The Direct Selling Association celebrates its centennial this year. One of its founding members was The California Perfume Company. If you don’t recognize the company, they changed their name in 1939 to something you may be more familiar with.

Avon.

The Direct Selling Association was first formed in 1910 in Binghamton, New York as Agents Credit Association. Over the years the Association changed its name a few times, but became what we know today as the DSA in 1968 when it moved to Washington, DC where it’s made its home for the last 41 years.

Some 200 Direct Sales and Network Marketing companies are members of the Direct Selling Association today. YTB International applied for membership more than three years ago, and was granted membership to this prestigious organization in September, 2007. The company remains a member to this day.

So why has an Association like the DSA and companies like Avon been able to withstand the test of time?

Simple – it’s one of the purest forms of distribution there is.

Period.

Manufactures who choose a Direct Sales company to distribute their products or services have major advantages over traditional channels. Both advertising and distribution costs are controlled – unlike “traditional” models. A manufacture only pays for product that’s actually sold instead of forking over hundreds of thousands (often times millions) in advertising to get the word out. Distribution costs are also controlled going “direct” and don’t pass through an elaborate maze of middle men who each take a cut along the way. Middle men only increase the cost to the end user. The variance between a manufacture and the end user can be so substantial that often the commissions earned in a Direct Sales company can be substantial, while being less expensive than other similar brands found on store shelves to consumers.

Tupperware is probably the best example I can think of – because it’s been done both ways. Invented in 1946, Earl Tupper took a gamble (or so he thought) by taking Tupperware off store shelves in the 1950′s and followed the “party plan” of Direct Sales. The line exploded and it’s a big reason why Tupperware is a house hold name today. It’s now sold in 100 Countries worldwide and has more than $1 billion in sales annually.

So if Avon has been around for 120 years, Tupperware started its Direct Sales program more than 50 years ago, and dozens of other companies like Mary Kay and Amway have been able to not only survive but thrive in the Direct Sales model call MLM for multiple decades – why even entertain the ignorant dolts who claim that MLM is a house of cards that can’t be sustained?

True the theory of exceeding the world’s population they all point to looks logical – but when has it EVER happened? This theory they all yammer about is nothing more than myth in an attempt to evoke fear into the one reading it. The hope is the reader just might think they’d be the one person left on this earth without anyone to recruit into their business of choice.

I use to enjoy going round and round with Zealots who use examples like the one found on SEC website to prove their point. It was great fun asking for a real life example. Quite often the silence was defining. Other times they just dug themselves deeper when they brought up examples that didn’t even come close with less than one hundred thousand participants. Even better – I’d bring up examples like Avon and Mary Kay that cater to a particular demographic – and ask how two similar companies couldn’t even capture half of the world’s population.

Ultimately frustrated and completely void of options – I’d end up being called every name in the book and chastised for being stupid.

Sucks being right. ;-P

Being a member of the DSA doesn’t protect you from being spit at as one of these “gigantic pyramid schemes”. Ironically, another government entity, Jerry Brown, the California Attorney General spit at YTB the day before our 2008 National Convention with those exact words. Concerned about YTB’s dramatic growth and rise, like all the others who buy into myths and theories, slapped a $25 million lawsuit on the company to protect consumers from the evils of fraudulent pyramid schemes.

As it turned out, the $25 million was settled out of court for a mere $1 million and while there was plenty of fanfare a year ago about putting an end to our company, I’m reminded of his words to this day every time commissions are loaded onto my YTB pay card. Hard to believe that it’s been a year since we “lost” that argument. (That’s the claim anyway.)

And yes, May 15th marks the one year anniversary since he spouted off that he ended everything. Gone but not forgotten, I just look at the commissions I continue to produce and earn, think about Jerry’s rhetoric and self-absorbed hype and say “Thanks for sharing”.

California is happy too. Of the $1 million YTB paid – $875 thousand went directly to California – not the “victims” they were intending to “protect”.

I know I really don’t have much of a voice with the DSA, as I’m only one person. But if there was anything I could ask them to help us out with over the next 100 years it’s this:

Could you make a push to help inform the general public between fact and what’s pure myth and hype? It’s not that hard to do. Ask the SEC to either produce an example of a company exceeding the world’s population or request that this bogus theory is taken down – never to implant false and misleading beliefs about Network Marketing and MLM’s again.

