Author Topic: No, I won't buy into your MLM  (Read 639055 times)

Ramblin' Ma'am

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #100 on: March 29, 2017, 09:27:20 AM »
One of my high school classmates is deep into "It Works," which seems to be one of the worst offenders in MLM's, not only because of the pyramid scheme aspect but because all the products are junk. She's posting 15-20 times a day about how great it is to "work for myself," "be my own boss," etc. It's about selling the lifestyle as much as selling the products, because you can only make any money by recruiting as many people as you can.

The other day she posted a graphic showing what people at each "level" make--what it doesn't tell you is that 98% of people are likely in the bottom two levels. One of her friends started asking her pointed questions like, "How much do YOU actually take home?" and she ignored all of them.

Just Joe

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #101 on: March 30, 2017, 08:55:14 AM »
I can't believe these MLMs are even a thing in 2017. You'd think the collective conscious would know better by now.

I suppose we can look around at other topics and see that a portion of each generation always falls for the same lies and promises. That portion never pops the hood to see what makes a business like this "go".   

MillieLincoln

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #102 on: March 30, 2017, 10:56:27 AM »
Man, I used to be an intern for a local artist in my hometown over summers. He had some financial struggles, but he was quite popular within his community, and his work over the time I was helping him was about struggles in fatherhood.

I followed him on instagram, went back off to college, and over the course of my Junior year he kept posting more and more about some MLM he was involved in- some sort of supplement. He was REALLY, GENUINELY excited about it, and because he had a big network of people following him he was actually doing super well with it. Talking about being able to fix his car, stuff like that- and it was so sad to watch because he seemed to believe it was this cure-all to financial woes and wanted to share it with everybody. I think that's part of what's so terrible about it- at some level of influence/visibility it really can work, and then all these people who admire and trust that person get screwed, without that person even meaning to take advantage.

Travis

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #103 on: March 30, 2017, 12:39:46 PM »
I can't believe these MLMs are even a thing in 2017. You'd think the collective conscious would know better by now.

I suppose we can look around at other topics and see that a portion of each generation always falls for the same lies and promises. That portion never pops the hood to see what makes a business like this "go".

The Ponzi scheme was invented almost a century ago, but it still takes people in despite there being systems in place to stop it.  Enough people in each generation strive for a "get rich quick" scheme so the demand doesn't have much effect on the supply.  What amazes me in the Google generation where too many people "do their research" with a few keystrokes on political, environmental, and health issues can't apply that towards looking up the name of the company peddling some idea to them before jumping on board.
« Last Edit: May 19, 2017, 02:43:41 PM by Travis »

StockBeard

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #104 on: March 30, 2017, 12:53:52 PM »
The Ponzi scheme was invented almost a century ago, but it still takes people in despite there being systems in place to stop it.  Enough people in each generation strive for a "get rich quick" scheme so the demand doesn't have much affect on the supply.  What amazes me in the Google generation where too many people "do their research" with a few keystrokes on political, environmental, and health issues can't apply that towards looking up the name of the company peddling some idea to them before jumping on board.

It's not that easy. Try to type any of these MLM's names followed by "scam" in a search engine, and you will find that the majority of the first results are disguised ads for the product, from distributors who use SEO to their advantage.
As a result, someone who would use due diligence and search in google would find a vast majority of seemingly independent sites claiming that the company is fine and the products are great. Heck, you even have billionaires nowadays pretending MLM is a perfectly valid business, not to mention celebrities paid to endorse the thing.

Ramblin' Ma'am

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #105 on: March 30, 2017, 01:54:00 PM »
I can't believe these MLMs are even a thing in 2017. You'd think the collective conscious would know better by now.

I suppose we can look around at other topics and see that a portion of each generation always falls for the same lies and promises. That portion never pops the hood to see what makes a business like this "go".

You'd think people would know better than to fall for phishing scams, too, but that's still a huge problem!

Travis

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #106 on: March 30, 2017, 01:55:10 PM »
The Ponzi scheme was invented almost a century ago, but it still takes people in despite there being systems in place to stop it.  Enough people in each generation strive for a "get rich quick" scheme so the demand doesn't have much affect on the supply.  What amazes me in the Google generation where too many people "do their research" with a few keystrokes on political, environmental, and health issues can't apply that towards looking up the name of the company peddling some idea to them before jumping on board.

It's not that easy. Try to type any of these MLM's names followed by "scam" in a search engine, and you will find that the majority of the first results are disguised ads for the product, from distributors who use SEO to their advantage.
As a result, someone who would use due diligence and search in google would find a vast majority of seemingly independent sites claiming that the company is fine and the products are great. Heck, you even have billionaires nowadays pretending MLM is a perfectly valid business, not to mention celebrities paid to endorse the thing.

I've never experienced that. I usually type in "review" and come up with BBB and Consumer Reports-type sites.  As for your last comment, maybe its my aversion to television, but just because someone is famous doesn't make me love a product more. I expect plenty of other folks put their trust in famous people.

Jouer

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #107 on: March 31, 2017, 08:26:50 AM »
You are all my spirit animals. Come for the MLM shaming....stay for the shitty graphs!

A few of my friends use Facebook to sell their MLM crap. It sure makes for a boring timeline. Especially bad when they use posts/words/phrases clearly taken from the handbook. I guess I wish for my friends to be smarter. And the hashtags, oh the hashtags. Some hijack even birthday parties by bringing samples and talking-up their products. It's obnoxious.

