I wanted to get involved with Ashmax originally but I kept hearing a lot of negative things and now that I've found this forum I've really found some very helpful information about MLMs in general. I thought that these companies were much more legit than they appear. I thought that a person was really only limited by the amount of effort they were willing to put into it. Now it seems you really have to be careful, super careful what you get involved with. I just read a post about TVI Express and it really bothered me a great deal, I had received some emails from someone representing them and my fiance and I actually considered it before considering Ashmax. Thank goodness for the Internet or we might not know anything about these wolves in sheep's clothing.

I've made the decision to try out Tastefully Simple :) (yay! I actually made a decision), mostly because I am most definitely into cooking and I have been unable to find any negative press attached to this company or its products. In all the Google terms I have entered, Tastefully Simple Scam brings up the least results, and when you do find them, they seem to point to people that either didn't try very hard to make it work, or are completely clueless as to the definition of a scam. Sometimes we accept challenges we really aren't ready for, or try half-heartedly to achieve, and then end up bitter in the end and blame everyone under the sun accept ourselves. That's where I find the few Tastefully Simple Scam posts that exist to represent. I'm a bit tougher than that, and even with school in the mix, I am a pretty aggressive girl!

I don't feel I can go wrong with Tastefully simple, and here is why:

I love the products... :) Tastefully Simple has like a gazillion gourmet foods and recipes, like soups, dressing mixes, sauces, and all kinds of stuff. They have cook books and even some already made food products like appetizers, desserts, dip mixes, spices, jams, beer bread mix, and just about everything else. It seems so much more interesting to me than communication services, exercise shakes and vitamin pills. One of the other things I love is it basically guarantees I have a lot less shopping to do on the holidays for my mom, and soon to be hubby's mom and sister. I hate shopping, I have little time for it, and to be honest, money is always short and we live pretty comfortably but I need to find a more efficient way to help pay bills, something that can grow and become lucrative.

I definitely feel confident that I can hold product parties, and most of my friends have been married awhile and are a bit bored since some of them let careers go to have little ones, this would be perfect for them. The web site says it will cost anywhere between $89.00 for the "Just a Taste" kit, or $170.00 for "The Business Blast Off" kit. I think I'm going to go with the business blast off because I have the money to put down and I really am confident that I can do this, especially for %30 commission.

My question to all of you is, do you think its worth it? Is there anything I need to know that I can't find on Google that needs to be considered before I give them $170? I am excited yes, but I don't want to be making some major blunder by missing something I really need to know. I am not expecting to get rich, but I would be really thrilled if I could even pay half the bills by doing this. Tastefully Simple isn't a scam.......right?

Opinions?

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Well Hi there Irataages, I can't comment on the business plan with any particulars, but my wife and I have a family friend who is involved with Tastefully Simple and she has never had a single complaint. I can tell you that she has a recipe she uses from them for chili that is just smack it up mmmmm good, and when she whips it up we finish off that whole pot. It is out of this world delicious. If you haven't been involved with MLM companies before, then don't you worry, from the sounds of it you have done your homework, and if I wasn't already involved with Isagenix, I would not think twice of giving Tastefully Simple a try.

It takes some dedication, and you need to know that your product is good, and that you yourself are willing to use it, which you seem to be so I say go for it girl! Get out there and get them dollars, and while you're at it, you can send me some free samples of the treats you'll be cooking at your gatherings...yum!

Simmer down Tiller, you don't need to be messing up all that success with too much Tastefully fattening chilli lol.

Just kidding bro.

Here is one plan I can actually promote, if you want to call it that. My best friend's mother has been involved with Tastefully Simple for a couple years now and in that short time she actually makes more money than his dad, who was basically the breadwinner previously. I'm all about organic foods so I can't say I promote the products, but I'd be straight up lying if I said it doesn't taste good...(watch out Jacob).....

Alot of  the prepared foods are loaded with preservatives, and some of the recipes call for pre-made common items I'd never use to cook with, but from a distributor viewpoint, you can't go wrong with becoming a consultant. She really doesn't do much to sell it aside from make the rounds with her friends and she has no problem getting stuff ordered and sold. She has a utensil and a cookbook for every single possible type of food on earth, and she gives the stuff away as gifts as well.

The company is pretty tight on keeping images and logos off of sites that haven't established legal rights to use, I'm not sure why, but it makes it difficult for critics to talk about them and use any visuals at all. Some people think the food is bad, or "simple"..(no joke, I meant that literally.) but I am pretty tough on non-organic or GMO foods and its slammin as far as taste goes.

If you are half as driven as you sound, I think you will have no problem getting this thing going. Best of luck to you irataages.

Hello fellow posters,

Tastefully Simple definitely seems like a very interesting opportunity and the product line looks fantastic. Gee wiz if only they could combine Tastefully Simple and Tupperware I think I would be in heaven. :P

So Irataages, I noticed you suggested that you're not very familiar with how MLM sales work, so here is what I've learned having a decade or so of experience. Its very important, probably the most important thing I can suggest, is consistency. If you are trying different methods to increase the reach of your sales network, stick with them long enough to know for sure that they work or not. Real success isn't like an infomercial, there are rarely any overnight profit explosions in the real world. If you use a web site, maintain it, update, add content, freshen your pitch, interact on it if possible and make sure your layout is professional and "secure" in appearance.

