There are a lot of information out there about MLM and Top Tier businesses but it is extremely difficult to find an impartial review about these two types of businesses. Obviously the MLM hardcore fans will say Top Tier is rubbish and the Top Tier diehards will say MLM is pointless. Personally I have been involved in both in the past and I don’t have a strong opinion over which one is better. My view is that these two business models are completely different and it is up to you which one suits you better. I am going to give you the “MOST IMPARTIAL” comparison between these two business models.
Top Tier Business is a type of direct selling business. Examples of popular top tier businesses are CarbonCopyPro/WMI combination, Lifepath Unlimited and Global Resort Network. These businesses generally have very expensive products and a large percentage of the profit generated from these expensive products are paid to the distributors directly. For example, if you sell a $8000 products, you will get something like $4000-5000 of commission. The rest of the profit goes to the uplines and the company. There are generally less levels in the compensation plan compared to MLM, usually 2-3 levels. This may look attractive for someone looking for quick income and for those who want to quit their job quickly, but the residual income is not great as you have to keep selling to get those type of income. And obviously with the expensive products, you make less sale than the cheaper products in MLM.
MLM on the other hand, is what I consider the king of residual. Most MLM companies pay out about 50% of their profit as commission. Only a small percentage of these goes to the distributors as initial bonus, whereas large proportion is paid out over many years and many levels as residual commission. Generally it takes time to build a sizable income and hence a lot of people don’t like it. However, once you have spent enough effort and time building it, the income will keep increasing and keep coming over many years to come, even when you stop working on it. That is the beauty of MLM.
So what is the pros and cons these two business models?
Pros of Top Tier:
- Make money fast
- No need to build a large organization before you make good money
Cons of Top Tier:
- Expensive to join
- Not easy to sell because of the price
- Little or no residual income
Pros of MLM:
- True long term residual
- More power of leverage
- Overall more people make more money in MLM
- Can go autopilot when you reach a certain level
- No need to keep selling and recruiting
Cons of MLM:
- Take time to build
- Slow start
So ultimately it is down to personal preference. If you are the type of person who are good at selling and recruiting yourself, don’t mind doing it over and over again and have other means of generating passive income, then Top Tier is for you. If you are the type of person who believe in building a team and leverage the power of a team to build a long term residual income from your business and then see your business grows on autopilot, then there is nothing better than MLM.
To Your Success,
Ket-Sang Tai
