Monday, April 07, 2008

What Is Network Marketing & What To Look For When Choosing A Network Marketing Company –

First of all if you're still not quite sure what Network Marketing is there are a couple of books I highly recommend to gain knowledge about our industry and business first from a very successful entrepreneur who teaches about becoming successful in business - Robert Kiyosaki



Even if you are already familiar with network marketing these books are highly recommended for further education and to recommend to others who are still seeking this knowledge.



The Business School For Helping People, The Eight Hidden Values Of Owning A Network Marketing Business, Rich Dad Poor Dad, Why We Want You To Be Rich and his CD The Perfect Business (15 min). There's another CD that explains our industry called Business Is Booming. All of these can be found at http://www.networkingtimes.com



Our industry is not only being recognized by business leaders such as Kiyosaki, the industry is also being recognized and recommended by other business leaders such as Donald Trump. Billionaires like Warren Buffet are investing in Direct Selling Companies such as Pampered Chef. Business Start-Ups Magazine (a division of Entrepreneur Magazine), rated Network Marketing as one of its 100 Best Businesses to start. The network marketing industry does about a $100 billion in retail sales annually. So this is big business as Robert Kiyosaki mentions in his training.



A long time colleague (mentor) and I, (Rod Nichols author of The Twelve Power Secrets For Network Marketing Success, will also be launching a new Funded Business System eBook that explains and trains on this information. This will also help you in understanding more about network marketing and how to become more effective in developing yourself and your business.



This system will be launched after April 15th. Email for more information



sueseward@gmail.com with 'Request FBS' in the subject line.



In his books, Kiyosaki teachs us about the 'E' (employee) - S' (self-employed) & the B' (big business) - I' (investor) quadrants. He recommends network marketing as a 'B' business. Read his books to find out why he recommends network marketing as the perfect 'B' business. Knowledge is powerful and this is the first step in becoming a successful entrepreneur in any business.



Even if you are in the 'S' (self-employed) quadrant we recommend you start a 'B' network marketing business as well because this is where you'll earn passive residual income for leverage. In your 'S' business if you take off does your income still flow in without you? Do you have employees to manage? If they are sick who does the work? Who does most of the work anyway? Do YOU or your employees?



Do they really care about your business like you do? What would happen if you got sick or incapacitated in some way and could not work? Would your income still flow in?



Because after you build a 'B' network marketing business the income would still flow in. Income from this kind of business is passive residual just like any big business that Kiyosaki talks about. After you develop your passive residual income then it's important to start learning the 'I' side of the quadrant and start to develop assets through investments.



Kiyosaki will teach you this knowledge in his books and CD's. It will be ultimately up to YOU to apply that knowledge by taking action to develop your 'B' network marketing business and gain the knowledge to invest your income!



There have been many books written with this information. People are free to give opinions based on facts that they collect and what it all really boils down to is the person writing the book recommends their company in the end or in some subtle way by recommending a list of companies and theirs is at the top of the list. After all it's their choice and it's usually because they've been in the industry for quite some time and have the experience to back up what they're recommending. That doesn't mean people are going to listen or choose that particular company or what we recommend will be the right company for everyone.



What we recommend are guidelines. This is why we call ourselves messengers!



The main thing is to start a 'B' business NOW. If you don't believe me watch the DVD What's Your Plan 'B' and listen to Robert Kiyosaki's The Perfect Business CD above. (15 min)



If this does not open your mind to what's happening in our economy then I'm not sure what will. If you are perfectly content with how things are going and you have all the money and time you want to spend with your family and loved ones, then this information just may not be appropriate for you.



First of all one of the most important things I look for in a company is - who's running the company? After all if I'm going to align my reputation with a company I'm looking for a management team of high integrity. I've worked hard to develop credibility and since I'm a person who values my own integrity, this is one of the first things I look for. If management makes bad decisions it can affect the entire company and eventually could cause the company to be shut down and then everyone loses.



Secondly I expect the management team to have experience in the Network Marketing industry preferably as successful distributors themselves. This way I know they have been in the trenches just like us and know what we go through and the benefits we're looking for as distributors.



Thirdly I like to make sure they have not been in any serious trouble and you can usually find this out if you network properly and seek advice from other experienced mentors in the industry.



The second thing I look for of course is a highly consumable product that is used up every month and reordered on a monthly basis. I also like to see a product that has a profitable retail mark up so that people can go out and sell that product and make money day one to get them into cash flow very quickly. This means it has to be a product that is unique that does not have a lot of competition such as having similar products sold in retail outlets, online stores, etc.



I like to see a product that has an almost 100% mark up in retail profit. This way if people are not interested in sponsoring and building a team (which of course we highly recommend for leverage - more on that later) they are not forced to sponsor to make money.



Look for a product that people can sell in a variety of methods such as fundraisers, craft and flea markets, home parties, online, person to person, gifts, etc. Look for a product that most people love and already buy on a regular basis. Only this product must be of much higher quality than what they are already purchasing in stores and at the same time priced comparably.



