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September 6, 2005
Bobble Is Beth Dornan
By QBlog in Web Initiative
Who is the author of the Quixtar Success blog posting under the pseudonym, Bobble? After "Outing Kia" I suppose it's time to do the same for Bobble.
Who Is Bobble?
Bobble is the pseudonym for Beth Dornan, Director of Communications for Quixtar. Dornan started the Quixtar Success blog last summer, around the time other Web Initiative blogs were launching.
However, Dornan's blog was refreshingly different from many of the Web Initiative blogs (like the Billy Florence blog, Fred Harteis blog and "Real Quixtar Blog") because it allowed trackbacks, comments and gave hints about the author's true identity:
Yes, I really do work at Quixtar headquarters near Grand Rapids, Michigan. I'm part of Sales & Marketing Division.
I really like Dornan's blog, even if it frequently shows its PR roots. Posts like "Growin' Up" give a genuine, blogger-like tone to a site that's obviously designed to boost Quixtar's image. And the fact that Dornan responds to comments engages the readers and gives them a reason to return again and again.
Anonymous
What I don't understand is why Dornan decided to post anonymously. I tried to get an answer to that question and received the following respons:
I'm anonymous by choice -- not by design. I'm very intrigued by blogging but have no interest in plastering my name all over the Web because of my commitment to my and my family's privacy.
While I understand Dornan's commitment to privacy, that has nothing to do with operating a corporate blog. I run a blog (not this one) for my employer and I use my real name on that blog. Is that compromising my family's privacy? No. Not any more than posting Dornan's name on a Quixtar press release.
We live in an era of instant, global communication and just because our name is attached to something public, doesn't mean we're endangering our family's privacy. Is Jim Payne endangering his family's privacy when he signs some public memo? Does Jeff Jarvis show a lack of commitment to his family's privacy because he blogs as himself? What about Scoble? You get the idea.
Here's what Michael Hyatt, the President and CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers (the largest Christian publishing company in the world), has to say about Corporate blogging:
Write as yourself. In other words, please use your real name. We don't want people writing anonymously or under a pseudonym. Your name should be prominently displayed on your blog's title or subtitle. This will add credibility with your readers and promote accountability within our company.
Credibility
I tried to raise the credibility issue with Dornan, and others, to no avail. For some reason Quixtar PR thinks that running anonymous blogs is more credible than the alternative. Or, maybe there's another reason? Maybe there's an accountability issue here? Could it be that Dornan, Luymes and others don't want to be held accountable for what they say on their very public blogs? I'd love for someone at Quixtar to post a comment here explaining the rationale for such behavior.
Anyway, I hope the Quixtar Success blog takes this opportunity to improve. It's a good blog that really has a chance to be great.
UPDATE: Beth Dornan has responded to this post:
Who am I? I'm Beth Dornan with Quixtar Communications. How will this change my blog? Not a lot. I'll still express some personal opinions about a wide range of topics, from the food in the cafeteria to the latest concerts coming to Grand Rapids, but I'll focus a bit more on what we're doing here at Quixtar Communications. Web sites we're working on. Catalogs we're producing. Cool stuff we're doing. And when what we do isn't so cool, what we didn't do so well.
Kudos to Dornan! I know I'll keep reading Quixtar Success and look forward to the increased focus on Quixtar Communications. Aren't blogs grand?
Comments
But that's not Quixtar's main goal.
PW
How many Quixtar employees, with access to the real success information, have become full time IBOs?
NONE. There are a handful of people that do dip their toes in, but NONE have left their 'J.O.B.' because they have become successful at Q* (or Amway before that).
Hmm, let me see, Quixtar own employees, working in a "legal" company, whos opportunity is also "legal", according to barnes and noble attorneys, are not using their name in their blog which they write for their company ?
What a sad bunch of fags!
((In the tune of the Smiths' classic))
"Soc-cer moms of the world
U-nite and take ooooh-vvver....."
Good grief!
See Spray-
Good to see you back.
I do know one example of an employee leaving and becoming a triple-diamond (highest pin qualified). I don't believe he is anywhere close today but I believe he fulfills the question answered. This was very early on and he was sponsored by Charlie & Elsie Marsh. His last name, ironically, is 'Rich'.
Wasn't Roger Krause employed at Ada at one time, also? Deb? I really think that there are probably other examples that others know.
Scott brings up a good point.
I was going to blog about this and get exact data from my brother-in-law who works as an employee for another MLM in Utah called 4life.com.
In just a quick conversation he gave me some approximate data. It is a $100 million company. He said they have a goal to pay back to the "pyramid" about 63% of revenue but usually only pay back somewhere around 54% of revenue. He cuts the I-9 tax forms at the end of the year, so he knows this stuff...but, he said there were only about 20 people who made $40,000 or more a year worldwide
(he was comparing to his approximate income). There were only a hand full that made big money, he said one guy in particular made nearly $700,000, he was at the top.
Their main product the "Transfer Factor" supplement cost about $5 a bottle to produce and they sell it for like $68, this blew me away.
He admitted that the employees recognize that most of the distributors are "strange" people. By the way, he gets a certain alotment of the product free every month. And, no, he does not contribute as a distributor, thank goodness.
They call the kingpins Diamonds. He said one of the lines has started using "motivational materials". I wouldn't be surprised if this is one of the many off shoots of a former Amway distributor.
