MLM Crash & Burn: Owning a Home Business in an Unstable Economy…a Perspective on Survival

As the title suggests, this article is about learning how to successfully survive in a home business with an MLM company, given the current unstable economy. I have quite a story to tell you.

Several years ago I was like so many people - awake at night with fears of letting my family down, of having to say “we can’t afford it”. Wondering how we would ever get ahead of the bills. Freaking out that I had to charge basics like groceries on a credit card. Would I be paying interest on that milk for the next five or ten years?
And then the ultimate question for me personally was - what can I really do with an infant at home?

My husband had just been laid off and we were living on our savings. After medical bills and baby needs it was pretty much gone, and then we were living on our credit cards which we’d always been responsible with…but no longer!

My former business was a pet sitting company that I had sold during my pregnancy. I certainly wasn’t going to go back to that.

I wanted to work from home, but I had fears. What if I spent money on a home business and failed? What would my family, friends and neighbors think of me? I could be embarrassed, or worse, bankrupt and lose everything.

Not to mention that an online business is completely different from a traditional, local business. How would people know that I’m a good person…that I’m a capable leader…how do you create trust online when people have no idea who you are?

All that and more went through my head daily. But, I bit the bullet, spent thousands of dollars upfront, and continued to pour thousands into training, advertising and leads. I sincerely felt that I had no other options. Getting a job and daycare was never an option for me – my goal was to raise my son myself.

Boy…that was a frustrating time. Imagine spending $500 on leads that are supposed to be “highly responsive” and you don’t make one sale! In fact most of the leads were rude, hung up, or never answered the phone. My business was going nowhere fast and I had already spent about $10,000 mostly on credit cards.

I had no idea how to work an internet business. I had no desire to market face to face, especially in my small town. I knew the internet was a huge opportunity, but I had no idea what to do with it! All those new phrases – google adwords, craigslist, pay per click, lead vendors, ezines, article marketing…what the heck was I supposed to do with those?

All I truly wanted was the ability to do what I want, when I want, with and for my family without money being the ultimate factor. But how?

So I did the only thing I could think of. I studied and learned from the MLM “gurus”. I became proficient at one or two marketing strategies and worked them consistently.

And you know what? It worked! Finally, after six months of struggle, I was making good money. Great money in fact, more than double I’d ever made in the work world.
For quite a while, things were great. Sure, we still had debt to pay down, but money was flowing and we could enjoy restaurants again, we could go on fantastic vacations and still have enough to go shopping too!

Suddenly, in an instant, it all crashed down.

There was definitely mismanagement at the parent company. But the economy played its hand as well in the destruction. Whatever the case was, I woke up one cold November morning and the direct sales company I had been exclusively promoting and building a business with for over three years had simply disappeared.

Shut down, closed, goodbye, sayonara sweetheart.

Instantly my world changed. I no longer had the income that I had enjoyed for three years. Sure, it wasn’t always the steadiest income, but I usually made between $8 and $16K per month. To top it off, my husband was laid off yet again. So we were facing zero income…for the second time in three years!

And that was it. Time to start over. Three plus years working hard and for what? I guess it was a great ride while it lasted, but now what?

And what to do in the fickle economy? Big ticket items don’t sell like they used to…people were very hesitant to put money into a business when we don’t know what the economic environment was going to be like over the coming months…and once again I was starting from square one.

Well, I did what any entrepreneur would do in this situation. I studied the marketplace. I reviewed many companies, their products and comp plans.

Most importantly I asked myself, “What did I enjoy over the past few years, what did I dislike? What worked and what didn’t? Why did I get stuck in this situation? How do I avoid it in the future?”

I knew if I’d had success before, I could do it again.

After intense review I came to several conclusions. I decided my next venture would have the following attributes that would help ensure (as best as it could) a stable business environment for years to come.

• A United States-based company with a history of growth and achievement
• A product that was unique and didn’t have a lot of competition
• A product that people buy already – and you don’t have to change their buying habits
• Strong corporate leadership with a global vision, plus training and support for the field
• Residual income opportunity – unlike what I had before with my other company

These criteria ruled out a lot of companies. Most notably they eliminated the entire
health and wellness industry. I learned there were over 3000 of these companies already, promoting healthy vitamins, juice, supplements and more…with the list of companies growing daily! Too much competition…way too much hassle for me.

Plus, I didn’t want to “convince” anyone that this vitamin, skin lotion, makeup or juice was better than the 3000 other ones. Forget it! That sounded like a nightmare to me and a failure in the making.

I prefer to market solid products or services that stand for themselves because of their intrinsic value. For example, with my pet sitting company, I was filling a need people had. They wanted to go away on vacation (or work long hours) and their animals and homes needed care.

So what sort of need was in the marketplace today, which was marketable on the internet using the skills I’d developed over the past four years? What were people doing differently to stand out? How could I stand out? What MLM companies were making a difference?

Suddenly it hit me. What if I took the other side of the equation? Instead of taking care of the animals while people vacationed, what if I could help people obtain those vacations and travel plans for less money? There’s no question about the huge size of the market, and people these days want more value for their dollar. I also learned that the travel industry dwarfs the health and wellness industry, bringing in over eight trillion dollars a year. Who knew?

