Most Herbalife reviews that you find online will tend to over-emphasise the positives of the company and gloss over any negatives...
Not this one!
Yes, I am a network marketing professional but I’m not linked to Herbalife in any way so I’d like to think that this - of all Herbalife reviews - will be pretty balanced.
Neither am I interested in you joining my MLM... the purpose of this site is all about helping networkers easily market themselves online.
More...
Company
Founded
Based
Product/Service
Our Rating
Herbalife
1980
USA
Nutritional products & wellness coaching
That said, I am not going to be exposing any kind of "Herbalife scam" either. More on that later.
Anyway, here’s my honest rundown of the pros and cons of the Herbalife opportunity.
Let’s start with the pros...Great Tasting, Worthwhile Product
The products taste great and aren’t too expensive. In fact I’ve used them myself before and I particularly enjoyed blending the shakes with fresh fruit.
Their products are helping to combat the global obesity epidemic and improve lives, which I think is very worthwhile.
Truly International Coverage
Herbalife is truly international, now operating in more than 90 countries around the world. This means that you can go and work wherever Herbalife operates.
I don’t know about you but when I'm earning seven figures I want to have the option of living and running my business abroad: preferably somewhere I don’t need an umbrella!
Strong Brand
The company has a very strong brand and sponsors nearly 200 top athletes, teams and sporting events around the world.
Good Track Record
They have a long and solid track record. The company history spans over 30 years and their annual turnover runs into billions.
OK, so now for the cons...
Strict Sales Targets?
Much emphasis is placed on hitting monthly sales targets.
Personally, I look for an opportunity that allows me to work as little or as much as I want without having to worry about the pressure of hitting any sort of monthly targets.Purely Product Based
Herbalife is obviously product-based: this means that as opposed, say, to a company that sells essential services, you have to sell the products over and over again.
Time Intensive Coaching?
Being a Herbalife distributor involves coaching (I don’t think it’s mandatory as such but advisable if you want your customers to continue using the products).
Obviously some may not see this as a con and may relish the opportunity to coach someone towards their fitness goals. Just doesn’t appeal to me, that’s all!
Artificial Ingredients?
The products are criticised by some (including my personal trainer!) for having too many artificial ingredients in them.
Re-selling of Products
You have to persuade people they need the product in the first place before you can even begin to get them to buy from you.
Contrast this with an MLM where all you do is save people money on services that they are already using -- much easier!
This point is particularly important in times of financial uncertainty. If you want your business to be recession-proof then choose one that sells essential services instead of non-essentials.
Not True Residual Income?
The income from the business is not truly residual. What I mean by that is: people may use the product and then stop a few months later when they’ve lost the weight they wanted to lose or if they can’t afford the product any more.
For this reason, you need to keep going out and finding more customers.
I look for a business model that is as close to true residual income as possible, where the average customer retention period is several years instead of a few months.Flawed Marketing Methods?
Like the majority of MLMs, the Herbalife marketing method is flawed: it is stuck in the dark ages. While holding home meetings and harassing friends and family may work for some, it is not my cup of tea. This website exists to help networkers solve this problem.
So, What About the “Herbalife Scam”?
Well, I’m sorry to disappoint but there is no Herbalife scam.
It is a sad fact that when people fail in network marketing (usually after not having done anything or having gone about it the wrong way), they go online and claim they’ve been scammed.
In other cases, other unscrupulous network marketers will claim that Herbalife is a scam, simply to encourage you to join their opportunity!
Herbalife Reviews Summary
So in summary, Herbalife is a solid company with a great track record if you don’t mind the coaching element, although the products could perhaps do with a makeover in terms of artificial ingredients.
Take a look at our checklist if you need some more info about choosing the right MLM for you.
[my-sig]