An Unbeautiful Mary Kay Story
June 14, 2006 by Christina Jones
Filed under Beauty Don'ts, Cosmetics, Friends of eBeauty Daily, Skin Care
I have just found Sweet Buzz, and this story probably rings true for quite a few people. Read it and laugh your hind end off. 
And do tell if this has happened to you!
What about me screams “gullible,” I wonder? I was walking around the grocery store a couple of weeks ago, looking at the canned food, when a smartly dressed woman walked up to me and said, “Hi, can I ask you a favor?” I asked her what I could help her with. Before she answered, she stuck out her hand and introduced herself; this seemed a rather suspicious response, seeing as I was expecting her to ask me to reach for a can of beans or something. She explained that she was from Mary Kay and wanted me to be a “face model” and asked if she could give me a call sometime. I walked away feeling a little smug; a face model, eh? I guess my little trip to have my brows done at Anastasia was worth it.
As you go on with the story, as you can imagine, she was not being offered a modeling job, but was being suckered into a bit ol’ sales pitch. Great story though, and great writing – I think you will like it!
Let me just say, I love Mary Kay, they have many, many great products, and I am positive that all of their salespeople do not do business this way, so don’t let one really shady salesperson ruin the whole product line for you. I imagine you could substitute any direct sales line for Mary Kay in this story and have it ring true for someone. I just really, really hope that MK does not suggest this as a way of selling. Let me know Mary Kay reps!
Selling/booking seem kind of quiet in this neck of the woods. Due to the economy? Probably not – I have seen a change for about the last 6 months.
What were your sales last quarter? How about last month?
How many parties or one on one facials did you book and how many actually held within the last three months?
How many guests were you in front of in the last three months? Of those guests, how many guests actually booked parties or one on one facials and HELD their appointments within the last three months?
From these totals, what was your average profit per party or one on one facial?
These are honest questions and I’m just wondering if if’s me? Right now I don’t know of anyone – including my SD – who is making money in MK right now …. do you?
I think we’re having production problems in the Unit – late night breathless messages inviting us to order, order and then order some more !!!!
I find these kinds of calls confusing. And, I know recruitment is also down in the Unit. What about you all? How many new consultants are there in your Unit within the last three months? Please be honest.
Please – this comments are not meant to offend anyone. It’s simply my observation in my part of the country. Maybe things are different where you live? If so, Great !!! Please share your inspiration with us – we NEED some REAL MK success stories right now !!!
I am a MK consultant and our Unit is stronger than ever! We had 5 team members go On-Target for their first Mary Kay Car last month, my director went On Target for her 2nd level car and our Senior Director (added 15 team members to her unit last month) is in her 2nd Cadillac and had a $30,000 month in production last month. My Director(added 8 team members) had a $14,000 month and I had a $5,800 month while adding 4 qualified team members in March. I have been in the business for 5 months, have 3 children under the age of 4 and work as a teacher full-time in a town 45 minutes away! Dont get frustrated! Stick with it, this business WILL work, but only when you work. I had a $1000 week last week in 3 hours. I think a big mistake people are making is they are thinking for others and assuming since finances are struggling across the country that they shouldn’t be asking women to spend money. It is not our job to prejudge. Also as a woman I know that a little pampering and make-up makes me feel better about myself. What a gift a consultant can give to someone else. They can buy or not uy products but if they leave smiling and feeling good about themselves, it was worth it. Keep your head up! Business will grow when you want it to grow.
I was a consultant for over 10 years. My Mom a sales director.
They actually teach you to do this garbage. They think it will flatter you. I could never do it.
I actually sell Mary Kay make up with my Mom. We just got started. And I would have to agree with you occasionally you will get those horribly obnoxious over the top, down right rude comments from some sales associatesrying to bully you into buying. But don’t write off Mary Kay forever, I promise we aren’t all bad. Yesterday I was out at the mall with my mother and we stopped at pretzel place, I simply through Mary Kay into the conversation, didn’t push it or comment on “how gorgeous she could potentially be” and we made our first two customers! Aside from our family of course! So if you like the product, or haven’t tried it because you’re terrified of us darn Mary Kay women,then give it a go, just once , maybe you’ll love the products and possibly even the women that you get to meet and make friends with along the way!
