Yes, there's a problem out there with MLM programs... not the 
good ones... the scams.
 
In fact, Budding NetPreneurs really need a good network 
marketing opportunity in their portfolio...
 
Network marketing opportunities can give a NetPreneur 
significantly more income than most any 2 or 3 tier affiliate 
program because of the potential for "viral" income growth as 
a distrbutor base grows.
 
If you can find a viable opportunity and build a team, you have 
a good shot at building true residual income.
 
But there are many pitfalls in finding one that viable 
opportunity.
 
First, MLM-like "opportunities" have exploded as the internet 
has matured.
 
Some are, at best, "Digital Money Games" with products of
questionable value where the main attraction is the income,
not the product or service being sold.
 
So how do you identify the best MLM's, those Top Picks?
 
Here's the litmus test I use: Would a real person buy this
product or service at the price being offered to the end user
even if they couldn't earn a penney by being associated with it?
 
It can be a premium product at a premium price, but it needs
to be unique and at a reasonable price even if it's a premium 
product.
 
Here's the second test I use: Could a distributor make a living
just selling the product if they never recruited anyone? Not
everyone can sell, but *could* a living be made by simply 
selling the product? (Yes that still applies whether you're MLM 
sells shampoo, vitamins or financial products. And in the best 
companies, this is still completely "doable".)
 
I'll give you some examples so you can recognize the bad ones...
 
I remember one prepaid phone card scam in the late 90's where 
the cards were being sold for $1 per MINUTE of long distance 
when the cost for regular long distance was only *10 cents per 
minute*.
 
The only people buying into the program were distributors 
wanting to get rich quick. It's long gone.
 
Another time, there was a program that offered people "Free 
Groceries". In reality, they offered $500 of grocery coupons 
certificates per month for a $50 monthly membership fee.
 
Then you had to REQUEST the coupons and then REDEEM them at the 
store. There really weren't any FREE Groceries.
 
At best there were discount groceries.
 
But not discounts you couldn't have found on your own!
 
And by the way, the coupon books you received for $50 per month
could be purchased in bulk for $1 a piece.
 
Can you say "RIP OFF"?
 
I guess another rule I've developed is this... If I can figure 
out how to run this operation myself without any specialized 
knowledge or with a product that I could find for myself in 10 
minutes using a search engine, it's probably NOT a long term 
viable opportunity!
 
For example, free vacation offers imprinted with your company's 
name, address, and phone number and offering "back end" 
redemption bonuses can run from 10 cents to several dollars 
a piece depending on where you order them.
 
Some so-called "MLM's" make a business of packaging inexpensive
premiums like this (e.g the grocery coupon deal I mentioned 
already), charging a monthly fee (where all the money really 
comes from - not from legitimate product sales) and then getting 
you to think there's something "magical" about what they're 
doing.
 
Sadly, it's all smoke and mirrors.
 
In the digital world, the opportunity for scams like these is 
multiplied.
 
Anyone can have a slick looking website these days.
 
Hey, there are even digital chain letters now offering "special 
reports". It's just like the old days... except in HTML.
 
So beware!
 
Having said this, there ARE viable MLM opportunities "out 
there". Just make sure that if you purchased the product 
yourself but never earned a dime, you would not feel cheated!
 
What's the best way to promote these MLM products on the web?
 
Sometimes a pay per click advertising campaign works well.
 
Sometimes building traffic to a website that highlights your
products is the way to go.
 
At other times though, there's simply too much competition from 
your fellow distributors. That's great for the pay per click 
search engines... some products wind up costing $5 per click for 
a bottle of vitamins that may only pay a $10 quick start bonus! 
(Do the math, unless you have a huge conversion ratio, you're 
losing money unless your customer stays on autoship FOREVER!)
 
The solution? Merging your product sales with a targeted 
information product that sells in it's own right.
 
That's a topic for another story, but to see what I mean for 
now, visit: http://1stHowToWorkAtHome.com/Niche
 
Happy marketing!