A solid foundation is built from the ground up but it can be overwhelming if you rush into things and try to reach the top without taking care of the basics first. That is why it is imperative you lead by example and show others to do the same.

Here are the 3 things you and your team members should be doing to grow your business, income and team:

1. EARN to pay for the program you are promoting which helps gain some momentum when you eliminate paying the program’s weekly, monthly or yearly cost by recruiting the amount of people it would take to cover that charge. It will provide motivation and psychologically it helps knowing you are working a business that it is making you money while you are not paying the costs to be a member.

2. RECRUIT a reasonable amount of members and have them do the same. Simple isn’t it? Every program works differently but in all of them you have to recruit a certain amount of people to position yourself to earn big money if your down line does the same and their down line does the same, and so on. Whatever that number is focus on that and show your team to do the same.

3. ALLOCATE some of the earnings to pay for some advertising and marketing. Although there are many free platforms to get your message out, there is always going to be a cost involved if you want to reach a higher level with your income but if you put some of your earnings to the side then you can use that for promotions. It’s a lot easier to tell people to put aside spending money that is earned through the business than their own money.

CLICK HERE to learn how Network Marketers use TrafficWave!

The road to success takes consistency, effort and focus and the following are 3 areas you should be working on starting today:

1. Activity -- taking the first step is probably the most challenging because of the unknown, so it’s scary to many people but once you begin working at growing your business it will become part of your life and it will become second nature.

2. Communication -- get involved with your mentors and prospects. Ask for help from those who have more experience and skills than you. Do the same for others by providing solutions to their issues. Be available and don’t become a stranger. Let people know who you are and how you can help them.

3. Passion -- if you are not passionate about what you are doing -- GET OUT NOW! Your excitement will rub off on people if you truly love what you are involved in. There is no way you can succeed at something if you don’t love it or worst yet be miserable. Then it becomes a job and that would defeat the purpose.

CLICK HERE to learn how Network Marketers use TrafficWave!

Here are 3 reasons why you should NOT start off trying to earn money online by recruiting or selling to your family and friends:

1. High-Expectations on both sides is inevitable. Although building relationships in network marketing is essential the bridge between a personal friend or family member is a tough one to cross. It’s much easier to expect more from someone you clearly know but it also adds an uncomfortable balance where the expectations to deliver and to participate may be realistically out of reach.

2. Lack of Support is common because the unknown is not easy for people to believe. Unfortunately, the constant lies and tricks some marketers use hurts the honest people who truly make money online and help others do the same. Someone close to you will understandably try to shield you from those things so they may not provide the moral support you are looking for. Don’t let that distract you from your goals because those normal behaviors are inevitable, so obviously wasting time to convince them about your opportunity could be better spent doing the basics and recruit those who have more faith.

3. It is Not Necessary to hang your goals to succeed on a TINY fraction of the proverbial pie. Why settle on building your business and income on what is truly a very small group of people who will not dramatically increase your bottom line. It doesn’t work and it will never work. Eventually, once you are raking in the big bucks some will come to you and at that point help them but make sure to put them on that path to success don’t just hand it to them because no one will hand it to you.

Network Marketing can be a tough business.  Sure, there is a lot of money to be made. But the key is to work smart instead of hard…CLICK HERE to find out more!

Come to terms with the following: don’t hide behind your computer screen and start realizing you are dealing with people and not robots. It’s easy to get caught in the technological aspects of business but in the end your prospects are like you and me -- HUMAN!

Here are 4 things you should be doing to grow your business and team:

1. Communicate -- start actually communicating with your leads. Ask questions and provide solutions. Find ways to give without expecting too much from them. Provide as many ways to contact you as possible. Be there in the good times and the rough ones. It’s never going to be perfect but if you are there for them they will respect you for it and become loyal.

2. Demonstrate -- Show them how it’s done. Give them ideas. Don’t just give them the same old boring talk. Add your unique perspective and see how it can apply to their situations. Set up ways they can see things in action. If you are involved in a quality opportunity there should be an abundance of training available, work with your leads to clarify what they don’t understand.

3. Motivate -- the most common types of people you will run into when trying to grow your network marketing business are those who are cynical, lazy and unrealistic. It’s natural and it’s probably based on some past experience or just the crap they hear from other’s who don’t know what they are talking about. Your motivational tactics can mean the difference between failure and success so think out the box to get the best from your team.

4. Relate -- help people realize you understand their situations. Everyone has a story and you will find the majority of people who come online are looking for solutions, so based on the type of business you are involved in it’s up to you to provide those solutions. Knowing the hardships of others and more importantly being sympathetic to those problems it’s critical to your growth in this business.

