Juice Plus+ Scam? Yes It Is In My Opinion!
MLM companies try to take on the banner of continuing the long tradition of direct sales. In my opinion, many are continuing the tradition of snake oil salesman. Lotions, potions and pills are the foundation of many of the top MLM scam companies. These lotions, positions and pills seem to help with almost everything. Just like the products that snake oil salesmen offered. My subscribers have requested that I take a look at the Juice Plus+ Virtual Franchise. Here is what I have found.
Juice Plus+ Scam Claims
The Juice Plus+ business offers the ability to build a part-time income while making a difference in the lives of others. With minimal risk and unlimited opportunity, our unique Virtual Franchise business model allows you to seamlessly grow your business around your life.
Supported by solid clinical evidence and backed by health professionals, Juice Plus+ products are proven to help bridge the nutritional gap with nutrients from 30 fruits, vegetables, grains and berries.
We’ve borrowed the best concepts from a variety of businesses to build our successful Virtual Franchise business model.
Here is how the Virtual Franchise is promoted:
Juice Plus+ Scam Reality
Juice Plus+ is owned by a company called National Safety Associates (NSA). The company was founded in 1970 by Jay Martin, a schoolteacher-turned-entrepreneur, who continues as the CEO. NSA initially sold home fire-protection equipment via door-to-door salespeople. In the late 1970s, they expanded into water filtration products. In 1986, they began using multi-level marketing, then expanding their product line to air filters and educational games for pre-schoolers. In 1993, they began selling the nutritional supplement Juice Plus+, manufactured by Natural Alternatives International in San Marcos, California.
NSA had some legal troubles in 1993, as the United States Attorney General’s office followed up on complaints that the company was deceptively requiring new distributors to make large upfront purchases of air and water filters. Each of the 32,000 distributors in Florida purchased an average of $7,000 worth of water filters, and many of these distributors were unable to sell all of them. The company’s business in the United States decreased that year, requiring the layoff of dozens of employees.
Former professional athlete O. J. Simpson signed a multi-year six-figure contract with NSA in January 1994 and became an official celebrity endorser of Juice Plus+. Simpson, who was tried and later acquitted for the June 12, 1994, murder of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ronald Goldman, was videotaped in March 1994 telling 8,000 Juice Plus distributors at a NSA convention in Dallas, Texas, that the product had cured his arthritis, improved his golf game, and freed him from using anti-arthritic drugs. – Source wikipedia.org
I want to get something out of the way right from the start. You do not get a franchise when you buy into Juice Plus+. They make it very clear where you actually stand on their application form.
“I understand that my relationship to Juice Plus+ is as an independent contractor, and that I am not authorized to bind Juice Plus+ or to incur any obligation on behalf of Juice Plus+.” – Source Juice Plus+ Virtual Franchise Application
In my opinion, you are paying Juice Plus+ $50 to sell their products as a 100% commission sales person and building their brand for them. Why would you want to pay a company to sell their products for them and build their brand? They should be paying you and training you for free.
They provide no information on how much the typical representative is making by selling these products for retail. Almost anyone can become a representative and get discounts on the cost of their products. The only income information they provide is average income for people that have recruited other representatives.
Juice Plus+ claims “…more than 80 percent of Juice Plus+ product sales are to people who are not actively involved in the Juice Plus+ business.” I don’t believe them.
Here is why I don’t believe them. In their compensation plan it says the following:
“A Note Regarding PVC Volume Requirements for the First Three Management Positions Compared with the Last Three: The volume requirements for the first three positions (Direct, Virtual Franchisee, and Sales Coordinator) are based on what is termed promotional PVC, rather than actual PVC. For example, the 500 PVC requirement for direct distributor can be met when a new distributor signs up for Juice Plus+® Orchard and Garden blends on the payment plan and gets five others to do the same. The actual PVC on the amounts paid on these orders during this first month is only 1/4 of the total (based on a four-month payment plan).” – Source Virtual Franchise Owners Manual
If personal consumption by distributors can be used to help quickly qualify for positions, why would new distributors NOT focus on getting other new distributors to do the same thing?
