Once you have identified and researched a network marketing company you will want to evaluate its viability as a business opportunity. While the above steps are in place to find a credible business that fits you it is important to evaluate if you can make money as a distributor (it’s a business after all).
Evaluation should primarily focus on four key areas: products, timing, market, and support systems.
Product – While the majority of network marketing companies promote luxury items, it is a great advantage to find an opportunity to promote something people need.
Whether in a recession or after the loss of a job, it is much easier to promote a product people ‘need’ instead of something they ‘want’. The old adage of “selling ice to an eskimo” is not a position you want to put yourself in, regardless of your sales experience. Network marketing is not sales; it is sorting.
Another consideration is the diversity of the product line as (in this case) more is better. It is already difficult to change someone’s purchasing habits and it is exponentially harder to change them all at once.
Remember how most of network marketing is about educating the consumer? Well with a massive catalog it can take significant time to train someone to be an avid product user. For this reason it is recommended to find an opportunity with a network marketing company that is somewhat focused.
Timing – When you are evaluating a network marketing business it can be a huge opportunity to get in early. This can often be a risk (less so if you follow the above steps), but offers even greater rewards.
When you are evaluating whether to join a company based on its age make sue you also evaluate the level of risk. As most network marketing have a very low investment your greater risk will often be time, but neither element will be as traumatic as losing millions in a failed traditional business.
The Harvard Business Review classifies any network marketing business with less than 50,000 distributors “Cutting Edge” while any company with less than 100,000 distributors is classified as “Ground Floor”. Getting in early to a network marketing business promoting a product that everyone needs and no one knows about is kind of the golden goose in terms of rating an opportunity.
While the opportunity of a young company is much greater the business as a whole is much more fluid and its longevity is tied directly to the decisions of the leadership.
For this reason it is recommended to do additional research on the leadership team of a new network marketing company.
Market – Similar to the ‘Competition’ analysis in the ‘Research’ stage above you will want to evaluate the market of the network marketing business you are about to enter. Is this a market that will grow with time or does the opportunity have an expiration date? Are you competing with companies using a traditional business model who are spending millions of dollars on advertising? What is the differentiating factor between your product(s) and others on the market? Identifying a network marketing company that is unique, but not impossible to explain, will make your promotional efforts much more effective.
Support Systems – Regardless of what business you are planning to launch (network marketing or otherwise) you will want to rely on the skills and expertise of people who have more experience than you. Try not to fall into the mindset that you know everything, there is always more to learn. Historically, the people who have no idea what they’re doing are faster to make big checks because they follow the training exactly.
A wealth of training systems, support teams, and educational tools at your disposal is a huge asset to your business. Ask a distributor if you are able to take a look at their back office and training system so you can see if it will be of use to you. Joining a team of distributors that have regular meetings to present the opportunity is a valuable asset in which you can rely.
Making A Decision & Getting Involved In Network Marketing
Go through the steps listed above and find a network marketing opportunity that is right for you. Remember not to go at it alone and ask for the advice of those around you while keeping in mind that if you buy someone’s opinion, you buy their lifestyle.
Don’t take advice from grouchy people who live paycheck to paycheck and instead seek out the guidance of people who are both happy and successful.
“Network marketing isn’t a get rich quick business. It’s a get rich slow business, but that is a hell of a lot better than a get rich never business.”
