Visalus ( Vi) MLM Diet Shakes.

wongawonga

I am getting fed up with people trying to get me to join this new mlm scheme just arrived from USA.

I cant believe its just me they are hitting on,is anyone else being bothered by them ? :eek:

Maz

Have been approached but not harrassed! Not interested anyway.

Chai_2

I love the VI shakes. I have been testing them for a few weeks now and they are fab. Good income stream to if you are very social and are willing to put the work in. The results I've seen ppl get are crazy!!

The only thing as usual, that lets it down is over zealous sales ppl!

wongawonga

Chai wrote: »

I love the VI shakes. I have been testing them for a few weeks now and they are fab. Good income stream to if you are very social and are willing to put the work in. The results I've seen ppl get are crazy!!

The only thing as usual, that lets it down is over zealous sales ppl!

Had a few more approaches from over zealous people telling porkie pies about the opportunity.Telling me how i could qualify for a free BMW,and get the products for free. . Did some more research found it wasnt the greatest thing since sliced bread, and the diet shake etc is not that impressive.

missterryshopper

They have possibly come to to the Uk because the USA side of the biz is currently in turmoil and they need the money.

See: http://blyth.investorroom.com/2013-08-02-Blyth-Inc-Reports-2nd-Quarter-2013-Sales-And-Earnings

Your see the company company that own them also own the Partylite Party Plan network marketing business.

Maz

I know someone who's trying this out for themselves before deciding whether to try and flog it.

This is my understanding, from what he's told me.

From what I can gather, they're meal replacement shakes (similar to SlimFast or whatever they're callled!) He says he never feels hungry but I suspect there are bulking agents used to achieve the 'full' feeling.

Your commitment is to replace two meals per day with the shakes until you reach your target weight, then you commit to buying a reduced amount of the powder, replace just one meal a day with them, to go onto the weight maintenance programme. It still means shelling out cash on a monthly basis to continue with the programme. He has lost weight but that would be expected if he has reduced his calorie intake anyway, whether by meal replacement shakes or by sensible eating?

I'm sure for some people who need a structured plan for weight loss it will be useful but seems a very expensive way to shed a bit of flab to me! Remind me of that ad on telly for 'Diet Chef' (I think that's what it's called, you know the one I mean) where ready made, calorie counted meals are delivered and you just eat those (also very piggin' expensive!)

As a biz opportunity, I can see it would be constant re selling and seeking new customers. If your customers have lost all the weight they want, they're going to stop buying the product so - no more sales commission for you!

I haven't looked into the company and compensation plan etc in any depth as this kind of re selling business doesn't really interest me but if I hear any more, I'll post on here.

Chai_2

Well.... Its not quite true that you can't get your shakes free and get the BMW. The shakes will be free if you enrol 3 other customers to sign up with you. The BMW is harder to get as you have to sign up promoters which costs more money for them but it is doable.

The concept is the same as slim fast. 2 shakes a day and a sensible meal3 snacks. They have unique selling points as they made the shakes to be a mixable base meaning you can create your own recipes with the shakes and they taste amazing. THis is why they get such good results as ppl are happy to be on the shakes for 6-12 months due to the huge variety they offer and this is why ppl make more money with this one as customers are happy to stay on them for longer than say slim fast as it doesn't feel like ur on a diet. I effectively have a pint of ice cold yummy smoothie for brekkie and dinner/ lunch.

Re the cost well... your replacing 2 meals a day which would cost u more that the 80 or so pounds it costs for the 2 bags pm that u need. i buy frozen fruit at £1 per bag and thats my milkshake/ smoothie sorted.

In my eyes it comes down to marketing. I know how to market the hell out of this but i have a professional life to so if u want to loose weight and are willing to go all in it could be great for u.

Im on them now and love them and if you are into helping ppl lose weight and want to make that your biz i would definitely go for it as the results and popularity (as in how many lives it changes verses the existing products) is amazing!

wongawonga

Leaving aside the not so free Shakes and the Free BMW which are not free which many say both are when they market the concept. How comes if it is that good according to the last two trading quarterly trading statements by its owners Blyth.inc they have lost 57000 of their 114000 promoter force in the last year, and that the companies second quarter net sales decreased 47% to $101.5 million versus $190.4 million for the same period last year, largely reflecting the effects of reductions in Promoter counts in North America.

Something appears to be wrong somewhere. I know their is a high turnover in network marketing but these losses are exceptionally high.

Is it true the mix they sell in uk is not the same as they one they sell in USA ?

LittleVoice

Got to admit they seem effective with Google - was not until page 7 that I saw something which looked as though it would be negative (and it was).

Chai_2

Wonga,

Im not sure what ur mission is but you DO get the shakes for free if you enrol 3 ppl with Vi, not sure how much clearer that can be made to you. The BMW is paid for monthly as long as you maintain a certain rank as with most incentive schemes including jobs.

The slump IMO is one that always happens when you launch into new spaces, there is a huge high then a low, they only started this wave of products in 2008 so its still growing in its current form.

Secondly, where i think they have got things a bit wrong is they have a higher tier for ppl who are trying to run this as their main business. This costs quite a chunk of change for the start up so by virtue, if you are loosing your high paying clients because they underestimated the work that goes into the biz then there will be issues. I can't speak for their biz model issues because I'm new to learning about mlm but the product itself is amazing.

Thirdly and i think most importantly... Im not sure if it was always this was but Vi don't like you to promote more than one MLM if you are going to be in their pro level. This has caused quite s few problems and quit s few high profile ppl had to leave as it was effecting other endorsement deals and ppl who do mlm's are known to do more than one and saw it as a limitation they couldn't deal with which I understand.

Im not sure if the contents are different. The US packaging is silver and the UK black.

I have no need to defend it as I don't sell it but it just annoys me when ppl go off on things they don't even know about especially when the product itself is changing lives around to world. Not sure if you've ever been over weight but when you find a product that helps you deal with your relationship with food and that you actually wake up looking forward to then you will know why its good to try before you knock.

wongawonga

Hi Chai.

Where have i knocked the product ? Fair play to you if it helps you. Can i ask you if you have researched what you are taking thoroughly ?

By the way it annoys me when people you assume I have an hidden agenda and that I have not researched the subject .;)

When I say not so free I did my research and found you only get them free providing you bring in 3 monthly subscribers of equal or greater value of their own challenge kit,and you all subscribe to autoships,and as/if they drop out you have to replace them with another customer.So a few hoops to jump through.

I also read the small print which shows you only get the BMW allowance depending on the level of sales in your team So given that the churn rate in Visalus is extremely high you know that a lot of your team will drop out each year. Thus maintaining the level for the BMW is difficult. That itself wouldn't be a problem, except for one little thing, The BMW is in your name. If sales drop, you need to come up with the payments on the car.

At least two overzealous sales people ( as you describe them ) who approached me told me both the products and the BMW are free without explaining things properly and your see a fair few saying it on social media particularly about the car.They also represented another network marketing business by the way.

From what I have a read and seen its not my cup of tea as a means to up my income,and i would recommend that anyone thinking of getting involved researches it thoroughly as i would for any business opportunity.

Good luck with your weight loss.:D