Dodo Loves Marketing

It is a sad fact of life that most small businesses require capital to start up. There are a few businesses which require only the minimum of equipment and stationery (journalism, PR and teaching, for instance), but most will require some form of outlay either for equipment, for stock or both. Then there are other considerations. You may need a budget for advertising, for accountancy and legal fees, or even for adapting your living room.

Before you even try to raise money, it is well worth thinking about the minimum amount needed. If the business is in the fledgling stage, try to keep only to the bare essentials — there will be time for a mahogany desk and state-of-the-art printer at a later, more successful stage. ..more

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The advantages and disadvantages of network marketing over conventional selling

Direct selling, network marketing, person-to-person, door-to-door, party-plan selling and other variants have certain advantages and disadvantages over conventional selling:

Advantages

• The customer is seen in the comfort of her home. No effort is required to get to a shop.
• The goods are often delivered directly by the distributor.
• Old and frail people who cannot get about are easily served.
• There is a considerable degree of personal attention.
• Direct selling is often made to friends, so it is a warm and enriching experience, not a sales experience. ..more
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Many network marketing companies steer clear of the word ‘selling‘. The reason? Some 95 per cent of the population actually dislike selling. For this reason you will often read in the classified section of the newspaper an advertisement which reads:

Representatives of these companies invite prospects to ’share opportunities’. They couch their presentation in a way which suggests the business opportunity they are offering is simply that of sharing wealth. Let’s get one thing straight: network marketing involves selling.

The fact is, whichever way you look at it, a network marketing company only succeeds if its products or services are sold regularly month after month; in other words, through repeat purchases. ..more

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Network marketing is a completely legitimate business. It has nothing to do with ‘pyramid selling‘ or chain-letter-type scams which have made newspaper headlines. Indeed, the worst excesses of pyramid operations have been largely stopped through legislation and consumer education.

For example, in the United Kingdom, legislation was passed in 1973 which detailed:

• what could be said in advertisements
• which promises could be made
• which information could be included in documents issued by promoters
• what the rights of distributors were
• undesirable practices such as charging for training.
• that network marketing companies were also required to buy back certain stock from their distributors on termination of any contract.

These regulations have been extremely effective in ridding the system of abuse. ..more

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