Strong Future International Review: Transparency?
When I first visited the Strong Future International Marketing Group (SFI) website, instead of an informative website where I could learn about the company, its MLM business opportunity and view their compensation plan, instead I was told that because I wasn’t recruited by someone, I wouldn’t be able to proceed any further:
Immediately setting off a red flag alert, I hunted around for an affiliate link and after findin one, found out I wasn’t in much of a better position than I had been without an affiliate referral link.
With a bajillion menu options it wasn’t until I’d wasted ten minutes or so of stuffind around (even with an affiliate link, most of the SFI website still doesn’t work unless you sign up as a member and “log in”), that I finally found some information about the company (tucked away under a “getting started” menu).
This page revealed that
SFI Marketing Group was launched in 1998. Starting with just one product, sold only in the United States, SFI has now grown to more than 56000 products and services (and growing daily) sold in more than 190 countries around the world.
Additionally the company claims to be based in the US state of Nebraska and is headed up by company founder “Gery Carson”.
Carson (photo right) is also the President (and presumably owner) of Carson Services, who are in turn the parent company of SFI.
Why I can’t access this informationn as a prospective member without going through a referral link first, I have no idea. In any case, read on for a full review of the SFI MLM business opportunity.
The SFI Product Line
SFI themselves don’t have products other than company membership (which appears to be free). Rather, commissions are paid out on the purchases of products via the online e-commerce site “Triple Clicks”.
Triple Clicks (another division of Carson Services) was founded in January 2009 and offers Daily Deals, a shopping portal and penny auctions under the “Price Benders” brand.
The Daily Deals and shopping portal are pretty standard, however the Price Benders penny auctions only seem to have launched mid 2012 and currently only offer a handful of scheduled auctions each day (mostly “occasionally refurbished” electronics).
Bids for Penny Benders are sold in packs and range in price from $1.99 for one bid to 29 cents a bid if bought in a pack of 200.
The SFI Compensation Plan
For reasons known only to themselves, SFI do not present a complete compensation plan to the general public. Significantly important components of it are hidden behind company membership (primarily membership rank qualification criteria within the compensation plan and their effect on affiliate commissions).
Making use of what information is made available to the general public though, the following is a brief rundown of the SFI compensation plan.
Retail Commissions
Retail commissions within the SFI compensation plan include any purchases made via the Triple Clicks shopping portal, made by either recruited affiliates or customers.
Each item available for sale through Triple Clicks has a “commissionable volume” (CV) value attached to it, with SFI paying out “45% of the CV” value of any purchased products.
For purchases made by Triple Clicks customers (non-affiliates), SFI affiliates also earn “Versa Points” (VP), which are used to calculate an affiliate’s share of the “Triple Clicks Executive Bonus Pool” (see below).
Triple Clicks Executive Bonus Pool
The Triple Clicks Executive Bonus Pool is made up of ‘40% of the CV of EVERY purchase companywide‘, with qualifying affiliates able to earn in it based on how many Versa Points they’ve generated.
Versa Points can be generated via non-affiliate retail purchases through Triple Clicks. The company does state that Versa Points can also be generated via other “pointable actions”, however the company does not share this information with the general public.
Matching VP bonuses are also available to SFI affiliates who achieve the membership rank of “Bronze Team Leader” and above.
Unfortunately SFI do not share membership rank requirements and qualifications with the general public so I can’t state what they are.
Co-Sponsoring of Affiliates
Co-sponsoring of affiliates within SFI appears to be the allocated re-recruitment of affiliates already in the system for the sole purpose of qualifying for additional commission payouts.
Every affiliate within SFI is able to be co-sponsored by other affiliates, with co-sponsorship allocated
- directly by SFI themselves (“a minimum of TWO (2) CSAs are allotted to you each month you attain the rank of EA“)
- winning something called the “Daily Grand Contest” (information on this contest is not available to the general public)
- won via Triple Click’s Pricebender penny auctions (yes, SFI actually auctions off co-sponsorship of fellow affiliates for money)
- winning something called the “Entrepreneur365 Finalist Drawing” (information on this contest is not available to the general public)
For every co-sponsored affiliate an SFI affiliate has, they are able to earn 15% of the CV generated by any products purchased via Triple Clicks these affiliates buy.
ECA Referral Program
The specific details of the ECA Referral Program are hidden from the general public, however from what I can piece together it appears to be a rewards program for referral of merchants to the Triple Clicks shopping portal.
If an SFI affiliate refers a merchant (referred to as an “ECA”), the affiliate is able to earn 10% of the CV on every order made through Triple Clicks from that merchant.
Recruitment Commissions
Referred to by SFI as “pay per action”, the company pays out affiliates $11 per new SFI member recruited and $5 per new Triple Clicks customer signed up.
Joining SFI
Membership to SFI as an affiliate appears to be free, however there appears to be an incentive for affiliates to reach the “Executive Affiliate” rank.
In order to reach the Executive Affiliate rank as soon as possible, SFI suggest
the best way to accumulate VersaPoints and attain Executive Affiliate rank is to generate 1,500 SVP instantly via a purchase at the TripleClicks store.
Apparently affiliates can also reach and maintain Executive Affiliate rank via sales through Triple Clicks (note that this appears to be an ongoing monthly requirement to maintain the Executive Affiliate rank).
Unfortunately with SFI not making the specifics of membership ranks within their compensation plan public, it is unknown the impact of being an Executive Affiliate has on an SFI affiliate’s commissions.
Given the emphasis of reaching the Executive Affiliate rank however, one can only assume it is significant.
In any case, it appears affiliates are potentially looking at an initial purchase of products through Triple Clicks in order to qualify themselves as Executive Affiliates.
Conclusion
I’m a big fan of transparency in MLM and sadly the SFI opportunity is severely lacking in this regard. For starters, the requirement for a prospective affiliate to browse the SFI website via an affiliate referral link is a definite no-no and raises an instant red flag.
Additionally simple basics are left out of the compensation plan (such as membership rank requirements and their impact on qualifications), which wholly render a prospective affiliate unable to make an informed decision about the opportunity.
From what information is made available, I believe a big question hangs on alternative methods of generating Versa Points. With Versa Points being tied into a profit-sharing pool, if any of these methods (which SFI again do not share with the general public) are tied into affiliates spending money without a product being purchased, this could raise some serious legitimacy issues.
Affiliate purchases via Triple Clicks do not generate Versa Points so full credit to SFI for that.
On the other hand, it was a bit disturbing to read the company suggest that
The KEY to creating a major income in SFI is by learning to lead and grow a TEAM of active SFI affiliates.
Coupled with the need to view the SFI website through an affiliate referral link, this might indicate a disproportionate amount of affiliate spending within the opportunity vs. actual retail Triple Clicks customers.
The recruitment commissions paid out upon the acquisition of new SFI affiliates ($11 per new member) also certainly seems to reflect this.
One way for a potential affiliate to establish whether or not there’s a focus on affiliate recruitment over retail Triple Clicks customers would be to enquire with their upline as to the number of Triple Clicks customers they have vs. the amount of recruited SFI affiliates they have.
And as for the whole re-selling of downline genealogy via co-sponsorship thing, that doesn’t at all seem legitimate to me. Especially if affiliates are able to bid on downline acquisition (or re-acquisition as is the case with co-sponsorship) via a penny auction format.
I see a big red flag there as there’s no way known bidding on downline genealogy could constitute a legitimate penny auction product (not to mention the fact that retail Triple Clicks customers would have no interest in bidding on the auction, further potentially highlighting a tailoring of Triple Click’s offerings to SFI affiliates over genuine retail customers.
This is further evidenced by the following message appearing on the Triple Clicks penny auction website:
Log in to set Alerts or to see SFI Auctions (SFI Affiliates only).
If only affiliates are able to see the auctions, that means no retail customers are able to participate.
