"Tools are optional, but so is success" One of the things that seems to be the common reason for IBOs losing money in Amway is the tools system. While IBOs may say that the system is optional, it certainly is not promoted that way. In my opinion, it is a defacto requirement. Especially when you may be told that nobody succeeds without the system, but you can be the first to try. Or that your upline double diamond accomplished that level with dedication to the system, but if you think you know better, you can try it on your own. To a prospect or new IBO, that certainly would not sound like the system is optional.
For most new IBOs, there really is not much of a choice is there? If you're lucky, maybe your upline will loan you some cds or books, but eventually, if you are to be a "serious" business owner, you will have to buy your own. Some uplines may compare these tools to a carpenter who needs a hammer and nails, or it might be compared to a college student who needs books to complete their coursework. But a carpenter certainly doesn't need 100 hammers and a student would not need multiple copies of the same book. And a carpenter can get many years of work out of a single tool whereas IBO's consumption of tools in endless.
Basically, the system never ends for Amway IBOs, unless they quit the business. And obviously, that explains why many IBOs quit, because they never recover the expenses they shell out for the system. What is also scary, is if you have a pushy upline who may encourage you to hyper consume tools. We were advised to purchase additional tapes/cds every week because they would help you grow and because you were to pass them out to prospects. We were told that you should not cancel standing orders (an audio subscription) if your downline quits because it was too much trouble to call upline to cancel the standing order. We were encouraged to buy extra function tickets because you don't want to sponsor someone just before the function only to have the function sold out.
What was also scary was how some diamonds would talk about how long someone could skip mortgage payments before a foreclosure would occur. I am guessing because IBOs could then skip a payment in order to attend a function. IBOs were told to go in debt if it was to invest in their Amway business (Meaning it was okay to go in debt to buy tools). IBOs were edified if they made it to functions at any cost. I recall a man dying of cancer being edified because he left his (real) family to attend a major function while he was basically dying (literally).
Amway implemented an accreditation program some years ago to try and curb some of these abuses, but I believe at least some, and possibly most/all of these abuses still occur, under Amway's radar. My hope is that someone seeking information might recognize the warning signs I have posted and can decide for themselves if their upline is leading them astray.
Thursday, November 29, 2018
Wednesday, November 28, 2018
Amway IBOs Are Sharp People?
One of the things taught to our group by upline was to recruit "sharp" people. And in general, I agree that many/most IBOs were sharp people. Most of them nice, motivated and wanting more in life. Certain Amway defenders wrongly claim that I am against Amway and IBOs to a degree where I am maniacal against them. I am not. I recall that most of my group and my cross line were mostly educated and had decent jobs. We all hoped to achieve the dream of walking away from our jobs and living in luxury. We got the idea that is was very reasonable and achievable if only we did as upline advised and immersed ourselves in the "system", which in my case, was WWDB. We were told that WWDB had much fruit on its tree and at the time I was an IBO, that appeared to be true.
However, we did not know that some WWDB leaders made significant income from selling us tools. You see, we were lied to and speakers at major functions told the audience that nobody made a cent from tools and that upline makes pennies only after you earn dollars. We know know that this is not true and that these speakers were lying. What's more, these leaders were never made accountable for their lies. They just revised history and acted like nothing happened. Sadly, many downline IBOs simply accepted the explanation and continued to buy tools. Currently, the WWDB tree is getting barren, with little "fruit". There are very few new diamonds from WWDB in the US, and some of their more apparently dynamic leaders have left WWDB to start their own systems. Thus it looks like WWDB is left with the same old tired speakers today, as the ones who were around prior to my involvement with Amway.
