Direct Selling ­ An Option for Mini-Preneurs

According to the Direct Selling Association (www.dsa.org), more than 13.6 million people participated in direct selling in 2004 with an overwhelming 73 percent of them being women. Buying and selling in the comfort of a home still seems to be the heart of the direct selling industry, with 62 percent of all direct sales being made that way in 2003. About 16 percent of total sales that year were made by phone, followed by about 10 percent via the Internet. While the Internet doesn’t allow for face-to-face selling, it does give direct sellers a worldwide customer base.