On Doctors Being Targeted to Distribute - And Consumers. Even if You Work As a Server!

An attention-grabbing title caught my eye/brain -- Why (a health product, in this case algae) Makes Me Tired. The D.O. was saying he's tired of being marketed to, and he makes the very good point of how it presents to the patient -- "I think you have (this symptom) and look, I have a product to sell you right here."  This is the way of the current market, because frankly, the providers are often not with that much extra money by the time they incur and pay all the costs associated with being a medical provider today.

So having products to sell is a way to offset that. Ideally, there would be the 'gap' between the one who advises to consume something and the source for purchasing the product.  In the US, the laws were set up so that there would not be financial motivation for a provider to recommend a particular other provider for services, or products. But when you're in the business a while you'd eventually realize there were ways they were still getting their financial benefits from having their gangs the were affiliate with, though cleverly accounted and without many incidents of being 'busted'. So this article raises that issue. 

It also raises the issue of safety and efficacy. We've had topics about quality of supplements from the years that Robin Thomas gave her time for no financial renumeration, just free exposure by being seen at Lumigrate. This article, below, goes into that aspect too -- that it is rare in some circles that anyone would write without financial compensation. So for all these reasons, I wanted to create a new topic at Lumigrate for our YOUsers and suggest people read and learn what is here if it seems to be of interest. Here's the link: 

www.tldp.com/issue/167/algae.html [1]

By the way, the product that he is referring to here was the first one I had come across my radar screen, back about 1990. A chiropractor, who overall did me a lot of good, was wanting me to take blue-green algae and the way he did it was to not sell the product to you but get you signed up as a distributor and then taking it by ordering it from YOU, the distributor. Naturally, hopefully you'd get other people going on it.  I was being very compliant with everything he suggested, which was a massive diet change, and many Standard Process supplements that he sold retail from his clinic. Then the blue-green algae. I bought a bunch of it at the start as that was some sort of 'deal' and then I found I got away from taking it. Eventually, I tossed it all in the trash. I don't know if it was my 'intuition' or what. So I had a particular interest in this product specifically at the core of this article. 

With Lumigrate, I've had the same issue with the MLM, DM, NM ('D'irect, 'N'etwork) distributors. Sometimes they have interesting products. I was tackled by one this summer and enjoyed what I learned in our phone time and then when I suggested we do a follow up and then I could just park them where I'd park that type of work on my plate for a while, they wanted to not have our follow up -- they wanted to do that when I had more time later. But --- that's not how I wanted to do it. And that just was obviously, to me, not a good fit, even though I did think they were a fabulous resource and the product was very intruguing. I think they have to work so hard in any of these businesses, even when it is a good product, that they have found the way that gets them the most yield and reward overall and don't deviate from that forumula. 

I know of someone I see on Facebook who has gotten into one of these companies with a product I think is aimed at short term results and takes money away from people who could spend it otherwise to get more long-term results that are better for their wellness. They had a family member doing it who was doing well so they hopped in. They basically were posting about the dollars they got out of someone's wallet when they stopped in somewhere to get a cup of coffee and with the two of them talking enthusiastically about the results of the product they sold, ended up with cash in hand back in the car. Photo taken and posted to Facebook. I was shocked. It even sounded like there is a strategy they use and maybe are taught by their company to gang up on people like that and pounce. I've forgotten the word that they used specifically --- but it is a word that is used in the military or in police work. The poor public. It started with the Fuller Brush Man and Avon Lady, and we had to put signs up if we didn't want that kind of thing at our door. So then we found ways of stopping phone solicitations. Now you're fair game if you're a barista!  

I saw someone on FB who lives in Salt Lake City talking about all the rah-rah conferences for these businesses, many of which are in Utah, and how they as servers in restaurants just get accosted by the distributors. I actually saw that in 2012 when I was in Provo to meet with someone over other matters, but they were there for a rah rah conference for a company they use products from in their practice. And their upline person and another distributor were all using one car so we all went to dinner together. I was paying for my dinner, and I basically had to deal with this aggressive 'push' about them and their product and it was still a great dinner and I enjoyed myself. But gads.  

And then this makes me with a thicker skin and harder to reach by someone with this type of product in the future. It was actually a good product that batch of people were 'into', it just wasn't something I wanted to be into. I tried to get others connected as it was a knowledgeable mentor to get under if someone wanted to get into that product, and everyone I approached had a similar reaction -- arms length. So as I say, my concern is there can be a VERY good and right product for a person and they'll maybe not consider it because of the way they've experienced distributors before. 

Then we have the really knowledgeable, ethical distributors of really good products out there, one of whom in the wide world is Robin Thomas, but she is just one among many out there -- on Lumigrate I wanted to have TWO represented in order to show the differences and the other one ended up dropping out, after some great discussions where you could clearly see her knowledge and capabilities at being a person who evaluates the scientific evidence. She researched and selected a company that was known for it's ethics and quality assurance, and she was comfortable and pleased with their product.

Robin Thomas provided that information in this forum for those who might be in the position of being asked to distribute a product, so our YOUsers could have education on what to look for. Others did the same thing, so please look at what they wrote. Dee Dee and Mary Lee. I've not put a lot of MLM on Lumigrate, but I decided to do a little and be selective BECAUSE it was booming with the economic problems of 2008/9. There are some fabulous people and products out there distributed this way AND a GOOD distributor can be the BEST WAY for people to get their supplements because they get someone checking with them every month. So I am glad that I, in a very selective way, included a little about MLM/DM/NM on Lumigrate. 

Live and learn. Learn and live better! ~ Mardy