About Us: John & Pat Parker
John and Pat Parker are located in Southwestern Virginia near the beautiful Blue Ridge Parkway. Parkers became distributors for a well known multi level marketing company in the early 1980's. That company encouraged all distributors to set goals. Goal setting improved John and Pat's lives mentally, physically, spiritually and financially and has become a part of their daily endeavors. It inspired them to publish their first book:How To Set Goals And Start Living The Good Life
See Link below.
Pat Parker and John Parker's book:
Pre-Plan Your Final Arrangements To Achieve Peace Of Mind Now
See Link below.
Pat Parker's publication:
The Greatest Legacy: Sharing Our Faith With Our Grandchildren
See Link below.
Pat is currently working on:
Sharing Aging Responsibilties With Our Parents
Webpage is under construction.
This page was last updated on: June 22, 2011
Imagine this if you can. It's October, 1982, and you've been in multi-level for 13 months. You've just received your monthly bonus check - it's for $17,000. During the next four months your bonus climbs. Your income is well into six figures. Then -- in the 18th month -- you decide to dump everything and go with another multilevel company. Sound crazy?To most in multi-level it would, but to Pat and John Parker of Wichita, Kansas, "it was the most logical move we could make" The Parkers, to say the least, are unusual people with some fascinating, informative and unorthodox opinions about multi-level."To make a lot of money in multilevel," says John, "you've got to know when to get in and when to get out. We did quite well with the first multi-level company we joined (a diet plan), however, we could see that our earnings were beginning to trail off. "When we saw a leveling," continued Pat, "we felt the plan was losing momentum. John and I started to worry. "What the Parkers worried about was not money but their "credibility. If we start to make less, obviously so does our downline. We might have been toward the top of the heap, but WATCH OUT IF THE COMPANY YOU ARE WITH DOESN'T DIVERSIFY
It was more, however, than just a dip in earnings that caused the Parkers to switch. "Too many multi-level people don't look at the company closely. They like the opportunity and they jump. They fail to evaluate things that will be important later. For example," continued Pat, "are you with a company that will diversify and introduce new products? Our first company didn't diversify. There was constant pressure to sell the same product and with the same product you're eventually going to level off in earnings."An expansion of the product line is not the only important element, according to the Parkers. "Before you take advantage of an opportunity check out some other things," advises John. "First, is the literature good? There's nothing more disappointing for a distributor than to try and sell an opportunity with poor-looking literature"Is the delivery time good? Has there been a bonus paid yet? Was the bonus paid on time? Was it the right amount? Everyone is in business to make money. Protect yourself with a few simple checks before you make the decision."ITS SILLY TO TRY AND STOP AN MLMER FROM TAKING ANOTHER LINE
The Parkers believe that any MLMer should have the "right to take advantage of more than one opportunity at the same time. This industry is changing. It's more professional than years ago. Many good distributors have established significant downlines and they want to filter other products through their organizations. Some companies stop them - in our opinion that's the wrong attitude. MLM distributors are sophisticated. They understand marketing and that once you've opened a 'pipeline' it's relatively simple to.expand the product line and make more money. It's silly to try and stop someone from dealing with more than one company." Although the Parkers espouse the right to "deal with many," they only deal with one -- the Hawaii Diet Plan. When we left our first multi-level company, we did not have any thoughts about going into another diet plan. But, we saw an ad and were called the same day," recalls Pat. Those two elements plus the fact John and I loved Hawaii and the name of the diet drinks sold us."Retailing and recruiting in multilevel are, of course, keys to success. The Parkers have the same philosophy with "Hawaii Diet" as they had with their first diet."First," says Pat, "never worry about retailing the product. The key to success is to become a user. Once you start using it and show results, recruiting becomes easy.""With Hawaii Diet," explains John "we invite potential distributors to tasting parties. That's the best sell because the drinks taste great."The most important part of any"tasting party" is the plan's 18 minute videotape "in less than 20 minute a potential distributor finds out about product and opportunity. It's done in a professional manner. It's not the same," says Pat, "as a distributor getting up in front of an audience and talking for a half-hour or hour. In 18 minutes the entire story is told. While they're watching, a sample of the drink is served. The meeting is over in one hour."WE'VE NEVER SEEN MATERIAL MAILED THAT SAID 'SUCCESS'
