To think she's lying or brainwashed - MLM

[queenbee67]

Friend of mine has recently joined one of the big MLMs - let's call it Squash Minus.

I was surprised as she always seemed quite sensible and level headed. Suddenly she's posting inspirational quotes all over Facebook and talking about how much she's earning and how great her new 'business' is...while trying relentlessly to recruit other people. I didn't have her down as a liar so I'm wondering if it's possible that she really believes she's doing well or maybe she really is?

I don't know a lot about these companies but I tend to think they're probably not the most legitimate way to earn a crust. What do you think? Has anyone had any first hand experience?

[Fizbosshoes]

A woman I knew from a toddler group once posted on fb about some miracle cure that she discovered after feeling low and run down as a new mum. There was something weird about the post and it looked like a copy and paste and not the sort of stuff someone would actually write. (Even my hair was shinier and nails felt stronger type of thing) Then it occured to me it was an MLM. Weirdly enough she popped up on fb a few years later asking for a pick me up as she was feeling rundown. My first thought was , why arent you still using the mystery miracle product that you were promoting a few years ago .......but most of the people that answered were herbal life reps so maybe it was a deliberate recruiting ad...?

[LavenderEast]

@ReginaTheEvilQueen

Ive had to unfriend/block one of these relentless mlm bots, at last count she was doing 8 different ones

Occasionally Dead? Im lost on that one 😂

Forever Living

[Thewiseoneincognito]

I have one on my Facebook hunning about with the Squash Minus powders and pills. Her stories and feed are all about how amazing they are and have changed her life allowed her to move her ‘business’ abroad and ‘Payday posts’ are always laced with vague claims of £100k bonuses.

Her before and after pictures are simply an ad for Instagram filters and the benefits of using a hair brush. On Her ‘live chats’ she always looks strangely the same as before she started on these lotions and potions. In fact if anything she looks more tired and exhausted than when she had a normal 9-5.

Posts about get your order in fast it’s all selling out are usually crammed full of her up down sideways lines commenting how they’ve got theirs ordered hun as if actual customers of hers. It’s all so scammy and blatantly obvious how desperate MLMs get when the 🔥 starts to burn out.

[ReginaTheEvilQueen]

Ahh thank you! I had got the others, but this one was really bugging me 😂

[CirclesWithinCircles]

They're seriously annoying. I accidentally liked one post by an acquaintance who did it, cur her messaging me to ask "what are your fitness goals for this year, maybe I can help you lose weight and get fit". I had to message back telling her my British Athletics accredited coach wouldn't be happy with me discussing my training plan with non-athletes but since it was aimed at getting me to run sub 38 for 10k, I hardly need to lose weight!

[acatcalledjohn]

@Fizbosshoes

A woman I knew from a toddler group once posted on fb about some miracle cure that she discovered after feeling low and run down as a new mum. There was something weird about the post and it looked like a copy and paste and not the sort of stuff someone would actually write. (Even my hair was shinier and nails felt stronger type of thing) Then it occured to me it was an MLM. Weirdly enough she popped up on fb a few years later asking for a pick me up as she was feeling rundown. My first thought was , why arent you still using the mystery miracle product that you were promoting a few years ago .......but most of the people that answered were herbal life reps so maybe it was a deliberate recruiting ad...?

I'd be very tempted to recommend the original miracle product she tried to flog, or mention the original miracle product and casually ask if it has stopped working

[Fizbosshoes]

I'd be very tempted to recommend the original miracle product she tried to flog, or mention the original miracle product and casually ask if it has stopped working

She never actually named the product in her first spiel because it was all "pm me if you want to know more" (which I didnt) but I was tempted to ask if the previous cure had been discontinued!

[GiveTheGirlAGun]

I had one message me to tell me about their new foundation. I declined because I use cover up foundation. "Oh, we have some great products for getting rid of scars and it will look loads better." I have a cleft repair that is not going anywhere. Stupid cow.

[MikeWozniaksGloriousTache]

A friend used to sell JP shit. I’m pretty sure she doesn’t sell it now but when she did she did say she didn’t make that much from it, I think it gave her a bit of pocket money and odd bonuses like a handbag but it wasn’t a career.
She still feeds it to her kids which I find astonishing as she must know it’s bollocks.

[Arianrhod01]

A friend's sister also was suckered into "Squash Minus" a few years ago... I would say that she is certainly their target demographic, low income, single Mum, pretty socially isolated. She came on a night out with us and after a few G&Ts, she admitted that on a good month she only took home around £80 if she is lucky. When you consider the amount that "reps" are expected to spend purchasing the products, the vast majority of the vulnerable people that have been ensnared into the pyramid scheme are making significant losses, only plunging them into debt and further financial hardship. It was heart-wrenching that the aforementioned woman stayed loyal to the MLM in question despite the losses made as you could see that the MLM gave her access to an extensive-albeit virtual-network of like minded vulnerable women that unfortunately she probably would not have had access to otherwise. She is now a "Business Bombshell", the CEO of which is from "Squash Minus". The marketing is all sickeningly pink and girly using the captions #bossbabe #hun, so so manipulative. These MLMs really make my blood boil!

