Multi Level Marketing (MLM)

MLM Home Based Business - Generating The Leads You Need

2010-04-01T22:20:00.001+02:00

The biggest challenge for most any MLM home based business has nothing to do with selling its products. The chief hurdle a MLM home based business usually faces involves building a successful downline. Just how do you find recruits who are genuinely interested in becoming part of your MLM home based business sales team?

Well, before you rush out and start trying to generate leads for your MLM home based business, you need to have a plan. It isn't enough to tell people about your MLM home based business and its products and expect them to sign up. You need to know as much as you possibly can about your MLM distributor, the products, and the compensation plan so that you can answer any questions a MLM lead may have.

The more you know and the more comfortable with it you are, the easier it is to make people want to become part of your MLM home based business. Not knowing the answers to their questions or giving vague answers is more likely to make any MLM leads you do generate mistrustful of you and your MLM home based business. And be sure to have a follow-up plan for what you'll do after you've generated some leads and started making contacts because it generally takes several contacts before people take action of any kind, whether buying a product or signing up for a MLM home based business opportunity.

Once you know your MLM home based business inside and out, you're ready to start generating those MLM leads. One of the first places to look, of course, is to your friends and personal acquaintances. Make a list of everyone you know. You'll likely be surprised by how long that list is, and the people you know are a good place to start looking for MLM recruits. A lot of the time, even if your friends and acquaintances aren't interested in a MLM business themselves, they can give you names of people they know who will be interested in your MLM home based business opportunity. And if they don't volunteer any names, don't hesitate to ask them, politely of course, for names of people you can contact.

Another thing you should do to generate MLM leads for your home based business is start collecting. Business cards. Email addresses. Phone numbers. You never know who may or may not be interested in an MLM home based business of their own--and you won't know unless you contact them and ask. Again, the person you contact may not be interested in a MLM home based business himself, but more often than not, the person will know someone else who is. Cold-calling isn't necessarily easy when you first start doing it, but as you gain experience, you'll get more comfortable and confident, and that confidence will ultimately pay off. Just be prepared to hear no and don't take it personally.

MLM trade journals are another good place to generate leads for your home based business. These journals are read by people who are already interested in MLMs which makes them a "warm" market. Including a press release with your ad will greatly improve the number of inquiries you get. And make your ad for your MLM home based business as different from the other ads as possible. This is important so that your home based business MLM ad doesn't get lost in a sea of others.

Buying MLM leads is one of the most popular wayw to generate leads for your MLM home based business. Many companies have email lists and phone number lists for people who have expressed their interest in getting information on MLM opportunities. Often you can even buy MLM leads who want to be involved with your particular type of MLM home based business opportunity. This makes purchasing leads a great option for most MLM home based businesses.

When buying MLM leads for your MLM home based business opportunity, you want to be sure you're getting them from a reputable company. You don't want to buy an out-of-date MLM leads list or one that's been sold over and over. So do some research on the list selling company before you buy. Also, be sure to check any phone numbers you buy in the Do Not Call Registry. Doing this is your responsibility, not the company's you buy the list from, so you need to be sure to check them before you call. It's always better to be safe than sorry.

author: Charles Fuchs

MLM Business - The 7 Business Factors Test of a Multi -level Marketing Business

2010-04-01T06:00:00.001+02:00

So many people ask the same question: Is Multi-level Marketing a REAL Business? Is it truly a business that can produce a living and income? Is it a REAL distribution business? It is a business that operates for the customer's satisfaction, and always looks to gain new customers?

Here is the answer: YES.

How and why does it qualify as a business? Every business has certain traits and functions that are needed to do business and stay in business. We have developed what we call the "7 Business Factors Test", and you have to ask these questions to see if it qualifies as a business. All businesses, no matter whether it is a traditional business or a non-traditional business, (such as MLM), answer these questions in the affirmative.

What are the "7 Business Factors Test" Questions?

1) Does the MLM Business distribute goods and services of some type?

Answer: Yes.

In MLM, there are goods and services that are distributed through personal distribution methods, and they are distributed directly to the customer, with no middle man. These goods and services can be manufactured by the MLM company, but usually are not. The goods and services many times are manufactured by an outside source, and then shipped by the MLM Business to the customer or distributor. Then the distributor can take the goods, and re-sell them to their customers as well.

2) Does the MLM Business have an official Office, headquarters, or structure that the business is operated out of, and with an address of some type?

Answer: Yes.

All MLM businesses should have some kind of office or headquarters that the goods are shipped from, or at least in charge of the shipments getting to the customer. This does not have to be a fancy office, but one that can get all the tasks needed to run the business done in a timely fashion. They should have a visible address on all communication.

The distributor's business is usually operated out of the home, and that counts as a structure that the home business is housed.

3) Is there an accounting structure that is set up to run the business effectively and legally?

Answer: Yes.

All MLM businesses should have an accounting function and people set up to handle all business transactions. They not only keep the books for the MLM Business itself, but also the MLM distributor as well. The MLM Business from the home should have some form of an accounting system, for tax purposes, and for profit and loss statements. Accounting also helps keep the Company and distributor aware of the health of the business and how it is doing, or not doing.

4) Does the MLM Business have easy communication to get a hold of someone if needed?

Answer: Yes.

Communication is the lifeblood of any business, and MLM is no exception. MLM Businesses usually not only have an order line, and a distributor line, but a general public telephone number that the public can get in touch with them as well. Usually at the MLM Business Office, there is someone to answer the phone as well.

And the MLM business should also have an email system that is watched, and taken care of, on a daily basis. This is not only for the distributor base, but also the customers and public as well.

5) Does the MLM Business have the needed business licenses and legal structure to do business in the states and countries they operate in?

Answer: Yes.

All MLM Businesses that have been in business for any amount of time, must have the needed legal structure and licenses to operate in every state. If they do not, they will eventually be forced to cease doing business in that state. And most MLM Businesses have some form of a corporate structure that the company operates under. That could include being a C Corporation, an LLC, or a Sub S Corporation.

Even MLM distributor needs a business license to do business in their city, so they will not be penalized if they do not have one and are caught.

6) Does the MLM business operate on a FOR PROFIT basis?

Every successful business structure, traditional or non-traditional, should operate on a FOR PROFIT basis. Even the MLM distributor needs to operate on a FOR PROFIT basis. If the MLM business does not operate in a profit mode, and loses money continually, the MLM business will not be in business for that long.

It is the same way for the MLM distributor. If the distributor does not make any money, then they will not stay in business long.

7) Does the MLM business perform all of the needed business functions to increase business, including marketing, promotion, campaigns, running specials, advertising tools, customer service, brand extensions, research and development, direct marketing, increasing brand awareness, and keeping their vendors at an honest price?

Answer: Yes.

Every MLM business operates to increase business, using all of the functions mentioned, and more. Even the MLM distributor needs to perform some of those functions, to increase their own business in their marketplace. These are functions any business needs to do, in order to stay in business, and enlarge it's operating capacity.

Yes, an MLM Business is a TRUE business that operates to service the customer's needs, bring products and services to the marketplace, and show a profit at the end of the year.

MLM or Multi-level Marketing, has passed the "7 Business Factors Test." If an MLM Business you are considering does not answer all of the above questions YES, then you may want to consider seeking another MLM company that can pass this test as a Multi-level Marketing business.

author: Doug Firebaugh

Online MLM Promotion - The 3 Wrong Ways and 3 Right Ways of Doing it

2010-04-01T03:40:00.001+02:00

Contrary to popular belief (or what most MLM people would prefer to believe), online MLM promotion campaign is somehow different from an offline MLM promotion campaign. You can not simply try to apply the same successful offline MLM campaign online and hope that it will be as successful online.

There is basically one major difference between offline and online MLM promotion: one-on-one approach versus one-on-many approach. In offline promotions, one-on-one approach and follow up on each lead is a very crucial factor. If you can follow up on a prospective lead and succesfully educate him about you MLM program, you've got yourself a downline. If not, you'll have to wipe the tears off your eyes and try your luck with the next prospective lead.

An ideal online promotion in the other hand, relies very little on one-on-one follow up. With the power of the internet, it is possible to find people who are already interested in MLM, willing to spend money on promoting it and train them about your MLM program all automatically. This way it is possible for you to have many prospective leads at the same time, train them all at the same time automatically and therefore makes your chance of recruiting downlines significantly bigger.

To do a successful online MLM promotion, it is best to know first what to avoid in doing it. Here are the wrong ways most people are doing in promoting their online MLM program:

1. Promoting an online MLM in an offline media

By offline media, we mean regular magazines or newspapers you usually subscribe to or sold on bookstores. Some people may think that if they promote their MLM program in TIME magazine or Wall Street Journal, they will instantly get thousands of leads who will easily turn into downlines. Anyway, almost everybody read TIME magazine, right? True, but to tell you the truth, almost nobody who is reading a magazine or a newspaper will put down whatever it is they are reading, dash frantically to the computer and type the URL you promote to check it out.

Most people will think "This may be OK to try. I'll browse the site when I get to my computer" then read on. When they finally get to their computer a few hours later, they most probably have totally forgotten about your ad.

2. Promoting an online MLM in an online classified ads site

There are two reasons why this is a bad move: First, because there are now literally thousands of classified ads sites on the internet. None of them is a major player in the field, which means you must try to post to all of them for maximum exposure. Second, because most of the sites don't charge anything to put ads on their sites, a lot of other people are also promoting there.

To get a decent number of people viewing your ad, you must put your MLM promotion ad in at least several hundreds classified ads sites. There are softwares out there that can do this automatically, but if everybody's using a specialized software to do this, then your ad will be competing against tens of thousand of other advertisers' ads, and as soon as your ad appears it will be pushed downward by other ads from other advertisers. The chance of the right kind of lead seeing your ad in the right time and the right mood is very slim if you try this approach.

3. What could make all those 2 mistakes even worse: using long and forgettable URL

This 3rd mistake can only make the previous 2 mistakes even worse. If you are very lucky and an eager lead finally reads your MLM ad and decides to visit the URL you're promoting (let's say it's something long and ugly like yourmlmcompany.com/cgi-bin/prospect1.cgi?sponsorid=1192349&message=1192. If he decides to sign up right there and then after reading the promotional material, you are to be congratulated as one of the luckiest MLM distributor in the history of the industry.

However, if he doesn't sign up directly (which is very normal), he may want to revisit your site later after some deep contemplation. Unfortunately for you, he may not remember your long URL when he gets back from his contemplation. He may only remembers the yourmlmcompany.com part and type it in into his browser. This will bring up the same exact page he visited, but this time you won't be his upline if he signs up. Sad, isn't it?

After looking at the wrong ways to do an online MLM promotion, let's take a look at the correct ways of doing it below:

1. Promoting an online MLM in an MLM/Internet business related ezine

An ezine is an electronic publication sent out by its publishers on a timely basis via email to its readers. Readers of MLM/Internet business related ezines are very interested in the topic, and they are a very responsive market to your MLM ads. Your ads will be put before/after or between articles, depending on how much money you are willing to pay.

Put your ads in one of the MLM/Internet business related ezines, and you are guaranteed many qualified leads who will be easy to convert into downlines if your MLM company has a good follow up system.

2. Promoting an online MLM with pay per click search engines

This is one of the most powerful online MLM promotion method known today. Many well known search engines such as Google now "rent" a portion of their search result page to be used by paid advertisers to put their ads on. For every "click" to your site, you must pay a certain amount of money (starting from as little as 5 cents).

With this promotion method, your MLM promotional ad can show up on the search result page of Google if somebody types in MLM related queries in the search box. Imagine the power of it. A lead wanting to join an MLM program, typing in the word "MLM program" into Google, and reads your ad when the search results are displayed. Will he click to find out more? Most likely.

3. What could make all those 2 right methods even more successful: using short and memorable URL

Which URL is more likely to be remembered by first time visitors to your MLM site: yourmlmcompany.com/cgi-bin/prospect1.cgi?sponsorid=1192349&message=1192 or myownmlm.com?

It is possible to direct every prospect visiting myownmlm.com to yourmlmcompany.com/cgi-bin/prospect1.cgi?sponsorid=1192349&message=1192 without they ever knowing the difference. This way, your prospect can remember your URL much more easily, and whenever they visit your URL again, you'll still be their upline of they sign up.

This very useful feature is now available from as cheap as $8 per year on the internet. Just search in the search engines for "cheap domain name with frame forwarding" (without the quotes) and you'll find many options to choose from.

CONCLUSION:

Most of the wrong ways of doing online MLM promotion are free methods. Avoid this seemingly money free methods. They seem to be free at the first glance, but in the end they bring you very little result and consume very much of your time.

All of the right ways of doing online MLM promotion are paid methods. Most beginners in MLM try to avoid these methods, yet they bring in the most result with no wasted time on your part.

author: Johannis Seumahu

How to Build Your MLM Team

2010-03-01T22:20:00.003+01:00

The only way to create solid residual income is to build a big and loyal team. Believing you are right or wanting to be is a trap you can easily fall into. It is a natural human failing, but it comes from the negative emotions and old conditioning. It isolates you from really connecting with those around you. Worse than that, it stops your business partners from developing their full potential.

* Confident you are right

This usually comes from old conditioned opinions. 'Women are over-cautious drivers'; 'Teenagers are so pig-headed'. Feelings like that sabotage all your relationships, not least those with your Network Marketing colleagues. Look at what is behind them and then let it go. You will lose your abrasive edges and people will warm to you. That's good for all your human interaction.

* Get rid of bad thinking

One of the best ways to get rid of negative stuff is to focus on the positive. One way to do this is to look into their soul. The vast majority of associates, prospects and family members aren't being devious. They are just doing what they believe in. If you can look at the other person and see the innocence behind their behaviour, then you can have compassion for them. As you fill your mind with positive emotions and start to look for the good in others - guess what? The good is what you will find.

* Why do my team do that?

They get things all wrong.....Don't go there! Maybe they think the same about you. There is no right or wrong way to build a business. Whatever works for someone and enables them to build good relationships with their downlines - if it can be duplicated - is cool. You might even learn something new yourself. After all once we stop learning, we're finished. If you approach everyone as if they have something to teach you, your team members will feel really validated.

* Celebrate everybody's differences

Variety is the spice of life. It would be a dull world if we were all clones of each other. Sure some people will mess up, but that's a great way to learn and they will be the stronger for it. We all get into grooves caused by past experience. When you see something happening that starts to get your hackles up, take a deep breath, step back and look for why it's a good thing. You might just be surprised to learn a new trick.

* Give unconditionally

Try and give, especially to your downlines who push your buttons. That is a tough one, but it can really turn a prickly relationship round into something good. Suspend your gut reaction judgement. Often we react from fear of how we think what that person is doing might impact on us or on others in the group. Let go of negative thoughts like that. Praise their efforts. They will feel great and you will too. Then if they do need guidance, they will be much more likely to accept it.

You will be amazed how giving to someone who challenges you can completely change your energy and feelings for them.

Building and nurturing a team in this industry is like no other. Think of it like bringing up kids; watching them go through all the stages of growth; finally flying the nest and becoming great leaders themselves. The bigger your team grows, the greater the challenge in managing it and the greater the rewards when you do it well.

author: Charlie Holles

MLM Business Success - 5 Keys of Effective Goal Setting

2010-03-01T06:00:00.000+01:00

Grow and transform from a caterpillar to a butterfly and move into the top 3% of network marketers by becoming a goal setter. Most people don't set goals at all and only about 3% of people set goals effectively. There's no such thing as unrealistic goals, there are only unrealistic time frames. There's an opposite for everything so if your goal setting isn't effective, it is defective. Here are 5 keys to effective goal setting every home based business owner should know for MLM business success.

1. Make Your Goals Specific, Very Specific

When you go to a restaurant and your waiter asks you what are you having, do you reply with a general statement, "I'm having a low cal meal," or worst "Just give me whatever." Then you're upset because your waiter gave you the best steak in the house. Why are you upset? Because you're a vegetarian! This is how most people set goals. Most people know exactly what they really, really, really want and because they don't know these 5 keys, they don't get intentional and set clear, specific goals. Because of this, many people end up with "whatever" because "whatever" is what they ordered. Getting whatever happens on a deep subconscious level and getting whatever continues because it's a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you're making $62,000 a year and you want to make more, does it serve you well to set a goal to make $67,000 when you know you really want $670,000 or $6,700,000? If you are serous about receiving MLM business success, get in touch with what you really want, set a specific goal for it and "get'er done!"

2. Put Your Goals In Writing

How would you feel if your cell phone company gave you a call and said, "We are discontinuing paper billing and we will give you a call and "verbally" inform you of your monthly bill amount." When you receive your phone bill call and they inform you your bill is $37 more than usual, you're irritated that you don't see in writing why your bill is so much. You feel bamboozled! When you don't put your goals in writing, you are bamboozling yourself. When you document your goals, you'll triple your commitment to get them. The action and effort of documenting your goals attaches your importance to them. Put your MLM business success goals in writing because you are worth being documented!

3. Time Stamp & Detail Stamp Your Goals

How would you feel if you bought a plane ticket to go to your best friend's wedding and you received a confirmation back without your seat number, the terminal number, flight number, and even without the date you specified? You are lost because you have know idea where to go and what time to go. You see the "HOW" to get there doesn't matter, which in this case is the plane. Anyone who has accomplished goals didn't know exactly "how" they were going to get there, they just knew the "when, where and what." Do you want your goals to be lost to you? If you don't, state the exact date and details you know you deserve to get! For example, "I will generate 75 leads a day by February 10, 2010." How much MLM business success will you have with 75 leads a day?

4. Prioritize Your Goals

To get anywhere on a map, you got to know your starting point. No matter how painful it is, honestly assess where you are right now. If your starting point is broke, write it. If your starting point is overwhelmed and depressed write it. If you're $80,000 in debt, weigh 300 lbs, going through bankruptcy, going through divorce, a death in the family, anxiety, or hate your job - write down your current situation. Prioritizing your goals is about keeping a score board and knowing where you came from and how far you've come.

5. Strategize Your Goals

All goals are not equal, therefore base them within a specific time frame. A monthly term is for goals you'll get within 30 days. Short-term goals are goals you'll get within 2 to 6 months. You'll get intermediate goals within 6 months to 2 years. Long-term goals are goals you'll get in 2 years or more. Remember there's no unrealistic goal, only unrealistic time frames. There's no reason to sabotage your goal setting so make sure you set realistic time frames.

author: Neef Davidson

MLM Business Marketing Tools to Ensure Success

2010-03-01T03:40:00.001+01:00

If you have just recently joined the world of MLM business, you may be feeling a little nervous or overwhelmed with your responsibilities. You may even have the mindset that you must be a people-person to be successful. However, with the advances in technology that are available today, you will find that person-to-person interaction is not required for you to be a success. You simply need to know how to use the tools that are available to you.

