I really don't want to get into heated discussion (probably will) or at all put people down but this certainly is 'emotional' for many, nor do I want to spend much time on it myself.

I suppose these MLM things are profitable for a number of people, although when you get a bad experience (of any kind) with one, which a lot of people have had over the decades they have been around it is hard to see too much positive about them.

Personally, I am sure some can do ok... but I only see this as real business for the people that start it, control it. Just surprised so many people seem to go for the stories, testimonials etc that make so many promises... people that are risking a lot to them.

Almost my 2 minutes up (I value my time) so I really just want to say, if you want to work for yourself... do business so to speak... really know your business and what you are doing, have your own plan and trust yourself more than what everyone else says (and enjoy it).

Power Advisor 27 and other members of EDC.... What is your best selling software product and what does it do? What is the highest amount you sold it for and the least amount? How many software products have you sold versus memberships into EDC?

Hello to DavidT and vbennett!

Just wanted to make a few remarks. To DavidT, I can understand your wanting to stay neutral when it comes to home based businesses. I do disagree slightly with one thing you've said (and that's not meant to cause a big uproar or heated discussion, just my opinion based on some observations I've made). I don't think that home businesses are profitable only for those who start and control them, if you meant founders or owners of the companies. I will say that it seems like many opportunities are made to collect money other than just the membership fees; I've even experienced this myself with a few. What all of this really depends on is an individual and whether they allow themselves to be "sucked in and sucked dry," so to speak. I was involved with LLI and a few others before coming across EDC. All of them make it seem as if you only pay a certain amount for membership and that's it, and then you're suddenly bombarded with recommendations for leads, landing page creating, auto-responders, safelists...all of these are "recommendations" from the company, but have the knack for making newbies feel as though they won't succeed without these services and products. Of course it's obvious that the company gets some kind of commission from all of these service providers as a thank you for referring huge amounts of customers. That's where and how these companies make their money (affiliate programs and partnerships on a much larger scale). That's where the problem comes. When I enter into any opportunity, I look for what is required and what's recommended. In my experience, most of the recommended things aren't a great quality or just plain don't work, so I don't invest in them. That way, I keep my operating costs and overhead down. As long as a person can pinpoint what's important and necessary and what isn't, then they can keep their expenses low and there are no longer issues of feeding more money into the company so that they owners and founders continue to get rich while independent reps and distributors struggle.

As I've said before, I'm an advocate for small business and entrepreneurship in general. Even if it isn't EDC that someone joins, I encourage everyone to look within themselves, find their talents and strengths, and capitalize on them! It is always better working for yourself rather than someone else!

To vbennett, each EDC member has their own personal agenda when they join. Some join specifically for the products and resale rights so that they can go out and sell these software titles and tools for more profit. Others join for what the company offers as a whole. I'm one of the latter. I joined EDC not just to sell a bunch of products, but in the hopes of learning more about internet marketing (and how to do it effectively) through the training and tools provided. I'm happy to say that I achieved that goal, and my new focus is on training and helping other entrepreneurs. For that reason, I promote the total EDC package instead of picking out individual products and selling them here, there and everywhere. I find that the EDC memberships are much more beneficial. Our members get training and benefits that customers just purchasing a product wouldn't receive. I believe someone asked this question in an earlier post: if I cared so much about my customers, wouldn't I direct them to the best deal? The fact is that I do care about all of my customers, and I know that purchasing our products through the membership will be a far better deal than purchasing them individually, so in directing them to the best deal, I direct them to EDC.

I haven't worried about breaking the packages up into smaller packages or individual items and selling them that way. Though I have the right to, it's not as much about profit as it is about the chance to grow and learn (at least for me, anyway). I may sell some individual products in the future, as I'm working to expand my current website and business. That will be in the form of an online storefront , not eBay auctions or the overpriced packages you see online selling for hundreds.

Hope that addresses your questions and concerns. Any more, feel free to post!

-PA27

Thank you PA 27 for your reply. I applaud you for your articulate responses, which were always very courteous and never demeaning.

Being an EDC member as an entreprenuer sounds very intriguing. Are there any members in your team or do you know of any EDC members who joined for the products and resale rights and sold the software? If so, which products have been sold and how well are they doing financially? I am interested in checking out the products (at least a few) before I join a company. I'd like to do some reseach on them. Such as customer reviews, ratings, CNET, etc...Also, specifically, which products have you sold or have any been sold as package deal?

