If you try to keep up with the state of the economy, you’re likely well aware it can be as unpredictable as the Wild West. There are plenty of conflicting reports from various experts, but one thing is 100 percent certain: People are getting very jittery when it comes to job security. Yet this cloud of uncertainty does have a silver lining – it’s got many people shifting their focus to multilevel marketing companies.

MLM businesses are proving to be a great solution to… open up additional avenues of revenue all the way to replacing full-time income.

In fact, Angela Pittenger, a writer for the Arizona Daily Star, says the same thing, and offers a few tips for those seeking network marketing opportunities. The Better Business Bureau also maintains a national database of companies, so search that and other reliable internet sources to get a better sense of the organization’s reputation.

Make informed decisions 
It’s wise to understand what network marketing is before getting started in this line of work. The Federal Trade Commission notes, “one sign of a pyramid scheme is if distributors sell more product to other distributors than to the public – or if they make more money from recruiting than they do from selling.”

You might be excited to quickly dive into a network marketing career, but there are few questions you should ask before getting involved with an MLM company, according to the FTC:

-Are the products fairly priced and of a high quality? Avoid snake oil equivalents, the FTC advises.

-Does the company have a strong track record? What do its past customers think of its products and practices?

-Do you have a strong understanding of what the business plan is? Has a company contact explained the compensation terms and potential expenses to you? Did he or she provide proof to support the company’s claims of how much you may make?

Always be on the lookout for red flags. “It’s important to get a complete picture of how the plan works: not just how much money distributors make, but also how much time and money they spend on the plan, how long it takes before they’re earning money, and how big a downline is needed to make money,” the FTC says.