WAHM Forums

Ok, this is my last poll, I promise. (for today)


The question area is not long enough, so please allow me to elaborate here. Would you prefer higher compensation for your own sales or those of your first line than the ability to earn commission on an unlimited number of levels of downlines? (hopefully that makes sense). Basically, would you be willing to get NO commission on say anyone after your 4th or 5th line in return for higher commissions on your sales or the sales of your first line?


Unlike the other polls, it does not matter if more than one rep from the same company answers this one.


Thanks for participating.


Lori

As has been stated by wiser people than I, I would rather earn 1% on the
volume of 1,000 consultants, than 100% of my own sales, and the sales of
my front line.

Nondy

I hear you! But that makes the assumption that you will ever get there. Also, some companies don't let you collect on your 2nd, 3d, 4th, 5th etc. lines until you attain certain goals, so I guess the answers to this question would depend very much on the goals that have to be attained first to open up the next level for commissions.


Lori

Lori,

I guess I just made the decision from the beginning that I would attain the
highest levels, and never entertained (Get it? "Entertained"?... I just crack
me UP!) the thought to just "try it", or to just do a few parties for pocket
change income... In my own mind (and I am not saying that anyone who
does not have the same goals as I do is a loser...NOT AT ALL!) It's just
that for me, I have been around, and I KNOW what both the company, and
what I am capable of.

This is the OLYMPICS to me! Go BIG, or GO HOME! I am talking to myself
here, not to anyone else.

I DO make the assumption that I will get there! LOL!

Nondy

Good point Nondy! But, I also think that if we are coaching our team members and mentoring them, they will be building their teams deep AND wide like we want to. Therefore you could easily have 1,000 consultants or more if you work it long enough,just in your 5 downlines getting paid 15%, 6%, 4%, 2% and 1% off of all of them. (percentages are based on wholesale sales, with Latasia it's 50% of retail because we keep 50% off the top of each party)

Woohoooo Nondy!!! We'll be there together!!!

Brenda P.

It is kind of like the question, "Would you rather receive $1,000,000 now, or be given 1 penny doubled every day for 1 month?" You make out much better having the penny doubled.


Multiple levels or unlimited levels give you the best earning potential if you are consistent in building your business.


:-) Marianne

Maybe this is another subject altogether, but I do have to wonder why
someone would get into a Direct Sales business just to make a couple of
hundred dollars a month. I mean, it's perfecty fine if that is what one
wants to do, but it's much harder to do in Direct Sales than in regular
sales, for example. At least I think so...

Much easier to buy products at wholesale online, and sell on Ebay for a
big mark-up. My son does this in a niche market. He buys an item for
$20 and sells it for $150 and the buyer pays for shipping... He's made
$130 with very little effort or time involved...

Just a few random thoughts...

NondyEdited by: UltraSkinPro

Why are you in Direct Sales then Nondy?


I'm personally in it because I love it. It's fun, it's very profitable very quickly. It's extremely rewarding to help others build on their dreams. I have met hundreds of great women and had lots of laughs. I have gotten to talk about the Lord to all of these women and share His love for us. I'm a stay at home mom and I don't get to visit with other women all day like ladies who work outside the home. This is my way of socializing I guess and getting to witness to people.Not to mention getting to help people get products in their homes that I truly believe are wonderful and will enrich their lives in some way. To see a hostess get $200 worth of merchandise for free is amazing. Their faces say it all. To know that children are playing with more educational and safer toys because their parents cared enough to get them Discovery Toys is amazing. To have Discovery Toys in classrooms because educators have that much appreciation for true educational products is amazing. To know that women have bought garments from me and called to tell me thank you or that they were pregnant and ecstatic because of what they earned for free from me is HUGE to me. I haven't started doing parties with Latasia yet, but I have no doubt that it is going to be awesome and that everything I mentioned above will continue to happen at these parties. I have gained more self confidence and esteem because of Direct Sales. I wouldn't have gotten that any other way. I am truly grateful for Direct Sales and all it does for us. I have made true friends through my uplines with Petra and Discovery Toys that I value greatly. I've gotten to win huge prizes, almost won $10,000 but that's ok. I can't control who goes out of business and who doesn't. But winning $5200 cash in 10 months isn't all bad. I don't know any place that gives you free vacations or cash prizes for what you do besides Direct Sales. The list could go on and on about why I do Direct Sales "just to make a couple hundred dollars a month".


