CBD oil products have overwhelmingly flooded the global consumer market, incorporated in a range of products such as supplements, essential oils, and even coffee. CBD oil is a key compound found in the cannabis plant, but unlike marijuana, consuming it does not result in a high. It is touted as a treatment for all types of ailments, even though the proof for some uses is not well-defined. Many companies that specialize in the manufacture and retail of CBD oil products have come up, and as you might expect, the quality varies from one vendor to another. Here is a look at Zilis, one such company, to help you determine if their business opportunity is worth looking into. So, is Zilis a scam?
WHAT IS ZILIS?
Zilis is a multi-level marketing company that operates in the CBD industry offering a wide range of products that are infused with CBD. It was founded by Steven and Angie Thompson in 2015 and is based in Texas.
Upon research, I discovered that Steven was once an affiliate with Cyberwise, otherwise known as LiveSmart 360 where he worked from 2001 to 2009. He left in 2015 to launch Zilis which he currently heads, with his wife Angie serving as COO.
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE PRODUCTS OFFERED BY THE COMPANY?
Zilis is partnered with manufacturers of a variety of health and nutritional products. The company also offers its proprietary Zen product line which is manufactured exclusively by Zilis. The product categories are given as follows:
- Zen
This includes products such as Zen Mist, which is a topical and oral spray nutritional product. It supposedly has the potential to improve nutrient absorption as well as promote hydration to ensure natural healthy cell performance.
- Vera Life
Vera is considered to be one of the pioneers of liquid nutrition. The products don’t contain fillers, non-natural additives, sweeteners, artificial flavors, or dairy. They are fully natural and are meant to improve your diet.
- Common Sense Supplements
These are nutritional and dietary supplements that are meant to improve the health of users. The ingredients used for the supplements are sourced within the USA.
- Common Sense Pet Nutrition
These supplements are targeted towards pets. The products range from joint support supplements for medium and large size dogs to multivitamin and mineral supplements for cats.
- Elementa Essential Oils
These are pure, botanically –sourced, therapeutic-grade essential oils that are meant to provide soothing and enhance vibrant health.
- Wright Family Products
These are handmade, organic personal care products, including deodorants, butter, and shampoo, lip balm, and sunscreen, among others.
- Clean Machine
This is a category of natural, plant-based sports-oriented supplements meant to make you more physically fit.
- Safe4U Cleaning
This category is made of natural house cleaning products that are meant to serve as an alternative to commercially produced varieties.
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO BECOME PART OF THE BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY?
To join the company, you are required to provide your sponsor’s ID and pay a membership fee of $99. This will give you access to the cheapest bundle pack.
There are three starter packs to choose from:
- Bronze – $199
- Silver – $599
- Gold – $1299
These starter packs are distinguished from each other in terms of the products that come with them as well as the eligibility to receive higher commissions. To access your affiliate back office, you are required to pay an additional $29 per month.
ZILIS COMPENSATION PLAN
ZILIS AFFILIATE RANKS
The Zilis compensation plan has a total of twelve affiliate ranks:
- Ambassador
- Associate ambassador
- Community ambassador
- City ambassador
- Area ambassador
- Regional ambassador
- National ambassador
- Presidential ambassador
- Diamond
- Double diamond
- Triple diamond
- Black diamond
MAKING MONEY WITH ZILIS
According to the compensation plan, there are several ways you can make money with Zilis:
Retail Profit (paid weekly)
All the orders that are generated by the people that you recruit pay retail commissions that can go up to 100%. You can opt to pay the retail price with one-time purchases or get discounted pricing by becoming a preferred customer and consequently receive up to 50% off the retail price. To become a preferred customer, you are required to have a minimum of one product that is commissionable on auto-ship. To qualify for this commission, you have to be an ambassador during the time that a customer purchase takes place.
Fast Start Bonus (paid weekly)
When you recruit a new ambassador to the company. The amount that you earn will depend on the starter pack that you purchase:
- Bronze – $20
- Silver – $60
- Gold – $130
A sponsor needs to be an active ambassador during the period which new ambassadors are recruited. Being active means having 50 auto-ship PV (personal volume) or 75 other personal volume in the previous or current month from your customer’s orders as well as your own.
Binary Team
This is the part of the compensation plan where you start to see the multi-level marketing and residua payments aspect. The company is based on a binary compensation model, where you have a placement tree that has two sides, a right team and a left team and you are required to recruit members on each side.
Your commission from the binary compensation model is 20% of the BV (business volume) from the lesser side volume (LSV0 from your right and left legs each week. BV is typically generated anytime that a newly enrolled ambassador purchases a pack or upgrades within your right or left leg. You can also qualify to store and carry over any unused BV from your stronger leg.
The earning potential for this category is primarily determined by rank. To earn accelerated binary commissions, you are required to have at least 100 auto-ship PV or 150 other PV in the previous or current month from your customer’s orders as well as your own. It is worth noting that at least 300 BV is required on each leg to earn a binary commission. You receive payments every week, with the bonuses ranging from $250 – $30,000.
Infinity Fast Start (IFS)
This bonus is quite similar to binary team bonus, with the main difference being that the infinity start bonus is only available to ambassadors who immediately advance in rank. When you achieve a leadership rank, you can earn this bonus when you recruit new members. The earnings are broken down as follows:
- Area – bronze pack earns $8; silver pack earns $35; gold pack earns $60.
- Regional – bronze pack earns $7; silver pack earns $25; gold pack earns $50.