Your biggest tool in MLM business is going to be your website. First and foremost, you should create a great landing page for your site. This is the page that visitors will first see. It should be professional and easily guide them to either ordering your products or requesting more information. Your site should be easy to maneuver around, but also maintain a very professional appearance.

Another tool that is going to be very useful to you is an auto-responder. This is a special system for your computer and website that can be set up to automatically respond to any of the leads that are going to be captured by your website. All you need to do is input the information into the auto-responder one time and the rest will be taken care of automatically, saving you a ton of time.

Tracking software can also be a very useful tool in the marketing of your products and opportunity. First of all, it can let you know exactly what advertising efforts are bringing in the traffic to your website and which ones are not working. This will allow you to save time and money and will help you concentrate on the best marketing strategies possible.

Network marketing may seem like a difficult business to get into, but when you have the right tools, you will find it can be very profitable. Keep in mind, however, that no matter what tools you have at your disposal, your business will need time to grow and bring you the success you want.

author: Gerald E. Stidham

Travel MLM Opportunities - Do They Actually Sell Travel?

2010-02-01T22:20:00.000+01:00

Right now there is so much hype on the internet about making money in travel. The travel deals are touting that it's an $8 TRILLION per year industry, if you just get the tiny-est slice of this pie, you'll be rich.

The problem is, most of the travel deals are not selling travel - they are just pretending to be. There is nothing wrong with selling travel packages and getting paid a commission. If you can selling a luxury holiday package and save your customers 60% if they had have arranged that package themselves, then more power to ya. But that's NOT where the travel deals are making their money.

There may be a few legitimate online travel deals using a multilevel marketing pay plan, but there not many. Travel MLM's simply can't make money selling travel. They just can't, the profit margins are too low. The industry is too competitive. You can find many great, competitively priced travel deals just by asking Google. The travel MLM's are making their money on selling memberships. Here's how they work...

They sell you a monthly subscription that allows you the privilege of purchasing travel packages at a discounted price. There's nothing wrong with that. Consumer retail stores like Sam's Club and Costco do the same thing. For $40 to $50 per year, you get the privilege of purchasing goods at these stores for less than you would at other retail stores.

The problem is the travel MLM's are putting a compensation plan behind the membership programs. They are not selling travel, which is the real product, but they are selling memberships and compensating their reps on the sale of memberships. It seems legit, but it in fact is a very sneaky way to pass up money from people at the bottom, who pay the monthly fees, to the people at the top, without giving them something of real value.

Yes, the memberships do allow you to purchase travel packages at a discounted price, but that's not where the emphasis is. Most of the emphasis is on the sale of memberships, not the travel packages.

Please understand this - memberships for travel discounts are not real products. They are one step away from the real product, the travel packages. But they can be cleverly disguised to make them seem like they are something of real value, which they are not.

A membership only gives you the privilege of discounted travel, not the travel itself. Therefore it is only valuable when you decide to use the privilege. At all other times, it is worthless. And that is what's wrong with most travel MLM's. They are trying to recruit people into their "travel club" where only a small portion of the people are going to take advantage of the real products - discounted travel.

To give you an real example of this type of business, a well established travel MLM company is currently under very close scrutiny from several state attorney generals because people are questioning the validity of it.

author: Wayne W Wu

How to Generate Quality MLM Opt in Leads

2010-02-01T06:00:00.002+01:00

What is the advantage of opt in leads or double opt in leads and what is the difference? When anyone submits their name and email address on a web page form, the information is sent to an auto responder which sends a confirmation email to the email address submitted. When the subscriber click the confirmation link, he has double opted in. In other words, he has verified that he did indeed subscribe to that particular list. A single opt in would not be required to confirm the subscription. He would be taken directly to the information he asked for.

90% of spam complaints are reported to come from single opt in lists. This obviously makes the double opt in lists very safe for the person using the list and there will be few, if any, spam complaints. The disadvantage of the double opt in leads is that some people do not take the second step and click the confirmation link.

Many insist that any online business will live or die by the quality of their list of opt in leads. To get quality, targeted opt in leads. learn how to do effective keyword research in your chosen niche. Carefully pick keywords that are searched for but choose those that have lower numbers so you are not so competitive that you have little chance to be found. You are looking for a 'hungry market' but a narrow piece of that niche. With this method of obtaining opt in leads, you position yourself as the expert in your niche regardless of what it is.

Marketers know that you get many more opt in leads by using landing pages, also known ads capture pages, to drive targeted traffic to rather than a full blown website. A well designed, focused landing page with an opt in form keeps everything simple. If you are offering the solution the reader is looking for he will opt in to your list. If green wagons are what you sell, your landing page and keywords should be all about green wagons.

If you can give away a report about green wagons, the reader will be eager to give up his name and email for the report. Simply write a short 2-10 page report that is linked to your autoresponder. Once you have your new opt in lead, you will be able to communicate and send more information about this specific niche. It does not matter If you sell your own products or you're an affiliate marketing the products of others, you need a list!

The best and most responsive list is made up of opt in leads specific to your micro niche. It does not matter If you sell your own products or you're an affiliate marketing the products of others,you need a list! The best and most responsive list is made up of opt in leads specific to your micro niche

author: Norma Marshall

What is an MLM Online System?

2010-02-01T03:40:00.000+01:00

Multi-Level Marketing systems are, in common terms, means to increase one's business. In everything that follows, we are going to present the types and characteristics of online MLM systems, as it is only online marketing systems that can support you to expand your team, business and income to such an extent, in a such a quick manner.

What a good system should do principally, is bring leads, which are the support of any MLM business. There are many good MLM or network marketing systems on the internet; you just need to discover the right one for you, with the promotion systems that suit you best. All online network marketing systems have some common qualities:

- A bright leader and spokesperson
- Unique product(s): the majority of these systems have their own products, every now and then even the self-contained marketing system.
- Lists: all of them collect and save opt-in permission contact directories of clients or possible clients.
- Joint-venture partners - these are usually respected online marketers with large opt-in lists that will help create momentum and sales for nearly any product.
- Auto-responders: one of the most useful marketing instruments, a sequence of automated follow-up e-mails that dramatically boost sales.
- A set of marketing resources: marketing resources such as lead capture pages, SEO instruments, links, graphics, banners, landing pages, brandable reports, articles or e-books.
- Viral marketing, which may use uncomplicated brandable reports, or articles, software, e-books that then get passed around all over the internet.
- Media to share the information: the company's blog, members' blogs, RSS feeds.
- Automation: the entire system is automated to the degree that it's possible; otherwise it couldn't keep track of such great networks
- The global marketing opportunity offered by the internet: the occasion to promote in all countries of the world.

There are the "out-of-nowhere" systems that boast with full automation, informing you that you don't have to do anything but sit back and enjoy the money. This should raise a red flag for you as, many times, these systems won't supply value; it's probable that they won't provide quality leads, or it's probable that they control your list.

Then, there are the systems where generally the provider is a thriving internet marketer; they have a product, they give you the guidance and the technology necessary, and, with a good guide to lead you, you can turn into a powerful network marketer yourself. A good part of the branding will belong to them, nonetheless, so they will have some command over your marketing. For newbies, this can be a good thing, though.

There is another type of system, one that constitutes an important advantage for the experienced network marketer, as it lets him to promote himself only, giving him full control over his branding, his list, and his marketing. From this point on, people will gather around him for himself, not a product, for his training and leadership that should help them succeed no matter what MLM business or system they opt for.

Unless you are by now an internet marketing guru, the best advice for you is to search for a practiced network marketer to point you. Some say your accomplishments is not a matter of what you join, but WHO you join. Consider it, it only makes sense that it's your mentor who influences your success rather than the system you use.

author: Kenny Gregg

Two Success Principles Most MLM Leaders Fail to Teach Their Downline

2010-01-01T22:20:00.001+01:00

Getting involved with an MLM opportunity has the incredible potential to completely change your life and allow all your dreams to come true. Your MLM team leader has told you exactly what to do to be successful and you can't wait to begin.

Financial success and time freedom are just some of the benefits you'll be reaping as soon as you create that all important MLM downline of enthusiastic sponsors happily sharing your product with hundreds if not thousands of people.

But your enthusiasm quickly dwindles as time goes by and you only recruit 2 people who haven't done a darn thing in the business.

In fact your closet is so full of products that they tumble out whenever the door opens. You cancel your auto ship, feel like you were taken advantage of from your MLM leader and vow to never get involved with one of those pyramid schemes again.

What went wrong? Why do 95% of all people fail with an MLM business opportunity?

I believe it's because most MLM leaders don't share the following key success principles with their downline. And it isn't the leaders fault because they are probably unaware of them also.

Principle #1: You must have marketing skills to be able to generate enough leads.

Marketing skills are the most important factor in business success and this includes every MLM business opportunity. I've often heard that your primary business is marketing and what ever else you do is secondary.

Are you a hair salon owner? Nope. You're a marketer who cuts hair.

Are you a Mona Vie rep? Nope. You're a marketer who introduces people to a healthy juice product.

You get the idea. If you want to be successful with your MLM business opportunity then you must learn marketing skills. Make it a priority. The great news is there is more marketing training now that ever before.

Don't rely on your MLM leader. Determine if you want to focus on internet marketing or off-line marketing and then begin learning and perfecting your craft. Your success depends on it.

Principle #2: You have to be ready to talk with a lot of people.

I know, most MLM leaders tell their new downline to make a list of everyone they know, call them up and present the business opportunity.

What happens when everyone is crossed off the list? That's where the marketing comes in. Effective marketing will give you an abundance of leads to talk to.

Yes, you need an abundance of leads to talk to. Plan on generating 10-30 leads every day. The super-successful generate 100 plus leads every day.

Most MLM leaders don't communicate this with their new people. If you know from the very beginning that an MLM business opportunity is a numbers game, then you're adequately prepared for what you need to do. The more people you talk to the quicker your success will arrive.

Simply decide how much you would like to earn with your MLM opportunity. Sit down with your MLM leader and strategically plan out how many people you will need to recruit into your downline to achieve your goals. Then figure that only 5% of the people you present to will sign up. This gives you an idea of how many leads you have to generate through your marketing efforts.

author: Becky Kimes

MLM Secrets - The Secrets to Riches

2010-01-01T06:00:00.000+01:00

MLM networks are certainly great businesses. Most of the time though, even with all your hard work and efforts, it still seems very hard to get a push. The truth is, MLM networks shouldn't have a reason to falter. With cunning and smart MLM secrets, there's absolutely no doubt that you can give your business more life. In all honesty, MLM secrets aren't really secrets. They just become secrets because these guidelines and tips have been overused along the years and hereby more and more people are ignoring them. There is a reason as to why overused words of wisdom are called clichés. That's because they work, and they work well. The things that you have heard in the past are the very same things that will get your MLM marketing system to the next level.

Never Cease Looking For Help

MLM networks never cease innovating. This is a business that is considered to be fast-paced merely because a lot of things are happening constantly. This is primarily due to the fact that MLM is heavily involved in the internet. With that in mind, you should always try to find resources and help of any kind that you can get as often as you can. Even the smartest and most experienced people in the world need help. A strong offence is the best defence. This means that if you start to relax with your efforts, your business could start going down.

Set Plans and Follow Them Strictly

One of the biggest obstacles of businesses is disorganization. You will notice that businesses of all kinds that are much disorganized also have lethargic sales. This is because disorganized businesses are very inefficient in all the operations. With that in mind, it should be imperative for all MLM marketing systems to work by creating and follow plans. Plans are used in order to arrange business agenda and set goals for the future. Plans also help businesses operate more productively assuming that people adhere to the plan strictly.

Maximize the Internet as much as Possible

The internet is one of the most proliferating and cheapest medium in this day and age. With that in mind, as a small business, you should take advantage of what the internet has to offer since it is very easy to deal with and it isn't very expensive. Also, try to create a smart budget for all your marketing efforts. We all know that everything comes at a limit. Always look for the best mediums at the greatest price. This way; you can truly maximize your efforts.

author: Casper Frederiksen

Best MLM Company - What You Need to Know Before Picking That Best One

2010-01-01T03:40:00.000+01:00

When you've made up your mind to join an MLM trade, you've got to be convinced, firstly, that Multi Level Marketing is for you, and in the second place, that you choose the best MLM company.

If you are the relationship-developing kind of individual, and one who would willingly give up the safety of an 8 hour/day job and of a constant income, only to be able to establish your own work schedule and revenue (with the proper efforts and skills, logically), then an MLM opportunity would almost certainly suit you well.

The best MLM company? In my view, such thing doesn't exist. But there is such thing as a company that would assist you in order to get the most out of your efforts, and this is the sort of organization you should be looking for. There are some of them, so if anybody gives you the "MY company is the only one" discourse, don't let yourself draw in.

There are things your success depends on that are just related to the MLM company you select. Let's have a quick look over them and over the aspects you should ask yourself before joining any MLM business.

To start with, the product: is there order for that product? Could it have millions of prospective buyers? Does it present value in exchange for that price? Is it too expensive? (People wouldn't buy luxurious beauty products in times of recession). Is it consumable? (This means recurring purchases from buyers). And, above all, does it have a monthly auto-ship program to make it work? All network marketing companies that are valid and authorized will have some kind of monthly product ship and or membership plan.

I would propose the compensation plan secondly, despite the fact that some persons may even look at it as coming first when choosing an MLM business. Can you understand it? What do you have to do to get paid? Does it appeal to you? (Remember that it takes about the same effort to advertise a $10 product as it does a $500 product). Do you have retail commissions? Does it include residual income? Do you receive payments for sponsoring new distributors? What about the override income on your team's sales? If you hate risks, then you might have a preference for the Get-Paid-Today version (direct pay at the moment of sale).

Then, and only then, make certain you judge the company itself: Does the organization have good leadership at the top managing it, with MLM accomplishment knowledge in the past? The product should be something that is unique and, even more, that has zero competition. If it is not one of a kind, it should stand above the others. I also consider that if you consider getting involved with a "me too" product, one that is not exclusive, then you should only get involved if the organization has at least 3 years of market experience. If it does, then it should have shown some progress already; go ask good old Google, for example - what does the internet know about it?

A good retention rate (over 50 %) is something to reflect on, and even a low beginning cost is good to have, but most weighty of all, you need to investigate your potential support system. Without it, you'll be making no money, no matter how safe the company, the product and the compensation plan are. Does your upline in the company assist you, do they answer to your inquiries promptly and successfully? Can they show you internet network marketing skills? Can they help you build your own website and, most importantly, drive traffic to it? Can they instruct you how to use online social networks to spread around your products? Speaking with your family and friends isn't going to be as much as necessary to strengthen your venture long-term, you need the power of the internet to make contact with people all over the country and around the planet in order to form a substantial, ongoing team. A good internet marketing strategy can allow you to reach a 3 or 4 figure income within months. If you haven't found a knowledgeable leader, you'd better search for one, as no matter the MLM company you choose, the training you have and the system you use are critical. And these depend on you, not on your business.

author: Kenny Gregg

6 Questions To Ask Before Becoming Involved In An Online MLM Business

2009-12-18T15:57:00.000+01:00

Everywhere you look on the Internet these days, someone is offering a "fantastic new" Internet business opportunity. Many of these, of course, are built on MLM models.

Some of the questions asked (or which should be asked) by people unfamiliar with MLM and/or Internet businesses and Internet marketing are:

1. What is an MLM business?

2. Is an MLM business even legal?

3. Can I make money with an MLM business?

4. Should I get involved with THIS online MLM business?

5. What do I need to do to be successful in an MLM business - online or offline?

6. Having looked at the items above, do I still REALLY want to do this?

WHAT IS MLM?

MLM stands for multi-level marketing. Simply put, MLM means that the business allows its distributors or representatives to recruit others into a downline. The "recruiter" then collects commissions from sales made by downline members as well as personal sales. MLM is commonly linked with network marketing which is marketing done essentially by word of mouth. In the U. S. some well known MLM network marketing companies are Avon cosmetics, Shaklee supplements and home care products, and Ameriplan health care plans.

IS MLM LEGAL?

MLM itself is a perfectly legal way for a company to distribute commissions and create a large sales force. The problem is that many unscrupulous companies and individuals have used the MLM model to promote illegal or quasi-legal "products". As a result, most people equate the term MLM with illegal schemes such as the "Make $90,000 In 90 Days" letter, the "Lawyer Brown" or "David Rhodes" letter, or other pyramid or Ponzi schemes in which the only "product" is the opportunity to get others to send money for the opportunity of making money with the pyramid scheme.

Usually, the single most important deciding factor, although not necessarily the only one, in determining if an MLM proposal is legitimate is a simple question. Is this company selling an ACTUAL product or service? Remember; just because an MLM company is legal DOES NOT necessarily mean that it is a good place to invest your time and money. Do your homework.

CAN I MAKE MONEY WITH MLM?

Absolutely. Millions of people around the world are participating in MLM network marketing ventures and making money...many making LOTS of money. I have two personal friends who became millionaires with MLM companies...Excel Telecommunications, and Ameriplan dental plans. However, an MLM opportunity is just that...an opportunity. There is no guarantee that anyone WILL make money with MLM or any other business opportunity for that matter. Success in any business venture depends on a lot of factors, and for all its apparent simplicity in most cases, a multi-level marketing business is just that...a business. Most failures in MLM come from the same reasons that other small businesses fail; lack of information, lack of education about the business, unwillingness to act, lack of motivation, and so on. Check out the website of the Small Business Administration at http://sba.gov/ for more detailed information and guidance.

IS THIS THE RIGHT MLM BUSINESS FOR ME?

Most people entering into an MLM network marketing business ask one question; "Can I make (lots) of money with this?" A better consideration is the fit between you and the company. Not to be sexist, but a macho dude kind of guy may feel silly trying to sell Avon cosmetics, although Avon is a huge company with lots of successful male and female representatives. In this example, Mr. Macho may feel more comfortable linking up with a more traditionally male oriented company such as Amsoil synthetic motor oils (which has many female representatives), or a gender neutral company such as Ameriplan dental plans.

The best thing to consider before jumping into a relationship with a company is your own personal likes and dislikes. I, for example, am passionate about health and fitness, so it is natural that I have gravitated towards those types of companies. The second consideration is how you feel about an individual company's products or services. Would you use them yourself? Would you feel good recommending them to others even if you were not allied with the company?

HOW DO I BECOME SUCCESSFUL WITH AN ONLINE MLM BUSINESS?

In the offline MLM network marketing world, you start with a good company in a field you are passionate about. You learn the product and use the product. Don't try to "sell" the product. Then you sell yourself. You become a valuable and effective member of the community. You broaden your network of friends and acquaintances. You let it be known what you do, but do not force the product down anybody's throat and do not give a sales pitch unless you are asked to. You DO feel free to offer constructive advice within your field of expertise, and you should become an expert in your field, and give honest appraisals of your positive experiences with the product or service.

