NuCerity launched in late 2009 and operates out of Houston in the US state of Texas.

The company, who market skin and eye wellness products, is headed up by NuCerity President Kevin Allen with Lonnie McKinney, David Dillingham and Richard Jaenicke all credited as company founders.

Kevin Allen (photo right) is credited with ‘more than 25 years in the network marketing industry‘ and has served in executive positions in a number of MLM companies, including Fortune 21 (IT dept) and more recently, Kyani (VP of North American Sales).

Allen also appears to have been involved in MLM company ACN prior to taking up his position at Kyani, although I haven’t been able to establish whether that was as a distributor or in an executive position.

Read on for a full review of the NuCerity MLM opportunity.

The NuCerity Product Line

As mentioned earlier, NuCerity market skin and eye wellness products.

Skincerity

Skincerity, a ‘nightly breathable masque‘ is NuCerity’s flagship product and is billed as a cosmetic.

With daily application, NuCerity claims some of the benefits of using Skincerity are

  • deep cleans on contact and flash-dries in seconds
  • delivers a continual source of antioxidants to combat sun damage
  • smart-science clinging action helps shed dull skin cells
  • rehydrates your skin naturally
  • nourishes damaged, parched skin
  • diminishes the appearance of facial redness, does not clog pores
  • reduces the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, and enlarged pores
  • can be used on face, hands, neck, and chest to help prevent the signs of premature aging

Skincerity retails at $129.95 for a 30ml bottle.

NuCerity Pure

Marketed as accompaniments to Skincerity, there are two varieties of NuCerity Pure:

  • Advanced Repair Satin Serum – a skin moisturizer that ‘restores skin to a soft, satin finish‘ and
  • Skin-Nutrition Rejuvenating Barrier – a water based “anti-aging”  skin mask that ‘rejuvenates damaged skin‘ using ‘Trehalose extract from desert “resurrection” plants‘

Both the serum and the barrier retail at $129.95 for a 30ml bottle.

NuCerity Eye Effects 3

NuCerity’s “Eye Effects 3 Advanced Serum” is a liquid application designed to combat anti-aging signs around the eyes.

NuCerity claim that Eye Effects 3 ‘targets the eye zone’s 3 critical signs of aging: crow’s feet, puffy bags, and dark circles‘.

Eye Effect 3’s active ingredients are ‘the super antioxidant lycopene, “Nature’s Botox” Argireline, chamomile, hyaluronic acid, and witch hazel’.

Eye Effects 3 retails at $79.95 for a 30ml bottle.

The NuCerity Compensation Plan

The NuCerity compensation plan pays out retail commissions, residual commissions using a binary compensation structure, matching bonuses using a unilevel compensation structure and a series of performance based bonuses.

Commisionable Volume

In order to qualify for commissions, a NuCerity distributor must be “qualified”. In order to qualify commissions, a NuCerity distributor must be generating 100 points of commissionable volume (CV) every 28 days.

CV is counted as the sale of any products made by distributors.

The retail CV points associated with each of NuCerity’s products are as follows:

  • Skincerity – 50 CV
  • Rejuvinating Barrier – 50 CV
  • Repair Serum – 50 CV
  • Eye Effects 3 – 35 CV

Retail Commissions

NuCerity pay out a retail commission on all product sales to customers.

NuCerity define their retail commissions as the difference calculated when distributors ‘purchase products at wholesale pricing and sell them directly to customers at retail pricing‘.

Retail commissions on NuCerity’s products are thus as follows:

  • Skincerity – $65
  • Rejuvenating Barrier – $65
  • Skin Serum – $65
  • Eye Effects – $40

Preferred Customer Commissions

A NuCerity Preferred Customer is a customer who has a monthly autoship order with the company.

In exchange for committing to a regular monthly order, the company offers Preferred Customers near wholesale prices on the purchase of products.

Because the price paid for products by Preferred Customers is less than retail customers, so too are the assigned CV and commissions paid out:

  • Skincerity – 25 CV and $20 commission
  • Rejuvenating Barrier – 25 CV and $20 commission
  • Skin Serum – 25 CV and $20 commission
  • Eye Effects 3 – 17 CV and $12 commission

First Order Bonus

Upon signing up as a NuCerity distributor, a distributor has the option of purchasing one of three “First Order Packs”.

