Welcome to my Wines of Humanity MLM Review.
You probably came to this page because you wonder if the Wines of Humanity MLM program is a scam or legit?
No need to worry you’re in the right place for the answers to these questions.
Over the last few years, I’ve been busy creating reviews about all kinds of online products.
Some turned out to be fake others were legit ways to make money online but in the process, I learned how to spot scams.
In this post, I’ll show you absolutely everything you need to know about Wines of humanity and after reading it you’ll know exactly if you should give it a chance.
Wines of Humanity Review Overview
Name: Wines of Humanity
Website: winesforhumanity.com
Founder: Anton Steinhart
Product Type: Wine MLM Program
Earning Potential: Low
Price: $69 + $9,95/month
Rating:
Summary:
Wines of Humanity is an MLM company that distributes wine with the help of an independent workforce that earns money through selling products and recruiting people and doing the same.
Wines of Humanity is a legitimate business and their MLM program can’t be considered a scam or pyramid scheme but the chances of succeeding with it seem very low because of multiple reasons.
That being said, I do think it is one of the better MLM programs
Similar to:
Younique MLM program, OneHope Wine MLM program, MaryKay MLM program, Amsoil MLM program, Savvi MLM Program, Trades of Hope MLM program
Recommended: No
What is Wines of Humanity?
Wines of Humanity is a company founded by Anton Steinhart in 2007. Wines of Humanity distributes Wine and wine-related products with the help of network marketing also known as multi-level marketing.
Wines of Humanity is active in 9 states in the US and raised over 6 million dollars for the less fortunate. Wines of Humanity headquarters is located at Wines For Humanity, 1323 Bond Street, Suite 179 B, Naperville IL 60563.
How does Wines of Humanity work?
In short, Wines of Humanity distributes wines and wine-related products Instead of directly selling them to consumers they have chosen to use the MLM model which gives you the choice to earn money by:
- Selling the products for a commission
- Recruiting people to earn bonuses.
What is MLM?
MLM (a.k.a network marketing or direct selling) stands for multi-level marketing.
According to Wikipedia, multi-level marketing is a marketing strategy for the sale of products or services where the revenue is derived from a non-salaried workforce.
As a part of this workforce, you sell the products from the company, and/or you recruit people to do the same thing. This group of people you recruit will work under you and is referred to as your downline.
The bigger your downline is the more money you can earn passively (technically speaking) because you’re getting paid a percentage based on the performance of your downline.
This also means the person that recruited you which is called your upline is making money based on your performance.
The act of recruiting turns an MLM company into a pyramid-shaped organization where the first people to join make the most and are on the top of the pyramid and those last to join are at the bottom.
Source: Wikipedia
MLMs have been around for a long time. There are Multi-level marketing companies active today that were founded in the 1950s. MLM has a lot in common with pyramid schemes which is why scammers often use MLM to disguise their pyramid scheme.
Is it absolutely necessary to recruit people? No.
You can also stick to just selling products that you can order and re-sell to make a profit. This is easier said than done for multiple reasons which are why most members try to recruit others so they can earn more money.
How to join Wines of Humanity MLM
You have to be introduced by a member or you can sign-up through the website. After that, you have to purchase their join kit for $69. After that, you have to pay a recurring fee of $9,95 a month.
According to the website, these fees cover:
- Your personalized website where customers can place orders with you
- Access to the CE Back Office where you have all the tools you need to run your business
- Access to business resources and tools
- Access to training courses
The next step is to purchase a wine kit. Wines of Humanity provides its members with the Wine advisory kit at the cost off $155.
The Wine Advisory kit contains:
- The kit includes 6 bottles of wine
- 18 crystal glasses
- carrying case
- insulated rolling wine bag
- corkscrew
- marketing materials for business launch.
Is Wines of Humanity a pyramid scheme?
To answer this question we need to know what a pyramid scheme is.
What is a pyramid scheme?
A pyramid scheme is a type of scam where people are promised money for joining the scheme and recruiting other people. No selling of a product or service is involved whatsoever.
So you might be wondering where the money comes from?
The people that join are expected to pay a one-time fee and in exchange for that, they get a percentage of the fee of everyone they recruit after that.
