Sunday, April 24, 2022

Amway - The Game You Can't Win?

 When people see the Amway plan, it sort of makes sense. You need to find six people to go direct, in 2-5 years and you have residual and willable income for life. You are then financially free and can spend your days walking on exotic beaches while checks keep coming in. This is what lures many prospects to take a better look and maybe even test the waters and give Amway a shot. After all, who wouldn't be interested in financial freedom and the ability to fulfill some of your ultimate dreams? Only a fool would turn down such an opportunity, right?

While Amway looks good on paper, too many things derail this plan for financial freedom and untold wealth. Over the years I've been blogging, I've challenged Amway supporters to name a couple of people who are financially free and walking the beaches while income rolls in. Very predictably, nobody has identified a single person who achieved some high level in Amway and is sitting back relaxing while money keeps coming. We even see crown ambassadors passing away while still working the business.

So why can't IBOs achieve what they aspire to? Because in my opinion, the odds are stacked against them. Sure, a rare individual might go diamond but the occurrence is very rare and almost as rare as winning the lottery, even though Amway is not a game of chance. I will go and list the reasons why IBOs are playing a game they can't win, even though they think they can. That is the sad part, that the upline is motivating downline to "never quit" even though they will "never succeed".

The system is set up for very few to succeed. Even in the common 6-4-2 plan where everyone did enough to earn a bonus, there is one person at the highest level with 78 downline who earn less. In real life, most IBOs do little or nothing. At Amway.com, you can see income disclosures that show how few people reach the higher levels. It's a tiny fraction of 1% that reach the higher levels. Even reaching platinum is a lofty achievement and platinums might not even see a net profit due to business expenses.

Business expenses such as product packs, catalogs, cds, books, voicemail and functions add up to significant expenses in the course of a month. If you're hoping to achieve financial freedom, you'll be expected to participate in the teaching system and more than likely, these expenses will be the reason for your business losses. Beware of upline who encourage you to go in debt to purchase training.

The products in general are not competitive. Sure, the Amway IBOs may give you some pitch about products being concentrated or of high quality but let's face it, consumers don't care about high quality soaps and household cleaners. There is nothing wrong with the similar products that you can purchase at Target or WalMart at a fraction of the cost. When your products can't compete on a level playing field, on what basis do you expect to sell these products? For that reason, many IBOs become "self consumers" and wind up with no actual customers.

Amway's reputation is soured. Most people know or know someone who had a bad experience with Amway. Due to past IBO behavior, people have developed a negative view of Amway. People being tricked or lied to in the past may have contributed to this issue. Add that to the fact that so few people actually make money turns this business into an almost insurmountable challenge. Even those who achieve often find themselves out of qualification shortly after.

For these reasons, my conclusion is that the Amway opportunity is a game that IBOs simply cannot win, even for those who learn from upline and put forth tremendous effort. And the longer you play. the bigger your losses become. Do your due diligence before undertaking any business opportunity.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

In the Amway racket (and all of its smaller AMO subsystems) the Platinums function very much like non-commissioned officers in the military. They are the backbone of the entire system, keeping lower-level IBOs in line, and following the orders of the higher up-line bigshots.

Platinums also do a great deal of the dirty work, such as compelling down-line to purchase all the available "tools" for training, to attend all weekly meetings, to buy tickets for the various functions, and to pay any fees that come up in connection with all of this. They also make sure that down-line IBOs are constantly recruiting new members, and buying enough Amway crap to maintain their PV levels.

The Platinums thereby make sure that there is a steady flow of cash to up-line, and they themselves take a cut of whatever money is generated by IBOs. Very few Platinums ever move up to being Diamonds, just as very few non-commissioned officers in the military ever join the officer class. They are essentially a permanent service class, whose purpose is to carry out up-line orders.

The Platinums only make a certain amount of money, and it may not actually be very much. But the fact that they make anything at all is the hook that keeps them working in the Amway racket. They have had some success, and they hope for more to follow. This is why Platinums are the key to "The Game You Can't Win." Platinums generate the enthusiasm in down-line IBOs, and they can do it because they themselves are emotionally and psychologically chained to the idea of success in Amway. Being at the Platinum level means that they are halfway there. They are genuinely motivated to push enthusiasm in the down-line levels.

This is why a one-percent success rate in Amway doesn't seem to turn off Platinums. They simply ignore it as irrelevant to themselves. They see the success of the few Diamonds, and they realize that they can generate enthusiasm (for at least a little while) in low-level IBOs. So they hang on, like some sergeant hoping that he will make it to lieutenant someday.