I guess I'm confused at just what you mean. Are you saying that we are silly for doing Direct Sales or are you making a point that we all do it for more than the money? Edited by: IamBlessed

[...]so I guess the answers to this question would depend very much on the goals that have to be attained first to open up the next level for commissions.


I think you hit the nail on the head there, Lori. There is SO much to consider when balancing the pros and cons of one compensation plan versus another.The best bet is to educate yourself thoroughly in advance, so that you know exactly what to expectfromthe company you plan to represent. That way you can be certain that the compensation plan you're signing up for is the one best suited to your own individual wants and needs.


Blessings,


Christy

My point is that if ones goal was to make $200 per month, it's easier in
traditional sales rather than in Direct Sales, because the mark-up is
higher.

Many folks get into DS for many reasons. For some, it's their social
outlet. For others, it's a ministry. But most folks want or need to make
an income while staying in their homes to do so. Or variations on ALL of
these and many more reasons.

My reason (s)? I need to take you back to last September. I have a very
successful skin therapy business. I brought on a young esthetician to
mentor her in her new career. It's a tough business, and I treat my
businesses as opportunities to help others in whatever capacity I can.
Unknown to me at that time, I would NEED her to almost completely take
over my business. In November, my daughter became very ill, and with
three days notice, I quit working nearly completely. Since then, I work
only one 1/2 day if dad can be home with our daughter.

My income evaporated. Don't get me wrong here...I was NOT looking to
get back nto Direct Sales! LOL!! But I will tell you that when I saw the
business opportunity with the Taste Of Home brand, I made the decision
immeditely to jump in with both feet! No hesitation at all. I KNEW I had
to do this!

Please, go back and re-read my posts in this thread. Please.Most
people do not make money in Direct Sales because they do not treat it
like the real business that it is. Sure we make friends, and can witness to
people of a certain "truth" we have to share, but we can do that anywhere,
can't we?

I want to create a lifestyle that gives us peace of mind with regard to
financial needs, both now and in the future. Sure, I'll make friends and
create relationships along the way, but the MAIN reason is to make a lot
of money.

Hope that didn't muddy the waters even MORE!!

Nondy

Just for the record, I certainly see the benefits of being paid on your downline's sales, but I have to wonder, once we get to the 6th, 7th, 8th line and on, are these people too far away from us to truly justify ourcompensation?


As an upline, you will definitely support your first two or three lines, and maybe play a role in the business for your next few lines, but as you get further and further out, its looks too much like a pyramid .. I know that the fact that you recruited people resulted in those "remote downlines" signing on the company, but might it be a better use ofcompany resourcesto increase amounts paid on 1st and 2nd lines to foster more support, and to encourage the development and promotion of lower level consultants... and capping downlines at 5 or 6 levelsinstead of paying commissions on unlimited numbers of downlines ... you're getting paid for the efforts of people you have likely never talked to , or even talked to their upline's upline.


I am truly asking this... I don't know how I feel about the issue. It seems almost industry standard to have these unlimited lines of commissions, but I wonder if this is the best way for most companies when thinking long term. I would love to hear all your thoughts on it.


Lori

I can certainly see where you're coming from on this, Lori. What we're looking at here is much more than recruiting, though... it has to do with providing leadership, training, and support. Leadership skills do not come naturally to most people... instead, they need to be taught, developed, and honed over time. If you're only being paid on a couple of levels deep, your impetus is certainly to train those people on how to be successful in their own sales. On the other hand, if you're being paid on infinite levels deep, you have the incentive to train your downline not only in selling techniques, but also in how to be a successful leader themselves. You would WANT them to build successful downlines of their own because itwill also benefit you. So you train them how to sell... then you train them how to recruit... then you train them how to lead. It means more work and time investment for the leaders when they are working to develop other leaders on their team, but the rewards are rich. smileys/smiley1.gif


Blessings,


Christy

Interesting point! I hadn't thought about it that way, but still, don't you think that when you get to the "n"th level that your involvement with the consultants is, practically speaking, over. I mean, in some companies that have really grown, you could have a consultant in your downline that is 25 levels from you, realisticly, your impact on them is very indirect, at best...


