Breakdown of CORE and why it doesn’t work. Here are the CORE steps. Some groups may have variations of CORE, but this is generally what many groups use:
1 - Show the Plan (10-15 per month)
2 - Retail the Products (10 customers @10 PV each)
3 – Tapes/cds
4 - Books
5- Functions (attend all)
6 - Accountability
7 - Counsel with Upline (Be teachable!)
8 - Buy 100% of your own products
9 – Communikate
Many upline will tell you that your success is nearly 100% guaranteed if you follow these steps for 2-5 years. Some Amway enthusiasts will tell you that 6 months of this activity will nearly assure you of a platinum level business. Certain steps are within the IBO’s control, such as reading every day and listening to cds, and attending functions. It is also easy enough to be accountable, counsel with upline, buy your own products, and use KATE (voicemail).
Here’s where an IBO’s efforts will break down. Showing the plan and retailing products. And remember, if you cannot do these steps then you are not considered “CORE” and your upline will likely tell you that it is your own fault and that you simply haven’t been CORE, therefore you did not achieve success. There is some truth in this but let me expose the system in a different angle.
Amway has a spotty reputation in the US. I don’t think anyone can dispute this fact. Therefore, for the vast majority of people, being able to show the plan 10-15 times per month is a nearly impossible task. If you are able to do this, you are a really good salesman or a good liar. In this scenario, the IBO is already successful, but not because of CORE, but simply because the IBO has the gift of being able to convince people into seeing the plan. But for many IBOs, they may contact hundreds of people and not be able to get anyone to see the plan. Even IBOs who follow upline advice on how to contact will probably not be able to show 10-15 plans per month. Thus this IBO, who is doing the work, will not be able to succeed. The system will blame the IBO, but the reality is that the IBO has too big of a disadvantage to overcome.
Secondly, with high prices (on average) and with a spotty reputation, most IBOs are unable to retail products. Amway itself has admitted that less than 4% of Amway products are sold to customers (non IBOs). Thus most IBOs are unable to sell products, therefore they are not CORE, therefore upline will blame the IBO for failure..
What if an IBO contacts 1000 people and cannot get 10 people to see the plan? Upline will claim that IBO is not CORE and therefore it is personal failure of the IBO. IMO, the only reason why upline can claim that CORE works is because in order to do the CORE steps consistently, you have to already be at a certain level of success. The vast majority of IBOs cannot and will never be able to reach that level.
That is the myth and the deception that many uplines will use to attract recruits. That each IBO can do the CORE steps. When only a fraction of 1% ever reach the level of platinum or higher, the numbers strongly support what is written here. Apologists are welcome to try and prove me wrong, but they can't. :D
6 comments:
Basic incontrovertible facts about Amway:
1) You can't recruit down-line, because word has gotten out about the Amway scam.
2) You can't retail Amway products to non-Amway customers, because they are too expensive and their quality sucks.
End of story.
Hi Joecool:
Do you have any information on whether Amway groups are still using the antiquated Communikate or “Kate” system? You have mentioned it frequently in your blog entries. When I quit back in 2008, Kate was still being used in The Crow Organization. The funny thing about it was that while I was active in Amway, I dreaded listening to all of the dumb messages left on my Kate account. When I decided to quit, it was the 5th or 6th of the month, past the deadline for crediting my checking account. It was then that I listened to the messages multiple times a day, mocking them and laughing at them as I listened. Then at the end of that month, my Kate account was cancelled as I requested.
I’m not sure how to go about finding out if they’re still using Kate, because they are so secretive about everything. Thanks!
David, I believe they still use KATE and as far as I know, KATE is still a part of CORE. The lame thing is the 100% personal use policy that WWDB leaders used to have. Amway has a voicemail system that gives monthly PV/BV that IBOs could receive but spline discovered that they can make big money selling voicemail to downline. I heard from a former big pin that a diamond can make $10 to $15 per downline on KATE. Imagine if you have 1000 downline or more?
Amway why would you use KATE when Amway has a system that pays PV/BV?
Hi Joecool:
Thanks for your insights. It figures that the Amway groups are still using Kate. Anything to extract money from down line.
If KATE eventually disappears because it's finally faced that it is untenable to justify in the 21st century, there will be some other value add that serious business builders will be told they must have. Value adds or tools are more efficient in upward distribution of downline "investments" than margins on products are, even with the whopping 30% payback that Amway has, that ensures the products are overpriced. The margin on value adds can far exceed 30%.
That is because what is provided in exchange costs almost nothing, the perceived value (because it's information) is difficult to compare against alternatives, even more so than typical MLM products in odd concentrations. In fact, the message will generally be there is no alternative, it will be pushed as a must have. This allows group leaders a lot of leeway to make their price.
That is compounded by the fact that such profits are not distributed through a published formula, unlike products, and lower levels get no share at all. The "beauty" of the design from the point of view of those very high up, is that the middle levels will do a lot of work pushing the value add to themselves and ultimate downline, without any commission at all. As far is tools go, the average IBO WITH downline is not a commission only sales person, he is a zero commissions zero basic sales person. A slave. A slave for an owner who profit handsomely from the slave's efforts.
From a mathematical games theory perspective...It would, in fact, be even more efficient and better for everybody if downline can just agree to pay upline in cash because they are higher up. If everybody can agree to stop pretending value is provided in exchange, and meetings and conferences are shoved. With no costs at all, downline can pay less to give the king pins more. This can be automated with a monthly debit order on downline bank accounts. With no meetings and conferences, no listening and reading homework, everybody will have a lot more free time, downline will loose a little less, mid levels will also loose less and work a lot less, and big pins will make a little more. It may sound ridiculous for downline to agree to give away money for absolutely nothing, but rationally it is a far better deal than they normally have with purchasing value adds.
The above suggestion could never become reality, simply because if down-line just sent a monthly sum to up-line, receiving nothing at all in return, a crucial part of the Amway racket would evaporate. And that part is the FANTASY, the DREAM, the EXPECTATION, and above all the cultish sense of EXCLUSIVITY that lets an IBO think that he is part of a specially important group.
Amway lives on the helium of SELF-IMPORTANCE. An IBO has to think that he is a big shot with a bright future of financial success ahead of him. He has to think that the tools matter, that the functions and meetings matter, that information from CommuniKate matters. When he takes part in meaningless activities, and receives CDs and tapes for his money, he is deluded into thinking that he is actively participating in building a new future.
Just sending money up-line might cost him less. But it would destroy a comforting fiction.
Post a Comment