First off, you deserve a ton of credit for wanting to make sure your venture into network marketing gets off on the right foot. Searching for the best list of tips out there for a MLM newbie has landed you here with us.

The MLM industry’s reputation gets just a little bit better when a new professional to network marketing takes the time to start on the right foot.

We’ve taken some serious time and energy to put together a list of truly business-impacting tips and pointers for you. It’s surprisingly hard to find actionable items or tips online for the MLM beginner.

These tips should serve as a great guide through your early stage of your MLM career and hopefully keep you from making some all too common rookie mistakes.

As you may have already discovered, searching for MLM beginner help unfortunately turns up a lot of lists just trying to backdoor recruit you (don’t worry we’re not gonna do that on this list) with bogus tips like “Grind” and “Work on Your Business Every Day”. Just do it, right?!?

We’re confident this list will be universally applicable to any new MLM business while giving specific thoughts beyond generic tips like “focusing on it daily”.

Here’s a list of 25 what we feel are strong pillars to guide you through a successful launch to your new MLM business.

Will these tips give you guaranteed success? It will depend on your execution but this has been the core tips that every successful MLM leader has used.

1. Be Strategic In the Company You Sign Up With

Let’s assume you hit this list before signing up a company. If you already signed up, use this point as a quick gut check to see if you made the right decision.

The company you sign up with should align with you as a person as well as your interests and even the existing network and connections in your life.

We all know that the health and wellness industry possesses a substantial portion of the MLM market with several products and companies in that category. Things to consider as you look for the right home for your new MLM business:

These questions are designed to encourage thinking about what you truly want to spend time building a business around. Don’t allow some MLM hype man to get you to make an emotional decision. Don’t allow the “worlds greatest compensation plan” to influence your decision

At the end of the day, no appealing compensation plan can compensate for passion. Money alone can’t fuel your commitment to growing your business when things get hard. Put real thought and consideration into the company you join.

If you're not sure where to start, HERE is a list of growing MLM's in 2020 you can check out!

2. Make a Timeframe Commitment You Won’t Break

This is a huge one. Most of the time we assume this is going to be our direct sponsor or a close upline leader. Sometimes in the MLM world, however, your role model may not even be part of your upline or organization.

So what is the point of a role model or mentor in your company? Ideally this individual is an example setter of what you want to see happen in your own business. They will have traits like these:

It's generally the best scenario when an individual like this exists in your current upline, so you should start looking there. 

When you are able to identify and connect with a mentor in your business, take a very high level of respect and appreciation for the time they give to you. We all know that we deal with prospects, lazy reps, and a million other things that are wasting our time in one way or another.

This happens in every position of a company, even for higher ranks and income earners. Be considerate of the time they invest in you.

There is legacy in learning from a mentor. One day you will have reps in your organization (or other organizations) reaching out to you asking if they could have a few minutes of your time. Don’t get too busy to help the “small people” as you experience success and growth. 

4. Know How to Deal With NO

We’re not gonna sugar coat this. A lot of those no’s are going to be presented to you in the form of “I think I can make it, I’ll let you know for sure tomorrow” or “I need to check with the wife, let me text you tonight”.

You’re gonna hope for the best and believe that they sincerely plan to come. You tell your upline that you have 5 people committed to coming to the meeting and 10 maybes. Not bad, right? Except an hour before the meeting the texts start showing up….”sorry, something came up”. 

So why are we painting all this doom and gloom to a new MLM rep? Because these no’s are some of the hardest ones you’ll hear.

It’s easier to hear NO from a stranger. You're not going to see them at holidays, or the gym, or family events on a regular basis. The NO's from your closer circle just feel different.

There are different kinds of NO that you’ll need to develop a resilient spirit toward. The most positive way to approach the NO’s you receive are by interpreting the no as meaning “not right now”.

If you can maintain a great connection with that person and thank them for their time, you can usually circle back to that individual after 6 months or so. Be sure to take a moment and truly thank them for their NO.

At the end of the day, how you choose to navigate the "NO's" in your business will tell a lot about your ability to remain consistent in your MLM business. The quicker you understand this, the sooner you'll get to your next "YES"!

5. Truly, TRULY Understand What Your "Why" Is

Any MLM sponsor worth their weight will be bringing this up to you early on in your MLM career. And they should.

