Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

I HATE multi-level marketing. I hate the pressure, I hate the promises, I hate products, and I hate the concept.

If I get asked ONE MORE TIME to buy a worthless bottle of juice that will solve every problem in the history of the world, I just might take a swing at somebody.

So here's the question...

How many of you:

1) Have been asked to sign up for ML Marketing stuff as a result of your association with a church;

2) Signed up for something;

3) What was it?

4) Did you make money?

5) Did you lose money?


I believe one of the unpardonable sins is to try to sign up someone for Melaleuca or that juice stuff at church!

Please people, just let me go to church!!!! The pressure at offering time is bad enough!!!

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

Life is good!! I have no idea what you are talking about. :)

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

AvonAmwayMelalucaReliveShackleyExcellPrepaidlegalH erbalifeSeasilverFortuneHiTech

I know nothing but Christ and Him crucified.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

:ursofunnyWell, I need to move to your town, then!

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

I just fell on the floor laughing.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

I'm currently involved in MXI, I do NOT use church relationships. I am very protective of my relationships. I would help someone if they were interested, but I am very cautious. I don't want to ruin a relationship over money/business.....just not worth it! I also don't use AFF for it either.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

I had a guy make an appointment recently and I should have known. He's pitched long-distance, juice, pills....you name it. I wish he'd just go get a real job.

So this time he pitched me this water stuff that, of course, fixes everything. His BIG sales pitch was, "Pastor, this will really help you control your weight."

And he was, at least, 150 lbs heavier than me. I really wanted to say, "Well then, I'll sign up and give my miracle water to YOU."

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

I've been surprised not to see the current juice craze on here. What is MXI, by the way?

What do you do when people in the church get militant/aggressive in their sales? I have a really hard time with that.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

This:

:lalala

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

One time a guy invited about four or five of us over for lunch, as soon as we started eating he starts this pitch about Amway, I couldn't get out of their fast enough.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

:ursofunny


Great! I'm gonna teach that! You mentioned a long church history. How many times would you say you've been approached?

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

I have been approached by MANY selling Amway. The first hint that it is MLM is when they ask the question "Are you happy with your job/income?", followed by an extreme amount of ducking and dodging when asked who they represent -at least at first.

It is unfortunate that Christians are suckered, errrr, sucked into these schemes so easily. It is the reason the Dennis Less targets small town Christian farmers so much for his free energy machines. If you believe the Earth is 6-7 thousand years old, your far more likely to believe that HE has a device which can generate free electricity to fill your whole families needs.
http://kingsandpriests.net/

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

You forgot Alpine Air in that mix. :)

http://www.air-purifier-power.com/im...r-purifier.jpg

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

Our latest craze at church is various electric companies. People are always dying to save us tons of money on our electric bill.

"Oh, rats. I signed a two-year contract with my current company."

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

For several years now I answer that with "Yes! I am content where God has placed me." That throws them for a loop.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

Not many, actually. Didn't seem to be that big of a thing, in the churches I attended.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

Once before I had a clue (one of those herbal things--I can't even remember the name), and once just as a favor to my sister.

The first one was doomed from the start, even though I had good intentions, simply because when people say "No", I say "okay" and walk away. I don't call people to sell them things, (because I HATE getting calls like that), and when I get together with friends, I just want to drink coffee and talk about my kids. So I am NOT a saleswoman.

Furthermore, I want friends to just be my friends; not a "network." I'm not climbing them to get to the top. :foottap

The only thing I've done recently is bought a membership in Arbonne skin products--but just so I could get discounts, because I LOVE their products. I'm just not interesting in selling. Anything. Ever. Never Ever. :nah

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

It's interesting that in most of the literature of these snake-oil companies, they blatantly target Christians. They tell people to seek out other church members. Are we a gullible bunch or what?

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

But the wonderful thing about MLM is that you don't actually have to do any selling. The people down line from you will do all the work! All you have to do is walk to your mailbox every day to pick up the checks!

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

I wasn't gonna say it! :ursofunny :ursofunny :ursofunny

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

See post 13 and check out the web site link if you have time. :)

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

:ursofunnyAre you REALLY sure???

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

Holy Cow. That's unbelievable. Embarrassing.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

Read some of the evolution/age of the earth threads.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

:ursofunnyYep, we are.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

Never signed up with an MLM due to church but was approached to do Melaluca years go.

Products? The products are not bad, still ok to this day.

Problem? Over priced!

I did "EnviroTech" waterless carwash and other so called "waterless" products.

products? Again they weren't bad. Don't have a problem with the products

Problem? Over priced!

I quit because the product did not sell itself, you had to sell it hard due to the high cost

The sales meetings are a turn off....I find it rather suspicious each meeting is hosted by some guy with a great tan, ultra bright teeth who just came from cancun....AND YOU CAN TOO! yeah right.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

MLMs are not ponzi or pyramid schemes.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

Most have weekly motivational speakers which serve no purpose other then to keep the troops in line.

