Marrying Two People at the Same Time?
Promoting Both Conservative and Liberal Politics?
Practicing Two Religions?
It doesn’t sound practical, does it?
Does it even sound fun?
Does it sound like something that would actually work?
No, it does not.
A trend in NWM is a focus on the Affiliate and Influencer (A&I) models to be emphasized. It makes sense as these models feature online social sellers which is a perfect match for the front end of Network Marketing (NWM). If you truly love a product why not promote it, especially if you have a significant following.
The challenge comes with two fundamental differences in the A&I and NWM models. A&I lends itself to promoting any product, multiple product brands, even competing brands. The end consumer is not confused by this and it does not negatively impact sales. NWM on the other hand relies on a purity of focus, mission driven passion and even a certain loyalty. Why? What is the difference between the two models? A lot more than meets the eye.
A Network Marketing Primer
Network marketing is a very specific and unique income and business expansion model. It’s the only business model on the planet where customers can enroll other customers—for income. And those customers can do the same. And you as the initiator of that customer community can earn on all of them, multiple levels or generations of customers potentially 10-20 levels deep. Which is why it is often called Multi-Level Marketing, not for the marketing but for how you get paid.
Every customer, no matter when they join, where they live, or what they buy, has the opportunity and the right to enroll other customers for profit.
On the surface, that might sound normal. But it’s not.
Because when you introduce duplication, you trigger random compounding—perhaps the most powerful mathematical force in existence. It’s how the rich get richer. And the poor get poorer. Einstein called it the Eighth Wonder of the World.
I have clients with over a million customers in their paid community. Yet, they personally enrolled only about 100. So how did they get to a million? Duplication and random compounding.
Here’s how it works:
Of course, humans aren’t perfect. Some enroll none. Others, one or two. A rare few, hundreds. It’s random, yet powerful.
And the best part?
Your customer community is yours for life. Your income is yours for life. In most companies, even in perpetuity—meaning your children and grandchildren inherit it.
I coach third-generation network marketers who inherited incomes built by their grandparents. That’s legacy income.
How valuable is this? Use The Rule of 200:
Most people will never save or invest enough to achieve that. Yet, in network marketing, you can build that kind of income in 2-4 years with just 15 minutes a day.
No working capital. No figuring things out on your own. Just following directions from someone already earning six figures a month.
And yet, hardly anyone does.
Network Marketing Is Not Transactional
Network marketing is relationship-based commerce. Why? Because the gravity of competition is constantly eating away at retention. The economic value of NWM is the Legacy Income, not the immediate income of what you sell today. Immediate income is linear, trading time/effort for money. It is transactional. You can earn $1,000 a month promoting a product on IG or Tik Tok, drive Uber or be a greeter at Walmart. It is all the same money.
Legacy income is built on customers buying over again, loyal, dedicated, passionate customers. They don’t buy every month based on your latest IG reel. They buy because you have served them, educated them, appreciated them, listened to them and nurtured the relationship. Consider the gravity of competition. New customers tend to enter queries about the product, ingredients, the problems the product may solve etc into various search engines including Google, Amazon and any social media. Big data picks all that up and sells it to advertisers. The internet sees you are somehow involved with turmeric or non-toxic skin care or anything and all of a sudden your feed is full of ads promoting the same thing only……Better and Cheaper. Better and Cheaper over and over and over again is the gravity of retention. Sooner or later the customer starts experimenting and the retention is over. Not because they found a better product but because they got distracted and out of the rhythm of ordering.
The most potent way to educate and inspire loyalty in customers is to offer them the income option. Customers that follow the journey of a sales leader learn 5-10 times more about the product and what makes it valuable and unique. They learn the supply chain and the science behind it. They learn the clinical studies, the patents and perhaps most importantly they are inspired by many many user experiences they would never see as just a customer. Sales leaders order more product every month for their own use and they stay loyal to the brand 3-5 times longer than customers.
But the real impact is from those sales leaders who get inspired to build big. When they create a vision they believe in and go to work building a legacy team, your team grows exponentially. Every time.
Your sales team and customer community in network marketing is made up of just customers, distributors (your best customers) and sales leaders (super customers). Their combined repeat sales make up your legacy income. And if that income is seasoned and tested over time to be resilient, it is worth 200 times the monthly amount. Millions. Tens of millions.
