Getting off something because it doesn’t add value or purpose to us is easy. But making it relevant to us by altering its features could be quite a task. To keep it simple, you have quite a few empty wine bottles waiting to be thrown into the junk. But if you could clean it, throw in some paints, and plant a few indoor plants, it could beautify your home and enhance your aesthetics. Right? Now consider your home is a direct selling business, those bottles are your distributors, and adding paints and plants is giving them the training to enhance their skills. Does that ring a bell? We are all human beings and could be in a state of uncertainty for some reason or the other. It could sometimes be work, family, finances, health, or various other factors that influence our survival and existence. Recently, there has been news of employees being laid off from every sector in huge batches across the world. What could possibly be the reason? Economic instability? Yes. But this instability can neither be called inflation nor cost-cutting. It is a state of stagflation where people lose their job first, and there is a price hike followed by decreased spending resulting in lower economic growth. Quite a dilemma impacting every aspect of an individual’s living! As a direct selling enthusiast, I analyzed the scenario in the network marketing and direct selling sector and came across a few interesting tactics to tackle this situation in the industry. Distributor force being the major backbone of direct selling business, how to efficiently encourage, engage, and utilize them as a resource is what matters the most. How Not to Lose Resources to a Mass Resignation or Layoff The Microsoft shows that 46% of the global workforce is critically evaluating their situation for the long term. Also, 52% of Gen Z and millennials are looking to change employers. So what is the underlying problem? Work Trend Index How do you get your distributors imbibed with what they are doing? Effective Communication A wise man once said, “Good communication is a bridge between confusion and clarity.” How true is that? Every minor to major issue in an organizational set-up starts with ‘miscommunication’ or ‘communication gap’ as we call it. Right from , the most important thing an organization could ensure is that ‘we have got your back’! onboarding a distributor in direct selling Encourage conversations to convey their thoughts, concerns, inconveniences, insecurities, and any other emotions or feelings that need to be shared or attended to. Direct selling is a business that also takes place in the virtual space, and hence, coordination and communication could be a hindrance to building effective workplace relationships. For example, when you ask your manager for something and they say ‘no’ for various reasons over a chat/email, you might feel bad or offended since you are unsure of the tone in which they are saying it. Whereas, if this is over a phone call or a video meeting, you are conversing better, and you will understand the tone and tenor in which they are speaking, letting you clarify the situation better. A direct-selling organization definitely has to have a meticulous communication policy to address issues relating to work or performance. The policy cannot be a bible which is one-and-done, but it would be a continuous process that would require alterations according to changing work scenarios. The policy should also emphasize the mental health and well-being of distributors which is the root that needs to be watered by the direct managers to sprout into leaves and flowers later. Welcome Feedback Randomly ask your team if they would recommend the organization as a place to work for their friends or family. Their replies could be great feedback to understand how they consider working with the brand and whether they are distressed or unhappy with any events or policies. Run distributor surveys with happiness meters rating from smile to scowl on various affairs relating to convenience to complexities in their work and performance. Tracking distributor engagement through surveys and scoring systems is an effective way to analyze how satisfied they are with their work culture, policies, and the environment as a whole. The results could be put to the best use to help distributors fuel their productivity and efficiency. Address bad reviews first. Even though a direct selling business is customer focused, at the organizational level, it has to be distributor-centric to maintain a healthy equilibrium. to ensure that they are heard, and their feedback is valid for the organization; keep them informed on how the company is going to address their concerns. Listen to your workforce Help Them to Help the Organization A well-trained, knowledgeable distributor is an asset that an organization wouldn’t want to miss. Once a distributor is onboard, training them to enhance their skills that are relevant to their designated roles in the organization is critical to help them to help the organization grow. A good distributor can take a direct selling business a long way once they are trained to be an efficient resource. Distributor training has to be fun with a bit of gamification or other techniques and has to be personalized according to each individual’s potential and capability. Training is a great way to make distributors understand that they are valued and so is the reason why the organization is investing its time and resources to train them to be efficient and bring in effective results. Identify when the performance index of a distributor goes down, analyze the data, find out possible reasons, and then help them get out of the situation with timely help. with problem-solving skills is also a crucial element of distributor training. Training a distributor In a direct selling scenario, if a distributor is well trained, the business is sure to scale newer heights overcoming any hurdles that come midway. The End Result? When a kid feels comfortable with you, with the way you handle them, and when you consider their likes and dislikes, the chances of them sticking to you is more. They wouldn’t want to leave you and go off with somebody else simply because they are happy with you. In the same way, a distributor who is highly engaged and encouraged wouldn’t leave an organization for tangible reasons. Even when the company is planning on downsizing, these powerful resources will remain and help the brand to grow efficiently resulting in a higher ROI. These happy bunches are sure to go a few extra miles to keep their customers and the business happy and steady. This could help: Increase productivity Gain higher customer ratings Attain more sales More business profitability Survivor guilt syndrome is a socio-physiological phenomenon that distributors or employees in an organization experience when their peers experience a loss but they do not. The phenomenon is commonly seen post mass resignations and layoffs, which is yet another task to get the distributors back on track. Having to undergo such situations could cost the organization at a large scale in terms of money, time, resources, and productivity. Understanding what each distributor is capable of, how an organization can leverage the best out of them, etc., are the key factors that decide a distributor’s timespan with the organization. Keeping distributors engaged and encouraged has got a huge significance on the brand’s KPIs. With a happy distributor force, the brand is sure to have improved credibility and identity as well.

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