1.  Getting Grounded in the world of Network Marketing 

--by Dave Cleinman

IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT-- remember this, because at this early stage you have likely seen more offers, websites, schemes, ads, search results, and other marketing-based information than you ever thought possible.  Network marketing / internet-based business is a veritable universe of chaos waiting to trap the novice marketer and confuse them until they go broke!!  (And sadly, many do!)  The basic idea that you must wrap your head around is simply this:

If you want to market on the internet find a product or service that is in demand and stick with it until it stops making you money.  In-demand on the internet usually means knowledge, and it NEVER stops being in demand, so right away, you are in luck!

So you find a product, great!  Something like Ewen Chia's Opt-in Profits, which clearly and concisely teaches us how to build a subscriber list and turn them into a warm market.  How do you sell it, and to whom do you sell it?  These are the two basic questions that new marketers struggle with, sometimes even after years!  But the answer is quite simple.  In the case of Opt-in Profits, Ewen tells us exactly how to sell it, and also explains how to build a warm market who will buy it, and nearly anything else of value that we choose to sell.

This is the hallmark of high-value information products.  They tell you how to sell them, and exactly where and how to find buyers.  This is for two distinct reasons, both equally important and things you need to consider when pursuing products to sell or opportunities to promote.

1.  The owner of a quality product WANTS their products to sell, so they will generally have methods for selling them built into the product.  This increases their profit margin and keeps their affiliates satisfied and loyal.

2.  It would be useless to have an army of affiliates who have no idea what they are doing, and even worse an angry mob who has invested time, money, and effort into sales efforts and gotten nowhere with sales and made no money at all, if they did not LOSE it!  That would kill a product owner's reputation faster than they could take enough of a breath to say "Oh Damn!"

SO, what does this all mean?

1.  Find products, or opportunities with products, that are useful and in demand.  Start with ONE until you know your way around the system.  That could take a week, a month, or longer depending on your comfort level with the internet and its marketing systems.

2.  Ensure that the owner of those products/opportunities provides comprehensive training on how to successfully market them.

3.  Follow the lead of the successful marketers within a company or affiliate system, and if there is no communication regarding that, run, don't walk away, and find the support you need.

4.  After you have made a sale, make sure YOU GET PAID!!!  I once built a thirty member downline in a matrix program only to see the owner (who I hope went to jail) shuffle the matrix to increase his profit margin!!  I do not promote matrix programs any more, and never did after that!  Make sure everything is above board and that the owner fulfills their agreement with you.

This is a basic overview of how to start and how to make sure your start is smooth.  You don't have to be confused if you find one good product, follow the owner's system, and follow the lead of other successful affiliates.  If you focus on one thing and avoid "opportunity hopping" you will have success easier and faster than you thought possible. ◄

 2.  What is MLM?

--by Dave Cleinman

By now, you probably know that MLM stands for multi-level marketing.  And while it sometimes has a negative connotation, there are a lot of positive things to be said for it that should not be ignored because of the unethical behavior of some marketers and business people.

MLM is a structure in a company where the owner(s) of the company pay equal monies to "distributors" or salespeople, based on the building of their own personal sales force.  This is both equitable, since everyone starts on a level playing field, but also practical, since it reduces the effort and oversight required to run a company.  A system where all parties are paid the same for the same effort is easy to script and automate, leaving the company owners free to continually update and improve products and services.

Because I am heavily involved in MLM, I will be discussing the company that I represent, GVO, but this is not really a sales pitch.  The average person reading this will always need to find their own niche. But I will use GVO as an example of how to properly structure, grow, and support a rapidly growing organization.

This banner is a clue as to why a company like GVO has so much success on a daily basis, and why an MLM is such a great opportunity if it is structured and run well.  GVO offers tools that will help any internet marketer or community business run their business, promote it, and maintain the sophisticated web presence a company needs to succeed in this fast paced world.  The tools are worth hundreds of dollars, yet the price is not quite a tenth of their value.  This is one thing MLM allows a company to do:  offer supreme value for relatively low cost, since money does not have to be paid to a sales force even if there is no sale.

MLM also tends to allow for the development of strong, cohesive, and supportive teams, since upline members succeed the best when their downlines succeed.  In fact, this is the ONLY way for an upline or sponsor to have ANY success!  They are dependent on the successful efforts of the people below them in order for them to make money.

