Herbalife Scam – Is Herbalife Really a Scam?
Is Herbalife a Scam?
–By Paul Zelig
The Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary defines a scam as, “A fraudulent or deceptive act or operation.” A similar definition I’ve found is “A fraudulent business scheme; a swindle.” Many people wonder if there really is a Herbalife scam, and we’re going to explore that in this article.
Whenever I hear the word scam, what comes to mind are things like the Nigerian email/letter scam and the recent Ponzi Scheme perpetrated by you-know-who. Typically, it’s something inherently designed to cheat people out of their money. There are other schemes out there that may not be a scam in the eyes of the law, but are painfully deceptive. Take the so called auto warranty phone scam for example, and one that I continue to see every year is the letter I get from a company who makes money preparing annual corporate minutes. The letter is specifically designed to look like it’s coming from the IRS. You really have to look for the small print explaining that it isn’t an official letter. And sometimes we are apt to label something a scam because of a gross injustice perpetrated by individuals or companies, and I completely understand this. So the question remains, is there a Herbalife scam?
So What’s This About a Herbalife Scam? Is It Real?
When I hear the words Herbalife Scam, I’ve found that typically, people who ask this type of question about a legitimate company are basing their skepticism on too much misinformation, or negative preconditioning. Sometimes it even stems from an unwillingness to take responsibility for their own misfortunes. It’s easy to blame other people, situations or companies for our own failures. Sure there are some very real scam’s out there, it’s just that Herbalife isn’t one of them.
“Opinion has caused more trouble on this little earth than plagues or earthquakes.” —Voltaire
“A wise man makes his own decisions, an ignorant man follows public opinion” —Chinese Proverbs
“At any given moment, public opinion is a chaos of superstition, misinformation, and prejudice. —Gore Vidal
Although these can apply to almost any company or opportunity, here are some reasons I believe there are those who call Herbalife a scam:
- I tried to make money in the Herbalife business but failed.
- I tried to lose weight using the products and either failed, or felt sick.
- I’m just leveraging the popularity of the Herbalife brand as a marketing tactic to discredit it so I can sell more of my own product or service.
- I’m an unhappy, cynical, skeptical, closed-minded person and if I don’t like you, then you’re a scam in my books.
Excuse my frankness, but skepticism isn’t natural. I believe what’s partly to blame for this is the negativity we’re inundated with on television and the fear that many news stories perpetrate. As a result, we become conditioned skeptics. Most popular news is bad news. We should be able to see and hear more of the good things about our country and the rest of the world. Many times when we don’t understand something we’re quick to make sweeping statements that aren’t based on fact. We may even read something on the internet, and we can always believe what we read on the internet, right? It was Ralph Waldo Emerson who said that “Skepticism is slow suicide.” I tend to agree.
I’ve always believed in digging deep enough to discover the facts about anything before jumping to conclusions. As it relates to an alleged Herbalife scam, it’s important to be clear on exactly what part of Herbalife may be considered a scam. Is it the weight loss and nutritional products the company sells? Or is it the business opportunity which provides entrepreneurs with a way to run their own business marketing and selling the products? Or both?
Do people claim there is a Herbalife scam because of the products, and does Herbalife really work? Well, has anyone ever purchased one of their nutritional shakes, opened the box and found nothing in there but air? If so, that could be called a Herbalife scam, but that isn’t the case. How about people who say the program never worked for them? Is that a good enough reason to call it a scam? The fact is, there are millions of people around the world who have achieved success using the products. So, the program certainly works. Will it work for everyone? Probably not.
How many of the people who say it isn’t working, actually stick to the program? When the going gets tough, most people quit. It doesn’t matter what program you choose for your weight loss, unless you commit to it, and follow through, your chances of success diminish. Most times, it isn’t that the program doesn’t work, it’s that the individual using the program doesn’t work the program. If you bought a gym membership but never went, would you claim it doesn’t work and call the gym a scam?
Some people who have felt sick after taking the products, say it must be a Herbalife scam. The thing is, this may be a normal part of the detoxification process as the body is being cleansed of toxins.
Herbalife Business
What about the business? Now this opens up a whole can of worms. There is no other industry that I know of that has received such a bad rap, as the direct sales/network marketing/multi-level marketing industry. There are many people who say that the Herbalife business opportunity is the part that’s the Herbalife scam.
