Travelution Review: Travel & $199.95 a pop recruitment

I ran into some initial confusion upon beginning my research into Travelution, namely because there’s two different MLM opportunities bearing the same name.

I don’t believe these two companies are linked, as they operate from different websites, have different logos and appear to be headquartered in different countries.

“My Travelution” operates from “mytravelution.com” and are a South African based company, with a compensation plan that quotes commissions and cost in South African Rand.

This review is for “Travelution”, who operate from the “yourtravelution.com” domain. As per the company’s website, Travelution are based out of Florida in the US, however no street address is provided.

Three co-founders are cited on the Travelution website, Dustin DeVaughn (CEO), Dave Manning (Chairman of the Board) and  Faraday Hosseinipour (VP of Sales).

As per their respective Travelution corporate bios (DeVaughn, Manning and Hosseinipour respectively from left to right);

Dustin DeVaughn (is) a travel agent veteran who created thousands of successful at home entrepreneurs in the travel industry.

Dustin has been in the travel industry for over 10 years. He has also created multiple six figure incomes in the home based business space and helped thousands find and create financial freedom from their homes.

Dave Manning (has) over 30 Years experience in the network marketing industry (with) 10 years in the Travel Industry.

(Manning has also run his) own Marketing company servicing the time-share industry.

(He has) gone to the top of 6 Network marketing companies earning millions and helping team member earn millions in the network marketing industry.

Faraday Hosseinipour (has) over 20 years experience in the network marketing arena (with) 10 years in the Travel Industry.

(She has also run her) own Marketing company servicing the time-share industry.

Hosseinipour (has) gone to the top of 4 different network marketing companies earning millions along the way and helping her team member earn millions in the network marketing profession.

Further research reveals Dustin DeVaughn to have been a Visalus and Empower Network affiliate. Identifying himself as an “MLM top recruiter”, DeVaughn was actively promoted Paycation in early 2014.

In 2015 DeVaughn was promoting ForeverGreen on Facebook, with advertisements for FG’s Ketopia product continuing up until October.

Dave Manning and Faraday Hosseinipour were also involved in ForeverGreen. Before that the duo promoted the BidXCel, Infinity2Global and Global1Entertainment Ponzi schemes.

Read on for a full review of the Travelution MLM business opportunity.

The Travelution Product Line

Travelution affiliates have access to a third-party travel booking engine, through which travel can be booked by retail customers.

Travelution do not disclose the name of the third-party travel engine provider on their website.

The Travelution Compensation Plan

The Travelution compensation plan pays affiliates an 80% commission on retail travel booked.

Travelution also pay affiliates to recruit new affiliates, via unilevel frontend and 3×10 matrix residual.

Travelution Affiliate Ranks

There are twelve affiliate ranks within the Travelution compensation plan.

Along with their respective qualification criteria, they are as follows:

• Agent – sign up as a Travelution affiliate agent 3 or 6 = 0 to 1499 GV
• Visionary = generate between 1500 to 4999 GV a month
• WaveRunner = generate between 5000 to 9999 GV a month
• BeachBum – generate between 10,000 to 24,999 GV a month
• Navigator – generate between 25,000 to 49,999 GV a month
• Explorer – generate between 50,000 to 99,999 GV a month
• Jetsetter – generate between 100,000 to 249,999 GV a month
• Tycoon – generate between 250,000 GV to 499,999 GV a month
• 1 Star Tycoon – generate between 500,000 GV to 749,999 GV a month
• 2 Star Tycoon – generate between 750,000 to 999,999 GV a month
• 3 Star Tycoon – generate between 1,000,000 to 1,999,999 GV a month
• Ultimate Tycoon – generate 2,000,000 GV or more a month

GV stands for “Group Volume” and in Travelution is a combination of commissionable volume generated by recruiting affiliates and their payment of ongoing monthly fees.

For the purpose of rank qualification, GV is counted from the 3×10 matrix used (see residual recruitment commissions).

Note that no more than 40% of the required GV counted from any of the three level 1 matrix legs.

Finally, some parts of the Travelution compensation plan refer to “Agent3” and “Agent6” qualification.

This is designated by how many affiliates a Travelution has personally recruited as follows:

• Agent3 = recruit and maintain three affiliates (who each pay monthly fees)
• Agent6 = recruit and maintain six affiliates (who each pay monthly fees)

Retail Commissions

Travelution affiliates are paid a retail commission of 80% of the vendor commission Travelution receives when travel is booked through their portal.

Recruitment Commissions

Travelution affiliates are paid to recruit new affiliates via a unilevel compensation structure.

A unilevel compensation structure places an affiliate at the top of a unilevel team, with every personally recruited affiliate placed directly under them (level 1):

If any level 1 affiliates recruit new affiliates, they are placed on level 2 of the original affiliate’s unilevel team.

If any level 2 affiliates recruit new affiliates, they are placed on level 3 and so on and so forth down a theoretical infinite number of levels.

Travelution cap payable unilevel levels at five, with commissions paid out as a percentage of affiliate fees paid by new recruits.

How many levels a Travelution affiliate is paid out on is determined by their Agent3 or Agent6 status:

• Agent (0 to 2 recruits) = 30% on level 1 (non-MLM)
• Agent3 = 30% on level 1, 10% on level 2 and 5% on level 3
• Agent6 = 30% on level 1, 10% on level 2, 5% on level 3, 3% on level 4 and 2% on level 5

Residual Recruitment Commissions

Each active Travelution affiliate pays a $69.95 monthly affiliate fee.

This fee is commissionable and paid out monthly via a 3×10 matrix compensation structure.

