What is Organo Gold About? (It’s Not A Scam!)

What is Organo Gold about? First, let me just say, it’s not a scam.

Coffee is one of the most popular beverages in the world. In fact, people are addicted to it.

According to How Stuff Works there are over 400 billion cups of coffee sold to consumers every year.

A money maker don’t you think?

According to E-Importz.com, they say Americans drink 400 million cups of coffee a day. Wow… that’s a lot of coffee don’t you think so?

A lot of entrepreneurs are monetizing this and the company Organo Gold (Organo) is right in there. BUT they say their coffee products are unique because they put powdered mushrooms in them.

Are the mushrooms really good for you? They’re a polypore fungus…

In this review, I’ll explain how Organo works, the benefits and side effects of the mushrooms, how you can make money with the company or not, and the products they sell.

First, let me just say I am not associated with Organo in any way. I’m not here to sell you their products.

My purpose here is to give all the necessary information for you to make your own informed decision to buy into their offers or not.

I know MLM (Multi-Level Marketing) and been involved in health and wellness, candles, and skincare. I’m still in the skincare but only to purchase the products at wholesale prices for my personal use.

Ok, let’s begin…

 

What Is Organo Gold (Organo)?

Organo Gold is a private network MLM (Multi-Level Marketing)  company that uses independent representatives to sell their gourmet coffee globally in over 45 different countries. Founded in 2008 by Bernie Chua and Shane Morand, their head office is located in Richmond, B.C., Canada.

“It all started with an extraordinary cup of coffee …”

Bernie’s dream was to come up with a better cup of coffee to the world. His mission is to help people live healthier by achieving well-being through Organo products and to gain financial freedom with their business opportunity.

That’s why the company’s mission statement is…“Bringing the Treasures of the Earth to the People of the World”.

In 2015, Organo Gold rebranded to Organo so it could sell a collection of other products like tea, personal and skincare.

What makes Organo’s coffee so different from other popular coffee companies like Starbuck and McCafe?

Organo’s coffee contains edible mushrooms, an oriental fungus called Ganoderma Lucidum.

The mushrooms have a medicinal and longevity history in Asian countries like China and Japan going back over 2000 years and is still used today. It’s also referred to as the “mushroom of immortality”. 

This precious edible mushroom is processed into powder form and infused into Organo’s coffee, tea, and other products. It’s supposed to have health benefits which I’ll be discussing.

The only way to purchase Organo products is through their independent representatives.

Typical of MLM companies, they offer 2 things – business opportunity and products for consumers to buy.

Health Benefits of Ganoderma Lucidum And Side Effects

If you’re interested in having a business of recruiting and selling Organo products, it’s important to know what Ganoderma Lucidum mushrooms’ benefits and side effects are.

The Good  

According to Examine.com some of the benefits of Ganoderma Lucidum are:

• The risk of prostate cancer may be reduced
• Recognized for its anti-cancer effects
• Strengthens your immune system
• Helps to reduce the possibility of cancer spreading through the body
• Improves your overall health when consumed by other medications
• Relieves allergies
• Combats fatigue
• Apparently you can get this over- the counter
• Helps regulate your blood pressure

Research on the Ganoderma Lucidum mushroom is on-going.

The Bad

Of course, along with the benefits, there are the side effects of Ganoderma Lucidum:

Most of the side effects are after 3 months of use. Here’s a list of the common ones:

• Nosebleeds
• Stomach upsets like constipation
• Dryness of the mouth, throat and nasal passage
• Itchiness
• Unable to sleep
• Diarrhea

My opinion is before you join or purchase any consumable Organo products is to consult with your family doctor, especially if you are taking any kind of blood thinners and if you’re pregnant or breastfeeding.

Just so you know, all Organo products have Ganoderma Lucidum powder.

Inside Organo – The Products

Like your typical MLM, Organo offers 2 types of products:

1. Products for consumers.
2. Products for independent distributors to make money.

Products For The Consumers…

Here, consumers don’t have to sign up and there are no monthly commitments. They just purchase the Organo products at retail prices from an independent distributor.

The company’s main flagstaff product is Ganoderma Lucidum so I suppose you could say the coffee is just a disguise.

Organo’s category products are beverages, body management, and personal care items.

