Something that often convinces people to become an Arbonne consultant is the opportunity to receive a free Mercedes when they hit a certain rank.
The famous white Mercedes that Arbonne consultants receive when they reach the level of Regional Vice President (RVP) is a physical manifestation of the luxury lifestyle that all Arbonne consultants aspire towards.
However, is the Arbonne Mercedes really free?
I decided to take a look at the small print to find out just what the catch is with Arbonne’s ‘free’ Mercedes, and unsurprisingly, things are not all they seem.
If something sounds too good to be true, it usually is, and when it comes to the Arbonne Mercedes, things are no different.
In this article you will find out just how much your ‘free car’ will really cost you, and the reasons why you may not want to take part in Arbonne’s car bonus programme after all.
Are you ready?
Then let’s get into it.
Is the Arbonne Mercedes Really Free?
The Financial Side – How Much Will it Really Cost You?
Let me make this very clear: there is no such thing as a free Arbonne Mercedes.
What actually happens is that if you ever hit the rank of Regional Vice President (only 2% of Arbonne consultants ever make it that far), you will be given cash payments towards the lease or purchase of a white Mercedes.
You will not be given the car itself.
The car must be purchased/leased in your name and connected to your bank account, and as long as you remain at the RVP level in the company, you will receive car payments from Arbonne each month.
However, if you fail to make the required amount of sales one month, lose your ranking in the company or decide to leave the business, you will no longer receive the payments BUT you will still be responsible for paying them yourself.
This is different to a regular company car, where you can just give the car back to the company if you decide to switch jobs. With the Arbonne Mercedes, you are locked into a fixed contract and must continue to make the payments no matter what (and they aren’t cheap!).
The fact that you will be responsible for the car payments if things don’t go well for you one month puts a huge amount of pressure on not only you, but on your downline as well, because everything that they sell counts towards your own sales volume.
If a few of your team members decide to go on holiday or leave Arbonne, chances are you will be stuck paying for your luxury car yourself, with no help from Arbonne.
You are also responsible for the cost of running the car, any maintenance that the car requires, insurance payments and tax.
When it comes to a shiny new Mercedes-Benz, none of these things are cheap.
As if all that wasn’t concerning enough, Arbonne reserve the right to change their minds at any time, saying ‘Arbonne reserves the right to periodically amend or modify this SuccessPlan, the Policies & Procedures, Privacy Policy, and the Independent Consultant Application & Agreement (the Agreement).’
This means that at any point Arbonne could decide to raise your monthly sales targets, reduce the amount that they pay you towards the car, or even discontinue the programme completely and you would still be responsible for making the payments on your Mercedes.
The Arbonne Emblem
One of the caveats of the Arbonne Mercedes-Benz Cash Bonus Programme is that in order to receive the car payments, you must display the Arbonne emblem on the car in 3 different places.
The reason for this, according to Arbonne, is that this ‘lets everyone know you have earned your Mercedes-Benz through your successful Arbonne business,’ which is code for ‘we want you to advertise how great our company is so that more people will want to join.’
Vehicle advertising is big business, with some companies paying hundreds of dollars a month to advertise on people’s cars.
This is a win for the company as it means plenty of people are seeing their logo every day, and a win for whoever they are paying to drive around in a car with their name on it.
In the case of the Arbonne Mercedes, you are advertising the company but not receiving a dime for it.
The Car Presentation
Another way that Arbonne benefit from their ‘free car’ bonus is by using the so-called ‘Car Presentation’ events to promote themselves even more.
Basically, whenever somebody qualifies for the Arbonne Mercedes, they are encouraged to host a huge party where the car is unveiled and everybody congratulates the person on their big win.
Sure, this sounds like great fun, and if I was given a car then I’d love to have a party with lots of bubble and supportive friends around me, but the ones who really benefit from the Car Presentations are Arbonne.
The whole presentation is less about celebrating the achievements of the RVP, and more about promoting the Arbonne ‘business opportunity.’
Guests are given free Arbonne products and told about all the reasons why Arbonne is the best company in the world and how they too can receive a free Mercedes if they just work hard enough.
It’s all just one big recruitment event.
Is the Arbonne Mercedes Ever a Good Idea?
There are some cases where joining the Arbonne Mercedes-Benz Cash Bonus Programme might be a good idea.
If you are financially stable enough to be able to afford the car payments without Arbonne’s help and you have enough in the bank to still make the payments even if your Arbonne business were to disappear tomorrow, go for it.
Likewise, if you were planning on buying a white Mercedes anyway then taking advantage of Arbonne’s help is the smart thing to do.
However, if you aren’t in a position where you would be able to afford a Mercedes without Arbonne, it really isn’t a good idea.
If the idea of a free Mercedes is what’s tempting you into becoming an Arbonne consultant, it is also very important to remember that only 2% of Arbonne consultants ever make it to the rank of Regional Vice President and it takes them an average of 35 months to hit that rank. Very few people make it to the top in multi-level marketing, and so joining Arbonne with the hope of qualifying for the Arbonne Mercedes is probably not the best idea.
Quick Recap FAQ
No, the Arbonne Mercedes is not really free. You will not be given a Mercedes, but payments towards a Mercedes, and there are lots of other involved and requirements to meet.
Yes, you do keep the Mercedes if you lose your rank in Arbonne but Arbonne will stop making payments towards it, so the financial responsibility becomes yours.
Regional Vice President. Only 2% of people in Arbonne are at the rank of RVP.
No, the Arbonne Mercedes is not a scam but there are a lot of caveats in the small print that you should be aware of if you decide to take part in the Arbonne Mercedes-Benz programme, otherwise you may end up paying a lot for the ‘free’ Mercedes.
Final Thoughts
While it’s easy to get excited over the promise of a free Mercedes, it is important to remember that the Arbonne Mercedes is really just a marketing tool designed to benefit Arbonne as a company.
Not only does the pressure of having to keep your rank mean that you have to make more and more sales for the company, but Arbonne also benefit from a tonne of free advertising, without ever having to worry about being out of pocket (because if you stop making sales, they stop making payments!).
What do you think about the Arbonne Mercedes-Benz Cash Bonus Programme? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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