I spoke with an associate a few days ago. This is second-hand information so I cannot answer questions about 1-step policies and porcedures et. al. People looking at this business may want to have this knowledge. My asociate was in the 1-step system, a hard-working diligent promoter, but like many, he was concerned that new assciates were having a hard time getting qualified. 1-step introduced a promotion where they would "spend up to $750 on marketing to get associates qualified," and everybody was excited, espeicially those looking forward to cashflow from 2-up sales. When the time came for all the lucky people to get qualified, they certainly were, but there were no 2-up commissions for their upline sponsors... They were just qualified. All the freshly qualified people cheered. Some individuals, like my associate, were not so pleased. "Where are all the sales that should be passing up to me?" they asked. There was no answer. They were kicked off calls. My associate was kicked out of his 1-step back office with no explanation. Is this a parable? Perhaps. Is it heresay? Maybe. Would I excercise caution in becoming involved with this opportunity? A definite yes.
They DO have integrity. They just don't want folks crying wolf. Alot of sponsors were NOT doing their job in helping get their enrollees started. I love the new qualification. That gives me a month to help those that struggle BUT if I can't... they get qualified anyways and are able to actually start making some money!!! That is a company that truely cares for their people. It is my lose as a sponsor true... BUT did I do everything possible and work with my enrollee to help them and reason for me to deserve their first two anyways? I LOVE 1STEP!!! Been with them since April and have made about 3/4 of my YEARLY SALERY in sales in 6 months!!! UNHEARD OF in a home business with me...
So what's the incentive for new people to go out to work to get 2 sales that will not benefit them directly considering that they go up to the sponsor whereas all they would have to do is wait 30 days and have the company qualify them directly? I called the conference call today and I caught the speaker saying 2 things that could be considered misrepresentations to put it mildly: 1- "This is not multi-level". Umm, then what is it? 2-ups are multi-levels because commissions are generated in multiple levels. That's the purpose of the 2-up concept: to generate multiple levels of commission. 2- He said you don't speak with anyone until they pay you. "The system won't let you". I donwloaded the PDF and the potential sponsor's email and phone # are on it. I could call and email him if I really wanted to. I'm probably going to keep looking for another opportunity.
Perhaps you can help me. Do you have an email address for the 1 step support team or a contact number? I can't get into my back office. Kind Regards Andrew Frater
Hello, Old Friend. We keep showing up in the same haunts, year after year. The wife and I took a long, hard look at this one a couple of months ago, but decided that the cost was too big a gamble. It looks like that one was a good move. Email me some time, and let me know what you are up to.
Hey... If you are still looking for a business and $597 is to much, this one just sprang up and already they have placed 13 PAYING folks into my downline. I really have not done a thing. So, what they say about making money with NO sponsoring is true... Link is in my signature
Hi Salamander, I can address what appeared to you to be "misrepresentations": 1. A 2-up isn't considered multi-level because commissions aren't paid to multiple levels, all commissions generated are only paid to 1 person. If you are a Qualified Associate and you make a sale you get 100% of the commission. If you are new and making a training sale then your sponsor receives 100% of the commission. Commissions are only paid to 1 level, not multiple. The reason for the 2 up structure is to create leverage in your business without using an mlm style compensation plan. 2. What he said during the teleseminar is true, that's how the system is set up. 1 Step company websites don't have your contact information on them. Some people have created their own personal websites and pdf's with their contact information on them, this is what you saw. The leading 1 Step associate strictly uses the company provided website, so the system does work well as is. I built my own website and include my contact information, but despite this, 70% of my sign-ups don't contact me before joining. David, Sure, $597 isn't chump change, but if you look at what you get for the price it's a very good value and one of the reasons the company has been so successful. It's much cheaper and simpler to operate than purchasing a traditional business or franchise. For those looking for a reply to the original post, please see the responses in the "outcry for clarification" posts. Good luck to all, Robert Long
Andrew, I'm sure you've gotten into your back office by now, but I'll post the info here for reference: If you're not able to log in it's because your username/password isn't matching up. There is a password retrieval function right next to the login screen (make sure you use the same email address that you have on file and they will email you your password). If you don't remember your username your sponsor can give you that information. If you're still having trouble you can access the support desk here: www.1stepsystem.com/support
Hi Robert, Thank you for your thoughtful responses. One thing makes me just a bit "nervous" for lack of a better word, about 1 Step. Perhaps you can address it here. I was surfing through a traffic exchange tonight, checking out ads when 1 Step came up. I thought it was interesting so I read further. I signed up for a call tomorrow night to check out the opportunity. As always, I go find a blog like this one to take a behind the scenes look at an opportunity in order to get a man-on-the-street viewpoint. This particular company appears to be more venom-free than most in terms of negative posts, I'd say. It amazes me how much anger is out there toward online opportunities. I am frankly surprised that more people are not writing about how badly they've been burned. PAS, for example, seemed to generate extreme opinons on both sides within various blogs. People here seem to be fairly content with their experience so far. Not millionaires yet, but... Anyhow, here (finally) is what makes me a little nervous. For one thing, I'm here on this blog and find you. Guess what? That just undercut the guy who went to the trouble and expense to post his 1 Step site on the traffic exchange I went to tonight. Why should I stay with him when I can "connect," so to speak, with you? Therefore: why would anyone sign up with me, either, given the fact that they can switch to another team just as easily as I can, before they even sign up? What protects my exclusivity with a prospect? Secondly, I'm sure you are familiar with PAS and what happened with them with the SEC. 1SS appears to be a little bit different biz op in that the Toobox I'm hearing about IS the "product" whereas said product was much more nebulous with PAS. Your thoughts on that would be appreciated. There appears to be very quick qualifications for the mostpart with 1SS. Ever heard of the odd guy (or maybe not so odd) who didn't qualify for weeks or even months? If so, do you know why not or can you explain why that would happen? Lastly, without revealing your own income (nudge, nudge, wink, wink, know what I mean?