What is the Herbalife About?
A guide: What is the Herbalife about. The Herbalife diet, the Herbalife program. Are you about to lose weight, with their shakes or lose your money?
Herbalife is not about a fly-by-night scam.
Herbalife has been around for a long time and has a solid reputation for dieting and making money. Unfortunately, the story does not end there.
Read this guide to how to make money with Herbalife and possibly how to lose weight.
Product Name: Herbalife
Website: www.herbalife.com / www.herbalife.co.uk
Price: Varies, depending on the business program you choose. Free just to buy product at retail prices.
Owner: Publicly listed company.
Ranking: As an MLM or Network Marketing company 65/100
Herbalife Overview
An MLM company based on selling health products, Herbalife focusses mostly on
- Weight loss
- Nutrition
- Energy
Herbalife has been around since the 1980s.
Herbalife have thousands of employees.
Herbalife markets a range of shakes which are intended to be used as meal replacements.
Users of the Herbalife products are strongly encouraged to become distributors to get a discount on the prices, usually 25%.
Personally, I find MLMs difficult to expand into a dependable business. I prefer affiliate marketing, which does not involve recruiting and the earnings potential are fantastic.
What is Herbalife About?
This depends on how you view Herbalife.
You can use the Herbalife products for weight loss and general health supplements or see Herbalife as a business opportunity.
There are 3 ways to make money through Herbalife.
- Become a Herbalife distributor and sell the products at retail thus making a 25% profit.
- You can recruit other Herbalife distributors and earn a small amount on their sales, usually about 8%
- Increase your Herbalife team sales to various target levels which will give you an even bigger discount and so higher % profits.
You can of course, choose not to become an active business person but just become a Herbalife distributor to get the discount for your own purchases.
Is Herbalife About Cheap Products?
There have been several comparisons done on Herbalife and competitor prices. Herbalife products are expensive.
Do Herbalife diet products work well? This is a challenging question because there have been several legal challenges over the years, questioning Herbalife claims regarding specific products.
Many of these Herbalife products have been discontinued and considerable compensation paid out.
The reviews of Herbalife products are very mixed. They vary from “stupendously good” to “damaging to your health.”
The truth is probably somewhere in between and probably depends on the individual person and other factors in their lives:
- How much exercise they do
- How much alcohol they drink
- How many cigarettes they smoke.
- How much sleep they get
- Their state of mind when attempting to lose weight
- Their medical health at the time.
What Does Herbalife Do
Herbalife sells weight loss and health supplements.
Herbalife does this on several continents and most of their sales are made through Multi-Level Marketing, (MLM.)
They have various levels of entering the Herbalife business which depend on the amount of product you are prepared to buy.
Herbalife’s own statistics make it clear that about 85#5 of distributors make no money. You might assume they become distributors to get their 25% discount.
Only a few hundred people in Herbalife in the USA made around a $100,000 in the last few years. There are over 450,000 Herbalife distributors in the USA.
The Good in Herbalife
There must be something good in the Herbalife products, so many people have used them over the years.
For someone with a small amount of capital, building a network of Herbalife distributors is hard work but possible.
Herbalife do have a strong track record of good extensive training.
The Bad in Herbalife
Herbalife is about recruiting. Even new distributors who have signed up to get a discount, get pressurised into recruiting.
The Herbalife customer support has come under a lot of criticism over the last few years. This is mainly to do with returns of unused or unwanted Herbalife products.
It is very difficult to make any really good money in Herbalife.
All businesses take study and hard work but the rewards from Herbalife are not good enough, in my opinion. I found the culture, philosophy and potential in this company so much better.
Who is Herbalife for?
If you work in a large company and have a wide circle of contacts, you could become the “go to” person for Herbalife products, if you can avoid the pressure to recruit.
You will never make a fortune in Herbalife unless you are in the top 1% but could build up a circle of regular customers over time.
Who is Herbalife Not for?
Anyone who wants to create a long-term solid business or livelihood should avoid Herbalife.
Anyone who is a bit shy of talking to people should avoid Herbalife or any other MLM.
If you are not going to use Herbalife products, it is not worth being a Herbalife distributor.
About Herbalife Tools and Training
What Herbalife do really well is the training they supply. They have a lot of training geared up to helping people develop a business. Unfortunately, that is also based on recruitment into Herbalife distributorships.
