[R]ecently I posted this picture on my Google+ account, Tweeted it and said I’d talk about it Monday. What inspired me taking the picture? Do I really make $50k a week on Clickbank?
My Clickbank “Money Shot”
My Clickbank Success Shot
Holy KAW! You’re KILLIN’ IT MAN!
I am SO killin’ it – killing the B.S. and hype.
Let me come clean here: I don’t make $50k a week.
Not sure I ever will, I’m not losing sleep over it, trust me. I do make a fully passive income (the details of which I no longer share), but it’s nothing like $50k a week, or a month.
Clickbank isn’t even my best performer. The only sales I make there are the random tool here and there for IMers, but my living isn’t earned by selling to the internet marketing niche.
That’s what finally got through my thick head this past week (forgive me for being so dense): the Warrior Forum is chock-full of people who live off the internet marketing niche. How’s that for a “revelation?”
But it’s deeper than that. I learned a bit when I saw what they wanted to ban, in addition to how these Warrior Special Offers are normally pitched.
What IS A WSO?
Here I am assuming you know – but not everyone goes to the Warrior Forum so let me define it. A “WSO” is a Warrior Special Offer, a discount given on a product that sells elsewhere for more money.
The WSO section of the forum isn’t only about making money online or SEO products, but that’s the majority of the products there: making money online, traffic generation, SEO, etc.
If You Can’t Prove It, Fake It
Fake testimonials and screenshots are instant credibility, just like plastic surgery: looks good from here, but it’s unreal. No, really: it’s NOT real.
Why I Doctored That Screenshot
…And what does this have to do with a banned post on the Warrior Forum?
Spend 2 minutes in the “Warrior Special Offers” section (WSO’s), and you’ll see tons of money-shots like the one I just showed you. Plenty of people already know how to doctor it up good and make it look real.
I did it in 3 minutes using free tools, it’s not hard but don’t ask me how to do it – I’m not keen on showing how to become a fraud.
On top of the screenshots, you’ll see tons of testimonials from other Warriors singing your praises when you sell a WSO (wait: those are “real,” right?)…
I hate to burst your bubble, but don’t be so easily impressed by all that “proof.”
The Warrior Forum seems a wee bit fishy when they delete a post like mine (of course I’m biased, I wrote the thing – will post it later this week), but they accept my WSO which I paid $40 to publish.
I published both within minutes of each other. Once my WSO went live, the cockroaches came out in droves.
What? You posted a WSO there? Are you a hypocrite or what?
Yes: I did. No: not a hypocrite.
I have a book I’d like to sell and get more exposure for, so I figured I’d go where people could use it most: where new people come in droves and look for a resource to get their websites ranking.
My thinking was and still is that if you get my book (if you’re new especially) it can save you lots of money on tools and services you don’t really need – so it’s a good fit, right? I thought so anyway…
And I figured writing an open letter addressed to my target market would be a way to give a little back to the forum, which would coincide with releasing my WSO.
Curiously, the post was banned, but my WSO was accepted. Maybe it’s not so much “curious” as it is “obvious.” You don’t have to pay to post a thread, but you do have to pay to post a WSO.
What made this whole thing worse, the admins didn’t reply to my inquiries as to why this thread was deleted. Why not?
(By the way, I put up Duct Tape SEO as a WSO through the 10th of October as part of my launch process, but after stunts like deleting my thread and thinking of why they’d do so, I’m not so sure it was a good business decision. Correct me if I’m wrong…)
What Does a Faked Clickbank Shot Have to Do With a Banned Thread?
When I posted the WSO, I received a few private messages from fellow “Warriors” telling me they’d had a history of helping others by giving a testimonial in exchange for a freebie. They asked for a review copy and showed me a number of WSO’s they had left glowing comments on…
OK, that’s smart of them to do so, but it’s also a bit fishy to say the least.
It got me thinking how “legit” (read: illegitimate) all those testimonials are: you scratch my back…
Problem: my book is nearly 300 pages long.
