MLM recruiting online is all the rage in the network marketing industry, and has been for quite a few years now. While you may be relieved to hear that you no longer need to pester your family, friends, plumber, hairdresser, or anyone within three feet to join you in your exciting endeavor, you do need to keep in mind that the rules of successful MLM recruiting online are really no different than what works in the offline world. Here are three Do’s to keep in mind.

1. Be respectful of the people that you meet online. If you don’t know them, behave that way. Do not invade their space. Do not “friend” them on Facebook to then blast them with messages or pitches. Do not assume that they want to hear about what you have to offer. They don’t, and if they did, they would ask you. If you are doing any of these things, you have basically taken the 3-foot rule that you so dreaded and moved it to your online neighborhood. And besides being disrespectful, it won’t work.

2. Set up a place where people can come see (on their own free will!!) what a great opportunity you have to offer. This can be likened to your online office. Offer informative, problem-solving, inspirational, how-to content. . .whatever matches what you’re target market is looking for. The information should be compelling, but not hypey. Include your own story here, and all your contact details. If this is your fist “online office”, I recommend creating it at either HubPages or Wordpress.

3. Use traffic methods to invite interested people (and the key word here is interested) to your online office. The quickest and most effective way to do this is through PPC (pay-per-click) advertising. It does require an investment, but you determine how much that is, so learn some PPC basics, invest whatever you can to start out, and go from there. You can then incorporate other paid and free advertising methods along the way. There are hundreds of traffic generating strategies you can use, but if you want immediate results, start with PPC on Google, Yahoo, and Bing.

Whatever you do online, whether it’s contributing in forums, training on YouTube, meeting and greeting on Facebook, be respectful of the people you come into contact with. Remember, you will learn as much, if not more, from them as you hope to teach them!

Are you using Wordpress? I myself made the switch from blogger to Wordpress a couple of months ago and have immersed myself in the world of plug-ins. You see, that’s how Wordpress automates many of its functions, so, if you have a Wordpress blog, then make sure you have these plug-ins. They will make your blog more effective on the SEO (Search Engine Optimization) front and just easier to maintain.

It’s hard to define exactly what Wordpress plug-ins are (they sound like little devices that you “plug-in” somewhere), but what they basically do is allow you to customize your blog to work for you the way you want it to. There are hundreds of Wordpress plug-ins and, for the most part, the ones that you claim work best for the functions of your blog will differ from those that are more important on another blog, BUT there are a few that everyone agrees are essential, and here they are. . . .

1. The All In One SEO Pack allows you to tweak your meta titles, descriptions and tags without changing the content of your post. In just a few seconds, you can do all this to optimize your SEO. This Wordpress plugin also protects your blog from violating Google’s Duplicate Content, and it offers many other options that you can try. However, the default options have worked just fine for me.

2. Akismet protects your blog against spam, and you definitely need this!

3. Google Analytics tracks your blog so you know how many visitors you are getting and where they are coming from.

4. Google XML Sitemaps helps Google, Yahoo, Bing, and other search engines index your blog more quickly.

5. Sociable allows you to place buttons at the end of your posts so readers can bookmark and share them with others.

New Wordpress plugins are constantly being developed so this may change in the near future. If you need help setting up your Wordpress blog, switching your Blogger blog to Wordpress, or installing these or any other Wordpress plug-ins, fill in your name on the right and I’ll walk you through it step by step!

MLM Selling: 5 Ways to Be Persuasive

So now you’re thinking “what do you mean MLM selling? My MLM sells itself,” right? When I first started looking into network marketing, I did quite a bit of research, and I did listen to several company  presentations of well-established MLM companies. I was surprised (and relieved) to find that, according
to the management of these companies, every single one of them included the words that went something to the effect of “there’s really no need to sell”, or “the product sells itself”, or “just tell a couple friends and you’re on your way.”

Well, the truth is that, if you want to be successful in your network marketing company, you will have
to do some selling. But the good news is that selling these days isn’t all that painful. In fact, the hardest part of the whole thing is finding the people who really want the products/services your company offers, or possibly the ones who want to go into business with you, rather than just pitching your offer to everyone and anyone.

But once you’ve identified the people who are interested in what you have to offer — in fact, who are
actively seeking what you have to offer — the MLM selling part becomes extremely easy. Because you’re
talking to people who are already willing and able to snatch up what it is you have waiting for them.

So, the hard part is actually locating these people–not selling to them. And if you can take a step further, and make it so that THEY find you, rather than YOU finding them, well, then, you are way ahead of the game.

It’s definitely worth spending the time and effort on market research early on because it will save you a ton of time and effort in the long-run. More on how to do that in the next couple of days. . .

For now, back from this tangent to the real story which is an article by AllTop’s Guy Kawasaki, entitled

5 Ways to Be Persuasive

This is a list narrowed down from the Yes! 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to be Persuasive book by Dr.
Noah Goldstein, Steve Martin, and Professor Robert Cialdini. You might be surprised that their meaning of
being persuasive isn’t quite what you thought it was in today’s world.

Make sure you read it all and take the “persuasion test” at the end to see how well you score!

Is Twitter one of your MLM tools?

Then you’ve most likely been keeping up with Twitter’s shift from a completely free platform to one that will bring in some advertising revenue from its millions (and quickly growing) of users. The lastest is that you can now pay to promote yourself on the trends list that appears on your Twitter home page. But is a paid trend really a trend?

Find out in Kit Eaton’s article on FastCompany.com:

Twitter’s Adding Paid ‘Fake Trends’ Advertising, But Will Users Object?

