If you’re reading this article, chances are you’ve been either approached to buy a World Financial Group (WFG) product or to start working for WFG as a financial advisor.
You might be curious but may also be wondering: Is World Financial Group a scam?
You’ve probably heard whispers about this from other friends or colleagues warning you that WFG is a scam, which I believe is a common occurrence.
In the finance industry where I had worked for over a decade, World Financial Group doesn’t get a lot of respect amongst its peers. But as of 2022, WFG has over 53,000 associates working for them. In 2021, WFG paid out over $1.1 billion in commission to its associates.
Say what you want about the company, but there’s no denying that it is a huge global force and one that requires close examination. Let’s go through this World Financial Group (WFG) review to see if it is a scam or legit.
MLM Financial Planning
WFG has a multi-level-marketing method of promotion and recruitment that can turn both customers and employees off. Read this WFG review to find out if it’s a scam or legit.
- The marketing and sales system is likely effective as WFG has impressive sales numbers, and you’ll get training on their tactics.
- Multi-level marketing (MLM) strategy is seen as a pyramid scheme by many and can be a difficult objection to overcome when trying to close sales.
- Reports of high pressure to recruit other associates to work under you
- Very difficult to make a lot of money using an MLM strategy, with only a small fraction of members finding long-term success.
- You could become a social outcast if you are too aggressive in selling to your family and friends.
- There could be a conflict of interest as the WFG associate might try to sell you a high-commission product that isn’t necessarily well-suited.
Check out my viral video, with over 130,000 views about this topic!
What is World Financial Group?
WFG is a company that sells financial planning services. The company sells savings, insurance, and retirement products through its associates, who usually have to pass a licensing exam for the country they live in.
The company was launched in 2001 by an insurance company called Aegon. In 2008, another insurance company, Transamerica, purchased WFG from Aegon. The company operates in Canada, the U.S., and Puerto Rico.
Is WFG a Scam or Pyramid Scheme?
One of the biggest accusations levelled against the World Financial Group is that it operates as a pyramid scheme and is an outright scam.
Pyramid schemes are illegal in most countries. In a classic pyramid scheme, individuals make money primarily from recruiting others, not from selling products or services to the public.
I wanted to answer this question right off the bat. In the literal sense of the word, no, World Financial Group is not a scam. The company will not take your money as a customer and give you nothing in return. That’s what a scam or a pyramid scheme is, and WFG is not that.
If you join the company as an agent, you will have the chance to earn an income and need to be licensed in order to sell any of these products directly. WFG is approved and regulated by the financial governing bodies of the countries where it operates.
However, where many people are turned off of WFG and wonder if it is a scam is due to its sales tactics in acquiring customers and multi-level marketing (MLM) methods of hiring agents to work for them.
How Does WFG Hire Associates?
WFG employs a multi-level marketing (MLM) business model for its associates. The way it works is after you get hired onto WFG and pass all the licensing exams, you’ll have to recruit new associates.
After you join WFG, you’ll be encouraged to get off to a “fast start,” where you are supposed to recruit three new members and sit in on three training sales within the first 30 days of the company.
This aggressive approach to recruiting new members sets off alarm bells in my head. Getting these new recruits and associates is another type of sales tactic.
Any products that those associates either buy themselves or sell to other people, you’ll get a percentage of the commissions.
A lot of WFG’s sales come from its associates themselves. It’s a classic MLM business model and one that should be a huge red flag in choosing to work for WFG. Their own website shows the multi-level shape of their business model.
How Much Money Can You Earn at WFG?
You will only receive money as a commission if you sell something at WFG or if those associates you recruit under you buy or sell WFG products.
Even ignoring all the negative connotations that come with MLM companies, I’ll give you an example of why WFG is not a great place to work. Let’s take a look at the WFG contract levels, which is the amount of commissions you can earn for say, a product like life insurance.
If you have a contract level of 100%, you will earn 100% of the first-year commissions on top of what your commission structure is.
When I first started out as a life insurance broker, I had an 80% contract level to start, and it increased to 140% near the end of my time as a broker, which was in less than two years.
According to a previous year’s compensation report that I found (which I can’t link to due to copyright claims by WFG), a WFG Associate contract level is a measly 36%, a Marketing Director contract level is 51%, and a Senior Marketing Director contract level is 64%.
I’ve had some WFG people reach out to me directly, and the contract levels they have mentioned seem pretty in line with those numbers.
There are other better and more reputable brokerages out there. If you are willing to get licensed, they can also train you and support you better than WFG and give you a larger payout.
Also, don’t be fooled by the WFG website, which states that the average earnings for someone with 0 – 3 years of experience is $88,075 per year. This is for a Senior Marketing Director if you read the fine print. The average new associate who joins WFG won’t make even close to this amount and often won’t make anything at all.
How Does WFG Get Its Customers?
WFG relies on its associates in two main ways to get customers. Firstly, any of the products the associates themselves purchase essentially turn them into customers.
All those new associates will be immersed in WFG products and culture, and many will end up buying products themselves. Then, many are taught to aggressively try to get more associates, spreading the WFG product line and sales almost like a virus as it multiplies down the levels.
As an associate, you’re expected to make a list of all your friends and family and approach them to sell your financial products or to recruit them as an associate for WFG.
But that is typical of all MLM financial companies, and I don’t want to knock WFG specifically. They aren’t doing anything illegal, but I just think it’s a terrible business model for both customers and associates, and there are so many better options out there. But it obviously works, as WFG has a tonne of sales. If anything, this just shows the power of “warm” leads and buying from people that you know and trust.
As a former sales guy, I think that WFG must have an extremely effective pitch for new members because it is obviously working and getting results. But as an investor or insurance purchaser, I would never hire a WFG associate.
I get it, though; investing and insurance can be intimidating. If you’ve never worked with numbers or cared about your finances before, the whole process can be daunting. But consider putting some time in, learn how to start investing, and take control of your own finances.
If you need to hire an advisor, try to find a properly trained fee-based one, and one that won’t just try to charge you an annual fee on your investments and never speak to you again.
Is WFG a Legitimate Company for Customers?
Yes, WFG is a legitimate company. If you purchase an insurance or investment product from them, you will receive the product.
But beware, you may be pressured into purchasing expensive products that may not be the best for you but will earn the associate selling it a big commission, such as permanent life insurance or segregated funds. There are numerous anecdotal accounts of this happening; just scroll through the dozens of comments below this article (some even state that “WFG ruined my life!”).
Often, the associate you are dealing with may not have much financial or investing experience and will likely try to recruit you to become an associate also.
As a former life insurance agent and financial advisor, I can understand the success of WFG. The secret to WFG is its method of using what we call in the industry “warm” leads.
You’re much more likely to buy or trust someone that you know. Multi-level marketing relies on this, and you’ll see it applied to many different businesses, the most successful one probably being Amway.
Have your guard up, and if WFG is pitching you something, don’t be afraid to ask tough questions like “what will you get paid in commissions on this product?” They are legally obligated to tell you their financial incentive; if they don’t reply, that’s a big red flag.
Should You Become a WFG Associate?
In my opinion, it is very difficult to make money with this business model. Yes, there are some success stories, and in its marketing materials, there will be descriptions of people getting rich at WFG. However, it will be a very tiny fraction of the overall recruits.
Sure, if you’re willing to hustle your butt off, contact all your friends and family, and aggressively pursue new sales prospects, then yes, you might be able to find success with WFG. But if you’re this much of a go-getter, why would you stick with a company like WFG?
You’ll also risk damage to your reputation and maybe even your personal relationships. WFG almost has the same negative stigma as Amway does. You could become known as the “pyramid scheme” person behind your back and might be avoided in social situations.
Other Reasons to Not Join WFG
High Fees
Another accusation against World Financial Group is that the company charges high fees from its associates. When someone joins WFG as an associate, they are required to pay a fee for background checks and online access to company resources. There are also continuing costs for training materials and meetings.
There have been complaints from WFG associates that the cost of becoming an associate and maintaining the membership is too high. Some also argue that the company is not clear about these fees upfront, leading to surprises for many new associates.
Misleading and Inadequate Training
Training provided to new recruits often focuses more on sales and recruitment techniques than on giving a comprehensive understanding of the financial products they’re expected to sell.
Many new recruits feel they are not adequately prepared to provide accurate financial advice to clients. They contend that the training is misleading because it overstates the potential income and understates the difficulty of selling insurance and investment products. This could potentially lead to unsuitable financial advice being given to clients and new recruits having unmet income expectations.
Unsuitable Products
World Financial Group has been accused of promoting unsuitable financial products when it isn’t necessary for the client, such as Universal Life Insurance. This can have the effect of giving the agent a big commission cheque, but it might not be the best product for the customer.
WFG associates, driven by high commissions, might be pressured to sell products that are more beneficial to them rather than ones suitable for their clients.
Why I Hate MLMs
I’ve been pitched multiple MLM ideas over the years, ranging from smoothie drinks, painting business, Amway, and many more. Here are some of the reasons I hate MLMs:
- MLM pitches are annoying and misleading and always sell the same kind of story: be your own boss, recruit three other people, and they will recruit three more, then you’ll have hundreds of people working for you, all while making money on whatever they sell!
- If someone I know pitches me an MLM business idea, it makes me think less of the person and want to avoid them in the future.
- While selling something like smoothie drinks is relatively harmless, having this business model for something so vital as investment products could have a direct harmful impact on customers by not having properly trained advisors that have your best financial interests at heart.
- It’s very difficult to climb to the top of an MLM company and actually start making really good money.
- Any business model that places more of an emphasis on recruiting new members rather than customer needs in order to make money is one to be cautious of.
World Financial Group Alternatives
If you were excited to join WFG before reading all this, I hope you aren’t too dejected now because there are a lot of other ways to make money and build your own business.
