Forum

What is a forum?

There are so many different names for a “forum”. Some think of them as message boards or bulletin boards. Some call them threaded discussions, discussion boards or discussion groups while others call them conferences.

Deciding if just one forum or multiple forums is needed can be difficult, especially if there is an uncertainty of how they are defined and what makes a forum.

The simplistic definition of a forum is a place where people have the ability to start communication (in the form of threads) and reply to other people's threads. A member of the community in the forum posts a message, which is visible to everyone in that community. Once read, there is the option to post a reply, which can also be visible to the community. Thus, a discussion can build up without all users having to be online at the same time.

FuseTalk can allow for more than one forum to be created. These forums can be considered as containers for threads started by the community. Depending on the permissions of community members as defined by the forum administrator, they can post replies to existing threads and start new threads as they wish. In addition, users of a forum can post anonymously (if this is enabled by the Forum Administrator) or as their registered username.

Basic Structure of a Forum

A forum consists of 4 components: the forum itself, its categories, the topics and the messages. Each component, or level of hierarchy, is illustrated in the diagram below.

Each forum can have an unlimited number of categories and sub-categories. Categories are like placeholders in which topics of discussion and messages are contained. Henceforth, a category manages the forum’s topics into folders or groupings. This is a logical method of sorting topics. On the home page of the forum, a listing of all the categories to which the user has access, excluding those categories that the user wishes to block from viewing (refer to “How do I update my profile?”), will be displayed. In addition, the user will see the number of topics posted within each corresponding category, and the date/time/author of the last posting made in the corresponding category. To find out quickly if new messages have been posted since the last viewing, simply hover over the clipboard icon corresponding to the category in question.

Users of a Forum

FuseTalk refers to pre-defined types of users. They are Forum Owner, Moderator, and User.

Forum Owners are individuals who have been assigned to manage a forum. Forum owners have the rights to change any forum level, create discussion categories for their forum, create moderators, and manage their own sets of users.

Moderators are individuals who have been assigned to moderate a category within a forum. A moderator can be assigned to one or multiple categories and their permissions range from deleting messages/topics to banning individuals from accessing the forum.

Users are individuals or members who have been given access to a forum or who have publicly registered to access the forum. These members do not have any special privileges unless otherwise given by the Forum Owner. Users can become Moderators or Forum Owners if designated by the Forum Owner.

Joining and Registering to a Forum

To join a forum, registering to a forum must be done. To do this, click on the “Join [name of forum] Forums” link, and the Registration Agreement will be displayed for the visitor to read and accept before continuing with the registration process. Upon acceptance of the terms, the visitor will be required to complete a form, which requests for information such as full name, username, email address, password, location and other miscellaneous information about the user. When all required fields (marked with an asterisk) have been provided, the visitor can proceed by clicking the “Join [name of forum] Forums” link at the bottom of the forum. To learn more about a member’s profile, please refer to “How do I update my profile?”

Logging in to a Forum

There are several sections on the main page of a forum: the Forum header, My Menu, Category Listing, and a Statistics section.

In the forum header, the following will be displayed: the name of the forum, and the number of new messages since the user’s last visit, any news posted by the Administrator, and the main navigational bar, which offers links to other features within the forum, such as: profile, help, my forums, calendar, refresh, and logout, as well as quick links to the latest topics and statistics.

The “profile” link will direct users to their personal profile, where they can update their personal information and password, update their location and other miscellaneous information, and personal settings. (Refer to “User’s Profile” for more information.)The “help” link will initiate the online Help documentation. “My forums” lists information about a user’s posts, his/her favorites, identified keywords, a list of specified “ignored users” and general statistics regarding his activity within the forum. The user’s calendar will display the events as set by the Forum Administrator. (Note: a user may add entries to his own calendar if granted permissions that authorize him to do so by the Administrator.)

In the user’s personal navigation menu or sidebar, which is located in the left pane, the member’s username will be displayed, as well as a list of his categories (if he is not on his “Home” page of the forums), and a search bar. The user can hide the side bar if he/she wishes to.

