How to Succeed in Network Marketing [7 Secret Strategies]

In this article we’ll show you step by step how to succeed in network marketing, regardless of your background, leadership, or sales experience.

Whether you’ve been in network marketing for a while, are just getting started, or are thinking about getting started…

At some point you have to honestly ask yourself, what’s it really going to take to be successful.

The good news is, it’s simple, not complicated, and easy to implement.
The bad news is, what’s easy to do… is also easy not to do.

You probably already have a bit of an idea of how to be successful in network marketing.
It’s the execution of that idea that’s slowing you down.

It’s kinda like losing weight.

Everyone knows what it takes (eat better, exercise more), but most don’t want to lose weight more than they want that piece of chocolate cake (or bag of chips, or mocha frappe, etc.)

And just like exercise, sometimes you need a good coach to point out the basics and show you where you’re messing up.

For example, you can exercise all day long, but if your diet’s a wreck… you’re wasting your time.

The same can be said of network marketing.

Many activities are helpful, but they still won’t bring you the success you want if you’re screwing up the foundation.

So keep reading to get a little network marketing FREE coaching.

My goal is to help as many people as possible live the life of their dreams, regardless of whether you’re working with us directly or not.

I hope this article will set you in the right direction and change the trajectory of your life!

Here’s a step by step success blueprint for anybody in the network marketing or mlm industry.

Please take the time to consider each and every step.

Some of them may not seem like a big deal on the surface, but if any components are missing, you’re undermining your own success.

If you leave ingredients out of a cake, you may not end up with a cake or the cake may not live up to your expectations.

1) Choose the Right Network Marketing Company

The first step to #MLM Success is to Choose the Right Company Click To Tweet

This is HUGE!

I’m talking about a foundational principle here.

If you get this wrong, it could completely wipe out any success and momentum you manage to create for yourself and those on your team!

The very first step to success (before anything else), is to pick the right company.

Unfortunately, as it stands right now, most people come into this industry by accident.

They have a friend show up, tell them about an incredible opportunity, and the next thing you know they’re in business together.

The dirty little secret that nobody talks about is that opportunities are like trains… there’s another one coming.

Another thing few talk about inside our profession is that if network marketing companies are like trains…

There’s a disproportionate number of them that get derailed, crash, and burn… taking all the passengers with them!

Jim Collins says it like this:
1) Get the Right People on the Bus
2) Get the Right People on the Right Seat on the Bus

What I’m saying is… make sure you’re on the right bus to begin with before you start filling seats.

When it comes to #networkmarketing, make sure you're on the right bus BEFORE you start filling seats. Click To Tweet

How to Pick the Right Network Marketing Company?

Everyone has different ideas on this so I’ll just give you my thoughts and you can take ’em or leave ’em.

Truth#1: Longevity Matters

#MLM Truth #1: Longevity Matters Click To Tweet

I know it’s tempting to be seduced by a brand new company. It’s the “get in early and get rich” mentality.

There are a few problems with this way of thinking though.

First, the newer a company is (especially in this industry), the higher the chance it will fold.

There’s absolutely no reason to invest your time, energy, and money into something that has a high likelihood of failure.

Especially when you can pick a company and leadership team that has a track record.

Secondly, the very idea that those who get in early make all the money implies ignorance and a misunderstanding of how this industry and business model really works.

The very idea that those who get in early make all the money, points to an ignorance and misunderstanding of how the industry and business model actually works. Click To Tweet

Getting in early will make you rich is simply not true in a legitimate company.

Of course, the problem with the statement above is that it looks like it’s true on first glance.

From the outside looking in, you don’t see all the people who get in early and quit.
You only see the rock stars, those who stuck around, performed well, and are making a lot of money.

There’s a very important concept to understand here…

The #mlm rock stars aren't making that much money because they got in early, they're making that much money because they did the work. Click To Tweet

They’re making that much money because they’ve been working and building longer than other distributors.

It just so happens that they started before everyone else… hence, they’ve been working at it longer than anybody else.

It’s a very distinctive and subtle difference, but my readers are pretty smart (*that means you).

