Thanks to email spamming, it is not likely that there are very many people on the Internet today who have not read some offer about a home based business opportunity or how to earn $1000 per week just by signing up for some affiliate program.

There also innumerable websites out there with success stories and scanned images of Stormpay and PayPal accounts loaded with some serious money and the people behind these stories will tell you to give them just $47 to join their revolutionary program and buy a Ferrari the next month.

So, the question is how to find the best home based business in network marketing?

While a cut and dry answer to this question is not possible, there are some very good precautions that can be taken to assure that the program you join isn't just a ploy by some affiliate to get you into their down line and leave you at a loose end after that.

Before joining as an affiliate any program that will help you build your home based business, ask yourself whether the business you are helping to co-promote is run by an experienced and well established company or by a new company offering nothing new in terms of products besides packaging. There are many longstanding companies out there, including Blue Chip and Fortune 500 companies, that are slowly realizing that with the digital world shrinking and the real world getting more congested, it is good to have as many successful affiliates as possible.

So, the first criteria is that the company whose products you wish to sell, have a name that buyers are comfortable with in their specific market niche.

The second point is a bit tricky and should be tackled carefully. While some companies have been doing affiliate management for a long time, there will be others who are just starting in that regard. The differences are obvious. While a company that has been doing this for a while is more stable and has a more reliable history, it also means that you are placed fairly low in the down line tree. With a newer company, the chances of building a healthier down line much faster are greater, but then so is the risk of where the company will be next year.

Look into the details of the affiliate program. For example, can you build multiple down lines? Some programs offer the feature that if you sponsor, let us say, 10 paid affiliate members one level below you, then you are given bonus down line members, or a greater commission on every sale per member in your down line. Are there any such benefits?

Of course, it goes without saying that you should read the fine print carefully. There is a very bad tendency in people to scroll through Terms of Service agreements and other policies or procedures and click the I Agree button. Please do not do this. You are starting a business, so be business like in everything you do. Read through every document carefully. Contact the company for clarification if required. One of the easiest ways to figure out whether an affiliate program is genuine or not, is that you can always contact the company directly and not merely through the upline member who sponsored you. Real companies have real addresses, phone numbers, and not just an email id.

If there is no phone number, do not become a member. Upline support, however, is also important in the initial stages. Think of the upline members as your marketing managers. They know more about the company and products (at least in the beginning) than you know and can answer your question. There should be a very good up line support system available.

Naturally, you will not want to sign up with a home based business opportunity that is offering products that are too common (believe it, you do not want to sell plastic spoons) or do not have a healthy market.

Finally, you should check what kind of marketing tools and lead generation systems are being provided to you. A lot of affiliate programs will sign you up for a nominal amount and then bill you for lead purchase, advertising revenues, and so forth. Do not fall for this ploy. Check everything before you pay.

Then there is the matter of building your downline. What kind of help is being provided there? There are many good companies out there offering Funded Sponsoring Franchises. The best idea is to go for those. If you find it difficult to locate such a program, then you should visit some sites offering information on Funded Sponsoring Franchise systems available and the companies offering them.

Remember that online business is not a regular task. Some amount of training is inevitably required and you are better off with a company with a long track record of successful affiliates.

So look for a home based business that has a low startup cost, excellent products, up line support, a real phone number, and a module to help you with lead generation and advertising.