--which really means I wish you would if you can) can you give a brief sketch of what a newbie could expect in: 1) monthly advertising expenses 2) time spent in the biz, either learning marketing techniques from the Toolbox and/or helping others to get that income 3) resultant monthly income from the efforts of 1) and 2). If you are able, your own personal figures (roughly) would help. I don't ask for much, do I? I suppose I should make it simple by asking, what in your opinion would it cost in monthly advertising and daily time to net a $20K/month income. Fair enough? I appreciate your time and willlingness to share your experience. Thanks, I look forward to your post.
Hi TrueNorth, That's a really good question. In any program there is going to be a certain percentage of people who go "sponsor shopping" and don't sign up with the person who first introduced the program to them. If this is something that concerns you, make sure you join a team that has a lot to offer, so you can in turn have something to offer your prospects and protect yourself from would-be prospect defectors. A prospect is able to sign up under anyone's site that they choose, but the company does take measures to track prospects so if someone is just going through the 1 Step sales process they will be linked to the appropriate person. When someone signs up for a teleseminar on your site their computer will be "cookied" to your site, so if they go to the main site without using any affiliate ID they will automatically be on your site. They may not even realize it because your ID won't show up in the url box, but you can test it out by clicking on the "stack of cash" on the website and scrolling down to the bottom of the sign-up form, it will say whose "team" you are joining. The company doesn't compete with you for sign-ups, all sales must come from an affiliate. If someone tries to access the main site without using an associates link, from a computer that hasn't previously been to the site, and therefore isn't cookied, they will be denied access (and asked for a VIP code). The autoresponder emails sent by the company to your prospects will also have your direct links on them. I'm very familiar with PAS, the reason they got shut down is two-fold. 1. They had no product other than the marketing system which was designed to sign up other prospects. 2. Because they claimed to be 100% automated- associates could buy their "ad-packs" (company generated leads) and let the companies sales professionals call and close the sales for them. This got them in trouble because it was deemed they were marketing their program as a passive investment vehicle (a security), which is a very heavily regulated industry. They were actually shut down by the SEC (Securites and Exchange Commission), not the FTC, because they didn't do the appropriate filings required of investment vehicles. The 1 Step System doesn't have these same problems. They have a viable product in the Ultimate Marketers Toolbox which provides significant value to the purchaser, in fact, I've had a couple of marketers purchase just for the education materials in the Toolbox and not sign on for the opportunity ($29.97/month). Secondly, the 1 Step System doesn't claim to be a fully automated, passive program. They have an automated sales process, but associates have to do their own marketing. It's basically a simple direct sales company, you're selling an actual product (and it's not multi-level either, the person who makes the sale gets the full profit). How quickly you are qualified is directly related to the amount of marketing you do (and the quality). If it's taking someone extra long to get qualified it's most likely they're not doing any marketing or stopped their marketing campaign before it started bringing results. It does take some time to get your marketing campaigns set-up, and also takes time for your prospects to become sales. It's common for people to think it over for a couple weeks before purchasing, this isn't an impulse buy. They are running a "30 day qualification bonus" right now, which works as a safety net for those that experience a heightened learning curve. If you haven't made your 2 qualifying sales in your first 30 days, you will be qualified without having to make them, and can start generating income right away. I recommend that during the first month people start with the free marketing methods and focus on training and getting things set-up. Once you start getting familiar with the system and have your free methods set up and producing results, then start ramping up with some paid methods and pay for your marketing out of your profits. We discuss dozens of marketing methods in our trainings, but you can have a successful business just focusing on 1 or 2 methods that you enjoy and that are right for your budget, skill-set, personality, etc. Some people do this full time, some just in their spare time. I'm not at the $20K/month level (yet!) but the guy that hosts our team training calls is the top earning associate in the company and has reached that level. I guess what I'm getting at is that the level of success is dependent on a number of individual factors and I don't want to make any general income claims, but I know anyone can be successful with this business if they take the time to go through the trainings and do the marketing. I hope I've answered some of your questions, good luck in your research! Sincerely, Robert Long
Robert, Thanks for answering TrueNorths Q's. I'm checkin this out too. It concerns me that newbies dont have the advantage of an experienced net marketer with 1 Step. On the other hand, I guess if a person genuinely wants to learn, w/ focus and dedication anything is possible. Just hope the curve aint too steep. I'm impressed that your team trainer is earning 20K/mo., and willing to train, esp. given the fact that he must be competing for sales (since you say this isn't MLM) Also, what the heck is a cookie--on a computer?
