Network Marketing Information

Mentoring For Free: A Review


Mentoring For Free is a training program that can also be used as a recruitment tool for network marketing distributors. The owner is Michael Dlouhy, a 26-year veteran of the network marketing industry. Mr. Dlouhy also gives away an e-book, Success in 10 Steps and sells an audio CD, Colors to Success.

This review of Mentoring For Free suggests that the program offers valuable training for network marketers provided a few caveats are kept in mind. The advantages and disadvantages of the program are as follows:

Advantages

  • Mastermind Call
  • - The Saturday night Mastermind call provides an opportunity to achieve personal growth with a group of network marketers who are, for the most part, caring and sincere.

  • Personality Types
  • - The description of the 4 personality types, while not unique, is a valuable heuristic, which I found improved my ability to quickly tailor my presentation to prospects. I'm a psychologist so I think it says a lot that Mr. Dlouhy's description of the personality types was so helpful.

  • Compensation Plans
  • - The overview of comp plans and the relationship between personality types and comp plans will help many people make a better decision when choosing an MLM or in working their own comp plan (although see below for the other side of the coin).

  • How to Talk with Prospects
  • - Mr. Dlouhy and others talk with live prospects, which can be educational although see my opinion about his practice below. The general discussions about talking with prospects are very helpful.

  • Relationship Focus
  • - Whether you like this aspect of the program might depend on your personality type. Thus, because I am a "Yellow/Green," I think the focus on building relationships is the only way to go!

Disadvantages

  • Live Prospecting Calls
  • - I realize this might be a minority opinion but I don't like the fact that with this program and other training programs, prospects are called while dozens of people are secretly listening to the conversation. It strikes me as voyeuristic and a violation of privacy. But if you don't mind this approach, you might see this as a big positive. Be aware that if you sign up for the free e-book, order the CD, or try the free version of the prospecting system that you could very well get a call from the person whose link you clicked on, then Mr. Dlouhy will come on the call ("I've got the author of the e-book on the line"), and dozens of people will be listening to everything you say.

  • Policy & Procedure Bias -
  • Mr. Dlouhy emphasizes reading a company's Policies & Procedures (P&P), which certainly makes good sense, and he offers advice for identifying rules that could jeopardize a distributor's financial success. However, it seems more than a coincidence that the type of Policies & Procedures Mr. Dlouhy advocates is nearly identical to the P&P of his company and he seems to find fault with the majority of other company's Policies & Procedures.

  • Comp Plan Bias
  • - Similar to the P&P bias, many companies are found to have bad comp plans when reviewed on the calls. Company names aren't mentioned but callers sometimes have an idea of the company and it's also clear that the company Mr. Dlouhy--and at least half the participants on the calls--represents has a good comp plan.

  • Not Completely Generic
  • - If a participant to the calls finds that his or her company's P&P or comp plan does not fit the recommendations made on the calls, there is a natural tendency to want to join a "good" company with a trusted sponsor. It's also a natural tendency for such a person to want to sign up with a leader whom they have come to know and trust. Mr. Dlouhy is an obvious choice for many participants since he clearly knows a lot about network marketing and he has a charismatic personality (I mean that in a good way).

    To be fair, Mr. Dlouhy states that he will always refer a person back to the person who invited them to Mentoring For Free (the system uses affiliate links to track visitors to the websites) and I have no reason to doubt him. At the same time, people have the freedom to join the company of their choice. Consequently, they can say, "no thanks" to the person who invited them to Mentoring For Free and sign up with Mr. Dlouhy's company (VitaMark). This might be particularly true if the person who invited them on the call is with a company that has a "negative" P&P or comp plan in Mr. Dlouhy's opinion.

  • Strong Personality
  • - Although I found Mr. Dlouhy to be likeable and engaging, he is a "Red/Blue" personality type. Consequently, he dominates the calls to some extent. He often is not very open to feedback; particularly when participants express--in a sincere, polite manner--concerns about his biases.

I went through three phases during my participation with Mentoring For Free:

  • Excitement at a very good educational program, which also looked like an ideal way to find new distributors for my business and train them;
  • Disillusionment and jealousy when the above negatives became apparent;
  • Respect for an ingenious viral marketing strategy that I suspect others will emulate in the near future.
  • In summary, I'm glad I participated in Mentoring For Free for a couple of months. I learned a lot and it gave me some great marketing and training ideas for my own business. I recommend it provided you keep the above caveats in mind.

    Mark Worthen, Psy.D. is a Phi Betta Kappa graduate of the University of Maryland's Honors Psychology program. He earned his Doctor of Psychology degree from Baylor University after serving as a Clinical Fellow, Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School. In addition to his work as a clinical psychologist, Dr. Worthen earns extra income as a representative for a leading health and wellness company. You can reach Dr. Worthen via the Contact page at http://www.Best-MLM-Opportunities.com


    MORE RESOURCES:

    UPDATE 1-Swisscom, ISPs in fibre network marketing effort
    Reuters - Nov 27, 2008
    ZURICH, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Swiss telephone network operator Swisscom (SCMN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) announced on Thursday that it has ...


    Ultra International - 20 Year Old Brick and Mortar Unveils ...
    Live-PR.com (Pressemitteilung), Austria - Dec 3, 2008
    03.12.2008 12:26:27 Ultra International, a 20-year-old wellness life oriented company announced their launch of it's direct-to-consumer marketing doors, ...


    Network Marketing MLM Training-10 Conversation Strategies for ...
    American Chronicle, CA - Dec 1, 2008
    Many people slow down during this time of the year, whether in network marketing, real estate, mortgage brokering, or any other type of entrepreneurial ...


    Filipino Magazine
    Black Hills Today, SD - 41 minutes ago
    By Territory Media Filipino online magazine features new business, network marketing, and hottest new businesses starting in Philippines. ...


    Philippine Network Marketing
    Black Hills Today, SD - Nov 28, 2008
    Philippine Network Marketing - If you have been looking in to getting into business in the Philippines, you might want to check out USANA. ...


    Network Marketing Business School Announces $75000 Giveaway to ...
    PR.com (press release), NY - Nov 26, 2008
    Troy Rocavert, CEO of Network Marketing Business School announced today that over the next 12 months Network Marketing Business School will be giving away ...


    vyrl mkt Creates Vyrl Multiplier, a Turn-key Social Network ...
    MarketWatch - Nov 20, 2008
    SAN JOSE, Calif., Nov 20, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- vyrl mkt ( http://www.vyrlmkt.com) announces the development of its Vyrl Multiplier system, ...


    Skeptical Aussie Journo Backs Ground-Breaking Online Business
    WebWire (press release), GA - 1 hour ago
    Network marketing, with its potential for ongoing residual income, seemed like an attractive proposition. As a successful professional businessman, ...


    Australian Millionaire Newspaper Publishing Couple Joins Network ...
    WebWire (press release), GA - Nov 26, 2008
    The Outridges were attracted to network marketing because of the opportunity to work from home and to spend more time with their three children—Maggie 13, ...


    SplashCast chosen for Entercom's social network marketing
    DM News, NY - Nov 13, 2008
    ... a US-based radio broadcasting group, has tapped SplashCast, an emerging media content syndication service, for its social network marketing efforts. ...

    Network-Marketing - Google News

    home | site map
    © 2006