E-commerce, ie. transactions occurring on-line, accounted for a whopping $9 Trillion in the year 2004 and that figure was expected to rise by 40% for the year 2005.

That's an incredible figure, considering the relative youth of the internet itself. People are rushing to the internet at an incredible rate.

The Internet Retailer recently conducted a study that ranked the top 400 retail sites. These top 400 eTailers represent a combined bank of $51 billion USD.This represents 58.3 percent of all U.S. Internet sales.Internet retail sales totalled $87.5 billion in 2004, up 25 percent from $70 billion in 2003 and up 62 percent from $54 billion in 2002, according to Internet Retailer estimates. Internet retailing (eTailing) is on the up and up, over all sales, average tickets, and conversions are steadily increasing. read the details here.



It is an undisputed fact then, that global e-commerce is escalating, but what exactly does that mean in the field of network marketing? How will the recruiting and sales figures change, and will the industry be able to adjust to this phenomenon?

Traditionally, network marketing is the moving of products or services through a "network" of associates, each of whom is a consumer themselves. The idea is that each person consumes a little, and retails a little, and the company achieves their sales goals, and the consumer has an opportunity to earn. The internet certainly won't change the principle definition of network sales, but how will it affect the organizations as a whole.

I have noticed several things over the past few years.

The first thing that stands out glaringly is how the internet has changed people's perception of how they will be able to earn money. Many people are lured into the belief that all they need is a splashy website and an online store and they will be millionaires over night. Enticed by seductive ads that scream out headlines such as, "make money in your underwear", the internet caters to a society that increasingly wants something for nothing.

The reality is that the internet is much more complicated than that. There are billions of websites all competing with products

and services. People can travel the globe with lightening speed, and the chances of someone "finding" your site is the proverbial "needle in a haystack".

Success in network marketing depends on ones ability to sponsor consumers, who in turn sponsor consumers. The internet should make that much easier, right? After all, there are a staggering number of people looking for what you've got. Again, it's true that people are looking, but it is also true that there are as many, if not more, people selling.

It is much easier to find a network marketing company today to work from home. The internet makes it very easy to sign a new distributor or purchase a product, but understand that there is SO much more to a business than that.

Consider why people start a business in network marketing, and why they stay.

People start a business from home because they want something.
What do they want? They want to be independent of the 9-5 constrictions, they want financial relief, and they want time freedom.

They stay for 2 reasons: They are making money, and they develop loyalty to the company, team and product.

Like it or not, consumerism is about the personal touch, particularly in the realm of networking. People need people. You can't have a meaningful relationship with your keyboard. You can't get all of your questions answered through F.A.Q.'s. You can't get ongoing motivation and training from your monitor. Human beings are social beings, and network marketing is the ultimate marriage of consumerism with social interaction. Take the personal touch away, and most people lose the most compelling reason to continue.

I personally feel that the internet is an incredible resource, and a very valuable tool. It has indeed taken my business to a new level, but only as a contact point. The key to true networking success is to take that contact offline, and onto the phone as quickly as possible. People still need the human connection. They need to hear a trustworthy voice, and they need to know that someone cares for their success.

So what does the internet mean to a traditional networking business? I think that the numbers will increase exponentially both in recruiting and failure.

The companies and individuals that will succeed in this new world of technology are the ones who recognize that we can use the internet to connect globally, and provide information, but not use it to replace the traditional principles on which network marketing was founded.

Use the tools to bring your market closer, and then keep them close with the personal touch.