The problem is from a mathematical standpoint it’s impossible for everyone to make money because you simply run out of people.
Take a look at this picture below showing how it’s impossible for everyone to earn money.
Source: Wikipedia
As you can see, in this pyramid model it’s required to recruit 6 people. You’ll notice from the 12th level and further, it’s not possible anymore for everyone to earn money.
The 2.2 Billion people on the 12th level need 13.1 billion recruits in total for them all to make money which is more people than there are currently on Earth.
Looking at the description of what a pyramid scheme is, Wines of Humanity MLM can’t be classified as a pyramid scheme from a legal perspective.
Wines of Humanity has given people a method to make money without recruiting people. How much you’ll be earning just by selling wine is a different story.
That being said, there definitely is something a bit sketchy going on. Read below to find out what I mean.
Who can benefit from Wines of Humanity?
Who would benefit from joining Wines of Humanity MLM program:
- Expert salesmen
- Expert recruiters
- Wine lovers
Who shouldn’t join Wines of Humanity MLM program:
- People that hate sales jobs.
- People that hate recruiting
- People that don’t have the budget for it
- People that expect to earn passive income
Wines of Humanity products
This post is mostly for people trying to earn money with Wines of Humanity but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t look at the products it sells. An MLM program is only as good as the products it offers.
Wines of Humanity provides people with multiple types of Wine such as red, dry white, fortified sparkling, sweet red/roses, and mild white. The price range of the Wines is for the majority between $20 and $40.
When it comes to price for the majority they’re aligned with the market when it comes to the price for these particular wines.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Wines of Humanity products have tangible benefits
Unlike MLM’s that sell essential oils you know exactly what you’re getting and how it works. This makes it easier to sell to people. - Wines of Humanity knows how to handle adversity
It has proven to be a stable company that even survived the last financial crisis. - You can stay a member without accumulating PCV
Your account isn’t deactivated when you don’t fulfill your monthly quota. You won’t be eligible to earn a commission but you don’t have to purchase the starters kit again to become a member. - High Commission rates
You start at a commission rate of 18% which is high compared to a lot of other companies.
Cons
- Products and commission rate imbalance
Wines of Humanity has a high commission rate but because of the prices of their products and most people not being alcoholics, you won’t earn much just by selling wine. - You have to pay to play
You have to invest a minimum of $69 just to become a member. After that, you’re also financially investing by accumulating $450 worth of products every month. - Limited to the US
The MLM program isn’t available for people outside of the United States. - Wines of Humanity doesn’t provide you with unique products
Other Wine MLMs sell the same wine just with another packaging. This means you aren’t only competing with cause entrepreneurs but also distributors from other MLM companies.
Wines of Humanity Compensation Plan
Wines of Humanity can be considered a traditional MLM when you look at their compensation plan. You either re-sell their products for a commission or you can recruit people and receive residual income, climb up the ranks, and earn bonuses.
In total there are 6 ranks that all come with their benefits such as getting a higher commission percentage of all your sales starting at 18% to a max of 24%
- Wine advisor
- Senior Wine Advisor
- Team Leader
- Advanced Team Leader
- Senior Team Leader
- Executive Team Leader
How much does it cost to start a Wines of Humanity “business”?
This question can be answered by looking at the compensation plan.
Like a lot of MLM compensation plans, the Wines of Humanity compensation plan is confusing at first sight. This is why I’m going to only share with you the most important aspects.
The initial cost for starting a Wines of Humanity business is $69. After that, you pay a monthly fee of $9,95 for your website.
By paying the initial costs you get the rank of Wine Advisor.
This doesn’t mean you can start earning money right away. To be eligible for a commission you have to be considered an “active” Wine Advisor.
According to the Wines of the Humanity compensation plan, you become an active Wine Advisor when you accumulate $450 worth of products. Accumulating simply means ordering the products that are going to be sold.
In summary, to start your business (and start earning) it’ll cost you a minimum of $78,95 and after that, you’ll have to spend money on products that you’ll have to sell for a commission.
This only applies to remaining in the lowest rank. The higher ranks will require you to sell even more products to stay at that rank.
