Pyramid Scheme Pariahs

[TowinKarz]

@Super Collie Mmmmmmmm, delicious karma.

About the person already having a job, it's not surprising. The aforementioned guy who kept trying to recruit me into his MLM was also gainfully employed at the time. One of the things that got him hooked (and he tried really hard to use it on me) was the recruiting "package" he was sold with was full of stories about how once you become super-rich selling stuff, you can walk into work and tell your boss to shove it! Proving you're BETTER than those worker-drones and stuffed shirts, you did in just a year what nobody in that fool company could ever figure out!!!! There were allegedly-true testimonials of people quitting their jobs and holding celebratory parties in the parking lot with all the fellow MLM-disciples lined up to high-five them on the way out the door for the final time.....

I was skeptical of that, to say the least.

But, Nobody ever went broke by catering to bloated egos.

 

[AnOminous]

@Super Collie Mmmmmmmm, delicious karma.

About the person already having a job, it's not surprising. The aforementioned guy who kept trying to recruit me into his MLM was also gainfully employed at the time.

The guy who tried to recruit me into Scamway was quite literally living in a van (but not down by the river). And tried to use one of their dumb spiels about financial success and independence. I pointed out "Dude, you're living in a van."

They got better.

 

[Strelok]

The guy who tried to recruit me into Scamway was quite literally living in a van (but not down by the river). And tried to use one of their dumb spiels about financial success and independence. I pointed out "Dude, you're living in a van."

They got better.

Wouldn't the van being by the river increase the property value though? Waterfront property and all.

(yes I get the reference)

 

[kschang]

@Super Collie the recruiting "package" he was sold with was full of stories about how once you become super-rich selling stuff, you can walk into work and tell your boss to shove it! Proving you're BETTER than those worker-drones and stuffed shirts, you did in just a year what nobody in that fool company could ever figure out!!!

Argh, they read way too much Kiyosaki. I bought a couple of his books and when I got the to third book, realized he rehashes his own advice. It all say the same thing, just with different words.

Speaking of Scamway and Kiyosaki, Kiyosaki hid his Ambot days very very well.

Back to Vemma... You'd think BK had learned his lesson from his God's Diet or whatchamacallit days. Or was that New Vision? Agree with the bogosity. He's living the message he's handing down to the cult... fake it till you make it, then keep faking it some more. Sales actually went DOWN in 2014, which is why they didn't say how much did they grow in 2014. They only mumbled about "second year of over 200 million..."

Too bad we don't require basic financial competence when one opens a back account, like when we assure some basic skills before a driver's license, eh? Or is it too late to teach critical thinking?

 

[melty]

I got approached by scamway recently.
I have been job hunting and this woman approached me as a headhunter. I've spoken with some at legitimate places before so I didn't think much about it, I just thought she was from one of the companies I'd spoken to, I don't like dealing with headhunters (who does...) but I am considering it if it moves me up a bit.
I always try to look up what companies they may work for, but they're pretty good and subtle about hiding that in my experience.
But this one, I have her phone number and the interview is bizarre but she really is interested about my job experience. There are so far no blatant red flags, like some weird group conference scamway tends to do. It's just a 1-on-1 interview with an ostensible headhunter that's suspicious.
So I did some digging and figured out she's trying to recruit for scamway.
I'm vengeful and pissed and want to lay down some shit tomorrow.

 

[Splendid]

I had a job interview for Amway in a PANERA once.
Guy was framing it as a legit job offer.

 

[melty]

Yeah. Looking into it more they apparently love coffee shops. I guess because they don't have an office?
I'm wondering if I should mess with her or just give up. I don't want to spend lots of time on this, but she's calling me at noon.

 

[melty]

I spoke with the Amway chick on the phone today. I told her I really liked the book she sent me (I didn't, the book is poorly written and stupid), and tried to pry more into what "business" her "mentor" was into, which she dodged and said nothing specific about. She refuses to answer any questions directly. She did not look at my resume and says it's more about personality or mindset or something and "taking over a business" and some other optimistic stuff/mlm crap.