Understanding this concept is paramount to finding success in network marketing and keeping yourself from jumping from shiny object to shiny object, which actually destroys your chances of success.

Truth#2: Network Marketing Leadership Matters

#MLM Truth #2: Leadership Matters Click To Tweet

This is somewhat related to the other concept. Network marketing leadership is important.

This is a multi-billion dollar industry that pays ridiculous income to those who produce.

If the corporate leadership team is untrustworthy, you’re playing Russian roulette with your income and business.

The same goes for leadership experience.

When my daughter was a teenager and I wouldn’t let her do something she would sometimes say “you don’t trust me?”

I had to explain to her that I trusted her intentions but I didn’t trust her judgement (in some situations).

Make sure you pick a company with leaders who have experience and a track record inside this industry.

Otherwise, their lack of experience may lead to decisions that hurt the company’s success, even if their intentions are good.

Truth #3: Products Are Over-Rated

#MLM Truth #3: Products are Over-Rated Click To Tweet

This is a touchy subject, but for some reason few in this industry want to point out the obvious.

Regardless of the hype, the products will NOT sell themselves.

If they did, what would distributors even be needed for?

However, you don’t have to be passionate and love the products to be successful.

Sometimes people think they’re being real and they say, “I could never sell something I’m not passionate about”.

BullCrap.

There are many educators, doctors, dentists, and employees who go to work every single day and promote something they have absolutely no passion about.

Yes, good products help.

But more important than the products is the business model and systems.

We’ve all heard the McDonald’s example before. But it’s a good example so I’m going to beat a dead horse one more time.

McDonald’s does not have the worlds best products.
So why are franchises for this fast food chain so expensive?

I’ve heard it costs over $100,000 just to go through their training program (which is actually called Hamburger University) and that’s on top of the $1,000,000+ franchise fee.

The reason is because their system is so good.
Franchise owners know they will make money.
They don’t buy a McDonald’s because they’re passionate about Big Macs.
They buy it because they know it will make money.

If product importance IS over-rated in network marketing, should you consider anything about the product?

Yes!

You want quality and something you can be proud of. You just have to be realistic and understand they don’t have a magic potion that sells itself.

My other high recommendation for products is to make sure the product demand is something that’s recurring.

This could be a consumable product (such as health and wellness products) or a service (such as software).

You won’t build a sustainable and predictable business unless there is recurring revenue.

That’s one reason I’m not a fan of traditional direct sales.

In direct sales, if you sell a $125 dress or cooking pan, you will make more money upfront.

But it won’t bring freedom because guess what?

The person who just bought doesn’t need a pan next month or even a dress. The sell is essentially dead (as is the revenue).

However, if somebody decides to take a health supplement, they make the decision once but they re-order every month because they use up their supply.

You make less up front per sale, but more in the long run.

It also allows you to use leverage and stop trading time for dollars.

If you make most your money from individual sales, you’re still trading time for dollars.

Truth #4: Corporate Causes are Over-Rated

#MLM Truth #4: Corporate Causes Are Over-Rated Click To Tweet

Every network marketing company loves to tell their story of how they’re changing the world through taking care of orphans, building schools, providing water, etc.

I applaud them and I’m happy to be in a profession that does that.

But the corporate mission doesn’t really matter to your success.

Wow. Really!? Did I just say that?

Yes I did.

If you build a successful business, you’ll have your own causes that you’re passionate about and you’ll have the money to personally fund them.

Focus on that.

That’s more important than the corporate cause because it’s tied to what you have a passion for.

Let it drive you.

2) Action Is More Important Than Belief

Action is More Important than Belief Click To Tweet

To be successful in network marketing you’ve got to wrap your brain around the statement above.

Mindset and belief matter… they do.
I’m not arguing that.

If you’re mindset isn’t right, you likely won’t take action and won’t succeed in network marketing.

But, do you know what matters more?

Action and habits.

If you want success in this industry, quit trying to get your belief up before taking action.

That’s putting the cart before the horse.
Just take consistent action every single day.

Your belief will grow as your activity does and so will your success.

