Where do I go for support if my Director is a flake?

I joined Coastal about 3 months ago as a L3 director. However, my upline director is not very active or supportive and I am beginning to become discouraged. I have presented Coastal to a few people all of which thought it was nice, but didn't want to fork out $1295. I understand that there are many different groups out there that unite as a team and help each other, but i just dont have the resources to invest between $50 and $100 + a month to form part of a call center or other group. Does anyone know what I could do to get more support and get my business rolling? Thanks.
Brandon

Hi Brandon...this forum is a good place to start!

Aside from this, if you are not part of a 'team' that you know of, you will want to tap into the official Board of Director's training website and training calls. I don't think I can post this link here, but if you don't know where to find this info, just PM me and I will get it to you.

Don't give up...there are many here who would be happy to help you!

Dawn

I think it's safe to post this site: officialcoastaltraining.com
This should get you started in the right direction Brandon....another suggestion is to read the various posts in this forum, there are a lot of helpful hints to help you. Here's one I wrote to start you off:

http://www.work-at-home-forum.com/22_2989_0.html



Roger

Brandon,

Do you know who your director's director is? If they are still active, perhaps you should try to hook up with them. Don't give up and don't become discouraged. You have us here on the forum for support! And I concur with Roger - go to the official Coastal websites for more info. Feel free to throw some questions out here. I am sure someone will be here to answer.

Noreen

Thanks for all of your support! Do you mind if I ask more a personal question?... How much should I expect to spend a month in advertising before I start to see results? I know that there is no set percentage or anything, and that it can be somewhat ambiguous, I am just looking for some sort of base. Can I make sales on less than $50 a month or do I need to spend $200 + a month before i see results. I feel that I am stuck between a rock and a hard place because i cant afford to advertise till i start making sales and i cant make sales until i advertise.

Also what are your thoughts and feelings on the different call centers? Are they really worth it? from what I understand I still have to advertise and get people to make the call, and they just try and close it for me. Is it worth the investment, or should I just try to do it all on my own?

Thanks again for all of your support.
-Brandon

Hello Brandon,

While a monthly advertising budget is a good idea, the best thing you can do is target the *most effective* form of advertising *for you*. This can vary for many people. For example, are you the type of person who converses easily and develops relationships with others? If so, you might try marketing within your community via business cards, flyers, or referrals and promoting yourself as a friendly, helpful Director.

Also, as a Level 3 (associate? qualified Director?) you have access to the packages that are most desirable to businesses. If you're at all articulate and know how to present yourself, market Coastal as incentives to the businesses in your area.

Are you shy to make the first move? Try classifieds (locally first - people trust someone more that they can "find") and other forms of advertising that lead people to your website. In this case, also, a Call Center will be an excellent option for you.

I feel the need to mention that what your Director has done is wrong - you deserve help and support, especially if you still owe two sales to qualify for your release! IMHO, he or she deserves a little reminder phone call from you...

Tonya

Brandon,

Although it is prudent not to go over budget, just spending more does not equal success. With Coastal, it is not necessary to spend a lot to be successful. You have to feel comfortable with what you spend. I have had success with Goggle, Yahoo, MSN ads and others. But Google lately has been really expensive. Don't know why. (discussed in a different thread). For me, Yahoo has been consistantly "cheap" and I do get opt-ins from that campaign.

There are other ways to advertise that will not be nearly expensive. But you have to be consistant. Our group has training that offers tons of ways to market. Personally, I prefer using my computer for advertising. But there are dozens of other alternatives.

As for the Call Centers, since I joined with one, of course I am going to say it is worth it. When I started, I did not want to spend my evenings calling people. Well, I don't do that with the call center. I would much rather have people call me - which is what happens. Seriously, those guys are professional closers! Our call center is always coming up with ways to help all of us be successful with our business. Check out the new entry level option on my site.

Don't give up on Coastal. I am sorry you have a "bum" director, but don't let that stop you from being a success. You have found a wonderful opportunity and I am sure it can work for you.


Noreen

When I joined Coastal at L3, my director gave me what he called an "instant directors release" for L1 and L2, so that I could profit immediatley from L1 and L2 sales without giving up my first two training sales to him. I do not know if my directors, director is active and I will try to find that out.

I have a few questions about marketing strategies...

I really like the idea of B2B sales. Have you found it be more successful to make an appointment to meet with the "marketing coordinator" or to just leave some literature at the office for them to review, or do you just focus on getting them to your website?

I thought about creating a booklet to distribute, but when I started adding numbers, It came out to about $8.00 a book. Now if I were to distribute that to a few hundred local businesses, that would add up in a hurry. What have you found to work the best?

I do have a website up and running, but my traffic is very low. I have set up pay per click ads with microsoft and google, but I have only averaged about 50 hits/month for the last 2 months. Of those I only had 10 subscribe to my opt-in emails but only 2 are currently receiving them. I set up my autoresponder through freeautobot.com (it is a free service) but they have to reply to the first message in order to agree to receive the rest.

