Where's the best place to buy leads?

That's a question I see asked over and over again on message boards. Direct sales consultants want to build their team and add to their downline to help generate more income.

There are several approaches you can take to finding prospects and leads:

1 - Your iRepNetwork membership provides tools and resources to help you generate targeted leads

2 - You can use a lead capture page to generate your own leads.

3 - Purchase quality leads. But finding quality leads to purchase can be difficult.

EDITOR'S NOTE:
This page used to contain an article reviewing lead companies. But I've removed the article and my suggestion to "purchase quality leads."

I'm just not comfortable recommending purchased leads because...

... Unfortunately the unscrupulous lead companies have made it more and more difficult to find the quality, legitimate companies from which to purchase leads.

... Purchased leads aren't usually targeted leads.

That's not to say there aren't good, quality lead companies out there. I'm sure there are. I just don't have the knowledge to suggest any of them.

So what should you do instead? Generate your own leads.

Here are some resources to help you do that:

• As mentioned above, grab a copy of the Special Report, Use a Lead Capture Page to Generate Your Own Leads for Your Direct Sales Opportunity.
• use your iRepNetwork membership to make yourself available to targeted leads.

If you still really want to purchase leads, please do your research and ask lots of questions before you buy any leads. Unscrupulous lead companies generate their leads through gimmick advertising such as contests for free televisions, cars, or other costly items. In order to enter the contest, a person has to fill out a form, including personal information such as their name, email address and phone number. There may have been some fine print on the form that says that by filling out the form, the person agrees to receive information about a home-based business or other offer, but the person filling out the form is probably not reading the fine print.

The lead generation company takes that information and then sells it to their unsuspecting customers. When the lead purchaser calls the lead, the person has no idea that they requested any information about the offer the lead purchaser is calling about. Worse yet, the lead company is most likely selling that leads’ information to five, ten, or even more different customers.

The person who filled out the form in the first place is now being bombarded with email and phone solicitations and the lead purchaser is now out of the money that they spent on the leads. Since there was a bit of fine print on the form that mentioned acceptance of information about an offer, the lead company is not guilty of false advertising.

This, of course, does not mean that all lead companies are bad or unethical. It may take some time to find a legitimate lead company, but it can be done. It is always wise to ask others you trust for referrals of the lead companies they use.

The amount of time the lead company has been in business is also something that should be considered. Lead generation companies that are untruthful tend to be unstable and don’t last very long, for all the right reasons.

When buying leads from a company you have not done business with before, it is wise to purchase a smaller package and test that out before committing to anything costly. The final proof of the value of the leads will be in the sales you make.

And before you buy even one lead, have a plan for how you're going to contact and follow-up with them.