If you've been involved with network marketing for any length of time, you may have heard someone ask, "What is your why?". Your answer may have been, "What is my why?". The answer to the the second question is that your why, is the reason that you are doing an network marketing or MLM business. The answer to the first question is yours to ponder.
It's important in any undertaking to know what your motivation is for spending time in that endeavor. In network marketing it is even more important, because this business requires a time and energy committment, often with little to show for it for a period of time. So before you read any read any further, move away from the computer, get a piece of paper and write down the answer to the question, "What is your why?". Some example to get your started are: I want to use my product for free; or I want to cover our monthly mortgage payment; or I want to be a millionaire.
Whatever your "why" that is where you start to determine your plan and your goals and what you're going to stay focused on as you grow your business. In my free newsletter "Healthy Freedom Secrets" I outline a program for developing your plan and your business using my 15 years of professional experience helping people create positive and forward-thinking behavior. I bring in techniques learned as I trained to take my psychology backround and use it to help business executives succeed.
For the sake of this posting, I want to stress how important your "why" is to your success. The people who succeed in the network marketing business are the people who don't quit. Many of us have heard it said that 97% of people who enter this business never make any money. What most of us don't read is that most of that 97% don't make any money because they become frustrated with the process and quit too early. If you know why you're doing this and you can use that reason to keep you motivated and on track with your plan and your goals, chances are much higher that you will succeed.
Happy Thanksgiving to all.
FREE PROSPECTING LEADS HERE
21 November 2007
10 November 2007
Why Network Marketing?
I thought you'd find this article interesting. It was written by a network marketing professional named Rod Nichols.
In April of 1979, I viewed my first network marketing presentation and fell in love with the concept. At that time, I was a corporate manager for a Fortune 100 company.
I had graduated from college with a business degree and set out to climb the corporate ladder to success. However, those circles drawn on a white board opened my eyes to the future of business.
Nearly twenty-seven years later, I am convinced that network marketing is the wave of the future in business. It is a powerful marketing model that is sweeping through the world and will have a greater impact than franchising. Bold statements? The balance of this article will provide the proof.
Fortune magazine called direct selling (of which network marketing is the largest segment) “the best kept secret in the business world.” It has experienced 91% growth in the last 10 years with annual sales in excess of $30 billion in the U.S. and $100 billion worldwide. Financial experts say that it’s a “recession proof” industry. Billionaire Warren Buffet, after purchasing a network marketing company, called it the best investment he’d ever made. Tom Peters, author of In Search of Excellence, calls it the first truly revolutionary shift in marketing in the last 50 years.
Even billionaires and Fortune 500 companies are jumping on board the network marketing bandwagon. Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Records, launched his own network marketing company in the U.K. Time Warner, Lillian Vernon, City Group, Hallmark Cards, Nestle, Jockey, Readers Digest, and Remington have either purchased or launched their own entries into this high growth industry.
Why the interest in network marketing? The main reason is that it fits the current marketing trends. If you haven’t figured it out by now, the baby boomers (those born between 1946 and 1964) are in control. Seventy six million strong in the U.S. and over a billion worldwide, the boomers have dictated what is hot, from baby food and diapers to fast food to minivans and SUVs. Now the boomers are looking for products that will help them look and feel younger and ways to secure their financial future and enjoy more time freedom. Network marketing offers the answers.
Tired of the corporate rat race, boomers are starting home businesses in record numbers. CNN reported that a new home based business is started in the United States every eleven seconds. The home business boom is the next big trend and network marketing is one of the hottest home businesses available. It offers low start-up investment and monthly overhead. Entrepreneurs can start part-time, while still employed, and build the business to replace their job income. Age, gender, and race aren’t barriers in network marketing. In fact, well over half of the success stories are women.
The biggest reasons that the boomers are flocking to network marketing are time leverage, residual income, and tax benefits. Network marketing is one of the few businesses that does not require employees and yet enables the owner to leverage his or her time by building a network of independent business people. This network, which purchases and sells products or services, generates a residual income for the owner. Unlike the income earned at a job, which stops when the work stops, residual income continues on long after the work is completed. As exciting as leverage and residual income are, boomers love the tax benefits of network marketing. Tax expert Sanford Botkin says that a network marketing home business can result in tax savings of $3,000 to $9,000 per year.
The final reason why so many people of all ages are interested in network marketing is the internet. Success requires a business owner to build a large network of people who buy and sell products/services and recruit others who will do the same. The internet now enables network marketers to build national and international businesses from the comfort of their home. No more early morning alarms and high stress commutes. All the work can be done from a bedroom with a computer and telephone.