Build a Skill
I strongly suspect that most people who join WFG aren’t that passionate about investing and insurance, and certainly not sales. Instead, they’re just looking for a way to make some money on the side or at home.
If that’s the case for you, why not build a tangible skill instead? You can learn something like how to code, become a virtual assistant, or brush up on design skills, then freelance your services to clients. The possibilities are endless. Check out lists like these for ideas:
- 25 Authentic Work-From-Home Jobs – No Degree Needed
- 30 Effective Ways to Make Money Online in Canada
- 30 Side-Hustles in Canada To Start Right Now
Employee
Instead of working at WFG, you can get licensed on your own to sell investment and insurance products and start working for an insurance or investment brokerage.
I mentioned before that I worked for an insurance broker in Canada that had way higher commission payouts than WFG has (see below).
ou won’t have to worry about the bad reputation that WFG seems to have among some consumers. You will also get trained up at these brokerages. Contact brokerages in your area to see if there are any opportunities or see if there are any job postings on sites like Indeed.
As A Customer
As a consumer, there are countless other options for you other than buying from WFG:
For Investors
If you’d like to become a do-it-yourself (DIY) investor, sign up for an online broker and learn how to invest on your own. Here are my top picks on the best trading platforms in Canada.
If you need a little bit of advice, you can look at my top picks for the best robo-advisors in Canada.
For Insurance
For Canadian term life insurance, I would recommend PolicyMe. They’ve recently created their own products and offer them at very competitive rates. Check out PolicyMe’s website for some free quotes.
Another life insurance option for Canadians is PolicyAdvisor. You can compare 20 different insurers very quickly and get the best rates. They have more options such as term and whole life, disability, and critical insurance you can choose from. Check out PolicyAdvisor’s website for a quick comparison of 20 companies.
Finding an Advisor
If you must use an advisor, try to find a fee-based advisor that is not incentivized to push you towards a certain product. They can help you with both investments and insurance. Do a search for a “fee-based financial advisor” in your area. Try to find one with a Certified Financial Planning (CFP) designation. You can also search on a site like Money Coaches Canada for a fee-based advisor in your area.
Work for a Better Insurance Company
Steer clear of MLM companies with low payouts like WFG. Opt for a career with a credible insurance company. Here’s how you can do it.
Steps:
- Choose a License Type:
- Canada: Decide between types such as life insurance, accident & sickness, and general insurance (e.g., property, auto).
- USA: Decide if you want to sell life, health, property, casualty, or other insurance.
- Complete Required Education:
- Canada: Enroll in an accredited insurance course relevant to your type; courses are offered by institutions like the Insurance Institute of Canada.
- USA: Complete the required pre-licensing education hours, either in-person or online, as mandated by your state.
- Pass the Licensing Exam:
- Canada: Take and pass a provincial licensing exam.
- USA: After pre-licensing education, take the state licensing exam, focusing on state-specific regulations and general insurance topics.
- Apply for a License:
- Canada: Submit an application to your province’s insurance regulatory body, which may include background checks.
- USA: Apply through your state’s Department of Insurance or equivalent, with most states requiring fingerprinting and a background check.
- Maintain the License:
- Both: Obtain Continuing Education credits periodically and stay updated with regulatory changes and industry practices.
- Join a Brokerage or Insurance Company:
- Canada: To sell insurance products, align with a recognized insurance provider or brokerage.
- USA: Before selling, be contracted or appointed with an insurance company.
Note that before getting licensed, you can try to find an insurance company that will sponsor and guide you through the licensing process. Research life insurance companies in your region, and use LinkedIn and Glassdoor for insights if you go this route. You can try reaching out to insurance agents directly as well via LinkedIn.
Has WFG been sued in Canada?
Yes, WFG has been sued before both in the U.S. and in Canada. Here are the details of some of the cases:
- In 2014, WFG Securities of Canada Inc. agreed to pay $250,000 to settle a case against it by the Manitoba Securities Commission.
- In 2022, WFG terminated an agent’s membership agreement and the agent was served two administrative monetary penalties.
- In April 2023, the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) issued a notice of proposal against World Financial Group Insurance Agency of Canada Inc., alleging gaps in WFG’s operation and ongoing proceedings by another regulator against WFG.
- In 2022, a lawsuit was filed against WFG in the United States. Seven brokers sold $1.4 million worth of fraudulent notes, scamming investors of their retirement savings.
Final Thoughts
While WFG may not be an outright scam, I wouldn’t personally ever work or buy any products from them, nor would I recommend any of my friends or family to either.
I believe there are so many other better options in terms of choosing a career or buying financial products.
When I wrote this article, I wanted to get to the bottom of WFG’s success despite the many complaints I’ve heard about them.
I want to end this by saying that not all WFG agents are bad, and it wasn’t my intention to paint every person there with the same brush or to cause so much anger in what I wrote.
There are competent, honest, and intelligent agents at WFG, and I’ve interacted with many since publishing this article. I’ve also interacted with some fairly nasty ones as well.
I’ve edited content in this article that I didn’t deem accurate after a rational argument and facts were presented to me, but my negative opinion on financial MLMs still stands.
If you can avoid all of the bad agents at WFG (and there are a lot of stories about unscrupulous agents, see the hundreds of comments in the comment section below or on my Youtube video for some horror stories!) and find a good agent that you can trust, then you might be alright with buying products at WFG, but I still feel there are better options out there.
There are two extremely divided sides to this argument, and I hope that this has helped to spark some conversation between them.
If you want to learn about other MLM companies that you might want to avoid, check out my Primerica review or my Greatway Financial review.
257 comments
Anonymous
Hey Shane. I’m a WFG agent, and no, I’m not here to do damage control or discredit your article.
I’ve been in the business for 5 years. I got my government license just before the world shut down in 2020; it made it REALLY difficult for me to do any business.
I can confirm that yes, the “fast start” bonus I received was for helping 3 people (I replaced 2 terrible insurance policies. You’ve worked in insurance, you’ve likely replaced an AIL policy yourself) I also set up a couple new TFSA’s with basic $25/month PACs. Starting a new TFSA paid nothing. Replacing the existing policies didn’t pay much, mostly peace of mind knowing friends of mine had better policies in place (i believe the total pay between the two was around $800).
It also required me to recruit 3 people. I made no falsehoods when recruiting them, and frankly, have been significantly more transparent with any potential recruit than the information I was originally given, and I learned from my dad to grill them for information about what hidden costs there were, because there’s no way it was as simple as it was being made out to be.
All 3 of those original recruits quit, along with the ones afterward, for one reason or another.
As you’ve pointed out, each advisor is an independent broker, and yeah, i’ve met some that i’ll just say, sell a lot more UL’s than i think are necessary, but then I don’t speak to their clients. I sell more term policies and the occasional whole life, with exactly one UL policy being sold, because honestly, needs based selling isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s literally outlined in provincial law.
Now down to the point you made about money. YES, there are a lot of costs every month. E&O, backend fees, various subscriptions, etc etc… it adds up fast. And there is ZERO warning about it. I personally tried to hustle in my first year, and in my 5th year am just now repairing my social life because of it.
I don’t think I’ve made over $2200 in a year. (I live in a small town, and have a very small market to work with). I’m an open book if you have any questions.
MARIA LOUISA GARCIA
The writer of this article mentions several times that this is his opinion. WFG is not an insurance agency. WFG works with the insurance companies that provide the products after WFG associates make recommendations. They get paid with commissions. Is the commissions less than other agencies? Well, consider that would hold down the insurance costs to clients. The commissions are not taken from the client’s premiums. There are no management fees from plans like 401(k), mutual funds, or financial planners. They get paid managements fees whether you have earnings or not. Are there less than reputable agents? Every agency or insurance company has them. They get weeded out. They get fined. They get terminated. They lose their insurance license. Unfortunately, in some cases, not fast enough.
The writer is right that if you come across an agressive and high pressure agent, don’t do business with them. Do what is right for you. Financial literacy is the first goal of WFG. Why? This is not taught in schools and colleges unless you are enrolled Finance degree. How can you make an important decision on how to protect your income, family, critical or terminal illnesses, or create supplemental retirement benefits? Most people don’t know what they don’t know. Financial literacy is the key to knowing.
I am a business owner and an associate with World Financial Group. As agents in WFG, we are taught not to disparage insurance companies or other agents. This is a mechanism within the insurance industry to report agents that are taking advantage of the public or are involved in fraudelent activity.
I have worked in accounting field. I can tell that most of our tax clients and Americans know very little of how money works, how to save, or why social security benefits, other important facts that they need to know. I teach them. Can I teach them everything? No. That does not means that I don’t try to do the best that I can. No.
Opinions vary and are often loud and scary. I am putting my name out there.
Take these words into consideration. Decide for yourself and not based on the opinions of others. So don’t spam me. Don’t bash me. Don’t get me hate emails. Be civil. That is missing in our country currently. Be kind and know the facts.
Anon
I completely disagree with James’ statement. The pitch my wife got had no financial needs analysis done. Just a very aggressive push to buy a million dollar IUL. Nothing else was suggested. As far as the “not pressured to recruit” is concerned, that’s all they push. In fact, you can’t get any financial education without signing up as an agent and paying the $125 background fee. Then 10 hours of “changing your mindset to a millionaire’s mindset” is the financial education she got in order to recruit people.
It could be just this particular SMD, but I’m not at all impressed by this company’s training. They train aggressiveness, pushiness, do whatever it takes to get someone to sign up as an agent, then again to sell the million dollar IUL.
Again, it could be this SMD, he did mention he wanted to be a millionaire as soon as possible, whatever it takes.
Oh, and Transamerica IUL policies are the only ones he’ll sell. From what I can tell, they’re all about their commission check.