But I have one friend who does Beachbody that I actually respect. She created a separate Facebook account - like a business page - for her "business". She uses that account for all posts related to Beachbody. Her personal account is still about her kids, her soccer, etc. Very rarely she'll promote her business page from her personal account. And when she does, that doesn't bug me because I just see that as good business. I think having a separate business page is the key to my respect.

jinga nation

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #108 on: March 31, 2017, 01:09:13 PM »
One of my high school classmates is deep into "It Works," which seems to be one of the worst offenders in MLM's, not only because of the pyramid scheme aspect but because all the products are junk. She's posting 15-20 times a day about how great it is to "work for myself," "be my own boss," etc. It's about selling the lifestyle as much as selling the products, because you can only make any money by recruiting as many people as you can.

The other day she posted a graphic showing what people at each "level" make--what it doesn't tell you is that 98% of people are likely in the bottom two levels. One of her friends started asking her pointed questions like, "How much do YOU actually take home?" and she ignored all of them.
I agree. Whenever I get pitched an It Works product (I'm a skinny male of median height) I always ask to see the product ingredients list. There isn't any on the packaging. How the heck can they sell health products (including wraps, energy drinks, and add-to-water weight loss) without adhering to FDA labeling guidelines? And why are all these idiots buying stuff without knowing what's inside?

I'm going to start a sugar-water MLM and call it MMMwater. All profits after my retirement investments will go to this wonderful community.

MgoSam

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #109 on: March 31, 2017, 01:12:29 PM »
One of my high school classmates is deep into "It Works," which seems to be one of the worst offenders in MLM's, not only because of the pyramid scheme aspect but because all the products are junk. She's posting 15-20 times a day about how great it is to "work for myself," "be my own boss," etc. It's about selling the lifestyle as much as selling the products, because you can only make any money by recruiting as many people as you can.

The other day she posted a graphic showing what people at each "level" make--what it doesn't tell you is that 98% of people are likely in the bottom two levels. One of her friends started asking her pointed questions like, "How much do YOU actually take home?" and she ignored all of them.

Jinga you're forgetting an essential fact. All of these MMM are started by white people, if brown people like us jump into the marketplace then the government will show up and actually pass restrictions.
I agree. Whenever I get pitched an It Works product (I'm a skinny male of median height) I always ask to see the product ingredients list. There isn't any on the packaging. How the heck can they sell health products (including wraps, energy drinks, and add-to-water weight loss) without adhering to FDA labeling guidelines? And why are all these idiots buying stuff without knowing what's inside?

I'm going to start a sugar-water MLM and call it MMMwater. All profits after my retirement investments will go to this wonderful community.

Proud Foot

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #110 on: March 31, 2017, 02:34:46 PM »
One of my high school classmates is deep into "It Works," which seems to be one of the worst offenders in MLM's, not only because of the pyramid scheme aspect but because all the products are junk. She's posting 15-20 times a day about how great it is to "work for myself," "be my own boss," etc. It's about selling the lifestyle as much as selling the products, because you can only make any money by recruiting as many people as you can.

The other day she posted a graphic showing what people at each "level" make--what it doesn't tell you is that 98% of people are likely in the bottom two levels. One of her friends started asking her pointed questions like, "How much do YOU actually take home?" and she ignored all of them.
I agree. Whenever I get pitched an It Works product (I'm a skinny male of median height) I always ask to see the product ingredients list. There isn't any on the packaging. How the heck can they sell health products (including wraps, energy drinks, and add-to-water weight loss) without adhering to FDA labeling guidelines? And why are all these idiots buying stuff without knowing what's inside?

I'm going to start a sugar-water MLM and call it MMMwater. All profits after my retirement investments will go to this wonderful community.

I don't know FDA labeling guidelines, but was anyone you asked able to tell you what was in the products? Pretty easy to find on their website so there's no reason why the person trying to sell it couldn't easily tell you what is in it.

Here is the one for their Greens Blend.

And Holy Shit!! I had never heard of It Works before it was mentioned and some of this stuff seems absolutely ridiculous! Just reading the guide for this makes me want to tell everyone not to use it.
« Last Edit: March 31, 2017, 02:43:46 PM by Proud Foot »

jinga nation

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #111 on: April 03, 2017, 07:33:08 AM »
One of my high school classmates is deep into "It Works," which seems to be one of the worst offenders in MLM's, not only because of the pyramid scheme aspect but because all the products are junk. She's posting 15-20 times a day about how great it is to "work for myself," "be my own boss," etc. It's about selling the lifestyle as much as selling the products, because you can only make any money by recruiting as many people as you can.

The other day she posted a graphic showing what people at each "level" make--what it doesn't tell you is that 98% of people are likely in the bottom two levels. One of her friends started asking her pointed questions like, "How much do YOU actually take home?" and she ignored all of them.
I agree. Whenever I get pitched an It Works product (I'm a skinny male of median height) I always ask to see the product ingredients list. There isn't any on the packaging. How the heck can they sell health products (including wraps, energy drinks, and add-to-water weight loss) without adhering to FDA labeling guidelines? And why are all these idiots buying stuff without knowing what's inside?