Network marketing is the first true equal opportunity, as there are success stories from every age and ethnic group, gender, personality type, education level, and walk of life. However, this is not a get rich quick scheme where supposedly everyone will succeed. This is a business that requires financial and time commitment and the willingness to work hard until success arrives. The great part is that network marketing, similar to franchising, is a turn-key business. Others have forged the trail and all a person has to do is use the proven systems and follow the path. Don’t expect to make millions the first year or the second, but do expect to make enough to give you time and financial freedom.
The first key to success is to find a company, out of the over 3,000 available, that operates with high integrity and offers a product/service that brings out passion and excitement. The second key is to find the right compensation plan. There are five types – Stairstep, Matrix, Unilevel, Binary, and 2 Up. Each has positives and negatives, so study the plans and find the one that fits best. The third key is to study those who have already been successful and duplicate what they have done. Last, never, never, never, never, quit. The success you seek may be just around the next corner.
Network marketing is well over fifty years old, so it’s not a new concept. However, it is a concept whose time has come. In the movie The Graduate, a young Dustin Hoffman was told that the future was in plastics. I’m here to tell you that the future is in network marketing and that future is now.
Written by Rod Nichols
www.rodnichols.com
________________________________________
FREE NETWORK MARKETING LEADS!!
In April of 1979, I viewed my first network marketing presentation and fell in love with the concept. At that time, I was a corporate manager for a Fortune 100 company.
I had graduated from college with a business degree and set out to climb the corporate ladder to success. However, those circles drawn on a white board opened my eyes to the future of business.
Nearly twenty-seven years later, I am convinced that network marketing is the wave of the future in business. It is a powerful marketing model that is sweeping through the world and will have a greater impact than franchising. Bold statements? The balance of this article will provide the proof.
Fortune magazine called direct selling (of which network marketing is the largest segment) “the best kept secret in the business world.” It has experienced 91% growth in the last 10 years with annual sales in excess of $30 billion in the U.S. and $100 billion worldwide. Financial experts say that it’s a “recession proof” industry. Billionaire Warren Buffet, after purchasing a network marketing company, called it the best investment he’d ever made. Tom Peters, author of In Search of Excellence, calls it the first truly revolutionary shift in marketing in the last 50 years.
Even billionaires and Fortune 500 companies are jumping on board the network marketing bandwagon. Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Records, launched his own network marketing company in the U.K. Time Warner, Lillian Vernon, City Group, Hallmark Cards, Nestle, Jockey, Readers Digest, and Remington have either purchased or launched their own entries into this high growth industry.
Why the interest in network marketing? The main reason is that it fits the current marketing trends. If you haven’t figured it out by now, the baby boomers (those born between 1946 and 1964) are in control. Seventy six million strong in the U.S. and over a billion worldwide, the boomers have dictated what is hot, from baby food and diapers to fast food to minivans and SUVs. Now the boomers are looking for products that will help them look and feel younger and ways to secure their financial future and enjoy more time freedom. Network marketing offers the answers.
Tired of the corporate rat race, boomers are starting home businesses in record numbers. CNN reported that a new home based business is started in the United States every eleven seconds. The home business boom is the next big trend and network marketing is one of the hottest home businesses available. It offers low start-up investment and monthly overhead. Entrepreneurs can start part-time, while still employed, and build the business to replace their job income. Age, gender, and race aren’t barriers in network marketing. In fact, well over half of the success stories are women.
The biggest reasons that the boomers are flocking to network marketing are time leverage, residual income, and tax benefits. Network marketing is one of the few businesses that does not require employees and yet enables the owner to leverage his or her time by building a network of independent business people. This network, which purchases and sells products or services, generates a residual income for the owner. Unlike the income earned at a job, which stops when the work stops, residual income continues on long after the work is completed. As exciting as leverage and residual income are, boomers love the tax benefits of network marketing. Tax expert Sanford Botkin says that a network marketing home business can result in tax savings of $3,000 to $9,000 per year.
The final reason why so many people of all ages are interested in network marketing is the internet. Success requires a business owner to build a large network of people who buy and sell products/services and recruit others who will do the same. The internet now enables network marketers to build national and international businesses from the comfort of their home. No more early morning alarms and high stress commutes. All the work can be done from a bedroom with a computer and telephone.
Network marketing is the first true equal opportunity, as there are success stories from every age and ethnic group, gender, personality type, education level, and walk of life. However, this is not a get rich quick scheme where supposedly everyone will succeed. This is a business that requires financial and time commitment and the willingness to work hard until success arrives. The great part is that network marketing, similar to franchising, is a turn-key business. Others have forged the trail and all a person has to do is use the proven systems and follow the path. Don’t expect to make millions the first year or the second, but do expect to make enough to give you time and financial freedom.
