Multi-level marketing has been around for quite some time and has been in its present pristine state (NOT a scam and NOT a pyramid scheme), for over 20 years. With 5% of the population having over 90% of the money, you would think people would be motivated to see how they could improve those figures organically, but instead are content to figure out how to best amass what they can of the remaining 10% or, better yet, create some real wealth to get themselves into that 5% elite group of capital controllers.
Not easily accomplished.
Most people are not aware of how wealth is created nor how it should be managed if ever attained. All you have to do is look at the history of lottery winners. Most of them have been ordinary working people without the necessary education to intelligently deal with their windfall. Sure, if you decide all you want to do is have the time of your life and blow the whole reward in a fantastic year, that is certainly a choice one could make. And for some, that would be perfectly fine. But unfortunately, many manage to do just that without ever realizing what is happening to them and before they know it they are right back in the same financial morass they were in before winning their fortune.
One of the main reasons that 5% control 90% of all the capital is because they DO know what money is all about, and how to not only protect it, but make it work for them. The most appealing prospect of multi-level marketing is that its compensation plan, generally, is designed to do for the ordinary 90 percenter what they most likely would never be able to do for themselves, and that is to create a very significant residual income that will continue long after the person stops actively doing the multi-level marketing him or herself.
This happens because the system works by what is known as leverage, whereas one can build a large network of people, all of whom have equal opportunity to do the same, whose earnings are shared with them. The more people one has, the more money, usually, one can make. This MLM system is frequently referred to in many of the presentations one will attend as being a "vehicle." We will frequently hear that "it is all about which vehicle we choose."
There is truth to that. Donald Trump recognizes it. So does Robert Kiyosaki (Rich Dad Poor Dad), both of whom are firmly within that 5% of big money controllers. In a recent Forbes Magazine article they both declared that this vehicle is perhaps the only way left in the present economy that just about anyone could expect to create a large fortune. In fact, the Donald has even started his own multi-level marketing company, so he put his money where his mouth is.
But is it really likely that our efforts to create this income stream which could produce $10,000/ month, let's say, have a good probability of success? We all hear about the top producers are making even more than that, reaching $40,000/ month and more...month after month. Well, the fact is that in order to actually realize that dream goal, one would need to have in his/her down-line a dozen or more people in the top tier of the company levels. With attrition being what it is, anything less would likely stop producing such significant income within a reasonably short time.
And for those who think they would be happy to create a network which would provide them with a modest $5000/ month, the fact is that for the same reason as mentioned that would only be happening as long as the marketer kept working, keeping the front line populated and managing the 2nd and 3rd tier motivated and busy. The whole deal could collapse if a significant member should stop, for whatever reason, or move. This is just the way it is. The only security is to have a huge network of top earners under you, if you want to not work and just collect big income.
But we all are used to working and frequently for much less than we would like, so at least here you would continue to work, yes, but you would have more control over your life and also the potential for big gains. I know many very wealthy MLMers who got there because that "crazy" person appeared in their downline, that amazing producer who never quits and turns everything into gold. It could happen; not likely, but certainly possible. Unfortunately, that little event is not something one can control or predict.
So, the bottom line we need to look at here is what is the actual value of creating a business that produces even a "modest" $5000 monthly? That's only about $60,000/ year; not enough to replace many of our incomes if we live in a large city like New York or LA, but certainly a nice addition. To create that $60,000 annually, at a 5% return (not easy to find these days) you would have to have a cash pile of $1,200,000 sitting there, working for you. Anyone in the upper 5% of the population likely doesn't even have to think about that. They know. The problem is, it is still too small an amount to be able to have consistently produced for you if you're depending on a firmly entrenched network that you can forget about. To be truly self-sustaining, your network needs to be huge. And if that is the case, you will also be making a lot more than $5000/month residual income.
All the same, multi-level marketing is still a very good way for the right people to make good money. It's just the big carrot that is the unlikely reward for most. But are there alternatives?
Well, yes. There is one I have learned about called G.P.T. (Get Paid Today) and it is something which many might like to consider. Just like multi-level marketing, G.P.T. isn't for everyone. Anything you do will require commitment, discipline, and work. But financially speaking, it may make more sense to some people to consider this alternative and I'll now explain why.
Growing frustration and dissatisfaction with MLM has opened the door a few years ago to G.P.T. which is now becoming very popular. The financial risks of the downline helped to create this system which changes the focus of the multi-level marketing industry from a long-term residual income to an immediate leveraged income.
Building a network is very difficult for many reasons which we all know too well.
� Most people we approach are employee minded people who don't really understand what it means to be an entrepreneur and don't seem to ever get it. We waste a lot of time with them, and time is money.
� Putting together a network that produces $10,000/month means building a downline of thousands. With G.P.T. you can do it with just 10 customers/ month...or less.