There are many health benefit claims that are made about Juice Plus+ products. Juice Plus+ offers many medical studies to back up their claims. I don’t believe their products are any more effective than other inexpensive multivitamins.
Taking a Juice Plus supplement may increase your vitamin and mineral intake.
However, there’s no evidence that Juice Plus is any better at this than a regular multivitamin.
Furthermore, taking supplements like these is no substitute for eating whole fruits and vegetables. – Source healthline.com
In my opinion, the next best thing to fruits and vegetables is worth little. You need to eat whole fruits and vegetables to gain the benefits from them.
Taking a multivitamin as a nutritional insurance policy may seem like a good idea. But the truth is that there’s no proof that the pills provide any benefit for healthy people.
Many scientists have reached that same conclusion. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, an independent group of national experts that advises the government, recently analyzed studies that included data for about 450,000 people. It found no clear evidence that multivitamins prevented cancer or heart disease, helped people live longer, or made them healthier in any way. – Source consumerreports.org
Here is the experience of one Reddit user with Juice Plus+:
I should preface by saying that I have a BS in Nutritional Sciences, but am not (yet) a dietitian. I am not the most experienced nutrition professional out there, but I do have some solid educational background. Most importantly, I like facts and I don’t like bullshit. Let’s begin.
I recently received a call from a college acquaintance with whom I’ve barely spoken, which caught me off guard. She told me that she worked for a company that wanted to help more people consume fruits and vegetables by making them more available, and that they were always looking to hire new bright, young nutritionists.
Flattered though I was (I am easily flattered) I was immediately suspicious. A big red flag was that in the span of a 5 minute conversation, she never once mentioned the name of her employer- I had to specifically ask for it. She told me that she worked for Juice Plus+ but that “It would be easier for her to show me some videos about them rather than try to look it up myself.”
Naturally, I immediately googled the hell out of “Juice Plus+”. Turns out, they’re a multi-level marketing company that operates in a similar fashion as Amway or the much-vilified Vector.
Not surprisingly, the Juice Plus+ website my friend directed me to had a set of videos explaining why they’re better than a “traditional” company and why they’re not a pyramid scheme. Watch them, if you have the time or interest. They are incredibly misleading, but sound VERY promising. It’s all very snake-oil salesman-y. The focus of their business is to sign more people up to their business, not to sell this product that is supposedly “amazing”.
I politely declined her offer to become a distributor/sales rep/bullshitter because MLM is not a very profitable venture for most people, but that’s not my area of expertise. I’m here to talk about NUTRITION.
Juice Plus+ sells pills and chewables that are powdered fruits and vegetables, under the guise that these count as daily servings of produce. If someone you know calls you and tries to sell you these products…
HERE IS WHY THEY ARE WRONG AND STUPID:
- THEIR RESEARCH IS STUPID
Beyond the “life-changing” testimonials that their professional bullshitters try to shove down your throat, one of the things Juice Plus+ brags about is the fact that there is so much research available to support the product. I, admittedly, have not read all of the research myself, but other reviews and sources document that nearly all of the research is funded by Juice Plus+ and rarely feature placebos, double-blinds, large sample sizes, etc. This is poor science at best, and intentionally misleading science in actuality. - THEIR PRODUCT IS STUPID
For a product distilled from a blend of fruits and veggies and nothing else, it should be at least a little good for you, right? The answer is “not really”. The supplements contain very few vitamins (only A, C, E and folate) and are much more concerned about their phytochemicals and antioxidants, which they use as buzzwords to imply nutritional value. I mean, shit, the ingredients section of their site doesn’t even tell you what is in each pill. You’d be much better off taking a multivitamin as a supplement if you’re concerned about your dietary intake. Additionally, these pills provide no calories. A BIG benefit of eating fruits and vegetables is that you’re eating foods dense in nutrients and low in calories, which is associated with healthier diets. Juice Plus+ may give you some nutrients, but you’re on your own to eat a nutritionally-balanced diet after that – it doesn’t really help your health at all. The lack of energy provided matters because… - THEIR PRICING IS (INSANELY) STUPID
Here is why I consider Juice Plus+ a scam instead of an ill-conceived, but mostly harmless, supplement: their prices are insane. For the meager nutrient content, a SINGLE container of their cheapest supplement is $100. If you order one bag of each “blend” of chewable, it runs you $280. Compare this to a similarly-sized (and much more complete) multivitamin which can be purchased at your friendly neighborhood grocery story for $30-40. But why stop there? If they can sell you this shit, they’re gonna try to sell you more. They also sell planters that are “the future” of gardening (called “Tower Gardens”) at even more ridiculous rates!