It is not easy. Most people that try get distracted or depressed and give up. Most never really believe “the work is worth it”. But for those that do…whoa. Life can be radically better, longer, faster and far more fun.
That’s why focus is everything. You need:
Your job is simple:
The Difference Between Network Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, and Influencers
Affiliate marketing is different. It is a transactional model trading a “reel for money.” It is linear and immediate income. If you stop promoting the product your income tends to stop but even if your customers keep ordering you are only getting paid on your customers. One level. One level cannot compete with 10 levels.
Influencers do the same, but with a bigger audience. They are Super Affiliates trading reels for money, perhaps lots of it.
On the surface one may not see any difference in the models. All three allow for immediate income by promoting a product.
An Elephant in the Room difference between these models is exclusivity. Network Marketing requires a strict loyalty culture. It is the legacy income genealogy or commission tree that requires it. To succeed you have to be a “one woman man or vice versa.” Multiple wives, religions and political parties don’t work. Riding two horses at once doesn’t work. Whereas Affiliates and Influencers models are not impacted negatively by promoting multiple brands…even competing brands. If you highly recommend the product your followers will buy it. Loyalty is not an issue.
I will explain at the end why “two horses” does not fly in NWM.
The rise of social media has blurred the models. TikTok’s algorithms made affiliate marketing explode. And naturally, network marketers got pulled in.
It was only a matter of time before affiliates and influencers pushed network marketing companies to allow them to promote other brands.
This is where network marketing as a profession has lost its way.
The Hidden Cancer
Promoting other brands in itself is not the problem. I might be building a NWM empire with nutritional products but also promote a makeup line on social media because I love it too. I might even have a complex Affiliate program where I pick up a small commission on a lot of products I love and recommend. I know one influencer that has contracts with 1000 different brands. This is not the problem.
The problem is if and when some of those brands also have an income option beyond an Affiliate option. Some Affiliate programs offer a 1, 2 or 3 level payout. Oops. That is a MLM/NWM compensation plan. NWM is not defined by how many levels it pays out but just multiple levels. Maybe the brand starts off as a simple Affiliate model but adds levels later. Or maybe the brand I want to promote IS a full-blown NWM opportunity.
There is no way to vet and mechanically prohibit some brands but not others. If you allow Sales Leaders to promote other brands in NWM they will end up promoting other NWM brands. There is no way to stop it.
And here is the hidden cancer….
Imagine you’re a network marketer.
You start promoting another product on social media.
Who sees it?
People in your own team start looking into it. They buy. Some start promoting it.
Now, you have a second genealogy (or team or commission tree)—one that crosses lines, relationships, and focus.
Now your former sideline is your downline. Your upline is your downline.
And because everyone else is doing it…
Multiply this by 1000 different products, 1000 companies, and 10,000 affiliates.
1000 times 1000 is a billion convoluted genealogies. Relationships are scrambled. Corporate cultures are a kitchen sink soup. Compensation plans are entangled.
It does not impact the Affiliate or Influencer models. Everyone can keep promoting whatever products and get their modest commissions. But the network market focus is splattered. The once promising legacy income sales leader is distracted times 100. There is no more mission. There is no more culture, no community. No cause.
Game over.
Affiliates and influencers just move on. But for network marketers building generational wealth?
Their legacy income is gone.
You Can’t Ride Two Horses
I get the appeal.
And when you see a trick rider at the rodeo doing it, it might even look cool.
But for your journey?
Trying to ride two horses will throw you flat on your face.
Love Bliss’s insights. ALWAYS. He’s a pioneer and champion of direct selling. I’ve admired him since I was a kid in this industry. Now I’m older… but I still learn from him. Thanks, Richard.
Wow! Love this blog as it really examines what happens AFTER the bling passes and you’re involved in multiple companies. I see it a lot and really get the “you can’t ride two horses”! People who you encouraged to ride horse number one, then sees you riding horse number two and it makes them wonder why should they continue OR why not ride horse two also! Loss of focus and then add affliates along w multiple NWM companies and you’re talking out of both sides of your mouth, exhausted and cannot do any of them well. You have become addicted to the quick sale instead of being in love with an amazing product and the people you sponsored. The result is an agonizing death for all involved.
Yes l have seen this play out also, with lack of loyalty and a drive for self, creating a lack of community.
Excellent post Richard!!!