Jobless folks 50 and older who still need to earn money may find a direct selling business opportunity their best option, says Seniors4Hire.org

Huntington Beach, CA (PRWEB) August 5, 2004

It’s a tough job market for unemployed people 50 and older who still need to earn money. According to Seniors4Hire.org, a national online career center for those 50+, a direct selling business opportunity is a viable option.

“Successful, well-educated and well-paid older workers are being downsized, encouraged to take early retirement, and losing their jobs,” says Renee Ward, executive director of Seniors4Hire.org. “Many are not able to find a comparable replacement. Sure, age discrimination is illegal. Just try to prove it,” she adds.

So what’s an unemployed 50+ person who needs money to do?

A direct selling business opportunity may be the best option she says.

To help the 50+ learn about such opportunities, Seniors4Hire.org has launched a direct selling recruitment campaign and devoted a section of its web site to direct selling business opportunities.

“Our process allows us to separate employment job ads from independent contractor type of opportunities to avoid confusion,” says Ward.

So, what is direct selling? Its network marketing matured in the 21st century.

Direct selling companies contract people to sell their products and/or services direct to consumers through in-home demonstrations, parties and one-on-one.

The person that sells for one of these companies is the direct seller. Depending on the company, the direct seller may be called a distributor, representative, consultant or various other titles.

A wide variety of useful products and/or services are sold in this manner. For example, nutritional supplements, house wares, food, cosmetics, jewelry, and telecommunications services.

Some companies even allow you to recruit other people to sell the products and/or services and you receive a percentage of all the combined sales.

Start-up costs are low, like the cost of a starter kit or licensing fee, or nothing at all. The representative that sponsors you into the program provides training and support. In addition, many companies also provide other rewards like trips, prizes and public recognition.

“Older workers have many skills that translate well to owning a direct selling business, “says Ward. “In most cases, it’s a business that can be operated out of the home.

“If you can sell their products and/or services, you WILL earn money, “says Ward. “The companies sponsoring our educational outreach in this industry are members in good standing of the Direct Selling Association and adhere to its Code of Ethics.”

Direct selling is big business.

More than 13.3 million people in the United States participated in direct selling in 2003.

Of the people that work in this profession;

24% have a HS Diploma/GED or less

32% have some college, or post-secondary tech or trade school

43% have a college degree or more

Sales in the U.S. have doubled in the last decade to nearly $29.5 billion and are now more than $88.4 billion worldwide.

Amy Robinson, spokesperson for the Direct Selling Association (DSA) says, “There’s so much opportunity in direct selling that even corporate giants and venture capital groups are jumping into the mix.”

Berkshire Hathaway recently purchased its third direct selling company. Sara Lee owns five direct selling operations and Citigroup, Nestle and Unilever have direct sales divisions working in partnership with millions of independent contractors.

According to recent DSA surveys, 55 percent of Americans have purchased goods or services through direct sales. That’s more than the number who have purchased through television shopping and on-line computer services combined.

People value the products and services available through direct selling and 45 percent of Americans say they want to buy from direct sellers.

Ward says, “Folks who want an opportunity to earn money, either as supplemental income or as a full-time career, can do so in direct selling. There’s no age discrimination in this industry.”

The Forward Group publishes http://www.seniors4hire.org, and http://www.teens4hire.org, a national career center for the college and high school age group.

# # #