But, it gives you a picture into a typical MLM. Multiply that data times ten and you can see what a $1 billion Quixtar/Amway company looks like.
The "Quixtar Success" blog became a lot more legitimate in my eyes when it dropped the annoying insistence to always include the words "Quixtar" and "Success" in the title of each an every blog post. That seemed just a bit too much like SEO to me.
"Quixtar messiah" (see my blog) speaks:
"Amen, Scott."
-r
PS:
Amen.
PPS: I haveta shave…
-=-
Isn't Ms. Dornan the daughter of one Jim Dornan, Crown Ambassador and head of Network 21 or what ever it might be called this week?
I recall he has three kids and I thought his daughter was named Beth.
No, Beth Dornan is not related to Crown Ambassador Jim Dornan.
Jim & Nancy Dornan's daughter is named Heather. You are correct that the other two are boys. "Network21" hasn't changed names for quite a while that I've heard - it's been the same for 10-15 years, I think.
Inheriter -
I'm not an expert at Q*, but I do have a lot of factual information. What you say could very well be true. There may be examples from other countries as well, I just don't know of any.
I could also give you a number of examples of employees that are children (Charlie Marsh's son was one -- and was that a sure case of a big favor) or relatives. Others have married pin levels, or gone to work for several of them (oh, the stories I could tell -- but that is not the point).
I can think of some in these situations that have been successful, but honestly, I would not consider that success independent. Business was actually 'moved' to these people or they just became part of the 'family organization'.
Just from my knowledge, I know of no employee that has left the employment of Alticor to become a full time distributor/IBO. In working with the highest level of distributors globally, I can say with certainty that NONE of them started out as employees of what is now Alticor and then started a business that could be considered a map for success.
Scott Larsen> It would seem like if it were as great as they promoted it, they would always be having to hire people as people retired into a full time Amway/Quixtar business. How come Ken McDonald did not become an IBO after he retired? If the money is so easy to make in Q, why aren't their more Q employees leaving to be full time IBOs?
Joecool18> I asked my upline that when I was in the biz. Of course I now realize now that my upline lied, but he told me (in 1997) that Amway went out of their way to over-compensate their employees so they would not quit to become IBO's. Has anyone else heard this?
Interesting thought, eh?
How many Quixtar employees, with access to the real success information, have become full time IBOs?
NONE. There are a handful of people that do dip their toes in, but NONE have left their 'J.O.B.' because they have become successful at Q* (or Amway before that).
Not true, and here's an another example. My sponsor was headhunted by Amway (not in the US mind yot) to be their marketing manager. He worked for them for 5 years then resigned, asked a Diamond when his next plan showing was, and has been a Founders Emerald for years and has dozens of downline diamonds and above.
Look, there is nothing wrong with not wanting to be an IBO and preferring the corporate career path. Being an IBO is for anyone, not everyone.
Hi My name is George ,just a quik msg to some of the sceptics out there towards this type of entrepreneurial oppertunity.Get educated towards having money or your business working for you and not you working for money ($/hr that is )the truly rich look for and build " networks " and the poor and middle class look for work.But most importantly have the courage to dream big because its an arguement you litrally cant afford to win and yor reward for winning that arguement is being a paid slave until you retire or die.have fun while we are all free...... Tee Hee Hee - Go Diamond..
I see a lot of people here bothered about too many unnecessary facts.
I have been working (most times just passive) for the last 6 years. I'm not very rich but I do know what it takes.
1- This is a real business, otherwise it cannot survive for 48 years & do the billions of $ turnover it does.
2-Lots of people do not get to the diamond level, similar to the corporate world where not everybody becomes the CEO. 85% of all business fail, failure in Amway doesn’t cost you too much anyway & you do get some great products in the deal.
3-However, unlike a corporate anybody who does the work gets to see the big money. (It takes 1000 plans to go diamond. I haven't found anybody who's done it and not become even Emerald). There is no limit on what PIN you achieve.
4- No expense in compulsory, everything is a choice. You didn't complain about which author made money when you bought books during university. You bought books because you wanted to learn.
5- If you are very negative, why don’t you do what is said to you (15 plans/ 100PV/ Read recommended books/ Listen to recommended tapes/ go to functions/ 10 customers/ work with the team) and not be successful in one year. Why don’t you try this and prove a point !!
Do as I say not as I do.....
Has anyone ever thought about how a Quixtar PR insider thinks? Ok, here you are an employee (you have a JOB) of a company whose main goal is to put people in business for themselves. As a PR person you must tell everyone how successful everyone is in the biz and what a great business opportunity it is. You as an insider should have a good view of how it really works and what really goes on. You also have a JOB with wants and dreams like all good IBOs. So now you as an insider, seeing what really goes with special access to information, how come you can't come to the conclusion that Quixtar is way better than a job and leave Quixtar to be full time IBO, like all the other people coming into Q? How many Quixtar employees, with access to the real success information, have become full time IBOs? That would be interesting to know. How many successful Quixtar/Alticor exec's left their job to be MLM participants?
It would seem like if it were as great as they promoted it, they would always be having to hire people as people retired into a full time Amway/Quixtar business. How come Ken McDonald did not become an IBO after he retired? If the money is so easy to make in Q, why aren't their more Q employees leaving to be full time IBOs?
Interesting thought, eh?
Posted by: Scott Larsen | September 6, 2005 9:04 PM