My Simple Goals for Network Marketing:
1. Elevate the profession.
2. Collaborate more.
For those who know me, you know I’m an optimist. I believe strongly in this profession. I love the transformation it creates and the business model it follows.
SELLING HOPE like we will be bigger in a few years does sell better and makes everyone want to follow those leaders/coaches. And I am great with anyone saying what they believe. Many leaders and coaches might say this is just a SEASON and it’s normal. I may lose followers and even money for saying this, but this isn’t just another season. HOLD ON! Read the whole post as there will be much optimism later.
We’ve never seen anything like this before. The last time our profession felt this threatened was when Amway went to court with the FTC from 1975 to 1979 over being labeled a pyramid scheme.
This time, the threat isn’t the FTC. It’s the combination of other opportunities available in this new digital world. Some call them opportunities, while others call them distractions – and both have some truth to it. Everyone keeps talking about GROWTH in our profession/industry. I’ve heard ambitious predictions like 300 billion by 2030. Let’s challenge that thought.
You know I’m a huge believer in this profess/industry, but to grow, we need awareness and accountability. And you need honesty and not some fluff sugarcoat randomly thrown out numbers. Or just YELLING optimism without solutions.
The Facts
10 years ago, we were at 178 billion in sales as an industry. Last year, we finished at 190 billion. If you account for inflation we have gone backwards by 16.61%. We can’t grow if MOST of the top earners are just leaders taken from other companies! What we have now isn’t setting us up for a 300-billion-dollar profession by 2030.
The competition with affiliate marketing and other opportunities like Affiliate Marketing, Uber or Airbnb is only increasing. For things to change, we need to change. We need to get better!
So let’s say there are 2000 total network marketing companies and only 10 total change their model to affiliate. That’s 0.5%. I hope that gives some optimism and perspective.
The competition from so many other ways to make income is an opportunity for us to improve. MY OPTIMISM! There are thousands of companies and although devastating only a few have changed their model to an affiliate MODEL.
MORE OPTIMISM I believe we CAN make this OBSTACLE and CHALLENGE the best thing that has ever happened to us but only if identify the problems and come up with solutions.
What We Need
- Develop NEW LEADERS!
- Improve the customer experience!
- Get back to the basics of creating skills.
- Keep innovating.
- Improve our systems.
- Double down on our culture.
- Owners and leaders need to be more responsible financially.
- Create even MORE value on SOCIAL MEDIA and stand out even more!
- Offline events to help even more with the culture and connection.
- Help the new person see a little bit of money sooner.
This last point is a combination of the compensation plan, but also your systems and recognition focusing on this. Please don’t misinterpret this post as pessimistic. If you know me, I’m a huge optimist. But to be even more optimistic, we need some tough love and awareness so we can improve this industry. Regardless of what happens with the industry as a whole, you can still create your own business.
You can still control your own environment and thrive. I would love to hear your feedback on how we can improve the industry by doing our part! My goal isn’t to create fear as I have given many solutions to help us GROW! I felt it was important to be bold and create more awareness and urgency. I want to keep building up this profession. I believe where there is GREAT tragedy, there is always great opportunity. Tough times are ahead, but they will make us stronger!! So think about this thought.
During the depression there were more millionaires created than any other time until the .com era! This time right NOW will be the greatest OPPORTUNITY for those who SEIZE it and focus on all the things I mentioned. Recessions in general can be absolutely amazing but only if we use the struggle to dig deep and improve. Recessions weed out the companies that did things the wrong way.
My goal is to first create awareness and then collaborate and create solutions. I strongly believe we will come out of this better and stronger. I believe the leaders who really hone in on improving themselves, their systems, culture, and basic skills will come out of this in a better position than ever before.
Let’s turn this TRIAL into the best thing this PROFESSION has ever had happen! Let’s be honest with where we are at as a profession.
Let’s be honest about where we are at personally. Then let’s focus 90% of the time on the solutions! And also if we even maintain a 200 billion dollar profession that is beyond PLENTY to go around.
It is beyond enough to create an incredible opportunity for YOU. Your brain can’t focus on problems and solutions at the same. Spend 10% of the time on the problem. And the other 90% of the time on the solutions!
3 Responses
Thank you for sharing this, Rob Sperry.
Great article. Thank you for your thoughts and also points to keep focusing on.
Fully agree with it. We need to keep working, working smart and building strategies that will give people results. We also shouldn’t forget to work with newbies and give them all the knowledge so they can become strong leaders. People are so triggered by fast money and automation (they are both good), but they forget about stability and a strong business that keeps growing.
This profession will keep growing and will stay.
And people just buy differently today than years ago. More people are ok with doing the entire transaction online without speaking to a single person. Respond to an ad, attend a webinar, go to a sales page and purchase. They don’t care about the marketing side of the business. Like you state, correctly, there are way too many options and everyone says their opportunity is easy. And let’s face it, anything is easier than building a sales team of straight commission, direct sales people.