Amway - An Internet War Against Amway?

I was reading an article written by a well known Amway defender who was whining about how there seems to be an internet war against Amway, a war that they seem to be losing. He decries how a google search will turn up more hits on critical sites than positive ones. He hopes that eventually, Amway and/or the IBOAI leadership would read his article and take action. But why would they and who would they take action against? Microsoft and WalMart have many critics, but the braintrust of these companies don't spend time strategizing against their critics, nor do their employees set up blogs defending themselves or attacking their critics.

A very vital question that should be asked is what is the criticism against Amway and is it valid criticism? For example, a common thought is that Amway is a pyramid. Well, it would appear that in most groups, Amway works as a legal pyramid because the compensation structure works in a manner where the upline make much of their profit right out of the pockets of the downline. It is especially prevalent in groups that teach the "buy from yourself" method of doing business. Also, a new IBO gets a measly 3% bonus for reaching the minimum 100 PV level and layers of upline get the lion's share of the bonus, some of them for doing nothing. Sounds like a valid criticism to me. In the case of the tools system, it is also true that uplines make their money almost exclusively from their downline, save for a few guests who may attend functions or purchase other materials.

Another common criticism is that people had bad experiences or knew someone who had a bad experience in Amway. Well, since many IBOs don't make a cent, and the ones who participate in the system usually generate financial losses, it is easy to conclude that many would see that as a negative, especially if they were led to believe that Amway was simple/easy and would lead them to untold wealth with early retirement and lifelong residual income. Some IBOs in the past, myself included were outright lied to about the upline earning significant income from the tools. After quitting and discovering the lies, it left a bad taste in my mouth. Toss in uplines who want control of your life, such as teaching that you should ask permission to have children and you have more scarred former IBOs.

How many people have heard stories of being tricked into attending an Amway meeting? Or how many people were outright lied to to deceived in the recruitment process? Or how many people made up rosy stories about the Amway business to attract prospects? What about other made up fables used to attract and retain IBOs? I still see IBOs claiming that Amway or their LOS saves their marriage, or that they will be retiring their wife next month or buying homes in cash. All nice goals, but generally a pipedream and IBOs who experience this will probbaly sour on the whole experience when they quit.

But the apparent source of the criticism comes from the IBOs themselves. Thus it is the behavior of IBOs and those who adviuse the IBOs who are responsible for what some see as an internet war against Amway. It isn't the critics, it is the IBOs who are carrying out unethical behavior, much of it apprently taught to them by upline, that is responsible for the criticism of Amway. The infamoous IBOFightback thinks Amway should take action. Well, maybe Amway can start by monitoring their LOS leaders and by addressing valid criticism. If people weren't tricked into meetings or told that perfact water can cure cancer and save their marriages, some criticism would vanish into thin air along with the critics.