Generally when a new person embarks on a new MLM home business they are usually trained to first make a list of people they know who they can approach to share their new business and hopefully have those friends and family see the opportunity as they have and join them in their venture ( known as the Warm Market).

If you truly believe in the MLM opportunity and product or service you are marketing then this shouldn’t be a problem since those you would most like to help would be your closest contacts.

I have been able to help my family and many friends but there comes a time when you must widen the net.  A constant stream of network marketing leads is required to keep your MLM home business growing (cold market).

As a result of this demand for network marketing leads a whole lead generation industry has sprung up where companies make huge money by generating and then selling you what are called opt-in network marketing leads.

So, what do you do? Easy – You go to an opt in network marketing leads company and you buy a batch of leads. The leads are $2.25 each, so you buy 100 of them for $225.50.

Understandably many network marketers (including myself) have taken advantage of such convenience and purchased a list of names of people who are supposedly qualified and looking for a home business opportunity in the MLM industry.

Simple, just get on the phone , crunch the numbers and we’ll be rich in no time! Unfortunately in reality it just didn’t work out like that ( But I’ll come on to that later!!)

Pretty soon I was asking myself “where do they get these so called network marketing leads they sell to us?”

For the most part, opt in network marketing leads are generated over the Internet. Whilst there is no definite study that I know of to prove this, I think it is safe to assume that 85-90% of all leads you find for sale are originated on the Internet.

There are two main reasons for this.

First, the Internet is where most people are doing their research today when looking for jobs, looking for ways to make extra money, something to invest on, etc. So, why not go where the people are looking?

Second, it is the most cost effective way of generating opt in network marketing leads. A person is surfing the Internet, doing a Google search, and checking out their options for ways to make extra income. Or, sometimes the person is not even thinking about wanting more money when an online ad or offer catches their attention and they check it out. So, they fill out a form and hit submit.

They just became a prospect waiting to be sold to you.

Quite a nice system. Wouldn’t we all like to receive a batch of opt in network marketing leads of hot hungry people who had been surfing the Internet for ways of making money from home and now you have their name, phone, and E-mail address in your hands.

Of course it seems like a good idea – but let me share my experience and the effect it had on my MLM home business.

Firstly it didn’t take long to work out that:

1. The people on my expensive list were not nesscesarily looking for a MLM home business at all! Many couldn’t remember filling in their details and were not expecting someone to ring them with a business opportunity.

2. Many people had already been rung several times by other network marketers who had been sold the same lead and some had reached the stage where they were not at all open and in many cases were very rude. How did you get my name? Take me off your list etc etc – I won’t tell you what some of them said!

I quickly learnt that to succeed with this strategy I was going to need VERY thick skin!

It is a numbers game and if you have bought a high quality lead and you are quick, have great phone skills and have elephant hide then you may be able to succeed by purchasing network marketing leads.

So what’s the the problem and how will it affect you?

One of the biggest problems that exists among the Internet lead generation business is the incentives that are used to entice a person to hand over their details. If you have ever purchased opt in network marketing leads, then you have probably come across the person who did not know they were going to be contacted about a home business. Instead they thought they were going to possibly win a new Video iPod, Laptop, $10,000, or a vacation cruise!

No opt in network marketing lead is ever pure because you do not know what sites the prospect has been to, filling out forms and checking out other businesses or how many other people have been sold the same lead!

Is buying network marketing leads duplicatable?

My experience is no.

In fact, that period of training people to buy network marketing leads actually did a lot of damage since many of my team (despite being armed with scripts and training) hated the experience. Hey no-one really likes rejection and some will say “if this is what it takes I’m not doing it!”

So what’s the answer?

If you are thinking about buying opt in network marketing leads STOP. It makes much more sense long term to learn how to quickly and easily generate your own HOT, targeted, EXCLUSIVE leads. There’s lot’s of different ways to do it ( Many of them free) so you and your team can tailor your business to suit your own preferences and that makes it fun, motivating and believe me, much more rewarding!

Click on this link to see my own Network Marketing Leads Generation system