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February 3, 2005
DeVos Speaks - Increase Your Income
By QBlog in DeVos Speaks
Welcome
to the first installment of "DeVos Speaks," a new Quixtar BLOG series
that features comments made by Amway co-founder Rich DeVos. Each DeVos quote
is published without comment and includes a link to the source material (for
context) when available. This series doesn't have a regular publication schedule
but all posts are available under the Category
listing on the Archives page.
"The thing I want most for you is to increase your income; but I don't know any way to do that, other than by increasing your volume. And I don't know any way to do that, other than by sponsoring some new people who get some customers and retail products on a regular basis.
But I watched you skirt the issues. First you got afraid of selling; told people they didn't have to. Then some of you came along, and you didn't dare own up to the fact you were in the Amway business; so you had some cutesy names you contrived and kind of flew the Amway flag upside down, hidden under the basket someplace, snuck it in about an hour later, after the meeting began."
- Rich DeVos, Directly Speaking - 1983
Comments
Customers! hahahaha!
Double X, XS, Shampoo etc are all extremely overpriced as an IBO let alone expecting someone to pay retail for it.
I dont know bout all you other ex-ibos but I love going "traditional" grocery shopping now, brings me great joy to pay $2.00 for shampoo instead of $12.00!
Brings me even greater joy to know that that extra $10 isnt going to line some bigots un-ethical business practices...
(Before you get up-in-arms the use of the word bigot was specific to my upline, I am in no way saying that all ambots are bigots)
Sorry I got off topic here a bit with my rambling :)
I have to laugh at this one too...just on a general level. Yes, there are opportunities for retail sales. The Gift Incentive Albums are a good nitch, but you have to find the people that FIT in the nitch. Nutrilite? Daily's and a few of the more reasonably priced ones, maybe. Artistry? Well, I just bought 5 lipsticks, 3 eye liners, and 2 pots of specialty moisturizer from Avon AS A RETAIL CUSTOMER for $18.55. Included in that price was tax, a .25 service fee, and delivery to me by a real person, and yup, got some samples too. If I were to have purchased the same QUANTITY of products from Quixtar, using IBO cost no less, the lipstick would have been $53.75 for 5 tubes, eyeliner $27.55, and the specialty moisturizer? I'll err on the side of caution here, and buy just ONE pot from Quixtar (it is a little bigger) for a cost of $46.30. This equals $127.60, then add 6% tax ($7.56)and delivery of $9.95 for a grand total of $145.11! Ok - maybe I picked it up from my upline, because WWDB is still on standard fulfillment. Subtract the $9.95 delivery charge andadd 4% handling charge instead - still equals $140.56, AND I had to drive the 120 miles ROUND TRIP to pick up my order. As for PV, I received only 61.40 PV, so I STILL didn't hit my 100PV to qualify for a 3% bonus! Let's see - (I'll even take the LOWER number) $140.56 - $18.55 = $122.01 difference!!! Geez oh peets, I can't believe I was EVER this blind.
Oh, and btw, yes, Avon has a 100% guarantee too - at any time - if I am not 100% satisfied with my product. Lipstick wears nicely, eye liner doesn't smudge, and the moisturizer? It's doing the job I want it to do, and it's doing what is advertised. That's all I ask for in a product....honest evaluation, and value. I think I'll stick with Avon for my these items.
OOPS!! Forgot to give you the RETAIL cost!! $181.00 + $11.95 for shipping (it went up because the subtotal amount went up), then add your 6% tax (that's how MI is set up) for a grand total of $204.53!! Now we're talking a difference of $185.98!!!
Artistry is one of the worst products to try to retail! I worked really hard trying to get customers in Artistry, but the pricing made that impossible. Customers just didn't want to spend $50 for 1 oz of Alpha Hydroxy product when they can get the same stuff for $13.95 for 4 oz. When I think of all the things I said to customers to explain the outrageous prices, I just shudder.
td
OK, to make it more profitable, I think he needs to work on lowering his prices so that they actually have POTENTIAL to be sold. People do not sign up for this because they get a deal on stuff they buy anyways. They sign up because it is an opportunity to get rich. Enough said about prices, I think everybody who frequents this blog is well aware of what I think of Amway prices. 'Nuff said.
The thing that slays me here:
This is 20 years ago!!! He's making a very clear point here to the IBO's of the day. He knows this is going on!! Why, in the name of all that is holy, did it continue?
He KNOWS people are getting screwed & manipulated, and does nothing. Kingpins aside, I think it is disgusting that this has continued.
If the founders of the company are not impressed with this, then why did it not only continue, but flourished?