In the Category Listing pane, members can view a listing of their categories and their Private Topics (if Private Topics has been enabled by the Administrator). An RSS link is also available for members who prefer to read the latest messages/topics through their RSS reader. General statistics relating to the categories are also provided for viewing, such as the number of topics posted within each category and when and who made the last post within the corresponding category.

In the Statistics pane, the number of users who are registered to the forum will be displayed, as well as the number of users who are currently logged into the forum. A link to find the users is available. Specific to the member, the statistics pane will identify the number of messages that he/she has posted to the forum, and if the member is a global user, the overall number of messages that he/she has contributed in all global forums.

Navigating within a Forum

To navigate between the various sections of a forum as described in “Logging in to a Forum”, simply click on the “home” link that appears in the main navigational bar. The link will display a member’s menu and a listing of his/her categories.

To navigate within a category, click on a category from the home page or search for a category. (To learn how to use the search features, refer to “Performing Searches”.) Click on the topic of interest and then the message that the user wishes to read. Users can then post a reply to a message.

What is a forum?

Network Marketing

Definition:Network marketing also known Mulit- level marketing can be define as a business model in which a distributor network is needed to build the business.it can also be defined as a term that describes a marketing structure used by some companies as part of their overall marketing strategy . The structure is designed to create a marketing and sales force by compensating promoters of company products not only for sales they personally generate, but also for the sales of other promoters they introduce to the company, creating a downline of distributors and a hierarchy of multiple levels of compensation.

Network marketing is a type of business opportunity that is very popular with people looking for part-time, flexible businesses. Some of the best-known companies in America, including Avon, Mary Kay Cosmetics and Tupperware, fall under the network marketing umbrella.

Network marketing programs feature a low upfront investment--usually only a few hundred dollars for the purchase of a product sample kit--and the opportunity to sell a product line directly to friend, family and other personal contacts. Most network marketing programs also ask participants to recruit other sales representatives. The recruits constitute a rep's "downline," and their sales generate income for those above them in the program.

Things can get sticky when a network marketing network compensates participants primarily for recruiting others rather than for selling the company's products or services. A network marketing system in which most of the revenue comes from recruitment may be considered an illegal pyramid scheme.

Since network marketing programs are usually exempt from business opportunity regulation and aren't defined as franchises under state and federal franchise laws, you'll need to do your own investigation before investing any money.

SETUP

Independent, unsalaried salespeople of multi-level marketing, referred to as distributors (or associates, independent business owners, dealers, franchise owners, sales consultants, consultants, independent agents, etc.), represent the company that produces the products or provides the services they sell. They are awarded a commission based upon the volume of product sold through their own sales efforts as well as that of their downline organization.

Independent distributors develop their organizations by either building an active customer base, who buy direct from the company, or by recruiting a downline of independent distributors who also build a customer base, thereby expanding the overall organization. Additionally, distributors can also earn a profit by retailing products they purchased from the company at wholesale price.

This arrangement of distributors earning a commission based on the sales of their independent efforts as well as the leveraged sales efforts of their downline is similar to franchise arrangements where royalties are paid from the sales of individual franchise operations to the franchiser as well as to an area or regional manager. Commissions are paid to multi-level marketing distributors according to the company’s compensation plan. There can be individuals at multiple levels of the structure receiving royalties from a single person's sales.

INCOME LEVELS

Several sources have commented on the income level of specific MLMs or MLMs in general:

• The Times: "The Government investigation claims to have revealed that just 10 per cent of Amway's agents in Britain make any profit, with less than one in ten selling a single item of the group's products."
• Scheibeler, a high level "Emerald" Amway member: "UK Justice Norris found in 2008 that out of an IBO [Independent Business Owners] population of 33,000, 'only about 90 made sufficient incomes to cover the costs of actively building their business.' That's a 99.7 percent loss rate for investors."
• Newsweek: based on Mona Vie's own 2007 income disclosure statement "fewer than 1 percent qualified for commissions and of those, only 10 percent made more than $100 a week."
• Business Students Focus on Ethics: "In the USA, the average annual income from MLM for 90% MLM members is no more than US $5,000, which is far from being a sufficient means of making a living (San Lian Life Weekly 1998)"
• USAToday: "While earning potential varies by company and sales ability, DSA says the median annual income for those in direct sales is $2,400."