- National – bronze pack earns $6; silver pack earns $15; gold pack earns $40.
Generational Bonus (paid monthly)
This bonus sets the foundation for residual income. The generational bonus allows you to earn from product sales volume generated by ambassadors on your downline up to six levels/generations deep. The commission that you earn will depend on your rank.
Infinity Residual Bonus (Paid monthly)
You can earn bonuses of up to 9% per month on the total volume that is produced within your generation. The higher the sales volume of your team, the more you get to earn. To qualify for this bonus, you have to attain the required rank every month. Because IRB is not capped and is paid through unlimited generation, the earning potential is limitless.
- Area – 4% IRB
- Regional – 3% IRB
- National – 2% IRB
Infinity Matching Bonus (paid monthly)
If an ambassador that you recruited achieves the same rank as you, you qualify for the infinity matching bonus (IMB). The more people you recruit and the higher the success of your team, the higher the IMB bonus you earn. Starting at the area ambassador rank, all the ambassadors qualify for 10% IMB.
- Area – 10%
- Regional – 20%
- National – 30%
- Presidential – 40%
If you enroll with a gold pack, you are eligible to receive a 20% matching potential on all the ambassadors that you personally enroll for a lifetime.
Blessing Bonus (BB)
To qualify for this bonus, you are required to attain the rank of city ambassador or higher during the qualifying month. The earnings for this bonus are broken down as follows:
- City/area – $100
- Regional – $200
- National – $300
- Presidential – $400
- Diamond and above – $500
You are expected to spend the blessing bonus on your local community. How you opt to pay forward this bonus is entirely up to you – the recipient can be a stranger, an established non-profit organization, or even a family member. To prove that you have given away your blessing bonus, you are required to send a video or photo once every three months.
Healthcare Bonus
Ambassadors who achieve the regional ambassador and higher qualify to earn the healthcare bonus. This bonus varies depending on the rank that you achieve:
- Regional – $500
- National – $750
- Presidential – $1250
- Double diamond and above – $1500
Jeep Bonus
The jeep bonus is paid monthly to ambassadors who have attained the area ambassador rank and higher. With this bonus, you are eligible to choose a Grand Cherokee or Jeep Wrangler and receive reimbursement on your loan payment or lease from Zilis.
- Area – $400
- Regional – $500
- National – $700
- Presidential – $800
- Diamond – $1000
- Double diamond and above – $1200
Global Bonus Pool (paid monthly and quarterly)
2% of all the generational volume is shared among regionals, nationals, and presidentials. The earnings that you receive are directly proportional to the amount pulled in by your sponsor tree team.
- Regional ambassadors receive 50% of the global bonus pool (GBP)
- National ambassadors receive 30% of the GBP
- Presidential ambassadors receive 20% of the GBP
PROS
- The compensation plan is detailed
The compensation plan provided on the company’s website is comprehensive and easy to follow. It details the various ways that ambassadors working for the company can make money as well as the ranks they can attain.
- The products appear to be of good quality
The products that are advertised on the website seem to be of good quality. Other than offering some of its own items, Zilis has made the effort to work with well-known manufacturers of CBD-based products.
CONS
- It is very expensive to get started as a Zilis ambassador
Although you are assured that the starter packs are optional, your earning potential will remain very low if you choose to do so. As a result, you will inevitably feel the pressure to buy one of them. Another issue is that these starter packs are costly, so you can expect to spend quite a bit of your money to get started.
- The company’s main aim is to recruit as many ambassadors as possible
Although you can earn money by making sales, the main focus of the company is to get their ambassadors to constantly recruit new members who will sell their products for them. This is where most of your income will come from and the only way you can upgrade your rank. This is hardly an easy task and will require a lot of your time and effort to execute.
- Success rate is low working with the company
As with other MLMs, the success rate of those who buy into the Zilis business opportunity is very low. The commission rates that you receive, especially for the lower levels, is far from compatible with the work that you are required to carry out in terms of recruitment and making sales.
- Strict requirements to qualify for commissions
To remain active and qualified, you have to buy the required number of products to ensure that you meet the PV quota for each rank. As a result, it is not uncommon to find members who purchase a lot more of the product that they can sell to customers or personally consume.
VERDICT
In conclusion, Zilis is not a scam as it offers a legitimate business opportunity. However, there is not much money to be made working with the company due to its MLM structure which allows only a handful of people at the very top to make most of the earnings. Because of this, I wouldn’t recommend investing in the company.
WHAT IS BETTER THAN ZILIS?
I am not a big fan of the MLM model. If you follow this blog, this comes at no surprise to you! I don’t like the fact that only a small number of people can make money with MLM. In addition, I hate the idea of forcing products on friends and family!
I prefer Affiliate Marketing! It is a simple model that gives everyone the opportunity to make money! It does not require force selling to your friends and family. In its most simple form, Affiliate marketing rewards you for helping people looking for solutions to their problems.
I get great satisfaction from helping people. I also happen to make good money while helping my readers. In my opinion, this is the best way to create a business online. Helping people has always proven to be a sustainable and effective business model whether online or out in the real world.
Don’t get me wrong! Affiliate marketing is not easy. It takes work and patience. Having said that, it not complicated either. All you need is a little know-how.
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I hope you take me up on my recommendation. It is free! You can take a look around and decide for yourself. I will also be there on the other side to answer any questions you may have!
To your success,
Mike Aha