I'm going to start a sugar-water MLM and call it MMMwater. All profits after my retirement investments will go to this wonderful community.

I don't know FDA labeling guidelines, but was anyone you asked able to tell you what was in the products? Pretty easy to find on their website so there's no reason why the person trying to sell it couldn't easily tell you what is in it.

Here is the one for their Greens Blend.

And Holy Shit!! I had never heard of It Works before it was mentioned and some of this stuff seems absolutely ridiculous! Just reading the guide for this makes me want to tell everyone not to use it.
Hahahahaha, NO. They told me it was gluten-free, soy-free, vegan, etc. in different flavors, just like in that data sheet. Peddlers should know their product inside out. Bring your A-game to my BS-detect-radar. Let's play some mental rugby and make this fun. What's a sale without some competitive verbal jousting and haggling? Ain't no fun in the boring shit!

Sydneystache

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #112 on: April 03, 2017, 09:12:12 AM »
I still have a lot of friends and relatives back on Hillbilly Mountain and a lot of them are involved in these pyramid schemes -- and that's what MLM is, so let's call a spade a spade. Pyramid schemes prey on very desperate people. The last thing someone living in a trailer on welfare needs is to end up being fooled by snakeoil salesmen into buying hundreds of dollars of a product they will never be able to sell. And that's how these pyramid schemes always end up. I know so many people with a pantry full of self-purchased, overpriced Amway non-perishable food.

Hear, hear. I called out pyramid scheme when a poor, vulnerable friend started mentioning one scheme she was involved in. She is a SAHM with no income as her husband is too cheap (not frugal) to even give her money. She stopped mentioning her MLM after that. One woeful story she told me was one meeting I said I was too busy to attend - nobody attended. Now she's left with hundreds of $s worth of products. She is the type of person MLMs love - desperate and poor.

Another gave me a cleanser sample - which felt nice on my face but I knew it was another MLM and no way I was going to participate in the Ponzi. I just pity people who get sucked in these MLMs...it's just not right.
 

TheGrimSqueaker

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #113 on: April 03, 2017, 09:29:08 AM »
My personal favorite MLM moment came many years ago when some of my father's relatives came to visit. One, a particularly obnoxious in-law, started in on his MLM spiel and tried to push his packaged, heavily processed "nutrition bars" on us. This was after a great deal of sexist, stupid behavior on his part that made me long to pick up one of my mother's heavy brass lamps and swing it at the side of his head.

Ever the irritating teenager, I picked up one of the bars and started to read the dizzying array of additives and chemicals, while this 60-year-old blathered on about how he had the body of a 29-year-old.

"Which one of the ingredients is the hallucinogen?" I asked.

My parents were too busy trying not to laugh to punish me for being rude to a guest.

NorthernDreamer

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #114 on: April 03, 2017, 10:38:51 AM »
One of my high school classmates is deep into "It Works," which seems to be one of the worst offenders in MLM's, not only because of the pyramid scheme aspect but because all the products are junk. She's posting 15-20 times a day about how great it is to "work for myself," "be my own boss," etc. It's about selling the lifestyle as much as selling the products, because you can only make any money by recruiting as many people as you can.

The other day she posted a graphic showing what people at each "level" make--what it doesn't tell you is that 98% of people are likely in the bottom two levels. One of her friends started asking her pointed questions like, "How much do YOU actually take home?" and she ignored all of them.
I agree. Whenever I get pitched an It Works product (I'm a skinny male of median height) I always ask to see the product ingredients list. There isn't any on the packaging. How the heck can they sell health products (including wraps, energy drinks, and add-to-water weight loss) without adhering to FDA labeling guidelines? And why are all these idiots buying stuff without knowing what's inside?

I'm going to start a sugar-water MLM and call it MMMwater. All profits after my retirement investments will go to this wonderful community.

I don't know FDA labeling guidelines, but was anyone you asked able to tell you what was in the products? Pretty easy to find on their website so there's no reason why the person trying to sell it couldn't easily tell you what is in it.

Here is the one for their Greens Blend.

And Holy Shit!! I had never heard of It Works before it was mentioned and some of this stuff seems absolutely ridiculous! Just reading the guide for this makes me want to tell everyone not to use it.
Hahahahaha, NO. They told me it was gluten-free, soy-free, vegan, etc. in different flavors, just like in that data sheet. Peddlers should know their product inside out. Bring your A-game to my BS-detect-radar. Let's play some mental rugby and make this fun. What's a sale without some competitive verbal jousting and haggling? Ain't no fun in the boring shit!

But - it's all in the brand name - "IT WORKS"!! What more is there to know? ;P

Where do I sign up for MMMwater, it sounds delicious AND nutritious!

Just Joe

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #115 on: April 03, 2017, 10:42:12 AM »
B/c of this thread I'm more aware of the topic lately. There are so many SUVs rolling around town with the logo of one MLM or another on the back window.

solon

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #116 on: April 03, 2017, 10:54:01 AM »
It Works = It's Got What Plants Crave?

You don't need to know what's in it, or how it works... It Works!

sw1tch

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #117 on: April 03, 2017, 11:58:37 AM »
It Works = It's Got What Plants Crave?

You don't need to know what's in it, or how it works... It Works!

Electrolytes!!