They have a lot of Herbalife home-grown tools to help people in their business development.
Support in Herbalife
As mentioned earlier, Herbalife customer support has taken a downturn over the last few years. It used to be really good.
I hope Herbalife pick up the problems and solve them soon.
Pricing and Upsells in Herbalife
There are several different ways of becoming a Herbalife distributor starting with a basic distributor pack. This is about $100.
Herbalife Balance Pros and Cons
- Herbalife is a well-established company with a range of products to sell.
- Herbalife have a well-developed business plan.
- The Herbalife products are expensive so difficult to sell.
- Many of the Herbalife products are not regulated and there have been complaints about side effects.
- The Herbalife business depends on constantly recruiting new people into your network. That becomes more difficult quite quickly as you run out of friends and family.
- People are turning more and more to the internet for their purchases. That is why I prefer a complete internet business model, like affiliate marketing.
Is Herbalife a Scam or not
Herbalife is not a scam.
Herbalife IS an MLM. This means that the business does not work based on just selling Herbalife product.
Product Name: Herbalife
Website: www.herbalife.com / www.herbalife.co.uk
Price: Varies, depending on the business program you choose. Free just to buy product at retail prices.
Owner: Publicly listed company.
Ranking: As an MLM or Network Marketing company 65/100
Verdict: is Herbalife Recommended or Not?
My personal opinion is that Herbalife products need a major cost review and a marketing model based on affiliate marketing through the internet.
In their current form, Herbalife is not at the top of my recommended list.
This review is my personal opinion based on some years of experience and a lot of really excellent training. I have made mistakes and I have learnt some expensive lessons. Those lessons have usually been due to believing the emotional hype that is used by unscrupulous people.
If you have experienced similar problems, especially with the program reviewed here, please do comment. We welcome honest views of all kinds.
If you are interested in a genuine free trial of an excellent training platform, click the button below. No obligation.
Great article- I’ve had several brushes with Herbalife but never tried their products. Unfortunately everyone I met who was associated with this MLM seemed to be pushy and had a one-size-fits-all mentality when recommending products. Not to mention they all want you to be a distributor. When recruiting is first….that’s a problem.
Plus I never liked the Icahn and Ackman battle over Herbalife stock. Looks like Ackmans short of the stock cost him big-time.
Affiliate Marketing is an awesome business model because you can pair the right product to answer someones problem, You are the solution finder…the matchmaker.
You are right, Tim. The problem with most MLM products is that they are overpriced to pressurise people to become distributors to get a discount. Then they pressurise you to recruit. Just selling the product does not offer a good income to anyone.
It is a pity because there are many MLMs with good products but the only people who really make money are the 1 to 2% at the top.
Personally, I would not invest in any MLM stock at the moment because if they do not have a vibrant online presence, they will not survive.
They need to look at affiliate marketing models so we can market their products on line??
I know Herbalife so well, and yes it’s been around for as long as I can remember.
More than 15 years ago when I was trying to lose weight, I used Herbalife products. Although I liked how the meal replacement shake tasted, I can honestly say that it did not really help me achieve my weight loss goals.
Just recently, I found out that my mom is using Herbalife products as health supplements and she said it’s effective in increasing her appetite. So I guess they are good for nutrition and energy but not for losing weight.
Do I consider becoming a distributor of Herbalife products? I don’t think so. I have joined other MLMs before and never succeeded.
Hi Alysanna, thanks for your comment.
Herbalife products are good quality but the principle of meal replacement shakes is not really efficient without other aspect, such as exercise being used.
There are a lot of processed products in most shakes and although on paper they seem to offer the nutrition we need without the calories, in my opinion, it is better to do the same thing with unprocessed, fresh food. It is also a lot cheaper.
Losing weight takes food control and exercise and an attitude to your body which is a challenging change for most people. It really involves a change in life style.
Was your Mum trying to put on weight?
You know that there are many reasons why we get overweight and they are different in everybody?
In some people it is emotional as well as physical and it can be caused by hormones or even genetics.
I think it is a very complicated business.
Hi, I just want to leave my opinion, I live in Paraguay and there isn’t so much Herbalife distributors here and is very controversial because some people say that Herbalife is the best thing that ever happened to them.