� Money today is worth more than money tomorrow and certainly next year. With G.P.T. you get paid today and can invest that money in bona fide residual income systems other than MLM like real estate or the market.
� Professionals are not usually interested in working a few hours a day selling vitamins, or whatever, for a $300 to a $1200 check, so here they have a vehicle where they can realistically pull in $10,000 / month from the start.
So how does this actually work? Most G.P.T. systems are found in what is called "Top Tier" opportunities. They are called that due to the quality of the people they attract as well as the significant incomes they produce compared to a regular MLM. Many of them are set up with a "Two-Up" compensation plan where a product costing $1500-$2000 will pay out an immediate $1000 commission. Originally, these G.P.T.s were getting objections because they did not offer residual income. But that is no longer true! Today, there are growing residual income comp plans and they are getting better each day.
But even without that residual compensation plan, there is another important factor which one needs to consider. And that is when you earn a $1000 commission up front, today, it's the same as getting an entire year of residuals whether the new rep builds out the line or not!
Think about that.
In a traditional multi-level marketing company, how many people would you need to build a $4000/ income? Five hundred? Twenty five hundred? Better double it if you consider attrition and cancelled orders. What if you lose a big leader? Bottom line is that it's no walk in the park to get this bus moving.
But how many customers would be required to make that same $4000 in a good top tier program?
Four. That's it.
That's one customer a week to make $48,000 in a year, and that doesn't even figure in the compensation plan which could dramatically increase that figure as much as ten times.
Also to be considered, as I mentioned before, is the value of the money you get today vs. that which you get down the road. The cost we have to make to keep our MLM accounts active also need to be considered. Sure, many of us actually love the products we need to buy each month, but the reality is that we could easily spend the average $200/ month, or $2400/ year on top of the other expenses we have for travel, etc. So after 6 years with an MLM system we'd have spent a minimum of $14,400, but our total cost for the Top Tier after the same 6 years would still be the original $1500 (average) cost of the product/ service.
That being said, the common objection that Top Tier start-up is too high a cost doesn't make financial sense. The start-up cost for the MLM will be at least $2400/ year and will continue, while the $1500 average Top Tier cost is a one time deal.
And of course the really nice feature about the Top Tier G.P.T. which I personally appreciate even more than the money aspect is that I get to choose who to work with and deal with more sophisticated, serious people. I don't have to put up with cluelessness such as people who really believe that they can start a profitable business with no money! I don't have to hear excuses from people who can't get out of their own way but who say they are "motivated" and want financial freedom. Well, yeah!!
In the Top Tier businesses which in some cases will include complete marketing formulas containing mentoring, software and immediate support, we see the serious business people. They already know how to advertise, have good phone skills, can follow instructions and be disciplined, but have found that it isn't working out too well for them. They are looking to make the big money and can recognize the better opportunities when they see them.
It's well known that we are going to be most like the people who we have around us, so it's really up to us to consider who they should be and act accordingly.
So to sum it up, comparing multi-level marketing to G.P.T., I think we understand that both have certain aspects which work and which need to be considered by any home marketing entrepreneur. The multi-level marketing model is well known, has been around a long time, provides what seems to be an easy entry and has hundreds of thousands, perhaps even millions of people already working it. Some of the companies, in particular, have very good energy and many people feel confident being associated with these. This is a good thing and is appreciated by many I have seen.
The G.P.T. Top Tier is a model which makes more sense to a more sophisticated person, one who understands money a little better and who can leverage the system to make a huge income without the significant running costs associated with MLMs but often overlooked. It's also a lot more fun to be dealing with people who don't keep repeating "pyramid scheme" like some broken record no matter what is presented to them.
The choice is certainly yours to make. It's just a good idea always to learn as much as you can about something before jumping in, but at the same time I have heard it said that run of the mill, not very successful people take a long time to decide to do something, but they tend to stop doing it when faced with the inevitable frustrations that any endeavor will present. But successful people, those who really make it big are t hose who make their minds up quickly when they see something that they sense is "right," and they just stick with it. They don't quit no matter what junk they are forced to deal with.
After all is said and done, perhaps this is the most important lesson we need to know.
Bruce Fields is a New Yorker, born and bred, living downtown in Soho where he has his photography studio which he ran for many years before becoming a real estate broker. His career then moved to being a real estate investor, an options trader, a multi-level marketer, and an internet marketing coach and practitioner. To see what Bruce is presently most excited about, visit
http://supersystemonline.com
And to contact him directly visit his Facebook page at
http://facebook.com/brucefields4
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http://EzineArticles.com/?Multi-Level-Marketing-Vs-GPT-(Get-Paid-Today):-Whats-Real-and-Not?&id=6157664] Multi-Level Marketing Vs GPT (Get Paid Today): What's Real and Not?
