Melaleuca MLM Review: Money Maker or Money Pit?
If there is a product that gives you good or perhaps great results, I can bet that you will want to continue using such a product if it works continuously. It only gets better if there is an opportunity to make extra cash on the side marketing these products to others. Let’s Discuss this opportunity in this Melaleuca MLM review.
Who are We
Eve Pacific Media is an affiliate marketing firm that provides support and guidance to those contemplating or who have chosen to become content creators. We help aspiring bloggers, content creators, and affiliate marketers with their strategies.
My relationship with multi-level marketing or network marketing started in the late 80s. I have had involvement with Shaklee, Primerica, Amway, and, yes, the infamous Consumer Buyline. I enjoyed various levels of success. Back then, I aspired to become an MLM or Network Marketing Pro. Savvy top MLM earners would build massive downlines, breakaway, and move to programs with the most lucrative opportunities during that era. This was a common practice before many States barred those multi-level marketing schemes.
Our goal at Eve Pacific Media is to use my vast experience to benefit others with a series of reviews of multi-level marketing companies.
What is Melaleuca MLM?
‘Melaleuca’ and not ‘Melaleuca’ (be mindful of the spelling) is the focus of this post. I will be sharing helpful information about this top-of-the-shelf health and wellness product company with you. I will be giving a piece of my opinion on if Melaleuca is an MLM or not. And whether the pros outweigh the con. Who knows? You might find a connection with the product and find out if it works for you or not.
How Does Melaleuca, Work?
It works through its users’ word of mouth. Melaleuca does not rely on traditional marketing of their products like other health and wellness products that you can find in stores. You can only purchase the products on their official website.
The CEO of Melaleuca, Frank VanderSloot, explained that Melaleuca works through marketing executives who refer customers to Melaleuca. The marketing executives subsequently help the customers by creating an account that will enable them to shop for products on the company’s website.
Check out this video that explains the Melaleuca Compensation Plan:
Can You Make Money with Melaleuca?
Yes, you can make money with Melaleuca. However, the amount you hope to make will determine if it is worth it or it is not. You can make money by either referring people to the website or through those who were referred by the people you referred. The former category earns you up to 50% off your next purchase, while you earn up to 7% off your next purchase in the latter category.
Let me break it down further. If you want to make money on Melaleuca, it works by first registering on the website. It works either through referral or a direct customer by submitting a membership agreement which costs $19.00. Once you have scaled through registration, the next step is to become actively invested by buying the Melaleuca care products. These products are over 400 on the catalog, and you are to buy a minimum of 35 points worth of products.
Melaleuca MLM Review – Program Titles
There are two categories of commissions that you can earn: product commission and organization commission. The commission works like this, when you enroll someone, you get 50% which only applies to your next purchase. The organization commission is paid when someone within your organization makes a purchase. The hierarchy in the organization ranges from product advocates to marketing executives to senior directors to executive directors to national directors, and finally, the corporate director.
As you ascend this hierarchy, Melaleuca pays you bonuses. Here is how it works:
- If the people in your organization progress.
- If the number of people within your organization grows.
- Registering customers on Melaleuca from you that makeup up the minimum purchases in the initial month of enrolment. These types of customers are known as ‘Preferred Customers’
- Keeping a network of preferred customers(s) on Melaleuca can also get you weekly bonuses.
- Finally, Melaleuca pays a bonus called, ‘leadership development bonuses’ reserved for those that have assembled a strong marketing team that has sold a ton of their products.
Is Melaleuca an MLM?
Yes, Melaleuca is a Multi-Level Marketing even though the CEO of Melaleuca has dispelled the notion that Melaleuca is a multi-level company in any form. According to VanderSloot, MLM companies rely on people joining a bandwagon that promises to get them rich in no time, Melaleuca does not. VanderSloot claims that there is no such thing as the get-rich-quick thing in the company as most customers are in a long-term relationship with the company.
Contrary to what the company depicts, expert opinion on what Melaleuca does is similar to an MLM structure. According to the decision of the court held in CTC against BurnLounge, an MLM is any marketing program that encourages subscribers to recruit more subscribers into a structured program to market goods or services and get paid.
Melaleuca checks all the boxes in the definition above because the Melaleuca platform rewards base on growth within your recruitment circle.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
One thing you cannot take from Melaleuca products is the quality. Users of the product have attested to the quality of this health and wellness product for decades. Sitejabber.com rates Melaleuca 4.5 from a pool of over 300 reviews in terms of quality.
- Membership is free for regular members.
Those who want to purchase the product without joining the bandwagon have the freedom to do that. It works for both parties (the referrer and the referred) as long as the former does not mind not getting points for referring a regular member.
- Eco-friendly Products.
According to the Melaleuca website, they have been preaching green before it became a popular demand. This is evident in the active agents in some of their products which exclude corrosive chemicals that are not ecofriendly.
- Responsive Customer Care
Customers have severally commended the time and efforts into getting any complaint fixed within the specified timeline. When you are not satisfied with a product, you can get a replacement when you make a formal complaint.
Cons:
- Unfair Policy on Cancellation.
If a product does not suit a customer’s need, or there are other reasons to end a subscription, the process is pretty slow. The submission of a complaint has to be done through writing or by mailing it (it would have worked if it was two decades ago when people use any of those mediums). This policy is nothing short of an unfair tactic.
- Unenticing Commission.
You might have read beautiful things about the process of getting more customers on board, but what you must know is that the rewards work by awarding points that do not translate to cash. You can only use these points to buy more products on Melaleuca.
- Product Misrepresentation
Melaleuca gives the impression that its products are all made in the United States of America, but that is not true. Some products on display are produced somewhere else.
- Several Customers Complaints
The Better Business Bureau (BBB) has disclosed that over 120 complaints have been filed about issues bordering on their products and services. From my findings, a lot of subscribers complained about the strenuous process of getting off the hook of some services or a remedy to defective products.
Is Melaleuca Legitimate?
Yes, Melaleuca is legitimate. The company has operations spanning 15 countries. Melaleuca was founded about 37 years ago in Idaho Hills, USA. Melaleuca’s products are over 400, and they are all eco-friendly, exclude corrosive and toxic elements, are competitively affordable, and work.
Melaleuca has paid over $3 billion as a bonus or commission to their loyal customers. It is ranked 6th among alternative health services according to comparably.
Final Thoughts
There is no doubt that the Melaleuca company is legit. The products are also top quality. The aggregated opinions show that it works for them, and they subscribe to their green agenda. However, if you want to live off marketing Melaleuca products, you may want to reconsider because it is not that financially rewarding.
