Beachbody Fact or Fiction?

In a continuation of yesterday's discussion about pyramid schemes, let's look at some FACT vs. FICTION with a Beachbody coaching business:

Fact: Beachbody is the 69th fastest growing company in the United States according to an article in Entrepreneur Magazine, March 2008.

Fact: Beachbody was started by Carl Daikeler and Jon Cogdon with $500,000 borrowed from family and private investors and is now a $250 million company that spends $90 million on marketing annually.

Fiction: Becoming an Independent Beachbody Coach is a get rich quick scheme.

Fact: With a modest investment of time, it takes about four months to start making money. When you invest more time, you make substantially more money.


Fiction: Beachbody coaches are part of a pyramid scheme - a non-sustainable business model that involves the exchange of money primarily for enrolling other people into the scheme, usually without any product or service being delivered.

Fact: Beachbody coaches market fitness and sell products from their own websites and are rewarded for encouraging people to become members of the Team Beachbody Club, get commissions on the fitness products that they sell and can build a business team where everyone is rewarded for their efforts to promote fitness, weight management and improved quality of life. Network Marketing is a business distribution model that allows a parent multi-level marketing company to market their products directly to consumers by means of relationship referral and direct selling.

Fiction: You have to spend a lot of money to be an Independent Team Beachbody Coach.

Fact: It costs $39.95 to become an Independent Team Beachbody Coach and then $14.95 a month if you decide to continue being a coach. There is no other cost for becoming a coach and the $14.95 monthly fee pays for your own coach website and e-commerce fitness product and supplement store.

Fiction: All that you have to do is sign up to be a coach and you will start making money.

Fact: Like any other business (each coach has their own coach business center) you have to work to make money. The more effort you put in, the more money that you will make. Beachbody helps you make money by providing a wealth of information and resources including live and recorded conference calls explaining the company and providing ideas on how to be successful, business building videos, product training sheets to familiarize you with all of the products, success stories, downloadable materials, access to everyone in the management of the company and most of all, your own personal coach to help you build your business.

Fact: The top coach in the company, a now retired school principal, in his first year (which is also the first year of the Beachbody network marketing business model)earned $305,938.00.