John Sp
Anyone with half a brain knows that MLMs are bad and fake. Run away. They market aggressively and they want new recruits to spend money. Guess where that money goes? Into the pockets of all the people sitting above in that MLM tree structure. As expected people from World Financial are here defending the company. If they really think World Financial is going to make someone rich, take their money AFTER they’re rich, not before. In some ways its like those PCH scams where they promise millions but you need to pay a hundreds or thousands to get the ‘money’ transferred. Money doesn’t grow on trees. It comes from the sale of real products and authentic services. Just search the internet. There’s a lot of other information on WFG. Whatever real financial advice exists, its available for FREE on the internet. You don’t have to pay 1000s for that. Its actually very simple. Don’t spend more than you should and max out your 401k and Roth IRA and if you still have money left over to invest, talk to someone you know well and ask what broker they use.
Robert long
It seems several comments indicate that wfg simply wants the associates to inform and teach, not to sell. If that’s the case how do the associates earn a commission? How do they get paid? Will wfg pay them hourly? If they spend 200 hours “teaching” will they get $25 and hour from wfg? $50 and hour? Why won’t they release the numbers that give average commision earnings for new associates? Quit being vague. Quit being elusive. It reminds me of the old Amway pitches where they wouldn’t even tell you who they represented, just come to the meeting and you will learn it all.
Actual WFG Agent
Who paid you to write this article? This article is incorrect. I am a long tenured WFG agent, many years. My agency does not pressure anyone into purchasing their own policy.
We create professional referral relationships and tap into those markets (presentations for doctors, teachers, etc.).
We teach people about the rules on their 401k, IRA, and insurance. We do that all for free, we dont charge ANY consultation. We dont get laid for recruiting. We get paid for HELPING people, teaching people.
This article is defaming a company for what? A handful of bad interactions? Guess what. In the real world, that happens at every company. I won’t put my contact information, I dont want YOU scamming ME.
Jeffrey
Yeah get a life
Geetika Sharma
WFG is an educational Base Company. In my Career as an Oil and Gas engineer I made a lot of money but no one means no one Banks , insurance companies sat with me to teach me how money works, but it’s only WFG which is company which teaches you the financial concepts irrespective of your background. Only this company cares about people who make less money than usual society.
I feel working with this company I got the purpose of my life to work in financial sector honestly speaking guys this company is giving normal people to become exceptional in their Life.
I support WFG from heart and soul. ❤️
Rob R
I agree 100% with you. WFG is changing families lives daily, and family legacy’s by creating generational wealth. I love working for them compared to the 12 years of the Corporate chains. I now have the time freedom to make a difference in my community and create wealth for my family! This person may have a bad experience, but it’s very unfortunate. Doing something that you have no passion in is a scam. WFG is amazing!
Himanshu
Greate! I would like to know average rate of return on WFG products.
Oliver
WFG works with insurance companies like IA and Equitable, both of these companies offer Whole Life and universal Life policies. The Investment portions are invested in the same places most banks keep your money.
I bought a UL through a wfg agent and I get between 6-10% annually in my accumulation fund.
Richard Burns
The concept of a pyramid scheme is obviously shown here and in the video. The takeaways are that it’s not funded by imaginary investments but rather offers products to fit others needs… of course at a higher cost because how else will the company earn profits and be able to pay their agents.
I won’t go too into detail but the part that’s viewed as a “pyramid scheme” is the recruitment (branching and expanding) and although the methods may not be unethical, the concept is. Many companies do this and it’s not illegal but can definitely be seen as immoral. Transparency is key only if it’s 100% without withholding information as that just leads to others being mislead and then later irate when their results fall short of expectations. In turn, negative reviews and false accusations.
All I can say for the outsiders looking in is; do your research, take everything with a grain of salt, and if you find hesitation in your decision, trust your gut.
MrsIllinoislady
I wasn’t interested in working for this company, but I was thinking about meeting with one of the people (an acquaintance) about how to help me get out of debt. I’m a Dave Ramsey fan, so, thanks to your informative article, I will tell the acquaintance that, never mind–I’m not interested.
Gazal
A big scam and unreliable model that accelerates selfishness, high pressure sales tactics without assessing customer needs. My wife is a wfg agent and she built one strong leg. The immediate agent under her got promoted to an MD leaving her as an associate with her only leg of active agents robbed from her. Her MD/SMD/CEO did not consult her while taking her leg away and assigning it to themselves. She is now depressed and has lost faith in the system. After two years of being with WFG, her earnings are a big fat zero. All commissions were taken by the MD/SMD/CEO although her leg produced 40K+ points
Actual WFG Agent
What???? That just isnt how WFG works ???? You cant have a promoted MD underneath you and have a associate contract.
Your wife isn’t telling you the truth or she simply doesnt understand.
There are MANY measures in place that inform the leg of an SMD that their MD is being promoted to SMD. That is moreso what you are talking about.
Again, more ignorance and defamation for what?
Sarah
It’s really unfortunate that the author is slamming a company that encourages people to regain hope in taking their finances into their own hands and instead encouraging people to trust “robo-advisors” and policy generators..
I know from experience that the online advice does not work.
I know from experience that not all insurance agents have the consumer’s best interest in mind.. author included.
If the consumer’s best interest was in mind, you would have said something like:
WFG is a platform that allows anyone with a clear criminal record to try to build something for themselves and future generations. Some people use this platform to recommend products that are not good for the consumer in order to raise their own income, and WFG is not exempt from those people.. in fact, selfish and greedy people seek out WFG so they can make high income and quit before there’s any chargebacks to be had and any licenses to lose.
I first was introduced to WFG over 3 years ago. I had a similar reaction to the author of this article. The agents I met were self-centred and wealth oriented and had no intention of getting to know me or my family’s needs, just wanted me to be another number on their chart. Very similar to how I thought everyone who worked in finance behaved.
I was re-introduced last spring. I was cold, I was closed minded like the author is, I wanted nothing to do with WFG or “their products” (WFG does not sell their own products). Because it was a friend, I shut my mouth and listened to the advisor she had found. I can now proudly say that I’ve fired my Canada Life advisor and I have a WFG advisor now.
Why?
Because he actually cares about me and my family. In fact, he’s organized a free sleep seminar for me and anyone I know with a company he had hired in the past all because I often can’t meet to learn about and improve my financial situation because of young kids fighting bed time. (That’s a long run-on sentence, let’s not discuss it)
Because he helps me look at all areas of my life (not just life insurance) to find things we can improve and helps me make an action plan to get there. It feels like the agents at WFG are teaching me how to float while I’ve been fighting for my life treading water with nothing but the doggy paddle.
I had an employer tell me to contact our local homeless shelter for tips on how to survive inflation rather than giving me a raise. The CEO of that company didn’t blink twice when I asked for help after he encouraged employees to reach out to him for help. The “pyramid” of WFG is wayy less of a pyramid than the corporate models that we all fight so hard to get into..
In my humble opinion, the validity of a company should be based on how many people they encourage to grow and do better.
WFG is producing more licensed agents than all other insurance brokers COMBINED.
That’s a lot of people with hope to grow and do better.
Anonymous
If Greatway Financial Inc copy & paste wfg’s business model, and Greatway is now under review by FRSA. Why not WFG? Do you think WFG will escape the review by FSRA body? Because it is exactly has the same business model MLM as well as violating the ethical practices under the Financial Regulations.
Christopher Liew, CFA
That’s really tough to say without knowing the ins and outs of how the company operates. But WFG is much larger than Greatway and has been around for much longer, so perhaps their compliance and legal team has done a better job than Greatway’s has.
WFG Agent
I have been with WFG for two years as a part time agent and I’m still with them. A lot of information in this article is quite false and very negative facts. Although it looks like MLM on paper, however there is glass ceiling for any WFG agent. It is what they put in to it that gives them a huge return and fulfill their dreams. I have attended conventions where there is real actual proof of people making some good money.
Lillian Teng
Hello Chris,
I thought of writing to let you know, I am truly appalled, coming across your webpage, on the topic of WFG. I understand you feel opposed to WFG, and how you understand WFG might be common among readers who may also see your point of view.
Thanks for sharing your strongly opposing personal opinion with regards to WFG and I look forward to know if you have additional or relevant information in 2024.
nickolodean
i got a friend of mine who out of respect i listened to the training and as what i expected it sounds really a pyramid scheme, ive been into some pyramiding before in a different country but it has the same concept. only it has more advantage here due to the tax writeoff.
Tina Michelle
Here’s an article comparing WFG (which is a MGA) to an MLM https://www.moneymakeovers.ca/wfg-questions
As a WFG client for 16 years and now an agent, I’ve always loved the company. I’ve been blessed with my advisors but I’ve also met some agents where I’m glad I’m not their client. When I hear of scams in the WFG community, it’s always with some agent doing something stupid. The company itself is pretty amazing.
Paul Margani
Hi christopher,
Your article has misinformation and bias in it from what I see.
Stop using the mlm excusitice to bash wfg. It gives everyone a fair chance to change their live, thier families and other’s through education plus, go through the legal steps. Like any financial services business needs a license or any business to operate and why would triple a companies work with wfg if a scam? So, false
Another lie in high pressure to recruit. If you want to you can to build a team like any buisness or job. Everyone recruits job, army, scouts, banks, etc so, they a scam then? Or can just service families your choice. So false.
Another lie in hard to make a lot of income with the system in wfg. Every business and job has a system for who joins them with a trainer to teach them so, Wfg is no different. Job caps on how much your worth but, wfg you can create your own worth so, false.
You become a social outcast to family amd friends. Only applies if you push it like that but, in realistic terms it does not make you a social outcast. Unless, you do that to yourself in the process so, false.
Could be a conflict of interest in trying to sell high commision product’s when it is not another biased lie. Like every busienss who is perfect? No one so, stop attacking wfg like it is the enemy to the public and other’s don’t have bad apples.