A person couldn’t possibly review it in time for me to benefit for the WSO I’d published – unless of course they planned to just fake the review.
It also got me thinking about the types of evidence we accept without question. Granted, when I put up that picture on my G+ stream, I’m sure that Brankica Underwood, Matthew Cox, Benny Hsu and Kevin Douglas responded with anticipation because they trust me.
One of the things I’m not known for is slinging a bunch of fake money-shots, or swindling people into buying what they don’t need, etc. Granted, when someone you trusts posts a picture like that Clickbank shot, you stand at attention and think,
OH! EM! GEE!
But is it much different when you go to some place like the Warrior Forum and see tons of “testimonials” and “proof of earnings” shots instead? The game is the same: earn trust and you can sell to the crowd.
“Proof” of earnings builds trust. Problem: they’re easy to fake.
“Proof” of peer review and customer’s testimonials builds trust. Problem: go to Fiverr and you can pay some cute college gal or guy to do a video about how screamin’ awesome your product is and you have instant credibility. Go to the WF and you have a boatload of people at the ready, willing to do you a solid and give you instant raving reviews.
“Proof” of rankings with screenshots in Google…Problem: are those REALLY websites owned by the WSO author/developer? Couldn’t you simply do a Google search and put in some highly competitive keyword and claim ownership? Again: it’s easy to fake.
The Only Evidence You Really Have
There is one sort of evidence you can bank on in most cases. It out-performs screenshots of earnings or rankings or testimonials, all of which are easily gamed.
You ready for the biggie?
Your character.
It’s what makes good people great. Want a list of ‘great’ people? Check out my blogroll for just a few ideas. They have a lot of character, and something to say.
Earning my trust isn’t easy to do, I’m jaded. If you want to know just one reason why, read My Story.
To admit I don’t trust people by default at this point is an unfortunate consequence of hard knocks and learning difficult lessons – and it sticks in my craw every single time I see some signs of abusive marketing going on.
Your reputation is important. Integrity matters. Character counts.
I’m having a hard time finding it in the forum, but that will make more sense after you read the banned thread later.
It reminds me, though…
How are You Building Trust Brand?
You’re not building a brand until you’re building trust, they go hand-in-hand. Online and off, whether a transaction is involved or not, are you building trust?
What are you going to be known for?
Call it a reputation. The buzzword lately is your “brand.” What are you known for? A huge Clickbank, PayPal or Commission Junction earnings statement?
Do we really have to pimp out our earning statement to win an audience? (That’s not a cheap-shot against Pat Flynn, by the way, that’s just Pat’s style and I’m not knocking it.)
I took that screenshot of a doctored-up Clickbank earnings report to talk on the larger issue: who do you trust?
Is your “brand” or website trustworthy? This is the heart of marketing, the heart of building an asset versus a website – building a name for yourself or business that’s stellar, a cut above, something to write home about.
I’ve been told people read my blog because I’m authentic (OK, that was my mom, but I like to believe her). Hopefully I don’t lose what trust I’ve won because I like money more than my reputation, and decide to rock faked earnings reports all of a sudden.
Getting back to you: Does your website actually deal in trust? Do people have a reason to trust what you publish?
When I started out, I was using a now infamous AdSense-optimized theme, it won for ugly theme of the year, trust me…but it worked with AdSense. That ugly theme doesn’t get much visits.
Next time you visit Google and do a search, check out the magnifying glass that appears next to every listing – it opens up a preview of your website for the searcher.
Ask yourself: How does your site stack up to its competition?
Does your web design engender trust, or look scammy?
Would you trust your site based on its looks? I don’t have “the right answer” for you, it’s something you need to consider given who you’re competing against. I can guarantee you that people will either intentionally or inadvertently scan the listings for quality web design.
In the very least, they’ll stay away from an over-advertised MFA (made for ads) site if you’re not careful.
Do all your reviews have 5-stars?
I’m assuming you have reviews on your website, maybe you don’t – but it looks fishy when all you have are glowing reviews.
