What's Happening In Amway?

I haven't heard much about Amway and the critics and Amway supporters seem to have given up. Is anyone out there still looking over the Amway business and monitoring the IBO's? I'm about to hang up this blog but I thought I'd give one last holler just in case.

Quixtar Is Now Amway Global

I read that Quixtar has officially morphed into Amway Global. I wonder what changes, good or bad will result from the name change? It would appear that the business in the US is struggling and I don't read accounts about a lot of new success. I believe that Amway has achieved market saturation and would completely collapse if not for IBO's suckering in young recruits.

It also looks like my friend Tex got his butt kicked by Amway. I read his blog post and it was a funny read.

Maybe it's time to retire from blogging?

Is Tex Paid By Amway?

Is he paid to purposely turn intelligent discussion to a useless thread? I have read multiple blogs and Tex has ruined some of them or been banned. I think Tex will not be allowed on here unless he posts normally. Apparently though, Tex is not normal.

We Can Be More Effective Without Infighting!

I believe many of us agree that some of the Amway diamonds are making their fortunes by selling tools (standing order and function tickets) to the detriment of their downline. One of the biggest advocates of stopping the "tools scam" is Tex, who runs Tex's Amway Global blog. It seems that many are in agreement with the major sticking points, but there is no concerted effort to bring abuses to the forefront.

I believe that Tex himself, is responsible for much of the confusion. This is not an attack on Tex. I believe his intention is noble, but he gets sidetracked with other bloggers. Why bother posting an attack thread on (presumably) Bridgett and JoeCool? What does that accomplish? If the goal is to stop the tools scam, IBO's and bloggers need to inform key people, including IBO's to write letters to the proper authorities and to allow corrective actions to take place.

Time To Call A Cease Fire?

I am a skeptic of Amway, although I do not consider myself to be that of the "rabid" variety.
I read a lof of blogs about Quixtar and Amway, but my commentary is confined to my own blog. That being said, I look at some other related blogs and they are insult blogs with name calling back and forth, and amway supporters and skeptics threatening each other.

In the original version of the movie Spiderman, the Green Goblin tells spidey - We can work together or we can continue to beat each other's brains in until we are both dead.

Obviously, I don't mean that example to be literal, but Amway afficianados and skpetics should learn to debate in a civilized manner. If you come forward two fisted hurling insults, you can bet it will be returned tenfold. Yes, Amway has issues, yes, skeptics have some points, but nobody is evil and all involved should debate the issues and not worry about insulting and degrading each other. What will be accomplished by calling someone a kook or whatever.

It's time for a cease fire. If not, both sides lose. (My two and a half cents)

Buy From Myself is Like Playing a Slot Machine?

(This story was inspired by debate on another blog)

One common thing that IBO's talk about is buying their own goods. While on the surface, buying from yourself may seem sensible, but in reality, buying from "yourself" is the same as buying from whoever originally sold the product. I used to help my uncle who owned a mom and pop grocery store. Every other day or so, a guy used to come to deliver bread, milk, and other perishable goods. Whatever wasn't sold was returned to the delivery guy and was credited to my uncle. My uncle very rarely took items from his store. He would go to another store and make purchases. He said it kept his bookkeeping cleaner, not to have to account for inventory
that he took. I didn't understand at the time, but I understand it much better now.

Let's look at what would happen if he did take goods from his store. Say he took a loaf of bread off his shelf. When the Wonderbread vendor came, he would have to pay for that loaf. If he took a bottle of coke off his shelf, the coca cola vendor would need to be paid. Sure, I suppose my uncle could cook the books and pay the same that he charged his customers, but if that "profit" came from his own pocket, is it truly a profit? In my viewpoint, it is an accounting trick and not a true business transaction. If Bill Gates bought a million microsoft computers, does he make a profit?

In Quixtar, if you spend roughly $300 monthly to "buy" your 100 points, you get back about $8 or $9. Now that seems like a sensible thing to do, on the surface. Problem is that many IBO's buy goods that they do not normally use. They buy things in order to reach the qualifying 100 PV level. Thus a non IBO may spend $200 in a normal month, while an IBO will spend $300 because it is necessary to reach that defacto 100 PV quota. It renders your $9 "profit" a net loss because you have at the end of the month, $9 after spending $300 on what you "need". A non IBO starting out the month with $300, will have $100 left over after spending $200 on what they "need".

