them out of it, and so on. And we can all understand this. We can also understand why people would think that "talking to strangers" is easier than talking to your friends and families. But it is not. If you're doing it correctly, it's much easier to talk to friends and family.

If you're pestering your friends, trying to convince them, asking them to sign up because they "owe you" or telling them you'll "pay them back" or "put people under them" or other such nonsense, that's as ill-conceived as it is difficult. But if you're merely showing them your new business, with no strings attached, no commitments requested, no sales pitch and no agenda other than sharing the information, what could be easier? "Mom, I'm sending you a video about my new business. I'm excited and want to show you what I'm doing." Piece of cake.

The cold market is not a piece of cake.

In the warm market, you can ask people to look at the information and give you their opinion (not sign up) as a favor. Not so in the cold market. Why should a stranger do a favor for you?

In the warm market, you can say "I don't know, I'm new" and defer to someone else. Not so easy in the cold market.

In the warm market, people trust you. They won't hang up on. They will be curious about what you're doing. The cold market doesn't know you or trust you and they don't care about what you're doing and in addition, they will lie to you ("No I didn't fill out a form, why are you spamming me!")

In the warm market, you don't need skills to get started, you need a system. In the cold market, if you don't know what you're doing, if you don't have "posture," if you don't know how to control the conversation and deal with objections and be the rejector instead of the rejectee, you're going to get beaten up, chewed up, and spat out.

Where do you acquire those skills and that posture? Yes, you can develop them in the cold market but most people won't stick around long enough to do so. That's the primary reason why those of us who say the warm market is the best place to start (if you're doing it right) take that position.

As for the notion that "the best prospects are those who have been in network marketing"

1. None of the hundreds I have recruited were experienced in network marketing
2. As far as I know, this is predominately true for my organization

In other words, we built a large organization with people with little or no network marketing experience. And, after reading some of the posts, here, I'm thinking that's a good thing! The more experience someone has in network marketing:

1. The less coachable they are likely to be, in terms of following the systems we use, and
2. The more likely it is that they have "burned through" their warm market.

The latter is undoubtedly one of the reasons why many experienced networkers look to methods other than warm market–they don't have one. (Well, they do, but it's easier to talk to strangers than to talk to the people who watched you mess up in five other "deals".)

If you don't have a warm market, either because you've "burned through it" or you just don't know a lot of people, that's one thing. You have no choice but to talk to strangers. You'll get good quickly or you'll become a statistic. But if you do have a warm market and you choose not to approach them, that says something about (a) the way you've been trained, or (b) your belief in what you're doing. Yes, there are many ways to get information in front of people, and yes, it's your right to build your business the way you choose to, but why would anyone choose to NOT show their information to people they know?

We all know individuals we don't want in our business, or even as customers. They are disagreeable, complainers, or we just don't like them. Whatever. That's legitimate. Don't show them. But the majority of the people you know, I hope, don't fit that description. They might not have money to be a customer or they might not believe in vitamins if that's what you sell, and they might not be entrepreneurial. But show them anyway.

(a) they know people and can give referrals;
(b) those factors could change, over time; and
(c) you could be wrong in your assessment. (That's why we say, "don't pre-judge".)

When I begin working with someone and they tell me they don't want to make a list, I have a heart to heart with them and if they still feel that way, I'm done with them. I probably won't tell them that, but I'm certainly not going to invest a lot of time and energy in someone who doesn't believe in what they are doing. It's no different than someone who signs up in the business but doesn't want to buy your product/service. We all know that these people don't make it, don't we?

In the beginning, I don't expect people to have the level of belief they will have later on, but if they don't have enough belief to make a list, or enough trust in me and my ability to coach them to success, that tells me I'll probably have to push them, and I don't want to do that.

You do have the right to build your business your way, but so does your sponsor. And that's something I think we can all agree with.