But what's puzzling, or maybe not, is why aren't there more successes if many, possibly most IBOs are "sharp" people? Surely large groups of smart and motivated people can accomplish much, but for whatever reason, they are unable to accomplish much in Amway and WWDB. In fact, many of these sharp people cannot sponsor a single downline and have difficulty in selling Amway products. After many years of blogging and analyzing the Amway opportunity, my conclusion is that Amway products are priced too highly and cannot compete with similar products on the open market. Sure, Amway defenders will cite quality or concentration as reasons why Amway is competitive, and in some cases, Amway is competitive, but the general public doesn't care, they just want cheap stuff and Walmart fulfills that need better than Amway. It leaves the majority of Amway sales being made to active business building IBOs. Apparently the artificial need to buy Amway goods disappears when the diamond dream disappears.
Also, the crazy and sometimes deceptive behavior of past and some present IBOs gives the Amway name a bad reputation, making it difficult to get anyone to see the plan, and sponsoring becomes nearly impossible. It is for this reason, I believe Amway is growing in foreign countries and not in North America, where saturation has occurred. When you factor in all of these variables, it is easy to conclude that large groups of sharp people fail is not because they are not capable. It is because the Amway opportunity comes with so many handicaps that even sharp people cannot overcome them. It is why so many former IBOs, including myself, have done quite well for themselves after leaving Amway. Did I learn some things about business while in Amway? yes, I did learn some things of value, but I also learned that I was lied to and deceived by WWDB leaders and for that reason, my blog continues......
However, we did not know that some WWDB leaders made significant income from selling us tools. You see, we were lied to and speakers at major functions told the audience that nobody made a cent from tools and that upline makes pennies only after you earn dollars. We know know that this is not true and that these speakers were lying. What's more, these leaders were never made accountable for their lies. They just revised history and acted like nothing happened. Sadly, many downline IBOs simply accepted the explanation and continued to buy tools. Currently, the WWDB tree is getting barren, with little "fruit". There are very few new diamonds from WWDB in the US, and some of their more apparently dynamic leaders have left WWDB to start their own systems. Thus it looks like WWDB is left with the same old tired speakers today, as the ones who were around prior to my involvement with Amway.
But what's puzzling, or maybe not, is why aren't there more successes if many, possibly most IBOs are "sharp" people? Surely large groups of smart and motivated people can accomplish much, but for whatever reason, they are unable to accomplish much in Amway and WWDB. In fact, many of these sharp people cannot sponsor a single downline and have difficulty in selling Amway products. After many years of blogging and analyzing the Amway opportunity, my conclusion is that Amway products are priced too highly and cannot compete with similar products on the open market. Sure, Amway defenders will cite quality or concentration as reasons why Amway is competitive, and in some cases, Amway is competitive, but the general public doesn't care, they just want cheap stuff and Walmart fulfills that need better than Amway. It leaves the majority of Amway sales being made to active business building IBOs. Apparently the artificial need to buy Amway goods disappears when the diamond dream disappears.
Also, the crazy and sometimes deceptive behavior of past and some present IBOs gives the Amway name a bad reputation, making it difficult to get anyone to see the plan, and sponsoring becomes nearly impossible. It is for this reason, I believe Amway is growing in foreign countries and not in North America, where saturation has occurred. When you factor in all of these variables, it is easy to conclude that large groups of sharp people fail is not because they are not capable. It is because the Amway opportunity comes with so many handicaps that even sharp people cannot overcome them. It is why so many former IBOs, including myself, have done quite well for themselves after leaving Amway. Did I learn some things about business while in Amway? yes, I did learn some things of value, but I also learned that I was lied to and deceived by WWDB leaders and for that reason, my blog continues......
Tuesday, November 27, 2018
The Amway Bait And Switch Scam?
In my informed opinion, Amway is a huge bait and switch scam run by the diamonds. The crowd sees the diamonds as someone to be worshipped. The arrive to standing ovations when they appear to show the plan and/or to speak at a function. The diamonds speak of untold wealth beyond the reach of most people. They show slide shows of fabulous trips and events that they attend and possibly golf outings and other fun things that are associated with people who have money. The diamond often has some sports car or a nice sedan such as a Lexus or Mercedes. And all of this alleged wealth comes from Amway. Just join and get the secrets to wealth from the diamonds and you too will be living in fabulous wealth. 2-5 years, build it right and build it once is what I heard.
