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If you’ve been studying different business models for a while, you’re probably wondering what the difference between
affiliate marketing and network marketing is. This is understandable as both offer you ways to generate income online, but you may be wondering which one is right for you.
I want to help you understand how these two business models are different. Network marketing is a model where you sell products by talking to people over the phone or in person, and
affiliate marketing is when you earn a commission when you successfully sell products on your website from other companies.
There are many
pros and cons of affiliate marketing and network marketing, but depending on your personality, one will be better than the other for you.
What Is Network Marketing?
To begin our discussion on the difference between affiliate marketing and network marketing, let’s start with network marketing first.
The term “network marketing” is often interchanged with the term MLM or “multi-level marketing“, but they are slightly different.
Network marketing involves committing yourself to one product or company, and pitching this product to people that you know or meet on the street.
This is a business model based on
person-to-person sales by a network of distributors. It revolves around how many people are actually in your network, i.e. how many you sign-up under you, and how much product these people sell through their network.
Multi-level marketing is similar, but you
recruit additional people who work under you in a “downline”. Whenever your recruits earn money on the product they’re selling, you’ll earn a percentage of their sale also.
The more people you can recruit and get in your downline, the higher the chances are of you earning residual income from them.
Difference Between Network Marketing And Pyramid Schemes
Network marketing is often referred to as a “pyramid scheme“, although it is not a pyramid scheme. There’s a key difference between the two. Network marketing is legal, but pyramid schemes are not.
When you have a product that is real and legit and is being served to a customer, it’s legal. When no product or service is being sent to a customer, or if the product is
defective or misconstrued, it’s illegal.
Alot of the products in the network marketing business model have exaggerated claims and features of a product.
Plus, to keep making sales, you have to always be out selling to people in person or on the phone, building your downline, and conducting presentations to sell people on the product you’re promoting.
Also, you usually don’t make any significant income until you’ve built your own
sales force and have
lead generation marketing going on.
If you want to get to the top of a network marketing program, you need alot of members in your network. You have to build your own individual “pyramid” where you’re constantly earning commissions from the sales that your mini sales force is generating for you.
You should know that most network marketing participants
never make any money at all, as their marketing is ineffective, and their network of distributors typically makes very little or no money at all.
What Is Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is not the same as network marketing or MLM. In affiliate marketing, you earn money from promoting products that you recommend to others. When you sign up as an affiliate, you “affiliate” yourself with a company and offer to
promote their products and services for a commission.
You don’t have to build a downline or recruit a network of members. There are many more options for what you can promote and how you can promote something.
With network marketing, typically you’re restricted to promoting a product in only the way that the company says you can promote it. But with affiliate marketing, you’re
free as to how you can promote a product.
For example, you can write product reviews, blog posts, social media posts,
run paid advertising, create Youtube videos, start a podcast, do email marketing, and more.
Also with affiliate marketing, there’s no downline to build or members to recruit. You are
your own boss, and there aren’t any members that you have to report to.
All you have to do with affiliate marketing is choose the products that you want to promote,
market them successfully, and you’ll get a commission for any sales that you make.
You don’t have to drive to meetings, host seminars, beg anyone to sign up under you, or any of that. You’ll be making money by simply recommending someone else’s product.
Affiliate Marketing vs Network Marketing: Which Is Better?
When you consider the differences between affiliate marketing and network marketing, you will want to think about the pros and cons of each. In all of my toils dealing with
different business models online, I’ve found that affiliate marketing beats network marketing hands down.
You can join an affiliate program within 5 minutes and start promoting products on your website for free. You
don’t have to buy into anything to start promoting a product as with network marketing. That doesn’t make sense.
In network marketing, you’ll constantly find yourself trying to convince others to join your network and have to manage the people you recruit. Plus you typically have to maintain a
minimum sales amount to stay active within the network.
In affiliate marketing, you don’t have to carry any inventory or have any kind of experience with a product. It’s recommended that you
try out a product that you’re promoting, but it’s not a prerequisite.
However, in network marketing, companies require new distributors to sign up for the product, pay for it, and become well-acquainted with the brand.
You should know that with network marketing, the whole design is set up so that
the person at the top of the network
makes the most money.
Your income will be based on whether the people you recruit into your network will make sales – but most typically don’t. This is usually because they’re unfamiliar with the
marketing tactics involved with selling the product.
In network marketing, while you’re told that you’re a “boss”, you’re actually a
worker
for the person at the top. The income that network marketing companies tell you that you can make is a false promise at best.
With affiliate marketing, you don’t have to report to anyone, and you can work on your own terms.
Affiliate marketing is a fun business that can offer a high income and easy lifestyle.
You don’t have to host seminars, do Facebook live parties, or conduct classes and events that only stress you out in the end. You can promote products where you
earn $500 or more for every sale that you make, and you can come and go as you please.
With that being said, deciding whether to become a network marketer or an affiliate marketer is
your choice. I’ve laid out the facts for you, but you have to decide which business model is best for you.
In my opinion,
affiliate marketing is the better home business model of the two.
Randall Magwood is an affiliate marketing expert and recommends this
free video that shows you how to make $10K/Month With Affiliate Marketing. He’s the creator of this blog, and recommends all beginners check out the
“Super Affiliate System Pro” 6-week program. To learn more about this system, simply
click here now.
#Difference #Affiliate #Marketing #Network #Marketing