The first key to success is to find a company, out of the over 3,000 available, that operates with high integrity and offers a product/service that brings out passion and excitement. The second key is to find the right compensation plan. There are five types – Stairstep, Matrix, Unilevel, Binary, and 2 Up. Each has positives and negatives, so study the plans and find the one that fits best. The third key is to study those who have already been successful and duplicate what they have done. Last, never, never, never, never, quit. The success you seek may be just around the next corner.
Network marketing is well over fifty years old, so it’s not a new concept. However, it is a concept whose time has come. In the movie The Graduate, a young Dustin Hoffman was told that the future was in plastics. I’m here to tell you that the future is in network marketing and that future is now.
Written by Rod Nichols
www.rodnichols.com
________________________________________
FREE NETWORK MARKETING LEADS!!
04 November 2007
Multiple Streams of Income
There are master marketers like Mark Yarnell, who write that you should pick one business and put everything you've got into it. Basically the thought is that it's really hard to build a business. If you're in network marketing its really hard to build a downline. So it makes sense to use your energy to focus build that downline and build it deep and wide, rather than diluting your efforts by building multiple businesses at the same time.
In this new world of internet marketing, there are many people who are doing very well financially, who advocate creating multiple streams of income. It is easy to find many network marketers and internet marketers who are doing this just by looking at some of the websites that are out there in cyberland. There are people focused on health and wellness who are marketing a few of the top health drinks like MonaVie, Zrii(#2631542) and Xango, all on one website. Web marketing gurus often have links to many companies that will help you build your site, advertise it and find leads for your business. Most of these people are "affiliates" with the different companies that they have links to. What this means is that they will receive a commission from that company for any product that you purchase if you linked in from their website.
Affiliate systems provide benefits for everyone involved. It's a win-win-win situation. The company benefits because they are essentially getting others to market their products. The marketer wins, because he or she gets a commission. The consumer wins because he is purchasing a product that someone who he respects, based on other information or services they have provided, has recommended. Chances are high that the consumer will find the product useful.
So here you are, new to this whole network marketing industry and new to internet marketing. How do you decide if doing one thing will all your energy or right for you, or if it's might be better to diversify? Ultimately it's a personal decision based on an honest assessment of yourself. Are you a person who can multi-task? How are you at keeping multiple balls in the air at one time? Do you have the time in your week to work on two or three different businesses? How are you will organization.
My suggestion is to begin with that type of self-assessment. Then get away from the computer and list your ideas. Obviously your main network marketing business will be first. Write an outline or a flow chart delineating your goals and your tasks. Then move on to you other ideas. It might help to have each on its own piece of paper. For each idea, describe what it is, list the goals and objectives and then the tasks involved to getting it running and keeping it going.
The beauty of internet marketing done well is that eventually it will run itself. You will need to check in on ads, keywords, etc... But once your programs are set up and going, especially if you automate them using an autoresponder, they will work somewhat on their own. This will free you up to concentrate on talking to people and following up on leads in person or on the phone.
In the last post I said I'd have links to my web building/hosting company and to the autoresponder company that I've been using. Here they are:
1and1
1and1 has been a really good web hosting and web building company for a beginner like me. Their customer service and tech support is all live, 24 hours per day.
AWeber
AWeber has been fantastic. Their tutorials are so easy to follow and the customer support (live again) could not be better!!
In this new world of internet marketing, there are many people who are doing very well financially, who advocate creating multiple streams of income. It is easy to find many network marketers and internet marketers who are doing this just by looking at some of the websites that are out there in cyberland. There are people focused on health and wellness who are marketing a few of the top health drinks like MonaVie, Zrii(#2631542) and Xango, all on one website. Web marketing gurus often have links to many companies that will help you build your site, advertise it and find leads for your business. Most of these people are "affiliates" with the different companies that they have links to. What this means is that they will receive a commission from that company for any product that you purchase if you linked in from their website.
Affiliate systems provide benefits for everyone involved. It's a win-win-win situation. The company benefits because they are essentially getting others to market their products. The marketer wins, because he or she gets a commission. The consumer wins because he is purchasing a product that someone who he respects, based on other information or services they have provided, has recommended. Chances are high that the consumer will find the product useful.
So here you are, new to this whole network marketing industry and new to internet marketing. How do you decide if doing one thing will all your energy or right for you, or if it's might be better to diversify? Ultimately it's a personal decision based on an honest assessment of yourself. Are you a person who can multi-task? How are you at keeping multiple balls in the air at one time? Do you have the time in your week to work on two or three different businesses? How are you will organization.