First off, what is a “why”? A “why” is your ultimate reason for wanting to build a successful MLM business. It extends much deeper than “I want to make 6 figures a year” or because you want to buy a certain material item.

Gain a clear mind and some uninterrupted time and sit down to write. Write down the things that you’d love to have. It’s not wrong to write down things like a new house or a new car, but thats just the surface results of your business success.

Think about the flexibility and freedom that owning a successful business brings. Think about the time you can spend with your loved ones without a boss telling you what days you can do it on. Where would you travel with your family? What new daily routines would be easier to implement? 

Do you have a hard working parent who deserves to retire, but they can’t afford it? Does financially being able to make that happen for them and allowing them to enjoy their twilight years in comfort sound like a great motivator?

Why does all of this stuff matter for understanding and identifying what your WHY is? It’s because a true why will keep you focused and committed when you want to quit. 

You won’t be phased by 10 people telling you NO at a meeting you worked on putting together all week. You won’t stop when you drive 3 hours one way to help a team member out and they end up quitting the following week.

You’ll simply say “next” and move on to the next opportunity in front of you to grow your business.

Your why is the very foundation of your business. Don’t take it lightly.

6. Develop a Daily Routine

In addition to setting up a daily schedule routine of when you’ll be working on your business, you also want to map out what exactly you will be working on. Set daily goals in your routine. Some examples could be:

Focusing on consistent activities like these listed above will have a huge impact on your business over time. Set your routines and stick with them!

7. Don’t Blow it On Social Media

Get ready for some cringe-worthy MLM action on social media below....

Odds are if you’re on social media you’ve had a long lost friend find their way into your DM’s about how you guys should grab some coffee soon and catch up! Sounds innocent enough until you jump over to their profile and find a series of social media posts kind of like these:

Nothing will jog your memory of that “appointment you forgot about” like seeing this and knowing this coffee meet up was a setup and you’re the prey. The catch-up-for-coffee bait and switch is a classic prospecting method by the amateur MLM rep. Sadly, it gets even worse than that. You could shoot your shot in the DM just like this:

Ok, let’s get into why you don’t want to blow it on social media. MLM dynasties have been built and sustained purely off of social media.

Most MLM companies know the blessing and curse social media can be for their reps and the company as a whole.

In the event you find yourself as a MLM rep for a company who is not giving clear guidance or suggestions for social media, take these universally sound MLM principles into consideration for social media:

We realize that these suggestions are a bit heavy on the “don’t do this” approach. Before we move on to the next tip, here is a final thought on what you SHOULD DO in regards to social media.

What you should be doing is actively seeking out top earners in your company who have a strong social media presence. Observe the hashtags they use on Instagram. Do they go live on Instagram or Facebook? What kind of photos and videos do they post? 

Use them as a template for how to behave on social media.

8. Take Personal Development Personally

Personal development, or PD is to network marketing as peanut butter is to jelly. They are practically inseparable.  

Businessdictionary.com describes Personal Development as:

“The process of improving oneself through such activities as enhancing employment skills, increasing consciousness and building wealth.”

Podcasts, books, and leadership content from well respected MLM names like Eric Worre that are applicable to all MLM reps are great places to start. ​

PD should sharpen your daily routine, your leadership and speaking skills, and ability to rely on yourself to grow your MLM business. 

Be honest with yourself. What are your weak areas? Do you struggle with time management or being in front of a crowd and speaking?

Identify what areas you know you are weak that you want to improve. Seek out content and information on how you can improve in that area.

9. Every Day Is a Building Block of Credibility

Raise your hand if you've ever had a friend get hyped up over their amazing business opportunity. It’s guns blazing on all fronts. They can’t contain themselves.

They have shirts printed up and Instagram stories nonstop about how great their opportunity. Then all of a sudden the instagram posts aren’t as frequent. Then they stop posting altogether...

 
Your consistency over time creates a story of credibility that is undeniable. This is what we are trying to explain to you, rookie. You will have people tell you no in this industry based on the sole fact that they don’t even believe YOU are going to stick with it.

That’s ok. You’re going to prove them wrong. 

Every day you are either adding or taking away from your credibility based on the action or inaction you take.

In an industry filled with reps who aren’t patient or consistent enough to hit high paying ranks, take the path less traveled.

Be prepared to grind it out day in and day out. When you don’t feel like it, do it anyway. Your credibility will become one of your most powerful assets.

