What is Network Marketing?

The quintessential focus of every business on its customers has never been as emphasised as it is in the digital era. With the presence of social media, a wider scope of feedback and better relationship with buyers and sellers has become quite apparent. Amongst different branches of marketing in the digital world, a new concept of network marketing has significantly emerged.

Network marketing refers to a business model that involves a person-to-person model of sales which is created by developing a network of independent representatives. If you are a business major, network marketing is an essential topic that will be encompassed in the degree and make you privy to its features and applications. This blog seeks to answer the question of what is network marketing and understand all its features and applications along with the major courses and universities you can consider in this field.

What is Network Marketing and How does it work? 

Network marketing is a medium of marketing that is used by producers and sellers to accelerate their sales rates. In network marketing, manufacturers deal with a large number of distributors who develop ‘networks’ to operate at various levels and thereby encompass a larger section of society. They often act as independent representatives of the company and result in curtailing the large costs involved in traditional marketing.

These distributors earn profit at their levels and also expand the earnings of the conglomerate per unit sold. Its uses are multifarious and wide-ranging and its intricate process is carried out by big corporations creating tiers of salespersons who using their independent networking and circle try to promote the product. Popularly known as multilevel marketing is trending globally. Companies that encourage network marketing often create tiers that have the authority to hire sub-tiers under them. This works on a commission-based system.

Must Read: Marketing Consultant: Courses & Career Pathways

Types of Network Marketing

Now that you are aware of what is network marketing and how it works, let’s explore the types of network marketing. There are three types of network marketing.

Single-Tier

You join an affiliate programme to sell a company’s products or services via single-tier network marketing. You are not required to recruit additional distributors, and direct sales are your sole source of income. Avon, a well-known cosmetics company, uses one-tier networking marketing.

Some internet affiliate schemes compensate you for directing visitors to the affiliate’s website. Pay-per-click (PPC) and pay-per-lead (PPL) affiliate schemes are also examples of single-tier networking.

Two Tier

Unlike single-tier network marketing, two-tier network marketing requires some recruiting, but your compensation is not entirely dependent on it. You are paid for direct sales (or traffic driven to a website) as well as direct sales or recommended traffic generated by affiliates or distributors you hire.

Multi-Level

Multi-level marketing (MLM) is used by some direct sales organisations to encourage existing distributors to recruit new distributors in exchange for a percentage of their recruits’ sales. The distributor’s “downline” is made up of recruits. Distributors benefit from direct product sales to customers as well.

A well-known direct sales organisation is Amway, a well-known multilevel marketing organisation that sells health, beauty, and home care products.

Advantages of Network Marketing

The major advantages of Network Marketing are as follows:

• The size of a network marketing organisation is unrestricted. This occurs because businesses may form distribution partnerships with a large number of people. Distributors can also collaborate with other sub-distributors to boost company sales.
• Companies do not need to rely on advertising to promote their products because they have a strong distribution network that directly engages customers.
• Firms consider retailer profit margins to be an expenditure, which is influenced by distributor structure. These profit margins are passed on to distributors, relieving corporations of their financial burden.
• Another advantage is that businesses do not have to spend as much money on storage and delivery as they used to. This is because distributors are responsible for these costs.
• Because of this framework, distributors can make an infinite amount of money from their business transactions with the organisation. They can profit from their own earnings as well as commissions.

Applications

Simply understanding what is network marketing isn’t enough. The actual understanding comes from being aware of its applications in a practical world in a lucrative sense that expand the growth of a business. It results in establishing a multi-level marketing structure involving a large number of distributors. With no inhibitions or size limitations, the network structure grows beyond any other kind of networking and supports a large number of people. 

Companies don’t invest immensely to build a network but earn sufficient returns. Additionally, in the process, distributors are also positively affected by its creation and the profits are substantial. Being a reliable system, there is no chance of collapse and creates a direct connection between the company and the target audience.

Courses and Top Universities 

Now that you know about network marketing and its essential process and applications, let’s further understand how you can establish a career in the field. It is a specialization offered as a core module of business degrees across various universities of the world. Business programs focus on a large number of topics and network marketing is one such concept that is essentially studied in this course. The core features, processes and applications can be learned at the bachelor’s as well as master’s levels. Tabulated below are some of the major business degree programs:

Course	Level	University
BBA Marketing	Bachelor’s	North Island College, Canada
Bachelor’s degree in Brand Management	Bachelor’s	Macromedia University of Applied Sciences, Germany
Bachelor of International Business Administration, Marketing and Communication	Bachelor’s	New European College, Germany
Bachelor of Marketing and Business	Bachelor’s	Abertay University, Scotland
Bachelor of Business (Marketing)	Bachelor’s	The University of Canberra, Australia
BA(Hons) Marketing (Management)	Bachelor’s	The University of Derby, England
BA Honours Advertising, PR and Branding	Bachelor’s	Middlesex University Dubai
Masters in Marketing Management	Master’s	Bologna Business School, Italy
Masters in Marketing	Master’s	Aalto University, Finland
Master of Marketing	Master’s	Curtin University, Australia
International Master of Business Administration(Marketing)	Master’s	The University of South Australia, Australia
MSc Marketing	Master’s	The University of Glasgow, Scotland
MSc Marketing Management	Master’s	Grenoble Ecole de Management, France

How to Start Network Marketing?

Network Marketing Success 

In order to succeed in Network Marketing, you must ensure that you have certain skills and tricks up your sleeve. 

• Be serious about your job
• Make use of social media to promote your business
• You must have a mentor for yourself who can guide you through the journey
• Have a growth mindset even if things are not working for you 
• Use automation tools that will quicken your process

Must Read: Affiliate Marketing Course

Questions to Consider

Before deciding to join a network marketing organisation, there are six questions to ask.

• What is the company’s age?
• What product or service do they provide (and do you find it valuable)?
• How equitable and generous is the salary distribution?
• What is the company’s integrity?
• Is the company gaining momentum and timing?
• What kind of assistance or training does the company provide?

Must Read: Post-Graduate Diploma in Marketing Management

Network Marketing Companies

Wondering what are the top companies you can work for after completing your degree? Here is the list of network marketing companies:

• Amway
• SafeShop
• Modicare
• 4Life
• Eazyways
• Forever Living
• Mi Lifestyle Marketing Global Private Ltd.
• Herbalife
• Vestige
• Oriflame
• Avon

Career Scope

Network marketing has significantly emerged amongst the popular forms of marketing with promising career opportunities on offer. It is a relatively undiscovered and good career to pursue if one has the makings and diligence. It is considered an important part of Multi-Level Marketing and provides a wide range of career options for graduates to explore such as:

• Brand Manager
• MLM Network Marketing Leader
• PR Manager
• Business Development Manager
• Marketing Executive/Associate

To summarise, Network Marketing is a unique marketing technique. It is unique, according to those involved, and the market is expanding at an incredible rate. We may see some dramatic expansions in the network marketing world in the near future. We can see it grow happily until then.

FAQs

We hope this blog has answered all your doubts related to what is network marketing, how it works as well as the courses and careers you can explore. Want to study a degree program in Marketing? Let our Experts at Leverage Edu assist you in picking the best course and university that can equip you with the requisite knowledge and skills to build a thriving career in this field! Sign up for an e-meeting with us today!