Cost
A Juice Plus+ Independent Representative must complete an application and pay a $50.00 application fee . There is a $50 annual renewal fee. If you wish to build a successful retailing business expect to spend personal time and effort and to incur additional expenses for such items as product samples, sales aids, business forms, shipping costs, travel and telephone expenses.
Products
Click Here for their 2017 price list.
Premium Trio Package Juice Plus+ Capsules & Vineyard
The Starter Package Juice Plus+ Capsules
Juice Plus+ Vineyard
Juice Plus+ Vineyard Blend Soft Chews
Juice Plus+ OMEGA Blend Capsules
Juice Plus+ New Soft Chews
Premium Trio Package Juice Plus+ Chews
Juice Plus+® Complete (60 Servings)
Juice Plus+ Complete Single Servings (60 servings)
Juice Plus+ Complete Nutrition Bar (30 or 60 servings)
JP Chewable Samples
Basic Juice Plus+ Tower Garden Kit
Tower Garden Extension Kit
Support Cage
Bulk Size Tower Tonic
TG Family Garden
TG Grow Lights
Community Garden by Tower Garden
Compensation Plan
I was unable to find a detailed compensation plan available on their website without becoming a representative.
To qualify to earn a Sales Commission in a given month you must have at least $90 in Personal PVC that month.
Ranks:
Virtual Franchisee (VF)
6000 in total accumulated PVC OR 2000 in PVC your first 60 days
500 in “Personal PVC” (Purchase Volume Credit in your number) in qualifying month
Sales Coordinator (SC)
12,000 in total accumulated PVC
500 in “Personal PVC” (Purchase Volume Credit in your number) in qualifying month
3 “lines” with a Direct Distributor (or higher) in each
Senior Sales Coordinator (SSC)
9,000 in total “payline” PVC during any one month
3 “lines” with a Virtual Franchisee (or higher) in each
2 “lines” in Performance Bonus
no more than 2/3 of your qualifying PVC from 1 “line”
Qualifying National Marketing Director (QNMD)
20,000 in total accumulated “payline” PVC during any one month
4 “lines” with a Virtual Franchise (or higher) in each
4 “lines” in Performance Bonus
3 of 4 “lines” must have a Sales Coordinator
2 of 3 Sales Coordinator “lines” must be Promote Out Bonus Qualified
no more than 2/3 of your qualifying PVC from 1 “line”
National Marketing Director (NMD)
33,000 in total “payline” PVC during any one month
5 “lines” with a Sales Coordinator (or higher) in each
5 “lines” in Performance Bonus
3 “lines” in Promote-Out Bonus
no more than 2/3 of your qualifying PVC from 1 “line”
** SSC, QNMD, & NMD promotions are subject to approval by The Juice Plus Company (Canada) Inc.
** For Fast Track team building incentives, please see the Team Building Bonus Flyer
Note: No household members can be utilized to meet structure requirements.
Recruiting is required to advance up the ranks of the Juice Plus+ compensation plan. You can be paid commissions 5 levels deep in your downline depending on your rank.
Income Disclosure
Juice Plus+ makes no guarantees or assurances whatsoever regarding any sales success, income or loss which may result from my activities as a Juice Plus+ Independent Representative.
Refund Policy
They offer an unconditional, 100% money-back guarantee on your last shipment that was received in the last six months.