Herbalife was founded in 1980. Today there are more than 1.8 million Independent Distributors in more than 65 countries generating annual sales in excess of $3.5 billion.
The only way to purchase Herbalife products is from an independent distributor. Herbalife uses a direct sales business model to take the products to market. Direct selling is defined as “Marketing and selling products, direct to consumers away from a fixed retail location.” This is a very effective form of distribution that has been around for over 50 years, and is used today by some of our most respected, multi-billion dollar companies.
Unfortunately, most people have a 40 year old image in their mind of folks standing around a kitchen table selling soap. We’re pre-conditioned to believe this is not a legitimate way to sell a product. But the industry has evolved, and continues to attract entrepreneurs committed to developing as leaders and enhancing their life experience. There’s a great CD narrated by Bob Proctor who was featured in The Secret called What Would You Change if Your Annual Income…Suddenly Became Your Monthly Income? This CD will really help people understand the industry.
Now I’m sure there have been some scam artists out there who have given multi-level marketing a bad name, and some people even confuse this legitimate business model with a pyramid scheme. The reality is, any business requires effort to be successful. Many people who fail at the Herbalife business are quick to call it a Herbalife scam and blame the company or the products, when they should really be looking internally for why they didn’t succeed.
Internet Ads
Do a Google search on Herbalife scam or just Herbalife, and you’ll find a bunch of paid advertisements telling you not to join Herbalife, and why the advertiser left Herbalife, etc., etc. Some people seem to have made a career out of discrediting the company. You can just as well do this for any other company or major direct sales organization and find similar ads.
Do you realize the people who are paying for these ads specifically design them to leverage the brand as a marketing tactic to sell their own program, lead source or service? Most people don’t realize this, and take what is being said on face value; that the Herbalife scam is real. And what does it say about the advertiser if these are the tactics they resort to in order to promote their own business. Personally, I’m not going to put another company down, just to sell more of my products.
Then there are those who object to the marketing practices of some eager independent distributors. Personally, I find it more offensive when I check out at the supermarket only to find a television in my face at the checkout lane. But to each his/her own. Within reason, I can’t fault the eager entrepreneur who is driven to take massive action in order improve the quality of their life.
Of course, there are bad apples in any business, but look at the core. Who are the leaders behind the company? Look at their track record. Did Herbalife have challenges in the early days? No question. Just as any business would as they experience tremendous growth. What about challenges currently? I don’t know of a major company that doesn’t.
We may not all agree on everything, but these facts and observations should help to set the record straight, and put you in a position to make an intelligent assessment for yourself about this so called Herbalife scam, and you may just realize that Herbalife is a legitimate organization.
Copyright © 2009 by Paul Zelig. Written for bloghealthydiet.com. If you reprint this article, please include the author name and a link back to this blog.
Related posts:
- Herbalife Fraud
- Problems With Herbalife
- Does Herbalife Work?
- What Is Herbalife
- Herbalife Business Opportunity
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I understand this is an independent view, no special interests involved?
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editor Reply:
August 15th, 2009 at 9:22 am
Thanks for commenting. If by special interest you mean the article was written with a bias favoring Herbalife because by doing so, it would benefit the writer in some way, then no that isn’t the case.
The article is based on experiences over a number of years in the direct sales industry and with Herbalife. The intent being to comment on the industry as a whole, to clear up some misinformation about Herbalife, and to do so as objectively as possible.
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Yes, you should really call this a press release. Anyone wanting to know other opinions of Herbalife who do not consider themselves “unhappy, cynical, skeptical, closed-minded person” need only search Google for some non-biased offerings. Every bit of research I’ve seen shows that Herbalife is a pyramid scheme, nothing more.
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A pyramid scheme is illegal. If Herbalife were a pyramid scheme they would have been shut down years ago. They’ve been in business for over 29 years and have offices all around the world. Saying it’s a pyramid scheme is ridiculous.
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Hello all,
My name is Joe, and I originally felt that I was royally scammed. I sent for the package, and my wife and I went through with the business. While we were not pleased with all of the business practices that were going on, we had the drive to succeed in our own business.
Herbalife is an excellent product. I and many family members have achieved very good results in using the products. While yes, the products are not for everyone, 40 million people in the world that are using them can not all be wrong.
