There are a tons of ways to make money online. You no longer have to be stuck in a boring 9-5 job slaving away, making other people's dreams come true. You can be your own boss! However, you do have to be careful with what business opportunity you choose. Quite often, many of these online business opportunities are nothing but glorified scams. Chances are you know this and why you're looking at Vector Marketing Reviews online. You're wondering can you really make money this way or is it just one of those scams everyone is talking about? Well, let's take a closer look and determine if Vector Marketing is cut above the rest. Pun intended.
What is Vector Marketing?
VectorMarketing.com is a direct sales marketing company that acquired kitchenware company Cutco Cutlery in 1985. Vector Marketing Corporation sells knives manufactured by Cutco using a sales force that goes door-to-door. Vector Marketing began in 1948 in Olean, New York.
What Products Does Vector Marketing Offer?
Vector Marketing sells Cutco Cutlery kitchenware. However, the biggest focus is on selling Cutco knife sets. These knives feature a patented “Double D” recessed edge with 440A stainless steel blades. At the time of this review, these knife sets range in price from $286-$1,212.
Vector Marketing Compensation Plan
Vector Marketing Sales Representatives receive a weekly base pay plus commission. According to the company's website, representatives will receive pay for every qualified appointment that they make, whether or not they make any sales. The company does not disclose the commission percentage for each sale. To make sales, representatives make appointments by phone to come to a potential customer's house to show what the knives can do. They can also go door-to-door to sell the products. If you don't like the idea of door to door selling or not knowing your commission rate, then I highly recommend checking out Fusion Cash, Swagbucks.com my Top Work At Home Recommendation or Swagbucks.com.
How to Become a Vector Marketing Distributor?
Those who wish to become a sales representative with Vector Marketing must fill out a free application and be interviewed by the company. No previous sales experience is required, but individuals must be at least 18 years old. Before sales representatives can make appointments to sell the knives, they must complete three days of unpaid training. Once this training is complete, they are loaned a demonstration set of knives valued at around $425. This set is used during appointments to showcase the knives to potential customers.
What We Like
Excellent BBB Rating: At the time of this review, Vector Marketing has an A+ rating along with full accreditation with the Better Business Bureau. Swagbucks.com is another work at home company with great BBB ratings.
Forever Satisfaction Guarantee: Vector Marketing will correct or replace the Cutco knives at no charge any time and for any reason.
Free Knife Sharpening: The company will sharpen your purchased knives at no cost whenever you need it.
15-Day Money Back Guarantee: Customers can exchange or return purchases within 15 days for a full refund. However, you must contact the company first to request your money back and include printed confirmation with your return package.
Vector Marketing Complaints
Preying on Naive College Students: The company places online and print advertisements directly aimed at college students. There are many complaints about these ads because they do not spell out how much the base pay is or they misrepresent how a person receives pay as a representative. Some ads claim that a representative can make $12-$18 per hour
Unclear Compensation: The company does not offer clear details on its website with how much it pays per appointment or what the commission percentages are. With the company being vague upfront on pay, it is highly likely you aren't going to make a good income from it. You may want to check out my Top Work At Home Recommendation instead.
Knives Aren't Great For Home Use: The knives feature a serrated edge, which isn't ideal when it comes to most home slicing tasks. If you try to use them to just up certain food items like tomatoes, you may end up with a hot mess. The knives don't stay sharpened for a long time either. You will end up having to send your knives to the company frequently over time for free sharpening.
Knife Sharpening and Fees: The free knife sharpening program isn't exactly free. Customers must pay shipping and handling fees ranging from $7 for 1-3 items to $10 for more than 4 items.
Damaged Returns: If you try to return an item and the company determines there was damage through your own misuse, then you will only receive a refund for up to half the original purchase price.
Previous Trouble With The Law: The company has had to defend its business practices on multiple occasions. Vector Marketing was accused by a recruit for failing to comply with New York labor laws and found guilty. Alicia Harris filed a lawsuit in 2008 against the company for failure in paying adequate wages and coercion of employees for illegal patronizing. A final settlement worth $13 million is still pending. Vector Marketing made an agreement to stop misrepresenting its compensation plan in 1990 after a lawsuit from the Arizona Attorney General. In 1994, the state of Wisconsin ordered the company to stop providing potential recruits with dishonest information.
