5 Signs Your MLM Might Be In Trouble

This is no April Fool’s… here are some potential warning signs that your MLM company could be in trouble.

Here’s how I know… because every single one of these happened to come degree to the company (companies) I promoted from 2007-2011. I say companies because the owner of the MLM repeatedly changed the name and products and I got grandfathered in (and opted in) to the new opportunities after each change.

I saw 5 companies be born..and struggle. Most failed. 2 are still officially operating but, like most things in business that could always change at any moment.

1. Your company introduces additional products or services that seemingly have nothing to do with the name or culture of your company.

It could just be diversification, which is always a potential way to generate more income..but watch out. If new things keep getting added it could also mean that your company is unable to produce enough income from its main product or service alone..which means it is struggling

2. Your company NEVER meets deadlines (i.e. they fail to follow through) This includes payment deadlines, website launch deadlines, and the like.

If your company keeps saying “XZY will be launched on such and such date” or “Direct deposits will appear at so and so time” etc and they never do, or are VERY VERY late…that’s a huge red flag that there’s trouble. Missing a deadline once is bad, but still forgivable. Missing every single deadline? Get out while you still can!

3. Your company keeps extending exclusive advance-in-rank promotions. Over and over and over. 

This means that nobody is producing the way the company expected. Or nobody is producing AT ALL. If your company extends a promotion once.. awesome. Take advantage of it. If they keep extending it..and extending it…and extending it.. that’s a big clue that the company is struggling because people are failing to advance, which means customers and reps have stopped being gathered…which means money troubles for the company itself.

4. Nobody answers the Corporate phone number and/or returns your calls/emails.

DUH! There is something amiss here! If you’re paying them a monthly fee to be a distributor and they’ve stopped responding STOP PAYING THEM because it is very likely they’re about to disappear from the face of the earth.

5.  The name of your company keeps changing with very little (or no) warning.

This is also a big BIG red flag. Rebranding is difficult but sometimes necessary in today’s market,  but if you find your company is constantly trying to reinvent itself with little or no heads up to the field of representatives promoting that company then perhaps the company itself is trying to run from something. Could be reputation problems, money troubles, bad partnerships, etc. but seriously. Trust your gut here. If it keeps happening… run.

Did I miss any red flags of company failure? Let me know!

The Thing About MLM Opportunities Is

….that eventually all things come to an end and those hardcore MLM’ers are left without a company to promote so what happens? Those people and their teams move on to other companies.

That’s just what happens.

If this has happened to you then you know how it is- all those people are now contacting you about their latest greatest comp plan, product, service, and/or company promotion.

Tip: If reps keep asking you to join and you really have no interest TELL THEM THAT. If the pitching continues then maybe you need to stop engaging in conversation with them for a while until they get the picture.

They want you to join.But should you? Well, that’s just up to you but never let yourself feel pressured to join a company just because “everybody else from the old company is doing it.”

That’s why I’ve passed on iZigg. It seems cool enough at first glance but I’m done with selling something.

I hate asking people to spend their own money to be my customer in a network marketing sales situation, which in turn earns me a commission. That just makes me feel icky. Now, some people are naturals in the selling department and there is nothing wrong with that. I just dislike how it makes me feel because I know I would be reluctant to spend my hard earned money on a product or service  that it a want rather than a need

Now, in iZigg’s case it is a tool for business owners to use so it’s less a “want” and more a need , but I personally think text-to campaigns are a bit spammy and I personally hate marketing texts to my phone.

Then there’s the Body By Vi 90 day challenge which is the MLM company ViSalus Sciences. Hulk Hogan is using and promoting their product, as well as some other celebrities. It seems to work, but here’s my beef- I already lost weight on Medifast (a non MLM product) and am in the transition phase.

I really want to avoid getting off one diet and getting on another health/diet product..and Medifast has been around since the 80′s..Vi? Not so much. I have trust issues when it comes to less established products.

I keep getting asked what I’m doing now..well, I’m waiting for something free or inexpensive that customers already use or actually need to come out that I can market in my immediate local area (that WORKS and does everything the company says it will) with proven leadership… until then, I’m finding other things to do to pass the time and earn some coin.

If you’re in one of the companies I mentioned or referred to and it’s what you want to do and you love it.. then  that’s awesome.. go you! This is just where I stand right now.

Carry on!

 

5 Things To Avoid In Network Marketing

This is just going to be a collection of things I have learned to AVOID doing in my almost 4 years of being in the Network Marketing industry.

1. No matter how excited you are NEVER get something permanent to reflect your business because anything can change at ANY TIME. This includes vanity license plates, jewelry (unless given to you by the company), permanent signage, tattoos, car paint jobs, etc.

This is something that I both observed when spending time with Mike and Barb Lammons out in California AND have personal experience with. For instance, I got so excited about a company that I bought the license plate for the state of Arkansas.

The reason why this was a bad decision was because the company is just the vehicle. The industry is the stuff that makes the vehicle drive… YOU are the fuel. Brand yourself. Brand your team. NEVER tie yourself to a company in that way.

