I’ve never been a fan of Multi-Level Marketing businesses, aka, MLMs. Or, as we used to call them before it became taboo, “pyramid schemes.” In fact, if you were into one and requested my services for branding or marketing, I’d have politely turned you down. (And I still would.) I’m also not a fan of autoship memberships or subscriptions. Yet these days, many things we consume are structured this way.
The idea of my time being sucked away by logging into websites or apps to manage my subscription of protein, vitamins, house-hold cleaners, etc. seems ridiculous. Or, taking time out of my life to remember to log in and, “skip a shipment” because I really don’t need new yoga pants every single month seems tedious.
Because I hate sales, confrontation and saying, “no.” I also don’t like when someone “manages” my auto-ship for me. I dread the monthly text from my Rodan and Fields rep because ultimately, I already know I’m going to say I don’t need a refill of the $150 eyelash boost that I splurged on one time just to see if it really worked. (It totally does.)
I cringe when I hear of people jumping aboard the “residual-income-work-from-home train,” and sadly sit back and watch most of them fail or, switch from product to product, because let’s face it, if you enter into anything in life based on the misguided conception it will be all reward and no work, you’re likely not going to make to that top-tier, Instaglam lifestyle, that many MLM gurus portray. I recently even came across an article that suggested MLM’s are ruining female friendships. (Not a huge surprise.)
So why in God’s green earth did I join Young Living? It’s simple. It not only solved one problem for me. It solved many. Here are just a few:
Rather than multiple subscriptions for protein and supplements, this one brand happened to have both.
I’ve also been looking for cleaning products to replace some of the current household products we use that contain harsh chemicals and this brand solved that problem too.
When I’m feeling creative in the kitchen and I bust open my recipe book, only to find I need to zest a lemon but have no lemon; that problem is now solved because this brand has cooking grade oils.
Sore muscles, there’s a solution for that.
Fragrances for my home, check.
Oils for use during my daily meditation or to relieve stress or even boost my day: check, check and check.
Is this a sales pitch? Nope. In fact, I almost vowed to keep quite out of fear of looking like a hypocrite. Until I remembered, one of deepest yearnings of my heart is not to be ruled by fear. (#fearnot, Isaiah 41:10.) All a story for another day.
Rather, this is a reminder that even the most frequent and strategically placed ads may not change someone’s behavior. It's a reminder than ultimately the best consumer, is one that doesn’t have to be convinced, but rather one that reaches their own conclusion that your product or service solves a problem(s) or meets their needs.