Getting to the Top in Mary Kay

A “top director” put together instructions for getting to the top in Mary Kay. Finally! The secret to making it big and doing it the right way. Step-by-step instructions from a “Queen.”

Except there’s a bit of irony here. The woman who wrote this has been “Queen of Sharing” in her seminar twice and runner-up twice. She is in a Cadillac, and is a senior director currently. She was a future executive senior director when she wrote this. So we’re taking instructions from someone who essentially failed in Mary Kay by getting herself demoted?

If this was really “it” and this director really had the keys to the Mary Kay castle, why isn’t she at the top of the pyramid? This is a woman who supposedly knows the secret to success and is held up as a pillar of success in Mary Kay… yet she is moving backward on the career path!

I mean no disrespect to this director. I understand exactly how a pyramid scheme like Mary Kay works. It’s a no-win situation for almost everyone. That’s why even when she’s held up as a winner, she’s really not winning. Isn’t it interesting that a woman held up as the epitome of success in Mary Kay is not actually achieving that success herself, thanks to the MLM system?

My Schedule – I work MK full time – I take off all day on Tues for me!

Work Monday through Friday – 8a-5:30p & I do a Thursday night SCC (while my husband works that night), plus I do a class 2 Saturdays a month – plus always a class at my Monday meeting. I do not work on Sunday.

Pick the nights that work for you – what works best with your family schedule.

I work really hard some days but also take off and enjoy other things. I really live God first, family second, career third!

  • Begin With The End In Mind!
  • Hold Classes to Recruit!
  • Power Start every month!!
  • I do it To Build!
  • Build my big customer base – build a big Unit!
  • Who can I help by sharing MK?
  • Who would benefit from extra money?

I offer them something free when they have 5 women at an open house for SCC. Find out what they want. Give them an incentive so that I always book from my appts. Continue to get new clientele too – go out & meet new people every day.

Give them a printed Invitation to come to my meeting Monday night as my guest! Get their number and tell them I will call them the next morning between 9-10a — where will they be and what number?? Follow up with them the next morning between 9-10a. They’ll come to the meeting and love everything and I will book them for a SCC then. They will do it because there are things they want FREE! Then they know what they really want and will book for it.

If you don’t have people to book – go out and meet them today and bring them to your meeting.

Work Full Circle. It is the most effective way to work.

Team Building – I always use The 4 Point Recruiting plan from MK!

At every SCC I ask the Hostess who would be great? I tell the Hostess to watch me & see if she thinks she would enjoy doing what I do – I plant a seed in her heart!

I share my story….a great recruiting talk!! (Short & sharp)

I will pick out 2 sharp women to share MK with at the class.

After the SCC I will talk with the hostess and the other 2 sharp women that I picked if there is time to talk tonight and if not, I will give her some info to take home with her and ask her if I can call her back in the morning – and exactly what time.(A clear agreement) I will call them the next morning – when they are on the way to work to talk with them.

1. Finalize sale
2. Rebook them
3. Pick the Hostess and the 2 sharpest people. – “I have to share the business info with at least 6 people a week and I would love to share it with you. (I give them the perfect opportunity brochure). When would be the best time for me to share with you? What time are you driving to work in the morning? 8-8:30a? (most people are on their way to work and this is a great time) Which is better for you 8 or 8:30?” If you wait, they get cold! 9 times out of 10 they say yes and I can reach them….

Role Play:
“Hi Katie – this is xxxxxxxx with Mary Kay. How are you? I just want to thank you for letting me follow up with you and helping me with my training. Did you get time to look over the information I gave you last night?

No – I didn’t yet.

That’s ok. I am going to ask you some questions about yourself, then I am going to share with you how our marketing plan works, and then ask you for some feedback, ok? Ok, great!

Katie, tell me a little about yourself – what do you like most about your job?
I have a 3 yr old daughter – I am a marketing director for a printing co and I am very busy.

What do you like most about your job?
Nothing.

What would you like to change?
Everything – more time to myself, answer to nobody, more money.

Where would you like to see yourself personally, financially and career wise in the next 5 yrs?
In NC on the coast somewhere with a six figure income so my husband can retire.