Still the improtance of fostering good leaders is definitely important, but should compensation for this be unlimited? Interested to hear from the rest of you too!


Lori

Nondy, I see what you're saying. And yes, we all do join companies to make good money and to contribute significantly to our household incomes. That's what it was initially for me but then it turned into so much more than that. And all the other benefits besides the money is what keeps me going in it. I have dealt with alot of aggravating mess with Petra going under and having to deal with Pure Romance and the underwhelming response they gave to our downlines and our customers when they started receiving our orders. I could have made ALOT of money from them had I stayed on but it was about so much more than the money. The number one thing was sacrificing my personal morals and beliefs and then the second thing was my customers and downline. This company was not providing THEM with what they deserved. So at that time it wasn't about the money anymore.


With that said, I think it is awesome what you are doing with Taste at Home. I think it is amazing the things you've had to overcome and deal with at home and work. And that you are so determined to make a great income for your family. I have no doubt that you will. I do wish you all the best and know that you will achieve all you want to. Our reasons are just different and that's ok.


The bottom line is that we are all in Direct Sales for whatever reasons, money or for other benefits. No matter what they are we can all benefit from each other in many ways. Especially thought provoking threads and posts like thisthread has turned out to be!

I wanted to share the response to this subject from a very successful and
wise mentor of mine, Rick Chitwood.


"Width builds wealth. Depth builds security.

I am in Network Marketing for the security and residual income.
That comes from width with depth.

I would never be in a company with a comp plan that did not
reward me in some way for infinite volume.

People who focus only on their pay levels are the same people
who will tell you that there is no such thing as residual income.

If the people on the levels below your comp plan pay levels are
not making money, your organization volume will dry up and your
people will leave.

In other words, if your comp plan pays you on six levels, and the
people on your sixth level are not making any money you will
not have a sixth level for very long.

If your organization was build properly with duplication, with age,
each level will be larger than the one above it. Therefore with
age, your sixth level will be your widest lever. If you sixth level
disappears, so does the income on your largest level.

You have a monetary incentive to work with serious people on
any level.

If you have the largest organization with the most volume and
you are not being compensated accordingly, you may have
problems with your comp plan

What goes around comes around. Help everyone. It does not
matter if they are in your pay scale or even in your downline. If
everyone helps everyone, everyone is successful, everyone will benefit.

JMHO and the system I have successfully followed for years."

Hope you all enjoyed his perspective as much as I did!

Nondy

Wow, the votes are really close but the perspectives voiced seem to strongly favor infinite downlines. This is very interesting, keep posting your perspectives, I, for one, am getting alot out of it.


Also, I am wondering if whether people have attained a level where the unlimited downline commission is available to themaffects their take on this. I have not, so that might be molding my thoughts that maybe there is a better way to go.


LoriEdited by: Lori Sievers

I remember going to an Arbonne training a couple of years ago and it
has stuck with me ever since even though I don't sell Arbonne. The
National, Sandra Tillinghast said that she was making money on people
she had never even met. She gets her print out every month and every
month there are more people on it most of whom she has no idea who they
are. This is because she gets paid on her downline's downline etc.
etc. Good or bad? Depends. If it is about money, it's good. If it
is
about relationships and helping others, how can you help someone you've
never met? I will never forget that day. She just finished
building her dream home on the Southern CA coast and those of us
in CA no how pricey coastal real estate is. What is even more
amazing to me is that she was a Pink Cadillac driving director with
Mary Kay when she started with Arbonne. Gave up her unit and big
commission in MK and started all over again. Amazing!
Edited by: MyJafrabiz

Hey Lori! This is off topic but how are things going with Marilyn Brown at the helm? Have you gotten to meet her yet? What'd ya think? She's an absolute ball of energy and has the most hilarious sense of humor. I'm just curious because, well I'm just curious I guess LOL

One persononly hasX amount of time on their hands and canonly sale so much. But, 100 people on your team can sale 100 times more than any one person can. I vote downline structure~