Help educate the general public that if you join a company like YTB for free as a Rep – there is no payment required for the opportunity to recruit others. Sounds painfully obvious I know – but there are plenty of examples I can provide where some simply don’t use their thinking caps – but instead wear dunce caps.

Bottom line is that there is still plenty of ignorance and false beliefs out there surrounding a very legitimate, viable, and profitable business model we call Direct Sales.

As an Association that has reached its centennial anniversary and provide tools and boundaries for those of us who uphold your ethics and standards, it’s time to expand our message to the general public and educate them on the difference between fact and fiction.

PS - If you're involved with YTB, sign up for our FREE Newsletter. As a Website Owner or Website Seller, we'll keep you up to date with all the latest news, acquisitions, and developments with YTB.

PPS - Subscribe to the Just Picture It Now RSS feed, (including e-mail) for all the latest posts and updates found right here!

Learn How To Become A Travel Agent

Book Your Travel & Vacations With

Do You ZamZuu?

Direct Sales date back thousands of years with roots in Egypt, Syria, Babylonia and India. Traders, merchants and caravans are examples of the early direct seller who formed this ancient tradition and basic need to exchange goods. Fast forward to a century ago here in the U.S. and you’ll find the birth of The Direct Selling Association (DSA) who will celebrate it 100th birthday next year. As a fan of Direct Sales, I wrote an article about one of the oldest Direct Sales Companies still in existence today. Founded in 1886, they’re a real powerhouse today – producing $10.7 BILLION in annual sales. Never heard of The California Perfume Company? They changed their name to Avon in 1939.

With all the economic news that this country has had to endure over the last year, it’s refreshing to see one business model that’s not only surviving, but thriving in these tough economic times.

Direct Selling News just released a comprehensive list of the the worlds top direct selling companies with wholesale revenue of $100 million or more. On the list we find some very old and prominent companies such as Avon, Mary Kay, Primerica Financial Services, Herbalife, Tupperware, Nu Skin, Shaklee, ACN, Pre-Paid Legal, Market America, Keller Williams, Pampered Chef, Southern Living At Home, and oh…lookie here…YTB International.

If you’ve never heard of this list before – well, it’s never been out before. Think Travel Weekly Power List here, but for the Direct Sales Industry. For the first time, Direct Selling News decided to come up with a list of it’s own for the Direct Sales Industry. I realize that for some, Direct Sales doesn’t amount to much, (in fact, it’s despised by some who just plaster the word “pyramid” on what ever they like) but when you look at these sales by the numbers, and compare them with some of the dates these companies were founded, you have to admit it’s pretty impressive list of “Networkers” who some claim will eventually run out of people.

The purpose of the list in Direct Selling News was to “journal the might of the direct selling industry”. In the report, YTB International ranked #46 overall with $162.5 million in sales. Not too shabby for a company that’s been a very heated topic in the travel industry, had it’s share of legal battles and has been a daily rant for a select few with a false and limiting belief that Direct Sales is a sham. While YTB’s numbers are fairly straight forward, reporting it’s numbers to the SEC as a publicly traded company, like the travel industry, very few Direct Sales companies do the same.

Like Travel Weekly, Direct Selling News made every effort to verify sales in this industry with checks and balances via sources like Hoover’s Company Records and Dun & Bradstreet, SGA Executive Tracker Companies, Standard & Poor’s Descriptions Plus News, Company Briefs–Gale Group, Global Duns Market Identifiers, Market Guide Company Profiles, America’s Corporate Finance Directory and Directory of Corporate Affiliations.

According to Direct Selling News, one thing became clear during their research: A number of Direct Sales companies are still growing despite the economy and despite all the misrepresentations and myths surrounding the industry.

“Almost miraculously, our organization has continued to grow,” says Joe Urso, Aerus Chairman and CEO. “Selling high-end products is not easy, especially in a down economy. Our team has continued to grow by inspiring others to pursue the opportunity for a better life that we offer.”

The report also states that USANA recorded its sixth consecutive year of record sales, Pampered Chef had a 5 percent increase in recruiting and Tastefully Simple product sales bumped up 5 percent. And like YTB’s Founders are telling their field or TSO’s and Website Sellers right now, Executives from other companies are telling people that despite the economy, their companies are not only larger in regard to revenue, but are coming out of this recession better than ever.

From the report.

