GLOBAL RECESSION COMING?

MLM BOOM!

Help People! NetWork Marketing Can Be Their Salvation!
By Rod Cook, B.sc., M.A., M.B.A.

The Global Economy keeps staggering around worldwide! Russia saw a tremendous upset in their system. The Asian nations, including the financial powerhouse that was Japan, are on the brink of collapse. In the US all signs indicate a recession. This always starts toward the end of boom in the financial cycle and indicates an economic downturn. Worldwide people are worrying about their economic future!

On top of that we have the impending Y2K (year 2000 computer glitches) that will compound the economic problems. People are beginning to worry. Then they quit spending money. This "Psychology of Fear" fuels a recession. Y2K problems fed recession fears, making the worldwide staggering worse two years ago. We aren't saying there is going to be a "Depression" which is much worse than a recession. What we are predicting with our studies (proven 98.6% correct over 10 years) is higher unemployment and underemployment (people forced to work for less money).

STEP ONE --WHY?

General economic theory has proven that there is a recession "about" every 8 years. This "boom and bust" cycle has pretty

well "played true" for the modern history of the United States. The interesting thing is that NetWork Marketing has grown during the "down" periods. The oldest MLM Company we can track is Watchers that started in 1934 at the bottom of the depression. Nutrilite took off in 1945 during the economic decline after WWII. Shackley and Neo-Life faired well in the post Korean War slump. Amway got a good start building with the slump in 1958. Mary Kay started with the downturn in 1963-64. This seemed to hold true in 1992 when Kaire, Life Plus and numerous other companies started up and became boomers.

STEP TWO -- UNDERSTANDING

Understanding the relationship between low cost entrepreneurship and economics is important. During the last few years the world economic boom made people complacent and lazy. In the US, the jobless rate dropped to all time lows of less than 5%. People had to be sick, lame, or lazy not to get a job. The underemployed (hamburger flippers) got higher paying jobs (assembling computers) and their income rose. So rather than looking for an alternative to a job or seeking extra income these folks sat around and watched television. Now those with any intelligence are going to scramble to find alternative sources of income. In their frantic searches they are going to find that the best of all alternatives is NetWork Marketing.

Another big factor that will fuel the growth in NetWork Marketing is that many "Baby Boomers," who put their saving in the stock market, just got a rude wakeup call! With the decline of the stock market they saw their retirement plan funds lose 25%-50% in value. They are realizing that the stock market is not the great money fountain utopia it appeared to be. With the of upward spiral of the stock market many baby boomers had resumed their high flying, fast spending ways and have meager savings except for the stock market. The stock market downturn was a rude awakening! As the stock market flounders around in the future watch panic follow! "Baby Boomers" with good sense will be looking for a secondary way to build a residual retirement income.

STEP THREE - RESEARCH

To carry this further let's take a look at growth during periods of economic decline. In the previous graph we tied the start of some major companies that exist today with the downturns in the economy.

This graph involved the study of 3 older companies Amway, Neo-Life, and Neo Life and their accelerated growth rate during the 1973 recession. Data from several other companies supported this same finding but the information was not available for all years of the study.

In this graph we show the increase in growth of major NetWork Marketing companies that were up and running in the recession of 1973-75. If you study the graph you will note that the companies weren't doing bad when the recession started. They had a fair amount of growth. However when the recession came they took off like a rocket!" Even after the recession their growth rates remained higher than before the recession. This was probably due to two reasons (1) the memory of the recession lingered in peoples minds after the recession was over (2) a larger distributor base recruiting more new people. The primary conclusion is that NetWork Marketing does better during a recession!

STEP FOUR --CONFIRMATION

A telephone survey of 100 MLM company owners and executives brought some interesting replies. I asked the owners what they attributed the "lull" in the industry to. A total of 58% said they thought it was the economy! Most said they couldn't publicly admit it. The remainder gave mixed answers with no statistical meaning.

STEP FIVE--ACTION!

Grab your hat and prepare for the next big boom in NetWork Marketing! If you are a newcomer, study the industry closely (and quickly), if you are an old timer get out all your contact lists for the last couple of years. In a recession they may turn out to be solid gold! You have to get out and help people out of their economic duress!

It is the greatest of times to grow your NetWork Marketing business! Whether you are a veteran or beginning NetWork Marketer the future is bright. Why? History proves that when there is an economic downturn NetWork Marketing booms! Why? Consumers start looking for the best quality at the best price. Where do they find it? Often in the quality products offered by NetWork Marketing companies. Once they try the products and find that the value they offer, the customer quite often is open to becoming a distributor. Why? The recession causes people open their minds to gaining alternative sources of income! Why? If they are still employed they are worrying about the possibility of losing their job or having it downgraded. If they are unemployed they are seeking ways to build their income without spending large amounts of money to start a business. NetWork Marketing is perfect for all types of concerned people during a recession!

Rod Cook is the President of America's MLM Consultants and Editor of the MLM Insider Magazine. When not working on starting new companies he researches and teaches on MLM subjects. Rod has the largest MLM library in the industry. The 1999 Edition of How To Start Your Internet Multi-Affiliate or NetWork Marketing Company" is out. This massive 280 page 8.5"x11" gives all the inside secrets of starting a company from an MBA/Marketing perspective. In its' 6th year of publication it is considered the "Bible of MLM" information.