Now promote your heart out always in whatever company you choose..but never lose your identity along the way. Believe me it is easy to do. You get so caught up in the company and its success that you forget about you and the health of your team.

2. Never try to do it all. Ask your team to share some of the responsibility. Nobody can shoulder all the responsibility all the time.

3. Personally, I choose to never personally sponsor someone more that twice. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

4. Never EVER buy someone in to your company. No matter HOW perfect you think that prospect will be for your team buying them in is NEVER a good idea because they have risked nothing therefore they can quit without losing any money.

If you buy someone in you’re basically asking them to quit on you. I also say this from experience. I have helped at least 10 people join my company and they are ALL GONE. None of them stayed.

5. Only go where the money is. Now-let me explain. If someone you know or meet says “hey, can you fly/drive out to X. I want to talk to you about the business.” Say, sure. Let’s talk on the phone first. If you still want me to come out enroll as a Representative and get me 3 other people to talk to while I’m there and I’ll come.

I have wasted SO MUCH TIME, MONEY, and EMOTIONAL ENERGY on people who asked me to come out to places as far out as Seattle ( I live in Arkansas) with NO intention of talking about the business. They just wanted to see me, catch up, or wanted to ask for money. This happened to me because I thought that, as a leader, I should go and because of this I wasted my time, money, and energy.  I hope you learn from my mistakes.

If you apply these 5 things to avoid to your business I believe that you’ll notice a big change. My hope is that this helps at least one person grow and become more successful.

Have you made a mistake that I left out? Please comment and share it so we can all learn from it together!

Businesses Benefit From Network Marketing

Several types of  businesses would greatly benefit from using the network marketing distribution model..but why don’t they?

I think a lot of companies fail to seek this type of expansion for a few reasons: one being the mis-information and stigma surrounding the MLM industry. The second reason probably stems from the fact that it is difficult to set up all the necessary structure to make a MLM company work and that the company doesn’t know where to begin or who to turn to for help to make that start.

The biggest industry that would benefit from using MLM to market their products would be As Seen On TV products. People LOVE the “big reveal” of products that work wonders and it would definitely take off if the companies would just look into using this model.

If the compensation plan paid the independent reps well then they would be that much more motivated to move the products, thus generating more revenue for the parent company.

Other industries that would also make a killing using network marketing to distribute their products would be companies in the service industry, such as movie rental memberships like Netflix or game rental memberships like GameFly. If you had movie lovers and gamers promoting these companies the revenue, again, would be staggering.

Digital downloads would also benefit greatly from a people to people marketing arm. Think about audio books like Audible.com, Amazon e-books, etc.

All in all- big companies need to really look into marketing their products and services through Network Marketing, people to people marketing, affiliate marketing… call it what you will, but it works!

 

What is Network Marketing

In addition to being a CPA with an MBA and a certified fraud examiner my mom is also a professor of business at University of Arkansas-Fort Smith.

This discussion of network marketing (commonly referred to as MLM, multi-level marketing, or distribution marketing) appeared in her course material that she taught her students (from chapter 15) and I wanted to share it with you all.

Network marketing is a very profitable and viable business model that depends upon the outside sale of the corporate office’s product or services via independent distributors.

My comments appear in italics.

Some popular network marketing companies are: Mary Kay, Avon, Pampered Chef, Pre-paid Legal, and many more.

Did you know these are network marketing?

MULTILEVEL MARKETING

Multilevel marketing often doesn’t get the respect it deserves in marketing literature.

When multilevel marketing companies succeed, their growth is often unbelievable.

At least six multilevel marketing companies have reached the $500 million level in sales.

Multilevel marketing companies work like this: The founders begin by recruiting a few good people to go out and find managers to sell their products(a FREE SERVICE in our case) and to recruit other supervisors. (also known as distributors or small business owners).

These supervisors then recruit additional salespeople.

That is, 20 people recruit 6 people each. That means 120 salespeople. Those people then recruit 6 people each, and you have 720 salespeople.

If in turn those people all recruit 6 people, you then have almost 5,000 salespeople who are all selling things to outside customers.

All supervisors earn commissions on what they sell as well as on what everyone under them sells.

When you get thousands of salespeople selling for you, commissions can be quite large. One company promotes the fact that 1% from 100 salespeople is as good as 100% from one successful salesperson. Companies often add new products or expand to other countries to keep a continuous growth pattern.

Distribution under multilevel marketing is relatively easy. Often the salespeople will carry inventory in their own homes and deliver products as ordered. Many companies also offer direct shipping to customers using UPS or other delivery firms.

Marketers cannot ignore the success of this sales and distribution strategy. Nu Skin (a seller of health and beauty products) alone will soon have $1 billion in sales. Looking for more growth, the company started a new division, Interior Design Nutrition, to make and sell vitamins and weight control products. Amway, perhaps one of the most well known multilevel marketers, has chosen the international route for growth; recently, its sales of home and personal care products increased by over $1 billion in one year.
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Taken from: http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/007310597x/student_view0/chapter15/casing_the_web.html