What do you need the most in your life right now?
Free time.

For you personally or with you family?
Both.

What do you value the most in your life?
My family.

What were some of your favorite products you loved the most at the SCC?
The cleanser and microderm.

Well, that completes your section… thank you Katie. You heard my story last night and what I love about MK – the abilty to work my busines around things – choices – I am the boss – I get to call the shots about who I work with – basically freedom to create the kind of life and income I want. (Do this part to fit with what she told you she would like to change in her life.)

Everybody starts at the same place – we all purchase the Starter Kit – it is a hundred and it has $450 worth of products in it. That registers you with the company as a consultant.

We make money by selling the products – really it sells itself – we get a 50% commission – did you know that Katie? Half of what we sell is profit.

It is a necessity and something that people use up all the time – so there is a great residual income as people reorder their products.

The only things that are recession proof are tobacco, alcohol and cosmetics -and I’d rather help people than hurt them, wouldn’t you?

If you want to move up you do that by bringing other people in to the company.

When you have 1-4 people you get a 4 % commission check from the co – that comes directly from MK. When you have 5 or more you get 9- 13%! And as a Sales Director you get an additional 23% plus bonsuses!

My first recruiting check was only $4.34 and my husband and I laughed about it — but my largest commission check now is over $12,000 for one month!

This is also an opportunity for you!

The free car is another way to make money! 85% of the insurance paid by the co – tax and tag – and you can take the car or cash compensation for 2 years when you earn it.
First car is a ______ or $425 a month – which would you take?
$425.

What would you do with the money?
College for my daughter.

Next car is the _________ or $500 cash?Which would you take?
Money.

What would you do with the money?
Some for college and some for me!

Next car is the Pink Cadi and you have or $900 cash! What would you take?
Car for sure!!

Are you making a car payment now?
Yes.

Then that would save you the car payment and insurance!

Extra income!

You own your own business so you can work when you want and off when you want. Freedom and flexibility!

We get lots of Recognition! At my old job, I got a turkey at the end of the year and I said, what will I do with that – I don’t even cook!!

I love the diamonds and the great free travel! Exciting, isn’t it?

Katie, there are 5 Qualities We Look For and you have to have at least 3! Let’s see if you have them, ok?

#1 -We are looking for women that are busy because we know that they get the most done because they are good time managers. Are you busy?
Yes. I am.

#2 -Goal oriented – do you have a need and want to fill it?
Yes I do.

#3 -Women that are not the sales type – we know the prod sells itself – we want someone who is professional but not pushy because our business is based on building relationships. Do you feel that you are not the sales type and not pushy?
I am not the sales type and not pushy.

#4 We want women that believe in our Company Philosoply – God First, Family Second and Career Third.
Katie, do you believe that?

#5 – We want women that are Decision Makes! The opposite of a decision maker is a procrastinator. The Boston Globe says that indecision and procrastination are the biggest causes of failure in America today. Are you a decision maker?

If you decided to join our team, what qualities do you have that
you could bring to MK that would benefit our company?
I am a great people person and a hard worker.

Of the benefits I shared with you about MK – what are you most impressed with about our company?
Freedom and the opportunity to make a lot of money.

Great.

On a scale of 1-10 I am going to ask you your interest level in the company. 1 is – If you were starving you would not do MK – that is pretty sad! 5 is – A chicken answer and confuses me – so please don’t say that! 10 is – I am ready to do MK and get it all!
Katie, what is your interest level?
I started to say 8 but it really is a10!!

(If they say less than 10 and they want to think about it – say – “What would stop you from starting and what do you need to now or do to make a decision? …I know how you feel…… I felt the same way….. what I found out is……….. I am going to send you some more information and I will follow up with you within 24 hours. If you decision then is yes you will have a choice of a FREE micro set or a beautiful ring. I will follow up with you tomorrow morning at and get your decision and if you say yes, that will be great and if you decide you don’t want to, you will still be my great customer! Great! I will talk with you in the morning at 8a.” I email them info on my website – link to look – and a fact sheet about the company!)

Katie, I am going to send you an email invitation and I have 2 gifts to offer you when you get it done within the next hour! Would you like to have free – the micro derm or a beautiful ring?
Micro for sure!