My suggestion is to begin with that type of self-assessment. Then get away from the computer and list your ideas. Obviously your main network marketing business will be first. Write an outline or a flow chart delineating your goals and your tasks. Then move on to you other ideas. It might help to have each on its own piece of paper. For each idea, describe what it is, list the goals and objectives and then the tasks involved to getting it running and keeping it going.
The beauty of internet marketing done well is that eventually it will run itself. You will need to check in on ads, keywords, etc... But once your programs are set up and going, especially if you automate them using an autoresponder, they will work somewhat on their own. This will free you up to concentrate on talking to people and following up on leads in person or on the phone.
In the last post I said I'd have links to my web building/hosting company and to the autoresponder company that I've been using. Here they are:
1and1
1and1 has been a really good web hosting and web building company for a beginner like me. Their customer service and tech support is all live, 24 hours per day.
AWeber
AWeber has been fantastic. Their tutorials are so easy to follow and the customer support (live again) could not be better!!
25 October 2007
Website builders, autoresponders and sanity
I'll bet you didn't realize when you became excited about growing your business online, that you would first need to be a computer techie? Neither did I. There have been no postings in the last few weeks because I've been consumed with building a website.
I have to say that the website building and hosting company I used were really helpful. I called tech support about 3 times per day for the last two weeks and was never even put on hold!! But as I learned, I didn't always know the right question to ask, and so I didn't always get all the information I needed. But now I know what Linux is and what javascript is. I even learned how to create forms that work like an autoresponder, that I can place on my website using "html", and they actually work the way they're supposed to.
So what do I recommend if you're trying to do this? If you have the money, you might want to hire professional website builder and someone skilled in search engine optimization. It will cost a bunch..but you will keep your sanity. If you have a lot of time, or you're compulsive about wanting to understand how things work, you can do it yourself. Be prepared for devoting the majority of your time to it for a few weeks. You will not have time to "work" on your business..that is, meeting with people, talking about your product, doing workshops or parties, etc... during that time. But in the end, you will be creating some tools which hopefully will grow your business faster and more easily.
Ultimately remember that sometimes laying the foundation and putting all the tools in order is the most important step of building the project. If you are committed to your business then taking time away from the "main event" to do this, is time well spent.
I have to say that the website building and hosting company I used were really helpful. I called tech support about 3 times per day for the last two weeks and was never even put on hold!! But as I learned, I didn't always know the right question to ask, and so I didn't always get all the information I needed. But now I know what Linux is and what javascript is. I even learned how to create forms that work like an autoresponder, that I can place on my website using "html", and they actually work the way they're supposed to.
So what do I recommend if you're trying to do this? If you have the money, you might want to hire professional website builder and someone skilled in search engine optimization. It will cost a bunch..but you will keep your sanity. If you have a lot of time, or you're compulsive about wanting to understand how things work, you can do it yourself. Be prepared for devoting the majority of your time to it for a few weeks. You will not have time to "work" on your business..that is, meeting with people, talking about your product, doing workshops or parties, etc... during that time. But in the end, you will be creating some tools which hopefully will grow your business faster and more easily.
Ultimately remember that sometimes laying the foundation and putting all the tools in order is the most important step of building the project. If you are committed to your business then taking time away from the "main event" to do this, is time well spent.
09 October 2007
MLM Information...An Overwhelming Amount
When you start really looking into this industry, it's amazing the sheer quantity of information that exists. From a psychological perspective, sometimes too much information causes action paralysis. You know the feeling, you're surfing the net and you find a page that perfectly describes your struggles or frustrations. So you read it and it sends you to other links and you then you read those. Then you google another phrase or question and read three more websites, or newletters, or latest and greatest ideas for gathering leads or reaching you target audience. And then...you're stuck....too much input but no way of figuring out what's actually worthwhile.
I would love to hear some other people's experience with this. Often in this world of free and abundant information people seem less able to take action. We used to go to the library and look things up in a few books. Or make a few phone calls to other professionals for advice. We then took the information we gathered and made a decision, or took some kind of action. Now we spend hours doing "research" but end up with so many options from so many different sources, most of them strangers. How do we decide what action to take?
In our field of direct selling/network marketing, it's important to have a plan that is essentially steps towards reaching a goal. It is also crucial to have support or coaching from someone who has been in the industry for awhile and has the financial success to prove that they know what they are doing. Anyone can get on the internet,create a web page, and sell you their SYSTEM. You have no idea though if that person was ever successful using the system they are selling you...or if their true financial gains have been from the sale of the SYSTEM.