I had a friend where I used to work, she tried several of their products and didn’t even lose a pound, because they are told that is not necessary to do exercise and its kind of magical. That is something that really annoyed me. There aren’t any magical products that can make you lose weight without having a good diet plan and exercise regularly.
And maybe that is the main reason whereby I am never going to get into an MLM business.
I prefer Affiliate marketing as well 🙂
Thanks Paola,
Interesting that you have few Herbalife distributors there. Are there a lot of people who go on a diet?
You are right though; the dieting is only a part of losing weight, it needs to be part of a change in lifestyle with exercise as well.
I had forgotten about the advice of not having to exercise. That is not good advice. I think that is down to the individual distributor trying to sell product and not what Herbalife advises.
I know in the UK, they advise that the shakes should be part of a lifestyle change and should be combined with regular exercise.
There are other MLMs, selling beauty products and vacuum cleaners. They do not all sell dieting products.
Good luck with your affiliate marketing.
It doesn’t sound all that great to me, but it has been around surviving for quite some time. In that sense they mist be doing something right.
A business like this isn’t for me, not at all. I don’t want to recruit people to work for me to line the pockets of any company.
Poor customer care, high prices, questionable products spell NOPE.
I would rather do some affiliate marketing and work from home on my PC.
Thanks Stew.
Well, MLMs are not for everybody. I guess affiliate Marketing is a bit specialised as well.
It is certainly hard work, but the rewards are high if you keep at it.
Herbalife have certainly been around long enough for any major faults in their products to have shown up. I believe their products are a high quality but I do not really want to have to recruit people to earn my money, either.
Maybe there are affiliate opportunities with Herbalife?
I am not into Multi Level Marketing but I think Herbalife is not a scam. If it is, it is some unethical members doing malicious things.
My friend took it for about 3-6 months. She developed back problems. It was so bad, the pain of walking made her feel paralyzed. It’s been 1 year and she have stopped using the products since. It works with weight loss but it is not worth the pain.
I am not saying the Herbalife products caused the back pain but it was obvious that my friend’s medical problems needed looking at.
Thanks Kit.
I cannot really see a connection between the Herbalife and back pain. I think, like you, that there must have been some underlying condition.
At least the dieting helped in that way, losing weight. I wonder if your friend managed to keep the weight off?
The one thing that always worries me about people getting into MLM opportunities is the fact that they seldom try out the products themselves…leading to blind selling and a blind business really.
The opportunities themselves are hard enough to earn from – the stats always stand against the MLM newcomers, and many of them leave out of pocket after a year or so. Coupled with expensive or poor products – and you really are in trouble.
I guess I’m asking what these Hebalife products are really like on the quality front, and do they stand up to the price that is charged for them?
Thanks Chris.
I am sure that Herbalife products are good quality. The question for me is whether that kind of dieting works, where you drink a shake instead of eating a meal.
Would a glass of milk and a vitamin tablet do the same as the shake?. I am not convinced.
You are right about the stats. The MLMs often publish their stats and it is obvious that many beginners sell to their friends and family, recruit them and then give up. This is because recruiting outside your known friends and family is very difficult.
The price is geared up to encouraging people to become distributors to get a discount.
Herbal Life seems to be questionable in terms of both health and effectiveness of the product and in terms of effectiveness of their business model. I think those are definitely red flags for me. Perhaps the products work and perhaps they don”t.
That is terrible for you as a salesperson because you will either be lying to yourself or to someone else to make money which is not exactly what I call solid business ethics. I think I’ll stick to affiliate marketing where the pressure lies with me to push myself and I can sell a range of goods that I choose myself.
There is a question over whether replacement shakes etc. are actually a help in dieting and losing weight. I do think Herbalife’s products are as good as any other’s.
Some people love that kind of face to face marketing but I think most people would prefer to make their decisions sitting in front of PC.
Good or bad, it is the way of the world.
With Amazon, alone offering 12 million products which can be sold by affiliate marketers. It is a logical move to make.
WOW you sure took the lid off Herbalife! My husband tried the products in past years and pretty much like them, but you are so right … they’re expensive!
Glad you specifically pointed out the pros and cons and defined them as an MLM – and you’re right. If someone is shy, they should stay away from MLMs. Thanks for your article – very informative!
Thanks Sharon,
Herbalife has some good products. As you say, the prices can be a bit high. I think they are pitched like that to encourage people to become distributors and so begin to get a discount.