All in all I feel that there’s probably a reason so much information is kept from prospective members browsing for information on the SFI MLM income opportunity and, given the fact that it is made available to members (it’s not that the company hasn’t written the information), I don’t see there being any excuse for the overall lack of transparency.
Today’s MLM affiliate need as much information as they can get their hands on before committing to a company and if that company deliberately chooses not to share even the most basic of compensation plan information with potential members, ultimately they just wind up working against themselves.
Lack of transparency is a recruitment method. It can be compared to “Reverse Funnel System” automated recruitment systems, where people will have to follow a specific “path” through the system.
Systems like that will filter out the wrong people, e.g. those who asks too many questions rather than following instructions.
In SFI, you will be directed towards a recruiter if you’re trying to find informatin on your own. You CAN find information if you try hard enough, but only half of the information you really want. Getting the rest of the information will require registration as a free member.
So the lack of transparency will lead to lots of people signing up as free members. And that will make the company look more “successful” in its marketing, pretending to have many more members than it really has.
Systems like that are designed to attract very specific personality types, more willing to follow instructions from leaders than the average population. They are also easier to convince about something, or more willing to convince themselves.
Oz tried the “direct method”, trying to go directly into sfi4.com to get information. When that failed, he found his own method rather than following the instructions directly. So he’s clearly the “wrong type of personality”.
I’m even worse than Oz. When I saw his first attempt had failed I didn’t even bother to try the same path, but came up with my own method immediately — “site:sfi4.com” and “site:sfimg.com” Google-search, followed by trying the menus and the sitemap I found in the search hits.
https://www.sfimg.com/Reference/Sitemap
A quick overview indicates that SFI can be compared to CarbonCopyPRO = recruiting members in a downline, and earn commissions when your downline order “stuff” (magazine subscriptions, books, training material, business tools, etc.).
Appr. 1/3 of the links in the sitemap leads to something, 2/3 leads to “You’re not logged in”. And that becomes rather meaningless when the FAQ for “Why should I become a member?” leads to a login-page. This concept is designed for people who are extremely willing to follow instructions. 🙂
Some statistics:
site:sfi4.com shows 140,000 hits. This website seems to be where the member profiles are located, and each member can have several different replicated webpages.
site:sfimg.com shows 14,600 hits. This website contains all the informational stuff, but it also has a forum. It also had several “Malfunction” pages in the search hots.
site:tripleclicks.com shows 2,260,000 hits. This website seems to contain advertising, auctions (5 auctions per day or so), daily deals and similar stuff.
TRIPLECLICKS.COM, SOME EXAMPLES
Upcoming auction:
The “Shopping” option in the menu was a “mixed experience”, some of the offers seemed to have been added as jokes rather than as real offers (e.g. who will buy “MS-DOS 6.2 upgrade” for $1,000 ???).
tripleclicks.com/detail.php?item=34128
Or who will buy a Digital Private Telephone Exchange System for $103,000 ??? From Nigeria ??? In a condition “Like new” ??? The dimensions 60x60x140 cm were impressive, though.
tripleclicks.com/detail.php?item=140372
After this “mixed experience” I decided to stop checking more details. It looks real on the surface, but it’s actually a waste of time.
Items out of Nigeria, that’s a good one. 😀
I’ve been a SFI affiliate since 2007 and have never had any problems with them.
All information about the compensation plan and the differences between membership ranks are clearly explained inside the membership area.
Maybe you just didn’t bother to read all the pages thoroughly before you wrote your review…
They also happen to have a A+ ranking on BBB which should also tell you something about their business ethics.
I have to sign up to learn basic information about the company? Red flag… warning warning… run for the hills!
You can’t all the pages unless you sign up, that’s the problem.
When a company won’t even divulge basic information to prospective members unless they sign up and become part of the income opportunity, business ethics (or lack thereof) becomes a moot point.
I have been an SFI member for six months. I disagree with your review. It is a very legitimate company. It just appears that you are a tire kicker. I have always received compensation as promised. Before you knock it, try it.
The fact that I actually wrote a review should mean something. But if you are going to break it down like the comments from Oz, get a life! I am making money, its working for me. It’s not a get rich scam, it doesn’t cost anything from the initial. Yes it is a ton of info, but hey, if you focus, you can learn something.
There will always be nay-Sayers, that’s fine with me. I know that my check gets higher and higher every month because I put some effort. I am not posting a link, I am not spamming. You can join without an affiliate link, someone will be assigned to you!
Oh, well if you say so alrighty then. Guess we can toss analysis of their compensation plan out the window.
You or anyone else getting paid is not an indication of legitimacy. And save your silly marketing tactics, they won’t work here.
The screenshot in the review clearly shows that you cannot do anything without punching in an affiliate’s ID.
How many genuine retail customers (non-affiliates) do you have vs. recruited affiliates?
Seem to be written with my Bad Argument generator!
“I’m making money” was repeated.
http://amlmskeptic.blogspot.com/2012/08/humor-item-bad-argument-generator.html
I have been with SFI for just over a month now. I earned an income after just 8 days of participating. A lot of other opportunities, it takes months and maybe over a year to see your first $10.00 check.
To me SFI is going to work, they are a legit company in my eyes and many other’s eyes as well. You really shouldn’t have a blog about MLM companies if you have never been in one. You are like the Taxi Driver telling people how to fly the space shuttle. No offense to taxi driver’s.
On to the transparency issue. How come your contact us button leads to an error page?
@Mike
That’s great. You earning money however is not a measuring factor in evaluating an MLM business opportunity though. The business model is all that counts and SFI appears to be largely affiliate funded.
I don’t tell owners how to run their companies. A more accurate analogy would be a taxi driver understanding that a space shuttle is designed to go into space. You don’t need to be a space shuttle pilot to realise there’s a problem is a space shuttle can’t get into space for whatever reason.
You also don’t need to be a pilot to identify and analyse the problem (assuming it’s not design/electronic in nature).
MLM company business models largely come down to math and the distribution of money in via commissions. You don’t need to be in an MLM company to understand and analyse how they work.
Anyone claiming you do is just trying to brush you off.
Working here.
@kchang
Do you cover this fallacy? The “must have experience to be qualified to analyze something” fallacy (not the official name, of cours)? Would that make all male OBGYN doctors not qualified? All judges and jurors not qualified to judge a felon unless they’ve been a felon themselves?
How about we try it another way, shall we ?
Sorta makes the “I’m earning so it must be legitimate” argument a little less valid, doesn’t it ?
The “you don’t understand us” argument?
Do cops have to be criminals first to catch criminals?
Do morticians have to die in order to be expert on dying?
Do film critics have to make a movie before they are qualified to critique them?
I don’t need to shoot myself in the head or anywhere in my body to know it’s a bad idea.
Your logic is just so bogus it’s laughable.
I have been in SFI for almost a year.
So far I do not find any negative issue with SFI, everything just fine. Most SFI members are nice peoples and we do help each other in the community. By today I did not make a huge money with SFI, but someday I believe I will.
I have joined many online marketing programs and so far SFI is the best.
All of SFIMG.COM (SFI) thing is a bull shit. Lot of poor people loss to much money on this crap and some affiliates refuse to tell the truth.
They pretend you can make money as a free affiliate, that’s a lie. Oh, yea! I almost forget, you boss your ASS to recruit affiliates and Spend money and time in getting people to join… and still not seeing the commissions.
After advertise to recruit some affiliates, Carson stealing your affiliates referral to put on IABE. After that, you have to buy the same affiliates on IABE membership. I have spent 300.00 on EA membership and so far my commission was 51.00, it’s not making sense. RUN, run people.
The only people who make money are : Carson and The early associates, the people at the top of the SFI. Let be honest people on SFI, when you recruit don’t tell people ”There is no cost to become an SFI affiliate”. Specially, when you have to buy to keep your EA each month, to buy to participate an auction, etc..
