New business opportunity for me, looking for input - gold grams BUT...MLM :(

Liberty Dollar, of course, was a network-marketed hard currency, and e-gold had a network-marketing (referral) element, so there are precedents in the sound money world.

In short, if the company seems to have a good product you can believe in, and if you will be able to sell it without resorting to any tactics you'd find either unethical or just distasteful, then I'd say this should be an option that's open for you.

Liberty Dollar, even though they had a RCO system, they still sold their products themselves, one thing MLMs typically don't do. But they did have a high markup, which is characteristic of a MLM. AOCS seems to too. Ironically, when the Fed busted NORFED, they didn't seem to care about the pyramid aspect of it, they were too interested in the 'counterfeit' element. Gotta give Liberty Dollar credit, the best way to mask a MLM business is to make sure it's referred to as something else, most will say it's a "business opportunity" (so that the buyers feel empowered, like a seller).
 
I know a guy that does this type of thing selling gold in .5 grams up to ....cant remember the max size, but he used a vending machine to do this. I have his info somewhere and can find it again. I know he is from Korea and had a demo machine at a trade show in Las Vegas two years ago at the Jewelry show. He even gave me a free .5gr card with the gold sealed and a serial number on it....nice guy. The machine stays connected with pricing and automatically adjust prices to reflect current prices. Nice looking machine and was built like a ATM
That would be sweet , I could just stop on the way home from work and buy a gram out of the vending machine :)
 
Amazon.com is network marketing. Amazon pays people who refer buyers to their site a percentage of the sale. What's wrong with that?

No no no, there's a big difference between referral/affiliate/commission and network/MLM. MLM/network REQUIRES giving commission, as do all sales jobs, but the former "referral/affiliate/commission" is usually 1 level, that means there's a warehouse, there's seller, and there's a buyer. The roles NEVER MIX, buyers do not become wholesalers, resellers don't become customers...Amazon pays ONE PERSON for referral, THAT'S IT. The person paid either cannot, or would not be profitable if he tried to "refer another person to do the same". Furthermore, Amazon's prices are extremely competitive whether you are talking about media or electronics, this is hardly ever seen in MLM, since MLM typically has to create new products, avoid selling products to wholesale outlets, charge high markup to split commissions on every level...etc
 
Hi, Karatbars sell at time of posting for 0.02 grams of gold (karatbar Card) $58.44 Add $ for shipping
and Karatbars will buy back the 0.02 grams of gold for $42.93 yes, we have to pay for shipping unless
we can find an exchange center near.

Or the Gold can be stored for free at SecurLog storage vaults in Neu-Isenburg.
Office hours: 9.00am - 17.00pm CET
 
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I’m resurrecting this thread for the simple fact that about a week ago I had this opportunity come my way and one of the first places I searched to see if there was any unbiased info was this forum. And lo and behold, this thread came up. I even PM’d Gunny Freedom who started the thread to see if he jumped in this and what he thought.

With that said, I ended up registering anyway. I, of course did as much due diligence as possible to find something that really looked shady or smelled fishy before I joined.

Now before I go any further some full disclosure is in order. First off, I am more of a lurker on this forum than an active member. I’m not here to “pitch” you to “join my team” or any of that crap. I just figured I could actually add something to a thread I had questions about just a week ago and shed some light on it for a few others if anyone even reads this.

Secondly, I went into this opportunity as an internet marketer. Yes, I am one of those people who actually do “make money online with only 2 hours of work a day”. What those catchy headlines don’t tell you is that you only reach that goal after years of getting scammed and dropping $1000’s in things that don’t work. The more failures I had the more prepared I was when I started to build an online business successfully. (I am also a fiber optics engineer – sitting in front of computer all day allows me to operate these other businesses – and have no intention of leaving the job until they kick me out. I’ll take the healthcare from them for me and my family but if I am forced to leave it won’t phase me from a financial standpoint right now).

With that out of the way, Karatbars International is a network marketing company. Plain and simple. Some could argue it is similar to any of those dopey energy drink businesses, or face creams, or seaweed belly wraps that make you lose weight. And at first glance it does look that way.

But in a nutshell what Karatbars does is give people the opportunity to exchange in their paper dollars for grams of gold. They will store it and you can take delivery whenever you want. What you get is a small 1 gram, 1.5 gram, or 5 gram, bar of gold embedded on a plastic card, just like a credit card. There is a spot on the card that states the value/weight of the gold embedded, a signature from the assayer, and an LBMA certification (London Bullion Market Association). If that LBMA certification is supposed to put people’s minds at ease I guess it does its job.

