Someone has probably introduced you to Crowd1 as a legit opportunity to make money from home. But you're probably wondering is Crowd1 a scam?
They've managed to use some loopholes to make it seem like they are a legit MLM. But I will eat my hat if this company still exists in 5 years time. It seems like they are mainly targetting African nations but the truth is slowly coming out.
Still, you may not even care!
All you probably want to know is, "can Crowd1 help me make money?"
Well this honest Crowd1 review, with videos, will expose the truth about the company. That way you can make an informed decision if it's right for you or not.
Crowd1 Review
The overview and rankings
Name: Crowd1
Founder: Jonas Werner in 2019
Type: Gaming and Gambling MLM (and real estate training?!)
Products (Including Pricing): 1 out of 100
Success Stories: 1 out of 100
Price To Join MLM: $99-$2,499 (20 out of 100)
Summary: Crowd1 claims to "connect crowd marketing and online networking with online gaming".
In reality, it uses a couple of mobile game/ gambling apps and some random real estate training as the product to hide behind. This means they can operate this pyramid scheme in disguise without being called an outright scam.
The only way members make money is by recruiting more people into the company. And this is the definition of a pyramid scheme, which is impossible for everyone to make money as I will prove to you in this Crowd1 review.
Make Time Online Rating: 10 out of 100
Recommended: No. If you are looking for a legit way to make money online and build a passive income, then check out my top recommendation...
What is Crowd1?
Crowd1 is a Multi-Level-Marketing company that offers people exposure to the gambling industry... oh and it also provides some real estate education. Weird right?
It was founded in early 2019 by some Swedish guy called Jonas Werner, but he hides behind Johan von Holstein the CEO (who was quoted to claim that he wasn't the CEO only to write a letter 2 months later with his name as the companie's CEO... hmm fishy!)
If you've already tried to work out what the frick is going on with Crowd1 then here's the best video I could find to explain it...
Clear as mud, right?
Note the video was so bad it's been removed from YouTube. I still can't find anything any better than this so I'm leaving it here to see what I mean about the poor info about Crowd1!
Now, you're probably still wondering...
Is Crowd1 a pyramid scheme?
Technically no Crowd1 is not a pyramid scheme.
However the "training" and products they offer are hardly mentioned anywhere on the website or sales pages. This makes Crowd1 very similar to a pyramid scheme in disguse.
Let me explain what I mean by that...
What is a pyramid scheme?
A company that promises future payments to members for recruiting more people into the company rather than offering a product or service.
These are totally unsustainable and illegal in most countries.
Just look at the Wikipedia diagram below to see why...
Crowd1 does not provide any clear product or service.
In fact, it appears that the company operated for 10 months without any product or service and then as an after thought realised they needed to offer something. So they whacked in some gambling app (anyone can join a similar app for free) and some real estate crowd marketing "education" which it never explains anything about.
Just watch the 5 minute video below to see how to spot these pyramid schemes...
Success is rare with Crowd1
Success is hard to find inside any MLM company.
Did you know that between 72.5% and 99.9% of all MLM representatives lose money?
Crowd1 has no income disclosure statements like many MLM companies.
But I will show you later in this Crowd1 review why the business model that Crowd1 is operating is totally unsustainable.
Ready to make passive income online?
Hey, I'm Mike.
I created a passive income online within a year. I had no marketing skills or online experience when I started.
How does Crowd1 Work?
Crowd1 offers everyday people the chance to join Crowd1 and then make money by recruiting more people into the program.
They have some gambling and gaming apps but what is this "education" they keep talking about?...
Crowd1 products
So Grithub is where you can access this "training".
However, the website has literally zero information on it (other than some Tony Robbins and Richard Branson quotes)...
The sole focus of this business model seems to be using "crowd marketing".
Crowd marketing is basically a sales technique by recommending something to a "crowd". The most common way you may see this is when a celebrity or social media "influencer" mentions a product or service to their audience.
It basically gets the message in front of a big crowd and can increase sales. But for me and you (aka the "average Joe") this method will take creating a lot of content (it could be YouTube, social media, blogging, podcasting etc.) before we can really use crowd marketing well.
