This article was originally posted on American Express’ Open Forum and was written by Shira Levine.

Here’s a non network marketing example of how powerful word-of-mouth advertising is – a perfect example of why so many companies are turning to network marketing.  My favorite quote from the article below is highlighted.

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The Power of Word-of-Mouth – And How to Harness It.

June 18, 2010

Word-of-mouth marketing is hands-down the easiest way to promote and market a business.

Simply put, word-of-mouth marketing happens when you have a good product or good service, and your customers tell everyone they know about it. As the word spreads, your customer base grows.

A publicist, marketing team, and media coverage can only go so far; word-of-mouth is what really gives personalized credibility to a business.

So how do you get started? The best tactic to get the word out is to begin with your friends.

That’s precisely what Oscar de la Renta did when he joined forces with PUNTACANA Group, a resort and residential community founded by Dominican businessman Frank Rainieri and New York attorney Theodore Kheel in the Punta Cana region of the Dominican Republic.

After Rainieri approached the famed Dominican-born fashion designer, De La Renta did what anyone would do — he called one of his best friends. In his case, it was singing sensation Julio Iglesias. “I called Julio and told him we finally had the opportunity to be neighbors. He always wanted to live next door to me and this was the time.”

So De La Renta and Iglesias came on board to support the development of The Estates, four residential communities. Shortly after, De La Renta further spread the word of the region by bringing his friend Russian ballet dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov into the mix.
“I invited Misha after he danced at a charity event I had in Santo Domingo,” says De La Renta. “He came to my property in Punta Cana and he instantly fell in love.”

As a result of spreading the word to his friends about his gem, the name Oscar De La Renta has become synonymous with Punta Cana.
It certainly helps to have friends celebrity friends, of course, but you don’t have to be down with the Clintons and other boldfaced names to enjoy the benefits of word-of-mouth.

Here’s how you can make it work for you:
Hone and demonstrate a unique expertise
A business with an expertise in something offers tremendous credibility; being the first and the only helps, too. For example, Rainieri’s PUNTACANA Group was one of the first privately-owned commercial airports, so they know and understand the business from a unique angle. They also feature distinctive characteristics like open-air terminals, where the roofs are covered in palm fronds.

Context and history
Rainieri has been developing PUNTACANA Group since it was first established with Kheel in 1969, and the endeavor took nearly 20 years before it started to make any money. Originally, Punta Cana was a region of thick jungle, without anything that even resembled a road — but Rainieri had a vision and perseverance which, today, adds depth and intrigue to the story of the company’s success. Now, Punta Cana is 26 square miles of developed, low-density real estate. Besides the four residential communities and the international airport, it now has two 18-hole golf courses; the high-end De La Renta-designed Tortuga Bay hotel, the Puntacana Hotel, an ecological reserve, multiple restaurants and a spa. It’s definitely been a long ride for the company! And that story is something that visitors take back with them.

Forward-thinking
Perseverance, a vision, and a whole lot of energy were a tremendous part of Rainieri’s success, but his constant innovation and forward-thinking are what keeps the business sustainable today. The fact that De La Renta, Iglesias, and Baryshnikov are so invested in the region also means that they want the best for it. Their “green” and environmentally-friendly developments have put the business on the global map. And Rainieri and his small business sees his work as having an impact on his customers.

“We want people who know us to be walking brochures for us when they leave, to spread word of us, word-of-mouth.”

Please take a few moments and update your records.

Anson and I have a new direct line:

1 250 446 2118

Please note that the cell phone numbers that you have for us will not work in this area and that we will not be able to send or receive text messages from this area.  We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Our toll free number 1 888 909 7306 will work — if you call it and do not reach us in person please be sure to leave a message.

Here’s to your success!

Marie Bennett

marie@mariebennett

anson@ansonmac.com

Please join us in signing the Earth Day 2010 Climate Declaration to demand a comprehensive climate bill from Congress!

http://action.earthday.net/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=2732

Anson and Marie

What a “riot”! And better yet, a “riot” with a business lesson attached!

This short video clip is from the 2010 TED event in Long Beach, California.

Perfectly suited to the industry of network marketing.

Have an enjoyable, profitable and of course – safe weekend!

G’day!

I just came across an interesting video titled:”Validation”. It is a fable about the magic of free parking (and more!)

Hopefully you will find it as inspiring and motivating as I did – and hopefully it will bring a “smile” to your face!

I know, I know it’s a little different than things that I usually post but our industry is all about lifting up and helping others, helping to inspire and support plus there’s a little “6 degrees of separation” twist that relates to the power of network marketing as well.

Enjoy!

Winner – Best Narrative Short, Cleveland Int’l Film Festival, Winner – Jury Award, Gen Art Chicago Film Festival, Winner – Audience Award, Hawaii Int’l Film Festival, Winner – Best Short Comedy, Breckenridge Festival of Film, Winner – Crystal Heart Award, Best Short Film & Audience Award, Heartland Film Festival, Winner – Christopher & Dana Reeve Audience Award, Williamstown Film Festival, Winner – Best Comedy, Dam Short Film Festival, Winner – Best Short Film, Sedona Int’l Film Festival.

