A network marketing or MLM company works much like any other type of business. The difference comes to light when its time to market the product offered - which could be a physical item or a service. A company can produce or set up an excellent product but without proper marketing or a good company reputation, it runs the risk of diminishing sales and profits.
In the network marketing industry, the real key to spreading news, reputation and achieving sales is through direct selling and word-of-mouth. The efficiently marketed MLM product has in other words good social proof in areas where a lot of people use it and recommend it.
Another way to build social proof or reputation of a product or company is through means that has been used for a long time. It could just as well be in the form of a magazine. You see them everywhere in the civilized world. At the mall, shop, hairdresser etc., magazines such as business, union and organization specific magazines, men's and women's magazines and so on.
Why not publish a magazine for entrepreneurs and home businesses - the core of MLM?
And this is exactly what some publishers have done. A good example is the Success from Home magazine, with real profiles and stories of successful home business owners.
Some time ago, a close friend arranged with her hairdresser to leave a few copies of an MLM magazine for costumers to read when they had their hair done, which is a great way to create social proof of an MLM company or product. When the average Susan or Joe sees a magazine about entrepreneurship and successful people, their interest is likely piqued and they want to learn more.
When successful people share their story in this way, people who aren't familiar with IT, software and computers can also relate to them and see possible similarities and common experiences in life and business.
Through media in the form of a magazine, the MLM company can reach out to new groups of people who are within sales and marketing and who might consider MLM or network marketing as an occasional or spare-time activity.
It would be advantageous for a single MLM company to publish an MLM magazine, informing about the company, its distributors, and its products. The most important aspect is likely, as mentioned, the distributors or representatives. These are the people in the trenches, with real people contact, engaging in direct-selling and face-to-face activities. This is the nuts and bolts of the MLM company, in its bare nature, saving costly marketing expenses, such as radio and TV ads, billboards and instead relying on outgoing sales people as distributors.
If you want to harness the power of an MLM magazine, a good idea could be to arrange a deal with your local mall, shop or any traffic-exposed place. Ask if you can leave a few magazines about your MLM company, highlighting profiles and stories, explaining how- and what it takes to get well started in this industry. By doing this, massive exposure and social proof is possible. Make sure that your unique rep id is mentioned in the information links for curious people. This way you get credit for showing people the MLM opportunity.
An extra very potent idea could be to include QR codes in the physical MLM magazine, which, when scanned with a camera of a smart phone, will take people to a web page of your making. This way your unique rep id can be included within this code. This allows for people to get quick and easy access to more information and learn how to get started, while you automatically get credit for it.