What exactly is a pyramid scheme?
153315
A pyramid scheme is a non-sustainable business model that involves the exchange of money primarily for enrolling other people into the scheme, usually without any product or service being delivered. Pyramid schemes have existed for at least a century. In addition, other methods of conducting business known as multi-level marketing (MLM) and as "matrix schemes" often closely resemble pyramid schemes (although unlike pyramid schemes, which are almost always frauds, MLM and matrix schemes are in many cases regarded — at least legally — as legitimate business methods).\n\nMost pyramid schemes are attempts to confuse potential consumers into complicated but convincingly fool-proof money making scams. The essential idea behind each scam is that the individual only makes one payment, but somehow they are promised to receive exponential benefits from other people as a reward. A common example might be that a victim is enticed with an offer that, for a fee, allows them to sell the same offer to other people. Each sale includes a fee to the original seller. Clearly, the fundamental flaw is that there is no end benefit; the money simply travels up the chain, and only the originator wins in swindling his followers. Furthermore, the people in the worst situation are the ones at the bottom of the pyramid: those who subscribed to the plan, but were not able to accrue any followers themselves. To embellish the act, most such scams will have fake referrals, testimonials, and information.\n\nAlthough pyramid schemes have been declared illegal in many countries, they still persist in various forms.
486217
OK. \nMLM = Multi level Marketing.\nYou have six bees. Keep them till they have children of their own. Then you give these children to 3 of your friends, who'll do the same like you did. And so on, and on, and on...\nAnd one day, you'll be rich.
511495
Agree with above answer.  Avoid anything that promises quick or easy money.  If it were true, then everyone would do it, and the money would be gone.\n\nA lot of businesses make their money by getting a lot of people to send some money in to get started.  Once they start, they find that the money isn't there.\n\nMany scams are based on a pyramid scheme where the early birds are sitting on top of the pyramid and do make money.  The majority of the people get in too late and don't make any money.\n\nSo just because some people made money doing something doesn't mean you'll make money doing the same thing.
416404
Pyramids are illegal and network marketing is a great way to do business.\n\nPyramids... are generally set up so that there is more emphasis on the business opportunity, training and seminars, $$$ for the "Upline". Usually the only people who make any $$$ are those who got in first.... those on the bottom do most of the work with very little returns for their efforts. (AND one can't say this often enough...THEY ARE ILLEGAL!!!!!)\n\nNetworkmarketing on the other hand: We are  all networking... we have always done it from the time we could talk.  If Sally asked you where you got your lunch box, you advertised for K-mart or where ever mom and dad bought it for you.  As adults we refer people to every profession:  doctors, mechanics, hair salons... or even refer people to a particular STORE like Target or the Macy's THEN tell them which PRODUCT to buy which could come from Proctor and Gamble or Microsoft.  We will never stop networking, it's a part of life.\n\nHope this helps
171445
One answer appears in the Book "I am Me I am Free" By David Icke..\nthe short version is:\nIt is a Pyramid of Manipulation where only a few "Elite" are at the control tower (so to speak) and manipulate things so as to stay in control..we the people are at the bottom and will never rise to the top because they have forces not to be reckoned with..\nIt's really fasinating and I recommend it for anyone who wants to try and escape the Matrix (so to speak)\nAnyone who doesn't believe that is delusional.\nNote to the elite: Only educating not trying to overthrow you...please don't kill me I am harmless really!
332890
Tahitian Noni International follows the foot steps of Amway and other Multi-Level-Marketing companies in their marketing hype. Some people would call it a pyramid scheme because of the levels of distributors that all get a piece of the price for the products they sell. What is unfortunate for the consumer is that they pay a premium price for a product that is cheaply made to pay the levels of distributors who make money.\n\nLike any MLM the marketing hype is questionable and you have to ask your self are they interested in helping people with their product or making money.\n\nI was shocked to see a news segment on my local CBS news station on just how Tahitian Noni International distributors are trained and how they think about their product. Once you watch the segment from the CBS web site you can make up your own mind if Tahitian Noni International is just another MLM scam.\n\nWatch the segment at:\nhttp://cbs2.com/goldstein/local_story_047223136.html
1061334
Go here and read. This is a Pyramid scheme out of India. According to what I could find, anyone participating in a scheme like this can be prosecuted by India. India doesn't believe you are a victim by investing in a scam like this.\n\nhttp://www.my-kerala.com/cgi-bin/talkshop/talkrec.cgi?submit=lt&baseurl=http://www.my-kerala.com/forum1&msg_num=13
160337
square-based pyramid=\n1 squared base\n4 triangle shaped sides\n1 point at the top of the shape\n4 more at the bottom
834212
The businesses promoted by people spamming these boards with their links appear to be mostly pyramid schemes where few people actually make any real money.\n\nThere are very, very few home based businesses that are turnkey.  Anyone promoting one to you is likely going to make money off of you and you'll make next to nothing.
