Did you know that the energy industry generated 390.7 billion in revenue in 2020? Sounds like a lucrative venture, right? And probably, you’ve received an invite from a friend to invest in Stream energy. And Cynical as might be, you’re asking, what’s Steam energy? Is stream Energy legit business or scam? Can you make money through Stream Energy? What’s their product line? How can one join the Stream team.
Well, Stream Energy, is a multi-level marketing company based in Texas. They offer home services, wireless, protective, and energy solutions across the US. There are a few doubts about its legitimacy, hence this review.
We have conducted thorough research to determine the perks and drawbacks of Stream Energy, now called Stream. By the end of the review, you will know if the company is a scam or a legit business.
What Is Stream Energy?
Today, the world is like a global village. And at the center energy and high-speed data connection play a central role. Since 2005, Stream Energy has been at the center of unlimited talk, text, and data, one of the nation’s fastest networks.
This MLM model offers a wide range of products. These include high-speed data, from 8mbps to 120mbps. The business model rewards its customers with free energy points whenever they refer people to Stream.
Having been in business for about 15 years, the company has had an income to the tune of $8 billion.
One of the main advantages of Stream energy points is that the customers pay a fixed amount monthly, provided they stay within the set parameters for their energy usage.
The Stream Energy product line
Unlike other MLMs that offer their products to customers, Stream Energy is an intermediary. The company buys electricity and gas from different providers at wholesale prices and sells to its clients at retail.
There are three groups of products available to residences and businesses. These include:
- Natural gas- used for cooking or as fuel
- Electricity- used to power homes and businesses
- Renewables- Solar energy
The company also offers Stream Wireless, a mobile phone service line.
One thing that sets an MLM apart from a pyramid scheme is the presence of a product line. To that accord, we can pass Stream Energy as a legit business. However, their clientele complains about the quality of their services, which puts a massive dent in their operation.
One major complaint was delayed bills, which meant that the customers had to pay a late fee.
How to join the Stream Team?
This could be your opportunity to enjoy the fastest data connection, unlimited talk, and SMS. To talk to family and friends, you can enroll for energy points. It is simple, and you only pay a $199 one-time fee and $24.95 monthly to maintain your website.
This fee lets you access the Stream Marketing Service and earn through referrals. You also access the tools and services you need to make sales and recruit new members for the month.
Once you are part of Stream Energy, you can enroll in one of their three energy solution products. These include:
- Simple and Secure Plan- sells for 10.9 cents per kilowatt
- The Green and Clean Plan retailing at 11.9 cents per kilowatt
- Stream Free Nights plan for 12.9 cents per kilowatt
Alternatively, you can subscribe to the 1MWH monthly, for $4.95, with a $2.48 connection fee.
Stream Energy Compensation Plan
It is hard to make money via a direct sales company. Only 1% of the MLM companies earn a significant amount, while others even lose their money, and this is proof enough. So, if you are to invest in an MLM, remember that you may not make money.
However, if you make sales at Stream Energy, you can earn your share of income in four different ways.
1. Immediate Income
As part of your immediate income, you earn money by enrolling customers and building a business team under you. You can also earn income by making sales to customers.
As a distributor, you can make as much as $200 by referring clients to the company within your first three months. At the same time, you can earn up to $500 when you enroll ten customers and make required sales.
2. Leadership Bonus
Being a leader has its perks, and Stream Energy recognizes that. You can earn more money when you build a team and help them succeed. That means creating a team and guiding them on how to make sales.
However, you can kiss goodbye to the leadership bonus if you do not get enough points from enrolling customers and their sales. This bonus is also challenging to earn because it demands that all recruits be equally active.
Your team needs to make sales within their first month before you can earn from them.
3. Bonus Incentives
Part of the opportunity to earn some rewards is the incentive program at Stream Energy. The offers at Stream include a car, a streamcation, or traveling stipends, among others. The downside is that these opportunities best performance in the company.
You have to be at the regional director level for one year. Besides other qualifications, to stand a chance to win. So, if you want to earn a trip, you have to find new ways to make sales
There have also been complaints of Stream failing to honor their promise, which is a common problem for MLMs.
4. Monthly Earned Income
As you and your team continue to use energy points and pay their bills, you can build a significant recurring income that will earn you some money. After the $200 reward on your first three months, your work as the distributor begins.
For every customer you enroll, you can earn between $0.50 to $3.00 as a compensation bonus. So, you must work hard to make a reasonable amount.
Lawsuits against Stream Energy
The year 2015 saw Steve Basile filed a lawsuit against Stream Energy, claiming that the company overcharged him. Later in 2018, Stream Energy pled guilty to this class action lawsuit. In the same year, the company faced a claim that they were a pyramid scheme, an action that put them at the firing line. However, they refuted the claim.