In fact, if your belief NEVER grows and you never believe you can do it… BUT you take the right actions consistently over time, success will come to you whether you believe you can or not.

You know why?
Because of the leverage built into the system.
It’s what makes this model so powerful.

If you’re taking action and sponsoring people, eventually a leader with more belief, more drive, and more influence than you will show up.

When that happens, your business will grow at a rate disproportionate to your own belief and your own capacity.

Again, that’s why the network marketing business model is soooo powerful!

So just ignore your feelings, forget about belief, and strive to take massive action.

If you want #MLM success, then forget about BELIEF and focus on taking MASSIVE action. Success will be inevitable. Click To Tweet

3) Understand and Maximize Duplication

This is really more important than people realize.

If you want massive growth in your business, you’ve got to get the multiplication effect going.

The problem is, most people misunderstand it or promote it wrong.

This either frustrates people coming in (because it doesn’t work like they were told) or it waters down the message for serious business people because they instinctively know it won’t work that way.

Tell me if you’ve heard this one… 2 people turns into 4, then 8, then 16, 32, 64, 128, etc. and then everyone gets rich.

Um… no. We’re dealing with people and it won’t work out that way. Telling people it will is going to just hurt the industry and your business.

You want success in network marketing?

Then understand that true duplication is the duplication of leadership.

True duplication in network marketing is the duplication of leadership. Click To Tweet

If you want to be successful, you’ll have to enroll a lot of people in order to find a few leaders.

Those leaders will do the same thing, and so on, and so forth.

To think everyone (or even most people) will duplicate is a pipe dream!

If that scares you… too bad.

That’s the way it is and there aren’t many out there telling the truth about it.

So here I am, giving you brutal honesty.

I care for you and I want you to be successful.
If you want it bad enough, that’s what you’ll have to do.
Sponsor a lot to find the few.
Come to terms with it or quit now.

To think everyone or even most people will duplicate in your #MLM business is ridiculous. If that scares you, quit now! Click To Tweet

Still here?… Good.
Keep reading.

Often, leaders hand out a tool (flipchart, video, etc.) and say “just show it to more people”.

That’s their system for duplicating.
The problem is, the strategy won’t work with most people.

It will only work with those who:
1. Have large networks
2. Have influence already
3. Are good at sales
4. Are super-crazy driven & will never quit

The good news is, most people are willing to do the work, they just can’t figure out how…

How to get enough leads.
How to talk to enough people.
How to do enough of the “profit generating activity”.
So they quit.

However, there are things you can do to increase the number of people who go out and build an organization (i.e. duplicate).

4) Solve the Biggest Problem & Obstacle for Your Team

Lack of people to talk to is (by far) the biggest reason people quit and/or aren’t successful in the network marketing industry.

You think people really want to quit on their dreams?

NO.

But people don’t want to bug friends and family either.
They don’t want to go to the mall and bug everybody there.
They certainly don’t want to do cold calling.

There are lots of ways to generate leads such as:

Social Media ads
Direct Mail
Drop cards
Referrals
Vlogging
Podcasting
Youtube
Blogging
… and the list goes on.

But these strategies take time, some of them take money, and there’s no guarantee to how many leads you’ll be able to generate using these methods.

Many top earners utilize every way they can think of to get quality prospects.

This website is a great example.

It’s our way of using attraction marketing to generate leads for our primary business.

But most people who get involved simply aren’t as committed as we are. They’re really not going for the big money income.

They just want to make a few thousand dollars a month (or even a few hundred) to help make life a little more manageable.

So if you can solve the problem of leads for them (easily and simply), you’ll increase their productivity and help them be more successful… Thus helping yourself be more successful.

Thankfully, this is actually an easy problem to solve.
In fact, it’s soooo easy, we missed it for a very long time.

The answer doesn’t have to be a fancy funnel, hundreds of dollars in social media advertising, or the next latest and greatest program….

For our team, we encourage people to use the company generated lead capture page.

It is by far the highest converting lead page we’ve used and it’s included in everyone’s back office.

That’s how a real system works.