No problem. I'm always glad to answer questions.

I don't know that any of my team members joined for the purpose of selling the products individually. That could be due to the way I train and the things I've communicated here. Just like my beliefs, I train with the frame of mind that EDC's package deals are far better bargains and much more beneficial than just purchasing or selling the individual products.

If you'd like, I'll be glad to help you do some research on some of the products we sell. As a start, I have seen some of the products we sell online in package deals or offered individually elsewhere. In particular, the following products:

Traffic, Sign-ups and Sales (software)
Auto Hits Machine (software)
Magic Subscriber (software)

I've seen some of these offered along side of marketing training courses like "Magnetic Sponsoring" and "Unorthodox Traffic." I've Googled these and some are selling them for low prices anywhere from $.99 to $10 USD. Then again, other sites are selling them for upwards of $29 or $39.95. In particular, Auto Hits Machine seems to be very popular. There is another called Web Audio Plus that I use pretty regularly to create audio training courses, and I've seen it selling for anywhere from $5 to $40.

Another thing I can do is move through my EDC circles and find out whether any other members are selling the products individually and how well that's going.

I think I mentioned this in an earlier post, but the pricing and how well items sells is dependent upon the person selling them. A customer is far more likely to purchase something from you if you present yourself as a knowledgeable entrepreneur with valuable products and tools to offer. I'm far less likely as a customer to buy software that's selling for $.99, not because I think it's low-quality, but because the seller doesn't seem to have much faith in what they're selling if they price it that low. Then all sorts of questions start to surface, like "are they even selling the real thing..." or "will I actually be able to download the product once I purchase it?" or "is this a trusted seller?" Having little faith in what you provide is what raises such questions, not the products themselves.

I hope that's helped some. I'll continue to report my findings as I come across new info, if that will help you. I can also send you some screenshots of our back office, so that you can see exactly what you get (and how much of it you get). Those products I mentioned above are some good ones if you're looking to test some out before you join a program. I can also conjure up a list of others if you need me to.

-PA27

Hello - I am new to the forum and find your discussion here interesting. I enjoy the EDC Gold reps persistently trying to defend their program with the same arguments over and over.

I am actually a former EDC Gold rep and did well with the program. I am not a disgruntled rep that thinks they were scammed out of their money. I am an entrepreneur interested in developing businesses with long term sustainability.

It is for this exact reason that I left EDC Gold. After downloading and using some of their "software" and "eBooks", all I found was complete garbage. There is no real product value there. I am a web developer and work with video on the web. Their streaming video and audio sofware is horrible. I could go on and on about how bad all of the products are, but you get the picture.

After figuring that out, I could no longer ethically promote the program. I would stay away from the EDC Gold program and find another home based business that has a true, stand alone product.

Best of luck to all!

Hi Healthliving,

That's very honest & ethical of you. At what level did you join? $297 or $997? and were you able to get a refund? How long were you in?

Yesterday, I googled "Auto Hits Machine (software)", from PA 27 and many of the people who purchased the program in 2005 and 2006 were not happy with it. (And that's being kind). It was reviewed under a site called scam. No offense PA 27.

I am trying to determine if EDC is behind their software or more about promoting members to join?

TY.

Interesting.....you say you're not a disgruntled ex-member, and that you did well while in EDC Gold, yet you bash the program. That makes little sense to me....

To each their own opinion, I try to be respectful to all. However, you should realize that what my be "garbage" to you is not necessarily garbage to another. Like you, I'm also in web design (was my profession with marketing long before I joined EDC). I have found our products to be very useful, especially the tools in our newest product. And I have found the training that we receive to be more complete and more valuable than any other type of marketing training I've received online.

It seems to me that if someone has left a program, and truly did well with it, they wouldn't have bad things to say. Period. If I were to leave the program today, I wouldn't have a single complaint. I'd only be leaving to "retire" and let my team members take the reigns. This is only a hunch, but I find that something in your story doesn't quite fit.....

And finally, EDC members "persistently defend their program with the same arguments over and over" because, in case you haven't noticed, the same arguments are presented by naysayers over and over. Even your argument, that the products are "garbage," has been discussed here before. So if I believe in what I say, and you present the same argument as several others that have come before you, then how else is there for me to respond but with the same counter argument? That is why I asked in an earlier post if naysayers could address new arguments against EDC that have not yet been discussed, so that we can address those issues and help out those that are doing research. I guess you didn't happen upon that part of the thread.

