One of the things that many Amway uplines will talk about with their downline is debt. Many IBOs and prospects join Amway, hoping that Amway will help them eliminate debt, by providing some extra income. What many IBOs find out though, is that they end up more deeply in debt, not because of Amway necessarily, but often because of the pressure to purchase tools and function tickets. While getting out of debt is a good idea, the same upline may advise that person to go deeper in hock to participate in Amway and the training (tools) system.
Eliminating debt on the surface, is a good thing. However, I believe that many uplines only want IBOs to eliminate debt so they can free up discretionary monies that can be channeled into tool purchases, which uplines profit from. So while the advice seems sound, it still ends up as a self serving piece of advice. If you are an IBO or a prospect, is your upline advising you to eliminate debt and then turning around and telling you to attend "all" functions? If so, they are simply helping you clear up debt so you can obtain more of it by making them wealthy via tool purchases.
As a WWDB IBO, I heard the mantra about getting rid of debt. It sounded good to me, but I was floored when the same upline told us it was okay to go deeper in hock if it was to further our business, or in other words, to buy more standing orders or to attend functions. I could not understand why it was okay to create more debt, but only to "invest" in your business. If debt is bad, then functions and other tools should be cut as well, until the IBO can reasonably afford to participate in the system. IBOs, in my opinion. should be using profits from the business in order to purchase tools. If there is no net profit, then that IBO should decide whether or not the tools are worthy of an investment. Even if an IBO has some profits, the IBOs should determine whether to bank the profit or to channel them towards tool purchases. This needs to be said: There is no evidence that tools work, unless you ask the people selling the tools.
Too many IBOs trust their upline and make initial and ongoing purchases of tools, and then continue to do so without seeing tangible results. I believe this is why IBOs are taught to trust and have faith. Or that success is right around the corner. It keeps an IBO going, even in the absence of results. Hopefully an article like this can bring awareness to IBOs and potential IBOs. Good luck to those who disregard this information.
I know it is really easy for you to blame others and make excuses, however might it just be that you lack judgement, are not a good salesperson and clearly lack the ability to run your own business? I'm not an Amway distributor but after 10 years of complaining and whining about the same thing...might the issue be with you and not the process or company. You have excuses for every person that disagrees with you yet you have never take responsibility for your own failure. Time for you to man up and own your failure.
ReplyDeleteWhat a pile of guano. Can you point out where I have laid blame or made excuses? Funny how these "drive by" comments often accuse me of things I haven't remotely done. It sounds like some canned answer you learned at an Amway function.
ReplyDeleteIf I clearly lack the ability o run a business, why did I successfully run an Amway business fro 0 to 4000 PV?
I only stopped because the business did not provide the income that I was expecting. It was upline who gave excuses as to why I wasn't making a net profit after doing what I was told and having the proper business parameters.
Maybe the diamonds should man up and take responsibility for their lies and deceit.
To Anonymous at 11:01 PM --
ReplyDeleteYou're "not an Amway distributor" but you've been reading Joe Cool's anti-Amway blog for ten years.
Huh? You're here to defend a company that you're not involved with?
You're a lying sack of shit. There's no way in hell you'd be reading this blog so faithfully if you didn't have some sort of commitment to the Amway racket.
Try your lies on your down-line. They're more gullible.
Hi. I was a former IBO for roughly less than 2 months. I quit last month after profited only $12.44 after spending 360 dollars on PV (business expenses not included). To me that was a huge loss because unless I hassle family, friends and strangers to buy those overpriced products and join the business then I will start earning more. Therefore in the mean time I will continue to lose every month until I find prospects so I can earn from them.
ReplyDeleteIt was so hard for me to recruit because I feel like I'm always lying to them when they want specific details of what the business is all about. But since I was trained to not mention anything about Amway or wwdb that put me in a horrible position. If this business is such a great opportunity why do I need to be shady and secretive?
I decided to quit after losing money and got so sick of weekly meetings and seminars. Every meeting consists of a same board plan and uplines brainwashing IBO's into thinking this is the only way to financial freedom (same for seminars). After going to several meetings and my first family reunion with glen and joya baker I felt like I was in some kind of brainwashing cult. These people are worshiping them like they are gods. I felt so ashamed at that seminar and just wanted to leave. I was extremely when it was over.
I was lied to when my sponsor (she's my coworker) and mentors that no one earns anything from me. That was complete BS. If they didn't earn from me then why would they want to recruit me? I felt betrayed because she's my close friend and we work together. This whole thing made me realized that she would rather pick money over our friendship. She's been in it for 2 years and haven't found anyone to be her down line except me but I already quit. She tells me that she makes money but i doubt it because she doesn't have customers or down line. She mainly buys unnecessary products each month just to get her 150 PV. I asked her how much she really profited for the last 2 years but she wouldn't tell me. One of the policies in our team is that no one is allow to ask anyone how much money they have made so far.
There were red flags before I joined and even more after I joined. I decided to look past it because I figured my close friend wouldn't lie to me therefore I put my guard down. It got so bad that I could no longer look the other way. I confronted her and she said that everything is tax deductible and everything will go back to me so basically I don't lose anything. Yeah....i really don't think so.
