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Network Marketing Now - Secrets for Finding Prospects on Online Message Boards

10 2008 Monday

By Eldon Beard in Featured

Promoting and advertising your network marketing and MLM business online is challenging. There are many different ways to go about it. If you want to promote your business inexpensively and effectively, message boards and forums are a solid and proven way to do it.

Choosing the Right Message Boards

There are lots of message boards and forums online, on just about every topic you can imagine. Since you are promoting your network marketing business, you will want to choose boards related to home business or working from home. This is where people looking for ways to make money will hang out.

Go to Google and do a search for “home business message boards”, “work from home discussions”, and similar keywords. This will bring up a list of boards and forums that you can visit. Look for boards that are active. Most will display the last post date for their various topics, and the total number of posts in the topic. Look for lots of recent posts as a sign that the message board is active and thriving.

Learn About the Community

Once you have chosen some boards to visit, take time to visit them and do some reading. Get a feel for the community and the type of discussions that go on there. Take a look at the board rules and make sure that “signatures” are okay - most forums allow them, but a few don’t. Once you have a good feel for the community, create an account and get ready to start posting.

The First Rule for Using Message Boards

The first rule for using message boards to promote your network marketing business - do not post advertisements, or direct invitations to consider your opportunity unless the board has a specific section set aside for ads. The boards you want to use will have strict rules about advertising. Posting ads in discussion areas will not attract prospects for your business, and you risk getting banned from posting in the future.

Become a Contributor and Build Your Reputation

Your goal is to establish yourself as an authority and a valuable contributor to the community. There are many more people reading these boards than actually posting, so each time you post, a lot of potential prospects will see it. Will they see you as a leader? This is your objective. Your first thought should be “how can I help or contribute something positive”. You will attract leads for your MLM business over time by doing this.

Creating Your Profile and Signature

Before you get started, be sure to fill out your profile. This is where you can tell more about yourself and create your signature. People can click on your profile at any time and find out more about who you are. Make your profile as complete and meaningful as possible.

Your signature will appear at the bottom of each post you submit. It can contain a link to your site, and usually a line or two you can use for a mini-advertisement. A simple signature might look something like this:

Joe Networker

Build a Profitable Home Business

Visit www.myMLMbusiness.com for more information

Start Posting and Contributing

Once your profile is set up, start looking for messages where someone is asking for help, or a discussion about a home business or network marketing related topic. If you know something that will help someone or contribute to the discussion, post it! Draw on your past experiences. Take time to provide thoughtful and meaningful replies.

Again, the key to making this work is establishing yourself as a leader and someone who is knowledgeable about network marketing and home business in general. People reading the boards will get to know you and you will begin to receive inquiries and visits to your opportunity site after you’ve been active for a while.

Pick a few boards to work with, and try to post something as often as possible. Daily posting is best, but if time is limited you can contribute 3-4 times a week and do well. You want to be seen as active and involved, and frequent posting is the way to achieve this.

Final Thoughts

Proper use of message boards and forums for promoting your network marketing and MLM business can be very effective. The key is to present yourself as a professional. Set yourself apart.

The Internet is full of self-serving business opportunity peddlers who take every opportunity to spam and promote their business on message boards while contributing nothing. These people do not succeed. You, by presenting yourself as a professional, will do well.

Eldon Beard is a network marketing professional who shows you how to start and build your home based business successfully. His popular network marketing and MLM blog shares secrets to help increase your income and build your business the right way.

Beginners guide to Network Marketing Part 1

06 2008 Thursday

By Michael Goodchild in Featured

This beginners guide to Network Marketing also includes MLM and can include affiliate marketing. It will show you a formula or system that you absolutely must follow to be successful in Network Marketing.

The Formula / System - Key elements in every successful online Network marketing system

1. Adverts - If you do not advertise nothing will happen - Nobody will find your business!

2. Lead capture page - A web page with a headline or a list of bullet points or video that convey the message of what the benefits of your product or system are. Then there is an opt-in box for the lead to enter their details - They are saying to you “Hey I’m interested tell me more about this.”

