Dot Dot Smile are primarily based out of California and function within the MLM clothes area of interest.
In accordance with Dot Dot Smile’s web site, the corporate initially launched in 2013. The MLM mannequin was adopted in July 2017.
Heading up Dot Dot Smile is founder Nicole Thompson.
Thompson’s husband Jeff is typically credited as a co-founder, however creation of Dot Dot Smile is generally credited to Nicole (proper with Jeff).
That stated though it’s not publicized on Dot Dot Smile’s web site, Jeff Thompson is CEO of the corporate.
In accordance with Dot Dot Smile’s “about us” web page on their web site, Thompson got here up with the enterprise concept whereas dwelling along with her dad and mom.
Nicole Thompson is the daughter of DeAnne Stidham, co-founder of LuLaRoe.
I wasn’t in a position to confirm whether or not Thompson was concerned in LuLaRoe previous to launching Dot Dot Smile.
In any occasion, Dot Dot Smile seems to be Thompson’s first run as an MLM government.
Learn on for a full overview of Dot Dot Smile’s MLM enterprise alternative.
Dot Dot Smile’s Merchandise
Dot Dot Smile markets a variety of youngsters’s clothes for ladies.
This contains attire, swimwear, tshirts, backpacks and a set of pens.
Dot Dot Smile’s on-line catalogue doesn’t seem like ordered. As an alternative merchandise are offered in an unorganized method.
With slight pricing fluctuations primarily based on sizing, most of Dot Dot Smile’s attire are available in on the $20 to $21 mark. Swimwear is about the identical.
Replace eighth November 2019 – After I initially printed this overview it seems the Dot Dot Smile assortment I used to be taking a look at was on sale.
Common pricing, as per a reader within the feedback under is roughly $34 to $42.
Backpacks are presently on sale from $39.99 all the way down to $23.99, and a 15 pack of Dot Dot Smile branded pens will set you again $5.99 down from $9.99. /finish replace
In accordance with Dot Dot Smile’s affiliate settlement, there’s a “restricted run of every print and elegance”.
Lastly, free delivery is obtainable on all $75 or greater buyer orders.
Dot Dot Smile’s Compensation Plan
Dot Dot Smile’s compensation plan combines a low-barrier of entry with retail commissions, first-order recruitment commissions.
Residual commissions are paid out by way of a five-level deep unilevel crew. And there are additionally rank-based bonuses accessible.
Retail Commissions
Dot Dot Smile associates earn a 40% fee on merchandise bought to retail prospects.
Recruitment Commissions
Dot Dot Smile associates earn recruitment commissions down two ranges of recruitment:
- 10% of the primary product order made by personally recruited associates
- 5% of the primary product order made by stage 2 recruited associates (these recruited by your personally recruited associates)
Achiever Maker Bonus
A $50 Achiever Maker Bonus is paid out every time a personally recruited affiliate qualifies on the Achiever rank.
Residual Commissions
Dot Dot Smile pays residual commissions by way of a unilevel compensation construction.
A unilevel compensation construction locations an affiliate on the prime of a unilevel crew, with each personally recruited affiliate positioned straight beneath them (stage 1):
If any stage 1 associates recruit new associates, they’re positioned on stage 2 of the unique affiliate’s unilevel crew.
If any stage 2 associates recruit new associates, they’re positioned on stage 3 and so forth and so forth down a theoretical infinite variety of ranges.
Dot Dot Smile caps payable unilevel ranges at 5.
