"If I had to do it all over again, rather than build an old style type of business, I would have started building a network marketing business."
Many people have made fortunes in network marketing business opportunities, also called multi-level marketing / MLM. Usually only a number of people at the top made money, with the majority of the distributors failing to achieve any measurable level of success!

Usually this was the result of compensation plans that did not reward the average person only those that build large downline's. Another aspect is all the free to join opportunities that advertise no selling no recruiting, this gives people the impression it's more of a hobby then a true business model and requires no skill.
Not much has changed over the years, yet this is still this is one of the most rewarding home business opportunities today. The majority of companies offer products and services that the average person uses on a daily and consistent basis. Today we have products like communication services, internet access, nutritional products, water filtration systems, financial programs this makes choosing a company all the more difficult. This business does have a high failure rate though; some of this stems from the false representations made on the internet, tv and by distributors who just don’t have the necessary skills to be successful. Some of these wildly exaggerated claims include statements like no sales required, no prospecting our automated web site system will do it all for you. Show me one business today that requires no sales to be successful!
Because of these false and misleading statements it literally robs people from being able to:
Work from home.
Spend quality time with their family.
Achieve financial freedom.

This clearly sets them up for failure before they even get started. Statistics have shown that most of the distributors that have stayed in this industry for 10+ years, achieved a level of residual income beyond their wildest dreams, yet most people will quit before the even get started.

  So why do they fail? A lot has to do with the promise of something for nothing. You will find businesses and individuals telling you that their web site systems will do all the marketing, advertising, prospecting and recruiting, no sales required. Distributors also share in this failure by lack of action, commitment and realizing this is a sales business!

What does it really take to become successful?

 It takes commitment and determination in both building and marketing your business. Network Marketing Training is vitally important to insure, success in your business opportunity. You may have a great company that provides training, great up line support but if you're still not achieving the success you are looking for, then by all means seek out additional training, possibly even professional coaching.
One of the keys to becoming successful is to provide products and services that the average person will use. The products or services should be unique or consumable. The power and distribution of the internet has made the stocking of products obsolete, your customers are just a click away from ordering directly online.
Another key to your success is finding the right sponsor; leader or team to work with this will help insure your success in this business. A sponsor is someone who will guide and assist you with the necessary support and resources to help you grow your business.
People when prospecting often place too much importance on their company, the online presentations or their companies pay plan. What they fail to realize is that it is the people within an organization are what matter most when prospecting.
Many companies have come and gone but when you’ve built a strong organization, have made many close personal friends and business partners will stay with you always.

 
from : en.wikipedia.org