I recently read an article critical of the number of ads on the internet claiming “250K First year Income Potential” for a network marketing business opportunity on the grounds that these ads only appeal to a person’s greed and desire to make a quick buck. Huh? Wait a minute!
Income potential is an important aspect of making a business decision. A BetterNetworker knows that when we are presenting a business opportunity, we’re not asking people to join a social club. We’re offering them the opportunity to become our business partners. Income potential is specifically the kind of objective, unemotional sort of data that I have often used when deciding where to invest my time. Can we accurately represent the possibilities of network marketing without discussing income potential? What do other industries do?
Here’s my experience. About twenty years ago (yikes) I sat down with Dr. Ed Ashley, then the chairman of the department of physical therapy at Loma Linda University. It was during the summer between my sophomore and junior years of college. I was 19 years old. I was thinking about changing my college major from history & economics to physical therapy. The decision was pretty pragmatic. I had recently realized that I didn’t want to try to live on a history teacher’s salary.
So I was investigating my options. I was also considering taking a year off to work and earn some money rather than just powering through school. Dr. Ashley said, “Melissa, PT school will cost you about $40,000. PT’s are making about $40,000/year right now. How many businesses can you buy that will return 100% of your investment in the first year?” So he shared the income potential of this alternative with me and provided me with the valuable information I needed to make an informed decision.
Notice, he didn’t say “PT school is highly competitive. We expect about 12,000 applicants next year. Each applicant will have to pay a fee ($100) just for us to review their application. We’ll only be accepting 65 new students. And only 59 of the students accepted will likely finish.” He didn’t have to. We both knew that my success or failure depended on me.
But why would I spend a year earning chump change now when I could earn three or four times as much my first year out of school? I invested four years of my life and about $40,000 in that education and made $42,000 my first year out of school. I was far from the top earner in my graduating class. I have never once accepted any business proposition without considering the income potential. It is a key aspect of my decision-making process.
A BetterNetworker know that we must honestly discuss our entire business, including income potential, with our prospective business partners so that they can make informed decisions. Most people considering a network marketing business have less “free” time and more at stake than I did at 19.
A BetterNetworker knows that network marketing has many colors and flavors… I have a friend who markets jewelry using home parties. She makes $100-$200 per party and she loves it. She was looking for part time income and it’s perfect for her. It is not designed to make her $250K this year. Her business would drive me crazy! I wanted a business that would support my family and grow into a real asset, so I chose a business that’s designed to do that.
Bottom line, a BetterNetworker understands that different opportunities offer different benefits. They offer social benefits, education, personal development, and income. We need to respect our prospects enough to encourage them to consider return on investment and risk, to complete their due diligence, then to commit to our opportunity only if it’s in line with their path, purpose, dreams, aspirations and goals. A BetterNetworker keeps his or her ego out of it and is a true advocate for their prospect.
The result is that a BetterNetworker will naturally build a bigger business because people are drawn to that kind of integrity. They are attracted to someone who will honestly present the essentials of the business – including income potential.
And don’t expect those “250K First year Income Potential” ads to disappear any time soon. In fact they’re likely to increase in number. Why? It’s simple. The people placing them are BetterNetworkers and they have growing businesses that support growing marketing budgets. How else could they make $250K a year?
