Internet Marketing Coach
Internet Marketing Business Owners Give Bad Advice
May 13th, 2008 | 7 comments
Yesterday I was reading various blog posts from a very popular article directory (the blog compliments the article directory) and the “advice” didn’t surprise me. What really surprised me were the positive comments being left on each post.
These people were just eating it up! They were acting like kids at Christmas after receiving this “Awesome” advice, which wasn’t even good advice.
Most of these posts didn’t contain horrible advice, but it was obvious to me that 90% of this “advice” wasn’t in the best interest of the authors who submit articles to the site, but it all helped the article directory owner fill his pockets a bit more.
I won’t show any examples because this post isn’t meant to call any one individual person or business out. It’s meant to advise you that not all “good advice” really is “good advice!”
I see this on a daily basis all over the place both online and offline, but many of us are blinded by the salesman’s kind and seemingly helpful words and forget that their advice is most likely in their best interest, and not necessarily in YOUR best interest!
If someone is trying to sell you a Dell Computer, they’re going to give you 1,000 reasons NOT to buy a HP and vise versa!
I truly believe this is the primary reason so many people fail and quit in our industry!
So, my point is this: When someone recommends something or dismisses something, whether it’s a product or technique, be sure to look and see if this recommendation may be in that person’s best interest! In some cases it is in their best interest, but it’s still good advice, but if you see a trend with that person, you may want to watch out.
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13th May, 2008 at 6:26 pm
Josh, you are absolutely right. There are a lot of people who tends to believe what is offered to them by these internet marketers without even thinking a few minutes.
13th May, 2008 at 6:42 pm
Josh, good point (I tried thinking of a way to disagree so I wasn’t like one of those kids at Christmas, but I couldn’t think of a good reason). The problem is that everyone can look like an expert online. So how do we know you’re an expert worth listening to? From what I’ve seen so far, you’re not the typical product-pusher, and you give real examples, so you seem trustworthy - but I just bought the article post robot last night, so if I don’t have a #1 ranking on Google tomorrow morning, I’ll be back to disagree!
Seriously, I’m going to try to be less product-pusher, and more info-giver, as that seems to be a good mix.
13th May, 2008 at 6:47 pm
@ Kris - I guess I should have expected that lol
It’s not necessarily the “pushing” of products. I push products as well. It’s all about WHY you push those products.
For me it’s because I honestly recommend them. For others it’s because they have a good affiliate program.
This post is in regards to big services like the one I’m referring to in this example and not necessarily individuals.
“Seriously, I’m going to try to be less product-pusher, and more info-giver, as that seems to be a good mix.”
The trick is to always give more than you take and be honest with everything you do, most importantly, be honest with your product recommendations.
14th May, 2008 at 1:17 am
I think the problem has been that the early adopters used every copywriting strategy known to mankind to sell stuff online, and make a ton of dough.
The focus was not on providing useful content and/or products, just conversion rates etc.
Thankfully, we are (I hope) finally starting to see a shift in this paradigm.
14th May, 2008 at 2:38 pm
That’s true in a way, but not really what I hitting on.
In regards to sales pages and products it all comes down to being a good consumer…never judge a book by it’s cover (or its sales page.)
This post is more about the “advice” coming from internet business owners who lie to you about strategies and techniques so you’ll do the things that help their business grow.
For instance, an article directory owner telling you that inserting a rel=”nofollow” into the signature links of your article will not hurt you, because the “real” value is in the traffic that the article directory sends. That traffic helps, but those links do too! Without them, article marketing wouldn’t help at all in ranking in the SE’s.
14th May, 2008 at 8:29 pm
Good advice, Josh (was that too Christmassy?).
Seriously though, it would be difficult to find anyone who markets online without some sort of angle. Even those who give “good” advice are probably looking to build a reputation . . . and why would they even be interested in such a thing if they didn’t have something to sell?
In other words, when reading “advice” it’s always good to consider the source as well as the source’s possible motivation . . . either for selling something now or down the line.
For example, I know of at least one blogger who wants to build an email list which provides good information, but the end result is a funnel into selling ebooks, coaching, and the sort.
14th May, 2008 at 8:38 pm
@ Terry - Yes, I don’t have any toys for you, sorry lol
Of course we all have some sort of angle. Everything I do in my business is to make money.
BUT, I do it in an honest way. I would NEVER, I’ll say it again NEVER (please quote on that for the future) recommend something that I haven’t tried and that I don’t honestly believe would help you!
I would NEVER advise you to do something or to stop doing something that would help me, but not you!
So, I do see your point and it is valid, but my point is that you are either honestly interested in helping people succeed or you aren’t.
*edit* the business owners I am referring to in this post are not. They’ll help you, but only if it helps them! Some of us will help you whether it helps us or not.