I get tons of questions from people about why some people do and some don’t make it in network marketing.

So, why do 97% of people who join and MLM fail?  Similarly, what’s the secret to success for the other 3% in this industry?

There are plenty of answers to these questions, but  here are the 6 most common.

1. They treat their business like a part-time hobby.  Even if you are part time, treating your business like a hobby is bound to produce very little.   Network Marketing is a BUSINESS and must be treated as such.  Just like becoming a MD requires education, so does learning to become a skilled network marketer.

2. They don’t believe in what they are doing.  Too often people go into this game “wanting” to create success, yet they don’t fully believe in what they do.  Doubting the business model you have joined is a guaranteed recipe for failure.

3. They lie to themselves.  People often kid themselves into believing they are actually conducting REVENUE PRODUCING ACTIVITIES, yet the reality is that many of them are simply being BUSY.  If you aren’t prospecting and exposing, you really ARE NOT doing network marketing…. it’s only marketing!  You must be on the phone for it to be networking!

4. They place blame everywhere else but on themselves.  People who don’t create commissions quickly point the finger at their sponsor, the company, the products, the tools or any other myriad of choices.  Bottom line:  If people are making money in your company and you aren’t, look in the mirror.  The cool thing is that in the end, YOU get to BLAME YOU for your SUCCESS or your failure.  I don’t know about you, but I think it’s a lot more fun blaming yourself for a big check!

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Foundation: (noun) – the basis or ground work of anything.

You need a strong foundation for anything that you try to build.  That may be a house, a snow fort, a sky-scraper, even pitching a tent.  This is equally true if you’re building an MLM business.

Although you may not believe it, your “company” is not the foundation.  Your product isn’t either, nor is the compensation plan or your upline support or company training.  Each of these add to the overall strength, but they’re not the foundation.

YOU are your MLM biz’s foundation.  You are the rock upon which your future success is built.

Wow!  Daunting, isn’t it?

In terms of buildings, if the foundation is poor, a building will fall apart from the bottom up.  It will rot, fall in, tip over, crumble… basically lose all value and become worthless.

What is the “foundation otherwise known as YOU”?  It’s the compilation of your wisdom and understanding that you make available to your reps.  teach.

This is what is loosely called “a system”.  This marketing system must be reproduceable by your team reps so they can in turn teach their own reps.

Here’s the basics of what you need to build a strong foundation for your MLM business.

1.  Committment.  This is a no brainer.  You must be committed to working at building your business.  You need to have realistic expectations.  Building a business in network marketing is not like playing the lottery: you won’t get rich in 3 months.  Make a plan, and stick to it!

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I was recently at a weekend seminar with Hal Perkins for a course titled “If Jesus Were A Parent”, based on his book by the same name.

Besides the eye opening methods about how to effectively disciple to my children to guide them into the world as disciples of Christ, I realized that much of what he said is true for a network marketing business too.

Before I get too far with this post, I hope I don’t offend anyone with the concept of creating an analogy between disciple building and MLM organization building.  Bear with me a few minutes and you’ll see the parallel…

As Hal went over many different aspects of how to take the principles of discipleship into everyday life, I was amazed at how much of a cross over there is into a relationship building business such as network marketing.

At the core of the message was that there needs to be implementation of basic principles of listening to others on a regular basis to help them meet their needs.

If you wish your children to become disciples of Jesus Christ, you need to create a relationship with them and with the church.  They need to have focused attention and leadership on a regular basis through their formative years until they have the knowledge to become disciples themselves.

Your MLM biz is a relationship based business whereby you are leading and teaching your reps until they have the ability to go out on their own with the necessary tools to do the same thing.  Fortunately you are not likely to require 15 + years to get your reps ready to go forth.

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How committed are you to building an online MLM empire?

If you are serious about marketing your MLM online, you need to treat your advertising campaign like a business. You are the President and CEO of You Inc., and you must weigh every business decision as though there were millions of dollars at stake. Sure, it would be awesome to roll out of bed at noon, post some content in your robe and slippers while you sip coffee on your couch, but the reality is that most of us can’t afford to do that.

You have to measure your daily work in results. The number of  hours spent typing on Facebook or Twitter is not a result: it’s a means to the result.

Replying to e-mails and building relationships is a necessity, but each activity must be viewed as a investment of your precious time.  You can’t put all your energy here to the effect of neglecting other areas of marketing.

As most network marketers run their business as an individual instead of as a group, only so much work can get done in a day.  Time efficiency is an absolute requirement.  Instead of a random approach, there must be a strict plan of action to achieve measurable results.

