MLM Blog – Network Marketing Blog

I posted some comments made by MonaVie about the Oprah, Dr. Oz MonaVie Lawsuit, here is one that stuck out to me:

The Oprah Blog:

Newsweek:

Flanked by a Ferrari, a Maserati, a Bentley, a Rolls-Royce and a Lamborghini, Dallin Larsen paced the stage, swigging deeply from a bottle in his hand. "I'll tell you what," said the tanned 49-year-old, opening his arms to the 4,000-person crowd, people are "looking for something they can count on, they can depend on, that's constant." The stirring scene would not be out of place at a megachurch revival—except Larsen's event, organized this June in Orlando, Fla., was bent on earning sales rather than salvation. The object of hope was not God but a dark purple fruit juice called MonaVie.

The rich syrupy blend of Brazilian açai (pronounced "ah-sigh-ee") berries and 18 other fruits has gained a cult following among those who say it can kill pain, disease and malnutrition. Packaged in wine bottles like the one Larsen gripped onstage, MonaVie retails for around $40 a pop and isn't available in stores. Instead, the Utah-based company tore a page from the Avon lady, enlisting regular people to sell the product to friends and family. Now MonaVie claims to be one of the world's fastest-growing private companies, with inroads on five continents, and an army of drinkers and sales apostles signing up at a rate of 10,000 a week. Earlier this year, the company announced that cumulative sales had topped $1 billion and that it had signed its millionth unsalaried sales person. "We're blessed," says Larsen, who founded the company in 2005. (As a private organization, MonaVie isn't required to publish financial data, making such claims difficult to judge.)

When your company doesn't have a unique product, your only choice is to build your business on hype, false claims and other mumbo-jumbo.

Regardless of what some may think, people are not stupid.  They will eventually find out that a product similar to MonaVie is being sold in Sam's Club for $17.24 while MonaVie product is being sold for $39. 

Introducing Frut A Vie:

Here is the price tag from Sam's Club (a division of Wal-Mart) - note the comparison to MonaVie on the shelf tag:

Finally, have a look at the back label.  I will be posting a comparison of ingredients soon:

Wal-Mart and Costco are not stupid either, gang.  Building a business based on a juice that can be copied so easily along with hype filled testimonies that many times cross the legal line into medical claims will catch up MonaVie.  The hype only lasts so long.

Update II (Ingredients):

Frut A Vie ingredients:

Proprietary blend of Acai (Freeze Dried Powder & Puree), Grape Juice, Pear Juice, Cherry Juice, Pomegranate Juice, Goji Juice (Wolfberry), Apple Juice, Cranberry Juice, Blueberry Juice, Acerola, Grape Skin Extract, Bannana, & 1140mg of Mangosteen Peel Extract. (incomplete - I am working on getting the rest of the ingredients).

MonaVie Active ingredients:

Proprietary blend of acai (freeze dried powder and puree); Fruit juice from concentrate (white grape, nashi pear, acerola, aronia, purple grape, cranberry, passion fruit, apricot, prune, kiwi, blueberry, wolfberry [goji], pomegranate, and lychee, camu camu); fruit purees (pear, banana, bilberry);d-glucosamine hydrochloride, esterified fatty acids, natural flavor, citric acid, sodium benzoate, potassium sorbate.

I also found a review of Frut A Vie on the Sam's Club site:

5 out of 5 fruit avie, 02/04/2008 By: judy This is great stuff! The acai fruit is the most healthful berry you can take and if you put a once in your smoothie it tasted great. Please bring it back!! Quality: 5 out of 5 Value: 5 out of 5

Pros: everything Cons: nothing

Gender: Female Age: 45-54 Owned product: 1-5 months Uses product: Every day Would you recommend this product to a friend?: Yes

ORAC Values:

MonaVie has an ORAC score of 1027 per oz.

Frut A Vie has an ORAC score of 3500 per oz.

An Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) score is a test tube analysis that measures the antioxidant levels of food and other chemical substances. If a food has a high ORAC score, then it means the food is high in antioxidants. The antioxidant’s strength is its ability to eliminate oxygen free radicals.

This story is just breaking...

MLM Company, MonaVie is being sued by Imagenetix Inc. for $2,750,000,000.00 (I believe that is $2.75 Billion!) in a trademark infringement lawsuit.  The scary part of this is the fact that not only is MonaVie being sued, but so are a number of top leaders, including...

