A sales person is usually envisioned as the pesky woman over the counter trying to offer products for which you did not enter the store.

In the past, it was a man with a brief case knocking at your front door.

Now, there is a new form of sales that models the social trend of today—network sales.

Vemma, a nutrition company that boasts “the world’s most powerful liquid antioxidant,” sells starter packs to any opportunist who is willing to spend around $150 for a kit.

That starter kit is more than a “start,” though; each month, Vemma automatically withdraws that $150 from the seller’s account and ships out a new kit.

The starter kit is not permitted to be sold through a commercial or business outlet.

It is meant to be a sample of products that is given to potential partners — not necessarily sold.

It would seem that Vemma would want to sell its products, however the “opportunity” is not its energy drink; it is to join Vemma.

This has created a league of the worst kind of sales person — the kind that makes sales.

He or she belong to a pyramid, and I do not mean Egypt.

My younger brother, now a Shippensburg sophomore, was approached last year to start working for Vemma.

Another student told him it was a great opportunity to gain cash while in school.

My brother tried it, and like 95 percent of aspiring Vemma partners, did not find success.

When I mentioned Vemma to him, he immediately barked “do not do it!”

So how do you gain success?

Most obviously, you need to have time to put in work.

Most college students cannot even get to class, let alone build a strong branch of a company.

More importantly, you need to have the personality to convince people to join your team.

Charisma, confidence and hard work pay off in this business — so does manipulation. This is why sales people are so annoying.

It takes a certain type of person to convince someone to get involved with a poorly constructed business model.

People should be caustious when venturing into this.

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