3. Direct Sales page - This page creates a problem agitates the problem and then shows the solution is buy buying the product.

4. Auto responder and email list - A system that sends out emails to your list automatically after they have opted in. So important because it starts the process of the lead getting to know you.

How it works

Place adverts all over the place as many as you can - when I say advert I mean anywhere that you put a link to your lead capture page that somebody can click on.

People see your advert and some of them click the link to your lead capture page. The Lead capture page tells the customer the benefits of what you are trying to give/sell them and asks for their details including email address.

Some people enter their details (They are now a captured lead) and some people move away from the page (they may come back).

Those that enter their details are taken directly to your Direct sales page where they are shown a common problem like - “do you think that your Network Marketing business would grow faster if you had an endless supply of new leads?” and then given the solution - Join this program and we will show you how. It is an important element of your direct sales page to have an incentive to buy the product now - ie a once only offer or a bonus etc. If the product is brought within the next hour.

At this point some people will buy into your program and some will not. Either way you have them as a captured lead until they decide to remove themselves from your mailing list - Which you should now own.

So what happens next is the autoresponder takes over and starts sending messages out to your list on autopilot - It takes us an average of 7 times to see something before we buy it so to type these messages and send them individually would be really time consuming.

Some more people will buy the product after they have received some of your emails and some will not but they remain on your list.

Now it is important to be communicating with your list so you can start to build a relationship with them. This will help them to get to know you and see your value.

What I mean by value is what they will learn from you as if they buy from you then you will be their upline and should then be teaching them how to be successful. So you need to be sharing with your list what you are doing and if it is working - Also this can include products that you have purchased and that help you in your own advertising - For most products you can become an affiliate and earn commissions for any sales that you make - Make sure that you are happy with the product ie It does what it says - Is simple to use - A good price etc Basically make sure that you think it’s the best on the market before you offer it to your list because if somebody from your list buys the product on your recommendation and does not like it then you have just lost some credibility.

If you do this correctly you can be helping people on your list whilst adding vale to yourself and earning good money in the process. This can be done time and time again - Not everybody on your list will buy every product but they will hopefully buy the products that are right for them.

That’s where the saying “The money is in the list” comes from. If you really understand this you should be really exited because the possibilities are huge!

In part 2 of The Beginners guide to Network marketing learn how to get the right product to start with and it does not need to cost you a fortune - In fact it definitely should not!

The perfect system for anybody in Network Marketing whether you are a beginner or Guru. Mike Goodchild is an MLM Coach and Mentor and has been making money online for the last 7 years He is also a qualified accountant so understands about business. Find out why ebay will not work as a business for most people

Five Keys to Success in Network Marketing

05 2008 Thursday

By Craig Mattice in Featured

OK! We’ve all heard that there are many “secrets” to success in Network Marketing and MLM. We’ve also heard that your upline is lying to you and not sharing their “secrets” about the business and industry. That’s all just horse hockey! The biggest secret about success in this business and industry is that there isn’t any secret. Surprised? I thought you might be, but it is very true. Oh! And by the way, your sponsor has a vested interest in your personal success so he is not going to be lying to you about what it takes. More on this later.

- Key #1: You! That’s right, you. Here’s what I mean about “you.” The success or failure you experience in network marketing and MLM is totally reliant upon you, your beliefs, your attitude, and the direct actions you take toward success. You must have a very strong “why” you want to be in this business and what you want to attain as the benefits or your efforts. The stronger the why the greater chance of success. I determined my “why” by completing a vision statement of how I want my life to be as a result of my efforts. What my life will look like, smell like, be like, experience and advantages I will have that I don’t have now. Vision statements will be covered in detail in another article.

There are many areas of your life you will need to evaluate to determine what type of product or service you wish to represent and market. Along with that, the choice of company is paramount in keeping yourself aligned with your wants and vision. See yourself as a success with this company and product. If you can’t see it then it won’t happen. Keep searching. You have to be the driving force behind your success. Yes, there are many other elements that come into play but “you” are the ultimate key to your own success.