How much can you earn with Wines of Humanity?
The commission rate starts at 18% which is decent and becomes higher every time you increase rank.
In theory, the sky is the limit but in reality, we know because of factors such as your ability to recruit, your competition, and the performance of your downlines there’s is often a limit.
Unfortunately, Wines of Humanity doesn’t have a public earnings disclaimer that we could use to find out how much Wine advisors are earning but I do see it shares the same “handicaps” most MLM companies have which prevents members from earning decent money.
Why aren’t people earning decent money with MLM companies like Wines of Humanity?
I have summed up the reasons why it’s hard to make money with Wines of Humanity and MLM companies in general into 3 points.
1. MLMs are often associated with pyramid schemes
MLMs have a pyramid recruiting structure that you often have to join to be able to make decent money or at the very least not lose money. The problem is a lot of pyramid schemes disguise themselves as MLM programs making it difficult to differentiate the two.
This is the biggest problem why most distributors have a difficult time recruiting people. The moment people hear about how you can make money by recruiting people red flags appear in most people’s minds.
2. You have to consistently invest your money to earn commissions
You’re only eligible for bonuses and commissions if you buy their products. The bigger the bonuses the more product you have to buy. You do get discounts but if you can’t sell the products I can see you easily fall into a financial deficit (which happens to the majority of MLMs).
3. The price of the product often isn’t aligned with the market
It’s hard for a multi-level marketer to sell products because most MLM products tend to be a lot more expensive than similar products sold by non-MLM companies. This means even if you’re really good at recruiting your downline still needs to sell those same expensive products for you to make decent money.
You can see that translate in these statistics I found about Multi-level Marketing.
- Nearly half (47%) of MLM participants reported that they lost money.
- One in four (27%) MLM participants reported that they broke even (made no money).
- MLM participants are 7% more likely to declare bankruptcy during their lifetime.
- Direct sales have risen 79% in the last decade, but MLM participants continue to lose money.
- 90 – 99% of distributors in multilevel marketing only receive a couple of hundred dollars commission per year.
- Out of 33,000 interviewed, 90 people made enough money to cover costs in building their business.
- 50% of the people who start a network marketing enterprise abandoned it in the first year.
Sources:
FTC
AARP
Jobsinmarketing.io
Wines of Humanity Reviews, Opinions, and Ratings
Wines of Humanity MLM program hasn’t been reviewed a lot but people seem to be very positive about the presentations that the Wine advisors give.
My Personal Take
The Wines of Humanity MLM program isn’t a pyramid scheme or any other sort of scam but I can’t call it a great business opportunity either. A commission rate of 18% on bottles with an average price of $35 is almost nothing.
To earn a full-time income you’d either have to sell wine in bulk. Most people that get invited to these parties aren’t interested to buy wine bottles at the rate needed to earn a full-time income.
This in a way almost forces you to start recruiting which is hard, especially with the reputation that network marketing has. I do think it’s possible to earn decent money with Wines of Humanity but you’d have to be an incredible salesman or recruiter.
Verdict
Is Wines of Humanity a scam or worth your time? Wines of Humanity is not a scam but if you’re looking for an effective way for earning money online Wines of Humanity is not the answer.
Wines of Humanity Alternative
Let’s be honest unless you’re very skilled at selling and recruiting, MLMs seem like a bad deal.
What if I said to you there’s a method to make money online that doesn’t require you to recruit people or resell products?
Sound like a better option for most right?!
If you want to make money online from anywhere including your own home I recommend looking into affiliate marketing.
I think this method is a better option for most people because you can earn just as much as with multi-level marketing but you don’t have to bother people to join your downline.
There is no need to dig yourself into a financial hole of $1600 without knowing if you can succeed and you aren’t required to sell a minimum of products to stay eligible for commissions.
I learned how to do affiliate marketing with the help of a step-by-step beginners course on an affiliate marketing training platform called Wealthy Affiliate.
Interested in doing the same? Learn more about the training platform and try out their FREE starters course.
If you have experience with MLM companies like Matilda Jane leave a comment.
I’d love to hear what you think about it.
That’s all for today.
See you at my next post!