But I'm somewhat charismatic and good at bullshit, and told her I was excited about the book (again, I am not) and it really spoke to me (nope), she proposed that my boyfriend ~needs to understand this opportunity~ and what it means to me so I need to bring him to a meeting with her "mentor" this weekend which is clearly just trying to rope more people into scamway,
Which I'm not going to go to, I told her we're going to meet up with her but neither of us are going to go because fuck amway and anyone that supports it. I'm going to tell her I'm on my way for a few hours.

 

[StraightShooter]

Not sure, there's a couple semi-famous infomercial pitchmen who've been busted, but I'm not keen on many well-known Youtube personalities involved in stuff like this.

Off the top of my head, there was Don Lapre, an infomercial con man who sold some "greatest vitamin in the world", ended up killing himself in prison after being arrested for fraud.

There's also a famous infomercial huckster Kevin Trudeau who sold books like "Free Money they Don't Want you to Know About"; he was busted about a year ago and spending 10 years in the federal pen.

Back in the early 2000s there was also these series of "Enzyte Male Enhancement" commercials featuring these cheesy "This is Bob" skits; apparently the guy in charge of the company and his mother too eventually got busted for scamming customers; allegedly the actor who played "Smilin' Bob" mysteriously vanished around the time the scam was brought down.

 

[MysticMisty]

Which I'm not going to go to, I told her we're going to meet up with her but neither of us are going to go because fuck amway and anyone that supports it. I'm going to tell her I'm on my way for a few hours.

I definitely approve of this. The more time she's wasting on you is less time with people she could deceive into joining.

 

[thisisnotaringwraith]

A girl at my work brings us Avon catalogs, but only orders for those who want the products. No one has been badgered into buying it to sell on their own. Same with Tupperware, actually. They would probably be nailed hard if they ever dared to use work email to promote the products.

Story time:

But I was personally targeted once by the mom of a school friend of mine. She called me with a "business opportunity" and namedropped the daughter of a local celebrity (I thought it was something related to the job skills I actually have). I went to the meeting place, which was the upstairs of what used to be a casino. Immediately she came in all happy and "let me introduce you to this coffee, it is so good!".

So apparently it is a scheme with coffee pods and fish oil (something like that) named Zinzino, and once the daughter arrived, they started massaging me with practically all the bullshit tactics that's been written about here before. I nodded along, then got the fuck out of there. Luckily she only called me once after, and I refused. But my school friend told me later on she hadn't made a single dime. It was a few years ago, and I think even then googling it as a scam gave results. There is even more.

We don't have as many MLMs in my country, but there are some.

EDIT: the meeting place was full of people in different booths, likely all shilling the product. I did not get the chance to listen in, but that was the moment when I began to get suspicious.

 

[zap2theextreme]

Anyone see those new commercials for AVON? There's a cover of "I Will Survive" except they replace those words with "I Am The Boss" and a strong black womyn rejects her office job to sell AVON and MAKE IT RAIN MONEY.

 

[melty]

I definitely approve of this. The more time she's wasting on you is less time with people she could deceive into joining.

That's the plan! I'm thinking about making up some kind of tragic car issue and have to reschedule later. Then next time maybe I'll have a tragic death in the family or some crap. I give absolutely no fucks about wasting their time as long as possible.

 

[Electric Feels]

I got roped into a Vemma presentation when I was in college. My boyfriend at the time was in a fraternity and they did fundraising pretty often, so I didn't think anything of being invited to an event. They rented out the banquet area of a Panera Bread and I was prepared for buying some bagels or dinner and they get some of the money. Instead there's some skevey looking guy at the table with a bunch of boxes of the drinks and posters of mansions, sports cars and other flashy shit, with about 10 of the other frat guys and their girlfriends. I sat through the entire thing chuckling about how ridiculous the claims were (about both the product and the amount you could make) and how if they got the entire frat to sign up, how much money they could put back into it and a bunch of other bullshit about how they'd be set for life. At the end I was surprised that almost everyone bought into it and a few even signed up there. These fucking idiots did the exact opposite of what they set out to do.