Chris22

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #118 on: April 03, 2017, 01:07:15 PM »
Anyone posted this pic yet in the thread?  It's my stock reply on FB to this crap.



ltt

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #119 on: April 04, 2017, 04:44:43 AM »
Because I find MLM morbidly fascinating and my kiddo took an extra long nap today, I fell down a rabbit hole of LuLaRoe horror stories on Google today and found this:

http://www.mommygyver.com/single-post/2017/03/16/LuLaBullies-and-Consultant-Cannibalism

The blogger has several other posts with her and others' experiences that make me concerned for my friend who sells the stuff. I had figured she was doing well enough with it since she seems to make a lot of sales and is always getting new merchandise in but I sincerely hope she isn't going into debt for it. :-/

Well, your friend could join the 355 on Go Fund Me asking for money to help fund their LuLaRoe consultant business: https://www.gofundme.com/mvc.php?route=category&term=lularoe

I just... there are no words.

I clicked your link, thinking I'd like to see what kind of a moron person would start a Go Fund Me to give to LuLaRoe. THERE ARE 357 MORONS PEOPLE LIKE THIS!

Oh, good grief!  I cannot believe there are people doing these campaigns.  One woman mentioned about donating to her LuLaRoe campaign would be helping get her family financially to a better place.  Ugh.

BeanCounter

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #120 on: April 04, 2017, 06:28:49 AM »
I do have a friend who is doing really well with LuLuRoe. (of course I haven't seen her financial statements, but she seems to have a lot of sales and she's even won a cruise with it)
But I keep wondering how many pairs of ugly leggings can people need? Won't this just run it's course like Pampered Chef and Tupperware?

I also had a friend post on facebook a nice "enjoying my day" post with the hashtag "residual income". Barf. She sells Isagenix. Although I don't actually know anyone who has bought anything from her.

KodeBlue

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #121 on: April 04, 2017, 06:53:18 AM »

ltt

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #122 on: April 04, 2017, 07:20:30 AM »
I do buy Pampered Chef items occasionally and, overall, like their products.

I've bought Mary Kay before....there is a website called "Pink Truth" which offers up some info.  It makes for some interesting reading.

And, years ago, was approached by a woman at school trying to sell some vitamins and blah, blah, blah, etc.  I had to walk away.

What I do not like is when people from church are involved in selling these items.  I try to buy one item, but that's really all I want--not interested in hosting a party or otherwise.  It's the fastest way to ruin relationships.

KodeBlue

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #123 on: April 04, 2017, 07:30:02 AM »
Oh, good grief!  I cannot believe there are people doing these campaigns.  One woman mentioned about donating to her LuLaRoe campaign would be helping get her family financially to a better place.  Ugh.
Yes and if you give me money it would help me get to a financially to a better place. Money does that.

MsSindy

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #124 on: April 04, 2017, 08:14:27 AM »
This didn't impact me, but was kind of sad to see my neighbor go through this.  She was a District Manager for a large Pharma company (making really good money), she said she couldn't handle the stress and quit.  Okay, fair enough.  Then she went on a spiritual journey.  She studied alternative nutrition and oils with the hopes of being a consultant ($8k for certificate).  Now, I'm all about alternative healing, and I find the subject fascinating.  She has good selling skills, so I thought she might actually do okay.  But, then she started talking all 'new wavish' and about her 'third eye' and 'enlightenment' and totally lost me.  Conversations got weird.

Then she was hand-dyeing scarfs and trying to sell them.

Then she signed up with a medical recruiting company ($30k buy in for her territory - took out a 2nd mortgage).  She was to call prospects to build her network AND call pharma companies to get them to retain her as a search agent.  So what exactly was the $30k for, the company provided little in the way of leads!  Sad.

All the while, her husband was a General Contractor busting his butt to keep the lifestyle they had when she was making almost $200k.

Eventually they sold the house and moved away.... not sure what happened to them.

tralfamadorian

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #125 on: April 04, 2017, 08:32:46 AM »
...she's even won a cruise with it...

The cruise is for people doing $12k in sales a month for four consecutive months. The wholesale cost of their lauded leggings is $18 and the typical selling price is $40/2 so $20/each.  This is below their advertised retail price of $25/each.  So, on average if they are concentrating on leggings, which appears to be the cornerstone of the brand, they are selling at least 600 pairs of leggings a month with a 10% profit margin, which I believe is typical for clothing retail.  With this $2 margin, that gives a whopping monthly income of $1,200, presuming $0 advertising or other costs. 

Like all MLMs the profit happens when you build your pyramid...err, team:
http://www.lularoe.com/income-disclosure-statement/

BeanCounter

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #126 on: April 04, 2017, 08:50:30 AM »
...she's even won a cruise with it...

The cruise is for people doing $12k in sales a month for four consecutive months. The wholesale cost of their lauded leggings is $18 and the typical selling price is $40/2 so $20/each.  This is below their advertised retail price of $25/each.  So, on average if they are concentrating on leggings, which appears to be the cornerstone of the brand, they are selling at least 600 pairs of leggings a month with a 10% profit margin, which I believe is typical for clothing retail.  With this $2 margin, that gives a whopping monthly income of $1,200, presuming $0 advertising or other costs. 