But it's a bait and switch scam. They show you wealth and speak of their large incomes (without verification of course) and people tend to believe what they are told. The diamonds claim to have the key to the secret of success. All you need to do is get plugged into their system and you are nearly assured of success. Right? Listen to those diamonds. They are the pinnacle of success and all you need to do it copy what they have done. So simple even a dog can become a platinum. All you need is 2-5 years, do it right and do it once and you're set for life.
So you subscribe to their system of voicemail, books, standing orders (audios/CDs), meetings and functions/seminars. In the teachings, the theme seems to be similar. Never quit, and the answer to most Amway problems are to consume more tools and functions. If you are struggling and losing money, the solution seems to be to invest more in tools and functions. It's like a struggling business spending more on overhead without simply trying to increase sales. This is why so many IBOs quit, because they struggle to make sales and/or to sponsor downline. Despite all of the teaching and tools and seminars, it is apparent that very few IBOs make any profit.
What people don't see is that the Amway business itself is just a shill for the real business. Amway IBOs unknowingly recruit prospects into Amway thinking they can make a fortune in Amway. In the meantime, the diamonds are raking in the dough by selling monthly subscriptions for voicemail, books, audios and meetings and seminars. Additionally, the diamonds put on a "major" function each quarter where they can make possibly hundreds of thousands of dollars in a single weekend. I believe some diamonds make way more income from the tools and functions than from Amway. A diamond is a lifetime achievement so someone could qualify diamond for 6 months, never qualify again, but still make a nice living from speaking honorariums and selling other tools. The tools business is the real business. The Amway business is like a "front" to conceal the real business, much like the Italian restaurant is a front for the mob. The restaurant is a legal business that helps conceal the illegal activity. And that my friends, is the Amway bait and switch scam.
But it's a bait and switch scam. They show you wealth and speak of their large incomes (without verification of course) and people tend to believe what they are told. The diamonds claim to have the key to the secret of success. All you need to do is get plugged into their system and you are nearly assured of success. Right? Listen to those diamonds. They are the pinnacle of success and all you need to do it copy what they have done. So simple even a dog can become a platinum. All you need is 2-5 years, do it right and do it once and you're set for life.
So you subscribe to their system of voicemail, books, standing orders (audios/CDs), meetings and functions/seminars. In the teachings, the theme seems to be similar. Never quit, and the answer to most Amway problems are to consume more tools and functions. If you are struggling and losing money, the solution seems to be to invest more in tools and functions. It's like a struggling business spending more on overhead without simply trying to increase sales. This is why so many IBOs quit, because they struggle to make sales and/or to sponsor downline. Despite all of the teaching and tools and seminars, it is apparent that very few IBOs make any profit.
What people don't see is that the Amway business itself is just a shill for the real business. Amway IBOs unknowingly recruit prospects into Amway thinking they can make a fortune in Amway. In the meantime, the diamonds are raking in the dough by selling monthly subscriptions for voicemail, books, audios and meetings and seminars. Additionally, the diamonds put on a "major" function each quarter where they can make possibly hundreds of thousands of dollars in a single weekend. I believe some diamonds make way more income from the tools and functions than from Amway. A diamond is a lifetime achievement so someone could qualify diamond for 6 months, never qualify again, but still make a nice living from speaking honorariums and selling other tools. The tools business is the real business. The Amway business is like a "front" to conceal the real business, much like the Italian restaurant is a front for the mob. The restaurant is a legal business that helps conceal the illegal activity. And that my friends, is the Amway bait and switch scam.
Friday, November 23, 2018
Amway Sales?
