The truth is people join people, not companies. Yes, your prospects want to know that the company is solid and the product or service is of value, but ultimately they are joining YOU!

So why should they join you in XYZ company rather than someone else? That is the question you need to ask, and provide the answer to your prospects. This is also true in marketing your product or service. Why should they buy the product/service from YOU?

A personal website, even if it is just a few pages can allow you to highlight your strengths and let them see that you are a real person willing and able to help them.

Your personal website can be your "hub" - the place you direct prospects to and then you can link your primary company website to it as well as any secondary or affilate programs you are promoting.

There are many benefits to doing this.

First, you can fund your marketing efforts for your primary business by creating more passive secondary income streams. Just be aware that you need to choose other products or services that are complimentary to your primary company. An example would be having an Amazon affilate link to network marketing books you have found helpful.

Secondly, you are directing people to you and your site. You can create a simple opt-in like a newsletter subscription, free ebook download, etc. and you are now capturing leads who have searched you out or have been directed to your site and interested enough to request more information from you. This is a lot better than chasing people who aren't interested!

Thirdly, if your primary company should make changes you are not happy with, you can "fire" them and move forward with another company. I hope this doesn't happen to you, but it happened to me - in fact several times! Sometimes people at the top of the company can make poor decisions, or simple make changes that are not a good fit for you. To be truly independent, no more than 80% of your income should come from your primary network marketing company.

So, all this sounds great, but how does someone who knows nothing about website building get started?

When I got started building a website about 4 or more years ago, I was fortunate that I had a decent computer background and used a software called Dreamweaver to edit and get my pages up. Now there are so many simple tools that even a novice can put up their own website with a little time and effort.

However, just getting a website up isn't the only thing to consider. How are you going to get found? If you have a large warm market of prospects or are doing local trade shows and have slews of prospects you are talking with this may not be an issue for you. Just direct all those people to your website and the serious ones will request information from you. This will help you to establish credibility and sort through your prospects so you can spend time with the ones who are serious.

However, for many people who either don't have a huge group of potential prospects or who prefer to truly work out of their home, learning how to get people to come to you is going to be extremely important.

One of the tools I have come across that is excellent is SiteBuildIt! This system not only walks you through creating a site step by step, but has the website marketing tools and training you need as well. I have some downline members who knew nothing about website building creating websites and getting traffic to them within a couple weeks!

I was amazed at all the tools and resources SiteBuildIt! has for about $25 a month.  This system include your website building tools, site hosting, autoresponders, blogging tools, training and a a lot more. The only downside for someone starting out is that it is an annual fee.  So for a new person starting out who may have tapped out their start up capital, they may be need to look at other options initially. I would recommend upgrading to a SiteBuildIt! site as soon as possible though.  Even though I have three websites up already I plan on getting a SiteBuildIt! site just to check out all the website marketing resources.

Now if your marketing budget is tight, you have a few other options. First you can create a blog for free and make your first page an About Me page. Then you can get a domain name at GoDaddy for only $9 a year, maybe less if they have a sale, and then forward that domain name to your blog post About You. You can create links to your company website and have a place to direct people to so they can find out more about you. I recommend having a blog anyway, so once you get a website you can link it to your blog.  If you go to my blog and look at the top right corner, you will see a link Create Blog.  Just click there and you can have a blog up in about 15 minutes.

Another option if you have a little money to spare for a website, but not enough for SiteBuildIt!, is Website Wizard. You can create a website free for the first 30 days and after that pay by the size of your website so can have the webtools and hosting included for as little as $9.95/mo. for a small website.

With all the technology options available to the individual you can truly create a big business from the convenience of your home and laptop. I love the fact that while in Scotland for three weeks with my family I could continue building my business without missing a beat.

If you have questions or need some help with your business, you can request a complimentary consultation.  Just complete a contact form from my website, www.ahomebusinessworks.com