Thursday, October 14, 2010

Amway - The Bottom Line?

In my point of view. one of the most critical mistakes that many IBOs make is to ignore the bottom line when analyzing their Amway businesses. Most business building IBOs, sadly, are taught by their uplines to ignore losses, or to view losses as investments into their businesses, or that money is really not important. Some upline may teach that the business is more about making friends or being a nicer person. All of these things may be nice side benefits of reading personal development books, etc., but when running a business, the most important goal should be to turn a profit.

For many IBOs, their businesses consist of listening to standing orders, attending functions and meetings, but not focused on selling products and earning a net profit. And for most IBOs, nobody can blame them as upline may give them bad advice and because the Amway business is person to person selling, it is so inefficient that many groups end up teaching IBOs to simply buy their own volume and get others to join the business. For groups who operate primarily in this manner, you are probably running an illegal business because new and existing IBOs can profit only by continuing to add more downline IBOs in the hope that they too, will buy their own volume and sponsor others.

When you look carefully at the business plan, whether it is 6-4-2, 9-4-2 or some other variation, the majority of these business building IBOs will have low volume and likely to earn only about $10 a month. But to earn that $10 a month, you are likely to have to spend $300 on products, and if you are on standing order, voicemail and functions, then you likely spend anywhere from $150 to $250 monthly to participate in the teaching system. Thus these IBO's bottom line is a net loss! It is only when you are able to sponsor many downline that your losses will get smaller and you will only profit when you have a sizable downline. That means your bottom line is a loss. And while Amway defender will argue that Walmart doesn't even give you $10 a month, you can certainly get more products from Walmart for $300 than you can get from Amway for the same price. Walmart will match any advertised price on a product that they and a competitor may carry. Also, Walmart's advertising reaching millions of people, which is much more effective than person to person. While Amway runs some ads now days, they do not directly drive customers to IBOs. The vast majority of IBO business is still to themselves and their downline, and not to non IBO customers.

I challenge IBOs to look objectively at their bottom lines. It is likely a new loss. If it is, ask your upline how long this is expected to last. Set hard goals and if you are doing what is advised by upline and results to not improve, you may have to ask yourself what willl change to make your business profitable. Basically, if you aren't adding active downlines and customers regularly, you aren't gooing anywhere and are likely to be running your business at a loss month after month after month. It won't take long before you realize that you have lost thousands if not tens of thousands of dollars.

As a former IBO with a 4000 PV business with eagle parameters, I was not making a net profit. I saw my bottom line and although doing and achieving what my upline advised, there was no money. I decided the effort, time and money invested wasn't worth it. Plus my upline started to interfere in my personal life. I saw my bottom line and wasn't satisfied, and I left Amway. I later discovered the lies my upline had fed me to keep me in the business and to keep me buying tools. It is why I started blogging. For now, my bottom line is to get the truth out about the tools scam run by upline. That is Joecool's bottom line.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

The bottom line is that you are a failure, quitter, whiner, loser and bitter. You couldn't make the business work so now you spend all your time bashing it and justifying your pitiful existence by pretending that Amway is some evil corporation that is trying to take over the wrold.

Joecool said...

I think my persistence is writing the truth about some of the unethical upline practices shows that I'm no quitter. You certainly sound more bitter and angry than I am and in fact, it is people like you that keep re-energizing me when I feel like retiring from blogging.

Jonathan Swift said...

Remove me from this land of slaves,
Where all are fools, and all are knaves,
Where every knave and fool is bought,
Yet kindly sells himself for nought;

Anonymous said...

listen, anon, you pathetic low-life. i'll put my foot up your sorry keister if you don't stop messing with my boy joe. i'm really getting sick of it. so i'll say it again: SHUT UP AND GET A LIFE!

colin said...

I use to wonder if ambots where in business to make money. Id hear nonsense like "dont u want to leave a legacy in this world"? etc. Who on earth cares about leaving a legacy? You're in business to improve your lifestyle and add dollars to your bank account. My next door neighbor sells avon and she's taught unless you sell something you wont make a dime. With amway its' entirely different it seems like very few people are making anything.

Joecool said...

It is sad, but upline will teach you that attending a meeting makes you successful, or that you have become a nicer person. But it is rare that an IBO on the system is actually making nice profits.

Anonymous said...

Hey Anonymous from Canada... That's exactly what your brain washed to believe isn't it; If you aren't in Amway you are a broke loser and if you quit Amway you are a failure, quitter, whiner and loser. Are you making any money (after expenses) as an Amway Business Owner? **DOUBTFUL** Are you losing money? **PROBABLY** Keep Dreaming and keep lining your upline's pockets with the money you spend on over priced product and the tools and functions designed to keep you plugged into the system (brainwashed). Some day you will wake up and realize that you are not in and surely don't own a real business.
>>>>Former Canadian WWDB Lemming<<<<

colin said...

Anon, some of the ambots never wake up. I met peop who've been in the busines for 10 years in amway without making a dime.

Anonymous said...

That's exactly why I'm pushing to the next level in Amway. I'm brainwashed, 100% aware of it, and in love forever more! Happy now?! Hahahhahahahaaaa...!

Joecool said...

Ignorance truly is bliss I guess.

Anonymous said...

Hi! OH! I don't know any of these people in here
I'm from NC.. been their done that! years ago! know them all! Britt, Miller, Yeager, Winters, the whole crowd! I saw thru it like a glass of water! but we had some fun times! I never let those folks get to me! I enjoyed some of the tapes I got back in those days! enlighten to say the least! they was some good teaching! been to GO DIAMOND WEEKEND! FREE ENTERPRIZE WEEKEND! all that other stuff! you have to THINK! for yourself! NOT LET UPLINE think for you! It can be a good business! at least a good retail business! AMWAY! has excellent products! alot better than the cheap BS! you buy in stores! Loc! Dishdrops! SA8! Satinque! just to name a few! didn't do the vitamins and the food bars and all that! but I could sure show a woman how to wash her clothes! effectively! and save money in the process! this stuff is highly concentrated! business is business! bottom line!
I don't think Rich DeVos & Jay Van Andel had all the HYPE in mind years ago when all this came about! they merely wanted to provide a means of income or extra income for families! the BS! tools, weekends, etc! all BS! who needs all that ? think for yourself! the products are some of the best out their! they pretty much sale theirselves! I don't need UPLINE or DOWNLINE! or BILL BRITT or PAUL MILLER! to build a business!
you people need to WAKE UP! think for yourself! build your own business! people do it everyday! and yes! it is FREE ENTERPRIZE! system we live in! for all the AMWAY! HYPE! focus on the products!

Anonymous said...

now if only that were the main push by the upline...