Half of SFI affiliates are liars. They don’t seem to be care if others loss money. Anyway they need fresh meat (new people) to get more money.
Good luck people
I’ve been in SFI for about two months. I’ve been in one other MLM company before – I left when it withdraw from a country where my entire downline was located.
SFI is genuine, as far as I can tell, but there’s an awful lot of noise so I understand the worries from non-affiliates.
Some of the noise comes from SFI itself – it really does a bad job of explaining the setup to new affiliates. It took me about 6 weeks to really come to grips with the breadth of SFI.
You join for free and you can stay a member without paying anything. So I imagine that there are a large number of affiliates that never even login anymore let alone try to recruit new affiliates or sell products. The last time I checked the website was showing around 5000 new people joining every day.
As has been mentioned, you don’t get a lot at the affiliate level, you need to get to the executive affiliate (EA) level. You can do this in your first month by following the instructions and performing the introductory tasks – going through online training etc. However, you need to requalify every month.
From month two you can’t get the necessary 1500 points unless you either buy something (and yes you are encouraged to get IABE membership) or sell something (anything on the TripleClicks website, not just your own products).
So if you already have a website where you sell things, you can insert some of the TripleClicks products in there to retain your EA level. If you find something to complement your existing products then you’re on to a winner. But if not, then you’ll probably struggle.
If you’re good at recruiting you need to recruit people who make it, and retain the position at, the EA level. You really need to be looking for 5 EAs. It is at this point that commissions become good (meaning in the hundreds of dollars per month).
What I’ve not seen on the SFI website is any indication of what proportion of affiliates make EA or higher each month.
I believe that the need to requalify is a good thing – it means that early joiners who sit back to earn from later joiners don’t earn as much as they might in other companies.
The thing I dislike the most about SFI is that there is no quality control on TripleClicks – the eCommerce website and, ultimately, the source of all income for all affiliates. There are some very good products on there, and some very good discounts. But there is also a huge load of crap.
It is full of MRR/PLR eBooks that people are trying to sell for a dollar (or even up to ten dollars) to generate their points.
And there is just so much of this rubbish that browsing the website is pointless – you have to use the search function. As a result, I’m sure that I’ve missed some of the really good products and offers.
For me, since I have other websites into which I can insert the good bits of TripleClicks, SFI is a good option. For others, I’m not sure – I imagine people focused on recruitment just get loads and loads of churn.
I have been with SFI for nearly two months. My particular business is exploding…I have tried other methods of earning income online eg PTC, surveys etc…SFI is the ONLY one that has paid me any reasonable amount of income, or, actually even paid me !
Yes, I can understand how things may look to an outsider….a lot of your personal success at SFI depends upon : who your Sponsor is, who your upline is and how much support and encouragement you receive, so if you are unfortunate enough to be the down line of an inactive member, it is up to you personally to achieve, and yes that is possible, because SFI is a community which allows you to communicate with other people in many ways, not just your personal Team.
You can form strong bonds with people who aren’t related at all to your own business, thereby supporting and assisting each other with advice.
It also depends upon how much work you are actually intending on doing! SFI is about building a strong business, and that means WORK!
I see a lot of assumption and mis-information in some of the above posts or articles… Quote: “From what information is made available, I believe a big question hangs on alternative methods of generating Versa Points.
With Versa Points being tied into a profit-sharing pool, if any of these methods (which SFI again do not share with the general public) are tied into affiliates spending money without a product being purchased, this could raise some serious legitimacy issues.
Affiliate purchases via Triple Clicks do not generate Versa Points so full credit to SFI for that.” end quote.
Hhmmm…the alternative methods are by earning Action VP, and these are given for many things, yes, given!
Every purchase at Triple Clicks generates VP! No matter how big or small…and you also do not need to use actual cash money to purchase….there are other methods…so perhaps it is worth signing up to have a look-see, as many people do….because it is free, never are you under any obligation to spend money…if you wish to build your business faster, then you can….that is your call.
Many people sign up, and disappear…guess what: they come back…because they probably try every thing else and realize that, hey if I work I might just earn….or they get tired of being told….”just $9.99 per month, you can earn thousands ! ” Yeah right ! That is the one thing SFI does not do….
On a personal not : I chose to invest ONCE with my own $30…I never have to invest again out of my own pocket, because I have actively worked my business, and now I can invest with my earnings…2 months is all it took to achieve this. Oh and I have made a profit as well!
@nikki
Do you have any retail activity within your downline? Or did you just invest $30, start recruiting new investors and now earn of the new investors they bring in?
If just affiliates are pumping money into SFI which is then being paid out to existing investors such as yourself, then it doesn’t matter if they’re paying you or not. There’s a far greater problem with the compensation plan.
Hi Oz, thanks for your question. Yes I have retail activity in my downline, I also choose to re-invest myself.
I think the point that people may be missing is that anyone is able to be a member of Triple Clicks, they don’t have to be an affiliate. Triple Clicks allows members to list product for sale, just like having a clean out at home, you do not need to be a business, it’s very much like Ebay but you have the option to sell product(new or second hand), not just auction it.
Plus it is free to list, a small percentage is paid upon sale of the item. The seller will make money once the product is sold and the affiliate whose Gateway they signed through will also benefit.
So it’s not just affiliate money getting recycled….as you achieve higher rank at SFI the more work you actually have to do ! I believe there is a preconception about MLM that once you hit the big time you can sit back and earn a huge living off the backs of the minions !
This is so NOT the case at SFI ! The higher you get, the more you’ve earned it, if you stop working your business, and fail to log in, fail to achieve a certain level, you will notice the difference, both in your own commission and in your downline…we lead by example and if we are not prepared to work then we cannot expect our down line to work either !
Which is why I believe that there is no other online business quite like SFI, it really is a unique business model.
I have owned my own businesses in the past, Retail. One of them cost me $30,000 in start up and it was a home based retail and online store… I like the $30 start up investment a lot more !
So I have had some experience in the business world and although I am new to SFI, I am not new to business. My experience so far has been positive and rewarding, as I said earlier, I understand that people have misgivings when it comes to online business, especially the affiliate based programmes.
There are a lot of underhanded, unscrupulous online enterprises out there…..I am pleased to report that I am not part of one.
You may think that this is a way for me to get more people in my down line….this is not possible as nowhere have I placed a link to myself or any way or form of contacting me….so the point is: I am just trying to defend what I believe is a strong, dependable and reliable company.
Dollar for dollar, over the life of your account, how much have you invested and re-invested and how much have you generated in retail revenue personally?
Hi Oz
Interesting review about SFI. Actually I was introduced to it today by a friend of mine. I’m skeptical about MLM companies, so decided to research on it today.
Though there are both sides of arguments, I noticed the red flags raised by you. Thanks for the time you took to review this and share info here. Knowledge is power, so as you said, run for the hills! LOL.
No worries Vinod, glad you found the review helpful.
My response is lengthy, but well worth the read. 😉
It would appear Lobo has clearly stated–should you attempt to join SFI, you can do so WITHOUT an affiliate link. Either way, someone will be assigned to you.
Your screen shot is for “SFI4” which is one of many commonly used gateways given to ALL affiliates with their personalized affiliate ID# attatched. That is by no means the main domain website which by the way is SFIMG.com.
On the *main* domain, you’ll find that there is a “Join SFI Free” printed quite clearly which will then take you into the site without a problem. You must’ve found the “SFI4” gateway in an ad, or someone had given it to you. But again, joining through the generic web domain that I’ve just stated requires no affiliate ID as it is not a personalized gateway and is meant for anyone interested.
It’s the same link I signed up through three years ago. I hope that helped to clarify your “red flag” regarding that aspect at least.
You can actually find that very open and available information that as you’ve claimed, was “tucked away”–on that very same generic web domain for all viewers. Located at the bottom where it says “Learn more about SFI” (sfimg.com/Reference/AboutSFI).
