A Most are women, though nearly a third are men or two-person teams such as couples. The vast majority are independent business people - they are micro-entrepreneurs whose purpose is to sell the product and/or services of the company they voluntarily choose to represent - not employees of the company. Approximately 90 percent of all direct sellers operate their businesses part-time.

A Virtually every consumer product or service can be purchased through direct selling. People who purchase through direct selling cite product quality, uniqueness and money-back guarantees as the top reasons for shopping through direct selling.

A Direct selling is selling a product or service in either a person-to-person or party plan method. Direct marketing is catalogue sales.

A Direct selling refers to a distribution method (for products or services), whereas multilevel marketing refers more specifically to a type of compensation plan found in direct selling. A direct selling company that offers a multilevel compensation plan pays its representatives/distributors based not only on one's own product sales, but on the product sales of one's "downline" (the people a representative/distributor has brought into the business, and, in turn, the people they have brought into the business).

A Single level compensation plan means a representative/distributor is compensated based solely on one's own product sales. In a multilevel compensation plan, representatives/distributors are compensated based not only on one's own product sales, but on the product sales of one's "downline"/group.

A It is impossible to estimate the number of direct selling companies operating at any given time. This is a result of several factors. First, most states do not require direct selling companies to register as such. Therefore, no exhaustive list exists. Second, as with any business, many direct selling companies do not thrive in the direct selling market and have a relatively short life span.

A As a representative/distributor of an HDSA Member Company, you are responsible for upholding the same high standards of business ethics your company has pledged to uphold, which are embodied in the HDSA Code of Ethics. As a representative/distributor/salesperson, you should always:

• Tell your potential customers who you are, why you're approaching them and what products you are selling.
• Explain how to return a product or cancel an order.
• Respect the privacy of your customers by calling at a time that is convenient for them.
• Promptly end a demonstration or presentation at the request of your customer.
• Provide accurate and truthful information regarding the price, quality, quantity, performance, and availability of your product or service.
• Provide your name and contact information, as well as the contact information of the company you represent.
• Offer a complete description of any warranty or guarantee.

A If at any time an HDSA Member Company representative/distributor or customer feels that the company has violated one or more provisions of the Code of Ethics, the incident should be reported to HDSA's independent Code Administrator. The Code Administrator will review the incident in question and prescribe a remedy based on his findings. HDSA Member Companies are required to abide by all rulings made by the Code Administrator to maintain membership in the association.