Juice Plus+ Scam Conclusion
In my opinion, Juice Plus+ is another MLM recruiting scam that incentivises distributors to self consume the products to achieve a rank in the compensation plan and recruit other representatives to do the same. I don’t believe their health benefit claims. They do not share what representatives are making on average selling the products at retail. You go into this business opportunity blind. Why would you want to pay a company to sell their products for them and build their brand? They should be paying you and training you for free. NSA has had legal problems before with loading up distributors with products that they could not sell. I would not invest my time and money in a Juice Plus+ Virtual Franchise.
I have read at least half of the research articles posted on their site. They vary in terms of what they say the measurable effects are. A summary of the studies by Sloan Kettering says that the only consistent results of the studies are that Juice Plus increases a few vitamin levels, I believe they were E, C and another one. However, these vitamins were added to Juice Plus. They were not a result of the Juice Plus manufacturing process. Also the Juice Plus comes from the juice of the fruits after removal of the fiber. This results in loss of nutritional value, since most of the nutrition is in the pulp. This is why most juices have little to no nutritional value unless it has been added back in. So there is no measurable consistent benefit from the actual process of creating the supplement itself from the fruit and vegetables. Whether or not phytochemicals have been preserved from the foods is not validated.
loading...
Hi, Ethan.
I have been following you for quite a long time now and I enjoy your work.
This whole thing of MLM/Network Marketing confuses me.
The reason for the confusion comes from real life situations. I go to the gas station or my local convenience store and I see people holding up the line to buy Lottery Tickets, and Scratch to Win. I see them spending upwards of $50.00. Apparently they do this over and over again.
Is this not a scam? I mean, what are their chances of winning? Yet, they do it over and over again.
Would they not be better off in placing a one-time bet in a gifting program for example and realising a return by having two of their other ‘Lottery Addicts’ do the same?
Please let me know your thoughts on this.
Kindest regards,
Paul.
loading...
Yes. The lottery is like dumping money down a hole. Just because something is legal does not mean that you should waste your money on it. MLM scams are like dumping money down a hole. You should avoid them as well.
loading...
Paul —
It would seem your cozy facade of a “long time follower” is just that, a facade. You clearly have an agenda based on this comment, which has nothing to do with “Juice Plus”. According to two different online profiles, http://www.mlmdiary.com/user/159664 and https://my.wealthyaffiliate.com/pmindra, both with the same picture as the one above, you are a long time MLMer. There isn’t any confusion on your end about the MLM industry, and your ridiculous comparison with the lottery is a ruse.
Paul said, “The reason for the confusion comes from real life situations. I go to the gas station or my local convenience store and I see people holding up the line to buy Lottery Tickets, and Scratch to Win. I see them spending upwards of $50.00. Apparently they do this over and over again.”
Again, this is ridiculous. Everyone knows the chances of winning the lottery are effectively 0%, and everyone knows it is a government funded game to help generate more revenue. That’s it. It has nothing to do with “Juice Plus”, or “MLM” as a whole. It is a terrible game that targets impoverished and uneducated folks, and it should be eliminated.
Paul said, “Is this not a scam? I mean, what are their chances of winning? Yet, they do it over and over again.”
Yes, it is a scam, and yes people do it over and over again. Unfortunately, when there are tons of commercials and billboards advertising it, there will be people deceived into playing. That doesn’t make it right, and it seems you are asking rhetorical questions as you already know the answer.
Paul said, “Would they not be better off in placing a one-time bet in a gifting program for example and realising a return by having two of their other ‘Lottery Addicts’ do the same?”
Ah, this is where you give up the charade. By offering a bad replacement for the lottery with MLM, you are revealing you are a member of the industry and a shill. The answer is simple, no MLM is not better than the lottery. They are both scams and they both should be eliminated.
Paul said, “Please let me know your thoughts on this.”
The only thoughts you would like to hear are, “Oh gee Paul that makes a ton of sense. I never thought of it that way!”. This will never happen, because your comparison is stupid and flawed. Ethan has spent a ton of time combating MLM scams, and would not promote one, even as an alternative to the lottery. That’s simply ridiculous.
loading...
