Christina Aguilera & 7 Tell-Tale Signs of MLM...

  Written by Raymond Fong on Jul 26, 2010 1:25 am

Read More: Companies

Earlier today I had lunch with David Schwind and Jim Yaghi up here in Sacramento and for some odd reason... we started talking about female singers - the likes of Mariah Carey, Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, and Christina Aguilera (I belive it was Jim who started the conversation... don't deny it Jim!)

We were musing how they each are amazing in their own rights from cerrtain perspective...  Mariah has a killer voice.  Lady Gaga has an amazing stage presence.  Britney Spears use to be hot...  And Christina does the "tough naked" thing pretty well. 

But each of them are also pretty "messed up in their own right.  Mariah got umm... healthy, REALLY healthy.  Lady Gaga is plain ol' "weird".  Britney Spears fell off the wagon.  And Christina is Lady Gaga wanna be.

(These are JUST our opinions, please don't hate us for them, but if you must *shrugs*.)

Here's the thing though, they are all famous and all make money and depending on what you look for in a female singer, you can be attracted to some of them, and be totally turned off by others.

This is No Different in the MLM World

When it comes to choosing a MLM, you have to realize that each have their strenghts and weaknesses and that while some may be perfectly suitable for you - given your passion, desires, strengths, persona, etc. - others will cause your stomach to turn.

There is no one "perfect" MLM opportunity.  So what I've done is distill MLM companies down into 7 key traits that you must consider when deciding if a network marketing buisness opportunity is right for you or not. 

Match each of these 7 traits to your MLM or any other MLM companies and decide if you are in an opportunity suitable for your growth and success. 

Here they are...

1. Does the Company Allow Its Distributors to Use Its Brand Name?

Simply put, do you get in trouble if you so much as publicly mention the company’s name and announce that you are a distributor?  Does their legal police come knocking and threatening you with a lawsuit on the basis of trademark infringement?

Ideally, find a company that allows you to utilize their brand name. Second best… find one that has some qualifications.  To me, a company that REFUSES to let its distributors use its name is just making it more challenging for its distributors to promote.

2. Analyze the RISK Factor

Welcome to the business world where risk is an inherent aspect of our daily lives :)

See, it’s not a matter of finding a company with NO risk, that’s impossible.  Everything in business requires you giving up SOMETHING for the possibility of gaining something in return.  It’s a matter of mitigating the risks involved and being okay with those risks considering your investment and the possibility of losing it all.

Ask yourself what you are/will be giving up to be a part of this business opportunity - give up in terms of money, time, effort, etc.  Then ask yourself... do the (potential) rewards justify these things you are giving up?

3. How Good is the Product?

If a product blows, is overpriced, and/or undesirable, that makes for a pretty tough business model to build on eh?  Examine the product carefully, don't get sucked in by the razzle-dazzle compensation plan, that comp plan means jack if you can't sell the product and can't get anyone excited about selling the product.

4. What’s the Compensation Plan Like?

This is simple... WILL you get paid and WILL you get paid enough within the timeframe you want? 

Some MLM companies have compensation plans that pay you well while others have compensation plans that only PRETEND to pay you.  Get me?

5. Is the Training All Just “Hoo-Rah-Rah”?

You know how this goes... when you show up for functions, meeting, and live events, are they all just “hoo-rah-rah” or do they actually have any sustenance? 

If they are all just about pumping you up, then how do you expect to grow as business person trying to grow a sizable business?  Find a company that is interested in developing you as a person, entrepreneur, and marketer.

6. Does It Allow You to Market the Way YOU Want to Market?

It’s called network/multi level MARKETING for a reason.. because the idea is that you are suppose to MARKET your business/those products – I know, what a concept right?

So how much freedom are you permitted when marketing this company and its products?  Is there any red-tape you need to be aware of?

Ultimely, if you cannot market the way you want to market, the way that works for you... then it really doesn't matter how amazing the opportunity and products are.  If you can't get the word out, your business will NOT grow.

7. Personal Experience… So Far

You may not have had much experience with that specific company but maybe you’ve had SOME.  From what you’ve seen and know so far, how do they make you feel?

How did/does your upline and team make you feel?  At the end of the day, if, for whatever reason, you have some negative feelings toward this opportunity, you ought to examine why and perhaps even considering something else that makes you feel better.

