People ask me all the time, “Do you actually make any money doing that?”
By “that” they’re referring to my job as a WineShop at Home consultant, and to put it simply, yes, I do make money in my Direct Sales business. In fact, I make ENOUGH money that it’s my only job and I am able to stay at home with my kids (something that was really important to our family).
Today, I’d like to clear the air about direct sales companies once and for all: yes, it is possible to make good money running a direct sales business. Yes, you can make real money in “one of those things”. I do it, many members of my team do it, and you can do it, too.
The “You Have to Get in Early to Make Good Money” Myth
Normally when people doubt the effectiveness of direct sales it’s because they’ve forgotten that this business model is really no different than a mini-franchise or any other brick and mortar business. The company (WineShop) is essentially your wholesaler and you’re the retailer with additional bonuses and support.
With direct sales companies like WineShop, it doesn’t hurt to be early in the game (in fact, WineShop at Home has fewer than approximately 1000 active consultants in the United States; if you’ve been considering becoming a consultant, click HERE and let’s talk).
However, even if you’re not first to market (as you would be if you become a consultant for WineShop at this point) you can still become very successful within the business structure.
I knew a woman – let’s call her Michelle – who became a Mary Kay Cosmetics consultant within the last five years. Considering that Mary Kay is a company with probably over a quarter million consultants, you might think that Michelle had zero shot of success. Isn’t the market saturated?
Apparently not! I’ve watched Michelle become very successful with her business and earn a more than decent living. If she was able to do it, anyone can. Including you.
The “You’ll Make Tons of Money Very Quickly” Myth
On the other end of the spectrum, I see people approach the business almost with a get-rich-quick mentality. They expect that they’re going to make a ton of money overnight, and that’s just not true.
In fact, check out this interview with consultant Rachel Thompson who started off slow and now routinely knocks it out of the park.
You wouldn’t open a storefront and expect the business to earn six-figures the next day. So why would you expect your WineShop at Home business to do that? Don’t get me wrong – this can be a very lucrative career path – but Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither is a WineShop at Home business.
The “Direct Sales is a Pyramid Scheme” Myth
I cringe when I hear people ask, “Is this a pyramid scheme?”
First of all, let’s get clear on what a pyramid scheme actually is: it’s an unsustainable business model where people are investing money into fake businesses or enterprises without realizing that the money is going straight into the pockets of the executives. The executives continually need to bring in more investing money until they exhaust all their resources, at which point the whole thing falls apart and people (hopefully) go to jail.
See what I mean when I say that I cringe?
WineShop at Home is just like any other business: we sell products to consumers. Often, people don’t understand that this business is completely legal, it is completely legitimate and it works much in the same that all businesses do. Things look a little different because we remove the middleman (the storefront) to reduce cost, but in a similar way that companies have different levels of management, Wine Shop at Home has different levels of consultants. It’s essentially recruiting and management, but with better personnel growth and development because we’re training each other.
When you get good at what you do, your income goes up and you enjoy more benefits. Ultimately, our business couldn’t survive if we didn’t offer fantastic products.
Becoming a WineShop at Home consultant has given many of my team members the freedom, the income and the social life they crave. Yes, the business really works – I’ve seen it in action time and time again.