6 Likely Reasons your MLM Failed

Multi-level marketing (better known as MLM but also called direct selling, referral marketing and network marketing) is often the butt of bad work-at-home jokes. The idea behind them is that you earn profits not only based on what you sell but on what other people sell after you’ve signed them up to participate in the program. These so-called “pyramid schemes” are typically considered to be scams. However, MLM businesses do have the potential to be successful. If you sign up with a legitimate MLM business and then put the majority of your efforts towards marketing directly towards customers (rather than other potential salespeople) then you can have a successful MLM.

If you have tried doing an MLM business in the past and it failed, one of these six causes was probably the reason for the failure:

1.     You didn’t have networking skills. MLM marketing works best when you can rely on a solid network of people to sell the same products that you are selling but to sell them to a different market than you are targeting. For example, it’s fine to have your friends participate in your MLM business but if they’re all friends with each other then the market that you’re all targeting is going to be the same and the MLM business isn’t going to be very successful. In order to be successful in a direct selling business it is important for you to have strong networking skills with a diverse group of people. You won’t concentrate your efforts on building up a network so much as selling your own product directly to customers but you will take the time to broaden your network and get others involved in the MLM business.

2.     You were a bad salesperson. In addition to networking you need to be able to sell the products that you’re trying to sell through the MLM business. If you don’t have the skills you need to be good in sales then you aren’t going to succeed in this business. You need to be able to make cold calls and entice people into buying your product. You need to be able to spread the word online without annoying your friends and followers. You need to be able to sell your product because your buyers truly believe that they need it. This is a lot easier to do if you believe in your product than if you don’t, which is an important point to consider before you sign up for an MLM business.

3.     You lacked passion for this business. Following along that same thread of needing to like your products, you really need to enjoy MLM work if you want to be good at it. People who lack passion for this business just aren’t going to get very far. That’s because this is a sales-based position that you need to be willing to be aggressive about if you want to be successful. If you aren’t truly passionate about the work then that is absolutely going to come through to others. As a result you will fail in this business. Unfortunately, many people are actually not only passion-less but even embarrassed about doing MLM work because of the bad reputation that it’s gotten over the years. Would you buy something from someone who seemed embarrassed about the fact that they were selling the product? Probably not. If you had this attitude going into the MLM business then it’s no wonder that your business failed!

4.     You thought you were going to get rich quick. MLM businesses have gotten a bad reputation over the years even among people who are interested in trying them out. They assume that they are going to get rich quick without doing a lot of hard work. That’s not true. This is a business and you have to treat it like one. If you think you’re going to rapidly get rich and then you give up when you don’t then you’re going to fail at the MLM business. If you accept that you’ll slowly and steadily increase your income with regular work in an MLM business then you’re more likely to find success.

5.     You don’t know anything about business. Now that you understand that the MLM business really is a real business you can see why it’s important that you have some business skills to make this venture work properly. It’s true that you may get some on-the-job training from the person who referred you into the program but you need additional business skills if you’re going to be successful. Read some business books, especially those related to marketing and direct-to-consumer sales. Consider taking an accounting class. Treat MLM work like the real job that it is.

6.    You lacked confidence in your ability to do this job. Many of the people who choose to do MLM marketing do so because they don’t know what else to do to try to earn some money. They don’t really believe in their ability to do the job but hope against hope that they’ll get lucky and make some extra cash. Being wishy washy and lacking confidence is a surefire way to fail in any sort of marketing or networking position. If you’re going to do MLM work then you need to be confident about your ability to do the work well. This confidence will come through and improve your chances for success in the business.