Network marketing

Network marketing is one of the several ways of activity in the area of goods and service distribution. In this method, the company employs a network of distributors to sell its products to the user.

The products are moved through independent distributors. The distributors are given an opportunity to introduce other distributors to the business.

Products or services are sold exclusively through individual salespersons to end consumers. There is little or no advertising as every sale is word of mouth. The savings of advertising are passed on to distributor consumers. At the same time products are available to consumers at wholesale prices.

The distributors are allowed to make and manage their sales force through “recruitment” and “training” of other participants in order to sell products.

The recruiter assumes the role of a mentor, taking the new recruit under their wing and teaching them the fundamentals of the business: how direct selling operates; how to run the business; how to sell the product or service; product knowledge and use, and effective recruiting techniques.

Three types of network marketing:
*Single-tier Network Marketing
*Two-tier Network Marketing
*Multi-level Network Marketing

A network marketing organization grows stronger when a member recruits or sponsors, another person into the organization. Every new prospect that a network marketer sponsor becomes a part of their downline, and helps to earn commission and bonuses for their sponsor and his or her upline.
Network marketing

Direct selling concept

Direct selling is a distribution of consumer products and services through personal, face to face sales away from fixed business locations.

Direct selling opportunities are geared to the home-based businessperson. Most direct selling programs are designed specifically to be home-based businesses and are often geared to women.

It gives the marketer an opportunity to demonstrate the product in an environment – usually customers’ homes – where it most likely would be used.

In India Avon, Amway etc., foreign firms have taken to the direct selling route. Although they have not gone strictly form door-to-door but the network of independent distributors help the companies reach a wide range of consumers.

In the United States Amway has already been a big success through the network marketing. In The United States, the top five companies are Avon, Amway, Herbalife, Mary Kay, and Tupperware.

Direct sellers was once historically used a cold canvas, door to door approach to finding prospects, has evolved onto a professional industry where most contacts with buyers are prearranged through electronic communications or personal contacts.

Today, most companies such as World Book, Amway, Mary Kay and Avon identify customers through the mail, telephone, internet, social networks, or shopping mall intercepts and then set-up appointments.
Direct selling concept

Relationship and Networks

Relationship and Networks
Transaction marketing is part of a larger idea, called relationship marketing. Smart marketers try to build up long term, trusting, “win-win” relationships with valued customers, distributors, dealers and suppliers. That is accomplished by promising and delivering high quality, good service, and fair prices to the other parties over time. It is accomplished by building strong economic, technical, and social ties with the other parties. Relationship marketing cuts down on transaction costs and time: in the best case, transaction move from being negotiated each time to being routinized.

The ultimate outcome of relationship marketing is the building of a unique company asset called a marketing network. A marketing network consists of the company and its suppliers, distributors, and customers, with which it has built solid, dependable business relationships. Increasingly, competition is not between companies but rather between whole networks, with the prize going to the company that has built the better network. The operating principle is simple: Build a good network of relationships with key stakeholders, and profits will follow.
Relationship and Networks

Network Marketing Vs. Affiliate Marketing

Marketing Strategy
Running a traditional brick and mortar kind of business with an online presence, is obviously one very good way to make at least part of your living online. But for the purposes of this article we are going to assume that you do not have your own business. So I am going to discuss two of the biggest online money makers right now: online business opportunities and affiliate marketing.

Network marketing
The typical online business opportunity is commonly built around some sort of network marketing concept, inheriting the basic qualities of the offline business model that has been available for many decades - the basic idea being that you recruit two or more people, who in their turn recruit two and in this way your efforts will (at least in theory) be greatly leveraged.

The main difference doing this online is that, utilizing the power of the Internet, you as a network marketer can literally reach people all over the planet. The problem with the network marketing, or "mlm", concept is that it sounds so good on paper - way too good in fact. Most people who joins up with a company of this type tend to get a dose of Mr. Reality rather soon.

They discover that recruiting new people, which is what all mlm is all about - even if they try to tell you differently - is not at all a simple process. There has been plenty of fraudulent businesses in this niche, and people tend to stay on their toes as soon as they hear the words mlm or network marketing.

To further complicate things this business model is also based on you paying a set monthly fee - wether you make any money or not, which means that many people who start this kind of business actually end up loosing money. It is definitely possible to make a good living in network marketing, but it is definitely not for everybody. "Getting in on the ground floor" is allegedly not always as good as it seems.
Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing is similar to network marketing, in the sense that you will be promoting a product produced by another company or person. This can obviously make life very simple for you, as the merchant will usually take care of all shipping and customer support issues. Amazon.com is probably one of the most well known (an respected) companies utilizing the power of affiliate partnerships.

As an affiliate, your task is simply to refer new clients to the merchant and when these people go ahead and buy something, you get credited with a certain percentage of the sale. Contrary to network marketing it is generally free to act as an affiliate marketer.

Although there are certain companies that have sort of a hybrid structure between network and affiliate marketing - requiring you to pay a start-up and/or monthly fee to market their products. Most affiliate programs are completely free to join though, so I'd personally stay away from those using their affiliate programs as an income generator in it's own right, or "affiliate sharks" as one marketer aptly named them.

Affiliate programs are thus a great way in which almost anyone can start to make money online, without having to invest a lot of money, if indeed any at all. There is however certain strategies and marketing methods you need to be knowledgeable of, if you are to make anything but peanuts with your affiliate marketing.


Choosing the right affiliate program and promoting it to the right people in the right way is an art form in it's own right. And the people who are really good at this, generally referred to as "super affiliates", make a very good living doing nothing else than selling other people's products.

If you are looking to make an additional income from the Internet, or eventually even replace your current income altogether, affiliate marketing is a great way to get started. To achieve the success you desire, you should study and learn the same techniques super affiliates use on a day to day basis.
Network Marketing Vs. Affiliate Marketing