Maybe the program just wasn't for you, but I and plenty of other folks are making it work, both on a short term and long-term basis. Thanks to EDC, I now have passive residual income coming in, as well as larger, immediate income. As I said before, this adds a measure of flexibility and security to my business. I couldn't ask for anything more, especially since I work from home and don't have (or have to have) a traditional job.

As I've also said, I defend EDC because it is my livelihood. It is feeding my family, it is furnishing my home, it is paying my father's mortgage. In short, it's allowing us to live the lifestyle that we all as human beings deserve. Just the same as if someone came up to a person at their job and bashed the company they worked for, downed the products and brought about a negative reputation. That person would be upset because it is their livelihood. They need their company to continue to have a good reputation in order to keep their job. I'm sure you would be offended if someone came up to you and bashed whatever it is that you do, especially if you weren't hurting anyone or doing anything illegal. I will tell you like I told Brian during our debate; just because you don't agree with something doesn't mean you have to be disrespectful of it or those that do it.

It is even funnier to me that at the end, you wish everyone "best of luck" after you've torn down the way I earn my living. I wonder if you meant that as it sounds? No matter, as again everyone is entitled to their own opinions. However, in the future please learn to be respectful with your opinions. It will do you more good in the long run.

-PA27

No offense taken on my part, vbennett. I put the info out there for you to do the research, as I have nothing to hide. I found conflicting reviews for many of the software titles and tools that we carry. You take from the research what is important for you. That's what matters.

I think that the EDC focus for each distributor will be different. There are many who are only about the money and so they focus on promoting the highest level membership, they use the hyped-up ads and make lots of empty promises. Those folks wouldn't be able to tell you a lick about the products, because they have probably not even looked over them, and probably don't care to.

Then you have others who have dabbled in the software and tools, but are still mostly about the money. And last,you have those who are trying to run a legitimate business. I would be one of the latter.

I think what folks fail to realize, regardless of what's being said here on anywhere else, is that what is garbage to some isn't garbage to others. I go into retail stores and see what I call "rubbish" all the time that I'd never spend my money on (like a lot of the "as seen on TV" cleaners, utensils, home contraptions, exercise machines, etc.). But surprisingly, they are hot-selling items, which means someone other than me finds use for them. Just because I would never buy the product doesn't make it worthless on a world-wide scale, just worthless to me. Nor would I ever bash the company or its products outright, because they aren't hurting me or anyone else. They are just running their business. But I think perhaps I know when to keep my opinions to myself....

Also, do remember that EDC is a home based business. It is meant to help folks earn money. So it doesn't surprise me when many distributors focus on the income opportunity. That's what it is to them, so that's how they promote it. Nothing wrong with that, and as long as their members understand what they're getting, what the policies are, and what they'll be instructed to do once they join, no one is getting scammed. You know, I and my fiancee have been involved in many "home based business opportunities." Most of them have products that might stand well on their own, but most of the distributors focus on recruiting because that is where the largest portion of their money is made. While I wouldn't operate this way, they do what works for them. We're all out here to make money. How we do it is our own choice. It's not for someone else to ruin our business unless we're performing illegal operations, selling illegal items, or hurting someone.

Perhaps some of you think that I'm scamming others, but I take joy in days like yesterday when I showed a team member that he has an option outside of the workforce, which is kicking him down right now. And I take joy in the fact that my fiancee can rest easy at work, because he knows there is something better, and if he were to lose his job, he wouldn't have anything to worry about. It is nice to bring hope to people, and even greater to deliver on that hope. If that is a scam, then so is the "American Dream." I think what is happening here is that folks will rise against anything that is unconventional. You see someone earning money without having a job, and you assume they're doing something wrong, because that's the way we've been programmed all of our lives. Time to break free of the brainwashing and open your eyes. The world is moving toward entrepreneurship, because the workforce doesn't care about it's workers. There will be many other companies like EDC, many other MLM companies. You might as well get used to seeing them. And many of you might want to look into how you can start something and work for yourselves. Just my opinion, but I think the mentality of Corporate America and the workforce situation are going to get worse before they get better.