10. Understand Every Angle of the Compensation Plan

Ever looked at a compensation plan and thought you were back in math class?? Overrides, downlines, different percentages paid out on different levels, sign up bonuses, fast start bonuses, company spiffs, and about a million other confusing ways to get paid....

Compensation plan complexity certainly can vary a lot from company to company. One thing remains a constant, however. You need to learn the compensation plan, and know it by heart. 

Take the time to fully understand every way you can make money. Help your team understand it on the level you do as well.

Just about every MLM company has educational material on how to fully understand and maximize their compensation plan.

If you find yourself still not understanding a certain aspect of the compensation plan or how you get paid for certain things, just reach out to your sponsor or upline. They will gladly help clear up any misunderstandings you may have.

11. You Only Get One Shot At Creating Your Origin Story

Once you join a company you’re inevitably going to hear about legendary business launches by reps in the company. “They hit rank X in their first 30 days!”. “So and so signed up 25 people at their very first meeting and they made thousands of dollars in their very first month!”. ​

There’s a reason for this. Your upline wants you to think bigger and believe for bigger numbers than you may be thinking.

You really only get to start your business one time. You only get one “first meeting” to invite guests to. You’ll only ever have your first 30 days in the business one time.

The success you have in your beginning days of the business is a benchmark you can use to encourage your future team members to also accomplish.

Set an aggressive target you want to achieve in your first 30, 60, and 90 days of business. Even if you fall short, you’ll likely still experience success and results much more quickly than if you just hold your breath and hope things go well.

12. Create An Accountability System

Bob Proctor (see: major PD resource) once said, “Accountability is the glue that ties commitment to the result.”. There is no getting around the role accountability plays in your success. 

It’s human nature to tend to take it easy when our feet aren’t being held to the fire. Did you know that having an accountability partner can increase your likelihood of follow through on commitments by up to 95%!?!

In your MLM business, it is generally the most efficient if you create an accountability system inside of your team or with a mentor. ​

Create a system that involves weekly check-ins for accountability at a minimum. Some great accountability system ideas include:

Any system that you consistently and transparently commit to will help develop you and your business. If you don’t have anyone on your team yet, reach out to upline for support and ask them for a way to organize an accountability group.

13. Set Proper Expectations

Don’t kid yourself, the top earners in your MLM company did not meander down a cake walk into their lucrative earnings they now have. They flat out worked their butt off, and likely did it for years, if not decades.

If you are taking the advice we gave back at tip number 2, we suggest setting some expectations of what you would like to see happen in that same window of time.

 Some areas of expectation you should put an effort into clearly defining are:

Setting proper expectations can keep you on task as well as help you from spiraling into depression when you can’t buy a new Lambo after 12 months into your MLM business. This tip is designed to make you look in the mirror and be honest with yourself.

The lifestyle and freedom opportunities that MLM likely hooked you with is there and is possible, but remember that less than 1% of MLM’ers achieve that level of success.

14. Identify Your “Target Audience” as Quickly as Possible

Ever heard of the wild MLM “3 foot rule”??? It says that anyone within 3 feet of you is a candidate for your MLM business. This mentality creates an outlook that turns literally any breathing human into a prospect.

Great way to perceive the world as an endless recruiting opportunity, right?

When you take an approach like this and just try to recruit anyone with a pulse, you are ignoring what it really takes to build a strong foundation for your new MLM business.

A target audience is essentially a specific group or segment of people you want to reach with your message about your business. This group is made up of people most likely to buy your products or services. They also share common characteristics, demographics, and even behaviors.

How do you define this for YOUR business, though? 

Check out these major key points about how you can define your target audience:

Check out this example from a coach for MLM company Beachbody speaking to her target audience:

She is clearly a mother who has made the decision to pursue a successful MLM career. She knows that her message resonates well with other moms. 

She addresses common things that other females would identify with, such as trying to earn income in a flexible manner from home, helping others, and becoming a successful “mompreneur”.

Take this same mentality into defining your target audience. Cater your message and branding to approach them in an authentic and relatable way.

15. DO NOT Turn Your Friends & Family Into Ghosts

Who doesn't wanna pitch their business to friends and family, right? Get prepared for the fact that your business opportunity may not be met with the warmest of receptions. There’s a few reasons that this happens.

Keep reading to understand why you should be in no hurry to spill the beans to those closest to you.

