Being unemployed is one of the worst dilemmas a person can face – it brings up the most damaging emotions we have . . . fear, loss, hate, dread, panic, diminished self respect, and we could go on and on. In addition to losing their job, many are on the verge of losing their biggest investment – their home. 

The unemployed need some kind of hope to bring them through this period of their lives. Right now, as we look at the state of our economy, it’s not very encouraging, and it could be several years before we have a healthy and robust economy again. They need to find something that can quickly bring money into their lives. 

What if there was some way these people could, for a very small initial investment, replace their employment income? There is a way, and it’s called gifting or peer-to-peer wealth building.

First let me tell you some of the reasons why gifting is such a great activity for anyone who is unemployed.

1. People need money NOW. They don’t have time to build a huge downline (network marketing) before a reasonable amount of money can be received.
2. You can start receiving money almost immediately in a well functioning gifting program.
3. There is a small one-time investment required to get into a good program, and it is flexible. No monthly subscription fees, no need to dip into one’s savings.
4. The unemployed have eight free hours a day, or the equivalent of the time their previous job required (plus the time spent commuting), to spend developing a new business for themselves.
5. Unemployed people usually know others who are unemployed and could use help.

Now, before we go on to talk about what elements are involved in a good gifting program, it must be understood that there is effort involved, and one should never get involved in any program unless they are willing to invest the time and effort that is needed to be successful . . . it’s no different than any other activity where monetary compensation is involved. The difference is that the payout comes much more quickly in a gifting program.

A legitimate gifting program can be very beneficial for anyone, whether they need money to pay their bills or if they simply want to increase their nest egg. I know of one gifting program that has been operating for more than seven years, has around 300,000 members, has put a half billion dollars in the members’ pockets and operates in more than 60 countries. Not bad for an activity that requires a one-time, out-of-pocket investment and can be done out of the home.

There are many who think gifting is an illegal activity and a pyramid scheme. This is not true. The gifting rules for the United States can be found in the IRS TAX CODE, Title 26, Sections 2501-2504 and 2511.  There are, however, gifting programs that operate illegally just like other scam programs. However, they are short lived and collapse pretty quickly on their own or are shut down by authorities.

These are some things that should raise the red flag when looking into gifting programs.

1. There is company ownership.
2. It is not treated as a private activity and is blatantly advertised as a business.
3. The money is funneled to the top of a "pyramid" where only the owners make money and the activity of the members is strictly to recruit people.

The activity of a well-designed gifting program is by invitation only. It is composed of like-minded people who willingly give and receive gifts of money. There is no company ownership, and all gifts of money are distributed to the members . . . 100% in, 100% out. A good program should provide members with their own website to use as a presentation tool and should include a well functioning back office to track and accommodate the giving and receiving of monies. This is usually funded by a small subscription fee.

A typical gifting program is based on a "1 Up" system. There are variations; however, this system is the most common.

To make this easy to understand, let’s say you are a member of a gifting activity. You have invited two people (we’ll call them Bob and Mary) to join you, and Bob and Mary each invited two people to join them. You now have six members in your group.

Let’s say you all made pledges of $100. The 1 Up system is designed so the pledges of Bob and Mary go to the person who invited you. The pledges of Bob’s two people and Mary’s two people would be received by you – you have now received $400 and pledged $100. At this time you would take $100 of the $400 you received and pledge again to keep yourself active in the system and ready to receive again. You would then have $300 remaining, and that would be yours to keep.

You can invite as many people as you like into a gifting program and keep pledging and receiving time and time again. There may also be a tax benefit in gifting. Since the taxes on the gift have already been paid by the pledgor, many times it is not required to be included in the gross income of the recipient and taxed again. But, check with your accountant just to be sure your situation isn’t different.

Since gifting is such a quick way to bring money in, I predict it will become one of the most popular home-based business activities.

To learn more about gifting programs and how you can get involved, contact Swanie Brandt directly at swanie@powerimage.com, or you can visit www.powerimage.com/g1g4.

Swanie Brandt has been involved in the network marketing industry for more than 8 years and has extensive experience and knowledge in getting past the network marketing “hype” and focusing on achieving success. Her primary goal is helping people succeed in the network marketing industry so they can attain the dreams they envision.

Why do you think 97% of network marketers fail? They come into the industry with great enthusiasm and expectations, so why do they fail? The bottom suddenly falls out of their dream, and here are some reasons why.