No need for the suggestive tone–it’s not a false or “red flag” claim (a term you’ve used frequently)…it’s a fact. A simple Google Maps check would’ve been nice. In fact, we’re welcome to visit there to check it out and see how things work.
On the contrary, SFI *does* have products, SOLD at TripleClicks.
SFI is what some would call the “back office”, where we engage with our team and other fellow affiliates, keep up with our progress, full access to our fruitful free marketing tips, tools, training, track our sales and commission etc. That’s why it’s called “SFI Marketing Group”–we’re marketers.
TripleClicks is where you’ll find the products (as it *is* indeed an online store), auctions, rewards, games, music and so much more. Again, I hope that has clarified your misconceptions and confusion about the difference and what has what. 🙂
This part was quite comical for very obvious reasons. The last or shall I say, *many* times I’ve checked–SFI has always left the complete compensation plan available to both members and non members. It’s easily found and quite available, you can check for yourself here: (sfimg.com/Reference/CompPlan) This could’ve also easily been found under the drop down menus you should’ve surpassed considering you were under the “getting started” menu.
Again, all there. I can see you’ve referenced a few things, so I’d like to imagine you’ve already gone over it? There’s really nothing else to it but what’s already provided there on the page, or the benefits chart (sfimg.com/Reference/ComparisonChart).
You can check out our earnings calculator here (sfimg.com/PopUp/EarningsCalculator). To learn more about “ranks” and what each one means to the affiliate, that requires signing up.
Again, with the suggestive references, it *IS* free.
MY CONCLUSION
(Ozedit: Offtopic derail attempts removed)
I forgot to address this last part:
Of COURSE “SFI Auctions” are meant for SFI affiliates only lol. Because the items being auctioned are of benefit to the affiliate and not a regular TC (TripleClicks) member. I mean, I thought that would be obvious? LOL! There are a ton of auctions reserved and open to all sorts of bidders making it more fun for all types of people to play, whether you’re new to penny auctions, seasoned, or an affiliate. For example:
“1WA = Auction is open only to bidders who have never won a Pricebenders auction before
WBF = Winning bidder will receive all of his/her bids back upon completion of this auction
New = New item recently added to Pricebenders
Last = Last chance to win this item; no additional auctions of this item are planned
DP = Double MRP (Member Rewards Points)
NAB = No auto-bidder auction
Jr = Junior auction, limited to members with 9 wins or less
XW = Extra winner(s) chosen in random drawing. Some restrictions apply. See Details here
Big Dog = Open bidding even if you’ve reached your standard win limit—maximum 1 Big Dog win per day.”
This is information ALSO left to the public when clicking on the “auction” tab and scrolling to the bottom. Tsk tsk. (http://www.tripleclicks.com/indexAuctions.php) You referenced this link, but didn’t notice everything on it?
That’s the beauty of it–if your sole intent is simply to “test drive” the program, where is the committment?
When I first joined three years ago, I had just finished looking through a VARIETY of online network marketing companies all of which had me turn the other cheek. They had fake BBB logos in an attempt to appear as though they were legit, and often times many moons later found out they’ve either been shut down or didn’t making it past a year or two…some didn’t even see past 6 months. But Gery Carson has been in business since 1985 and SFI has been around for 16 years!
I joined SFI very skeptical but very interested. It allowed anyone who was anyone to participate and didn’t require any fees and still offered so much. I joined with an alias in case they wanted to spam my email or again, ask for my credit card at the door before I even had the chance to get my feet wet…all of which to my surprise cleared all of my doubts.
Truth is, there aren’t members who have invested all of their time (some of which have been here all 16 years since SFI started) and effort into something that wasn’t honest, that didn’t work, or that left them with questions.
If you have a question about something…simply ask. Isn’t that what we’re all taught as kids?
(Ozedit: Offtopic conspiracy theories removed, last warning.)
Ugh, psuedo-compliance…
First up, you’re welcome to make up whatever bullshit you want about websites. This review was written in 2012, and at that point in time there was no public compensation plan and you had to join with an affiliate link.
What SFI have done with their website since then does not change the sorry state it was in back in 2012.
That said, it’s great to see them now providing information about the business.
Whether you punch one in or “the system” does, recruitment is recruitment.
An alternative website is all very well, but means bugger all if it’s not being marketed by anyone.
Nope. Google search. There was no alternative at the time.
Bullshit. TripleClicks sells whatever, SFI is a standalone MLM business opportunity with no products.
If I launch a $200 recruitment scheme and sign up for affiliate membership with Amazon, that doesn’t mean my opportunity has products.
SFI as a standalone MLM company has no products.
Wasn’t there in 2012.
I would have sourced it alternatively, and this is a last resort. I always mark a red flag when I cannot locate a compensation plan publicly from the company itself.
Instead of wasting everybody’s time with psuedo-compliance garbage, how about making yourself useful and addressing this:
100% internal consumption = red flag. Throw in “profit-sharing” and it’s a regulatory nightmare.
Nobody test drives anything without even the most basic of information beforehand. That was all missing circa 2012. Again, stop passing off 2014 as 2012.
Back then there was boatloads of crucial information missing from SFI’s website.
What’s the spread of non-affiliate revenue vs. affiliate revenue being paid out as commissions?
Like I’ve said, I joined three years ago (surpassing 2012 by a year) and the compensation plan was and always has been made available WITHOUT an affiliate link.
Please forgive me for misunderstanding your point? Can you rephrase what it is you’re trying to say? Because I’m not sure I follow or how it correlates to the section of what I wrote, that you were responding to.
I’m going to attempt to respond from what I’ve comprehended in your response. There was no denial of sign ups (as it’s clearly apart of participating), and correct me if I’m wrong, but are you sharing your opinion about a fact in the form of a fact against or about how SFI works?
You can find someones ad with their redirect websites etc via Google search with no problem. Again, I’ve been with SFI for three years now–which would mean even prior to this post and the year in which you’ve made your “conclusions”, I would have known about the very site I’m involved with.
How else would I have found SFI? Surely, it was not via an affiliate link but rather the direct website.
S-Builder is one of MANY SFI related products SOLD at TripleClicks. There was no online store when SFI started–just the business plan and the products that needed to be sold. SFI started in 1998…TripleClicks in 2009. How do you think the sales were being made? LOL! Remarkable!
No matter how you slice it, that’s what it is. Yes, SFI is the MARKETING GROUP…but what do you think SFI markets? SFI branded products SOLD now at TripleClicks. Your foul language takes away from your message by the way.
It was there in 2011…and every year after that. I’m sorry you had a hard time finding it during your “research”.
Sourced it how?
(Ozedit: offtopic derail attempt removed)
#1. The “profit-sharing pool” you’ve highlighted is 40% of the commission volume of every sale made at TripleClicks.
#2. Information not shared with the general public is a method used in all aspects of life. When you apply for a job, they give you an overview of the benefits (some of which share your hourly wage or opt to do so during the interview), and you are trained accordingly and given the full background of the Company once you’re hired.
Or the back of a reading book will highlight the best parts of the story to peek your interest and to learn more about the rest, you’d have to open it and read…right? Or a flyer posted with general information, but details are discussed when you arrive to whatever it’s promoting.
Or a commercial that gives you the general idea and concept of whatever it’s advertising, and should you be interested, you contact them (if it’s services) or purchase it (should it be a product) or read reviews on it to get a better feel of things.
I can go on and on, but I’m sure you get the picture by now–hopefully. You’re given an overview of SFI, you can either take it or leave it. Should you want to learn more, you’ll show up…if you’re that curious, and there is no obligation unto you–what’s the big problem? Moving along…
#3 Affiliates spending money without a product being purchased? LOL! Have you even checked out the store products and categories? SFI and TripleClicks products aren’t the only things made available either–there are other merchants all across the globe who also sell their products along side ours and are given their own “T-connect page” to sell their stuff from their store.
