Comments on: Hide Your Checkbooks – The Direct Marketing Sales Army is Growing http://toughmoneylove.com/2008/10/31/hide-your-checkbooks-%e2%80%93-the-direct-marketing-sales-army-is-growing/ The Hard Truth about Money and Personal Finance Fri, 19 Mar 2010 02:03:20 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9 hourly 1 By: Mr. ToughMoneyLove http://toughmoneylove.com/2008/10/31/hide-your-checkbooks-%e2%80%93-the-direct-marketing-sales-army-is-growing/comment-page-1/#comment-1034 Mr. ToughMoneyLove Tue, 04 Nov 2008 16:11:15 +0000 http://toughmoneylove.com/?p=148#comment-1034 Poor boomer - That is an excellent question and I am not sure if I have a great answer. I will say that I have learned from other comments that there are direct sales opportunities that involve selling products that people need and use. So, if you have excellent sales skills, go for those opportunities. My concern is people selling and buying stuff that is overpriced or that they simply don't need. I also dislike the multi-level marketing schemes that are often associated with these direct selling programs. Poor boomer – That is an excellent question and I am not sure if I have a great answer. I will say that I have learned from other comments that there are direct sales opportunities that involve selling products that people need and use. So, if you have excellent sales skills, go for those opportunities. My concern is people selling and buying stuff that is overpriced or that they simply don’t need. I also dislike the multi-level marketing schemes that are often associated with these direct selling programs.

]]> By: poor boomer http://toughmoneylove.com/2008/10/31/hide-your-checkbooks-%e2%80%93-the-direct-marketing-sales-army-is-growing/comment-page-1/#comment-1032 poor boomer Tue, 04 Nov 2008 15:58:03 +0000 http://toughmoneylove.com/?p=148#comment-1032 What then is the ToughMoneyLove solution for someone who is unemployed or underemployed? What then is the ToughMoneyLove solution for someone who is unemployed or underemployed?

]]> By: Mr. ToughMoneyLove http://toughmoneylove.com/2008/10/31/hide-your-checkbooks-%e2%80%93-the-direct-marketing-sales-army-is-growing/comment-page-1/#comment-1002 Mr. ToughMoneyLove Fri, 31 Oct 2008 19:15:56 +0000 http://toughmoneylove.com/?p=148#comment-1002 JEM - Well I am getting an education here. Maybe I am being a little harsh on direct marketers. I hvaen't had any experience with Shaklee but I have heard of their products and don't know anything negative about them. If you can make that much money for that little work, there must be something good about their products. Thanks for the info. JEM – Well I am getting an education here. Maybe I am being a little harsh on direct marketers. I hvaen’t had any experience with Shaklee but I have heard of their products and don’t know anything negative about them. If you can make that much money for that little work, there must be something good about their products. Thanks for the info.

]]> By: JEM http://toughmoneylove.com/2008/10/31/hide-your-checkbooks-%e2%80%93-the-direct-marketing-sales-army-is-growing/comment-page-1/#comment-1001 JEM Fri, 31 Oct 2008 18:50:01 +0000 http://toughmoneylove.com/?p=148#comment-1001 By the way...I may only make a little money but honestly I put in only 15-30 mins a week into the business. Thats 200 bucks an hour even if I only have a 400 buck month. By the way…I may only make a little money but honestly I put in only 15-30 mins a week into the business. Thats 200 bucks an hour even if I only have a 400 buck month.

]]> By: JEM http://toughmoneylove.com/2008/10/31/hide-your-checkbooks-%e2%80%93-the-direct-marketing-sales-army-is-growing/comment-page-1/#comment-1000 JEM Fri, 31 Oct 2008 18:47:59 +0000 http://toughmoneylove.com/?p=148#comment-1000 I sell shaklee. I don't have parties or try to push people into buying from me. I have been at it for over 10 years. The products truly are awesome and they work. They have sold themselves. I don't make a ton of money at it. (400-800 a month.) But since I take the products myself and LOVE them and I don't have to keep any stock in house I think it is great. There are a lot of fly by night, low quality, bad ethics direct marketing companies that have given them a bad name. A couple of them are good. But I agree, most of them aren't. I sell shaklee. I don’t have parties or try to push people into buying from me. I have been at it for over 10 years. The products truly are awesome and they work. They have sold themselves. I don’t make a ton of money at it. (400-800 a month.) But since I take the products myself and LOVE them and I don’t have to keep any stock in house I think it is great.

There are a lot of fly by night, low quality, bad ethics direct marketing companies that have given them a bad name. A couple of them are good.

But I agree, most of them aren’t.

]]> By: RetiredAt47 http://toughmoneylove.com/2008/10/31/hide-your-checkbooks-%e2%80%93-the-direct-marketing-sales-army-is-growing/comment-page-1/#comment-999 RetiredAt47 Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:20:46 +0000 http://toughmoneylove.com/?p=148#comment-999 OK, you almost made me LOL with this: 'However, I now know that if the person inviting me uses the words “party” and “opportunity” in the same sentence, I definitely have other plans that night.' When I was young and naive, my (now ex-)husband and I were very friendly with another couple. We knew they had their own side-business but they were very secretive about what they did. The guy used to tell me that he was in business to help people, and someday he'd explain. Eventually we were invited to a small "party" at their house and found out the big secret: Amway. Because we liked them so much, we signed up but never really got involved. I couldn't believe the pressure, though, to get more and more sucked into that business scheme. It was cult-like. Anyway, it was a good life lesson for me. Although I may appear to be a cynic now, I am usually the first to sound the warning bells when an "opportunity" looks questionable. And anytime there is an air of secrecy, I am doubly suspicious. OK, you almost made me LOL with this:
‘However, I now know that if the person inviting me uses the words “party” and “opportunity” in the same sentence, I definitely have other plans that night.’

When I was young and naive, my (now ex-)husband and I were very friendly with another couple. We knew they had their own side-business but they were very secretive about what they did. The guy used to tell me that he was in business to help people, and someday he’d explain. Eventually we were invited to a small “party” at their house and found out the big secret: Amway. Because we liked them so much, we signed up but never really got involved. I couldn’t believe the pressure, though, to get more and more sucked into that business scheme. It was cult-like.

Anyway, it was a good life lesson for me. Although I may appear to be a cynic now, I am usually the first to sound the warning bells when an “opportunity” looks questionable. And anytime there is an air of secrecy, I am doubly suspicious.

]]> By: Mr. ToughMoneyLove http://toughmoneylove.com/2008/10/31/hide-your-checkbooks-%e2%80%93-the-direct-marketing-sales-army-is-growing/comment-page-1/#comment-998 Mr. ToughMoneyLove Fri, 31 Oct 2008 16:01:24 +0000 http://toughmoneylove.com/?p=148#comment-998 Goldenrail - What you describe makes sense to me. If it's stuff they are going to purchase anyway and is reasonably priced, your way is certainly convenient. I have to confess that I used to purchase business clothes from a sales organization that came to my office. I paid a little more for it because it was custom fitted but the convenience and time savings were significant. Goldenrail – What you describe makes sense to me. If it’s stuff they are going to purchase anyway and is reasonably priced, your way is certainly convenient. I have to confess that I used to purchase business clothes from a sales organization that came to my office. I paid a little more for it because it was custom fitted but the convenience and time savings were significant.

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