If you have ever joined an MLM / network marketing program, it's highly likely that the first thing the company will have told you is that you have to target your warm market. These are simply people in your life who you have good relationships with, ie your friends and family. However is it really a good idea to get these people involved in your network marketing business?

Let's start by discussing the negatives. Firstly, approaching your close friends and family members with your latest MLM project generally never goes down very well. It's not only uncomfortable for you trying to sell the business to them, but it often draws negative responses from them, resulting in them coming to the wrongful conclusion that it's a scam.

This can have the effect of your close friends and family lowering their opinion of you because you're involved in what they consider to be dubious MLM businesses. In addition, in the worst case scenario this can lead to them avoiding you so they don't have to listen to you pitching your network marketing business to them, and the embarrassment caused by them turning down your offer.

One other drawback to introducing your friends and family to your network marketing business, that I want to mention, is that even if they do join you are they really the kind of people who are going to work hard to build their own downline? Even if they do have the motivation, do they have the necessary knowledge and advertising know-how to recruit new members?

By now you're probably thinking that I definitely do NOT recommend introducing friends and family to your latest network marketing ventures. Well that's not necessarily true, there are exceptions.

I'm a full-time online marketer who has not only a good knowledge of the network marketing industry, but also a large advertising budget. Therefore my golden rule is that if I'm going to introduce my close group of friends and family to my latest venture, then I will be doing everything in my power to get them into profit with the program as soon as possible. I will tell them this, and I will also pass on my knowledge of the industry, including what are the best ways of building a downline, where to advertise for optimum results, etc. I will even pay to advertise their unique affiliate links, if necessary, out of any profits I make, just to get them into profit.

In addition, in certain network marketing companies you can really generate a significant income for these people. For example, if you place them immediately below you in your downline when you first join a specific program, and they receive spillover from your efforts, then they could do very well out of the program, without doing a lot of recruiting themselves. These are the types of programs that you really want your friends and family involved in if at all possible.

To conclude, while there are drawbacks to approaching the people you are closest to in life with what is effectively a sales pitch, there are instances where they could do very well financially from joining your program. My advice is this. If you are convinced that you can attract a lot of members in the future, and have sufficient knowledge to pass on to your close friends and family who sign up under you, then by all means approach them with your proposal. If, on the other hand, you are an inexperienced marketer, new to the industry, then my advice is to not even mention that you are a member of a network marketing program, let alone attempt to persuade them to join you.