Welcome to our Plexus Review!
Has someone just introduced you to a fancy pink drink from Plexus that can help you lose weight? They may have also told you that you could make a living selling them too.
But you are doing a bit of research because it all sounds too good to be true, or that it may even be a Pyramid scheme?
First off, it is great to see that you are doing your research before buying into a “seemingly good” product.
It is the best way to avoid scams and find the legitimate way to make money online!
To be completely transparent with you, we are not associated with Plexus in any form.
So, relax. We are not here to pitch or sell you anything. We are just here to provide you with an honest 3rd party review of Plexus.
There are many question marks around Plexus. But we will answer them all, including whether Plexus is a scam… or is Plexus a Pyramid Scheme.
Find out all you need to know in our Plexus review. Starting with a quick product overview.
Plexus Worldwide Review Summary
Product Name: Plexus Worldwide
Founder: Tarl Robinson, in 2006
Product Type: Weight Loss & Dieting MLM Company
Price: $39,95 annual fee + $99-$199 welcome pack + $100/month autoship
Best For: The Owners
Pros
- Established Business
Cons
- FTC Warnings About Coronavirus Claims
- Numerous Side Effects
- Distributors Only Interested in Making Sales
- Customer Complaints
- Unsubstantiated Health Claims
- Deceptive Income Claims
- Exceptionally Low Success Rate
- Monthly Autoship
Summary: Plexus is a health and wellness MLM company. Although the company seems to be doing well financially, their products, customer service, and business opportunity have received so many complaints that it begs to question as to why the company is not doing more to dispel all the negative hype about this company.
Distributors are making such a low amount (proof included) that they are even resorting to lying to make a sale.
All in all, we think this is one of the worst MLM companies in the health and wellness sector.
Rating: 10/100
Recommended? No
Table of Contents
What is Plexus?
Plexus Worldwide or Plexus Global is an MLM or Multi-Level Marketing company selling weight loss and nutritional products. It was founded in 2006 by a Tarl Robinson and it is based in Arizona.
Being an MLM, instead of spending money on advertisements and marketing, they allow people to sign up as distributors to sell the products for them. They get a commission for sales and for when they recruit other distributors too.
The MLM business model has a lot of problems with it, in which we will explain later on, but most people do end up losing money.
Most MLM’s do not last more than a few years, so the fact that Plexus is still around after 14 years is a positive one.
Having said that, Plexus has not escaped the glare of controversy in that time. There are many complaints about them, and even the FDA have warned Plexus about some of their health claims made on their website calling them out to be false.
And in June 2020, The FTC send a warning to 16 MLM companies about Coronavirus Fraud including Melaleuca, Isagenix, Youngevity, and Plexus. You can read more about that here.
But the short story is that they or their distributors have been claiming their products and can prevent or cure Coronavirus and how people could make up for loss of earnings through becoming a distributor.
This brings into question the ethics of both the company and their distributors.
Plexus is a controversial company, and this latest thing is just another reason why they do not do themselves any favours. As they are a Network Marketing company, there are two main aspects to their business:
- Their unique and controversial products
- Their business opportunity to make money.
We are going to look at their product line first.
Plexus Product Line
There are five main categories in their product line:
- Weight Management – Powders and supplements to control your diet
- Nutrition – All sorts of supplements for different purposes to boost your health
- Skincare – They offer a line of skincare products known as “Joyome”. Their two main products are “Day Serum” and “Night Repair”
- Personal Care – Body cream and breast check kit
- Combos – these are combination bundles of various product for different purposes, for example – hunger control and family package.
But their main focus is really on weight loss and all the other products are just there for the sake of having other products for people to see.
Their flagship product is their “Pink Drink”.
It is called that because, as you can see from the picture, it is pink! But the actual name of the product is called “Plexus Slim”. It is basically a powder mix for you to take before meals and it serves the purpose of controlling your hunger. It is supposed to suppress your appetite.
