A New Generation of MLM
Whether you’re familiar with the term ‘MLM’ or not, you are most assuredly familiar with the business model. Was your neighbor down the street an Avon lady, or did your mother sell Pampered Chef? Or are you one of the millions of women who have had a Mary Kay makeover. Then you are familiar with MLM. Today, the popularity of MLM companies has doubled what it was even ten years ago, and the catalogues for Tastefully Simple, Pampered Chef and Avon abound at offices everywhere.
As the one flipping through the catalogues while I wait for my afternoon popcorn to pop, I am always inclined to wonder, “How successful is this Representative? Is she rolling in dough? Is she one party away from the free car or the incentive vacation? Is she likely to make a career out of network marketing? Or is she a newbie, diligently pestering family, friends and coworkers to host parties until she becomes burned out and quits?”
Traditionally, there was only one kind of person who could succeed at direct sales. You know the type: a born salesperson, extremely forward, charismatic and more than slightly pushy. Anyone who didn’t possess those characteristics in exactly the right order and quantities failed, failed quickly, and more importantly, failed with a grudge against mlm’s of all kinds.
It’s a shame that the true virtues of mlm are hidden under the stigmas of traditional marketing tactics. Who doesn’t want to work from home? Who doesn’t want to supplement his or her income without having to deal with a schedule and wages someone else decided on? Who doesn’t want to be a part of a company they really believe in? Yet many don’t, because of previous bad experiences with mlm.
Truthfully, MLM can be a great source of reliable income, but only if it is gone about in the proper fashion. Today’s network marketers are leveraging the Internet to attract lists of prospects, build teams and earn amounts of money never dreamed about in the old model of mlm. And by doing so, they are changing the marred image of the industry.
There is a whole big world out there that can be reached using the Internet. Network marketers can now attract prospects to them by offering informative articles and web content, helpful tips and web-inars before ever trying to sell anything to anyone. The big world is not providing these network marketers with big residual income.
That makes the idea of prospecting in your cul-de-sac neighborhood seem asinine, doesn’t it? That’s because your neighborhood, your local grocery store, your office, or even your whole town, are ultimately limited markets. You may make income, but it won’t be residual income. Your home business will eventually reach a plateau.
The Internet creates a global market with an endless stream of prospects and income potential. Distributors do not have to spend their time chasing down prospects and pestering their friends with this new mode of network marketing, because they are attracting leads who are already interested. The Internet is geared toward seekers. That’s why you will see a “search” engine box on nearly every page on the Internet. Those who find your home based business on the web will do so because it is the answer they have been searching for!
Attraction marketing makes the marketer a sought-after commodity. No more blind pursuit, no more endless warming up of indifferent leads. With attraction marketing, the work is almost done by the time you begin contact with leads. You can choose the most highly qualified to work with, and yes, you decide how much money you earn. After it’s begun, this state of being pursued perpetuates itself. Everyone wants to wear the most popular labels. It’s written into the Law of Attraction.
Additionally, modern network marketers are able to make money while they establish their businesses by selling advertising space on their website or by linking with a separate company to promote their products for commission. You need not pay for advertising in the beginning, because there are numerous avenues for free advertising, such as YouTube and Ezine Articles. The business pays for itself, and the consultants are not desperate or discouraged.
That’s a long way from the harried sales reps of our mothers’ generation, isn’t it? It’s a long way from the indignity of rejection and the pointlessness of chasing disinterested leads. Today’s network marketers are establishing themselves as authorities in their fields, and they are leveraging the Internet to build self-sustaining business and earn residual income.
Filed under: Marketing