Let me first make very clear and emphasize yet again–very boldly, that it is FREE to join and there is no obligation what so ever of any kind to purchase. Again NO PURCHASE NECCESARY to participate with SFI. Now that I’ve gotten that out of the way, should an affiliate CHOOSE to invest in their business and purchase things of their choosing to eccelerate their business ie: advertising, business cards, brochures etc, then they are free to do so.
You can succeed with SFI either way. There are benefits to being an affiliate regardless of how you spin it and what method you’re using. Whether you’re a newbie and inexperienced with network marketing, or you’re a seasoned vet in marketing and already know what to do with an awesome opportunity.
Might I add, you don’t have to join SFI to shop at our store. You do realize it’s a global E-Commerce store, right? So sales are generated from regular store members (like most online/brick and mortar stores have available now *affiliate programs*), or team sales. On the contrary, SFI is again an honest business built on integrity, equality and fairness among it’s people.
There are no legal issues that SFI has to be concerned with and you’re welcome to do your “research” on Gery Carson and the entire Carson Services, Inc. Again, try checking out their status with the Better Business Bureau.
For future references, please share the same courtesy you’ve enforced you’d want in your comment section by not “derailing” from the topic and to speak truth and not accusations ie: “affiliates spending money without a product being purchased”. What money? Who said anyone was spending anything forcibly?
(Ozedit: Offtopic derail attempts removed)
We’re not required to stock and deliver products. SFI provides all necessary sale support services, such as customer service, payment processing, and product shipment – all at no cost to the affiliate. Again, if we choose to, that is our perogative. Information that you can again, find in the “about us” section at SFI…without an affiliate ID.
I’d imagine only those with a true skill in marketing and a warm market of individuals interested in which ever item from the store the affiliate chooses to sell–are willing to stock and deliver.
Again, show the same courtesy and don’t divert or throw false accusations to suit your purpose. I’m not “passing off” anything. I’ve been with SFI since 2011, and online you can find the exact replica of SFI EVERY YEAR up until this very date. You’re welcome to check it out. A simple “google search” will do it.
Again, I’m sorry you missed that very clear information and were misdirected based on your search–but that’s no reflection on SFI. There were also a “boatload” of sign ups that year who stayed and understood the program just fine.
Should there have been “information missing”, I’m sure they would’ve said something, or at the very least…left. For future references, reviews are taken place AFTER you’ve “test drived” the product or service. I can distinguish whether or not I prefer Mc Donalds or Burger King’s burgers based on the actual consumption of the burgers and not the commercials or images of them.
Not sure I follow…”non-affiliates” aren’t paid anything because they’re not members. How would they be able to sponsor/refer their prospects without a personalized ad/link etc so that SFI can connect it to them and know who they’re paying? Either I’ve misunderstood your question yet again or that was meant to appear the way it does.
So there’s no way to “sell” anything without buying it first. Is that right?
Judy if you can’t restrict your discussion to the topic and leave out the derail attempts, they’re going to get marked as spam. I’m already editing your mountain-of-text replies for paragraphs, editing out the offtopic crap is tiresome.
It wasn’t when I checked in 2012, else I would have used it. You couldn’t access it from the SFI website.
Recruitment is recruitment, whether it’s system generated or a referral link.
You tell me. How did you stumble across SFI?
Yep. And I’ll reiterate again, SFI themselves don’t sell any products to retail customers. What TripleClicks sells is neither here nor there.
This is going back years in this case, but typically I’ll cross-reference YouTube presentations with slides if available. Sometimes I can find a comp plan PDF from a third-party. Occasionally readers will supply one when they contact me.
If I can confirm the same details from multiple sources then I’ll use that as a reasonably reliable compensation plan blueprint. I much prefer to use a plan sourced from the company itself though.
Deceptive. Penny auctions are bid-pack heavy. The amount paid for items is negligible. Auction bid packs are what primary fund the pool.
If that money is primarily from affiliates, then there’s a problem (see “affiliate only auctions”).
Yeah I couldn’t care less about your non-MLM examples.
In MLM you either provide adequate information to prospects to make an informed decision or you don’t. Circa 2012, SFI failed miserably in this area.
Bid packs (Tcredits) != product purchase.
You provide a lot of hypothetical options, which are all ultimately irrelevant if they are generating negligible revenue. And that was the main point behind me asking:
And of course you replied:
Look, I don’t have time for amateur hour. You can leave all the wall-of-text responses you want and argue about whether or not information was available till the cows came home (it wasn’t when I checked in 2012, and nothing you say will change that).
Bottom line: There are aspects of the compensation pertaining to money flow that you clearly do not understand, both in principal and importance. I’m not interested in sales pitches about what you can and can’t do at SFI, just the red flags.
The source of revenue being used to pay out commissions has nothing to do with sponsoring and/or tracking who paid what. It’s a simple question.
That the information was available after someone signed up is besides the point.
Hello K.Chang, welcome and thank you for asking. To answer your question, no–that is incorrect. What I’ve asked was, “How would they be able to sponsor/refer their prospects without a personalized ad/link etc so that SFI can connect it to them and know who they’re paying?”.
There is no need to purchase anything. I’ve mentioned that a few times in my previous responses. TripleClicks is an online store with physical and digital products ie: E-books, games etc…all of which (the physical products) are stored at the warehouse in Nebraska.
So how would one sell a product available online and not a brick and mortar store? By directing them to the product(s) online. How does one track so many members and who to pay? By having their own personal account with their sales stats, detailed information (ie: name, address, etc) and progress.
That is what eliminates the need to purchase the product yourself to sell…you’re free of that headache in a sense lol. You can choose how you want to be paid. Check, direct deposit, your own TripleClicks Master Card, etc etc.
(Ozedit: Offtopic comments removed)
Again, the SFI website was not the “SFI4” that you’ve highlighted in your blog, so if that’s the gateway you’re referring to–that would explain why you couldn’t access it without an affiliate ID as it was an affiliates link…
And again, who is denying referrals? That is apart of the process and I’m not sure I’ve stated otherwise, so what was the point of highlighting that very known fact? That Network Marketing reffers and sponsors people who join?
I’d be happy to share that. 🙂 My circumstances required me to find something suitable and convenient enough for that moment so I googled a bunch of online at home jobs/businesses or free opportunities.
I realized everything available either had a gimmicky flashing pop up with false claims of getting rich overnight, or messages on the screen asking if I’m sure I wanted to leave. Or, warning messages suggesting I not click this and that, them wanting my money before proving whatever book or program it was they were trying to sell was worth it–in my opinion, not even close!
I found nothing worth bothering with and literally said forget it. Right before I clicked off at the very bottom of the page (if my memory serves me correctly maybe the 2nd or 3rd page), there was SFI’s main domain. I was skeptical after wasting time reading the other nonsense I came across…but entertained it. Noticed it said free and all the stuff they offered for free (training, marketing tools, customer care etc etc)…something that would’ve cost “$295” according to what the site explained.
I waited for all the other red flags that show themselves not even seconds before landing on the site lol. Scanned it for about a week…waited for pop up messages asking me to cough up this and that. Within all the training, Gery kept it 100% honest in what to expect etc. and the realistic aspects of network marketing…that within itself on top of a few other things that had to pass my “checklist” for red flags–told me enough.
It may sound cheesy, but I’m beyond words thankful I found something worthwhile. The rest was history from there.
I explained that many posts ago…SFI is not the store so of course you won’t find it there, you’ll find it at our store. That’s also a known fact and I’m not sure what point you were making in stating it.
SFI is not the product lol…it’s an opportunity to sell products. Like school…you go to school to learn right, not to make money? But what you’re being taught is the gained skill TO go out and make money in that specified field.
SFI is the school of knowledge so to speak for the marketers…and the money is earned when sales are conducted at our store….TripleClicks. Here’s a Q&A from our FAQ regarding what I think you’re suggesting:
“Is SFI a “pyramid scheme”?