Maybe it will teach you to do this sort of thing, but who knows. There really is no information anywhere about what the "education" is.
Crowd1 AffilGo & Miggster - flagship product
But there are also the 2 main platforms that keep getting mentioned by Crowd1:
- AffilGo- the online gambling affiliate site
- Miggster- online mobile games and social media game
The 1 minute video is Crowd1's way of explaining more about them...
Still clear as mud right?
Did you happen to notice the title claims that AffilGo is the "fastest growing affiliate network?
Well here is what Google Trends has to say about that (Clickbank is another generic affiliate network)...
Can you make money with Crowd1?
Yes, you can make money from Crowd1.
If you recruit tons of people into the company and pretend like it's the best thing since sliced bread you'll be able to make money.
But here's the issue...
How to make money with Crowd1
There's only one way to make money at Crowd1:
- Recruit people into Crowd1
Most MLMs have some legit products such as protein shakes, makeup or shampoo such as:
The MLM members can usually make commission from selling these products.
However, the ONLY way you can make money from Crowd1 is by recruiting people to join Crowd1... there are no products or service that people can buy without joining Crowd1!
You may think it's rare to see a MLM running without actually selling any real products. But here are some other MLMs that don't offer any product at all and only focus on recruiting (*cough* pyramid schemes *cough*):
How much does it cost to join Crowd1?
It costs between €99-€2,499 to join Crowd1. And there are 4 entry points:
- White- €99
- Black- €299
- Gold- €799
- Titanium- 2,499
Each level you join at gives you more options to make extra money from recruiting people.
Crowd1 compensation plan
Crowd1 uses a binary compensation plan (I'll explain this more later) and there are 6 ways that Crowd1 will pay you money for recruiting people:
- Affiliate bonus - earn €9-€900 for recruiting someone (depends on your rank and the package they buy... it's possible to get a 1:3 balance on your binary plan*)
- Matching bonus - 10% bonus on your personal recruits once you have recruited at least 4 people (up to 5 levels deep- you need to recruit 20 people and buy the Titanium package to get all 5 levels*)
- Streamline bonus - get paid "exclusive limited owner rights" for any recruited people after you join- you need to claim this once a week*
- Fear of loss bonus - €125 if you recruit 4 white, €375 if you recruit 4 black, €1,000 if you recruit 4 gold, €3,000 if you recruit 4 titanium within your first 14 days*
- Affiliate residual - commission from any money spent by your recruits inside the gambling and gaming platforms*
- Network levels - Move up the ranks for recruiting more people- get 100,000 binary points and get the luxury cruise* (but I'm guessing this didn't happen in May 2020 due to COVID-19)
Do not worry if you are looking at all of that and thinking...
Whuh?!...
MLMs have a habit of using confusing terms and points systems to make it seem like there are tons of ways for you to make money.
Here's the simple truth...
You have to recruit people to make a penny.
*Just watch 7 minutes of the video below which explains the compensation plan in more detail (no need to watch it from 8 minutes onwards as it just shows you the cruise trip, how to pay and withdraw money, disclaimers and a sales pitch)...
Or you can find the full 33 page Crowd1 compensation plan here.
Is Crowd1 a scam?
Technically no, Crowd1 is not a scam.
They hide behind their "education" and gambling apps to make it seem like they are actually providing something.
However, there is no way for members to sell these services to people outside of Crowd1. The only way members can make money is by recruiting people and that makes Crowd1 very similar to a pyramid scheme scam.
The rest of this Crowd1 review will show you the proof and evidence of why this is the case...
Just to be fully transparent with you, I am not a distributor myself and I do not endorse Crowd1 in any way.
I have researched the website, testimonials and information on the Internet to get to the bottom of what this program genuinely does. This is because I have been burnt from programs just like this in the past and I want to prevent others from making the same mistakes. If you’d like to learn how to “Spot an Online Marketing Scam” then click the highlighted text.
Tired of MLMs? Check out how I make money online here!
What I like about Crowd1
There is one thing that makes Crowd1 look quite appealing to people...