Great! Well welcome to my team Katie!!
I will be in touch with you as soon as I get your agreement. Talk with you soon…

Xxxxxx recommends doing at least 3 classes a week and following up with the Hostess plus 2 from each one. That will give you 9-10 great interviews for YOU a week and will give you a couple of new team members every week. When you are a director, do the same thing for your new people who want to earn their Pearls of Sharing – 10 for you and 10 for them! You will start to see RED! 🙂

Nothing new. All the same stuff – much of it purposely misleading (product sells itself, highest check, “free car” etc….).

What a perfect piece to instill lots of guilt into all of the consultants who haven’t succeeded – they will certainly believe they haven’t tried hard enough.sand

36 COMMENTS

  1. Can you imagine commuting to work and trying to have a business call with numbers and a sales pitch. How unsafe while driving. I guess this works well for the MK bot because the target is distracted and will say yes just to get off the phone.amd she only picks the hostess and two sharp guests? So she’s assuming and denying the opportunity to other guests? That flies directly against other advice that they should ask every single person they meet because you never know who will say yes.

    12
    • I was thinking the same thing. Even with a handsfree phone, a call like this is too distracting. I’m trying to picture merging on to the freeway while answering questions about my goals in life – SMH.

    • My husband used to do talk/text and drive. If we went anywhere as a couple or a family, I’d drive because I hated how much attention was not on the road conditions.

      In Quebec, you are allowed to use a Hands-Free device. I have a dash-board mount for those times I need to use my map feature on the phone. In theory, I could sync my phone to my stereo system but I chose not to. I still see plenty of people using their phones.

      • When I worked as a territory sales manager, I drove A LOT. Like approx 30-35k miles per year (oh, the things I’ve seen on the road lol) for over a decade. Early on was before Bluetooth, and I rarely took calls whilst driving. But even for the later years when I had Bluetooth, I still rarely answered any calls that came in when I was driving. Usually, it was because I knew that the call would require me to answer questions or take notes (client needs a return authorization for damaged product, wanted to place an order, whatever) and I could only safely do so when stopped.

        But those are they types of calls you receive when you are already successful with your sales business…ie existing customers just needing assistance or wanting to place an order. With MLM, these directors are so desperate to recruit, that they just CANNOT let any call go to voicemail, because WHAT IF THAT CALL IS A POTENTIAL RECRUIT??

        If the Mary Kay “opportunity” was anywhere as successful as claimed, directors would have so many recruits and so much business that they could feel comfortable in letting a call go to voicemail when they’re driving. But of course that’s not the case. When you’re left BEGGING for recruits and business, you can’t afford to miss a single call. It’s so sad.

    • I do NOT use the phone while driving … she would get a hard “hell no, my commute time is for ME” response.

  2. “What do you like most about your job?
    Nothing.”

    I know these are fake answers written by whoever wrote the script, but I call bullmuffins. Most everyone has something they like about their job, even if it’s only the employee discount. If you really hate your job, you’re allowed to look for a new one at any time.

    “What would you like to change?
    Everything – more time to myself, answer to nobody, more money.”

    Which is exactly why you shouldn’t emulate a woman who admits to working 8-5:30, longer than normal office hours, every day plus extras on Saturday. Not to mention you’d be constantly answering to your recruiter and your director about everything from why havn’t you ordered enough to why did you wear pants to a meeting. Extra money? Sell your plasma. That’s at least honest. But seriously, if you can live comfortably within your means but have to forego some luxuries, welcome to the real world.

    “Where would you like to see yourself personally, financially and career wise in the next 5 yrs?
    In NC on the coast somewhere with a six figure income so my husband can retire.”

    As if. Six-figure salaries don’t grow on trees. People making that kind of money were either born to it or worked their asses off for years to get to that level. And if your husband wants to retire early, why should the full burden fall on you? He can meet with a financial planner and come up with a workable plan like a big boy.

    “What do you need the most in your life right now?
    Free time.”

    Said every parent ever 😉

    Once again, longer days than your standard office hours, stuff on weekends, extra meetings, time spent running around…

    “What do you value the most in your life?
    My family.”

