Why Network Marketing?
Filed under: network marketing, internet marketing, search marketing
I’m often asked this very question and I always reply back with another question.
Why not?
Them: Well, they are all scams. They never work.
I get this statement just as frequently.
Me: Hmm, have you ever gotten involved in a networking opportunity?
Them: No, but my neighbor’s brother knows a guy who lost thousands in them. I would have guessed you were smarter than that.
Me: *laugh*
My response wasn’t always like this. It used to hurt me when family and friends regarded my efforts in this fashion but as time went on and I persisted I began to see more clearly and understood their stand on the subject. It scares them.
It’s time to set the record straight.
The knowledge and growth which has taken root in me has far exceeds any received at the hands of the traditional educational system. This is why I often refer to network marketing as a personal growth program with a compensation plan attached.
The answer to the question in the title has always been right there in front of them and they were to busy fearing I might fail or get hurt to noticed what I’ve become. And the answer is…
Opportunity.
Yes, there are scams out there but show me any area of life where there is no risk at all. Albeit you can’t think of a single one. Where network marketing is concerned, if you do your due diligence, the benefits far outweigh the risks involved.
Statistics say that 74% of the individuals who have acquired wealth have done so with a home-based business.*
Have you ever looked into the kind of investment it takes to run a start up? It requires thousands of dollars just to begin, and with that comes the struggle of running the business, and the headaches of being an employer. This is just one of the reasons that network marketing appeals to people such as myself. I wanted to make changes in my life, and this afforded me that chance.
A network marketing company does most of the work for you. They create the product or service, deliver the product, have a website for you, maintain said website, and have customer service for your customers as well. You, as the representative of the company do the marketing and upon joining pay a small fee (The ones I’ve seen range from under $500 to free).
People go wrong when they believe the hype of the lottery mentality, jumping on the already full bandwagon, assuming that network marketing will make them millions in just days.
As a result of the past year I’ve grown in more ways than I could have imagined, I’m finding success in YTB, running a travel agency and I’ve also begun working on writing a book. None of this would have happened if I hadn’t seen the opportunity and persisted against all advice of the nay sayers. The joy I now feel as well as the opportunities that I continue to create are why I persist.
*Obtained from the YTB company website.
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October 7th, 2006 at 10:07 am
Tim - I just clicked through to the YTB site. The one thing I would urge multi-level marketing companies in general is that if you don’t want people to have a lottery mentality, don’t embody that mentality in your website, marketing material, etc.
I have been part of two different network marketing organizations at different times. I do have some experience with them and found there can be siginifant benefits attached.
However, if you market yourself like a lottery - you’re going to attract those that regard your business that way and the ones you don’t attract will think you’re a scam. MLM’s have to be careful about the image they project if they expect to be taken seriously. (IMHO)
October 7th, 2006 at 1:24 pm
Ann - Thanks for adding your thoughts. Its good to see you again. I completely agree with you regarding MLM companies and how they portray themselves. It becomes a really fine line when they begin to discuss what is possible to achieve with them and making it sound to easy.
Network Marketing as an entire industry has a long way to come in that respect and it is going to take allot of time and work before network marketing companies stop the bombastic claims.
As a representative of any given company, I have the choice, as I speak with people to either perpetuate those claims or be honest about them. I choose to be clear and honest about what can be achieved but more importantly about how fast.
Kim Klaver often speaks about changing the way the Reps and the companies do business, wanting a great industry to be reshaped to cut out the fatastic claims and focus more on products and services. In other words, to behave much more like a traditional business.
She as well as many others, including myself, don’t like the way companies and reps have a tendency to put emphasis on recruiting, and huge money at the expense of knowing that person is right for this kind of business.
The rest of the story is in the hands of the Reps, it is up to them since they are the word-of-mouth agents to tell the truth and build a business based on what they know to be true.
October 9th, 2006 at 1:38 am
Just like with everything. It takes reading the fine print. Which most people tend to avoid. It easier to take the soundbyte or the headline and turn everything on that. It’s true that Network Marketing has earned a bad reputation which is not totally unearned. But it all depends on reading the fine print. There are good ones and ones rotten to the core. But like you said. Life is not without risks.
What is even better is your ability to trod ahead has led you in ways that provided growth beyond what you expected when you first started. Keep going and know that your path maybe be similar to someone, but the journey truely is your own. :)
October 9th, 2006 at 1:48 am
Richard - Howz it going? Haven’t heard from you, in blog, for awhile. Glad to have you jumping in to share your thoughts!
Part of the problem is that we are all human and we all want more for ourselves. That in and of itself isn’t wrong, but it creates a need and that is where the lottery mentality is born. People jump on something with bold promises hoping to have their needs met and soon find out that it takes much much more work than first assumed.
You are right that there are scams out there but I’ve noticed that many of the people who scream ’scam!’ are the very ones that either have no clue or have tried an opportunity, did nothing with it and chose to blame the thing and not themselves.