See what people are asking and how this could affect your own MLM business. All comments welcome. . .

I just read an insightful article, written by Allison Nazarian on Entrepreneur.com, that I think we MLM marketers or home business men and woman can all benefit from. . .

You Work From Home. . .So What?

Sometimes we are so used to the proximity of the “rest of the home” and the “home office” (which may just be a desk in your bedroom or living room), that it’s hard to separate the two. Allison gives some tips on why you really should keep your home and office life apart, and the best ways to do that. And she too is a busy mom, entrepreneur, and business coach who knows the challenges you face.

Enjoy the article!

The Multi Level Marketing Product – What to Look for And What to Avoid

We’ve been over the basics of what constitutes a good network marketing opportunity. And the the product or service offered is just one aspect that you need to evaluate . . .but it is an extremely important one. . .

I just watched a short video narrated by Darren Falter, author of How to Select a Network Marketing Company. According to him and the top network marketers that he interviewed. . .

There are 7 qualities that define a good network marketing product.

Many of us already realize how important these qualities are but it’s great to see them portrayed as crucial to your network marketing success so I thought I would put them here in black and white.

Perhaps most important of all is how consumable the multi level marketing product is. Will it be used (and used up) on a regular basis? Or is the product something that you buy once and it lasts forever?

You want to make sure you’re representing a product that people will need over and over again.

Some products are more consumable than others. . . the important point is that they are used on a regular basis.

Is the product or service emotional? Does it stir up feelings of excitement, enthusiasm or any other emotions in any way? If so, it’s doing well so far in the process. If not, you may want to move on in your search, depending on the answers to the rest of the questions about what defines a good multi level marketing product.

Are people used to buying this product in the direct sales market rather than from retail establishments?  If not, it might create some difficulties for you in your business. If people are not used to purchasing these products through direct sales, you’ll have a hard time getting them to change their minds now.

Is the product unique? Does it stand out in any way? Does it have a unique angle?

A good multi level marketing product should be unique. . .but make sure that it is “believably unique” as well.

If something seems far-fetched or too good to be true, check it out a little further. A product can be unique if it has a unique ingredient, a unique patent or trademark, a celebrity endorsement, or unique branding or packaging.

How timely is the multi level marketing product? Is the demand for this product huge right now? Timing is everything. Don’t be fooled into thinking that it’s better to start selling a product before it’s really popular.

Don’t speculate on how great a product will be. You can only make money on what is doing well right now.

How stable is the multi level marketing product? How long has it been around and how long will it last? Make sure you choose a company that has been around long enough to prove its worth. A good benchmark is usually about five years.

Is the product/service valuable? It needs to be perceived as being at least worth its price and maybe more. Would you buy it in a retail store at the same price? If not, then people will be tough-pressed to purchase it from you.

The multi level marketing product is just one aspect you need to consider when making a decision about joining a network marketing company or if you’re analyzing the company you are already involved with. There are lots of network marketing products that meet the above criteria – just make sure that you have the other important elements in place like a communicative team with a proven system and training and you’re in the right place.

The MLM Launch Formula is opening on Monday, June 7 and offering lots of bonuses for the movers and shakers.

If you haven’t yet seen the 6  free instructional videos that Jonathan Budd and Mark Hoverson have offered as pre-launch material, do go ahead and access them right here: MLM Launch Formula. You will definitely learn something from these two experts. The videos include some recent and detailed examples and case studies of what Jonathan and Mark do to be so successful in their MLM businesses, and how some newcomers to the MLM industry have applied these techniques to become successful right from the get-go.

Just a very brief recap on what the MLM Launch formula is offering members. . .

A six-week intensive training course that will take place every Monday afternoon and be followed up every Friday afternoon with a Q & A session where Jonathan and Mark will answer your questions personally. In addition to the training, you will receive resources, tools, blueprints,  and software that will help you put your training into action.

The first MLM Launch Formula lesson hands you a pre-built launch and you just put it into play by following the instructions given to you. This lesson also focuses on building your list. And the good news is that you do not need to have a huge list to start profiting right away. Learn how to build and hone down your list to get the most responsive players. While it’s true that the money is all in the list, the real money is all in the quality list.

The second MLM Launch Formula lesson focuses on using webinars for your launches and give you step-by-step details on how to go about this. The program is called the easy, no-fail webinar plan.

The third lesson is called “The Art of the Perpetual Launch” and here is where you will learn some special techniques and secret weapons that you can use over and over again on your launch, without putting forth any further effort. You will also receive a “technology weapon” that both Mark and Jonathan use in their business and is worth more than the MLM Launch Formula itself.

The fourth MLM Launch Formula lesson will teach you how to continuously earn multiple streams of income as an affiliate, and the fifth lesson gives you access to Mark Hoverson’s Downline Supernova Formula, which teaches you to instill the “launch culture” within your entire team, so that they can duplicate exactly what you are doing, and how to make your specific team a brand that others will fight to become a part of.

And the last lesson teaches you one of the most important aspects of MLM branding — how to create your own product. Often the mention of creating your own product puts fear into the hearts of new network marketers. But it is easier than you think it is – especially if you follow the MLM Launch Formula action plan. This lesson also teaches you how to market your product so that it can create income for you long into the future.

When you access the MLM Launch Formula training videos, keep in mind that the first three are strict content that are designed to help you in your current business. Video number four describes the MLM Launch Formula in great detail. Video 6 describes all the bonuses you get after you join the program, and if you hurry, you can get some really big prizes!

Check out the MLM Launch Formula videos  if you haven’t already and keep your eyes peeled on Monday, June 7, 2010 at 12:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time for the official launch.