Please note I am not a distributor of Juice Plus or in anyway connected to them in any business sense. That said I use their Juice Plus Complete Dutch Chocolate. I like the flavor I’m not arguing any health benefits. I use it on my cereal with soy or almond milk. One prob is the contributor is my nutritionist Degree from “Clayton:” BTW anyone know anything about this school? I’ m not the most assertive. Is there someone who can suggest how I handle refusing to buy any more products from JP?
loading...
Are you on an auto-ship of any kind? If you are, just call their 1-800 number and cancel your auto-ship. Make sure they understand clearly you want to cancel immediately. However, MLM companies are known for charging your credit card even after you’ve told them to cancel numerous times. In that case, cancel your credit card with your bank immediately, and get a new card. Problem solved. If you’re buying from a distributor, just tell him/her you no longer want the products. Besides, you can buy products that are just as good, if not better at any retail vitamin shop for 1/3 the price of a MLM company’s products.
loading...
To compare any MLM operation to a franchise completely overlooks the fact that the entire MLM industry fought tooth and nail to be exempted from the FTC’s Business Opportunity Rules, which would have required full disclosure of earnings, etc. Instead, MLMs are allowed to get away with stating average earnings, which aren’t even average. 1 rep earning $600k and 299 reps earning $0 would equal a misleading $2000 average, but is that really telling the full story? It also ignores the fact that those earnings are before expenses. It is just one of the reasons most joining an MLM operation actually lose money (and friends).
loading...
In my opinion, it is totally wrong for these MLMs to be able to call themselves a franchise. You are nothing more than a customer and sales person for them.
loading...
Thank you Ethan for this work and your conclusion… you are talk from my heart.
I have the same opinion.
If you like I can provide you additional information and the compensation plan for Germany.
Many thanks
Jens
loading...
I love it when these product-based MLM pyramid schemes use the phrase ‘franchise like’ or ‘virtual franchise’ in their presentation. ABSOLUTELY insulting the intelligence of people like you and I. Funny, UNLIKE a REAL FRANCHISE after the company sells it’s OVERPRICED products to you, they don’t do SQUAT to support you, like NATIONAL ADVERTISING for starters? How about REAL HANDS-ON TRAINING? Where is that in their ‘franchise like’ operation? The ‘word of mouth’ BS works GREAT for the OWNERS, but how does it work for the 99% of distributors? WE ALL KNOW THE ANSWER TO THAT ONE! REAL FRANCHISES are laughing their ASSES OFF with these MORONIC statements.
loading...
Brilliant, please do Younique next!
loading...
Thank you for your request. I refer all people with questions about Younique here: https://notquitefairytalesblog.com/poonique/
loading...
I personally am sick and tired of these MLMs and their ridiculous health claims. Not only do they go out of their way to hire current and former FDA members, but they also lobby in Congress with Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah. This is the only industry that is completely backward when it comes to bringing a health product for sale, and every single product they bring is exactly the same mundane snake-oil garbage. From “Vitasol” to “Juice Plus”, the “lotions”, “potions”, and “pills” are nothing but a bunch of useless and overpriced junk.
John Oliver just did another nice episode on the Alex Jones vitamin garbage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WyGq6cjcc3Q
While I haven’t been a fan of Oliver lately, and do like the fact that Alex Jones gives different, and often important news, his BS supplements disgust me. The man is a living, breathing, infomercial during most of his shows, and almost all of the crap he sells is complete crap.
If the FDA could expunge all of the cancerous people allowing vitamin and supplement pills to come to market before clinical testing, then the amount of people being duped by these types of “medicines” and “MLMs” would drop to nearly 0.
loading...
Ridiculous health claims are the foundation of these types of scams.
loading...
Once Upon A Time iO.J. Simpson appeared at a Juice Plus Seminar and gave testimony that Juice Plus helped his Arthritis Condition. This testimony came back to haunt Simpson during his Murder Trial:
“Superior Court Judge Lance Ito also said Monday that he will allow prosecutors to play a tape from a March 1994 seminar in which Simpson claims a product, Juice Plus, dramatically helped his arthritis.”
https://www.upi.com/Archives/1995/07/17/Jury-sees-OJ-workout-videotape/3069805953600/
loading...