Would you recognize a network marketing scam if you came across one? Do you think that it’s common to encounter a network marketing scam? People often confuse a network marketing scam and a pyramid scheme. Or, people think all MLM is a network marketing scam.

What is a Network Marketing Scam and How Would You Know One?

Important question, don’t you think? If you spend any time on the search engines looking at anything to do with network marketing, you will inevitably come across lots of people screaming: network marketing scam. They seem to have an investment in diminishing the business model and more often than not, they really don’t understand how it works, so have no ability to determine whether something is real and legitimate or might actually be a network marketing scam or a real and solid business.

Let us be a bit more specific. Network marketing is a serious legitimate business model – a method of distribution, plain and simple. A network marketing scam would be a company or business that represents itself as a real network marketing company, but doesn’t offer any exchange of value – or simply put, there is no real product or solid compensation plan. If you come across a company like this – run like crazy – you’ve found a network marketing scam.

Really, then, there is no such as an actual network marketing scam, only companies pretending to be network marketing companies that really aren’t. They give the whole industry a bad name, especially since people don’t understand network marketing; they have no way to evaluate what’s legitimate and what isn’t.

Network Marketing Scams are NOT Common

It makes sense, then that you won’t encounter a real network marketing scam often, if ever. When you hear someone talking about network marketing and scam in the same sentence, ask them what they mean. Debunk the myths and help them differentiate a pyramid scheme where there is absolutely NO exchange of value with network marketing where there is. Exchange of value occurs for example, when you become a distributor, buy into a company and get something exchange – product, service, training and a chance to build a real business. No exchange of value means you pay money but get nothing in exchange at all. Be aware that while the idea of a network marketing scam may be easily found, an actual network marketing scam is way less common than the scammers would have you believe!