Beverages (all contain Ganoderma Lucidum powder)

• Gourmet Black Coffee – Classic instant coffee with Arabica Brazil beans and Robusta beans 
• King of Coffee – Organic Arabica instant coffee
• Cafe Latte – Instant blend mixed with cream and sugar with Arabica Brazil and Robusta beans
• Café Mocha – Instant blend of coffee and cocoa powder
• Café Supreme – Instant blend of Ginseng and Eurycoma Longifolia Jack (popular in teas) herbs
•  Hot Cocoa –  Instant blend of caffeine-free cocoa power 
• Green Tea – Instant blend of unfermented organic green leaves with natural antioxidants
• Red Tea – Instant favourable light tea blended with natural antioxidants and amino acids
• Due Espresso –  Capsules
• Espresso

Body Management – A variety of shakes, and smoothies  (vanilla and chocolate) rich in proteins, and nutrients for weight loss.

Other Products

• Ganoderma Lucidum – Herbal medicine in capsules
• Mycelium – In capsules, these are early harvested baby Ganoderma Lucidum in spore powder form
• Grape Seed Oil – In capsules, the oil is extracted from grape seeds rich in vitamin E and antioxidants and consumable with Ganoderma Lucidum capsules
• Personal care – Beauty soaps and toothpaste fused with Ganoderma Lucidum powder
• beU Skincare – Anti-aging serums (jojoba), cream facial cleanser (Manuka), anti-ageing moisturizer (Retinol), anti-ageing mask (Organo Bee Venom)
• Tea Room – Collection of recipes for your Green and Red Tea containing Ganoderma Lucidum powder.

The Cost of Organo To Join 

On The Business Opportunity Side

If you want to get into Organo’s business opportunity, you need to start by purchasing their beginner kit (Starter Kit),

Starter Kit ($49.95)

The Starter Kit is just to get you started in the business.  You’re not going to get much but you still need to purchase this kit.

Inside the kit, you’ll get the following:

• Information on how to become a successful distributor
• Brochures and signup applications
• Pro-replicated website
• One year Back Office access
• A variety of Organo coffee samples – 3 bags each of hot chocolate, Café Mocha, Café Latte, Black Coffee

There are a few things I don’t like about this kit:

1. Your Back Office is only available for 1 year. You have an additional fee to pay each year.
   
   
2. Your Pro-replicated Website. You don’t actually own it and if you’re not familiar with SEO (Search Engine Optimization), the only people who will see your site are the ones you personally send them to it. In other words, you need some internet marketing training to generate traffic to your site.
   
   
3. You still need to pay for one of the optional business levels (i.e. membership levels) which I’ll be discussing below

Tip:  Like all MLM businesses, if you’re really serious about making good commissions and bonuses consider these 2 things, what products are you getting in your pack and what kind of commissions are you going to get.

The type of commission is dependent on the business level pack you purchase. Of course, if you purchase the expensive one, the Gold Pack, you’ll make more $$$$ however there are more commitments to be met.

The other thing you should be aware of is each Organo product has value points (CV/BV) meaning each product is designated with points. The points you earn and the pack you purchase determines the amount of commissions and bonuses.

There are 3 optional business level packs to choose from. Each of these packs has a catch which I will also explain below…

Let’s start with the least priced package… 

#1. Bronze Pack ($150):

In the Bronze Pack, you’ll get inventory worth $150 of wholesale products. You can earn 10% commission but there are 2 criteria that must be met:

• You must have recruited 2 people in your network.
• You must order products every month (autoship) that come to no less than $50.

#2. Silver Package ($450)

The Silver contains an inventory of more Organo wholesale products worth $450.

With this Silver Package you receive:

• Dual team bonus – An opportunity to earn 15% commission but you still need to have sponsored a minimum of 2 people in your downline and your team must meet certain sales criteria.
• Fast track bonus when you sponsor people into your downline.

The Silver Package rules:

To earn your 15% commission, every month, you must also purchase Organo products at wholesale prices that total to a minimum of $100.

#3. Organo Gold Package ($1,300)

Note: The $1245.00 is the old price.

Your Sponsor will push you to buy the Gold Pack. A bigger commission for your Sponsor and for you of course. This is where you want to be if you want to make the big $$$$$.

If your mind is set on being successful, you want this.