That is the investment part of it and I am guessing this is where Karatbars makes their recurring income. What your sponsors tell you to do is go on the automatic payment of 1 gram a week and take delivery once a month. You can set all this on automatic. So you get 4 1gram cards a month if you want. Rinse and repeat the next month. For people who need some discipline and just want to dabble in gold this is not such a bad deal. Yes, it is a bit on the high side as far as over spot price and such. I think it is somewhere between $65-$70 a gram. But they are storing it, embedding it, and packaging it and delivering it to your door. (I went with a 5gram card a month just because it is cheaper than 4 1gram cards but there is no auto delivery and stuff for the 5gram). So, if millions of people (so they claim) are doing this they are definitely making a few bucks just off of the constant exchange of paper into gold.

That can all be done on a FREE plan. As can any direct referral you bring in. You would get a commission on any gold they exchange as well as any upgrade to their membership.

And this is where the network marketing part comes in. There are 5 packages. Free, Bronze, Silver, Gold, and VIP. All of these packages are a 1 time fee, which is nice since you are not under some contract to purchase 4 cases of energy drinks a month regardless of if you sell them or not. At Free you get placed in your sponsors downline and anyone he or you refer in goes below you. Again, this makes things a little different than the regular network marketing nonsense. So even if you didn’t refer someone but they are below you you can make some money if they take some sort of action.

But you need to be on a Bronze, Silver, Gold, or VIP plan. Once you take one of those plans, you are now on the team and every move made from someone below you whether you placed them there or not you get the commish. Every person has 2 legs also to build and you can place your referrals on either leg. Bronze is a one time fee of around $135, Silver - $350, Gold $800+, VIP - $2K. The bigger the plan the more perks, higher commissions, blah, blah, blah.

But what their big marketing campaign is, and the one I am using on my internet marketing leads is, You can easily get to $4500 a week in 12 weeks if you just follow the 12 week plan.

Briefly the 12 week plan is, you make a 1 time purchase of a package(Bronze,Silver, etc)…and you exchange your paper dollars for 1 gram of gold a week and you get 2 people to do the same thing, and so on and so on after week 6 (if you took the bronze package) your weekly gold is free and by week 12 you are bringing in $4500 a week. Easier said than done but even if it takes a year if someone sticks with it, it can be done. Its either volume until you have the right people in place or you find the right 2 people who will do what you do and they find the right 2 people etc…

I went in for a silver package and because of my marketing tools, resources, and online experience I was already in a good position to market this immediately. So from just 1 week of doing this and targeting the “make money online” niche, I grabbed about 200 leads (these people opted in to my offer – my squeeze page opened with “I will Force You To Make $4500 A Week in 12 Weeks” or something like that.) Of those 200, I’d say 50 registered onto to my downline. Of those 50, 6 have converted into active team members aka payed for a package and buying gold.

I didn’t do any cold calling whatsoever but I am told by my upline that people convert like crazy that way. I just didn’t have the time to call these people. But what I did in my follow up emails to these leads is go into the value of gold, the history of the dollar, pointed them to a webpage I set up that explains the Karatbars business as well videos on gold, the dollar, etc...and I always left my contact info in my emails as well as on the webpages. People were skyping me and calling me like crazy. “this is fascinating stuff, I never knew this”, “this is something I could get behind”, or even stuff like, “I can’t believe you answered the phone and took the time to explain all this stuff to me”.

And for once in all my marketing years, I didn’t feel like I was “selling” something. It was finally something I believe in. (I already purchase gold and silver locally so this is actually just another strategy) I was just talking to them about how F’d up everything is and how we’ve been hoodwinked for the last 100 years, etc. It was coming out so genuine that I didn’t need to sell. The people who “got it” jumped right in.

Is it Network Marketing? Yes. I won’t shy away from that question. There is no point dancing around that. Lots of leads try and go on the attack and ask that or “is it a Pyramid scheme?” I just say Yes. (Even though I will take a marketing program where you exchange small denominations of paper into gold that is actually tangible and MINE as opposed to having a closet full of Amway products I don’t know what to do with).

My next campaign will be targeting the libertarian/gold crowd although I definitely won’t be approaching it from a “Make $4500 a week” angle. More like a “Finally, an online business with no, energy drinks, lotions, or diet pills…just Common Sense.”

I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want people from sites like this one on my team but this is not the time or place for that, so if you see an ad on your Facebook sidebar talking about gold and an online business – it might be me.

I hope this helps someone who was on the fence either way.
 
