MLM for the gullible

[SpringIsComingAlways]

MLM everywhere on social media...living my own life selling tat @bossgirl

Apart from people at the very top is MLM just aimed at gullible people recruiting more gullible people?

YABU all type of people join MLM and make shedloads of money

YANBU it's just for gullible or vulnerable people

In case anyone doesn't know MLM is multi level marketing.... getting others to sell products you sell, like a pyramid with commission to those above you in the scheme...think YouNique, bodysuit, fake perfumes, smelly candles, make up that is ridiculously overpriced due to commission, etc etc..... they come and come and spread as much as covid

I have a friend who sells scentsy. Ridiculously overpriced tat. She claims to make loads off it and she won a trip to Disney for her and the kids in august. She drives everyone mad putting it all over facebook and getting her family to buy it. Drives me mad.

as pp said they prey on desperate and vulnerable people.

If they did only that, they wouldn't be as prolific as they are. They prey on everyone, not just desperate and vulnerable people.

People can and do make real money at it

Those at the top who make their "real money" from the millions of people further down the tree who pump money they can't afford in to buying themselves up the levels to try and recoup their losses. The vast, vast majority of people in MLMs make peanuts or lose money.

There is no such thing as a good MLM.

I have a friend who I think is in one. Cannot remember the name, it’s a “ come and talk to me about saving money” thing. She posts about holidays she had earned and how her ‘part time work is her full time dream’ she drives a mini with the logo all over it. Her DH is also doing this full time, they have both left paid employment. I am worried and a bit confused how she earns anything and expect it won’t last.

The infiltration of MLMs into all school PTFAs are currently grinding my gears. Selling handcreams in bulk to give to teachers

YANBU. These mlm schemes are evil and should be illegal, imo. They prey on the desperate, the vulnerable and the gullible, people who are down on their luck and want to boost their incomes. What they end up with, of course, is a whole stack of stuff that they've paid for but can't then sell.
The only people who make money out of these schemes are the people at the top. There's no money to be made from actually selling the goods, all the profit is in the commission from the people below who are doing all the actual work.

@Boysarebackintown

I have a friend who I think is in one. Cannot remember the name, it’s a “ come and talk to me about saving money” thing. She posts about holidays she had earned and how her ‘part time work is her full time dream’ she drives a mini with the logo all over it. Her DH is also doing this full time, they have both left paid employment. I am worried and a bit confused how she earns anything and expect it won’t last.

She isn't earning anything and doing the classic MLM things of using other sources of money - savings, family etc. to Fake it Till You Make It. But of course they never make it and just rack up the debt.

@SpringIsComingAlways

Oh dear epic phone changing on spelling

Oh apparently only around 25% of people that join make any money....that's sad.

If you look at MLM Annual Income Disclosure Statements the number is much, much less particularly when you take into account the "pay to play" fees they have to shell out every month to earn bonuses and all the other hidden costs they have to pay to the company. The reps are the customers!

I believe that the actual percentage of reps who make an income after all pay to play costs and expenses is about 3%. The rest spend more than they earn. MLM is a despicable business model.

Apparently you can make more money gambling and only 90% lose money being part of an actual illegal pyramid scheme

I’ve got loads of them on my social media at the moment - FM, body shop, juice plus, Usbourne books. They’re all also on a recruitment push. I’ve been told I can work from my phone 4 times already since Saturday. I can work on my phone anyway (work phone) but I’ve realised you’re a hell of a lot more productive at an actual laptop and so that is not a selling point for me.

One of the many women who selling this shit posted something the other day about supporting your local economy, when you spend with big shops your local economy doesn’t get that income. Then listed a bunch of MLMs with links - Ann Summers and body shop among the list of MLMs. Firstly, Ann summers and body shop are on every high street, they’re a big company. Secondly big companies do support the local economy by employing local people e.g Tesco or amazon.

With covid a number of local fairs have stopped, obviously. Someone started a virtual fair, a chance for small, local businesses to show what they do over Facebook. It seemed lovely and I joined until I realised the woman who started it, is part of two MLMs (clearly not making her millions there is she) and the group is 95% filled with MLMs. Aloe Vera shit, FM, some sort of tablets that will you make 1,000% more sexy and obviously multiples of FM, body shop. This is in an area of about 10,000 people and we’ve got probably 15 MLMs on that one group drowning out a handful of sellers that are actually running a small business.

@Peanutbutterblood

I have one friend who has done very well off an MLM, nearly 6 figures but none of the people (her friends) below her that she recruited have made anything. Not that theyd tell you that on facebook. I think the whole thing is really sad

I think you'll find your friend is lying. I assume that she has a limited company (she should have if she does earn that income), I would go to Companies House website and check out her accounts. These can be very valuable to see the truth about the bots six figure claims. They often contain useful nuggets of info like debts, loans etc., that they won't tell anyone they're trying to recruit. Often too, there is family money or other income and not income from the MLM company they're peddling.

I absolutely hate them, and I hate that when you point out to people they are an MLM they get all defensive and upset you aren’t ‘supporting their business’. It’s not your ‘business’ FFS. I also hate right now they are all ‘manifesting’ as if just wanting good things to happen makes it so. Unfortunately they target people who are vulnerable and don’t understand how it works which is why so many exist.

