There is a wealth of information for network marketing consultants available; you just need to know what to look for and where to find it.

Check your local bookstore. In the business section, I’ve found several books on network marketing and owning your own business.

In addition, I’ve always enjoyed reading books on leadership. There are several wonderful authors. One of my favorites is John Maxwell. He has several books on the market. I’ve not read all of them but each one I’ve read I’ve ended up recommending to others.

Check online for network marketing forums. There are two that I’m a member of that are network marketing discussions only. There are also forums for home businesses in general and home party plans.

Find an ezine directory. You’ll find several ezines on network marketing and home businesses. Search out other business related topics such as marketing and branding and read a few ezines on those topics as well.

Look at article directories. You’ll find articles such as this one, written by many different authors on a wide variety of topics relating to network marketing.

Look at everything your company puts out. Many companies put out a distributor only company magazine. Those magazines often include product information and distributor success stories.

Companies also often have training materials. There materials are sometimes written documents and sometimes DVDs.

I’ve found some wonderful demo videos on YouTube. I’ve loved the videos showing the products and how to use them. I’ve gotten lots of ideas from watching these total strangers representing the same company I do.

Watch for industry seminars in your town or in neighboring towns. I’ve attended several seminars and workshops over the years. There are several trainers out there and each one offers something a bit different in their presentations.

Find industry conference calls. Many companies and/or uplines offer training calls. If your company or upline does not offer training calls, search online for trainers who offer network marketing training calls and join in . Often the calls are free, less the cost of the long distance phone call. With so many free training calls being offered, I’d hold off on paying for training calls until you know exactly what training you’re willing to pay for.

Make it a point to invest at least 10 minutes per day reading, watching or taking part in a discussion. You’ll find that your business will continue to grow as you learn more and put those teachings into action.

I read ads daily that say, “get in on the ground floor.” The ad poster then goes on to say if you don’t join now, you’ll be left out in the cold.

I see businesses shut their doors every single month. These businesses range from small mom and pop retail stores to giant chains. I’ve also seen a lot of network marketing companies never even make it past “pre-launch” mode.

I am very aware that every new company must start at day one. I’m also aware that each of these companies had distributors on day one.

If you are going to consider joining a start-up company, there are several things I suggest you consider:

1. Research the owners. Who is putting their money behind this company and what is their background?

2. What has been the pattern of other companies offering the product line this new start-up company is offering? Is the market saturated? Is the product a fad product that will be gone in 2 years time? Is the product a consumable product or a luxury product?

3. If the company is being started by “friends” have you researched how many companies have succeeded where “friends” began the company? There is a phrase, “don’t mix business and pleasure”. That phrase has more merit than most other common phrases.

4. What will you do if the company does not make it? Do you have a backup plan? Will this closure affect your reputation and credibility?

5. When you join a start-up company, no one will have heard of the company. What type of marketing plan do you have to educate others about this new company?

6. What types of marketing materials are available from this new company? Marketing is the lifeline of any business. I’ve seen new businesses start and they didn’t even have a catalog available. It’s very difficult to sell products without the benefit of a catalog.

The statistics I’ve read say, “90% of new network marketing businesses fail in their first year, and 90% of the remaining 10% fail in their second year.” When you work the numbers, this means that out of 100 new start-up companies, only one will be left after two years. Are you willing to take this chance?

There are Six Key Ingredients lurking inside of your prospect’s mind at all times. You must know what these are, know that they exist and be prepared to satisfy them if you want people to buy anything from YOU. So let’s analyze how and why people buy..

First Ingredient:

People coming online to try to make money are looking for great business opportunities. And when they find one then the buying decision becomes obvious to them. However, whom they choose to buy from is not as obvious and quite a different matter altogether.

Usually people will buy from those they know and trust.

When you finally understand this concept, you will be more than halfway there. Now let’s expand upon this further…

Second Ingredient:

The next question is how to get the people to know and to trust you.

Well, first you must try to create an online presence very quickly. This can happen. In fact, done correctly it can be achieved within 1 – 2 weeks! (I’ll throw in some tips along the way in this article).

Third Ingredient:

Most people coming online to learn how to market and make money are information junkies and they just can’t get enough. It’s like when you yourself came online and were searching for information: the articles, the blogs, you just couldn’t get enough.

Well give them what they are looking for! Give them the information and content that they are Googling for and present it in such a way that it is not too sales-y or hype-y. Do not flaunt your cars and your cash (real or otherwise).

Give them information on how to find a good sponsor, on what to look for in a business, give them the information on the products and the services. In this fashion, they will be more likely to stay and to bond with you.

One way to get yourself out there quickly is to build a presence using social bookmarking and networking sites, such as:

myspace.com this is a social site that can get you online quickly without having to build a website from scratch.

facebook.com this is a bit more formal and business like. It is also more accepting of business and sales pitches.

blogger.com this is a great place to deliver content. Most marketers would advise you avoid a heavy sales pitch on your blogs.

wordpress.com this is another blogging platform with greater add in features, like widgets which will come in handy for optimizing and getting people to interact and build loyalty.

One more item deserves mention. There are software programs available (like friendblasterpro) which help you to invite people on myspace to join you as a ‘friend’. Look for people with similar interests to yours and invite them to be open and receptive contacts for getting information from you.

Fourth Ingredient:

You must remember this one simple fact about human nature: People buy on emotions and then defend their buy with logic.

All of your social networking sites should warm the reader up to you. However, when it comes to sending this reader to a pre-sell site that covers your business opportunity or affiliate product or service, then your sale piece comes into action.

Your sales piece must always be written from the reader’s perspective because the reader only cares about how they will benefit.

So write from the benefits angle and sprinkle in some exceptional features in bullet point form further into your ad copy. That is a secondary thing.

You can get lots more copywriting tips and help by signing up to receive my marketing newsletter (i give you the link at the end of this article).

Fifth Ingredient:

When your prospect is considering joining a business, their main concern (as was yours) is choosing to join that business with one particular KEY person. Just remember that they have already decided on the business opportunity, and now they are simply “Sponsor Shopping”.

They will need to know what they can expect to get from one particular sponsor over another. So answer the questions in their head.

“What’s in it for me?” and, “Why should I buy it from you?”

Keep these at the forefront of everything that you write and always try to answer these underlying questions in your ad copy and promotional information.

Sixth Ingredient:

Understand that the biggest fear that any new person coming online has when joining a business is the fear of abandonment or of being left orphaned trying to figure it all out on their own.

One caveat to consider when you are boasting about your business and your sponsorship is: “Never market negatively.” In other words, it is best to not bash your opponent, nor use a negative mind set like “Is This a Scam?” in your promotional angles.

Yes. We all know that people tend to gravitate to the negative as a flaw in human nature; however, you do not want to associate your business opportunity with anything negative. Not even if you turn it around and give a glowing recommendation of the business in the end. This is phoney and smart people read right through you.