MLM's 201...The Psychology of MLM's...!!!

It’s all elementary psychology. I’m not here to offend or put anyone off; I’m here because I have dedicated a ton of time to figuring out why I get sucked into so many scams. In many ways, the answer and the solution are very simple. The answer, to how they get us to join, is they appeal to our ego and our wallets. And the answer, to not getting sucked into joining, is to simply walk away. That’s all well and good, but like the old saying goes…“it’s easier said then done.” And here is the problem. These highly motivated MLM sales people know that the majority of us out there are just like me. We are nice, trusting people who are always looking for something good; something that will make our lives easier, or that will help us live our hectic lives a bit healthier. We look for these things not just for ourselves, but also for those closest to us. The second important consideration that they also know about people is that most of us are also looking for a better way to make money. And the promise of partaking in a product that will, in theory, not only enhance our lives and the lives of our loved ones, but that can also make us a good amount of money is usually too good for us to pass up.

So this is how they get us. MLM sales reps are all highly trained in the art of emotional persuasion. It’s nothing special really, in a way we all have this training…in fact, we are kind of born with it. The difference is that some people just learn how to use it better than others. It’s actually very simple and the fact is that all of us have used emotional persuasion at one time or another to get things we would otherwise not be able to get. For example, take children. I remember my son at bedtime (he was four at the time) after I had made it abundantly clear that it was late and we would only have time to read one story before bedtime. Well you can guess what happened. At the end of the story, he looked up at me with those big doe eyes and in a cute soft voice, asked if I could read him another one. How could I resist? I didn’t want to disappoint him and, if I read him another story, I had a chance at further solidifying my “hero status” in his eyes. Or take my niece, who by the way has the biggest blue eyes I have ever seen. There is not much that little girl doesn’t get, after batting those long eye-lashed, baby blues at you. So you get the point. Even as children, we quickly learn the value of emotional persuasion. However, while this type of persuasion may be cute with kids, when practiced by adults the results can be a lot more damaging then just getting an extra story out of dad at bedtime.

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The fact is that most of us who have tried MLM’s, and yes that includes me, have lost hundreds if not thousands of dollars to the emotional persuasion of excitement. And it’s as simple as that…they get you excited. That excitement, especially in a group environment, becomes very contagious. Even if you are not fully sold on the program, the fact that most of the people in the vicinity are seals the deal the majority of the time. After all, who wants to be the only person in the room who isn’t going to buy into this exciting program? This is why they always prefer to have you meet as a group. They know that wherever they fail to convince you, the peer pressure of the group will. Another big problem with MLM’s is that they are constantly bugging you to sell, either to your friends or your family. MLM’s only work if people are selling the product. However, more frequently, your up-line sales people do not want to give you the time to properly use and advertise the product. So they pressure you once again to sell. And when I say pressure you, I mean they can get to the point of almost harassing you. Many companies use a quota system, which at first they say is a voluntary guideline; however, once you sign up it turns out to be a way for them to guilt you into action. All of these methods of persuasion go against the first principle of a properly formed MLM. Again, the first step in the forming of a proper MLM is the product. They must have a good product. If the product is good then the “word of mouth” will sell it without the pressure.

Time becomes a giant factor in MLMs. Your up-line wants to make as much money as they can while you are still excited. It also benefits them to make you a few bucks, so that you can continue to believe in the system they are promoting. However, for you to be able to fully investigate the product you are about to sell, we all know this would take a good amount of time. As we all also know, time is money. So instead of letting you take the time you need, they force it. The MLM owners try to convince you that the product is good, giving you very little time to try it out for yourself. In many instances, if the product is sub-standard, they will work very hard to hide any review or make you feel bad for wanting to know the details of the product. So another thing to remember about MLMs is…a good MLM always has transparency. If they don’t want to show you the details of the product, run away fast. Don’t let them try to convince you.

Another way they will try to get you to believe in the product without giving you enough time to investigate it, will be through their own testimonials. They will constantly parade success stories and testimonials about how much money you can make with their company by selling their products. This process of “excitement through others” allows a company and their high-ranked sellers to excite you about the amount of money you can make while hiding the fact that their product may not be good.

The first angle they take, in many instances, is by example of their personal success. They flaunt in front of you all of their success. They promote the enjoyment of being involved with the product or company they are promoting. They tell you how they started out, “JUST LIKE YOU,” with hardly a dime in their pockets, and how they took a leap of faith and spent the last little bit of money they had to invest in this product. Then they tell you how this product has turned their life around and has made them hundreds of thousands of dollars over night. By the end of their speech, you are thinking to yourself, “Hey that sounds like me,” or “He looks like a regular guy, if he can do it so can I.”

