First, it’s important that you are clear on what Second Homes CSAs are. Here is our Glossary definition:
Glossary definition: Second Home CSAs
CSAs (Co-Sponsored Affiliates) who were previously assigned a Co-Sponsor but were forfeited. These forfeited CSAs are reassigned to SFI Silver Builder Affiliates and above on approximately the 15th of each month.
It’s also important to view your Second Home CSAs with the proper perspective. The fact is, many may become active in SFI. Indeed, every Affiliate leveling up in SFI, every person on the top of the leaderboards, every up-and-coming leader in your team, every one of SFI's highest earners is someone's CSA...and were assigned to a co-sponsor in exactly the same way YOU are receiving YOUR CSAs. Some of our very, very top Platinum Builder leaders have been reassigned as Second Home CSAs! But just as in a card deck, it may take time before an "ace" appears. PERSISTENCE is the key. Giving up because an ace doesn't appear right way is how you FAIL.
Also, every affiliate in SFI also deserves to have a co-sponsor. The reason you receive the forfeited CSAs is so that the person finally gets an active co-sponsor and one who is hopefully experienced and can guide them (something they may have never had before with their original co-sponsor)—NOT someone who's just going to immediately judge them, dismiss them, and abandon them!
YOU can make all the difference! Of course you're not going to be able to wake everyone up, but imagine how many of those folks never had proper support or guidance and were ultimately orphaned by their original, probably inactive, co-sponsor.
Every CSA you receive is an OPPORTUNITY and that's how you should approach each and every one of them. But if you cannot see that, you may opt out of receiving them and every other team leader who sees the value in these CSAs will gladly receive a larger share.
For additional perspective, following are some actual posts from affiliates at the SFI Forum pertaining to Second Home CSAs:
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Just because a CSA is inactive now does not mean they will always be inactive. This is a numbers game. You have to understand that concept. Team leaders are given these CSA's for a reason. Instead of posting in the forum how unhappy you are to have them, find the "one percent" that WANT to build a business. I have hundreds of currently inactive CSA's. I also have CSAs who are [leveling up]. Recently, a few "sleeping" CSA's started working again. Maybe the last co-sponsor could not or did not communicate with them.
Now it is YOUR JOB to be active and available for them. It must be very discouraging to someone who sees their sponsor or co-sponsor being negative in the forum. Try to remember that THEY are also reading this. Just change your mindset back to a team leader mindset and be an awesome sponsor!
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I look upon second home CSAs as gifts in the rough. Bear in mind they are FREE and all come with potential. It is a matter of reaching out to them through an email that even though they may have lost their way or lost heart in SFI it is possible to re-activate those who want to give it another chance.
I send them a simple mailing telling them whatever their experience in the past I am here for them now and ready to help them now. I have had some surprising results in that CSAs who look as though they are out of the game, suddenly start earning and coming up from nowhere.
In essence if you give people the right signs of hope and care you will get a positive response from some of them. Many are confused or haven't had the right help and guidance and are waiting for the sponsor with the care, knowledge or experience to lead them.
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Right now, I earn much better from my CSAs than from my PSAs. I only got 1 active PSA, the rest of my small income comes from those CSAs, you know. So try to reach them and take care of them. Later, just focus on those Movers.
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It is amazing at how many are so upset because they have received CSAs that are not workers, instead of appreciating the fact that they got some new members on their team, that they can put their Leadership skills into action to try to get them motivated. Remember, Practice Makes Perfect!!
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The Second Home CSAs are given to us in proportion to our status, not as a reward for that status, but because we have shown that we have a certain level of leadership, and these people certainly need leadership, at least those who have low CV earnings. Their original co-sponsors failed them in one way or another. We know this, otherwise they wouldn't be a second home CSA...So it is our turn to give back to SFI and try to guide these CSAs into activity. We may succeed with some. It may take months.
I have some that have awakened, and some that are very active. I view them as a responsibility and a gift from SFI.
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These CSA's may be 'orphaned' by their sponsors, so instead of abandoning them, SFI distributes them randomly to [qualified affiliates] in order to give them the opportunity they never had and most of them will not be active on arrival for this reason. It is therefore incumbent on you at the moment to do all within you power to assist them as your 'adopted children’.
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For those who are disappointed in this "reward":
The second home CSAs are not given to you as a reward. They are given to you because you have shown some leadership ability in the past, but the real reason that you are given second home CSAs are that they need your help. You may be their last chance at success here or anywhere else. Their lives depend on you to come up with a letter that really catches their eye and gets them thinking about the positives of this business.
You are showing that you are not very positive about receiving them. Can you give them some good reasons why you are still active and that they would benefit from your guidance? Work on it.
These CSAs obviously have sponsors who have not been able to get them fired up or keep them communicating. And for certain, they have had at least one co-sponsor who has not been too helpful by cutting back on his rank and giving up all his CSAs. I'm on my third co-sponsor.
We're not looking to cast blame on one side or the other. There is definitely a lack of being faithful to keep the responsibilities by each side. And it turns into a vicious circle, a co-sponsor gets discouraged and so is no help to his new or old CSAs and the CSAs who may also have an inactive sponsor gets discouraged because neither of them are encouraging him.
As a leader who is considered by SFI able to be a leader, find what you have in you to take on the challenge of revving up the excitement in these sleepers.
Not all will awaken. You must understand there are many out there who enroll just for a small reward for clicking and signing in. They have no interest in this business and may never even check the return email address they gave to SFI. So those will never awaken, but there are others in your list who are still looking for financial help. They just don't know that the found it.
It's your turn to be their hero.
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The main reason most of the second home CSA's are inactive is because their sponsor didn't support them.
I think everybody has had this gripe at one time or another but averages say that out of every 100 people who join only 2 will do anything. I had a second home CSA who hasn't really done anything since 2008 but she is now an EA and about to open her own ECA store. She will tell you that it is because she found someone that cared about her success.
We can gripe about the inactives or we can try and support them and hope they come back.
Remember the 98/2% rule and you'll appreciate those 98 inactives a bit more.
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I was thinking about motivating them after a welcome letter.
You may do things differently than their previous sponsor or co-sponsor.
I send a letter telling them I will be contacting them more than once per week.
- In my letter I give tips and tricks to earn for free.
( I don't know if financial issue is the problem for many or not)
- I invite them to check my leadership page where I post contests and rewards for active affiliates.
(for example to reward them 3 or 5 signups under them if they [level up]. Then tell them how to do by fixing an auto delivery). I will also let them know that next to my rewards, SFI also give them bonuses [each time they advance to the next level].
- Rewards to participate in a coop that I make for the half price if they stay 3 or more months [at their level rank].
Just stay positive and never give up. One day 3 or 5 will react on your mails. If nothing happens just make sure your weekly Genealogy mail reaches them. Some do see it read it and then ignore. In other situation wait to see next month if you will get CSA with at least 2 active! Yes it is possible.