One big reason you may meet skepticism especially from family is due to the fact that they know that as of yesterday you were not a business owner. Unless you have owned a traditional business, you likely have little to no experience on what it means or what it takes to grow one.

The best way you’re going to be able to get them interested your business opportunity to them is by being consistent and showing that this is not just a hobby or idea you’re hoping to work out. 

Be as committed to this as you would be if you took out a $100,000 loan to open a local business. That kind of fire and resolve is what those close to you need to see.

16. Become a Student of Marketing

It is network MARKETING, isn’t it? Marketing is as much a part of your new MLM business as sales or anything else is.

Stop for a moment and think, how much do you really know about marketing? Do you understand how your message and presentation should be crafted to improve the likelihood of new member conversions?

Marketing is governed by 4 primary pillars:

17. Network With and Connect Regularly With Successful Upline/Sponsors

Call it networking, connecting, or befriending, but you will want to “get in good” with your upline.

This isn’t about being a suck up, but about establishing yourself as determined to one day be considered their peer.

You will notice this as your eventually build out a team yourself. You'll spend more time with the individuals on your team who are 100% sold out to their business. There is a common synergy in what you both are trying to accomplish and that connection makes it easy to naturally want to be around them. 

In addition to this, you may be surprised at what additional “perks” come along with being well connected with top performers in your upline. 

If your MLM compensation model allows, your upline may even toss you a bone every now and then and drop new reps they closed into your team for you to work with since you have shown your commitment.

Whether its for the fringe benefits or just the ability to know and be inspired by them, connecting with your successful upline will only produce positive results for you.

18. Begin Creating Your Own “Brand”

Creating your own “brand” in which you present your business model to individuals arms you with a very personalized approach to how you convey what you do.

What is the point of creating your own “brand”? Isn’t your MLM company supposed to give you everything you need to grow the business?

In a short answer, yes. However, most larger MLM companies have reps with large organizations that largely identify with a team wide name. If the organization you sign up in has a team name, you’ll likely hear about it pretty quickly.

Check out this branding example below. Ray Higdon is a relatively well known name in the network marketing industry. He has done a great job branding himself to the success he has had in the MLM industry.

He operates under a brand now called The Higdon Group, which is a hub of sorts for entrepreneur and MLM education:

Here are some key takeaways for this tip:

19. Become a True LinkedIn Professional

Did you know that half of LinkedIn users earn $75,000 or more per year?!

Are you active on LinkedIn yet? If not, you’re about to be.

Don’t forget about the only social media platform filled with professionals who are specifically on the platform to network and connect. LinkedIn has some pretty cool advanced search functions too that allow you to filter users and potential new connections based on interest. 

Start looking for individuals you can connect with by searching in the filters for things like “mlm”, “networking marketing”, “Multi level marketing”, and any other relevant industry keywords.

Keep in mind that true MLM professionals on LinkedIn are going to look at a new connection as an opportunity to prospect. Be prepared for sales pitches in your inbox!

Set goals for LinkedIn activity such as making 100 new connections a day. This won’t take too long. Look at it as truly trying to connect with people and learn about them. Don’t come off as a desperate recruiter.

Remember, this tip is about being a TRUE LinkedIn professional, so conduct yourself like one.

20. Have a Product or Service You Are Passionate About

Who doesn’t want to own a business that offers something they actually love? At the end of the day, there is no replacement for authentic passion​.

Don’t join a company for an attractive sign up bonus promotion, or because their compensation plan seems like a simple jog to a 6 figure income. ​

You have to keep in mind that you’re going to meet a lot of individuals who decide against becoming a customer or team member. It will be discouraging.

Passion AND a true belief that you are bringing value to people’s lives will weather those disappointing times​.

At the end of the day, true passion cannot be hidden. If your primary motive for selling fitness supplements is the commission you can make, you’re setting yourself up for failure.

If you experience fulfillment when you see someone take their health back and begin a journey to a more fulfilled life thanks to the help your products have brought them, then that passion radiates to everyone you talk to.

21. Be Prepared to Hit the Road

Inevitably, the growth of your team will bring members that are not local. Some may be in other states, others a few hours away.

No matter where they are, as a leader you must be prepared to travel and offer support. We’re not saying book a flight every time someone signs up, but if you’re taking your business serious you need to be prepared to hit the road.

That means when a team member 3 or 4 hours away texts you at 10am and says that they have 4 people who are interested in hearing about the business this evening, you’re gonna be hitting the road to drive there.