204570
It's just a scheme to make money. \n*sarcasticly* Unlike other religions
842912
Pyramid Club in NYC is pretty weird.
581726
first of all, i am not involved in a multi-level business or pyramid but have seen enough to know what is going on.\n1.full commitment, you get out of it what you put in\n2.initially lots of time invested to build your client base. you will need to start by inviting relatives, friends, coworkers, too try your product or service.  once your base is developed, those people will refer their family, friends, coworkers to you.  Depending on what it is your selling or how well the company works with you could determine how much you will have to initially invest to either build inventory or do schooling and testing for licensing.\n3.to be successful with any objective, you need to devote your time to it.  i took the route of getting an education so that i could find a secure job with benefits.  it also depends on your situation.  are you married or do you have kids.  are you looking towards their best interests.  if you are not a people person, then multi-level selling is not for you.\n4. hope this helps.
949218
This will answer any questions\n\nhttp://www.sec.gov/investor/pubs/autosurf.htm\n\nIn the world of marketing, people often get compensated — with cash or free products and services— for doing fairly easy things, like sampling new ice-cream flavors, filling out surveys, or allowing a firm to monitor the television shows you watch or the websites you visit.  While some “money for nothing” opportunities may be perfectly legitimate, others can turn out to be frauds.  \n\n“Auto-surfing” is a form of online advertising that purportedly generates advertising revenue for companies that want to increase traffic to their websites.  The premise behind auto-surfing is that companies that advertise on the Internet are willing to pay to increase traffic to their web sites.  These companies hire an auto-surf firm or “host,” which in turn pays individual web surfers to view certain websites on an automatically rotating basis.  The more sites the individual visits, the more money he or she stands to earn.\n\nWhile auto-surfing may sound easy and appealing — and risk-free — there can be a hitch.  Some auto-surf programs require their surfers to pay to participate, although perhaps not initially.  When you first sign up to auto-surf, the firm might assign a limited number of sites for you to visit and pay you accordingly.  Once you’ve made a modest amount of money, the firm might encourage — or even require — you to purchase a “membership” so that you can maximize your earnings.  The program will promise high — often double or triple digit — returns on your investment in the program, often within days or weeks of joining. \n\nThe line you’ll hear is that the more you click, the more you collect.  But the reality is that any scheme that requires you to pay to participate — and promises handsome rewards in no time at all for little to no effort on your part — bears many of the hallmarks of a “Ponzi” or pyramid scheme.  These schemes look deceptively legitimate because the fraudsters behind them typically use money coming in from new recruits to pay off early stage investors.  But eventually the pyramid will collapse when it gets too big.  It’s simply not possible to “rob-Peter-to-pay-Paul" forever.  \n\nThe SEC warns investors to be wary of any sort of “get rich scheme quick” scheme — and to be especially leery of opportunities that require you to pay to play.  Before you pay a dime to make extra cash in your spare time, be sure to do a little due diligence:\n\nIf it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.  Compare promised yields with current returns on well-known stock indexes.  Any investment opportunity that claims you’ll get substantially more could be highly risky — and that means you might lose money.\n\n\nCheck out the company before you invest.  Contact the secretary of state where the company is incorporated to find out whether the company is a corporation in good standing.  Also call your state securities regulator to see whether the company, its officers, or the promoters of the opportunity have a history of complaints or fraud.  If a supposedly upright business lists only a P.O. box, you'll want to do a lot of work before sending your money!\n\n\nSteer Clear of Testimonials.  Watch out if the company’s promotional materials, contain “testimonials” from supposedly satisfied customers, especially if all the “testimonials” are full of praise.\n\n\n"Guaranteed returns" aren't.  Every investment carries some degree of risk, and the level of risk typically correlates with the return you can expect to receive.  Low risk generally means low yields, and high yields typically involve high risk.  If your money is perfectly safe, you'll most likely get a low return.  High returns represent potential rewards for folks who are willing to take big risks.  Most fraudsters spend a lot of time trying to convince investors that extremely high returns are &
454826
http://triforcegroup.unfranchise.com/ this is my business. Check it out and if you'd like to learn more e-mail me at seamus182002@yahoo.com no mlm, no inventory, no pyramid schemeing. My name is Collin.