Key Terms:
- Pyramid Scheme – recruits members via a promise for payment from referring others to the service rather than providing a product
- Affiliate Marketing- Connecting a customer to a product they are looking for and receiving a commission for doing so
- Red Flag - A warning sign
#1 Gaining momentum
Crowd1 has taken a huge spike in Google searches recently. One of the best MLMs I've seen is Farmasi for growing and Crowd1 isn't far behind.
And when people actively are searcing for somehing it's much easier to sell it.
This has actually been during the COVID-19 pandemic, which just tells me that people are pretty desperate right now. It's quite sad really that a program like this is profiting from people's struggles.
But when an opportunity is put in front of you and it seems like people are making money, it's hard to ignore it.
But I do urge you to read on here to become more informed...
What I don't like about Crowd1
There are a ton of red flags about the company but I've tried to condense the main ones here just so that you are aware.
That way at least you will have your eyes open if you still decide to join...
#1 Hides what the products or services are
Here's another 90 second Crowd1 promotional video...
There seems to be this urge to promote these useless taglines and terrible videos that don't actually tell you anything about what you are getting into.
Here were some of my questions that are still hard to really answer...
- How are people supposed to make an informed decision about what they are getting into?
- Is having access to a gambling app really a product?
- What is this "education" they keep going on about?
When a company is not open and honest about what they do it's a huge red flag.
#2 Crowd1 is a pyramid scheme in disguise
I had my suspicions when I saw this program. But here are some cold hard facts from what's happening with Crowd1 around the world...
- November 2019- Norway's gaming and foundation authority, the Lottery Authority, determined that Crowd1 operates with a pyramid structure.
- January 2020- Crowd1 was raided and over 300 people were arrested in Burundi, Africa, for promoting Crowd1 labeling it as a "ponzi scheme". 17 people were placed into custody for promoting Crowd1.
- 6th February 2020- The CNV issued a securities fraud against Crowd1 and promoters in Paraguay face up to 3 years imprisonment if caught.
- 21st February 2020- The Bank of Namibia declared Crowd1 a pyramid scheme.
The bank of Namibia even stated...
Crowd1 does not sell tangible products or render any service of essential value, but the primary source of income for Crowd1 is the sale of membership packages to new members
That's what I've been saying!!
A company of this nature always ends up looking like this...
So yes, you may see some income proof from people making money. But it will always be a select few making a lot of money and the majority of people losing money!
Yes, if you recruit tons of people you can even make money too... but you'd need to do that knowing that you are making money because other people are losing money!
...Not my idea of ethical business.
#3 Confusing words and black hat sales techniques
I've reviewed over 100 MLMs now.
After about 30 seconds of research I can usually tell what the product or service offered is. After about 10 minutes of research it's usually clear to see if the MLM is any good or offers overpriced products with a monthly sales quota...
Well, after 2 hours of research into Crowd1 I was still confused!! And this is what they say...
I'm no rocket scientist, but this is a very confusing business model (unless they count pyramid scheme's as a business model).
Here's some more quotes from the compensation plan
Crowd1 must not be mistaken for a gaming or gambling company.
But 2 pages later they say this...
Crowd1 takes the step into the world’s largestentertainment industry, online gaming.
Serioulsy wtf!!??
Then they talk about owner rights and use outrageous figures like 450% growth...
If you are starting with 1 person, then 450% growth is not that great!
Basically, it's totally misleading, confusing and impossible for people to actually make an informed decision about joining.
#4 CEO has a history of scaling then crashing companies
I watched a lot of YouTube videos to try and understand this a bit more. At one point I even saw some guy claim that the CEO had already founded 3 "unicorn" businesses before. It sounded impressive so I did some digging.
The CEO, Johan von Holstein, has founded 4 companies before and here are the results...
