Today, I want to share what I believe are the five participation levels in network marketing. In other words, once you actually JOIN a network marketing company, these are the five options you can choose from.
The Five Participation Levels in Network Marketing
- Legacy Income/Financial Independence ($100k plus a month)
- Full-Time Income ($5k to $10k month)
- Part-Time Income ($500 to $2k per month)
- Social Club ($200 to $500 month)
- Customer/Health Advocate ($0 to $200 per month)
None of these options are right or wrong. Ultimately, you must choose the option that is best for you. Of course, individual results will vary.
# 1 Legacy Income/Financial Independence
This is not a participation level most reps will commit to. I’d bet that no more than 1 in 5,000 people who join the industry will be willing to do whatever it takes to achieve this level of success in the business.
But for the special person, this is the true beauty of our industry, the ability to create a LEGACY income without a capital investment or needing employees.
Someone at this participation level normally strives to make $100,000 or more per MONTH with their business.
For the people who are committed to do this, it would typically be a minimum five to ten YEAR plan with ONE company, and sometimes even longer than that.
Someone at this commitment level would be making minimum 30 to 50 contacts per day, either about the products and/or opportunity. They would be willing to work their network marketing business MINIMUM 4-hours per day, 7-days per week.
This is the true network marketing professional. They are VERY RARE breed. Even having one person on your team like this can make you a lot of money in this industry.
# 2 Full-Time Income
For most people who are really committed to their business, this level of success is very attainable. I think so anyway.
Someone at this commitment level would be happy earning $5k to $10k per month with their network marketing business.
This would allow them to do the business full-time, OR keep their day job and use their network marketing income to invest in ASSETS that increase their wealth.
Someone at this participation level in network marketing could achieve this level of success in 2 to 5 years working with ONE network marketing company. In most cases, they would be sharing the products or business with at least 10-20 new prospects each day, and they’d commit to working their business at least 2-hours per day.
This has always been my goal in the business. I just believe that making the $100k or more per month requires way more work than I am personally willing to do.
But, if you can find a way to create a full-time income like this with network marketing, over a period of time, you can use that income to create some serious wealth. Or, you can just live debt free and own your life.
# 3 Part-Time Income
This is the participation level that most people joining our industry do, probably 50 to 70 percent of the people. Someone at this participation level is looking to make $1,000 to $2,000 per month.
This is a one to three year plan if you are working your business about an hour a day. This person would need to make at least 2 to 5 NEW exposures per day.
This person is just looking to make some extra income to pay off debt, save for retirement or increase their standard of living. To be honest with you, an extra $1,000 to $2,000 per month would be a HUGE game-changer for most people.
# 4 Social Club
I’d bet that 20 to 30 percent of the people who join the network marketing industry do so at this participation level.
They have a job or career. They’re busy. But, they would love to earn an extra $200 to $500 per month. They love to attend events, spend time with team members and belong to something greater than themselves.
Most people at this participation level could probably get to that income level in 6 to 12-months by making 1-2 exposures per day.
# 5 Customer/Health Advocate
Probably 10 or 20 percent of the people who join our industry are happy with this participation level in network marketing. Their goal is to get the products or services at WHOLESALE cost. They love the products and are passionate about them.
They’re just too busy (they think so anyway) to build a business. They are perfectly content just getting their products at wholesale cost, or earning enough to get their products for free each month.
Keep in mind these people are a very important part of your team.
Key Takeaways
Here are some key takeaways, just to keep things in perspective.
- This business is designed to build part-time. Do not quit your job and go full-time too early; it’s the kiss of death in this business.
- A part-timer can EASILY outperform a full-timer IF they work smart and spend their time on income producing activities.
- If you can’t do the business part-time, you will never be able to do it full-time. You must learn how to manage your time.
- The only real difference between whether you are part-time or full-time in the business is the amount of EXPOSURES you make each day.
- You want to be part-time, with a full-time ATTITUDE.
- Make sure your WORK ETHIC and TIME COMMITMENT are in ALIGNMENT with your business goals.
- Never ever pressure someone to do more with the business than they want to. Every team member is an important part of your team.
Final Thoughts
There you have it folks. These are the 10 participation levels in network marketing, as I see it. What are your thoughts? Leave a comment below to let me know what you think. I look forward to hearing from you.

Chuck Holmes
20+ Year Network Marketing Professional
Top Earner & Top Recruiter
Email: mrchuckholmes@gmail.com
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