How MLM Companies Join the US Direct Selling Association and Its Importance

If you’re here, you must be interested in joining the US Direct Selling Association. And that’s a great step to improve your MLM business’s credibility, visibility, and long-term success. Companies such as Herbalife, Arbonne, and LifeVantage are also part of the Direct Selling Association. You’ll find almost all top-ranking MLM businesses among its members.

Joining the DSA is not about being a part of an organization; it’s a commitment to ethical standards, consumer protection, and promoting a culture of honesty and accountability.

However, many companies aren’t sure if they are eligible to join DSA, what its exact benefits are, how much it costs, and what the complete process is.

You’ll get answers to all these questions here.

By the end of this article, you’ll be confident enough to apply for DSA membership or have a clear plan to prepare your business for it.

What is the US Direct Selling Association?

Before getting into the benefits, application, and other attributes, let’s give you a brief understanding of what the US Direct Selling Association is.

The association was started in 1910. At that time, the Direct Selling Association was known as the Agents Credit Association, which was formed to help agents who were unable to collect their respective payments. Today, the DSA is much more than that, acting as the national trade association for companies selling products and services directly to consumers through independent distributors and sales representatives.

The DSA provides the following services to its member companies:

• Access to educational material and industry research

• Networking opportunities

• Professional development programs

Though the Direct Selling Association is an independent organization, it works with the government and regulatory agencies to ensure that companies maintain the highest level of professional ethics and consumer protection.

Who is considered Direct Selling Association Members?

DSA currently has 130 direct selling companies as its members. All these DSA-approved MLM companies completed their application forms, which were then reviewed and accepted by the organization. These companies, once they obtain the DSA membership, have to go through an annual review process to ensure that businesses maintain compliance with the Code of Ethics.

If your business is not operational in the US and you are not planning to enter the US market, you can apply for Global Associate membership. Under this, you receive access to DSA resources and events.

When a business applies for membership, it gets the “pending member” status. During this, it receives all the DSA members' benefits, such as access to research studies and educational content. However, the official membership is only granted after the review and acceptance of the application.

Who Can Apply to Join the DSA?

Not every company can join the Direct Selling Association as an official member. There are certain criteria that companies need to fulfill regardless of anything:

• Your business, or at least one of its branches, must be involved in direct selling activities.

• Your business must be operational at the time you apply for membership. If you’re planning to launch your direct selling operations later, you can choose the Subscriber option for now. This gives you access to the DSA’s resources and events, helping you prepare. Once your direct selling business is up and running, you can then apply for full membership.

• Your business must be operating in the United States. If you are applying for a direct selling company located outside the US, go for the Global Associate member application.

How MLM Companies Join the Direct Selling Association: Step-by-Step Process

Now, as you are familiar with what DSA is and who can join the organization, it's time to understand how to do it.

Gather the Documents and Information Required

Before applying for Direct Selling Association membership, ensure that you have all the required documents in place:

• Business Registration Documents: General documents showing that your business is operational in the US and functions as a legal entity.

• Financial Statement/Net Sales Proof: The DSA annual membership fees depend on the domestic sales. Therefore, it is necessary to keep your sales records in place while applying. You should also have proof of commissions paid to the distributors.

• Marketing Plan: Documents of your marketing strategy, product information, target audience, revenue forecast, and market expansion.

• Compensation Plan: Details of the MLM model, commissions, bonuses, rewards, and downline creation. Overall, it must contain details of how your salespeople are going to sell your products and earn income.

• Code of Conduct: This contains rules, ethical standards, principles, or guidelines that employees and distributors of your MLM business follow.

• Refund/Buy-back Policy: Terms and conditions according to which return requests are entertained.

• Compliance Records: Proof related to compliance activities such as ethical standards training, research studies backing your products, and a customer and distributor grievance redressal system.

• References and Endorsements: If you have a letter of recommendation from an existing DSA member or direct selling experts, you must attach it along with the other documents.

Filling the Application Process

The Direct Selling Association membership form is available on their website. You need to fill in the following information:

• Personal Information

• Company Details

• Company Demographics

• Additional Information about the firm (optional)

Note that you need to choose that your company is selling directly “now” for the membership. If you select that you are considering selling directly in the future, that option is to join as a subscriber.

Also, you must have a business location in the United States. If you select No, you can apply as a Global Associate.

Evaluation by the Direct Selling Association

After you submit the application, the Direct Selling Association will contact you if you are eligible for membership. You must be prepared with the gathered documents, readily available for DSA executives to evaluate.

After you submit the required material and ensure that you are ready to follow the DSA policies and their Code of Ethics, the evaluation period starts.

During this period, you’ll be considered DSA’s “pending member.” The status allows you to access all the DSA’s benefits for members. However, the official membership will only be provided after one year.

In the first year after the submission of the application, the US Direct Selling Association’s legal department will go through the submitted documentation and request information from various sources, such as:

• The Better Business Bureau

• Attorneys General

This is to ensure that you follow the highest ethical standards set by the DSA.

This evaluation process isn’t a barrier but a ladder to elevate your business. The DSA staff advises businesses on improving their compliance standards and meeting the expectations of state and federal regulations by implementing a thorough compliance checklist.

Getting an Approval and Onboarding

After the end of the first year, the DSA will reevaluate compliance practices. If the DSA’s Code of Ethics is followed, approval will be provided by the DSA’s Board of Directors.

After the approval, you’ll become an official member of the Direct Selling Association and be added to their member directory.

It gives you high visibility, as any prospect looking for an entrepreneurial opportunity in the direct selling industry can search for your business by using the product/service category filter.

DSA Application Renewal Process

Once your direct selling application is approved, you need to get it renewed annually. This is to ensure that members maintain the ethical standards even after becoming part of the association.

