Hey there sea changers, and welcome back to my series of MLM reviews. Today we are going to check out another within the extremely popular personal care niche with my SeneGence MLM Review. The online sale of beauty and cosmetics products can be extremely lucrative with many making a good living selling items via online stores and affiliate marketing. Added to this obviously is the huge array of multi level marketing programs available within this niche as well. So, what is the SeneGence MLM all about? Let's have a look and find out…
What is MLM?
Multi-level marketing (MLM) programs are the traditional mainstay of the ‘party plan' world of products such as Tupperware, Mary Kay and Amway etc. and, of course within the beauty/cosmetics market. Also known as Network Marketing (based on historical sales operations where parties are planned via personal networks), MLM programs appear to be under somewhat of a resurgence in recent times mainly due to the fact that much of the sales and marketing is now being managed online although some, such as this one, still run with hosted parties as their major form of sales.
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The ‘multi level' aspects of MLM come from its hierarchical nature in which you make commissions based not only on those that you sell to, but also the sales of those whom you ‘sign' into membership arrangements as well.
In short, the process works as follows:
- You join the program, either via referral from another person (known as your up line) or directly through their website.
- You promote the products of the company via parties, workshops or online.
- As you make sales, you offer incentives to your customers to sign up as a member of the program (there are different names for this but they all mean the same thing).
- That new member is then placed ‘underneath' you in a hierarchical arrangement (known as your down line).
- You, and a number of levels of your up line, then gain extra commissions for everything they sell as well.
- If they manage to refer their customers into memberships, they also become a member of your down line allowing you to make up line commissions as well.
The number of levels of your up and down lines will vary depending on the program you have joined. Commission rates will also change as your down line grows or contracts and many will also offer other incentives such as total company sales percentages and/or access to membership prizes as your own business grows.
Who are SeneGence?
SeneGence, founded in April 1999 by Joni Rogers-Kante, is a privately owned, network marketing company selling a range of “long-lasting cosmetic colors and anti-aging skincare products as well as accessories and boutique items”. Founded on a platform to “support for the environment and respect for the global community”, SeneGence maintains a high standard of environmentally conscientious and ecologically responsible operations throughout all countries of operation worldwide.
SeneGence is based in Foothill Ranch, CA in the United States with an office in Sapulpa, OK as well.
What do they Sell?
As mentioned above, SeneGence operate within the cosmetics and beauty market with a good range of products including:
Skin Care
- SeneDerm Cleansers
- SeneDerm DayTime Moisturizers
- SeneDerm Evening Moisturizers
- EyeCrème
- EyeLuminator
Anti-Aging
- Climate Control
- SeneSerum-C
- Collagen Night Pak
- Hydrating Facial Serum Mist
- Neck Cream
- Advanced SenePlex+ with Retinol
SeneDerm Solutions
- Anti-Wrinkle Treatment
- Dark Circle Under Eye Treatment
- LashExtend
- LipVolumizer
- Facial Resurfacer
- Spot-On Blemish & Acne Treatment
- NailExtend
- Brightening Multi-Vitamin Treatment
- Nangai Oil
SeneGence For Men
- Soothing Shave Cream
- Gentle Purifying Cleanser
- Facial Moisturizer SPF 20
Face
- Corrective Color Concealers
- BlushSense
- Translucid Loose Powder & Bronzer
- MakeSense Foundations
- Remover
- MakeSense Silk Primer & Pore Minimizer
- MakeSense Color Correcting Moisturizer
- MakeSense Pearlizer
Eyes
- BrowSense
- EyeSense
- ShadowSense
- LashSense
- UnderSense
Lips
- LinerSense
- LipSense
- LipSense Gloss
- Lip Balms
- Ooops! Remover
- LipVolumizer
- LipSmooth Conditioning Polish
Body
- Body Wash
- Body Scrub
- Body Lotion
- Hand Cream
- Detoxifying & Moisturizing Mask
- Shea Butter Body Cream
- Self-Tanning Bronzing Coconut Milk
Spa
- Renewing and Brightening Hand Cream
- Golden Radiance Peel-Off Mask
- Heel and Elbow Softening Cream
Hair
- HairCovery™ HairCare
- HairPlenish™ HairCare
Abundance Parfums
- Abundance Fresh Parfum
- Abundance Bloom Parfum
- Abundance Lush Parfum
- Abundance Travel Trio
Item costs appear to fall into the low to medium price range of around $20 to $50 per product making it a little more budget friendly than the likes of competitor companies such as Nu Skin, Youngevity and Arbonne.
MLM Program outline
The SeneGence MLM program calls their members ‘Distributors' who are part of what appears to be a traditional program with basic retail and downline commission structures without all of the extra bonus options available within some of the more modern programs. I was unable to locate their compensation plan on their website however it did pop up with a few basic web searches so here are the basics as I have found them…
Base commission rates: 25 – 100% (based on retail discounts below)
Distributor Discount: 20 – 50%
Down line commission rates: 5 – 30% to 5 levels (level 1 down line is 10%) – These are paid on the first 100CV of sales only with the rest covered via Group Sales commissions of 2 – 10% to 5 levels.
Minimum monthly spend to qualify for commissions
To qualify for downline commissions, Distributors are required to personally meet monthly PV targets of at least 100 per month (which can be on sold at retail prices). Base 25% sales commissions however can be earned without the need to meet or maintain sales targets.
Payment terms: Monthly.
Application required?: Yes, Application form on website.
