ITV Ventures vs Shaklee - Game On

Call it what you will. Health and Wellness, Life Enhancing, Health Enhancing, Neutriceuticals, All-Natural, Herbal, Anti-Pharmaceutical have all been used. It is a billion dollar industry that continues to enjoy phenomenal growth. As demand expands internationally, competition will stiffen. The companies that are fiscally healthy and based on solid principles will survive.

Two safe bets are Shaklee and ITV Ventures. If you are considering joining the "work at home revolution", you can't go wrong with either company. There are many similarities and drastically different marketing plans. Both have excellent products that are great for your health. Deciding which company is a fit for you will require a closer look.

Shaklee has been in business since 1956 and you have to respect that given the 'hear one day - gone tomorrow" mantra of the web-based home business industry. The company was recently purchased by Roger Barnett who now serves as Chairman and CEO. Barnett is a solid leader and constant promoter of the company. He has recently appeared on "The Oprah Show" as she is a fan of Shaklee products; especially the Get Clean line which consists of Earth friendly, non-toxic household cleaners. Shaklee has always been known for environmentally safe products and Roger Barnett seems to be expanding on this and spreading the message globally. If you are into "Goin' Green", Shaklee is the home based business opportunity for you.

If you are serious about starting a Shaklee business, it's best to get the Fast Start Kit for about $300. You will receive a small sampling of products called a Wellness Pack and a starter kit with CDs and brochures. As far as training, they do a weekly corporate call, but for the most part it is done through uplines. Some teams have developed web-based business building systems and you should use your due diligence in finding one that is a good fit for you. Otherwise, you will more than likely end up bugging family and friends to join you which is what many people resort to in the traditional network marketing business model.

Enter ITV Ventures.

ITV in and of itself is a direct response television company that creates infomercials predominantly for health and wellness products. ITV Ventures is an extension of that into the home based business arena. Both were founded by Donald Barrett, who serves as President and is the host on most of the award winning infomercials. The company's trademarked statement is "Positively Impacting People". With ITV Ventures, Barrett is expanding his mission beyond personal health and wellness for his customers into financial health and wellness for entrepreneurs who joint venture with him in ITV Ventures.

What makes ITV Ventures so revolutionary is that as an Independent Business Owner (IBO) you have the option of joining the Home Agent Program where you can take calls directly from the infomercial to your home phone and make sales. This has never been done before.

Most people join ITV Ventures at the Premier level which is $299 like Shaklee, however you get $400 worth of products. It's a one time offer and a great value. ITV Ventures has Shaklee and many other companies beat in that area. You also get a leather briefcase, a Fast Start kit with CDs and DVDs, a copy of "The Magic of Thinking Big" by David J Schwartz, and a really cool looking ITV Ventures pen. Other companies' starter kits come with more bubble wrap than product, but not so with ITV Ventures.

You also get a fully functional ecommerce site for the life of your membership. You can literally take orders or present the opportunity immediately upon joining. With Shaklee's starter package, you get use of a Shaklee.net site for 2 or 3 months and then they charge you a monthly fee for continued use.

The three main ways you make money with ITV Ventures are Retailing, Referring, and Residual. Selling from your site, in person, or taking phone orders are considered retail.

ITV gives a generous 40% - 50% commission on retail sales.

Referring people to the business is optional. You do not have to recruit people to make money with ITV Ventures. Many people opt to simply make sales in their living room and not refer others. Many do both. There is a $100 commission when you introduce someone to ITV Ventures at the Premier level.

Residual income can be accomplished in two ways. Because ITV sells consumable health products, many people reorder. Your customers are tied to you for life and when they do reorder, you get commission. If you take a call from the infomercial, that is your customer for as long as you are active. Every time that customer orders, you get paid your 40% - 50% commission weekly. The other residual component is a 5% - 7% override on your group's sales if you were to refer others to the business.

In order to take sales calls from the infomercials in the comfort of your own home, you have the option of joining the Home Agent Program(HAP). Most people get trained up first as an IBO and then do the HAP when they are ready. Some people do strictly Internet marketing. To join the HAP, there is a small monthly fee plus the purchase of call credits. It also requires a background check and testing. Most IBOs get acquainted with the system and the products first and only join the HAP when they are comfortable and ready for the next step.

If recruiting is not your strong point, ITV Ventures may be a better fit for you as you can take calls, make sales, build a customer base, and follow up and follow through for residual income based on retail sales.

If you are interested in the Home Agent Program, ITV Ventures has 30 minute infomercials for both popular products and the business opportunity itself so you can take calls for either or both. You can build a strong customer base taking product calls, and build a team which is basically a virtual call center of IBOs talking "bizop" calls.

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