G’day,

This posting contains details in regards to:

1. Business Overview presentation at 6 Pacific
2. NEW link (4 Steps)
3. Training this Saturday a.m. at 8 Pacific

At 6 PM Pacific tonight Thursday April 15, 2010 please join us for a Business Overview presentation.

Business Overview presentations are designed for you to use to present the business opportunity to your potential distributors. Let your upline executive support team present a 5 point overview on your behalf. Business Overview presentations are professional, fact filled, and without hype overviews that allow your contact to make their own informed business decision. They are also designed to help you learn how to present the business.

Business Overview WEBINAR this evening at
6 PM Pacific, 7 PM Mountain, 8 PM Central, 9 PM Eastern

Market timing and trends
Product overview – benefits and documentation
Company – background, support
Leverage – networking 101, the mathematical equation of exponential growth
Timing – within the company, the power of being an early innovator
Plus a compensation plan introduction,
how to break even within your first few hours, days or weeks!

Register for the business overview webinar here:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/681422659

9PM Eastern (Gmt-5)
8PM Central
7PM Mountain
6PM Pacific (Gmt-8)

Time Converter Link:

http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html

PLEASE NOTE:
If you dial into the calls instead of using the WEBINAR and your computer speakers.

Our conference bridge numbers have changed!

Pre-register at the link above and your confirmation email will include the NEW phone numbers.
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SATURDAY MORNING TRAINING:

Please join us this Saturday morning at 8 a.m. Pacific for a business training.

You may pre-register by visiting the training site

See you on the business overview webinar this evening at 6 P.M. Pacific.

Best regards,
Anson MacLauchlan & Marie Bennett

Direct line: 1 (250) 446 2118
Toll Free: 1 (888) 909 7306

Mailing list & Updates: http://www.mariebennett.com
SKYPE: marie.d.bennettTwitter: http://www.twitter.com/Marie_Bennett

We conduct free business building training webinars every Saturday morning. This week the training will be on the compensation plan.

Please join us:

Saturday April 10, 2010

8 am Pacific, 9 Mountain, 10 Central, 11 Eastern

Compensation Plan Training webinar Hosted by Marie Bennett

Pre-register for the free webinar at: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/524156346

Special thanks to Doug Allen and Chuck Ownbey.   Doug hosted both of the EcoMates business overview webinars last week.  Doug provided an audio/video recording of both presentations and  was joined on the webinar each evening by Chuck Ownbey who provided an audio recording of each.  Doug and Chuck your continued help and support is greatly appreciated.

UPDATE: EcoMates generic recruiting and business overview website was revamped this weekend.  You can check it out at:

http://www.yourfutureisgreen.com

[Thanks to Yifat, Sherry, Penny and Doug for their contributions to the site.]

Do you have a product or business testimonial that you would like to share on either http://www.yourfutureisgreen.com/video or on an upcoming webinar or training session?  If so please email marie@mariebennett.com

There will be 3 webinars this week.

2 Business Overview Presentations

• Tuesday evening at 6 Pacific, 7 Mountain, 8 Central, 9 Eastern
• Thursday evening at 6 Pacific, 7 Mountain, 8 Central, 9 Eastern

Pre-register for both at:

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/681422659

It is always preferable to be in front of a computer for these presentations but if you are not going to have computer access during the time frame in which webinars are presented OR if you can’t hear the presentations through your computer, phone numbers are also provided upon registration.

Compensation Plan Training

• Saturday morning at 8 Pacific, 9 Mountain, 10 Central, 9 Eastern

In preparation for the compensation plan training please visit:

http://yourfutureisgreen.biz/internetworking/compensation/

Pre-register for training at:

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/524156346

Best regards,

Marie

The economy may stink now, but this could be the perfect time to start your own business. CNN’s Josh Levs went to an economics conventions and had the opportunity to get advice from economists. One expert told Josh if you do it right, on your own, you will be a leader of the future economy.
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BUSINESS OVERVIEW WEBINARS:

Pre-register for the next Business Overview webinar:

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/681422659

To listen by phone:

According to Wikipedia…

Deferred gratification or delayed gratification is the ability to wait in order to obtain something that one wants.

Conventional wisdom considered good impulse control to be a personality trait important for life success.

The marshmallow experiment is a well known test of this concept conducted by Walter Mischel at Stanford University. In the 1960s, a group of four-year-olds were given a marshmallow and promised another, only if they could wait 20 minutes before eating the first one. Some children could wait and others could not.

The researchers then followed the progress of each child into adolescence and demonstrated that those with the ability to wait were better adjusted and more dependable (determined via surveys of their parents and teachers), and scored significantly higher on the Scholastic Aptitude Test years later. Notably, Mischel later found that easily explained tactics allowed children who had waited very short periods to wait for quite long periods.

Okay, okay, I know what you are thinking… there is definitely a relationship between delayed gratification and success in network marketing – for that matter – in any business.

Short term are you prepared to make sacrifices? Are you prepared to delay gratification in order to make your networking business successful?

That choice is of course yours!

Here’s to YOUR success!

Best regards,

Anson MacLauchlan & Marie Bennett

Cell: 1 604 771 5838

Toll Free: 1 888 909 7306

SKYPE: marie.d.bennett

marie@mariebennett.com

http://www.yourfutureisgreen.com

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/marie_bennett

anson@youcan2.com