But in my research all I could find were companies that cost thousands to get involved, and they continually pressured you to upgrade to the next level.
Not that again! No, I was looking for something affordable, less than $500 to start.
Something that held true value – no cheapo deals with zero view hotel rooms.
Something that when people heard of it, they’d immediately see the usefulness and benefit of an exclusive travel club membership, and some may even want to market the business as well.

Anyway, I didn’t think it was possible after all my searching, but I finally found a solution. It took time because there wasn’t anything else like it around and it’s very easy to get distracted with all the internet “opportunities”. There’s so much hype and promises, I honestly don’t know how people can find legitimate companies these days with all the noise out there.

So that’s what I did…it just took some real soul searching and honest research of companies. I actually flew to Texas from New Hampshire twice to ensure I was making the right decision. After meeting the CEO and the major players in person, I was ready to start anew with a company that fit my strict criteria, and had a product I was excited about!

Have you been able to find your passion? Maybe you’re a newbie to all this home business research, or maybe you’re like many who are on the MLM merry-go-round, jumping from opportunity to opportunity.

I’ve seen it happen and I’ve circled a bit on that merry-go-round myself. Finally I realized the secret. Do you know it?

Don’t worry, I’ll tell you.

It’s not about the company or the product. It’s not about the comp plan or how much money you can make in the next 30 days.

It’s all about YOU and what you want to create in your life and your business. Your enthusiasm and energy make up the “it” factor you are looking for. Jumping from one business to the next best thing will never create wealth.

Another way to think of it is this: Let’s say you love to cook and you came up with the most amazing and unique recipes and started a restaurant. Who is going to explain the dish to your customers with the most passion and excitement. You…or your wait staff?

Of course, YOU. And that’s because you’ve taken ownership of it, you’ve internalized the passion of your creations and even though you’re absolutely “selling” it in your restaurant, it never comes across as a sale because of your passion for your product.

At this point, it would be criminal for you not to share these amazing dishes with people! (Can you tell I love food?)

So, you see the difference? If you get into a business to make money and “hope” it’s going to “work” for you, you need to take a serious step back.

Simply joining a business online and using their marketing tools and buying leads will not lead you to success. That’s what some promote, but it’s not reality. Been there, done that.

You must have faith in what you’re doing (i.e. what you’re selling). You must see the value in it yourself first before promoting it to others.

You must have faith in yourself and your abilities – and be willing to learn new skills if needed.

You must actually work, be consistent and persistent…

If you can do that, you can find success.

If you are someone always are looking for the latest-and-greatest fast money scheme, believe me you’ll find it. And you will lose more money than you can imagine. People are always ready to take advantage of newbies or those who are discontent with their current situation. They will say anything to get your credit card number and the sale. People actually feed on the discontent of other networkers.

They’ll lure you with smoke and mirrors, promises and fast payouts. Heck they’ll even give you guarantees, which we all know are bogus and illegal.

After realizing that there’s no such thing as get rich quick, and completing the research to find the right home business for me, I was able to wade out of the MLM ocean feeling like I really had what it took to beat the lame economy, no matter what!

So my advice to you, the person looking for some kind of solution on the internet, is this:

1. Decide. Decide if you have what it takes to work from home – the drive, self-motivation and consistent effort to see through to the results you seek. Because if you have an employee mentality (8 hours pay for 8 hours work) you won’t make it. Sorry to be blunt, but it’s true.

2. Choose. Choose what kind of company and product/service you’d like to represent. You must have a passion for it or you will not succeed! What do you love? Don’t sell something just to make a profit; that strategy will never last and can seriously damage your self-esteem at best. At worst you could be sued or fined for being involved in a scam. Use your intuition.

3. Pick. Pick a mentor who can teach you what you need to know to make it work. Do you want to market on the internet? Find someone who’s learned those skills and can train and guide you in the right direction. Believe me you don’t want to rely on buying leads – that simply does not work.

4. Take action. Don’t procrastinate. Once you’ve made a decision, move forward with action. It’s the only way you’ll get from where you are now to where you want to be. Simply thinking about something doesn’t pay the bills.

5. Finally…Don’t expect ove
ight success or set a time limit on your results. Whether we’re talking about a brand new job or a new business venture, there’s going to be a learning curve. With each day you’ll be more comfortable and confident and that attitude will shine through and guide your success. Every little step you take is a success in my book! One day those efforts will provide you with the results you seek, if you stick with your plans.

As a final note to my story, my infant is now four years old. I’ve kept him out of daycare that whole time and now he’s attending preschool. Do I regret anything that happened with my home business along the way? Nope. My former business provided me with income, freedom to stay home and raise my son, and of course all the skills I learned on my journey that I can now take anywhere, and apply to any business venture.

And of course now I know it’s not about the company. The company didn’t make me successful. I DID.

Sure, it was an emotional and financial blow to make such a huge change – but those experiences have taught me that survival is possible, even in our current economy.
And remember, you don’t need to rely on the “perfect” company or comp plan, just find something you can relate to and everything else you need is already in you. Just bring it to the table and get started!

Please contact me with any questions or comments. Best of luck!

Warmly,

Kara Jankowskir
Kara@FollowALeader.com

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