So is Vector Marketing Legit or A Big Scam?
Vector Marketing appears to have cleaned up its act. But they had a troubled past with various lawsuits about their deceptive marketing tactics to recruit distributors. Things seemed to have improved of recent and Vector marketing reps receive a base pay per appointment plus commissions for selling kitchenware products. Another nice feature is that there is no cost to become a distributor.
However, the company still isn't up front about what you can actually make. So I'm not sure if I would be interested in this opportunity for myself.
I'm a big proponent of multiple streams of income to make money from home. But you need to find the right type of companies. That said, I highly recommend you start by checking out, Swagbucks.com my Top Work At Home Recommendation and my Work At Home Courses. But that's my two cents.
I'd love to hear what you have to say about this company and your experiences with Cutco knives so please feel free to leave your comments down below. And if you enjoyed this review, please free to check out my other work at home reviews as well.
Until next time,
Eddy with a y
I knew i had lost $220k to this company two months ago, At first I tried to do a chargeback with the bank directly, I tried to do it myself. The result was negative; the bank rejected my request and would not open the chargebacks for me (not to mention I’ve put the whole process at risk as after banks rejection I had even smaller chance to open, not to even mention winning the dispute so I suggest for people to not handle it on their own as then you might not even have a chance to get any help from professional.
Cutco is great. Vector is not. They allow sexual assaults to happen between employees and they trick you into paying them, I didn’t get paid for may 2nd until June 16 because I owed them money for a work trip I was told was mandatory
Thanks for sharing your experience.
Great article. I was surprised at how current it was. I have to say though, that I sold Cutco so some friends a few years (3-4) back and the knives are still VERY sharp. The Double-D design cuts through tomatoes so cleanly that you’d think it was butter.
To fill in some information:
I never had to pay for my loaner kit, though I’m sure some people do. One of the reasons commission percentage isn’t listed is because its supposed to increase as an incentive to sell more. The more you sell, the higher your commission increases from 10% up to 50% at certain monetary milestones. I found that the percentage did actually increase, but I don’t know what the milestones are now.
I think your article highlights the importance of being weary though. This organization seems to be run like a pyramid, though (in my experience) they seem to honor all the agreements made with sales representatives.
Hi I just want to update on the Vector experience since everyone seems to have tried it a few years ago but they are still on the hunt for victims, ehem, I mean contractors. I recently fell for their antics and scheduled an interview. I was told to arrive 10 minutes early and I did, but not a single soul was there. A crappy sign on the door indicated that I was at the right spot, but no one showed up. The door was locked and I could see that the lights were off inside. I tried contacting the “manager” via that number they give you on an automated text message, but my calls never went through. It seems to me like even their managers have given up on their jobs.
Hey Eddy great words man…I actually attended interview today with Vector the way they explained their products and plans looks cool to me but after when I shared this with my couple of friends they said it’s a scam so m still confused should I go for training or not…
Well, we’ve laid out the pros and cons here. It’s up to you to decide if the cons we laid out are things you can deal with or not.
usually these employment interviews are actual demonstrations and the interviewer makes commission off new employees buying their demo sets. not unethical, but not totally upfront either.
Thanks for sharing that. It’s the first time I’ve heard of this being used as a tactic.
Hello!
I just recently came on with cutco and I absolutely love it. I’m in school in Athens, Ga and working with CUTCO has helped me out a lot so far financially. When I saw the job advertised there was a base pay listed and also an upfront commission rate and my boss told my training group up front how to raise your commission rate. Most people speculate its door to door but its actually the complete opposite. Our training manual specifically stated how our mission is not to be the annoying seller that uses a phone book for clients and we are not a door to door marketing agency. We start off with our family and friends and can only reach out to people we have been personally recommended to and it goes from there. Of course there are probably some employees that will go to a phone book to get ahead but that’s not the company’s mission. We are in charge of building our own clientele and getting recommendations comes easy once you mention your goal or ____ recommendations to help you get a scholarship from the company. The knives stay sharp FOREVER and I know this because my parents and aunts have had the same set since I was little.
