A few weeks ago, The European Direct Selling Association (Seldia) and Direct Selling Europe (DSE) jointly released the findings of the “2023 Survey on European Direct Sellers”.
In this article, we share the highlights of these findings. Also, we compare them with the findings of the 2018 survey. This will help us understand how the European direct sales industry has evolved in the last five years from the direct sellers’ point of view.
Both surveys were conducted by Ipsos.
Survey Samples
The survey in 2023 covered 25,896 direct sellers across 12 EU countries. In 2018, the sample consisted of 30,127 people from 11 countries.
As far as the respondents’ companies are concerned, the recent survey included companies associated with both Seldia and DSE, whereas the 2018 survey included only those associated with Seldia.
In both surveys, results have been weighted back to direct seller population data based on the WFDSA’s (World Federation of Direct Selling Associations) Global Statistics Database.
Gender, Age and Education of Direct Sellers
In 2023, 85% of direct sellers were female, 14% were male, and 1% preferred not to respond. The ratio was 88-12 in 2018.
The largest age group in 2023 was 45-54 with its 27% share (up from 23% in 2018). In 2018, however, 35-44 made the largest group (26%).
52% of direct sellers were between ages 35-54 in 2023 survey. This was 49% in 2018.
As another sign of aging direct seller population in Europe, the share of 25-34 age group went down to 5% this year from 12% in 2018, and the share of 64+ group went up to 11% from 5%.
Length of Involvement in Direct Sales
The direct sellers that have been with a direct selling company for more than 10 years was the largest group (37%) in 2023. This has come up significantly from 23% in 2018.
In 2023, those who have been involved for three years and less was 37%, whereas this was 50% in 2018.
This picture can be interpreted in two ways: a) European direct sellers have become more loyal, or b) There is a decline in the number of newcomers. Adding to this the fact that those who have been in direct sales for less than one year has dropped from 24% to 14%, “b” seems to be more realistic.
Reasons for Being in Direct Selling
As can be expected, “I like the products/service I sell” emerged as the strongest motivation in 2023 in getting involved in direct selling (62%) and in continuing doing so (65%). This was the strongest motivation in 2018, too (57% and 61%, respectively).
The two surveys show that direct sellers’ other motivations (e.g. buying products at discounted prices, meeting new people, earning supplemental income, being own boss, flexible hours etc.) have not changed much in five years, too.
Time Spent on Direct Selling
In 2023, 57% of the respondents said they spent less than eight hours per week, very similar to the findings in 2018 (58%).
Those who spent more than 30 hours in a week was 12% in 2023 and 10% in 2018.
Personal Gains from Direct Selling Activities
In 2023, 77% agreed with each of these two sentences: “I have gained more than just money through my direct selling activity (friends, skills, confidence) and “It has improved my interpersonal skills (with clients, prospect).
The least agreement (64%) was with the sentence “It has improved my quality of life overall”.
In 2018, the strongest agreement (85%) was with the sentence “It enables me to meet new people”. It was followed by “It is a good way to earn additional income” (81%).
Feelings Towards Main Company Affiliated With
In 2023, 58% said they were very likely to recommend their main direct sales company to a friend or a colleague, and 10% said this was unlikely to happen.
In 2018, those who were very likely to recommend was 52% and those who found this unlikely was 19%.
In both 2023 and 2018, 90% of direct sellers said it is likely that they would continue with their main company over the next year.
Describing Direct Selling in Three Words
In both surveys, direct sellers were asked to describe direct selling in three words. The responses give almost exclusively positive responses.
The two surveys’ findings were similar but in 2023, new words like “development / evolution” and “trust/confidence” emerged. The survey in 2023 also found an increased emphasis on “income” and “profit”:
Such surveys help us a lot understand how the industry is evolving. For that reason, Seldia and DSE did an excellent job by conducting them and by sharing the findings with the public.
Additionally, I personally extend my gratitude to them for granting the permission to use the visuals in this article.
You can access here the findings made public.
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Hakki Ozmorali is the Founder of WDS Consultancy, a management consulting and online publishing firm in Canada, specialized in providing services to direct selling firms. WDS Consultancy is the publisher of The World of Direct Selling, global industry’s leading weekly online publication since 2010. Hakki Ozmorali is an experienced professional with a strong background in direct sales. His work experiences in direct selling include Country and Regional Manager roles at various multinationals. You can contact Hakki here.
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