Any normal person choosing a new career path or applying for or accepting a new job would thoroughly investigate who they are going to work for and any potential risks but these lot are of a different and seemingly rather stupid breed
It is amazing how people seem to think Castle et al are credible! I think it’s a question of vulnerability rather than stupidity though @Sugarplum48 . MLMs are constantly tweaking how they present their opportunity and they are very very convincing, especially if one knows nothing about MLM and haven’t had a ringside seat watching their behaviour over time like we have, to be able to see the contradictions and lies of MLM and their long term uplines.
If I was researching a legitimate company that might potentially employ me I’d probably be able to research them much more easily. I’d be able to look at their structure, salaries, benefits. That company may have a public profile and be regulated in some way. There may be experiences of other employees that I can read - those employees will have nothing to gain by my recruitment so their opinions may be more honest. I might have a formal interview where I’m assessed for my skills and where I can ask questions. It’s easier to be objective.
However if I’m researching an MLM before joining perhaps because I have had low pay or totally inflexible work or I’ve been at home and a bit isolated then I’m probably looking for more than employment and my reasons are already more emotion driven and vague; “time freedom”, “flexibility”, “being part of a great team”, “being with my children”, “not being limited by my education”, “unlimited earning potential”. It feels like MLM offers all those things. It feels like the MLM is really open as there is SO much [deliberately unfathomable] information about compensation plans etc; I don’t understand it all but they are sharing info - that feels legitimate and open. If I’m not having to do too much research before someone like Yawn appears and tells me what I want to hear; that it would be perfect for me, how objective will I stay?
If I’m told “I was struggling like you, but look at me now” then that is a very appealing message; it’s the low barriers to entry version of success. It’s so much more of a draw than the cold hard objective application process for the legitimate employment alternative that may be available to me. If part of my research is looking at the online content of an MLM I’m going to see a parade of “successful” people and it will be very hard for me to uncover the fact that these MLM successes are very rare. I may see anti MLM content but that can be dismissed as negative. I’m not familiar with the concept of confirmation bias.
If I am also not that financially literate then I might not question how it works and that it doesn’t add up. I probably won’t ask to see hard evidence of profit and loss from my upline. If I’ve got concerns they are dismissed and I’m told to trust the process and to ignore people who question it. If I’m going to get “promotion” quickly and get to call myself a “director” or “ambassador” then that feels so full of potential. If someone like Yawn, who seems like she’s on my side, presents things to tick the boxes I clearly want ticked then I may set aside my doubts. Once I’ve signed up, I’ve got all these new friends, I’ve got the initial purchases from family and friends that make me believe this new venture is going to keep working.
It feels like I’ve done loads of research and I really didn’t want to go back to my old job so it’s not my stupidity that’s lead me to MLM it’s my vulnerability to MLMs’ promises (and a lack of understanding about what research is).
I think Huns then fall into two categories. Those who think it’s a sales business and hop from MLM to MLM believing the fault lies with them or those that give up fairly quickly having lost money. The second category are those that enter MLM recognising the potential to recruit or quickly realise what it’s all about. The second category chooses to ignore the victims and start recruiting them regardless of the damage it’s likely to do - they are lied to and they pass those lies on. These are the ones that deserve all that’s coming to them.