What I don't understand is the candle one. It's a candle. You can find those in literally every store.
I did go to a wine MLM party a few months ago. The other ladies bought a bunch of it so I got tipsy off of their purchases. Not a bad way to spend an afternoon. I gave the rep my spam e-mail.
Post by thebreakfastclub on Aug 26, 2015 8:47:16 GMT -5
I am not 100% positive, but I believe a law requires these companies to provide information on what an average consultant makes, what % are at the different levels, etc.
My boss sold Thirty One bags a couple of years ago as a team fundraiser, and I remember seeing this statement on their site. 13% of all consultants made no money at all in 2014, and the average was $600 in yearly sales.
I noticed that it only quotes gross sales and does not state what the costs are to purchase start up kits, etc.
The founder of Beachbody has stated that the average life of being a Beachbody Coach is only 18 months.
A woman I used to work with quit her$150k a year job about a year ago to become a BB coach. She actually seems to be doing REALLY well. But I think she "got in" at the right time and how has a huge structure of coaches below her.
BUT - I've always wondered "how long can this actually last?".
Then a neighbor has now become a BB coach too. My old CW - she's my neighbor's "upline" coach. I don't think they actually know each other. I just think my CW has that many people below her.
But my neighbor is hoping to quit her job in a year too in order to do BB full time. AGAIN, what are the real chances?! How long will it actually be able to be sustained??
EVERYONE I know who has done anything BB (including me) does a program or two, maybe 3, does the shakes for a few months, and then pull out entirely.
I have a few acquaintances who are R&F reps and they seem to be doing pretty well, but they spam facebook at least once a day. Sometimes they are posting about this person or that person who left "real" jobs because they were making so much money. I just feel sorry for those people because I'm sure in few years that "fad" will die down and then they are left without a job.
Two things: one, I cannot wrap my head around being presented with all of these rules by BB regarding using only their scripts, etc. and being like "oh, okay. Sounds great." It's mind boggling how dumb people can be.
two: this part " After all, as an independent contractor and because you indemnified Beachb0dy, you’d be solely liable for the expenses associated with violating federal telemarketing laws."
Why the hell would you want to represent a company that is clearly not going to back you, and is stating to you that they will immediately throw you under the bus in order to not have to face repercussions for the aggressive and obnoxious sales techniques they are teaching you.
I refuse MLM parties on the regular. A girl I used to be friends with recently started selling those wraps. She hit me up on text (we hadn't spoken in over a year prior) pretending to be interested in our new house. She skipped along pretty quickly to the sales pitch. I told her I think her company is crap and that I refuse to be involved with a company that tries to make money by preying on women's body insecurities. Also, that I'm still breastfeeding so even if I was interested I couldn't use them. SHe proceeded to try and tell me they are all natural and totally safe for breastfeeding. I asked her (out of curiosity) if they had been approved by the FDA for breastfeeding women. Her reply "well, I'm sure it's totally safe. Even pregnant women use them" FUCK THAT! I told her that was bullshit and she needed to watch what kind of medical advice and assurances she is giving people. She wasn't happy and shockingly I haven't heard anything more from her.
Post by thebreakfastclub on Aug 26, 2015 8:54:34 GMT -5
Googling whatever MLM plus income disclosure statement seems to get the goods.
My H's friend is constantly pitching Advo Care as income that gives him such a great lifestyle. Meanwhile, he is still a firefighter, so I guess he needs his real job.
There were 154,000 distributors last year, and 600 of them made more than $50K, so less than 0.5%.
I do think the statistic about not making any money is a little misleading, as I personally know a couple of people in MLMs who are just in it to get discounted products for themselves and don't actually sell.
Another sorority sister is selling advo.care now. She was into pamperedchef but I guess that didn't pan out?
It seems like a lot of the women I know that are SAHMs are very into it b/c they think they'll make fast money. But that's just not the case 99% of the time.
The FB posts are canned for all of the MLM companies that I've seen pop up on my feed. I have a co-worker who sells i.sa.gen.ix and her posts are always well-written, using sophisticated vocabulary, etc. This girl, under normal circumstances, cannot string together a coherent thought that is not chock-full of run-ons, fragments, and lots of !!! at the end of every sentence. And then she hashtags the hell out of everything.
A different girl who sells the same product I mentioned above contacted me on FB last week. She suggested I could make an extra $500 per month! lol
What I don't understand is the candle one. It's a candle. You can find those in literally every store.
I have a friend who sells the G0ld Cany0n Candles and I'll be damned if those aren't the best ones I've ever owned. They last longer, burn evenly, and the smell actually fills the house. They're awesome.