I know, you may be a little sceptical, and to be honest, you are not alone. There are many people who aren’t convinced, especially as there is a lack of evidence to prove their claims.
It is the same thing with many MLM’s, they claim their products are all clinical tested but there is no official proof given. This makes it really suspicious.
They could just be doing the tests themselves and publishing the data, but none of these tests are done independently. Therefore, it is highly unlikely the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) have signed these products off.
To figure out where it is really safe, you need to know what is inside that powder. The main ingredients include:
- Green coffee bean extract
- Garcinia Cambogia
- Alpha Iopic acid
- Chromium
- Flavourings, sweetener and colour agents (RED FLAG!)
- Beet extract (for the pink colour)
We do not consider ourselves health experts, so we cant give you much of an opinion on the ingredients. However, our research has shown there are lots of problems with these ingredients.
What is even worse, is that there are many people who have reported serious side effects after using this product. Which we will reveal to you shortly.
How to Make Money with Plexus
As Plexus is an MLM business, there are the usual two ways for you to make money, which are:
- Sell their products and earn retail commissions
- Recruit people to join your downline and build the business with you
But before you can do that, there are a few requirements you will need to meet…
Getting Started with Plexus
To get started with Plexus, you first need to a $34.95 sign-up fee. This entitles you to become an “Associate” of Plexus.
But unlike many other MLM companies, Plexus Associates CANNOT promote their products to earn commission. You have to buy the products at wholesale prices and then sell them on at retail prices.
If you want to run this as a business and make money, you need to purchase additional product packages that are priced at either $99 or $199.
Once you have purchased one of these packs, you are then considered an “Ambassador” of Plexus and you can start selling and recruiting people.
But the requirements do not stop there…
To remain active and therefore qualify for commissions, you still need to incur a $100/month autoship. This means you will be expected to buy at least $100 worth of products every month to remain qualified. This is pretty common to MLM’s.
But you have to be mindful that you need to be selling more than you are buying to ensure you don’t end up in tons of debt and a garage full of stock that you cannot shift.
If you are only selling $10 worth of stock and yet spending $100 every month, you will soon end up with no money.
Here is a list of the Different Packs you can get started with:
- Tri-Plex Welcome Pack – $133.95
- Double Tri-Plex Welcome Pack – $233.95
- Slim & Accelerator+ Welcome Pack – $133.95
- Double Slim & Accelerator Welcome Pack – $233.95
- Slim & Boost Welcome Pack – $133.95
- Business Booster Welcome Pack – $233.95
- Slim & X Welcome Pack – $133.95
P.S. This program that has enabled us to generate a 4-Figure Monthly Passive Income is FREE to Get Started and only costs $49/month fee to go full-time!
Plexus Compensation Plan Explained...
MLM’s are well-known for have very complicated compensation plans. If you are unfamiliar with MLM jargon, then it is going to be really hard for you to understand how to make money with Plexus. If you want to read the full plan, then click here.
Otherwise, we have broken it down to include the most important things you need to know.
Basically, there are 11 ways for you to make money with Plexus:
- Retail Rewards Commission – Buy products at wholesale prices and then sell them at retail prices to earn the difference.
- Retail Rewards Override Commission – Additional 5% override commission from the sales volume of your Level 1 downline Ambassadors
- Preferred Customer Bonus – Commissions earned when your customers join as Associates (Preferred Customers) and purchase products
- One-Time Achievement Bonus – These are earned as you achieve certain ranks
- Fast Start Achievement Bonus – A special bonus that rewards new Ambassadors who achieve the mock rank level of Gold, Senior Gold, Ruby or Senior Ruby in their first 30 days of being a Plexus Ambassador
- Business Building Bonus – Commissions for selling the $99 or $199 Welcome Pack
- Plexus Points – bonus for helping your downline Ambassadors to reach 100PV (Sales Volume) per month
- Emerald Pool Bonus
- Sapphire Pool Bonus
- Diamond Pool Bonus
- Earn a Diamond Re-Entry Position
The last four bonuses are all for those few who manage to reach the top rank in the company. Something only a small minority are able to do.
