Keeping an Open Mind

So recently, I had someone ask me to review the company they had just joined. Obviously I do not want to 'bash' any company or get too negative, so I will cut to the chase.

When I look for a great opportunity (and yes I only believe in working on one, so this is biased already), these are my tips. Hopefully they help some of you who are either frustrated with your lack of results, or are new to the home biz arena and wondering how to choose.

1. How easy it is to share with people in general without having to resort to your 'elevator speech'? Is it natural and is the model designed so that people are wanting to know more without being dragged to a meeting? Big numbers on your compensation plan don't count for much if you have to travel to the moon and back to get the numbers and find the right people. This should be something you can integrate into your daily life, not completely change your life for.

2. Is there a home for customers ? Now, I don't mean product-users that had to pay a join fee. Some people just do not want to join an opportunity, and as a result, despite loving MLM products, will actually walk away. I mean, will customers come, and stay? Are there perks for them? A system to encourage referrals from your customers would go a long way! Do they have to pay spiked 'retail' prices? Opportunities that offer these are hard to come by, but offer very strong growth because the focus is shared between recruiting distributors and customer acquisition. Some companies are leaving a lot of money on the table, because people who are put off by those 'MLM thingees' walk away from great products.

3. A broad product range versus one-man-wonder ... because already this will majorly limit your target market, and who you can share with. You may think everybody needs it, but that doesn't mean THEY will think that!

4. Products that people need to reorder, not a one time purchase . If you are going to work to get that new recruit or customer signed up, wouldn't it be great to benefit from that for the rest of your life? Aim for consumable products because then you get paid every time they run out and need to reorder.

5. Stronger customer #s than distributor sign ups. You may have noticed some big MLM companies recently come under fire from regulatory agencies. One of the biggest problems was actually because their customer ratio to distributor figure was much too low. Eventually this means your structure unravels, everybody in your neighborhood is doing the same gig as you, and your company may be under threat from agencies.

7. Fair compensation plan that rewards you, not your lazy upline . Is the compensation plan designed to let you outrank your upline if they are not pulling their weight? And if your immediate downline doesn't work hard enough and you end up training their crew, will those bonuses roll up to you like they should?

8. Training that teaches skills, not personal development . Sure personal development is great, but too often we spend more and more money on it in hopes we will find the secret, the gem, with one more listen! Reality check. Eyeballs on your presentation is the gem, and the fortune is in the follow up. No amount of fancy talk will change that, so make sure you have someone to teach you the basics: product knowledge, how to get a prospect right through the funnel (connect, invite, expose, consult, close, retain, coach/get referrals, recruits) and things like tech skills and attraction marketing. 

9. Marketing. Is the marketing on par with great brands you know, or does the website and packaging look like it was last updated in the 90s? The greatest product will not sell or go 'viral' with shoddy marketing, because it makes the company look inauthentic. Impressions do make the sale.

10. Products that are unique. Well, most MLM products are good quality or have great points of difference, but before you commit, check it out, because if they can find a better MLM that does what you offer, or just buy it at the shop, you may struggle. 

There are more I am sure, but I hope this helps some of you searching for a great place to start. Connect with me if any of this resonated with you. Best of luck in all your endeavors!