Speaking of reviews – can your customers leave a review?
I don’t have to tell you that Amazon is the #1 most sellingest place online. Customers leave all kinds of reviews: good, bad and indifferent.
There are tons of review plugins for free and for a price, if you’re running WordPress to power your review site, give one of them a look-see. It engenders trust, and it cuts against the typical thinking of most internet marketers (me likey).
Is there a guarantee with the purchase?
If you’re an affiliate like myself of various products – remember to look this up. Clickbank products all have a 60-day money-back guarantee, if you’re selling one, mention it.
If you sell Amazon or Commission Junction products, this guarantee can fluctuate – but look it up and spell it out. Remove the risk from your customers and more will feel at ease to buy.
There’s a number of ways to build (or lose) trust…right now I’m a bit raw after having my post deleted at the Warrior Forum when it was written to be a help to newbies.
No, I don’t trust the place.
I’m not a big player in the IM niche: I don’t pitch a bunch of tools here that you don’t need. If it seemed like that at some point, it’s not the direction I’m going in. What I’d rather have than $50,000 Clickbank weeks is the trust of my readers.
(OK, who am I kidding – $50k a week? Yeah – that wouldn’t be so bad…)
Seriously though, I’d rather “settle” for earning your trust and keeping it. Speaking of which, if you’re on my list, I’m re-writing the auto-responder sequence and will be putting out a few PDF reports for my subscribers. I tell you that because of this change in my thinking – dealing in trust rather than transactions.
Hopefully you’re on the list, I’ll announce when the new changes have taken place. In the meantime, if you haven’t yet:
Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for the “big, bad, banned Warrior Forum thread” that saw 15 minutes of fame. Hopefully you can tell me what was so awful about it…
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I must admit I didn’t trust your Clickbank screenshot – not because I don’t trust you but because of the hint you gave in the intro to it “it’s unreal”. Lol! I had a feeling you would write a post like this, shame you’re not earning 50k a week though!
The WF is very tough. As I may have said before, I share many of the strong feelings with you. It is rife with scammers, even those who are highly regarded within the community there (in my opinion), and there are cliques who always review each others products. I try not to waste my anger on these people – believe me, it makes me so angry that they are apparently raking it in with crappy reports and selling crap to newbies, but everything comes back around.
The flip side is I’ve met some great people there. We take our conversations away from the forum into email and it is so worth the time filtering through the junk. Plus as you know I sell a lot of PLR there. I can’t ignore the fact that it’s a great place to reach more people so I still do sell there. I don’t want to be associated with the junk WSOs, and it’s true that if you don’t want to hype things up it’s harder to get noticed, but I can’t do it.
Interesting, Pat Flynn has recently mentioned a lot how he makes a huge amount of cash from his MMO blog. Makes sense because it is so big, but there is an element of guilt there, or at least a need to explain yourself, from doing so. However, it started with his solid success outside of the IM niche (which still continues) and that is what makes him such a trustworthy source – that and the fact he’s a great, honest guy. I have the same guilt selling PLR, believe it or not. And I don’t think I would be able to do it if I didn’t know that *using* what I am selling does work too (I use it myself, altered though).
I feel I’m starting to go off on a tangent here. Anyway, I guess I will finish by saying I totally agree with you, and it’s why I’m starting to abandon most of my earlier niche sites in favour of a very small few that I can be proud to call my own. One of them gets thousands of thousands of visitors but I don’t monetize it with the Clickbank products that I get emailed about from the vendors (it’s a health niche) because I cannot break the trust I have with my visitors to sell a sub-standard product that offers false hope. So yes, $50k/week would be nice, but having your values and knowing you are helping people is more important.