And many direct selling executives tell us they believe the industry will emerge from the recession bigger, faster and stronger. “Over the course of the next few years,” says USANA President Fred Cooper, “we anticipate USANA—and the network marketing industry in general—to continue to show patterns of growth.”

Emerging bigger, faster and stronger has special meaning for those of us in YTB. The company wasn’t fighting just the recession and the poor economy. Just over a year ago YTB was in another club, sued for $100 million by a bunch of ambulance chasers who wanted a quick buck. A year later, the class action thrown out for being redundant, immaterial, impertinent, and scandalous, YTB is prominently placed in a $100 million club for actual sales with another prestigious group of peers.

My how things have changed for YTB as the debate over pyramid crumbles and legitimate rises from the ashes.

Congratulations to all 65 members of this list. You’re the cream of the crop in the Direct Sales Industry who have collectively produced billions of dollars in revenue – one person – one sale – one day at a time.

PS - If you're involved with YTB, sign up for our FREE Newsletter. As a Website Owner or Website Seller, we'll keep you up to date with all the latest news, acquisitions, and developments with YTB.

PPS - Subscribe to the Just Picture It Now RSS feed, (including e-mail) for all the latest posts and updates found right here!

Learn How To Become A Travel Agent

Book Your Travel & Vacations With

Do You ZamZuu?

I was introduced to a book a couple of years ago by Chris Anderson entitled “The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business is Selling Less of More “.  Mr. Anderson is the editor-in-chief of Wired Magazine. He wrote The Long Tail, which first appeared in Wired in October 2004 and then became a book in July, 2006.

While I usually find data and numbers extremely boring and it can make my head spin, Chris did an excellent job of injecting enough “layman’s speak” that kept my interest. I do enjoy reading about both business models and the men, (or woman in e-Bay’s case) who ran these successful businesses.

If your unfamiliar with just what The Long Tail is, and your in YTB, it’s best that you have a basic understanding of why this transition is important. In a nutshell, our culture and economy is increasingly shifting away from a focus on a relatively small number of mainstream products and markets at the “head” and toward a huge number of niches in the “tail”.

There are certainly examples of “heads” that are extremely successful, such as Wal-Mart for the mass appeal, or someone like a close friend of mine Nick McCulloch, who owns Link Your House, a specialty Home Automation and Security company. Here’s the rub concerning “real world” retailers. (Brick and Mortar) Due to exorbitant costs for space, you either need to select items that have a mass appeal, or scale back to reduce costs and attempt to focus on a niche market and hope there is enough of a local market to support your niche. 

An average movie theater will not show a film unless it can attract at least 1,500 people over a two-week run; that’s essentially the rent for a screen. An average record store needs to sell at least two copies of a CD per year to make it worth carrying; that’s the rent for a half inch of shelf space. And so on for DVD rental shops, videogame stores, booksellers, and newsstands.

In each case, retailers will carry only content that can generate sufficient demand to earn its keep. But each can pull only from a limited local population – perhaps a 10-mile radius for a typical movie theater, less than that for music and bookstores, and even less (just a mile or two) for video rental shops.

These costs however, drop dramatically in the digital world. Look at music stores like Rhapsody, a purely digital services with no manufacturing costs and minimal distribution fees. Because all music is stored in “bits and bytes”, The Who “Eminence Front“, a song or album that makes one sale per year has the same margins as a someone like Bruce Springsteen, “Working on a Dream” who will sell millions of copies after it’s debut at the end of the month. A hit and a miss are on equal economic footing because both are just entries in a database which are called up on demand. This make BOTH equally worthy of being offered due minimal or no cost, while increasing profits. In The Long Tail, popularity no longer has a monopoly on profitability. Unlike the Wal-Mart’s of the world with a little sliver of space to hold a CD that equals a cost associated with the space, and even that little CD needs to help pay the rent.

In “Brick and Mortar”, if you had to pick between a 1982 version of an old rock classic, and a new hit that’s already getting buzz due to President Elect Obama, which CD would you be stocking your shelves with?

Unlimited selection is revealing truths about what consumers want and how they want to get it in service after service, from DVDs at Netflix to music videos on Yahoo! Launch to songs in the iTunes Music Store and Rhapsody. People are going deep into the catalog, down the long, long list of available titles, far past what’s available at Blockbuster Video, Tower Records, and Barnes & Noble. And the more they find, the more they like. As they wander further from the beaten path, they discover their taste is not as mainstream as they thought (or as they had been led to believe by marketing, a lack of alternatives, and a hit-driven culture).