In our area they are called mall stalkers and they make it very hard on the rest of us who wnt to build a client base through intergrity and just want people to try the products. I get so frusterated as they give MK a bad name. Just like the “devout Christian” who stops you and asks you if you have been saved. Not the best add for a truly personal relationship with God. I just hope that enough ladies will get to know me and trust me as a person and then be willing to try the products. Even if they do not enjoy what they tried at least I didn’t lie to them or trick them by phony lines and phony give aways. Here’s to all the reps in any line who run there business with honesty and integrity. Please support the ones you know who are like that as they won’t be stalking so they need you to do the talking if you have had a good experience. On behalf of all those who run it differently I am sorry
I hate to admit it, but I am currently a MK consultant – I was gullible enough to buy a boat load of the stuff I can’t even give away at my cost! Yes, I love the product but there are many other great products out there. People are scared to death I am going to try to “sell” them or “sign them up” like Amway. Yes, this is common practice to “may I borrow your face”. It is sleezy and they don’t tell you everything…like you have to place a $200 order every 3 months. Weekly meetings are mandatory but it is like a religion – don’t go and you are shunned. I think MK makes great products for the money – esp. in our economy. But, I will not be a consultant come 2009. I’ll pay full-price to use the stuff. Without the hassle!
spookysrick,
I’m really sorry to hear about your experience with MK. I have been with the company since 2001. I know it isn’t for everyone. You don’t need to place a $200 order every 3 months unless you want to stay active. You will be inactive if you don’t but you really only need to order once a year before you would be terminated. The meetings are not mandatory. It is suggested that you attend them to keep up on your training and motivation. As for having a boatload of stuff, you could have returned your inventory back to the company within 1 year of purchase and they would pay you 90% of the wholesale you paid. Don’t sell on Ebay. I know you probably don’t care but that is a violation of your contract but it also makes all of MK look bad.
Again, I’m really sorry to hear of the experience you had. I think that you just didn’t have the proper training.
spookysrick – if you’re that unhappy and you’ve only purchased “the store” w/in the last year, return it and get your 90pct and cut your losses. It was the best thing I ever did and get that monkey off your back!! Everything you describe is exactly how I felt too.
Any idea if I can return although I’ve been in for almost 2 years??? Otherwise I’ll have to go to alternative methods to off load this stuff. Like I said in my initial post – I can’t even give the stuff away! Thanks
spookysrick-
You may want to try e-bay. You could open a store for $15.95 and start listing your items. Or don’t open a store, and just do e-bay auctions. You won’t make “full price” but at least you’ll get something. Another idea for e-bay is to sell your items in a wholesale lot – such as all the foundations as a lot, all the eye shadows as a lot, etc.
You would be surprised at how many DIRECTORS shop on e-bay, plus consultants and their customers. Hmmmm.
I knew I was doomed in MK when I ran a special for over 450 customers on the MK Spa products a few years back. No one – not one person – was interested at a 25% discount and later increased to a 70% discount. Does that tell you something? I used the spa products as give aways for hostess gifts – and even then the hostess was not that enthusiastic. Yuck I am so glad to be off the hamster wheel in MK !!!
Good luck to you and keep us posted.
As I can see where this business is not for everyone, and that having a ton of inventory and not being able to sell it is a scarry thing, I have to say that while people will buy almost anything from ebay, its not a great idea to do so. If your product is in fact 2 years old, the packaging will show it, since it has been updated since then. Also makeup does not give the same results after 2 years that it gives when its new. Therefore, Mary Kay cannot back up or guarantee the product for the customer. Some customers may go as far as to call Mary Kay because they are not pleased with the product to which Mary Kay will ask what consultant they purchased the product from, when the customer finds out its from a consultant that has not been active in quite some time and is trying to “get rid” of old product it makes your ebay business look bad. So, I would put some thought into trying to sell a cosmetic product that is 2 years old on ebay.