Definitely not. In pyramid schemes, income is generated solely on the process of recruiting others into the pyramid who pay a fee to get in. Sometimes a product or service of questionable value is involved (one that is never retailed to the general public). However, generally what you’re buying is the right to recruit others into the scheme.
This is illegal. Also, in pyramid schemes, those who get in first and who are at the top of the pyramid win, while most everyone else loses.
In SFI, on the other hand, there is NO COST required to participate, and affiliates are paid ONLY on product movement (both at wholesale and retail) — never on recruiting. And, unlike illegal pyramids, in SFI, no matter where you’re positioned in the network or when you join, you can advance to the very highest income levels and even earn more income than those above you in the network.”
I hope that’s clarified some things.
Only 2 years ago 🙂 . Well, I share the same preference…getting it directly from the source. It’s the only way I can draw a factual conclusion. It’s only right.
Again, stick to your own suggestions about derailing…”deceptive”? Anyway, why are you only highlighting the auctions? Again I ask, have you checked out our products? What exactly do you think it is we’re selling? We sell anything and everything from home goods, electronics, apparel, food, toys/games and so much more.
So to highlight “bid packs” (which by the way are called Tcredit Paks), says little to nothing when the credits to bid can be purchased by either SFI members when they participate (because we CAN participate in all of the auctions), or by regular TripleClicks members.
TripleClicks members are no different than Amazon or Ebay customers. They have one sole purpose…to shop or bid, and not all TripleClicks members are members of SFI–hence the seperated auctions lol. But in the case of TripleClicks, they can also vote and or download music at our music section…play games…list their unwanted items from home for sale or even join as an E-Commerce Associate.
So sales are made all around…and the products vary. Really curious on why you highlighted one product lol. Care to share? And what’s “bid-pack heavy”? :-/
Lol, I’m sorry you feel that way. Especially considering the very relevant BUSINESS examples I’ve shared. There are many others who I’m sure felt there was something left out on the main page, or not. But you see, your point only holds water if SFI didn’t explain anything at all…before or after joining.
That argument is null as the information was made available–the steps just weren’t taken to access it. Pish posh.
So explain to me how that’s affiliates spending money without a product being purchased when you’ve made it quite clear and obviously agree–that Tcredits are in fact products? Smh.
Physical or digital…a product is simply an article or substance that is manufactured or refined for sale. Something was purchased to be used, and they were used accordingly. Do state the “hypothetical options” you are referring to that in your very derailing opinion are “ultimately irrelevant”? There’s nothing insignificant about the revenue over here :). Next…
Wow! That’s how I replied? I believe not. You deleted the rest of my reply! SMH.
Nor do I. You can dance around what I’ve said all you’d like…the proof is in the pudding. I don’t have the patience for arguments, I was simply sharing facts and answering questions and correcting misunderstandings.
(Ozedit: offtopic derail attempt removed)
I never asked what you were interested in, nor am I concerned with it. I simply came to correct the red flags in this blog regarding SFI.
My interest had nothing to do with a “sales pitch”. *You* asked *me* about “non-affiliate revenue vs. affiliate revenue” and I answered. Again, I’m sorry YOU felt that way…as I presumed my intentions to be clear.
No, it very much IS the point. To go tit for tat about when, where, and how something was presented despite the overall factor being it WAS available, is ludacris. Maybe you should have tried reviewing the Testimonials? Or unbiased reviews by others?
There’s a lot of waffle dodging going on. It’s reminding me of anjali in the Speak Asia era.
That is what was publicly available at the time. Anything else is irrelevant. If SFI had alternative hidden websites that’s neither here nor there. The public for the mostpart would land on their “give us an affiliate ID” website.
MLM companies never rank for generic terms. You had to of specifically been searching out SFI.
You can verify search terms used to find SFI via Alexa, or a premium service if you don’t trust them. They are all related to the company.
Cool BS marketing story though.
So again, SFI as an MLM business opportunity has no products or services. Third party affiliations are not a substitute for having your own products and services and selling them within the MLM opportunity.
Because SFI popped up on the radar circa Zeek Rewards. They jumped on the MLM penny auction bandwagon at the time. That’s what was driving the business (marketing wise).
I see the rest of the products on Triple Clicks as irrelevant. As it’s quite obvious nobody is purchasing anything there at a retail level.
I clicked “products” and then “computers”. That led me to a listing for a 1GB Sandisk MicroSD card for $12.97.
In an actual retail store, an 8GB Sandisk MicroSD card costs just $5.99 (dx.com/p/genuine-sandisk-microsd-transflash-tf-memory-card-8gb-34532#.U4qDLPmSy-0).
Then I clicked “products”, “electronics” and then “batteries and chargers”. This lists a “Technocel Universal USB/Car/Travel PowerPak Charger w/Built-in Battery & 11 Adapter Tips” for $28.62.
Same thing on Amazon is $13.43 (amazon.com/Technocel-U8USBTC-CC-Universal-PowerPak-Charger/dp/B00DU1OM4G/ref=pd_sim_sbs_cps_4?ie=UTF8&refRID=0DYM5EA341JK428QWB45)
TripleClicks is not retail viable.
That leaves what? T-credits which only affiliates will buy.
Retail is a myth in penny auctions connected to an MLM business opportunity. This has been proven no less than twenty something times (failed businesses trying to capitalize on Zeek).
If affiliates are themselves generating the bulk of incoming revenue, then that’s defacto getting paid on recruitment. I suspect this to be the case.
In addition to TripleClicks not being retail viable, you keep dodging the question of what the company’s retail vs. affiliate revenue is.
If that’s too big of a question for you, you can answer it in your own business. Week to week, how much of the revenue you bring into the company comes from retail (non-affiliate) customers, and how much comes from a recruited downline?
Tcredits, or any virtual currency for that matter, are not viable MLM products.
The exchange of money is all that happens with Tcredits, nothing is actually bought or sold.
That you can’t see the problem with an MLM company providing vital business information only after someone has signed up… speaks volumes about the level of understanding of basic MLM principles.
That was the only thing you could find at the time. Again, NOT a reflection of SFI. Suggesting or imposing SFI’s intentions or remarks like “alternative hidden websites” derails and assumes an untruth. But ok. 🙂
I had to of? No. Yet another assumption. I knew nothing of SFI prior to my searching of it. Take it or leave it, it doesn’t change the fact of the matter. 🙂 I was searching for an OPPORTUNITY like the one presented, and I found what I was looking for.
What was the point of asking about it if you’ve made up your mind about it? You can keep that negative attitude right where you found it thank you. Does nothing for anyone. If you think I’m going to allow this level of degredation in your speech while you mute mine–you’re sadly mistaken.
So I’m going to take a wild guess here and ask, are you asking to be literal, or to make a point and find the truth? SFI didn’t have a “substitute” when it started in 98′ to distribute it’s products. It was all available at SFI…it wasn’t until the welcoming of TripleClicks that they were made available there.
Making them SFI products WITHIN TripleClicks. I’m sorry you’re not getting that. Moving along…
At the very LEAST share some FACTS and not biased opinions about what you THINK is happening. Sheesh! LOL. Retail sales on ALL products are made on a regular basis.
There were various prices for the same item or similar that varied according to the seller. EVEN at Amazon. I just checked ;). Every online store with other merchants carry various prices some compete with one another and others don’t. Your point?
You named TWO items that I presume pertained to your interest–and that should be a solid justification to validate what you’re suggesting? C’mon. More home work…less surface scratching. Thank you. TripleClicks has products selling both retail AND wholesale.
That is your opinion and you’re entitled to it, although what you were responding to was a matter of facts and not opinions. Opinions hold little to no value without facts. You keep referencing Zeek–don’t derail.
