An Affiliate or Network Marketing business is no different to any other. You must take it seriously, put in the work, and go about what is required fully rather than in a piecemeal fashion. However, there’s more to it than these alone.
Following are five keys which every online or offline Marketer should be addressing.
[These areas are all catered for by various products featured on this site.]
1.) Get Guidance and Direction
No matter how good a product you have, your success is going to be determined to a great extent by your ability to think and act as a winner and the processes you establish for systematically growing your business. When you get these right, no roadblock is insurmountable.
Once you understand the methodical processes required to achieve success, anything is possible. Addressing needs like building a blog or email marketing system (as many Network Marketing systems offer) comes AFTER you’ve mastered what these products provide.
2.) Build Your Own Brand
No matter what anyone tells you, people will buy from you because they “know like and trust you“. Therefore, your #1 priority should be to build your OWN brand … and the starting point for this should be a website YOU own.
Forget Facebook – you do NOT own that. Facebook and other social media services are marketing channels … and they should be addressed AFTER you have created your own website or blog. This is explained in more detail at: Why You Need To Build Your OWN Business Rather Than Someone Elses.
Incorporate everything you do – including any Affiliate or Network Marketing programs you are involved in – into YOUR website and promote that rather than a “company” website or a Facebook fanpage. Your website should ALWAYS be the first point of contact for everything you do online.
If you address matters like this, you can represent multiple network and Affiliate programs without confusing people. ONE website gives you the opportunity to create synergy (and cross sales) between everything you do.
3.) Expand Your Income Streams
Every business needs a combination of “primary” and “secondary” income streams.
Fundamentally, you need to be able to say “Yes, I can help you with that” to more people more often.
By all means push your own products, but also look to represent products provided by 3rd parties.
4.) Build – And Consolidate – More Relationships
Every successful business is built around relationships. Every extra relationship you create can open new doors, maybe even lead to sales of your other products.
Once you have established a relationship, you need to consolidate it – and there’s no better way of doing that than through rewards and incentives.
Build your own rewards program – or licence one provided by a third party.
5.) Streamline Your Costs
This is a crucial area as you must find a balance between “money in” and “money out”.
In many businesses, it’s not the cost of the product itself but the inherent marketing and customer service costs which affect profitability. You have to control these and, a smart way of doing so, is through outsourcing.
Keep your costs as low as possible at all times.