PayOfRewards Review: Zeek Ponzi Points clone
There is no information on the PayOfRewards website indicating who owns or runs the business.
The PayOfRewards website domain (“payofrewards.com”) was registered on the 21st of May 2013, however the domain registration is set to private.
On the PayOfRewards website a Twitter and Facebook button can be seen and while the Facebook button goes nowehere, the Twitter button links to an account under the name of “Albert Midwall”.
No tweets have been made by the account though and Albert Midwall’s name does not appear on the internet outside of the PayOfRewards opportunity, indicating that it’s most likely not a real person.
As always, if an MLM company is not openly upfront about who is running or owns it, think long and hard about joining and/or handing over any money.
The PayOfRewards Product Line
PayOfRewards markets advertising credits. Retail customers can purchase advertising credits, although it’s not clear where the advertising is displayed as no advertising currently features on the PayOfRewards website.
Alternatively affiliates join the company and then purchase “advertising credits”, with each credit purchased generating points in the PayOfRewards investment scheme.
Advertising credits can be used to display advertising
The PayOfRewards Compensation Plan
The PayOfRewards compensation revolves around the purchase of advertising credits by affiliates, with each credit generating a point the company then pays a daily ROI for 90 days on.
Affiliates qualify for their daily ROI by giving away a minimum of ten advertising credits a day to retail customers they’ve signed up.
For every advertising credit bought by an affiliate, they are awarded one “bonus point”. PayOfRewards pay out a daily ROI per bonus point an affiliate has, with bonus points expiring over a 90 day rolling period.
Affiliates make an initial investment of up to $10,000, and receive a daily ROI as long as they give away 10 advertising credits each day.
PayOfRewards state that the daily ROI paid out to affiliates is ‘up to 60% of the revenue earned that day‘.
Recruitment Commissions
Recruitment commissions are offered on the recruitment of paid PayOfRewards affiliates:
- Silver affiliate = $2
- Gold affiliates = $10
- Diamond affiliates = $20
Note that these are ongoing monthly commissions, payable whenever a personally recruited affiliate makes their monthly membership fee payment.
Matrix Recruitment Commissions
PayOfRewards don’t specify how wide their matrix is but do state that affiliates can earn down 21 levels (I’m guessing it’s a 2×21 matrix).
Affiliates earn a monthly commission for each position filled in their matrix, with each position representing a recruited affiliate. Matrix positions are filled either via direct recruitment or the recruiting efforts of an affiliate’s up and downlines.
How much of a commission an affiliate earns per filled matrix positions depends on their affiliate membership rank (how much they pay each month in membership fees) and how much volume they generate via their own investment or the retail sale of credits.
Silver affiliates ($10 a month)
- 30 PV = 5 matrix levels at 25 cents per position filled
- 50 PV = 10 matrix levels at 25 cents for a Silver affiliate and $1 for a Gold or Diamond affiliate
- 100 PV = 15 matrix levels at 35 cents for a Silver affiliate, $1.50 for a Gold affiliate and $3.50 for a Diamond affiliate
- 700 PV = 21 matrix levels at 25 cents for a Silver affiliate, $1 for a Gold affiliate and $2 for a Diamond affiliate
Gold affiliates ($50 a month)
- 50 PV = 10 matrix levels at 25 cents for a Silver affiliate and $1 for a Gold or Diamond affiliate
- 100 PV = 15 matrix levels at 35 cents for a Silver affiliate, $1.50 for a Gold affiliate and $3.50 for a Diamond affiliate
- 700 PV = 21 matrix levels at 25 cents for a Silver affiliate, $1 for a Gold affiliate and $2 for a Diamond affiliate
Diamond affiliates ($100 a month)
- 100 PV = 15 matrix levels at 35 cents for a Silver affiliate, $1.50 for a Gold affiliate and $3.50 for a Diamond affiliate
- 700 PV = 21 matrix levels at 25 cents for a Silver affiliate, $1 for a Gold affiliate and $2 for a Diamond affiliate
Referral Commissions
Affiliates who qualify for the daily ROI are also paid referral commissions on investments made by affiliates in their downline, however PayOfRewards do not go into specific details in their compensation plan material.
Qualified Members also earn PV on the Purchase and renewals of the Premium Subscriptions of their Personally Sponsored Members.
Joining PayOfRewards
Affiliate membership to PayOfRewards is available in four options:
- Free – no cost but only able to earn referral commissions
- Silver – $10 a month
- Gold – $50 a month
- Diamond $100 a month
Conclusion
Whereas Zeek Rewards attempted to mask their Ponzi scheme behind a penny auction, PayOfRewards strip out the facade and combine the Ponzi points mechanic with advertising credits.
In a nutshell, affiliates invest, dump the credits on dummy accounts they’ve set up themselves and earn a percentage of what has been invested into the company that day.
Or as PayOfRewards put it:
the daily award for RPP is calculated based on up to 60% of the revenue earned that day from the company’s overall business production, which can include product sale, Ad pack sales, member renewals and other income production from their member companies.
As with all Ponzi schemes, once what is being withdrawn exceeds what is coming in the scheme collapses.
Due to the nature of the Ponzi points model, this is typically delayed and is difficult to predict when it will happen. This is due to the fact that affiliates are encouraged to “compound” their daily ROI to increase their daily ROI percentage payout, and only withdraw once a sufficient point balance has been generated.
How much an affiliate then withdraws and how quickly they decide to withdraw is entirely up to the affiliate, leading to instability in the long-run (more so than your typical straightforward Ponzi model).
With PayOfRewards’ launch coinciding with the anniversary of Zeek Rewards’ SEC shutdown (at which time the company was on the verge of organic collapse), I’d guess that it’s being backed by ex-affiliates who are looking to capitalise on the recent spate of revenue-sharing collapses within the niche.
Coupled with anonymous ownership of PayOfRewards, by the time most but the earliest of the company’s affiliates are ready to start withdrawing, there’s a strong likelihood that those running the scheme will have already up and left with everyone’s money.