Text Cash Network Review: Daily Deals with limits
One of the seemingly hot properties of the internet marketing world right now is the Daily Deals coupon niche.
Whereas the traditional business model for the Daily Deals companies relies on attracting businesses to utilise the network with professional marketing teams, those in the MLM industry have taken note and attempted to pair the Daily Deals niche with MLM network marketing.
Most of these companies tend to focus on Groupon like online networks, choosing to deliver their Daily Deals in much the same manner. This model is proven and easily accessible.
Today however we’re going to take a look at ‘Text Cash Network’ who seek to pair the Daily Deal niche with an online backend, but instead of the internet will deliver their deals and coupons via SMS.
Read on for a full review of the Text Cash Network MLM opportunity.
The Company
The domain information for the Text Cash Network is currently set to private and was registered just days ago on the 23rd October, 2011.
Text Cash Network’s website makes no mention of who owns the company nor who is running it.
It is noted that Text Cash Network is currently in pre-launch but to be honest, that’s hardly an excuse. Be extremely wary of doing business or joining any MLM opportunity that is not upfront and transparent about who is behind the company.
Update 9th December, 2011 – Since writing this review Text Cash Network have announced that their President is a one Mr. Brett Hudson.
The Product Line
Text Cash Network doesn’t have a tangible product, but instead members are encouraged to sell exposure to the company’s network of members to potential advertisers.
In addition to this Text Cash Networks are also encouraged to sell membership to the network itself with the idea being that the larger the network is, the easier it will be to attract potential advertisers.
The Text Cash Network Compensation Plan
The Text Cash Network compensation plan can be broken down into two basic components;
Referral commissions
The Text Cash Network will pay out $1.50 for each new member an existing member brings into the company and any members they bring in, up to 10 levels deep.
This commission is structured around a unilevel organisation that, with you at the top, is infinity levels wide and ten levels deep. Basically you recruit someone, they recruit someone and so on and so forth, and Text Cash Network will pay you $1.50 for each of these members a month.
Due to the unlimited width nature of a unilevel organisation, there is no limit to the amount of members you can recruit.
Advertising Commissions
As of yet, Text Cash Network haven’t released any specifics or commission figures for their advertising commissions.
The general idea however is that members refer businesses to use the Text Cash Network to advertise their Daily Deals and/or coupons, and the referring member then makes a cut of these advertising sales.
Along with this there is also a matching bonus paid out to the upline of members who earn an advertising commission. Unfortunately the percentage of this matching bonus has not yet been released so I can’t say whether it’s a 100% matching bonus or not.
Joining Text Cash Network
Joining Text Cash Network is free as a member but in order to maintain your membership you do need to agree to receive up to 5 SMS text advertisements a day.
Conclusion
One of the main reasons online based Daily Deal and coupon type sites work is due to the relatively large exposure the internet offers businesses.
These days everyone has an internet connection so the potential membership to Daily Deals sites is huge. Thus, putting aside the question of actual value offered to businesses by such sites, it’s no surprise that the Daily Deal coupon niche has been booming for a while.
The problem with taking this idea offline and delivering deals via SMS is that you eliminate the key element of success these online networks have, exposure.
SMS isn’t an open platform and as far as attracting advertisers to Text Cash Network goes, you’re pretty much limited exposure wise to members.
The problem?
Text Cash Networks members are only in the network as a result of the business opportunity itself.
Does this provide any real value to advertisers?
Not really. Sure there might be a few members who are genuinely interested in some of the ads they receive, but with 5 of them coming in every day chances are most of them are just going to get deleted without a second chance.
Add to that the fact that Text Cash Network is a global opportunity, and well… I don’t see really see the benefit from a potential advertiser’s perspective in using a SMS network to blast out a Daily Deal or coupon.
You’ve got nowhere near the exposure an online site has and are sending out your deal to a memberbase who by and large probably aren’t interested in purchasing anything from you anyway – they’re just there to earn commissions on recruiting new members and signing on new advertisers.
Of course there is the safeguard of only having to pay out on deals that are actually used (similar to a ‘per sale’ commission) but Text Cash Network haven’t specified whether or not this is what they are using.
And if they are, with no geographical restrictions and the limitations of SMS, it’s a pretty steep assumption that the money generated by advertisers will pay out the recruitment referral fees month after month as the Text Cash Network grows.
Seeing how there’s no connection between growing referral payouts on new members each month and the amount of advertising business brought in to cover costs (Text Cash Network’s only revenue stream mind you), how Text Cash Network plans to stay afloat is beyond me.
Simply put, without some sort of connection in place there’s too much of a probability Text Cash Network is going to struggle to cover its costs. And ultimately, that means you’re not going to get paid.
Probably best to stay clear of this one folks.
And the author of this article is?…
Oz, nice to meet you.