I know it is different for everyone but do you get more of your sales through the internet or from local advertising? I just feel like a small fish competing with the big fish on the internet because Im trying to start off with a small budget.

Thanks again for all of your help!
-Brandon

Brandon - I'm sorry that you have not had as positive of results as you would have wanted. I think doing extensive research on your director before joining is one of if not the most important steps to take in deciding to join with coastal. My boyfriend and I are part of leadership council, and our goal is to help make coastal a better place for everyone. We are helping to shut down directors who are not doing things the 'official' coastal way, and are also working towards unifying everyone so we continue to earn the kind of commissions we are making. I would be happy to have you listen to our daily training calls, which can really help your business if you are interested. Short of joining with another director, or just using the resources that you have I'm not sure of your options other then making your business a success by keeping focused and a positive frame of mind. Your director may have brought you in, but you have the power to create your own success. That is a shame though about your director.

Robert and Bonnie - 800-713-0917 EXT#1

Hi Bonnie,
It's good to know that you guys are trying to keep things profitable for us. I have a question about people who are giving directors releases or even selling them without selling packages. A couple of weeks ago we had a person come on this forum and offered a couple of level 1 packages at a very low price. This person was getting out of Coastal and didn't have use for them anymore and on top of that the person was going to give the person who bought them a level 3 directors release as a bonus. Some of the members of this forum immediately "rebuked" this person and the offer was eventually taken down and even the thread was deleted but there are people doing this or similar things like this everyday. Is there a way we can alert the shipping center about people like this and will whoever is making money off of the wholesale cost of each package actually turn down the money sent in from a bogus directors release?

Oh dear Brandon.. not yet another orphan! Indeed, the way to find out who your 2nd upline is is to contact the shipping centre if you don't already know. Then get in touch with them. I'd also send a very pointed email to your here today goon tomorrow director!

I'm willing to help people in your situation, but unfortunately its really hard to train and support others if they don't have access to the MAC system.

I agree, brainstorm and use this forum for support. Please feel free to ask me if there is anything you have a question about. I also don't mind doing 3 ways or whatnot for you.

Since you have the level III package already- as mentioned before USE IT to promote your business! There are TONS of low cost and free advertising resources both on and offline. Of course, what you don't have in funding you generally have to invest in time. But at the end of the day, well worth it!

I recommend to my team that when they are making profit sales they re-invest an amount (for me it was 50%) of EVERY sale back into promoting their business. Whether that be via incentives to help new team members get started, personal development or advertising. Its the best way to get your business up and running in full swing very quickly!

Take heart, you have a great attitude and your commitment does come through to me in your posts. YOU WILL be successful, in fact many of the uber successful directors I know of were successful in spite of also being in similar positions to you!

Cheers

Jani Teeter
L3 Director, CSG

Hello Brandon

Jan is correct, the shipping center will contact you and give you the name and contact info of your upline.

You can call them, don't forget to include your coastal membership ID in the message (plus your name tel #, directors name and tel #)

The shipping center will get back to you with details of your upline director (above your director), he/she should be able to help you get on the right track.


If you don't get a call back within a few days, I would drop them a letter with the same info.

I usually tell my new members to allocate approx $150 in ezine ads,leads, PPC etc to bring in a sale. Of course there are plenty of free ways to bring in leads as well, but they take more time and effort.


I do offer some free advice, on my website as well as over the phone, plus a mentoring program if you wish to go that way.

Hope this helps
maria Porter

Quoting: griffithsI know it is different for everyone but do you get more of your sales through the internet or from local advertising? I just feel like a small fish competing with the big fish on the internet because Im trying to start off with a small budget.

Thanks again for all of your help!
-Brandon

Hi Brandon, you are with Vacation Power, you have a fantastic website, did someone help you to put all of that together?

Looks like you are experienced with marketing and advertising, where do you feel that you need help?

What company did your website?

Have you bought leads and have you called them?

Do you need a script to call people?

The only other suggestion I can make is if you aren't good at closing than join our call center they close sales for you, I am glad I joined especially now with the fast track entry level for just $795 they are offering.

Hope this helped!

Terri

Also, if you are calling leads but haven't received good training, check out DaniJohnson(dot com) and get on some of her FREE Monday night calls. She'll get you headed in the right direction in terms of your positive attitude, posture, confidence and skills in prospecting and closing. She has tons of archived calls on her site that you can access for free.

Good luck!

Dawn

HI Brandon,

I would agree with everyone else here, you have come to a great place for help....I know how it feels to have a director who is not directing! It makes it really hard.....But I think that you have come to the right place for support.

There are lots of ways to market as everyone has mentioned, just check around the forum and see what people have been doing.

If you plan on b2b marketing, you should really think about what each company needs - and tell them that.....Show them that they NEED your product for their business to grow....Most managers don't care what you are selling unless it is going to help them out....