There ya go, the 7 factors we decided on when reviewing your (or any) MLM opportunities.  These are by no means complete but they are a good start.  I'd love to heat your thoughts and get your feedback on these 7 factors.  Looking for your comment below, thanks!
To the top,

Raymond Fong

*** Click here to get my "Network Marketer's Shortcut Guide - 7 Tell-Tale Signs That'll Accelerate Your MLM Growth" and get the questions YOU need to ask concerning these 7 tell-tale signs. ***


 

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About the Author: Raymond Fong

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Member Since: 11/15/2007

I'm a Distributor For:: Numis Network

Other Company: Affinity Integration, LLC

Industry: Consulting

Primary Web Site: http://www.RaymondFong.net/

Comments

Lady Gaga Is The Best

Lady Gaga is the best with her lyrics because you have to be funny when you sing!! She is in her song...Ra Ra Ra Ra!!!

Lawrence Bergfeld — Mon, 07/26/2010 - 7:22am

Very good stuff - most of what you mentioned...

Can be answered in their Policies and Procedures. Yes its a pretty dry instrument. Here is what I have found: if they spend 20-40 pages on legaleeze garbage you can take your feet and run! Is the policies written in plain language that your neighbor, yourself, your teenager can understand? If so there is great hope. Also how many pages are there? It doesn't have to take 40 pages to tell you how to run your business. Yes there has to be rules they need to be straight forward and down to earth.

I appreciate what you said about their name. If you have become a distributor of XYZ Company, then you should be able to put that out there. If you have to hide it then how do you promote it?

I agree with you also about the training. There should be a combination of both the actual face-to-face training and online-or phone support training. Most of us have uplines and downlines that are all over the place, there should be multiple ways to communicate and get the help you want!

Sometimes the company is great but you have to look outside for training, if you have found that to be true, I can help!

Lynda Cromar
303-386-4666 anytime

http://LYNDAS-SUCCESSBOOK.COM

Lynda Cromar — Mon, 07/26/2010 - 9:30am

Great Material

This info might seem basic for the veterans out there, personally thoughts like this provoke your mind to think about your possible business opportunity's pros & cons. Thanks for the tips.

Saul Godoy — Mon, 07/26/2010 - 9:46am

If I may ask

What company did you pick? What is the primary MLM opportunity your are building? I mean not a top-tear, a real, deep, mass driven MLM model?

Riccardo Ferrari — Mon, 07/26/2010 - 10:02am

Big Topic Raymond

These are all good points.

I come from the old model Amway business
in the 80"s and 90's and for me in the beginning
all I saw and heard was Rah-Rah..standing
on chairs and all that stuff.

That get's old fast once you realize...hey
I'm doing this as a business...or not.

Some in my group never got that we were
in a business.

So with my somewhat anal personality I did
start to look at my distributorsip as a business
and got serious and did quite well.

I probably took most of those points you
mentioned into consideration as I treated it as
a business after that.

That was pre-internet and before all the shinny
new trinkets where available on a weekly and even
daily bases.

Anyway I've just picked a new Network to build
after not being in one for 5-6 years.

I had to learn online marketing for the last few years
which I have and am.

My passion has been fitness and anti-aging
which is why I picked the leading anti-aging
company in the world.

I'm not mentioning the company here because they
are my reasons and I don't want to debate
anyone about this.
I will say though that one of the major reasons
I picked them is they are 3 decades old , a billion dollar company and exploding again because of the
convergence of many trends.

So yes for new folks ...it's a good idea
to put some thought into which network you
want to dedicate your time to.

Nicholas Wind — Mon, 07/26/2010 - 10:25am

Cool point

Hi Lynda,

Excellent addition to Raymonds points. It made me think for a second. Thankfully, I got the answers I was looking for when I checked our companys P&P.

Thanks for your thoughts.

Owen

Owen McHale — Mon, 07/26/2010 - 1:28pm

May I add.....

Good info for the newbie and for the seasoned marketers to review their own businesses. The one I fell trap to was support material costing way too much, a lot of these companies make more money in this area than in their product.

Jack Shea — Mon, 07/26/2010 - 2:29pm

Good stuff

Thanks for the feedback! Gave me more ideas to toss around (especially the expensive training part hmm...)

@Riccardo - check out the link at the bottom of the post

Raymond Fong — Mon, 07/26/2010 - 2:44pm

MLM ???

I had a look at your list and must admit, if you can actually get a MLM company that delivers on those 7 points, then you would have a much better chance of making it work. Up to now I have not seen or heard of any Co that complies. For example, if they did let you use their name say in your own web site, imagine what some blockheads would get up to. MLM is just as restrictive as a Franchise, and in some ways you can see why the companies have to do it. If you are a lone ranger, then maybe MLM is not for you.