Before starting with your renewal process, you need to review the following information and prepare the relevant documents:

• The Code of Ethics: You need to review DSA’s Code of Ethics and make sure your MLM compliance practices align with it. You need to show proof of compliance with the Code of Ethics, commitment to a 90% buy-back as part of your policy, and cooling-off provisions.

• Code Responsibility Officer: For every renewal, you need to provide the details of the code responsibility officer, who ensures that the MLM business complies with the Code of Ethics. In case Code complaints are made, their job is to work with DSA’s Code Administrator to resolve the issue.

• Details of Legal or Regulatory Actions: If in the last five years, any legal or regulatory action has been taken against your parent or subsidiary company or their principals, which is related to unfair or deceptive direct selling practices, recruitment practices, or products or services, all relevant information, including the current status, must be provided.

• Details of the Net Sales: The company’s domestic direct sales revenue after subtracting the commissions, refunds, and other costs involved.

• Your Dues Certification: A scanned document of the company’s certification for the 2025 membership dues amount needs to be attached. It should be signed by a senior management official or an independent CPA or auditor.

The DSA will go through the documents and renew your membership if everything is up to standard.

Benefits of DSA Membership for MLM Companies

Now, as you know about the application process, it’s time to explore what benefits you get with its membership.

Better Compliance With DSA’s Code of Ethics

The primary purpose for which the DSA came into existence was to set the highest ethical standards for direct selling businesses and protect consumers.

As part of this mission, they developed the Code of Ethics, which every DSA member must comply with according to the DSA’s membership conditions. When a company follows the Code of Ethics, it significantly contributes to ensuring compliance with the Federal Trade Commission guidelines as well. That’s the reason that when you are part of DSA, compliance comes in handy.

Under the Code of Ethics, a business must:

• Have clear and true communication that shows the right picture of the business to the salesperson.

• Follow the stringent guidelines for making earnings claims that are true.

• Ensure that their product claims are backed by research and science.

And several such pointers that combine to promote fair and undeceptive direct selling practices.

However, even with these efforts, some direct selling companies still fall into non-compliance. As a DSA member, the greatest benefit you gain is access to remedies for non-compliance.

The DSA appoints the Code Administrator, who is an independent third party with expert knowledge of the Code of Ethics as well as the direct selling channel.

Whenever DSA receives a complaint of non-compliance, the code administrator works with the direct selling business to resolve the issue by aligning the member's activities with the Code of Ethics.

Therefore, when a member follows DSA’s Code of Ethics and the Code Administrator’s recommendations, they are likely to stay compliant and safe from the FTC’s scrutiny.

Gain Distributor Trust

In the previous section, we discussed how the DSA enforces compliance among its member businesses. Every Direct Selling Association member is responsible for protecting its independent direct salespeople and consumers alike.

A distributor can easily verify whether your direct selling business is part of the Direct Selling Association, and if you are a member, they’ll immediately build trust and credibility. Because they’ll know you are following the highest level of ethical standards and making every possible effort for the well-being of distributors and customers.

Distributors also know that if they face any kind of fraudulent act, they can reach out to the DSA for a solution. This works as an extra layer of protection for them, even if the business seems credible.

This allows them to focus on growing their business and building their network without worrying about being misled or cheated.

That’s one of the biggest reasons why companies should be a part of the DSA.

Get Access to DSA’s Suppliers

Direct Selling Association Suppliers are the DSA’s recommended businesses that provide products and services to direct selling companies, including DSA members.

There are businesses from fourteen categories, such as Travel and Tourism, Consultants, Legal, and Tech.

These members handle a variety of direct selling aspects, which can help you grow your MLM business better.

Obtain Research Studies

The Direct Selling Association has an exclusive research department that conducts a variety of research all the time. These research studies are related to compliance, consumer protection, sales, and the market.

Members get access to these industry insights, which assist them in making better, informed decisions.

Besides that, surveys like the Sales Strategy Survey and the Growth and Outlook Survey provide distributors with a competitive edge.

Businesses also benefit from monthly and quarterly newsletters.

Growth and Development Opportunities

The direct selling market keeps changing, and one needs to stay updated with it. With the DSA’s conferences, webinars, and events, your executives can learn about the trending business practices related to sales and marketing. These growth and development opportunities also help the compliance team stay updated with the latest amendments and new compliance requirements.

Members also get the privilege to be part of network opportunities, connect with other members, veteran distributors, and experts, and empower their team with more knowledge than ever.

Network Councils and Governing Committee

There are several network councils in the Direct Selling Association, whose primary aim is to guide direct selling businesses in various aspects.

Some of the councils are:

• CEO Council

• Compliance Officer Council

• Diversity and Empowerment Council

The member companies are also provided access to forums where they can discuss new opportunities, challenges, and direct selling developments.

How DSA Membership Affects Distributors and Customers?

With the DSA’s benefits, they surely support MLM businesses to a great extent. But how does it affect distributors and consumers?

Let’s find out now:

• With the Code of Ethics in place, distributors can easily build trust with member companies, allowing them to get into direct selling without worries.

• Customers who experience fraudulent acts can register their complaint with DSA, and the organization will look into it. They can file complaints whether the company in question is a member or not.

• It overall creates an easier and more relaxed environment for distributors and customers so that they can do business with direct selling companies.

It’s Time to Join DSA!

This article showed the true importance of DSA membership for MLM companies. When you join the DSA, you pledge to develop a safer environment for direct selling, where distributors and customers focus on taking action rather than evaluating companies.

The DSA takes care of the evaluation, providing you with valuable credibility. These efforts toward protecting distributors and customers bring lasting growth to your business.

Now, it’s time to prepare your business and join the Direct Selling Association.

Frequently Asked Questions Regarding the Direct Selling Association