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Why MLMers Freak People Out

January 5, 2005 by Dane | 6 Comments
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Dave Stone: “Many MLMs teach a ‘high-hype’ approach whereby you are trained to move quickly through your prospects. I compare it to the character in the Dr. Seuss book, The Sneetches. The carpetbagger mentality is what I believe has given MLMs the poor public perception.”

Comments

Dave Stone on January 5th, 2005 at 5:51 pm

Dane,
Thanks for the link.

Dave
Andy Wibbels on January 6th, 2005 at 2:54 am

I think any over-excited sales strategy freaks anybody out. Unless it’s Ronco. Then I’m a slave.
Willie Crawford on January 8th, 2005 at 1:16 pm

I agree with you 100% but see the crux of the problem being that most MLMers don’t get the proper training in building a business so they can’t pass that proper training along to their recruits. It then becomes a numbers game with little real concern for those that they recruit.

Hype also sells because that’s what a big part of the market seems to want. They don’t want to work. Approach 99% of MLM prospects and their only questions is one that can’t really be answered, “How much can I make and how long will it take?”

Willie Crawford
Consulting Clicks on January 9th, 2005 at 4:12 pm

Do you think they know that they annoy people and freak them out? I had a friend that was so almost brainwashed into the MLM bandwagon that he seriously could not hold a normal adult conversation without giving his MLM a plug. The poor guy would practicly go around preaching this stuff. I have nothing aginst MLMs personally other than how highly annoyed my friend made me. I don’t know that I have ever seen an MLM work effectivly but don’t jump me here because my research into the topic up to this point is minimal. I suppose that in theory it could work but am I wrong for being sceptical. To this day my friend probably only makes some change every month off of it. I think he is in Quixtar but I never payed that much attention. Does anyone have any MLM success stories or for that matter failure stories. I don’t think I’ll be joining an MLM but I would like to know. By the way I would have to complement this blog. I really don’t have time to read small business magizenes and this is a nice way to stay fresh.
Willioam Lezotte-EAUSA on July 15th, 2006 at 9:06 pm

Slow is MUCH better as you are really relationship building here!
Katheryn Labosky on March 9th, 2007 at 9:17 am

Just cruising and found this topic.

Have to agree wholeheartedly with Willie and others above.

There seem to be no real business principles and concepts taught. I can’t speak from experience, just from ‘third-party exposure’ but I’ve dealt with many MLMers, and overall I would describe their business basics knowledge as ‘weak.’

Although it’s great to have a positive mindset and a positive outlook, which does seem to be taught, and which many of my own clients focus on, this has to be combined with real practical business skill sets.

Many that join an MLM business do not seem to know how to generate leads, how to follow up, or even how to close a sale. And if you can’t close a sale, well, you are ‘nowhere’ in business, any business not just MLM businesses.

I do understand that this is a business model built on the theory that it is for ‘everyman’ (or woman) and that’s a great theory. But every man or woman does not necessarily come complete with an intuitive knowledge of sales or the sales process.

Thereby the ‘freaking out’ threshold is reached, as many don’t know when to stop selling or even (and I HAVE seen this personally) when they’ve made the sale and need to stop talking.