The majority of large network marketing companies will allow the contractor to have his own replicating website. A replicating website is a duplicate copy of the companies main website, but the with the consultants own name and contact information. Quite often the contractor is charged a fee for this site. The contractor has very little control over his site. Generally he can only change the name and add a note.

Most companies will not allow a contractor to sell their products, use their product images, logos, company name or product name/descriptions on any website other than the replicating ones.

Why won't companies let you have your own website...one word BRANDING. They want to project a certain image to the public, and if everyone in their mother created her own website, their brand image would become diluted. They would no longer have control over how their product is presented and described. By providing replicating sites to contractors, they ensure brand consistency and control.

However, having said that, network marketing companies are losing out on a significant amount of revenue that could be generated by additional contractor websites. A good mlm business plan would include an informational website as an option. This is the information age. The age of the internet. These days, people do not need to go to libraries to get answers, they just do a search on the internet. Wouldn't it make sense that the contractor if so inclined could create an informational website that would also sell products related to the information?

For example, I love to cook. I am always looking online for new healthy recipes. I often make salads. Imagine if I did a search for salad recipes and came upon a site that gave me just what I was looking for? In addition, the recipe explanation told me about an avacado scooper that makes it a snap to scoop the avacado without cutting the skin. The recipe also mentions a pronged device used to slice onions which ensures you do not accidentally slice your finger instead of the onion. Wow, I have never seen these products before, but I think I will order them. Bam! Now the contractor has received an order for her MLM cooking company on her website that she developed about salad recipes.

Couldn't there be a middle ground? I think there could be a middle ground. If a company that is an MLM were willing to think out of the box and leave their archaic ways behind, a win-win situation could occur. For example, the company could have pre-approved product images the consultant could use. They might also have verbiage and logos the consultant would be able to use. Also, they could have clear guidelines about how their product must be presented in order to maintain their "brand image". And last, the company would have to approve the contractors website prior to it being published with their products. If the website does not meet their standards, they could give suggestions for improvement so the contractor would eventually be able to sell the products on his own website. Now, the contractor has an additional way to generate revenue for himself and the MLM company.