I’m sure Amway is as tired of this question as I am. After being around the business for over 30 years and failing, I now
know why. It was me not Amway. This company has been around for 62 years and has grown from strength to strength over the years in lots of positive ways. It is about time we settled the question of is Amway a scam once and for all.
I still buy their products today and get my bonus back every month (similar to flybuy credits,) as it makes good economic sense. If you want to make money from your weekly shop, then I am happy to sponsor you to buy wholesale. Just ask in the comment section!
Table of Contents
Looking for Freedom
I was a naive 24-year-old working in Sydney when I first met my lovely sponsor. She was a well-dressed, savvy businesswoman and I wanted to be like her. After a professional explanation of the business model. She showed me some amazing product demonstrations and I wanted to know more. No pressure, just information, and an offer to help me build a business of my own.
There wasn’t any reason to not believe her. But a trip to the head office in Sydney and meeting more people in the business worked. Fortunately for me, this company was terrific and that hasn’t changed in all this time. Especially, now that they are moving more into the internet world.
Amway was founded in 1959 by two friends who were passionate about the world around them. The two friends are Rich Devos and Jay Can Andel.
They believed in people and helping them live better lives by making them realize their potential. This gave birth to Amway. It is a company that offers people a chance to be in business themselves.
Today, people across over 100 countries are involved with Amway. These people control their businesses in Amway by working hard to achieve success. They get more control of their time, more financial security, and a better quality of life for themselves and their community.
Amway has been operating with a plan that has been proven over time. With this plan, there’s no limit to what you can earn.
Amway business owners are the exclusive point of access to over 400 world-class products. These products could be in the categories of beauty, nutrition, and more. Amway makes use of multi-level marketing (MLM) to promote its products.
The concept of earning on Amway is through referrals. This is where you have to invite people to join and convince them to have an account. When these people work, you get to earn out of what they earn.
How the Company Trains its Business Owners
As I mentioned earlier, the company provides free training by giving you an experienced mentor to help put you through. This training is mostly geared towards how to market and sell products to interested buyers. They teach you how to develop yourself and orient you on the overall concept of business.
There is also a support system that will help put you through when you have difficulties. The support system is there to answer any questions you have.
The Cost of Joining Amway
The cost of joining depends on the product you want to market. You can either pay about 60 USD to join or pay 82 USD. The latter is for when you want to market a popular product that is in demand. That way, you get to sell faster because the products are from popular companies.
Earning on Amway
You get money from the people you refer. This happens when they sell. You get a percentage from what they earn. This percentage depends on the value of the sold products.
Pros and Cons of Amway
Pros
- You can enhance your marketing experience.
- Different products abound for you to market.
- You get to earn money.
Cons
- Sometimes the value of your earning is not commensurate with the work you put in.
- The value of products is a combination of a marketer’s commission with the actual price of the product. This makes marketing difficult because of the expensive products.
Amway has been paying its marketers for over 5 decades and that’s evident in the company’s longevity. The reason people think it’s a scam is mostly that earning on Amway is very difficult.
Multi-level marketing (MLM) is a very difficult method. So, it shouldn’t surprise you when people have difficulties earning on Amway. But if you’re ready to put in the work, you stand a chance to earn well.
What Makes Amway Different?
There are some fundamental differences in how we get products and services in our world.
- Bricks and Mortar Business – Mechanics, Plumbers, Clothing, and Food Outlets.
- Direct to Public – Amway, and Tupperware (just to name two)
- Internet Business – Everything these days, delivered by courier or local post office.
Bricks and Mortar
Most people understand how a brick and mortar business works, even from a young age. We have been around the mechanics (service), plumbers (service), and retail (product) shops since we were babies. If you think carefully about any service or product business there is one similarity.
They can only get business if first, they promote their business and then provide the service or product. Accordingly, you will go to them on their premises. Even banks have to advertise and then provide a service and product. A lot of businesses do both.
Amway and other companies
The other option to promote products and services is by word of mouth.
Having independent distributors deliver the product. This business model has been around for years and some huge personal businesses have been built this way. This model works similar to any wholesale business, in that the distributor buys at wholesale and sells at retail. The distributor keeps the difference.
- The company also pays them a bonus on the amount of volume going through their personal business. For these businesses to survive the company must provide product knowledge and training to the distributors. In most cases, this is provided by the parent company and the sole trader business owner to their down line.
- Amway, Avon, and Tupperware. Their bonus structure is designed to encourage sole traders to look after and educate people who have joined them in their business (down line).
- If you are a people person who loves to have a crowd around you then this is a fantastic business model. You will enjoy the social aspect of building a business. I would be delighted to sponsor you into your own business and help with your first steps to growing your financial freedom (Lily Munday 9364611) Please leave a comment and I will contact you to get you started in this exciting and fun business.
- Or you can go directly to the Amway site and register under my name as your sponsor, and I will contact you to see how I can support you in your new journey. It’s very simple and there is lots of training material available as well as an awesome training system called Network 21.
Internet Business
If you are not a crowd person then Internet marketing is your best option.