With an online MLM business, the steps are essentially the same. Your website will usually do a lot of the selling, but you use forums, articles, linking, ads and search engines to accomplish the same things as you would do off line.

DO I REALLY WANT TO GET INVOLVED WITH AN ONLINE MLM BUSINESS?

The bottom line is that you will not know until you try. However, starting an MLM business, or any new business, involves risk. If you dive in with both feet, quit your job and give it 1000% you may soar to the top or crash and burn. If you hang onto your job for the paycheck, benefits and the social and professional security it provides, you will be limited in your ability to grow your business. This does not mean the business WILL NOT grow; it just means that it will grow more slowly. Even the best business may not grow in leaps and bounds if you can only work on it for five to ten hours a week.

In most cases, there will be a lot of self-doubt and uncertainty even once the project has begun. There will be lags and slow progression due to learning curves, inexperience, nervousness, and the inability to work full time on the business. Therefore, production of income, or any other indicators of success, may be a long time coming. However, many network marketers have achieved great success with the use of two simple tools; time and perseverance.

author: Donovan Baldwin

MLM Marketing The Home Business Of The Future

2009-12-18T15:47:00.000+01:00

MLM Network Marketing is the wave of the future. For those who may be looking for a few extra hundred or even a thousand a month and don't have the time to work another full time job, MLM Network Marketing is the best way to earn that cash without a huge risk or large investments. MLM Network Marketing is a system of home biz based on the concept of networking. MLM Network Marketing is NOT the same as pyramid selling. MLM Network Marketing is not a scam, scheme or pyramid industry. MLM Network Marketing is a very real home biz model.

To break it all down MLM Network Marketing is a process in which you share information while developing long term relationships. The greatest thing about MLM Network Marketing is the residual or recurring income that can result through being part of the home biz.

To be successful at MLM Network Marketing requires you getting in touch with the people that can help you out the most and this includes your upline and downline, and the company. MLM Network Marketing is particularly suited to moms who want to work at home due to family commitments, as it offers them an opportunity to start a home biz on a part time basis with very little capital. The fact of the matter is that MLM Network Marketing is quite easy to understand; it is exactly what it sounds like. MLM Network Marketing is about people.

The best way to get started in MLM Network Marketing is by making yourself accessible to a large amount of people. If you do not know what MLM Network Marketing is there is no reason to give up. Actually, MLM Network Marketing is not all that hard, it's just that people make it that way. The truth is MLM Network Marketing is an honourable and ethical home biz model to get into, and it offers many people the opportunity for true financial freedom and independence. No other home biz can offer us as much as MLM Network Marketing can.

MLM Network Marketing requires you to treat the home biz professionally and like any other home biz. For millions of individuals involved in MLM Network Marketing it signifies a complete home biz and all without all the planning, and seeking finance. It is not correct to compare MLM Network Marketing with a game of chance; you must make your success happen. MLM Network Marketing is really a team effort so be prepared to meet many new people who might become long term friends. MLM Network Marketing provides tremendous opportunity for you to learn and earn. Internet based MLM Network Marketing opportunities are a rewarding home biz for those who can do it correctly. This involves studying it, doing it, and focusing on your personal development, and also learning the skills necessary to succeed in MLM Network Marketing. Then you will become the person necessary in order to create the life you want to live, and all while you help others to achieve there success, through your leadership.

I must reiterate as this is key for your success through your personal development and increasing your own skill set as well as your team on a daily, weekly, monthly, yearly basis, and teaching it to others and doing this consistently will result in your success. I mention this because it is important to realize MLM Network Marketing is a great home biz opportunity. Many fail in this great home biz because they think about cash, and don't think about what they really want in life. Did you ever wonder how people succeed in MLM Network Marketing?

More millionaires in the the U.S. of the U.S. owe there millionaire status to MLM Network Marketing than any other home biz type or method. MLM Network Marketing needs focus, and attention to achieve any noteworthy success. And by being committed and looking at the long term ~ you will become a successful person. Not just cash wise, you will be the type of person who can always succeed, because of who you become by being part of MLM Network Marketing.

MLM Network Marketing is the ideal home biz venture for the entrepreneur and the regular person. MLM Network Marketing is a serious home biz to consider joining and one which is fun to be a part of. MLM Network Marketing is such a well-known concept lately and is on the increase. MLM Network Marketing is not a get rich quick cash maker, and does require a solid set of skills to succeed. With commitment, even if you don't know anything about MLM Network Marketing, MLM Network Marketing will craft you into a successful person, but only if you are committed to achieving your success.

To your success,

author: Kozan Huseyin

MLM Success Tips - Don't Worry About Pillar One

2009-12-18T15:39:00.000+01:00

MLM Success Tips to help distributors build their MLM Business are found in Pillar One.

Pillar One: MLM Company upper management who have built a successful business of their own in a MLM corporation with integrity.

If an executive were considering a position in a Fortune 500 Company, would he/she be concerned about the upper management? Why is it different when joining a MLM Company?

Case Study: I am interested in an upper level management position of the Fortune 500 Company called General Electric. My research prior to taking this position consists of the following:

a) Talking to one of the territory representatives I have been buying light bulbs for my personal use for about 2 months.

b) My representative is really great. He talks highly of the company, gave me a generous discount, and sold me great products. I love the products and believe there are no better light bulbs on the market today. I will use them forever.

c) I reviewed the company literature the MLM Company designed prior to joining.

Like many new distributors, I did not understand the importance of the corporate management of my first MLM Company nor how to obtain true MLM Success Tips designed to help me build my business my own way. I did what most of us do and LOVED the products, trusted my up line, and signed up.

I have since learned if your corporate leader has not built an MLM organization of their own, they will put the corporation before the distributors. The MLM Company that hires leaders from the traditional corporate setting with no MLM background will have different MLM goals than someone who has built an organization.

MLM Success Tips: Everyone should know where to look for good solid information regarding their MLM organization. Without Pillar One, there will be no need for any of the other four pillars. Pillar One is the foundation of a great MLM organization.

The first pillar of a good MLM Company is corporate leadership who has built a successful MLM organization as an independent business owner. Why? They have walked in the distributor's shoes and will only enhance the company, compensation plan, and policies and procedures.

Consider these MLM Success Tips:

Traditional corporate mentality and MLM corporate mentality are two very different schools of thought.

1) A MLM Company with leaders who have built an MLM business WILL only enhance the compensation plan and policies and procedures. Because they have been where you are, they value you as an independent business owner and understand the concept of true residual income, long vacations and retirement.

Things NOT found with these companies:

a) Items in the policies and procedures or compensation plan that do not benefit the distributor.

b) On-going requirements affecting retirement or requiring distributors to be responsible for each independent distributor in their down-line.

2) A MLM Company with leaders from the traditional corporate world who have never built a MLM organization will look at your $20,000 per month check while you are on your 3 month Hawaii vacation and resent paying out that money when you are not working! They have an employee mentality, with You being the employee while they receive the perks of upper management.

Common things FOUND in a MLM Company without Pillar One:

1) Requirements of ongoing training

2) Communication

3) Monthly retail receipts

You are now a commission only sales rep with no benefits. Can you ever retire? Most people interested in the MLM Industry do plan to retire eventually.

MLM Success Tip: Pillar One is crucial to every distributor's MLM Success in this industry. Give it due consideration when choosing an MLM Company for a home.

author: Brenda Bunney

Understanding the Basis of Your MLM Business

2009-12-10T09:03:00.000+01:00

By-passing All the Pitfalls

Are you serious about earning a living through MLM or Network Marketing business? Out of misconception, failure, and bad experiences in their previous MLM ventures some people may have decided that MLM is not a proper way even to earn a decent living, let alone to make it a means to be wealthy. Some other people may have condemned MLM and showed sour face when approached by their friends who invited them to get involved in MLM business.

How and where do MLM get its notoriety from? It comes from misconception and is granted by many MLM’s losers. Some of those people who underestimate MLM and speak bad about MLM may have not even tried any venture in MLM business at all. They just heard about something bad or wrong with MLM from MLM and Money Game’s losers. Out of ignorance, some people associate all rich-quick schemes (such as Money Games, Pyramid Schemes) with MLM or Network Marketing business. This is truly an atrocious generalization. These people are in need of education so that they will find out the real nature and characteristics of a true MLM or Network Marketing business. If you want to get involved seriously in MLM and Network Marketing business and expect to earn better living from it, you have to carefully choose the right MLM company. Spend some of your time on conducting a research about MLM companies you have considered to get involved with. By doing this you will be able to by-pass all pitfalls and serious handicaps that may have failed many people who are now suffering from MLM phobia.

Handling the Hardest Parts of MLM Routines

There are some common reasons which cause people to stay away from MLM business and which are also responsible for failing many who, out of curiousity, have tried to involved themselves in an MLM business for some time. Many people think they will downgrade their reputation and prestige when they get involved in an MLM business because they imagine that their involvement in MLM will require them to go door to door selling products they hate being associated with. This kind of people certainly lack information and background knowledge about MLM or Network Marketing business. If your prospects or circle of acquaintances consist mostly of this type of people, you will need a more educative approach in prospecting them. Supply them with good readers (books, articles, brochures) about MLM and Network Marketing business. Educate them first before trying to sponsor them. Let them know that there are many people out there who make it big through MLM.

-Understanding What It Takes In Sponsoring

To many people who never do a job which requires speaking skills and interpersonal approach, sponsoring is a truly scary thing to do in the beginning. Why are they scared of sponsoring? There must be reasons behind this fear. Each person may have his own reason for fear of sponsoring. Offline sponsoring involves a long speaking activities which includes explaining, describing, exemplifying, assuring and trust-building. When you are able to analyze what you should do in sponsoring, you can prepare yourself so that you can perform well in a sponsoring-oriented activities. Considering the components that make up sponsoring activities, you will realize what you need to perform well in sponsoring. Regardless of whom you are sponsoring, it takes the same mastery of materials and skills to perform well in sponsoring. With the mastery of the materials and skills needed in hand, you only need to adjust your methods and approaches in accordance with the background of a person you are about to sponsor. Of course you will not use the same approach in sponsoring a senior high school graduate as you will in sponsoring a physician. Although you use the same materials and skills in sponsoring them.

What materials do you really need to master to be able to perform well in sponsoring? There are two kinds of materials that you have to master to perform well in sponsoring activities, namely: 1. Materials about your MLM company’s profile and the system of compensation plan and all things related to this, 2. Materials about the products being marketed by the company and all things related them. So, it is strongly recommended that when you sign up with any MLM company, you have to immediately know, at least general knowledge about this company’s profile, its compensation plan, and the products being marketed. If you are not interested in finding out about all this, then you are not joining the company to succeed but to please your sponsor and/or upline temporarily. You will go nowhere beyond being registered as a member. This type of member possibly makes up the highest percentage of all MLM members who will eventually say, “I am not cut out to be an MLM millionaire.”

- Learning to Handle Rejection Wisely

It is understandable and human nature not to readily accept refusal or rejection. Most people will not take “No” for an answer. Basically, nobody wants to be rejected. But it is also the law of nature that there is a “No” to balance a “Yes”, there is a “Light” to balance a “Dark”, and there is a “Good” to balance is a “Bad”. So, considering this law of nature, you must not kill yourself just because you are rejected three times today. Some other people may have been rejected ten times today but remain calm because they know tomorrow they may get 10 acceptances. That is life. To these optimistic people, life is like a turning wheel. You will never be on top all the time. And God is of supreme justice. Succeeding is the right of everyone who struggles for it. It is a matter of time and persistence.

-Duplicating Leaders

Why do people build a network? There must be a reason why a network is so highly regarded by the people who know the value a network. It takes time and energy to build a huge network. Building a network is not a one man’s work. You will never have a huge network if you work alone. It is almost impossible to build a network alone. The more people you have to build a network the easier and faster you can establish a huge network. Duplicating is creating more and more people whose expertise, skills, attitude and action are similar to those of their competent leader in relation to their business development. If one able leader can build a huge castle, a lot more can be expected from more competent leaders.

-Managing Downlines

The longevity of your inflow of residual and passive income lies on your success in managing your downlines. Your downlines are your asset, so treat them as such (See my article entitled “Don’t Let Your Downlines Down” ). Your downline organization is a vital infrastructure of your MLM business. Your business is nothing without your downlines. If you fail in understanding the importance of your downlines, just imagine yourself standing on a roof of a tall building, then suddenly comes a big earthquake shaking and breaking the foundation and the body of the building on which you are standing. What is the chance of your staying alive?

Entertaining and Rewarding Yourself

Are you tired of doing your MLM routines, being rejected, being frustrated because of failure in achieving your own target, and in certain cases being left behind by the people whom you used to introduce to the business. Again, it is a fact of life that at times you have to accept the reality of life. Learn how to appreciate what you have got in your hands, and what God has granted to you so far. You may have achieved more than what your colleagues have, but you do not realize it or to arrogant to say “Thanks!” to the Creator of this universe.

Try to learn from other people who have succeeded. Do not just see how rich they are now, but learn the strategies which they may have shared with million people through their biographies. Did they suddenly succeed out of the blue. You may not realize that you have found the right path to achieve your long time goals. Do not let others steal your dreams or divert your direction. Entertain yourself when you achieve some improvement in you MLM career. Reward yourself for each achievement however small it may be. Thank “God” for all blessing and mercy granted to you, then you will be guided safely to your destination.

author: Majelis Abu Hamid

Choosing Topics For Your MLM Website Or Blog

2009-12-10T08:57:00.000+01:00

Before you start tapping away at your keyboard and generating content for your MLM website or blog, the first thing you need to figure out is what you're going to write. What topics are you going to cover with you're writing? Which questions are you going to answer? What kinds of help and resources are you going to offer people?

Most importantly, what are you going to write that will make you stand out from the crowd of other MLM businesses marketing online?

Topics for People Already in MLM
It may seem odd to offer tips and advice on your MLM website or blog for people already in an MLM business, especially if those people are in a different MLM than the one you promote. But, it actually does make sense to help those people for two reasons.

First, by answering questions with which people already in MLM are struggling, you eventually become a recognized expert in the field, which gives you credibility and visibility when new prospects search for an MLM business to join. Second, by offering sound advice that actually works, you will attract some people already in an MLM into your business. This conversion rate will be small but may contribute significantly to your group volume.

So how can you write helpful advice for people already in an MLM business? Write articles and blog posts that answer these 9 questions.

1. What is the biggest problem you struggle with in your own MLM business?
2. What is the biggest problem people in your group struggle with?
3. What problems are being addressed and discussed on your team or company's training calls?
4. What problems are being addressed on webinars and teleconferences offered by other groups outside your team and company?
5. What problems do you see MLMers struggling with that are not being addressed at all?
6. What problems are specific to your chosen method of prospecting (three-way calling, online MLM marketing, home parties)?
7. Where have you found the best answers and resources to solve these problems?
8. What are the most common questions asked by MLM newbies in online forums or on "getting started" teleconference trainings?
9. What will be the most important problems that need to be solved in MLM in the near or far future?

Bonus Round
Analyze a bunch of people out there answering questions and solving MLM problems. Are their solutions really working? Are they offering solutions that actually ring true to you or are they just parroting the same old lines that you have heard in a hundred MLM seminars and trainings? If you keep hearing the same stuff, then look outside the MLM industry. Is there someone in another niche or industry who is offering solutions that might work for MLM?

Topics to Attract People Looking for the Right MLM
The second group of people you want to write for is the group looking for the right MLM opportunity. These people may not yet be sure that MLM is right for them, but have heard enough about the possibilities of MLM to be actively doing research. For these people, you want to write content that answers questions like these:

1. Is MLM right for you?
2. What kind of personality types excel in MLM?
3. What does it really take to successfully do MLM in terms of hours and dollars?
4. How many different ways would someone be able to market your MLM business or product?
5. How do different compensation plans compare?
6. How does one investigate the track record and trustworthiness of various MLM companies?
7. What kind of training is available for people who join an MLM, and for people who join your team?
8. Does a new signup have to prospect the same way his or her upline does? The same way you do?
9. What are the qualities of a successful MLM business builder (one who really earns a paycheck that covers all the bills, and more)?

Bonus Round
What kinds of questions can you answer on your website or blog that will help you pre-qualify prospects before they ever dial your phone number or zip you an email? What can you tell people about your business that helps them decide whether they want to take the next step or not? Here are topics that will help you pre-qualify leads from your website or blog:

- MLM is not a job, it's a business
- MLM is not a "get rich quick" scheme, ever
- MLM is not for snobs but for people with open minds
- Some of the most successful MLM business owners were the hardest bring in
- You will work just as hard at MLM as in any other small business, but MLM will pay you more money and for a longer period of time
- MLM doesn't require you to have a bunch of skills, but having a few skills and a lot of willingness help you go far

Get the picture?

To Attract People Not Yet Looking for MLM
This third group is a whole different kettle of fish and one that I'm not going to try to cover in this article. However, once you have been writing for the first two groups for a while, and have developed a unique voice that people find interesting, then you might consider writing for this third group.

To attract people who are not actively looking to join an MLM but "would be perfect for your opportunity," you have to adopt a whole new style of writing. You have to write pieces that both speak to this group's current interests and tempt them to explore new interests, such as MLM. This kind of writing is far trickier and requires a lot more homework, so we'll save that set of instructions for another day.

In the meantime, learning to get online and writing for the first two groups will give you plenty of homework.

author: Stephanie Valentine

Online MLM, Ofline MLM, Or Both

2009-12-10T08:52:00.000+01:00

MLM is one of those things where there is no single way to do it. For example, with MLM you can choose to work your MLM business online, offline, or both.

It's not by chance that I prefer to work my MLM business online with the exception of some direct mail, TV, and newspaper ads (all of which cross-promote to my online MLM strategy). And one thing I never do is face-to-face prospecting, pitch my own business to friends or family, or call leads.

I personally find online MLM more enjoyable, profitable, and best of all - automated. Let's take a brief look at the main difference between online MLM versus offline MLM.

Finding MLM Prospects

Offline MLM Prospecting - Prospecting can be time consuming and for some people - very uncomfortable. It can also be difficult to "sell" your business opportunity or products without a sales personality or years of experience. Offline MLM is also very difficult to target prospects.

Online MLM Prospecting - Requires MLM training that focuses on advertising and marketing online, but can be learned rather quickly. Researching where prospects visit and placing your MLM in front of them is also easy to learn. Online MLM prospecting does not require sales skills or an outgoing personality.

MLM Training

Offline MLM Training - Meetings are at a specific time and place and may not be convenient for your downline members.