These packs range in price from $440 to $800, with the purchase of one generating a $50-$100 bonus for the distributor who recruited them.

  • Business Pack – costs $400 and generates 220 CV + $50 commission
  • Builder Pack – costs $800 and generates 400 CV + $100 commission
  • Combination Builder Pack – costs $800 and generates 400 CV + $100 commission

Star Bonus

The NuCerity Star Bonuses are only achievable within 28 days of a new distributor joining the company. The basic idea behind the Star Bonuses is that a member joins and purchases either a Builder or Business Pack, and then recruits two new members who do the same.

  • Shining Star Bonus ($50) – join NuCerity and purchase a Business Pack, recruit 2 new members who also purchase a Business Pack
  • Nova Star Bonus ($200) – join NuCerity and purchase a Business Pack, recruit 2 new members who also purchase a Business Pack and help them recruit 2 new members who also purchase Business Packs
  • Power Star Bonus ($150) – join NuCerity and purchase a Builder Pack, recruit 2 new members who also purchase a Builder Pack
  • Super Star Bonus ($400) – join NuCerity and purchase a Builder Pack, recruit 2 new members who also purchase Builder Packs and help them recruit 2 new members who also purchase Builder Packs

Note that the Nova and Super Star Bonuses can be extended past helping 2 new members recruit 2 new members. After your first two new members qualify you to earn either the Nova or Super Star Bonus, you can continue to generate bonus payments for each new pair of recruited distributors you help to recruit 2 new distributors who purchase the applicable pack.

Again, a distributor is only eligible to earn Star Bonuses during their first 28 days with the company.

Residual Binary Commissions

Residual commissions in NuCerity are calculated weekly using a binary commissions structure. A binary commission structure puts you at the top with legs branching out under you. Each of these legs forms two teams, with two legs in turn branching out from under them and so on and so forth:

Each binary team is full of affiliates you’ve recruited (and affiliates they’ve recruited etc.) and you are paid a commission based on their commissionable volume (CV).

Each team’s CV is calculated up at the end of the week and the team with more CV is designated your “strong leg”, while the weaker team is your “pay leg”. Commissions are then matched between your strong and pay legs in 250 CV increments, with each matched increment generating you a $30 commission.

The maximum able to earnt from a pay leg is $10,000 a week. Leftover volume in a pay leg is carried over until $10,000 is earnt in a single week, at which point any leftover CV is flushed. Leftover CV in a distributor’s strong leg is always carried over and is never flushed.

Eg. Your strong leg has generated 1200 CV and your pay leg 1000 CV for the week.

At the end of the week you earn $120 in binary commissions (1000/250 = 4 * $30 = $120), your pay leg resets to 0 and your strong leg is reduced to 200 CV going into the next pay week.

NuCerity Membership Levels

The Matching Bonus, Car Bonus, Mentor Bonus, Diamond Pool and Additional Business Centers components of the NuCerity compensation plan outlined below, all are dependent on a distributor’s NuCerity membership rank.

There are ten membership levels with the NuCerity compensation plan and along with their qualification requirements, they are as follows:

  • Qualified Associate – recruit 2 new distributors
  • Silver – your binary Pay Team must have generated at least 1000 CV a week for four consecutive weeks
  • Gold –  must have at least two personally recruited distributors on both your Pay and Strong binary teams and one preferred customer, your binary Pay Team must have generated at least 2500 CV a week for four consecutive weeks
  • Platinum – must have at least three personally recruited distributors on both your Pay and Strong binary teams and one preferred customer, your binary Pay Team must have generated at least 5,000 CV a week for four consecutive weeks
  • Ruby – must have at least three personally recruited distributors on both your Pay and Strong binary teams and one preferred customer, your binary Pay Team must have generated at least 10,000 CV a week for four consecutive weeks
  • Emerald – must have at least three personally recruited distributors on both your Pay and Strong binary teams and one preferred customer, your binary Pay Team must have generated at least 25,000 CV a week for four consecutive weeks
  • Diamond – must have at least four personally recruited distributors on both your Pay and Strong binary teams and 2 preferred customers, your binary Pay Team must have generated at least 50,000 CV a week for four consecutive weeks, and 2 Platinum and 1 Ruby distributors in your downline
  • Blue Diamond – must have at least four personally recruited distributors on both your Pay and Strong binary teams and 2 preferred customers, your binary Pay Team must have generated at least 100,000 CV a week for four consecutive weeks, and 2 Ruby and 1 Emerald distributors in your downline
  • 2 Star Blue Diamond – must have at least four personally recruited distributors on both your Pay and Strong binary teams and 2 preferred customers, your binary Pay Team must have generated at least 200,000 CV a week for four consecutive weeks, must have 2 Ruby and 2 Emerald distributors in your downline
  • 3 Star Blue Diamond – must have at least four personally recruited distributors on both your Pay and Strong binary teams and 2 preferred customers, your binary Pay Team must have generated at least 400,000 CV a week for four consecutive weeks, must have 1 Ruby,  1 Emerald and 1 Diamond distributor in your downline