Curious as to why it costs so much? You’re going to get a load of Organo inventory worth $1,300 of wholesale products. For instance…

• Grapeseed Oil Extract (2 bottles of 30 capsules each)
• Organic Ganoderma Lucidum (2 bottles of 90 capsules each)
• Organic Spore Powder (2 bottles of 90 capsules each)
• Organic Mycelium (2 bottles of 90 capsules each)
• Soap (2)
• Organic Green Tea (6 boxes)
• Hot Chocolate (6 boxes)
• Cafe Mocha (10 boxes)
• Black Coffee (15 boxes)
• Coffee Latte (15 boxes)

If you don’t want to be stuck with all this inventory, start selling like crazy and recruit and recruit.

Here’s the thing, if you want to earn 20% commission you must still meet the minimum criteria of $100 a month and your team must also meet certain sales criteria.

I don’t about you but that’s a huge “OUCH” in my pocket!

Let me tell you a bit about Organo’s Autoship

An autoship is a monthly shipment of the product(s). Organo keeps track of your credit card information and every month they process your order.

The good thing about the company’s autoship is it’s not mandatory.

If you decide you already have enough products you’re not stuck with an automatic charge and more delivered products. BUT you’re missing out on long-term residual income.

Autoship has its good points. One is that you never forget to order products that can give up to 25% off as is the case with Organo and according to your Sponsor, you always want to have products available for your customers.

Don’t forget, you have shipping costs too!

The bad part about autoship is it’s very easy to build up excess inventory. Trust me… I’ve been there. I’ve seen families destroyed by it too…

If you’re looking for a real investment for an online business, one that costs less than $1 a day, and no inventory you might want to check this out… 

Organo Gold’s Compensation Plan 

Have you heard of Holton Buggs? He used to be Organo’s Chief Visionary Officer but he’s now one of the co-founders of iBuumerang.

Anyway, Holton made $1.3 million a month according to Business For Home.org. 

Quite impressive don’t you think. I’m puzzled as to why he would leave Organo…

Organo’s compensation plan is certainly no different from other MLM companies. It’s always complicated for one thing and they use the popular binary compensation plan.

If you already heard of the binary compensation plan then you know what I’m talking about. Here are some  MLM companies who use it:

• iBuumerang
• Ariix
• USANA
• Yoli
• Isagenix

Binary means there are 2 legs of growth and you must recruit at least 2 people. Each person you recruit must do the same.

Your job is to recruit and sell products. Not only can you make money on the products you sell, the more people you recruit and get them to recruit others and sell products, well… you earn more commissions and bonuses. This is how MLM works in a nutshell.

Yes, I know, it looks like a pyramid because of all that recruiting going on but with Organo, they’re not a pyramid scam because they actually have real products to sell.

There’s a catch to all binary compensation plans… unfortunately, you’re only going to be paid on your lesser leg. Doesn’t seem fair, does it?

You’re going to miss a lot of commissions if one leg is stronger than the other. I speak as a voice of MLM experience, that finding someone special who is an exemplary salesperson is not as easy as you think.

You’re going to have to hope you can find 2 people with supernatural selling skills and hope they too recruit people of the same and so on. Not only that, each of the recruits has certain criteria they must meet. More on that below…

Can you see why so many independent representatives quit MLM or simply become deadbeats?

Making Money With Organo – The Business Opportunity

Making money with Organo Gold is like every other MLM company. It’s simply not an easy task.

Typical of MLM companies, there are 2 ways to make money with Organo’s business opportunity.

1. You purchase Organo products at wholesale prices and sell them at retail prices. The difference is your retail earning (50% to 100% retail earnings).
2. The only real way of making money is by recruiting people to your downline so when they sell products you earn commissions.

The challenge with the 2^nd one is you have to know your products very well,  be extremely good at selling products and able to successfully convince your prospects into joining Organo as an independent representative.

With the 1^st one, if you can talk your retail customers into signing up for the company’s autoship of monthly products it will definitely help earn you more money. The problem is, from my personal MLM experience, they eventually cancel their autoship because they either have too much inventory or it’s too costly.

Like I mentioned MLM has other complicated methods of earning like their multiple ways of earning which very few make money on. Take a look at the following…

There are 7 Ways to Get Paid by Organo

While you can earn commissions on all of Organo’s products, their flagstaff product is clearly their coffee. Millions and millions of people drink coffee and more than 1 cup a day.

#1. RETAIL PROFIT (daily/weekly payment)

Purchase your Organo products at wholesale prices and sell them to your retail customers at retail prices face to face or through your replicated website.  is yours to keep.

#2. FAST TRACK BONUS (weekly payment)

Anytime you sell Organo products personally or recruit someone and they purchase a product pack, you can earn the following:

• Bronze pack – earn a bonus of $20
• Silver pack – earn a bonus of $80
• Gold pack – earn a bonus of $150

Sell an unlimited number of these promotional product packages and make money.