CLICK HERE here to learn how Network Marketers use TrafficWave!

Building a list helps you do that as long as you build a relationship with your subscribers. Here are some network marketing tips to help you avoid the pitfalls that lead to failure in this business:

1. Exposure -- more than ever branding yourself is extremely important. Unless you come out with the next Facebook or Google then having people know who you are is essential to your success. The product or service you are promoting should be secondary.

Added Tip: more than likely you are involved or will join a business opportunity that many others are promoting so your advantage is standing out from the pack. The product and service may be the same but you as an individual are unique.

2. Interaction -- with social marketing becoming a popular choice among network marketers it would be foolish not to see why. What better platform can you have where people can get to know the real you? Building a list and providing quality content to your subscribers is powerful but actually communicating with people in real time is priceless.

Added Tip: your ultimate goal should always be to build a list because communication is possible 24/7 and it can be done while you sleep or just away from your computer but you have to provide as many ways for people to contact you because it creates a comfort level and subsequently a relationship.

3. Time -- just like building a relationship offline you have to bridge a trust between you and the people signing up to your list. It becomes more difficult for potential customers to dig through the barrage of emails they receive from your competitors so you have to set yourself apart by allowing them to know you and that takes time.

Added Tip: understanding the gradual process of how relationships build should give you a better grasp and will prepare you to be much more patient. Add some personality to your email campaigns and engage your subscribers.

CLICK HERE to learn How Network Marketers Use TrafficWave for more Sign-Ups and Sales…

Discover 5 Effortless Ways To Succeed At Network Marketing

1. Acceptance -- realizing that it won’t be an easy journey to success is the first step but more importantly not giving up because you are not raking in the big bucks immediately is the toughest part.  Most of us want instant gratification but nothing is more gratifying than seeing your hard work materialize into success and helping others do the same.

2. Connections -- it’s already a difficult road trying to build a successful business but meeting and networking with the right people can help you leaps and bounds into success.  Just as you need to help others succeed it also helps for you to get some assistance as well.

3. Dedication -- this is a no-brainer but people seem to think joining a successful business will put instant cash in their pockets.  You have to bust your ass to reach your full potential and if you are not conveying that to your downline it will be a rough road ahead.  It takes a full-on effort and focus to succeed!

4. Encouragement -- deciding on the perfect program to build and promote is easy but maintaining growth and actually earning a long-term income is not because people fail to nurture their downlines.  Simply put, you have to be a cheerleader and mentor to others and help them to do the same.

5. Marketing Tools -- using current Internet marketing tools to build your network marketing business is something people did not have in their arsenal before. The Internet has changed the game big time and it is your “not so” secret weapon to make a nice steady income.

CLICK HERE To Discover How Network Marketers Use Autoresponders To Build Downlines and Make Instant Sales!

TE’s are simple to use, they are free and/or very inexpensive to financially promote your product or service, a wonderful place to get ideas for your own marketing, you can start building a list quickly, and more importantly a productive place to brand yourself.

Here is a list of blogs I’ve posted since Monday if you haven’t had a chance to read them:

Tracking Your Ads -- Don’t Discriminate Test & Track

Traffic Exchange Marketing -- Tracking Your Way To Profits

Traffic Exchange Marketing -- Get Social By Meeting The Owners

You would probably think I’m a traffic exchange owner at this point, but I’m not,  Would I consider owning a TE?  Perhaps, but it’s not part of my long-term goal.  I will tell you this, I will in some way, shape or form be part of traffic exchanges for a long time to come.

In today’s post I want to come full circle with all of this.  I have given you my reasons why I use traffic exchanges, I’ve gone over my current testing and tracking campaign including the components I’m using, I’ve also pointed out how the social marketing platform is also a big part of TE’s.

Not too long ago before Twitter and all the other awesome social media stuff consumed so many of us, blogging was and still is an automatic weapon in most serious Internet marketer’s arsenal.  None takes it more seriously than Tim Linden and yes he is a traffic exchange owner -- StartXchange.

Why is this important?

Because this gives you another platform to learn more about the owners and another place to leave comments and ask questions.

Tim’s blog is one of my favorite blogs inside and outside of traffic exchanges because he goes into testing in great detail, he also uses video and is very into the Web 2.0 stuff -- Tim actually set up the Facebook Traffic Exchange Group and he also created Twitter Me Fun to help people grow their list of Twitter followers.