The ones I know;

Nuskin
Tropic x3
Utility warehouse -lost count
Bodyshop x1
Avon x2
Partylite x2
Scentsy x 2
Flamingo cards x1
Doterra x3
Young living x1
Neals yard -lost count
Arbonne x3

Is Everra (sp) a MLM? I’ve seen a couple of people on my Facebook doing this

This came up in a Schitts Creek episode. Very funny. Turned out most of the town were involved they all sold their stock to each other and were all “Vice Presidents”

@fairgame84

My friend started bodyshop last march and she levelled up twice and makes decent money from it. She puts a lot of time in though and she's good at it. She's a minority though. I have a another friend who's lost money on forever living and partylite.

How do you know she is making 'decent' money? Did she tell you? Well she would because she wants to recruit you to her downline. This is essential to do because just selling the products (which you can also get online and in store very easily) makes only a tiny % commission.

Just think about it, she is projecting a successful at home business in order to attract recruits, all MLM reps do this, they have to.

Levelled up twice means nothing, actually but it does give the illusion of success.

It’s a storyline on Corrie at the moment.

Genuine question - (showing my ignorance 🤔).
Do companies like Slimming World and WW operate as MLMs?

@CigarsofthePharoahs

I have a forever living Hun on my FB. A group of us at my church have a WhatsApp group, mostly for prayer requests. She spammed all over it. Thankfully it went down like a lead balloon. Also nobody wanted to join her on an aloe juice cleanse.

The fl bots can be particularly predatory. I know one who has in the past targetted blind and deaf communities, those with chronic illnesses etc. No one is safe.

One tried to post on a local community fb page I follow and I wrote a reply asking pointed questions about exactly what she was saying. She PMed me saying she was authentic but I got post removed by admin. A couple of other members PMed me afterwards, thanking me for highlighting it.

The one with the mini, I can save you money is utility warehouse

@BloodyDarrener

I'm getting annoyed with my MLM friends who are 'kindly' selling their wares and donating them to NHS workers on your behalf. Guilting people into levelling them up giving them large sales results by using the NHS and charity as their sales pitch.

No Betty, I don't want to buy your bodyshop shit to donate to nurses so you can get paid. I'd rather buy from a shop which is at least not bullshitting me about their reasons for selling it.

(Plus I wouldn't buy Bodyshop again after TRAs got the words woman, women and girls from their websites but still sell multiple products for men.)

This practice is particularly disgusting because although the rep appears not to be making a profit from all the gloop she sells to her friends and family members so she can donate it to xx hospital, in actual fact she is contributing to her own CCs (case credits) that she has to make every month in order to collect her bonus. Reps usually have to buy products themselves in order to make up their monthly CCs and it can work out very expensive. Of course, officially their MLM company will discourage ding such a thing (inventory loading) but we know it happens all the time.

So, the rep will be so grateful that she has been able to dupe and exploit family and friends and not have to pay for products herself that month. Despicable.

@Devlesko

If they are advertising you are expected to goin as far as job centre concerned. Avon advertised on job sites, a friend was told this signing on. Some people have no choice other than to sign up.

They are almost all self-employed so-called 'businesses' though. They are not actual jobs where you become employed. So I can't see how the job centre could possibly enforce it.

I currently have one Younique and one Herbalife "Bossbabe", both asking us to "support my little business". No can do.
Neither of them are stupid, but both fell on hard times due to the pandemic so were easy prey. I hope they come out relatively unscathed.

Do companies like Slimming World and WW operate as MLMs?

I don't think so. They don't rely on consultants hiring other consultants to make money. They do actually sell a service which is the basis of the consultant's commission.

i have four on my fb - one magic slimming coffee, one is nuskin and one forever living and the other is a life coach type one.

they all pounced on me when i was on maternity leave citing that i could make as much money a year working evenings with them so that i could stay home and spend time with my kids like a proper mum.

emphasis on proper mum. i pointed out that i earn great money and didnt think that they could guarantee to match it. oh and also i want to work because its best for everyone.

oh and its a scam.

@ketosavedmylife

Yes she did tell and no she's not trying to recruit me and has no reason to lie to me. She's not vulnerable. She's trying to recruit others but she knows I'm a lost cause as I'd never do it so she doesn't waste her time.
She's a supply teacher and didn't get any work in lockdown one so started bodyshop.
Her husband works full time and has done all the time.
She's levelled up in that she now an area manager, I think that means she gets a free bodyshop branded suitcase on wheels.
She makes approx £200 per month from it but works constantly doing videos and competitions. She gets lots of freebies and uses these as competition prizes or as gifts for family. She enjoys it but says it's hard work. I think she put in about £200 to get started. If she broke down her earnings she'd be on less than minimum wage.

She's not as obsessed as my other friend was when she did forever living as that dominated her life and it was awful being around her. Bodyshop friend only talks about it when I ask, she sees it more of a hobby than a job and she still seems normal.

Someone targeted me after I posted in a Facebook group for people with a chronic illness to support each other. She was trying to sell me some herbal vitamin shit that she claimed cured her. Amazing considering it's an incurable lifelong disease and there are currently some very clever scientists spending millions on finding a cure for it. It's a shame these highly educated scientists seem to have overlooked herbal shit by hunbots in their research.

I've been approached by the travel one too. You have to pay a joining fee of about £150 then it costs about £40 a month for access to the magic back office booking system. Then you can post pictures showing how much cheaper you can get a hotel than booking.com. You put the same hotel, same dates, etc. and just happen to miss off that the booking.com room is a luxury sea view room with breakfast included and yours is the basic room overlooking the car park on room only hence it's cheaper.