Choosing the right network marketing opportunity can be a scary process. On one hand, you’re anxious to start building substantial income, but on the other you’re worried about choosing the right network marketing company. You’re not alone, most people I help are actually in the same boat you are.
As such, I’ve compiled a list of what I would consider the Top Five questions to ask any network marketing company. Keep in mind that these aren’t all-inclusive, but they’ll give you a good starting point.
1. What Product or Service will you be selling?
Every network marketing company sells something, that’s just the way this industry works. (For that matter, it’s the way commerce as a whole works). But what is it exactly that this company offers? Is it something you find value in? Would you buy it even if you weren’t involved in the company? Would you buy it at Wal-Mart if it was available?
Forget the fast-talking person trying to get you enrolled for a moment, you need to make sure this is something you can personally believe in. Selling is believing, and believe me you’ll absolutely HATE network marketing if you exhaust yourself trying to sell something you despise.
Buy a sample, or better yet, have the company or a distributor offer you a sample for free. Try it out yourself, and make plenty of mental notes. Make sure it’s something you can stand behind, because a genuine personal testimonial is one of the most persuasive sales tools.
If you don’t like it, it doesn’t work or you just don’t believe in it, run for the hills. Even if the product is genuine, you’re going to be a very unhappy network marketer if you invest countless hours, dollars or both into this.
More importantly, is there a market for the product or service? It doesn’t matter how much you like it if nobody is willing to buy it.
2. How does the Compensation Plan work?
Compensations systems, compensation plans, comp plans… These are known by a variety of names, but all they really do is explain how the money flows through the network. This is made even more complicated by the fact that nearly every company has its own version, with intricate ins and outs that can baffle even the most process-oriented person. (There are some out there that even I don’t understand!).
Make someone sit down and explain the system. How does it work? What is the “ideal” structure? How many people do you need to accomplish your goals (and how would they be organized in your network?). Ask every question you can think of, and don’t stop until you fully understand the entire plan. This is little policy is what’s going to determine your income, so make sure you understand it front and back.
Does the “comp plan” seem reasonable? How does it compare against other companies? Can you map out a ‘game plan’ right off the bat? That is, can you determine where your first three people you’ll sign up will go? Should they go directly underneath you? Should you stack them under each other? Which gives you the greatest benefit? What about the first 10 people? The first 25?
Also ask what power people above you have. Can they move your downline without your permission? This happens sometimes so that it’ll better benefit them, even though it hurts you.
3. Can you Retail (sell) the Product or Service outside of your network?
While network marketing is product/service-based, different companies take different approaches to this question. Some literally won’t let you sell the product or service directly, they’ll only let you recruit people into the network so they can buy their own stuff. In other words, you can only buy from yourself – and if anyone wants “in” they’ll have to join the company.
Others let you sell the products or services directly to consumers, and usually for a decent price markup.
Both have advantages and disadvantages, and the correct answer really depends on your personal preference.
Personally I don’t like companies that won’t let me sell the product, and for two big reasons.
- I like having that second income opportunity that comes from outside retail sales. I’ve actually positioned my products in several places throughout the Internet, and make a decent amount of money from each. And the added retail markup (the difference between my wholesale cost and the price I charge customers) makes this very worthwhile. Not only is it money in my pocket, buy my upline isn’t complaining either! And consequently I’ve put on several workshops for my personal network on how they can do this themselves.
- A company you can’t buy from without joining up tells me that the product/service doesn’t stand on its own. I truly feel that selling quality stuff that you believe in plays a big role in your success. Granted we sell Products and Opportunities, but I think this should be a 50/50 scenario; but if you can’t retail from a company, it tells me that the mix is really 100/0.
But non retailers do have some advantages. Well, one. It’s easier to recruit people into your business if it’s their only means of obtaining the product or service. If you’re into that, great. But to me it seem really fishy – and you’ll find that most of your leads will too.
4. Can you still work with other Network Marketing companies?
It’s amazing to me that so many network marketing companies outright prohibit you from signing up with other MLMs. I can kind of understand the idea of non-compete, but in my mind that only means MLMs that offer similar products, such as Mona Vie and Jus International.
Don’t get me wrong, I definitely DON’T recommend going out and signing up with a handful of companies all at once, but I do feel it’s important to have the option of expanding your wings once you’ve built a decent business with the first. Otherwise you’re putting all of your eggs in one basket.
Most network marketing companies frown on people joining multiple MLMs, and that doesn’t necessarily make them bad. It just means I don’t agree with them. Read the company policies on this, because it is important. If you have any questions, I strongly recommend calling the actual company customer service line for clarification – they know the legalities of the company inside and out, probably better than the eager wanna-be upline sitting across from you.
Some people prefer staying with one company, and if you’re in that boat, that’s fine. Nothing wrong with that at all. Just be aware of your options heading in so you don’t get surprised later.
5. How can you market your business?
As a marketing guy, this is one of my favorite questions. Before joining the network marketing world, I built a career in marketing. I know how to get my message in front of lots of people, and ultimately I know how to build my own network marketing leads through my own methods. But some companies frown on this, they’d prefer you stay inside the old-school “traditional” prospect-to-person approach.
If you’re an outgoing people person who has hours to waste by prospecting up and down your city, by all means go for it. But in today’s world, you’ll be making the whole process much harder than it need to be.
Leads are important – they’re more than important, they’re the lifeblood of your network marketing business. Wouldn’t you rather have the option to prospect and build leads through effective, legal and successful methods? Even if you choose to spend your time shaking hands, having the option is nice.
And from personal experience, if it weren’t for my non-traditional network marketing approach, based on my experiences as a professional marketer, my business wouldn’t be where it is today.
Conclusion
So there you have it, five big questions to ask any network marketing company before you join. By knowing where the company stands on these issues, you’ll have a better sense of the business you can build, the money you can make and the opportunities you’ll have. See, not so scary, huh?