Let me start by saying I am not a direct seller, so hear me out on this one.

Putting yourself out there isn’t easy. Direct sales companies get a bad rap for being a pyramid scheme and having pushy sales people. One rotten egg can spoil it for everyone.

I have many friends who are in direct sales: Younique, Scentsy, Perfectly Posh, Lularoe, Beachbody, and even Thirty-one.

Each person starts his or her direct sales career for a different reason. Some salespeople I know have joined because they want to be a part of a group of likeminded individuals, some have joined to have something that is just their own, some join because their family needs to make some extra money, some join to stay home and watch their babies grow up, and some join because they see the potential a company has to offer. Each of these people will work their businesses differently, and each will have a different outcome.

In terms of marketing, each salesperson puts himself or herself out there, as a representative of a brand. They teach you how to apply makeup, how to make your house smell great, or how to find styles that make you feel confident.

When you go to target, does someone come up and color-match you for your perfect shade of foundation? Does buying Maybelline pay for your best friends child to be able to have a few more toys under the tree at Christmas? Men and women are working hard to find ways to provide for their families. When you support a direct seller you aren’t putting another car in Kylie Jenner’s driveway, and you aren’t helping a CEO buy their own helicopter… your helping a mom buy groceries, or a dad buy his kid a bike.

While there are a few direct sellers who might leave a funny taste in your mouth (their product is too perfect, and they shove their product at you 300 times a day) most sellers are not this way. Many of the major direct sales companies are also giving hundreds of thousands of dollars back to the communities their sellers work in, or they have charities all of their own.

They are providing you with a great customer service, their honest thoughts of products, and things you cant always buy in the store. I’ve seen what direct sales have done for some of my friends’ families, and I have watched it change their lives. I’ve seen mommas get back their confidence, and families rise out of financial crisis. It might not be the path everyone takes, but it is the path for some people!

Don’t shut out trying a product, just because it comes from a direct sales company, and don’t assume that direct sellers will relentlessly bombard you with their sales pitches.

…. You get to support your friends, you know where your hard earned dollars are going, and you can shop online… so really it’s a win-win! Support real families like your own by shopping your friends small businesses.

Let this be your encouragement to comment on their posts, interact in their sales pages, share their link, ask questions, check out their website, ask for a sample, host an online party, and be proud of what they are doing, because they are working hard to make a better life for themselves, and their families!