In this detailed post, I’d like to discuss how to set up your own MLM Blog, talk about why you should do it, and educate you on how to build your MLM Business by blogging. This is a topic I am enthusiastic about. I hope to pay it forward and teach you what I’ve learned during the past 11+ years about blogging.
My Story & How I Got Here
I first got involved with network marketing in 2002. I built my business the traditional way for the first nine years. I did okay following those methods, but I honestly hated it. I knew there had to be a better way to build my business that aligned with personality, skills, and goals. Can you relate?
When I first joined network marketing, the internet was still new (to me anyway). I knew nothing about email or websites. There were no blogs. There was no Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube. I was still using AOL and my phone to connect to the Internet.
I learned about the idea of blogging in 2009. When I first joined My Lead System Pro back in 2009 (no, I am not a member anymore) I purchased a book called Magnetic Sponsoring. The book taught me many valuable business lessons, but the biggest lesson was Attraction Marketing. After reading the book, I figured the best way to apply the principles of Attraction Marketing was to establish my own MLM Blog or website. So that’s what I did.
In October 2010, I started with a MLM website and built it up to about 2,000 pages, but then I decided to switch to a blog instead. The only problem I had with having a traditional website was I couldn’t make it interactive like I could a blog. I wanted a website where people could ask questions, leave comments, and share their thoughts. So, in April 2013 I started this MLM Blog.
Fast forward a few years and I build my MLM Business primarily by blogging. I don’t cold call, chase people down at the mall, bug friends and family, have home parties, or prospect strangers. I don’t do meetings, three-way calls, or drive all around town to meet with people.
I believe in getting people to CONTACT ME FIRST with their credit card in hand, rather than me trying to contact and sell them. I try to be a welcomed guest rather than an annoying pest (thanks Dan Kennedy!). I believe in promoting myself (attraction marketing) rather than just promoting a network marketing business. And I cannot think of a better way to do that than by blogging.
Reasons to Have a MLM Blog
Why should you build your network marketing business by blogging? Why should you have your own MLM Blog? Here are a few good reasons I can think of.
# 1: You Don’t Own Anything
When you are just building a team in your MLM Company, you don’t own anything. You don’t own your downline, the products, the intellectual property, shares in the company, etc. You can be terminated at any time for any reason. The company can go bankrupt or shut down at any time. Simply put, you don’t own anything.
You should have a MLM Blog because a blog is a genuine business, a real asset, and you OWN it! It’s something you own, and if you build it up right, it will become an asset that you can sell one day (if you choose to).
# 2: Promote Yourself
Another good reason to blog is to promote YOURSELF first. You can build your own brand. Rather than just promoting your network marketing company, you position yourself as an expert and authority on a certain topic. People join people, not businesses, so it’s important to promote yourself first. Plus, if you promote yourself first, you won’t be dependent on any specific network marketing company.
# 3: Global Audience
Blogging allows you to connect with a worldwide audience. You will get free traffic from the search engines 24/7, even while you sleep. Your audience will consist of people from EVERY country. Plus, if you do the proper marketing, SEO, and website optimization, you can find people who are looking for your company or its products. Best of all, these people approach you first.
# 4: Multiple Streams of Income
The final reason for blogging (and my favorite) is to have multiple streams of income in your business. You can promote different affiliate products, sell your own services, promote your MLM Company, sell advertising, and so much more. My blog has more than 30 income streams, with three to five of those income streams being substantial. And I make money whether people join my team or not! That is the position you want to be in.
How to Build Your MLM Business by Blogging
In the paragraphs below I’m going to show you how to build your MLM Business by blogging. I will share step-by-step instructions.
Step # 1: Pick Your Target Market
This is where most people mess up. Most people create a blog and then try to figure out who will read it. That is the wrong approach. You must pick your audience BEFORE you create the blog. The more segmented the audience the better.
I do not suggest creating a blog about network marketing. There are tens of thousands of blogs on that subject. Competition is FIERCE and it will be difficult to rank high in the search engines and get noticed. Don’t write about your MLM Company either. The name is trademarked, and you will get yourself in big legal trouble by doing so. Or if you company goes out of business, your MLM Blog will be useless.
Instead, focus on the benefits of your product or service. Here are a few examples:
- If you sell energy drinks, make a blog about energy drinks.
- If your company sells cosmetics, make a blog about cosmetics.
- If your company sells vitamins, make a blog about vitamins.
- If your company sells weight loss items, make a blog about weight loss items.