I'm even more annoyed by crappy, appearance-shaming MLMs because I actually LIKE several MLM products and have had positive, non-spammy relationships with the consultants.
OMG! Yes! I wonder if that's a BB supplied hashtag!
My ex CW - I'm glad for her that she's doing so well, but she posts a LOT about the freedom she now has, how she can be there for her girls, she and her DH don't have to have those guilt laden conversations over "who has to stay home today because a kid is sick", etc.
It makes me want to scream. She HAS GOT to understand that she's truly the unique one here. MOST people under her will not ever get to her level of success and will never be able to afford to quit their job. I feel like she's dangling a carrot out there that's all based on guilt in order to try and get people to be coaches under her.
I'm also fairly confident that the amount of obnoxious MLMs would decrease by half if the US enacted some sort of decent-length paid maternity leave.
It seems like the majority of sellers I know got into it because they want to SAH after having kids and, sadly, feel like this is a magic bullet to do so.
I'm not anti-MLM in and of themselves (I read a fascinating article a few months ago on the granddaddy - Tupperware) but I'm against how predatory they are on people's desperation. Desperation to make money, desperation for connection, desperation to change something. You WANT to believe in that savior. A friend recently got sucked in by the spider lashes and she absolutely cannot afford to lose money like that. She's really down about it because it just compounded every bad feeling - not making enough money, feeling like a failure, feeling ashamed for being so gullible, etc.
We're in a weird time where social media has really impacted our lack of human connection and people are more and more unable to think critically for themselves. Sometimes I feel like we're stuck in a particularly awful episode of The Twilight Zone.
What I don't understand is the candle one. It's a candle. You can find those in literally every store.
I have a friend who sells the G0ld Cany0n Candles and I'll be damned if those aren't the best ones I've ever owned. They last longer, burn evenly, and the smell actually fills the house. They're awesome.
I'm even more annoyed by crappy, appearance-shaming MLMs because I actually LIKE several MLM products and have had positive, non-spammy relationships with the consultants.
This is where I'm at. The crappy ones give the ones that don't suck (you know who you are) a bad name.
So a lot of people apparently become sellers just to get the product for themselves, like Brie said. Do they not have monthly fees like listed on the website above? If the discount on products is high enough to offset a monthly fee of like $15, then damn. (Especially for something like bb where you could just go to gnc for protein powder and get workout videos on YouTube for free.)
some products do require a fee or a minimum amount of sales. I signed up for Usborne last month when they had a starter kit with 10 books for $55. There is NO monthly fee or sales minimum, I basically get 25% off the books for life.
I dislike them all and refuse to support them. I feel surprised, disappointed and sad any time I see somebody I know/like/respect has signed up for one. The chance of making any money is slim, it turns you into an annoying person, and I just feel that they "prey" on the weakness of women, mostly SAHMs. It's like "hey so you're feeling worthless, like you don't do anything except take care of your kids-- well HERE is a way to make money, have your own business, make friends etc. from home!" blah blah. It's like, you are taking the thing that people feel vulnerable about and exploiting it. It angers me because most SAHMs will make little to no money at all and waste a bunch of time on it and probably LOSE friends.
don't get me started on the most annoying one of all, which is of course beach body. Because not only are you preying on those you are trying to recruit into the "business", but everyone you try to get as a customer is being subjected to your sneaky fat-shaming. Pregnant women, PP women. HEY GUYS lets take women at their MOST body-conscious, exhausted and hormonal, and get them to buy our stuff! They'll feel even more like shit about themselves than before, BUT we'll get money so it's a win win!
I dislike them all and refuse to support them. I feel surprised, disappointed and sad any time I see somebody I know/like/respect has signed up for one. The chance of making any money is slim, it turns you into an annoying person, and I just feel that they "prey" on the weakness of women, mostly SAHMs. It's like "hey so you're feeling worthless, like you don't do anything except take care of your kids-- well HERE is a way to make money, have your own business, make friends etc. from home!" blah blah. It's like, you are taking the thing that people feel vulnerable about and exploiting it. It angers me because most SAHMs will make little to no money at all and waste a bunch of time on it and probably LOSE friends.
Ugh, MLMS I dislike you greatly.
Add to this that MLMs basically require you beg your friends for money, often putting people in an awkward situation.
It's all horrible. I hate them SO much.
I shut down an Advo.Care rep a few weeks ago by telling her I don't put untested supplements into my body. She backed off.
They are not empowering to women, at all. I refuse to believe they are and nobody will ever convince me of that. If only 1% of them make a salary you could live on and support a family on, then that is not successful.
