Gym Membership Stats vs. Network Marketing Stats

by Chuck
(MD)

Today, I’d like to compare gym membership stats and network marketing stats. Believe it or not, these two industries share very similar results. I’ve read online that upward of 90% of people who buy a gym membership only go once or twice and never go to the gym again. And of the 10% that go consistently, only half of that group of people go to the gym on a regular basis. And of the 5% that are left, only half of them actually achieve their fitness goals. So, only 2-3% of people who buy a gym membership actually reach their fitness goals.

On the other hand, it’s been said that approximately 97% of all people fail in network marketing. I’m not sure if there is a reliable source out there to verify the actual number or not. But for the purpose of this article, let’s assume that number is correct. It’s also been said that nearly 75 to 80% of all distributors quit within their first 90 days. And another 10% quit by the end of their first year. That means that only 10% of people who join a MLM Company today will still be with the company one year from now.

Obviously, this varies a little bit by company, but let’s just assume these numbers are fairly close. Of the 10% of the distributors that stick around 2-3% earn substantial incomes. The other 7-8% earn some money, but don’t achieve financial independence. Simply put, only 2-3% reach their financial goals via network marketing.

Why is it that there aren’t thousands of blogs, forums, articles and websites claiming that gyms are a scam? How come people take personal responsibility when it comes to their fitness routine (or lack of it), but when they join a MLM Company, and quit, they feel compelled to spend every waking hour claiming they were scammed or ripped off? That my friend is a million dollar question that I wished I knew the answer for.

What I would really like to see is a statistic for the number of people who join a MLM Company, work consistently for 5-10 hours per week, week in and week out, for 3-5 years. You would quickly find that these are people who eventually rise to the top of the compensation plan.

The same holds true with the gym memberships. It’s the people who get started, follow through, develop new habits, and don’t quit who end up reaching their fitness goals.

I want you to think about this statement before you feel compelled to knock our industry. You must evaluate the facts objectively and compare apples to apples. If you did, you would quickly discover that the success rate in our industry is very similar to the success rate in other industries. But, the individual has to give our opportunity a chance, follow a system, and not expect instant results.