Affiliate sales requires a marketer to market a product to one buyer at a time.  MLM allows 10 marketers to sell the same product to 10 different buyers at the same time (as an example).  Your downline will sell for you even when you are asleep, sick in a hospital, on vacation, working on other projects, and should you build a significant organization, will continue to provide for your family long after you have passed on.

These are the benefits of MLM and a few of the reasons why it is the cream of the crop of network marketing opportunities.  With good products, good payment, and proper upline support, the potential income is unmatched.  AND, properly done, MLM can be tremendously fun and fulfilling. ◄

GDI is another of my opportunities:  Phenomenal!

3.  Identifying Frauds, Schemes, or GRQs (Get Rich Quicks)

by Bill Lyman

The best way to keep from being scammed in the first place is to avoid them upfront. Remember the old adage, "If it's sounds too good to be true, it probably is". The secret to avoiding scams is to be able to recognize them before you spend your money.

There are several clues to a scam. The first, as stated above, is a fantastic offer. And the scammer is in a hurry, trying to convince you the time is now. Act fast before its too late. They don't want you to think.

For example, investments are one place for scams. Witness the Bernie Madoff in the papers. They typically will offer a return on investment (roi) 2 to 3 times what you can do in the marketplace. If most investments are paying 4%, then they will offer 8% to 12% or even more. Madoff's Ponzi scheme worked that way. People got caught up in a frenzy and didn't check things out.

A Ponzi scheme, named after a gentleman almost 100 years ago, where he took money from secondary investors to pay the primary investors their high return. And it escalates from there. But, investors are not aware of this upfront.

The fact the scam artist is paying such high rates should be a tipoff immediately. Check it out before investing. How long is he in business? What actually is he investing in? The fact Madoff was working with billions of dollars, and no one thought to investigate. Start with state and federal regulators. There usually is a license of some type required. Check with competitors in the same field.

Other means of recognizing a scam, include the fact they usually want cash up front. It may be only a few hundred dollars. But that's usually the first step. Once they have you hooked, then they put you on the elevator and start going for thousands. Again, they are always in a hurry, tomorrow may be too late. Hurry, do it now.

Determine if this company really exists. Call BBB, call state regulators. Run a google search on the company. Do they have references? If so, call them. Is it a local company? Then they should be listed in local yellow pages.

With 'fake' checks being one of he top complaints to federal authorities, be careful of 'certified checks'. Don't accept checks for more than the agreed price if you are selling an article. It takes about a week for the bank to return the check, then it's too late. I received a 'fake check' about 6 months ago. I went to one of these check cashing places to verify it. I figured they wouldn't give me the cash if they weren't sure. It only took them about 10 minutes to know the check was counterfeit.

Beware of calls and correspondence from overseas. These are almost always a scam. Never give out bank account information or social security numbers. Banks, employers and the I.R.S. already have your number.

Some scammers will call you under the pretense of verifying some information. They will give you your credit card number, then ask you to confirm the expiration date and the security code on back side of card. They do this to gain your confidence. Once they have this, they start their shopping spree with your money.

Be careful of a letter or email that starts out "you have been selected...." How were you selected? And for what? That's a very good indication of a scam. It could be a foreign lottery or contest where you win a prize. And they need to collect taxes or fees up front. Of course they will let you charge it, just give them the credit card info. All US lotteries must retain 20% of winnings and submit it to the I.R.S. So there is no need for any fees to be paid. It's best to ignore any so-called lotteries from outside the U.S. ◄

My Special Offer, no expiration!

I'm willing and happy to work with you one on one to help you get started and have success in network marketing, provided that you can:

• Tell a scam from a real business & avoid get rich quick garbage

• Help yourself by helping others be successful

• Follow a simple and Proven system and share it with others

• Be part of a team & interact freely, honestly, and professionally

Once you are established and having success, I will only ask that you teach others the same thing so they can enjoy the same level of success.

If you wish to take me up on this offer, please feel free to contact me on Yahoo instant messenger.  My Yahoo id is dcleinman.

You can download messenger here:

About the Editor:

I'm Dave Cleinman, internet marketer and free-lance writer who specializes in helping network marketers have success in business.  A successful owner of two businesses, and manager of three others during a lifetime of service, he believes anyone can be successful if they have the desire, patience, and willingness to follow the lead of those who have done it.

Visit my blog:  http://www.davecleinman.com

Join my two growing Traffic Exchanges:

Rocket Hits

Horsepower hits