One of the things IBOs like to tout is how Amway had over 8 billion dollars in sales. That's great for Amway. The Amway corporation surely made a good profit from those sales. I'm pretty sure that the DeVos and Van Andel families would use Amway products. But I'm also sure that their purchases are an insignificant portion of the Amway Global sales. Most of their sales are to IBOs and to customers of IBOs. After paying operational costs and their employees, Amway makes a nice profit, which is why the families who own Amway are (last I heard) registered as billionaires.
IBOs, regardless of level, make up the sales force for Amway. But IBOs do not work for Amway. They are "Independent Business Owners". They are supplied products from Amway and receive their bonuses from Amway for the amount of volume they move. They can also sponsor downline which helps them to move more volume since downline's volume is also credited upline.
Many IBOs however, in the past and even today, hold the philosophy of "buy from yourself and get others to do the same". I believe this method of running an Amway business was created because many people do not like the prospect of selling products, especially when the business often requires a "personal touch". Thus many IBOs simply buy from their own business and hope to sponsor a lot of downline. Sadly, most IBOs cannot sponsor anyone and cannot or do not sell Amway products.
Many IBOs are taught to move at least 100 PV, which is equal to about $300 in sales. However, if an IBO fails to sell any products, then effectively, the $300 in sales belongs to Amway and the IBO had nothing, rendering the IBO as a customer.
If the IBO sells a few items and consumes the majority of their 100 PV, then Amway still gets most of the sales and the IBO gets the rest.
The point is this. If your consumption dollars exceed your sales dollars, then whatever income you receive, is simply coming out of your own pocket. It would be like clipping coupons and then when you use them at the store, you count the coupon value as profit. Ridiculous right? But sadly, it is what many IBOs have done, and continue to do today. What makes things worse is when an IBO spends their hard earned money to purchase standing order, voicemail, and seminar tickets where they teach this garbage. It's like paying your upline and Amway for the privilege of consuming and selling Amway products. Everyone makes a buck except the lower level IBOs.
Amway had over 8 billion dollars in sales last year. How much net profit do you think they would have if the DeVos and Van Andel families consumed most of that volume? Right, they would have massive losses. What makes IBOs think they are any different?
IBOs, regardless of level, make up the sales force for Amway. But IBOs do not work for Amway. They are "Independent Business Owners". They are supplied products from Amway and receive their bonuses from Amway for the amount of volume they move. They can also sponsor downline which helps them to move more volume since downline's volume is also credited upline.
Many IBOs however, in the past and even today, hold the philosophy of "buy from yourself and get others to do the same". I believe this method of running an Amway business was created because many people do not like the prospect of selling products, especially when the business often requires a "personal touch". Thus many IBOs simply buy from their own business and hope to sponsor a lot of downline. Sadly, most IBOs cannot sponsor anyone and cannot or do not sell Amway products.
Many IBOs are taught to move at least 100 PV, which is equal to about $300 in sales. However, if an IBO fails to sell any products, then effectively, the $300 in sales belongs to Amway and the IBO had nothing, rendering the IBO as a customer.
If the IBO sells a few items and consumes the majority of their 100 PV, then Amway still gets most of the sales and the IBO gets the rest.
The point is this. If your consumption dollars exceed your sales dollars, then whatever income you receive, is simply coming out of your own pocket. It would be like clipping coupons and then when you use them at the store, you count the coupon value as profit. Ridiculous right? But sadly, it is what many IBOs have done, and continue to do today. What makes things worse is when an IBO spends their hard earned money to purchase standing order, voicemail, and seminar tickets where they teach this garbage. It's like paying your upline and Amway for the privilege of consuming and selling Amway products. Everyone makes a buck except the lower level IBOs.
Amway had over 8 billion dollars in sales last year. How much net profit do you think they would have if the DeVos and Van Andel families consumed most of that volume? Right, they would have massive losses. What makes IBOs think they are any different?
Wednesday, November 21, 2018
The Real Purpose Of Amway Tools?