This not only helps grow your business, it also sets an example for your team. You’ll ideally want to see your team members display this kind of commitment and leadership, duplicating the model you have set.

Make the trips that you can, and offer the best support possible to those you can’t make. Get creative and use things like FaceTime, Facebook Live, and other means to connect with prospects and meetings for your team.

22. How Outgoing Will You Be?

Have you been to an MLM presentation before? Guaranteed, the presenter looks like they just won a million dollars.

You’ll find that the personality of most high earning MLM’ers walks a fine line between infectious and obnoxious. It’s not a coincidence that you run into this kind of behavior/personality from top earners in your company.

Most top earners will credit personal development and the system their MLM company has for their level of success.

While they may be slightly embellishing on the level of impact their MLM system will have on your ability to do the same, there is truth in carefully constructed MLM systems. ​

You can boil this down to the simple facts of human nature. People like to be around other people who make them feel good. People like to be around other people who are positive. Be honest with yourself and your overall outlook in approach to life.

Are you a glass half full or glass half empty kind of person? What do you want to follow somebody in a business who acted and spoke just like you?

You don’t have to become a completely different person than who you are, but you will want to invest time and effort into how you authentically present your business.

23. Set a Target (Goals) and Hit Them

Lay out aggressive goals you want to it, but don’t overlook the importance of consistently hitting the small ones.

Things like hitting your daily prospecting numbers, or appointments set can give a massive mental boost to feeling like you’re truly growing the business.

We can’t always control how many people sign up into our MLM team. Unfortunately, this often becomes the defining way we evaluate our success.

Set small goals you know people can hit. Set big ones that will take time and effort.

Setting these smaller targets even allow you to come in and help your team hit them. 

You may get a lot of NO’s, but you and your team member can celebrate the fact that they still hit their daily goal. 

Want to help your team? Sit down and help them reach out to 10 new people in one day. Help them make this part of their daily process by doing it with them.

24. The Sooner You Create Your Own Pitch & Style the Better

25. Invest in Yourself & Your Team

There is no replacing the intangible impact that truly investing in yourself AND your team can have. The bond among your team is strengthened when they have a leader who is willing to pour time, energy, and resources into their growth. Here are some ideas of how you can invest in your team:

Don’t forget that you can’t pour from an empty cup. You have to take care of and pour time and effort into yourself as well. From the perspective of your MLM business, here are a few ideas of how you can make sure you are on top of your game for your team:

Investing in yourself and your team should never stop. Regardless of what your goals are for your MLM business, this effort in yourself and them will contribute to growth in about every area. 

Conclusion

I hope you found this list helpful.

MLM is a great business if you're truly passionate about the product you're promoting.

With enough hustle and following this guideline, you can build a profitable business.

I certaintly learned a lot when I built my own MLM business for 2 years.

These days I'm doing something different tho... I'll explain down below.

What I'm Doing Instead of MLM Now & Why

MLM's have been great source of income for me for sometime. 

After few years though, I got bit burnt out from the constant recruiting and promoting of the products.

That's when I started looking for a business that provides more passive income.

Enter Lead Generation.

Check this out.

Let's say you had a simple website for customers looking for tree removal services in Grand Rapids, Michigan.....kinda like this: 

....AND every time people needing these services hit the website, it would create daily phone calls from hot leads looking to spend their money on that kind of service for their home or business:

Do you think that a local small business tree removal service would have any interest at all getting 12 new customers calling him every day, asking for a quote?

You're correct, that is the easiest slam dunk ever. And with tree services running into the thousands of dollars, how much extra revenue would 300+ calls a month bring them? 

If that business was the WORST closer ever and only got 1% of these piping hot leads to become a customer, do you think they could easily make a couple extra thousand bucks a month from these leads? Correct, again.

And for you generously providing him these leads on a silver platter month in and month out, how easy would it be to arrange a monthly fee of let's say a few hundred bucks? I'll give you a hint, you're going to quickly realize that they will make way more than that.

They'll also be willing to pay WAY more....like this site of mine:

If you haven't figured it out by now, these little websites are your army. There is no recruiting them, and they don't go away. They produce revenue for you every. single. month.

All you do is build new soldiers. Take our Grand Rapids example and head down to Florida. Head over to Cali. Go to the UK if you want...

These websites can be built in any market, in practically ANY industry.