Multi Level Madness – Is Online MLM Ruining Network Marketing?

Although there are highly skilled and professional Multi Level Marketers both online and off, there are hundreds of MLMers online who fall into traps set by those who only pretend to be Multi Level Marketers. I refer to them as the teachers of Multi Level Madness!

These are my theories behind that statement:

Multi Level Madness Theory #1:

Mindless MLM is destroying the reputation of the network marketing industry. These amateur online MLM people send spam emails daily, sometimes hourly, about their so-called “exciting” opportunity, and very often with no opt out box at the bottom of their emails. They are impossible to control. If you do open their emails, all they are doing is pitching their deal repeatedly, buzzing around like mosquitoes in a swamp. As a further example, take a look at this scenario:

Recently I went on Twitter, and entered the name of an MLM company and ran across a distributor’s Tweets. (I changed the company’s name to ABC PLC and took out the web link, for obvious reasons).

Have a quick look at the following Tweets, and take a good look at the frequency these Tweets were posted. This is clearly not a professional marketing approach; this is playing right into the Multi Level Madness Theory – online marketing at its worst.

This particular company has over 49,000 followers, which might lead you to believe that they are very successful, but don’t be fooled by the numbers. Many could be their downline or crossline etc., which is appalling! All they are doing, in effect, is setting an example of how to be totally mindless to nearly 50,000 people who are expecting something of value. They are doing this all day, every day, non-stop.

These are REAL tweets, look.

The word is just now getting out. Find out the Truth about “ABC” PLC
less than 10 seconds ago
Our company means excellence. ABC PLC wants you! (Weblink)
1 minute ago
ABC PLC’s new product can make you a fortune! See what we have new for America. (Weblink)
7 minutes ago
Our professionals earn 7 figures! ABC PLC needs you! (Weblink)
14 minutes ago
ABC PLC wants you! Learn what ABC PLC has for You! Click this! (Weblink)
18 minutes ago
The ABC Launch! Get info now from our top professionals! Click this now! (Weblink)
20 minutes ago
Get the facts! Find out the truth about ABC’s Hottest Offer! Get it from our top earner! (Weblink)
29 minutes ago
ABC PLC is going to revolutionize networking marketing! Sign up NOW! (Weblink)
35 minutes ago
Pay attention to what ABC PLC is going to do! (weblink) Hear from our top earner!
39 minutes ago
The ABC Launch. Get the hot news from a veteran! (Weblink)
47 minutes ago

And so the twittering continues and it only gets worse!

This method is ridiculous. It is completely mindless and not the way online marketing should be done. If the top person is doing this, you can pretty much guess what the newest recruit is doing as well! There are much better marketing strategies than this. If you do this on MySpace, Twitter and Facebook enough, you should be blacklisted, and told to try your methods on My-Twit-Face.com – the Multi-Level Unsociable Garbage Dump. Do you get my point here?

There is a simple solution to this, but let me lay down the other theories first:

Multi Level Madness Theory #2:

The “Warm Market” theory is dead. The “Old School” network-marketing model is dead, and if you don’t tell all the people you know, anyone you meet, all your acquaintances and all of your second cousins and in-laws about your business, you have no business being in business.

I can quite confidently say that “Old School” network marketing is NOT DEAD, it is alive and well and meeting in a hotel conference room near you!

I just sponsored a close friend into my business, I know how to use the communication skills that allowed that to happen, and I have high regard for my friend. He needed help and I had something that I knew would help him. Why would I not offer him a solution to his problem? We would all do it in the same situation. If you eliminate Old School networking to your teams, you are cutting off many ‘warm’, qualified contacts.

I must stress that you must only talk to people you know about your business, when it is suitable. If, for example, you were talking to someone and he needed or wanted something you could provide, only then you would invite him or suggest a resource to help. Don’t call him on his cell phone, without warning, and pitch your business to him for no reason. You would be breaching the Inviting Formula, and the Ten Communication Qualities.

If you can’t communicate correctly, you will waste your time marketing to people who are not interested. You will never be a true professional, either online or off. Incorrect communication is the biggest problem in MLM.

Next – another one that fits in with Marketing Madness

Multi Level Madness Theory #3:

The melodramatic headlines, with tag lines like “Your Upline is Not Telling You The Truth” or “Your Company Is Not Telling You The Truth”

These ridiculous statements hit the hot buttons of people who are struggling – which is a lot of people these days.

I doubt if all companies and uplines are not telling the truth! Some probably are, but most of these companies simply have no idea how to help you in your marketing efforts. A lot of them just don’t care either – there’s plenty of other naïve marketers behind you. They will discourage you, on the pretext that you might become distracted. Learn how to market; don’t ask them what they think of a certain method, because many will tell you flat out not to do it.

You must learn this: to really have control of your income for the short and long term, proper marketing is YOUR responsibility, not your upline’s responsibility, nor your company’s responsibility.

Where are the best areas to direct your marketing efforts? In newspapers and magazines? No. Readership of newspapers and magazines is dropping dramatically, and many have gone out of business. I cannot remember when I last bought a newspaper or purchased a subscription to a magazine, so I am not going to do that. Direct Mail still works, but you need a huge budget to hire demographers, printers and distributors, to ensure you get your message to the right audience cost-effectively.

There are still plenty of ways to find good leads offline, but for this purpose, where can a MLM Professional turn to? The internet obviously.

If I can print a label for a package online and by the time I am back from dropping it off, I have an email update with a drop-off time, tracking number and then further email confirmations, it is only natural that we are going to turn to the internet to find our prospects.

If you had a way to get an excellent stream of qualified prospects coming across your desk right now – you’d be all for it. You wouldn’t have time to complain!

Like any other specialist business, this is where your hard-earned knowledge comes into play. Many people just do not know how to market properly. With the right people helping you, you will learn how to differentiate between what is valuable information, and what is hype. You can then avoid the madness of the hyper-Twitterer and the rep who tries to sell you sun block in the middle of a snowstorm.

Avoid the Multi Level Madness and learn to market properly with effective communication. By following these rules, you will be able to have a successful marketing business, and plan your future accordingly.