As an Amway/WWDB IBO, I was told that I "needed" to attend all functions. Attending all functions meant "all" is what I was told. Brad Duncan once had a tape in the true north series where he said that downline should not cancel standing orders even when IBOs quit, because there would then be an urgency to replace that person. I was in WWDB and while not everyone in WWDB may have taught this, our group was told that we should purchase 5-7 additional tapes/cds/audios in addition to standing order because we needed to listen to new material daily and because we should be passing out these materials as they will sponsor new people. To date, I do not know of anyone who passed out a tape or cd and had someone decide to join the Amway business as a result of listening to that tape or cd.
When I was in the business (In WWDB), our group was told that WWDB was a non profit organization. That was quickly retracted, but still, the WWDB leaders stood on stage in front of tens of thousands of IBOs and said nobody made a profit from tools. We now know that it was a lie. We also know that many of these leaders are still teaching, and as far as I know, not a single WWDB leader has ever been accountable for these lies. Some of these lies may have caused untold financial damage to downline. I'm certain I would have been less dedicated to tools if I had known that some uplines made most of their income from tools and that their advice was a conflict of interest. Some Amway defenders are currently talking about how some negative misinformation about Amway is hurting their business, but ironically, it would appear that most damage to Amway has been done by IBOs themselves, such as tricking people to meetings. As far as I know, not a single person has ever been held liable for the financial damages to downlines and former IBOs who lost money by being told lies about Amway.
Now I also would like to emphasize that I do not believe the tools work and do not produce any results. While Amway defenders will claim that most if not all new emeralds and diamonds are on the system, they fail to mention that there are also tens or hundreds of thousands of people who work the system without results. As far as I know, there is no bonafide unbiased evidence that suggests that the system produces any results. It is why IBOs end up later talking about being a nicer person of how their marriage was strengthened by joining the system. While these are nice side benefits (if true), these reasons are not why you started a business. A business exists to make a profit, yet uplines make all kinds of excuses as to why IBOs did not profit, even placing the blame on the IBOs who trusted them.
It brings me to the real purpose of having tools. The REAL purpose of tools is to make profits for your upline. I believe the tools were invented as a way to motivate and train new and distance IBOs, but apparently, GREED eventually set in and many uplines started emphasizing tools, not because they wanted downline success, but because their tool businesses were wildly successful with thousands of captive downline dedicated to the system. I believe it is why I saw many IBOs who worked hard, never missed a meeting or function, did nto sponsor any downline, but were still told they needed more and more tools.
I believe the real purpose of having tools is so your upline's tools business can be profitable.
When I was in the business (In WWDB), our group was told that WWDB was a non profit organization. That was quickly retracted, but still, the WWDB leaders stood on stage in front of tens of thousands of IBOs and said nobody made a profit from tools. We now know that it was a lie. We also know that many of these leaders are still teaching, and as far as I know, not a single WWDB leader has ever been accountable for these lies. Some of these lies may have caused untold financial damage to downline. I'm certain I would have been less dedicated to tools if I had known that some uplines made most of their income from tools and that their advice was a conflict of interest. Some Amway defenders are currently talking about how some negative misinformation about Amway is hurting their business, but ironically, it would appear that most damage to Amway has been done by IBOs themselves, such as tricking people to meetings. As far as I know, not a single person has ever been held liable for the financial damages to downlines and former IBOs who lost money by being told lies about Amway.
Now I also would like to emphasize that I do not believe the tools work and do not produce any results. While Amway defenders will claim that most if not all new emeralds and diamonds are on the system, they fail to mention that there are also tens or hundreds of thousands of people who work the system without results. As far as I know, there is no bonafide unbiased evidence that suggests that the system produces any results. It is why IBOs end up later talking about being a nicer person of how their marriage was strengthened by joining the system. While these are nice side benefits (if true), these reasons are not why you started a business. A business exists to make a profit, yet uplines make all kinds of excuses as to why IBOs did not profit, even placing the blame on the IBOs who trusted them.