This leads me to their second angle. The second angle used is they make it personal to you. They tell you how the use of these products will enhance your life and the life of those around you. The go on to tell you how you will be able to provide for your family better, and how your future prosperity hinges on you joining their company. By this time in the sales pitch (if you’re anything like me), you are hooked.

The strategy once again is to get you excited. If they can get you excited enough, it will in turn make it easier for you to part with your money. This initial investment can be in the form of a membership to either be able to buy the product, or in the form of a fee to becoming a distributor for the company. Once they get you to part with your money, it’s too late for you to walk away. After all, they know we are not stupid and they know that if we invest money into something, we will take the extra steps to try to make it work. Unfortunately, for many of us, as soon as we hand over that money it’s as good as gone. Either because the MLM compensation plan may be too confusing to understand or worse, the payout-per-sale is so low that you will never have the proper return on your investment.

For example, let’s take the Lottery. We all know the lottery works. We hear about people winning the lottery all the time. We are also told repeatedly that you can’t win if you don’t play. However, the one common sense idea that keeps us all grounded when it comes to the lottery, is the odds of winning. In fact, the odds are always advertised with the game itself. The posting of the odds not only protect the interest of the legitimate lottery business holdings, but also act as a reality check for the consumer. The consumer is informed of the risk on the return of investment that he or she is taking by spending money on the game. This is why the lottery is, for the most part, respected and trusted by consumers. And in fact, the proceeds of the lottery not only serve to enrich state and local governments, but also serve to potentially benefit the very few people who, over time, are lucky enough to have guessed the right numbers. Once again, the facts are plainly stated and the general consensus is unanimous in understanding that you play at your own risk, with the hopes of one day winning. Knowing that the odds of winning are extremely stacked against you allow common sense and good judgment to prevail, so that every time you by a ticket you don’t go crazy celebrating thinking that “this is the one.”

Multi Level Marketing or MLM’s are essentially the same thing. They are just like the lottery in that they take money and, for the most part, take time to be successful. The problem is, to get you to part with your money, MLM sellers don’t present you with all of the risks. Sure, just like the lottery, there are a few select people who make it big in a very short amount of time. And like you, I am always amazed at how they have done it. After talking with a few of these people about their success stories, I’ve come to the conclusion that luck, like being in the right place at the right time, and a unique ability to sell has contributed a lot to these enigmatic success stories. So it turns out that by not telling you the risks, we feel more comfortable and willing to part with our money.

Do me a favor…treat any MLM like the lottery. Don’t just buy a ticket and expect to be a winner the next day. For the most part, know that you will have to form a business strategy. You will have to spend a lot of money before you find the best strategy for you. And more times then not, it will take perseverance and time to get your strategy to pay off. I know, I have already said this many times throughout my website, but it bears repeating again and again. There is no such thing as easy, fast money. Trust me, I have tried.

Well, the answer to that is simple too. Just don’t join them. You know yourself better than anyone else. Be honest with yourself. If you know in your heart of hearts that you are not a seller, or that you don’t have the time to invest in learning how to sell, then don’t do it. If you know that you won’t have the money to put into the business, like the purchasing of support products as well as advertising supplies for the products, then don’t do it. If you know that your family is not supportive of the idea of joining this venture, then don’t do it. Any one, or all, of these things will weigh hard on your success. Be smart…take your time and research the product before jumping in.

Another little trick is to go to multiple meetings. See if the company representatives say the same things from meeting to meeting. Any significant diversion from their original product sales pitch is a warning to you that they are just tailoring each meeting to the audience, to what they feel the audience wants to hear.

Remember the psychology? These people can pick up on the feelings of the group, and they can sense what people may want to hear. Depending on the group, they may sense desperation and turn their sales pitch to encourage the group to see the money aspect of the business. They may also sense skepticism, in which case they will push the testimonial side of the business to sure up your confidence in the program. A truly good company will always present the product, and show you the facts about how the product works and the health benefits that the product provides as researched by an independent evaluation. They will (or should) only divert from the product once they are sure that everyone fully understands what they will be selling. The money and benefits from the selling of the product should be the icing on the cake and never the focus of the meeting. Use your gut feeling. If something seems wrong or out of place, walk away. Don’t worry about what the group will think of you. In the long run, you will thank yourself for protecting yourself and keeping your best interests at heart.

Not all is lost. There are plenty of people who do well with MLM's and with the right mentoring it is possible to do well. It just takes hard work and the know how, to avoid the pit falls. For more information on how to run a proper MLM business... Please visit our good friends at Breathtaking Network Marketing Secrets.

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