I have not dodged any question you’ve asked thus far, in fact I asked you to ELABORATE…do you remember this?
and in fact…YOU didn’t answer my response question at all. Instead I got this:
Such a question would be a COMPANY question and if you’re that curious, I’d suggest contacting Gery directly. For a detailed layout of the revenue generated within ANY Company would be had by the President/CEO and not the affiliates.
But to further respond to your false accusation of us being paid on recruitments, let me share with you a direct answer to WHY SFI doesn’t charge a fee to join or have a sign up kit you have to buy to join. That may better help heal your damaged belief that affiliates are generating income or getting paid upon recruitment.
I’ll leave it at that, it makes no sense trying to prove a fact, the fact stands for itself and well the assumer…lol. They’re left alone in their assumptions.
There was a #3 in regards to inactive affiliates and a response to such–but I didn’t find it relevant unless you’re an affiliate so I shared only what pertained to your question.
Your opinion on Network Marketing or MLM for that matter is neither here no there. Facts are–Tcredits are a DIGITAL product much like an E-book. They just hold seperate purposes. Product: an article or substance that is manufactured or refined for sale. ie: “marketing products and services”. It’s worth/value is your opinion. At TripleClicks, they serve a purpose.
Just like a giftcard to walmart wouldn’t be meant for target. If you’re going to go off the notion that it’s not a product unless seen touched or felt, then you’d have to say the same thing about credit cards and all other things using digital technology. You know it works because you use it–but you can’t see the physical cash.
Much like a Tcredit…it’s CREDIT to be used accordingly. You can either earn credit or buy it. By the way, we have a wave 3 program that gives out monthly free stuff, one of which being Tcredits. Lol…and all TripleClicks members can be given Tcredits by their refferers.
All of the vital information was made available…privacy policy…terms and conditions…compensation plan…benefits…background knowledge on the company and it’s owner etc etc. Did you want an autograph?
Might I add another friendly highlight and then I will leave you to your opinion and leave the world to the facts:
“What kind of products does SFI have?”
SFI’s exclusive online store, TripleClicks-
(Ozedit: I’m going to cut you off there. By all means list products SFI sells. What third-party products are sold via affiliate deals on TripleClicks however, is irrelevant.
TripleClicks is not the MLM business opportunity.)
…on the SFI website. Correct.
ORLY? The company just popped into your head one day? Fair enough *cough*BS*cough*.
Feel free to provide a search string that is not in any way related to SFI that brings up the company website.
And now they’re not. There’s a problem there. MLM business opportunities have to have a product. Third-part affiliate deals on a third-party website are not “products”.
If you want to claim products are being sold on TripleClicks as fact, what was the percentage of revenue paid to SFI from TripleClicks, versus what they took in from affiliate membership fees?
Instead of providing these figures, you answered with this:
Blow it out your ass. You want to claim “facts” that products are being sold at TripleClicks, you provide the data. Otherwise admit you pulled your “facts” out of… your ass.
So? The point still stands. Products on TripleClicks are overpriced and therefore it’s unlikely that anyone outside of the business opportunity is purchasing them.
The example I quoted was DealExtreme, which has nothing to do with Amazon or any of your other excuses.
The two products I checked were purely at random. Both were overpriced, and one would assume that for the majority of other products listed, this is the case with third-party products featured on TripleClicks.
I don’t have time to audit the entire TripleClicks website to check if all of their affiliate deals are overpriced. The two I did check though, were.
False. Every MLM tied to a penny auction to date has failed to generate any significant retail activity. Most of them that launched in the Zeek era, which appears to be when SFI thought they’d get in on it, have either collapsed or been shut down.
Again, virtual currency is not a viable MLM product. This is not opinion, this is fact. Giftcards are also not viable MLM products.
All these do is transfer money from one medium to another, nothing is infact bought or sold.
Not opinion, fact.
(Ozedit: Feel free to provide a search string that is not in any way related to SFI that brings up the company website.)
You’re HIGHLY misinformed on the definition and context in which the term “third party” is used when regarding business.
(Ozedit: Triple Clicks and SFI are two different companies. One is MLM and one isn’t. The MLM company has no retailable products of their own, this is a problem.)
I’m not about to beat a dead horse about something already proven. If we carried no products, there would be no store…
(Ozedit: There is no SFI store. What TripleClicks do or don’t do is irrelevant, unless SFI own TripleClicks (then it becomes the company’s product as a service).)
Feel free to provide evidence that TripleClicks products are not overpriced. Anything else in response to the above quote is offtopic spam.)
On the contrary, it was YOU that mentioned Amazon (Ozedit: Two examples were provided, you don’t get to ignore one.).
In your opinion they were over priced–(Ozedit: Hard numbers are not an opinion.)
(Ozedit: Paragraphs and paragraphs of offtopic derail attempts, irrelevant waffle and general time-wasting removed)
Incase anyone’s wondering why I was so harsh on the comment above with the editing, the original came in at 1800+ words.
I cut out everything that was offtopic, irrelevant or a derail attempt. The above is what’s left.
Judy seems to have a problem with answering straight-forward questions, instead attempting to drown others out with essays of irrelevance.
This is typical MLM-speak. Overwhelm the other person with information. The truth is simple, lies are complex.
It’s a ‘stream-of-consciousness’ rebuttal rather than a well-rationalized rebuttal. 😉
More like a torrent-of-unconsciousness.
(Ozedit: mountains of offtopic waffle removed)
That’s what you fail to understand…it IS! It’s all I’ve iterated in this discussion that you’ve chosen to edit for unknown reasons to me. TripleClicks is run specifically FOR SFI…hence it being developed AFTER SFI. Your interpretations are irrelevant when discussing facts.
(Ozedit: more mountains of offtopic waffle removed)
@Judy
Then it needs to be integrated itself, with the business built around that.
Stocking it with third-party affiliate products adds an additional layer of product, which obviously doesn’t count for SFI. Hell they’re not even TripleClicks’ products.
There’s obviously some level of (overpriced) dropshipping going on in the backend, which needs to become the business itself. Offering access to a platform offering access to third-party products and services isn’t a viable MLM product.
And Tcredits cannot count as a product either (virtual currency), it has to be the shopping platform itself and what’s sold on there. These are the basics of the e-commerce MLM niche.
It’s integrated quite clearly with redirects and molded connections. Gery has taken care of what “needs” to be done and I’d prefer someone who has a strong stable and successful business model and business ethics over that of uninformed opinions.
TripleClicks has expanded what’s available and when the ECA program was initially incorporated, it opened a new window of revenue for all involved. That has nothing to do with SFI products–it’s business. People are in business to make money. Smh.
Haha the MERCHANTS aren’t products…the ITEMS they are selling are. Pfft.
I’ve already said you’re entitled to your opinion. Facts always overule opinion though…in fact, making it irrelevant. 🙂
(Ozedit: Offtopic derail waffle removed)
Yeah I meant actual integration. Not just on an IT level.
Exactly. The products they’re selling. Those products aren’t TripleClicks’ or SFI’s. In MLM when you don’t have your own products there’s a problem.
Virtual currency, the exchange of cash to another platform is not a viable MLM product.
Sitting there all day and dismissing any facts that you choose to ignore as opinions doesn’t make them so.
OZ….I just wanna say THANK YOU for excellent responses while experiencing all that waffling from the 3-year member of sfi, who obviously knows nothing about mlm101—specifically, that the MLM company MUST have product/s of their own for retail.
Makes me wonder what took her 2+ years to land on THIS particular review page. HA! Keep up the great work!
For Tripleclick can expose a sale or as an e-commerce. It is a wonderful thing.
One condition – to be able to earn money SFI is the mediator, Takes the money from the buyer, but not for the seller for safety…… hahahahahaha
Carson is a thief – cheater – shuffler. SFI is a group of mafia (sect?) – Censorship on the forum. Censorship on email – Zero help from support.
You can only write to the forum: I love Gary, I love SFI, I love … tripleclick.