Matching Bonus

NuCerity’s Matching Bonus is paid out using a unilevel commissions structure. A unilevel commissions structure places you at the top, with any distributors you personally recruit being placed directly underneath you (forming your level 1).

In turn, any new distributors your level 1 distributors recruit form your level 2 and so on and so forth.

NuCerity pay out a matching bonus commission down seven levels, with the bonus paid as a percentage of the residual binary commissions earnt by distributors in your unilevel structure.

How many levels a distributor is paid a matching bonus on depends on their NuCerity membership rank:

  • Silver – 25% on level 1
  • Gold – 25% on level 1 and 15% on level 2
  • Platinum – 25 % on level 1, 15% on level 2 and 10% on level 3
  • Ruby – 25 % on level 1, 15% on level 2, 10% on level 3 and 5% on level 4
  • Emerald – 25 % on level 1, 15% on level 2, 10% on level 3 and 5% on levels 4 and 5
  • Diamond – 25 % on level 1, 15% on level 2, 10% on level 3 and 5% on levels 4 to 6
  • Blue Diamond, 2 Star Diamond and 3 Star Diamond – 25 % on level 1, 15% on level 2, 10% on level 3 and 5% on levels 4 to 7

Mentor Bonus

The Mentor Bonus is a cash commission paid upline upon the successful recruitment of  new NuCerity member who signs up and purchases a Start Pack:

  • $50 for a Business Pack and
  • $100 for a Builder Pack

The Mentor Bonus is paid out as a percentage according to membership rank:

  • 10% to the first Platinum or higher member found
  • 10% to the first Ruby or higher member found
  • 15% to the first Emerald or higher member found
  • 10% to the second Emerald or higher member found
  • 25% to the first Diamond or higher member found
  • 10% to the second Diamond or higher member found
  • 15% to the first Blue Diamond or higher member found
  • 5% to the first 2-Star Blue Diamond or higher member found

One member is able to claim multiple positions if they are the first upline member found and qualify below their current rank.

Eg. Member X recruits a new member who purchases a Builder Pack. Searching his upline genealogy, an Emerald member is the first ranked member found. Because no lesser ranked member was found before this Emerald member, they get the Emerald, Ruby and Platinum percentages of the Mentor Bonus (15% + 10% + 10% = 35%).

If the next qualified member up was a Diamond member, they’d then only get the 25% commission because up to Emerald had already been paid out. Had they have been a Blue Diamond, they’d have been entitled to the Diamond and Blue Diamond Mentor Bonus (25% + 15% = 40%).

There is one exception to the rule however and it applies when a member qualifies for both the Emerald and Diamond mentor bonus (15% + 25%). In this scenario, the qualifying member will only receive the higher percentage bonus (Diamond at 25%), with the remaining bonus going to the next qualified Emerald member found in the upline genealogy.

Note that the “second” members found operate independently to the “first” members found, ie. if you’re the second Emerald member found in the upline genealogy (10% bonus), you only qualify for that commission as no prior “second” Mentor Bonus exists.

Likewise if you were a Diamond member, qualified as the second Diamond member found (10%) and nobody had qualified as the second Emerald member, you’d qualify for both bonuses (10% + 10% = 20%).