- Founder of Icon Medialab - Public in 1999, 3,000 employees in 32 offices - Shares plummetedd by 98% in 2001 & suspended from the Stockholm exchange before merging with Lost Boys in a reverse takeover
- Founder of LetsBuylt - Raised $180 million in 2000 and then declared bankruptcy in March 2002
- Founder of IQube in 2004 - one of the largest private incubators in Europe - it liquidatied in 2009
- Founder of MyCube (which challenged Facebook!) in 2008 - the first decentralized social exchange that prioritized privacy, ownership, and user freedom to monetize on their own creativity, it raised $8 million in 2011 - filed for volunatry liquidation in August 2012
It's clear to see that Johan is great at scaling a business in the early days (just like what's happening with Crowd1). But they have all either become bankrupt or he's liquidated them (taken the money and run).
Like I say... I will eat my hat if Crowd1 still exists in 5 years time (or they need to quickly pivot the direction of the company)!
#5 Binary compensation plan
There are 3 main types of compensation plans in MLMs:
- Linear
- Binary
- Matrix
Out of the 3, Binary is the worst one.
Just watch 2 minutes of this clip as Patrick Bet David explains this simply...
Basically, you may get a big "downline leg" in your business (due to some influencer recruiting tons of people above you) but unless you can recruit people to keep up with them on the other "leg" it means nothing.
You only get paid for your "weakest leg" and it promotes laziness and terrible teams within the company.
Ready to make passive income online?
I've created a growing passive income online with no previous marketing skills or online experience...
I've made a special video for you to explain exactly how I did this.
My opinion - Crowd1
I have 2 words...
Sure you could make a quick buck if you can persuade a ton of people to join under your "sponsorship". But the majority of them will lose money. And how many people do you actually know that would willingly jump into a pyramid scheme with you?
It's way harder to recruit people into legit MLMs than most people think (most people want to see results, which you can only get if people join! Go figure!)
But if people do a bit of research such as this Crowd1 review, their spidey senses will tingle. And your best mate for 20 years will probably even resent you.
That's not my idea of an ethical business model!
If you're looking to make money gaming then there are far better options out there.
How I make passive income online
MLMs are not scams or illegal. However, I'm not a fan of them because of the restrictions to the expensive products you have to promote.
Once I learnt about affiliate marketing, I realised it's a far superior business model because:
- You can promote anything you want and truly own the business
- You never need to sell to friends and family
- It's completely free to start
In 2018 I had no idea what affiliate marketing was.
But I went from a full time PE teacher to making a passive income online within one year...
If you want to discover how I did it then check out this special video I created which explains exactly how. You can also get your free 7-day bootcamp to get started.
It was a great article it touched on some major issues in Crowd1 like the available packages but I firstly maybe your review has been overtaken by time because Crowd1 has since added some "products" to it's platform like Lifetrnds a travel booking application. Yes I said because indeed accessing an app is a product. I'm a software developer and I understand the business model of Crowd1…at least the product part. I could spent the whole day commenting here… Take a look at my article in which I wrote about it here {spam content deleted}
Thanks Kev, can you expand a bit on these new “products” please?
I'm hurt because a friend of my mother introduced my mom to Crowd selling ol these dreams about people are building houses and buying cars with this business and mom had to spend all her salary by joining me she said I'm sending you money to join crowd 1 , our struggles would all disappear , a month later she lost her job because of this Covid 19 pandemic , u know most companies closed down.mom said well at least I had the chance to join crowd 1, we will make a living out of it , months later havng joined crowd 1 , I just felt that we were robbed , started discovering about the whole ' you can't make money if u recruit less people , one has to convince other people to join,' and the whole dividends payouts of 0.01 of the rewards we claim every Wednesday, it's all sick money , not fair at all,
So sorry to hear that Dee. Unfortunately, I’ve heard and read about numerous people that are starting to find this out about Crowd1.
It may seem great now for those that are managing to convince other people to join *cough pyramid scheme*, but it won’t be long until they find out how it works too.
Thanks for sharing, I hope it helps others too.
Thanks a lot for the cautious information. I was almost going to "invest" 299 euros for myself.
The thing is Karl… people are actually making money from this… for now.
It will get to a stage where they won’t and it’s impossible to tell when this will be. The more I have found out about it the more it sounds like a Ponzi scheme which is paying people from new people signing up.
This is extremely informative, thanks so much for saving souls. please keep it up.
Thanks Emmanuel, I hope it really does help!