Sunday, January 29, 2023

A Straight Answer Please?

 One of the humorous things about Amway IBOs is their ability to say a whole lot without having any substance. They'll talk about how great the business is and how much they have learned and then when you ask if they made any money, you either get dead silence or you get some answer about how they's seen a copy of a check from someone's upline diamond or something like that. But it's very rare that an IBO will be upfront about their earnings. Of course I can understand that someone brand new might not have made a whole lot, but I have seen some IBOs outright lie and say they've been in Amway a month and they're making $5000 a month or some other tall tale like that.  The IBOs say a lot without saying anything, if that's possible.

Even when discussing some Amway released information such as the average earnings of an IBO, you can hear all kinds of excuses provided by Amway defenders. They will make excuses like most IBOs do nothing. As if that isn't a problem in itself. Or they make stupid analogies about people signing up for a gym membership and then not doing anything. As if owning a business and exercising are the same thing. I even hear questionable claims about how so many people sign up as IBOs to get lower prices. I chuckle when I hear that because Amway's prices in general, are not competitive with big retailers. I believe that is because Amway must add the cost of IBO bonuses into the cost of their goods and services. While an IBO might save from the full retail price of Amway products, you can (in most cases) find the same or a similar product cheaper online or at Walmart.

Another area where IBOs like to divert the discussion is when the discussion is about the success rate of IBOs in general. Based on Amway's own numbers, less than one half of one percent of IBOs reach the level of platinum. Platinum is the level where allegedly, an IBO either breaks even or starts to make some net profit. It would depend on whether the IBO is involved in the tools and to what level of participation. But IBOs like to downplay this fact as if people simply did not work hard enough or did not learn enough, rather than simply acknowledging that the system itself might be flawed. 

The last area I see issues is when talking about selling products. I suspect that product sales to non-IBOs is relatively small. I believe there may be some exceptional people who can sell, but people in general, do not like to or do not possess the skills to sell products. Yet I see IBOs making all kinds of stories about "selling" to customers. I rarely get a straight answer about product sales as well. The fact that many Amway IBOs can't give a straight answer is quite telling.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

The real problem with Amway is that it is a stupid and highly inconvenient way to sell products. This is true for all MLM schemes.

For this reason, selling to a general retail market is always downplayed when Amway is presented to potential recruits. The real money (they are told) is in the development of a huge down-line. Having a huge structure of IBOs underneath you is touted as the way to riches. But in actual reality, only a tiny percentage of Amway IBOs ever develop such a down-line. It is difficult to create, and it takes constant effort to maintain.

Anonymous said...

In a cult, straight answers are not given, because a cult is a belief-system where the "official truth" is established and accepted by all members. Questions come from those who are not yet convinced, and are usually directed at what are perceived flaws or weaknesses in the "official truth."

In such a situation, an honest answer would be impossible. So cult members must lie, distract, or obfuscate to avoid undermining the "official truth." That's why you will never get a straight answer from an Amway freak.

Examples --

Potential recruit: This plan that you're describing -- isn't it Amway?
Cult member: Why, what have you heard about Amway?

Potential recruit: This thing you're pushing -- how does it differ from a pyramid scheme?
Cult member: Every job in the world is a pyramid scheme.

Potential recruit: Why are these Amway products so very expensive?
Cult member: Wouldn't you pay a lot more for better quality?

Anonymous said...

I re started after quitting 20 years ago and getting no s for the double x vitamins which I swear by. Who does door to door sales? How do I compare 43$ boxes of detergent to? There are more expensive store bought detergents btw. People in trucking do love the energy drinks, too bad we are getting rained out lately in NC where there is a housing shortage.

kwaaikat said...

@Anonymous February 1, 2023 at 8:47 AM

Excellent comment, so true. Everything put a straight answer. Just a rehearsed line to avoid it.

Here is another one:

Potential recruit: So how has it worked for you, how much have you earned?
Cult member1: I don't know yet, I'm still counting! In the business mindset we don't ask questions like that, because we don't sell hours for dollars.
Cult member2:You know, I've only just started, but that one guy I know off, he has paid off all debts, lives in a mansion and owns a Ferrari. You should really see him on stage. Wow.
Cult member3:Your question reflects an employee mindset. We are all different. The question is not how much have I earned, but much you can potentially earn.
Cult member4:It's none of your business really. Would I go around asking people how much they owe on their house, how much they earn? What else do you want to know? How much I have in my bank account? You know we can't answer questions like that.
Cult member5:The first year I had too many other distractions, and I didn't realise I had to commit, follow the plan and work hard. It is not get rich quick. But now that I'm focused good things will happen soon, there are already positive signs, and it could happen to you to.

The above are only some. Potential recruits will hear a variety of answers, and if you google, it appears it is a hot topic amongst recruiters on how to approach this "objection". In fact, the only answer you won't year is the answer to the question.



Anonymous said...

Yes, it used to be called "the doubletalk routine." Avoid answering an embarrassing question by generating a series of vaguely relevant sentences that touch upon the subject tangentially, but fail to address it directly. Criminals are very good at this. Example:

Police interrogator: Did you beat your wife up?
Criminal: My wife and I have had disagreements, just like any normal couple.

Police interrogator: Why is your wife all bloody and bruised?
Criminal: Accidents happen around the house all the time, and can't be helped.