1. There are thousands of network marketing opportunities out there, but the truth is, only a SMALL number of them are worth getting involved with.
2. Many of the people who develop the network marketing programs don’t know what they’re doing, don’t have the capital available to do it properly and don’t know anything about marketing.
3. Marketing is miserably executed by even some of the more legitimate programs; some of which have been around for several years – struggling, but still viable enough to stay alive.
4. There is so much hype, exaggeration and downright lies floating around, it has gotten to the point where nobody believes anybody. This is unfortunate for the legitimate opportunities that really do have a program that works and works well.
5. When you are told distributors easily make six-figure monthly incomes by only working a few hours a week, run immediately in the other direction or at least do your due diligence before signing on the dotted line. Yes, that is definitely a possibility, and many network marketers make staggering incomes. But, this did not happen overnight for them; they worked hard and steady, and I doubt very much they would tell you it was easy at the beginning. After all, anything worth having is worth time, attention and effort.
6. Too often network marketers tell anyone they talk to that they would do great in the business and make lots of money. Network marketing is a business just like a brick and mortar business. You need to have knowledge on how a business operates and the tax laws involved. You must ask yourself whether you’re happier being an "entrepreneur" or an "employee."
7. Most network marketing opportunities tell you there is no selling involved. Don’t kid yourself. There isn’t a business of any kind alive today that doesn’t have sales of some sort in place. What you want are prospects interested in what you have to offer – then selling comes easy.
8. It seems difficult for the deeply-entrenched network marketing companies, who have been around and successful for a long time, to embrace the internet for marketing. They have their company information, distributor back offices, etc. online, but they still do their prospect training the old fashioned way.

   I recall a few years ago when I was involved with a nutritional company, I approached my director (he was in corporate) about doing prospecting online. He laughed at me and told me it would never work. They believed in the "everyone that breathes wants to be in your business" and the "three-foot rule" (everyone three feet from you wants to be in your business), "make a list of 100 people you know" because they all want to be in your business (?), etc. This is archaic – it doesn’t work! Incidentally, this company now does some prospecting online.

9. Unfortunately with many of the network marketing companies, it’s only a few at the top that ever make any money. They keep this well hidden, and new distributors don’t discover it right away. These companies thrive on the entrance fees paid by the steady flow of new distributors joining the program. They give no support to their distributors, even though they say they do, and when the "well" dries up, they move on and reintroduce the same program, giving it a different name.

My intention is not to scare you. Network marketing can give you a wonderful life style and generate great income. Many people are truly living their dream. You must, however, know what you’re doing. If you are thinking about entering the network marketing industry, study it carefully and diligently and check the opportunities carefully. There are some wonderful and legitimate programs out there, and besides that, network marketing is a viable and economical distribution method. You just need to find the right one for you.

To learn more about the lies being told about network marketing, how to get past them and plot your own course, visit www.powerimage.com/7lies and download “7 Great Lies of Network Marketing."

Swanie Brandt has been involved in the network marketing industry for more than 8 years and has extensive experience and knowledge in getting past the “hype” and uncovering the crippling truth about the “lies” being told. She focuses on helping people succeed in the network marketing industry so they can attain the dreams they envision.

Well, the answer is yes to all of the above. But it’s not what you think . . . There are a set of skills and actions you can take to become “one of those people.” Some people were lucky to learn them early on in life, while others weren’t exposed to them until later. The bottom line is by learning these skills and actions everyone can be one of the “lucky” ones and have customers come to them in droves.

The most important piece to the puzzle is you. Are you trustworthy? Are you credible? Do you live up to your word? People choose to work with people they trust. People who make them feel secure. People they know they can count on if something goes wrong. You may look great on paper, have all the experience and credentials, but if your customer doesn’t get a warm fuzzy feeling from you, he or she will go elsewhere. Remember, people claim they make decisions based on logic, when in reality they make decisions based on emotion and then justify them with logic.

How much time to you spend developing who you are as a person? Have you taken a good look at your level of self-confidence? Do you believe in yourself? Do you follow through on what you say? You can snow people for awhile, but deep down their gut will tell them you’re a fake. Take time to work on developing yourself. Find out who you really are and who and where you want to be.

So many people are operating on autopilot. They are doing what they think they should be doing or what someone else told them to do. Unfortunately, many times it is not what they truly want to do. The saddest part is that they are miserable and they have no idea why. Take the time to get to know your true self and them progress from there. Once you are true to yourself and you are doing what you like, your customers will have a higher comfort level with you and your business.

Make each and every customer feel special. Remember little things about them and take care of them. The more you engage with your customer and become a trusted resource the less likely they are to go elsewhere. Just remember, you’re not trying to become their best friend, just a very trusted resource.

This is much easier now with CRM programs and computer sales records. You can keep track of things you learn about your customer on the computer so you don’t have to keep everything in your head. For example, a Happy Birthday message is almost always welcomed by customers, even if you haven’t done business with them for awhile. This will keep you on the top of their mind when a need for your products or services comes up again.

Finally, stay relevant. Make sure your knowledge and skills are current with the market. Invest in extra training or read trade magazines or books. Schedule a few minutes every day to increase your knowledge base, it can be as little as 15 minutes. Just do it! This is another attribute that your customer will appreciate and will put you ahead of the competition.