Teleconferences are similar in that they may not be at a convenient time for everyone.

With offline MLM, folks tend to get "beat down" more than online MLM. So, regular MLM training is extremely important for a productive downline.

Online MLM Training - With modern technologies you can train and motivate your downline daily - whenever and wherever they might need it. This is a great benefit that will help you keep your team motivated and productive - even in times of weakness or burn out.

MLM Duplication

Offline MLM Duplication - Duplication is only possible with downline members of the same personality types - which is rare in this business. Many MLM "heavy hitters" will say that it's possible for anyone to simply jump right in to a system that is duplicated easily. That is just not true.

Online MLM Duplication - Duplication is as easy as the click of a button. There is no personality requirements on the web. MLM online is really one of the easiest marketing systems ever because there is no need for uncomfortable situations like face-to-face selling, calling MLM leads over the phone, or prospecting friends and family. you just setup your online MLM system and it runs like a robot.

Although traditional MLMers rarely cross over to online methods, I believe it's only a matter of time before the majority of MLMers use the web for more than just sending MLM prospects to a plain opportunity overview website.

If you don't currently use the web to prospect, recruit, train, and motivate your downline online - now may be as good as anytime to get started. You'll still be ahead of most MLMers.

author: G. Collins

The 7 Hidden Things to Look for and MUST HAVE in an MLM Opportunity

2009-11-28T08:00:00.000+01:00

That can be two words that transform your life forever, or two words that create intense negative emotions in your heart. It is different for many people.

If you are looking for a good or the best MLM Opportunity, and really do not know what to expect or pursue, then this article can help you know what to look for, and what to demand for your future.

It doesn't matter if it is a franchise, retail store, real estate agency, or MLM opportunity, you should embrace and become a part of only what you deem worthy, and demand that your future deserves the best and you will not settle for anything less. There is an MLM Opportunity waiting for you, and it is the one you really want.

But there are some hidden things that you need to look for, and demand from Your MLM opportunity. Not everyone looks at these things, and if they had, they would have had a different outcome in MLM.

Here are 7 hidden things to look for that you MUST HAVE in an MLM Opportunity:

1) MLM Opportunity - Timing.

Timing is everything in an MLM business. You need to make sure that timing is good for the company you are looking for, and timing is good for YOU. Is the company experiencing growth and momentum? Or is it going through a slow time that could slow you down? Is it succeeding in the marketplace, or struggling? There is a growth curve to MLM Opportunities. Where is it along the curve? That will determine a lot of the future potential of rapid growth.

Timing in the marketplace is everything for you. Look at the market trends (anti aging, technology, skin care advancements, legal product improvements, insurance product advancements, weight loss advancements, etc) and see if the mlm company has products that contain ingredients or technology that are being talked about in the media. This alone speaks volumes of where the company is in the timing curve.

And how old is the company? If it is too young, it could fold, and if it is too old, it could be stale, and living on past Successes, not current. But there are some older MLM Opportunities that stay current with their approach to the marketplace. My suggestion is start looking for an MLM Opportunity that is at least 3 years old.

2) MLM Opportunity - Seriousness of Owners.

This is a Million Dollar Question: How serious are the owners about a LONG TERM business? If you are going to build a business for your future, you need to make sure that the owners are as serious about your future as you are. There are some that are not unfortunately.

They may talk about it, but you need to SEE it. They need to make sure they make decisions based on long term growth, not short term profits. This is a key sign to look for. Talk to people and see if they have made any recent changes to the compensation plan, or the requirements to qualify for your check, or consistent changes in product pricing.

If they have, and it is not the first time, beware. They are thinking short term profits. Owners that are serious, have proven to do what they need to do internally, in house first, and only as a last resort take money from the field. And ask around, and even see if you can talk to one of the top earners, or one of the owners themselves.

3) MLM Opportunity - Product Uniqueness.

Does the mlm product you are looking at have a one of a kind reputation? Does it have a unique marketing proposition?

Is it a truly unique product, or honestly, just another "me too" product or product line? Me too products can fade from view in the marketplace quickly in MLM.

Your products MUST be unique, and no other quite like it. Yes, there can be many skin care, weight loss, make up, nutritional products out there, but the product you are considering must have a unique "sizzle" to it that sets it apart. There are many vitamin products, but what does the product have that makes it unique? This is a HUGE test for long term product viability, as well as what the next products will be like.

An MLM opportunity may have products that come across as sleek, sexy, and hot. But if they are not unique, they will have a limited life span in MLM.

4) MLM Opportunity - Idiot Proof Training System.

A good MLM opportunity will have a training system that can be used 24/7 and can train anyone anytime, anywhere. It does not replace the role of the sponsor, but a good training system will train the new distributors quicker, and with more impact.

This is a brutal truth fact: Most sponsors do not train their people. That is just the way it is, and I wish it wasn't like that, but it is. Ask anyone who has been in MLM for a while. They will say the same thing, if they are honest. That is why that a good training system, including training manuals, cds, online training, and live events and conference call training is a must. That gives the new distributors a "menu" to choose from and to start getting their training immediately.

And it must be step by step. If the MLM opportunity has these things, or working on them, that is a great sign that they are serious about their field's success.

5) MLM Opportunity - The Better Business Bureau Factor.

Simply, in a good MLM opportunity, there cannot be a lot of complaints with the BBB. It is that simple. Yes, you will always have disgruntled distributors, that is part of the business. But a lot of complaints from all over on shipping, getting their checks, refunds, products, legal challenges, all must be considered when looking at an MLM opportunity.

Every company I know of that has had massive MLM Success, has had some things against it with the BBB. But they all were minor, and not really of the "you should be concerned" type.

If the complaints are consistent, and current and fresh, then you need to really look into that, as where there is consistent smoke, somewhere there is a fire.

Make sure you do not get burned with that fire.

6) MLM Opportunity - Is the company "product and customer focused?"

Understand this: Without customers, there is no business. Without good products, there are no customers. Without either, there is no use to look any further.

A company MUST be customer and product focused, but business driven. It is the customers and their purchases that create the volume for the MLM company. But it is the distributors driving the message out to the masses that creates the business vehicle. But it ALWAYS needs to revolve around creating a massive customer base, with a great downline helping to build that army.

Check on the MLM opportunity you are looking at, and if they are more business focused, and the products are a mere mention, then you may want to seek an MLM Opportunity somewhere else. Lots of loyal customers create wealth, not one time up front hits of volume, as that eventually goes away.

7) MLM Opportunity - What kind of people does this company attract?

This is HUGE. I have seen so many good companies that have attracted people who want to become scientists, and not distributors. They want to become Ph.Ds, not build a wealth producing business. Some MLM opportunities attract people that are more focused on short term gain, then long term stability. Some companies attract mostly the older crowd. Some network marketing companies attract mostly people under 30.

You MUST have a mix. Not too heavy on either. Why? Overall market viability. Today's MLM opportunities that are going great guns, appear to have a great mix of ages, and the average age is not too young, but yet, not too old. This is a hidden factor that speaks volumes of the MLM opportunity.

Too much youth, or too much grey, will slow any company down over time.

These are 7 Hidden things you MUST HAVE in the best MLM Opportunity. Check them with who you are looking at, and see where they stand, and how they add up.

author: Doug Firebaugh

MLM Ethics

2009-11-28T07:53:00.000+01:00

Many people question the ethics of MLM. They claim that the people on the top get all the benefit from the people working below them, while the people below don't get much if anything at all. Nothing could be further from the truth! The main income for an honest MLM comes from selling goods or services. With an honest MLM, you can easily make more than the person that brought you into the company if you put the effort into it. He gets a little bit from your sales, but you get the lion's share. Work equals money!

An honest MLM also focuses both on sales and on recruiting people (increasing the distribution system) to earn you more money. When a MLM representative contacts a person, he views that person as a potential customer and as a potential future representative. A representative will give you the opportunity to purchase his merchandise (which you were going to buy anyway) and to become a representative yourself, giving you the chance to earn money, grow your own business, become part of the company and share in the profits!

The recruited person benefits since he is now part of the company and is also the owner of his own business. Some benefits of joining the honest MLM can include products at a reduced cost and the opportunity to build their own business by selling and recruiting themselves. However, recruiting alone is not enough. You must recruit, motivate, train and supply the persons you recruited to get your share of their sales profit.

I Don't Know How to Sell or Recruit!

If you do not know how, don't panic! There are many honest MLM guides online. All the tips, tricks and the knowledge you need to start and grow a MLM company are available. The good news is that a lot of these are free.

Expand your business over the Internet. It is easier and cheaper. People are much more comfortable buying things from perfect strangers over the Internet, rather than buying them from total stranger at their doorstep. Save time and avoid stress by doing all your managerial tasks from your computer. Recruiting can also be performed online. As can selling.

The Future of Multi-Level Marketing

The home-based business boom, also know as MLM or Network Marketing, isn't really booming at all. Now it's true that in the last decade the number of MLM companies popping up all over the United States have grown by over 500%. Yet, the number of distributors has only grown by 15%! So, yes there is a "MLM Boom", but it's the number of companies that have boomed, not the number of distributors.

What does that mean? It means that there are too many companies competing for the same distributor base, plain and simple. Ever seen a small town "boom" really quickly only to go "bust" in a few years? You know the type I'm talking about. You drive through the town and see closed businesses and shopping malls all through the town and you ask yourself "what happened here?" Now, I'm not saying that the MLM industry is ever going to "bust".

Quite the contrary, the MLM industry will continue to grow with or without you-it's that strong of a business model. But, it's not 1977 anymore where Amway, Shaklee and Herbalife are not the only games in town. Instead, there are literally thousands of "good" MLM programs to choose from. To grow a profitable MLM company needs work and dedication, but once you have it rolling, you will enjoy the benefits. Grab a MLM opportunity and make your first step towards your honest MLM Empire.

author: Robin Rushlo

Are MLM - Network Marketing Businesses - A Honest Way to Earn Income?

2009-11-28T07:45:00.000+01:00

MLM (Multi-Level Marketing) is based on the concept of distributing the process of selling onto independent businesspersons. Honest MLMs give everyone (and anyone) the opportunity to start and grow their own business. Consider that the MLM concept can be applied to selling every good and/or service, and that every person is a potential future representative. One can say that everything has the potential to become a MLM opportunity.

Think about where you work. Isn't it true that the boss (or company) is raking in the big bucks out of the money YOU are making for the company? Maybe you aren't in sales. You still contribute something of value to the company. If you didn't, they wouldn't pay you! Your paycheck is a reflection of that value. Whether you work in sales, for a nonprofit, or in the service industry, somebody somewhere is making money and you are contributing to that effort. If they weren't making money, the company would collapse.

There are many good examples of traditional businesses that function very much like a MLM. Examples include the Insurance business, the Yellow pages guys, your local Auto Dealers, etc. Look at a sales force. The salesman makes a commission of 12%. That's all he makes unless he makes his quota or sale goals and then he may get a bonus. The sales managers for these companies may have 10 salespeople to train, keep track of, and motivate. As reward for this extra work, he makes 3% of everything that each salesman makes plus commissions and bonuses for his own effort. He may make an additional bonus for all of his salesmen making their sale goals. And the owner of the company makes money on everyone!

Gee, that would mean Honest MLM is everywhere we just do not see it like a MLM company.

An Honest MLM versus a Pyramid Scheme?

Pyramid schemes are illegal scams involve a large number of people at the bottom of the pyramid, all of them paying money to a few people at the top. Each new participant pays for the chance to advance to the top and profit from cash paid by others who join down the line. You receive no products or services for your participation. Pyramids resemble a legal honest MLM in structure, but there is an important difference. Pyramid schemes seek to make money from you, while multi-level marketing seeks to make money with you by offering top quality products and/or services. Pyramid schemes are much like chain letters; they require mathematical gymnastics that cannot possibly work. Pyramids always collapse in the end, and only a very few (usually the con artists themselves) make any money on them at all.

Many people associate the MLM technique with pyramidal schemes. An MLM does not work this way. You must do work to earn money-it is as simple as that. The main objective of an MLM is to enlarge the area of distribution for different goods by involving as many people as possible, either as customers or as possible representatives. Each company representative earns their money through honest work. They may receive commissions for selling and may also receive a bonus for offering the business opportunity to others.

Anyone who works a conventional job is in a pyramid scheme. Every company, army, and government in the world is built on the pyramid concept. However, with multilevel marketing, you aren't held back by the people above you like you are in a conventional job.

With an MLM, you can build your business as large and as profitable as you want and you do not need to be at the top. In fact, with many MLMs, you can surpass the earnings of the person that introduced you to the business.

How Can You Tell if an MLM is a Good and Honest Company?

MLM opportunities are all around us, but only a few of them are turned into profitable businesses. Be sure to make the most out of every honest MLM opportunity.

The Direct Selling Education Foundation suggests that, before you sign up with a company, you ask yourself these three questions:

1) How much am I required to pay to become a distributor? An honest MLM company will generally charge a small start- up fee. Pyramid schemes make most of their money from signing up new distributors, so their start-up charges are often very high. These start-up fees may be called many things and you may be told they are required or are recommended purchases for training, computer services and product inventory.

2) Will the company buy back unsold inventory? Honest companies will usually buy back any products that you fail to sell. Bogus companies will stick you with the inventory.

3) Are the company's products sold to customers? Pyramid schemes gain nothing by actually selling a product and often don't sell anything at all. They focus only on gaining new investors. Be wary if you must start by buying a large amount of product. Also, take a good look at the product itself. Multi-level marketing depends on quality products that are well-priced; pyramid schemes do not.

As with any other investment, before you commit ask questions about the company, its leadership, its ethics and its earnings. Take your time and investigate any information you're given. Talk to other people who have joined and research the company. Don't act hastily!

author: Robin Rushlo

7 Tips to Avoid a MLM Scam

2009-11-22T20:20:00.000+01:00

A big reason many individuals fear MLM is because they believe they are going to get scammed. There is lots of information in cyberspace about MLM scam this or MLM scam that. People are afraid of the unknown and since very few know much about MLM, except hearsay, it creates an atmosphere of anxiety and aversion.

The key, as in anything, is to do your homework and educate yourself on the ins and outs of MLM. Then you have the information to make your own educated decision. The following 7 tips will provide some information on how to avoid scams when choosing a MLM.

MLM Scam Tip #1

Research the company management. That's very easy to do nowadays. Google is an incredible resource. Put the names of the company's top management into the search engines and see what comes up, some of the results are shocking!

MLM Scam Tip #2

Read the policy and procedures before you join. The policy and procedures, p&p's, are your contract with the company. Make sure you understand what they are saying. Look for red flags such as, p&p's not available on the main company website, p&p's that are over 7 pages long, anything in the p&p that says ongoing or continual, or 30 day termination at the company's discretion. These are just a few things to watch out for. You don't want to build a team only to have it ripped out from under you. Sadly, that happens.

MLM Scam Tip #3

Understand the compensation plan. This might seem like a no brainer, but MLM comp plans are not like anything in the real world. Take your time to understand it before you join. Ask questions if you don't understand. A good question to ask is "How many people will it take in my organization, on the back end, meaning residual, to make 10K per month?" See what they say and ask yourself how doable is that for me?

MLM Scam Tip #4

Good upline support is extremely important to MLM success. You need a team of people that work together and leave their egos at the door. If possible talk to others in their downline and see what they have to say. Many good people enter into MLM being promised support but get none because their upline has moved on to recruit others or they are too busy helping the "superstars".

MLM Scam Tip #5

Good solid training. Training you can take to the field and use. Not lots of hype and pie in the sky tales of success. Training where you get some basic skills needed to do this business. Of course, you shouldn't have to pay for it!

MLM Scam Tip #6

Avoid lead generation systems that rely on friend and family. Systems like these make it extremely difficult for success in MLM. 92% of the population doesn't like to sell or be sold; I'd say the number is even higher when you are talking about friends and family. If the company your thinking about joining employs this type of lead generation system, tie up your shoelaces and run for the door!

MLM Scam Tip #7

MLM success takes work. It is not a get rich quick scheme. If someone is saying; "in our company it's easy to have success" or "we'll build your downline for you" or "you can make 100K in 6 months", they are lying. Plain and simple.

MLM is an incredible business when you align yourself with the right company. By following these 7 tips you will increase your chances of success immensely by avoiding a MLM scam.

author: Suzanne Fulford

How To Choose An MLM Company

2009-11-22T20:15:00.000+01:00

If you are looking into starting a home based business, on either a full or part-time basis, and are good at working with people, but have little business knowledge and minimal capital, then Multilevel marketing may be for you. Before you jump into a MLM company, you should consider the positives and the negatives of an MLM company.

This article will show you the positives to look for in an MLM company and some of the downsides of MLM companies.

An MLM company provides a product or service to the consumer through a network of distributors. The distributors make their money through a percentage of the products they sell. They also make a percentage of revenues from the customers of the distributors that they recruit and a percentage of the distributors that their distributors they recruit. This is why it is called multi level marketing.

Reputable MLM companies also provide a low start-up cost, all the training you need, advertising in one form or another, and supply you with a product line-up or service to sell.

The United States Federal Trade Commission, however, cautions anyone from joining a MLM company that pays you for each distributor you recruit, as opposed to only paying a commission on the total sales they generate. This is called ‘Pyramiding’ and is illegal.

Before you join an MLM company you should take the time to really looking into the company beforehand. Do your due diligence.

Here are the positive and negative factors to consider when choosing an MLM company.

POSITIVES TO LOOK FOR WHEN CHOOSING AN MLM COMPANY

-Established and marketable product line or service. -Striving to improve or add to the existing line-up -Easy to sign up new distributors online. -Solid track record and good work ethic. -No experience required. -Training provided. -Excellent bonus plan with incentives. -Minimal start up fees. -Strong support system. -Successful business and marketing plan -Can work full time or part time.

These attributes would definitely belong to an ideal multilevel marketing company, however not all reputable companies excel in all these areas. Some companies will be better in certain areas than others. Do research on the company. Don’t just accept the motivational hype used by most MLM companies in order to recruit.

Some MLM distributors are so highly trained that they have a “come-back” for almost every statement you make or concern you have. This would be considered a ‘high-pressure’ invitation to join. Always take time away to cool off – especially if you’re excited by what you heard. Sit on your decision for a while and do research. If the company is good, they will still be there when you wake up tomorrow; and yes, you will get a follow-up phone call.

THE NEGATIVES OF MLM COMPANIES

While the MLM model can be a great tool to achieve what you want in life, it would be remiss not to mention the negatives of MLM companies.

