NONE: Re: Advertising and MLMs
Re: Advertising and MLMs
CVANDERV_at_aol.com
Tue, 9 Jul 1996 00:52:01 -0400
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MODERATOR'S NOTE:
This thread seems to be drifting off-topic, as it no longer talking about
online advertising & promotion issues. This will be the last post I'm
letting through on this subject.
thanks,
richard
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In a message dated 96-07-08 23:23:22 EDT, you write:
Appropriate disclaimer: Yes I work in MLM, and any direct advertising related
issues I'm interested in are from my MLM work (I'm interested in advertising
and advertising ideas for my "day" job, but not ultimately resposible for
them.
I will not be putting forth any attempts to recruit/sponsor in this or any
posts to this forum (don't need the flames my e-mail load is too heavy now
<G>)
>
<<snip>>
> By its very nature, the greatest bulk of MLM advertising, online and
> otherwise, seems to be for participation in their particular MLM program -
> recruitment.
Actually the MLM's that do have strong products also advertise in product
related areas/manners, but it is generally done at the independant
representative level.
>The basic idea being that the networking of sales agents
> offsets the need for the large advertising budget. Which brings me to my
> point of topic. Many MLMs have some of the highest quality products
> available to market, but they don't spend the big bucks advertising them
> (with us). Could it be that the nature of MLM, as it has presently
evolved,
> is such an aggravation to advertising people that the whole concept of
> networked marketing/sales gets burned as the strawman? Not the highest
> caliber of cerebral output, if so.
There is also a recurring similar line of thought in MLM circles along the
line of
"we don't get good press in the media because we don't pay them to advertise
our products"
> There were even comments which tried to knit together pyramid schemes (a
> true fraud) with network marketing (MLM). That is patently false, both
> legally and honestly, and smacks of simple "hooray for our side"
chauvinism.
In fairness, since one of the primary differences between a pyramid scheme
and
a pyramidal MLM is the product they do or don't have, there can be honest
confusion
on this issue.
> If MLM is the opponent, counterpart, or even the enemy in the minds of
some
> advertising professionals, it would seem wise to "know thy enemy" for who
> and what and how s/he is, and not by some false icon. May be time to
> re-read Sun Tzu.
Hopefully not enemy, but perhaps non-friend/non-associate.
> MLMs may never spend the dough advertising with us, but to falsely
accuse
> the marketing system of being a "can't possibly succeed" and borderline
> fraudulent scam is to subject our own profession to the charge of spiteful
> jingoism.
Actually where on-line advertising, direct mail, and support systems for
these
(fax on demand or autoresponders for example) are concernedMLMs can be
advertising customers. I know of several groups which are pooling together
within
their respective organizations to try to do better advertising for their
products and/or
opportunity. This is being done by the Independent Representatives and not
the
company, the IRs are the potential advertising customers. IRs may not make
for
big individual advertising accounts, but the sum total of what all the IRs
are doing
could get rather large and increasingly there are advertising services
targeting this level.
Ad placement sevices (on-line and off-line), copywriting services and similar
small
advertising related services are all actively pursuing the MLM IRs.
> To answer the obvious question, I have been in and out of MLMs
(presently
> out - and NO, I'm not looking), made as much money as I cared to equate to
> my own personal marketing efforts, and found nothing scamish about the few
I
> have tasted. I hope this online advertising mail list continues to evolve
> into a high-quality product, and doesn't fall the way of becoming just
> another tiresome clique.
>
As the size and the complexity of the internet increases, it will become
increasingly
difficult to ensure that your ad is reaching the desired audience. The more
this continues
the more I would expect to see MLM organizations individually or in groups
seeking
some forms of professional help to improve their advertising results.
Chuck VanderVeen
Cvanderv_at_aol.com