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A piramid based industry allows only one person to benefit from a lot of hard workin people and make a profit Herbalife allows every person investing time,effort,and willingness to make money…And it’s products are incredible just look at it’s doctors it’s bussiness associates it’s main lab in ucla…it’s nobel price winner it’s really hard to please everyone in thee world but the good thing about herbalife it’s that it’s not here to try and please averyone only those who really want to be pleased open minded and spitually driven it’s here to make people feel actually good about themselves and at the same time make some extra money…what’s so bad about that?…
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I think that your web page should come up when “questionable” individuals search the Herbalife scam. Not only are your facts legitimate, you correctly address the problems other feed on to make Herbalife look bad. Thank you for this web page.
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I consider any ‘business’ that misleads and individual into thinking they are actually working for a different business a scam. In my case I responded to an advertisement on my local news paper webpage about an at home business that consists of posting links online for google. When the ‘mentor’ contacted me via telephone and was confronted about if this training package had any thing to do with google he confessed and said no. I got scammed a few years ago with this company…now they got me for another $9.95. If you have any questions always check with your local BBB. This reputable ‘company’ rates an F-. Apparently my view of a scam is totally different from yours.
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Good point Kay. And that’s not good to hear about your unfortunate situation. But what does this reference about being scammed for $9.95 have to do with Herbalife? And by the way, there are many people out there who feel that the BBB is a scam… Google it. In fact, google any major company and you’ll find something on there about it being a scam. Most are bogus blog posts or websites from unscrupulous internet marketers, others are quite valid. You just have to make up your own mind about what constitutes a scam.
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I joined Herbalife since 2007 and I’m still an indepenent distributor up to now. The reason is personal usage only and not yet for business. The products are great, it really did help me lose weight! Though it’s a little expensive compared with those products in the the supermarkets, still the quality and effect of herbalife products worth the money I spent on it! I can’t blame those people who continuously put disgrace on this company/industry for we all have our own choices and point of views especially in a modern world with mixed honest and scammers people. But if i were to ask, i’ll say YES to herbalife!more power everyone!
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The fact is, that it’s not really a scam. It’s just some people are more sell savvy than others. You can be very successful selling Herbalife or you can end up in debt and suck at it. It depends how determined people are. If it was truly a horrible scam I’m sure the BBB would have already had them shut down.
Those of you who say that you can only find information on it being a scam, have obviously never done enough research or even bothered to check out or speak to a herbalife distributor. I’m not one myself, don’t think I’d ever have that determination, but I’ve spoke to a few of them and they’re very happy doing what they do.
As far as the diet thing goes, that too depends if people are determined. People usually expect themselves to loose weight in 30 days or something when that’s not the case at all with everybody. I was speaking to a woman who sells herbalife, and she had a whole album of people who lost weight buying her products. I asked her how long they took, pointing at random photos, and most took over a year to loose the weight and not 30 – 60 days like some people think.
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I dont have the money to be a supervisor if i save what i make as a distributor can i still eventually have a 6 figure income?
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most poeple lost money cos they thought it was a get rich quick scheme and with out the right information started investing money they dont have.you have to be passionate about a product before thinking of selling them.i have struggled for so many years trying to get back in shape but herbalife shakes did the miracle.now i have lost weight, build proper muscles and ve grown so much passion for the product not for the money.am about to start distibuting just to make a difference in peoples life,if i make profite thats a plus other than that am just gonna do what am passionate about and love.
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Doesn’t make any difference wheather you work the program or not. Herbalife International is a fraudulent scam based on chronic lies and deception. The sponsors are two-face liers, too!
They’ll screw you over royal with their phoney training program and unscrupulous business practices, while practically twisting your arm to become a Supervisor.
The crap inventory that is delivered to you is just that…crap! You’ll spend $3000 on worthless inventory you could get at WalMart for way under $300!
Herbalife products have NOT been evaluated or approved by the Food and Drug Administration!
I can’t understand why the law doesn’t protect us from these creeps and put them behind bars where they belong.
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Rob, you’re really misinformed. If you’ve come across an unscrupulous distributor, you should report them to Herbalife. And you may want to educate yourself about the FDA. Many people feel the FDA is scam. Here’s one example: http://www.naturalnews.com/002439_the_FDA_Food_and_Drug_Administration.html. Don’t be like the mass population who are easily controlled and manipulated, and do your research before making idiotic statements like this.
