Sadly, many of these values are represented as "Christian" - but are most often a Satanic distortion of Biblical truth. The teachings of this multilevel marketing MLM training system are well documented in hundreds of cassette tapes, seminars, books and other components that comprise this training system. A consumer organization to battle the Millennium's fastest growing fraud. PSA helps consumers around the world to: Recognize illegal pyramid schemes when they are in one, recruited to join one, or have a friend or family member in one.
Get access to the right information, people and government agencies for exposing and combatting pyramid frauds. Provide a voice for people around the world to speak out for proper laws, regulation, and protection from pyramid schemes perpetrators. In particular, note this page: Taylor, of the Consumer Awareness Institute, spent two years researching NWM, first as a distributor determined to give NWM every chance of proving what it claims to be - then later as a researcher determined to find out if everyone had as much trouble as he did making the large amounts of money that were promised to the diligent.
The results were surprising, and millions of people who are involved would be shocked if they knew what Taylor has discovered about the industry. Some say that the high trust level between members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints LDS and the pressing income needs of large LDS families lead them to seek out extra income options from one another. Some articles on the website are located here: MLM's Questionable Legality [ http: Employment Schemes [ http: Alerts and News [ http: Your Skeptical Guide to Multilevel Marketing [ http: At this time, the products sold themselves, and the multi-level aspect was a way of giving a small reward to those who had worked hard to build the organization.
But the focus was always on the product. There is simply no real need for distribution "systems" as there once was, and indeed the focus of all the programs is not on the products they sell - which are usually either bogus or are available somewhere else to the public at the same or lesser prices. Instead, the focus now is solely on recruiting new people to either buy into the program or else to buy products that are grossly overpriced i.
In today's internet economy, there is simply no need for multi-level marketing or the overpriced products that they sell - meaning that the only thing they are selling are memberships in anticipation that future memberships will be sold in the future, which is the classic definition of a pyramid scheme, and thus securities fraud. Multi-Level Marketing [ http: I joined 4 out of the 5 because friends asked me to do so.
It couldn't be, I thought, because the law allowed it to flourish. My thoughts always were, "If it's legal, it's OK with me. And I certainly didn't imagine that such corruption of thought could get past the best of legal minds.
Amway MLM: Success Through Creative Network Marketing - Kindle edition by Pam Hogan. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or . "Amway MLM: Success Through Creative Network Marketing"provides a no nonsense reality check of what it takes to succeed in the multi level marketing.
The facts speak for themselves. Argument and opinion mean little in the face of so many millions of failed distributors. The Untold Story [ http: The Continuing Story [ http: Churches are one of the most popular places for building MLM networks.
Here an individual looking to build his network is likely to find other hard-working people who are willing to consider a new business opportunity. Like wolves coming to steal the sheep, it is not uncommon for MLM networkers to literally bounce from church to church and become involved with the ministry, with the sole purpose of building enough trust to draw church-goers into their network. In the gospels, much is made of the incidents when Christ cleanses the Temple. Consumed by zeal, Jesus Christ overturns tables of the money changers and drives them out of the temple.
Today, both pastors and laymen within the church struggle with the same problem, as members become involved with MLM business, and use the church as a primary recruiting ground. Like a virus, the real ministry of the church is slowly replaced by the allure of MLM. Ultimately, Christians must lovingly admonish their brothers and sisters to stop serving idols of gold and silver and turn towards the Living God. Tough love means that someone might be hurt in the process, and people might be offended.
The church needs to be quick to forgive when those caught up in MLM finally come to the end of themselves, and be ready to help them heal. Not everyone who is caught up in MLM have goals of "sheep stealing" in mind. Christians often become involved with MLMs as a fundraising enterprise - as a way to make money so they can do ministry full time, or to raise money to go to a mission field.
These are laudable goals, but the time investment involved in MLM plans verses the amount of money raised should give us pause to consider how best our lives are being invested into the Kingdom.
Are we, as Christians, called to build business networks, or to share the gospel and disciple others? Some Christians resolve this dilemma by arguing that the two are complementary.
