Opportunity of a Lifetime
I went to the big opportunity meeting last night to hear about Pre-Paid Legal and Identity Theft protection.
It was in a big hotel room at the Crown Plaza. When I got there at 6:45pm (it was to start at 7:30pm with registration at 7:00pm) there were a lot of people waiting to get into the meeting room. About five to seven the crowd started 'moving' toward the door. I guess there must have been a signal that I missed. As the herd congregated around the door to the room the line kept getting wider and wider.
At Seven they opened up one door. Now I don't mean they opened both sides of the double door, no, they opened up one side of the double door. So now the line stretched several feet, and I mean several feet, on each side of the small opening. We dutifully shuffled to the door. I was fairly close to the front, so this only took me about fifteen minutes.
As I went into the room there were two small tables registering people. If you were a guest you got in free, if you were an associate it was like $5 to get in. Now when I went in, the seats set up were more than half full. Where did the rest of the people come from? I know not that many came in with the common folks.
I found my seat on the end. People were coming in and out of my row (the same three) four or five times.
They decided they needed to set up more chairs, so they had everyone already seated move the chairs closer together in order to get more seats on the end of each row. Then they set up a few more rows in front, at which time the people in the front moved up to be on the front row, which caused a ripple effect of everyone getting out of my row, again, to move up closer (the same three people plus some new ones). I stayed towards the back in case I needed to make a quick get away.
Then the hype and presentation started. I thought I was in a Southern Baptist meeting with all of the 'that's right', 'yah, right on', 'you tell 'em', going on. Clapping, standing ovations, laughs at the jokes. It was almost contagious, but I restrained myself and tried to be objective.
The speaker is one of the Executive Directors (up the pyramid a ways) who makes over $500,000 a year (yeah, right). He was telling little stories of how much he has used the Pre-Paid Legal and how it has helped him get out of speeding tickets, get money from a theater for a ruined shirt, etc. If I had that much trouble with tickets, etc., well it seemed a little exaggerated.
So basically the program is, you get five people to buy the product ($35.99/mo) for which you get $100 a piece or $500. That more than covers your initial investment of $249 (plus buying the program for $35.99/mo). Then you get them to sell for you, and they get people to sell for them, then they get people to sell for them, you know like a pyramid (oh, multi level marketing). Then you sit at home and wait for the big checks to start rolling in. Of course the more people you get to sign up and sell for you the more you make on each sell they make.
Then they had the top performers come up and tell you how they spend more time with their children, can now retire, can send their children to any college, help people in need, etc, etc, etc.
I must confess that I left the meeting just before the big SPECIAL offers were presented. Since my brother and nephew already do this, all of my relatives have already been contacted (probably several times). So who would I sell to? I would end up shelling out $249 and $35.99/mo and get no big checks because, as you may know, I am not really the salesman type.
Well, that was my experience in Multi Level Marketing (pyramid scheme).
It was in a big hotel room at the Crown Plaza. When I got there at 6:45pm (it was to start at 7:30pm with registration at 7:00pm) there were a lot of people waiting to get into the meeting room. About five to seven the crowd started 'moving' toward the door. I guess there must have been a signal that I missed. As the herd congregated around the door to the room the line kept getting wider and wider.
At Seven they opened up one door. Now I don't mean they opened both sides of the double door, no, they opened up one side of the double door. So now the line stretched several feet, and I mean several feet, on each side of the small opening. We dutifully shuffled to the door. I was fairly close to the front, so this only took me about fifteen minutes.
As I went into the room there were two small tables registering people. If you were a guest you got in free, if you were an associate it was like $5 to get in. Now when I went in, the seats set up were more than half full. Where did the rest of the people come from? I know not that many came in with the common folks.
I found my seat on the end. People were coming in and out of my row (the same three) four or five times.
They decided they needed to set up more chairs, so they had everyone already seated move the chairs closer together in order to get more seats on the end of each row. Then they set up a few more rows in front, at which time the people in the front moved up to be on the front row, which caused a ripple effect of everyone getting out of my row, again, to move up closer (the same three people plus some new ones). I stayed towards the back in case I needed to make a quick get away.
Then the hype and presentation started. I thought I was in a Southern Baptist meeting with all of the 'that's right', 'yah, right on', 'you tell 'em', going on. Clapping, standing ovations, laughs at the jokes. It was almost contagious, but I restrained myself and tried to be objective.
The speaker is one of the Executive Directors (up the pyramid a ways) who makes over $500,000 a year (yeah, right). He was telling little stories of how much he has used the Pre-Paid Legal and how it has helped him get out of speeding tickets, get money from a theater for a ruined shirt, etc. If I had that much trouble with tickets, etc., well it seemed a little exaggerated.
So basically the program is, you get five people to buy the product ($35.99/mo) for which you get $100 a piece or $500. That more than covers your initial investment of $249 (plus buying the program for $35.99/mo). Then you get them to sell for you, and they get people to sell for them, then they get people to sell for them, you know like a pyramid (oh, multi level marketing). Then you sit at home and wait for the big checks to start rolling in. Of course the more people you get to sign up and sell for you the more you make on each sell they make.
Then they had the top performers come up and tell you how they spend more time with their children, can now retire, can send their children to any college, help people in need, etc, etc, etc.
I must confess that I left the meeting just before the big SPECIAL offers were presented. Since my brother and nephew already do this, all of my relatives have already been contacted (probably several times). So who would I sell to? I would end up shelling out $249 and $35.99/mo and get no big checks because, as you may know, I am not really the salesman type.
Well, that was my experience in Multi Level Marketing (pyramid scheme).
posted by Paola | 11:45 AM
2 Comments:
I've found that dating a lawyer is helpful for getting out of speeding tickets as well. :o)
So, Dad. I guess they are using some seriously different "marketing tactics" on us. Ken got to call the "1-800" number and listen to the "message". You got to go to the big fancy conference. (Did they have food there, by the way. They really should have, maybe then they would have won some people over). David and Max three way called me to tell me about this magazine that David sent me in the mail (which I got yesterday), complete with a DVD, showing how once you start this, you can ride 4 wheeler and jet skis and feed your cows all day because you will have so much free time. David said, read the magazine and then I will call you on Saturday and ask which part you liked best. I was like, hmmmmm. I am having surgery on Friday, I don't think I will want to talk much on Saturday. It is just very interesting that we have all been marketed in different ways. And very uncomfortable position to be put in. By family members. That you never hear from. Plus, Kyle is probably going to law school. And they only cover legal problems up to 2000 bucks, then it is a 25% discount after that. And Kyle and I were talking about how much "legal trouble" our parents have been in in their lifetimes since they were are age. Not enough to necessitate wasting 36 bucks a month. Or whatever it was. So basically, no, I am not interested, and the whole thing seems kind of smarmie to me......
Wow. That was a long comment. Sorry!!
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