You got into network marketing because you wanted to make money to have the freedom that comes with it.   Don’t lie to yourself that it’s too hard and you don’t have the time or ability.

Work relentlessly at achieving your goals.

Mike Dillard spent 4 years to become an overnight success.  Cedrick Harris begain network marketing in 1993, and became an industry leader only inthe last couple of years.  The best in our industry struggled and suffered through the lean times to become who they are today.

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I know people that buy new golf clubs every year, expecting the newest, most expensive set will make them a better golfer.

Is that how you run your MLM life?

But… is it the club?

Or is it the golfer that scores well?

Unfortunately, it’s wrong to expect that something external can cause significant changes when the same swing will get the same result!

This is the same affliction I have heard of countless times in network marketing.  People are quick to decide that all they need for success is something new.

Their old MLM company is – for some reason – not getting them what they are after.  The comp plan isn’t good enough.  The product is out dated.  There’s too many competing products.  There’s always an excuse.

The general theme of chaning business is this…

People are looking for an external cause of their failures!

Thus, they change the meaningless external influences to try to improve rather than change their own internal issues.

However, it’s internal tools and implementation – practice using them – that leads to success.

I’m absolutely certain that if I had the worlds best clubs, and gave Tiger Woods my grandfather’s 1970’s vintage clubs, he would still crush me!

What I’m getting at here – if you haven’t already guessed – is that the tools of success are not external.  Tiger has a better set of internal tools than any other golfer he plays against.   Those tools have made him successful.

That’s why there are people in MLM’s that are successful, regardless of the product or company. They have learned, practiced and implemented an internal set of tools that work.

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By now you’ve likely heard the term “attraction marketing” .  But do you have a good description of what it is.

It was not entirely foreign to me, but prior to my education on what it really is to market this way, I had been on the other side…

Companies have done this for years…  maybe you’ve seen some of them?

Home Depot does this type of marketing…  They have free classes at their stores on decorating, painting, building patios… they have books for purchase that teach people how to build, plumb, wire…

So what does this do?  It creates customer loyalty, and when the customer is looking at their next project, they look in the book for what materials and tools they need…

And where do you think the go shopping at?  Home Depot?

Exactly!

This is what attraction marketing  does.

It places you as an expert in the field, such that when someone is looking for a particular item or service,  they will come to you!

In network marketing, this is a powerful piece of leverage!  You position yourself so that people who want to have a successful network marketing business seek you over anyone else, thus putting already committed network marketers into your business.

They want to be there, and you do not have to sell them anything.  It does not matter what your company or product is, because you are what they are buying for your value as a leader… you’ve attracted them to you by showing that you have value – can teach them how to lead and build a profitable networking business.

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Ever wondered what happened to the reps you signed up?   Why did they stop working at building their down-lines and disappear?

In the past, I’ve had reps do the same thing in my organization.

There were sign-ups in my organization I was sure would become MLM rock stars, but they withered away at the first sign of difficulty.  They didn’t get the immediate roll of income from their MLM and they decided it was time to move on to something else.

Here’s what I’ve learned…

The top 7 reasons your reps quit your MLM are:

7.  Natural born quitters.   Not overly profound a concept here, but you know the type.  They quit jobs, they quit marriages, they quit school.  They quit almost most anything except making excuses because there’s no drive or determination to do what’s necessary to succeed.  The fact that you’re reading this article shows you’re not in this category.

6.  I don’t mean to offend, but his group I term “Diarrhea of ideas, constipation of action”.  These people start all sorts of things but never follow through.  They often start many things  but never finish.  Likely they’ll have joined many MLM’s before yours.

5.  Emotional decision makers. They jump on board your opportunity early based on what they percieve to be a great opportunity.  These prospects will buy anything that gets them hyped up,  but at the first hint of not getting everything they want fast – aka money -  they jump ship to  join the next great opportunity they see.

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Can it be done?  Can you be ethically and morally market your MLM business and still make money?

Maybe in the past you’ve felt like you’re selling your soul in order to make a sale in your MLM business?

I don’t mean that you’re actually dealing with the devil – and I sincerely hope you’re not doing that… but you somehow feel  that, in the course of attempting to convert your prospect to a rep, you are dealing in deception.

Marketing and sales have always felt that way to me too.  I felt that in order to sell whatever product I had, there had to be some sort of angle.  It seemed there was no direct and ethical approach to sales.

