Elizabeth residents seek network marketing for financial help

Elizabeth residents seek network marketing for financial help
By Ashley Dieterle
Published: 03.17.09

http://coloradocommunitynewspapers.com/articles/2009/03/23/elbert_county_news/news/19_ad_marketing.txt

After a significant pay decrease in the family, an Elizabeth woman decided to find her own route in making extra money for her family.

Like many people in the country dealing with pay-cuts and layoffs, Jamilyn Anthony geared her direction to earn money in the network marketing business selling Pampered Chef. She and other women in her community are working to build a support network to help one another and their business. Anthony said the other women have opted for network marketing businesses also because of financial hardships.

Network marketing businesses or multilevel businesses have become increasingly popular recently. According to Direct Sales Association only 9.7 million people were considered independent sales people compared to 15 million in 2007. There are advantages and disadvantages to this type of a business, but it is apparent that more and more people are being drawn to the business.

Networking marketing is a business that allows a person to choose the product he or she wants to sell and the work schedule. It is a multi-level business that pays people for sales generated by other people who have been recruited into the distribution network below them. Each person involved is able to sell their products at their own pace, but also benefit from the sales of others.For Anthony, her choice for Pampered Chef was easy — she loves to cook. After selling the product about 10 years ago it was easy for her to jump back into the flow of things. After her husband took a pay cut, her family could no longer afford the extra things in life.
“We were able to pay our bills, but if something else comes up it was really tough,” she said.
The main reason Anthony went the Pampered Chef route was because she loves the product and after experience with owning her one private business, this direction was much easier. She said she does not have to hire any employees and she can work when she feels like working. She said learning about the products is not hard and neither is finding people who are interested in the products. Each week ranges in the amount of shows she works, but said she typically makes $50 an hour.

Anthony said it is important for a person to love the product they sell because that is the only way great success will happen. A person must also be self-motivated and willing to get out there and schedule shows and recruit other people interested in being part of the Pampered Chef family.

“You really have to share the business opportunities with others who might want to join,” she said. “But you really have to put in the time especially if you’re at home where there can be a lot of distractions.”

Leah Walker is another person in Elizabeth using network marketing as a residual income for her family. She first started selling products for Arbonne International in 2007 as a way to earn extra money, not knowing how important that business would be down the road. Recently her husband took a $1,000 a month pay cut, leaving their family in a rough spot. After family issues in 2007, Walker was forced to take a break from her business, but is now happy she has the opportunity in her back pocket.

“Before I stopped I was making more money working part-time selling Arbonne products as my husband was working full-time before he took the cut,” she said. “It was great knowing the business never goes away.”

Walker is a firm believer that people using network marketing can be successful as long as they know their product and are willing to talk to people.

“You have to get out there and be a people person and build relationships,” she said.
Although Anthony and Walker have been successful so far with her network marketing business, not all who get involved will prosper.

According to co-author of “The Virtual Handshake: Opening Doors and Closing Deals Online and the Emergence of the Relationship Economy” and 20-year veteran technology entrepreneur, executive, and consultant Scott Allen, there are certain people who are definitely not right for a network marketing position.

According to an article Allen wrote for About.com people with certain characteristics may be attracted to network marketing, but will not end up being successful.

People who have not done well in their business or profession and have little money saved up to invest, have no previous experience owning or running a business, have no previous experience in sales, have little or no experience developing business relationships other than that of employer/employee/co-worker, are not satisfied with their level of income and have unrealistic expectations of the amount of work involved compared to the revenue realized may have trouble with network marketing.

As a result, he says these people may end up over-selling the opportunity inappropriately, discussing business in social situations, coming across as desperate over-focused on new recruits and neglecting existing customers as a result being either inaccurate or deceptive when talking about their business.

But Allen says there is a first time for everything and network marketing is a venue people can explore, but need to remember to treat network marketing as a business and learn from others with more experience.

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