Ruth recently posted..August Update And Goals For September
Wow that’s a huge jump in Pat’s income from SPI – I hadn’t looked at one of his breakdowns for a while. I know how he feels – I’ve never been entirely comfortable earning money from my self-titled blog either – after all I was no expert (still aren’t). Initially people would actually email me and ask me for affiliate links – because I wouldn’t put them up LOL
The thing is that once people “get” IM and understand affiliates – they are very keen to give a “friend” a commission – it doesn’t happen in any other niche – I have family who won’t use my Amazon affiliate link – because they think its dodgy!
lissie recently posted..Bullying Online is NOT OK – Even for “Adults”
He’s pretty stellar and just UNREAL in how much he’s making, but he’s also one of few doing it right (if this is your niche I mean). I’m one of the few recent converts to SPI, I never heard of the guy but people would refer to “Pat” like he was their neighbor, then I started reading him and realized that was the sort of marketer I wanted to be.
Not necessarily selling to the IM or blogging niche, but just in terms of character. And your experience in affiliate links is mine, too – had no idea what an affiliate link was really and sure wouldn’t buy anything online until I got into the IM ‘thing.’ Luckily I have 8 readers who buy from me now and then. :D
Ruth –
You’re the kind of person that fits my disclaimer on the WF – there’s good people on there earning money and they should be earning from the WF (I don’t think we can let the scam artists have all the loot, newbies and business owners deserve better than that). You described my angst:
And ITA with:
Word! (Sorry, went 80′s hip-hop on you, I think you need the opposite side of proper English, just to balance things out properly.)
It’s a fine line (hyping things up to sell vs. just being honest and hoping things sell, etc. – but people like Pat do make it seem possible!).
Agreed – interesting you and me both seem to have really started following Pat Flynn lately, I agree I also realized he’s the kind of marketer I’d like to be.
Ruth recently posted..August Update And Goals For September
James WTF – it took you this long to wake up to the WF???? I keep forgetting some people haven’t been around as long as I have – for the record DP is just about as bad, but has its (limited) uses.
Try doing a seriously negative review – it can live on and on for years LOL – though don’t bother if you are of a nervous disposition – it gets ugly fast in the IM world if you don’t play the “game” – its an entire industry built on every one pimping everyone else’s crap – a bit like a sharemarket really … when the faith goes – it all comes tumbling down.
The trust thing is interesting actually – as far as I can tell people either trust me online or think I am the devil incarnate – which is way better than medicore in my view.
And I didn’t do it with perfect grammar or spelling or a beautiful theme – I did it by writing as myself – no persona, no skill (to start with), no bullshit. I wanted to record what it was a like for a real person with a not atypical story (burnt out from the corporate job – wanting to be self-employed – terrified of marketing) – and to record whether or not I could make it.
That $50k week is a little far away at the moment – but it pays the bills (just)!
lissie recently posted..Bullying Online is NOT OK – Even for “Adults”
For the record I have strong evidence that Lissie IS the devil incarnate. Email me for proof but DO NOT use Gmail. Shhh.
Carrie recently posted..My Summer Recap
Couldn’t be – you’re confusing her with a guy named Ken. :P
JamestheJust recently posted..How My Newbie Wife Used Twitter to Get Over 3000 Visitors
Yes I know! Grizz responded to my Facebook wall and so did Dave – both telling me the place was worth staying away from. Sadly, I wanted to believe otherwise, but the post they deleted spoke volumes. It wasn’t revolutionary, just my story on making money online really – nothing that intermediate marketers should be nervous of seeing posted (I still can’t believe they deleted THAT post, hopefully you’ll see what I mean if you have time to read it).
I honestly thought better of the place, but this fiasco is sending red flags and warning bells in spades – but to tell you the truth, I dialed down this post (it started off as a rant proper) just to put a more helpful spin on it. Your SBI rant is more famous than Obama and the Queen online, Lis – it’s won you a place high on my totem pole for courage and integrity for sure. I don’t think I’d even know of that company if it wasn’t for rumors of that notorious post (seems Ken doesn’t want it to die, either!).
By the way, you nailed it:
Hear, hear! (Here, hear? Whatever!) Couldn’t agree more.
Agree with James about the whole SBI thing – makes my blood boil but you’ve handled it perfectly Lis!