The Travelers Group, in short, had synergy. Its successes are noted in the business press. And while Citigroup's conventional payroll dwindled, its MLM sales force grew, reaching , agents by But for innovative executives, it offers opportunity as well. In fact, Primerica sold more of a new series of Smith Barney Inc. In addition to its own branded products, Quixtar is expected to offer a representive sampling of the existing Amway wares, which may include everything from Addidas sneakers and Panasonic sound systems to Amway-brand SA8 cleaning products and Artistry cosmetics. The Continuing Story [ http:
In some cases, the same passages of scripture that are used by "health and wealth" theologians are drawn upon to show the Christ meant for us to be prosperous here and now. Little emphasis is placed on the fact that Christianity is a hard road, and that rather than guarantees of health and wealth, the Bible only promises believers persecution for Christ's sake. The tensions caused by MLM marketing in relationships are opposed to the work of building the body of Christ.
MLM simply puts too much stress upon relationships to be anything but a virus in the Christian church. Likewise, when dialoguing with unbelievers, we cannot share the gospel of Christ on the one hand, and then make a sales pitch on the other. How is an unbeliever supposed to recognize that the gospel is not merely another sales pitch, selling another prepackaged product to make their life better? In the end, MLM will drive people away from the gospel of Christ.
Evangelism is not simply another MLM scheme. It is about drawing people to Christ - not with gimmicks or products, but with the truth of Jesus Christ. What is your life like? For you are a puff of smoke that appears for a short time and then vanishes. All such boasting is evil. Biblical Christianity and Multi-Level Marketing face in opposite directions: The Biblical teaching that you will reap that which you sow applies to MLM as much as to any other part of life.
Multi-level Marketing Biblical Christianity Goal Generate and Maximize Revenue by moving merchandise, by gaining exposure and uplifting one's own name, by generating profits or net revenue Uplift and Magnify Jesus Christ by sharing the gospel, discipling others, and giving glory to Jesus Christ in all things, regardless of the cost Means Slick advertising, fancy packaging, distribution networks, price targets, demographic selectivism, litigation, political maneuvering Relying on the power of the Holy Spirit to transform lives; loving Jesus Christ with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength; reading the Word of God and being obedient to it Results Inflated understanding of one's own reputation; Boastful of own worldly works; Relying on own financial strength; Asserting one's own agenda Uplifting Jesus' Name and Reputation; Boasting in Christ; Relying on the power of the Spirit; Knowing and Obeying the will of God A little free time?
Jacques Ellul's observations in his famous treatise on the effects of technique on culture, The Technological Society , ring particularly true in the case of MLM businesses. One of the common claims of MLM is that it is a business you can do at home, during your spare time. Indeed, for the average person, some leisure time normally spend watching television or in other non-creative actvities can be productively spent in other ways.
Con-men thrived alongside genuine visionaries. At the same time, government regulators targeted MLM companies with equal recklessness, often making up rules as they went along. The chaos of Wave 1 came to an end in After a long and acrimonious investigation, the Federal Trade Commission ruled that Amway Corporation--and, by implication, network marketing in general -- was a legitimate business, not a pyramid scheme.
Encouraged by the friendlier legal climate, the industry entered Wave 2. New technology sparked an explosion of network marketing startups in the s. Thousands of new companies sprang into business overnight. Millions of Americans entered the MLM sales force. But during this phase, the technology was immature. Like those VCRs that require an Einstein to program them, Wave 2 network marketing proved too difficult and complicated for most.
As with the early VCRs, the technology just wasn't ready for the market. Innovations like the use of computers, management systems, and cutting edge telecommunications made MLM fully accessible to the masses for the first time. They lowered the cost of working a multilevel business, both in time and money. As a result, millions of people flocked to the industry.
Wave 4 - The '90s will be remembered as the decade when network marketing became a serious industry. It was during the s that network marketing spilled over the US borders for the first times, spreading, en masse into foreign countries. Also, the closing years of the s saw a quantum shift in the perception of network marketing. Suddenly, major corporations were jostling one another for access to MLM networks. Wall Street analysts praised multilevel marketing in their reports. The race was on to cash in on the network marketing phenomenon.
