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I'm a newly SAHM who would like to earn a bit of extra spending money. I met a woman who is a consultant for Usborne books and am interested in selling them myself. My husband (the cynical lawyer that he is) is concerned that its a scam. Does any one have any feedback about experiences with this company? I sure would appreciate it.
Thanks,
Tracy
I know several people who do this, and it seems legit. I've considered it myself, but haven't pursued it so far.
Don't know about the company but the books are great. I didn't know they sold them in the states. I've always bought mine in HK.
I know a lot of people that do it and it seems legit.
It is legit.
~ deb
DS born at home 12/03
Breastfeeding After Reduction is possible! www.bfar.org
http://www.bfar.org/members/fora/sty...onths-bfar.jpg
It's a multi-level marketing company that sells products like many others... Tupperware, Pampered Chef, Herbalife, Avon, Creative Memories, etc. I suspect, also like most of those companies, the vast majority of people who do the business do it because they like the products and make a little bit of extra cash. Only a few will be top sellers that can make it their livelihood. It doesn't sound like you need it to be that, so it might be worth pursuing. I agree; I like the books.
>It's a multi-level marketing company that sells products like
>many others... Tupperware, Pampered Chef, Herbalife, Avon,
>Creative Memories, etc.
Actually, these companies are not multi-level marketing. They are considered network marketing companies. There is a difference.
~ deb
DS born at home 12/03
Breastfeeding After Reduction is possible! www.bfar.org
http://www.bfar.org/members/fora/sty...onths-bfar.jpg
It is not a scam. The books are really good and very cute. I see their books at the library and regular book stores, like Barnes and Noble or amazon.com. I've bought some from a friend online, as well as from a friend of a friend at a book "show" at her house. The books do sell themselves, but I imagine you would constantly need to be able to find new groups of people to sell to in order to make a profit.
Could you clarify what the difference is? I am not at all trying to be antagonistic, but am interested in what the perception is because if there is a difference, it is important to be accurate in what I do. I used to represent one of the aforementioned companies and had to read all kinds of literature from the various networking publications. I, and the people I dealt with daily including at the company, never made a distinction.
DD loves loves LOVE hser Usborne Books, particularly the Complete Book of First Experiences.
http://www.amazon.ca/Complete-Book-F...e=UTF8&s=books
She loves hunting for the "sneaky duck" on the pages!
Melissa
DD#1: 04/2004
DD#2: c/s 01/2007
In multi-level marketing, if someone signs up under you, you get a large on-time cash bonus and not much else. If that recruit fails or succeeds, you don't care, because you got your money and you won't get much else.
In network marketing, if someone signs up under you, there is no big cash bonus. Some companies may provide something small (my company gives me 25 catalogs). What you care about is the success of that recruit. If the recruit fails, you get nothing. If the recruit succeeds, then you are awarded with commission overrides and other bonuses.
In MLM, you just sign people up. In Network Marketing, you help them succeed.
I am not familiar with Usborne's policies, but I know that several of the others you mentioned work more in the network marketing concept.
~ deb
DS born at home 12/03
Breastfeeding After Reduction is possible! www.bfar.org
http://www.bfar.org/members/fora/sty...onths-bfar.jpg
Don't know about the earning part but DS preschool just had a book fair and we love the ones we got, very educational!
Thanks for the clarification! You are absolutely right that the company I did work for follows more of the network marketing method down to the use of the word "override."
Haven't worked for them, but have lots of the books and love them! I think it's really just like any other home show business and is fairly well known.
I just attended an Uborne Book party and bought DD a bunch of books for the holidays. They are adorable! Seems legit to me.
Hi Tracy. I've been an Usborne consultant for about two months. Yes, we are a legitimate company. A networking marketing one as Deb mentioned and the leading supplier of children's educational books. The books do sell themselves as others have mentioned. However, you've got to work to get them in front of people. Free free to contact me privately if you'd like.
Gina
I don't know about the buying/selling of the books, but the school I used to teach in uses the Usborne series in our Litteracy Collaborative program.
They were very good for teaching reading skills, and I plan to get them for DD when the time comes.
HTH,
Molly
I've never heard of Usborn Books. Can you tell me more about them?
>I've never heard of Usborn Books. Can you tell me more about
>them?
Candy,
Usborne Books is a British Company (www.usborne.com). Educational Development Corporation (EDC) has the rights to distribute/publish Usborne Books in the US. EDC has a publishing division and a home business division. The publishing division sells books to retail outlets. The home business division has the independent consultants who do home shows and book fairs. This division also has educational consultants who sell to libraries and schools. You can find out more by visiting the EDC website (www.edcpub.com).
Gina
Thanks to everyone for their feedback. I've decided to go for it. Hopefully, I will be able to earn a little pocketmoney while earning free books.
Thanks,
Tracy
wondering if you went for it and how did the usborne experience go for you
It is legit! I know a few people that does this and we love the books.
It's legit. I am an Usborne books consultant. I'm not that active right now b/c I've been so busy with my kids (and they are not school aged yet), but I will say that the company is well run and professional. They treat their consultants well and the product is fantastic. The books really do sell themselves and once you get more familiar with your product, it's very easy to help clients figure out which books would suit their childrens' needs.
With that being said, if you live in an area, like where I live, and ppl aren't very literate, nor do they really care to buy a high quality product (ie: those who would prefer to just to go walmart to get a book with Dora the Explorer splattered all over it), it can be difficult to get your business up and going. I kind of ran into this problem, although I did have a niche group of clientele that would keep coming back to me. I haven't put much effort into getting new clients, so right now I only put in a couple of orders a yr when ppl contact me and are interested. I know many consultants who are very successful, but they live in areas with a population that appreciate books and one that isn't as rural as where I live and they also do things like hold book fairs for schools, conferences, train shows, etc.. As with any other business, your success often depends with how much work you put into it. Overall though, I have nothing but positive things to say about the company. They really try to help you to succeed and the training that you get is very good.
When my kids start school full time, I may consider doing more with my Usborne business again. Oh and of course the benefit to being a consultant is that you can get awesome books for your own family for a discount. I am a book addict, which is what drew me to Usborne to begin with, my children love the books and can't get enough. They are very nicely done, educational, there are no commercial cartoon characters (ever noticed that the Scholastic book sales are splattered with tv cartoon characters?), the books are high quality, printed on very nice paper with a selection of bindings AND if you buy your books from a consultant, we also offer a 1/2 price replacement guarantee if something happens to one of your books (ie: kids drop it in the toilet, etc), we will replace your book for half price. I have never been too keen on hostess parties until I discovered Usborne books, it's perfect for those who value books and promoting literacy to their children. I also feel that since the books come in a variety of prices, it is an affordable, "home" party type of product. Some home parties, the products are just so expensive, I think it really limits your clientele.
OK, sorry for sounding like a commercial. If any of you have any questions, feel free to post here or feel free to PM me and I will try to answer them. I did a lot of research before I signed with Usborne and was very surprised with how happy their consultants are with the company. If you watch carefully, they have different priced bundles for new consultants every month. I recommend getting in cheap (I think I signed up during a month when the consultant pkg was less than $30), but I believe Jan and Feb is when they have their big pkg for 1/2 price. If you would like to get a large sample of books, instead of trying to build up your display samples on your own, then this is the time to sign up. They only offer this special in Jan and Feb or if you can find a brand new consultant, if you sign under them during their orientation period, they can also offer you that deal. Otherwise, the monthly sign up kits are usually smaller bundles, but IMO very affordable.