Like all MLMs the profit happens when you build your pyramid...err, team:
http://www.lularoe.com/income-disclosure-statement/
oh cool.
Based on that link and her posts I bet they are pulling in about $60k. I know that she has posted that she is trainer level working on getting to coach level.
I think she is an example of someone who got in at the exact right time, very early, and was one of the only consultants in her area for awhile.
IMHO the mistake is thinking that this revenue stream will last.

GhostSaver

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #127 on: April 04, 2017, 09:00:22 AM »
I do buy Pampered Chef items occasionally and, overall, like their products.

I've bought Mary Kay before....there is a website called "Pink Truth" which offers up some info.  It makes for some interesting reading.

And, years ago, was approached by a woman at school trying to sell some vitamins and blah, blah, blah, etc.  I had to walk away.

What I do not like is when people from church are involved in selling these items.  I try to buy one item, but that's really all I want--not interested in hosting a party or otherwise.  It's the fastest way to ruin relationships.

One of the things that bums me out about these MLM scams is that they take advantage of this kind of low-grade affinity fraud. It seems huge with the Mormons here in Utah.

KodeBlue

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #128 on: April 04, 2017, 08:22:26 PM »

Well, your friend could join the 355 on Go Fund Me asking for money to help fund their LuLaRoe consultant business: https://www.gofundme.com/mvc.php?route=category&term=lularoe

I just... there are no words.
Another case of "I want to follow my dream with your money".

Sydneystache

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #129 on: April 04, 2017, 08:32:27 PM »
I do buy Pampered Chef items occasionally and, overall, like their products.

I've bought Mary Kay before....there is a website called "Pink Truth" which offers up some info.  It makes for some interesting reading.

And, years ago, was approached by a woman at school trying to sell some vitamins and blah, blah, blah, etc.  I had to walk away.

What I do not like is when people from church are involved in selling these items.  I try to buy one item, but that's really all I want--not interested in hosting a party or otherwise.  It's the fastest way to ruin relationships.

One of the things that bums me out about these MLM scams is that they take advantage of this kind of low-grade affinity fraud. It seems huge with the Mormons here in Utah.

Is it a religious traditional thing? My friend (Catholic and subservient to hubby) above is religious. MLMs are great for SAHPs but I wonder if there's an extra element in being religious and being vulnerable to MLMs.

Too bad the Bible doesn't mention anything against Ponzi schemes :-/

Warlord1986

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #130 on: April 05, 2017, 07:21:09 AM »
The Bible said some stuff about moneylenders in the temple, and it didn't take too kindly to unrepentant thieves and usury.

I can't speak for all religious folks, but my crowd avoids this MLM shit like the plague. My suspicion is that a lot of women (and men) misinterpret the Bible to believe they have to be SAHM. When that causes financial stress and they feel isolated because the only people they talk to are under the age of five, they look for ways to get out of the house. MLM people prey on them and wrap their scheme up in the Bible, which is how we get hashtags talking about how working for lulu blesses other people.

It's not a religious tradition. It's greedy people preying on lonely and poorly instructed religious people.

infogoon

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #131 on: April 05, 2017, 11:09:44 AM »
The Bible said some stuff about moneylenders in the temple, and it didn't take too kindly to unrepentant thieves and usury.

Always remember, when the question is "What Would Jesus Do?", sometimes the answer is "Flip over some tables and kick some ass."

LadyMuMu

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #132 on: April 05, 2017, 11:16:54 AM »
I think religious folks who are in congregations that emphasize small group spirituality, intentionally reaching out to others or evangelization, and forming strong relationship bonds with those in your faith community are particularly attractive and and attracted to MLMs. They already have many of the skills needs: striking conversations with those you don't know well, creating a sense of community rather quickly for a common goal, etc. They also come with their own built in sales field of people they know. Churched folks tend to know many more people outside of work and family than non-churched. You add in a dose of affinity bias in making business decisions and I think it explains why there is so much overlap in MLMs and certain Christian churches. I think it goes much deeper than "they are gullible enough to believe in a Flying Spaghetti Monster so they'll fall for anything" assumption.

Raenia

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #133 on: April 05, 2017, 12:36:57 PM »
This was many years ago, but I love the story so much I want to share it.  My mom had a few Cutco knives that she'd reluctantly bought from a friend.  Several years later, one of her students had become a Cutco rep and asked if they could "practice" their spiel on us.  Knowing exactly what this was going to be, Mom prepared very carefully: she hid all the low quality knives in the house and kept in the knife block the old Cutco knives (which were of course very disappointing, dulled quickly, etc) along with a few newer knives she'd picked up at BigLots that were probably both the best quality and cheapest knives I've ever worked with.  So the student comes in and goes through the sales pitch, setting up to show off how great the knives are.  Since we already have some, we are happy to dispute the story that the contoured handles are comfortable and easy to use - in reality they restrict you to holding in a particular way and heaven help you if you have larger or smaller hands.  Student blows past this, of course.  One of the demos they do is cutting a piece of rope.  So Mom takes the Cutco knife and cuts the rope - one, two, three strokes.  Student goes all "isn't that amazing, just three strokes to cut through that rope!  Now let's compare it to the knives you have here, so we can see how much better ours are."  Mom takes her cheap BigLots knives - one stroke, straight down to the cutting board.  Left the student speechless.  Especially since you know they sharpen theirs before every visit, and ours hadn't been sharpened since they were bought.