A law company, Morgan & Morgan, investigated some claims about Stream energy overcharging their clients. According to the lawsuit, Ignite, the marketing team at Stream Energy overcharged their customers for natural gas and electricity.
The company, on its pages, advertise lower rates than those paid by their customers. The federal lawsuit against the company alleges that Stream is a pyramid scheme, which violates state and federal laws.
Morgan & Morgan also believed that Stream Energy was violating its consumer protection rights by engaging in false advertisements and overcharging them for natural gas and electricity. Also, Stream energy imposed a termination fee between $25 and $100 for any customer who wants to switch providers.
The company’s billing practices are also questionable, with some customers claiming an increase in their electricity bill. Some also reported month-to-month charge rates, even after renewing their contracts. Furthermore, their complaints fell on deaf ears since the customer service team did not respond accordingly to these claims.
So, is Stream Energy a Scam?
It is essential to differentiate the two to classify it as a pyramid scheme and a legit MLM business. An MLM is a network marketing business, a legit business model in the US. It has tangible products, and its distributors can make money by either referring clients or selling the products.
A pyramid scheme is a total scam. The company has no actual products, and if they do, they are of poor quality. You recruit members and earn money from it.
Sometimes, when an MLM puts a lot of emphasis on recruitment, they may end up closing business, thanks to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) orders regarding their unethical practices.
Now, to Stream Energy, despite the many challenges and complaints against the company, it is safe to say that the organization is not a scam. The business, which operates on an MLM model, has been in business for more than 15 years now, which is a long time.
Also, the company has a product line and an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau. However, there are many complaints filed against the company by its customers. Therefore, it is recommended you take a minute to think about your choice to join the team.
Stream Energy faced accusations of being a pyramid scheme in 2014, which is never a good sign of a business to invest in. Note that the organization offers handsome rewards to members who can recruit more members. The compensation grows as you encourage your recruits to recruit more people.
According to the FTC, this could be an unethical practice. It seems like Stream Energy only wants to expand their memberships rather than provide quality services to their customers.
Pros and Cons of joining Stream
There are some perks to joining the Stream Energy family. Some of the advantages include:
- You join a community that advocates for green energy. You will become part of the team that supports improved awareness of cleaner energy
- The company has been around for more than 15 years and is now a serious business in the energy market
Some downsides associated with stream energy include:
- A shameful income statement- one red flag when considering businesses to invest in is when the organization hides its income statement. But sometimes, the income statement is horrendous. Stream Energy is the perfect example of this. According to their statement, affiliates at the director’s position earn an average of 4 cents annually.
Considering that 58% of the Stream Energy affiliates are at the director’s position, this is horrible. Out of the remaining 42%, more than 50% earn an average of $47.93 annually, nothing to be proud of. - High investment cost– To join the team, you have to spend over $200. And considering the income rate, this is just not worth it.
- Expensive energy– Stream’s ideology is to offer a cheaper energy option to its customers. However, this only lasts for a certain period, after which the rates become wild. This has been a cause of outrage among customers and why lawsuits follow the company.
- Low Income Potential– More people want to buy electricity and gas from huge brands or the government. You do not need fees to become a member there. As a result, recruiting new members to companies like Stream Energy becomes problematic. Since you need recruitments to earn money, your income is at risk.
- Required energy points per month– You need $299 to sign up as an independent contractor. You also need an extra $100 to buy energy products. This is not a good sign since it is clear that the company only wants to make money from you.
Final thoughts
Stream Energy is not a scam. It has received an A+ rating from BBB, a sign of an excellent conflict resolution team. It also earned a spot at the top 20 Direct Selling Association companies in 2017.
In 2016, it gained the title of the most innovative marketer of the year from the Energy Marketing Conference. However, there are many complaints against the company. 30% of the complaints are about their customer service.
It may be legit, but the risk of losing your money is high. Therfore, we don’t recommend invetsing with them. Despiet being a legit MLM company, chnaces of amking money are slim.
Our Recommendation
There are a few gains from joining the Stream Energy business. However, you’ll part with a huge membership fee. In the end, you earn very little from their compensation plan. The income statement is nothing to celebrate either.
Also, for a business, that deals with utility and still receives that many complaints from its customers, you should take a minute to reconsider. You may be joining a legit business, but the risk of losing your money is significant.
As a business that promises to offer cheaper energy, the complaints are too much. According to the customers, the plan is only affordable for a limited time.
It is important ypu also consider other top rated business opportunities out there, that gives you a chance to earn even more.