Your article seems biased and one sided when you wrote this i must say. Before you print something about a company you do not know the full facts about sit down and stay quiet until, you actually do the proper research to write it. You don’t spread misinformstion to people then, see some other’s speak the same misinformation in your comment section. To everyone elses slandering the company need to keep quiet till you actually research properly.
This system and platform has changed thousand’s and million’s of lives to a better future. So, saying you would not touch any of the products or recommend to family and friend’s shows your arrogance of that ego.
Hope you have seen the positive impact the campaign is giving people in a better life in educating yourself.
Best regards
Paul M
Scott
Learn to write. This reply is exactly the reason no one should ever purchase a product from wfg without reading all the downsides and risk involved. I’ve met several “agents” on a spectrum of not at all qualified to somewhat qualified. Not who I would trust with my hard earned money.
meet patel
I don’t say it is a scam totally because some of the policies are useful for the clients if ” taking from a knowledgeable advisor”. But working as a wfg agent is very hard. Most of the agents pass the exam by cheating and they don’t have any knowledge at all. The top-level agents just wants to make money and just recruiting new agents by giving fake information.
James Green
I am a WFG agent, and I find this comment fairly ignorant.”Most of the agents pass the exam by cheating”? Firstly, how could you possibly know that, in any realistic sense? Secondly, how is that even possible, since the exams are administered by the states and FINRA (Federal level, for securities)? Also, there are systems in place to make sure that products offered to fill a client’s needs are correct for that client–important since in many states, including California (the single largest grouping of WFG agents), which make financial professionals fiduciaries, which is the highest standard of commitment to the client. Initially an agent may or may not know much beyond what they studied for their tests, but few of those handle they transactions without supervision of those who are quite knowledeable.
Craig Stokes
I have been approached by an ex co-worker who works for the WFG. This ex co-worker wants to “have a meeting” and fill me in on some “cool financial solutions”. I am in no way a closed-minded person, and have agreed to meet with them a few days from now. I came to this article to see what I was getting myself into. After reading the article I was quite happy to hear the perspective of the author. I did not notice any bias or slander in this article, and the author even vows to update his writing with more accurate information as it becomes present. This is a rare case where an author is looking to always improve their own information, and I can respect that. I always appreciate someone who can leave the door open for further discussion. The comments all seem to be the same thing: either really positive and pro-WFG, or a negative comment followed by someone defending the WFG.
A lot of the comments defend poor service as a personal issue between some rogue agent and a client, rather than let it reflect poorly on the company. As someone who has worked in customer service for many years, I dream of a day where the negligent employee gets the blame, and not the company as a whole. If someone in my company lets a customer down it is up to my company to make it better for the customer. But it seems in the financial game it is easy to brush off poor service as a situation where someone was provided a low-quality agent. This does not sit right with me as the company does the hiring, the company does the training, from what I understand these agents must spend some time with their superiors who are watching their performance, and they are also offering their services to “friends and loved ones”.
This combination of training and pitching to people you know should result in a very universal positive experience. It is a perfect situation to purchase a product from someone who has the proper knowledge and training, while also being someone you know and trust. So why is it that so many people have a negative experience with this system? It seems like the company has done all of the ground work, but people still end up with a negative experience.
I am going to go into this meeting in a few days and write back on my experience. I am a person who appreciates knowledge, clarity, and service.
I have a deep understanding of all things finance, and currently I invest all of my own money and run my own businesses. I don’t see any real need to change what I am doing financially, and why would I pay someone to do something I can already do myself? But all of the positive comments speaking about the great offerings at WFG have me convinced that I will not be let down by this meeting.
Will post back in a few days.
Thanks for the excellent article, Chris!
Thomas
Hello Craig:
Have you had that meeting with your co-worker regarding joining WFG? Like to hear the update.
Thomas
Peter
Hi Chris,
I can discuss actuals of the comp model in hopes you can update your piece. How do I contact you directly?
Craig Stokes, the author’s is Steve Siebold. Great comment overall.
Gary, great comment!!
Full disclosure, I am a WFG Agent for the past two and a bit years. I have a total of 27 years in financial services. And I approve the WFG model, as it inspires entrepreneurialism for starters.
Christopher Liew, CFA
Hi Peter, you can find my contact here: https://wealthawesome.com/contact/
Gary
Upfront, I am a current agent within WFG. Is it a perfect company? No, but show me one that is. What I’ve experience is this;
I came to WFG as a potential client. My wife and I wanted to get a better handle on our finances and at the time, had yet to get any REAL help from our bank advisor or our personal financial advisor (whom is a Friend of mine that works for a well know Financial company). It seemed whenever we tried to get help, we were sold a product to fix things or to relieve the current source of financial stress.
For example: when we needed to replace our roof we were approved for a line of credit… aka DEBT. No one talked to us about how to properly create an emergency fund so as to cover unexpected repairs or situations.
When I spoke with friends, coworkers and relatives, they all shared similar experiences with various results from most banks, insurance providers, etc so there really didn’t seem to be much difference who we went with for help.
My wife’s co-worker was the one that recommend the WFG agent we eventually sat down with.
He didn’t offer to sell us another or better product. He listened to our issues, assured us that many people are dealing with the same things, which we already knew from speaking with friends and relatives, and offered to help us learn through the financial workshops they offered for free. He also offered to do a full review on our current finances to make sure everything was working or not. Something no bank or even my buddy that was also a financial advisor, offered to do….again for free.
So we took him up on the offer. Within 2 weeks, we learned more about money than either of us had in over 35 years. When he completed the review, he had found where we were spending too much, the products we had that weren’t working and the ones that were, like my RRSP and our kids resps. We paid him nothing but he was able to significantly reduce how much we were spending by eliminating several insurances and other products we had been sold as solutions, that were anything but.
Now I did say I’m also an agent currently, but he wasn’t the one that “recruited” me. I actually was between jobs and loved their approach, so I asked how I could get started. To be able to do the same for others as he did for us. He offered to mentor me and I’ve learned way more than I ever thought I would and not just about finances and WFG’s systems, but also about business in general. I took what I learned and was able to start up two other ventures that I had dreamed of long before I even met my wife.
Now… is it Perfect? No! the article does explain thing fairly well but not completely accurately. There is a book by Simon Sinek(think thats how it’s spelled) called “The real truth about WFG: unauthorized” that does an even better job. The author wasn’t fired or employed by WFG to write it and it is 100% accurate… at least from what I have experienced and seen.
A couple points that I will clarify from what I’ve seen;
1) I have never been forced to “recruit” or “sell” to my family/friends. In fact I have never been forced to recruit anyone. I did eventually find 2 people (this year) that liked what we do and wanted to join me in business. Financial services is the highest paying industry in the world so you can make good money on your own pen as they say. The advantage that having people to work with is that I can rely on others to help when I’m not able and to be perfectly honest… it’s more fun working with others.
2) There are definitely bad apples every where… including WFG. I have met and heard stories of other WFG agents and even whole teams that will gladly do things they shouldn’t….outside of breaking the law of course…..like selling higher commission products or services that the client may not actually need. This problem happens in any sales business when commission is involved. Technically they aren’t breaking the rules that govern agents in the financial sector but it’s still wrong in my books.
3) It does look like an MLM. No need to lie and say it doesn’t. they are structured similarly. the difference though are many. For one, we don’t have our own brand of products or services. Anything you could get from WFG, you can get from our product providers yourself. The difference is that were we work with many (70+ in Canada and 200+ in the US) providers products, your Bank as an example, only offers theirs. So we’re able to find the best fit for each situation by shopping around for our clientele. as an example: It’s very unlikely that if you went to your bank for a mortgage, they would tell you the green bank across the street has a better interest rate right now.
Like anything else in life, you need to use your judgement and decide what is and isn’t right for you. WFG has a lot of positives… more than the article gives them credit for and more than I went into… but it does have it’s draw backs too.
Hope this helps
Anon
My experience is completely different. My wife got sucked into WFG about a month ago, so far, all the ‘training’ she’s had is how to get people to sign up to be agents. They teach to be ‘aggressive’ and don’t take no for an answer. They’ve also mentioned to specifically target women for signups. Take it for what you will, it’s just what I’ve seen sitting in on the ‘training’ with my wife.
Robert long
You indicate that you paid your friend no money and he helped you reduce your needs and payouts. Who paid him? How did he earn money? You also indicated you went into business with them but only later did you get 2 others to join you in business. How did you get paid before they joined? How much was it? Are those 2 equal partners in your business? I am not being sarcastic but if all these people did for you was what you indicated, how did they earn any money to l8ve and pay bills? Did World Financial pay them? If I join and spend lots of time trying to recruit but get no takers, do I still get paid for my time? $25 an hour? $50 and hour? Not being sarcastic but tired of the dancing around that happens in these type businesses
Jason
Very, very helpful and well-written, thank you!
Shant Karlubian
What Christopher leaves out in his “opinion” hit piece is that there are over 200 million Americans who literally live paycheck to paycheck, barely making ends meet, not having the ability or knowledge on how to save $ because they are either working for someone paying them a pittance, or self-employed & unable to create more income because becoming an employer has become such an arduous task.
He also leaves out that WFG has perfected a system to help agents create & build their own business that is now being COPIED by 100s of other companies, because it is SO effective. The system helps people grow their own business effectively, that’s why the system is in place. Christopher also fails to mention that if you were to join ANY life insurance company they would push you to SELL life insurance (with warm leads and all the other things that turn him off).
WFG specifically trains you NOT to SELL. They train you to help EDUCATE prospects, all while giving same prospects the same opportunity to build their own WFG agency. All this is FREE. WFG’s goals are to help educate as many families in this nation to be independently wealthy, with a noble purpose to help one another. No other life insurance company works off those principals. They tell you to go out and sell. WFG tells you to go out & educate & help.