    Once again, longer days than your standard office hours, stuff on weekends, extra meetings, time spent running around… Whatever Mary Kay Wagner Rogers Eckman Weaver Louis Miller Hallenbeck Ash might have said, throwing an onion into a pot of boiling water doesn’t really make it smell like dinner’s cooking.

    The time will come when you’ll have to choose between a family event and some spurious Mary Kay goal. Which do you want – six-figure income (HAHAHAHA!!!!!) and a daughter who resents you for never being around, or a normal life with some potholes and sacrifices but you’re all together for the whole journey?

    12
    • One of the things we comment about a lot on PT is how if these ladies (such as the subject of today’s post) would just take even HALF the energy/time they expend on MLM in an actual J.O.B., oh the success they could have!

      They could be an hourly or salaried sales professional, working in a retail store that they don’t have to pay any rent or utilities for, with willing customer traffic driven by their employer’s own advertising dollars, selling products to legitimately interested customers and being rewarded for their time, PLUS getting training AND benefits, all on the employer’s dime.

      But instead they somehow buy into this whole spiel about being their own boss and setting their own hours…yet neither of those things are actually true.

      What we can surmise from many of the posts and videos we see coming from these MLM folks is that unfortunately they lack the basic skills needed to be successful in an actual JOB (the horrible spelling and basic grammatical errors, the total lack of any business understandings, the begging/pleading/guilting others to buy from them are a few).

      Sadly, most of them wouldn’t get past an initial interview for many jobs, even entry-level ones. So how can someone who would not succeed as an actual paid sales employee for a company think that they’re capable of running their “own” (MLM) business?

      THESE are the types of recruits that MLM recruiters want…those who desire to be successful sales professionals but who lack the basic skills to actually BECOME successful sales professionals via employment with a retail company. These are the people who will buy into the MLM dream and not question the most basic business issues with the MLM format (they don’t ask how many other sellers are in their area, they don’t question why it makes any sense for them to recruit their own customers as their competitors, they don’t wonder why they can’t advertise as they want to).

      And as long as there are MLM recruiters dangling that fake carrot, there will be those who buy into it.

  3. “…answer to nobody…”

    Except in MK and other MLMs, you DO answer to somebody. It could be corporate and your lack of ordering, your upline (and your lack of ordering), your spouse/partner due to always ordering and not selling, your bank account (for always ordering and not selling), your children since you’re always working, and more…..

    These scripts have not changed in 30 years.

    12
  4. What’s the obsession with retiring husbands? Maybe he likes working and contributing to the family.

    17
    • It’s to make the family dependant purely on the MLMer’s money. Plus he can become her unpaid office assistant/ boy Friday removing another expense.
      In LuLaRich the founders stated that if the business got that successful, then the husband should take it over thus demoting the wife.

    • It fits right in with the whole faux empowerment “husbands are the enemy” gaslighting, though.

      Husbands are bad because they’ll try to talk you out of the opportunity of a lifetime (yeah right) and because they have logical brains that get hung up on numbers and figures and they don’t realize you have to spend money to make money. Therefore you must hide your inventory from him, open your own credit cards to buy inventory on the “husband unawareness plan,” never say anything negative about MK or that mean old man will make you quit, etc. etc.

      Therefore, when you make executive income doing part time work (yeah right) and become the sole breadwinner, when he complains about you and the kids never seeing you, you can throw it right back in his face. Because affection with MLM is transactional.

    • I followed two MLM distributors who claimed they had “retired” their husbands.

      As time went on, it was revealed that, in one case, husband had lost his job and was working out of town (no, he wasn’t “away on fishing trips” like the wife claimed.)

      In the other case, husband had been injured at his job and was collecting disability insurance. (And THAT is why he was always home on the couch while she filmed those opportunity videos.)

      Liars.

      12
    • And poor Roya Mattis, she supposedly “retired” her husband (likely lies) and with his newfound free time he took up with another woman, thus pushing Roya into her bizarre current downward spiral!

  5. No mention of the product’s value, or how much she’s made from selling product. In fact no real detail on how to make money in Mary Kay! Also no mention of the $1000/yr commitment to stay “active” and remain eligible for commissions and discounted product.