The Parkers are believers in video. "As we said," says John, "multi-level is becoming sophisticated. Distributors and companies are going to need more contemporary materials in order to expand downlines. The days of someone giving hour-long testimonials are, we believe, on the way out. We live in a visual society. Recruiting becomes easy with a professional tape."For distributors who still recruit through the mail, the Parkers have cautionary words ~ "We've never seen material in the mail that said 'success' or 'professional.' Most distributors just go out and zerox literature. Frankly, it presents a poor image for multi-level and turns off potential distributors. If you are going to do something through the mail, make it look good. Spend the money. If you can't, don't do it."The selling/recruiting techniques of tomorrow will be vastly different than today, according to the pair. "When we got involved in our first diet plan, we did it because a friend of our's needed help. She had someone coming in from Utah and she was afraid no one would be attending. She needed people to make the 'house' look good. So we went."Both Pat and John were surprised at what they heard. "The speaker wasn't that dynamic but he kept telling us how much money he was making. Both John and I had been involved in direct sales. John had retired from the Air Force and sold home study courses for Bell and Howell. I did a great deal of work in the social service and motivation area. We thought, 'if this guy can do it, why not us'?"THE PARKERS MADE ONE MISTAKE ON THE WAY TO $17,000 A MONTH
On the way home that evening, the Parkers began to set goals. They decided to try the diet for two weeks and list the people they could recruit. They looked upon retailing as a stepping stone and, says Pat, "most of the time we would give the people the product. We didn't always make money. The key was getting people to become users."The first goal was to lose weight. John lost 30 pounds, Pat 10-15. "Anyone who looked at us," smiled Pat, "would know the product worked."The pair, however, did more than use product. They planned how many people they were going to see, how many levels they were going to build, what kind of hotel rooms they would rent for meetings and how they were going to build their organization.They made one mistake - "we didn't set our goals high enough," says Pat. "That was probably because we didn't know anything about multi-level."During their first three months (Oct-Dec., 1981), they watched their volume grow to $700 a day. "We just couldn't believe it," says Pat. By the end of the third month, Pat gave up her full-time job but John stayed with his excellent job in the aerospace industry there in Wichita. A short time later they bought their own building in downtown Wichita that cost them well into six figures."We were really cooking," recalls John. "We made a lot of out-of-town trips to Florida and North Carolina and built extensive downlines in each place with family members and friends. We left product wherever we went ~ whether they signed up or paid for it, and the investment paid off.""From the beginning," said Pat, "we had made up our minds to hold meetings for our downlines-open our meetings and enable them to bring in anyone they wanted. At the same time, the meetings were structured. Don't ever go more than an hour with the product presentation and opportunity pitch."The most effective selling mechanism at the meeting was "testimony." Even today, with the Hawaii Diet Plan, it is testimony that does it for the Parkers and their downline.Another thing Pat and John did was "stamp as much literature as possible" Everyone who left our home took literature. It would turn up at the oddest places. Someone told us they were once cleaning out their bosses' desk and they found a brochure with our name on it. They came to our next meeting and signed up. It pays to have things around with your name on it."DON'T EVER FORGET THE MISCONCEPTIONS PEOPLE HAVE ABOUT MLM
The Parker's credit most of their success to simple selling techniques. They're both practical and realistic. Neither one liked "rah rah" meetings or, as Pat puts it, "too much hype. I don't like things to be superficial. On the other hand, don't make your presentations so down-to-earth they're corny."Everything should be professional. You should have professional handouts and presentations. Don't give someone a piece of paper with a typographical error on it. Remember, you're in business. You have to be careful. Every person you talk to is a potential customer; treat them with dignity.Even with an honest, business approach, the Parkers have problems. "Everyone has misconceptions about multi-level," says Pat. "I don't care how long you've been in the field, don't ever forget that. Some will tell you that MLM is a 'pyramid'. It's hard to explain the difference to someone between multi-level and pyramids because the media has given the industry such a bad rap (and so have many dishonest distributors)."If you tell them," says John, "they can make a lot of money they don't believe it. If you tell them they can make a little they will say it isn't worth it. Recruiting is difficult. You have to walk a fine line. Be honest, forthright but realistic. Remember the preconceived notions that people have about MLM. Don't stress the money aspect. Push the use of the product and the sharing of it. That will work."Another reason for emphasizing the caring/sharing is because of the negative image "selling" has among prospects. "People will say they can't sell, they won't sell," says Pat, "so we avoid the word. Ultimately, however, they will be selling whether they realize it or not."Once they sign a distributor, the Parkers feel their job is just beginning. "The first thing we do," explains Pat, "is to have them get their rubber stamp made. Their name should be on all their literature. "Then we sit down and try to help them set goals. The trouble with most people is they set their