© 2005—All Rights Reserved.

In a marketplace where competing companies vie for the attention of prospects and the loyalty of customers, it may seem difficult, if not impossible, to create a harmonious environment where competitors can coexist and work together to for their mutual benefit. This is especially true of those in the multi-level marketing industry, who are notorious for bombarding the general public and each other with their often overly enthusiastic messages.

It seems we’ve all heard the ‘get rich quick’ hype a million times over, and as multi-level marketers, we’re probably all guilty of perpetuating it to some degree, at one time or another. For better or worse, it is what initially attracts most people to the industry. However, after a while, hearing the same hype gets tedious, especially when a bunch of multi-level marketers get together. Such an assembly can easily deteriorate into a polite tug-of-war regarding who’s MLM is making the most money, who’s is better, etc. as each individual attempts to win over the others to their way of thinking, and ultimately their MLM company. Such a gathering can be a terribly competitive and uncomfortable environment, and possibly the reason many multi-level marketers don’t make the effort to gather together as a real community. So the question is, how does one foster a sense of harmony and community among such avid competitors?

Given the very nature of multi-level marketing, attempting to create an environment of complete non-competitive cooperation among a multitude of MLM distributors would probably prove to be a fool’s errand. However, it may be possible to carve out a loose and mutually beneficial confederation of sorts. But, such a thing would necessarily have to be based on a firm foundation of mutual respect, honesty, integrity, and open-mindedness, and may well require a radical shift in perspective.

Where multi-level marketing companies truly distinguish themselves is in their product offerings. Of course, among the many MLM companies, there is some genuine overlap, and competition. This is natural in any healthy market place. Variations in price, quality, features, functions, and formulations make for an interesting mix of products, even among companies that offer similar products, and this provides consumers many choices to choose from in order to suit their diverse personal preferences. It is precisely here, where multi-level marketers can come together into a mutually beneficial, cohesive community, and serve each other’s needs without necessarily conflicting or competing.