Again, if you want to read the whole thing then please refer to their compensation plan PDF, or you can watch the video below:
Haven't Made Your First $1 Yet?
Is Plexus a Pyramid Scheme?
Let’s ensure we answer the initial question that led you here. Is Plexus a Pyramid Scheme. The important thing to know that not all MLM’s are pyramid schemes. But they don’t make it easy to differentiate between them. That is because MLM compensation plans, when referring to the recruitment side do use a structure that looks like a Pyramid.
Some people will brand all MLM’s as one, because of this recruitment structure. But it is much easier to know whether an MLM is a legit company or an illegal Pyramid Scheme.
First off, let’s cover off why people think MLM’s are Pyramid Scheme. Take a look at the image below. This represents the recruitment side of an MLM’s compensation plan structure.
As you can see, it looks like a pyramid. As you build a downline, they will be placed under you and then as they recruit, the same happens.
But it only forms part of the compensation plan for Plexus. If recruitment was the only option, the only way for you to make money, then you can normally see that it is a pyramid scheme. But as you can also make money by selling their products, and in fact there is no actual need to recruit anyone. Then we can safely say that Plexus is not a Pyramid scheme.
They have real products; you can buy them and sell them, and recruitment is an option too.
When recruitment is the only option, then you know it is a Pyramid Scheme.
But the thing you need to know is that recruitment is where the money is with the MLM business model.
You would find it extremely difficult to make this a full-time income stream without the recruitment side. But even then, it is not as easy as most of them make out.
Success is Rare at Plexus
The MLM business model is extremely flawed and this type of system produces a handful of big winners, whilst the rest of the Associates make very little money or even lose money.
More established MLM’s will usually publish an income disclosure statement where they show the percentage of people making money. Click HERE if you want to read Plexus’ income disclosure.
There are various ranks you can achieve at Plexus and these are based on your performance for both sales and recruitment.
As you can see, 82% of people never get past the first rank of Ambassador and they only make an average of $300 FOR THE YEAR!
That works out to $25 per month, but you have to remember you still need to pay $100 each month to qualify for those commissions. So, you could say 82% of their ambassadors lose $75 every month based on that…
The next group is their Senior Ambassador. These make up 5% of all of the people who have joined Plexus. They make on average $1707 for the year, which comes out to $142 per month. So, they are making just $42 per month.
Then we have the Silver Ambassador which makes up nearly 9% of the people at Plexus. This group makes $3778 for the year and this comes in at $314 per month.
When you break it down, 96% of people who join Plexus make less than $11 per day and the majority make less than $1 per day.
That is why we say success is really rare. Does this sound like a business you want to get involved in? Of course not.
If you want to learn a better way to make money online or from home, click HERE!
Tired of MLMs? See Our Top Recommended Method Here!
What We Liked About Plexus
Here is what we liked about Plexus:
#1 Established Business
There are many examples of MLM’s that do not manage to stick around for a long time, with some just disappearing overnight without warning. This means that people can lose their income and any money they have invested overnight too.
Plexus has been around a long time and doesn’t look like it is going anywhere.
What We Didn't Like About Plexus
Here is what we didn’t like about Plexus:
#1 FTC Issues Warning for Coronavirus Claims
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has issued a warning to 16 MLM companies about Coronavirus Fraud, including Plexus over claims made by their representatives on social media. Examples include where their distributors are claiming Plexus products can treat or prevent Coronavirus and claims made about their earnings and that people who have lost their income could do the same.
Whilst this isn’t aimed at their company, it is what their distributors are doing. It seems many MLM companies pressure their distributors to make sales, so they resort to methods like this to try and make some money.
MLM business opportunities are really difficult and they are high-pressured sales environments, and this is what it can do to distributors…
#2 Numerous Side Effects
Despite claims that Plexus products have been clinically tested, there are still a lot of problems because they do not have any proof to show.
