One of the things Amway IBOs "think" they possess, but in reality they are far from it, is "Business Mentality". It is not necessarily the fault of the IBOs. Many are sponsored into Amway by trusted friends or family lacking business experience. They will "submit" to upline as they are advised and will try to learn about the Amway business. The problem is that many upline leaders teach self serving business practices such as hard core dedication to their tools system, from which they often handsomely profit. They may also downplay the vital importance of actually selling products to actual customers. Let's examine some of the questionable practices.
"Buy from yourself". If you have a business owner mentality, you only buy from yourself if it's beneficial to your business. Many IBOs talk about ridiculous things like a McDonald's owner would never eat at Burger King. That's totally false. Just because I own a McDonald's doesn't mean I am eating Big Macs the rest of my life. You cannot spend yourself to prosperity. If I sold pens for $1.00 and my cost was .50, and my competitor had a special on the same pens at 3 for $1.00, I'm buying them from my competition. Also, buying from yourself makes you a customer, not a business owner. Many new IBOs and prospects fail to see the flaws in this kind of teaching.
"Ignore facts if you have a dream". This is probably the biggest heap of bull crap taught by some upline. I have seen this spouted in particular by IBOs downline from WWDB and BWW leaders. A business owner studies the facts, not ignores them. Any REAL business owner wants to know how much he is bringing in and how much is going out. That's how you detect the heartbeat of your business. A site visitor named Gina on this site, posted a profit/loss statement from her real business. Naturally, IBOs were at a loss to discuss it because it was foreign material to them. If you are spending more on tools, functions and training than you are taking in, you are operating at a net loss and unless your sales goes up, you will continue to bleed money until you lower your expenditures. The purpose of the training is supposed to help you generate more sales volume. If that isn't happening, how much more training do you really need?
"Submit to upline". Another load of hogwash. Why should someone submit to upline simply because they "sponsored me" or whatever? Why should someone have authority over you and your business simply because they signed up before you? A real business owner would think independently and make business decisions based on facts and numbers, not on the advice of someone upline who hasn't taken the time to assess each IBO on a personal level to be able to give advice on an IBO's "Independent Business", or worse, advice on their personal lives".
"Dedication to the system". Silly advice as well. What dedication does the system have for an IBO? If an IBO succeeds (which is very rare), the system takes credit, but for the more than 99% of people who never make a significant income, it is their own fault if they don't make it. Amway apologists will defend this by saying that many may not have signed up wanting a significant income. While that may be partially true, tell me where people show "plans" designed for the guy who wants an extra $100 a month? The plans shown are always (AFAIK) to go platinum or diamond. There is no unbiased evidence that the systems help anyone succeed in Amway.
IBOs and information seekers, does any of this sound familiar? Is this a part of your experience? If so, I encourage you to ask questions and get more information before proceeding with any more "business" activity.
I remember at a Terry Felber plan, he said that he's not in the product selling business, but that he's in the "business opportunity business."
ReplyDeleteWhich is the business of what?
He's selling hopes and dreams and pyramid scams. Without the product, Amway is a pyramid scheme.
DeleteExactly. That plan should've been one of many other plans. It doesn't add up.
DeleteOne other crushing thing which detached me further is when an up line emerald got his 150k bonus check at family reunion, said he can finally pay off all debts. What got me hooked at my first plan is him spouting being debt free, living free. It was an outright lie and nobody batted a fucking eye
Joe, you have zeroed in on the basic fraudulence of the entire Amway plan, and how this plan has nothing whatsoever to do with a genuine real-world business.
ReplyDelete"Buy from yourself, ignore the facts, submit to up-line, and be dedicated to the system" aren't business ideas. They're RELIGIOUS ideas.
Just rewrite them this way, and the true religious structure of Amway becomes clear: "Contribute to your own church, believe in its miracles, obey your clergy, and be totally loyal to your church's ideology and organizational structure."
Only a church can command something like that. For a business, it's suicidal.
Yes, I recall as an IBO, when I made progress in the business, I was told to submit to upline. Even so far as to ask permission to buy a car, get married, have kids. That's why Amway gets their cult comparisons.
DeleteDon't forget that if you didn't show the plan 2 to 3 times in a week, YOU AREN'T CORE AND THAT IS WHY YOU'RE FAILING. SHOW THE DAMN PLAN! IT'S NOT HARD. Which is a shitty feeling if you've done the 8 or 9 other steps.
DeleteYes -- and it's practically impossible to show the plan at all, not even once a month! Nobody in North America wants to hear it, and if you even mention the dread word "Amway" they will fly from you as if you had the damn plague.