    This whole thing is hot air geared toward building a downline, with little or no mention of selling product to end consumers.

    We all need to band together on one important theme: When approached by any MLMer to host a party, reply with, “It’s your business, so it would be most appropriate for you to host your own sales events.”

    13
    • “No mention of the product’s value, or how much she’s made from selling product. In fact no real detail on how to make money in Mary Kay! Also no mention of the $1000/yr commitment to stay “active” and remain eligible for commissions and discounted product.”

      But but but…it’s not about making money, it’s about enriching women’s lives, right?

      I mean, that’s the only way to justify recruiting your own customers (so, trading in that fifty percent retail profit you make on their sales for the itty bitty percentage you’ll make on their wholesale purchases after you’ve recruited them) amirite?

      Because if it’s really about making money, you’ll keep your customers’ fifty percent profit all day long, and will continue to build your CUSTOMER base without recruiting a single one.

      But…if it’s NOT about making money and is instead SUPPOSEDLY about sharing the opportunity, you’ll happily give up that profit and if you don’t, not only are you not sharing the opportunity, you’re also not “lifting women up” or whatever catch phrase they use to drive this point home to you.

  6. I always get stuck on the “free travel” thing. Disclaimer: I am not in MK- I became fascinated with this website after doing the interview for a cousin and feeling icky afterward. I was hoping she would get out of it, but, here we are…..7 years later. I have only seen her pay her own money to go to Dallas several times. There were a couple of cruises (I think) she was trying to win, but they make it nearly impossible to win. For one of the contests, the angle was that she would pick one customer to go with her to NYC for a “girls weekend.” Does anyone remember that promotion? Why would I want to do that? I would want to go with my husband, and so should she. Just a weird promotion. Of course, she didn’t win that either, because no one actually wins their contests. That “free travel” angle is just a small part of the lies, but it is still so gross. I think most of us associate free travel for work with the opportunity to see a city for a day or two after you have done your work there (on a flight your company paid for). Or perhaps, you can bring your spouse along to share your company-paid hotel room, because you don’t have four people in your room, and then spend a day or two soaking up the city after your work is done. Mary Kay’s idea idea of “free travel” is the off chance that you might win one of their contests. Just gross….

    10
    • Everyone PAYS DEARLY for the so-called free travel. They end up buying products they don’t need and will never sell. They’d be better off using that money to buy their own trip somewhere.

      13
    • Welcome! And you’ve hit a nail on the head…the “free” trip lies. They could have worked as an employee of an actual company and could have saved up for their dream trips, scheduled on their own terms and to their own liking.

      I’ll admit that as a salaried plus bonus employee of actual companies, I earned a couple FABULOUS trips (oh Quebec City, LE Frontenac; the Bellagio in LV; Marco Island and Naples…) so maybe my intolerance for the whole “MLM free trips” lie is particularly vehement, but even people who haven’t worked in jobs where they get these types of trips can see how blatantly FALSE the whole MLM free trips claim is.

      It is so true that they have to spend so much more to “earn” the trip than what they would have spent on the trip themselves.

      I am so glad you’ve found PT, and that you can see MK for the scam that it is. Maybe one day your cousin will be free of the MK pink fog, hopefully. At least you can continue to learn more about how bad it is and continue to steer clear. That icky feeling was your own smarts and instincts telling you that MK and MLMs overall are bad news!

  7. My Schedule – I work MK full time – I take off all day on Tues for me!

    Work Monday through Friday – 8a-5:30p & I do a Thursday night SCC (while my husband works that night), plus I do a class 2 Saturdays a month – plus always a class at my Monday meeting. I do not work on Sunday.

    Pick the nights that work for you – what works best with your family schedule.

    I work really hard some days but also take off and enjoy other things. I really live God first, family second, career third!

    Have I been lied to? I was told it was/is executive pay for part-time work. Not a 5 day week from 8-17.30. Plus evenings .

    12
    1
    • You might want to sit down for this, DA, because it’s so shocking.

      There’s a possibility that someone along the way…

      [looks furtively right and left]

      …told a FIB :O

      15
      1
      • Staggers to fainting couch, clutching pearls….