Don't be dismayed by the controversy surrounding network marketing. In its early days, franchising endured similar abuse from the press and the corporate world, and for almost identical reasons. It all started back in the s, when McDonald's and a handful of other daring companies discovered that they could grow ten times faster than conventional firms. Instead of shelling out millions of dollars to build and operate new stores, they let independent 'franchisees' do it for them. And the franchisees had to pay for the privilege! It seemed like a great idea. But the media attacked like hungry barracuda.
They featured destitute families who'd lost their savings through franchising schemes. Attorney general in state after state condemned the new marketing method. Some Congressmen actually tried to outlaw franchising entirely. How quickly things change! Many are among the top-rated public companies on the New York Stock Exchange.
The death of jobs -- In the last 10 years, millions lost their jobs through corporate mergers, acquisitions, downsizing and closings. One reason is that technology has made many jobs obsolete, from the factory worker displaced by automated production lines, to the middle manager nudged out by computerized office network. Or companies downsize because their plants have moved out of the country permanently.
For whatever reasons, most of the jobs slashed will never come back. More and more white-collar workers are being forced into what Fortune calls the contingent workforce. Consisting of temps, part-time workers, consultants, and the self-employed. The contingent workforce is growing at a staggering rate. Many of those under employed professionals are going straight into network marketing companies.
MLM recruiters are hard at working reaping Corporate America's human castoffs including doctors, lawyers, CPAs, stockbrokers, and corporate presidents tired of the rat race. Conventional advertising and marketing strategies no longer worked. Market share was evaporating before an onslaught of interactive media, proactive media, proactive customers, and global competition.
An average American today is exposed to commercial messages daily. But the chances of any one advertiser making an impact have plummeted. Armed with remote controls, today's consumers now flit from one cable station to the next, bypassing all the commercials. As the number of media outlets proliferates --from cable TV to the Internet- advertising messages are lost in the ever-widening data stream. The 21st century will see profound changes in shopping habits, instead of going to the store, the store will come to the consumers. Billions of dollars have been diverted from conventional retailers into catalog sales, televised home shopping, and virtual stores on the Internet.
Network marketing play an ever increasing role in that shopping revolution. MCI sold its long-distance service through Amway Corporation. Sprint enjoyed similar success, marketing its service through an MLM company called Network The Network independent marketing representatives were ten times more effective in acquiring customers than Sprint's telemarketing groups.
But for innovative executives, it offers opportunity as well. You'll have to reach them in the cocoon itself. In this respect no marketing method does it better than MLM. Even the most elusive Cocooner will still lend an ear to the occasional friend, relative, associate, or co-worker who recommends particular diet supplement, investment plan, or Internet service provider. If handled properly, the sales pitch raises no eyebrows and provokes no backlash. Word of mouth marketing penetrates the thickest psychological defenses, with the efficiency of a uranium-sheathed armor-piercing shell.
In a world without shopping, more and more corporation will contract with firms such as Amway to deliver their products straight to the consumer. Indeed, many brand-name companies have already taken this step. Dupont and Conagra teamed up in to form a bio-technology venture called DCV which launched a network marketing subsidiary called Legacy USA to sell propriety nutritional products.
With its virtual mall on the Internet and its catalog of products and Corporation it is showing the way to the future. Wave 4 networkers will provide a Distribution Freeway through which thousands of client corporations will move their wares. For the first time in history, the Dow Jones Industrial Average soared above 9, points. The financial press buzzed with excitement. Yet the most intriguing part of the story went untold. Pundits completely overlooked the small but critical role that networking had played in driving the Dow to new heights.
Together, they formed a new entity called CitiGroup, which instantly took its place as the largest financial services company in the world.
So what did network marketing have to do with all this? In fact, it lay at the core of the Citigroup merger. It acted as a distribution channel for a wide range of Travelers Group companies. And it sold them with extraordinary vigor.