Residual commissions are paid out as a share of gross sales quantity generated throughout these 5 ranges, primarily based on an affiliate’s personal month-to-month PV:
- generate 50 PV a month and earn 5% on stage 1 (personally recruited associates)
- generate 75 PV a month and earn 5% on stage 1 and 4% on stage 2
- generate 100 PV a month and earn 5% on stage 1, 4% on stage 2 and three% on stage 3
- generate 125 PV a month and earn 5% on stage 1, 4% on stage 2, 3% on stage 3 and a couple of% on stage 4
- generate 175 PV a month and earn 5% on stage 1, 4% on stage 2, 3% on stage 3, 2% on stage 4 and 1% on stage 5
Management Test Bonus
The Management Test Bonus is a rank-based bonus paid out upon qualification of the next standards:
- Achiever (recruit and preserve two energetic associates, and generate and preserve 50 PV and 300 GV a month) = $100 Management Test Bonus
- Believer (recruit and preserve 4 energetic associates (not less than two Achievers), and generate and preserve 75 PV and 750 GV a month) = $1000
- Creator (recruit and preserve six energetic associates (two Achievers and two Believers or greater), and generate and preserve 100 PV and 2000 GV a month) = $5000 paid out over two months
- Dreamer (recruit and preserve eight energetic associates (two Achievers, two Believers and two Creators or greater), and generate and preserve 125 PV and 6500 GV a month) = $10,000 paid out over 4 months
- Govt (recruit and preserve ten energetic associates (two Achievers, three Beleivers, three Creatros and two Dreamers or greater), and generate 175 PV and 30,000 GV a month) = $50,000 paid out over 5 months
Observe that from Creator, qualification is required to be maintained for 2 consecutive months.
Becoming a member of Dot Dot Smile
Dot Dot Smile affiliate membership is $50 yearly plus an preliminary minimal $149 order of merchandise.
Conclusion
No matter disconnection I felt reviewing private care merchandise, Dot Dot Smile took that to an entire different stage.
Yeah, so I do know nothing about actually nothing about woman’s clothes. ~$21 appears first rate sufficient for a costume however I’ve nothing to benchmark Dot Dot Smile’s merchandise in opposition to.
On this occasion I’m probably not comfy firing up Amazon and what not, as a result of I’m not 100% positive I’d be evaluating apples with apples.
Anyway, that apart Dot Dot Smile hasn’t fallen that removed from the LuLaRoe tree.
The “leggings lottery” mannequin from LuLaRoe has been utilized to woman’s garments and, from an affiliate perspective, that’s Dot Dot Smile’s greatest weak point.
You’ll be despatched a blind field with totally different print varieties included! First, tell us what number of of every measurement and elegance you need under!
Exterior of retail gross sales made by way of their replicated web site, Dot Dot Smile associates are anticipated to pay for “blind stock”. That’s past what sort of clothes and measurement, they don’t have any enter into what designs they may get.
It is a horrible methodology of distribution for associates, because it assumes retail prospects will purchase something.
As with LuLaRoe, Dot Dot Smile is incentivized to maintain this mannequin. It offers the corporate a handy out if a product line flops, versus should come clean with creating designs that no person desires.
You possibly can’t promote the random patterns we despatched you? Properly clearly you’re simply not making an attempt onerous sufficient.
The excellent news is that past the preliminary $149 order, Dot Dot Smile don’t power their associates to buy merchandise.
The dangerous information is MLM fee qualification is tied to PV which, when you think about the chance of a Dot Dot Smile affiliate receiving dud patterns, may drive them to self-purchase to fulfill PV necessities.
In LuLaRoe I referred to this as a “leggings lottery”. The identical principal applies in Dot Dot Smile.
As with every lottery, if a Dot Dot Smile associates believes they’ve acquired stock they will’t promote, they will merely purchase a brand new ticket.
That ticket is a Dot Dot Smile product order, and the target is to obtain favorable stock.
Sadly the percentages are stacked in opposition to the affiliate, as they don’t have any say in what patterns they obtain.
Did I point out this can be a horrible enterprise mannequin?
One can maybe try to justify this by the use of 50 PV being the minimal requirement for MLM commissions.
However once more, promoting 50 PV value of product to somebody who desires stated product is one factor.
When was the final time you walked right into a retailer, gave them your measurement and paid for a bag containing a random merchandise of clothes?
The net retailer is after all there, however if you happen to simply deal with that you just’re eliminating a probably giant supply of retail gross sales.
One thing Dot Dot Smile themselves readily acknowledge;
Promoting DotDotSmile Merchandise on to your buyer base is the primary pillar of a strong basis for your corporation.