        A God-honouring Mary Kay Wagner Rogers Eckman Weaver Louis Miller Hallenbeck Ash following paragon of beauty and honesty told.. a a FIB in this economy!!!!

        13
      • Okay so because I love to use the “trademark” symbol, could we maybe start a thing like “Pink Fib”? Such as:

        Pink Fib ™?

        I mean, I know I can’t trademark EVERYTHING (though ™ it won’t ™ stop ™ me ™ from ™ trying ™) BUT we are due to add one more trademark to the site, I believe! We should start a thread on the boards as to what MK phrases/words could be considered for a trademark and maybe vote for one to add.

  8. #1 -We are looking for women that are busy because we know that they get the most done because they are good time managers. Are you busy?
    Yes. I am.

    If I’m busy, I’ve messed up my time management.

    • Well mainly because it’s not profit margin. It’s possibly gross profit, but actually almost never is.

  9. “We make money by selling the products”

    But notice she moves right into these statements:

    If you want to move up you do that by bringing other people in to the company.

    When you have 1-4 people you get a 4 % commission check from the co – that comes directly from MK. When you have 5 or more you get 9- 13%! And as a Sales Director you get an additional 23% plus bonsuses!

    My first recruiting check was only $4.34 and my husband and I laughed about it — but my largest commission check now is over $12,000 for one month!

    “The free car is another way to make money!” — Also requires recruiting, not “selling the products”.

    The quote should really read:

    It’s impossible to make any significant profit selling products. The only way to make decent money is to recruit your mark by telling her the lie “we make money selling the products”. This, so the mark will place an order for products, then the recruiter makes her recruiting commission on that amount. The bigger the order, the bigger commission. Remember that 12k check? That’s recruiting commissions.

    In summary for the lurkers: You’re only ordering products so your upline can make a commission on your purchase. It’s about her. Once in, you will also have yourself order products, not to sell, but to qualify for something. You will also be encouraged to find a mark like yourself. No retailing of product ever required.

    MLM Golden Rule: Do unto others as they have done unto you.

    • How often the closing line is the gut wrencher….you nailed it, Char. Absolute travesty of EVERYTHING mk purports to be.

      “MLM Golden Rule: Do unto others as they have done unto you.”

    • “When you have 5 or more you get 9- 13%!”

      So…I can either make the magical fifty percent on the retail purchases from five of my friends/family, OR I can make nine percent of their wholesale purchases if I recruit them instead. So for example if as CUSTOMERS, these five each buy $100 at retail prices from me, I get $250 in profit. BUT if instead I recruit these five and they each buy $50 in wholesale, I’ll earn five percent of that figure, which is $22.50.

      Hmm…$250.00 versus $22.50.

      How is this even a question???

      Well, if I am smart and choose to NOT recruit my fifty-percent-profit-paying customers (instead continuing to enjoy that mad profit) then anyone else in MK (whether my director, her director, or total strangers) are not only allowed to recruit my customers, they’re ENCOURAGED to. Because if I’m unwilling to give up my sales profits by not recruiting my customers, I’m apparently denying them of The Opportunity, and it’s only right if some other Kaybot swoops in and offers it.

      Even if you’re an English Major like me (I don’t do mathematics, but I can spell mathematics), this Mary Kay “math” makes no sense. If you’re an IBC, you’d best figure out early on that retail sales profit is not what’s important; sharing the opportunity with any breathing life form IS important, and giving up your retail profit to enable the “opportunity” is expected of you.

      If you as a Mary Kay IBC (or director) truly consider yourself to be the “business owner” they tell you to believe that you are, you’ll have enough business sense to recognize that giving up profit in such a way and for such reasons MAKES NO SENSE!

      2
      1
  10. The next time an MLM’er asks me for leads cause thats what they are, I’m gonna say sure I’ll introduce you to x amount of people but it’s gonna cost you = cash.

  11. Please please please continue using “Mary Kay Wagner Rogers Eckman Weaver Louis Miller Hallenbeck Ash” as often as possible lololol. Nothing wrong with seeking the right spouse hee hee but guessing the kbots prefer the much abbreviated Mary Kay!

    10

Comments are closed.

Related Posts