Creating and owning your own website(s)
means you can choose any product that you like from the internet and promote it. If they have an affiliate (commission) program then for every product you sell you will make a percentage.
If you are just dying to create your own physical product you can sell this on your website too. Or through a created storefront on eBay or Amazon.
There are many ways that you can get started on your own website but if you feel a little out of your depth and feel you would like to have a mentor to teach and support you on this journey click the link below for a Free trial.
A Digital Product
Another option is to create a digital e-book or PDF paper that you sell. This way you get 100% of the profit or can pay affiliates a little to promote it for you. No meetings or prospecting, you have all the control but it can get lonely, and beware of the sharks!
As you can see there is nothing scammy about Amway. It’s a direct selling business model, started in 1959. In 2019, they turned over 8.4 Billion US Dollars. In 60 years in business, they have paid out $63 Billion US in Bonuses! They have never missed paying a bonus ever. Don’t believe me, check out the facts here.
Why The Bad Rap?
This goes back to human nature and having seen the Amway business from the inside and outside. I will explain how it could happen. It takes more than a dream or desire to run your own business, it takes dedication, learning, and staying power!
Some Reasons People Fail in Any Business
- Type of business model that suits you
- Inexperienced new business owners
- Not willing to work hard to build any business
- Saving face
Type of business model that suits you
This is where most people stumble (as I did) and it is easy to do when you have limited knowledge. Consequently, congratulations on reading this article to educate yourself. Knowledge is power! One of the most important questions you need to ask yourself is if you want to be a business owner is.
What type of business model will suit me?
- Bricks and mortar mean buying or leasing a building or shop. Buying the equipment, outfitting the shop, promotion flyers, and business cards. Promoting your business and waiting for customers to come to you.
- Becoming an independent distributor means paying to join, promotion and learning material, some products and conventions, and training costs. The products are tried and true. You go out and find customers.
- Starting an internet business or a website means you will pay for training and the hosting of your website. Advertising and freight on delivery of your own product or you can be paid affiliate commission on other products. You will write content to attract customers.
Inexperienced new business owners
Why on earth do most people think that they can go from being an employee to suddenly owning a business? Most of us have been through school for many years to prepare to be very good employees.
If you own a business, any business you will probably need to employ people as it grows. Consequently, our heads are full of the knowledge to be of service in our chosen field of employment. To be employed, not to employ people.
Suddenly, we need a whole set of new skills. In fact, we need to know a lot to build and run a profitable business,
any type of business! If you decide to buy bricks and mortar business or start a direct selling business. Or create an online website business you must commit to learning the new rules and knowledge.
Otherwise, you will fail before you begin.
This is not to put you off, just the facts. It’s an exciting journey to explore greater financial and time freedom. To be your own boss but you can be sure you will be putting in lots of overtime before the payoff.
Most new businesses only start to make a return after 5 years. The sooner you start studying the sooner you will get there. Internet businesses can start paying affiliate commissions within 1-5 years depending on how hard your work to write content.
Not willing to work hard
There is no cure for this and if you want it to fall in your lap, you will either have to have been born into a wealthy family or marry into one. Even then, they probably will expect you to work. Being an employee isn’t a doddle either but you reap what you sow.
The only great difference is as an employee, you don’t have the ultimate responsibility for success. You can leave whenever you want. Mind you, having to pay everyday bills can keep you working long hours for someone else. You get paid immediately but you don’t own the asset, even if you work all your life.
Work is work, you get to decide where you spend your hours. We all have the same amount of hours in our day. You can create something which will grow and eventually make you money or help to support another person’s dream. You can start today for Free and get training and a community.
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Saving face
The Amway conundrum is that when new distributors try and fail to build a business, it’s just easier to blame the company. It’s hard to admit to friends and family that you didn’t try hard enough or long enough (or picked the wrong business style for yourself and really didn’t understand how this business works.)
No-one likes to admit they failed.
There is nothing wrong with Amway’s business model. The products are a little more expensive but they sell because they are of good quality. Depending on who sponsors you the training can be fantastic (it gave me skills for life.)
And if you enjoy talking to
people and supporting them through the growing pains and group fun, then you will love this business. But if you are a bit of a lone wolf then the internet is an exciting place to build your dream.
Read about my # 1 recommendation here!
I hope you have enjoyed my post and it has helped you to understand the different business models and why Amway isn’t a scam. Please leave a comment and any questions that you may have and I will be happy to help. Share and Like if you a willing.
Join me in business.
LILY
Hi Lily, It is so interesting to see AMWAY as part of your article. I was once an Amway sales rep in the beginning of 1980s. I tried to earn money selling amway products. I never thought amway was a scam. I don’t remember too much about AMWAY now as it was ages ago when I sold AMway products. But I do remember that all of their products are of high quality and they work. Cleaning stuff are safe for the hands but works effectively. Some of the products are biodegradable. Most of the products I bought from Amway lasted for many years because most are concentrated. It was unbelievable!. You made me curious about AMWAY. I will check what kind of products do they have now. You arouse my curiosity. Thank you for sharing your post. I love it!