After that, Mom had to go on to her next student and left met to walk them out - and they still tried to sell me on getting her a set of steak knives as a gift, since we "didn't have any" (actually, we did, they were just in hiding for this episode.)  I was flabbergasted.  We'd spent the entire time complaining about how uncomfortable and dull the knives were, and they still thought they could sell me more of them?

charis

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #134 on: April 05, 2017, 01:45:29 PM »
This was many years ago, but I love the story so much I want to share it.  My mom had a few Cutco knives that she'd reluctantly bought from a friend.  Several years later, one of her students had become a Cutco rep and asked if they could "practice" their spiel on us.  Knowing exactly what this was going to be, Mom prepared very carefully: she hid all the low quality knives in the house and kept in the knife block the old Cutco knives (which were of course very disappointing, dulled quickly, etc) along with a few newer knives she'd picked up at BigLots that were probably both the best quality and cheapest knives I've ever worked with.  So the student comes in and goes through the sales pitch, setting up to show off how great the knives are.  Since we already have some, we are happy to dispute the story that the contoured handles are comfortable and easy to use - in reality they restrict you to holding in a particular way and heaven help you if you have larger or smaller hands.  Student blows past this, of course.  One of the demos they do is cutting a piece of rope.  So Mom takes the Cutco knife and cuts the rope - one, two, three strokes.  Student goes all "isn't that amazing, just three strokes to cut through that rope!  Now let's compare it to the knives you have here, so we can see how much better ours are."  Mom takes her cheap BigLots knives - one stroke, straight down to the cutting board.  Left the student speechless.  Especially since you know they sharpen theirs before every visit, and ours hadn't been sharpened since they were bought.

After that, Mom had to go on to her next student and left met to walk them out - and they still tried to sell me on getting her a set of steak knives as a gift, since we "didn't have any" (actually, we did, they were just in hiding for this episode.)  I was flabbergasted.  We'd spent the entire time complaining about how uncomfortable and dull the knives were, and they still thought they could sell me more of them?

I actually sold Cutco for a few days a loooong time ago.  I still have the knives from my demo set and love them.  They have never been sharpened and they are better than any other knife we've had from cheap to high end.  Everyone else I know who owns any Cutco knives says the same thing.   I'm not fan of the company or the scheme obviously, but even so.

Just Joe

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #135 on: April 05, 2017, 04:09:52 PM »
I thought Cutco was a generic name  like ACME used to protect the very real brand. ;)

Mezzie

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #136 on: April 05, 2017, 05:10:53 PM »
One of my students practiced a Cutco spiel on me, guided by her trainer/recruiter. She had me saw through the rope with my (professional chef quality) knife, then had me use a totally different motion when using the Cutco knife. I then used that same motion with my knife and cut the rope much more easily.

I don't think Cutco is necessarily crap, but I don't like dishonest marketing tricks like that and pointed it out.

Raenia

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #137 on: April 06, 2017, 07:32:38 AM »
I actually sold Cutco for a few days a loooong time ago.  I still have the knives from my demo set and love them.  They have never been sharpened and they are better than any other knife we've had from cheap to high end.  Everyone else I know who owns any Cutco knives says the same thing.   I'm not fan of the company or the scheme obviously, but even so.

Not everyone you know, anymore ;)  I found that the contoured grip really hurt my hand when I was cutting for any length of time, a problem I've never had with any other brand.  I now use ceramic knives, and I find them much more comfortable and stay sharper than Cutco (which my mom gave me when I moved out, since she was fed up with them.)  YMMV, obviously.

joleran

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #138 on: April 06, 2017, 10:32:20 AM »
Cutco makes well-polished and fit knives out of a middling steel far better known for its corrosion resistance than holding an edge.  They get away with a lot by using the double-d serration pattern, but their paring and Chef's knives are only so-so over time, and just plain bad for the price.  Not the worst option for a home look looking for low-maintenance knives though.

dreaming

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #139 on: April 06, 2017, 11:04:25 AM »
My neighbor just got into LuLaRoe and is already totally despondent. It cost 10k to buy in and she was on the wait list for months for an opening. Now that she's in, she's discovered how hard it is, how little support she gets from the mothership, and how disorganized and poorly run that mothership is. She was in tears over the 10k that she's now positive will be a loss.

I just told her I was sorry, but in my head I was thinking, "Yeah, you really would have been better off starting a side hustle on your home computer for no money and working to build something of your own."

How well you do with Lularoe must be dependent on who you signed up under and how well you can market yourself. My SIL  is making a killing selling it.  The mothership might be awful, but her upline is wonderful I guess.  AND, she's really good at permoting herself.  Personally, I don't like the clothes (if I hear the term buttery soft one more time I swear I'm going to...)  and have not bought anything from her.  Thankfully she has never bothered me with it, but she doesn't need to.  I was in her FB group but got out because it sickened me the cult she has following her.  Really people, you just spent $150 on 3 items, and you're back for more a few days later.  "oh, but that pattern is my unicorn".  She has been doing it for a year, and will probably make close to 6 figures this year.  I kid you not.  THAT is how well she has marketed herself.  If it wasn't for Facebook, Lularoe would NOT be as big as it is.  I don't know why FB allows all the parties (from every MLM).  But since they do, one would think they would cash in on it somehow.  To my knowledge they have not yet done so. 
« Last Edit: April 06, 2017, 11:41:55 AM by dreaming »

hops

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #140 on: April 06, 2017, 11:04:52 AM »
We've hoped for years that my aunt would disentangle herself from a vitamin-peddling MLM scheme, but she's as firmly entrenched as ever. She fervently believes in this company's "health mission" and eagerly parrots every line of bullshit they feed her. As often as she can, she travels out-of-state to "conferences" where the brainwashing continues with PowerPoint presentations (full of data from bogus studies paid for by the mothership) and motivational speeches.