I think if the deals/coupons/whatever are attractive enough the sms recipients will bite, even though their main intention when signing up was to just make money. The key here is the deals are in front of eyeballs on a device that has become so attached to us all.
In terms of exposure, the network is promoted on the internet first of all so I don’t see that as too much of an issue. I see it as a pretty shrewd way of tapping into a lucrative market.
The lack of transparency bothers me a bit, but they’re not asking you to buy anything after all.
Cheers,
Vin
@Vin
That counts on the receipients being actually able to use the deals or coupons though. Even within the US we’re probably going to be talking hyperlocal deals (the big national chains will have marketing teams dedicated to utilising the larger coupon networks) which are going to be largely useless to a nation wide network.
Furthermore Text Cash Network is open globally, although they’re only sending SMS’s to the US (everyone else can just make money from recruiting).
I think that pretty much sums up the business opportunity.
How exactly are you guaranteed to make any money here? Just from signing people up and maybe some little mom and pop buying an ad that they don’t get charged for unless that deal is actually used?
So when do you get your commission? They going to pay you up front creating chargebacks that will guarantee that they never have to pay you again or will you be waiting for payment in the so called ‘sales’ to materialize from where ever it is hiding in the Twilight Zone?
And lets not even talk about the fact that not everyone in the US is on unlimited text and that is approximately 150 texts per month. And does it say standard rates will apply? Meaning that you will be charged for receiving these texts.
There’s a reason Pyrite is called Fool’s Gold and this looks to have Pyrite stamped all over it.
You forgot to mention the biggest red flag which is Phil Piccolo is behind TCN.
There are some valid points here. However, some points are gross mistatements of TCN disclaimer. Nevertheless, its in the beta stage (pre-launch)so…there will be kinks to be ironed.
BUT!…at this point there is NO RISK. Its 100% Free. Bottom line…being skepital is ok. But, don’t let others opinions (including mines)keep you from the “Next Big Thing.”
@Felix
Such as what? I didn’t quote the Text Cash Network disclaimer once as far as I can see.
Paying out recruitment commissions on advertising business you may or may not get isn’t a mere kink, it’s a fundamental flaw in your business model.
Free or not, there’s always a risk when you’re participating in an obvious pyramid scheme that can’t sustain itself because it offers access to a useless advertising network and pays out on how many members you recruit into it.
First off you don’t get paid for recruiting you get paid when recruits open texts. Over 80% of texts are opened vs emails low rate.
People are people and a good deal is a good deal. It’s dumb to say people who sign up are in it just for the money.
The other text company sent out a test text and it was from restaurant.com selling local restaurant $25 gift certs for $2-3
Phil Piccolo…now that bothers me. He’s a snake. But in the end it’s free.
@jim
Yes you do,
And as for this,
Where’s this figure being pulled from? And if true, that’s obviously because email spam filtering is much more efficient.
Gmail alone cans over 99% of spam before the end user even sees it, meanwhile how many mobile phone simple show ‘1 new message!’ requiring owners to open the message before quickly hitting the delete button upon realising it’s just spam?
Well what else are they in it for? Human rights, the good of the nation, personal development??
Were they exclusive or just rebadged deals scraped from restaurant.com?
Hey clown…if I recruit you I don’t make a dime. You made my point about the email not being opened because of spam.
I never would have known about the special offer from restaurant.com if it was not for the text.
You are a sad angry, lonely basement dweller.
@Jim
Taken from textcashnetwork.com –
Get people to join the company and receive texts (why else would they join the company?) and earn a recruitment commission for recruiting them. It’s right there in plain English.
TCN’s attempts to differentiate between joining the network and accepting to recieve spam is stupid. Remove the spam and what is the reason for joining the network? Do I get a shiny membership card I can show my friends?
Membership and receiving spam, along with the recruitment commission are effectively one and the same.
So it was just scraped from a third party offer. Given that there’s probably no business relationship between restaurant.com and TCN, this only proves the network is failing to attract advertisers. Otherwise they’d be offering up exclusive offers rather than just rehashed third party offers anybody can see on the internet for free.
Yawn, diddums.
You really are slow. It says receiving texts to get paid. As far as the offer I doubt restaurants.com is selling $25 gift certs for $3 on the site.
Can I receive texts without joining the company?
It’s a membership commission.
Thank you for the in depth explanation of how this all works.
Honestly, I hate MLM but a buddy of mine asked me to sign up so I did rather reluctantly only because I’m helping out a friend.
He couldn’t tell me what it was really all about so I had to look for some info on this Text Cash Network.
I hope your article gets to #1 on Google for “text cash network” because the other sites are either crap ads or nonsensical explanations about how “text messaging is big right now yada yada..”.
Good job Oz.
Much more info available here: text-cash-network-red-flags
(Ozedit: link 404 as of Jan 2020, removed)
What a bunch of overanalytic loosers! You are probably the same individuals that proclaimed Groupon & Living Social will go belly up 3 years ago!