#3. DUAL TEAM BONUS (weekly payment)

To earn this bonus you must have a minimum of 2 legs. One on the right and one on the left. Meaning you must recruit 2 people to start earning this bonus.

If you happen to sign up a third person, for instance, that person will go below one of your other 2 people who happen to be in your dual team. You’ll definitely want to work with your 2 teams and motivate them to recruit more people.

The reason for that is the weekly payment is based on your Dual Team volume of sales on the product packs and on all orders that are the first time.

The amount of commission is determined by your ranking ( 8 levels).

#4. UNILEVEL BONUS (paid monthly)

This is where you have the opportunity to earn residual income

When someone reorders or purchases any Organo products initiated from within your group you can earn bonuses. The 9 ranking levels determine the percentage amount of your payout.  You can earn from 5% to a total of 32%.

9 Ranking levels:

• Representative
• Marketing Associate
• Supervisor
• Consultant
• Sapphire
• Ruby
• Emerald
• Diamond
• Ambassador

#5. UNILEVEL MATCHING BONUS (paid monthly)

You can earn up to 20% on product sales made by your recruits and when a customer reorders you earn a matching bonus.

There are 4 levels here. 

#6. GENERATIONAL BONUS (paid monthly)

To be here, you first need to get to the Sapphire rank in order to qualify which means you must be making at least $14k a month.

The Generational Bonus is based on your teams’ product reorders.

There are 4 commission levels:

• 1^st generation – 2% on all of your team’s product reorders
• 2^nd generation – you must rank to Ruby in order to receive bonuses on 2 generations
• 3^rd generation – you must rank as an Emerald to earn the bonus on 3 generations.
• 4^th generation – if you ever make it to the Diamond or higher. Congratulations! Organo will pay you on all 4 generations.

#7. GLOBAL BONUS POOL (paid quarterly)

Interested in getting a share of Organo for a piece of their profit?

The company banks 3% of all reorder revenues worldwide and splits them into different pools for their top leaders. The good part is it doesn’t matter who sold the products.

You can earn 3% of the company’s unilevel commissionable pot worldwide. 

NOTE: If you don’t quite understand all this don’t worry, most representatives don’t make it to qualify for the bigger commissions.

For further detailed information on Organo’s Compensation Plan, CLICK HERE!

Finally, the Big Question… How Much Can I Expect to Earn?

While Organo Gold is definitely not a scam because they market real products you can sell, many people who get into MLM have this dream that very quickly they can live an extravagant life of beautiful cars and luxurious homes doing this as their business at home.

There are many representatives who won’t make any money and many who lose money.

Take a look at Organo’s Income Disclosure…

Imagine paying $49.95 for the Starter Kit, $150 for the Bronze Pack, $50/month Autoship ($50 x 12) = $600. You just spent $799.95. Are you ok with that?

The other thing is, when you first look at the numbers under Leadership Ranks, you might think that 35.31% of Organo representatives made $600 to $1,000 BUT it’s somewhat misleading! This 35.31% is the balance of the 5.76%

You could easily lose your investment or maybe you might be lucky and break even if you purchased the Bronze or the Gold Pack.

I’m sorry to say, this is quite common with the MLM business model. 

What I Like About Organo Gold

There really isn’t a lot I like about Organo Gold. 

1. Involved In Charity Work

Organo Gold is not the only MLM company giving back to the community. Mary Kay has their Mary Kay Foundation, Isagenix has Child Help, USANA has USANA Kids Eat and these are just a few.

Nonetheless, I do find it refreshing to see Organo Gold do the same. They have their “Bags For Live” a non-profit organization that helps unemployed women work in needy areas.

Members donate empty sachets and women are employed by the company to make purses that are auctioned off in conventions. Apparently, most of the proceeds are given back to the women who created them.

2. Reveal Income Disclosure Statement

MLM companies that are legit should have their Income Disclosure Statement on their website and often times it’s located way down in the footer and so it might be missed by the visitor.

I was impressed to find Organo’s Statement right out in the open even though it reveals your chances of making good commissions are slim. It’s not in their website footer. 

There are very few MLM companies who actually reveal their Income Disclosure Statement. They don’t want you to find out the truth about how their independent representatives are faring.  

They don’t want you to know that only a very small percentage of representatives make a decent amount of earnings.