BIG difference! It is all a mindset. As I mentioned, it’s a system that is now being implemented by 100s of other companies, copying the exact WFG platform.
Christopher literally tells you that WFG is NOT a scam. It is NOT a pyramid. You don’t have to buy anything to get involved. They train you thoroughly, they inspire you daily, they give you access to over 100 companies with 1000s of products for every financial need for the common person. Do not be misled by him telling you this will not create you personal wealth. I personally do not know anyone who has dedicated themselves to the WFG system who isn’t making more than they were working for someone else, within just a couple of years. WFG creates inspiration! WFG creates a mindset that will help anyone realize their true potential to build on their own dreams.
Imagine we have 200 million people needing financial literacy (something they do not teach in school), and Christopher disregards that basic fact. The TOP 1% have their financial advisors who will not even speak to a prospect without charging a minimum of $1k for financial advice, people who work at JP Morgan or Merrill Lynch, Charles Schwab etc. WFG is made for the middle class American who needs help, not for the wealthy who can drop $$ on financial advice. Every agent I have come across WFG has an inspiring story. 99% never started in the financial business. Most were employees at a retail store, owned unprofitable businesses, were self-employed & unable to grow, because the WFG platform is a system created with the middle class in mind. Shame on you for taking your time to writing such nonsense. You come off as some Wall Street pompous pawn, trying to discourage millions who can use WFGs help. You are not helping the masses. You are in this for your own personal glory.
80,000+ WFG agents whole heartedly disagree with your attempt to discredit their mission. Their mission to help educate as many families realize their true potential, to realize they too can build wealth, regardless from what background they come from. WFG is literally the American Dream.
Meeps
You don’t sound biased AT ALL. Maybe it’s the use of CAPS.
This company is as bad as all the others. You love it until they screw you over too. Yawn.
Paul Margani
Thank you for the true article on what wfg stands for not more of a biased hit piece from not knowing all your facts. Proud to be a agent in wfg.
S Farrell
$150 at WFG is skin in the game to register you with 70 product providers in the insurance, investment and banking industries so you can create a wholistic plan for people with products that suit their needs and goals. It also gets you access to unlimited training and mentoring.
The information about the compensation is inaccurate. Those commission levels go up as you get more competent… true. However, those percentages are not based on 100% commission. WFG has economy of scale with our product providers and as a result those percentages are based on 218%. 66% of 218% not 66% of 100%.
Nice try at the review but…. there are many flaws inherent in this publication. I would strongly suggest more accurate research or you fall into the category of people propagating half truths and out right incorrect information. Bias is quite evident… maybe ditch that too.
Christopher Liew, CFA
If you can provide me with documents that show the compensation is based on 218%, I will consider changing it.
pri ba
so what evidence do you have Christ that WFG does not offer that compensation? You are the one who’s writing the article without the proof.
Shant Karlubian
Chris has more than likely been paid by outside sources who see WFG as a threat to their very existence.
Paige Kus
The best company to work for if someone doesnt like this company it because they arnt willing to put in the work! I owed a policy (IUL) before joining and was so passionate about the product that i wanted to come help familys and pursure the mission!
Shant Karlubian
You Paige is what WFG is all about! Inspired people helping others find their true potential. The public should not be misled by Chris’s attempt to discredit WFG.
Harp
I agree, they should stop this misleading fake news
Brandon
I thought when my mother mentioned she was getting her insurance license to make money after retirement. When she told me something about how she could make millions in selling insurance, I didn’t know what to said an said nothing. Life insurance agents are not millionaires. Sure, maybe a small few, but lets face it. Life insurance agents are middle class, not the upper class. I consider the upper class millionaires and billionaires. Below that you’re upper middle class. I thought maybe she was just mislead because she’d heard selling insurance is a good way to make money. Now I know why she said millionaires. She is one of their seminars in Vegas. I thought she was going to some general educational seminar of something. Now I see it. She was talking about some woman at work of something…clearly the woman recruited her. Here’s the two things I hate:
1) the misleading, but not enough to be criminal, information that you can be a millionaire. Basically, you haven’t done enough to go to federal prison, but so what? There’s something calls ethics and integrity.
2) Yes, there’s something called ethics and integrity. And because the ones that get rich are hustlers, they often lack that. You have to lack that usually to get rich in selling things. You have to just sell and forget about ethics. It’s why so many people in the financial industry end up in federal prison, right?
3) Also, you might end up committing a federal crime and not even know it, you’re so ambitious, even though you are honest. These recruited people have no knowledge of regulations on how to sell insurance and might end up committing fraud even though they didn’t lie. And you don’t have to know it’s a crime to be convicted. Generally you do, but when it comes to finance, there is the exception to mens rea of strict liability. Google it and you’ll find the legal definitions. It is a big problem for salespeople and doctors. Chances are the government will not charge a person who did not act without mens rea in a MLM because they know how ignorant the people are of everything to begin with. But, it is possible. And who wants to end up in prison or paying fines to the government and a felony record?
4) Like stated, it makes social interactions awkward. I have to go to work. Now I’m pissed. I was having a good day until I learned my mom wasn’t just going to be selling health insurance. I really love the thought of these people that own this company, etc. in bunkbeds in federal prison camps. I swear, if I was there, I would put that guy pushing it against a wall and tell him if he wrongs my mom, I will end him–not kill, just a way of saying, do what a man does when someone wrongs his mother.
Paul Margani
Stop with your misinformation Brandon. Saying it is fraud or commiting federal crime because you don’t want to learn. Instead of blaming someome who wants to help your mom then, you learn to help her.
That is a better solution
Carl McKay
WFG is an MLM. They want me to pay them $150.00 so they can generate sales leads from my inner circle of acquaintances. When the SMD confirmed MLM, I removed myself from the corporation as an associate the next day. Feeling relieved I did not provide the corporation with any list of potential clients.
Shant Karlubian
So Carl, do tell us what system is better than WFGs that will help people realize their full potential? Carl doesn’t tell you that 100s of companies are changing their approach to business using the exact platform & methods used by WFG.
Lisa
How did you remove yourself? That is what I am trying to do, disassociate myself from them and they are not complying.
Racine
I may need to do the same and just eat the investment I put into it. Were you able to get out?
Niyah
How did you remove yourself ?
PAULA D FORRESTER
Good to know.
Nicole
When comparing compensation, please take the time to understand OTHER company’s compensation models and do NOT assume it to be based on the same as your past experience.
Most agencies percentages, First Year Commission (FYC) & Bonus, that are based on PREMIUM dolloars.
WFG percentages are based on their own POINTS system (which is greater than, NOT the same as, First Year Premium dollars). To be fair you should probably GROSS UP their Points Percentages by 150-200% to properly ‘compare’ with premium dollars.
Just comparing their percentages the way you did is being ignorant of these differences, it’s like comparing an Apple to an Orange.
Viktoriia
Company of FROUDS. They promise financial education on the interview and such little pay for that like 150 + tax. First lesson they try to make you a fool like tell us about your family, your goals and bla-bla-bla. If you are able to put in that words diarrea your question about WHERE IS PROMISED EDUCATION? Now strong attack of humiliations and HIDDEN COSTS appear. You have to quit your job to be able to attend that bla-bla-bla schedule instead of promised study, pay again to be accepted for a job after examination, pay for examinations and pay for written study information and pay if you didn’t pass. They DO NOT open all thous costs on the first meeting BEFORE you pay, over 150$ as they promise, for study! They open it little by little AFTER YOU HAVE PAYED and tell you that thous money you have payed for all their bla-bla instead of promised study in not refundable.
Evelyn Shan
Viktoriia,
I am a contracted agent with WFG, and the pain you mentioned I’ve experienced and heard hundreds of times. I totally understood how you felt. That’s why I shopped around and eventually stayed in a WFG branch where the team leader values integrity, professional ethics, quality of service, and the qualification of all their advisors. Whoever I invited or recruited to WFG, I delivered the information in full disclosure in the first invitation and make sure I made all messages clear and check with the guest what kind of education they need, communication, financial planning strategy, types of insurance or investments, leadership build up? Different education needs lead to completely different directions. I am sorry the person who invited you signed up with the code didn’t provide what you need and what you were looking for. So far the people joined me, I haven’t heard any complaints yet and they are happy working with me, we’ve built up strong trust. What I recently noticed is that quite a few of my agents started self-evaluation, they are eager to improve themselves in all different aspects which I am so happy to see. All in all what I wanted to say is, that WFG is just a platform for people to get fundamental financial education (code valid for 9 months), or make some extra income by providing financial consulting services or starting a financial broker. The person who didn’t provide the full information or even humiliated you or lied to you is such a shame. It doesn’t mean WFG is a fraud. Like gun itself doesn’t kill people, it is the person who used the gun, that kills lives.
I hope in the future you can be surrounded by great people and get the quality financial education you need. 🙂
I hope
Khushneev
WORLD FINANCIAL GROUP IS A BLESSING!!!! I can say this 10000000 time’s without having a second thought or any self doubt.
It’s a company which helps normal people in becoming elite. If you are part of this great organization you are blessed as well. My life has changed into soooo good that I’ve no words to explain. [WFG] World Financial Group is a Blessing ????????
Blessed to be a part of such a great Family, Team, Leaders ????????????????????
Tom
Lol the only people defending this clownshow of a company are probably the scumbags that work for it.
Everyone I know that works in the finance industry at one of the big bank-owned firms or one of the big independents like Raymond James thinks this place is a joke.
They target people that are completely ignorant about how the industry works, so they have no frame of reference and don’t know any better. I know 2 people that were recruited by some douchebag at this company, they were both servers at a restaurant with no previous experience in finance, that should tell you all you need to know right there.
I’ve seen some of these guys here in Vancouver market themselves as #1 in North America when they probably aren’t even in the top 100 in this city.