When you are practicing the "buy from youself" method of running your Quixtar business, you are simply transferring cash from your bank account to Quixtar. They in turn give you back less than what you spent, the following month, you repeat. A few IBO's will succeed and "hit the jackpot", so to speak. Business is not gambling, but the process by which money is extracted from IBO's is very similar to how slot machines work. You put in 10 coins, in turn the slot machine pays out 9. You put in 3 coins, the slot machine pays back 2. Once in a while you hit a small jackpot and get back some money, but then you start feeding the machine again. Eventually the gambler runs out of money and quits. Similarly, an IBO, after a few months, runs out of money and quits. Sometimes a gambler hits a jackpot and will tell everyone about his good fortune. Similarly, an IBO will sometimes go diamond and will charge downline IBO's so he can share his success story. IBO's feel compelled to pay as they are hoping that his story will allow them to copy his efforts and propel themselves to diamond.

The only way IBO's can continue to play this game, is to fund their efforts by a job or another business. Much like a gambler's job or business is needed to fund his bankroll at the casino. In the long run, nearly all who play slot machines end up losing money. In Quixtar, nearly all IBO's end up quitting or not succeeding. As I said, the Quixtar opportunity is a business, but unfortunately, the results are similar to a bunch of slot machine players.

Is Quixtar Thriving or Sinking?

I read various post about Quixtar and their income has been in the one billion dollar range for the past handful of years. A billion in sales is a lot but is seems as though the sales have somewhat flatlined. On the surface, it seems as though Amway as a whole is doing well (global).
Why is this the case? Do the critics have some truth in asserting that in foreign countries, the business opportunity is relatively new and not enough antics have been done by IBO's to create a bad image of the company (yet). I know Quixtar ran some national commercials recently. I saw someof them andwhile they were nice commercials, they weren't that catchy and did not entice me to inquire, unlike how I ran out to Jack In The Box to get a $2.99 deal for a jumbo jack, fries, and two tacos. Why does the business seem stale in the US? Could it be that there is some truth to the claims that Quixtar's name is damaged goods in the US? Are new IBO's simply taking the place of those who drop out? The bigger question is whether quixtar will end up thriving in the US or dying a slow death?

Quixtar and Lying

Happy New Year to all!

This is my last post for 2008. I have not commented, but have been reading some material on quixtar. One somewhat common theme I have noticed is that there are many lies and/or information withheld. A lack of transparency. And it appears that is is not only by IBO's but by the corporation as well (basic stats and income information - outdated). If you are building your group on a foundation of lies or false information, you are building a house of cards. It is inevitable that it will eventually fall apart.

That certainly explains the high drop out rate for quixtar IBO's and it explains why there are many stories of deceit and trickery used in recruitment. Quixtar however, can survive because the quitters are simply replaced, albeit on a temporary basis, by new incoming IBO's. Friends, if you are hiding things from prospects and/or building your group based on deception, it will eventually fall apart. If by chance you can hold a group together by lying, can you live with yourself? Let's start 2009 with a resolution to uphold the truth to shed light on darkness.

Is There A Tools Scam in Quixtar?

I have been reading some discussion about the business support materials in quixtar. They are often refered to as "tools". One blogger is very persistent is exposing the "tools scam". As I looked at the issue in a bigger perspective, I can see where tools as a training mechanism might be helpful for leaders, especially if they have downline who live far away. I also can see a need to occasionaly "rah rah" rally type meetings to get people pumped up. However, I believe that some training can be accomplished over the internet at little or no cost to downline.

So having said this, I guess the question is whether upline is selling you training material as a means to train you or are they selling this material to you to empty your pockets. From what I have observed, both kinds of upline are out there. IBO's must observe and determine whether your upline looks at your business and advises the purchase of tools, or simply advises you to buy these materials without regard to your business profitability. If it's the latter, the it's caveat emptor. (Buyer beware)

Why Doesn't Quixtar Terminate The Abusers?

I haven't been blogging much, but I still read articles about quixtar. The subject is fascinating to me, at least from a psychological standpoint. The groupthink and subtle peer pressure that is applied to IBO's is interesting and it would make for a great study to register and infiltrate the rank and file IBO's to see what really is said and what goes on "in the trenches". I know the hardline critics have a position as well as the hardline supporters. I am guessing that both sides have a point and that the most common experience for IBO's is in the middle of the road.

My point is that the Quixtar executives could easily hire someone to join and sit in meetings, and easily audit functions and eliminate a lot of the abuse and bad practices that some groups teach. The issue seems very solvable yet for some reason, the abuse continues to this day. Until something is done to curb the antics of some upline, the corporation has to live with the dirty reputation that has permeated the United States and Canada.