The photos she proudly shares of these events are always sad. Mostly she's surrounded by underemployed women in their fifties who long to be taken seriously, to be accepted as an expert in something, but their lack of scientific knowledge is staggering and their sales pitches to the chronically ill are nonsensical and wildly insensitive. Basically, if you're sick, you aren't trying hard enough. We have the power to heal ourselves through nutrition, and their products can help.

I've noticed many of her associates are fond of sharing memes suggesting that prescription drugs are a scam, which always makes me chuckle. Generic immunosuppressants to control diseases that might otherwise land me in the hospital cost $10 for a 90-day supply. The immune-boosting vitamins she's been trying to get me to buy for the last five years cost $30 to $75 per month.
« Last Edit: April 06, 2017, 11:10:21 AM by hops »

Fomerly known as something

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #141 on: April 06, 2017, 02:28:34 PM »
I love to talk about the summer I was employed by Amway corporation.  Notice I said employed, I interned at the mother ship in their International PR department.  They paid really well for a LCL area internship  1.5 to 2x the minimum wage and 40% more than my previous summer jobs working as a lifeguard. 

I got to sling BS about how Nope Amway was not a Ponzi scheme because there are real items you buy.  I also got to escort a guest of the company to the new "direct distributors" conference, and tell the nice suckers that no I have no intention of "owning" my own business.   

jeromedawg

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #142 on: April 29, 2017, 12:17:51 AM »
Rodan and Fields has been popping up all over my FB feed with our friends who are signing up. And yes, a majority of them are SAHMs. Is it because they're just bored? Or is it because they *need* the extra income? BTW: I've always been curious but what do people actually make from these schemes.

Anyway, it can be annoying at times when they tag or invite us to stuff. Fortunately, zero to nil house parties but some FB event parties. The latest friend who signed up 'accidentally' sent some invite to where when you click on it, it auto-joins you to the group LOL. I think it was genuinely unintentional but it is annoying. I haven't seen that many posts flooding the feed yet, but once that happens I'm going to mute it all. Hopefully that won't happen because these friends of ours in particular we have never known to be pushy like that. Money changes people though, so we'll see...

My sister-in-law was doing Stella & Dot for a while and I think stopped. Now I think she's trying to do "FB consultant" advertising for random jewelers, shoe stores, etc. My wife told me that she charged an "hourly" rate for posting ads on behalf of a jeweler because she said she would only spend several hours per week posting ads for them. I'm not quite sure what goes into posting ads besides writing a semi-lengthy post but I would think anyone in their right mind would pay by the post and not by the hour. How can you be sure you aren't paying someone $300 per hour to post 5 posts that only took 20 minutes to post total). Not to bash my SIL or anything but I think this is stemming from a desire to go SAHM - I don't think MLM and FB advertising is the route to take to replace a high six-figure salary though... The problem is that she's the bread-winner and my brother doesn't want her to stop working (and rightly so if you feel the need to take your family on international vacations every year, buy every gadget you could ever want, and buy all the designer clothes/shoes/jewelry you could ever want, in addition to mortgage and car payments)

My wife has a couple other friends who do Norwex and Usborne. We actually ordered a few Usborne books for our son, which are pretty good (one is a Chinese-learning book). We were considering buying some Norwex stuff but never ended up doing it. I guess the thought of reusable/sustainable/antimicrobial is appealing, but can't you just do all that with microfiber or whatever? And here comes the sales pitch in 3...2...1...

Ugh and finally, my wife's parents have a ton of friends who are into Amway and some other Korean/Chinese MLM scheme that sells them magic bar soap, magic toothbrushes, magic air purifiers, magic light bulbs that eat cigarette smoke, magic bidets, and magic everything and anything else you can imagine. And boy do they buy the magic... they bought a $700 bidet for themselves and then ordered one for us. They were super-mad when we told them we didn't want it, especially because they couldn't return it. So they had to find another sucker-friend to buy it off them - fortunately, they had no problems reselling it to another sucker. I don't think they got any commission of that though hahahaha!

On that note, I don't get why more husbands don't have their SAHM's research and analyze deals and areas to invest in for REI... that would be far more productive time spent. I've already told my wife (currently SAHM) to prepare herself for this, as well as to get ready for balancing the books once we start acquiring properties (she's an accountant). LOL. 
« Last Edit: April 29, 2017, 12:43:32 AM by jeromedawg »

englishteacheralex

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #143 on: April 29, 2017, 05:47:10 AM »
Something about this stuff really, really depresses me. About seven years ago I was invited to a "jewelry party" by a lady from my church. Rad! We're going to make jewelry! I don't know you that well, but you seem great and I'd love to become better friends with you!