Anyway, I am very happy that I left scamway because I now have time to spend with family and friends without having to always bring up scamway. They are sick of hearing me talk about it. Honestly I'm sick to hearing myself talk about it too haha. I can relax when i go out without having to recruit. I wish I had research and read your blogs before launching to save me from 2 months of misery. Im not close to be free but at least my conscience is clear. I'm blessed with a decent job and decent pay so for now I will appreciate what I have. I definitely will not invest my hard earn money to feed the uplines nor taking money from my down line for my own benefits. I really enjoy your blogs and you are spot on. Keep on blogging and make others aware of this scam.
Your friend is definitely lying to you.
ReplyDeleteNobody makes money in Amway without having a down-line, since it is next to impossible to sell the Amway products to non-IBO buyers. Sure, you can sell some to family and close friends, but that can't go on forever. Amway stuff is simply non-competitive with other products, because few people want the junk.
As for your business expenses being tax deductible, this is also a lie. You can declare a business loss on a startup business for a year, but after that the government classifies it as a hobby, and the tax deduction is disallowed. The IRS is especially watchful of Amway, since so many dishonest Amway IBOs try to recoup their losses by angling for a tax deduction. Claiming Amway for business losses will only get you dragged in for an audit.
If your friend has been in Amway for two years, she's probably a lifer. She's living on hopes and dreams, since she's certainly not making any money from the business.
And this is why Amway makes the rule that you MAY NOT ASK anybody how much they are making in their Amway business. If you found out that everyone around you was going broke just like you, you'd realize in a flash that the whole thing was nothing but a ripoff.
Having been courted by an Amway upline, I had concerns that were never addressed so I did my research into costs and the point system that's used. I was taken aback by how much you need to 'invest' every month if you really want to be 'dedicated' then there's the bullshit line they feed about being gb there for family. Yeah maybe the diamonds and uo spend a lot of time with the family but everyone else works a fuoltime job and then goes out to meet people or going to weekly meeting where you're feed the same crap/hear the same stories.
ReplyDeleteI went to 2 of the in house meetings, with the same upline, and heard The same speech twice. I can not imagine hearing that speech once a month forever. Or listening to the audios of basically the same generic speach.
My wife and I talked about it we can't see dedicating all the free time to this and spending just in tickets/audios/books/etc in order to be in...
The upline Said in the second group recruit that he'd gone back to work at his job. If the system is so good why did he need to go back to work? I was gonna ask but we called it off after that meeting.
Enough was enough
Thanks for you reply. I am glad to get all the answers I have been looking for since they wouldn't tell me because they were afraid I was going to quit. Let's just say the friendship because my coworker and I is no long the same as before. She became distant from me. I hope she will realize what a scam this is and quit before she goes into debt. I want financial freedom but I want to do it the right way. This is definitely not it.
ReplyDeleteMy menntor has been in it for 4 years now and she drives a beat up car, still lives with her parents because she's not able to pay monthly rent on her won. She also told me that she's not able to afford a new car just yet. Yet at the same time she was telling me how this business is helping her out tremendously. It just doesn't match up. All lies from left to right.
I'd like to know how this company claims all these profits by hawking 15$ toothpaste and 20$ shampoos! Give me a brrreak! It's obvious this is all a front for international money laundering, human traffiking and gun running. For crying out loud people they're mfing Calvinist pieces of sh*t!
ReplyDeleteOne big seller for Amway is their vitamins. The vitamins are generic in nature but premium in price. Distributors are told to self consume these products and to sponsor like minded people to leverage product volume. It all sounds reasonable and achievable until you talk to people and mention Amway only to get funny looks from those people.
ReplyDeleteBetween functions and standing orders and other fees along wit the overpriced products you start off in the hole probably around -$400
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't appear you can sell enough to dig out of that hole so tell only other way is to sponsor others into a hole. If you put about 30 people in a hole you'll break even and then all the rest that go in the hole from that point becomes your profit margin... It's literally a matter of financially hurting your friend and family for your personal gain... 99% of the people quit before they get to the profit point
To Anonymous at 10:17 AM --
ReplyDeleteYou're absolutely correct. You won't break even in Amway until you have at least 30 IBOs in your down-line, and you have to work endlessly to convince them to stay. When one leaves, he must be replaced.
Part of the disguised overhead in Amway is the monthly requirement of 100 PV, which must be made even if you don't need any of the stuff that you buy. Without that 100 PV, you won't be able to get a dime for your labor.
You know what PV means? It means that you pay for the privilege of being in Amway by being forced to buy stuff that you neither want nor need, and which you cannot sell to retail customers. It means that you are a "captive market' for Amway products -- products that could NEVER compete openly with rival brands in a store.
To Anonymous December 13, 2021 at 6:58 PM
ReplyDeleteA 100 PV requirement? Gosh, your AMO got off way easy. In URA, we had to do 300 PV by the 5th of the month. But in reality, Upline would rip you a new one if your Ditto wasn't processed on the 1st of the month with at least 300 PV.
By the time I had enough and left URA, they were pushing for 500 PV a month by the 5th with a goal of having 500 PV by the 1st.
Took me longer than most to get out, but at least I did. And the main catalyst? An overzealous and b****y Upline Emerald's wife who snatched $15 out of my hand (as I tried to straighten out the bills for her) when I was paying her for a seminar ticket and she said, "I'LL COUNT IT." That was after she, in front of others said, "YOU!!! YOU HAVEN'T GOTTEN YOUR TICKET YET!"
F***ing psychopath.
The woman sounds like a bitch on wheels. But many women in Amway become nasty, selfish cunts when their husband make a little money and get to be big pins.
ReplyDelete