That leads to pressure to recruit other people, who then buy some products and so the cycle continues. Few people actually make money out of becoming a distributor.
Perhaps MLMs have had their day? People prefer to buy over the internet and that is where th growth business lies, in affiliate marketing.
I’m not a huge fan of their business model or how they go about having people use their products. As a personal trainer, the fact that they recommend people to consume shakes rather than eat solid foods, isn’t something I tend to agree with.
Coupled with that the fact that i’m not a huge fan of MLMs, is more of a reason for me to stay away from them. So I agree with your assessment of the Herbalife brand.
Thanks for this.
Thanks Ralph.
I do woder about the meal-replacement issues. I read recently that much of the meal replacement shakes were a waste of time and no more nutritious than a banana.
I have tried it for losing weight onece and it was very effective over a couple of months. Then I began looking at the ingredients and stopped using the shakes. They were not Herbalife, BTW.
I do agree totally with you on MLMs. I have come across one or two which were good enough to make a little money from product sales but the only way to make a sustainable income was to recruit and encourage your downline to recruit. The stats for most MLMs do not add up either. Many of them quote that less than 3 % of their distributors make good money and about 80% make no money at all.
This cannot be a good business model.
I have never understood why a product range not advertised in the media should be just as expensive and sometimes more, to the end user?
Hello,Several times I was invited to join as a distributor but the truth never ended convincing me. Your review is very successful. I think a product of good quality but very expensive as you explain. It is a multi-level company that for many people is difficult to understand their system. I do not like recruiting people either, I prefer affiliate marketing. Thank you very much for all the information. Regards!
Claudio
Thanks for you comment Claudio.
Multi Level Marketing is not for everybody. It does suit some people and their situation.
For me, Affiliate Marketing is the way forward though.
Perhaps Herbalife would eventually shift over to recruiting Affiliates, instead of distributors?
Thanks for this really good review of Herbalife. I have been involved in several MLM’s over the years but Herbalife was not one of them so it was interesting to read about a company that is the same as all the rest. I really liked it when you talked about how hard it is to recruit distributors which is the way you need to do if you want to make any money with Herbalife. Good job,
Thanks Donnie.
Yes Herbalife is quite a traditional MLM and with the “Health and Beauty” sector expanding like mad, I guess they have got a good range of products.
I would like to see a reduction in their retail prices, more commission on sales and permission to sell online.
I think they will have to change their marketing to survive.
I haven’t used this product and I am not sure about the quality but as you mentioned correctly, in MLM systems, you can only make good money if you are in the top %1. That is why I am not a fan of MLM products.
I think the best way to create a reliable income online is to stay out of emotional hype and to start and grow an affiliate marketing business step by step.
Thank you for your through review.
Best,
Albert
Thanks for your comment Albert.
Herbalife is a good company but maybe they should move into distributing through affiliate marketing?
You are dead right about the emotional hype. Too many things promoted that way, even politics these days.
Personally, I am quite passionate about the Wealthy Affiliate community. It offers a unique form of openness and support that I appreciate and can work within.
While I can see the value in signing up to get the discounts if you like the Herbalife products, I’m not a fan of MLM’s. I prefer affiliate marketing, and the slow but steady approach to online business. I don’t think I would be interested in the products because I have digestive problems and I always find whole foods work better in my case.
I would have to pass, but I appreciate the great overview and details. Thanks! 🙂
Thanks Stella.
I am not a fan of MLMs myself because most of them focus too much on the recruitment to make a living. There are a few that don’t, of course.
You are the one who knows yourself the best. You are the one who should decode how you treat yourself so you are absolutely right to take care of yourself in the best way.
Looking at the future, I think more and more companies are moving towards affiliate marketing tosell their goods so it is definitely a growth area.
Good review on Herbalife. I have lots of family and friends that are part of this company. I do not use these products but I hear great things about them. The business sounds good too although I’m not really an MLM fan I think its a great opportunity. Thank you for sharing this, I will make sure to share this with my family.
Thanks Andrea. The products are excellent in Herbalife and I do think that it is worth someone in the family joining up to get the discounts, especially if you are regular users.
I am not an MLM fan either but there are not many really good MLMs around and a lot of poor ones.
Herbalife is one of the good ones.