Saturday, August 23, 2008

Warning: Internet Marketing gets Black Eye

If you are an online marketer and have value to offer your clients looking for real information on earning money, whether it be online or offline, you will cringe at this news story.
Two brothers who were selling "money making secrets" from their websites were charged with making false earning claims and were barred from making any more work at home websites.
Story here:
http://www.thestandard.com/news/2008/08/20/work-home-web-sites-settle-ftc-charges
We have seen so many claims from internet marketers that give the illusion that we can be found sitting on the beach with our laptops, raking in the money, drive expensive cars, after working unbelievably short expanses of time to earn "millions", even while sleeping. Only the brain dead would believe this but even the brain dead seem to have money in their pocket to shell out for these programs and then have the gall to sue just because they didn't make tons of money sitting on their butts.
Remember when "in your face" jokes were cute? We laughed because they were different, irreverant, and just plain shocking. But we reached a point where they no longer seemed so cute and funny. We became desensitized by the genre. I believe we are seeing an out of control, out of date method being used when internet marketers copy old methods and exaggerate them beyond reason. This is the work of amateurs. Promises of wealth have a great responsibility for the speaker. The top names in internet marketing are wealthy because they consistently deliver valuable information and make it clear that is up to you what to do with it.
As a retired professional photographer, I have always detested the stereotype of the sleasy photographer, unkempt and lewd, but given the same title "photographer". It is unfortunate that individuals like the brothers in this news story give a bad name to the profession of some of the finest individuals I know in internet marketing.


My parting shot:
And it would seem that the top name internet marketers don't have to take these shortcuts to get this message across: wealth CAN be made, it CAN be easy (when you have learned and USED their methods), and that, more often than not, you have the choices of DO, DON'T DO, or ask for a REFUND.

Your comments are welcomed and encouraged.