Distributors are the important part of a direct sales business. Companies are incorporating advanced data driven techniques such persistent training, better compensation plans, community & recognition, use of technology and following ethical leadership and transparency.  Direct sales business growth relies mainly on distributor retention. Direct sales companies should make sure that they follow a proper strategy from the onboarding phase itself. Provide ongoing training and mentoring for them if needed.

Launching a direct sales business is not that simple. There are many factors business should consider before entering the direct selling industry. Accessibility means not just physical; it is about digital accessibility. Digital accessibility means your workforce are provided with necessary tools and systems for carrying out their responsibilities. Along with digital accessibility, content accessibility is also essential. Transparency is another important factor for a business success. It ultimately builds trust and loyalty.

For a smooth function of business, it is essential that there is no blockage in cash flow as well as workflow. The workflow can be efficient by using advanced technologies but for an efficient cashflow should need smarter steps should be taken. In a direct sales process, there are several processes such as procuring raw materials, manufacturing products, stocking up inventory, finding distributors, and finally when the product reaches the customers, companies still can’t be sure if they are going to receive the cash until the return window is over.

Direct selling is a successful business model over the years. As technologies progressed, it would be difficult for the companies to stay ahead of the curve. DTC tends is a modern marketing approach where the brand is responsible for marketing, sales, and distribution by utilizing ecommerce platforms and online marketing strategies to reach and engage with customers directly. There are 10 DTC trends in direct selling industry and they are  

• Live shopping experience 

• Social commerce 

• Influencer partnerships 

• Content marketing 

• Digital storefronts 

• Personalized experiences 

• Diverse product categories 

• Supply chain and inventory management 

• Subscription model 

• Sustainability initiatives 

Direct selling has become a popular business model over the years. Before achieving this success, there were many risks they were facing. Legal and regulatory compliance, compensation plan, distributor and customer attrition, security threats, competition, operational risk, brand identity, financial risk are some of the risks.  

Legal and regulatory compliance is the most common risk faced by the direct selling companies. Direct selling companies were penalized for breaking the barriers. Compliance automation should be incorporated with the system to detect policy violations and identify associated risks. Try to publish income disclosure statement every year. A clear earnings statement will stand as a testament to your brand credibility. 

Just like any other business, marketing is important for a direct sales business. The customers should be well delivered with what is your product and how your product gets performed. There are tools direct sales companies use for attracting potential prospects such as marketing suite, virtual party sales prototype, customer relationship management (CRM), intelligent business tools, and distributor training suite. 

A marketing suite is a collection of tools such as social media management and tracking, email marketing, lead capture campaign management, A/B testing tools, referral & affiliate marketing management. The companies use this marketing suite to organize the company's marketing process in one place and helps to discover the best marketing channels suitable for the business.

Africa and middle east are the growth potential zones for direct selling business. In between 2019 and 2024, the retail sales of Africa/middle east regions experience a decline in their retail sales of 22.5%. For more precise, Africa region experiences a decline of retail sales about 21%in 2019 to 2023, and middle eastern region faced a decline of 29% in retail sales for the same period of years.  
For the south African region, the region experienced a decline of 13.2% to $ 438 million. The reason for this decline may be because of the pandemic or the loss of trust of customers in the direct sales business or any political instabilities. As per studies, the direct sales industry fell about 13.2%, whereas brick-and-mortar retail fell by only 1%, but ecommerce made a 29% surge in 2023. 

Network marketing is a successful business model. The success they achieved is by surpassing so many challenges internally and externally. The internal challenges include compensation plan management, team collaboration, payout management, decision making, distributor management customer relationship management, reducing attrition rates establishing organizational transparency, security and external challenges include achieving compliance with laws, rules, and regulations, understanding the market, beating the competition, overcoming natural and man-made disasters.