I find it very ironic that many diamonds will put down jobs as if you should be embarrassed to have one. They talk about employees being slaves who have to worship an alarm clock and a boss. That your life is so miserable in a job and you will end up broke at the end of your career. They get people to despise their jobs and their boss and offer the Amway opportunity as a solution. Join Amway, 2-5 years of effort and then your job becomes optional, or so they say.
Ironically, the Amway opportunity is basically a job. You sell products and you sell the opportunity to others. That is the key to success according to many LOS's. The flaw is that too many IBOs get fooled into thinking they need to be their own best customer. As an IBO, you are Amway's customer. Anything you purchase results in a profit for Amway, but not necessarily for your business. Have you ever heard of a car salesman buying a new car each month to earn a commission? Or a vacuum cleaner salesman buy a new vaccum each month to increase volume? These concepts sound ridiculous, yet most IBOs run most of their own volume. Some IBOs don't have any customers and end up buying their PV bonus.
While some will argue that they are independent business owners, these nice folks are more like commissioned sales people with no fringe benefits from Amway. Amway has minimal advertising for their products, thus volume moves person to person, and mainly word of mouth. In my opinion, the least efficient means of getting goods to the consumer. When you factor in that the Amway goods are not really cheaper than a retailer like WalMart, you can see why some groups focus on self consumption, because there is no market demand for many of these goods and services, The demand is artificial because the IBOs themselves consume most of the Amway goods and services.
The really damaging aspect of all this is the upline leaders who tout their system of cds, functions, books and voicemail as the key to success. While these materials may have some value, it doesn't equate to success in Amway, and in most cases, the cost of these materials are the reason why so many IBOs end up with a net loss, instead of the extra cash they are seeking. Part of th reason why these materials do not work is because you are dealing with a very inefficient delvery system, coupled with uncompetitive prices (in many cases) and a bad reputation. If the opportunity were "all that", people would be seeking IBOs to sign up instead of IBOs having to lie or trick people into attending recruitment meetings.
Unsuspecting people think the Amway opportunity is a business, but it is more like a job than you think. It is my hope that this article will get you to think about it.
An important thing to note is that some defenders of Amway scream that they are not involved in the sale of products at all. They've come here and to other anti-MLM websites insisting that they have never sold a single Amway product in the normal retail manner.
ReplyDeleteOne of them said "This business opportunity isn't about selling! It's a business opportunity about business opportunities!"
You now what that means, translated into clear English? It means "All I do is recruit new IBOs, and force them in turn to recruit new IBOs!"
So Amway is neither a job nor a business. It's just a weird kind of chain-letter, with a bunch of unsellable products as camouflage.
IBOs who admit they don't sell and simply recruit others are admitting that they are running a pyramid scheme.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was shown the plan, I said thanks but I'm not much of a sales person. The answer (which sounded well rehearsed) was something along the lines of: "That's okay. Neither am I. You don't have to sell. We not looking for sales people, but people who dream of being financially free, and who have heart to help others to achieve the same".
ReplyDeleteHowever when the pyramid allegations come knocking, it is quickly pointed out that they (mainly) sell, and the 1979 (or something) ruling that Amway is not pyramid. The justification at the time was the 10 customer (per IBO, or distributor, as the were called then).
Something else: when you ARE in fact very good at sales, there are many commission based job opportunities where you can do very well, and in which you actually have a lot of freedom without being advised about your personal life, TV habits, excluding negative friends etc.
What is ironic is that it is their job income that sustains their "business" expense. the fact that they are taught to flush their jobs is simply biting a hand that feeds you. Cringe.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to the sales jobs mentioned, I agree with the comment above. If you are a good sales person, there are tons of great sales jobs out there in many different industries that would hire you. Pick an industry, then research a company in that industry and apply. Why settle for being an amway IBO that lurks around a starbucks (which is creepy to begin with) to find his/her next uninformed prospect and force that person to sell and/or buy over priced products knowing that there is a high probability that he or she will fail? Will that sound good on your resume? No, it won't. Again if you are good at sales, a lot of companies will pay you very handsomely, they will train you on the products they sell, they will have a 401k that the company contributes to, health insurance, most likely you'll have fantastic bonuses if you are really good at selling the company's products, you won't be forced to buy anything, and my gosh, most sales folks are given a valid business card that you hand out to the clients that shows your name, position, and company. Many companies offer valid business training to improve your business skills and many companies offer to pay for folks to go to college. In return? Yes you are required to go to work and act in a professional way. So what. I am pretty sure that the work environment would also be more professional, respectful, and ethical. Not to mention, large corporations will offer many different job opportunities. If you get tired of sales, apply internally for another type of job that way you keep all your benefits. Folks do that all the time when the like the company they are working for. There are many different paths to succeed at a large company once you get your foot in the door with your first job. Don't cut yourself short. Don't settle for less. Don't settle for unethical shady business practices.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely correct. If you're good at sales, you can do a lot better than being involved in a nickel-and-dime bullshit scheme like Amway.