Look for a pay plan that rewards the part-timer AND the full-time network marketer who is interested in earning a 5, 6 or even 7 figure income. Look for a compensation plan that does not require you to frontload or order extra products to qualify for your commission checks.



Next I look for systems already in place so that we do not have to take up time developing our own (this is called leveraging other people's time and money which gives you more leverage).



These would be high tech cutting edge systems that anyone can plug into right away from day one without any learning curve. This means having a replicated type website that has a landing page to receive a person's contact information, an autoresponder system that drips information to them while we are doing other things (such as spending time with our family) which also has some sort of personal approach to it such as a MY STORY page with bio and photo, etc.



This way when someone visits the website and actually request more information we call them to start the relationship process by asking questions and ask how we can assist them further.



I'm all for developing a presence online with a personal website. I became very successful doing that for years. The point is it's taken me YEARS to develop that presence online using a personal website. Those personal websites took me a lot of time to develop and I'm still constantly tweaking them.



What I have found is that people want SYSTEMS to plug into NOW that do not take them weeks and weeks to develop. Having a system that a new person can plug into right away from day one where they can start introducing people to their business immediately is crucial and it's what all the successful networkers are using! I cannot stress this enough.



The next thing that is important is finding a mentor and team that are experienced and have support systems in place. I do not ever recommend that someone go online to a replicated site that they found by googling and just sign up for something with someone they have no clue about or from a spam email their receive. This is sure fire failure in my opinion and I have seen it happen over and over again. What I mean is going to a plain replicated site with no mention of who this person is or what sort of experience they have.



This is why it's so important to began your networking business by actually networking and making connections with people you meet either offline or online. There are all sorts of online communities and social networks online now where you can plug in and start networking with people and when you are in the looking zone for a company and business there will be people you can consult with.



It's important to make connections and network even with people who are already with a company who may not be interested in switching companies. I never recommend trying to shove your company onto someone's plate. That's not only inconsiderate it's rude and people will become very upset if you do this.



The most effective way to network with other likeminded people is to develop a relationship. Then down the road when someone is actually in the looking zone who are they gonna call? The person that turned them off by pushing their deal onto them or YOU who is a great networking connection? They are most likely going to contact YOU if you've build a solid relationship with them.



Anytime you find a great book, CD, online community, let other networkers know about it. This will create trust and credibility. You'll start to develop into an expert and people will seek you out.



You can read about people and find out what their experience is in the industry and how successful they are from their profile in these online communities. See what they write about, how often do they post, are they positive about the industry in general and are they truly a networker or just shoving their company in other people's faces? You'll quickly notice if they are a leader or not and what their agenda is. These are the people you see constantly advertising their company in places where people are looking for educational content and input.



Email a leader to see how quickly they respond, if they respond and how they respond. Speak with them on the phone. See if you click with them. Find out how knowledgeable they really are about the industry and find out what sort of contacts they have. Who are they connected with? This is very important because who you decide to align yourself with can ultimately connect you with other networkers. Are they serious and committed to their business and company. How successful are they? Are they just giving advice, yet have not really built an organization or made any income in the industry?



Are they an island? Or are they a delegation type of leader who works with leaders and achievers to build depth in expanding their team? I do not mean entitlement mentality and giving away just for the sake of giving or because they feel sorry for a person.



What I mean by this is - are they a leader who is really into working with specific key leaders, delegating leads and qualified contacts to them because they are committed and loyal and have EARNED the right to be in the inner circle. The inner circle are people who have proven themselves by building their organization, bringing in new partners on a consistent basis and taking action everyday to build their business. This again creates more leverage.




One of the important things I've learned over the years is about ROI which means Return On Investment. That means that everything you do you think about - what will my return on investment be on this? This also includes people you are partnered with. Everything you do in business think about what the ROI will be when you choose to do something.



When it comes to people you are helping to develop into leaders, what will your ROI be with that particular person when you delegate a lead or qualified contact to them? When you have a health issue and decide not to take care of it because it's too expensive. What will your ROI be if you decide to spend the money on your health? How much more productive are you to develop your income when you're healthy vs sick?



Every time you decide to spend money on certain educational material for your business what will your ROI be on that investment? Every time you decide to go to a company event what will your ROI be on that investment? When you invest in tools, resources, marketing, advertising for your business what will your ROI be?


If you would like to speak with me about starting or choosing a network marketing company call - 800-985-4697 - leave your name, number and the best time to call you back and I would be happy to discuss some options with you.



To your future of financial freedom,
Sue

Sue is an entrepreneur, Network Marketing Online Coach and top earner in the industry, who has been creating an income from home online since 1996. She encourages self-growth and teaches people how to develop valuable connections online and turn them into lasting relationships for long term business profits. She is also a public speaker and published author of numerous print and electronic articles as well as coauthor of the book 'Build It Big: 101 Insider Secrets From Top Direct Selling Experts'. To find out more visit http://www.eCommerceHomeBiz.com and/or call 800-985-4697

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