-Watch out for disreputable MLM companies. -Building a downline will take longer than and cost you more than you think. -There are costs to running an MLM that you need to consider: gas for your car, staying in hotels, and taking people out to eat. -It usually takes a minimum monthly order to maintain your distributorship. -Watch out for getting paid to just recruit distributors and not on sales volume. -Even though the companies insist the products sell themselves, it is still going to take hard work to make money. -In MLM you have to deal with rejection. -Getting involved with certain MLM companies can cause you to focus all your attention on your business. Some distributors stop attending important family events because the family event falls on the same date as one of their MLM seminars.

When considering getting involved in an MLM company take the time to choose the right company. There are many different companies to choose from. Resist the temptation to just join any company, but do your due diligence. Also, count the costs involved in getting involved in MLM. Realize that there are hidden costs to starting an MLM company that you may not see on the surface.

Starting an MLM business can make you a fortune, but it can also cost you a fortune. It is going to take consistent and diligent work to succeed. Make sure that the company that you choose to work with has all the positives mentioned above and also take the time to consider if you are willing to put in the work that is necessary to make MLM work. And remember, God loves you.

author: Jeff Flow

MLM Survival Guide

2009-11-22T20:08:00.000+01:00

The purpose of this guide is to provide a step-by-step procedure for starting, operating and optimizing a MLM based business, and to do this without making serous mistakes along the way. There are volumes of books on this subject, so this guide will not attempt to "rehash" the "rose colored" views of these authors. Instead, this guide will show you a "lean, mean, cut-to-the-bone" quick and easy way to succeed in your business based upon the MLM MACHINE program. Also, you will be shown tips to use, tricks to be aware of, and traps to avoid.

Why Most People Fail In MLM

MLM is an explosive growth opportunity and it is here to stay. Like it or not! Let's review some MLM facts.

There appears to be thousands of MLM companies. Some of these MLM companies are well established multi million dollar companies, while most of them are not. Many people have become wealthy in MLM, but some of the would be MLM'ers never make it! Therefore, before we go blindly into MLM, let's analyze why some of the would-be MLM'ers don't survive. Let's bread down the problem in three categories.

1. MLM'er can't EFFECTIVELY recruit new members. 2. MLM'er can't keep his program going. It runs out of gas and dies a natural death. 3. MLM Company has serious problems. I believe that sums it up. Either the MLM'er can't get his program started, can't keep it going, or the MLM company itself goes "belly up."

Why New MLM'er Can't Effectively Recruit New Members?

1. The MLM Paradox According to Webster, the word "paradox" means, "something with seemingly contradictory qualities or phases." In MLM, there is a paradox that causes major confusion that must be understood and dealt with. Here is the problem. MLM companies by law cannot aggressively "push" the MLM opportunity as the main reason for joining their program. They must emphasize their products and services and explain the MLM opportunity as only a nice extra benefit. If they don't, all kinds of local, state and federal government officials will attack them. Therefore, they must be extremely careful about what their literature, advertising and promotional material states, what they say in meetings, etc. That is why we normally don't mention the MLM company name when we use examples in these reports. We do this just to avoid this kind of problem.

All MLM'ers are aware of the MLM "paradox" problem. Look, everyone knows, including the MLM companies and all the distributors, that the real reason that most people get involved with MLM is for the opportunity! Yet, the MLM literature and the MLM distributor cannot tell you this directly without crossing over the fine line of being illegal. In other words, it is illegal to promote a MLM company if the sole purpose is to earn profits by signing up new distributors with no regard to the usefulness of the product or service.

Where does this leave the new MLM distributor? Well, no one is officially allowed to tell him how to go out and aggressively recruit new members! Instead, he is always taught how to "promote" the product and then "as an after thought" explain the opportunity! All up standing MLM companies will follow this procedure.

TIP: Keep your lead generating methods separate from your MLM promotions. In other words, it is perfectly legal to promote an opportunity any way you want to as long as you don't tie this directly with a MLM company.

That means that you can write your own advertisements, etc. and generate all kinds of leads. But when it comes time to discuss a particular MLM company, then us the official MLM literature, guidelines, etc. when presenting that particular company, products, and opportunities. In that way, you are making a clear distinction between "lead generating" and promoting a particular "MLM company opportunity."

2. MLM Concepts Are Way Too Complicated

Whey most people are first exposed to their first MLM opportunity, they are over powered by the complexity and newness of MLM concepts and terms. They are confused with all those new terms such as "Network, Downline, Upline, Organization, Levels, etc." Then there is the specific MLM plan that is being presented that is always anything but simple. There is too much to absorb quickly. Then there is much suspicion. Is this a pyramid scheme? Is it legal? They have probably never heard of the MLM company that adds to the problem. They find it hard to believe that they can really make the kind of money being discussed. They probably suspect the MLM distributor. And on and on. Right? So what happens? In most cases, nothing! They simply don't sign up.

3. Potential MLM Member Can't Decide Which MLM Company To Join

Put yourself in his shoes. If he has been investigating MLM companies, he is sure to be confused with all those offers and different companies. If he can't decide, he just doesn't sign up with any MLM company! Does He?

TIP: There are literally thousands and thousands of MLM distributors who will jump at the chance to tell you which companies you should get into and promote. If you want more "advice" there are many books written by the "experts." Understand one thing, every book and magazine article that you read and everyone that you talk to will almost assuredly have a "vested interest." In other words, they are either openly or subtlety trying to get you to sign up in their program. They will be quick to explain that there are "golden rules" and guidelines to follow. Some will tell you to stay away from "grown floor" opportunities since they are too risky. Others, will explain that this is where the big money is. Some will explain why matrix MLM programs are better than others - and visa versa. Some will adamantly advise you to be active in only one MLM company - "be loyal" is their motto. Others, try to sign you up in multiple companies. Still others have put together "Downline Building Teams," and will invite you to join them. They do all the work (You simply send to them money). With all this "good" advise, what is correct?

I have noticed one thing about all these "good" advice sources. They never seem to ask me what my goals are.

What is it that I want? How in the world can someone give another person advice before he understands that the objectives are? What is it that you really want? When? How much can you afford to spend? How much risk are you willing to take? What MLM programs and products do you like? Before we even think about selecting a MLM company, let's review the real world about MLM companies and opportunities.

Most new MLM companies never make it through their 2nd year. This is because they are not properly financed, don't really have a good offering, or the federal (Fed's ) government shuts them down! The reason that the Fed's shut down some of these companies is that there is a lot of unscrupulous people in MLM, mailorder and in fact, all kinds of business.

MLM is no different from other companies that frankly have about the same survival length. New companies in any business, MLM or not, have a tough time getting through the first few years. The people that promote MLM companies never seem to get around to explaining the real facts to you. But you need to understand the dark side as well as the "rose colored glasses view." Sound scary? Well, it you were to invest $5,000 to $25,000 like some MLM companies would like you to do, yes it would be scary. The correct word is probably "foolish."

Now let's take these facts and see if there is really a low risk, high potential waiting for you.

So, back to the question, "How do You Select the Right MLM Company?" This is like asking, "What Stock should I buy?" Brokers, advisement firms, and the like will be quick to make their advice. Wouldn't they? And why not - they all earn a fat commission or other fees. do you think any of them really cares about you? And if they really believed in their own "advice", why don't they mortgage their homes and buy in themselves? The fact is,

"No one knows!" And that is true with MLM companies and buying stocks! A standard solution does exit however: diversify! Spread your investment around! Why put all your eggs into one basket?

1. Select your MLM programs from the "Highly Recommended" listing from reliable sources

2. Enroll into at least 2 or 3 MLM programs. There is no guarantee that any MLM program will survive, so let's not be naive about this. Safety is in numbers! They all won't go sour . . . at least at the same time. And in the mean time, you should be making money with the one or two companies that you're in.

3. Build your one core MLM company that is at least five years old and is the best one that you can find. Write for literature on our #1 ranking program. Consider our #2, #3, #4 and #5 "Highly Recommended" for diversification. Since some of these can be promoted easier and faster, you may want to vigorously promote these programs while you are building your slower, but stronger #1 program.

4. Get into MLM companies that you have total confidence in. There is nothing quite as frustrating as trying to promote a product or a company that you don't really believe in. Stick with the winners with a few years of success behind them!

5. Make sure that the MLM company(s) that you select have inexpensive literature that you can send by mail in a cost effective manner. This just makes good mail order sense!

TRAP: Don't be a "MLM junkie" without a plan. Human nature is to entice you into many different exciting " ground floor" MLM opportunities. These can be fine, but you will lose your shirt if you don't have a coherent plan that makes sense. work this program and its offering to the fullest before you take off in other directions.

Here are a few problems some new MLMers have:

1. No Upline Support Once a person joins a new MLM program, he is vulnerable and needs a lot of help from something or someone. In many cases, his upline is not actively helping him for whatever reason. This happens a lot when the upline person is simply sponsoring as many people as he can with no regard to what happens to them after they get sponsored. In most standard MLM programs, it is important that the new person gets immediate assistance from a local person, meetings or what have you. Otherwise his chances for survival are slim to none.

2. New MLM'er Can't Sell

This is probably the major reason most people don't make it MLM. By using standard MLM techniques, you have "just got to" sell and learn how to speak at opportunity meetings and the like.

3. MLM'er Cannot Generate Good Leads Next to the selling problem, this has to be the next biggest reason most people fail in MLM. Let me paint you a picture of what normally happens. The new person has just signed up in an exciting MLM program. He is taught by the manuals, meetings and so forth, how he should "share" his product with his friends, neighbors and relatives. Normally, he is not comfortable with this, and if he is typical, he will have many sleepless, tossing and turning nights! He just doesn't want to "impose" on his friends! He would feel a lot more comfortable just presenting his opportunity to strangers. But to whom? Unless his upline sponsor can get to him immediately, this guy is sure to be a fatality!

4. There Is No True Duplicative System

If the MLM company must be promoted through expensive methods, this is not feasible. Also, if you must learn how to sell, or to speak and conduct an opportunity meeting - friend, this is just not duplicative. It just isn't! Only a few people can do this. Here again, is a very important reason a lot of would be MLM'ers die on the vine.

TRICK: Follow up with your first level of people. You can do this by letter or phone. If you have signed up someone that is not active, replace him with someone new, but keep all your first level people active.

5. MLM'er Sells By Mail Using Standard MLM Techniques

Traditional way to promote MLM is to sit down fact to face, spend all spare time to call around and travel around to get prospects. A lot of people already have full time job, it is hard to find extra time to travel and make phone calls. MLM'er Can't Keep His Program Going Strong

6. MLM'er Not "Sure" About His MLM Company Or Service

Often a person will "sign up" in a MLM program in a "fit of excitement." After the dust clears, he comes down to earth and reality slowly sets in. He then starts having doubts about the company, the product or service and his own ability to promote it. If he has enrolled in a program that is not well established, he may have some well founded fears. If the company is not at least two years old, things can get very shaky very quickly.

The slightest amount of financial problems or bad press can crater this company over night. Therefore, it is of utmost importance for the new MLM'er to align himself with a solid company with unquestionable products and services!

TIP: Pick an established, financially sound MLM company that is at least two years old with unquestionable products or services. That way, you can feel good about the company and products that you are promoting. There is nothing quite like being able to "tell the complete truth" to your prospective customers.

TRICK: Don't select a MLM just because you are "in love" with the product. Put your emphasis on the business, the money making potential.

7. New MLM'er Doesn't Stick With It Long Enough

TIP: Starting any company takes time, and this is true with MLM as well. By the time you study the program, write and receive literature: study this and sign up; get the literature; etc. - it takes time! And then you have to generate your leads and so on. Also, there is a lead time before you get your first check. And then your organization has to take time to grow. And on and on. The point is, it will take several months before you can expect much of anything to start to happen. You should set in your mind that you are going to stick with this for at least one year! That just makes good business sense.

TRICK: Use some other promotions to earn money during the interim time. That way, you are earning extra profits and generating a lot of surplus leads to help your downline.

TRAP: Don't spend all your initial promotional money on one thing and all at once. Do a little testing. Spread it out and find out what works best for you. If you "blow it" all in one big shot, and it doesn't work, then what?

MLM COMPANY IN SERIOUS TROUBLE

Your MLM Company Gets into Serious Trouble

Here is something that can happen, so you had better be prepared for it. As I have mentioned before, there are some excellent MLM companies, and some not so good. But any company can get into serious trouble, and a lot of MLM companies certainly do. they can get into financial problems, or get bad "press," management problems, etc. Anything can happen, and if you are one of the unlucky ones to be promoting this company, you could quickly become another MLM fatality. Particularly if you are promoting only this one MLM company.

TIP: Diversify. Look, we both know that MLM offers many wonderful opportunities. We also know that this is a volatile industry. That doesn't mean we should not participate. If you had to invest several thousand dollars in one MLM company, then I would be worried. But that is not the case here. You can partake in several MLM companies for less than $200 a month, and still enjoy the benefits. Can't you? Let's face it. Although the companies that are listed "Highly Recommended" in the our site are excellent, solid companies, they may not be perfect. In fact, some may go "belly up." But not all at once! Worst case, you will be in a MLM company at least a few months or years before they get into trouble. Now tell me you won't have made a profit even with that company!

TRICK: Sponsor your first level quickly. That way, your income will more than cover your costs. With the Internet's help, this can be done with just a little extra effort. Then show your first level how to do the same. That way, you earn profits quickly and stay ahead of the game.

TRAP: Don't be a MLM "junkie" without a plan. diversifying with a good coherent plan is one thing, but just buying into a lot of MLM companies is a "no-no." But yet, did you know that there are many people that buy into dozens of MLM programs without promoting any of them?

* MORE How To Build A Secure Income

TIP: When you can afford it, buy into more MLM programs. Re-invest some of your profits and round out your MLM companies to at least three. Start promoting MLM programs so you can recruit members into your new MLM programs. When you do this, you will generate surplus leads for your original MLM programs. At this point, you can either feed these leads to your existing down line, or start to build a second organization.

TRICK: Consider forming a co-op advertising group made up of your down line. You can advertise locally or nationally. You simply put the advertising package together, and your down line pays you so much for a block of this advertising. That way, they get tons of leads, and your down line builds automatically.

TRAP: Don't forget the method that you used to succeed. After you become successful, you will want to work closer with the individual MLM companies that you are promoting. All these companies have "grand" ways that they want you to use and teach. Beware! Stick to the system that worked for you.

With Internet's help, you can do a lot of research before you jump to any network marketing company. Plus, you can use Internet to recruit new prospects at low cost with search engine's help.

author: Julia Tang

Why Do Many People Fail in MLM

2009-11-15T00:44:00.000+01:00

Why do the majority of Multi Level Marketing Businesses fail? (97% according to industry statistics). Well there are many reasons but the main reason is down to a lack of Qualified leads and prospects. This usually results from a lack of effective marketing training. Most MLM organizations provide lots of training. However, this is usually geared towards getting distributors 'hyped' up and in the right psychological state. Most distributors are trained in outdated marketing strategies and this leads to business failure.

My own personal experience reflects this. For 6 years I was a distributor with one of the largest MLM organizations in the world. During this time I attended many 'Training' events but they very rarely revealed specific, up to date methods of marketing. They were usually techniques that had been used for years and were out of date. In fact I don't even think that making a list of family and friends and speaking to strangers at every opportunity constitutes marketing! Advice on how to use the Internet to promote the business usually came in the form of 'buying leads'. If you have tried to build your MLM by buying leads you will be well aware that this can quickly lead to financial suicide.

One reason for this type of training at these events is because there are often distributors from various 'lines' withing the organization. Therefore, the content has to be kept generic because some 'groups' have particular methods or strategies that they promote. The last thing they want is for their team of distributors to be sidetracked with other methods or systems of operating. As a result these events never really provide valuable in depth training in marketing methods.

Instead, It ends to be left up to the 'sponsor' or 'upline' to deliver specific detail on particular methods. Here is where another problem arises. Sponsors can only teach what they know and what has worked for them. This information has often been passed down over years from one generation of distributors to the next. It may have worked decades ago but they are often totally obsolete in today's marketplace. Unless people are extrovert characters or extraordinary persuaders/ communicators then they struggle with the concepts such as striking up conversations with random strangers in shopping malls etc. They will ultimately be doomed for failure. During my time in MLM I was partly responsible for this situation. I lacked any real IT skills and chose to ignore these areas. As for my new distributors I trained them in what I did. This included Handing out fliers in the street, conducting surveys in shopping malls and striking up conversations with total strangers that moved within 3 feet of me!

I have some friends who have worked in call centers. The work is so grim that often on the first day of work new employees have been known to ask for directions to the toilet. With this they excuse themselves, take the opportunity to walk straight out of the building never to be seen at their desks again!

Before joining an MLM company it is vital that you carry out some research and check what type of marketing systems they promote and that will be trained in. Ask questions about what marketing they do and if they make one mention of 'writing a list' contacting your 'warm market' or pitching anyone and everyone that you meet - make a polite excuse to visit the loo and run a mile!!!

The Internet and particular WEB 2.0 technology have radically changed the MLM prospecting landscape for good. The gulf between those who embrace these opportunities and those who ignore them will widen. The reason that Internet Marketing has become such a hot topic is because there are over 1.4 Billion people who have direct access to the Internet today and this is growing at an alarming rate. If an organization does not have a strong Internet marketing division behind them they will find it increasingly difficult to compete. The only question left is this - Are you going to take the time needed to learn and implement some of these new opportunities. Or are you going to continue like the Osterich with it's head stuck in the sand heading for failure, by denying that they even exist?

author: Manal Tawdrous

Online Multi-Level Marketing: How to Earn Money Online

2009-11-15T00:30:00.000+01:00

When the multi-level marketing concept was first introduced in the United States more than 50 years ago, a lot of people were skeptical of its sustainability. A lot of people didn't believe that such concept is workable and that people would actually earn good money directly selling the good and services of certain companies. For the last 50 years, those who did not believe in the multi-level marketing system have been proven again and again. Hundreds of people have earned considerable income through the multi-level marketing system and some of them have even become very wealthy.

How does multi-level marketing work?

Multi-level marketing works in two different ways. If you become a member of a multi-level marketing company, you will earn through direct discounts o you personal purchases and direct commissions on your own sales. Some multi-level marketing companies would offer up to 30% discounts and commissions on whatever goods that you purchase or sell for the company. Many multi-level marketing companies also offer big bonuses for those dealers who are able to meet certain level of sales in a given month.

Another way for you to earn money in a multi-level marketing system is thought recruitment of new members. The multi-level system is designed for members to recruit other people to become members and earn commissions on whatever sales that the new members they recruited make. For instance, if you are able to recruit two new members, you can earn as much as 5% to 10% commissions on whatever sales they may generate. This means, the more people you recruit to become members of the company, the more income you will earn through commissions.

