How to spot a pyramid scheme - Stacie Bosley

Translator: Polona Ramšak Reviewer: Matej Divjak

In 2004,

Leta 2004

a new company called Vemma Nutrition

je novo podjetje Vemma Nutrition

started offering a life-changing opportunity

začelo ponujati življenjsko priložnost,

to earn full time income for part time work.

zaslužiti polno plačo za polovičen delovni čas.

Vemma’s offer was open to everybody,

Vemmina ponudba je bila na voljo vsakomur

regardless of prior experience or education.

ne glede na izkušnje ali izobrazbo.

There were only two steps to start get started earning:

Samo dva koraka sta bila potrebna za začetek:

purchase a $500-600 kit of their liquid nutrition products,

nakup kompleta njihovih proizvodov tekoče prehrane, vrednega 500 do 600 dolarjev,

and recruit two more members to do the same.

in rekrutiranje še dveh članov, ki bosta storila isto.

Vemma Nutrition Company grew quickly,

Podjetje Vemma Nutrition je hitro raslo

becoming a global operation

in postalo globalna operacija,

that brought in 30,000 new members per month at its peak.

ki je na svojem vrhuncu vsak mesec pridobila 30 000 novih članov.

There was just one problem—

Bil je le en problem.

while the company generated $200 million of annual revenue by 2013,

Medtem ko je podjetje do leta 2013 imelo 200 mio dolarjev letnega prihodka,

the vast majority of participants earned less than they paid in.

je velika večina sodelujočih zaslužila manj, kot je vplačala.

Vemma was eventually charged with operating a pyramid scheme:

Vemmo so nazadnje obtožili vodenja piramidne sheme,

a common type of fraud

pogoste vrste goljufije,

where members make money

kjer člani služijo denar

by recruiting more people to buy in.

z rekrutiranjem ljudi, ki prispevajo denar.

Typically, the founder solicits an initial group of people

Tipično ustanovitelj privabi začetno skupino ljudi,

to buy in and promote the scheme.

ki kupijo in promovirajo shemo.

They are then encouraged to recruit others

Nato se jih spodbudi, da rekrutirajo druge,

and promised part of the money those people invest,

in obljubi se jim del denarja, ki ga bodo ti ljudje investirali,

while the founder also takes a share.

medtem ko si tudi ustanovitelj vzame del.

The pattern repeats for each group of new participants,

Vzorec se ponavlja za vsako skupino novih udeležencev,

with money from recent arrivals funneled to those who recruited them.

denar zadnjih prišlekov pa se zliva tistim, ki so jih rekrutirali.

This differs from a Ponzi scheme,

To se razlikuje od navadnega piramidnega sistema,

where the founders recruit new members

kjer ustanovitelj rekrutira nove člane

and secretly use their fees to pay existing members,

in na skrivaj uporablja njihovo plačilo, da plača obstoječe člane,

who think the payments come from a legitimate investment.

ki mislijo, da plačila prihajajo od legitimne investicije.

As a pyramid scheme grows,

Ko piramidna shema raste,

it becomes increasingly difficult for new recruits to make money.

postane novim rekrutom vedno težje služiti denar.

That’s because the number of participants expands exponentially.

Razlog je ta, da število udeležencev narašča eksponentno.

Take a structure where each person has to recruit six more to earn a profit.

Vzemimo npr. strukturo, kjer mora vsakdo za svoj dobiček rekrutirati 6 ljudi.

The founder recruits six people to start,

Ustanovitelj za začetek rekrutira šest oseb

and each of them recruits six more.

in vsak od njih jih rekrutira še šest.

There are 36 people in that second round of recruits,

V drugem krogu rekrutov je torej 36 ljudi,

who then each recruit 6 people—

ki potem rekrutirajo vsak po šest ljudi -

a total of 216 new recruits.

skupaj 216 novih rekrutov.

By the twelfth round of recruiting,

Do dvanajstega kroga rekrutiranja

the 2.1 billion newest members would have to recruit

bi 2,1 milijarde najnovejših članov moralo rekrutirati

over 13 billion more people total to make money–

več kot 13 milijard novih ljudi, da bi zaslužili,

more than the entire world population.

kar je več kot cela svetovna populacija.

In this scenario,

Po tem scenariju zadnji rekruti,

the most recent recruits,

over 80% of the scheme’s participants,

več kot 80 % udeležencev sheme,

lose all the money they paid in.

izgubijo ves denar, ki so ga vplačali.

And in real life,

In v resničnem življenju

many earlier joiners lose out too.

izgubijo tudi mnogi, ki so se priključili prej.

