You see headlines all the time about 'Hot leads' 'Fresh Leads', etc. With this kind of lingo in place, one is likely to get the idea that a 'lead' is some sort of baked good.

I'm being silly of course. I'm sure you have some idea of what this term refers to.

A 'lead' is an individual who has expressed some initial interest in your product, service, or opportunity. Typically, this interest is displayed in the form of a request for more information; i.e. filling out an opt-in form to receive a more detailed explanation of what you can offer via email.

Acquiring new leads on a daily basis should be your top priority. Instead of spending your time and energy trying to make a sale on the front end, put your efforts into bringing new prospects onto your contact list so you can promote your offer to them on a more personal level.

But I really want to focus this article on how you should be collecting these new leads. So I'll get right to the point; capture a prospect's interest by yourself instead of purchasing so-called 'leads' through a third party provider.

The best prospects are always people who see your offer and make a conscious decision to ask for more information.

Consider this analogy:

Let's say I stroll into the local video store and strike up a friendly convo with that cute young lady behind the counter. She'd recognize me, because I'm in there renting a new video game at least a couple of times per month. In fact, I've even pulled a laugh or two out of her with a few (well rehearsed) jokes. During the course of our chatter, let's say I ask if she'd like to catch a live band with me over the weekend (unlikely I'll ever acquire the nerve for this but it's certainly a nice thought).

Just for the sake of example, let's assume she says: "Hey that sounds cool. Give me a call on Thursday and I can tell you for sure if I'm free."

In the above scenario, I have just acquired a (hot!) lead.

To put this into perspective, let's look at it from another angle:

I could just as easily pay another employee of the video store to give me the phone number of the young lady mentioned above. Then, armed with her contact information, I could call her at home, completely out of any relevant context, and pitch my offer of a good band and a meal on the side.

Mind you, the band in question is a local favorite. And the club where they will be playing can deliver one of the best hamburgers money can buy.

But despite the quality of my offer, how is my target prospect likely to respond? It's safe to assume I would be in need of a new video store, as I would most likely be viewed as some type of stalker form this point forward.

Can you see what I'm getting at here? If someone who's email address you have purchased suddenly gets a message from you, and has no bloody idea who you are, I can almost guarantee they're not going to respond in a favorable manner.

Purchased mailing lists work great for big spending companies who can lay out thousands of dollars on this type of campaign. But for the average network marketer who is building a business on a far more modest budget, it simply is not cost-effective to try and play the numbers game with purchased leads.

Focus on giving people a good reason to ask you for more information. Once this request is made, over-deliver on the quality and value of information that you provide, and start building a real relationship with your new lead.

This business is personal. So don't get sucked into some scam that promises to build your prospect list by selling you the contact info of people who have never met you, and probably don't want to hear from you.

Tim Whiston is a full-time entrepreneur and internet marketer. He publishes a monthly ezine, and is the author of a popular e-book entitled From Zero to Profit.