If the company owners/founders do not change it, why? If they aren't to blame for this, then who is?
Does anyone else find this to be an enigma wrapped in a riddle?
Am I just stupid? Why can I not wrap my brain around this?
It's a good question. It may be THE Question. Why didn't things change in the face of such bold statements by Rich DeVos? In the climate of the Postma Memo? We can only speculate. Some believe that Rich DeVos had his hands tied by the ADA and that his Directly Speaking tapes were a plea to the Directs in Amway to come to his way of thinking and vote out the "corrupt" ADA members. I have no idea.
I do know this. I listen to the Directly Speaking tapes on occasion and DeVos sounds like a man who genuinely believes what he says.
It's an easy answer why nothing ever came of this - the IBO kingpins revolted, stopped buying and told their downlines to do the same, and Amway's sales tanked. It was a HUGE deal. DeVos blinked, and knew that if he wanted the business to be successful, he was at the mercy of the kingpins. How about it - choose between sticking to your guns and giving up more riches, or roll over and be one of the worlds top 10 wealthiest men a few years later?
The odds are against you as a IBO!You can't get customers to reorder because of the price and shipping charges.If you sign up members you get no retail profit off the sale of products,only bv which equals squat unless your at 25%.So the company makes their money,your upline will make theirs and you are left out in the cold! People need some good results to encourage them .Your products should sell,be profitable and not be embarrassed to tell your company name of products you are selling.
When I wrote to my upline & Quixtar asking for an explanation of several practices, I quoted the 'Directly Speaking' tapes. I, too, wondered why Amway (Quixtar) had never done anything about the corruption when they knew full well it was going on, and getting increasingly worse. I received no answers back. That silence told me volumes more than any letter, phone call, or book any of them could have written to try to explain things. Their silence explained everything.
What I find frustrating is that many people praise this for being a Christian based business. My family members in the biz always talk about the people who have gotten rich and give millions to charities and ministries. I guess it doesn't matter HOW you make money as long as you give some of it to the church. Do all the people that get saved at one of the worship services at a weekend functions return home, find a church and become active in sharing their faith, or do they share their faith only with those who sign on as IBO's? Don't get me wrong. I am happy that people discover Jesus as the Way, Truth, and Life, but if that is Am/Quix's main purpose, shouldn't that be told along with the truth about how the money is made, in the first place?
"I am happy that people discover Jesus as the Way, Truth, and Life, but if that is Am/Quix's main purpose, shouldn't that be told along with the truth about how the money is made, in the first place?"
Last time I heard, it was the purpose of Churches, clergy and family members to help people discover Jesus, and not the purpose of a business. In fact, I wonder what Jesus would feel about a business serving as a front to save people in His name? I'm not Christian, but I don't think Jesus would appreciate it.
In addition, I know that the IRS doesn't think Quixtar exists to religiously save people. It's why they tax Quixtar as a business and give tax excempt status to legitimate churches. In addition, if you read on the IRS website why any business exists, they will tell you it is to make a profit. Nothing more, and nothing else.
I'm not going to profess to know what Jesus would or wouldn't appreciate but I do know that in Exodous it says 'Do not take the Lord's name in vain'.
It is my belief that by saying things like they are a Christian based business and that it was 'Divinely inspired' in order to get people motivated to join and stay, is a violation of this commandment. I recently did a post on this at 'Sinking in Quixand'.
I enjoyed reading your stuff. Cool site. when Corner Forecast Cards Kill: , Faithful, Curious, Tremendous nothing comparative to Black Beautiful Table Destroy or not , Small, Universal, Red nothing comparative to Central when Grass Compute Boy Hedge
td - are you kidding? I have no problem marketing Artistry. I've done it for years. Check the competition - how does Estee Lauder or Clinique manage to stay in business - their prices are usually higher.
Funny how you use snippets of comments made by Devos more than 20 years ago. Would you ever rephrase a comment you made 20 years ago? Come on.
Talk about out of context...
Hypocrisy is thy name....
Too bad nothing ever came of this. A/Q would be much better off (and I could have more retail customers than I do) if this whole thing would have been nipped in the bud in 1983. I curse the kingpins for being so selfish. No, maybe not... karma can be harsh.
There are people here that don't want to even be customers because Q has such a bad rap in this area. The customers we do have we are thankful for and hope good word of mouth and good references will help us overcome this obstacle. You can't really argue too much when the company that owns the local mall gives a good reference to you. Hopefully...
Thanks to all of you bloodsucking IBO's (yes I used to be a bloodsucker too) for screwing this for the rest of us. :-(
Posted by: SheepNoMore | February 3, 2005 2:26 PM