I would love to hear some other people's experience with this. Often in this world of free and abundant information people seem less able to take action. We used to go to the library and look things up in a few books. Or make a few phone calls to other professionals for advice. We then took the information we gathered and made a decision, or took some kind of action. Now we spend hours doing "research" but end up with so many options from so many different sources, most of them strangers. How do we decide what action to take?
In our field of direct selling/network marketing, it's important to have a plan that is essentially steps towards reaching a goal. It is also crucial to have support or coaching from someone who has been in the industry for awhile and has the financial success to prove that they know what they are doing. Anyone can get on the internet,create a web page, and sell you their SYSTEM. You have no idea though if that person was ever successful using the system they are selling you...or if their true financial gains have been from the sale of the SYSTEM.
04 October 2007
Working From Home and Creating Success
Did you know that according the Mark Yarnell, author of Your First Year in Network Marketing, the often quoted statistic about 97% of Network Marketers failing is incorrect? The reason it's wrong is that most people assume it means that 97% of people involved with Network Marketing fail no matter how hard or how long they work. In fact, what it really means is that most beginners in the MLM industry "fail" because they quit too soon and/or because nobody took the time to train them and tell them the truth about the industry. The truth is that you have to work hard and work smart in the MLM business. You also have to understand that even though there are people who've made big money in a short period of time, most have to put in their time.
The BEST thing is that putting in your time is usually fun, often exciting and it's totally under your own control. According to Mr. Yarnell, most MLM professionals work hard for 3-4 years and can then reap the rewards of their efforts. That doesn't mean they stop working necessarily, but it may mean that they work 2-3 hours per day and spend the rest of their time doing other things that they love to do. In other professions, most people work for 40 years, 8-10 hours per day, 5 days per week and only then can they sit back and reap the rewards. And the scary part about that is that in these days of no pensions, a rocky stock market and a social security system that is hurting financially, the "rewards" might not be what you were expecting.
Be cautious about opportunities that indicate fast and easy money. Everything takes some kind of effort whether it's time or energy or education. But being self-employed, working at home, choosing your hours and your company, and having control over your destiny sure surpasses 9-5 in a cubicle with no windows. Network Marketing seems to have the best opportunities, in that it often costs little to get involved, you can "ramp-up" quickly-especially if your upline is supportive and knowledgable, and anyone can do it. You don't need a Master's degree or even a College degree. What you do need it focus, consistency, commitment, and a burning desire to succeed in this business.
The BEST thing is that putting in your time is usually fun, often exciting and it's totally under your own control. According to Mr. Yarnell, most MLM professionals work hard for 3-4 years and can then reap the rewards of their efforts. That doesn't mean they stop working necessarily, but it may mean that they work 2-3 hours per day and spend the rest of their time doing other things that they love to do. In other professions, most people work for 40 years, 8-10 hours per day, 5 days per week and only then can they sit back and reap the rewards. And the scary part about that is that in these days of no pensions, a rocky stock market and a social security system that is hurting financially, the "rewards" might not be what you were expecting.
Be cautious about opportunities that indicate fast and easy money. Everything takes some kind of effort whether it's time or energy or education. But being self-employed, working at home, choosing your hours and your company, and having control over your destiny sure surpasses 9-5 in a cubicle with no windows. Network Marketing seems to have the best opportunities, in that it often costs little to get involved, you can "ramp-up" quickly-especially if your upline is supportive and knowledgable, and anyone can do it. You don't need a Master's degree or even a College degree. What you do need it focus, consistency, commitment, and a burning desire to succeed in this business.
03 October 2007
Internet Marketing How to Get Started
If you are going to market yourself on the internet you will need a domain name and eventually a website. Being a non-technical person, I was looking for a company that it made it easy for me to get a domain name and create a website without hiring a website designer. I found one called 1and1. I was so excited because with no prior experience I was able to create a website that looks professional and works well. (I'll post the link to it once is completed.) The best part was that at 10:00 on a saturday evening there was a live person who was able to help me and answer all my questions for FREE. Now that's service.
I'm not planning to focus much on this type of thing in my blog...but I know that I was thrilled when someone told me about 1and1 and so I thought other beginners would like to know about it too. Working from home should be so much easier now that we have computers. My understanding is that if you can optimize your website so that it can be found by the search engines, many, many, many people will see it and hopefully be interested in your business.
I'm not planning to focus much on this type of thing in my blog...but I know that I was thrilled when someone told me about 1and1 and so I thought other beginners would like to know about it too. Working from home should be so much easier now that we have computers. My understanding is that if you can optimize your website so that it can be found by the search engines, many, many, many people will see it and hopefully be interested in your business.
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