 

[cuddle striker]

I AM THE KING OF THE ECHO PEOPLE


also this luleroe stockings thing. there's like a thousand housewives trying this now that their Etsy knitting didn't work?;

 

[Fareal]

I AM THE KING OF THE ECHO PEOPLE


also this luleroe stockings thing. there's like a thousand housewives trying this now that their Etsy knitting didn't work?;

Christ, are you also in the dark zone where it seems like literally everyone you fucking know is either selling LuLaRoe directly, reselling the shit they impulse bought and can't afford, or amassing a vast hoard of poor quality leggings?

Declaration of interest: I've got a pair and they are shit

 

[Varg Did Nothing Wrong]

I remember like 6 years ago when I was in the offices of the company I still work for after doing an interview, I was approached by some MLM scheme recruiter guy for a company called LR (they apparently also had an office in the building) and he derisively asked me if I wanted to work for some "nothing company" or if I wanted to make real money and get a company car and shit. I sat there for a couple minutes listening to him extoll the virtues of whatever fucking Bruce Willis sponsored cologne or something. Then I stood up and said "yeah, thanks but no thanks" and left.

6 years later the "nothing company" I work for is a multi-million dollar business and I get paid a relative shit-ton of money to sit around at home playing Elder Scrolls and every 3 months the company pays to fly me out to various cities around the world. I wonder if Mr. LR Representative is still driving his company-bought Volkswagen Polo or not. I don't seem to remember them still having an office in our complex last time I was there.

 

[melty]

I got this thread confused with the foreverkailyn thread briefly, she loves luleroe. The ones she's bought are ugly as fuck though.
Haven't heard back from the Amway lady lately, she asked me to call her randomly the other night and I didn't. I forgot when I was supposed to meet her, it was some weekend? I didn't go and didn't get a call so maybe it was some group thing and they didn't notice idk.

 

[cuddle striker]

Christ, are you also in the dark zone where it seems like literally everyone you fucking know is either selling LuLaRoe directly, reselling the shit they impulse bought and can't afford, or amassing a vast hoard of poor quality leggings?

Declaration of interest: I've got a pair and they are shit

also essential oils, homemade soap stuff that's actually pre packaged shit, candles, and for a while, jamberry. it's not people I know really, it's people I follow for their drama. I've just been seeing it a lot more over the past year or so. there's a couple more things but those are the main ones. those belly wraps too.

you bought a pair? they're so ugly usually

 

[Fareal]

also essential oils, homemade soap stuff that's actually pre packaged shit, candles, and for a while, jamberry. it's not people I know really, it's people I follow for their drama. I've just been seeing it a lot more over the past year or so. there's a couple more things but those are the main ones. those belly wraps too.

you bought a pair? they're so ugly usually

They had unicorns. I'm a sucker. It was my friend's first 'pop up sales party'. Never again. They are my 'bleaching the bathroom and kitchen' clothes now.

Oh the pre packaged charcoal soap shit? That costs about three times as much as the same stuff Lush makes and is actually a lot shitter? Yep, I have friends doing that. And This Works, and a bunch of folk who are ex-Jamberry.

It could be worse, they could be trying Mary Kay.

It's people I know, most of whom could badly use extra money, but who can't get a job that covers the cost of childcare so are trying to work from home. The amount of money they have to front up to 'onboard' is shocking. One of my friends is a teacher and had to take out a personal loan for 15 grand to onboard for LuLaRoe. I honestly wish she had never done it and I believe so does she. But she has to keep going until she at least tries to clear that inventory. But it's all 'old' prints now and unpopular sizes, so she'll never get rid of it really. I know she brought it on herself, yada yada, but I can't help but worry about her.