A 3×10 matrix places an affiliate at the top of the matrix, with three positions directly under them (level 1):

Level 2 of the matrix is generated by splitting each of these three level 1 positions into another three positions each (9 positions).

Each subsequent level of the matrix is generated in the same manner down a total of 10 levels (88,572 positions).

Commissions are paid out as a percentage of monthly fees paid by recruited affiliates in the matrix.

How many levels of the matrix a Travelution affiliate can earn on is determined by their Agent status:

• Agent (0 to 2 recruits) = 5% on level 1, 8% on level 2 and 12% on level 3
• Agent3 (earns on levels 1 to 7 of the matrix) = 5% on level 1, 8% on level 2, 12% on levels 3 and 4, 10% on level 5 and 5% on levels 6 and 7
• Agent6 = (earns on all 10 levels of the matrix) =  5% on level 1, 8% on level 2, 12% on levels 3 and 4, 10% on level 5, 5% on levels 6 and 7 and 0.5% to 2% on levels 8 to 10

Note that the exact percentages paid out on levels 8 to 10 are determined by Travelution affiliate’s rank.

The exact percentages paid out and what rank they correspond to are not disclosed on the Travelution website.

Check Match

Travelution pay a check match bonus on the earnings of recruited Travelution affiliates (excluding retail commissions, the Travel Global Bonus and Enroller Pool Bonus).

Commissions are paid out using the same unilevel team used to pay recruitment commissions, with how much of a percentage match paid out determined by what level of the unilevel team a matched affiliate is placed:

• level 1 – 10%
• level 2 – 5%
• level 3 – 5%
• level 4 – 3%
• level 5 – 2%

Luxury Lifestyle Bonus

The Luxury Lifestyle Bonus is a monthly bonus paid out to Travelution affiliates based on their affiliate rank.

• WaveRunner – $200 a month
• BeachBum – $300 a month
• Navigator – $500 a month
• Explorer – $750 a month
• JetSetter – $1000 a month
• Tycoon – $2500 a month
• 1 Star Tycoon – $5000 a month
• 2 Star Tycoon – $7500 a month
• 3 Star Tycoon – $10,000 a month
• Ultimate Tycoon – $20,000 a month

Travel Global Bonus

The Travel Global Bonus pool is a monthly bonus pool, made up of 2.5% of the vendor commission Travelution receive on booked travel.

Travelution affiliates earn one share in the pool per $1000 of travel booked through their replicated booking engine.

Shares in the Travel Global Bonus pool expire monthly (after the bonus has been paid out).

Enroller Pool

The Enroller Pool is made up of 2.5% of the commissionable volume generated company-wide by affiliate recruitment and payment of monthly affiliate fees.

The Enroller Pool is paid out weekly, with Travelution affiliates earning a share in the pool per three affiliates they recruit for that week.

Joining Travelution

Affiliate membership with Travelution is ‘a one time investment of $199.95 and $69.95 per month‘.

Conclusion

Travelution break the mold of MLM travel companies without commissionable travel bookings, however said commissions are still likely to be dwarfed by affiliate recruitment volume.

Dollar for dollar, whatever Travelution receives from vendors on booked travel is not going to equal or surpass hundreds of dollars paid in by affiliates when they sign up. Nor will it compete with their ongoing monthly $69.95 fee.

This in turn means the bulk of commissions paid out by Travelution will be tied to affiliate recruitment, as opposed to actual retail booking of travel services.

This is a problem because is essentially reduced the Travelution MLM opportunity to a chain-recruitment scheme.

You pay $199.95 and as long you continue to pay $69.95 each month, qualify to earn commissions on subsequent affiliate recruitment.

The compensation plan reflects that with designated Agent3 and Agent6 ranks, with broader ranks determined by GV tied to recruited affiliate fees.

Travelution has no retail travel booking volume requirements.

Before I went over the Travelution compensation plan, it struck me as odd that the company referred to Travelution affiliate membership as an investment:

We are licensed and legal to sell to all 50 states and offer this same product to you for a one time investment of $199.95 and $69.95 per month.

The Luxury Lifestyle Bonus explains this, with it in and of itself constituting a securities offering.

Travelution affiliates pay $199.95 and then $69.95 a month. With no retail travel sales whatsoever, all they then need to do is recruit new affiliates and, as long as everyone pays their $69.95 a month, are able to take home up to $20,000 a month.

Given that no retail travel bookings are required, it follows that the Luxury Lifestyle Bonus is made up of affiliate fees.

Thus new affiliate fees flow into the company which, through the Luxury Lifestyle Bonus, are then paid out to existing affiliates.

Given the types of MLM opportunities Dustin DeVaughn, Dave Manning and Faradar Hosseinipour have been involved in, I wouldn’t be surprised if they each hold one or multiple positions at the top of the company-wide unilevel and matrix.

The goal is obviously to take home $20,000 or more a month through one or more positions, on top of whatever they collect through company-wide recruitment efforts.

As with all such schemes, Travelution will collapse once new affiliate recruitment slows down.

Those at the bottom will realize there’s nobody left to recruit and will stop paying their monthly fee.

This sees those above them stop earning monthly residual commissions and, if they can’t replace those lost with new recruits, they too will stop paying monthly fees.

Eventually this trickles up the Travelution affiliate genealogy far enough that a company-wide collapse is triggered.

At that point anyone who hasn’t recouped their initial $199.95 “investment” and whatever they’ve paid in monthly fees, walks away with a loss.

Mathematically, this is guaranteed to be the majority of participants in such schemes.