One of my other favorite blogs is actually a weekly newsletter written by Jon Olson.  He uses a blogging platform for his newsletter and I still look forward to his Hit Exchange News post every Thursday.  By the way, Jon is one of the most recognized owners in the TE industry and he owns and co-owns a few of the hottest traffic exchanges like ILoveHits & Sweeva.

Here are 5 other blogs by traffic exchange owners you may find interesting:

TRAFFIC WITCH -- Blog Link

Owner -- Guido Nussbaum -- this guy gets it.  Guido already made his mark in the Internet Marketing industry but knew well enough to give us a great new traffic exchange with endless possibilities.

HIT SAFARI - Blog Link

Owner -- Paula Brown Zuehlke -- Paula is not only a very successful traffic exchange owner, but she is genuinely one of the nicest people I’ve come across in this business.   Check out her blog and you will see what I mean.  She cares.

DRAGON SURF -- Blog Link

Owner -- Sored Jordansen -- here is another guy who really gets it, but what I like about reading Soren’s stuff is the ease it is presented.  His IM Success Formula report is a great example of that.  If you want to get an Internet business up and running quickly check that report out.

BOOT SCOOTIN TRAFFIC -- Blog Link

Owner -- Sunny Suggs -- never mind that I love her name, the name of her traffic exchange and the results I’ve gotten using BST but Sunny has also given us AllAboutAdd-ons.com.  She has made it possible for people to understand how to work with add-ons and not be afraid of using them because she makes it easy to learn.

TONY TEZAK -- Blog Link

Guess what?

Tony doesn’t own a traffic exchange [HE DOES NOW], but he has a big voice in the industry.  He’s been using them for years and is someone you can get some great tidbits from especially if you are undecided about using TE’s.  This gives you a great perspective from an actual and successful user.

Add the blogs I’ve mentioned above  to your RSS Feeds and get to know the traffic exchange owners because they are blogging too.

I want to go over the reasons I did choose the 50 TE’s to help you with your choices when you are ready to start tracking your efforts, but more importantly I want you to pay close attention to the social marketing aspect which I leave for last (#5).

The 5 reasons I chose the 50 traffic exchanges I’m testing and tracking are as follows:

1. Past results -- a handful of these TE’s have given me results in the past.   It’s that simple.  Although, I didn’t take ad tracking as serious as I do now there was always an instinct for me to know what was working for a certain campaign or not.  Some of these traffic exchanges gave me the results I was looking for at the time.

2. Rankings -- getting feedback from people who have been using traffic exchanges for a lot longer than me or that specialize in testing and tracking TE’s is an obvious source to refer to.  Affiliate Funnel and TrafficHoopla are 2 sites I am a member of and getting the rankings of the top ranking exchanges from these guys are more than reliable.

3. Design -- I am a sucker for a well designed website.  It’s not a huge deciding factor for me but admittedly I tend to gravitate to these sites and go in hoping they give me great results so I can continue using them.

4. Script -- this is huge for me.  I love easy flowing surf bars, large icons to click on, generous surfing bonuses, etc.  In the end, the results is what counts but I will work harder on my campaigns and splashes to give these type of traffic exchanges a chance to work for me.

5. Networking - there is no secret how critical social marketing is to your business.  The interaction with business owners, clients, customers and prospects is so important to your success it’s easy to understand why the social marketing landscape has exploded for Internet and Network marketers.

I can honestly say that traffic exchange owners are the most accessible business owners I’ve ever come across.  I may not agree with them on everything but there is no doubt in my mind I have many platforms to interact with at least one of them virtually at any time of the day, such as Facebook and Twitter.

There are also forums such as TheMembersForum & NetMarketingForum where you can find the latest and greatest information regarding traffic exchanges and ask all the questions you ever wanted to ask or provide constructive criticisms, etc.

Jon Guanzon and Jon Olson have a very nifty free report called Social Surfing Secrets where they cover social networking and the impact it had on their own success and others relating to their interactions with other traffic exchange owners.

Travis Millward also has an excellent report that first introduced us to the power of networking in this business before all that social networking madness hit the traffic exchange landscape. Networking -- The Evolution.

If you have any doubts about traffic exchanges why not get to know some of the business owners and voice your concerns.  Ask them questions or tell them what is it you don’t like and perhaps they can take some of your criticisms and turn them into something positive to continue improving traffic exchanges.

I’m doing my part by keeping them honest through my consistency, focus, networking, testing and tracking, so don’t be like those naysayers without putting it to the test yourself.