Bulk Order Bonus

The Bulk Order Bonus is a bonus paid out upon a recruited distributor purchasing a “bulk order” of product. Bulk orders are counted in batches of 8, 12 or 16 and are as follows:

Skincerity, Rejuvenating Barrier and Skin Serum –

  • 8 bottles ($60 a bottle) – $120
  • 12 bottles ($55 a bottle) – $66
  • 24 bottles ($50 a bottle) – $48

Eye Effects 3 –

  • 8 bottles ($40 a bottle) – $32
  • 12 bottles ($37 a bottle) – $44
  • 24 bottles ($34 a bottle) – $80

Additional Business Centers

As you gain membership ranks within the NuCerity compensation plan, at various membership levels the company allows you to create an additional business center (compensation plan position).

This new center is placed on top of your existing center, with your existing center counting as the strong leg for an effectively new created of paired binary teams.

You are still paid out on your existing business center as normal, with the new center providing an additional revenue stream as you grow it (it follows the same rules as the first center, up to a $10,000 a week cap on earnings).

NuCerity reward additional business centers at the Blue Diamond, 2 Star Blue Diamond and 3 Star Blue Diamond membership levels.

Diamond Pool

2% of NuCerity’s global CV is placed into the Diamond Pool, which is then paid out weekly to qualifying Diamond or above distributors. Shares in the Diamond Pool are of equal value and are allocated as follows:

  • Diamond – 3 shares
  • Blue Diamond – 4 shares
  • 2 Star Blue Diamond – 5 shares
  • 3 Star Blue Diamond – 6 shares

Car Bonus

The NuCerity Car Bonus is available to qualified Emerald or higher ranked distributors:

  • $150 for Emerald distributors
  • $200 for Diamond distributors
  • $400 for Blue Diamond or higher distributors

The NuCerity car bonus is paid out weekly and to qualify a distributor must hold their membership position for at least 4 weekly pay cycles.

Cars are restricted to silver Mercedes with NuCerity restricting each membership rank to a specific car model (they don’t publicly state what these models are).

Joining NuCerity

Membership to NuCerity is $59 annually.

NuCerity claim that “no product purchase required to become an Independent Distributor” and while this is correct, it’s worth noting that new membership must be “activated” in order to earn commissions.

Activation can be achieved in two ways:

  1. 100 points of commissionable volume being generated, which for a new member without a downline or customers will typically come from self purchase of NuCerity products or
  2. the recruitment of four preferred customers (customers who have a monthly autoship order)

These are potential additional costs to consider when ascertaining the actual cost of joining NuCerity.

Conclusion

Compensation plan wise NuCerity has solid products and rewards members for generating sales of said products.

There is a slight lean towards recruiting members, getting them to buy a First Order Pack and then whacking them on autoship to meet the qualification requirement (the Star Bonus in particular encourages this, albeit with a limited qualification period), but long-term this won’t prove very fruitful.

Due to the nature of the product (long-term use) the commission margins just aren’t high enough and you’ll soon find newly recruited members dropping off as they’re unable to duplicate your efforts. In the long-term you’ll most likely just wind up chasing your own tail.

One other aspect of the compensation plan I wasn’t too keen on was the huge reduction in CV you get paid on from your Pay Leg. It’s bad enough the company halves your downlines sales efforts with binary teams but then they go and stiff you some 88% of the CV they’ve generated!

Product wise I’m no expert on facial masks so I can’t really comment there. Demographics wise if you’re looking at NuCerity you’re probably going to be female though and primarily marketing to other females.

There will of course be some males interested in the products and be interested in signing up as a distributor but I imagine they’d be far and few between.

At the end of the day you’re looking at $130 roll-on facial masks and $80 eye lotion, which I’d strongly advise you test yourself for at least a month before diving in as a distributor.

Being cosmetics people are going to want to see results and if you can’t demonstrate them on yourself naturally they’re going to be skeptical.

It might even be worth taking some before shots before you start using the products and then an after shot following 1-3 months of use, which you can perhaps use a later date for marketing purposes depending on the outcome.

Good luck!

 

Update March 6th 2018 – On March 5th Ariix announced a merger with NuCerity.

Looks to me that it’s more of an acquisition, with NuCerity affiliates and the business itself being rolled into Ariix.

Comparing Alexa traffic estimates for their respective websites, NuCerity is easily the weaker of the two companies. Ariix seems to be doing quite well.