The speakers go on for an hour or more using catch phrases and words guaranteed to make the people stand up and applaud, without having really anything to do with the product(s) in question.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

My roomie does Mona Vie...a miracle juice that has yet to revolutionalize his life..

You would not believe the claims...dialysis patient takes the stuff and is cured...funny...it would probably kill most dialysis patients as it is loaded with potassium

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

The way they are marketed, they sure are.

Only recently have I actually seen commercials for Amway where they were actually trying to SELL the products. Every rep I ever ran into only tried to sell me into buying in -with promises of wealth and a story or two about someone else in the same town who only works 4 hours a week yet is on track to making over a quarter of a million this year.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

Im sure they got pre set people in the audience to cheer too.

I went to a stockmarket seminar. What they had to say was interesting. Then the bombshell dropped. For a set of DVDs you had to pay like 5k...

They promised you continuing "mentor" by some guy that is supposed to be an expert, but I found out you had to pay for that too.

It was the same sort of sale...guy pitching, doing his little act. The funny thing was when we were not cheering loud enough he acted like a Pentecostal preacher trying to get us "into" it.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

When I graduated with my first degree and was sending out resumes, I sent one to a company looking for a computer guy. They called me back and set me up with for a group interview. It turned out about 30 others showed up for this "interview" and we got to listen to a motivational speaker go on for 45 minutes. The company was Primerica (MLM insurance). And no, they weren't really looking for a "computer guy". This was one of my first big turnoffs to MLM. The second was a year later was a lady decided to go out on a date with me for the sole purpose of trying to sell me an Amway distributorship. And here I thought she liked me for ME!

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

MLMs are NOT pyramid schemes. They are not schemes. They are perfectly legal

MLMs are legitemate businesses...yeah I know that sounds odd, but they are. They involve real products and selling them. All those home parties are a lot like MLMs too...Ive seen very successful home parties selling security products and even sex toys :-).

A Pyramid scheme usually involves no products. Are illegal
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyramid_scheme

A successful pyramid scheme combines a fake yet seemingly credible business with a simple-to-understand yet sophisticated-sounding money-making formula which is used for profit. The essential idea is that the mark, Mr. X, makes only one payment. To start earning, Mr. X has to recruit others like him who will also make one payment each. Mr. X gets paid out of receipts from those new recruits. They then go on to recruit others. As each new recruit makes a payment, Mr. X gets a cut. He is thus promised exponential benefits as the "business" expands.
Such "businesses" seldom involve sales of real products or services to which a monetary value might be easily attached. However, sometimes the "payment" itself may be a non-cash valuable. To enhance credibility, most such scams are well equipped with fake referrals, testimonials, and information. The flaw is that there is no end benefit. The money simply travels up the chain. Only the originator (sometimes called the "pharaoh") and a very few at the top levels of the pyramid make significant amounts of money. The amounts dwindle steeply down the pyramid slopes. Individuals at the bottom of the pyramid (those who subscribed to the plan, but were not able to recruit any followers themselves) end up with a deficit.
Some network or multi-level marketing businesses, which sell real products and rely on the price differentials between the manufacturer's dispatch ramp and the retail counter, may verge on the borderline between "smart" and "scam". However, legitimate network or multi-level marketing businesses can be distinguished from illegal pyramids by their compliance with these three criteria:

1. Substantial sales of products or services to end users
2. Commissions paid only on product usage, not on new enrollments
3. Company buys back the inventory of terminating participants

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

I've heard of them too. Had a friend that was involved with them.

BTW the door to door vaccuum cleaners are sort of the same

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

I understand fully the legal difference between the two -ML and pyramid, but even though a LEGAL MLM company may sell a real product, the way they are sold is really no different in that mathematically it is almost impossible for later recruits in any given city to make any real money, yet they are promised such.
Yes, a pyramid scheme usually involves NO product or service (or could be safely be said to NEVER provide a real product or service), but the charts and funny math seem (to me) to be so close as to be indistinguishable.

Here is a little info about Primerica: http://www.pinktruth.com/index.php?o...617&Itemid=123 Note the very last short paragraph on the page!

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

Absolutely. No matter how you spin it, no matter how it may pass the "legal test", it's a scheme! And you pointed out the key of it all....it's presented as a marketing plan, not because of the value of the products.

The current big thing in my neck of the woods, Mona Vie, is presented as the cure-all for everything including your transmission that's slipping. "Here, try this free bottle that will cost $40 from here on out."

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

Actually the charge for those meetings and make money on them They are not free. They also charge for promo material.

Re: Have You Done ML Marketing?
 

My pastor tells the flock that we are not a source of leads. If your leads don't pan out we even lose fellowship

He is strong against it.