As I can see where this business is not for everyone, and that having a ton of inventory and not being able to sell it is a scarry thing, I have to say that while people will buy almost anything from ebay, its not a great idea to do so. If your product is in fact 2 years old, the packaging will show it, since it has been updated since then. Also makeup does not give the same results after 2 years that it gives when its new. Therefore, Mary Kay cannot back up or guarantee the product for the customer. Some customers may go as far as to call Mary Kay because they are not pleased with the product to which Mary Kay will ask what consultant they purchased the product from, when the customer finds out its from a consultant that has not been active in quite some time and is trying to “get rid” of old product it makes your ebay business look bad. So, I would put some thought into trying to sell a cosmetic product that is 2 years old on ebay.
As I can see where this business is not for everyone, and that having a ton of inventory and not being able to sell it is a scarry thing, I have to say that while people will buy almost anything from ebay, its not a great idea to do so. If your product is in fact 2 years old, the packaging will show it, since it has been updated since then. Also makeup does not give the same results after 2 years that it gives when its new. Therefore, Mary Kay cannot back up or guarantee the product for the customer. Some customers may go as far as to call Mary Kay because they are not pleased with the product to which Mary Kay will ask what consultant they purchased the product from, when the customer finds out its from a consultant that has not been active in quite some time and is trying to “get rid” of old product it makes your ebay business look bad. So, I would put some thought into trying to sell a cosmetic product that is 2 years old on ebay.
Hi Spookysrick, (and anyone else in the same situation)
If you’ve been in over the year time frame the company will not refund. On ebay you get into selling bulks of items worth thousands for maybe a couple hundred, minus shipping, ebay fees, and processing fees. You can email me and I can help you with ideas that could help you get more of your money back. All options are feasible, it just depends on your situation (space, time, energy). By that I mean some people would rather just dump it all at once on ebay, because they don’t want to deal with it anymore and don’t mind losing the money… I’m a single mom and I only have my business and my name so both are very important to me. I will help in any way that I can. Elizabeth
P.S.I’ve commented about almost any question you could have on my other posts, feel free to look back.
Spooky, if you don’t have much luck on ebay, there is a company called Touch of Pink that will buy your old inventory off you. They have an excellent reputation.
Spookysrick, why don’t you try selling it again and keeping all of your profit? I’m not being sarcastic. You said people are scared to death I am going to try to “sell†them or “sign them up†like Amway. Well — yeah, no one likes to be sold. That’s why not being pushy is so imporant to successful selling. Don’t mention the recruiting stuff at all. You say you love the product, simply ask your friends and family if they’d like to try it — no obligation. If they like it they get it, if they don’t, they don’t and you haven’t pushed them so they’ll trust you. If you’re saying that “you can’t even give it away” I must ask how you are trying to “give it away” that people are so cautious around you?
Thanks ladies for all your well wishes and advice. I really appreciate it. I will keep you updated with what is going on. You have been a God’s send. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all.
My mom has been selling Mary Kay for twenty years. I can still remember the night I walked in and saw her on her bedroom floor sorting thru her new pink cases. She had been to a Mary Kay party earlier that week and was recruited the same night. She had also lived with terrible skin problems all of her adult life and swore she could feel the difference in her skin from the very first application. I don’t believe she was pressured into becoming a consultant; she really was inspired. I had never seen my mother so excited about a new venture, to believe in something so strongly. It was a completely different side of her.
Before that night, she was a shy woman identified mostly by her role as my fathers wife. She had very little confidence and very few friends. After that, she followed the “warm chatter” scripts-overcoming some tall fears of rejection in the process- but never in a pushy manner (because she doesn’t have a pushy bone in her body). She approached women who she truly believed would make good faces for her portfolio and not only invited them to be face models, but proudly showed them her portfolio to illustrate exactly what that meant. She ALWAYS had that thing with her-it was her pride and joy.
On prom night, my mother was booked with makeovers from morning until the hour of the big event. The day always resulted in a some sales, but often she was just a free makeup artist for a special occasion. Our house was turned into a “spa” every other day it seemed, with women laughing and gossiping and generally having a good time..oh yeah, and there was skin care/makeup involved. A Mary Kay party for her was never about recruiting, which she only attempted when a customer had became a loyal client who she knew well enough to sincerely recommend the opportunity.
She became popular, earned a healthy second income and was well on her way to earning her first car (I think it was a Grand Am, but its been so long ago I honestly can’t remember) when a personal tragedy struck that stole much of her drive.
