From the President
When I flew to Toronto in May I had a three-hour taxi ride from the airport to my destination. I visited with the driver along the way, and we talked about AMSOIL. He knew very little about the company or our products. When it came time to talk about distribution, it became awkward. The driver went silent. I figured he had preconceived notions about multi-level marketing (MLM). MLM has a bad rap thanks to numerous companies that have employed underhanded business practices. I am sure you have heard the term “pyramid scheme.” The way I see it, there are two types of MLM companies – those that emphasize making money by bringing new people into their program, and those that emphasize making money selling products and use MLM as a method of distribution. AMSOIL is all about selling a great product.
The fact is, AMSOIL is not like any MLM company and is not really MLM in the traditional sense. There is no category that neatly fits the AMSOIL business. We are a direct-sales hybrid. There is a network-marketing aspect to our business, but many aspects of our company do not align with traditional MLM businesses. The Retail, Commercial and Catalog Programs are prime examples. Those types of programs don’t exist in typical MLM businesses, but we found a way to make them work. We recently made some improvements to the Commercial Program and invested in additional corporate support staff for commercial business to help drive Dealer success in that area. This month you’re going to read about some upcoming changes to the Retail Program that will increase your opportunity through that sales channel. We are working hard to expand your opportunities everywhere possible.
One major change is the addition of a minimum advertised price (MAP) policy. Today no Dealer or account is allowed to advertise pricing for AMSOIL products through any national medium, but Dealers and accounts can advertise any price in local or regional fliers. The MAP policy will restrict all ads to include pricing no lower than our manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP). This will prevent the advertisement of predatory pricing and keep a level playing field for all involved.
The MAP policy is a perfect example of our two main goals in action: helping Dealers be successful and ensuring AMSOIL remains strong for years to come. We need to expand opportunity in all markets, but we need to protect Dealers’ interests when we do so. That’s something we take very seriously, and it’s something we do every day. We’ve been approached by just about every national retailer in existence, and we’ve told them all “no” to protect Dealers. We said “no” to Ace Hardware.* We said “no” to Advance Auto Parts.* We said “no” to Walmart.* They were astounded that we would refuse millions of dollars and thought we were crazy for remaining true to our principles. We are invested in you, and allowing our products to be sold through national chains would harm that investment.
Our advertising efforts are another example of something typical MLM companies don’t do. We invest millions annually to raise brand awareness and increase sales opportunities for Dealers.
By choosing to be an AMSOIL Dealer, you’ve started a business unlike any other. You get to sell the best products in the world, you have no inventory requirements or sales quotas, you have low annual fees and you have the backing of a company that works tirelessly on your behalf every day. If you make the most of it, we will continue growing together.