But there is real evidence of side effects. Numerous customers have experienced side effects after consuming Plexus products. These include:
- Heartburn
- Upset Stomach
- Abdominal Pain
- Nervousness
- Anxiety
- Nausea
- Constant Headache
- Dizziness
- Dull Chest Pain
- Stomach Pains
- Constipation
- Shakiness
- Increases Heart Rate
Here is one example of someone who has tried their products before:
This person was experienced severe abdominal pains and their doctor actually told them to stop taking the Plexus pink drink.
You might think that this is a one-off, but I can assure you that this is not the case. There are many people who are complaining about their health being affected after using Plexus products. This is just one example of many.
#3 Distributors Only Interested in Making Sales
Another concern we have is that their distributors (or Ambassadors) are somewhat brainwashed.
They are more interested in making sales than anything else.
For example, if their customer complains to them that they have severe abdominal paid, they will tell them that it is a normal reaction and everything will be fine, things like that.
#4 Loads of Customer Complaints
Plexus has over 600 customer complaints to date on the Better Business Bureau (BBB). Most of them are about billing issues and poor products and services.
There are examples such as customers that are unable to cancel their autoship and Plexus have just kept charging them money.
We also found examples where Plexus didn’t honour their refund policy. The customers just couldn’t seem to get hold of their customer.
There are also two sides to any company review, but when you have a look at the numbers, there is definitely a negative side to this company with not much to give it a positive view:
658 total customer complaints and 114 negative reviews. Only 67 positive reviews. It just shows there is definitely a problem with Plexus…
#5 Unsubstantiated Health Claims
Tarl Robinson, founder of Plexus, has received a warning letter from the FDA for making false claims on the Plexus website and illegally marketing their products as drugs saying that Plexus supplements can treat medical conditions.
He claims that their supplements can cure eczema, arthritis, chronic pain and even auto-immune diseases. (See the proof here)
It is just a way of making people believe their claims, when they have no foundation in science. They also don’t relate to their core message of their supplements helping with weight loss.
These things happen often with low quality Health & Wellness MLM companies. Another example includes LifeVantage, who also received a warning letter from the FDA for a similar issue.
#6 Deceptive Income Claims
This one relates to the first one, but other than their unsubstantiated health claims, their distributors are also making bold claims about their income. They are claiming that they are living luxurious lifestyles and using deceptive income claims to get people to join their business. (See the proof here).
These acts are totally unacceptable, and they are not in compliance with the FTC rules, because these income claims are not representative and are certainly not the norm.
Especially, when we consider the next point where the norm shows that MOST PEOPLE FAILED!
#7 Exceptionally Low Success Rate
This is the same problem that the majority of MLM companies have. But it is even more serious when you consider Plexus, as you can see from their income disclosure below:
Over 95% of their distributors are earning less than $3,778 per year.
82% of all their distributors are only earning $301 in a year.
So, where is that luxurious lifestyle they were talking about?!
Only 1% of their distributors are living that kind of lifestyle. The very few that are at the top of the pyramid.
We are not saying it is impossible for you to make money with Plexus, we are just trying to highlight how very difficult it will be to make a full-time income with them.
Tired of MLM? Check Out Our #1 Recommendation HERE!
#8 Monthly Autoship
On top of the really low-income potential shown in their income disclosure, you also have to factor in that you still need to spend $100 or more a month with their autoship.
Consider if you do make $301 in a year like 82% of their distributors do. You will have spent over $1200 on products in that same year.
That means you will have spent $899 more than you made?!
#9 Will Have to Bother Friends & Family
This is the one that many do not consider when they sign up with an MLM. But MLM still relies on traditional methods of selling products. Namely, you will need to sell these products to people you know until you can build up a network of other people to buy products from too.
This means you first customers will most likely be your friends and family.
Many close relationships have been ruined because of an MLM. They do not want to be brought into schemes like this, and they will only buy products to keep you quiet.
But if they are the ones that suffer from one of these side effects or are left out of pocket because they are not selling anything, just like you. They will start to blame you.