DeleteThere are 30 new diamonds in na this year. So a lot of people must be showing the plan.
DeleteAnd how many diamonds failed to re-qualify?
DeleteProbably as many. But nevertheless the point is people are showing the plan and people are signing up even in na 50 years later.
DeleteSubmitting to up line and dedication to the system are contrary to what they say about "work on your own hours". Also, you pointed out the contradiction of what they chant "freedom, flush that stinking job." Because this, too is a job and there is no freedom if you belong to this cult.
ReplyDeleteYep Amway is like a job and your upline is like your boss. There is no freedom. Your upline will be your boss as long as you stay in the business.
Delete"Business mentality"? LOL! Is that what they call it? Well, without a business plan or business balance sheet (no balance there because there are no profits to balance against the losses) and with their only customer being their own self I guess they have to call it something. Seriously though, Amway has to offer something to keep their poor sucker members paying into it and that thing seems to be this false mentality of being better than others. Of course it is all b.s. but in their minds they think they are gifted with a "business mentality", they are going to "flush that job" and soar with the eagles etc. In their dreams only because once they wake up they leave Amway and lick their wounds.
ReplyDeleteYeah, upline has many tricks and semantic gymnastics to make things seem or sound better to keep the drones hooked and buying into the system.
DeleteAny business or marketing major is well-rounded in all aspects of owning/operating a business. There is accounting, business trends, profit/loss margins, customer service/relations, advertising, etc. Oh, and a big major one that is stressed and should be a part of any personality make-up even before college is (drum roll).......ETHICS!!!!
ReplyDeleteAnyone without basic math skills and ethics is a real bait for a Scamway recruiter. The puppets recruited must be math flunkies and the con-artists in the uplines have no ethics. None, they're morally bankrupt to con people into buying their CD', "tools", KATE, selling tickets to their brainwashing sessions they call conferences. It's pretty criminal how long this has been allowed to go on. The con-game frauds disguising a business opportunity? How sad the young and vulnerable people that are sucked into this scam.
Yep the tools are the main scam but this part seems to fly under the radar undetected by the authorities.
DeleteAmway and ethics? That's like talking about whore houses and chastity.
ReplyDeleteI have results! If you do the work it works! It's about team building! You have to have leadership. I have been in Platinum qualification for the last 5 months. You people who complain about Amway its a scam. Your full of it! Why would other companies like Bank of America, Best Buy, Gap Corp. Apple, Microsoft, Sears, Shoe Buy At&t, Sprint, Tmobile and many more companies even partner up with Amway if it's scam. Do there lawyer don't know something you don't know! Sad thing the people who blog most likely have a job. If you have a job you are in a pyramid. And it's not an equal opportunity playing field if you have a boss he makes more then you!!! And you can't pass the owners or match his income!
ReplyDeleteMy coach and mentor was sponsored by his father. Which he surpassed his father in business and he makes more money then his dad. You don't even know the 3 types of income you get in Amway I bet. And what creates the asset!! I will be free in 1 year! Thank Amway and WWDB! My up lines are Awsome!! It's about building the network and get comp for it. Face book is more of a scam. People build a net work for Mark Zuckerberg but they did not get paid for there net work. But in return he lets people creep on there friends! You are a bunch of weirdos!!! Who don't have patient to learn the build business a net working business. Believe in the Dream!!! It's real!!!!! And I know alot of people who are having great success using Amway as a Manufacture supplier. That pays you!!! FREEDOM FREEDOM
ADVICE if your an IBO you must learn the how to use Ditto!! 1st of the month you willl know your income. Pay retail and Amway will give back the the 10-35% cash to you. Open a 2nd checking account and have direct deposit Your retail difference goes in there with your 3-31% performance bonus. Separate your personal and biz. Do a 300PV minimum 150PV watch that build up after a year. You will have $1800-$4000+
This is called a duplicatable business blue print model. Better than a 401k you know where your money is going and you can touch it anytime. So if you bought from yourself after 5 years of doing that at $4000 retail profit from yourself after a year return you will have $24,000 in the bank Have faith. You can't do this if you shop a Costco. Think business exponential!! Don't think like a employee. Linear thinking short term.
Do all Amway IBOs have bad grammar like you?
DeleteDid you know that Amway was partners with Enron and Worldcom? What did the Amay lawyers know about that.
My job being a pyramid doesn't mean Amway isn't one.
And sorry, you don't have "results". What you have is a statement that you have results. Come back here after you qualify platinum and prove your statement then we can talk.
Almost one year later...I wonder if he's "free"
ReplyDelete