There’s a lot of hub-bub going on about an Acai product called Mona Vie right now and I felt the need to address it and give my two cents on the topic. I’ll try to focus on the product itself and why I wouldn’t sell it myself, rather than all-out attack the MLM/Pyramid Scheme model. I don’t need to explain something that someone else has already done quite well.
Basically Mona Vie is a juice supplement heralded as a “cures what ails you” product. Containing acai berry juice, other assorted juices, and some vitamins and minerals, it’s full of healthy stuff the body needs. What’s so wrong with that? The issue I take with the product is that for the price, one could do just as well or better with a superfood supplement, multivitamin, or simply spending the extra money on healthier, organic foods. $40/bottle is quite a steep price for something that, at the recommended dosage of 3oz. or so per day, lasts around a week.
I was given a bottle by a friend to try out and see if it helps my autoimmune conditions. Having dealt with these conditions for over 10 years now, trying just about everything under the sun both natural and medical, I feel I have nothing to lose. Just recently I spent two months taking a similar product donated by a family member called Zrii. However, what I will NOT do is pursue any sort of participation in selling, distributing, or recruiting others to sell the product. I believe the business model as referenced in the link above is one that is exploitative and takes advantage of the passionate and naive.
For example, Joe Schmoe hears about this new wonder product, gets all this professional literature about said product, and is sucked into the frenzy and hype. Soon enough he’s enrolled in the program, trying to spread it to his friends to make more money. Therein lies the ethical problem for me: I just don’t see how it’s right to bring others in with the knowledge that you’ll be making money off of them. I don’t feel that “loving your neighbor”, as we are commanded to do, includes encouraging them to buy something from us and then sell it, with a portion of their profit becoming ours. I could write pages and pages about my disdain for this model, but I’ll keep it concise and end it with the following.
Bottom line: if I want to buy a health product, I want it sold in the conventional way, with no one profiting but the person or company that created it, not a force of distributors and recruiters who are desperately trying to increase their referrals so they can make a few bucks. To me, that lowers the product’s attractiveness because it’s no longer about how great the product is, it’s about perception and how many people you convince to believe in its greatness.
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I have read this posting and I fully respect each individual’s right to their own opinion. Although I disagree with your take on this, I’m not here to try to change your mind, or anyone else’s for that matter. I just wanted to comment, though, on your bottom line. I mean no disrespect, but I think it’s naive to assume that “traditionally sold” products are not also being referred by and benefiting the individuals who are selling them. I can’t speak for any other distributor out there, but personally I am not here to try to coerce people into doing this with me. I just tell them about it and if they’re not interested that’s fine. We have built a very large business, though, of people who are as excited as we are about it.
This is the only post of yours that I have read, so I don’t know anything about the autoimmune issues that you referenced here, nor do I need to know your personal business. That being said, I wish you the best in your health and your life in general. Take care
Thanks, I appreciate the input!
I’m glad you looked into this…I know this was triggered by me mentioning this thing called “mona vie” that I’m looking into. I’ve been looking into this for about 1 month. I have seen a couple of these blog sites which made me skeptical at first. Then, looking into the product and business more I found the accusations to be very inaccurate. As I read this blog I saw consistent inaccuracies and lack of knowledge. Please go back into that blog and read all of the comments. Most of the ones against it seem to be simple stabs and there are ones that support the product and give facts and experiences refuting some of the accusations. The comments accually refute several of those items as I would. The business is not to sell juice. From what I have seen in a nutshell, the business is to try the juice. If you like it and feel it is worth it, use it as you would a vitamin supplement. It never claims to cure anything…some people may state that but the company says that it builds and supports a healthy immune system. We like it and use it and believe it is worth it. Any well-rounded vitamin supplement will cost that much a month or more. We now want to tell others about it and see if they want to use it as well. If they do, they will probably tell others. If not, it’s not for them, no harm done. I don’t see this as a moral issue. It is very much a business. If you own a business it is not wrong to make money from people. That is business and is not wrong.
Chris, know that I am not offended at all and I don’t want to offend you in any way. This is a simple debate and not unhealthy. You are a great new friend and that will always be. It’s good to exchange opinions. Later bud- Garren
Thanks for the feedback, Garren. Check your email!