What is more interesting about the multi-level marketing scheme is that you do not only earn commissions on the sales generated by the people that you have directly recruited. There are a lot multi-level marketing companies that offer commissions up to the 8th generation of recruits. For instance, if your recruit brings in another new member, you can also earn commissions on the sales of the person that your recruit invited to become a member of the company. As more and more people are added into your team, you earn more money. If you really want to earn a huge amount of money through the multi-level marketing system, you have to recruit as many people as you can to become members of the company. You should also help your recruit in recruiting other members because if your recruit brings in more people who will work for the company, you will also be benefited.

author: S. Ann

How to Be Successful in Multi-Level Marketing

2009-11-15T00:12:00.000+01:00

Multi-level marketing has been around for ages! Initially it started off through Amway or rather known as The American Way, way back in the 50's. During that time when the economy was just starting to recover from the effects of the war, Amway started to distribute their products in a different method - through network distribution. People became suspicious as Amway grew into one of the most successful corporation at that time.

Of course, multi-level marketing has become a people's business - Meaning that it is mainly dealing with people. If you take a look at an organization, the people that made up the organization are one of the most valuable assets. Same goes to multi-level marketing. Each person that joined under you is your valuable asset. Be sure to provide excellent training as well as an educational system to get your people highly knowledgeable in the respective field. Furthermore I believe that almost 99 percent of the people that have joined are new to the industry. Think of this - when you joined a new company, the first thing that they will do is to send you for training. You are new the company and in the industry right? Same goes to multi-level marketing.

To really succeed in multi-level marketing, you need to train yourself to have a business mindset rather than an employee or a worker's mindset. 95 percent of the population are employees and have been an employee for most of their lives. Having a shift from an employee's mindset to become an entrepreneur is not an easy task. As an entrepreneur, you are your own boss. You will need to figure out and sort most of the problems in your organization. And reflecting this in multi-level marketing, it is pretty similar. As a leader, you will need to lead your group well and act as a leader. Problems that you will most likely encounter by you and your group would be usually emotional and social aspects. Remember this is a people business right? Lead your team as a leader and run your group like a corporation - and a big corporation that is. This is part of the key to success.

Of course you can always read more books on how to succeed in multi-level marketing. But the truth is, you will only gain knowledge and not experience. Dealing with people is not an easy task and especially almost everyone that you meet is a critic! Always put in mind that changing a person's mindset from an employee's mindset to become an entrepreneur is not easy! Most of your friends have been working for an organization for years and most probably it's hard to change their daily routine or job that is.

Practicing is always to key to success. Get information from books and always practice what you have learned. In most cased during your practice, the rejection rate is pretty high - more than 90% to be exact. If you think that 90% rejection rate is bad then you are wrong. Contrary, 90% rejection rate might turn out to be a 90% growth for you! Think of this, if everyone of your friends are already doing this business, what sort of business growth are you looking at then? Rather, think yourself as a specialist and only if you are a specialist you will make more money compared to a general practitioner right? And never give up during your practice but rather think of the people that you have met as your practice dummies. Most people failed to succeed in multi-level marketing is because they quit not even half way of the journey! Although multi-level marketing does pay high, it's not a get-rich-quick scheme. It takes lots of effort and perseverance to succeed.

As a conclusion remember these basic pointers:

1. People are your asset
2. Have an entrepreneur mindset
3. Provide excellent emotional and educational training for your team
4. Practice what you have learned and implement it
5. 90% rejection is 90% growth!

author: Mich

Can Legitimate Money Be Made from Multi-level Marketing?

2009-10-25T22:24:00.000+01:00

If you have ever searched the Internet for moneymaking sources you have ran across multi-level marketing (MLM). Many people believe MLMs are a great money making source and actually there are many people making a very good income through it. One question many people ask is if multi-level marketing is legal.

In a typical MLM business individuals associate with a parent company as an independent contractor or franchisee and are compensated based on their sales of products or a service and sales achieved by those they recruit into the business under them. Most multi-level marketing organizations put a great emphasis upon recruiting distributors over selling products.

Multi-level marketing has had an image problem due to it is often difficult to distinguish legitimate MLMs from illegal scams such as pyramid and Ponzi schemes. A pyramid scheme is moneymaking process that primarily and in some cases solely on enrolling other people. The Ponzi scheme involves paying abnormally high returns to investors out of money paid by later enrolled investors. Both of these depend highly on the confusion between them and legitimate MLM programs to work.

One reason it is hard for multi-level marketing programs to succeed is it is a legal version of a pyramid scheme. The basic idea behind it is for a salesperson to recruit more salespeople. The people really making the most money is the company owner and the supplier of the products. There are some obvious benefits in MLM membership and that is you are able to take certain tax cuts and you may be able to purchase merchandise you need at far below cost.

In what is considered a more legitimate MLM, commissions are earned only on sales of the company's products and services. If you are considering trying a MLM you should analyze the compensation plan to determine whether you are paid from actual sales to customers and not from recruiting new members.
Compensation plans for multi-level marketing members.

Unilevel or stair step plan. This is one of the oldest and most commonly used. There are two types of distributors, which are managers and non-managers. There are three types of pay.

Baseshop overrides- these are a group of managers that receive compensation from their subordinate non-managers, collectively called a baseshop. This is similar to most sales organizations.

Generalized overrides are a group of managers who were previously their subordinate. Most plans pay at least three generations of managers. Executive bonuses are commissions for managers who exceed their sales quota.

Matrix plans limit the width of each level of a distributors group. This forces strong distributors to spill over their recruits to people who did not sponsor them.

Binary plans limit the width of each level to two legs. The commission is based on "cycles," where a distributor is paid a fixed amount when both legs achieve a certain number of sales volumes in each leg match.

Elevator or matrix schemes have a game board or a list on which each distributor pays in one or more product units to participate. When a predetermined number of units have paid in, the structure splits and the earlier participant receives compensation.

In 1979, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a decision entitled re. Amway Corp that indicated that multi-level marketing is not illegal. In this case, though Amway was found guilty of price fixing because they required independent distributors to sell at the same prices. They also were found guilty of making exaggerated income claims.

A fraudulent MLM scheme can usually be identified by an inflated entrance fee or requiring you to purchase expensive inventories. They often fold quickly when the merchandise cannot be resold; this leaves only the top of the pyramid people without financial loss. The FTC advises potential entrepreneurs that multi-level marketing plans with great incentives for recruiting other people over the sales of products should be looked at carefully.

If you are still considering a multi-level marketing program, these are four things you should look at to be successful.
· A good product · A good marketing structure · A good sponsor · A strong down line

Once you have found a MLM organization with these four qualities it is easy to maintain. All you have to do is keep in contact with the people under you. If everyone follows this, everyone will be a success.

To check on a company, contact your local Better Business Bureau; district attorney or state attorney general's office.

Author: Allen Bell

Multi Level Marketing (MLM) - Does It Work?

2009-10-11T04:54:00.000+02:00

For some people, MLM is the way to go and indeed a large number of people around the world swear by it and i personally know people who make well over $100k a year working their multi level marketing program.

The unfortunate part about it is that they were the only ones making money. No one on their team was duplicating the efforts they were doing. Whether they were selling vitamins, travel, a gas saver product, lotions, potions, pills, candles or juice beverage products, I have tried it all and it was a difficult task for me.

The classic MLM training plan is to firstly approach your family & friends but if you are like me (just a normal family guy) i soon ran out of people to bug, so what then, well i then tried the next step in the manual and hosted two or three home parties and got nowhere, once i ran out of leads I started buying leads, in the hope of converting some people into my business. That is so much harder than it sounds. Sure I made sales, but by the time I was getting to the next profit level, the people who i brought in 2-3 months ago were dropping like flies. This is why I could never make it to the next big payout level of the commission plan.

For some reason, I would always fall short of the next bonus payout or car bonus. Usually, I would fall short of personal volume or group volume or I would have enough on my left side, but not enough on my right side, so I would miss out on the big payouts, month after month.

This is the same old stuff you hear about why MLM doesnt work for most people and the only people making money were the people with huge dowlines and people that have been in the business a long time with lists of hundreds of thousands of people to market to. For any newbie MLMer joining, good luck.

I once watched a stay at home mom put $13,000 into a business to quit within a year. Most of us are smarter than that and would have quit after a few months and maybe only lost $1000 down the drain, but this person was persistent and did not want to fail. So she kept plugging away until they had no money left and when gas prices went to $3.50, the father of the family couldnt afford to put gas in the car. So much for a supportive upline.

The only thing we have found on the internet to work for most people is a direct sales company that pays you 100% of the sale. Companies that have a price point of less than $1000 to start. This is the only way you have a chance to succeed. Beware of the $1500 to $5000 programs, the start up company and program jumpers.

The truth about start ups is that they have no track record. You have no idea if they will be in business two years later. Watch out for people who jump ship every time a new program comes out on the internet.

Most importantly, be careful of the program that costs more than $1000.00. They are hard to sell, no matter how good it sounds - unless they have lower entry levels or allow you to work your way up without further investment - but these are few and far between.

I hope this helps your research in determining a company that you have confidence in and that you can be proud to represent.

author: Mark Quibell

The Basics of Multi-level Marketing (mlm)

2009-10-11T04:49:00.000+02:00

You have seen the ads that are too good to be true: “Make $10,000 a month from home” or “Be your own boss and make $3,000 a week!” These ads are in the paper, on the Internet, on television commercials and fill up your inbox.

These advertisements are trying to draw you into the elusive world of multi-level marketing, otherwise known as MLM.

What is MLM?
Multi-level marketing, also known as network marketing, is a form of direct sales in which individuals, known as distributors, sell products, usually over the telephone or go door to door. Distributors recruit other distributors who do the same.

Each distributor makes money on the products that their recruits sell in addition to the money they make from their own sales. The idea is that eventually the original distributor can just sit back and let the distributors he recruited make money for him.

For a fee, usually between $25 and $100, these MLM companies will sell people a distributor kit that includes informational brochures about the product they will be selling, price lists, order forms and an instructional manual.

When it started in the 1930s, MLM was a legitimate business practice that afforded a way for small businesses to get their products to consumers in rural areas that had no access to these products. The idea was much like that of the traveling salesman. At the time, the products sold themselves and the percentage that went to the owner(s) was regarded as an award to those who built the organization. The focus remained on the product.

MLM today
Today, with the advent of technology giving us the ability to travel far distances, there is no need for these “distribution systems.” Therefore, the focus has shifted from the product to recruiting new people to buy into the program or to sell low-quality products for high-quality prices (for example, selling a face cream that costs $4 for $25).

The idea is that Distributor A will recruit people who will pay to become distributors, and then Distributor A will get a portion of the money paid for the distribution kits and the overpriced products sold by these new distributors.

In today’s Internet age, where you can comparison shop and buy products all over the world, MLM has no place in the marketplace for selling products. That is why now they are basically just selling memberships and expecting future memberships to be sold – this is the definition of a pyramid scheme, which amounts to securities fraud. In fact, many of these companies have been forced to close for securities fraud and people who were running these companies now have criminal records.

Other marketing options
You have so many other marketing options there’s no reason to even think of using MLM in your business. You can legally print brochures, posters, and other color printing materials to promote your business. You can write press releases, create television and radio commercials, hand out flyers and business cards, partner with complementary businesses … the choices are nearly endless and have much better results than anything you will get from MLM.

author: Katie Marcus

Inside Multi-Level Marketing: MLM Defined

2009-10-11T04:43:00.000+02:00

Are you looking for a new start? Are you looking for a new beginning? Do you want the chance to become a part of something bigger than yourself and all the while making big profits? Do you want the opportunity to run your own home based business? Then the answer to these questions is Multi-Level Marketing (MLM). Surely, you have heard the term MLM, but not always with the greatest of words behind it. Many people have a misconception about multi-level marketing, as a negative entity that only exists to take your money. While, I cannot deny that some multi-level marketing outfits are like that, the truth is a great majority are true, honest-to-goodness, businesses that will help you build your business from the ground up, with little to no money down.

So, before we go any further, why not look into exactly what multi-level marketing is, how it works, and why it would be beneficial to you as a home based business. Multi-level marketing is an arrangement, sometimes referred to as network marketing, which has one parent company, if you will. The sales team, is made up of independent contractors (which are the home based business operators) and each contractor is an associate of the parent company. Income is generated when the independent contractor sells the parent company's services or products.

Now that is just the first level of this marketing outfit. You see, it is in your best interest to recruit new independent contractors and here is why. When you bring in new recruits, they are now in, what is called, your downline. The downline consists of independent contractors that you initially recruit, then the new recruits your recruits sign up, and so forth, it keeps going down the line, hence "downline". Now what is great about these recruits and getting them is that not only do you receive a percentage of their sales, but a percentage of their recruit's sales, and so on. This is where the real profits begin to show.

Now, with that said, you should be aware of some illegitimate multi-level marketing companies. The above, is what you should be looking for in any MLM company, for that is the way the entire business was intended to run. As with any idea, some people got it into their heads that things could be easier and you would not have to make any sales, you would only have to get recruits. You should avoid these ones, while it may seem easier it is farce, especially since people are much more aware of these types of schemes and stay away from them. When you are looking for an honest multi-level marketing campaign, make sure that you are compensated for sales, not for recruits alone. This is called the pyramid scheme.

The pyramid scheme is disguised to resemble the multi-level marketing campaign, but is far different and should be avoided if at all possible. Not that the pyramid scheme is anything new, remember the chain letters way back when? Think about those chain letters, you send every person on the list $1 or $5 and your name is moved to the top, with the promise, people will send to you as well. This was a pyramid scheme also, no services or products were involved. However, once people caught on, they began offering advice as the service or something similar.

Legitimate multi-level marketing companies have specific steps in place and will have everything out in the open. Look for a company that provides you with specific details regarding their compensation plan, how you can benefit at various levels, and real products or services for you to sell. Nothing in life comes free, so you will have to really work at it to make good profit. However, a reputable MLM company will provide you with everything you need to begin. Many will have marketing tools, advertising campaigns, training, and support for you as you begin your home based business.

Do not be afraid to sign up with a multi-level marketing campaign; simply be careful about the businesses you choose. Take great care in investigating the company, talking to other independent contractors, and reading everything on the website prior to making that first step.

by: Scott

How to Pay For Your Multi-Level Marketing - MLM - Internet Advertising

2009-10-05T11:14:00.000+02:00

It's a tightly guarded secret that online marketing can actually fund itself, whether anybody links up with your MLM business or not. The mystery is so underground that simply a very low percentage of online marketers even realize how to capitalize on this "free" cash in hand. And not many of those who use the secret will let you in on how to use it for yourself.

One often cited reason for this secrecy is that there's a snobbishness among online marketers. Those who succeed at it frequently like to hold their methods underground for fear that whenever they reveal their methods, they'll not be able to hold their advertising "superiority" over those who haven't yet figured matters out.

Who can find fault with them for that? We all wish to be "special," don't we? The marketers who have figured out how to acquire substantial money online recognize that they're breathing rarefied air, and they like it up there. At their viewpoint, they can see all the drudges of the online village scurrying to any gratis form of marketing information like ants crawling on a lollypop stuck to a summer sidewalk.

Multi-level marketing distributors have two alternatives: join the ants or pay the gurus for some education. With the first option, they may acquire a sweet tip or two for free, but will never get the entire lollypop, so to speak. With the second alternative, they'll be out some cash, but stand a decent opportunity of winning, IF the guru doesn't suppress some of the actual steps involved to succeed. "Holding back" is a maneuver often employed to prime the students for a guru's future books/lectures/courses, etc. It reeks.

So here is the big marketing secret: It can place you in a position to acquire cash for Advertising your multi-level marketing business. Use a funded proposal. "A what?" you ask.

A funded proposal is an offer created in the course of marketing your multi-level marketing business. The proposal could have something in common with your MLM, like a super-low-cost product or sample. Or it could be an e-book or e-zine or anything which a prospect will easily buy, prior to when you present either your primary product, or multi-level marketing business.

Do you see the picture of what a funded proposal can do? An example is that two online companies sell prospects a fifty dollar information package about the business. It does two things: Gives the distributor a commission, and qualifies the prospects by involving them in a form of commitment. Another MLM company sells try-out packs of product for ten dollars.

But what if your company does not have a funded proposal? How can you make one? What do you require to market it and get candidates for your multi-level marketing enterprise?

A few online gurus have produced marketing systems which use the funded proposal concept, and MLM network marketers can get pre-made templates by joining their programs. The focus of these varies widely, and many are not flexible when it comes to marketing a pre-existing MLM. One system which is designed generically to market any MLM is PrimaryBusinesses.net. The developers have produced a funded proposal sales funnel which can be employed to generate operating capital while finding prospects for your multi-level marketing/MLM business.

author: Bruce Wood

Multi Level Marketing - Earning More Residual Income

2009-10-05T11:09:00.000+02:00

While many people may think that the MLM business is complicated, you simply have to look at where the money is going to come from and know where you should be concentrating your efforts. The first thing you should concentrate on in your multi level marketing is how you can earn more residual income.

Increase Your Downline
One of the first ways to increase your residual income is to increase your downline. As your recruits sell more products, you, too, will earn a portion of those commissions. To recruit more members into your downline, be honest and upfront about the opportunity you are offering and listen to what your prospect is looking for. While your business may be everything you've ever dreamed of, you will find it is not the ideal company for everyone and you want your downline to be filled with members who are a great match.

Encourage Them to Increase Their Downline
As you spend time with your downline, offer them the encouragement they need to increase their own downline. For many people, recruiting is the most difficult aspect of multi level marketing. Role play with them to help them improve on their recruiting skills and you will earn more residual income.

Get Those Repeat Customers
One of the best things about multi level marketing is the relationships you build with your customers. Most MLM companies offer products that will need to be purchased over and over again. Building a strong relationship will get you those repeat customers that will help you to earn more residual income.

The multilevel marketing business is not one that should be taken lightly. Keep a professional demeanor when dealing with your customers and prospects and you will find that they, too, believe that your business is professional. In the long run, maintaining a professional business is what will get you the residual income you need to help build your business stronger.

author: Dustin Health

Overcome MLM Multi Level Marketing Failure and Achieve Success

2009-10-05T11:03:00.000+02:00

One of the toughest obstacles that many people face in the network marketing industry is MLM multi level marketing failure. There are many people who are not able to overcome failure and this actually drive them to quitting the program that they are in. It is very important for you to understand that failure is actually part of achieving success because in order to achieve success you have to fail.

The best way to overcome MLM multilevel marketing failure is simply going to be to accept it and continue to find a way to better yourself in order to achieve success. Everybody fails, there are many people who fail over and over again but somehow and someway are able to keep going and find a way to succeed.

So the way to overcome this failure is simply to change your mind. You have to obtain the mindset that no matter what happens you will succeed. By having this mindset you're going to be able to overcome failure and the obstacles that are going to come your way. Even after you have achieved success there are going to be obstacles that are going to test you so you have to be mentally ready to face them.

