As part of the ongoing Herbalife short seller saga, Herbalife recently released its 2012 income disclosure statement. The first paragraph immediately highlights one of the common misconceptions about direct selling. Many people mistakenly believe that most (or at least a significant portion) of distributors sign up as distributors and buy a product they don’t want in order to pursue the business opportunity.

But according to a January 2013 Herbalife distributor research survey, that’s far from the truth:

People become Herbalife Distributors for a number of reasons. The majority (73%) primarily join us to receive a wholesale price on products they and their families enjoy.

These numbers do vary from company to company, and Herbalife is way above the norm in that regard (the Direct Selling Association (DSA) puts the industry average at around 30%). This just highlights even further that Herbalife is a legitimate, product-focused company, not a pyramid scheme.

Also worth noting: about 1,100 people are making over $50K/yr. in Herbalife. That’s hardly “a handful of people at the top” and should offer inspiration to anyone seeking a career in network marketing.

To discuss this topic further or to learn how the Momentum Factor team can be of assistance, reach out by clicking here.