73% of people who join an MLM lose money. 65% quit because they feel it is too awkward selling to friends and family.
You have to really consider what you current network is like before joining any MLM. But with Plexus, I think it is definitely one you need to give a miss too.
Haven't Made Your First $1 Yet?
Is Plexus A Scam?
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No, Plexus is not a scam. Their recruitment model does resemble a pyramid scheme, but as we covered earlier, that could be said of any legit MLM.
Whilst it is not a scam, Plexus is definitely a pretty bad MLM company in the health and wellness market and I think we have covered off why in our review.
If you want to make money with Plexus, you are going to find many obstacles in your way. The products for a start have too many complaints about them, and you have to remember you need to sell these on to make any money.
There are only a few that are making the kind of money they are claiming is possible, and the vast majority are spending a lot more than there are ever making.
In short, this is not a great opportunity and there are much better opportunities out there.
How We Make Money Online
We are not a fan of MLM, not because it is illegal or that it isn’t profitable, but because it is really restrictive, and the expensive costs involved.
That is why we recommend Affiliate Marketing. It is our top recommended business model for anyone wanting to make money online.
The reasons are simple…
- You don’t have to recruit anyone to make money
- You have the freedom to promote any products or services you want and not get restricted by only promoting products from one MLM company
- NO face-to-face Selling is involved
- It is FREE to get started
In fact, with affiliate marketing we are close to earning a 4-figure monthly passive income stream. With the right help and guidance, you can too. Click HERE to find out about our top recommended training platform for learning affiliate marketing:
Thanks for reading our Plexus Review. If you have any questions or comments, then please write them in the comments section below. We would love to hear from you and will respond as soon as we can. 😉
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Plexus
$34.95 + $99/$199 + $100/MONTHLY AUTOSHIP
Pros
- Established Business
Cons
- FTC Issues Warning for Coronavirus Claims
- Numerous Side Effects, Unsubstantiated Health Claims
- Loads of Customer Complaints, Deceptive Income Claims
- Exceptionally Low Success Rate
- Monthly Autoship
A great detailed article in reference to Plexus.
You have so much content in here which was really easy to read and understand.
What is interesting is that I was approached by somebody through messenger who was introducing me to these products but the way they did it I did not like. Reading this article has made me grateful that I took it no further than that.
I really like the way you have mentioned about the warnings from the FTC as I think this is something important that people should know. I did not when I first heard about them.
You have done so much research which will make it easy for people to make an educated decision about this company.
Thank you
Hi Imelda,
thanks for checking out our review. The problem with MLM is the extreme difficulty for distributors, who are relying on outdated marketing methods. So they end up resorting to sales techniques that often push people away rather than getting them interested.
But the warnings from the FTC should be a huge RED FLAG to avoid this MLM!! Anyone who is intrigued, but does some research will find these and end up not buying the stuff, making it even harder for distributors.
MLM is not a great business model, as it is relying on those outdated sales/recruitment methods. But with poor quality products like this, you can understand why.
Thanks again for checking out our review
John
Hello there! this is an amazing review you have got here, I’m sure the quality information in this post will be of great help to anyone who come across as it is to me. For me, I don’t think making money will be profitable because anyone who buys a product from you the first time and complain about, wont come back again.
I still prefer wealthy affiliate to all these numerous make money platforms.
Hey Joy,
thanks for checking out our review. Any of these products that lack clinical test results are going to end up having different results for people. It is like MLM’s want to cut corners. They offer health products, but do not get them properly tested. Either to save money, or because they know they wouldn’t pass the test.
Everyone is different and will have different results, but you do need to careful with what you consume. There is nothing worse than finding out you have an issue, when you end up in hospital.
It is such a gamble as a business opportunity, because of the issues with the products. Let alone the usual problems with MLM.
We prefer to take the guesswork out and promote proven products via affiliate marketing. A much better success rate and Wealthy Affiliate can help people achieve success with it.
All the best
John