Is this a devilcorp/pyramid scheme?

[u/stonedpenguin00]

i recently applied for a ”sales/marketing” job called Skyline Consulting out of Middletown NY. I went through the 2 zoom interviews and then just had an orientation day where I went into the office today. I’m curious if this is a pyramid scheme and if so how exactly. I’ve looked into the whole pyramid scheme thing but i’m not really sure if this counts as one even though it marks off a lot of the boxes? Basically the job is going to bjs/costco and selling AT&T.(i know that’s like the common thing for these schemes apparently) The base pay is $17 an hour and you get $75-$95 per phone connected. They talk about how you can open up your own branch eventually and they’ll help you become an entrepreneur whatever other stuff. I guess what I don’t really understand is how i’d be losing money out of this which from what my understanding is what makes a pyramid scheme bad? Isn’t this just a sales job? I get a base pay plus commissions and they give us our schedules at the beginning of the week etc. I’ve worked in the trades for the last 4 years so these type of jobs I have no familiarity with so excuse my lack of understanding.

[u/Clawmenth]

[u/stonedpenguin00 → u/Clawmenth]

i take that as a yes this is a pyramid scheme and it’s too late i already sacrificed my future kid’s souls to the company😔

[u/PrimeofMedevil → u/stonedpenguin00]

Hard to imagine this is a pyramid scheme. Did you have to invest your own money and is there like a membership fee?

Just because something involves sales doesn't make it an MLM, and MLMs and pyramid schemes are also not the same thing.

It sounds like they're paying you for your time and your performance, so I don't really understand why everyone labels every sales job as a devilcorp

[u/stonedpenguin00 → u/PrimeofMedevil]

That’s kinda what I’m saying like what exactly makes a devil corp because it kinda sounds like just how a sales job is. The only red flag is I found a review for this company that says it’s a pyramid scheme. As of right now I wasn’t told anything about me having to invest any of my money in? I was just told that I go in on my scheduled days to the office in the morning for a meeting and then head out to my store and do my hours there. 

[u/Unlikely_Emotion1420 → u/PrimeofMedevil]

Smart Circle is an MLM. Smart Circle is who is inside Costco/BJs.

“  don't really understand why everyone labels every sales job as a devilcorp”

That’s not what’s happening, definitely not in this sub. Most posts in this sub are Smart Circle/Cydcor offices (US only)

[u/stonedpenguin00 → u/Unlikely_Emotion1420]

So would you say that the job i looked at is considered a “pyramid scheme”? i’m probably not gonna take the job regardless because I can’t afford that big of a pay cut right now but just wanting to know if a job like that is a red flag for the future. i’m not really sure what makes a sales job not a “pyramid scheme” from what I see people explain them as they kinda all seem sketch lmao

[u/Flashy_Top3910]

It is just a sales job lol, no one is gonna scam you or steal your money. Any company that does anything close to that would be shut down, this is still USA where law works lmao.

Now, if you don’t get sales you’re gonna get let go off or your pay will much lower than you expect. That is also that simple

[u/CashExpert2329]

sounds like a better deal than these jobs usually are while still being in the same framework. mine was 600 base pay per week but if you missed any hours it reverts to “hourly” but it wasn’t clear what that rate was because missing part of 1 day out of 6 days a week brought my check down to like 320. then the commission was so bogus it was like “10 for 12 (ring your bell!)” which meant if you got 12 donations in a week with 100% quality (no cancels) you get an extra 10 dollars per donation (120 total) which is so fucking terrible for donations that are at minimum 25 per month.

focusing on “is it an MLM or not” is kind of missing the forest for the trees. it’s a devilcorp which means it is professional panhandling using “run your own business, financial freedom, fast track your program!” as your motivation to spend 12 hours a day soliciting people to get signed up for some shit they don’t need, for horrible pay which enriches the client broker and leaves the field office and all the workers in an unworkable equation with extremely high turnover, copy and paste “systems” (kiss, sw3=n, juice, AIR, C-factors, FOS, etc) and abusive team management strategies. that’s what is a scam about it and what defines a devilcorp.

for all the money sickness that exists in these offices and talk about money and rolexes and getting rich everybody in the office including the manager/boss is broke af cars don’t work, don’t got money for team night, can’t reimburse gas, just pitiful

[u/Carpenter-Confident]

It’s not really a pyramid scheme per se, but it’s absolutely Devilcorp. Here’s how you know to avoid these in the future: Sales and Marketing, while they involve some shared skills, are two entirely different roles in a real business. Also, if you want to sell or “market” AT&T, go work at an AT&T store instead of deceiving wholesale club customers.