Um, no. It was a party selling some kind of jewelry and then trying to recruit all of us to also sell it. I felt so disoriented. Why would I buy jewelry at a party? I buy modest, longlasting jewelry to make myself look more professional. I buy it from department stores when they are having a sale. I have about three nice pieces and a few costume pieces. That's it for jewelry. I dislike really cheap jewelry because it looks terrible pretty quickly.

But why would I buy expensive jewelry that looks cheaply made? And...I guess you weren't that into being friends, huh?

Since then I've gotten invites to parties for all this stuff. I'm pretty religious and an active member of my church. The MLM parties always makes me so sad. It feels like exploiting something so precious--relationships--I always say no and then have to work hard to not judge the person and resent them for using friendship for financial gain. I don't boycott the parties because I am afraid of caving to pressure to buy (I know I would never cave! Just not in my nature) but because I disagree so vehemently with their very premise.

aceyou

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #144 on: April 29, 2017, 06:58:14 AM »
My coworker does the Lulularue, or whatever it's called with the leggings. 

Amazingly, the staff is VERY happy that she is doing this.  They are buying leggings from her like they cure cancer.  I was first shocked thats she would consider this a viable thing to do, and more shocked that she is actually selling.  I will say that I have no idea if this is actually turning a profit though...no idea there. 

Yuck!!!!!

Travis

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #145 on: April 29, 2017, 07:04:34 PM »
It feels like exploiting something so precious--relationships--I always say no and then have to work hard to not judge the person and resent them for using friendship for financial gain.

That's MLM marketing strategy in a nutshell.  The parent company is counting on your inability to say no to a friend since the majority of their down-trace vendors don't know how to do actual marketing.

StockBeard

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #146 on: April 30, 2017, 12:15:59 PM »
BTW: I've always been curious but what do people actually make from these schemes.

It is now well documented that more than 95% of the participants in these schemes lose money.
Of the 5% remaining, the vast majority makes well below minimum wage.
In some countries like Canada these companies have a legal obligation to release their numbers so you can easily find numbers. And these are never pretty, even though they try really hard to fudge them by not counting what they call "inactive members". For the MLMs that don't release their numbers, you have to assume the numbers are even worse.

My little brother is with one of them, peddling Aloe vera gloop. The only reason he believes he is making money is because he is not counting his own consumption ( which is pretty much compulsory for him to qualify for commissions) as an expense.

LiveLean

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #147 on: April 30, 2017, 06:05:10 PM »
At 24, in 1994, a then-girlfriend of mine got roped into a Mary Kay party at a mall. I went along. One of those hideous women said, "She'll be making more than you in no time." I was doing really well at the age of 24 and said, "Great. I make X. At what point will she be making that?" The woman quickly found someone else to talk to. (Dropped that GF for a number of reasons related to poor judgment and finances.)

Circa 2003, wife and I get invited to a wine party -- I had no concept of at-home MLM parties at the time. Our oldest is a year old, one of our first times out, paid for a sitter for the first time. I thought one brought a bottle of wine, so I grabbed a bottle from our stash. Walked in a little late right into the sales pitch. Stared darts at the douche husband the whole time, never spoke to them again.

Circa 2006, lots of friends selling Mona Vie. Said it gave them great energy, blah, blah, blah. I told them if some $60 fruit juice made that dramatic of an effect on their well-being, they must have some pretty crappy diets that could be improved in a lot of other areas for far less money.

In recent years, I co-authored a book with a guy who didn't want to do any sort of promotion. Said he found it cheesy. A month later his wife got into Rodan & Fields and she is relentless on FB . She got the Lexus, like some of the Mona Vie people who did well early. But just as $60 snake oil fruit juice goes away, so too will overpriced skin care.

Here's my rule for family and friends: You may mention your MLM to me once and I will forgive you for your stupidity. Second time, you're dead to me.
« Last Edit: April 30, 2017, 06:09:56 PM by LiveLean »

Gone_Hiking

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #148 on: April 30, 2017, 10:21:24 PM »
It feels like exploiting something so precious--relationships--I always say no and then have to work hard to not judge the person and resent them for using friendship for financial gain.

That's MLM marketing strategy in a nutshell.  The parent company is counting on your inability to say no to a friend since the majority of their down-trace vendors don't know how to do actual marketing.

A while back, I met a woman who was selling Mary Kay or something like that.  She seemed really into me and I had no idea why.   One day she wanted to meet me for ice cream.  When I got there, she was not alone.  With her sat a woman who was her sales lead.  Out of the blue, the sales lead started recruiting me hard for sales position.  Was I making enough money?  Would I like more?  She mentioned the absolutely fabulous cruise.  She suggested I could be very effective among immigrant women like myself.  Because I have that immigrant entrepreneurial work ethics.   Nothing like being patronizing and playing a little stereotype to convince people to your position, no?  I got up and left as soon as I finished my ice cream.

I learned then how one advances in these organizations: by recruiting people and getting a cut of what the recruits sell.  The woman was so much into me because she thought I was going to make her money.   Fake friends I need not, and neither does anybody else.

jeromedawg

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Re: No, I won't buy into your MLM
« Reply #149 on: April 30, 2017, 10:47:20 PM »
How does the "Lexus gift" work with R+F anyway? I saw on Reddit something about how you get the Lexus but if you don't meet sales goals any given month you're on the hook for the payment(s). LOL. I'm not sure why anyone would sign up for this without researching it more... or if they claim they did their "research" I wonder what sources they used.