LEGALITY AND LEGITIMACY

MLM businesses operate in the United States in all 50 states and in more than 100 other countries, and new businesses may use terms like "affiliate marketing" or "home-based business franchising". However, many pyramid schemes try to present themselves as legitimate MLM businesses.

The FTC states "Steer clear of multilevel marketing plans that pay commissions for recruiting new distributors. They're actually illegal pyramid schemes. Why is pyramiding dangerous? Because plans that pay commissions for recruiting new distributors inevitably collapse when no new distributors can be recruited. And when a plan collapses, most people-except perhaps those at the very top of the pyramid-end up empty-handed."

In a 2004 United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Staff Advisory letter to the Direct Selling Association states:

Much has been made of the personal, or internal, consumption issue in recent years. In fact, the amount of internal consumption in any multi-level compensation business does not determine whether or not the FTC will consider the plan a pyramid scheme. The critical question for the FTC is whether the revenues that primarily support the commissions paid to all participants are generated from purchases of goods and services that are not simply incidental to the purchase of the right to participate in a money-making venture.

The FTC warns "Not all multilevel marketing plans are legitimate. Some are pyramid schemes. It's best not to get involved in plans where the money you make is based primarily on the number of distributors you recruit and your sales to them, rather than on your sales to people outside the plan who intend to use the products." and states that research is your best tool and gives eight steps to follow:

• 1) Find — and study — the company’s track record.
• 2) Learn about the product
• 3) Ask questions
• 4) Understand any restrictions
• 5) Talk to other distributors (beware shills)
• 6) Consider using a friend or adviser as a neutral sounding board or for a gut check.
• 7) Take your time.
• 8) Think about whether this plan suits your talents and goals

However there are people who hold that all MLMs are nothing more than pyramid schemes even if they are legal rendering the whole issue of a particular MLM being legal moot.

CRITICISM OF THE MLM

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a decision, In re Amway Corp., in 1979 in which it indicated that multi-level marketing was not illegal per se in the United States. However, Amway was found guilty of price fixing (by requiring "independent" distributors to sell at the low price) and making exaggerated income claims.

The FTC advises that multi-level marketing organizations with greater incentives for recruitment than product sales are to be viewed skeptically. The FTC also warns that the practice of getting commissions from recruiting new members is outlawed in most states as "pyramiding". In April 2006, it proposed a Business Opportunity Rule intended to require all sellers of business opportunities—including MLMs—to provide enough information to enable prospective buyers to make an informed decision about their probability of earning money. In March 2008, the FTC removed Network Marketing (MLM) companies from the proposed Business Opportunity Rule:

The revised proposal, however, would not reach multi-level marketing companies or certain companies that may have been swept inadvertently into scope of the April 2006 proposition

Walter J. Carl stated in a 2004 Western Journal of Communication article that "MLM organizations have been described by some as cults (Butterfield, 1985), pyramid schemes (Fitzpatrick & Reynolds, 1997), or organizations rife with misleading, deceptive, and unethical behavior (Carter, 1999), such as the questionable use of evangelical discourse to promote the business (Hopfl & Maddrell, 1996), and the exploitation of personal relationships for financial gain (Fitzpatrick & Reynolds, 1997)".

MLM's are also criticized for being unable to fulfill their promises for the majority of participants due to basic conflicts with Western cultural norms. There are even claims that the success rate for breaking even or even making money are far worse than other types of businesses: "The vast majority of MLM’s are recruiting MLM’s, in which participants must recruit aggressively to profit. Based on available data from the companies themselves, the loss rate for recruiting MLM’s is approximately 99.9%; i.e., 99.9% of participants lose money after subtracting all expenses, including purchases from the company." In part, this is because encouraging recruits to further "recruit people to compete with [them]"leads to "market saturation."

Because of encouraging recruits to further recruit their competitors, some people have even gone so far as to say at best MLMs are nothing more than legalized pyramid schemes with one stating "Multi-level marketing companies have become an accepted and legally sanctioned form of pyramid scheme in the United States" while another states "Multi-Level Marketing, a form of Pyramid Scheme, is not necessarily fraudulent."

Network Marketing

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