Overview:

Reassuringly, it's a functional and constructive taster text. Acquainting the reader with a specialized aspect of the marketing communications mix. It provides the reader with the opportunity to go and learn more about how the whole communications mix which direct sales is part of, reliably links and sits alongside the rest of the marketing tactics available for anyone seeking to make it their turn for success now.

Evaluation:

Yes, a specialist text. It opens up the reader to the purpose of direct sales and multi level marketing (MLM). Its offers the reader the beginnings to explore questions of how this all fits in with strategic marketing. It prompts the reader to consider their personal attitude, the individuals' starting point, which directs their special viewpoint of what is possible for them in terms of success.

The contents acquaint the reader with the major techniques, which the authors regard as important to their success. Chapters dealing with, why join an MLM firm? What you can earn, different ways you can get paid, the marketing, step, binary and matrix plan. Chapters on how to get started, knowing what products or services to get, creating your story, designing a direction for you, are essential sections. Additionally chapters which describe the stages in understanding the sales process, questioning and listening skills, asking for the order, obtaining referrals and repeat business. The chapters move on a pace with subjects dealing with implementation. Topics such as creating action plans, time management plans, knowing how to run a party plan, and developing the business even further within a network. Some strategic considerations such as the 80/20 rule and securing future income are also mentioned. And whilst the reader has all of this, the icing on the cake is a chapter which presents several successful and proven ideas and ways to develop and increase your network.

Context of book in relation to others in its field:

Formal marketing texts tend to deal with direct sales and multi level marketing (MLM) for specialist direct marketing courses. Early academic texts have tended to be practically based with a strong bias on quantification of costs and projected sales and income. Those texts, which are used in the academic world, tend to deal with technique also meet the usual academic requirements of academic referencing and suggestions for assignments etc. This texts' focus on getting started, plans for marketing, the step plan, the binary, matrix and party plan successful proven ideas, ways to increase the networks helps direct and chart the reader around the bigger plan of business success now.

Although this is not an academic text, meaning it is not targeted for universities or colleges. It is targeted it seems for possibly business owners who are beginning to explore MLM. If so, then its beginnings, which start with the debunking any, get rich quick ideas is a reassuring and necessary opening.

Again, it is its step plan, the sliding scale plan, royalty bonus are all good visuals and help to indicate to the reader that for direct sales the ability to quantify the seed injection alongside the returns is and MLM core activity which help chart the reader around the valuable steps to master. The book can increase it dependability by offering more of these types of metrics possibly in the appendix. It will really help the reader grasp the quantifiable responsibility of the MLM project.

Strengths of the book:

It's a great taster. Its gets the reader's feet happily wet. It's an appetizing foretaste for the work necessary for the MLM, direct sales project. To enhance this beginning, more reference to the whole, reference to where MLM, direct sales sits in the whole, i.e. strategic marketing, strategic business, tactical marketing elements and more specially how it compares with other aspects of the communications, promotions mix, i.e. pr. advertising, using the internet for direct sales/marketing and so on.

How well is the book suited to its target readership?

Depending on what the target is expecting, the authors of the book could take up the opportunity of providing novices to the sector with the whole picture, possibly just in a diagram and direct them to doing more reading and studying. As previously mentioned it engages readers and once this healthy engagement is integrated into the whole then this book's shine will remain. This could occur in another text, a follow on, or a revision. The book is a useful introductory text and the opportunities to leave the reader with significant tangible skills remains firmly obtainable to its reader.