David Frost has made millions as an entrepreneur, opening, running and selling six businesses prior to becoming a professor at Bethany College in Kansas in 2006. He knows the money it takes to get a business off the ground, the resources and time it takes to maintain it, and the experience necessary to keep it profitable.
That’s why he did his homework when his boss, the department chair at the college, asked him to find a business that would help his students get plugged in so they could really understand the inner workings of how businesses flourish. The main goal was to help them create businesses that could follow them after they graduated, minimizing their student-debt ratios while giving them a fighting, post-education chance at success.
“We had three criteria,” explains Professor Frost. “It had to be a business they could take with them, which meant it had to be an ecommerce business. It also had to have the earning potential of at least $50,000 a year and it also had to have little or no financial risk for them.”
After six months of research, the only business model Professor Frost could find that met all three criteria was the network marketing business model.
“The world of academia has largely ignored that there’s such a thing as network marketing, even though many of these companies recruit heavily on college campuses,” shares Professor Frost. “We often would have students coming to us asking if these opportunities were viable options and, because we didn’t know much about them at the time, we played it safe and would tell them it’s probably a scam, so stay away from it. Now, we see how we can help them succeed.”
Just over a year later, Professor Frost now teaches a three-credit-hour online class that meets for 16 weeks.
“In this class, we examine anything to do with the network marketing profession, including its history, the various compensation plans, company leadership, how to determine the financial stability of these companies and we even look into the FTC vs. Amway ruling of 1979,” explains Professor Frost. “The FTC vs. Amway case helps the students understand the difference between a pyramid scheme and a legitimate network marketing company.”
The school offers this accredited course as part of a Marketing degree or as part of a network marketing certificate.
The ground-breaking course hasn’t come without some opposition. Professor Frost has received several messages from other schools who balk at the idea of even offering a course educating students about the network marketing industry.
“I completely understand,” says Professor Frost. “I felt the same way about network marketing before I investigated it. Because they don’t know the difference between a pyramid scheme and network marketing, they assume they’re the same. I’m sure they will come around if they take the time to do a little research.”
The Right Opportunity
Professor Frost says while he doesn’t promote Vemma as the only opportunity to pursue, it is the company that continues to be the No. 1 choice of the students upon completion of their own research during class.
“What I like most about Vemma Founder and CEO BK (Boreyko) is he’s made the right business decisions to ensure his company will be around for many years. He wants to create a legacy company for his kids. Plus, with his move away from the network marketing model to an affiliate marketing company, Vemma now truly has all the things in place to not only make it a billion-dollar company, but it also gives my students a unique opportunity to create financial success in their lives as well.”
So what’s the big deal with shifting from “network marketing” to “affiliate marketing?”
“The big deal for me is that because people don’t understand the truth about network marketing they are often closed to the idea without even taking the time to understand what it is and what it can do for them,” Professor Frost says. “I find most people are more open minded and certainly more receptive to learning when you ask them if they are familiar with Amazon’s affiliate program. The door is now open to education.”
He adds, “In the end, it may still not be for them, but I just want them to understand what they are saying ’no’ to.”
Putting His Research into Practice
About eight months ago, Professor Frost began practicing what he was preaching after numerous students asked him if he would take the time outside of class to help them become successful with their businesses.
“When I first started teaching this class, I wasn’t part of Vemma or any network marketing company. I have a rule that does not allow anyone in the class to pitch or promote any network marketing companies. Keep in mind, the class is simply to teach the students about the industry not to try to get them into a particular company,” explains Professor Frost.
“But, as I watched my students picking various companies and failing, I decided, on my own time, to help them by developing a process for them that they could duplicate in order to succeed,” he shares.
After careful consideration, Professor Frost decided to join the company that had risen to the top as his students’ first choice: Vemma. He called Rich and Karen of Wichita, Kansas, who were very successful with Vemma, and asked them to partner with him to help create success in the students’ lives.
“It was a hard decision because, as a professor, we typically prefer to teach theory in the classroom,” explains Professor Frost. “As soon as you move out of the classroom to put theory to the test, you put your neck and reputation on the line.”
So far, putting his neck on the line has proven successful. A Platinum rank Affiliate, Professor Frost is mentoring any student who chooses to join a network marketing company including those students who choose Vemma.
“Of course, I felt it was important to sign a full disclosure with the school so everyone is aware of my relationship with Vemma,” he shares. “It’s not always the easiest thing for others to understand, but you can’t win either way (staying neutral or doing the business).”
Laughing, he adds, “Before I joined Vemma, I would receive criticism that I shouldn’t be teaching a class that I had no experience or success in. Then after joining Vemma, I started receiving criticism from many of the same people saying that I would not be able to remain unbiased. Either way, Vemma is not mentioned in the class. But, I will tell you that joining Vemma has taught me some skills that will help many of my students, friends, and family become successful.”
Equipping Future Generations for Financial Success
The ultimate goal of Professor Frost’s program is to give students the resources they need to be successful entrepreneurs upon graduation no matter what occupation they choose. “They’re gaining knowledge on how to communicate effectively, they’re learning the value of becoming good listeners who are determined to solve problems, and they’re honing their management skills,” he says.
Regardless of whether they create and maintain a network marketing business coming out of Bethany College, Professor Frost says they’re learning life skills that can only be taught through experience, not just through college textbooks and lectures.
“My goal is to help people understand how the network marketing business model can actually help those around you, such as friends and family, if done correctly,” he shares. “Unfortunately, I found that not to be the case when I was running many of my traditional businesses in the past.”
“In order to succeed in business, you have to hire hard working, smart people. The problem with keeping top employees in the traditional business model is that it forms a pyramid that only has room at the top for the owner/CEO. This caused many of my key employees (who wanted to make more money) to leave me and eventually compete with me,” he explains.
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