Is USANA Health Sciences a good partner in business? USANA kicked off my network marketing experience. Although, I am no longer a USANA Associate, I don’t recruit people into the USANA opportunity, nor do I promote their products. But, before you discredit me and leave before hearing this valuable information, listen for a second, I did not fail at USANA, I left by choice and on great terms. I based my decision on my own review of what I wanted and needed out of a Network Marketing business model. This review is going to be about balanced and objective, based only on truth and facts. This is a truthful look at USANA from an industry insider that will lay it on the line.
Without a doubt, USANA Health Sciences is not a scam. USANA Health Sciences has more 3rd party accolades that most Network Marketing companies…period. Dr. Myron Wentz founded USANA in 1992. USANA has grown positively during it’s 17 years. Their nutritional products are scientifically formulated, pharmaceutical grade and NSF certified. What all this really means is stability.
An older company has it’s upsides, but there are some concerns with a deeply rooted company. I would’ve much preferred to get involved, back when my ex-Diamond Director’s uplines parents did, in the 90’s, when the market penetration wasn’t as deep. For example the new Philippine, Mexico and Asia markets are booming while the North American markets are lagging behind and in need of some attention.
USANA associates get updates of rank advancements and earning of other associates and you won’t be surprised to find that it’s hard to pronounce most of the names on those lists. For me this was a red flag. You really want to be able to take advantage of growing trends, for example when Google first took center stage, wouldn’t you have wanted to climb on that band wagon.
You always want to look at market penetration when deciding to join a company. The nutritional industry as a whole is projected to be a Trillion dollar industry. Now, all that sounds good except for one thing. The nutritional market is over saturated in MLM/Network Marketing as it is in retail stores around the world. There’s so much competition in that industry So be very careful in an over saturated industry, you’ll really have to have something special to set yourself apart from the crowd.
That being said, USANA is a proven, legit company with real profits. Publicly traded, on NASDAQ, which requires the company’s financials to be made readily available to the public. A publicly traded company is usually a safe bet, and an important factor when choosing a solid company. According to a transcript of a webinar held on February 10, 2010, Jeff Yates USANA’s Chief Financial Officer reports, “For the full year 2009, net sales increased 1.8% to $436.9 million, which marks the seventh consecutive year of record sales for USANA.” It’s note worthy to also report that North America sales decreased due to a drop in active sales associates, while the ASIA market is steadily on the rise.
In evaluating a company’s sales it’s important to understand where those sales are coming from. For example you must ask, “Are sales heavily made up of Distributors and Associates auto-shipments or can Company XYZ’s product stand on it’s own?” With USANA I found a mix. Commission eligible associates must be on a 100 point or 200 point auto-shipment, which usually translate to $150 or $250. There are over 90,000 active North American USANA associates, with other markets steadily on the rise, auto-shipment sales as well as cutomer sales are tremendous.
USANA uses a compensation plan that’s called a binary, and prides themselves in paying out the highest percentage…period. The company I’m involved with now, says the same thing. I challenge anyone to find a company in this industry that doesn’t say that or something similar. It’s much like the difference between Pepsi or Coke. It all comes down to preference. Take the hype away, it comes down to this. Are you being rewarded for your leadership? Are you able to maximize the pay plan, meaning if you recruit 100 people while in a binary plan will you be making more or less money say if it was a matrix plan instead?
After all that, you have to sit back, evaluate, and decide for yourself. I’d like to leave you with two of my best pieces of advice. First, come to a decision firmly, but slowly, don’t feel rushed, and definitely don’t let anyone rush you. Don’t buy on impulse, you’ll regret it later. Let the excitement of being presented an opportunity to make every dream you have come true subside a bit and imagine yourself day in and day out, your back up against the wall, struggling to make this USANA business work, with your last 10 dollars in your pocket….Then ask yourself, “Do I still want to join USANA?” That’s the honest truth, this business is tough, and you have to be willing to step outside your comfort zone, be faced with paralyzing fear, get stuck in quick sand, and fight your way out!