So if you fail don't take it personal and just keep going trying to find a way to succeed. The only way you truly fail is if you give up so the one thing that you have to make sure you do is never give up in your business and always try to make it happen. Of course this is not as easy as it sounds but believe me when I tell you that is not impossible as long as you're willing to be dedicated and have the desire to achieve success.

author: Willow Perez

How to Build a MLM Lead Generation Network

2009-09-29T07:03:00.000+02:00

A successful mlm marketer knows that their business thrives on qualified "MLM marketing leads".

If you are having difficulties finding prospects to build your downline or want to build a team of recruiters that will generate more income in "multilevel marketing", consider creating a mlm lead generation network.

You can build a team of multi-level marketers who can recommend productivity exercises, tools and products to grow your mlm business or become the founding members of your mlm lead generation network.

Step 1

MLM or Multi-Level Marketing

Build your mlm lead generation group with members of your core group.

Your core group consists of family, friends and coworkers who are looking for opportunities to increase their income and become entrepreneurs. Have each member of your core make a list of 10 people within their inner circle who may be interested in an mlm network marketing product to help them achieve their personal and financial goals. Use these contacts to build your mlm network marketing lead generation network.
Step 2

Create a blog using Wordpress or Blogger to drive internet searches to your mlm lead generation site.

The internet is brimming with youtube videos and blogs touting the latest mlm network marketing program. Beat the competition by creating a free SEO friendly blog using free blogging networks like Typepad, Wordpress or Blogger. Create your mlm lead generation blog using the keywords "mlm network marketing tips" to introduce a prospect into your "multilevel marketing" network and giving them the tools to succeed.
Step 3

MLM Lead Generation

Write a free ebook showing other network marketing tips on how to build a mlm lead generation group. Send out a press release advertising the ebook which will lead prospects to your blog and reinforce your credibility as a successful network marketer.
Step 4

Create a weekly talk or podcast to give to new and existing members of your mlm lead generation group. By connecting weekly with your sales team or members of your mlm network marketing lead network you can generate more leads from referrals and help your team create more sales.

by: how to-Queen

How to Be Successful in Your Home Based MLM Business Opportunity When You Have Kids

2009-09-29T06:58:00.000+02:00

Having a family and working on your home based MLM business opportunity is a blessing and an inconvenience at the same time. I would not say a curse because working from home was a decision made by you. With that said, finding ways to work at home in a MLM business with younger or older childre can be managed. Finding ways to work around your children can be arranged and I will show you how this can be accomplished.

Step 1

rise early to work your MLM home based business

Rise Early Before Your Children Do. Working at home on your home based MLM business opportunity gives you the option of sleeping in. If you have small children though, you know they usually wake up between 6 AM and 7 AM. This means if you want to get one or two hours of work completed before your children wake up, you need to wake up one to two hours before they do. I know, this is way too early, but think about those who have to normally wake up at 6 AM or 7 AM to get to work by 8 AM. Once you own your own home based MLM business opportunity and get to work at home with children, you have got it made.
Step 2

get childcare to work your home business

Arrange for Child Care. Being a work at home parent in a home based MLM business opportunity does not mean your children, especially if they are infants or toddlers, have to be home with you. Now, if you have an infant, they are a little bit easier to manage. Infants, for the most part, sleep every 3 to 4 hours with a feeding. This will give you that may hours to get your morning work in your MLM home based business completed. If this does not sound good to you, hire one of your friends to watch your baby until your work is complete. If you have toddlers, they are now mobile and not as easy to manage. Toddlers want your time whenever you are home with them. This means you will get little or no work done. Arranging to have a daycare provider watch your toddlers will be the best thing for your home business. Toddlers usually only attend a daycare for three hours. This gives you plenty of time to work in the morning hours.
Step 3

no phones MLM home business

Research a home based MLM business opportunity that requires no phone work. A lot of MLM home businesses which can be done online sound good and even look easy to do. This is especially true if you have a friend who is in the same home business you are considering. Now, before committing to any online home based MLM business opportunity, it is best to do some research first. Many of these online MLM opportunities at home require a lot of your time and require you to be on the phone. This could be something you had not planned for. If you are looking for a child, or family friendly, online MLM business, consider home based businesses that you can do strictly online. They are hard to find, but you can find a legitimate home business that you can do online without the need for phones with a little bit of research. Any of these online MLM opportunities can be done at your convenience or around your children’s schedules.

author: wlrahily

How to Find An MLM Business Worthy Of Your Time and Money

2009-09-29T06:38:00.001+02:00

If you are looking to join an MLM and make money from home whether it be a network marketing, direct sales, or top-tier program, I will say to you that this is not an easy task. Read more to learn whether or not there is an MLM or network marketing company that is worthy of your time and money.

steps:

Step 1

What Type Of MLM Business Are Your Looking To Join?

First you must decide what type of business you want to be in. Is it an MLM nutrition company, or perhaps and MLM travel company. You must decide this before even starting your research.
Step 2

How Long Has The MLM Been In Business?

Once you find the MLM niche of your interest, see how long the MLM or network marketing company has been in business. Research has shown that an MLM company less than 5 years old should be avoided.
Step 3

Has An MLM Owner Been In Jail?

Check out the owners and leaders of the MLM company you are looking to join. Do they have a squeaky clean past. Do they have a horrible reputation for being an MLM scam artist? Have they been in jail?
Step 4

What Is The MLM Compensation Plan of This Company?

What is the compensation plan of the MLM or network marketing company? Is it a binary, stairstep breakaway, or matrix compensation plan. Each has its' benefits and drawbacks. Do some research on MLM compensation plans to learn more about this.
Step 5

MLM Has A 97 to 99 Percent Failure Rate

Remember that MLM and network marketing failure rates are quite high. There is a close to 99 percent failure rate in MLM. Is this something you want to risk? One percent of all of the people in MLM make almost 96 percent of the money. Be sure that this is the type of business that you want to invest time and money in.

source: ehow.com

Multi Level Marketing MLM - Here's What You Need to Know

2009-09-24T09:01:00.000+02:00

Multi level marketing has been around since the 1950's. It's as old as the hills and just as crumby! If you are looking for a way to make money from a home based business and you're considering an Multi Level Marketing MLM opportunity, please read this report and I hope that my words will dhow you the big picture of what Multi Level Marketing MLM is all about.

Multi Level Marketing offers everything from water softeners to vitamins and anything else that can't sell in retail stores. Think about this, if the product had true value wouldn't it be on the shelf at a retail super store? If you had the patent and copyright on a great useable product would you sell it through major store chains or go to the effort of selling it door to door and cold selling? Of course you would sign the contract to put the product in stores. It's been my experience that MLM doesn't offer products that are worth continuing to pay a monthly fee.

The lack of real products is just the tip of the ice burg. Multi Level Marketing opportunities seem to be as far behind the times when it comes to marketing as they are when it comes to their products. Your upline will suggest that you purchase leads and spend all day cold calling, passing out flyers, attend conferences in various cities and other low response and low success rate tactics.

The primary tactic they teach members is "The 3 Foot Rule". I absolutely hate the concept of this particular rule. The 3 foot rule means that everyone who you come in contact within 3 feet of, you must pitch your business to them. I can not phantom hanging out with my friends and constantly pitching them on some vitamin or magic juice. Those who do this technique find that their friends develop a 10 feet rule. I other words they say "stay 10 feet away from that guy!"

I have been earning money from home for 8 years. And never once have I used the 3 feet rule. When I'm out and about it's my time. If I had to tell everybody about my business it would seem like over time to me.

The Multi Level Marketing payment structures are created to make those at the top and the owner of the MLM rich. All the payment plans are matrices which usually are binary payment plans. Plenty of legs but little profit! Another bad thing about Multi Level Marketing payment plans id that they require monthly payments. Believe me or ignore this it's up to you, but monthly fees guarantee dropouts.

source: articlebase

Multi Level Marketing MLM The Possibilities

2009-09-24T08:36:00.000+02:00

Multi level marketing mlm is popular all over the world, it really is a simple business model, selling products or services and bringing new people into the multi-level marketing business, in which both aspects give the referer a residual monthly income as long as customer and recruit stay involved with the company.

So how does MLM work? When someone first becomes involved with an MLM company, they will normally pay a small upfront payment which will give them all of the training and company/products information they will need to get started.

They then have two roots to market, product/service or opportunity. When something is sold, the person gets commission, but the emphasis is not on selling products and services, but on bringing more and more people to this Multi-level marketing business as distributors.

So many people new to MLM place far to much emphasis on the compensation plans, I agree if a company is brand new, tread very carefully, but if the company has been going for several years, you can rest assured they have a very good compensation plan and my advice to all mlmers is STOP worrying about the compensation plan and start building your business!

Recruiting for multi level marketing mlm companies is where it's all at. The more people you bring into the business the more you will earn, simple really.

But there is one drawback, you have to talk to people! NO, hang on a minute, a few years ago, you had to make a list of friends and family, then talk to people, day in and day out and if you were really lucky and pushy, every now and then you would sign someone to the business opportunity. Well thankfully those days have passed and most successful mlmers are now talking about attraction marketing and putting the whole business online, on AUTOPILOT! Where people contact you instead of you chasing people around the country!

Once upon a time there was horse and cart, now we have cars, once upon a time you had to make a list of friends and family, now we have the internet!

Today you can build an enormous multi level marketing mlm business by utilizing the incredible ways to market, that are possible when you start applying the Internet multi level marketing techniques that are available.

source: articlebase

A Basic Guide to the Multi-level Marketing (mlm) Network

2009-09-24T08:28:00.000+02:00

Multi-level marketing (MLM) is also referred to as network marketing. The MLM is essentially a type of business model that combines direct marketing with franchising. The term business model describes a vast range of informal and formal models that are used by companies to represent various aspects of business, such as operational processes, organizational structures, and financial forecasts. The MLM business functions by enrolling unsalaried salespeople to sell products and meanwhile earn additional sales commissions based on the sales of people enrolled into their downline, an organization of people that includes direct recruits, recruits' recruits and so on. This arrangement is similar to franchises where royalties are paid from the sales of individual franchise operations to the franchisor as well as to an area or region manager. There can be multiple levels of people receiving royalties from one person's sales. New MLM members may be required to pay for their own training and marketing materials, or to buy a significant amount of inventory to start their career.

The compensation plans vary from one MLM business to the other, but there are basic plans in place. The Unilevel or Stairstep Breakaway plans are the oldest and most popular in the MLM business. These plans features two types of distributors either managers or non-managers. The pay method of these plans includes Baseshop overrides where there are overrides of managers from their subordinate non-managers. This method is the same as any other type of sales organization. Generational overrides are overrides of managers from the baseshop of managers who were previously their subordinate. Most plans compensate at least three generations of such managers. Executive bonuses are commissions for managers who exceed a posted sales quota. For example, 2% of the total company sales revenue may go to a bonus pool that is shared monthly to managers who exceed $10,000 in that month. Commissions are based on the aspect of cycles, where a distributor is paid a fixed amount whenever both legs achieve a certain number of sales units each. Commissions are paid incrementally when the sales volume in each leg matches.

In recent years, the MLM business has developed an image problem due to its resemblance to the illegal pyramid or other similar schemes. MLM businesses operate in the United States in all 50 states and in more than 100 other countries around the world. Many pyramid schemes try to present themselves as legitimate MLM businesses. In the legitimate MLM companies, commissions are earned only on sales of the company's products and/or services. No money may be earned from recruiting alone through sign-up fees, though money earned from the sales of members recruited is one attraction of MLM arrangements.

A commonly adopted test of legality is that MLMs follow the so-called 70% rule which prevents members "inventory loading" in order to qualify for additional bonuses. The 70% rule requires participants to sell 70% of previously purchased inventory before procuring new orders. There are however variations in interpretations of this rule.

author: Cherie Ang

Multilevel Marketing Plans

2009-09-12T08:51:00.000+02:00

Multilevel marketing plans, also known as "network" or "matrix" marketing, are a way of selling goods or services through distributors. These plans typically promise that if you sign up as a distributor, you will receive commissions -- for both your sales of the plan's goods or services and those of other people you recruit to join the distributors. Multilevel marketing plans usually promise to pay commissions through two or more levels of recruits, known as the distributor's "downline."

If a plan offers to pay commissions for recruiting new distributors, watch out! Most states outlaw this practice, which is known as "pyramiding." State laws against pyramiding say that a multilevel marketing plan should only pay commissions for retail sales of goods or services, not for recruiting new distributors.

Why is pyramiding prohibited? Because plans that pay commissions for recruiting new distributors inevitably collapse when no new distributors can be recruited. And when a plan collapses, most people -- except perhaps those at the very top of the pyramid -- lose their money.

The Federal Trade Commission cannot tell you whether a particular multilevel marketing plan is legal. Nor can it give you advice about whether to join such a plan. You must make that decision yourself. However, the FTC suggests that you use common sense, and consider these seven tips when you make your decision:

Avoid any plan that includes commissions for recruiting additional distributors. It may be an illegal pyramid.
Beware of plans that ask new distributors to purchase expensive inventory. These plans can collapse quickly -- and also may be thinly-disguised pyramids.
Be cautious of plans that claim you will make money through continued growth of your "downline" -- the commissions on sales made by new distributors you recruit -- rather than through sales of products you make yourself.
Beware of plans that claim to sell miracle products or promise enormous earnings. Just because a promoter of a plan makes a claim doesn't mean it's true! Ask the promoter of the plan to substantiate claims with hard evidence.
Beware of shills -- "decoy" references paid by a plan's promoter to describe their fictional success in earning money through the plan.
Don't pay or sign any contracts in an "opportunity meeting" or any other high-pressure situation. Insist on taking your time to think over a decision to join. Talk it over with your spouse, a knowledgeable friend, an accountant or lawyer.
Do your homework! Check with your local Better Business Bureau and state Attorney General about any plan you're considering -- especially when the claims about the product or your potential earnings seem too good to be true.

by FTC

The Real Problem with Network Marketing and Multi-Level Marketing (MLM)

2009-09-12T08:44:00.000+02:00

It never ceases to amaze me the extreme polar views on the topic of network marketing and MLM. Some people are passionate about it in the extreme, and there are even top celebrity authors like Robert Allen, Mark Victor Hansen, and Robert Kiyosaki doing it and advocating it. Yet, in many circles, you might as well declare yourself a leper as admit to being in network marketing.

So, what is the problem with MLM and network marketing?

Maybe it's the pyramid structure? But you can't really take issue with the tiered compensation structure—almost every large sales organization in the world has that. Salespeople get commission, and sales managers get overrides or bonuses on top of that, and sales directors on top of that, and VPs on top of that.

Or maybe it's the fact that you have to pay to participate in it? But that can't be it—that's a standard franchising model. And I assure you, the franchise fee of most traditional franchises dwarf the sign-up cost of any MLM program by comparison.

Now certainly, there are illegal pyramid, or "Ponzi", schemes. This is where the money is all being made off of signing up other people, with little or no real product ever being delivered. But in spite of whatever perceptions people may have, the fact is that Amway, Excel, Meleleuca, PrePaid Legal, USANA, and many others have sold millions upon millions of dollars of products to happy customers, many of whom are NOT also reps. So, there may be a perception problem here, but if so, the perception is out of line with the reality.

But surely the bad reputation MLM'ers has some more basis in fact than the occasional illegal pyramid scheme?

The real problem with MLM is not MLM itself, but some of the people it attracts. Network marketing is just a business model, and it really amounts to "micro-franchising". Its upside is that it has a very low cost of entry, with the potential for exceptional revenue, and there are those who achieve that.

But those same things that make it attractive make it attractive to many who are NOT really qualified or prepared to become business owners. The salient characteristics of MLM make it attractive to people who:

have not done well in their business or profession and have little money saved up to invest
have no previous experience owning or running a business
have no previous experience in sales
have little or no experience developing business relationships other than that of employer/employee/co-worker
are not satisfied with their current level of income
have unrealistic expectations of the amount of work involved compared to the revenue realized

Don't get me wrong—I'm not saying that there's anything wrong with any of these things, or that this describes even a majority of network marketers—only that it describes a disproportionate number of network marketers, and that many of them never do anything about it.

As a result, many network marketers end up:

over-selling the opportunity
inappropriately discussing business in social situations
coming across as desperate
over-focused on new recruits and neglecting existing customers as a result
being either inaccurate or deceptive when talking about their business

Again, I'm certainly not saying that this describes a majority of network marketers, but it does describe enough of them to tarnish the reputation of the rest. To pre-judge someone based on the basis of a small minority of people in that group is horribly unfair, but we must realize that most prejudices have some basis in reality, even if it has been distorted.

So what's the solution?

There's a first time for everything. And network marketing/MLM is a great opportunity for people to have their first business, their first sales role, etc. My point is this—recognize it for what it is: it's a business, and you are a business owner. And if you've never owned a business before, if you've never done sales before, if you've never networked before, you need to learn about how to do so, not just from the network marketing/MLM experts, but from established experts in those fields.

Network marketers who are serious about building a business should be reading and learning about business fundamentals, the latest sales and marketing techniques, strategies for networking and business development, etc., not just swapping tips at your team's weekly or monthly meeting. Act like a small business owner, and people will treat you like one.

by Scott Allen

Multi-Level Marketing, The American Way

2009-09-12T08:28:00.000+02:00

MLM or multi level marketing has become one of the mainstays of American business. Almost every business has a form of MLM in its makeup

MLM or multi level marketing is the concept of having one company or product represented by many different people in a down line makeup. Or, more simply put it allows a company to sell directly to the consumer through a channel of representatives through referrals or direct sales techniques. It is one of the most effective business models in that it has many different channels through which participants can make money. There are a lot of reasons why MLM is so lucrative.

It all starts at the top of the chain in an MLM model. A company enlists the help of offsite representatives to talk to other people about the product or service and then get those people to not only become users of the product or service but also to market said product or service themselves. How it works is the people at the top get a piece of the action of those below them and so on. This is attractive to a lot of people because it works on the law of numbers the more people in your specific network the more money you can make through their efforts as well as yours.

MLM has proven itself to be an effective motivator for people to start their own businesses based on their association with the people above the in the distribution chain of a MLM based business. There are a lot of benefits to such a business. For instance, your time is your own you can do as much work as you want or as little depending on your goals. The theory is that if you build up your distribution channels long enough then you dont have to do anything but collect the commission checks. This is incentive to those who want to put in the effort for a set period of time and then relax to take in the rewards.

MLM has been thrown around a bit as far as a business model goes as Ponzi schemes have been exposed as illegitimate businesses. But, the truth is MLM is a legal and effective way of doing business. MLM is for anyone who wants to start a low cost business with the possibility of great monetary rewards. Not to mention time rewards.

