In the past decade, social media has become increasingly more popular. Young girls in particular often flock to apps such as Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter. Through using these platforms users make themselves susceptible to public scrutiny, as well as giving others a way to contact them. In many cases, this is a good thing. You could be contacted by a childhood friend, an old classmate, or even a long lost cousin. Despite all the great possibilities social media presents us with, there are even more downfalls.

One major downfall that comes from social media is online companies who contact you in the hopes of hiring you as a “consultant.” They make their proposition sound like rainbow and sunshine, yet is it really? They have promises of you earning an extra five hundred to two thousand dollars a month and tempt people with the prospect of earning a life from your phone. Samantha Bohling (12) says that “ companies always approach me with big promises, yet have no guarantee or proof of success.” The problem with companies like these is that they make the majority of their money off of young, impressionable girls that buy into their pretty words and flashy white Mercedes.

If you are one of these people who get approached by a wellness company, here are some things you need to understand before you pay that “small” joining fee they require on top of you buying all your own products to test out. First of all, these companies do not make the majority of their money off of product sales, but rather off of their consultants joining fees and buying products to promote. On top of this, the girls who approach you about joining their “life changing” companies often only want you to join due to the fact that they will make a signing bonus when you join and 8% of all your profit will go to theme. They also work as a “multi-level management company.” This pretty much means that they have four to five levels of management that are obtainable, and therefore give you room to grow in their company. While this hypothetically sounds nice and they love to send you videos of pretty girls talking about all the money they have made, they neglect to mention that over 50% of girls who join quit within their first year, and over 75% of girls who join either make no profit or lose money.

When these companies approach you they try to make it sound as if they only have your best interests in mind, when realistically they just want to exploit you for money. They target young high school and college girls since the idea of making easy money is so intriguing to naive girls around this age. I’m sure there are many companies out there who truly do offer jobs that revolve around social media, yet you shouldn’t be getting hired through your Instagram direct messages. Next time you consider an opportunity like this one just make sure to remember that success never just falls into your lap, you have to work for it. Do your research on a company before you sign your life away to it.