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My So-Called Facebook Friends Are Peddling Products
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Confession time: I almost jumped into the world of direct sales. Almost. A friend reached out to me with her pitch, and I was totally swept off my feet. It seemed simple enough—recruit seven people, who would each recruit seven more, and before I knew it, I’d be swimming in cash and cruising around in my brand-new free car!
Of course, that’s not quite how it turned out, but you catch my drift. Thankfully, my fear of phone calls kept me from diving in headfirst. Asking a neighbor for an egg is tough enough, let alone trying to convince high school pals to buy something from me. During my brief stint in direct sales, I sold precisely zero products and I’m pretty sure I’m on some company’s “do not disturb” list.
Now, what about that “friend” who roped me in? I never heard from her again. Not once.
Let me be clear: I wholeheartedly support moms striving for self-improvement. I’m all for backing small businesses and moms launching their ventures. If you’re thriving in direct sales, kudos to you! I have no problem with the concept itself. What really irks me, though, is the faux-friendship that often accompanies these sales pitches.
We’ve all received those overly enthusiastic messages from friends we haven’t spoken to in ages, hawking everything from hair removal cream to miracle oils. Just the other day, I found a message from an old friend in my inbox. Excited to reconnect, I opened it, only to find, “Hey Girl! Your kids are adorable, and your life looks amazing! But you know what would make it even better? My latest product!”
Wait a minute—years of radio silence, and now you’re trying to sell me something? My fake friendship alert went off immediately. I didn’t even bother to see what she was selling; I felt duped. She wasn’t interested in rekindling our friendship; she simply wanted my cash.
In a bizarre twist, I even had a friend message my husband on Facebook, asking if he wanted to buy some fancy skincare products for me. Seriously? First off, leave my husband out of your contrived friendships. Second, is there something about my appearance that I’m missing? Am I now a haggard old lady at just 29? Please say it ain’t so!
And let’s not even bring up the fact that more than half of my Instagram requests come from “friends” trying to sell me something. One person I barely knew on Instagram sent me a picture of her kids, then immediately followed it up with, “Want to earn a full-time income from home? Contact me for details!” Talk about fake friendship.
I’m confident that to achieve a full-time income, I’d have to sell a gazillion dollars’ worth of products while juggling flaming swords and sleeping on a bed of nails. But I digress. As a working mom, I found it offensive when people assumed I was miserable in my job, yearning to work from home. Not every working mom dreams of becoming the next June Cleaver!
There’s nothing more irritating than a disingenuous friendship. It drives me nuts when people I haven’t spoken to in years reach out, add me to groups, and try to sell me something. I already see their products crowding my Facebook feed, and honestly, that doesn’t bother me. Share away! But when someone contacts me like we’ve been besties all along to pitch their sales pitch, it drives me up the wall. Sorry, fake friends, but I’m not buying it.
If I’m ever interested in a product, I promise I’ll reach out to the seller myself. And when I do decide to make a purchase, I swear on my favorite pair of yoga pants that I’ll buy from my real friends first.
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In summary, while I completely support and admire those in direct sales, the insincerity that can often accompany these interactions feels disingenuous. I’m all for nurturing real friendships, and if you’re genuinely interested in sharing your business, let’s keep it authentic.