The Smart Circle Scam

Anyone who knows me personally would quickly praise my work ethic, my personable demeanor, my ambition, and they would tell you I am a good and honest (maybe occasionally too honest) person. I would never intentionally cause harm to someone mentally or physically. I believe that above all else, being kind and just and good to others is IMPORTANT. So, this is why I feel completely okay in educating everyone I know about my short, but incredibly awful journey with the company Smart Circle.

I have a lot of friends who are graduating and looking for jobs in marketing, communication, event planning, promotions, business administration ETC. This company is looking for people like you to exploit and take advantage of. If you are older and looking for a career change, they’re looking for you as well. They want people down on their luck who don’t have a whole lot of other options that can be molded and manipulated into what they want.

Let me start by saying from the very beginning this company isn’t truthful.

1. Smart Circle, the overall company name, is never mentioned until you are officially hired and working.

a. This is because if you google Smart Circle you will see the absolute atrocity that this company is. Instead they give you a name of a branch company that has filtered and censored reviews.

2. They make it seem as if you will be working a typical 9-5 office job as a Marketing Manager and they tell you that you'll make 45K a year starting.

a. You are a sales representative and you work inside of a Walmart running scripted shows selling a product that very few people actually need.

b. You make $10 an hour plus a commission that often equates to absolutely nothing.

3. The interview itself is scripted and rehearsed and completely ingenuine.

a. They require a hard copy of your resume solely so they can make mark ups on it in order to assert their dominance and make you feel inferior.

4. The job postings have multiple different names but are all sale representative positions. Below I included titles and the exact description I applied for.

Reach out to me if you're interested in hearing the other names the company goes by.

This is completely inaccurate. I stood in a Walmart (often in low income areas) and I was a sales representative.

4. This place has a revolving door of employees. They tell you training is difficult, and a lot of people are not strong enough to make it. That is not the truth. They constantly hire because most people leave due to the blatant issues that arise through the process.

a. They are the type of place that will try to break you down so that they can build you up and make you feel like the “team” are the only people you have for support.

b. They DO NOT condone you speaking with and hanging out with people who are at the same level as you outside of the office. I was spoken to about “lateral networking” multiple times and told it created cliques and separation from the “team.” In reality they just did not want us communicating about how we felt or insecurities we had about the company. They aim to control your behavior and all the information you receive.

5. You are told you get a 30-minute break for 5 hour shifts and an hour break for 8-hour shifts

a. You cannot actually afford to take those breaks and successfully complete what is expected of you in a day.

b. A normal scheduled full day in the field is from 10-7 and if it is a morning meeting day then it is from 7:30 A.M to 7 P.M. If you don’t sell the standard amount of product then you are expected to stay late and guilted if you do not.

c. You are also constantly hounded to “network” and sit down with “Top Leaders” for unpaid time before work, after work, and on your day off.

6. When I interviewed I specifically asked how the company handled harassment and was assured it was taken extremely seriously

a. I had my car keys stolen by a Walmart associate. Said Walmart associate made small talk with me earlier in the day about what kind of car I drove. I was shaken by this experience and tried to speak to my boss about it the next day. My boss’ response was to tell me that Walmart is safe because they have cameras and that I was going to be late to the field and that wasn’t compliant with company policy. He didn’t even know the whole situation and he did not ever call the Walmart to make sure the situation was dealt with and that the environment was safe.

Every single company under smart circle does every single thing the same way. They use the same lingo, they use the same job titles, they use the same job descriptions, they use the same methods of teaching and everything they’re teaching you has been created by the company. If you bring up a realistic concern or observation, they tell you, “you need to stop negging out and fix your mindset.”

I was spoken to about my negativity when I told a new start that our storage unit looked worse every single time I had been in there, even though that was a truthful and accurate statement. It was also never mentioned how much heavy lifting and transportation of product (using our personal vehicles) was required. The picture below is what the storage unit looked like this previous Monday (7/15).

The back wall was close to collapse.

We had to pull out all those boxes and equipment in 90-degree heat. It took two hours (we made $20) and afterwards we were required to take the inventory and supplies and go set up a new store and create a positive first interaction with the store manager while we were dripping in sweat and covered in dust. It was humiliating.

My first solo day in the field I had to pack forty cases of product into my car, I was told to fill it to the brim. Then I was required to unload it all into this unit. All this while not being paid mileage for travel. The only time you got “mileage” was when you left directly from the office and you were given TEN DOLLARS (I travelled at least 35 minutes and often 45 minutes to an hour one way to get to the field). Ten dollars did not properly equate to 58 cents to the mile (the standard in Minnesota).

I could go on and on about this company and my experience with them. It was terrible and it was painful, and my mental health has suffered greatly. I was made to feel so insufficient and I worked ridiculous hours and dealt with so many lies and gimmicks. I'm truly embarrassed and ashamed but this information needs to be shared for my fellow graduates and anyone else who is vulnerable.

The point of me talking about my experience is to inform others who would make easy targets. This company has offices across the country, and they have so many postings under so many different names. I do not want my fellow college graduates to be fooled into accepting a position at this company. If you want more information about Smart Circle watch the documentary that was created about them or reach out to me and I will go even more in depth about my experience.