When somebody first enters our team we teach them free and paid methods for driving traffic to that lead capture page.

These leads are people who are requesting information on working from home.
They include a cell phone number.
They include an email address.

Best of all, they are yours and yours alone. Not shared or sold to 20 other people.

A cell number that you can text is an absolute necessity.

People hate getting on the phone (especially the younger generation), but texting is so easy.

Then you sponsor people and teach them how to do the same inside the company with the most powerful compensation plan you can find.

That’s how wealth is created.

This provides a simple solution that solves the “who do I reach out to” problem that most new distributors face.
This makes it easy for people (brand new or those with experience) to hit their prospecting numbers…

Every…
Single…
Day.

All you have to do is teach them how to utilize the leads (which I’m about to show you how to do).

5) Get Leads In Front of Your Presentation

So how do you use these leads?

Contact and follow up.
It’s that simple.

This is the basic building block for all network marketing business plans.

Once our team has their leads, they just follow a simple script.
You could use something similar for your team.
It goes something like this:

Text 1: Is this ________?

Prospect will almost always respond with one of the following:
(1) Yes/Yeah
(2) Depends who’s asking
(3) Who are You?
(4) No response

If there’s no response, you’re done.
If there IS a response you move on.

Text #2: My name is ___________. I know it’s odd getting a random text but I received your information as someone open to working from home… is that something you’re still exploring? If not, no problem.

Prospect will respond again, almost always with one of the following:
(1) No/Not interested
(2) It depends, what is it
(3) Yes
(4) No response

If they respond with any of the first 3 (or a variation), you go on to the next text. If not, you’re done.

Text #3: Typically, I send over a link to a short 15 min. video that outlines what we do and you can decide if it’s something worth exploring. Want me to send it over?

Again… the responses will be:
(1) Yes/Sure
(2) No
(3) No response

If they respond positively, you go on to the next text.

This is where it gets really Ninja!…

6) Sponsor, Sponsor, Sponsor

We have an app in our company that allows us to share videos and info via text message.

Again, this is free to all distributors and it’s what an actual system looks like.

So at this point, you share the link through the app.

It looks like a regular text message on their side, but it tracks clicks and sends you a notification when somebody clicks on it.

If you get that video out to enough people from your list, some will watch it.

When they do, you’ll be notified through the app.

At that point, you strategically follow up with those who have watched it and see what they like best.

Have a conversation and explore whether or not it would be a fit for them.

It’s a very non-threatening way for your team to get eyeballs on your presentation.

You are literally just sorting through people and harvesting the low hanging fruit.

If your company doesn’t have an app, you can use a video and just follow up with everyone who requested it.

Or you could join us (just a thought) and we could help you.

This process is like the McDonalds example…
It’s a simple system that anybody can do.

By the time you get somebody going, it becomes just a matter of desire.

Whoever shares the presentation with the most people and follows up the most… wins (and makes the most money).

Period.

Jim Rohn said it best (he always does):
If you get 9/10 and I can only get 1/10, I will beat you.
How?
You show the presentation to 10 people and get 9.
I show the presentation to 100 people and get 10…
I beat you.

If you get a few people doing this and teaching this, even if they only sponsor 1 person a month, an organization can grow extremely rapidly, especially if retention and duplication are high.

We would love the opportunity to work with you and plug you into our organization, but we understand if you’re happy where you’re at.

If that’s the case for you, we wish you luck!

Just be sure to re-assess your company and make sure you’re on the right bus.

The worst thing that could happen is you begin having massive success AND THEN you realize you picked the wrong company.

7) Teach and Repeat

Once someone is enrolled, you teach them to do the same thing you’re doing.

We work with people to customize a plan that makes sense to them and plays to their strengths.

The great part is they aren’t focusing on the result, just the activity.

Activities produce results.

Remember, action is more powerful than belief.

This system truly makes it a part time business.

Once you sponsor someone, a ratio has appeared (thanks again Jim Rohn).

When that happens, people get excited because it’s real.

You can see how many people needed to watch the video for you to get one enrollment.

