I just got back from a "meeting" about this "marketing" group. Anybody here have any experience with this company? I saw the whole presentation and it struck me as an obvious pyramid scheme. I guess my question is, how in the world have they been around this long without being struck down by the SEC or various law enforcement agencies? I thought pyramid schemes are illegal. I just did some research and couldn't find any solid sources showing FHTM as the scam that it appears to me to be.

FHTM's website

Scam.

I know a guy who did this for a few months, it was all he talked about. Now he doesn't say a word about it.

This. Knew a guy who was totally sucked into the Amway vortex. I just went along with it, he kept saying how rich he was going to be and how he was going to advance in the company...didn't want to hear anything to the contrary. And now, 9 months later?



Not a peep.

That's about what I figured. Seemed pretty obvious to me.

If it looks like a duck...

Run, don't walk away.

If you have to ask... "Is this a pyramid scheme..." It most likely *is.*

And as for "Pyramid" schemes being illegal. Outright ponzi schemes are illegal. No one, except the key players make money in a ponzi scheme, and the money of folks getting brought in is the only income source covering those actually making money.

Ponzi schemes have made it years without anyone noticing... Madoff made a lot of money over a lot of years on a pure ponzi scheme. He even paid people on occasion from the income of other investors. But he never actually invested the investors money in anything that could make any real return.

He just paid himself and his family.

A "pyramid" is most likely based out of Utah, or at least has an office in Utah based on the very lax (or, from another perspective: very competitive) state tax and banking regulations there.

They look like a ponzi scheme, but they will actually have a product for sale. Usually the product has some super-unique aspect that makes it *special.* I call them snake-oil sales companies. less than a fraction of a percent of those selling the product actually *make* money, and the very-clear majority of product sales are purchases by salespersons who are mandated to purchase a certain set-amount of product each month in order to stay in-salesperson-status with the company. It will look like a ponzi scheme, and they get in trouble with "the law" often enough. But it is not criminal to "sell" anything they are selling in the US... So they skirt the law in many cases... The ones that get in trouble are usually for accounting irregularities, and fraud, not necessarily with the specific business-model, though. They get "warned" a lot for "claims" about the product. And they get sued for trying to tie-in to celebrities. A celebrity might say: "I like a certain berry in my yogurt..." Then the company turns around and says: "Celebrity X endorses our product..." And copies and pastes a google-search image of the celebrity next to their endorsement...

But, needless to say, they operate legally for the most part, just skirting violating the law... And many operate for years.

No one makes anything beyond the fraction of a percent, who actually *make* something, and the fraction is even smaller of those who actually make enough to make a livable income from it... The company, and those running the company make a killing...

Anything sold by one of those snakeoil sales companies can be found somewhere else for a lot cheaper...

These snakeoil sales companies should not be confused with "direct sales" companies that might *look* like pyramid schemes... Usually it is snakeoil-pyramid schemes that are trying to *resemble* direct-sales companies... They will even compare themselves to legitimate direct sales companies in corporate literature...

If the corporation is sustained by product sales directly to "sales" people... To me that speaks that it is a snakeoil sales company, and not a direct-sales company. Avon and Mary-Kay are two examples of respected direct sales companies. But even with "direct" sales companies, you can usually find the same thing somewhere else for a lot cheaper. Especially with big-box retailers, and the purchasing power that drops prices...

We prefer Multi Level Marketing.

I was looking around in the room, and it looked like everybody besides me was eating that shit up. I was thinking, "You guys can't seriously be buying this!" The guy came over and talked to everybody individually. He asked me what I thought and I told him. My buddy was with me, and then he turns to my buddy and asks him if he wanted to be a robot for the rest of his life like this guy (pointing at me). During the whole presentation, the look on my face was this: . Good Lord those guys get aggressive when you call'em out on it being a Pyramid Scheme, too.

Another top-shelf term: is "Network Marketing"

I will stick with snakeoil-sales, thank you very much...

Yeah, another *clue* that you are dealing with a pyramid scheme is the difficulty/complexity in communicating/describing the business-model. If they describe the business model, then have to explain the definitions in their description, either you are dealing with a pyramid scheme, or someone who likes to make up fancy business words.

Snakeoil sales = Homebased marketing opportunity
Snakeoil sales = Associate Marketing, Affiliate Marketing
Snakeoil sales = Matrix marketing
Snakeoil sales = Homebased franchising opportunity

If they say that they have a business, and that the only way they can describe to you how the business operates is for you to attend a conference... It is more-than-likely a pyramid scheme...

It makes *a lot* of sense within the context that the companies are held-up entirely by those "selling" the product. Not that they are *moving* product, but that they are meeting the minimum purchase-requirement.

In that context, yeah, they are going to be making *great* presentations, and getting people to start "selling" (speak: buying) product...

And, that is what makes them legal: They are actually *moving* a product. It is pure snakeoil sales, and only a fraction of a fraction of a percent actually *make* any money... An aside I like poking these folks with is that 100% of the door-greeters at the local grocery store will *make* money...

You can buy a bottle of Acai berry juice from the grocery store for a couple bucks. Or, if you are retarded,  you can buy a bottle from "MonaVie" for $30.00. The difference is that the Acai berry juice sold by MonaVie cures cancer, and will make you feel 10 years younger...

I also love how they won't tell you what it is before the presentation, and even then not usually until 15 minutes or so into the presentation. They try to hook you with the bullshit first. When I wouldn't buy the guy's shit when he was talking to me one on one, he got some sheet of paper that showed how much he had made and showed it to me.