This is a business blog, and to million of Americans the face of business is a MLM. Over 100 million Americans have been in a MLM during some part of their life, and no business blog would be complete if it did not address this issue. So I will write a series on this subject.

I am sort of an expert in this area. I have been in many MLMs myself, I have had great success with some and failure with most. I have researched the MLM concept from every angle because at one time I was thinking of starting my own MLM. I have known the owners of different MLMs and I have seem many different ideas.

So what is my take on all of this. In short, my take is that the MLM idea is a way for average people to get into business and have the chance for success fairly quickly, but there are many pitfalls to avoid. A good MLM will provide training, have a good system, have a good product and pay well. This sounds easy but in reality MOST MLM companies that I have seen do not meet these four simply requirements.

The reason that the MLM idea is so powerful is because of a few different things. First most MLMs have a system in place, so it is easy to get involved and easy to get started, and you can do this part time. You put as little or as much effort into it as you like. Next the system is usually designed that anyone can do it, with even a little education you can be successful. The next strength of the MLM concept is that you can start it with very few resources. Most businesses that you start cost thousands to start but a MLM can cost under $100 to buy in and usually under $1000 to get everything set up. Next you usually have a team of people supporting you, trying to make you successful. Next you can bring on other people and duplicate your self and your income. They can be helping you make money at the same time that you are making money.

Now the MLM idea also has some weaknesses. One weakness is tied to the power, and that it the idea of being able to do it part time from home. With a job you must work the hours that you are told to work, but with a MLM you can choose, and most people (Honestly) are lazy and when they are their own boss they choose to do very little. The most successful people I know in MLM companies treat it like a job, they work 40+ hours a week at it and MOST of them rent an office so it feels like a real job. The idea of success from home is mostly a myth, it is much easier having a separate place and time to work, or else the work often does not happen. Another weakness is that many MLMs take most of the money that you earn and give it away to pay the whole system, so if you are a super star sales person you may not do as well. Another major weakness is that you really don’t control your business, the MLM company sets rules on what you can and can not do, and they have the right to make changes to the system they can change the prices of the products or even the rates in the pay plan. They also usually will set rules limiting your marketing, your website, and even your business cards. Also in many MLM companies you can get caught up focusing your time on many things very loosely related to making money, you will attend countless meetings, where you usually hear the same things over and over, leaving you little time to actually grow your business. This is helpful at first but later this can be very bad.

There are a few good MLMs out there please read the next articles on how to find them. In future articles in this series I will address the following topics, once the articles are posted these will become links:

• What you need to do to get set up for success in your MLM.
• How to pick a MLM company, and what to stay away from.
• Pro’s and Con’s of various MLM companies I have seen.
• How to market your MLM with great success.