Today, she has just enough inventory to keep family, friends and long term clients happy, but the personal changes in her confidence have been lasting. And she has so many friends now, a social circle that she never had before Mary Kay. Not to mention a flawless complexion which she never came close to having before that party that really did change her life.
I have never sold May Kay(she could never recruit me), but I did end up in business to business sales and I have seen so many different sales people come and go, pushy and weak, ethical and unscrupulous, and ditto for sales managers. With every sales job I ever held, I was handed a script to follow, gradually rewriting it based on what worked/what didn’t, making it better suit my personal style as I gained confidence and understanding.
I believe it really is all in the person, not necessarily the company. So when a Mary Kay lady approaches you, I hope you will have enough of an open mind to consider the messenger and listen to the message before making your judgement. Seriously, it may be my mom (well, she doesn’t actually warm chatter anymore, but you get my meaning hopefully). And if it sounds like she is following the same worn out script, she may really just be new and scared and without enough experience to make it her own. So just be nice:)
Unless she’s NOT, in which case turnabout is fair play.
http://www.marykay.com/kimbright/default.aspx is a thief and a fraud.
My Mary Kay story is that I’ve been robbed and defrauded by a Mary Kay sales person (black woman) from Charlotte, NC area. She stole my cash and attempted to steal big amounts of money from my credit card. I can only guess what happens to all her “face models”…
Emlyn, that was a very nice account – thanks for sharing that!
Like I’ve said, I applaud and encourage those in MK who work to make an honest living simply selling the product and servicing their customers. What angers me is that no matter how well an IBC does this, she will never get promoted unless she recruits someone – how wrong is that?
I do NOT applaud the scripts and guidance being passed out and taught via the upline that involve manipulation, religious-twisting, husband-bashing, and other delightful methods to con women into saying “yes” to the opportunity.
If a Mary Kay lady approaches you, friends, it is never “negative” to not take her at face value. There’s a LOT you’re not being told at that moment in time and it is critical that you learn what that conveniently-omitted information is before you sign anything.
Scrib,
There are alot of women representing MK, as has been stated above. If you are talking about someone recruiting you in the mall, then of course there is alot being omitted. There is no way all the info can be exchanged in a few minutes. That is not the time or place. One thing I love about my MK career is that I get to choose the women I want to work with. I would never choose someone that I think wouldn’t do things the proper way. And I would never recruit without knowing the woman. I know consultants have gotten greedy and its just a numbers game to them but those are the people who shouldn’t be part of MK. Husbands are very involved in the unit I am part of. So I don’t know what bashing you are talking about. Trying and buying the products is very black and white (you try it, you like it, you buy it) (you don’t like it, you don’t buy it). Being a consultant is running your own home-based business. It needs to be treated with integrity, as with any other business. I hope I’ve softened your feeling for MK a little.
If a Mary Kay lady approaches you, friends… RUN FOR LIFE!!!
Oh, Takasha, I’m sorry you obviously had a bad experience, but really…not all of us are out to get you, dupe you and steal your money.
Some of us, believe it or not, are really nice, decent people who if you give us half a chance will actually become really good friends. It’s that kind of prejudice that really makes me sad. My own clients would set you straight if they knew you were being so negative about their Mary Kay Lady.
As a former, HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL Top-Level Director with MK (multiple free cars, high checks, trips, many unit members/offsprings, etc) , I will advise anyone: RUN! Run away and don’t look back. We are trained to become psychotic pitbulls, and it’s not until something deep inside you wakes up saying “This is WRONG and sick how we try and manipulate people for our own profit!” that you will be able to break free of this cult. Yes, I said cult. Look up the definition. They use very successful forms of brainwashing.
Hey Erin! I saw your post and wanted to ask you what happened that you quit Mary Kay since you were a MK director. What made you quit?
Hey Erin,
I too am very curious to know what happened to make you decide to not continue with your business? Is Mary Kay that bad?
Thank you so much for sharing this story. I had a consultant from a nearby city just send me a message on myspace asking me to be her face model. She even left me her number. At first I thought it was a ploy, but I looked her page up and it seemed legit. But I googled “Mary Kay face models” and saw this, and now I’m just insulted. I politely sent her a message back letting her know it, too.
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