If we ignore the lottery facet of Dot Dot Designs supply-chain, the comp plan is fairly straight ahead.
Hell it’s even reasonably priced (LuLaRoe demand $5000 to enter their lottery).
However I simply can’t in good conscience look previous associates paying for merchandise and receiving fully randoms designs they or their prospects might or might not need.
One final thing I need to contact on is Dot Dot Smile’s company “about us” story.
One night, Nicole was sitting on the sofa late at night time with time to replicate on life and her present state of affairs.
On the time, she and her husband, Jeff, had been dwelling along with her dad and mom as they’d chosen to save cash for a down fee on what could be their first dwelling.
As she sat there quietly, she pulled out her gratitude journal, which was one thing Nicole had dedicated to doing as a New 12 months’s decision.
As she quietly wrote within the journal, she was crammed with gratitude for all the various blessings she had been given.
Someplace between her pen touching the paper and shutting the journal earlier than mattress, she had acquired inspiration from God.
She felt prompted to begin a youngsters’s clothes line with the intention of making one thing that may deliver additional pleasure to youngsters by the clothes they put on day by day.
Since Jeff had already gone to mattress as he needed to rise up early for work, Nicole didn’t have the time to debate the inspiration with him however was decided to see it by way of.
Deciding to behave on her prompting, she headed for LA the very subsequent day.
Taking all of the money financial savings she and Jeff had constructed up till that time, she arrived in LA and gathered as many cute and distinctive textiles she might discover.
On her means dwelling, she known as Jeff and knowledgeable him of her dream and inspiration. Jeff was thrilled to listen to it.
He had all the time believed in her and was keen to listen to extra about it that night.
Nicole was crammed with regret and even questioned what she was doing for a break up second, however Jeff was there to reassure her and specific perception in what she had felt and the trail on which they had been about to embark.
Significantly? This reads extra like one thing you’d discover in a trashy romance novel.
So let me get this straight. Nicole and hubby are staying along with her dad and mom and saving each greenback they will to place in direction of a home.
At some point Nicole, with out consulting her companion, decides to as much as LA and blow their complete life financial savings on a enterprise concept.
And Jeff isn’t indignant about this. Actually he’s “thrilled” and might’t wait to listen to extra about it “that night”.
Puh-leeeze!
Look, some components of that story are in all probability correct however there’s clearly an entire lotta PR spin in there additionally.
Contemplating LuLaRoe was based mere months previous to Dot Dot Smile, it’s unlikely the enterprise concept was some random journal-inspired whim as offered.
What I’ll level out although is regardless of the obvious connections, there does seem like some separation between LuLaRoe and Dot Dot Smile.
In accordance with mommy blogger and Dot Dot Smile affiliate Kate Symons;
DotDotSmile is a completely totally different firm, with a separate mission assertion, totally different set of merchandise, all separate factories and manufacturing crew.
Getting again to Dot Dot Smile’s origin story; the cynic in me can’t additionally assist however level out it doubles as teaching.
Dot Dot Smile’s web site backstory is mainly preemptive teaching on methods to sort out a partner indignant at financial savings being blown up on stock lottery orders.
Nicole’s husband supported her with none questions, and look how that labored out for them.
WHY CAN’T YOU BLINDLY SUPPORT MY BUSINESS?!?
Take into accout this doesn’t have something to do with Dot Dot Smile’s MLM alternative otherwise you working it – I simply felt it was one thing that wanted to be identified.
What you need to discover out out of your perspective Dot Dot Smile upline is how a lot in uncooked {dollars} they’ve bought since signing up, versus what they’ve been in a position to promote.
Above all else, that’s the important thing to Dot Dot Smile due-diligence.
Take any hesitation as affirmation that exact affiliate has in all probability bought greater than they’ve been in a position to promote – which interprets into them dropping the stock lottery.
Except you need to gamble on the excessive chance you’ll wind up similar to them, select methods to proceed accordingly.
Replace seventh September 2022 – After canning MLM operations on the finish of June, Dot Dot Smile has filed for Chapter 11 chapter.