This is the best way to do it, because people who visit your blog will want more information about what you write about, and they will be in your target market!
My best advice is to put a lot of thought into your niche. You don’t want a niche that’s too big or one that’s too small. For example, if you want to blog about weight loss, it would be better to blog about natural weight loss, or holistic weight loss, or weight loss after 60. Got it?
A blog niche is a carefully selected topic area that you’ll be focusing your blog content around. In simpler terms, picking a blog niche is really just another way of answering the question, how do you decide what to blog about?
And this is a pretty important question to answer as you’re very early on in the process of starting your blog… because it could ultimately be the deciding factor that determines the future success (or failure) of your blog.
While some bloggers simply write about whatever pops into their minds, that’s not a great blog strategy for long-term success. Especially if you want your blog to eventually generate income and become something more than just an online diary with a small handful of readers tuning in for your musings. ~ Ryob.com
Step # 2: Develop Your Site Blueprint
Do not be in a rush to just create your blog and start writing. Set aside time to develop your plan. Think of it as business planning. What you really want to do is make a list of keywords by doing your keyword research. This is a comprehensive list of hundreds, even thousands, of topics that you will eventually write about.
You also want to think about how you will STRUCTURE your blog, what the layout will be, and how you will monetize it. You should also identify your unique selling proposition and think about how you will PROMOTE your MLM Blog.
Put these ideas into a one-page business plan. I have a business plan for each of my blogs and it’s helped me immensely.
You don’t need to spend WEEKS doing this step but set aside some quite time to do it. Write everything down and get organized!
Step # 3: Set Up Your MLM Blog
Let me start by telling you that I am not a techie. You don’t need to be a techie to have your own blog. What I suggest you do is just hire someone to set up the blog for you, so your only worry is writing content. You can hire someone online to do this for you for less than $100.
I consider it money well spent because it will save you TONS of time, especially if you have no idea about what you are doing.
One tip of advice is to NEVER use a free blog on a subdomain. You want a self-hosted blog, not a free WordPress or Blogger blog. I recommend this advice because people simply won’t take you seriously with a subdomain or free blogging service. In addition, you don’t own it and you are limited about how you can make money with it.
A self-hosted blog like I have only costs me about $100 per year for hosting, so it is a small investment.
Step # 4: Provide the BEST Content You Can
What separates a successful blog from a blog that doesn’t do well is the content. On the internet, content is KING. Don’t expect to write a bunch of short, crappy posts and get tons of traffic. Your content must over-deliver. Your content is what makes your blog work (or not).
Your content should be geared around the theme of your blog. Each post should be at least 1,500 to 2,000 words of original, high-quality content (the more the merrier). Do not write about what everyone else is writing about. Be unique. Be different. Have your own VOICE on your blog.
Give people a reason to return to your bog. If you don’t want to write high value content, you shouldn’t even have a blog!
To build and maintain a successful blog, you need to have a well-established content plan. It should include all of the details related to future blog posts, publishing schedules, audience development and much more. Without this concrete plan, it is impossible to maintain the popularity and consistent quality of your work.
Quality content, regular publishing, good design, and an established social media presence are ranked as the four highest factors determining the credibility of a blog. ~ First Site Guide
Step # 5: SEO & Marketing
As you create fresh, high quality content, it’s important to have the proper SEO and a good marketing plan. This means you must spend time and money to promote your content. High quality content is not enough. In fact, it is useless if no one knows about it.
You can do your own SEO or hire someone to do it for you. You can outsource your SEO and marketing if you choose to, but I suggest you initially do it yourself, so you can learn the ropes, and know what to expect and look for when you hire someone to help you with it.
Step # 6: Have Multiple Streams of Income
Your blog should have multiple streams of income to include Amazon, Google AdSense, affiliate products, your MLM Company, coaching, services, etc. My websites have about 30 different income streams. It allows me to make money whether people join my team or not.
Most people who visit your blog will NEVER become a customer or rep on your team. If you don’t have a way to monetize those folks you will leave a lot of money on the table! Remember that you want something for everyone! You want to monetize every visitor to the fullest.
Start with a few income streams (three to five) and add more as your MLM Blog grows.
Step # 7: Generate Leads & Build a List
Your blog is your HUB of operations, but your genuine business is your EMAIL LIST. The purpose of your blog is to build your email list. In return, your email list is what will make you your money and grow your MLM Team.
You want an opt-in form on your MLM Blog, so people can join your email list. This is where people give you their name and email in exchange for something free. This is how you build your list.