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Rob, this might be of interest to you “FDA Official Joins Herbalife”
http://ir.herbalife.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=183888&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1376785&highlight=
This one too “Michael O. Johnson makes a special appearance!
Just before Michael O. Johnson flew to Singapore to attend the largest Extravaganza in APAC’s history, he appeared on a special edition of CNBC’s “Mad Money” with Jim Cramer.”
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=1492336965&play=1
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Hi,
I’ve been taking Herbalife product from Jan 2010 till today. I am actually trying to gain weight with it. Well, it did not work for me. Why? Simple, my body need more calories than what I am in-taking to gain weight. However, by taking this product, it has actually improved my health A LOT! I had sinus, nowadays I need not stuck tissues up my nose like I used to. I had a lot more health problems, and am now seeing the results. I can go on with it…
Anyway, my point is that not all products work for everyone. And only by listening to crap doesn’t help. I did some studies and research on the product and how to gain weight, guess what…. after taking the product in a systematic method, I gained 3 kg in 1 month.
And this ‘ROB’ guy, I think you must be the same Rob Cockerham from this website – http://www.cockeyed.com/workfromhome/workfromhome.html. You have 27 unsuccessful stories from herbalife. How about 40 million SUCCESSFUL stories from herbalife?
Herbalife is not a ‘get rich quick’ company, it is more like a ‘get healthy now, everyone’ company. No one in this world will get rich quick without actually doing something. Read about the top 10 richest man in the world and you will know.
How many products in this world that you are using is actually safe? You eat crap and getting sick from many restaurants out there. Are they scamming your @ss? But look at your weight and your health eating those things… I strongly believe they scammed every juices out from you.
So before calling Herbalife a scam just because it is a MLM company, do some research, try it out and then you tell me.
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editor Reply:
June 11th, 2010 at 10:38 pm
Amen!
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Hi I have been a PTI member for over a year now and I would advise you to move carefully. They advertise it as an income opportunity, and sometimes as a job which it is not (if you were not recruited this way, you will need to be ok with decieving others in this manner to join your team). You will need to invest anywhere from $180- $299 just to start, plus $19.99/mo for pti membership, plus $17/mo for a toll free number, plus hundreds more dollars in internet lead and even more for newspaper ads and fliers, etc, etc, etc. It goes on and on. You will also be pressured to achieve (aka: purchase) the supervisor level- cost: $2500- $3000 depending. They encourage this very strongly and while they dont openly say you should, most testimonials say they used a credit card, loan or sold possessions to do this. After one year I was considered a “Success” I sold over $10,000 in product and got to be “earning” over $1500 per month. By the way my cost of business with advertising was about $2000 per month. I ended the year with no savings and an $1900 credit card bill. I was told to tell people that I profited $1500 per month and not to mention the cost because it was “my choice what I spent my profits on”. So that is the scoop. Even if you are okay with spending a large amount of money and working a lot of hours away from family for no pay, you also have to be okay with duping other hopeful, poor people into doing the same thing. They also encourage you to do other questionable things like put fliers on atms, pop machines, etc, which is illegal (private property) and to ignore when people threaten to call the police on you. The products that we sell are good, but it’s hard to find clientel and often times it doesnt work and people want their money back. In that case you end up taking a huge loss (someone buys a program for $200, you pay $150 to the company and keep $50, then they want their money back and return the containers to you. You are then responsible to give them $200 from your own pocket plus pay to ship the product containers back to Herbalife and the company then sends you new product, which you can resell, but that in turn costs more money in advertising and shipping and time just to break even at that point. I hope that answers your questions and that you proceed with all the info. Good job looking into it ahead of time! I wish I would have.
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editor Reply:
June 18th, 2010 at 7:31 am
What you are describing has less to do with Herbalife, and more to do with the network marketing sales model. There’s a fine line sometimes as to what is ethical practice and what isn’t. Legitimate network marketing companies, like Herbalife for example, always play by the rules. Every now and then you get unscrupulous distributors, but if they’re that bad, they usually get kicked out of the company.
As to all the money you spent, or that can be spent, well get over it. Unless you didn’t realize it, you started a business. Whether it’s Herbalife, a brick and mortar business, a franchise, whatever, starting and running a business requires a capital investment. Startup costs and maintenance costs. The fact that you lost money has little to do with Herbalife, and more to do with the fact that you simply started a business and wasn’t successful. It happens all the time. Herbalife never claims that everyone who starts will be a millionaire. Some succeed, and some don’t. The numbers you’re describing that you achieved is in fact impressive when you consider the overall stats of how much money the average person makes in network marketing. It’s just that your costs were too high.
