We live in a world where self-defense is becoming increasingly important. But did you know you can also make money selling self-defense products? You probably did and that’s why you’re searching through Damsel in Defense reviews to see if they are legit. Our Damsel in Defense review will take a closer look to see if they are a legitimate work from home opportunity or a scam.
What Is Damsel in Defense
DamselinDefense.net was founded in 2011 by co-founders Mindy Lin and Bethany Hughes. It is an MLM company that sells personal defense products to and for women, primarily through direct, in-home sales at product parties. Damsel in Defense is also a member of the Direct Selling Association and adheres to their code of ethics. Their headquarters is currently in Boise, Idaho.
What Are The Damsel in Defense Products?
The core Damsel in Defense products are personal defense items, like pepper spray, stun guns, personal alarms, and similar items, usually with a catchy name and feminine packaging. They also sell related items like concealed safes, wallets and purses, and roadside emergency kits, as well as keychains and t-shirts.
They also sell a digital protection plan that claims to keep you and your whole family safe online from identity and credit card theft, and even harassment and cyberbullying.
How Much Does it Cost to Become A Damsel Pro?
You can become a Damsel Pro and distribute Damsel in Defense products in two ways. You can sign up to host a party and earn hostess rewards and gifts, or you can join Damsel in Defense and become a professional distributor.
- Party hostesses must pay tax and shipping on all items, and their rewards are based on the total sales at the party. They earn a product discount and have access to several items at half price. The discount can't be applied to the half-price items, though.
- To become a Damsel in Defense Pro, you need to purchase the starter kit for $99. It includes an array of Damsel in Defense products, as well as business cards, hostess guides, invitations, receipts, and so on.
Damsel in Defense Compensation Plan
Because Damsel in Defense is not just a direct selling company, but also an MLM, the compensation plan is fairly complex, involving achieving and maintaining your own personal sales volume, team and group volumes, and numbers of recruits.
Damsel in Defense calculates your personal volume on a rolling 3 month period and requires that at least 50% of your sales volume be from non-digital products.
At the bottom level, a Recruit earns 25% commission until they reach $1000 accumulated volume, when they gain the rank of Protege, the commission rate jumps to 30%.
If you recruit another member, you earn the rank of Junior Mentor, and earn 30% commission on your own sales, and 4% commission on their sales. You must maintain a $150 sales volume per rolling 3 month period.
As you progress, you join groups and teams, each of which has a volume requirement, and you earn commission on your first, second, and third generation recruits.
If this compensation plan makes you head spin I don’t blame you. Most MLM plans are convoluted. Fortunately there are businesses with straight forward compensation such as Wealthy Affiliate. They can help you start a business working with major companies that pay you in a nice simple manner.But if you're not looking for a business opportunity and just want to make some side income, you may want to try free sites like Inboxdollars.com, SurveyJunkie.com, Swagbucks.com, and Fusioncash.com.
How Much Money Can Damsel in Defense Pro’s Make?
Unfortunately, Damsel in Defense doesn't publish an Income Disclosure Statement. This should set off some alarm bells. Why aren't they being transparent regarding how much you can earn as other MLMs do? Ultimately how much you can earn is anyone's guess.
What We Like about Damsel in Defense
We have laid out the logistics and what to expect, now to look into some of the things we like about Damsel in Defense.
Good BBB Rating
Damsel in Defense has an A+ Better Business Bureau rating at the time of writing this review and has been accredited with them since 2015. So, if you put a lot of faith into these ratings, at least you know they have a solid rating.
Reputable Company
Not only are they accredited by the Better Business Bureau, but they are also a member of the Direct Selling Association which has a strict code of ethics. It’s a good sign that they are accredited by all these bureau’s and associations. It shows they are reputable and won’t run away with your money.
It supports charitable causes
In line with their mission-driven marketing, Damsel in Defense supports many women's charities and does good work for women's causes.
Damsel in Defense Complaints
Now that we have covered what we like, it’s time to have a look at some of the complaints and see if these are deal breakers or not.
Lots of Recruiting
To earn more, chances are you will need to recruit a lot of people in your downline in order to earn a percentage of the sales they make. This means hosting in-home parties and trying to recruit people to grow your network.
If the idea of direct selling or recruiting people to make money doesn't appeal to you, then you might want to try sites like Wealthy Affiliate, Inboxdollars.com, SurveyJunkie.com, Swagbucks.com, and Fusioncash.com. There is no selling or recruiting involved with these sites.
No Income Disclosure
In the compensation plan they tell you the commission rates you can earn but what they don’t tell you is what their distributors have earned in a given year. The reason you can’t see this information is that they don’t have an income disclosure published on their website. So, you are kind of left in the dark as to what you can actually earn.
State-Specific Restrictions
Some states prohibit certain self-defense products. This means your income will be reduced even more since you won’t be able to sell products to people in certain states. It might be worth looking at the state-specific restrictions to see what products you can’t sell, and in which states it applies.
Is Damsel in Defense Just Another Scam?
Damsel in Defense is definitely not just another scam. It seems like the perfect opportunity for a great salesperson who also really, truly believes in the company and its mission to protect women.
Unfortunately, it’s not a great way to make money, unless you are already an exceptional salesperson with a great network and a lot of resources. It relies a lot on hosting home parties and trying to recruit other people into your network.
If you're looking for a business opportunity that will enable you to make a part-income or full-time online, you might want to try My Best Work At Home Recommendation. It's free to get started so there is no risk on your part. And there is no recruiting involved either.
So, there you have my opinion on Damsel in Defense. If you have any experience using Damsel in Defense or want to share your thoughts, please feel free to leave a comment below.
Until next time,
Eddy with a Y
Thanks for the in-depth review. MLM companies like these are prolific nowadays but how legitimate are they is a hard deal to crack. So, it is important to conduct research before setting off. Your reviews is much helpful in this process.