Posted by
Icarus on Friday, January 30, 2009 7:32:20 PM
Dear Seattle-PI Editors,
Warning your readers about scams and frauds provides your
readers a great service (State
warns job hunters: Be alert for scams - 1/26/09). Condemning an entire
industry during the course of this warning, however, serves no one and keeps Seattle P-I readers
ignorant of an amazing opportunity for both personal and professional
development.
In the article linked above characterized the entire Network
Marketing industry (also referred to as Multilevel Marketing or Direct Sales)
as comprising nothing but “con artists”. The article’s author wrote, “Con
artists are placing ads online and in newspaper classifieds offering the chance
to earn extra income by working at home.” This may have been an honest mistake;
nothing more than a poor choice of words by the reporter. However, it plants in
the reader’s mind the idea that everyone who offers a home-based business
opportunity in the Network Marketing industry is a “con artist”. Nothing could
be further from the truth. Millions of entrepreneurs are building strong
home-based businesses in Network Marketing everyday. It is as legitimate an
industry as Retail Selling, Construction or Automotive Manufacturing.
Network Marketing is a distribution method that effectively
and efficiently moves products directly from the Manufacturer to the End User.
Some well-known companies using this method of distribution are Amway,
Herbalife, Nuskin, Mary Kay and Usana Health Sciences. In America there are well over a 1,000
companies that use Network Marketing to move products to millions of people
every year. According to the Direct Selling Association,
Network Marketing moved approximately $30.8 Billion in goods and services in
the United States
in 2007. Worldwide this figure rises to approximately $110 Billion.
Furthermore, in 2007, 71% of individuals involved with Network Marketing had
some college, were college graduates or had a postgraduate degree. I certainly
hope American colleges and universities are not in the practice of producing
“con artists”.
Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki, bestselling author of Rich
Dad Poor Dad, both endorse the Network Marketing industry for people
looking for additional streams of income. In the book Why we want you to be
Rich, Kiyosaki wrote, “I recommend the [Network Marketing] industry for
people who want to change and get the necessary skills and attitude training to
be successful [business owners]”. In that same book Trump wrote, “Network
marketing has proven itself to be a viable and rewarding source of income, and
the challenges could be just right for you.” Furthermore, in 2003 Warren
Buffet acquired Pampered Chef, a Network Marketing company with about $740
Million in sales in 2003. Are these powerful business leaders endorsing an
industry full of nothing but “con artists”?
Network Marketing is not for everyone. It requires hard work
and the willingness to learn and operate outside one’s comfort zone. I came into
the industry after the General Contractor I worked for laid me off in October
2008. In just a few short months, I have gained skills I never would have
learned in my previous career. It has already paid significant dividends in my
own personal development and I know I will have the opportunity to help others
be successful.
Are there some involved in Network Marketing who will take
advantage of people? Of course. Is any industry, however, comprised entirely of
saints? Are there not individuals in the automotive industry who would take
advantage of their customers? Have not more than a few people felt “conned” by
the banking and mortgage industries? What about the energy industry; ever hear
of Enron? There are bad apples in any business, but they do not invalidate the
industry itself. People should be aware of unscrupulous activity no matter what
the industry is, and when they decide to pursue a business opportunity, they
must do their due diligence.
Network Marketing requires due diligence, hard work and
persistence. For those willing to put in the time and effort, however, it
offers the freedom and opportunity that no J-O-B ever will.
Most Sincerely,
Daniel Crandall, M.A.
Independent Associate - USANA Health Sciences
http://dpcrandall.usana.com