Combine enough small, obscure sales on the Long Tail and you’ve got a market bigger than even “The Boss” can produce.

Likewise,  in the case of books, the average Barnes & Noble carries 130,000 titles. Yet more than half of Amazon’s book sales come from outside its top 130,000 titles. Personally, I can only find a book I’m looking for half the time in a book store. Sure, they can order it for me, but so can I through Amazon, AND have it delivered directly to my home without the need of getting a call to drive back down to the store to pick the book up. If the Amazon statistics are any guide, the market for books that are not even sold in the average bookstore is larger than the market for those that are.

In other words, the potential book market may be twice as big as it appears to be, if only we can get over the economics of scarcity. Venture capitalist and former music industry consultant Kevin Laws puts it this way: “The biggest money is in the smallest sales.”

At this point, your asking yourself, “What in the world does that have to do with YTB?”

Take a look at all the niche sites this company offers in it’s digital arena. I know Travel Store Owners who specialize in Weddings and Honeymoons, others who specialize in Golf Packages, and still others like me, who specialize in cruises. Specialization is great, and I highly recommend that you find a couple of areas to specialize in when it comes to travel. But there are times when I run into areas I have no interest or knowledge in, but a potential customer or client may have a passion for.

A perfect example for me would be hunting. Honestly, I’d rather watch paint dry, but my In-Laws who I spent part of the Christmas break with are avid hunters. They also live about an hour and a half away from the nearest Bass Pro Shop. Is it out of the realm of possibility that they might have an interest in a new Hunting and Fishing web site that has comparable prices, that saves them both time and money?

That’s The Long Tail at work. I’m certainly not going to get rich off camouflage sales, but what did it cost me to carry the line as an Travel Store Owner?

Not a penny more than it did before I started…to sell cruises.

Let’s go back to Amazon for a minute. We all know them for their books and probably DVD’s and CD these days. What do you suppose happened that caused them to start selling groceries on a site known for books and DVD’s?? While you’re at it, you can fix the pesky light switch in their lighting and electrical department on isle five.

Are you thinking they might have lost it? Are they getting out of books because they’re making a mint off coffee and light bulbs? Or are they beginning to get the concept of The Long Tail?

Like Amazon who branched out in it’s distribution to capture ancillary sales, YTB is now moving into Food and Gifts, Home Decor, Financial Services, and Apperal and Accessories. Does that mean my passion has changed from cruises to carrot cake? Do I now need to be an expert or even remotely care about thread counts on pillow cases?

Hell no. Besides, if I did care about something like wellness and beauty, I could have gone with a century old MLM called Avon. (Unlike my love for a good steak or carrot cake, I don’t do makeup.)

I realize there are some who could never accept this shift in distribution. You need to remember, they’ll still hanging on to their “brick and mortar” theories and beliefs. Others will attempt to outwit and outsmart an experienced economic mind like Chris with their own excuses as to why this model simply won’t work.

So be it, if that’s their case. Just smile, nod your head, and say “Thanks for sharing”.

On a completely different note, and simply a followup on a previous post concerning Joystar just after Christmas.

It appears that a number of Agents have filed an involuntary bankruptcy case against Joystar in US Bankruptcy Court on Friday. They are seeking more than $150,000 in unpaid commissions that the agents claim are owed to them.

PS - If you're involved with YTB, sign up for our FREE Newsletter. As a Website Owner or Website Seller, we'll keep you up to date with all the latest news, acquisitions, and developments with YTB.

PPS - Subscribe to the Just Picture It Now RSS feed, (including e-mail) for all the latest posts and updates found right here!

Learn How To Become A Travel Agent

Book Your Travel & Vacations With

Do You ZamZuu?

You may be wondering, who in the WORLD is Mrs. Albee? She’s certainly not a household name. As a matter of fact I never heard of the name before her name popped up doing a little research yesterday. Before I divulge who this Albee woman is, I saw in interesting commercial yesterday afternoon, with a message similar to the one I was introduced to at the National Convention.

How to recession proof your income.

Take a quick look at the video found on the AVON web site (bottom right hand corner) and a solid argument why AVON is a great way to produce the extra income needed in these difficult times. With all the news about layoffs, bankruptcies, and the recession it’s difficult to find solutions to combat the worst economic condition this country has faced in 70 years. While there are a number of companies who were around 70 years ago, not many know that there were a couple of Network Marketing Companies around at that time, one of them being AVON. Although AVON was known as the California Perfume Company back then. The name was changed to AVON back in 1939.

