"Can honesty bring back respect to Network Marketing?"

I described 5 half-truths people use to entice (too many wrong) people into the business. Here's one:

Omitting how much it really costs to make a go of the business.

THEY TELL: For $19.95 you can have the amazing opportunity to get financial freedom!

BUT DON'T TELL: After the $19.95 (or whatever the sign-up fee is), the person must first buy product, and enough of it to qualify to earn income. To earn income after that, they must get either customers who buy, or sign up other recruits who also buy product (the $19.95 sign-up fee goes to the company, not the rep) so that there's a product or business sale on which the company pays out a commission.

Usually nothing is mentioned about what kind of effort the person might have to put out to market in order to make those sales, time wise or money wise. What the new person hears at first is only that it's easy, that everyone will want the products - they sell themselves, etc.

After I said that, one lady asked, "Well what DO we tell the new person then? Should I tell them how much they should spend for leads, or business cards, or how many miles they will have to drive?"

Not at all. The specific reaching out methods can be decided by the recruit. Your job is to tell them what they have to do to earn income, and they can decide on the means and ways to do it.

Here's what we told our people, and what I recommend you tell ANY new person looking at the business.

(By the way there is nothing wrong whatever with someone buying products and marketing them and finding more sales people. What's wrong is too many recruiters who keep this information from recruits with promises of how easy this will be and how everyone will want the product, until they finally persuade the person to hand over their money.)

There are two things we do to make money:

1. Get customers (who buy the product) and they pay us a percent on those sales AND

2. Get sales reps who also buy the product, and who help find more customers and perhaps another sales rep or two to help introduce the product to others. They pay us a percent on those sales, too.

Isn't that it, ladies? You can also offer:

There are many ways to get customers, and I'll show you what they are, and then you decide how you want to do it. And there are ways to find more sales people, too. Some marketing methods cost money, some cost time. Some a little of both. You want to hear the options?

There are many reaching out methods - some are in the Truth book, some in the If My Product's So Great, How Come I Can't Sell It?" book and 100 Customers CDs, and you no doubt have your own ideas as well.