By Frederick Blobndeau

Qualified MLM Leads are the Secret of Network Marketing

2009-09-06T05:27:00.000+02:00

Succeeding in network marketing requires not only having a list of qualified MLM leads to call upon, but also being able to interest those leads in the product and/or opportunities you can offer them. Though most people assume that all you need is a pool of high quality leads at your disposal, in reality just having such information is not enough. After all, a very high percentage of even qualified MLM leads do not pan out; if this is the case, you might very well find yourself back at square one, with little capital or chances to build your network further. Many people assume that purchasing, so called "fresh" real time leads will help put you on the road to success. Umm, right. And when the tooth fairy appears your bank account will also overflow with a ton of Ben Franklins. Seriously folks, the reality is that all of this depends on you, and your ability to attract others to the business. Traditional methods of acquiring qualified MLM leads are propositioning family and friends, cold calling, and practicing the infamous three foot rule. In the past these methods worked well, and were considered to be tried and true, but a lot has changed in today's business economy. Perhaps the most obvious change is the internet, and online technologies in general. Those who know the secrets of network marketing can tell you that the one thing more important than going virtual is to use this environment to build a pool of interested and enthusiastic MLM leads. Of course, if you use those old strategies to find qualified MLM leads, just using the internet is no guarantee of success. Those with the most success and largest incomes in network marketing are those that have not only established a list of qualified MLM leads, but also never run out of leads. You need a constantly replenishing supply of leads so that you never have to struggle to build your network again. Even if the leads you have do not turn into business partners, the list keeps growing, even while in your sleep. Here is the "cool" part, this never-ending supply of leads actually are contributing to your bottom line as well, making it that much easier to earn the income of your dreams. Knowing how to profit off of the leads that do not become business associates of yours is essential to the growth of your business venture. This is critical, folks. It is tragic to see people struggle in network marketing, especially when others are making the industry work very well for them. It may seem like some people are just destined to failure. In fact, everyone can profit from a multi-level marketing business venture if you have qualified leads. Whether you are new to the industry, and completely inexperienced, simply worn out with ineffective solicitation techniques, or in dire need of qualified MLM leads, there are still many opportunities for you to succeed, if you know where to look. The secret of multi-level marketing that many know is the importance of your own unique personality in building your network. Once you know how to attract interested people to your website, you will not only have an infinite supply of qualified MLM leads, you will also find that the amount of commissions you are earning will also increase. It is your turn to be on the inside of the game now. Learn the secrets of the top earners in network marketing.

7 Keys of MLM Home Business Success

2009-09-06T05:19:00.000+02:00

Passive MLM Anyone? When multi level marketing (MLM) was seen through the eyes of a successful affiliate marketer, magic happened! You no longer need to puke your opportunity on passers by. Read these strategies based on methods the affiliates of companies like Amazon have been fine tuning since 1995. You can build a successful MLM Home Business by attracting prospects to you.

1) Find Your Niche Identify your passion and you reveal your niche. Do this before looking for a home business opportunity. Because when you know and love your subject matter, you will talk with a real voice and communicating with people will be something you enjoy. Don't be dazzled with dollars from an alien territory. Niche Nicely!

2) Now Choose Your Opportunity When you have "niched nicely" you can easily cut out any opportunity that is not in some way connected to what you are passionate about. And when you do find your opportunity you will be driven by an inner energy bursting to make a success of things.

3) Invest In Prospecting Systems I call this the online attraction of network marketing. I enjoy having a continual stream of qualified prospects so I've never had to vomit my opportunity on friends and neighbors. Look for ways to set up automated prospecting systems both online and offline. Then duplicate those systems for your team. You will create multiple streams of affiliate income in doing so and a thriving MLM home business.

4) Keep Following Up Follow up needs to be automated or you will be overwhelmed. When your prospects start appearing, your job will be to develop a relationship with them so they know, like and trust you. 48% of sales people never follow up with a prospect. Only 2% of sales are made on the first contact. 18% of sales are made between the first and fourth follow up. 80% of sales are made on the fifth to twelfth follow up. 85% of sales people give up following up too soon.

5) Skill Development You will plateau at the level of your present ability. To break though glass ceilings it is essential to develop new skills. But beware the training trap! "Doing" results in cash flow. Hiding in the training trap results in bankruptcy. Develop the skills you do not yet have while USING the skills you do.

6) MLM Home Business Tool Kit Assemble your tool kit early to start life on top of your business, rather than later while you are trying not to get buried in it. Today's professional network marketer owns the right tools of the trade. The last thing you want is for your business to become a 24/7 JOB! You will not need too many tools but do get yourself have the essential ones.

7) Teach Others To Do The Same When you have become the big fish in the small pond it's time to emigrate to the ocean. Now you need to become the trainer of trainers. If you have all the six keys above in place you will find it easy to lead a team of trainers from the front. Be patient with your self and take each step, one at a time, and your success will all unfold naturally. Keep giving what you do know and learning what you do not. Get yourself a success coach to mentor you and your success will be an easy and fun adventure. Then play it forward and mentor others.

source: bestmanagementarticle.com

This is Why You Should Start a Multi Level Business

2009-09-06T05:10:00.000+02:00

Network Marketing or MLM, as it is sometimes called, is an excellent way to earn extra income or build a full time business. Many people who get involved do so because a friend or relative introduced them to the products or service. The traditional teaching of, "Get a good education and go to work for a big corporation," does not have the same outcome as it did before in many ways. There has been a paradigm shift in the marketplace. With corporate downsizing and advances in technology many jobs have virtually been eliminated. Families are faced with the dilemma of having to find a way to supplement or even replace their present income source.

Sometimes the first thought is to get a part time job but this involves more time away from family and other important activities that contribute to a happy life In an ever changing world we sometimes have to think new thoughts and consider something totally out of our present thought patterns. For this reason when a friend or relative says that they want to share an idea that will create extra income many people that might not have thought about it years ago are open to the idea today MLM is mainstream business today. There are several billion dollar companies in the industry that have excellent products and services that people from all walks of life are using. It is something to be proud off. The playing field is level for everyone, which is not the case in traditional business. Network Marketing or MLM has been associated with, "Get Rich Quick," schemes in the past and is still viewed that way by some people. In reality if one is willing to put in the effort and time to build one of these business in the same way that one would build a traditional business the rewards are great. One can usually start with a few hundred dollars and turn time and effort into a sizable income in a few months. If one can get pass the hype and see the real potential of what is actually offered MLM can be a rewarding journey. My suggestion would be to find a company that has products or services that you would want to use whether or not there was a way to make money; this way the money you make will just be a plus. Most people get involved with these companies for the money and sometimes that takes a while which makes them jump to another company which promises faster money.

For this reason many people jump from program to program and never really put in the time and effort that is required to build one of these businesses. Sometimes when people think of building one of these businesses they think of having to drive long distances to give product demonstrations and presentations to people in far away places. With the Internet this is no longer necessary. It is not uncommon to have someone see your website online and join or purchase products without ever talking to you or anyone in your company. Many people like the privacy of checking out an opportunity on their own without being influenced to make a decision. If someone uses the Internet to build their business they can see tremendous growth in their downlines from people they may never meet. Some of these people will live in other countries. With the Internet it is really a small world. Find a company and get involved. You will be glad you did.

Is Joining a Multi Level Marketing Program the Best Way to Make Money From Home?

2009-08-11T10:41:00.000+02:00

One of the most common income opportunities that are advertised are multi level marketing programs. Make money online programs are also becoming heavily advertised but even a lot of those are based on the same concept of making money by selling the same opportunity online. Are these really the best ways to make money online or are they just the most advertised?

Even if they are not multilevel most programs for making money from home involve the same concept of making money by selling other people the same opportunity to make money. The reason these programs are so common is not because people like them better than other opportunities or that people are more successful with them. They are so common because advertising and promoting the opportunities is how the money is made.

In reality most of the things that you have to do in order to make money in multi level marketing programs are things that most people don't want to do. Most people don't want to have to pitch the opportunity to others or call leads and have to be a sales person. Not only that but most people are not good at these things and more than 95% of them fail with these programs.

People are often sold on the idea that joining a multi level marketing program will be easy and fast money. But in reality most people who join these programs lose money. Most of them only joined in the first place because they wanted money, not because they want to do multi level marketing. They just joined this kind of program because these are the kind of opportunities that get advertised.

Other opportunities that don't have anything to do with making money by selling the opportunity are out there but most people have no reason to advertise them. Other opportunities can be a lot easier and more profitable. Multi level marketing programs may be one of the most difficult ways to money make for most people.

There are people who are successful at MLM but they are successful because they are good at MLM. They have the right skills and the right personality for it. For someone who wants to get these skills and may be able to have the right personality these programs can be a good opportunity. But like with most of the successful people in that industry, it may take years of failing before you ever get good.

Multi Level Marketing Business – the Benefits

2009-08-11T10:37:00.001+02:00

There are many benefits to Multi Level Marketing. It costs very little to get started, you get a proven system that is easy to duplicate and you can be making profit within months rather than years. If you’re looking to start a internet business Multi Level Marketing is a smart choice.

Multi Level Marketing home businesses have never been easier to start. The Internet has played a major part in Multi Level Marketing’s remarkable growth rate over the last ten years.

So if you have ever dreamed of running your own business from home whether it is part time or full time, Multi Level Marketing is for you. You can decide on your own work hours, so you might get into MLM part time but after just a few months you will be able to turn your part time income into a full time work from home job.

A major benefit of working from home is you can decide how long or short your work hours will be. This comes when you have built up your Multi Level Marketing program so it works for you on auto pilot. In many cases you can get this done in as little time as 10 hours per week.

You don’t have to have the biggest brain to establish a MLM network that is profitable. It’s as easy as following a proven duplicate system which will teach you the ways to build your network.

Gone are the days where you had to hold meetings to sign members up, the Internet is making Multi Level Marketing an easy possibility for anyone who wants to start working from home.

Two Key Elements of Any Multi-Level Marketing System

2009-08-11T10:31:00.001+02:00

Simplicity in networking a multi-level marketing bsiness is essential to success. Not only do you need to have a quality product or service, similar to a traditional business, you need to have a simple networking plan that is easy for new recruits to duplicate. This duplication process is necessary for the multi-level marketing aspect of your business to thrive.

A complicated networking system will only decrease the success of a multi-level marketing business. Even if you are able to utilize a complex networking infrastructure yourself, those who sign up under you may not fare as well. Not all entrepreneurs are adept at communication and sales skills. A universally accessible and easy to understand system that can be used by even the newest member of your multi-level marketing team will best serve your business. A system that is appropriate for an 18 year old fast-food employee as well as an 80 year old volunteer is the ultimate goal.

There are several aspects that should NOT be included in your networking plan.

Time consuming concepts, intricate training processes and any resources that are not readily accessible by the general public should all be avoided.

Wordy sales pitches should be avoided. A sales pitch should be condensed down to the basic information in everyday terms and should be delivered with enthusiasm and confidence.

High pressure sales techniques and complex interpersonal interactions have no place in multi-level marketing.

Your networking plan cannot be time consuming. Most customers will not stay interested and focused for more than a few minutes unless the sales pitch is phenomenal and most business owners are unable to smoothly deliver a lengthy presentation.

Your networking presentation should be quick to learn, easy to remember and simple to understand so that new recruits can deliver the pitch with ease and confidence. Keep the facts honest, to the point and all inclusive. Concealing important information will be considered dishonest by consumers and will most likely cost you the sale.

Your networking framework should not be burdened with unnecessary sales techniques, product details or drawn out pleas for a buy in. Find out what motivates your target audience, adapt a sales pitch to meet their needs and give them the bottom line of the deal. You should choose wording that creates interest and excitement in your product or opportunity. If you believe in your product, present a positive mental attitude and teach others on your multi-level marketing team to do the same, you will then be on your way to a successful home-based business.

As you develop and adapt your networking plan, ask yourself if the changes are easy to duplicate. If they are, then your plan is sound for multi-level marketing success. Keep it simple and make sure that others can follow in your footsteps without venturing too far outside their own comfort zone. A confident, positive and enthusiastic sales pitch is far better than a complex, lengthy presentation when aiming for success with a multi-level marketing business.

5 Reasons Why Multi-Level Marketing Businesses Fail

2009-07-30T15:13:00.001+02:00

Multi-level marketing business are a dime a dozen, but few last longer than a year. Many do not make it beyond the first few weeks of business life. Knowledge is a powerful tool in business of any kind, so what does the prolific failure of multi-level marketing businesses teach us about how to make an MLM business succeed?

Many multi-level marketing businesses fail because of a few common problems. Being aware of these potential pitfalls before beginning an MLM business can help your business succeed where others have failed.

LACK OF SUPPORT

A new multi-level marketing business owner needs a great deal of support, guidance and encouragement during the first few months of business ownership. Good multi-level marketing business owners take a personal interest in the success of their new recruits and plan to spend extra time with these fledglings to help ensure their success.

If a new multi-level marketing business owner does not get prompt and adequate attention by a more experienced team member in the upline, they may change their mind or lose their desire to work towards a productive business profit.

FAILURE TO GENERATE LEADS

Fresh opt-in leads are the lifeblood to any multi-level marketing business. A failure to generate leads means certain failure for your business. Most new recruits are hesitant to approach their friends and family about their newfound businessopportunity. If they are unable to generate a list of acquaintances or approach strangers about their business, there will be no sales.

DIFFICULT TO DUPLICATE

If a multi-level marketing business' system of promoting products or services is not easy to duplicate, the business is not likely to thrive. Not every person can become skilled enough at wining friends and influencing people to generate enough sales to make the business succeed. The main concept of an MLM business is to sign up more business owners who will in turn create their own succession of thriving businesses. This requires an easy to duplicate system.

LACK OF CONFIDENCE AND TRUST

Many new recruits are still on the fence about the legitimacy of a multi-level marketing business. They also battle a lack of confidence in their business, communication, leadership and sales skills. This lack of trust and confidence is often conveyed to potential customers and new recruits during business interactions. Large doses of educational materials may help overcome these fears if they are available early enough. Once the excitement of owning an MLM business wears off, new recruits may become bewildered and hopeless unless they receive a fresh direction for their energies. Providing them with concrete skills that they can feel confident about will help overcome this obstacle to success.

IMPATIENCE

Making any business successful takes time. Many new buminess owners become impatient and frustrated at a lack of progress or slow growth. Dedication, persistence and patience are necessary for the success of any business, multi-level marketing or traditional.

Safeguarding against failure is a wise step when setting up your multi-level marketing business. Proactive planning and education are great tools that can help ensure your business' success.

Four Things You Need to Know About Multi Level Marketing

2009-07-30T15:09:00.000+02:00

It’s hard to escape pitches for multi level marketing programs. After all, they’re everywhere. Turn on the TV late at night or early in the morning, and you’ll likely find an infomercial for one staring back at you. Check the mail, surf the net, read a newspaper – multi level marketing opportunity are coming at you from all corners. And the pitches really do a great job of making them sound enticing. They all have the same common elements. Someone just like you took a chance one day, and now, after making a small investment, they’re living the high life beyond their wildest dreams and barely working at all to do it. They appeal to your material side, and they appeal to the part of you that wishes that you had all the time in the world to spend with family and friends. So are they for real? Here are four things you need to know about multi level marketing.

The first thing is a biggie – you need to know that being successful at multi level marketing take a huge time commitment. They may make it seems like you can do everything in an hour or two a day, but that doesn’t make it the case. In reality, there is a lot of hard work that needs to be put into one of these plans to make them pay off, and in many cases, they require more work than a “normal” job. If you’re getting into any business opportunity, let alone a multi level marketing one, because you think it’s your ticket to easy street, you’re setting yourself up for failure.

The second thing you should know is related to the first. In addition to suggesting that you can make a ton of money without making a time investment, multi level marketers often tell new recruits that they don’t need any skills to get the job done. All they need is the vision to see the potential in the idea of the business. In fact, multi level marketing requires sales abilities that the vast majority of people lack. This is different from any other sales you will. Your pitch will almost always be unwelcome, you have to try and turn your family and friends into paying customers and you constantly have to search out new clients. It requires a special kind of talent.

Thirdly, despite what the pitch people might say, multi level marketing is hardly the wave of the future and it is not going to drive you local mall out of business. It is a business model that has been around for years and has made very little dent into the retail sale market. The best way to think about is door to door salespeople. Do you see many of them any more? Exactly.

Last but not least, you should know that many multi level marketing plan are pyramid schemes in disguise. You could lose your investment, and if you sign up enough people, you could go to jail for fraud. Tread carefully when it comes to any multi level marketing program.

Multi Level Marketing Defined

2009-07-30T15:06:00.001+02:00

There is a lot of misinformation out there about multi level marketing, and following the wrong advice could be costly, as it could scare you away from what is really a great business opportunity or it could lead you to invest in what turns out to be a scam. Your best bet is to understand what multi level marketing really is – and what it isn’t – so you can protect yourself and make an informed decision about your business opportunities.

First, consider a simple definition of multi level marketing. In essence, multi level marketing is not unlike a franchise system, except agents involved in multi level marketing generally operate outside of a particular location – like a chain restaurant – and instead do roving sales. In multi level marketing, a parent company has a group of products, and they hire individual representatives, “down stream” as it is typically referred to, to go out and sell those products. Often, the down stream reps purchase the products that the sell from the parent company, although in some cases they can receive stock up front and then split the profits. Down stream reps do not receive any kind of base salary. Their income instead comes in the form of sales.

You have almost certainly dealt with multi level marketing companies without even realizing it. If you have ever attended a party where a host gave you a spiel about kitchen equipment, make-up, lingerie, jewelry or some other kind of product, and then you purchased the product from the host, then you have seen multi level marketing in action. Typically, the people who host these parties receive a small amount of sample stock to show their guests, and then they collect orders, pass those on to the parent company and receive a portion of the profits from sales at the parties they have hosted. The share they receive and whether or not they had to pay for their samples differs from company to company.

Although many multi level marketing programs are entirely legitimate, there are ways these set ups can be exploitative. Most of these programs provide some kind of incentive for people to recruit new reps, but that opens the door for a pyramid scheme to develop. In a pyramid scheme, everyone makes their money by signing up new representatives to the company rather than for selling any products. If you are approached with a scheme that requires you to sign up new representatives and to get them to pay a join up fee, then chances are that you are dealing with an illegitimate multi level marketing plan that not only could end up costing you lost of money but that could also land you in jail.

If you keep an eye out for that important red flag, however, multi level marketing programs can be profitable and reliable ways for good sales people to make money.

Multi Level Marketing

2009-07-15T17:51:00.000+02:00

Multi Level Marketing

2009-07-15T17:49:00.001+02:00