I’ve been subjected to “up-selling”… that nefarious activity of selling an item and then notifying you that it needs all these other add-on items for it to actually work.

The “bait and switch” technique has angered me on many occasions too.  You get offered one thing -usually a spectacular offer to get you in the door – and then once you’re there, they require that you buy more to qualify for the spectacular deal.

Where’s the integrity?

These kinds of tactics drive me absoultely nuts. And they’re why I have always had an aversion to selling… anything.

Likely it’s happened to you also… many more times than you care to remember.

So how do you ethically and morally market your MLM… and still make money?

I’ll let you in on a secret here…

You’re not selling anything but YOURSELF… and if that lacks moral or ethical balance, your MLM biz will never succeed.

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There is something very wrong with our health care industry.
Yeah, this is supposed to be a blog about network marketing… just bear with me a second, because we’re going there after an analogy…
Having worked in health care for 12+ years, I’ve seen – what I would call – a self serving industry grow in the direction of creating dependence.  Patients are told they have to come back, that they cannot take care of their problems on their own and that they require ongoing treatment.  Dependence = money.  Plain and simple.  Keep them coming back, take care of the symptoms, but never treat the cause of the problem.  If patients keep coming back, so does money.
This is a gross disservice and I find it to be insulting of intelligence.  Personally, I won’t return to a provider who won’t make an effort to educate me about what I am being treated for and what I can do for myself.  Thus, in my health care career I have made it a point to educate.  Empowerment is a great thing.  Certainly, there are those who for some reason can’t or won’t take advice and continue to rely on me for care, but this is of their own choice.  I still take every opportunity to help them learn how to help themselves.
Ok, you’ve been waiting patiently for how this semi-rant has any comparison to network marketing.  If you’ve been in networking for some time, you may have run into a MLM team that is operated like your HMO plan: team leaders who give you minimal amount of information on how you can keep your business healthy, old information that is not effective and keeps you returning for more support.  They run on the concept of get the new one in and out fast (sign anyone up), make them dependent (meetings and trainings), and never teach them fully how to succeed!
How did that work for you?  Did your MLM business grow and thrive?  Were you able to provide your downline an effective way to build their businesses?  Or, did you and your company flatline?  95% of network marketers experience this and fail.
Empowerment comes from knowlege that can be easily applied.  You can provide your downline with the information necessary to be able to help themselves and others.  They come to you when the run into new problems they don’t yet know how to solve.  When they are leaders of thier own group and ready for more, you again are positioned to educate them on how to grow their leadership skills.  This is kind of like going through rehab after an injury.  You start with small tasks, and when you can perform those, you graduate to bigger physical tasks until you are capable of doing everything on your own again.
Leaders help you implement the knowlege and skills that they teach you much the same way a therapist or provider teaches you more and more as you advance through the stages of healing.  They provide more information about other methods or systems you can use to improve once you have graduated to a point where you are capable to do more.
That information should come in a series of steps.  Once you have mastered one method of generating leads, it’s time to introduce another.  When you have figured out how to successfully convert your prospects more regularly, you learn another skill.  Your value improves in increments, and your team does the same.  Too much information at once and you overload the system and slow the progression.
Are you ready to get the education that has been holding you back from getting your MLM business healthy?

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I know people that buy new golf clubs every year, expecting the newest, most expensive set will make them a better golfer.  It always seem strange to me that they are so willing to give up on what they have with the illusion that there has to be a better club that will shave strokes from their game.

Personally, I have used the same set for years.  They were custom made for my measurements, swing speed and swing mechanics.  Sure, there are nicer, newer clubs I look at, but I have a good feel for what I have, and have practiced with them such that I am comfortable and consistent with them.  I guess I don’t feel a need to jump ship with the hope that something else will make me better just by changing something external.

This is the same affliction I have heard of countless times in network marketing.  People are quick to decide that all they need for success is something new.  Their old MLM is – for some reason – not getting them what they are after.  The comp plan isn’t good enough.  The product is out dated.  There’s too many competing products.  The number of excuses is astounding.  The general theme of chaning business is this: People are looking for the external elements that cause their failure, and they change the meaningless external influences to try to improve rather than change their own internal issues.

It’s the internal tools and implementation – practice using them – that leads to success.  I’m absolutely certain that if I had the worlds best clubs, and gave Tiger Woods my grandfather’s 1970’s vintage clubs, he would still crush me!  What I’m getting at here – if you haven’t already guessed – is that the tools of success are not external.  Tiger has a better set of internal tools than any other golfer he plays against.   Those tools have made him successful.

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