Dallin Larsen, Henry Marsh, Randy Larsen, Amy Cowley, John Brigham Hart, Lita Hart, Steven Merritt, Gina Merritt, Corbin Roush, Holly Roush, Charles Kalb, Deborah Kalb, Ronald Prudhomme, Brenda Prudhomme, Edward Aristizabal, Shelly Aristizabal, Brian Cattano, Jill Cattano, Matthew Curtis, Kimberly Curtis, Tina Dupart, Todd Hartog, Angelique Hartog, Rodney Howard-Browne, Adonica Howard-Browne, Mickey Karshner, Victoria Karshner, Jason Lyons, Carrie Lyons, Angel Matos, Grayson Maule, Ken Porter, Robert Robinson, Linda Robinson, Devon Robinson, Todd Smith, Stephanie Smith, Frank Soucinek, Jr, Cynthia Soucinek, Brian Thayer, Jacqueline Thayer, Bo Vanpelt, Carrie Vanpelt, Black Diamond University Inc, Darrell Utterbach, Tracy Utterbach, Joseph Licciardi, Patrice Licciardi, Andre Walton, Penny Walton, James Bellacera, Denise Bellacera, Kelly Bangert, Jillian Bangert, Eric M Gutman, Rebekah Gutman and Does 1 - 10,000, inclusive

Apparently, MonaVie (and it's leaders) has been touting a trademarked ingredient called Celadrin without the permission of the trademark owner.

My opinion:

I have long thought that there was a "culture of overlooking" at MonaVie. The company first caught my attention because of it's associates illegal product claims like "curing cancer". So many of these crazy claims were taking place that it was obviously part of the culture within the company.

Culture and leadership are such a vital part of building a long term Network Marketing business and it appears as though MonaVie CEO, Dallin Larsen has sacrificed some of that for the sake of short term growth.

I will post more details as they roll in.

In my soon to be released book on The 5 Key Essentials In Picking A Network Marketing Company, I talk about products. Having a unique product is vital for long term success in Network Marketing.  That point apparently rubbed a MonaVie representative the wrong way.

After I offered my opinion about MonaVie, I was told that I didn't know anything and that no product compares with MonaVie in the marketplace which lead me do a little research where I found a comparison of MonaVie with a product called Perfect Acai. 

I have no affiliation with Perfect Acai (or MonaVie), but I thought the information presented was interesting:

From PowerSupplements:

How much Acai is in your product?

PERFECT ACAI™: Perfect Acai contains 1,000mg (1 gram) of 100% freeze dried Sambazon Organic Acai per serving. There are 60 servings in a bottle. Most clients do 2 servings a day, so they get 2 grams of Acai per day and 1 bottle last 30 days.

MonaVie™ Juice: Unknown. Monavie is a proprietary blend of 19 fruits and there is no way to know how much Acai is in each serving.

What is the source of your Acai?

PERFECT ACAI™: Perfect Acai exclusively uses Sambazon 100% Freeze Dried Organic Acai. Sambazon Acai is Fairly Traded. Sambazon Acai is certified organic and is a member of the Fair Trade Federation.

MonaVie™ Juice: Unknown. A review of the Monavie website and promotional material does not state where they purchase their Acai from.

What is the price per serving of your product?

PERFECT ACAI™: One serving is 2 capsules and there are 120 capsules in a bottle. One bottle is $39.95 and if you buy 3 bottles the price drops down to $29.95 a bottle. One serving of Perfect Acai will cost between 50 and 67 cents.

MonaVie™ Juice: One bottle of Monavie juice is 25.35 ounces and cost about $45. One serving is 2 ounces. The cost per serving of the Monavie juice is about $3.55.

To be fair, MonaVie has other juices plus the active version contains glucosamine.  In my research I also found dozens of comparable Acai liquid products, similar to MonaVie.  You can see these on Google.

Google has a pretty cool tool that tracks the search trends across Google's network.  It is really useful if you want to see who is hot in Network Marketing.

Below is a chart showing the Google Search trends (Quixtar is in blue, Monavie in red):

So MonaVie wins the Google Trends portion of who's hotter.  Now let's look at the Alexa rankings which tracks the popularity of a particular web site.  For this we will look at Quixtar.com vs. Monavie.com

Quixtar's Alexa ranking is 17,056 and Monavie is 69,578 (lower is better).  This is an estimate of site traffic.  So Quixtar is the clear winner in site traffic.

So, more people seem to be searching for MonaVie information, while Quixtar has more site traffic.  We know that Quixtar historically has more associates in the U.S. than any other MLM company (outside of Avon and Mary Kay), so we can conclude that much of the traffic on the Quixtar site is associates, not prospective associates...leading me to believe that MonaVie is hotter than Quixtar in today's marketplace.

For additional Google Trends Fun, here are the hottest places in the U.S. to build Quixtar and MonaVie:

Quixtar:

MonaVie:

Look what MonaVie did for this guys warts! Yummy! 

It looks like Amway and MonaVie are not the only companies who are looking to nutrient packed Acai and Acerola Cherries for antioxidants....