Why anyone would ever work here or be a client is beyond me.
Gary
You mean compared to the big bank firms that only see people as “Assets under management?”
The reason WFG is looked down on by the big firms, is because they don’t work with the rich to make them richer. They work with middle income families and help by focusing on education first. Can you name me one “Big bank firm” that offers free financial education workshops to anyone, not just clients?
Unlike most of the big bank firms, WFG doesn’t sell their own products. They work with many of the top financial institutions, banks, insurance providers in Canada and the USA to offer the best options to any client. Pretty sure no big bank firm is going to recommend someone else’s product over their own if it’s a better fit for their client.
Can people “upsell” products for extra commissions? Sure and some probably do, but firms and banks also have “incentives” for there people to sell certain products over others so don’t think it’s any different.
Ja dee
Its funny because you can tell who the WFG agents are. All posting massive walls of text, all extremely angry about this fairly neutral article, and often claiming its not an MLM, when it clearly is.
E-Z
Exactly correct Tom!
Great article Christopher!!
SP
Most important thing to understand is, it’s highly regualated by the ministry of finance. If it is always watched by the government how can it be MLM which is not even legal in Canada. This guy seems to have a very shallow knowledge. The most important mission of WFG is to provide a Financial Education for free. Sales is a by- product that’s inevitable.
Ss
Don’t mislead SP. From beginning to end WFG operates on taking your money, before they even tell you to make more money for them. There is no financial education but a propoganda.
Ja dee
MLMs are legal in Canada, what are you talking about?
T
All the brainwashed people in these comments are incredible. Please keep them coming. I am laughing so hard I can barely breathe.
Ryan
If you think WFG is an MLM, then I encourage you to look at any other financial services company compensation model, and any other real estate brokerage.
In fact, look at any corporation. Every company recruits, they have to. It is the life blood of business. The key difference is who benefits from the recruiting? The corporation does. WFG figured out how pass those benefits on to the agents. It is a fair and level plying field for everyone. No internal political BS, no favoritism, no bad mouthing other associates to get a leg up and climb the “corporate ladder.”
These types of articles are are written from a biased, subjective view and have no merit.
Ja dee
Inaccurate. As someone who works at an insurance provider, I can tell you many of our WFG agents do a lot of sketchy things and sometimes even commit fraud.
This happens on a noticeably higher level than our independent agents or agents from other non-MLM agencies.
Andy Davis
If they are doing so many sketchy things and committing fraud, how are they getting past your underwriters? After all, this is a highly regulated business.
Stephanie D Camargo
I totally agree!
Jess
I agree, this seems as if this was written by an individual who didn’t make it in WFG. I agree 100% with this comment above. My favorite part of this article was when the author alluded to an individual being such a “go getter” then why not put those efforts into another platform?
What he or she has failed to touch on is the the passive income.
There’s nothing legally, ethically or morally wrong with being in sales or in talent acquisition, but when those 2 skill sets are combined and are able to provide passive income for an individual and not a company, it’s labeled as an MLM or a scam, why?
People remain in WFG because they want to spend less time of their lives working and more time living. Why would anyone use their skill sets to build someone else’s business and dream when they can build their own? WFG is not for 1099 independent contractors who want to chase sales for the rest of their lives which is what you suggested people use their skill sets for other than a platform like WFG.
Thank you for this. This article was given to me by someone who was skeptical and your article and all of it’s comments made them even more of a believer in what WFG has to offer, so thank you.
Inso
Here is my take— WFG agents are not selling thier own product rather they are distributing some the world’s buggest financial players. Now just take this scenario if you go to any investment with a little networth like they won’t even give you time of the day and these are the companies and players who are supposedly the who’s who of the financial markets. And to the author- Sir you are a CFA with 11 years of experience in the industry. So what you have is an opinion of a professional but if I come to you tomorrow for an advice you are going the charge me a fee so heavy so as a leyman with no financial background do I not have a right to manage wealth or get educated about financial markets. Now common every individual agent is different can’t just be smart enough to find out if the agent is shitty and ask for a different one. STOP THIS BULLSHIT BLAME GAME. I have been dealing with an extremely professional agent and they are legit business and just because someone has pumped in too much money to get a fancy finance degree digesting a fact that a leyman is able to maximise thier wealth without the degree is just a sign of envious nature
Sorry but not sorry
James Buchanan
WFG uses a financial needs analysis to determine how much a family can save without undue pressure. Then we suggest taking a part of that to purchase products. If some agents don’t follow that, it’s their fault, not WFG. We are not pressured to sell certain products or recruit. We are always being trained on the multitude of products we sell, to the CLIENT”S benefit, not ours. Our first step is to educate, to keep people from falling into money traps. I have never been paid a fee for recruiting. Event ticket sales go to pay for events. WFG earns it’s income through sales to some of the best companies in our industry. It is possible to earn more than your recruiter, you can be promoted to a higher commission level than your leader. We emphasize term insurance for temporary needs and whole life for permanent needs. There are also many niche products we sell as well, for those who don’t qualify for other products. I challenge anyone to find a company with more top notch product providers.WFG has been in business for over twenty years, and we are always growing, and never collapsing. Also, you only need yourself and 12 other people to make a significant income, not half the people in the country.
Anon
I completely disagree with James’ statement. The pitch my wife got had no financial needs analysis done. Just a very aggressive push to buy a million dollar IUL. Nothing else was suggested. As far as the “not pressured to recruit” is concerned, that’s all they push. In fact, you can’t get any financial education without signing up as an agent and paying the $125 background fee. Then 10 hours of “changing your mindset to a millionaire’s mindset” is the financial education she got in order to recruit people.
It could be just this particular SMD, but I’m not at all impressed by this company’s training. They train aggressiveness, pushiness, do whatever it takes to get someone to sign up as an agent, then again to sell the million dollar IUL.
Again, it could be this SMD, he did mention he wanted to be a millionaire as soon as possible, whatever it takes.
Oh, and Transamerica IUL policies are the only ones he’ll sell. From what I can tell, they’re all about their commission check.
Naomi
I appreciate the balanced article. TL:DR, it’s legit, not a scam, but it’s MLM, motivated by commissions and there is no consistency in the agents because of the business model, so you may or may not get the products most suited to your personal situation. Thanks!
Connor S
I’m an associate in training and I’m giving advice to people that are licensed because I’ve come from a business background. A lot of the people in the team I joined seem honest and from our team chat on WhatsApp I’ve already seen lots of questions from people asking which product to sell and why, for the most part if you’re honest you will do well
Ched
WFG is not an MLM.
There is no “forcing” anyone to do anything.
You can sell as you choose. You are an independent agent and can work as little or as much as you want to.
Anyone who shames WFG as this small minded author has, is just unsuccessful in their efforts.
WFG does not pay millions of dollars in advertising every year like many traditional firms. They don’t have base salaries and don’t require people to work 9-5 M-F. I’d much rather have a flexible schedule and earn as much or as a little as I want than to be forced into a 40-80hr a week situation for a base salary.
There is no buy in requirement either. Associates typically buy these financial services bcuz they become educated on them and see how powerful their products are.
But again there is no requirement to do so. In fact this why WFG is not an MLM at all. There the only cost to becoming an agent is the $100 fee that goes to cover the background check, plus the $80 or so it costs to get licensed through the state. The companies makes no money on associate sign ups.
The WFG system is in place to incentivize directors and trainers to train their new associates. In a typical business why would a higher level producer want to train anyone that will eventually become their competitor??
In this system the directors want the associates under them to do well because of the override opportunity. If new associates do well, the directors do well.
One can draw comparisons between WFG and MLM’s. But that doesn’t mean WFG is an MLM. Or perhaps it is, but it doesn’t have all of the negative connotations and requirements that most MLM’s have.
This author needs to remove this article or update it as it’s subjective points are inaccurate lies.
Henry
WFG has been cheating so many people for too many years. Just gave you an example. Under persuasion of its agent, I transferred my 401k to American Equity as owner of American Equity Retirement Gold a few years ago. Although the stock grew by 50%, my money has not grown at all since. Basically, American Equity sets up the growth cap of less than 1% and charges about 1% fee. My WFG agent did not tell me that. But later I knew he made 9% fee. So please don’t let WFG and American Equity cheat you and your relatives.
Per
Then you had a bad experience with an uneducated agent. This is not an issue with WFG itself and doesn’t have an relevance to whether WFG is an MLM or not.
SP
Is it not your fault as you didn’t educate your decision as well, you didn’t ask about the benefits or difference? This agent (not WFG) didn’t FORCE you to do anything, you did this through your own decision in the end.
gq
Where does the accountability stick? Just to the “uneducated” agent? I feel WFG has a responsibility too.
Eb
Spot on article. My gut feeling confirmed.
Was pulled in by being told i was taking oart in a financial literacy meeting which would wnable me to take 6 classes free assist with my finances. Asked to set up individual meetings with out family. In my individual meeting, we did a budget worksheet with no real information on how to tackle what i teuly wanted to tackle, debt reduction, but was pitched on and IUL policy with no real explanation as to the options or alternatives. The next meeting is to decide if i will purchase. And the meeting ended with them trying to recruit me to which is wild cause if i am coming to you for financial advice, clearly i should not be “teaching” anyone else.
When i pressed for more info about the agent side, they informed me of how much commission they get from selling to a family. I know we all need a quick buck but these schemes are dangerous.
Ped
You are poorly educated. Or were approached by a sloppy agent. This is not how this company is supposed to operate.
You are not supposed to be teaching others financial literacy until you are licensed and well trained. Your director is supposed train you by leading on a minimum of 3 trainings then sit with you on your first 10 meetings that you lead. They correct you or guide you if you make a mistake and of course every policy or financial needs analysis you run is supposed to be reviewed by a seasoned veteran until you have hundreds of cases under you.
