Eureka! Institutional Repository

This graduate thesis is titled “The business model of Network Marketing” and it has been developed for my graduate degree in the Accounting and Financial Department of the Alexandrian Technological Educational Institute of Thessaloniki. The purpose of the work is to investigate Network Marketing as a contemporary business model. The Network Marketing is the evolution of Direct Selling. In essence, it is Retail Sale whereby consumer products are sold not in shops but through a network of Independent Partners- Distributors. The function of Multi Level Companies is not so different from the way of the traditional companies’ business operation. Their main difference lies in the fact that MLM Companies operate separately from commercial shops and they use supply systems to pay their Distributors. The Networkers should have a blend of skills and talents from the profession of Sales and Management, as well. This is based on the fact that apart from being successful in personal sales the Networkers should also be able to induct and educate other people into their business. Finally, it should be noted that Network Marketing is a business model that operates legally in our country and has nothing to do with the illicit economic systems (such as pyramids, Ponzi schemes, etc.) that many people like to identify with. After comparisons with other financial systems, it is clear that there are several similarities, yet there are fundamental differences that separate Multi Level Marketing from all the illicit economic schemes created over time.