[idontlikealdi]

A woman approached me in a shopping centre car park one day when I was unloading baby twins into the pram - she gave me some spiel about the wonders of fucking aloe vera and how I could fit it in around looking after very small babies and make a fortune from home yada yada.

I was sleep deprived and could have done with some extra cash at the time. Fortunately I knew what she was on about and told her to feck off. Targeting vulnerable new mothers is pretty disgusting behaviour on every lev el. She was literally hanging around the car park to see who she could suck in.

[MindGrapes]

@Quaagars

Urgh. (At your post, that is.)
I'm a SAHM, never done an MLM scheme but I'm not about to laugh or sneer at those who do.
Sometimes you want to be able to bring a bit of extra money in, and this is a way of doing it (whether via Usborne, Body Shop, or whatever)
(Yes aware there's a whole other argument out there intertwined such as not paying enough, promises of earning shitloads etc)

I love how this thread is full of links to resources explaining how people lose money on MLMs (£hundreds if not more), people's experiences of losing money or family losing money on them, links to explainers showing how nearly all but 0.1% of people who do them are unable to make money due to the structure of the scheme - it's a built-in feature, not a failure of the sellers... and that it actively encourages you to lie to your friends and family and other ethically dubious practices...

and what Quaagars gets from the thread is that we are 'laughing at people for making money'.

Did you just disagree for the sake of it? Or are you genuinely unaware of the practices of Younique, Scentsy, Herballife, Juice Plus, Forever Living etc?

[IbrahimaRedTwo]

Both friends were in a vulnerable lonely predicament at the time. MLMs are extremely morally questionable

Yes, but they aren't just victims in it, they are the perps as well. You get scammed and you become a scammer.

[Springsprung8]

I read a really good blog about MLMs - ellesbeautyblog. She joined an MLM and descfibes the brainwashing that happened! Good read

[Springsprung8]

ellebeaublog.com/

[TableFlowerss]

@tillytoodles1

A friend has started doing a skincare range via MLM, she talks about it all the time and says her skin has never looked better. She's 60 and looks just the same.

😂😂 made me laugh

[TableFlowerss]

@babbaloushka

I found that MLM blog and it's so interesting, the exploitation is sickening. These poor women.

It’s more their poor friends/family I’d say, getting --forced-- in to having to attend ‘parties’ and feel totally pressured to to buy these ‘amazing’ over priced products!!!

Hard selling the friends and family for your own gain isn’t going to end well....

[BrightYellowDaffodil]

What is it about women that makes us fall for this?

I suspect there's several reasons. Women still tend to be the stay-at-home parent if there is one, and MLMs promise that you can make your fortune while working around other things, such as childcare/school pickups etc - given the scarcity of good, flexible part-time jobs the MLM set up must seem attractive. Secondly, I think women are more likely to have lower work-related self-esteem (to go by research into promotions, in that women are more likely to wait until they have all the qualifications/experience before applying, whereas men will tend to have a bash) and MLMs are very good at a) preying on this and b) presenting a female-friendly work environment.

Then you have the social aspect - MLMs trade heavily on recruitment through people you already know so women's social circles would seem a natural target. Top it all off with a 'female empowerment' bow (#bossbabe ) and you've got the perfect recipe for indoctrinating people into your scam recruiting.

[TableFlowerss]

@Katiejanej

I run a social media business, and the whole reason I run my own business is that I don’t have to report to people. An MLM seems like a direct sales job with horrific bosses that you don’t get paid for? And actually costs you to do. And you alienate friends and family, leave your self respect at the door. It’s got all the negatives of a job, and none of the benefits, and all the downsides of self employment with none of the benefits. It’s sad that people, mainly women get caught up in them.

You’ve nailed it in this paragraph!

[PandemicAtTheDisco]

I get really annoyed when my neighbour tells me about her earnings from the products she's sold.

She might have sold £400 worth of product but she hasn't earned £400.

She's forgotten to take off her purchase costs for the £400 worth of products she's sold and any other costs such as packaging, brochures, samples etc plus the products she's bought herself to make the order up to the minimal order amount.

[GladAllOver]

I think some people do believe it. After all some people believe covid is a conspiracy. You can't argue with stupidity.

[Anonmousse]

I read on here that apparently the job centre sometimes direct people to MLMs as an actual job, which I think is awful. They'll probably end up being way worse off than being on UC

[PandemicAtTheDisco]

The job centre were pushing a self employed scheme a few years ago and I think a few advisors were misled and suggested MLMs without really knowing much about them. I think it was betterware and kleeneze they were promoting.

[Garliccoriander]

With the job centre you can fake it till you make it. They cannot check anything due to GDPR and they do not have the time.

[BSintolerant]

Here’s a link to Merchants of Deception, written by Eric Scheibeler. The author got suckered into Amway through friends he made in the Mormon Church and discovered just how deceptive and manipulative those at the top of the pyramid really are. The part where he found out about the training tools scam was fascinating. There are certainly parallels with other MLMs like Forever Living, Younique, and Juice Plus (or Sometimes Dead, Poonique, and Squash Minus). I’m still laughing at those!

www.ratbags.com/rsoles/books/merchants_of_deception.pdf