You then inform people on your email list about your different income streams, including your products and MLM Company. I do most of my selling, recruiting, and retailing through my email marketing efforts. That’s what you want to do too. The money is in the list.
Your blog should generate leads for your MLM Business and promote your different income streams.
Step # 8: Grow Your MLM Business
As your blog grows, and your traffic grows, so will your list. As your email list grows, you will sponsor more customers and distributors into your business. I have people call me or email me every day about joining my team. They found me on my MLM Blog, got my emails, and are ready to collaborate with me! Wouldn’t it be cool to have a few people call you or email you daily wanting to know more about your products or business?
Building your MLM Business by blogging is slow in the beginning. Success won’t happen overnight. But once you have a high traffic blog, you can promote any MLM Business with ease because you own the audience. Your goal is simply to get people to subscribe to your email list and then inform them about what you do by email!
A Word of Caution
I must share a word of caution with you. Blogging is not fast or easy. Count on it taking you at least TWO YEARS of blogging before you can expect much traffic. You can’t just launch a blog today and have it be profitable tomorrow. It takes time, tons of work, and persistence, just like network marketing.
If you take the time to build a good MLM Blog, it can be a good cash cow. But individual results will vary. Deciding to build my own MLM Blog was one of the best business decision I’ve ever made.
How to Create Your Own MLM Blog
In this section, I want to share how to create your own MLM Blog. Think of this as the step-by-step instructions you must follow to start your MLM Blog.
Step # 1: Pick a Theme
The first thing you want to do is pick a theme for your MLM Blog. You have two options. You could pick network marketing as your niche or do a theme-based website. If you’re set on MLM as your niche, try to pick a tight, sub-niche. Ideally, you want something geared around “MLM Leads” or “Online MLM” or MLM Blogging Tips” or something else. Your second option would be to pick a niche around your product line. For example, if your company specializes in coffee, you could create a coffee-themed website. By picking a sub-niche you will have less competition and you will have better odds at ranking high in the search engines.
Step # 2: Pick a Good Domain Name
You must put a lot of thought into your domain name. Don’t wing it! You will be stuck with this domain name for a long time, so make it count. Try to brainstorm ten to twenty different domain names and seek input from others. If possible, avoid hyphens and try to get a dot com domain. Also, keep your domain name to three or less words. Short and catchy is ideal! You can register your domain name via Go Daddy. That’s who I use and recommend.
Choosing a domain name that’s easy to type is critical to online success. If you use slang (u instead of you) or words with multiple spellings (express vs. xpress), it might be harder for customers to find your site.
If your domain name is long and complex, you risk customers mistyping or misspelling it. Short and simple is the way to go.
Try using keywords that describe your business and the services you offer. For example, if you’re a glass replacement business, you may want to register GlassRepair.com or GlassReplacement.com. ~ GoDaddy.com
Step # 3: Create Your Site Blueprint
Before you set your up blog you should do your site blueprint. This is where you do your keyword research and brainstorm at least 500-1000 keywords that you will write about. These will become the topics for content on your MLM Blog. If you can’t produce at least 500 to 1000 keywords, you should find a different niche. The last thing you want to do is run out of ideas to write about after you’ve only done 50 to 100 posts. Compile these keywords in an Excel Spreadsheet and try to organize them in a logical way.
Step # 4: Purchase Hosting
You need hosting for your MLM Blog. I suggest Site Ground. That’s who I use. They are one of the best in the industry.
Step # 5: Set Up Your Blog Layout
This is the technical side of setting up a blog. I highly recommend you outsource this to someone who knows what they are doing. You can hire someone on Fiverr.com, Craigslist.org, or upwork.com to do this for you. The estimated cost is $100 to $400, depending on what you want done. Find three to five different websites you like that you can use as a reference for the person creating your MLM Blog layout. Be as specific as possible.
You also want to seek input as to what plugins you should use on your MLM Blog. Ask a couple of other bloggers what plugins they use an recommend. That will help you get started.
Whatever you do, you should NEVER use a free hosting site. Get a self-hosted blog, not a dot Blogger or dot WordPress blog. You want a blog that you own and have complete control over.
Step # 6: Create Your Initial Pages
Once your layout is done you need to create your initial pages. Ideally, you want a Site Map, a Contact page, an About Me Page, a Privacy/Legal Page, and a Welcome Page. Feel free to look at the tabs at the top of this website to see the type of pages I use.