goals too low. We try to get our people to look up...way up. The idea is that we never want one of our distributors to fail to sign someone under them. We make our offices and audio/visual equipment available We'll even wear our Hawaiian costumes if it will help," laughs Pat.Some people, however, don't need help. "They're primarily from other MLM companies," says John, "and what they need is convincing about the company and product."With those who don't have the experience to do it themselves, the Parkers have a variety of suggestions. "We encourage tasting parties and we'll be there with a tray of pineapples and strawberries. Many companies are into nutrition and they are willing to set aside 15-30 minutes for a health product such as our's. We have the tasting party and if someone likes it we invite them to our next meeting. We never twist arms. We do, however, encourage distributors to have weekly meetings. We have two a week plus one on Saturday mornings. Our place is always available"THERE ARE FOUR IMPORTANT QUESTIONS WE ASK EVERY DISTRIBUTOR
The point of every meeting is to get downline distributors involved. "Try to involve the new ones," says John. "They will gain confidence as they go along. We signed one woman who said she could never hold a meeting - now she is doing two a week. You know the old saying...'do the thing you fear most.' Once a distributor starts getting his bonus checks, his confidence builds. They're more willing to participate. Success breeds more confidence and, of course, more success."Still the Parkers run into distributors who look at their success, shake their heads and say "you may have done it but I can't." For those, they have both motivation and goal setting sessions. The pair have put together their own motivation/goal setting tapes which they supply to their downline."There are four important questions we try to remind our downline of," says John. "First, Where am I now? second, Where do I want to be? third, How do I get there? and fourth, What do I do when I get there? If someone is happy with where they are now then we tell them to forget two, three and four and go home.""It's surprising, however," says Pat, "what kind of goals people have and how MLM can help them. We've even had one person become independent and eventually get divorced because that was her goal ~ she wanted to earn enough money to support herself so she could get a divorce. Finally she made it."Although the Parkers have been in MLM for under three years, they have developed a unique understanding of the business and what, in general, "makes people tick.""It is true," they say, "that the opportunity is there for everyone. We are no different than anyone else. We are two ordinary people who saw an opportunity and went after it. A problem some have is that they feel MLM is beneath them...they don't want to be a part of it. This is especially true of many professionals."However, regardless of whether someone is a professional or not, few make it big in business. They fail because of a variety of reasons that range from being scared to succeed, to those who are unwilling to take a risk (they feel if they miss they have personally failed). That's not true but it's hard to convince someone of that."Admittedly, John was a negative person when he first entered MLM and "I've had trouble overcoming it. But, I'm getting better. Success teaches you that not everything has to fail. If it does fail, don't take it personal.THE PARKERS ARE SYMBOLIC OF A NEW BREED OF MLM SEEKERS
The Parkers have had a great deal of experience with a wide variety of people. John, a native of Portsmouth, Virginia, was a 23 year veteran of the U.S. Air Force. He and Pat were married in college and the two have traveled throughout the world. Their three children, two girls and a boy, range in age from 27 to 22. Interestingly, two were born in Hawaii.Perhaps it is their worldliness that has made the Parkers different from other MLMers. Or, perhaps they are symbolic of a new breed of opportunity seekers ~ a breed that looks upon MLM as a "professional business opportunity" that involves one key if you are to be successful: work."This industry is changing rapidly," they say, "we've only been in it a short time but we can see that the age of computers has revolutionized marketing plans and made it possible to sell virtually everything through multi-level."New products and different marketing plans are only a small part of it," says John. "There's a growing sophistication among distributors. They have a greater understanding of marketing and they know you have to be creative and work hard in order to be successful in this business."Remember, in small business the three keys to success are location...location...location...And, in this industry, the three keys are timing...timing...timing. Know when to get out."To the Parker's, the decision to "get off and give up $17,000 a month has been the right one."John and Pat Parker's success was highlighted
in the August 1983
issue of the
Multi Level Marketing News
magazine where they
were featured on the
front cover of the
magazine and in an article
"Portrait of A Winner" below.
The front cover picture was taken in front of their MLM Building in Wichita, Kansas in early 1983.
you have to watch for those below you. "After all, they're making money for you and if their earnings slide it won't take long before they are disenchanted and drop your organization. Before that happens, it is up to the people on top to make the switch. Of course, you don't have to but you won't keep your organization if you don't."