There is no scheme when it comes to WFG.
Carlos
I’m a client! Love their services agents are simply amazing
Anna
I’m really not surprised by the former/current WFG members commenting here and saying how great of a company it is. After digging deeper it really is a MLM where all they do is hype social media and talk about passive income (which doesn’t exist outside of stocks). This hype media includes taking down any comments or posts about the true nature of WFG. I’m sure they go over all of this in the long zoom meetings they’re in to look busy- but I’m sure if I was working with people with no sales experience, no insurance knowledge, and pushing a MLM I’d focus on creating a perfect social media account to to try and sell the “I make millions a year AND still have time for family and fun” picture. So fishy and so many red flags.
Aaron
I have been associated With WFG a little over a year and I have not experienced any pressure sales from any members of my W. F. G. team! I am quite suprised by this article as the majority of the claims are not my experiences. Yes, recruiting is part of developing any business, after all, Walmart has more than 1 employee, 1 manager, 1 senior manager. W. F. G. is more related to the real estate environment than any other business model out there. His article sounds a bit more jaded and option based than fact based. My suggestion is to do your own fact finding.
Really?
Aaron: Thanks for post. I just joined WFG and the professionalism, staff, and amenities are great. I’m quitting my position at a premier bank to work WFG. The articles author is astoundingly unprofessional — if I were considering him for anything, this article’s the deal breaker — too hater-ish and unprofessional.
M
Your comment is from Feb 14th. Can we get an update on how its going? I was recently approached by an agent. He said first zoom meeting he was going to tell me about the company which he did but then he started asking me info about me and that same day i had to purchase the classes.. that caught me off guard because i wasnt aware i was suppose to pay that same day. i felt a little pressured so i ended up doing it. and thats why im here reading this article to find out more.
Racine
Interested how this shook out for you too. I’m in the same boat now.
Anahit Garibyan
That is right. Thank you.
Aaron
** “Opinion based”, not option based.
Kim Ho
WFG own Transamerica If you notice all agent will guide their client to buy all insurance products from
Check review Transamerica on Google to give you a clear picture
Anahit Garibyan
WFG is distribution Chanel. Doesn’t have product, not captive, works with over 100 companies and provide not only specific solution for the each family but also educating families by providing financial workshops. What others promises, they deliver.
Tommy Lee
Christopher Liew is obviously trying to throw dirt on a competitor. He is trying to grab everyone’s attention by giving a clickbait title, and promoting his own agenda.
I am a client of WFG, and WFG does not have any products of their own. They are like Amazon, just a distributor of existing products in the market. So far I am happy with the advice given by my agent.
Kim Ho
WFG own Transamerica If you notice all agent will guide their client to buy all insurance products from
Check review Transamerica on Google to give you a clear picture
DC
WFG absolutely does not own Transamerica. That’s completely uniformed. Aegon, a $500 billion asset company, owns Transamerica and WFG. It’s the other way around as Transamerica bought WFG. And if you really knew the truth, WFG writes 40% of Nationwide’s life insurance business. There’s absolutely no pushing one over the other. The agents have access to many companies as brokers and can work with the best fit.
Oray
This Man defenetly dont know he’s talking about. And what WFG does for people. I would suggest you to take an appointement with them and listen to what they Do. I dont know for USA but in Canada, they dont sell products, they redirect clients to the best financial or insurance institution based on the product they need. The difference between them and other well known financial institutions is that they dont have to represent a compagny. Because Working for RBC per example, even if you know they dont have the product the client is looking for, or its not the best rate on the market. The RBC agent will be oblige to sell RBC products, he cannot send the client to the competitor even if he knows that they have a better Product. WFG choose to not represent financial institutions but to represent their client. They have access to more then 75 partners. They know in which compagny There is this product at a better rate, per example.
Anyway this article is biased.
I strongly suggest that you make an appointement and go with an open minded you’ll see you were wrong.
And if you feel that the agent that is with you doesnt really have enough experience or knowledge, you have the right to ask another advisor to look info your plan.
They will always be better advisors then other, people that doing it with bad intensions but that not true to talk like its the whole organization. Thats a lie.
Chris
Thank you for writing this article… It made things a little more clear for me while looking for life insurance for my family. A friend of mine recently started working for WFG and at the same time I was doing my research on investing and insurance… So there was a connection and trust with someone I had a friendship with. The first Zoom meeting she was with a Senior Advisor which was uncomfortable for me and my friend kept pushing me to watch a 45 minute video about the company. I am a new mom and kept telling her I don’t have the time to watch it (it expired after 12 hours) and that I didn’t like the pressure… I did watch it after the first consultation (I only wanted premium quotes for my daughter and they kept asking for more personal financial info like my retirement savings, my husbands income, our assets etc…) I didn’t like that either because I knew they were going to pressure me into having him join a meeting to sell to him. Once they sat with me for the second time they gave me a presentation for segregated funds for myself which I made clear I wasn’t interested in from the first 5 minutes meeting. I already told my friend I had NO interest in any plans for myself with WFG only insurance for my daughter and I was ONLY shopping… They then hit me with the “lets followup in 2 days and make a decision and if you don’t want it then you can go look somewhere else.” That was the end for me… I never even contacted her back. I knew it was something stinky. I am glad I followed my gut and I paid for a consultation with a CFP who gave me the same advise as you… PolicyMe. You confirmed my feelings!! Thanks!
Ernest
I can’t defend and won’t be defending their actions. It definitely sounds like an aggressive style of sales. I’m sorry you experienced that. I can understand some reasons why they did it. They were trying to do a financial needs analysis. You mentioned you wanted life insurance for your daughter and that should have been the focus and income and assets are irrelevant. The only issue I have with PolicyMe is that they deal with term insurance and not permanent insurance. The difference between them is like renting a home vs owning a home. Which one has cash value? So at the end of 20 years, you have nothing if you get term. With permanent insurance, at the end of 20 years, you have something and it continues to grow. Permanent insurance has both an insurance component and an investment component. For kids, I recommend permanent insurance. Depending on what you prefer, you can pay for the premiums for that for 20 years (or pass the ownership to your daughter when she starts working) and that permanent insurance will be inforce for the rest of her life without any further premiums. If you don’t like 20 years, 10 years or 15 years or 30 years. It’s really up to you. There’s a time for term insurance and a time for permanent but the most effective is a sweet spot using both so you’re covered for life but at the same time not spending excessively. Just a note, since permanent insurance has cash value, you can use it as leverage for borrowing money for a mortgage or something.
Chuck
Classic WFG. Trying to make a sale anyway they can. Even if it means doing it in the comments section
hadi
its not about a sale really base on my reading, its more like stating the truth about the two types of insurance which is in any insurance manual.
PRADEEP CHENNAMPALLIL
In every field you can see good and bad people. There are bad doctor’s who prescribe unnecessary medication to the patients. Can you judge all the doctors are bad. You can point out few restaurants serve bad food for the customers. Does it mean all the restaurants are bad.
Chris Petitclerc
How do we get this opinionated blog taken down? There is so much mis-information that there should be a law or even a lawsuit. I can’t possible cover all of it but it is effecting my business and leading people to believe things that are not true.
– As a WFG it has been life changing for me. I have never worked for a better company and many positive, motivated and helpful colleges. Not to mention all the rewards including , golfing, World Cup Soccer event, Fancy dinners at Pampa and other amazing restaurants, convention at Banff Springs hotel and Vegas, Skip the dishes gift cards etc. Just rewards & recognized for doing good work, which is not common in the corporate world.
– So many families helped. I don’t bad mouth other companies as that was part of the ethics course during the government licensing process but this post should be reported as un-ethical. Exactly what firm are you now working for now Christopher Liew?
– Highly regulated industry. Must have a government license to work in finance. WFG has ongoing training daily as well as training continuously from the companies we are partnered with.
– Most all WFG agents educate the client on the products and services available and then let the client decide what best suits them. Never do we push a product and not mention or compare them to any others. For many younger people or younger wealthy people, a tax sheltered UL is best, possibly mixed with some term insurance. For so many people, that is the only savings they have when they reach 65 and never saved a dime into a TFSA, RRSP (Canada), IRA (USA).
– The contract levels and payment structure is not accurate. TA:26%, A:36%, MD: 51%, SMD: 66%. If you don’t like the lower contract levels than I don’t see how you would get the amazing support and the training involved with another company. Good luck figuring out how to do that on your own.
The problem with many companies is that nobody wants to train the new guy if there is no incentive to do so. At WFG there is an incentive. The support by your colleges is what makes it great. In business for yourself, but not by yourself.
The commissions are disbursed between the agent and their upline. I don’t think that is what a MLM is specifically but if it is than that is why support is great at a MLM. Also working with people you trust (warm market) is preferred. Do you like cold market or working with people your don’t know? Do you like getting cold calls from strangers. Every business must market to get clients. So which do you prefer as a business owner. If you pay for marketing, than somebody pays for that. Unfortunately it is the client in the end that pays as a business must make money. Networking is free marketing so it is preferred by many business owners.
– If you want to trade time for money than do that. There is a sense of security by people who have jobs but when they get let go they panic. When you have a successful business you don’t have that problem as you know how to start another business if it fails. I feel entrepreneurship should be taught in school.
The personal growth at WFG has been world class. Listen to “The Pursuit” podcast by Ben Spangle and also Ed Mylett also has amazing podcast and amazing leadership.
I hope this helps others to try things for yourself instead of letting others decide for you what is possible. WFG is not easy but is worth it if you stick with it and give it 100%.
LC
WFG may not be a scam to customers but it definitely is to the people they lie and trick into selling their “products”. They charge for a useless “product” list that anyone can google, charge for an office no one can go to, etc.