It brings me to the real purpose of having tools. The REAL purpose of tools is to make profits for your upline. I believe the tools were invented as a way to motivate and train new and distance IBOs, but apparently, GREED eventually set in and many uplines started emphasizing tools, not because they wanted downline success, but because their tool businesses were wildly successful with thousands of captive downline dedicated to the system. I believe it is why I saw many IBOs who worked hard, never missed a meeting or function, did nto sponsor any downline, but were still told they needed more and more tools.
I believe the real purpose of having tools is so your upline's tools business can be profitable.
Tuesday, November 20, 2018
Amway Losers?
Over my years as a blogger, many - an - IBO has called me a loser. I decided to look at dicitonary.com for a defintion and here's what I found:
los·er (lōō'zər)
One that fails to win: the losers of the game.
One who takes loss in a specified way: a graceful loser; a poor loser.
One that fails consistently, especially a person with bad luck or poor skills: "losers at home seeking wealth and glory in undeveloped countries" (Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.)
One that is bad in quality: That book is a real loser
And: an inept person; an undesirable or annoying person; a social failure. : Those guys are all losers. They'll never amount to anything.
The owner of Amway, Rich DeVos made a speech sometime ago, stating that IBOs should not refer to people not interested in Amway, as losers. And it is not the Amway corporation or Amway employees that call others "losers". It is some IBOs in some LOSs that coined the phrase. But when I took a closer look at the definition, I could see that truly, it is IBOs who fit the definition better than the rest of the population. Amway's biggest defender, IBOfightback, is the one who said many times that "most" IBOs don't do anything, not even place an order. Wouldn't that already make these IBOs "losers"? What about those who try very hard but never make profits? Wouldn't that make them "losers"?
The average IBO earns less than $200 a month (Amway's figures) which is well below the US poverty line. Does that make the average IBO a "loser"?
Diamond is the pinnacle of Amway success, if you have ever seen an Amway 6-4-2 or 9-4-2 "plan". But only 1 in 10,000 or 20,000 ever reach diamond. (Those figures may be lower) Are the rest of the IBOs "losers"? Those functions must be filled with losers?
If IBOs and AMO leaders wish to continue to use the term "loser", perhaps they should learn the definition and look in the mirror before using the term?
:-)
los·er (lōō'zər)
One that fails to win: the losers of the game.
One who takes loss in a specified way: a graceful loser; a poor loser.
One that fails consistently, especially a person with bad luck or poor skills: "losers at home seeking wealth and glory in undeveloped countries" (Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.)
One that is bad in quality: That book is a real loser
And: an inept person; an undesirable or annoying person; a social failure. : Those guys are all losers. They'll never amount to anything.
The owner of Amway, Rich DeVos made a speech sometime ago, stating that IBOs should not refer to people not interested in Amway, as losers. And it is not the Amway corporation or Amway employees that call others "losers". It is some IBOs in some LOSs that coined the phrase. But when I took a closer look at the definition, I could see that truly, it is IBOs who fit the definition better than the rest of the population. Amway's biggest defender, IBOfightback, is the one who said many times that "most" IBOs don't do anything, not even place an order. Wouldn't that already make these IBOs "losers"? What about those who try very hard but never make profits? Wouldn't that make them "losers"?
The average IBO earns less than $200 a month (Amway's figures) which is well below the US poverty line. Does that make the average IBO a "loser"?
Diamond is the pinnacle of Amway success, if you have ever seen an Amway 6-4-2 or 9-4-2 "plan". But only 1 in 10,000 or 20,000 ever reach diamond. (Those figures may be lower) Are the rest of the IBOs "losers"? Those functions must be filled with losers?
If IBOs and AMO leaders wish to continue to use the term "loser", perhaps they should learn the definition and look in the mirror before using the term?
:-)
Monday, November 19, 2018
The Merits Of Your Amway Business?