Ruth recently posted..August Update And Goals For September
You know you got me there for awhile last night. First thing I thought when I saw the screenshot was “Hell, yea, this is awesome”. But after a few minutes I thought it was fake. I even looked at the image closely to see if I can see where it was edited.
Then I was like, I sure hope he scored that one product on one of his sites and really kicked ass.
I know of people who are killing it with WF and they have short reports but they are worth the money.
On the other hand, I have purchased one report that was plain lame.
I did the same one time I believe with Digital point forum. I got so many requests for a free copy in exchange for the testimonial. I refused the first few saying I don’t have any review copies for them and guess what happened, my post was reported and removed and I got a warning (not sure how they call it).
There was no reason for it and it followed the Forum rules but when you have a-holes being plain mean, what can u expect.
And yes, I did believe for some time your screenshot was real and I don’t trust many people :)
Brankica recently posted..Aweber or MailChimp | Why You Should Choose My New Favorite
Brankica –
I sure hope I still have your trust after this screenshot – I did it being burned from the WF and some funny requests for “proof,” but what people wanted to accept as proof is something I’m not willing to give (such as my *actual* keywords I’m ranking for – been burned already with that, not going to happen, or others in the forum – no, I gave a select few people a review copy, people I trust and whos opinions I think would be honest – but not “I give you a free copy, you tell people how awesome this is” – I want honesty).
Anyhow, it was a stunt and hopefully I didn’t lose readers for it. You’re absolutely right that there are GOOD people and GOOD products on the forums – and it’s definitely a smart place to market if you’re in the blogging/IM niches, even if the bad apples seem to be churning out more garbage than not.
The other thing I didn’t make clear here was that not too long ago (this is embarrassing), I spent nearly $500 in the WF after not spending a dime in there for nearly 2 years…it was like I thought, “Oh wow, I have lots to learn…” Which is TRUE – but what I got for my small investments was a lot of junk I didn’t need. It’s just left a bad taste in my mouth. Anyhow, thanks for dropping by! Don’t hate me.
You had me going for a bit!! I thought that was amazing! But yes I trusted you because you seem like a trustworthy guy.
Its so easy to fake how much money you make. Before Tyrone Shum had to confess he doesn’t make six figures a year online. He even made a video confessing the lies. That’s bad!
There is a particular SEO blogger with a green ring around his avatar that comments everywhere. But when you go to his page, it screams of so much hype and not much truth! He has a product, with the worst sales page I’ve ever seen, that promises to help you make $500,000 a year. He’s got an amazing no risk policy. If you don’t like it, get a refund and he’ll give you $500 back!! How much is the product? I think like $50 bucks. It’s pretty funny actually. And the tesimonials are clearly fake.
I’m sure there are lots more people who fake screenshots like you said. I used to visit the Warrior forum and saw those offers. I used to get excited by them. Not anymore.
But there are people looking to make an easy buck. That’s why you have insurance fraud and ponzi schemes happening all the time.
But In the end it’s about building trust with your audience. They get to know you over time. I’m sure if I said I made $50k as App of the week people would believe me!! But then I would have done interview after interview and keep telling lies about how much money I made. I couldn’t live like that. I certainly imagined $5K days as App of the week but it didn’t happen. Still I was excited by it.
If people were to ask me now how much I’m making, I’d tell them the truth. Sure I could say I’m making $1K a day but I’m making way less than that now.
But great post!! I look forward to your real $50K week in the future!!
Benny recently posted..Is Your Brain Full of Crap or Full of Clean Water?
When my wife saw your winning app and your numbers, she looked at me like, “Why can’t YOU do an app? Huh?” But it was just a fleeting moment. :D
Anyhow, I was a bit nervous after I did that screenshot – to tell the truth, I totally hate bait and switches, which is clearly what I did here – but I usually do something like that and throw caution to the wind. Hopefully you don’t hate my guts for it – and it’s stuff like this that drives me to people like Pat Flynn to begin with. The trust factor is huge and credibility is something that few bother to cultivate (it takes time), but it’s so worth it.