Evelyn
Oh thanks Evelyn. I still use their cleaning products as they last so long. They have branched out into cosmetics (which I use as they work) and health products. We also have their water purifier which is excellent. I just didn’t enjoy the meetings and propping people up who weren’t serious business builders, I love being on the internet.
I was once in Amway (then Quixtar). I liked the concept and the business model, in theory. The problem for me is that I’m a terrible sales person, and my personality really isn’t geared towards success in this business model. I knew successful people within, so I know it’s not a scam.
You are absolutely right when you say you need to pick the business model that fits you best, and that nothing falls into your lap. You have to be willing to work to succeed.
I’m glad to see someone post something fair about Amway. It really is a decent company, with decent products. I still remember the laundry soap – only need a small amount for the entire load. 😉
Thanks Steve for your comment. It is nice to put a balanced review up. I enjoyed building my Amway business to 1000 people but found it exhausting with people not working their businesses and expecting me to do it for them and really don’t enjoy retail. I’ve tried it twice and it really isn’t the business model for me I prefer to work alone. That’s why I love Wealthy Affiliate so much as I can do what works for me on my own websites.
Hello there thanks for sharing such an amazing review about this platform. It was really helpful I must say. Well for me, for a company to have lasted for over 60 years is not something that should be considered as scam although the means of making money on the platform may be difficult but I know with time it will pay off.
Thanks Phil, I’m glad that you understand that the company and products are great but for some it doesn’t fit with the type of business they want to run.
Wishing you all the best for your future.
Lily 😊🎶
I remember when I first started my journey to become my own boss I was recruited into Amway by my eldest sister in the mid 1980’s. I learned the whole process of MLM and how to build a team.
Though I was excited at first and went to a couple of the local events, it was tough to build a team and I wound up spending more just to stay viable for commissions than what I was bringing in. I eventually quit.
I would never call Amway a scam and they did have some quality products, though a bit over priced. It just was not the type of business commitment for me. Back then there was no real internet to leverage.
Had there been a way to build a website like now and use the power and reach of the internet to grow a team and sell products, I feel I could do better. Plus it is obvious that Amway is not a scam. They have been around for decades!
I totally agree with you Robert. It is a shame they haven’t moved it more onto the internet, although during the Covid lockdown they have been running internet previews of the business online, which is a start. I would just like to promote individual Amway products on my website like any other product in the world but you are not allowed to do that. I do think they are finding themselves very restricted in this changing world with the business model that they have.
Wishing you success in whatever business you do.
Lily
I heard about Amway a long time ago but I didn’t become a part of it because at the time I wasn’t really serious about anything in life and I knew that becoming a part of Amway wouldn’t be my solution so I didn’t bother. Well now that I am reading your review years later, I think I could have made something out of it at least. What do you think?
It’s always a great idea to keep an open mind and do your homework for any business idea. MLM (Multi-level Marketing) isn’t for everyone. It all depends on whether you are a lone wolf or you like to work in a crowd. There is tremendous support and group training with Amway and you make friends for life. Only you can decide. Let me know if you want to have a go and I will mentor you through the training, it’s fun.
HI there! Nice review! Thanks for sharing this detailed and informative piece. Prior to this I knew nothing about clever success affiliate, but now I know. This was indeed very helpful to me, I will definitely give this a trail in future and with time am sure it will definitely pay. Thanks again.
Hi Virtue and thanks for your kind comments. It is so easy to just believe everything you hear and nice to get the truth from someone who has been around a company for over 40 years. Wishing you all the best with Wealthy Affiliate.
Thanks a lot for sharing this amazing article here, it is a good one and I’ve enjoyed reading through every bit of it, it is always very advisable that we take time to read through reviews as it helps us know a very lot about the products that we are buying. I’ll share this article and it is very thoughtful of you to put it out here.
I can tell that you enjoyed getting a balanced review of this interesting company. Thanks for sharing it.
I was excited to see that you chose to talk about AMWAY. While I’ve never sold the Amway products, they do seem to make a lot of high-quality products.
Honestly, the main reason I haven’t considered being a part of Amway before is because a few of my relatives did not have much success selling their products and call it a rip-off. I imagine that their lack of success really has little to do with Amway, and more to do with their own poor salesmanship.
Hi Delaney, I think you may be right about their lack of success and it is understandable to blame the company when you can’t sell. But they are a great company and although the products are a little more expensive they really last a long time. I still buy a lot of them now.
Hi there, Amway is a multi level marketing company which focuses on selling health and wellness products.
It’s well-established network marketing company, which offers training materials and events for their IBOs.
Amway company has been around for quite some time, not everyone likes the company, but the steady stream of 5 star reviews indicates that their products are pretty effective and the majority of websites that feature collective reviews on Amway reveal that it’s a good company.
Amway’s products are pretty expensive and Amway says that their products are expensive because of the high quality ingredients that are involved and the amount of research involved.
You have nailed the essence of this review Bushra. Amway is a good company that looks after its sales team (IBO) and helps them to sell the products. They wouldn’t still be around 60 years down the track if the product weren’t great and the company solid.