Step # 7: Start Blogging
Your last step is to start blogging. For the first year, you should blog several times per week minimum. This will help you build up your content quickly. Once you have a few hundred pages of content, you can set a regular posting schedule, such as one or two times per week. When you write new posts, make sure your content is unique and high quality. Don’t do short posts. Try to make each post at least 1,500 to 2,000 words, if not more. Write for your visitors, not the search engines.
Pros & Cons of Having Your Own MLM Blog
In this section, I want to talk about the pros and cons of having your own MLM Blog.
Pros
- Once built, your MLM Blog can run on autopilot. The first few years require a lot of work, but once your blog gains momentum and high search engine rankings, you can coast with ease.
- Generate multiple streams of income. Your blog allows you to generate multiple streams of income with ease. You can replace or change any income stream at the push of a button.
- Global audience. You have access to a worldwide audience. This is especially great if your MLM Company does business internationally.
Cons
- Takes a long time to get your blog to rank high. It can take two to five years of hard work to build up your blog’s authority and ranking, sometimes even longer.
- You must keep producing fresh content each week. As a blogger, your audience expects you to create new, fresh content on a regular basis.
- Lots of technical experience required. There is a lot of things to know about SEO, marketing, optimization, list building, email marketing, etc.
- The internet and algorithms are constantly changing; you must keep up with them. Mother Google, and the other search engines, constantly change their SEO requirements. You must be able to keep up with these changes to keep your blog ranking high.
Alternatives to MLM Blogging
If blogging isn’t your thing, and you have no desire to have your own MLM Blog, but you do see the value in attraction marketing, there are other things you can do:
Video Marketing
Setting up your own YouTube channel, using the success tips I listed in this article, is a smart move. In fact, having your own YouTube channel might be even better than having your own MLM Blog. Although you don’t own the videos (YouTube does) and you have less control, YouTube owns a huge market share and offers a great way to build your brand, grow your MLM Business, and even have multiple streams of income. Just keep in mind that YouTube isn’t a big fan of our industry.
Podcasting
Podcasting is an untapped goldmine. I think so. Think of podcasting as an online radio show. Basically, you create your own brand or channel, for the niche of your choice. You create educational and entertaining content for your audience. While doing so you build your brand. You can also grow your MLM Business doing this.
Direct Mail
Your next alternative to MLM Blogging is to do direct mail. For the right person, this is a great strategy. I send out a lot of direct mail myself and I know it works. This is the most expensive option out of these alternatives to MLM Blogging, but it’s easily the simplest strategy you can follow.
The Traditional Way
Worst case scenario, if you are good with traditional MLM, you can keep doing it that way. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. If you enjoy three-way calls, doing home parties, and meeting people face-to-face, then I would stay with that strategy.
Was it Worth It?
Several website visitors have asked me if it was worth it? If I knew what I knew now, and I was starting over, would I still have started my own MLM Blog? My answer is yes. While the first few years were difficult, as I learned the ropes, I have since personally recruited SEVERAL THOUSAND people and become a top recruiter and top earner in my company with a team approaching 200,000 people. My business runs on autopilot and I live a great life and work from home full-time.
I don’t think blogging is a good option for everyone. It takes a love of writing and a huge amount of self-discipline, but it was worth it to me. I suggest you choose the strategy that is best for you, get started, and stay the course.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, blogging is a terrific way to build your MLM Business online if you have the patience, vision, discipline, and focus to stick with it. In most cases, you will need to work your blog consistently for a few YEARS before you see any remarkable results. For people who don’t want to wait that long you might be much better off just building your business offline, or by simply creating YouTube videos instead. But for the person who enjoys writing, internet marketing and SEO, blogging is a fantastic way to take your MLM Business online. Like anything in life, there are pros and cons. It’s up to you to figure out what works best for you and then to take massive action.
What are your thoughts about MLM Blogging? Do you have your own MLM Blog? Leave a comment below to share your thoughts and let me know what you think. I look forward to hearing from you.
Other Posts You Might Enjoy
- Postcard Marketing Tips
- How to Build Your MLM Business on YouTube
- Podcasting Tips
- 34 Ways to Get More MLM Leads
- MLM Deception
Sincerely,
Chuck Holmes
Network Marketing Professional (21+ years)
Top Recruiter & Top Rep
mrchuckholmes@gmail.com
Thanks very much for these insights. Personally I never decided to start blogging i was just trying different ways of getting prospects into my network marketing business and blogging happened to be one of the most productive ways for me. Since then, I’ve been implementing it.