Is American Communications Network a pyramid? A review on ACN

ACN started in 1993 and is headquartered in Concord, North Carolina, but also has international offices located in Canada, the Netherlands, Australia, Sweden and Poland. ACN is short for American Communications Network, but it was changed to the initials because it has expanded to 20 different countries.

American Communications Network is the largest telecommunications ‘direct seller’. What this really means is that ACN is the largest telecommunications company that ‘uses an MLM business model’ to sell its goods and services. The MLM business model requires the recruitment of new distributors who are interested in selling telecommunications. Commissions are paid either for finding new customers or for recruiting new representatives into the business. The company prefers that reps find customers in their warm market (people they already know) rather than using ads or meetings that target a cold market.

The company grew extremely fast and went from starting in 1992 to having annual revenue of $98.1 million in 1998. The company has gone through many changes over the years and has operated as a gas and electric retailer, acquired utility services Internet and even started selling videophone equipment.

Apprentice star and executive producer Donald Trump has endorsed American Communications Network and has even attended some of the international trainings to promote the company. As with many MLM companies, it has been said that ACN is a scam or pyramid scheme and that the real money is made by recruiting representatives and not selling products to customers. Many reps also complain that most of the money they receive from clients goes to their sponsor. Due to these allegations, there have been legal problems in Australia and Canada, but they have never been found guilty of these things.

With this information, the fact that the company has expanded to over 20 different countries and has the likes of Donald Trump promoting it, makes it clear that American Communications Network is not a scam. It offers a legitimate business opportunity for someone interested in selling telecommunications to their warm market. What you have to decide is whether selling a product that is in a very competitive market with generally low profits is what you want. Also, to make big money in the MLM system, you’ll need to recruit people from your warm market, which means convincing family and friends to join ACN and sell telecom with you. If this sounds like your cup of tea, then ACN may work for you. If not, look for other opportunities that use different marketing methods like the Internet to promote their products and services.