Purchase requirements to join: Yes
New Distributors are required to purchase a New Distributor kit at a cost of $65 which includes:
- Checklist for Getting Started
- Beauty Books
- Testers of LipSense® shades
- Free SeneSite and business apps
There is also the option for an upgraded Glamour Demo Kit at a cost of $295.
Marketing materials provided: As per starter kit above.
Within most MLM programs, rankings and commissions are determined by the total points value (PV) generated by the Distributor and their down line within a calendar month with points assigned to each product. These point allocations can range from 50 to 100% of the retail price of each product (before tax and shipping) and vary from item to item and currency of sale.
In the case of the SeneGence MLM program, PV is calculated at 50% of the USD retail sales price. Downline commission value points (CV) are also calculated at this rate if sales are made in USD but higher for other currencies (e.g. for AUD and CAD purchases CV is calculated at PV x 1.25). This means that if a product is sold for $100 with a Commissional Volume (CV) of 50, then payments are calculated on $50 of the sale cost not the full $100. Hence, then if a downline commission rate is 5% then the payment to the Distributor would total $2.50 (i.e. 5%of $50).
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How can I get paid?
The compensation plan outlines 2 ways in which Distributors can make money when they promote and sell SeneGence products. As mentioned above, these are fairly straight forward without any of the added bonus options that are available in other programs such as Monat for example. The 2 payment options – driven primarily under the party plan/sales event model – for the SeneGence MLM program are outlined as follows:
1. Retail Profits
These are the base profits earned by the general day to day retail sales that Distributors can generate via parties, popups, kiosks etc. These are earned via two methods as follows:
- Immediate Sales Income – Profit on total sales from holding a product demonstration.
- Reorder Sales Income – Profit on reorder sales of existing customers.
Earnings are tiered based on the total retail sales made by the Distributor as below:
As above, to qualify for the base 25% commissions, no minimum sales targets are required – although as demonstrated within the graphic, the payment amount here is capped at around $40.
2. Commission Income
Commissions Income is SeneGence's version of the traditional unilevel commission structures prevalent within many MLM programs. Within the SeneGence MLM program however, commissions are paid in two formats:
Downline Commission
Downline Commissions are paid on the first 100 CV earned by a Distributor via down line purchases as long as they personally place and pay for at least 100 PV in the same qualifying month as orders placed in their down line (which can be kept or on sold). Commissions rates are as follows:
Group Sales Volume Bonus
Once the initial 100 CV thresholds is reached, Distributors then qualify for the Group Sales Volume Bonus. This is paid against all down line sales (after the first 100 CV) as below:
To earn a bonus on 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th levels, Distributors must:
- Personally place and pay for at least 300 PV within the same qualifying month.
- Have five personally sponsored Distributors at 1st level, that have each personally placed and paid for at least 300 PV within the same qualifying month.
and also:
- Each level of Distributors (level 2-5) must have at least five Distributors that have been personally sponsored by the up line Distributor, with at least 300 PV personally placed and paid for in order to qualify for commission payout of that level.
- Each level (2-5) must fulfill qualifications for that level and the levels above it to receive the commission for that level.
Ranking structure
Most MLM programs use ranking structures on which to base commission payments and other bonuses upon. The SeneGence program however only appears to use rankings as a means of providing extra prizes to Distributors and not for the calculation of commissions.
As is common with almost all MLM programs however, commissions for the SeneGence program are in part determined by both the number of members within the Distributor's down line, and the total sales made by those members per month.
What is good about it?
So, after a good look around the site and looking at all the options I could find, I do like the following:
- Commission rates for entry level sales and downline commissions are good.
- Program is simple and easy to follow.
What is no so good about it?
There are also some things to be aware of including:
- There are some joining costs.
- Ongoing purchases are required.
- There are not the full array of bonus options available within others in this niche.
How much can you make?
SeneGence does not provide an income disclosure statement on its website however as with most MLM programs, it has to be assumed from the compensation plan that the percentage of members earning a living is very low (usually less than 1%).
My final thoughts
Look, MLM is not an easy platform to make money in and there is not much that I have seen here to put this program above the many others I have seen. However, the program is pretty straight forward with common commission arrangements and the ability to make ongoing sales for reorders – always a good thing when dealing with consumable products with the downside found in the lack of extra bonus options that a prevalent withing the more modern programs. Although if you are passionate about these products with a large customer list at your disposal and the ability to generate good sales via the traditional network marketing model, then the 25 – 100% base commission rates might just appeal here.
Once you have joined, there are however some financial pressures via the need to make minimum personal purchases in order to qualify for commissions however these can be on sold at retail prices. That said, I think if you are going to succeed within this MLM program, you will need to have a good array of demonstration stock on hand. You may also need to bump up your personal purchase quota if customer sales alone are not enough for you to remain ‘Active' and qualify for commissions and/or discounts within a particular month.
I was unable to locate any negative reviews in terms of non-payment etc. although there were some negative comments about the quality of customer service and the MLM program itself – although it was not really anything that is uncommon in regards to MLM programs or products within this niche. There were also a large number of complaints in regards to the availability of stock however all was available when I checked on the site.
Conclusion
So there you have it, my honest review and appraisal of the SeneGence MLM program. I hope it has been of assistance but as usual, if you have any questions or experience with this program please do not hesitate to reach out by commenting below – especially if any of my information is inaccurate.
Are there any other programs you have been looking at but want to know more about? If so, please comment below and I will do my best to get some details for you.
Do you want further assistance with any of the above or need help to build your own beauty or cosmetics based website?
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Until next time
Have fun
Paul
Note: If you make a purchase from this page, there is a very good chance that I make a commission from it – these commissions do not increase your sale price.