The Multi-level marketing industry has gotten away from its roots, the foundation on which it was originally created.  In recent years, the industry has thrown away the model of yesterday, which focused on the individual achievement, measure by how much product or service a given individual, or group of individuals, could move.  The heavy emphasis on MLM Prospecting, as it relates to recruiting, has taken the industry from a good, solid alternative for the average person to make some extra money, to hype-driven, almost evangelistic, approach to suck people in by promising them fortune and fame, while offering little real help on accomplishing either.

Think about this – if you MLM company truly had a great product or service to offer to the marketplace, why wouldn’t they simply have it stocked on the shelf of the local grocery store or Costco?  If they really had a service, second to none, that was competitively priced to sell in the marketplace, why would they want you out there pitching it to your friends and family, following their training on MLM Prospecting?  The answer is simple – as my good friend likes to say, “follow the money.”  That’s right, most modern day MLM companies have figured out that they make the most money that way.

Take the average “juice company”, for example.  They know that there are a thousand different ‘miracle’ juices out there in the marketplace, already.  They know that!  They also are smart enough to know that it would be almost financial suicide to sink 40 million dollars into research and development, setting up plants, hiring a huge staff and a marketing department, spending millions on promotion, etc.  They know that is a very risky game.  After all, they’re competing against giants in the industry – companies like Welch’s and Minutemaid.  But, if they instead build their business model around network marketing and training people on MLM Prospecting, they can be up and running, and profitable, within 1 year.  Wow!  No wonder so many MLM launches are happening every year.

The networking marketing model, centered around distributor training on MLM Prospecting, is a good thing for the company, as we’ve discussed.  The question you have to ask yourself, however, is whether or not participating in this type of model is worthwhile for you and your family.  After all, if you’ve ever been in the MLM industry, or if you’re involved now with MLM, I’m guessing you’re trying to make extra money.  Oh sure, there’s the occasional “purest” who just does it for the ‘love’ of the industry, etc., but, for the most part, people want to make money!  But, are you making any money?  If not, why not?  If you are, is the money you’re making worth your time?  I mean, it should be obvious to you by now that time is more valuable than money. So you need to ask yourself if MLM Prospecting for your company, the way your company has taught you is worth your time.  I’m willing to bet, in most cases, it is not.

There are a few good companies out there that have structured their training and their comp plans to make it worth your time– they are at the forefront of what I believe is a huge industry shift that’s underway.  I, for one, am avoiding traditional MLM Prospecting and instead am placing my focus on promoting the products and services of one of these companies. If you’d like more information on what I’m involved with, you can learn more about it at www.MLMRescuePlan.com.