Digvijay and Ridhima's blog

New to the U.S. : Beware of MLM marketers

May 18th, 2010 | by Ridhima Suri |

Have you recently moved to the U.S. ?

If you have recently moved to the U.S.,  chances are that you will take some time to get used to things around here. For a few months your curiosity will get the better of you and you will smile at any Indian face you see. The problem is when someone solicits you for doing business in grocery and departmental stores and tries to be too friendly.

Here is a likely scenario.

People trying to be too friendly

1. You are dressed in ethnic clothes and are happily shopping in Walmart, Sears, Frys, or IKEA. You may also be in an Indian store but the likelihood of someone talking to you in such stores is less.
2. Suddenly, a lady will start beaming at you, not once but couple of times. Then she will come up to you and say good things about your dress, hair, or jewelery. If you are a man, another person will say hello to you or ask for directions within the store. In either case, the conversation leads on from one thing to another. Most likely, the other person will ask you over for weekend dinner or lunch. duh!
3. The person will also ask for your mobile number. He will immediately store it and also ring on the number to make sure that you have not given a wrong number.
4. If you attend one of these meetings, the person will definitely try to sell you a Multi level Marketing (MLM) package or scheme. They will tell you how much money you can make by selling the product to x or y people and that it will be a life changing decision. OMG! They will try to sell you a dream!
5. About 2 out 5 people fall into such traps. There are some people selling genuine packages but there are several MLM scammers in the market as well.
6. I am not saying there is anything wrong in this technique. It is just too invasive for me. I succumbed to the trap a few times in Walmart & IKEA when I was really new to the country. However, I quickly made it clear to the solicitors that I was not interested in doing any business with them or in exchanging cellphone numbers. Now, I have an invisible ‘DO NOT MESS WITH ME’ note on my forehead!!

The interesting part is that I have never ever been approached by a marketer of another ethnicity. Its always been Indians. What is more annoying is that people usually approach young couples in a group or a ‘couple’. So if the woman is admiring your beaded skirt or bling, the man will most certainly talk about a gadget to your better half.

What do MLM marketers know about you?

What is sad is that these people understand psychology of Indian immigrants and know exactly how people who move to the country behave in the first few months.

1. They know that new migrants are confused, dreamy eyed, and curious.
2. They also know that familiarity is the key to strike a conversation.
3. They know that being of the same ethnicity is a golden opportunity to make a fool of the trusting one.
4. They can tell who has recently moved to the country and who has stayed here for long. This is not magic. Its just the way it is.
5. They know that Walmart & IKEA are the best places to catch unaware budget shoppers. Young migrants need basic groceries, furniture, and household appliances to set up their homes. For MLM marketers, these are the ‘hotspots’ for baiting unaware shoppers. Why don’t I see such people in stores like Macy’s, Nordstrom, Barnes & Noble etc? or perhaps in other clothing stores in the mall?

How to avoid MLM networking

You cannot blame them-they are smart. But if you have just moved to the country, you have to be smarter. Here are a few tips to keep MLM marketers at bay:

1. Never talk to strangers.
2. Never give your phone number, address or email ids to a stranger.
3. Never accept dinner invitations during causal conversations in a store. Who invites people over for dinner in grocery stores? No one is so desperate or has spare time. There has to be a hidden agenda.
4. Never accept friend requests from such people on online social and professional networks. Once you add them to Orkut, MySpace or Facebook you cannot avoid them even though there are many privacy settings.

These may look like grandma tips but they are very useful. However, this does not mean that you look like a mean person or behave like one. Or that all MLM marketers are bad or corny. There is no harm in replying to a polite greeting and I am not saying that you become a moronic bimbette. Just be aware that things like this happen and there are simple ways to avoid strangers who try to be too friendly.

If you have recently moved to the country, hope to expect people approaching you out of the blue in your favourite shopping center. If you know what to expect you will also know how to deal with it!

*MLM stands for Multi level marketing schemes.

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Tags: H4 visa, H4 Visa Related, Immigration, MLM Marketing, MLM network marketing