So many IBOs like to point out that Amway has a satisfactory rating from the better business bureau, or that Amway owns title sponsorship of Amway arena where the NBA's Orlando Magic plays. But what so many IBOs fail to remember is that they are not Amway. Amway has over 8 billion dollars in sales but IBOs are not Amway. And IBO stands for "Independent Business Owner". Amway supplies you with products and bonuses based on movement of volume, and Amway also sets the rules by which you can advertise and market your goods. Amway also sets the rules by which disputes are settled.
A big part of being an IBO, is to recruit other IBOs. This is an important focus for many because an individual cannot generate enough volume to reach the higher levels of the business where significant bonuses kick in, along with the recognition and the ability to speak at functions and other types of meetings. When some IBOs reach this level, it is apparently expected that the IBO, who may now be an "emerald or "diamond" will show off the fruits of success, or may show a copy of some bonus check. IBOs like to use these things to entice others to join. The entire process is ridiculous. Can you imagine being enticed to work for a company by seeing the paycheck of the company CEO? If you saw the CEO's home or car, would that entice you to work for a company? Of course not because the CEO's salary has nothing to do with you as an employee, just as a diamond's success is no assurance of a new IBO being able to achieve diamond.
But why do IBOs use these methods to attract others? Is it because their Amway business cannot stand on it's own merit? I believe that to be true. I believe that even the platinum level IBOs mostly lose money. The State of Wisconsin attorney general did a study of all platinum (direct distributor) IBOs in their State and found that they lost $900 a year on average. While the study is a bit dated, I would suggest that nothing has changed. In fact it is very likely that platinums lose even more today because there are more tools and functions that platinums must attend.
It would be very easy for a platinum or a higher level IBO to simply open their books and reveal their schedule C (business tax return) which is common among REAL business owners. But I suspect that most platinums lose money and therefore can't do this, and I also suspect that the higher level pin winners do not make as much income from Amway as they like downline to believe, and do not want to reveal how much they earn from the sales of business support materials (such as voicemail or functions). In a few cases where a diamond's income was revealed, there was less earnings than expected and in some cases, debt where there should have been none.
Can your Amway business stand on it's own merits? Do you use the curiosity approach and leave the Amway name out of your pitch? Are you upfront with prospects when they ask you about what you earn? If not, then your business does not stand on its own merits.
A big part of being an IBO, is to recruit other IBOs. This is an important focus for many because an individual cannot generate enough volume to reach the higher levels of the business where significant bonuses kick in, along with the recognition and the ability to speak at functions and other types of meetings. When some IBOs reach this level, it is apparently expected that the IBO, who may now be an "emerald or "diamond" will show off the fruits of success, or may show a copy of some bonus check. IBOs like to use these things to entice others to join. The entire process is ridiculous. Can you imagine being enticed to work for a company by seeing the paycheck of the company CEO? If you saw the CEO's home or car, would that entice you to work for a company? Of course not because the CEO's salary has nothing to do with you as an employee, just as a diamond's success is no assurance of a new IBO being able to achieve diamond.
But why do IBOs use these methods to attract others? Is it because their Amway business cannot stand on it's own merit? I believe that to be true. I believe that even the platinum level IBOs mostly lose money. The State of Wisconsin attorney general did a study of all platinum (direct distributor) IBOs in their State and found that they lost $900 a year on average. While the study is a bit dated, I would suggest that nothing has changed. In fact it is very likely that platinums lose even more today because there are more tools and functions that platinums must attend.
It would be very easy for a platinum or a higher level IBO to simply open their books and reveal their schedule C (business tax return) which is common among REAL business owners. But I suspect that most platinums lose money and therefore can't do this, and I also suspect that the higher level pin winners do not make as much income from Amway as they like downline to believe, and do not want to reveal how much they earn from the sales of business support materials (such as voicemail or functions). In a few cases where a diamond's income was revealed, there was less earnings than expected and in some cases, debt where there should have been none.
Can your Amway business stand on it's own merits? Do you use the curiosity approach and leave the Amway name out of your pitch? Are you upfront with prospects when they ask you about what you earn? If not, then your business does not stand on its own merits.
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