I have noticed something interesting throughout this conversation and others like it. There are "glass half empty" people, "glass half full" people, and knowledge-seekers. It seems like many will take a discussion like this, which has both good and bad points, and for whatever reason, only focus on the bad. And then their are folks who will look at the good and the bad, and focus on the good. And last are the knowledge-seekers, who don't take sides, but look at the whole situation and pose questions and comments for thought. I'm a glass half full person myself. These programs, like people, are innocent until proven guilty. And I greatly appreciate folks like 4silverstrea and LightHammer, who make us think. They aren't for or against, but merely make observations that bring up positive challenges. Most of who I've encountered on here are the others, the "glass half empty folks." It almost seems as if they have a chip on their shoulder to begin with, and take it out on those who are doing well at something. I can tell you though, that's not the way to do research. True research needs an objective mind, so that you can analyze the entire situation, and take the good and the bad together, to get the most effective solution. No business or income opportunity (brick & mortar, virtual or otherwise) is going to have a sparkling record. Common sense should tell us that. But you weigh one against the other, instead of completely ignoring one or the other.

And again, we must all strive to be respectful of another's profession. There are many folks who are new to internet marketing, network marketing, MLM or whatever. EDC competes against countless other business opportunities for the attention of those wishing to start a home based business. That doesn't mean that as an EDC distributor, I'm going to bash LLI, Tahitian Noni, MonaVie or any of the others. It all comes down to what will work best for the individual. Why not let them view the facts, and then decide, instead of resulting to such immature tactics as bashing?

-PA27

Knowledge Seeker Here and I've got 1/2 glass full of Arizona Ice Tea!

PA 27 - You have the knowledge! I do agree with you that some people do try to knock down what is unconventional and some of the websites are really Hyped Up and have made empty promises.

I am curious. Let's say I sign up at the Gold program.
What are the actual costs?

1. Membership Cost? (I think someone stated earlier $80, $300, or $1000)
2. Admin Costs? Are there 1-time fees or recurring monthly fees? I'm sure EDC has to get something, right?
3. Replicated Website Costs? (for those of us who are not webdesigners)
4. Cost of taking credit cards, merchant accounts, any recurring fees?
5. Cost having your own domain?
6. Any other costs I may have forgotten?
7. What's the refund policy?
8. Have you had to teach or Mentor people who had no web experience?
9. How long was it until your first sale? A few days, weeks, etc...?
Thank you.

Hi. Just ran across this forum and read through the EDC posts and thought I should put in my two cents plus. I do have experience with EDC Gold. I also just got out. My experience: I got in with a lot of promises. I was on the Dubbs team and my direct sponsor was sponsored by DD.....Mr. Top Earner. I am a novice internet marketer. I was promised help. My direct sponsor did make good money and helped. He has left as have over 70% of his people. I did not know he'd quit marketing it until I was emailing and calling him 'wondering about a million things'. Like why DD was discounting everyone, why he was paying for a month of free advertising, why he was qualifying everyone? Basically I understood that he was just doing direct sales because he was killing the residual aspect. I carried his marketing website paying 40 a month for that as EDC Gold gives you 3 different websites to market separately which is very unhelpful. You think for the entry price and the monthly fee of 50 they would create a website that does what the Dubbs does (market them all from one site). But then he is their top earner and he's making money that way and that's their 'gig' together to double and triple dip income wise. I dropped his site as I felt that his site crossed the line of a good replicatible site that promotes 'me'......The Dubbs site I feel markets Mr. Dubbs and I pay the 40 dollars a pop monthly to promote him. I had people at the site who then decided to go with him as he was the money earner.....I was not. I had no conversion. I did market, spent many hours doing many of the free things and also paid for leads. I have not even made back my investment. I was told as a member of the Dubbs Team that I would get all the marketing training and info on his site. He changed the deal and now you had to carry his website which I had dropped. I inquired as I would assume he would honor what was promised and I could no longer access the training site. He never bothered to respond to me......a team member. He never responded to my sponsor who actually did some training calls on the EDC site. To add to this Craig Garcia........one of the owners was beyond rude. His office staff even apologized. I was told I would get free leads. I inquired when new about them. Was told wrong info and was sent back and forth.....all to no avail. Finally I was told to contact Craig for the 4th time and be 'firm' with him. I emailed him requesting the leads as advised by his office. However I was 'funny and friendly' not pushy.........didn't lean on him as his officer person had stated to do. He called me minutes later and did nothing but literally yell at me. I quote,' are you trying to mess with my head'? I TRIED to explain that no, I was told to get the leads from him and there must be a misunderstanding. He continued to yell and would not let me talk or try to explain. All he could say was how every second he was on with me (remember he called me) he was losing money and he was wasting time with me who was screwing with him. That was the furthest thing from the truth. I was new and trying to get the leads and following directions. After the call ended I felt sick to my stomach because I knew I was 'emotionally' in the wrong program and could not respect one of the owners and could not trust he would be professional with others I would bring in potentially. I've had nothing but a very very poor experience, crabby support and feel intimidated from asking questions or getting help............except for my sponsor who was honorable. However he is out and he had made up to 25k in a month. He too was tired of competing with DD because he is all over the net and promising things to people that I cannot compete with. Why would they go with me when I carry his site, with his name.......they can google him and see that he offers to qualify everyone (I can't afford to do that) and he pays their marketing for a month. This has been a big lesson for me. I don't care if it's a pyramid or not.......doesn't even matter. It was a bad experience through and through regardless. 2 up's are not a good plan and then if you qualify everyone and allow the top earner and Reps to have to much control........the system starts to fail. I believe they will not be out there for long. Just got an email from a merchant account that EDC added for overseas people and folks who couldn't get the original merchant account.......that they now have denied EDC and will not work with them.....hmmmmmmmm? Too risky perhaps? Too many disgrunted reps that are wanting money back and earning nothing so it's too risky for the merchant account? Don't know but something is not right. Overall not a good happy, healthy positive environment to build in.....simply my inside observation from a novice...........