How about over 120 million members between both companies and billions of dollars 3-5 years later! What makes TCN different? We will always be FREE Membership referral platform based, with an option to be a FREE member ONLY!
No commissions paid to you just receive the discounts! Ignorance is a bad thing!!!
I take it you’re one of those ‘lol why are you asking so many questions, just shutup and sign up!’ type marketers…
The fact that the internet is global whereas SMS isn’t, and the fact that TCN pay out recruitment commissions.
From a business standpoint, there’s no money to be made by joining and not recruiting – so why even bring that up?
You can try and attract advertisers but see point #1, this is much harder because of SMSs localness. That and people are joining TCN to earn money be recruiting, they don’t give a crap about advertisements so advertisers are wasting their time advertising on the network too.
patrickpretty.com says that Text cash network may have stolen the “agreements” page from ZeekRewards, and prior investigations shows that the company may not actually be where they claim to be
http://www.patrickpretty.com/2011/12/27/update-text-cash-network-creates-even-more-name-confusion-with-assignment-clause-that-appeared-on-purchase-agreement-page
Hello and Wow!
Such vehement responses to common sense plus wisdom. If the truth hurts say ouch (I did). I signed up with TCN to make, not save, money. I have none to spend to utilize the Savings!
I never got any text messages, I did promote many ads daily. “C’est la vie” (that’s life) or “Caveat Emptor” let the buyer (or MARKETER) beware. I want something real, I NEED MONEY> not another scam or something I do not succeed at because I am, in TRUTH (as most onliners are), NOT a marketer and fail miserably at it.
WHEN, not IF, a person with a BAD REP is involved, R-U-N, don’t be deceived by your own greed or need or whatever,
Good riddance TCN as you join far too many others in the “online hall of shame”.
@barbara — it’s known as “sunken cost fallacy”… Someone who invested in the thing feels obligated to defend it, because to do otherwise would deflate their own ego.
Oz and I have seen it many times on various “opportunities” he and I (separately) have found to be either a total scam, or completely deficient or unlikely to be profitable.
Related news to TCN from PattricPretty.com … A related company whose top members seem to be on top of TCN have been in… financial trouble, seeks new investors?
http://www.patrickpretty.com/2012/01/17/special-report-owow-phil-piccolo-associated-firm-that-pumped-text-cash-network-purportedly-cited-financial-trouble-last-summer-and-sought-brand-new-people-to-pay-off-all-of-the-past-commi/
So start up new company to save the old one… and then when the business model flounders then what?
I wonder how much in debt these ‘top people’ are.
@Barbara
Thx for your report. In fact, most of the opportunities released in the last 6 months seems to have been shortlived “schemes”. Even experienced marketers will fail under these conditions.
You need money NOW?
The schemes released the last 6 months are designed to do something similiar, provide the organizers with money within a short period of time. They’re not designed to provide the participants with money.
Start looking for ideas that works rather than opportunities, ideas that works for you rather than joining some ideas that works for others?
None of the “opportunities” out there will provide you with money if you are an average participant (like most participants are, even if they believe something else).
A few of the opportunities may have some basic ideas that may work for you. The ideas may work, but the opportunity will usually not work, since they simply aren’t designed to work for most participants.
One of the basic ideas that makes these schemes work for the organizers is this one:
It seems like you have been following a similar idea? And have continued to follow the same ideas even if they haven’t worked very well for you? Then I believe it’s time to change some of your ideas rather than to look for new opportunities.
Most online marketers sucks because they believe in ideas that are shortlived and designed to work for someone else. The few who makes it adds lots of shortlived ideas, or a few longlived ideas that works for them. Both of these principles seems to work. The best idea seems to be to have some longlived basic ideas as a foundation, and adding shortlived ideas when they’re needed.
Any update on this one?
I think the company is set to launch a “member only” platform by February. Agents who earn money has a different platform.
VIP members received their first pay-out (Jan.20,2012). You can see/converse with their President (Brett Hudson) and their Communication Director (Gene Johnson) in their official facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/tcnofficialgroup/
hope you could find time to properly investigate this company so as to save many people from being scammed.
Text Cash Network are going to have to launch first before there’s any point delving deeper into the opportunity.
I first heard payouts late last year, then early January – and now it seems they’ve finally got the ball rolling.
I still don’t think there’s enough money in localised SMS daily deals but until they launch and run for a few months we won’t know for sure.
PatricPretty.com have another update:
http://www.patrickpretty.com/2012/02/14/update-text-cash-network-firm-with-phil-piccolo-tie-now-fishing-for-international-satellite-partners-and-25000-deposits-after-earlier-piccolo-associated-firm-asked-for-14995-at-a-time-fo/
Basically, TextCashNetwork wants people to recommend suckers who will give TCN at least $25000 to promote satellite TV shows.