Well thanks for sharing your experience. It sounds like you’ve had a positive experience with this company and that’s great.
In 2012 I attempted to work for this company. Yes it’s aimed at college kids that’s what almost my whole class was. Now the knives…..and scissors what I would do to own a set, not just serrated anymore! They cut wonderfully anything! I was living in Winston Salem NC at the time and a large chef lived across the street I asked him could I show him a few things he was delighted with them! The scissors are TOP NOCH!!! They will cut a penny in half lol my sister’s MIL bought a zinc plated ice cream scoop made for “effortless” ice cream scooping and so it was! The company will make a effort to make anything right with customers but NOT employees. So unless you’re in college with a bunch of friends you can show your knives to, no it’s not worth it a bit. You do get paid for every appointment plus any commission but like I said unless you have a TON of people to show it’s not worth it. Eddy do you have a review on Perfectly Posh? If not I’d like to collaborate on one!
Katie, thanks for sharing your experience. I did do a Perfectly Posh review here.
With any sales company such as this one, one has to make certain that the product that you are selling is top notch, otherwise people will rather buy that same product from their nearest store.
Why anyone would want to sell substandard knives is beyond me, and actually, how much money could you earn by selling knives of all things.
Multiple streams of income online is the way to go for the future, and if you want to work for yourself, I suggest you find out as much as possible about building your own online business.
You make some great points Michel.
Thanks for sharing.
Hi Eddy with a Y,
My cousin sold knives door to door when he was in college… I wonder if it was for the same company?
I think the idea of selling knives door to door or anything for that matter is outdated. We live in a world that’s making it harder to trust strangers. Me personally, I wouldn’t open the door if someone was trying to sell me knives.
I think it’s a cool concept that Vector Marketing pays its distributors weekly for completing qualified appointments because whether or not they make a sale, they’re still working their butts off.
I like that they offer free knife sharpening, but I don’t think I’d consider buying these knives. As a former chef, I think I’ll stick to Japanese and German knives.
While the 15 day money back guarantee puts me at ease about Vector Marketing, this business opportunity is not for me.
Thanks,
Diana
Hey Diana,
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Your cousin may have actually been selling these knives since this company was targeting college students. I agree, the whole door to door sales stuff sounds dated. I don’t open the door for anyone unless I’m expecting you. So I’m totally there with you.
My mother and law got me and my wife some Cutco knives one year for a Christmas gift. We have a serrated as well as a straight edge knife. I’ve gotta say, they’re the two nicest knives we own. They actually have a pretty good product. That being said, I don’t know if I want to try pushing their product. They do prey on younger adults. I remember back in the day going to an interview to sale their products door to door. I never would have wasted my time going to the interview if the ad in the paper would have been more up front about the actual job.
Hey Dustin, thanks for sharing your experience about their knives and what you think about the opportunity. I appreciate the real feedback.
Thanks for this review. I wouldn’t consider working as a sales representative that has to go knocking every door in the neighbourhood.
Having those past lawsuits doesn’t look good for this company. I think that looking scammy is one of the worst things that can happen to an online company. It actually kills all their metrics.
I know for experience your recommendation does work so I’m glad you’re sharing it with others.
You’re welcome. And I agree the whole door to door sales is a big turn off.
This was an honest review on Vector Marketing. Most reviews of MLM tend to be more bashing than actually reviewing them. I have experience with them and they were “ok ” but the lawsuit against them is tough to overcome. I personally would have change the company name and started of in a clean slate.
I’m glad you liked the review Yunier. I try to stay objective despite my feelings or experiences with MLMs.
Honestly, just knowing their past is enough to make me want to take a step back and just say “NO” to them, but that is just how I am though.
They would of never changed if the law hadn’t got involved most likely, and just knowing that makes me not want anything to do with them
I hear ya Tomas. I can see how that would turn people off.