Why do they refer to this 'Australian 2-up'?

Regardless of the EDC and how it operates, just find it a little cheeky & offensive for EDC to try to relate any part of it's program to something like Autralia's two-up... which to my knowledge all Australian's see as a fair & straight up game (fair-dinkum one might say).

David
(Australian & two-up player - on Anzac Days)

Hello again!

Here are answers to your questions:

1. You are correct. There are 3 memberships, at $997, $297 and $69.95. The difference in pricing is because each suite of software and tools is different. They each contain different items and different amounts of items.

2. There is an administrative fee for each membership. This covers maintenance of the back office (which houses your downloadable tools and software, recorded training classes, other free marketing tools and other training. It also enables you to track your team members and your earnings), and the costs of the live, weekly training. There are now 7 training classes held per week via web conferencing. For the Gold membership, the admin fee is $49.95 per month or a one time fee of $350 if you don't want to pay monthly. For the EDC membership (mid level), the admin fee is $29.95 per month or a one time fee of $250, if you don't want a monthly bill. For the lowest membership, the fee stays at $69.95 a month.

Total initial costs for each program: Gold is $1,046.94 (membership fee and admin fee), EDC is $327.95, and YNF is just $69.95.

3. Replicated Website costs: For either the Dubbs or the EDC replicated site, $39.95 a month. I believe these came about because otherwise, an EDC or Gold member would have to promote 2 or 3 different links for each program, which is time consuming and inconvenient. However, I think it unfair to charge (and even if, charge so much) for that. Let it be known that I don't recommend these sites, nor do I use them. I have nothing against Dubbs or the company, but I don't feel that they do a good job of converting website visitors into customers (and that's the whole purpose of the website, right?), not to mention there are hundreds of other distributors using the same sites. They are also not the least bit personalized. For my team members (and myself), I create a customized marketing website (complete with registered domain of their choice) free of charge. And of course, they can promote all levels of EDC Gold and the PromoBlackBox product in one place.

I also provide the same customized marketing sites for other EDC members not sponsored by me. For this, I charge $29.99 a month. The only reason I charge is because I create these myself, which takes time from my training and business. However, it is a less expensive alternative to the replicated sites, and with a more personal touch (which is proving to convert visitors into customers better than replicated sites).

Let it also be known that no member is forced to purchase these. There are plenty of free providers out here that allow the creation of free websites, and a person doesn't have to know anything about creating websites to use them. They may not be as professional looking as other sites, but then, you get what you pay for....


4. There is a merchant account called LinkPoint that is recommended. However, it's expensive, something like $299 set up and activation, and $99 a month. The only advantage is that it can be linked directly to the company sites. They do recommend Safepay, which is free and allows you to accept Visa, Discover, eCheck, and Safepay balance, and can be linked to the replicated sites. And there are others you can use outside of the system, such as Alertpay and Google Checkout which are also free. EDC also recommends Freedom Charge, which is free and allows all major credit cards. The only problem with it is that it takes about 3 weeks to become completely activated, so you may have to use a free option like the ones above until that merchant account is activated. And then, you can always accept cash, check, money order or wire transfer if you want.