Janey Rose
Hello! I came to this post because a friend of mine introduced me to someone (her upline) and said that will introduce about financial literacy. The upline lectured us about estate planning and said that we could have it for as low as $100 since we are friends then asked for our ssn and credit card details. Later we found out that it’s a membership fee and tadaahh we’re already a member. We felt cheated because they didn’t explain to it transparently. All we just wanted to know is where and how to invest.
mo
that’s not at all his wfg operates . that wasn’t through them.
Christopher Liew, CFA
And herein lies the controversy. I’m sure that there are lots of WFG agents that wouldn’t resort to such sleazy tactics, but I’ve heard of so many stories similar to this.
Shane
Heard… yes there are sleazy rumors about every insurance company. How about looking at dat and statistics, and not rumors.
Gary
As a current WFG agent, I can tell you that though my team and I are definitely not like that, like most commission based enterprises, there are definitely those that will find ways to use it to their own advantage over that of their clients.
Many of the people I have met and worked with in WFG are very much like minded in that our goal is to help educate individuals and families on the basics of financial literacy. Something that is definitely in greater need as historically, the financial industry has focused largely on the wealthiest of society.
When I began with WFG, I was not interested at all in recruiting, nor was I constantly pressured to do so by my upline. I chose to beginning building a team of my own for the same reason as many of us. There are only so many hours in a day for myself to help others. By expanding my team, training them to help others as I do, I expand my reach of people and families I can help.
Like a mortgage broker does, I earn override commissions on the work that my agents do. This gives me the incentive to not only recruit but, and more importantly, to also ensure that they are trained appropriately to do as I would.
I hope this helps many to understand a bit more about why we do things the way we do and to express the point that like many professions, there are some bad apples, though I have found them to be the exception and not the rule with regards to WFG.
Many agents are incouraged to develop their personal, and professional skills and knowledge to be able to fully help clients, but it is still on the individual to make use of the opportunities presented to them.
Janey Rose
Do you know if it’s possible to have the $100 be refunded to us?
Anyway, do you have recommendations on where to get a life insurance or where to invest? Thank you.
Shane
Yes its possible but why would you want to. You just acquired a years worth of business training, financial education from multi millionaires as well as having access to over 200 companies so you can custom tailor a financial package that best fits your clientele, rather than pushing something on them because thats all you have to offer! And the commission in this article is way off and misunderstood because it doesn’t work like typical insurance sales. We are primarily financial educators and teach our clients how everything works in the financial industry. We show people the tax advantages owning a business has. We recruit in the same sense that every business does. An employee at a company was recruited. You want to build a business, you need employees. The difference is we offer on the job training where most employers expect you to come with all the skills required, and we do this because the pay is commission based and not hourly. This is not an MLM, it is similar to an MLM but there are key differences. MLM’s you make money off recruiting. We get paid only when a product sells. This is not how an MLM works. Its also not how an hourly job works. Since you call in an MLM i will use that terminology. It is in between these methods of business and is why WFG has an amazing system that has your “upline” constantly supporting and trying to grow their “downline”. A traditional MLM you don’t care about your downline’s success because you got paid out on their recruit.
Christopher Liew, CFA
I am not sure if you can have it refunded to you! As for your other questions I try to cover it in the blog post.
Rose
I don’t think the actual products or system of WFG is bad but the sales tactics/recruitment methods are highly questionable and distasteful! I absolutely would not buy a financial product from this company just because the quality and ethics of the agents I have come across are so questionable.
I met up with an acquaintance from a college class who acted as if she wanted to grab coffee. I thought it was strange as we had not had much interaction but figured she might be feeling isolated after the pandemic, tried to do my good deed by meeting up with her but turned out she was trying to shove WFG down my throat.
I actually wasn’t turned off by WFG, the opportunity to sell financial planning sounded interesting! BUT the behavior of my friend and the woman who recruited her was incredibly aggressive and a bit of a show, low focus on substance and high focus on flash.
Two days from when we grabbed coffee, my acquaintance was pushing for a meeting to show me about the WFG program. I let her know I was kind of busy but ok, I’ll attend the online meeting. The online meeting was highly questionable, the woman presenting seemed to focus more on telling me about how much money she made through WFG instead of how she actually made the money or even what the WFG program was. By the time the hour long presentation was over I knew she said she had made serious money in earnings but I still had no idea what WFG actually was because she didn’t focus on that. That should have been my sign to run for the hills.
The presenter kept stating that she had retired before she hit 40 because woohoo, WFG was so good for her finances! But she kept on trying to frame the situation as “ I retired we earned so much from WFG!” when in reality she and her husband had just moved from working their 9-5 jobs into doing WFG recruitment full time. This seemed a bit disingenuous but i brushed it aside.
A few days after that meeting I get a document from my college acquaintance asking me for my employment information, medical history, family information, beneficiary information and so on. Turns out she was getting ready to sell me life insurance but ummmm…what? I had no idea that the WFG recruits were trying to earn money by selling products to other recruits. In addition tactics were very aggressive. I received multiple texts and emails a day regarding “meetings” to try to get me to sign up for products. The early interactions left a bad taste in my mouth but ok whatever, for $200 bucks I’ll try out this course nothing to lose.
I wish I hadn’t signed up. After I signed up I ended up sick for a few weeks, to the point where I was at my best friends house with her taking care of me (I had what I’m pretty sure was covid but all my tests kept coming back negative). I was absolutely exhausted, had already told my college acquaintance I was super sick and…
I got texts, a lot of texts, from both my college acquaintance and the woman who recruited her trying to schedule meetings even though I told them I was very sick. That didn’t stop them from trying to message me numerous times over three weeks trying to schedule meetings. I could barely manage to sit up for weeks but these people were trying to schedule half hour zoom meetings when I already told them I wasn’t even near my phone for days, the friend taking care of me was screening my calls and texts and keeping my family and friends updated on my status. It was ridiculous but I tried to move past it because I considered the fact that I may have just been in a really bad mood/unfairly annoyed because I had been so sick.
Yeah no. I realized in full health the agents I was dealing with were manipulative. They were super pushy on trying to get me and family members to sign up for products, kept trying to disguise aggressive sales to me as friendly zoom meetings and just overall these people felt like people who did not have the morals and values of people I wanted to do business with.
WFG is not a pyramid scheme but it is an MLM. The structure of the business rewards sales and there are agents out there who are literally willing to bombard a sick person with texts to try to make a sale and agents who disguise aggressive sale meetings as friendly “catch up” get togethers.
I would absolutely avoid WFG just because there is no set standard for levels of professionalism and conduct. The products are genuine but unfortunately being peddled by some agents with extremely questionable morals.
mo
yet again a person who doesn’t have the full story here. you paid 200 to become licensed . then the emails come automatically . it’s like any other business where your employer sends emails.
now the person you dealt with is the issue not the company . and they have access to more financial services than other places especially banks and it’s not mlm as the money earned isn’t from the person they recruit but the companies whose product is sold.
this article and your bad experience aren’t the facts
Sivasundar Sambandamoorthi
I don’t find anything wrong in this Post except generalization. There are both Good people and Bad people in every industry. Fortunately I have seen both in WFG.
Good People –
1. Understand clients need.
2. Protect clients wealth.
3. Accepts that something went wrong and tries to fix it.
Bad People – They tend to play with peoples fear in disguise of providing financial literacy.
1. Do you want to take control of your life?
2. Who controls your time? You work for money and does your money work for you?
3. Do you want financial literacy and/or financial independence?
4. Is your money growing?
5. Trying hard to sell ULs and Seg. Funds despite financial situation of the client.
During Pandemic last year, I lost my job. Immediately an agent (has 12+ years with WFG) whom I took TFSA and RRSP, was visiting home to do a review. I was not in mood but he insisted to in person meeting.
They were flaming the fear that North American countries has bad reputation for job security. Only Financial Services industry can provide protect people, even in financial crisis people in WFG have thrived and they promised they has impugnable duplication system that works immensely for everyone. I have joined them and was working there for year before I decided to discontinue.
There are thousands who have benefitted from joining WFG (at least that’s what I learnt attending their meetings). The only problem I see is that there are too many bad ones than good ones.
1. Their system of “Fast start” and making recruit as an activity has falsely implied on people to make quick earnings. It is like any other business, if we want to grow the business you need to recruit is the justification provided from great mentors and coaches.
2. They really have poor understanding of product. To my knowledge I have interacted with few extra-ordinary people (SMDs or CEOs) who understood what product to recommend and how to design a product. Rest all 30 to 45 people depend on these 2 or 3 people. Often these other people tend to suggest very bad advise and/or product. They don’t do financial need analysis or consider the situation of client, its mostly the “one solution fits all”.
3. They also worry about activities and trying to meet goals. People at the bottom somehow want to be SMD to get bigger cut and get bonus, which I felt really bad. They really don’t care about products and services because they have backup to get information. They are worst so much so that they err in basics. How many of them will be scrutinized in a random audit?
4. They take ownership if their product does well, they will call to inform about grow. they will schedule in-person review to discuss about the grow, thereby asking about other solutions and products that they offer and they thing we are lacking from their financial advisor’s view.
My Agent despite having 12+ years of experience, was constantly critical about my investments in banks and wanted me to move to WFG offered solutions. I moved all my investments on his advise and simultaneous I was fortunate to have few other company sponsored and private investments. Currently all my other investments have outperformed WFG offered solution at least by 10-13%. It may be just my agent fault but I had enough.
I am not an agent representing anyone. Shop around and learning about stuffs is very easy in this internet world. There are pros and cons in every product. Don’t buy products from person who emphases only the pros. Take your time to decide which I felt not given by bad agents in WFG.
As far as joining yourself in WFG (especially Students and Immigrants), if you are absolutely sure that you can help people and can devote your entire time like some of the good agents, then you can join. Don’t join WFG for part-time or for easy money based on their prospecting stories (even if you are without job). You will simply loose your friends at the end.