Have you come across the “Tabloids of the Internet”; forums and online scam sites that have placed negative comments about your particular company? As a business owner, no matter how good the business and products are with your company; someone will state a negative comment. That’s business and you can overcome that.
I have been doing a lot of searching and researching on Google and Yahoo! finding information about Online Scams and MLM or Network Marketing programs. Yes, there are so-called scams, but there are also legitimate opportunities as well. You have to look for them and be cautious, yet be diligent to be open to seeing both sides of the coin because it is very one sided looking at the so-called helpful scam information sites which can give you the Home Based Business Blues.
In all of the so-called scam sites I searched, I found a lot of people who are just negative people and it made me feel like I was a loser for thinking there is any legitimate opportunity out there. It was quite depressing. To me, that is the biggest SCAM; they steal your dreams and your vision! In fact, I had to listen to the Power of Positive Thinking to get my brain reprogrammed after the end of that!
I have to tell you that the sites which spoke ill of online businesses, home based businesses, MLM companies, Networking companies, etc. were one sided because almost everybody and their “peanut gallery” seemed to think that just because a product or service is sold by one of those means, it is too expensive and doesn’t work or the person is taking advantage of family and friends and is just a poor sucker. That is furthest from the truth! A wise person once said, "Fools are always certain, but wise men leave room for doubt".
Is working at a job the best thing a person could do for their financial situation and does a company they work for have their best interest at heart? For some people, “yes” for many people, “no”. How many times have you been laid off? A company will pay a person for their time and will determines how much to be paid, the hours when to work, when to go on vacation, and when to retire or not. Also, there are many jobs which do not EVEN provide any benefits! Oh, yes, and if you want to be paid more, you have to ask or wait for the annual review to hope for a raise or a promotion for your 2080+ hours of servitude each year. That time doesn’t include your commute time either, so you can add another 500 hours. For those working a home based business; their income and time is based upon the effort put into the program. Is working part-time for 2-5 years a lot of time to build up your own business? Yes, many people will quit because their vision gets trampled on by going to family and friends or reading a negative comment on the Internet. Yet even according to the SBA, over 50% of small businesses fail in the first year and 95% fail within the first five years.
I have also heard and read about how products from MLM are expensive. Yes, many are, but not all of them if a person can see the value in what they are getting. Let me ask…Does not the large department store chains, franchises, book stores, home town retail businesses, oil companies, real estate, jewelry and furniture stores to name just a few have expensive products and services to make money? YES! They make an average of 60% markup or more on their products and services. Have you been to a movie lately? How about spending $4 for a small soda? What about the consultant that charges $500 an hour, or the Doctor, Lawyer, Accountant, Financial Planner, or Mortgage Lender? Isn’t there a value and quality to them? I don’t hear anything about them over charging except when the bill comes due except, that’s the way it is and people accept it and pay it.
Would you purchase products or services from a stranger, friend or a family member first? I personally do not know why it is so frowned upon because products or a service sold by a person in MLM is trying to help another person with their particular situation. Perhaps some people think that the representative is going to make a commission from the sale, right? Although, at a job, many people do not directly deal with customers, but yet, they serve them. Does not the Leadership, Sales team and Professional Services teams directly work and serve the customers? Therefore, they also receive the biggest commissions when they get the sales and the employee is stuck with the same salary at the end of the day because that is their job. Right?
Yet, isn’t that why all businesses are in business; to make a commission above their overhead? Isn’t that why we spend thousands of dollars in overhead for our children and ourselves to go to school for the first 20+ years of our life and beyond so we can get a good job to help build and serve a business someone else built? We each have our own overhead each month to pay even if we do not have a business. You can just add up your personal budget and that is your overhead. Compared with a retail business on the street corner and the thousands it takes to keep it running each month, it is significantly less with an MLM company. Yes, there are requirements with each MLM company, yet if you realize that is a part of your overhead, it is really not any different than if you owned a business downtown, but it’s thousands of dollars less.
Now when someone gets tired of getting laid off because the companies they have worked at were looking at their bottom line. Most likely, the company is not looking at you who have helped them for years, it’s the dollar! Therefore, eventually you will start searching for something you can work out of your home that does not cost you “tons of time”, an “Arm and a Leg” or your “firstborn” and is not a “scam”. There are good businesses out there! However, do not give in to the victimized thought from the scam sites or negative forums! That will cause a “paralysis of the analysis” and will equal zero results in getting started with your own business. Once you start a business, there are hurdles that you did not see, so work through them not around them.
Over the past decade the networking business is gaining much more popularity and is gaining respect from people such as Robert T. Kiyosaki and Donald Trump in their book, “Why We Want You to Be Rich”. Since there is a low risk in capital and a good proving ground to see if you do have what it takes to build your own business from the ground floor if you have done your homework. I would suggest, do not go to the scam sites on the Internet. You will walk away from them feeling the weight of the world on your shoulders as if you were just dumped on and will not want to do anything, but sulk. They are so negative and have nothing to say good about anything except their site.
Be prepared to investigate a home based business that you think you could do well at. Your choice of a company will depend on whether you are business oriented or product oriented. Be proactive and ask a lot of questions such as;
1. How long has the company been in business and what is their track record complying with laws of the USA and Internationally? Anything under 5 years is risky.
2. What makes this business model distinct from other business in the industry?
3. How are the products created, manufactured, and where?
4. What kind of science is behind the product and has the company conducted independent research and studies as well?
5. Who are the owners and those running the company? You can Google them to find out more information on them.
6. How does the compensation plan work? The following is personal advice from me…Binary programs, Force Matrixes, and One-up programs are hard to understand for many people and rarely are a long-term business. People have lost a lot of money in them and 99% of them fail within the first 3 years. They do not last, whereas a Uni-level program is much safer and lucrative in the long run.
7. What is the Buy-in to get involved and is it necessary to get to the higher levels? My advice…I’d stay away from any program that requires a large buy-in if you pay more money. Large buy-in to me is, “What am I willing to lose?”
8. Call the Customer Service department to see how they handle calls. Is it Out-Sourced or is it In-House?
9. Is there inventory that needs to be purchased? Usually get them from large buy-ins.
10. What are the requirements to be paid your commissions each month?
11. What kind of marketing structure is available to help you succeed at the business?
12. Very importantly, who you join with will determine how successful you will be in the business. A helpful and available support structure is critical to succeeding.
13. What kind of training, support, resources and tools does the company have to help you be successful?
These questions and suggestions can help you get started on the right track and will help you on your quest for finding a good home-based business, because they are out there. Remember, a person can find negatives along with positives in everything when it comes to any type of business or job, but it’s that attitude that will determine what a person will make of their particular situation. Remember, not everyone will buy from you (even your family or friends), or appreciate what you are doing…you have to overcome that. There is a universal law that is, “You get what you get because you expect it, so therefore you get it…good or bad.” Expect the best and plan for it because eventually you will achieve it!