5. Having your own domain isn't required, but recommended. The prices vary, but here are some inexpensive options: Yahoo offers domains at $1.99 a year for the first domain to new customers. If you needed more then one domain, you could always create a new Yahoo account, for which you'd be considered a new customer and eligible for the $1.99 pricing again. Domainsarefree.com offers domains at $3.99 a year, and GoDaddy offers them at $9 a year.

6. There are no required costs other than the initial membership fee and the monthly admin fee. All of this other stuff is fluff. When I started, I had limited funds, and only dished out $327.95. That was enough to get me going. Folks have got to be savvy enough to realize that if it isn't required, then you don't have to purchase it. Simple concept.

7. Refund Policy: No refunds allowed. Before anyone jumps to conclusions, there is a very good reason for this. The products that a member purchases are available in a downloadable format. It is impossible for EDC to get those products back from a person, or to monitor or regulate who has downloaded what. Most companies that offer refunds sell tangible products, and give out those refunds once they receive the product back. Since EDC can't go into the home of every single member and wipe their hard drive clean of every piece of software (and that's assuming someone didn't have some of the products before they joined), no refunds are offered. It protects us as distributors as well, because that refund would be coming from us, not the company. If refunds were allowed, our money would have to sit in something much like an Escrow account and not be touched, because you never know when someone is going to want a refund. Not to mention, it leaves the door open for scammers to join, take their time and download any or all of the software and resale rights they want, and then request a refund. They walk away with software that they can take elsewhere and make a profit on, and we're left with nothing. People have argued that there is no refund policy because our products are worthless, but it doesn't have anything to do really with the quality of the products, but with protecting us.

I do know of a member who's experimenting with giving all of his new members a 30 day money back guarantee. I applaud his faith in his business and what he's providing, but he'll probably face some of the same things I described above. To me, that might just bring about extra and unnecessary issues to deal with, that he would otherwise have been protected from. The point is to earn money by working smarter, not harder (or at least, that's what I thought). I'll update you on how his promotion goes if I hear anything.

8. Yes, I've had to mentor folks with little experience in computers, internet skills or marketing. I don't mind it, either. This world can be a bit cruel to newbies. The way I think of it, we were all newbies at some point in time, and we wouldn't have liked anyone disregarding our needs just because we were inexperienced. I have actually created a marketing training course that was designed for newcomers to home business and internet marketing. It is 20 pages of advice, tips, tricks, techniques and free and low-cost advertising resources to help newcomers get started. And I provide 1-on-1 training, which is of course personalized for each member and their level of skill and experience. The nice thing is that our business is straight forward. It is simple to understand and simple to work, once you have a bit of guidance. It can be as simple as just talking to folks and letting them know the facts, like I'm doing with you. You don't have to learn phone scripts, you don't have to go out and do live prospecting, you don't have to purchase leads or use cold-calling techniques. All a newcomer has to do is take the skills they are taught, and apply them, and along the way ask questions is there is something they don't understand. And all I do as a mentor is guide them. I suggest the best (and least expensive) places to advertise based on my own experiences. I teach the techniques that have the best results, I provide them with tools to help them market their business. It's a simple, but beneficial relationship!

I've also heard someone argue that once a newcomer goes through training, they then become competition for their mentors. Everyone handles their mentor-to-member relationships differently. Personally, my team members aren't competition but partners. We all help each other. I've posted about this on another forum which goes into greater detail. I'll post a snippet from that in my next post.

9. It took me about 2 and a half weeks to get my first sale. But then again, I didn't have a helpful mentor. A lot of what I did was trial and error, which takes time. Had I known then all of the things that I've learned along the way (like which advertising is effective and which isn't), I'd have probably made my first sale sooner. Of course, it varies for each member. Most of my team members work full-time, so we don't get to training every day. Some folks are only available late night, which doesn't work out too well if folks are asking you to contact them back. There are lots of factors involved. Thankfully, my fiancee had enough faith in what I was trying to do, that he suggested I stay at home to see if I could make it work, and he'd pick up the slack. I think the fact that I can be available at any time has really helped my business. Had I also been had that opportunity when I first joined, I probably would have made my first sale more quickly.

I set realistic goals for folks who are interested. I let them know that this business can start off slowly, especially if they don't have a whole lot of time to devote to it in the beginning. I let them know that many members I know of have made their first sale by 1 month in. That may seem like a long time to some, but it's not a get rich quick scheme after all. It takes time to build your business, and more time to learn and perfect your methods. 1 month for a newcomer to make a sale isn't bad at all, and even better if I decide just to let them keep that sale!

