Analyzing Online Distributor Behavior

By Steve Ostermiller
September 17, 2003

What’s that? Research? You want me to do what?

Resources and Research. They go together so well, don’t they? Kind of like M&M’s, Ben and Jerry’s, and peanut butter and jelly.

I’ve found that the ‘Resources’ part of this duo, however, never seems to carry its weight with the amount of research we need in network marketing. Jerry’s nothing without Ben. Hardly anyone likes a plain jelly sandwich. And what would we do with just one ‘M’? (Lunch time already?)

Scores and scores of tools exist for distributors to build their business online. But let’s face it—not all of them work. And those that work don’t always work well. So, if you want to provide the right tools that work, as well as anticipate changes brought on by new technology, how do you find out what you need to know, on a budget typical of the post-market-bust economy?

Six Proven Methods We’ve Used

I can't guarantee that the methods we’ve used are inexpensive, but I can guarantee that they’re effective in gathering data and analyzing your distributors’ behavior online.

These methods have helped us tremendously in building tools that are long lasting and effective. The impact our research has on our products is so clear when we compare the usability and effectiveness of our tools in contributing to overall business growth of our clients. When we rush to throw something together, it’s almost obvious to the end-user that is precisely what happened.

With that in mind, here are some proven methods we and a few of our clients have used that have been pots of gold in our journey to improve our online tools for building a successful business. (Listed in no particular order.)

1. Hands-on training at conventions. Seriously, we’ve received some of the most valuable feedback from working hands on with our end-users at their sales force conventions. By coming to them, removing distractions of the corporate office, giving one-on-one attention, and having a computer (sometimes 70 computers) to demonstrate even the simplest (or, at least, what we thought was simple) of tools, we’ve not only seen the tools in the hands of the actual business builders, but we've also received hugs and "ah-ha's" and made friends for life. Sure, we had to rent the computers and pay the hotel for Internet access, and fly a few of our people out there, but it's been worth every penny. Some of our clients have been doing this every year—even multiple times a year—for the past five years.

2. Hands-on sales and recruiting experience. Get your corporate employees out in the field, actually using the technology and producing sales with them. When your employees interact with your distributors, on their level, their job becomes more than “just a job.” Your customer care manager or your marketing assistants will find a sense of ownership and will relate to your business builders so much better. A large percentage of our employees have actually joined the sales forces of our clients and have experimented (within the bounds the clients have set, of course) with the technology we’ve created to see what works and what does not. This has taken us out of our own little “techie” bubble and into the world of the distributors. (Not to brag, but I even moved up a level or two in one that I joined.)

3. Talk to them. Have your “techies” and marketers and product developers talk directly to sales force members. Your customer service reps talk to them all day long, but they don’t make corporate decisions. Can you think of any better way for all of your employees to gain an appreciation of what your distributors want and need? Put all your new employees on the phone for a few days during training. Or rotate current and senior employees through every once in a while. Give everyone a chance to attend conventions. Bottom line: stop guessing what distributors would say if you asked them “such and such.”

4. Usability testing. Wait! Keep reading. It’s not that scary. Even basic usability testing (i.e. watching a distributor use the tool and see if they use it the way you intended) can provide priceless information. You only need a few testers, a little bit of food, and written instructions for the testers to follow. By the way, it's amazing what incentive a free month of subscription to your online tools can be to get distributors to participate.

Usability testing can be less of an investment than you think, and the return on that investment is simply too valuable to pass up. Your results will be better overall experience for the users, and most often you’ll see decreased post-launch development and fixes, not to mention increased success of your website (additional orders, more leads, etc).

For example, Staples.com determined that the key to online success and increased market share was to make its e-commerce site as usable as possible. Staples.com spent hundreds of hours evaluating users’ work environments, decision-support needs, and tendencies when browsing and buying office products and small business services through the Web. Methods included data gathering, heuristic evaluations, and usability testing. They achieved these results*:

• 67% more repeat customers
• 31-45% reduced drop-off rates
• 10% better shopping experience
• 80% increased traffic
• Increased revenue

For under $100, you can test a proposed redesign you’re planning on launching or your current site for usability—correctly and effectively. What will you need? Here's a brief list we’ve compiled

5. Conduct surveys. But be careful and write them effectively. It might be worth having a professional group write the survey and analyze results for you. They know how to ask the right questions and compile the data in very meaningful and helpful ways.

Keeping this in mind, we developed a survey tool for our ARRAY Express technology that allows us, and our corporate clients, to post surveys at any time to the entire sales force or only a portion of it. Although we use it to collect information about what users want and what they like and dislike, our clients also use it to find out information about what their distributors think about non-Web-related issues. (Did I mention it’s a point-and-click tool that’s really easy to use?)

6. Local universities. For free, or at least fairly inexpensively, you may be able to get some assistance from marketing and research classes from universities or colleges in your area. At the beginning of this year, we had a specific objective in mind for improving our product, and heard about a marketing research class taking place just across town. During that semester, a group of four undergrad students did all our planning and legwork on the research, and then presented their findings in a nice, professionally bound book. You may even consider giving masters students the opportunity, which may provide a higher level of data and insight. What is it students write on their cardboard signs on the street corner? "Will study for food" or something? You get the idea.

The ROI of Paying for Quality and Growth

I apologize if I got your hopes up that I had magic tricks that cost nothing. One thing I learn time and time again is that quality and growth come at a price. Too often we reserve our resources for the bare necessities to “survive,” but forget the real contributors to success. In the online world, you’ll be successful by providing online tools that make sense and work right—the first time.

Tom Gilb, renown software engineering expert, says the following**:

“The rule of thumb in many usability-aware organizations is that the cost-benefit ratio for usability is $1 to $10-$100. Once a system is in development, correcting a problem costs 10 times as much as fixing the same problem in [pre-production planning]. If the system has been released, it costs 100 times as much relative to fixing it in [pre-production planning].”

How does Gilb’s ratio apply to network marketing? Reduce your costs and increase your distributors’ success by preparing early to utilize new technology at the right time and place.

Seriously reconsider the amount of thought, time and/or resources you currently devote to researching your distributors’ online habits and behavior. Each of you has a unique group of people growing their business, with unique interests and needs. You can’t get the information you need from government or tech industry statistics. But you can certainly break down barriers and learn some good stuff by spending some time with your company’s driving force—your distributors.

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* Human Factors International, 2001, as quoted in UPA’s “The ROI of Usability”
http://www.usabilityprofessionals.org/usability...

** Tom Gilb, as quoted in UPA’s “The ROI of Usability”
http://www.usabilityprofessionals.org/usability...

Considering a redesign of your company’s website? Consider Jared Spool’s
“The Quiet Death of the Major Re-Launch” before you plan any further.