Hope you’re working on that next app to show Pat how it’s done!
Uh, if you are going to fake a screenshot at least make it believable. You show earnings of $49,836.79 for two consecutive weeks – duh.
I also had to laugh that you think YOU have a hard time trusting people. I always think of you as too trusting, not sure what that makes me :)
Good article, spot on, ramble on and all that stuff.
Carrie recently posted..My Summer Recap
Hello! Dangit…I knew I goofed that fake shot somehow…
I think your lack of trust comes just means you work for the KGB! Or…CIA…or Google!
JamestheJust recently posted..My 50k Dollar Week and a Lesson in Branding, Trust and Conversions
Ugh, James, this is such a familiar story unfortunately. It seems that the only way to wake up to all the BS is to go through it and get a little burned on the way. For some, that can take a long time and a lot of money lost, for others it’s shorter and less costly. I was lucky to work out the BS early on. Keep your eyes and ears open even around what appears to be ‘genuine’ ‘heartfelt’ marketing too, seriously, that is an art in itself.
I think you’ll find that you don’t need to sell to the IM crowd. There are a lot of fabulous ‘every day’ people who are not hanging around IM forums but still need your advice/services. You know how to build trust, you know how to market and you have a conscience – that my friend will work amazingly well for you in online spaces that are far far removed from the WF et al.
Michelle recently posted..4 Reasons to Seek Private Equity Funding for Your Business
Reminds me of your “Cow Pats” post. :) I probably should have re-read that post of yours, vs. let this get to me. Thanks for dropping by, Michelle! And even moreso for the kind words.
Awesome post James, couldn’t agree more! I had a hunch that the image was doctored but for your sake, I was hoping it was real, lol. Oh well, i’m sure if you keep it up, you’ll get there sooner than you think!
Matthew DC recently posted..Duct Tape SEO Review
Oh, P.S. Eff the Warrior Forum! They are a bunch of elitists who are stuck pawning $9 ebooks to each other because they aren’t really making any money practicing what they preach! Don’t even get me started on that place, their corrupt admins, and borderline illegal business practices.
Matthew DC recently posted..5 Amazing $8 Landing Page Themes for Your Product Launch
Well that’s because you didn’t get the WSO on selling WSO’s (there’s only 100 of them). But it is unreal that they chose this one post of mine to be deleted – what made it all the worse was not responding to my emails.
Griz responded on my Facebook about the place and I have to admit I was naive (hoping for the best, you wind up with egg on your face sometimes).
JamestheJust recently posted..My 50k Dollar Week and a Lesson in Branding, Trust and Conversions
I have to agree that most WSO’s are pretty bad, but what really sucks is that every once in awhile there is an awesome one. It would be nice to have a whitelist page with people you can trust. I’m personally a huge fan of Lisa Parmley, John Robinson (Xfactor), and D&J. Lisa’s Inline SEO course changed the way I do a lot of things in regards to SEO. However, now that anyone can become an affiliate of WSO’s people are recommending everything under the sun which is just freaking annoying.
James, just found your blog. Cheers to a fellow ghost! …
… ghost writer that is. I was the writer behind the machine for two multi-million dollar best selling products in the dating/relationship niche. Now recently I am out doing my own thing so I had a couple questions for you since you seem like one of the few authentic people out there.
1. Using Duct Tape SEO methods, is it possible to rank in the top 5 for VERY competitive niches (like the dating and attraction niche) and competitive keywords? like over 150k phrase match? Also, a lot of the top 10 rankers for some of my keywords are huge sites like askmen.com, my domain is only about 9 months old
2. What’s your take on URL optimization and “stop words”. The AIOSEO plugin automatically takes out words like a, the, what, is, numbers etc and it reads funny in my URLs but apparently there is some sort of seo benefit to it. What do you think?
thanks!
Brian
Brian -
I’m no longer a ghost writer, congrats on your success (I bet you wish you’d been the owner vs. the ghost writer for those products, though? That’s why I’m no longer a ghost writer…).