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Never trust a Helmuth :p

phil-hellmuth-05-665x1024.jpg

It all started to go downhill for Helmuth in 1935 when the Nazis banned the Boy Scouts....
 
Peter Schiff tried selling grams of gold but seems to have dropped it. Must not have done very well for him.
 
But what their big marketing campaign is, and the one I am using on my internet marketing leads is, You can easily get to $4500 a week in 12 weeks if you just follow the 12 week plan.

If, as I thought one of the earlier posts said, you get about $8 a sale, to earn $4,500 a week you need to be selling 562 units a week.
 
If, as I thought one of the earlier posts said, you get about $8 a sale, to earn $4,500 a week you need to be selling 562 units a week.

If you could put them in a vending machine in a high traffic , high end area , maybe you could sell 125 a week , that would be worthwhile , just cut the property owner in on a % ?
 
If, as I thought one of the earlier posts said, you get about $8 a sale, to earn $4,500 a week you need to be selling 562 units a week.

I think its $8 over spot to exchange your dollars for the gram. The 2 main ways to get paid is when your downline exchanges/buys their gold and when someone buys a package. You accrue "units" and when you hit a certain amount of units (through your own buying, downline buying and purchasing packages) you get paid and the cycle starts over until you reach the certain amount of units again and on and on. Some people who have been in this for like a year cycle like 10-20 times a day because their downline is huge. That translates to $100's even $1000's a day. Of course they are a rare exception.
 
If you could put them in a vending machine in a high traffic , high end area , maybe you could sell 125 a week , that would be worthwhile , just cut the property owner in on a % ?



You can get a Gold To Go vending machine for only $28,000 (gold and service fees not included). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold_to_Go

History[edit]

The concept was developed by Thomas Geissler, who has previously created an online platform for trading precious metals. He stated that his initial inspiration was observing the "seemingly endless" line of traditional toiletries vending machines at airports and train stations, and during his search for advertising models for an online marketplace.[4] The initial prototype system was installed in Frankfurt in 2009, where it dispensed 1-gram pieces of gold at a 30% premium above market price.[5]

Machines[edit]

The vending machines are covered in gold leaf, and includes a touch screen, cash and credit card slots, and a lighted display showcase. Users must scan identification for purchases exceeding 100 Euro, and any single user may only access the system three times in one day before an enforced 48 hour break to prevent money laundering.[6] The machines are fitted "like an armored vehicle" and tested with explosives to prevent theft, and include surveillance cameras that record all transactions.[4]

Sale items[edit]

Gold bars made of 24-carat gold are sold in 1, 5, and 10 gram sizes.[4] Other items for sale include gift boxes of gold coins with symbols such as the Krugerrand, a maple leaf, or a kangaroo,[6] and are dispensed in "handsome" boxes.[4] Each gold bar is sealed in plastic with an anti-counterfeit hologram label, and comes with a description of its purity and price per gram, as well as information about the sale and the company's 10-day return policy.[7]

Distribution[edit]

The German corporation plans to distribute 500 "gold ATMs" throughout airports and rail stations in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. British and U.S. locations may apply for a license to host one of the machines.[8] Franchise licensees may purchase the machines for about $28,000 and then pay TG-Gold to service the machines.[4] The first Gold to Go vending machine in the United States was installed in Boca Raton, Florida in December 2010

(I am very wary of MLM programs anyways- you hear the promise of good money but that usually only works out if you are at the top)

You can buy direct from someplace like AMPEX and sell yourself and cut out the middle men.
 
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There is nothing wrong with Network Marketing as a business model. Amway, Avon, LegalShield, Tupperware, Mary Kaye, and other solid legitimate businesses use this structure to grow and pay their sales force.

The problem is, that new companies pop up every day, some may not necessarily be real MLMs, but illegal pyramids. Like others have said, do your research. Who owns the company? How long have they been in business?

Most importantly- Does this company have a product or service that you can sell retail? Will I want to buy what you're selling as a customer -without joining the opportunity? Can I purchase the same quality product/service more conveniently at a store for cheaper? If so, why would I buy from you?

For example, I own multiple rental properties. I purchased legalshield and identity theft shield so that I can call an attorney when I have tenant issues, and can protect my family from identity theft... I have no interest in joining the sales force and building a sales team. There's nothing wrong with that, but a good MLM will be based on selling real products to real customers - Not just a 'business' with pseudo-products built on the idea of getting rich recruiting more and more people that want to get rich by recruiting more and more people...
 
