Posted on 02/22/2013 12:31:21 PM PST by iloveamerica1980
Herbalife has been around for a long time, hasn’t it?
yes, and it was a pyramind scheme when I was a distibutor in the 80’s
Most of these ‘network marketing’ companies are just pyramid schemes using different names, terminology, and tweaking the program just enough to not fall under the legal category that could get them shut down.
On of my major papers I did when working on my Master’s degree was to study the financial operations of many of these companies (herbalife wasn’t one but it operates much the same as many of them). I found most operate under a system that only works if the ‘employees’(sic) have a high failure rate, that is they buy into the program with its large start-up costs then don’t fail to achieve the goals to receive any payout benefit from their network.
The products they sell are just a secondary thought. The real business is to sell the business opportunity, get people in and investing, then have them drop out before significant revenue flows to them. It was shocking to see how some people have invested thousands upon thousands of dollars and hours and received pennies in commission. They were always looking for that next ‘break’ that would fill their pyramid (or binary, or network, or whatever it was called with that program) that would start the money flowing.
These type of programs benefit very few. Just a couple of people at the top and the few downline who buy into the program who are more savvy at playing the game.
I suggest avoiding them at all costs.
(note, I did find a couple whose finances and history showed benefit to the people who buy into the business. They usually were ones who had real, established product lines that were focused on first, not buying into the business as the goal (Mary Kay being one of the few ones with decent financials)).
Yes, its a scheme. Glenn Beck also supports it which is disappointing.
Unfortunately the parent company of many of these schemes have advertised on Beck, Hannity, and Rush. They all have the same pitch, ‘work from home opportunities’. I hear their advertisements on a daily basis.
Actually, I finally googled incomeathome.com. I found a guy that had put a lot of work into a site exposing these guys. After paying his ten bucks and deciding it wasn’t worth it he told them never mind.
They told him no problem. Just sent the dvd back so that the $10 trial doesn’t become a $49 purchase.
;-)
That right there tells you they are sleazy. They know people won’t bother.
Herbalife is a huge supporter of US Senator Tommie “The Commie” Harkin (Democrat, Iowa). It is a multi-level marketing operation, though the actual products are OK but pricey.
Anything that requires you to “bring in other people” and not emphasizing “selling product”......is a Pyramid Scheme
I got burned in one of these two decades ago with one run by Kevin Trudeau.....who sells those “.....Cures” books on TV. In fact the state of Florida shut him down in FL
Any radio show host who pushes pyramid schemes should be ashamed of themselves.
And....with so much business done on line...no one should even consider pyramids
I thought so! I knew a guy, in Wisconsin, in the early Eighties that was rakin’ in money hand over fist!
If Herbalife was a pyramid scheme the feds would have them in court as we write.
I somehow got stupid and went to the website and it hijacks your browser and won't let you use the "back" button. I had to close the tab to get out of it. GGGRRRRRR!!
Not only that it is also the Cult mentality they force upon their down line distributors. Such as claiming they aren’t selling enough because their spouse isn’t doing their fair share, or you aren’t living right because you didn’t spend 500 dollars on toliet paper to save a dime.
They then flood them with visits, emails, phone calls strongly suggesting that they need more training thru weekend seminars. Which is put on by the Top of the Pyramid shysters who hard sell videos, DVDs, tapes and other “self Help” materials.
These weekend seminars end up costing people minimum a couple of hundred plus several hundred for the “training” materials.
I watched two friends destroy their lives listening to these cult personalities. I tried to tell em...
I have never sold or bought Herbalife but I've never heard any scandal on the company. They've been around a long time.
Actually, there were other cases that caused Scamway to move their business model overseas and rebrand it as Quixstar or something like that to avoid the Federal rulings. Matter of fact most of the scamway distributors were hawking it claiming it wasn't scamway...PR was so bad they finally started admitting they are in fact directly associated with scamway.
A quick google seach will reveal much to those that want to see...
Till one day the Feds found out on her spare time as a tax preparer or CPA, she learned who had money to invest so she was running some kind of investment scam like Madoff she was cooking books. She got busted for that AND turns out her husband had bought or built a warehouse that all that scamway product that they supposedly had sold was stored in.
It was a great story about how many that claim to be "stars" in the multilevel marketing business are nothing but scammers and charletons.
Another company I like is Malelueca (sp?) I love their oil, laundry products. and their furniture polish is THE best.
I don't care about the marketing plan as long as I like the products and think I'm getting ny $$$ worth!
The people I had interviewed had the biggest complaint about the pressure to get their friends and families to pitch meetings. Many had lost friends or isolated family members due to this or worse, them getting ripped off by these programs. One actually had one of his ‘up-levels’ look up a person’s family and without his knowledge, invite all of them to a pitch on his behalf.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.