You still find yourself humming a jingle or two from the 90s and early 2000s whether that be reminiscing over Billy Mays, rest his soul. His exuberance, backed by his high octane pitch style, made him one of the most popular infomercial hosts in history. Categorizing Mays as a marketing mogul, he could sell anything from cleaning supplies to kitchen utensils, creating notoriety and wealth for himself in the process. So just how did Billy Mays reach such levels of success and what was Billy Mays Net Worth? Now, here is the breakdown of the life career and financial legacy of this legendary pitchman.
The Man Behind the Pitch
Billy Mays was more than a man with a loud voice he was an empire. Famed for his trademark mechanical style, prodigious voice and unforgettable catchphrases, Mays became the public face of infomercials. His pitches made household names out of products like OxiClean, the Mighty Putty, and the Kaboom cleaner. However, off the small screens, how did Billy Mays accumulate his fortunes? In this post, we’ll take a look at how Mays grew from a basic pitchman to building a multi million dollar global brand.
First Years and Start of Career
Billy Mays was born July 20, 1958, in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania. He began his sales career at an early age selling to several companies, eventually moving into the direct response television industry. Mays’ first big break arrived when he did a pitch for OxiClean, the product that would eventually change his life. His style, brash, convincing and full of energy, quickly turned millions of viewer’s heads towards the screen.
Mays’ career wasn’t simply about yelling his way to the head of the class. He was also a brilliant salesman he believed in the product that he was selling and knew how to communicate well with his audience. For the next several years, infomercials with Mays became a late night staple.
The Infomercial Success of Billy Mays
Nobody did as well on television as Mays. Following his initial success using OxiClean, he pitched a slew of other products, all of which were also extremely successful. But it was as the face of the stain removing OxiClean cleaning product that he cemented his status as an infomercial king. Mays’ pitch, which sparkled with all its wit and charm, worked wonders for the brand and helped it catapult to success.
Beyond OxiClean, Mays promoted a range of products, from Mighty Putty to Kaboom, and earned a place on the Discovery Channel series Pitchmen alongside other infomercial legends like Anthony Sullivan. These could help him to build a fortune and then create a professional stream.
Billy Mays: How The TV Pitchman Made His Money
Although most only knew Mays through the television lens, he made much of his money doing business and being an entrepreneur. Not only did he profit from his commercials, but he also had stocks in the products that he sold. Mays negotiated royalty arrangements with the manufacturers of the products he sold instead of a standard commission, Mays took a cut from every sale.
The shrewdness Mays possessed regarding good and bad business was also displayed with things he acquired outside of baseball. He held an interest in some companies conducting infomercial and direct response marketing. By the time he passed, this was part of what made his net worth estimated at $10 million on the business level.
Mays also had endorsement deals, as he pitched in commercials for companies. His earnings and endorsements were made most critical so that he could pile up as much wealth as possible.
InfoPower: Products & The Power of Infomercials
Billy Mays lent his name and talents to a lot of products that were aggressively marketed via infomercials. Mays would then enthusiastically demonstrate how effective the functions of these products were. Mays pitched some of the most iconic products including these:
OxiClean: Possibly the most famous of Mays products, OxiClean became a household name after his endorsement. Mays was able to clean stains with the product which proved its power for viewers at home, and the rest is history a household name.
Mighty Putty: Mays pitched this as a kind of ace in the hole repair product you could use for just about every damage under the sun. Mays had the ability to imbue even the most basic object with an air of not being able to live without it and this product quickly became a huge bestseller.
Kaboom: Kaboom was also positioned as a heavy duty bathroom cleaner that could cut through the toughest stains.
Orange Glo: Mays pitched this citrus based cleaning liquid, which grew to be a household name in the home care category.
And while most of those products saw considerable success, none would ever have left the ground without Mays to do all the heavy lifting turning them into household names.
Billy Mays’ Net Worth and Wealth Breakdown
At the time of his passing in 2009, Billy Mays Net Worth estimated to be about $10 million. He was not an overnight millionaire, It was earned over decades with a lot of hard work, perseverance, and some business acumen to boot. His share of the royalties and profits from products he endorsed composed a significant portion of his net worth.
Aside from his success in the OxiClean world and other products, Mays made plenty of money out of pocket from appearances on television, endorsements and as the star of a series on Discovery Channel called Pitchmen. Mays’ success wasn’t just due to pitchman status, it was building a brand capitalizing on his fame and visage in the words of his voice, comic sans serif font style malarkey.
Death and Legacy
Billy Mays died suddenly on June 28, 2009, at the age of 50. His death was due to heart disease, and it stunned many around the world, especially his fans through his commercials. Mays is no longer around, but the imprint he left on the infomercial and advertising industries remains.
Mays was also an influence on advertising and helped design show how the infomercials took root. His larger than life demeanour, commanding voice, and ability to hustle left a lasting mark that pitchmen and infomercial personalities still reflect today.
Billy Mays’ Continued Impact
Billy Mays’s brand continues to live on years after his death. Companies still use his image and likeness in marketing materials, and people use his name as a synonym for infomercial. One cannot help but credit Mays’ innovative sales strategies and showmanship for the success of products such as OxiClean.
Conclusion
During his life, Billy Mays Net Worth of around $10 million, which is a result of being an infomercial legend TV personality and overall businessman. His larger than life persona, combined with an ability to sell almost ANYTHING, made him a direct response marketing MASTER of empires. Though he wasn’t with us long enough to earn a place in the Rake Hall of Fame, his impact still resonates as we work toward our common goal of making a living by selling useless household tools on 3 a.m. infomercials.
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