PLANO, Texas, Nov. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- As more people look for beverages that offer a one-two punch, Snapple's introduction of Antioxidant Water and LYTeWater takes drinking water to the next level.

The Antioxidant Water product line offers a smart solution that improves energy, helps restore the body and supports a healthy immune system for consumers who are actively taking steps to incorporate healthier behaviors into their everyday routine. For those looking to add a healthier boost to their traditional bottled water, the zero calorie Snapple LYTeWater line is enhanced with electrolytes and minerals.

"We know that consumers are looking for healthier options that include antioxidants, vitamins and electrolytes when choosing beverages," said Bryan Mazur, vice president and general manager of Snapple. "The launch of Antioxidant Water and LYTeWater provides consumers with nutrient-packed, great tasting alternatives to traditional bottled water."

Snapple Antioxidant Water features seven unique flavors inspired by nature's "superfruits," including pomegranates and acai berries. The antioxidants, vitamins and electrolytes in each flavor provide one of four distinct benefits for the body:

      -- The Power to PROTECT: Vitamins A and E, electrolytes and a complete
         dose of Vitamin C help protect the body against free radicals.
         Available in Tropical Mango and Orange Starfruit flavors.
      -- The Power to DEFY: Vitamins A and E, Grape Seed Extract, plus
         electrolytes assist in refreshing the body and mind.  Available in
         Raspberry Acerola and Grape Pomegranate flavors.
      -- The Power to AWAKEN: Vitamins A, E and B, Caffeine, Guarana, Ginseng
         and Ribose, plus electrolytes will awaken your senses.  Available in
         Strawberry Acai and Dragonfruit flavors.
      -- The Power to RESTORE: Vitamins A and E, plus a double dose of
         electrolytes assist in restoring the body after any endurance and
         strength activity.  Available in Agave Melon flavor.

The LYTeWater introduction complements the Snapple Antioxidant Water line, a mineral enhanced water with electrolytes from magnesium, manganese, calcium and zinc for premium hydration.

Snapple Antioxidant Water, available in 20-ounce single bottles for $1.39 to $1.59, and Snapple LYTeWater, available in 20 oz./6-pack packages as well as 1 Liter single serve bottles for $1.00 to $1.69 per unit, is available at major retailers, grocery and convenience stores nationwide.

    To learn more about Snapple, visit www.Snapple.com.

    About Snapple

Snapple is the leader in great-tasting premium beverages. Founded in 1972 by three childhood friends, Snapple got its start in Greenwich Village, New York and is now available throughout the United States and 80 countries worldwide. Snapple prides itself on developing, producing and marketing a wide variety of premium beverages, including ready-to-drink iced teas, juice drinks, 100% vitamin-fortified juices and water. Known for its down-to-earth approach to marketing, Snapple continues to delight fans across the world. In 2003, Snapple made history by becoming the official iced tea of New York City.

    About Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages

Snapple is a leading brand in the beverage portfolio of Plano, Texas-based Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages (CSAB), a subsidiary division of Cadbury Schweppes plc . CSAB is one of the largest producers of soft drinks and premium beverages in the Americas. CSAB's brand portfolio includes Dr Pepper, 7UP, Snapple, Accelerade, Mott's Apple Juice and Sauce, RC Cola, A&W Root Beer, Sunkist Soda, Canada Dry, Hawaiian Punch, Schweppes, Diet Rite, Clamato, Mr & Mrs T Mixers, Holland House Mixers, Rose's, Mistic, Yoo-hoo, Orangina, IBC, Stewart's, Nantucket Nectars and other well-known consumer brands. For additional information on CSAB and its products, visit www.brandspeoplelove.com.

I thought this was pretty funny.

A couple of days ago, I posted a video from a MonaVie rep. talking about how MonaVie helps him with his Lyme Disease.  The video was posted on YouTube and one of the comments said that following:

"who said there is no cure for Cancer Logon to the monavie,com and use ID # 580838 from the Enroll to get ur health better,Cancer no more"

So I posted the comment as well. (An obvious illegal claim).

Then I get the following comment from a MonaVie rep reader:

This isn't the first sensationalist comment you've made simply to draw attention to yourself. And every time I follow up, I find nothing of substance.

OK, let me get this straight.  One MonaVie rep. goes on YouTube talking about Lyme Disease (and there are dozens of other videos talking about Arthritis and other ailments) and another rep. posts their ID number saying that MonaVie is a cure for cancer, yet I am the sensationalist?

That's funny.

Quote me on this:

If MonaVie doesn't get a handle on this illegal claims, the FTC and FDA will get a handle on it  for them. That can include hefty fines, lawsuits and shutdown.

Update: The video that started this little exchange has been pulled from YouTube. Someone is apparently listening.