Then it actually is just a numbers game.
The best part is… this system isn’t dependent on skills.
Anyone can text, show a video, and follow up.

After a while, you can drop everything into a funnel and automated email sequence so that it’s all automated.

Then you really have a powerful system!

Part of getting people to actually take action in network marketing is convincing them they can do what you do.

How you approach and share something with someone is MORE IMPORTANT than what you say or how you say it.

That’s because when they think about doing the business, they’re going to think of their interaction with you.

If you were in front of a room, they’ll think that they will eventually have to do what you’re doing.

By the way, public speaking is the #1 fear of most people, so you’re basically asking people to conquer their deepest and darkest fear… and pay for the opportunity to do it.

Helping someone believe they can do it is much easier when all you did was text them and send a video.

The personal belief piece is much harder to conquer if the prospecting process was complicated.

Yes, these things can increase your exposure and numbers, but you better be able to plug people into a system they can implement immediately.

Otherwise, they think they have to do what you did to be successful.

Once people have this systematic approach in place, their belief tends to go up as well, especially after they sponsor their first person.

Then it’s even easier to approach people they know (if they choose to) because they can show them exactly what to do and how to do it.

They can also describe their first few successes.

They’re no longer trying to use their friends and family, they’re trying to share something with them that they are going to do with OR WITHOUT them.

That authentic posture and confidence makes a big difference and will draw their friends to them.

Final Network Marketing Success Thoughts

As I close out this section, I want to review what we’ve covered.
The first 3 steps are about setting up the right foundation.
Then you focus on Steps 4-7.

If you do this, your success will stop being a matter of “IF” and start being a question of “WHEN”.

You’ll be UNSTOPPABLE!

How to Be Successful in Network Marketing

Choose the Right Company
Action is More Important than Belief
Understand and Master Duplication
Solve the Biggest Problem for your Team (Lead Generation)
Get Eyeballs on Your Presentation
Sponsor More People
Teach and Repeat

Lastly: Leaders Find Leaders, They Don’t Manage.

The best explanation I’ve ever heard of this idea, comes from Jordan Addler.

I heard Jordan speak about this on a podcast and it stuck with me.

Jordan tells the story of being out sailing on a boat.

He’s talking to his captain about how he learned to sail.

He asked him, “when was the last time you spoke to your instructor”

The captain says “Probably 15 years ago”.

Jordan then explains how this is similar to how to succeed in network marketing.

There are thousands of people sailing on the ocean and tens of thousands who learned to sail at one time or another,… but don’t sail anymore.

Maybe they lost interest, maybe they realized it wasn’t for them, perhaps they got passionate about something else, or they just had some change in their life and had to let sailing go.

Whatever the case, they were taught to sail and then stopped sailing for one reason or another.

Their instructors didn’t try to keep them in sailing, they just showed them how.

Whether or not they continue to sail and grow their experience of sailing is completely up to them.

That’s the way successful network marketers run their businesses.

You bring somebody in, you teach them the business (how to sail), and then you let them go.

They decide whether or not they’re going to continue sailing.
It’s not your job to keep them sailing, so don’t beat yourself up when people quit.

Your job is to find people who want to sail and teach them how.

Don’t try to manage them and make them sail.
Teach them how and (more importantly) show them how.
That’s it.
That’s your job.

We feel we’ve got the perfect system set up with the right company so you can have massive success.

If you’re happy with your current company and upline, then fantastic!

Stay there and build a massive organization!

However, if you’re looking for a new home or want to learn to “sail” for the first time, we invite you to apply to work with us.

We already know you’re the type of person we’re looking for because you’re proactively looking for the answer to the age old question of how to be successful in network marketing.

In addition, you read this whole article.
You have success written in your future.
I don’t know how long it will take, but if you’re in a solid company, with solid leadership and a solid system, you WILL arrive.

So consider joining others with the same mindset and help us change lives 1 family at a time.

And always remember…

If nothing changes… nothing changes.

If you enjoyed this article and found value in it, we’d really appreciate a social media share!

God Bless.

Lastly, but most importantly, if you would like a relationship with Jesus Christ, you can learn more here.