BehindMLM is Wrong about Webtalk

I recently came across an article from the website BehindMLM, which makes several mistakes in its review of Webtalk, and I think it worth clearing up.

Information about the Company
They open their article by saying that Webtalk provides no information about who owns or runs the business. Oddly, this appears true in the sense that they don't have an "About Us" page on the front end. But as soon as you've joined, you're connected to the founder, chairman, and CEO, RJ Garbowicz. His profile talks all about the company, where it's going, and the team that's running the company.

Free Members DO Get Unlimited Contacts
A bigger error the article makes -- especially because this error would really dissuade people from joining a promising service -- is in saying that free members are locked into having 50 contacts. I understand why they've made this mistake, and will explain this in a second, but this is entirely untrue.

Like on any social network, free members can have unlimited numbers of contacts. Otherwise, it would definitely be awkward to invite people to Webtalk, as you'd basically be inviting them to something they'd have to eventually pay for while other social networks are free.

But Webtalk is entirely free, and no one has to upgrade to get more contacts.

So why does the article claim this? Because they've misunderstood a pro feature. One thing Webtalk lets you do is break people into different groups. Friends, family, acquaintances, and business contacts. This helps sort the posts you want to read as well as who you want seeing certain posts. This is a HUGE advantage of Webtalk for people to think about. And this feature is FREE.

But if you want to get really specific about the types of business contacts you have, Webtalk even lets you use their system as a simple CRM (customer relationship manager). This means breaking business contacts into more refined groups like prospects, vendors, and so on. This is not for everyone. It's an advanced feature that some will use. And free members will only be able to have 50 contacts who get sorted in this more advanced way. To go further with using Webtalk as a CRM, then you would need to pay, much as you pay for advanced features on LinkedIn. (Pro accounts also come with additional features.)

But free members can still have unlimited contacts sorted into friends, family, acquaintance, and business categories at the broad level. This is all that most people will ever need.

ALL Members (incl. Free) Can Earn by Sharing
Another error they make is suggesting that Webtalk's referral compensation is only available to their first million members. Again, I know where this is coming from, but it's wrong.

Those who sign up during beta (originally suggested as just their first million members, but later extended to all who join during beta) have access to a 5-level referral program to help the company grow in its early period. And this is the only income opportunity the article mentions. But this is a beta only program.

Once Webtalk leaves the beta period, it will have a standard 1-level affiliate program for ALL members. Or if people find out about Webtalk without a referral, they can join without one. There is no need to come in from a referral (after beta). But those who continue to bring in others will continue to benefit from any revenue generated by those people, whether from a pro account or because they do some advertising or because they sell products or services on the platform or whatever.

The article IS ACCURATE in saying that you do NOT need to pay anything to take part in the referral program, though to qualify for commissions you need to have ONE referral who upgrades to a pro account (these start at $20/month and have several benefits especially to business users).

Webtalk is NOT an MLM Social Network
Another error the article makes is suggesting that this is an MLM social network. The article RIGHTLY points out that most people will never want to join an MLM social network, because in such a network, everyone's just trying to sell everyone else on something. And yes, because of the initial 5-level referral program, the early Webtalk experience is like that to a degree. But just don't connect with the people who are posting garbage on their feeds and the problem is solved.

As the network leaves beta and people can join without referrals, and all new members will only have a 1-tier affiliate program, that flavor will rapidly disappear. Webtalk has no intention of being an MLM social network. They are rolling out features not seen elsewhere, gunning to be among the most advanced platforms for communicating in more targeted ways and seeing the news you want, when you want it, with advanced filtering that lets you sort between groups of people, types of posts (images, videos, files, etc.), and much more.

All for free.

The article specifically says: "Case in point, have a closer look at WebTalk's premium memberships. Benefits offered are strictly marketing advantages, in that you're paying to increase your advertising reach to WebTalk members. How does this benefit a non-affiliate WebTalk member? It doesn't."

First, by non-affiliate, I'll give the benefit of the doubt and assume they mean "non-paying Webtalk member." To the point, the tools are networking tools, precisely like those found in LinkedIn paid accounts. People use them for business purposes. Yes, some wrongly use them to just sell. But others are very good at using them to network, and this hasn't driven "free" members of LinkedIn away from that platform.

Webtalk DOES Offer Something New
The article's bottom line says that no one will join an MLM social network (I agree, and Webtalk isn't one) and that Webtalk brings no new features to social networking. I strongly disagree.

When you join and view the founder's profile, you can see the extensive number of features they're working on that will make Webtalk different. (And they say that, unlike on Facebook, you'll never have to pay to reach your followers. Your followers get to decide what they see, including how heavily they want to weigh you or anyone else in their feed.)

That's why I'm especially interested to see where it goes.

Because I agree, if it brings nothing new to social networking, then they might as well bow out. But they clearly know that, and everything they're showing so far is that they're ready to take this well beyond.

They may succeed or not. Every business needs good execution and a bit of magic to reach the tipping point. But that doesn't negate the solid foundation and vision that Webtalk has.
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