The reason you want to see the Statement is it lets you know if the company’s independent representatives are really making money

What I Don’t Like About Organo Gold 

1. Autoship – Accumulation of Inventory

Apparently, Autoships are meant to make your life easier. Why? You don’t have to remember ordering your products monthly so you don’t need to worry about losing your qualified commissions.

The company automatically takes a certain amount of money from your bank account and ships your pre-selected Organo products. They also charge for shipping costs.

I speak with MLM experience, the problem with autoships is if you’re unable to sell your inventory fast enough before the next shipment you will accumulate inventory.

The company seems to encourage you to have inventory. They will say it’s not a good idea to run out of products when your customers want them asap. 

2. Must Stay Active

The only way you will qualify to earn commissions and bonuses is to meet your minimum commission/sales points every month. This means you must be active and have a minimum of 2 people recruited (Binary Compensation Plan).

If you don’t have 2 people then Organo will deduct points and this will certainly have an impact on your compensation from your downline. Sound fair? Nope… but that’s how the MLM Binary Plan works.

This is common with most MLM companies and it’s how they make their money.

You’ll want to sell to your family and friends, use Organo products for yourself, recruit more people and push your downline to do the same in order to remain active.

3. Recruit, Recruit and Recruit

First, I just want to say that if you don’t like selling products face to face or don’t like to push people into joining your downline, the MLM business is not for you!

Recruiting and talking to people face to face is your main activity.

You’ll be doing home presentations mostly because even though you have your own replicated website, people you don’t know are simply not going to find your site unless you get the proper internet marketing training. 

The usual MLM procedure in growing your business is to first invite your family and friends. At some point in time, they’ll come up with all sorts of reasons why they can’t buy products anymore or they’ll simply not show up at your presentations.

4. One Year Back Office Access

I don’t know the yearly cost to have access to your back office but you’re definitely going to need it. Just be aware that this is an additional cost.

5. On Average, Members Are Not Earning Much

As I mentioned earlier… Over 90% Of Organo Representatives in 2015 earned between $0 to $599 a huge drawback.

This is not uncommon with MLM companies. There will be a very tiny percentage of people who will make the majority of the commissions and bonuses. There will be a minimal number of people who will make an adequate amount and the rest, the large group of people well, they just fail or struggle to make a living.

6. Expensive To Join

Pricey, don’t you think? Especially if you’re new to MLM, Organo could be quite a pricey investment.

There is a better way if you want to have a successful business online and its cost to you will be less than $1 USD a year.

7. Other MLM Coffee Competitors (with Ganoderma Lucidum)

Organo Gold has other MLM competitors who use the powdered Ganoderma Lucidum in their coffee products. You might want to research the following companies if you’re still interested in this business:

• DXN Global 
• Gano Excel 
• Healthy Coffee International 
• Healthy Habits Global (http://www.healthyhabitsglobal.com/)
• Ganolife International (http://www.ganolife.com)

Is Organo Gold a Scam? A Pyramid Scheme?

Organo Gold is not a scam nor are they a pyramid scheme. They sell real products and you can make retail profits by selling the company’s products at retail prices without recruiting anyone. 

However, if you really want a chance to earn big money from the company’s compensation plan then you need to pay to play the MLM game and recruit people into your downline.

The thing about Organo Gold is the majority of their members are not making much and some have lost their investment.

It is for these reasons and everything else I said I don’t like that I don’t recommend Organo Gold. 

If you love face to face selling, recruiting and are successful in MLM then Organo Gold may work quite well for you. It’s your decision.

A Better Way To Make Money And Be Your Own Boss

If you’re still interested in making money and want to get away from MLM and all that recruiting I suggest Affiliate Marketing! If you want to market any product your heart desires without inventory and be your own boss then seriously take my recommendation.

BUT to do this, you need to get training…

My personal preference is to get FREE lessons as a FREE Starter Member within a large mentoring community and the best one I recommend and call it my home is Wealthy Affiliate.

Read my review of Wealthy Affiliate and my personal Guide to Affiliate Marketing. Find how it works and why you don’t need to have any experience at all to do this.

Comments And Feedbacks

I hope I was able to give you helpful information about Organo Gold. If you have any questions or comments, please put them in the comment box below.

If you are a member of Organo Gold, I would also like to hear from you. If I missed anything, let me know. I would like to know what you did to be successful with Organo’s business opportunity.

Thank you for reading my review of Organo Gold!

Monica