Earn more money? You will be banned and your account disappears – Money also….. I love Gary, I love SFI, I love …
Today SFI eliminates a2a and just read the censored forum.
Do not ask others – Do not send uncensored posts to friends. Everything has to be censorship and control!!!!
What so afraid Carson?
If this is pure business – why not allowed to ask? Big red flag!!!!!
I have been an SFI affiliate for about a month and a half now and problems and concerns.
Kindly note; SFI continues to improve its system. You are allowed to post in the forum and I have made suggestions to improve the tripleclicks website.
The founder Gery Carson, was very well ready to hear my improvements. He is an active member in the forum.
Some members (not Gery) however, instead found it insulting to make such suggestions, well this I found to be hilarious. There are many physical products on TripleClicks and new products continue to be added daily.
One problem is that most sales are made on digital products (E-books etc). Really, this has to change!
Personally, I see no problem with affiliates buying from the online store as long as they are not pressured to do so. Still, SFI is one of the best online opportunity out there; however a lot of improvement is needed, really!
I have been with SFI since 2014. It works for workers.
In order to earn there’s no obligation to spend any money. I agree there’s room for improvement but that does not mean it’s flawed.
SFI is the best. 17 years+ and growing stronger.
Just to help you understand, when I signed up in 2014 I patiently studied how the system has been designed and my conclusion was that this is the great model for making money now and in the future.
For me it has proven.
All busineses have rules and policy that may at one time change. Inspite of changes successful companies maintain and develop on vision.
SFI founding vision is to enable an ordinary person like you and me to earn income via the internet. It does.
By doing what exactly? And please don’t answer by giving a link. If you can’t explain it yourself, how do you expect to sell this idea to others?
What do you mean with “workers”?
Recruitment, clicking on ads, posting ads, something else?
The review is 3 years old, from November 4th 2012. And it had a lot of missing details back then.
I looked at some details in post #1, e.g. how the websites were organized. I also looked at the auctions.
The websites sfi4.com and tripleclicks.com seem to be most active in India and South Africa.
Upstream to sfi4.com:
Lets not be fooled. Those that earn the most in sfi either have spent the most time or money there to do it.
You can spend money to get a return or You can find people that join that get others to join.
Your income will grow at a snails pace.
They want you buying points into the system to build your income.
You look at what is being offered for sale and you dont begin to shop there.
Constant flood of freebie signups from the not so rich countries.
This growth does not mean big income it just means big mailing list for them.
Giving freebie seekers busy work on the promise of easy wealth.
Then the con of contests and chasing income ladder prizes.
You have people with little money in sfi being sold on the idea there is money to be made if they hang around and pay monthly.
Truth is many earn next to nothing even after years of recruiting a massive downline to do so.
Yet when you have 100’s join a day to find out. Someone is getting paid its just not the members for the most part.
I looked at a couple of videos, e.g. “How to become an Executive Affiliate (EA) within one month”.
(affiliate video)
youtube.com/watch?v=dxef30N57w4
The system pays “rewards” in VersaPoints for daily, weekly and monthly tasks, and the VersaPoints are required to qualify for upgraded membership.
The typical daily task is to visit a webpage (click on a tab), read it, click a blue button “I have reviewed the information on this webpage”, wait until the button turns grey “You have been awarded one Versapoint”.
Tabs for daily tasks are Alerts, To-Do List, Tips, Stream, TripleClicks, Scoreboard, A2A, Movers, Growth, Goals, Ask SC. A total of 10 or 12 Versapoints per day.
The tasks are rather meaningless, but people might of course feel “rewarded” by doing them.
“Eager to follow instructions AND being rewarded for it”. The program seems to have been designed for a specific personality type where rewards have an important function.
About 900 Versapoints can be earned the first month by doing daily, weekly and monthly tasks. The requirement to qualify as an Executive Affiliate EA(1) is 1,500 Versapoints. The remaining 600 Versapoints can be earned through a purchase of products from TripleClicks, e.g. auction bids or products.
The second month Executive Affiliate rank EA(2) will require autoship purchase from TripleClicks. So it’s basically a program where people self-qualify for the eligibility to earn commissions — similar to Vemma’s model — but with daily tasks as a part of the qualification.
The program will probably reward Versapoints for adding new products to the online shopping mall. That can explain those “weird products” I looked at in post #1.
I wonder why you didn’t sign up to get an ID. It is free and you can get way more information for free than any other place I have been on the web. It is worth signing up and getting an ID just to read the information material and the Internet Lessons.
You can take what you learn from SFI and go anywhere on the web you want and make more money because you learned the basic skills for FREE.
You can do a lot as an affiliate. You don’t ever need to spend a cent, but if you do purchase, SFI uses 45% of their profits to pay the members.
Your review is full of bull——.
This is my 5th year in SFI and it has been worth it.
Because I shouldn’t have to sign up for anything to get basic information about a company.
That’s MLM 101.
So uh new affiliate money goes in and is then paid out to existing members. That sounds familiar…
And what sort of verbiage do you have to agree with to get the ID? What rights did you sign away? Did you ever think about that?
I have been with SFI for over 19 years.. I earn a full time income. You Do Not need to be an SFI affiliate to participate in auctions, purchase products or play games. All that is required is to register as a Tripleclicks affiliate.
The person who referred you will be a registered SFI member and earn commissions as well as Executive override bonuses. You are no way able to write a review that has my respect.. Get a real job!!
but let’s face it, nobody outside of the SFI income opportunity is using Triple Clicks. So one way or another it’s a closed-loop of recruitment.
I guarantee the income isn’t from SFI.
I have seen people pour time and money into SFI and get little to no return.
The auctions are a joke where as you are spending more for the items than they truly cost.
Just give me one example of how a person can join and gain full time income without spending a fortune of money and time doing it.
You guarantee it??? What will you guarantee?
I have over 130,000 affiliates in my downline. My downline grows by over 7,000 new affiliates every month.
SFI has been in business for over 19 years now… So tell me, all those Amway affiliates never earned full-time incomes. What about all those other great companies…
No one can earn a full-time income from Network Marketing? I think it`s you that doesn`t have the ability to build a strong Network Marketing team, so you bash all the great companies and people who are successful with Network Marketing.
I am ending my communication with you. I am very successful with my Network Marketing business and you aren`t, so best wishes to you..
I knew you would post just the fact that proves my point.
growing 7000 a month on what FREE members joining.
You and the whole concept of join for free and earn a fortune is what drives your massive downline.
Yet how many are spending money monthly and how many are earning full time income?
I think we both know the answer.
19 years is a long time and you probably didn’t get a full time income when you joined let alone in the first few years either.
You would need masses of new signups to keep the “income” coming in as those members either need to recruit massively like you are doing or spending.
Which is why I guarantee you not getting full time income from SFI.
You say that you’ve been with this company “over 19 years” and only have a mere 130,000 in your downline? I think, Roy, that you are telling lies.
I suspect that you actually joined them in 2012 and that your surname is Stubbs.
SFI’s website Alexa ranking = 6.4 million, which is all but dead.
Roy = full of shit. If anyone is joining it’s free TripleClicks members, which are worthless (with respect to SFI’s MLM opportunity).
The SFI system removes all inactive affiliates every month after 1 year of inactivity. Tell me any business that earns massive income in just one year. And if they do, then they are full of sh..!
You try to start a profitable business with zero money down. SFI is 100% free. You are not required to make any purchase, simply market Tripleclicks products.
I think a company being in business for over 19 years is very impressive. It takes time for any business to build a profitable income.
I tried to post photos of my proof, but I can`t. I will give you proof. You said you would guarantee me I wasn`t making a full-time income.. what are you guaranteeing me?? Put your money where you mouth is.. YOU CAN`T!!
you’re here defending this scam because it’s been exposed and you’re taking a hit on recruiting suckers. 19 years indeed. lmao!
(Ozedit: That’s enough abusive waffle from you thanks.)