Direct selling

{{Short description|Business model}}

{{Distinguish|Direct marketing|Direct trade|Door-to-door}}

{{For| Direct-to-consumer (DTC) e-commerce business model| Direct-to-consumer}}

Direct selling is a business model that involves a party of people

buying products from a parent organization and selling them directly to customers. It can take the form of either single-level marketing (in which a direct seller makes money purely from sales) and multi-level marketing (in which the direct seller may earn money from both direct sales to customers and by sponsoring new direct sellers and earning a commission from their efforts).{{cite web| url=https://www.inc.com/guides/2010/07/8-things-you-should-know-before-becoming-a-direct-seller.html| title=8 Things You Should Know Before Becoming a Direct Seller| last=Brown| first=Carolyn M.| date=19 July 2010| publisher=Inc.| access-date=29 July 2018}}

According to the US Federal Trade Commission: "Direct selling is a blanket term that encompasses a variety of business forms premised on person-to-person selling in locations other than a retail establishment, such as social media platforms or the home of the salesperson or prospective customer."{{cite web|title=Business Guidance Concerning Multi-Level Marketing|url=https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/business-guidance-concerning-multi-level-marketing|website=FTC.gove|date=4 January 2018|publisher=Federal Trade Commission|access-date=8 January 2018}}

Modern direct selling includes sales made through the party plan, one-on-one demonstrations, and other personal contact arrangements as well as internet sales.Merrilees, Bill; Miller, Dale (1999). "Direct Selling in the West and East: The Relative Roles of Product and Relationship (Guanxi) Drivers". Journal of Business Research 45 (3): 267–273. {{doi|10.1016/S0148-2963(97)00238-5}}. Some sources have defined direct selling as "the direct personal presentation, demonstration, and sale of products and services to consumers, usually in their homes or at their jobs".Michael A. Belch George E. Belch Advertising and Promotion: An Integrated Marketing Communications Perspective, 7/e., McGraw-Hill/Irwin, 2006{{cite book |last= Xardel |first= Dominique |author-link= Dominique Xardel|title= The Direct Selling Revolution. Understanding the Growth of the Amway Corporation |publisher= Blackwell Publishing |year= 1993 |isbn= 978-0-631-19229-9|pages=3–4 }}