Okay, I feel like I can chime in on this! “BOUT FACE?” Well at least you didn’t fire afew sound shots first to see if you blindly hit anyone, or did ya? Now I’m an ole navy guy, and it’s full steamahead, where I come from, especially when it comes to propaganda.
Sun Tzu, a war strategist, said in Chapter 3: 5-7, toidentify the “mastery of empire,” and the world is your oyster. But Aristotle two thousand years earlier saidthat there is a major premise and a minor premise to a logical syllogism andthat fallacy’s by flawed or uneducated people will taint the truth.
So bandwagon sayings are fallacy’s, such as “if it sounds toogood to be true then it probably isn’t true,” like stated by heavenlyboy, “doyour research,” don’t just cut and run in “retreat” from possible specters ofarbitrary delusions.
The Comstock mine is a good example. Had the new buyer paid heed to a logicallysound advice that the mine had played out, the joy of digging a few more feetand hitting the largest silver strike in history of the times, would still bewaiting for discovery! Comstock died a miserableold man. Don’t do that!
I joined the company in on june 22 and I have gold that Inever would have had, and for no out of pocket expense, after the catch, YEAHYOU GOT TO SPEND MONEY TO MAKE MONEY.” Ifyou were a lifer and stuff was given to you for showing up every morning atmuster, that may be alien to you. SinceJune 22, I have had my mortgage paid for by this company for building a team ofpeople now who are working in the Gold Bullion business. Because of leveraging with Network Marketing,the company does not use newspapers and tv commercials to recruit sales. But you opposed to ‘MLM’ think that there isa difference, another fallacy knee jerk reaction without merit or rationalbasis.
For instance, Macy’s advertising using recruiters who paygazillions to media spots to sell the cool Hawaiian shirts I buy to hide mybulge, or what I shamelessly call the man moomoo. BTW, I'm so excited about selling gold bullion, I have lost 25 lbs! So all us fat suckers go in buy into the man moomoo thing and dad burnit, the guy at the top gets rich, and he gives some of his riches to investors who gamble ontheir cash in wall street! Some sucker investor 's, sadly, losetheir life savings every day, and it is perfectly acceptable by society, due to“Caveat Emptor!” But to be fair a little bit trickles down tothe stiffs on the floor and in the warehouse.
Hey isn’t that what occupy wall streeters were gripingabout? So, this so-called MLM company,fired the investors, so now they will not loose their life savings, as we allknow business have a hard time getting off the ground, everyone agrees 90% failthe first year! We all hear that,whether it is true or not! So thecompany that sells the 1 gram ingots, is 3 years old, debt free, and all thosenot in yet are Comstockers, or a rotten egg.
The company you are talking about, I will not name, but I’dlike to work with you if you are interested, instead of risking life savingsfor their success, they sell affiliate positions, way under priced, for thereturn on purchase price, to people whom are willing to work their butt off,and endure insults and listen to the most stupid ignorance and keep smiling dayafter day! I didn’t realize howstupid our society was until I joined Network Marketing. MLM fails just like any other business, butprobably statistically less. So-calledinvestors rarely loose a life savings, and those who invest 50 to a fewthousand dollars, if lost, although maybe a great deal of money, did not losetheir life savings. If the companyfailed because of bad product, there is no foul! But those that do fail due to fraud, oursociety sends those creeps to the pokey, just like non mlm entities.
Occupy Wall Street, without a clue, was begging for MLMcompany’s to take over evil corporations and share the profits with the worker! Hey the reality is, that mlm company’s dojust that! But I bet dollars to goldingots that OWS’rs just love sitting in grass and griping, they’d even gripeabout MLM’rs like I see here.
The gold is London Bullion Market Assoc. [LBMA] accredited. That means it is on the “good delivery list”used to pay debt between nations with the highest trusted gold. Each gram 2.5 or 5 gram ingot has a serialnumber that can be traced to the QR code on the card. The card is tamberproof sealed signed by theassayer, and warrantied. Spot price doesnot include wither or not the gold you have is real gold or pure 999.9 24 karatbars gold, as are the karat bars we sell and market. This is the only way people, whom normallydon’t buy gold, that si 99.9% of society, so the market is developed so thegold they buy is practically guaranteed to be gold that the LBMA calls “conflictfree gold.”
I hope this clears things up for you Gunnyfreedom! If you are looking for a good team look nofurther! But I’m sort of jaded, and don’tget me wrong, I usually try not to point out the flaws in other people likethis, but I don’t “RETREAT” in the face of ignorance, when it belittles ablessing to many.
 
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