Networking Marketing/MLM's

Building a business can be rewarding yet scary at times. Especially when the business you're building is a Network Marketing or MLM (multi level marketing) business. Unfortunately, people become leery when they hear about MLM's. This is due to the unpopular press MLM's received in the past (namely the '90's and early 2000's) when companies like Amway Corporation were found guilty by the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) for engaging in some illegal activities*...Namely price fixing and exaggerated income claims.

For the record, an MLM is a marketing structure that compensates distributors of a certain product/products for not only the sales they generate through selling the product, but also through the recruitment of others. The recruitment of these new distributors establishes a hierarchy (which includes multiple compensation levels) and the new distributors brought into the business by the initial distributor is called a downline.

This direct marketing strategy is the reason many MLM businesses are successful. Also, most MLM's use word of mouth as the main advertising source, which proves more successful than other ad campaigns.

There are many Ponzi and pyramid schemes pretending to be MLM's. Be leery of those. Do your research, contact the Better Business Bureau if necessary. If it sounds too good to be true, it just might be. Every business requires work. Very rarely, if ever, you will gain a return (whether big or small) on a business who have not put any work in.

*Wikipedia used as reference (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-level_marketing).