Kerry Erasmus — Mon, 07/26/2010 - 6:27pm

Got It Raymond!!!

Great information... All is this is very true.

It took me six months to boil it down to the company I am in.

Something about doing your homework... Great instructions..

Again Thank You,

Your Friends,

Danny & Laura

Danny & Laura J... — Mon, 07/26/2010 - 8:50pm

Thanks for the great ideas

Thanks for the great ideas of what to look for .I look at MLM opportunity ,in some of the same ways I would look at a investment in the stock market 1 who is running the company
2.how long have they been is business are they making a good profit,and who is their main competition in the market place .Then I pay my money and take my chances.

fred st.john — Mon, 07/26/2010 - 11:34pm

Great Catchy Title!

Equally great article giving lots of food for thought. I also agree with Jack Shea's point of training. It should be included (or at least readily available) so that you don't spend more "learning" your business than actually "doing" your business.
Can't wait to see what you write next.
Nancy

Nancy James — Mon, 07/26/2010 - 11:46pm

Training

One of the things that is critical for me is WHO is running the company, the transparency they offer, the training tools they have available and the communication from distributors to upline and to corporate office. All those things really need to be in place for me. I finally realized I needed to stop getting ready to get ready.
Anyone know what I mean?? :)

Aleta Batz — Tue, 07/27/2010 - 8:13pm

Great checklist!

I like these 7 points. There could be more but this looks essential. Do I have your permission to reproduce this article on my blog? By the way, I grew up with Mariah Carey and heard she's damn good in Precious :)

Nelson Tan — Wed, 07/28/2010 - 8:43am

Great guidelines...

It's always seemed to me that if I'm an INDEPENDENT business associate, I should be able to market the way I want to market. If an MLM company wants to control their distributors activities that carefully, they should hire commissioned sales reps instead of "independent" associates. It is, after all, the distributor who is taking all the risk...

John Zehr — Thu, 07/29/2010 - 9:58am

Great MLM Advice

Thanks Raymond, I wish I had this information when I first started in MLM. This is great advice for so many that are looking to succeed in a network marketing company. It gives them a reason to work hard and have belief.

Rick Salas — Thu, 07/29/2010 - 11:40am

Sactown

Hey, it was good hanging with you and the boys in Sactown. Good post, this is really a checklist that more people should consult when analyzing a company, there are some companies out there that won't even let you talk about them on your facebook. That is sheer craziness and they just don't get it.

I also hate it when people say the product doesn't matter, well, it may not matter at first but eventually, some poor schmuck ends up with a garage full of crap and unhappy. If you would not be interested in getting a ton of the product, you might think twice!

See ya around bro!

Ray Higdon — Fri, 07/30/2010 - 7:18am

Dumb Luck

I don't keep it a secret that I "married" into MLM afer blowing off multiple invitations over the years. I was fat and happy with a big paycheck clueless about the benfits of MLM.

And I have to admit that I got lucky in landing where I did. My company is not too fussy, not too complicated and not too demanding and at the same time has never missed a check and provides plenty of back up.

Even from the comments here you can see that our industry is made up of different personalities.

I think the thing I appreciate most is the comment about 'Rah-Rah'. I can still remember my first few meetings and thinking "where's the beef".

There is some inspiration to be found in pounding music and applause and, sometimes, in standing on chairs but that has to be backed up with some bare-knuckles training. Nothing builds belief like selling something.

Great Post!

Tom Bradley — Fri, 07/30/2010 - 9:26pm

Great Stuff

Thanks Raymond

After being in MLM for so long, it is refreshing to take a review. So many things to learn, but this is good information to pass on to the team after personal EVALUATION.

I had gotten so sick of all the meetings and hype that I had quit marketing because the team was not going anywhere or making money...rah rah rah

I believe my company has passed the test because they are out for the cause of GOING GREEN an protecting the environment. It took a little revamping but the relaunch of a NEW and IMPROVE company is ripe for me.

Thanks again for sharing!

Earline "Tina" ... — Tue, 08/03/2010 - 5:56pm

Thanks!

This is great information. While I was already confident that I had made the right choice of company, your information put a bow on it. The secret is to find the right company for YOU. I am confident that the Trump Network is the right company for me. And, at the end of the day, that's what matters.

Tammie Lang — Tue, 08/10/2010 - 6:54am

Well, I think now if you

Well, I think now if you want to be a successful MLM you should like Lady Gaga cause she’s really successful. Don’t be like Britney. -GAR Labs

GAR Labs — Mon, 08/29/2011 - 12:41pm
 

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