While YTB has taken a considerable amount of flak for producing our “Recession Proof” DVD to offer a legitimate alternative to our economic times, this message was produced to help the members of the Director Selling Assoication. (An Association who’s been around since 1910.)

I know there are a lot of critics out there who spend a considerable amount of time posting and telling you that Network Marketing is nothing more than a pyramid scheme. If you find one of these critics, you might want to ask them about their personal experience in the industry. I find it interesting that I can’t be called a Travel Agent because I don’t have the proper experience or training, but these same individuals have no problem telling me that Network Marketing is a scam without one ounce of experience in my industry.

For some reason the same rules don’t apply to them. They’ve been given a pass, simply because they “researched” the industry. (From the likes of guys like Fitzpatrick or Taylor more than likely.) Trust me, I’ve had my share of experience with critics, and while I do enjoy a good debate, after you’ve been in this industry for as long as I have, critics start running out of excuses and start with personal attacks. Why because they can’t answer the tough questions.

Here’s a good example; Have you heard this story?

Network Marketing companies are doomed to fail, flawed, because the model will eventually run out of “suckers” to recruit.

If that’s the case than WHY has AVON, been around since 1886 and STILL not run out of people (sorry, suckers) who sell this product to consumers? I mean come on people, when does the statute of limitations run out on this type of baloney? The truth is, this notion of running out of people has never happened in the entire history of the MLM model, which is more than a century old. For a listing of some of the oldest and most prominent Network Marketing Companies in the industry, you can find a listing on the DSA web site. And none of them have “run out of suckers” even if they’ve been around for decades.

Yet this notion about the pyramid crumbling still abounds by those who choose to ignore the most prominent and respected companies in the industry today.

Another interesting note about these companies; I can’t seem to find any information about any of them laying off any of their representatives. Strange how that works. Why haven’t we seen stories like we have for Liberty Travel or the long list of layoffs connected to the traditional models popping up with Network Marketing Companies? It was my understanding, according to critics at least, that working for a traditional company was more secure, a better deal? Based on the list I posted last month, there were more than 200,000 jobs lost due to pink slips, (and that’s just a sampling of the total amount) yet, not one word about any Network Marketing Companies laying off its Independent Representatives. True, there are those that quit on their own, but not one was forced or pressured to do so to help the company remain solvent.

And as you’ve seen in this AVON commercial, like my agreement in YTB, I don’t have to worry about being laid off due to downsizing.

Which of course brings up the suits that are floating around right now that our critics would like you to believe will crush my tenure with YTB. My guess is that they choose to ignore the same stories said about Pre-Paid Legal back in 2002 when the company faced more than $750 Million in damages, far more than the $40 Million in assets it had. More recently, USANA faced the same type of suits from distributors in California. Funny how critics slammed both these companies at the time, but are not only still in business, but are profitable today.

Like much of the misinformation and spin out there on the internet from critics who have nothing better to do with their time but promote the doom and gloom, I’ll let those with the proper knowledge and experience, and time handle that mess. The simple filing of a lawsuit certainly doesn’t produce innocence or guilt, that’s what the legal process is for. While many didn’t give YTB a chance to make it this far, according to some, the company should have folded YEARS ago, it dosen’t seem to bother or stop the company from executing plans that have been in the works since its inception.

I’ve seen plenty of changes and advancements with YTB over my years. Like AVON, it’s a work in progress. We simply roll with the times.

I wonder what Mrs. Albee would think of AVON today? Wonder if she would even recognize the name or the products for that matter?

And just who is Mrs. Albee? AVON’s first Independent Representative of the California Perfume Company. The date, was 1886, and if she still survived, she’s have one heck of an organization under her.

I guess getting in early does have it’s advantages. ;-P

PS - If you're involved with YTB, sign up for our FREE Newsletter. As a Website Owner or Website Seller, we'll keep you up to date with all the latest news, acquisitions, and developments with YTB.

PPS - Subscribe to the Just Picture It Now RSS feed, (including e-mail) for all the latest posts and updates found right here!

Learn How To Become A Travel Agent

Book Your Travel & Vacations With

Do You ZamZuu?