One of the reasons why I believe MLM gets a bad name and is accused of hype - is that MLM or network marketing is promoted to the wrong people about 80% of the time. It's promoted as a part-time work at home job to people who really just want a steady pay and flexible hours. 1) Network marketing is not a job. It is a business system for entrepreneurs who want to have their businesses at home instead of another location, like an office.

The vast majority of networkers still promote MLM as "You can make thousands of dollars in just a few hours a week"! You can do that.just not right away. Depending on your company, your experience, budget, and business system that could take 90 days or 9 months. People who want at-home jobs expect to be paid a set amount of money every week.

It's call a paycheck, not an override. 2) A home business takes heart, energy, perservence and a degree of risk. In a business, you are responsible for your success, no one else. A work at home job takes only time and energy. People wanting at-home jobs are not prepared for the responsibility of a business because it's not what they want.

All the motivational tapes and contests will not matter if they don't want it in the first place. 3) Why doesn't your new distributor want to make a prospect list? Probably because a home job doesn't require him/her to create his/her own work by creating a client base. Entrepreneurs intuitively understand the need for prospecting.

Home-based employees do not. They will however, gladly help you take care of YOUR prospects. 4) Is your new distributor who is turned off by talk of goal-boards, dreams, or vision-casting? A job doesn't require that kind of mental or emotional energy.

There is no "big picture" or the "whole story" in a job. If you marketed your opportunity in terms of a job, you will have distributors that won't come to meetings, listen to conference calls or do any of the training. Why? Because they want a job, not a business! 5) A home-job is defined. Even with "action plans" or "success blueprints" home-businesses are open-ended by nature. You cannot guarantee how many appointments you will set, how many orders you will get that day and so on.

You can only guarantee your activity level, not the result of each indvidual action. If you want distributors, market to entrepreneurs. Do not hide your opportunity under "help wanted" or work-at-home ads. As you are sorting through people, you are looking for entrepreneurs.

If you want to increase retention in your network marketing business, market to those people who are the most likely to stay in the first place.

Karen Hurd is a former Marketing executive. She's been a top producer in network marketing since 1988. She is a writer,teacher & wellness educator. She lives in Virginia, with her husband & 5 children. Karen built her business while her children slept, and now she makes money while she sleeps. Home business ideas Her MLM Maniac blog: http://lifestylcreatr.blogspot.com