322557
Yup, they're interesting all right. Just like many daydreams of found riches can be. \n\nPonzi schemes (named after one of the most brazen practitioners in Boston in the 1920s) depend on the next 'investor' making it possible to pay back earlier investors. There is no underlying business from the operation of which the later investors could be paid what they've been promised. For the investor, the trick is to get involved early, but late enough that sufficient suckers have been reeled in and you can get paid. Investors who miss their timing are suckers. And that's why they are illegal as 'investment vehicles' in the US and most other places. \n\nThe trick for someone starting one of these is to find a way to make it sound plausible and new, yet at the same time complex enough that it won't be immediately recognized by investors and suckers alike -- and investigators too -- as yet another scam. It helps to have set up a way to disappear without a trace when the pyramid begins to show signs of collapse. Always good to set up a patsy to take the fall, too. \n\nBut a pyramid scheme need not be consciously started and run by one or more people. it's possible for a large number of folks to fool themselves into an unsustainable pyramid scheme without much trouble. Consider, for instance, the Tulip Mania in 17th century Amsterdam. Everyone was convinced that tulip bulbs would continue to grow in value, and reports suggest that nearly everyone was involved. When the inevitable end came, the crash was unpleasant, to say the least. There was a similar boom in land values in Tokyo during the 1980s. At its peak, the total land value in Tokyo was, according to some estimates, greater than the entire value of all the land in the United States. The collapse in Japan has not been abrupt, and there are banks who are still trying to regularize their accounts even now, more than a decade after the boom began to end. \n\nThere is no end to the gullibility and culpability of man, it would seem.
184589
Before investing time and especially money on any home-based business offers you might see here, it’s a very good idea to educate yourself on the different types of schemes there are out there, and what to look for – and look out for – before picking a home-based business.  The Federal Trade Commission offers several advisories about home-based business opportunities and network marketing (MLM) schemes. Please review them before making any decisions:\n\n"Work at home Schemes" <http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/inve...>\n\n'Net Based Business Opportunities: Are Some Flop-portunities? <http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/onli...>\n\n"The Bottom Line on Multilevel Marketing Plans" <http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/aler...>
939491
Trading Schemes, Multi-level marketing, Pyramid Selling, Chain Letters, and Gifting Schemes Fact Sheet\nURN No: 05/1738\n\nSubject: Trading Schemes, Multi-level marketing, Pyramid Selling, Chain Letters, and Gifting Schemes \n\nRelevant or Related Legislation:\n\nPart XI of the Fair Trading Act, as amended by the Trading Schemes Act 1996 and the Trading Schemes Regulations 1997. The Gambling Act 2005. \n\nCurrent Position:\n\n• There are no immediate plans to review the trading schemes legislation.\n\n• There is precedent for schemes operating as chain letters being subject to the Lotteries and Amusement Act 1976.  However, under the Gambling Act 2005 (when commenced) it will be an offence for a person to invite someone to join a chain-gift scheme or for them to knowingly participate in the promotion, administration or management of a chain-gift scheme.  The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) have policy responsibility for the Gambling Act 2005. \n\nRecent Relevant Campaigns or Consultation:\n\nThe Office of Fair Trading (OFT) Scams Awareness month in February 2005 and the jointly produced booklet ‘How to Recognise a Scam’ included some relevant warnings, including: \n\n• What am I being asked to pay for?\n• Can I afford to lose the money?\n• Does it look to good to be true? (If it does, it probably is) \n\nKey Facts:\n\n• DTI has enforcement responsibility for Trading Schemes legislation and will investigate schemes which appear to be breaking the law. \n\n• Trading schemes can be a legitimate opportunity for people to operate a business from home and are not illegal in the UK.\n\n• Trading schemes become illegitimate and illegal if, while purporting to offer business opportunities, the sole purpose of the scheme is to make money by recruiting other participants, rather than trading in goods or services. This form of bogus scheme is sometimes referred to as "pyramid selling". \n\n• There are also a wide range of bogus schemes which do not claim to trade in goods or services but which are known as "pyramid schemes". Schemes operating as chain letters or games are common examples. \n\n• All these bogus schemes need an infinite supply of new participants for everyone to make money. Since the supply will always be finite, the pyramid must collapse eventually and most participants will lose their money. \n\n• All schemes where money changes hands are subject to the general criminal law on fraud, theft, and deceit and the police are responsible for enforcement of the law in these areas. \n \n For more info: http://www.dti.gov.uk/consumers/fact-sheets/page24752.html\n\ncc