If you read between the lines of your comment, there is a valid point and that’s to know what you’re in for when you get involved in any business opportunity or network marketing company. Herbalife isn’t a get rich quick scheme. Like any business it’s going to require an investment of time and money, with no guarantee of success. If you’ve ended up losing money, see this as a learning experience for you. I’ve found that whether you succeed in this business, or you don’t, either way I can pretty much bet that you will walk away with new skills and will have learned something out of the experience.
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Anirban Reply:
August 8th, 2010 at 11:09 pm
Hi ac,
Thanks for your information.I suppose to join Herbalife in next few days.
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I think it all comes down to choice. I don’t like supplementation for people with a balanced diet. Some can’t get what they need because of dietary choices, allergies or medical issues so I understand why some go down this route, but sports nutrition is a complex area and I think there are many people using supplementation without a full understanding of the products.
I know I am not the only one that doesn’t agree with MLM, but again, everyone has a choice.
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My wife has recently started suffering from slight depression and after going to a herbalife seminar she was given a list of about 9 dfrent supliments that she “desperately needs” (amounting to an amount higher than our families monthly food budget)with the promise that this will help with her depression. I’m not saying that herbalife is a scam but this “eager entrepreneur” is (in my opinion)trying to sell her more than what she needs “in order improve the quality of her own life”. Another way of scaming people is to (knowingly) tring sell them more than what they need.
This I think is one of the main reasons Herbalife has gotten a bad rep. Because of over zealeus distributors that try to sell you the whole store in one visit. I was realy surprised when i added up the figure. I was told that i’m obese and that i need to go on a diet c-mon im a body builder and i have a 15% fat ratio.
My experience altho I did feel good after the Aloe, tea and shake b-fast, is that i’m not confortable with some one trying to push products on me, altho legaly that is not a scam, it is unethical and needs to be addressed by the Herbalife corporate headquarters.
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I completely agree with what you’ve said. So many people who fail at Herbalife are quick to blame the company, write it off as a scam, and are in no way responsible.
These people who accuse Herbalife of being a scam, should really reflect on their own time in the company. Did they really do all they can to make it successful? I doubt it. People have been able to make money from Herbalife, so it can be done.
I found this article which I think might interest you, it’s very related to what you have been discussing.
http://www.explosivemlm.com/mlm-companies/herbalife-mlm-companies/is-it-really-possible-to-make-money-with-herbalife/
Joan
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ITS NOT A SCAM!!!
I have a company built around Herbalife, called StartToLive101 http://www.stl101.com an organization that is committed to fighting obesity, and improving the lifestyles of individuals.
Herbalife is a great company with a lot of success and great products. As far as the training goes herbalife gives you all the tools necessary to have success with their company. From training videos, phone call trainings mon wed and fri at night, seminars, online lectures and much more. All so you can grow your herbalife business. They even teach you how to open up a nutrition center and or do a weight loss challenge (which is what I do). They do not twist your arm. U truly earn what u put in with herbalife, so work your but off and make great money to the point where u have people doing all the hard work for u. Its only $60 to join and it is a business starter pack that money goes to yourself, u get the membership, samples, some marketing tool, and more when you but this. This is really all you need to get started. The money from this $60 goes to no one, so I am not trying to sell it to you. It’s simply a great opportunity! Contact me I will coach u personally for free of course (anywhere in the world). Email me at info@stl101.com. You are not alone we all help each other.
It’s simple, sign up and buy a starter pack (all u need) u will get assigned to your personal coach to help you or pick your own coach ( Not all are good coaches so make sure you get someone that will help you grow your business, not just hangs out and doesn’t return your calls. Start selling, using and sharing your herbalife products and story.
Herbalife and its products are about making lifestyle changes!
Te secret to making money in this “BIZ” is to truly love the products, love the company, use the products yourself to reach your own goals and you will see results physically and make money motivating others to do the same. When something changes your life you will want to tell everyone you know, so it will get easier
Herbalife is the #1 wellness company in the world! Making over 3.5 Billion a year, be a part of it.
Don’t hesitate! I can explain it all to you. Just contact me for info, Its free lol. I want to help those that want to get started in the business not just recruit. It’s great!
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