- Key #2: Product or service. What products or services get you excited or do you already have a firm foundation of experience and knowledge? This may or may not take some time on your part to crystallize. It is as an important key as any of the others and must be addressed from a business point of view. Can you make a profit with this product or service? Is there a ready made market? Is there exclusivity in the product or service not found in the general consumer market? Exclusivity is nice but is also short-lived in this consumer market.

Network Marketing has hundreds of quality products and services available to you including travel, nutritional, health, long distance, VIOP, communication, energy, and many others. Don’t make the mistake of following the herd but then again, don’t be too unique that no one has ever heard of it either. Choosing a product or service to represent in your home based business is as personal as the company you select to partner with that has your offering.

- Key #3: Selecting the company that represents and markets your chosen product or service. This is so important and requires research, due diligence, investigation, interviews with existing reps, interviews with potential sponsors, and following that, oh so important, “gut feeling.” To keep it simple, I will list for you the requirements that I used to pick my current company and this may shed some light on what you need to look for in your company.

Solid company of five years or older
A fun, professional, and enthusiastic “culture”
Competent corporate staff with business management and NWM/MLM experience on the front lines.
Exclusive product by quality unmatched in the marketplace
Products supported by real life studies for efficacy and quality
A robust comp plan that is quick to see results and easy to understand
Ability to retail products at a reasonable price for “right now” money
A quality marketing plan and support tools in place
Solid and increasing annual sales and distributor growth
Qualified Upline with proven success and willingness to share information
A plan for a successful system to plug into and NOT reinvent the wheel
Both company and product recognized in the community for quality
Easy online signups and prospect back office tracking
Company websites provided at no or minimum cost to the distributor
Outstanding customer support in knowledge and helpfulness
No voicemail, phone trees, but “real people” answering the phones
Company MUST be distributor oriented with income based on volume and not on the backs of distributors in the form of fees etc.

- Key #4: Selecting a sponsor may or may not have a direct effect on your success but, it may definitely affect your failure without the correct choice. Many people in the industry will tell you that your sponsor will not dictate your success or failure in the business and industry. This may be true however; I believe having all of the proper support and guidance is to your best advantage. Once you’ve selected a company then begins the process of determining who is the best fit to have as your sponsor? Is this person currently working the business? Are they successful to the point you would like to be someday? Can you relate to this person and like them? Are they forthcoming with information, knowledge, experiences so that you don’t have to reinvent the wheel but learn from their experiences?

A final and very important question regarding the selection of a qualified sponsor, would you want to take a 30 day cruise with this person? Think about that for a moment and the answer will be very revealing.

- Key #5: In addition to the above, is there a viable and robust training/marketing system in place and a viable and robust team for support and interaction? All of this lends itself to a further advantage toward success provided the previous keys have been taken seriously and good decisions made. You don’t want to be left out to stand on your own but want a group of like minded people to interact and learn from their experiences. You want to feel part of a successful team, almost like a family.

As for the training/marketing system, do you want to have to create that all by yourself or would you rather have it up and running and productive from day one. Look for video and audio training, sizzle lines, 800#s, contact management back office, auto responders, existing sizzle messages, emails, and auto responder messages. All of this will save you a great deal of time, shorten the learning curve, allow you to focus on building your business, and increasing your ROI (Return On Investment).

OK then! By accomplishing the above keys you have started out on a strong path to becoming successful in your own home based business in network marketing and MLM. I know this looks like a great deal of effort but starting a business is not a flippant decision and needs to be researched in many areas to give you the best chance of success. Above all, you want to have fun in the process of doing. In a later article I will discuss “learn, doing, learn, and being.”

Craig Mattice is totally disabled and works his home based business in network marketing with Vitamark International from his home in Richmond, VA. His works include quality content, personality, humor, and are all personally written. To learn more about the author visit his personal website.