The whole product behind the 1 Step System is designed to teach you how to be a better marketer. And everything in our Toolbox is from millionare marketing masters, no garbage e-books included, no free re-sale rights products, nothing that will waste your time. Some of our exclusive content is from seminars people paid $5000 to attend live. A computer cookie is a small text file which contains a unique ID tag placed on your computer by a website. The website saves a complimentary file with a matching ID tag. In this file various information can be stored, from pages visited on the site, to information voluntarily given to the site. When you revisit the site days or weeks later, the site can recognize you by matching the cookie on your computer with the counterpart in its database.
Getting back to the original topic of this thread, I do think there is a problem with the program regarding the guarantee. On your telephone sales pitch you state that if, after 30 days, you have not made your two training sales, admin will spend up to $700 to find two for you. That is false advertising. Admin does nothing more than change the status of the member to a qualified associate. The sponsor of that individual gets nothing. The problem with this is that Admin is now cutting off the potential residual income of the member they brought into the program. This could amount to thousands of dollars. I can't think of too many experienced Internet Marketers that would join a program where they would allow Admin to cut off their income. I believe this guarantee will eventually kill the program if it hasn't already. One of the reasons stated for the guarantee is that many sponsors are not training the members in their genealogy. Huh! Everyone who joins the program purchases up to $1200 worth of Internet Marketing materials ??“ is anyone bothering to study them or are they expecting their sponsor to do all the work. My recommendation: The guarantee should be changed to state that after 60 days if you have not made two training sales, we will make one for you. To qualify for this guarantee, you must make at least one training sale on your own. I mean that anyone who cannot make at least one sale in 60 days is in the wrong program. Actually my real recommendation is that you get rid of the guarantee. Period! The only people who benefit from it is Admin. The 1step program is an excellent program but unless something is done with the guarantee ??“ the program is gone.
Your idea for modifying the promotion is very interesting, I wouldn't mind seeing them modify or switch the promotion. But getting rid of the promotion all together I think would be a bad idea. The promotion has its pros and cons but it is very unique in the industry and is a strong selling point for prospects. There was a backlash from some associates when it was first introduced but virtually everyone I've spoken to who was with the company before the promotion started is now in favor of it. There is no benefit to Admin, and Admin doesn't sponsor any new members, all prospects must join through the link of an existing member. So Admin isn't cutting off any potential residual income, there just not in a position to give freebies in your downline. This is one of the big benefits of the program, your not compteting with the company for sales. And although the promotion is administered by the company, when you look at it, it's actually an agreement between a new member and their sponsor. It's a safety net for new members that are experiencing a longer learning curve or have limited time and resources to put into the business. The sponsor is basically agreeing to forego the training sales if their member isn't finding success within a certain period of time. I'm happy to give my members this promotion, it gives incentive for sponsors to give good leadership and support and help their members get off to a fast start. If the majority of members didn't like it, they would change or eliminate it, after all, it wasn't put in place to benefit the company.
The problem that I have with the guarantee is that the time is two short and guarantee too broad. Anyone can dawdle around for thirty days to get their guarantee and then start marketing. 60 days is a different story. Anyone who is serious about earning an income will not wait around for that length of time. The guarantee also does nothing to encourage someone to do some work on their own. The Small Business Administration states that only about 1 in 10 new startups will be around at the end of one year. To think that everyone who joins the 1Step program will succeed is ludicrous. That's why I think that a better guarantee is needed. A guarantee of a credit for one sale after 60 days will assist those who are struggling is acceptable. This also benefits their sponsor member who is trying to get a business started. The requirement that the member make at least one sale on their own should encourage them to get involved. Anyone who cannot make at least one sale in 60 days is probably in the wrong program. The Piedmont Group