1) Yes, you can rank for terms of over 300k exact match (not just phrase match) with Duct Tape SEO – it all depends on your dedication to the project and the Google fairy. So don’t read that as a guarantee of rankings (I can’t promise success), but the system itself if geared for tough to rank terms as well as easier terms. It doesn’t matter how old your domain is or isn’t, but if you got links from aged domains that can sure help.
2) I use plugins that make AIOSEO look like a pathetic slug with a limp. That plugin stinks like anchovies, it’s pathetic. (Sorry, but it’s time people stopped using it – the development of that plugin stops far short of what I recommend.) The plugins I recommend in my book strip out those stop words, and the truth is the search engines look past most or all of those words anyway.
Yup, the guy made atleast 1.5 mil off my stuff over the past few years. Ohwell, lesson learned.
Ok cool. Well, I guess the question is if leaving the stop words in there DOESNT hurt anything…because ofcourse they are better for human readers, so I would prefer to leave them in, unless leaving them in HURTS ranking
It doesn’t hurt ranking, but every search engine will truncate your title if you go over the limit of characters (some say 70 characters, others 60, I use plugins to monitor that for me). So if you have 10 words and some are articles (“the” for example), you’re taking up space that you could use for your title, which can act like an anchor text.
If you have shorter titles, you get the benefit of being found more relevant for your chosen keywords. Say your keyword was dog training tips. A title like, “Some of the darn best dog training tips evah” wouldn’t be as SEO-savvy as “Dog Training Tips Anyone Can Use” or whatever. It doesn’t hurt your rankings, though. Blog commenting on blogs for a backlink who refuse to give you a link won’t hurt your rankings, either – but your time would be better spent getting links where you can get your links…
The WF is one big circle jerk. I’ve noticed this trend where people push these regurgitated products for around 10 bucks on a dimesale and give 100% commission to affiliates even.
What it is they just want you on their list and then what they do is pimp everyone elses WSOs and get 100% commission and it goes around and around like that.
I think theres a big goup there that has figured out that the 10 dollar price point is the winning number. You get less per sale, but a much higher conversion so the total is higher than if you sold it at 27, which used to be the normal price for a WSO.
Um – you should’ve made this into a WSO and sold it. Hello?! Ka-CHING!! :D
Hey James,
I have been a member of WF for a few years now (since I started doing this IM thing) and I have to say, I learned a lot of stuff from reading and participating on WF. There are a lot of good honest people there that are always more than happy to help you. To be honest, if it wasn’t for the help of few of really good people on WF, I wouldn’t have gotten this far, going from not knowing anything about SEO to ranking high for my keywords and making over $5000 a month with my first blog in about 1 year.
However, One thing I stayed away from was spending money on WF and especially on those “WSO”s. Most of the so called “WSO”s are rehashed of old information that you can easily find for free.
But, in all honestly, there are some people(a few) who do provide really good stuff (mostly tools and plugins).
The biggest problem I have with WF is that most of their member seem to be living in a dream!
Satrap recently posted..How Does Facebook Make Money?
I totally agree – there are a lot of honest people just learning from one another, and it’s not all bad by any means. I wrote this post out of frustration of A) getting a thread blocked, B) getting sick of the over-selling there.
What sells there is a lot of junk (sprinkled in you can find GOOD WSO’s, of course, but you have to pick through a lot of junk first). I hate the idea of people losing tons of money and getting burned out by buying all that first and seeing how cheap a lot of so-called “business plans” really are.
Marketing and web publishing is much more demanding than typical WSO’s would have you believe, but what “sells” is the “easy road”….truth is a tougher thing to actually profit off of, when hype looks so much easier. That sort of marketing gets my dander up, as Mark Twain would put it.
I’ve seen lots of screen shots by others who are calling themselves as high earners in clickbank. Unfortunately, lots of people find themselves interested to these easy money earning activities. So they are tempted to pay for the money worth of the best opportunity! But those who are really aware, they totally rely on trust to the person.