My daughter tried to do this and she fell flat on her face because she was never consistent, in fact in some cases she had people calling her up because they were tired of waiting for her to deliver product which she was willing to do, but procrastinated. Live the life of a good appearance, "good" as in professional, presentable, speak clearly and confidently but don't push too hard, and the biggest thing in trying to recruit more distributors, LISTEN!!..

Personalize yourself with their needs, and especially their concerns, don't come across as though you are going to teach them to "sell ice to Eskimos" so to speak. Believe in your product, and make sure they do to. You're going to become a professional motivator you know, you're going to motivate people to buy, and motivate them to sell. Immediately spread what you learn to your down line, teach them what works as fast as you learn it. They are an extension of you, and the more you love and nurture yourself so to speak, the healthier the entire network will be, and the more money you will all make.

You already have a fantastic ally in the form of your network being mostly women. Excellent! Now you can appeal on a very personal level and show them all the things about your product base that you love. I don't want to go on any more of a sales rant, but I really like your attitude and I think you're going to do fantastically well!

I like the Tastefully Simple compensation plan, and in any MLM your motivation will be that much more sustainable when you really stand behind the product, and if your sales prospects including recruits see the genuine honesty in you, they will definitely join you in becoming involved.

I hope you stick with it Irataages, and if I can help in any way please let me know.

PS.. If I join Tastefully Simple, I'm going to sign up through you!

Aww, you guys are so sweet!

I did it, and joined Tastefully Simple yippie!I really appreciate all the responses so much, and you have all really made me smile, thanks guys.

Jacob Tiller, I'd be more than happy to have you over for dinner so long as you don't mind a small apartment, and my 3 cats, they make a LOT of noise chasing each other lol.

Thank you for wishing me luck Rick, I'll need it because I have some totally busy days ahead.

Linda, thank you SO much for your pep talk, in your post alone I got a ton of ideas and insight to apply toward making this work, and my fiance even said he had some friends I could pitch to and that they would probably know even more people I could use. A close friend of ours owns a skating rink and said I can use it to hold super large Tastefully Simple events when I get big enough, and even hang some flyers there, which is totally awesome.

The girl I spoke to with Tastefully simple was just awesome, really nice and very informed about the products. She told me everything I needed to know and explained the compensation plan to me and it sounds excellent for me. I really believe this just might be the key for me and Craig to reach our goals. The representative told me that Tastefully Simple was one of the top 500 fastest growing private companies in the country, and I didn't know that.

It was a pretty easy process signing up, I called them and not even a day later Kendra showed up and did a small demo for me and Craig, she hooked me up with her site, and I filled out the registration. I will admit I was a bit nervous spending $170 to sign up but I really got excited thinking about how many people I actually have access to.

She told me about the commissions, discounts, vacation packages, and just how fun the parties are in general, so I'm pretty souped up!

Linda, I'll PM you my email if you would like to be my first girl, I'm honored!

This was a really great thread, I enjoyed it alot, just read it from top to bottom and I have to agree, Tastefully Simple seems like its a good company for the right kind of person. Not a bad price for start up either, and of course if you are a man or a woman who really appreciates food, recipes, and other related things, then company product discounts are ideal for you. One of my first "serious" jobs was managing a Lowe's Home Improvement store, and as tired as it made me, I always appreciated the products because I love to build stuff. Typical of most guys but that kind of dynamic helps a great deal in staying motivated while working for a company like this.

I truly hope you succeed Irataages, it seems like you really like the products. Also, you're in a really valuable place for a lot of the posters on this forum in that we get a first-hand account of how you felt starting up, how the process went, and how successful you are. Please let us know in as much detail as you can; how you make out. I'm sure many of us would appreciate the jumpstart in your success as an inspiration.

Hi Wallace,

Tastefully Simple IS a great company.  I joined as a consultant in July and absolutely love it.   I was priveledged to go to National Conference in August (which was held in Minneapolis) and was totally impressed with the way they treat their consultants.  As a new consultant I was welcomed with open arms.  I hadn't hardly had time to finish my first party before going to National Conference and yet so many people were willing to offer any kind of assistance I needed in learning the ropes.  The "Law of Abundancy" which is part of the Tastefully Simple motto is truly practiced and what I have found out is that there is more than enough to go around.  I'm getting busy during the holiday season and am looking for help to grow my business and team.  I've been part of direct sales companies that didn't offer near as much as Tastefully Simple does.  I feel that one of the greatest gifts the company gives is their FREE training.  Once I started building my team, I get a call every other work to help me progress and become a better person.

Also, no complaints on the product.  And no personal complaints.  If someone was looking for a direct sales opportunity, this would be the place to go.  Since I am new to the community, if anyone was interested in knowing more about the company, I would be happy to answer their questions.  When I first joined, I had questions, now I recognize that what I did was make the best decision of my life.