Hope that answers your questions thoroughly. If you have any more, feel free to lay them on me!

-PA27

To britta,

I'm sorry about your experience with EDC. I've heard from several members that interaction with the owners and with DD never goes well. I've never had to contact them myself. I'm not in business to deal with them, nor would I depend on them or anyone else for help.

Still, it's wrong for the main representatives of a company to have such ill dispositions toward the folks who are helping them to make money. No reason or excuse for that whatsoever.

I think I've said this a few times on this forum and others. The top earners aren't necessarily the best mentors. I don't mean that to be disrespectful to them, but they have hundreds of folks calling and emailing them every day. It's impossible for them to be able to respond to each and every one in a timely manner, and handling that many calls every day might make me a bit cranky too (but I guess not if that's all I had to do to earn a 6 or 7 figure income). I think lots of folks (not you, but many others) assume that joining with a top earner will mean spill-over and success for them. Not true! If anything, you'll always be in that person's shadow (much like your mentor felt), and it'll be harder for you to earn in someone's shadow.

And as I've also stated, I'm not a fan of the Dubbs or other replicated sites. That's why I created my own, and why I create more personalized sites for my team members. Better not to have to deal with shelling out $40 a month.

After reading your story, and hearing about some others, I can see why there are members who leave this company. I guess where I differ is that I don't attach myself to them when it comes to earning. I do take advantage of the training, which is excellent training, but that's really about it. It's just the means. I've never had to deal with the owners or top earners, so I've not experienced what you have. I have talked to Craig briefly in training, but he never seems rude in training. My team members also don't have to deal with them, which is helpful. Nor do we promote anything to do with them, look for leads from them, or depend on them to close sales. I view EDC a lot like a job. When you apply for and get hired for a job, you don't know what dirty things the "upper shelf" of that company is doing behind closed doors. And unless it will trickle down to you somehow, doesn't even matter because it has nothing to do with you. You just work the job and go home. I don't let any of it get too personal (except among my team), nor do I take any of it personally, because it doesn't matter. At the end of the day, I don't need those folks to earn my income. All they get from me is my monthly admin fee, and other than that, I keep it rolling!

As far as EDC's relations with other providers, I don't know much about that. Again, I don't get involved. But just so you know, most payment processing providers don't like to deal with home based businesses in general. Just comes with the territory. I don't think it's so much a personal cut to EDC as to the whole industry. Again, folks don't like dealing with what's unconventional and different. I use a different processor and operate my business as ethically and with as much integrity as I can. If I have issues with someone, I settle them personally with that customer, so that my payment processor never has to hear about it. I personally don't have any problems.

I'm sorry again for your experience. I hope you can find something that will be better for you financially and emotionally. Seems a shame, as there is a lot of potential in the business model. I realize that lots of folks don't favor the 2-up system, but again, it's not a big issue with me as I don't even always require my team members to pass their sales up. Especially if they did all the work for the sale. I guess the best advice I can give is that when you do find a business model you feel you can work with, get creative and tweak it to fit your personality and needs. That's what entrepreneurship is all about. I guarantee you that I don't run my EDC business exactly like anyone else, and perhaps that's why I have what little success I have.

-PA27

DavidT,

It isn't just EDC that refers to their system as the "Aussie 2-up plan." If you Google the exact words "aussie 2 up plan," or "2 up" you'll come up with several different business opps. I even noticed some talking about Aussie 2 ups and scams that use them. I didn't happen to see EDC listed anywhere there, nor do the characteristics they list match EDC. Actually, they speak about another opp in reference to the aussie 2-up plan. You might want to be a bit more offended about that one.

I guess it all boils down to the owners and their efforts to make sure what they're doing is legal. I have no questions about my own business, nor have I had any issues with folks wanting refunds. That could be because I take the time to fully explain the refund policy, and I don't pressure or hassle folks. When I have folks who are interested in joining, I take extra steps to make sure they understand everything. At that point, if they join, it tells me that they understand and are ok with everything they've been informed of, so we move on. Nor will I be doing anything illegal like evading taxes come next April. Each individual just has to take the steps to make their own business legal, and to be ethical and honest in their dealings. Do that, and you'll have nothing to worry about, even if the company goes down.

-PA27