Pyramid schemes are illegal in most countries,

Piramidne sheme so nezakonite v večini držav,

but they can be difficult to detect.

a včasih jih je težko zaznati.

They are presented as many different things,

Skrite so kot mnoge različne stvari,

including gifting groups,

vključno z darilnimi skupinami,

investment clubs, and multi-level marketing businesses.

investicijskimi klubi in podjetji, ki uporabljajo mrežni marketing.

The distinction between pyramid schemes and legitimate multi-level marketing

Razlika med piramidnimi shemami in legitimnim mrežnim marketingom

can be particularly hazy.

je lahko še posebej nejasna.

In theory, the difference is that

V teoriji je razlika ta,

the members of the multi-level marketing companies

da člani podjetij z mrežnim marketingom

primarily earn compensation from selling a particular product or a service

primarno služijo kompenzacijo od prodaje določenega produkta

ali usluge potrošnikom,

to retail customers,

while pyramid schemes primarily compensate members for recruitment of new sellers.

medtem ko piramidne sheme primarno kompenzirajo člane za rekrutiranje novih.

In practice, though,

A v praksi

many multi-level marketing companies make it all but impossible

mnoga področja mrežnega marketinga popolnoma onemogočajo

for members to profit purely through sales.

članom, da bi profitirali samo skozi prodajo.

And many pyramid schemes, like Vemma Nutrition,

In mnoge piramidne sheme, kot npr. Vemma Nutrition,

disguise themselves as legal multi-level marketing businesses,

se zamaskirajo kot legalna podjetja z mrežnim marketingom

using a product or service to hide the pay-and-recruit structure.

z uporabo izdelka ali usluge, da skrijejo strukturo 'plačaj in rekrutiraj'.

Many pyramid schemes also capitalize on already existing trust within churches,

Mnoge piramidne sheme tudi izkoriščajo že obstoječe zaupanje znotraj cerkva,

immigrant communities, or other tightly knit groups.

imigrantskih skupnosti ali drugih tesno prepletenih skupin.

The first few members are encouraged to report a good experience

Prve člane se spodbudi, da poročajo o svoji dobri izkušnji,

before they actually start making a profit.

preden dejansko začnejo profitirati.

Others in their network follow their example,

Drugi v njihovi mreži sledijo njihovemu zgledu

and the schemes balloon in size

in shema se razbohoti,

before it comes clear that most members aren’t actually profiting.

preden postane jasno, da večina članov dejansko ne profitira.

Often, the victims are embarrassed into silence.

Žrtve pogosto sram potisne v molk.

Pyramid schemes entice people with the promise of opportunity and empowerment.

Piramidne sheme zvabijo ljudi z obljubo priložnosti in opolnomočenja.

So when members don’t end up making money,

Ko člani torej ne dobijo denarja,

they can blame themselves rather than the scheme,

krivijo sebe, ne pa sheme,

thinking they weren’t tenacious enough to earn the returns promised.

ker mislijo, da niso bili dovolj vztrajni, da bi zaslužili obljubljeni dohodek.

Some victims keep trying,

Nekatere žrtve ne nehajo poskušati

investing in multiple schemes,

in investirajo v različne sheme

and losing money each time.

ter vsakokrat izgubijo denar.

In spite of all these factors,

Kljub vsem tem faktorjem

there are ways to spot a pyramid scheme.

obstajajo načini, kako prepoznati piramidno shemo.

Time pressure is one red flag—

Rdeča zastava je na primer časovni pritisk.

be wary of directives to “act now or miss a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

Bojte se navodil, kot je 'ukrepaj zdaj ali pa izgubi življenjsko priložnost'.

Promises of large, life-altering amounts of income are also suspect.

Obljube velikih, življenje spreminjajočih vsot denarja so tudi sumljive.

And finally, a legitimate multi-level marketing business

In nazadnje, legitimno podjetje z mrežnim marketingom

shouldn’t require members to pay for the opportunity to sell a product or service.

ne bi smelo zahtevati, da član plača za priložnost prodaje izdelka ali usluge.

Pyramid schemes can be incredibly destructive to individuals,

Piramidne sheme so lahko izredno uničujoče za posameznike,

communities, and even entire countries.

skupnosti in celo cele države.

But you can fight fire with fire

A ogenj lahko premagate z ognjem,

by sending this video to three people you know,

tako da pošljete ta video trem ljudem, ki jih poznate,

and encouraging them to do the same.

in jih vzpodbudite, da storijo isto.