Post by cincodemayo on Aug 26, 2015 9:23:29 GMT -5
I feel like the market is just SO saturated, I don't understand people thinking they can make a buck on it anymore. I don't know. I have purchased products from Arbonne, 31, etc that I *do* like, but I hate knowing how overpriced those products can be.
A girlfriend of mine was really big on 31 a few years ago, but she got in early and had several people below her. At her peak she made like $1,000-$1,200 a month. BUT she always bought so many more gosh darn bags with her earnings, it blew my mind.
The founder of Beachbody has stated that the average life of being a Beachbody Coach is only 18 months.
A woman I used to work with quit her$150k a year job about a year ago to become a BB coach. She actually seems to be doing REALLY well. But I think she "got in" at the right time and how has a huge structure of coaches below her.
BUT - I've always wondered "how long can this actually last?".
Then a neighbor has now become a BB coach too. My old CW - she's my neighbor's "upline" coach. I don't think they actually know each other. I just think my CW has that many people below her.
But my neighbor is hoping to quit her job in a year too in order to do BB full time. AGAIN, what are the real chances?! How long will it actually be able to be sustained??
EVERYONE I know who has done anything BB (including me) does a program or two, maybe 3, does the shakes for a few months, and then pull out entirely.
This is my thing. I have a friend of a friend that is high up in BB. She is making good money, 6 figures. At least she claims to have last year. She is constantly hounding my friend to quit her job and do BB full time. I keep trying to explain that even though the BB coach may be making good money now it won't last. Fitness is a fad in that what is popular one year isn't the next. It's always changing!
This BB shit won't be around forever and her 100k income is only good so long as she keeps continuously adding to her group. The girl recently added her old and very overweight MIL as a coach. That is shameful! She is clearly reaching if she had to stoop so low as to sell this shit to her mil. She also added her own mother who has now "retired" because she can make monew in bb.
It makes me so, so uncomfortable when I see people making lifestyle changes like quitting respectable jobs to chase this shit. It's just not sustainable. If it was, you wouldn't be adding you mil!!
My dad has a fairly good friend who is worth NINE figures because of MLM. Yes, that is hundreds of millions of dollars. It's OBVIOUSLY a totally unique situation, but he wins at life. He has the best social media accounts.
Anyway, MLM's don't drive me crazy. I go to parties if I feel like it, and I usually buy something. I have Cabi clothes I like, and Pampered Chef items that are fine. I like Osborne Books well enough. I'm sure I bought some Mary Kay/Avon makeup from the 90's. All my mom & grandma wore was MK. Oh and I have a 31 bag I got as a gift that is also fine.
I haven't run into anyone selling candles or jamberry nails or whatever. I block/ignore people who are spamming it on FB. I have only gotten a few of those PM's, and I tell them clearly I am not interested. I am totally willing to hide/block/unfriend people whose posts I don't enjoy.
Honestly, I feel bad/sorry for the women who fall for this stuff hook, line, and sinker. I would seriously murder my husband if he told me he was quitting his job and then pretended like selling vitamins to strangers was going to be a substantial income stream. If you have given up a career to make <$500/YEAR shilling stuff, it's not a real career and there is no way that is your dream. I AM THE ONE LIVING MY DREAM.
Just chiming in to say that BB fees are actually quite low and you get a good discount on the goods... the only reason I became a coach. Though I've already quit, so I am well below that 18mo mark, lol. I did reach out to a few people (literally a few) but they were all people who voiced being interested in the workouts so I figured why not. I sort of saw it as an Ebates plug. If they were going to sign up, why not get a (measly) bonus from it. Probably not my best idea. BUT I never brought it up again and I never would.
They really do push you to post 20 times a day and be all secretive. Things I just didn't feel comfortable doing.
I am so curious how much my SIL makes selling Scentsy. She's been doing it for a while now (and I've never bought a thing). I don't know if it's because she is doing OK (doubtful) or keeps thinking eventually she will.
I don't really understand the ones that sell products because, like, once you run out of friends who have bought your shit, then what? I mean everyone has a "friend" who sells shit and someone else to go to already.
it's all about your downline! Also they usually have new products come out 2-3 times a year so they can hit the same people up to buy when that happens.
I also feel OK occasionally buying something if A) I legit want it (this happens rarely) and B) the rep isn't drunk on the Kool-Aid. As soon as I get an unsolicited FB invite for a product party or a million posts a day in my feed, it's over.
I do like the FB feature where you can say "I don't want to see posts like this" so you can still have the person in your feed but only see baby pics instead of sales pitches.