ReplyDeleteYou are spot on, Amway is a job, and not a very good job at that.
ReplyDelete- in most jobs, unless it's in your job description, people don't know how their boss or his boss like their coffee. Nobody ever carried my boss's briefcase or laptop, or that of his boss.
- in jobs, getting time off work to attend to family responsibilities like funerals is a non-issue. Amway hopefulls that are on the brink of their big break, as they always are, are regularly pressured to skip those if it clashes with an important event. When I told my boss "funeral", that was it. No guilt trip that I must decide how hungry I was for success. I never had to ask to attend a wedding, because weddings were on weekends.
- I actually questioned my boss from time to time when I was employed, which led to robust debates, many of which he appreciated. It depends on the job and situation, bit it is not unheard of. In some jobs, it is EXPECTED. What is a given in all decent jobs is clarification of foggy issues.
- my boss did not earn being my boss because he introduced me to the company.
- in most jobs, weekends and evenings are your own. If not, one is compensated some other way for that. If Amway does not require you to pitch at 8 or 9 every morning, where you can sleep late (if you don't have another job) there are many jobs like that. Amway is one of many non-office daily hour job. The dowside of that is that you work at the very times (weekends and evenings) when your family is at home.
- in most jobs you get enough to sustain you on that job alone. You certainly don't need another job to pay for this job.
- most jobs do not care what you do with the money you get from them, like buying their product, or spending it in such a way as to appear successful.
- my boss could not care less who I socialized with, or whether the people I socialized with liked the organization I was involved with. Basically, he would not dare interfere there. He was not the boss of my life.
- in the jobs I had, when I resigned, there was a paid farewell for me, where people handed me a nice card with a gift, saying they were sad to see me go, but they wish me all the best and success, and that I should keep contact. Amway quitters are shunned, insulted and unfriended.
- in the non Amway job market, you can choose a career or role that suits you, and your interests. You could become a teacher, engineer, project manager, tour guide, lawyer, accountant, sales person, shop assistant, park ranger, programmer, graphic designer, web developer, builder, mechanic, journalist. Not a very narrow definition of a sales person. If sales is your thing, you could sell cars, tech, software, air conditioners, medical equipment. You don't have to sell soap and energy bars.
- in a job, I never had to hide what my job was until I could ambush the person in a captive audience situation to show the plan. I quite liked telling people what I did, and it was often just a good conversation starter, even when there were no further motives at all. There was nothing embarassing about being a programmer or analyst, or the companies that I was associated with.
So what makes Amway better.? It is not that fraction of 1% chance that you will make something. (Most all jobs have a 100% chance that you will make something). Perhaps it is the fraction of that fraction that you will make good money.? Most jobs have a pathway, a small chance, that one will make good money. Be it becoming the CEO, or a sales person landing a very big account, or starting your own (real) business in the industry where you have job experience. I did that. The chance is small, bit it is bigger than Amway. As in Amway, it is probably a combination of talent, personal attributes and luck. Gates prepared himself for a career in IT when he got his big break. Larry Page of google was preparing himself to become an employed engineer. There is no proof that the chance of financial independence is bigger in Amway than it is anywhere else, including a job.
To succeed in Amway you really have to work hard. The get rich quick mentality must be dropped !
ReplyDeleteSure. But sometimes even when an Amway IBO works frantically and intensely, he doesn't make a dime. That's the difference between the Amway racket and a real job.
ReplyDeleteSamuel Njoroge, how's that working out for you?
ReplyDelete