Best Of The Affiliate Review

Author: Len Thurmond

Each week I critique online business opportunities in my weekly newsletter ‘The Affiliate Review’, and each week the email responses are amusing and predictable.

When the review is a positive one, I get almost no response at all. Presumably my readership either agrees with me or assumes that I am just plugging the programs for my own financial gain.

However, let me make it very clear that I am not a card carrying member of every program that I endorse.

I firmly believe that if you try to work too many programs at once, you end up doing justice to none. Two or three good ones is more than enough!

The amusing part comes from the response to the negative reviews.

Each time I write a negative review, I get flooded with emails from the participants of those poor assaulted programs.

Those who regularly read my articles or subscribe to my newsletter, have probably come to the conclusion, that I am not a big fan of MLM companies.

The truth is, however, that it is not the MLM part that I take exception to.

On the contrary, it’s the numerous companies that hide behind the MLM shield to make a profit… And the masses be Damned!

The basic concept of MLM is not only sound, but brilliant!

Let’s take a look at this concept…

Let’s say a company markets products that are both used and needed by the majority of the public. Obviously, the best products to market are consumables, those products that are used and then reordered. This creates a continuing market share, from their existing customer base. All the company has to do now, is build on that base.

Enter the MLM concept.

The main focus of MLM companies is in the building of their sales force. The concept being that if every member can recruit a handful of members and they all buy their own products, instead of buying them from someone else (which only makes sense, why would you buy a product, that you sell, from someone else), then the end result is an exponential growth of customers, that are buying the companies products, ie; I get six, who each get six, who each get six, etc., (you do the math)

To further stimulate sales, the company pays each member a percentage of the product usage, down through a number of levels, those being members who recruited members, who recruited members, etc., etc., all consuming their own product line.

The company sells their products without having to advertise and jump through all of the expensive hoops that Non-MLM companies have to deal with, and their members not only get the products that they need in everyday life, but also get paid to use them and to convince others to do the same.

However, in order for this scenario to be successful and sustainable, it MUST adhere to the criteria of the following two Cardinal Rules…

1) The products MUST be as good or better than those bought in the traditional fashion, and

2) They MUST be competitively priced.

These, I think, are the areas that all too many MLM programs come up short.

Now I don’t want all you MLMer’s, out there, to get your bowels in an uproar over this and start sending me mail bombs. I’m not targeting any programs in particular , but if this makes you mad, then I must have hit a nerve, and perhaps you should take a closer look at your particular choice of endeavors.

There are good companies and bad companies in every segment of marketing and the trick is to settle on a good one and stick with it until you achieve success.

All too many of these companies focus completely on the building of their downlines to the exclusion of their products, altogether. By law, they have to have products, but to the companies that fit into this category, any ole product will do. They just keep harping on the easy income that everyone will make if you can get enough people to by into their hype.

The problem with this train of thought is obvious. When their members get tired of buying inferior products without seeing any appreciable income, they move on to something else, leaving the ones who are desperately trying to make it work, in a constant state of replacing the deserters.

The breaking of the other Cardinal Rule is equally devastating, if not as quick a death.

Many MLM companies will jack up their prices to cover the loss in profits that they incur by paying their downline percentages, and sooner or later, the members of these programs get tired of paying exorbitant prices for their necessities. All to often, even if they do manage to make a little money, it’s usually only enough to offset the difference in price.

Yes, there are tens of thousands of people who are very successful in both of these categories of MLM, but I have to ask this question.

Which would you rather do?

Sell quality products, to people who need them, at a competitive price and give them the chance to profit by passing on that opportunity to others, or…

Work towards becoming one of the relative few that get rich from ripping off the masses by selling them overpriced, inferior products and unfounded dreams.

The choice is clearly yours.

Look closely at the programs that you are approached by, and try to choose one that can benefit both you and your downline.

Rule of thumb…If you wouldn’t be happy to buy their products just for the sake of using them, then you should probably just keep lookin’!

Remember, this is a business, and no business endeavor should be entered into lightly.

If you’re going to put your time and energy into a program, make sure you truly believe in it and are not just buying into the hype!

Your future, not to mention your reputation is on the line!

Internet Success Blueprint

Finally, someone has put out an Ebook that gives you everything you need to succeed on the Internet.

Last week I featured this Ebook in my Ebook section, but it is such an exceptional value that I feel a need to tell you more about it.

There are literally hundreds of fine Ebooks, about how to succeed in marketing programs on the Internet, but as most of you know, they all tell only part of the story.

In order to get the whole story, on what you need to do, you have to read them all!

This is a very time-consuming and expensive process, to say the least.

Neil Shearing has obviously done just that!

This book is an in depth compilation of the best of the instructional Ebooks, by the most successful Internet marketers, on the net today.

‘Internet Success Blueprint’ takes you from the inception of your product idea to the banking of your profits and covers all points in between.

He quotes and paraphrases such famous and successful people as Ken Evoy, Adam Audette, Bob Cortez, Jim Daniels, Decann Dunn, Alan Gardyne, Joe Robson, and Michael Campbell just to name a few.

He presents the wisdom of these highly successful entrepreneurs in an easy to understand, no-nonsense format in his 300 + page offering.

He also give you hundreds of links to invaluable information and tells you exactly how you can start and finish your project on a shoestring budget.

With your purchase of Internet Blueprint Success, you also receive the script for a smart-personalized-autoresponder system that you can use form your own PC. This feature alone will save you hundreds of dollars a year.

All of this and much more for the ridiculously low price of only $27.

He also offers an associate program, for promoting his Ebook, which pays 50% of the purchase price!

That’s ‘Purchase Price’ not profits or BV or any of the other gimmicks that so many of the other associate programs use to make their associate packages sound better than they really are.

This package deal is obviously tailored for the ‘Newbies’, in it’s easy language and no-nonsense format, but would be of tremendous value to anyone wanting or needing to market anything on the net. The links and software alone are invaluable.

This project is the culmination of many years of study and planning, and for the modest sales price, it may be the best value on the internet today and is definitely a must for all serious netpreneurs.

One of the most complete and useful Ebooks I’ve seen in a long time.

Just check out the table of contents!

http://scamfreezone.com/bizop/toc.shtml

If you’ve read all the marketing and ‘how to books’ out there, and know all the links for all of the info and software that’s available, you probably don’t need to buy this one, but I suspect there aren’t many who fall into that category.

As for the rest of us…

Even the most experienced marketers amongst us will find something useful in this amazing Ebook.

As you can see, I’m very excited about this program and strongly recommend it to all serious entrepreneurs!

I know that this is a blatant ad for this program, and yes, I am an associate, but only because I truly believe that everyone will profit from this manual.

Check it out for yourself at:

http://scamfreezone.com/t.cgi/142388

You’ll Be Glad You Did!
…

To read more of Len’s Marketing Articles visit his blog at http://LenThurmond.com

As always, feel free to use this or any of my articles on your sites. Just be SURE to include the Resource Box at the bottom of this Article ;o)

Len Thurmond has been marketing on the Internet since 1995, and is one of the best known authors and newsletter publishers in the Internet World Today.

Through his highly acclaimed Newsletter, his many Seminar and Tele-seminars speaking engagements, and his coaching programs, he has helped thousands of now successful Entrepreneurs find their niche, and make it profitable.