Network Marketing

Building Streams of Income

By MaryAnn Shank, President, BusinessFinance-One Inc

Network Marketing: Building Streams of Income “Network marketing” used to be a dirty word. It used to mean MLM. Period.

Well, it just ain’t so any more. “Network marketing” is a whole new game. Simply put, it is a dynamic way of building an internet business with multiple streams of income. MLM may even be one of the streams of income, but it certainly won’t be the only one. The object in network marketing is to create a number of different revenue streams all around one topic.

For example, let’s take a basic online store. Perhaps a book store. This is a specialized book store for romance novels, both from first time authors and from established authors. Doesn’t sound too profitable, does it. Well, let’s take a look at the multiple streams of income we could build into this site. How about:

AdSense Ads
Charge for editing books
Put Amazon ads on site (If you can’t beat them, you might as well still earn a few cents)
eBay ads for all things bookish
Write your own ebook on how to get published and sell it
Find a web host that you can recommend so that your visitors can have their own website
Affiliate with a company that will print hard copies of the books
Go to art.com, and feature art pertaining to your books or the writers
Find other affiliates that have bookish things, perhaps even bells, books and candles
Locate affiliate for the “romance” part of the website. Perhaps flowers. Perhaps chocolates. Perhaps jewelry. Your imagination can run wild here.
And, yes, sell the books themselves!

Now, instead of just selling with one possible income stream, you’ve got eleven! Now THIS is a real business. I

Feature eBooks -- Yours or Others

EBOOKS. Write your own, or see what others have written. "Jiffy books" do pretty well. These are short, 10-20 page ebooks, that sell for under $5.
Try: You usually get a pretty good commission with ClickBank ebooks, so it's worth checking into. You can also do both: write your own AND feature ebooks that others have written.

Add AdSense Ads

These are the ads that you place on your site. They are easy to set up. Whenever anyone clicks on these, you get paid. The rate of pay is determined by your topic, and the page the ad is on.
Try: Google AdSense is the biggie in this field, and they do extremely well. There's loads of information on their site about formatting and placing ads, and great tracking so you can tell what works. All you do is decide on size, colors and placement. Then place the code in the right spot. Easy peasy.

Affiliate Marketing -- One or More

Another company has a product you like. You see they have an affiliate program. That means that you can show it and sell it on your site. Every time you make a sale, you get a commission. The money transaction is handled by the merchant, so you don't need a shopping cart
Try: Check out Commission Junction for a slew of affiliate based products. You will need to sign up, but it is free to sign up. Linkshare and Affiliate Programs are also good sources for affiliate companies. Also check the Direct Selling Assocation for a list of top notch affiliate companies.

Create a Membership Site

Do you have special knowledge in a unique field? Let members pay to join and offer them premium knowledge, products and networking.
Try: Try Instant Membership Creator and Membership Advisor for information on how to set up these sites.

Bring eBay Sales to Your Site

You can set up your own eBay store, featuring the types of products that your visitors would like. A cake decorating site could sell molds for devils on the page about devils food cakes! eBay has so much to offer that they sky is the limit.
Try: eBay, of course. Look at the bottom of the page for the “Affiliate” link. That will walk you through how to set up your on site store.

Create and Sell Your Own Training DVDs

Sometimes visual works better than written material. If that is the case for you, create your own training program. You can sell them as a download, or in hard case DVD, or both.
Try: Video Help is a good source of information, as is PC Magazine.

Create Your Own Shopping Mall

Thousands of different kinds of products lurk in different shopping malls, from teddy bears to samurai swords. Track down your vendors and create your own very unique shopping experience.
Try: Pull in lots of products, from a number of different sources, such as Commission Junction and The Direct Selling Association. Once you start looking, you will be amazed at the variety of product you can offer.

Promote Your Service or Your Own Product Online

From massage parlors (the legit kind) to dentists to attorneys, there just isn't a corner of the business world that couldn't benefit from a good website. Have online coupons for your customers, both from your business and from affiliated businesses. Or do you create jewelry? Write children's books? Design stained glass doors? The internet is made for you. Nowhere else can you reach such a wide audience, at such a low price. And it's not just for "creative" folks. One of the most successful webmasters I know sells kits for people to set up their own concrete driveway contractor business. Honest.
Try: Site Build It is designed for entrepreneurs, with loads of help in developing and promoting your site.

Join A Travel Company

For all travel sites and geographically oriented sites, this is a must. And it's a nice source of income.
Try: Trip Advisor is an excellent company to work with, but they get filled up quickly. If you see an opening, take it.