Getting in "Early" vs. joining a more established company

[Alison728]

I must admit I do not have a lot of network marketing experience but I honestly don't see the big advantage to "getting in early" unless your plan is to sit back and do nothing.

Everything I've read and heard about new companies is that they fail 95-99% of the time in the first few years. They have compliance issues, product issues, payment issues, training issues etc. and the go belly-up leaving you with nothing to show for a year's work.

Yet, I have people who tell me when I approach them that M***V*** is great...if they had only gotten in earlier. They talk the same way about numerous other big name MLM Companies and I could scream. I have personally met people who joined my company a year ago or even less who are making 6 figure incomes. Did they get spillover? Yes. Did they wait for the spillover to make they rich? Apparently not!

I just saw a post from my upline indicating that more than 103K people joined the company over the last 2 months. I realize that for a big company that is not a large % increase but that is still 103,000 plus people. How is a 35% or whatever increase better when based on the size of the company it translates into say 10,000?

I would love to hear from other network marketers on the subject.

[Karen McCranie]

By the very nature of a network marketing compensation plan, earlier is better. It's easier to build a network if the market isn't already saturated with consultants. In my company we are not restricted by the size of our personal team, and we are paid 6 generations deep. This doesn't keep anyone in my 6th generation from being able to do the same. But, as time goes by and the market becomes thick with customers and consultants, it can become more challenging.

The challenge in getting in earlier is in establishing brand presence, so looking for a new opportunity is better if you can already capitalize on a company's previous successes!

[Alison728]

I agree that longevity is key to ultimate success. But I am not sure I equate that with a need to get in early. I have seen many people flit from company to company or work two or three at a time and, even those who "got in early" aren't making money.

As to saturation, I agree with you that there is a saturation point but what is it? And when does it happen? I am with a billion dollar company with probably a million or more distributors. From what I can see, we are just getting started.

The company is now big enough, with enough distributors to do massive media blitzes to build name recognition. You can't advertize in USA today or on ComCast until you have distributors in every city.

People are constantly being born, growing older and dying to make way for new people being born etc. Those are all new customers waiting for you to share products with them. I am with a health and wellness company with fabulous weight management products. When I walk down the street and see how unfit we are in the US I can't help but see potential customers everyplace I go.

And, there is overseas expansion. We just expanded into India and Austria. There were ZERO distributors there 6 months ago.

and it is not impossible for anyone in the US to build an international business. We are a melting pot. There are plenty of immigrants from all over the world who would love to bring an opportunity to their families abroad.

My sponsor is working with a couple with family and friends in Brazil. and they are under me, I'm so excited!

Anyway, while I understand what you are saying, I see a bigger company with more distributors as creating more opportunity not less.

I'd love to hear back form you and others about your experiences.

[MillieJ]

I think that a good opportunity is a good opportunity regardless of whether the company is young, old or somewhere in between.

It's just really important not to fall for a company that is all hype and no substance.

[Phyllis J. Smith]

I've check into several network marketing companies. Some of them many years old and solid, and others brand new, and just getting a solid marketing network going. I think it depends on the product and the compensation structure when you decide what will be long-term...Fad vs.Need....In our economy today....it must be a very needed product in order for it to appeal to those of us who are just making ends meet.

Also....can you see yourself being passionate about your product for the long-haul....or are you just trying to make a bundle quick...It would seem to me that a company that has residual earnings potential would be your best bet for long-term!

Thanks for bringing this interesting subject to the forum....

[LorettaA]

The people who get in early work the hardest. They are far from the ones who sit back and do nothing. They help build the company nobody has ever heard of. That's not easy and a lot of people aren't willing, or don't know how, to do it. They went through all the growing pains so everything works smoothly for those who join in the future. They get rewarded well for the hard work they put in, if they have great leadership and products. Hopefully they are working with their teams and not sitting back and doing nothing.

[LillianRose]

That is a really good point Loretta.

Anyone who reads the stories of the MLM legends who "got in on the ground floor" will find themselves surprised by how much work had to do to "get lucky."

[Cornelius]

Something that always got me when I hear people say get in early is what does that really say about the opportunity? Sure I somewhat understand how MLM works but if the best business decision is to get in early what does that mean later on when bringing in others. Do people tell them the opportunity is now limited and they should have gotten in early?

I look at it this way. An opportunity is nothing more than a vehicle. It's just to get a person where they want to be. The major question is can the opportunity get you to your destination? If it can't then find one that can..

Get in early... That doesn't sound like there's that's good long term business mindset. The opportunity sounds limited and at some point people will have to move on to another new opportunity because at some point if there's a limited opportunity for the masses they won't stay..

Something many people don't see is we all have a limited amount of time to build and enjoy the fruits of our labor. Rather than moving from company to company we have to make a stand somewhere and build. Time does not stop for anyone.

[LillianRose]

I just saw the stats on Public Direct Selling Companies Q3 -2011.

Results... $525 Million Growth!

Herbalife 30% growth, Tupperware 15.2% growth, Nu Skin 11.7% growth.

Even 12 billion dollar annual sales mega company Avon grew by 4.9%

Apparently there are some successful distributors out there who didn't get the "you needed to get in early" memo.

[Cornelius]

Tim Sales on You Tube does address this issue. Type this heading into the YT search bar.

Tim Sales - MLM Who is Getting Rich?