Take a look and see what you find in here and don't be afraid to answer questions.

I, like Jani, will offer as much support as I can, however I am with a different group. If you need help with talking to people and what to say, I can help with that as well. I am pretty sure every one on here can!!

Cheers to your coming success!

Lindsay

Thanks for all the input! I think I will start testing the waters in the B2B ocean this week. No, I have not bought leads because they are very expensive and I haven't heard good things about getting your leads that way. I am just trying to direct traffic to my website through ppc advertising, business classifieds, ect. and getting their info through my opt-in form. Thanks for the compliments on the website. I designed it myself. I feel I know how to advertise, just a little scared of trying to close I guess. I subscribed to danijohnson's website and I hope that will help me out some. Thanks to all for your input and sincerity!

Brandon

Hi Brandon!

I have to disagree with the comment about buying leads.. I started my business successfully solely doing that. There are lots of lead companies available.. some are VERY inexpensive (ie .04/each). Look for re-direct leads, that send folks right to that swanky site of yours! As you are using opt in, incentivze them to fill out the form. A free report, complimentary vacation, ebook etc etc.

BTW- I've noticed you have some CSG art on your site. You may want to consider replacing it with something that is non-royalty etc etc- they are REALLY particular about that. They paid big bucks for our system, so I can see why. Just stear clear of trouble- I know your intensions are good- but theft is still theft and you don't want to get yourself into any nastiness if you can avoid it. Its always better to have your own unique images anyhow if possible- picks up better in the engines! Why not take some more pics of your handsome self, or pretty places in your local area?

You might want to get some instant traffic by finding a good, reputable lead co in ADDITION to your ppc and classifieds campaign. PPC can be MUCH more expensive then leads.. statistically 1 in 100 people who land on a website via ppc actually end up making a decision to buy. The average price of "webgoods" is $65- so that is a lot different then our L1 costs!! That is a heck of a LOT of clicks! I've got team members now from other groups that were paying THOUSANDS for ppc with zero results, and only a handful of opt ins. PPC DOES work, but its not as cheap as it used to be!

One of the best things to do is word of mouth in your local community. It also helps you get familiar with your package! Order some certs, take colour photocopies of them for your book (front and back) and start donating them in exchange for advertising here and there. Support charities etc that you feel good about. Have FUN!! I made 2 platinum sales B2B doing just that, completely by accident and unexpectedly!! Easiest money I ever made! Spring is here, see if the local police or boys and girls clubs have something like a bike or water safety drive in your area. Get yourself some business cards (bod has nice ones, quite el cheapo), hand them out to people you meet, or just leave them in public places that have bulletin boards or whatnot.

Hope that helps!

Jani Teeter
L3 Director,CSG

O.K. so I've read all you have to say about Directors who leave you without support but I as a newbie who wants to be a L2Director once I can make my first 2 sales wants to know how to be a good Director.
I am just starting to navigate my way around the internet and surely don't have the knowledge someone like Maria or Jan or Jeff has (hopefully someday). I want people to pick me to be their upline but why would they when there are old pros who offer so much support out there?
The director who signed me up is supportive but unfortunately she is not able to travel and so has no experience with that aspect. She is also working many different online businesses so her focus is not on Coastal (though she has done well with them).

I can only afford to work on Coastal and only part-time at this point.

Any advice on how it was when you started and how ling it took you to feel like an expert (or at least a professional?)
Thanks -Judy

Judy you have opened a big door. Everyone and there mother in here will be more than willing to help you. Ive been in Coastal 2 years and been extremely successful but still learn something everyday in here. So feeling like an expert is a growing thing. Id say if you are working part time you need to find some systems that can work your business when you arent working it yourself. Your auto-responder will be your best friend. Id also say if you are internet savvy learn about internet marketing. I mean there are avenues for free advertising everywhere. You put out a big net and let it work for you. I also suggest giving out alot of vacations to build a portfolio. Get receipts and pictures from people you give them to. Something I learned 20 years ago when I was in (omg I dont want to admit this ) Amway was to follow my money. If I did business with a store owner they should be willing to at least look at my business. So give them vacations to help increase their business. Its simple really. Heck we got advertised to 30,000 homes in our local area by just going to Dominoes Pizza and offering a Carnival Cruise as a incentive for for buying pizza. Everyone that spent $15 that day entered the drawing and there was one winner. Went over big. We even did somethign similar with Pizza Hut. And the big thing was it cost us nothing. They just added it to their ongoing advertising. So I hope that helps and as always you can get my contact info from my signature line if you need to talk directly to me for more details.

Adam

Judy,
make sure and listen to ALL of the product info recordings in your back office and that will help a great deal. Also, go to officialcoastaltraining-dot-com and click on the "make a fast start book" and then go to section 6. Right click on the link and hit save target as and save it on your desktop and there are lots of testimonials that can give you insight on how the package works. Also, there should be a dvd that explains how to use the package in the new kits, I think. Let me know if I'm wrong, OK?