by Joseph Belfield

Created on: April 17, 2008

MLM is not the dreaded demon of the internet that most people see it to be. Yes,there are many scams online promising to make you rich over night. First off there is no one system online that will let you just plug-in and get rich,the only one who gets rich is the person who owns the product not the person selling the product.

With this said there are many profitable MLM companies online and offline as well,but one should consider these five basic rules when making the decision to get into one of these programs. When all five of these rules,or pillars I like to call them, have been met then one should feel a bit more comfortable joining the program of their choice.

1. Is this product marketable?
Sure one could find,and will find,a multitude of products online that they could sell but you should be asking yourself this question,"Is there a market for the product that is not being filled or is the market flooded with this product?" If every other person is selling the same product as you are considering then what are the chances someone will buy from you? Yet,if you have a unique product then the chances are better for you to capture the open market.

2. Support of your up-line.
Will the person who signed you into their program be there to help get you trained and to answer any question you might have along the way? Or will they just send you an email welcoming you aboard to never be heard from again? If one does not have support from their up-line then you are almost doomed from the start,unless you are lucky to have great learn on the fly type of skills.

3.Time this company has been in service.
Sure you could fall for the ads online for the newest and greatest item to come along since sliced bread,but ask yourself this,if the company is just founded and promising you unheard of results how believable is it. My rule of thumb is to look for a company that has at least five years of existence and has not made unfounded promises of riches but does offer you a reasonable expectation of residual income. Find a reputable company and do not try to reinvent the wheel.

4. Compensation plan.
Does the company offer a real plan of residual income or is it a one time check? The residual income should be easy to obtain and not some weird complicated formula to figure out. Lets face it if you are going to rely on the income of your referrals and their referrals to some many levels deep then you are not really going to do well. Now if you are going to rely on you sells alone and the return sells from those who bought from you in the past then there is a good chance to earn the residual income.

5. Is this program duplicable?
I would love to say that you are in this alone but lets face it you are not and you will have to find a program that is easily duplicable. Just as you signed up under someone else you will need to find others to market the program to and become their sponsor. Thus continuing the chain of the MLM system. The majority of your sells will come from the people you sign up under you just as your sells also benefit the person who signed you up in the first place. We are not alone in the company and nor should we be. The success of others should be the founding blocks of our own success.

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