Being self-employed during the last 20 years has given me some key insights on how to do business, specifically in the marketing and promotion area. When I started my business, I didn’t know about networks. I mostly relied on newspaper ads directed at my specific audience. Then one day it happened. Someone referred a friend. That was the beginning of working with clients that knew and trusted me well enough that they felt comfortable to recommend me to their friends that were in need of my product and services. My network was born. It happen d enough times that I started to rely on this source of marketing, and I worked mainly with referrals.
Networks of distribution and sales exists in all business. Product reviews & recommendations, star ratings for customer service and support, Yelp score, Amazon, even Google Maps has a review service all relying on their user network to report their personal experience with a product, service, or business. Networks are everywhere because people need someone to trust. There are whole companies that build their own networks to distribute products or services, including communication services, Realtors, internet companies, and online stores, to name a few.
But how can you make money from home?
Good questions usually have several answers. If you have a network that knows and trusts you, then you can make recommendations to your network on products and services you like, and the seller gives you a finders fee as a “thank you” for the sale. (Disclosure: this article has links to products and services that the author gets paid a fee for referring the reader you can follow the link but no fee is paid until a sales transaction occurs… Pretty cool technology.) This is called affiliate marketing. There are several ways to do affiliate marketing without networks. If you have time and patience, they can be profitable. My favorite system is Wealthy Affiliates. (This is one of many ways an affiliate link looks like) They help build your network and establish your authority. Over time, you learn what it really takes to be a “Wealthy Affiliate” while building your website.
The other way is to join a Multi-Level Marketing company (MLM). They usually have a consumable product that you buy monthly. You are the affiliate as well as the consumer so you make a small commission on your clients’ purchases, but your clients can be affiliates also, and you can make a small commission on their clients’ purchases too. Commissions usually go up a few levels and end up looking like a pyramid chart. This scares some people because they think it is a scheme. This is a real hot button topic which always lights up the comments, so be sure to let me know how you feel about making money from MLMs.
So here are 4 reasons you might want to join a Network Marketing Company:
1. Easy to Start
Your friend or family member will be extremely happy to get a recruit. Go ahead, ask them about their business. Chances are they will fumble around and have you talk to their recruiter to close the sale. That is the proper way because they make a commission too. Make them work hard, and enjoy the show.
2. Get Paid Fast
If you go all in with a proper plan, some companies offer generous fast start bonuses that get paid within a week. This works really well if you bring in a couple friends too. MLMs are built upon other people’s networks… which gives you the ability to build authority.
3. Learn New Useful Skills
Maybe you like meeting and associating with motivated people or you want to learn how to be more motivated. This includes traveling to new places and learning new methods to grow your network. When your network grows, it helps the entire organization. An additional bonus to this is that it increases your self-esteem and ability to present to large groups.
4. Business Tax Advantages
Being a sole proprietor enters you into a special club section on your tax form where you can expense, or deduct from your income, certain expenses associated with running your business, such as cell phone, internet, computer, travel & education. There are other ways to reduce your taxes you will learn about later.
Conclusion:
I have been in several MLM companies. Usually they lead to the next opportunity. I still keep buying some products because of the health benefits, and probably will continue until I find something better. I am also grateful to the people who worked with me to overcome my fears and anxiety, basically increasing my social interactions.
Since you’re here, chances are, someone sent this article to you. Probably a relative or friend looking for a recruit. After all they know and trust you and MLMs are always more fun with friends. Do them a favor say YES and don’t look back!
Happy Networking
-max
So, I’ve tried a few network marketing businesses in the past. It was pretty cool how they are pretty much a business in a box, so to speak. They seemed to have lots of training and lots of meetings. They are also a great way to get out and meet people. People would open up their homes for their meetings. It was cool to get to see peoples homes that I wouldn’t normally see. I didn’t quite get too far with it. I had issues with trying to get people to join my group, because I was afraid to talk to people about it.
Hi Christopher. You just might be introverted, welcome to REXI club. Stay tuned because I’m working on a email campaign that qualifies membership to our club, that will be easy to share and make building qualified club members a snap.