Lynn Terry blogs about the FTC and Social Media Marketing

May 20, 2009 by John Dilbeck · 24 Comments
Filed under: Advertising and Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, Blogging, Social Networking 

For the first time in several weeks, I fired up my newsreader and started catching up on what my friends have been blogging about recently.

One of the first things that caught my eye was Lynn Terry’s post, FTC to Regulate Social Media Marketing.

She did a good job linking to information about this, so I won’t repeat what she said. Click the link, above, to read her post; it will open in a new window.

I think it’s about time that the FTC started to crack down on deceptive advertising and claims, and the new emphasis on “atypical results” is a good thing, too.

Although I can’t show you specific statistics to back up what I’m about to say, it’s common knowledge that over 90% of affiliate marketers never earn anything, or at least earn very little.

Yet, there are people and websites out there that claim that it’s the easiest thing in the world to join a few affiliate programs, set up a blog, and start earning thousands of dollars.

This claim is simply not true.

Yes, there are a few people who earn thousands of dollars every month through affiliate marketing, but they are the exceptions – they are the people who enjoy “atypical results.”

Perhaps it was a matter of timing. Maybe they got in at the right time.

Maybe they had more experience in marketing and advertising than most of us.

Who knows why they were successful.

Online marketing is still not as easy as some would paint it.

So, I’m hoping that the FTC does crack down on all the hype and scams that are floating around.

On the other hand, it worries me a bit that they may go too far.

Some of us try very hard to have a good knowledge of what we recommend. I am a satisfied customer of the products and services I recommend the most, but I can’t be 100% sure that I haven’t said something, somewhere, sometime, that may come back to bite me.

What about you?

Have you ever taken someone else’s word about a product and recommended it with little or no personal experience?

I don’t think you want to open yourself up to all the problems that will arise when the FTC cracks down on blogs and social networking sites.

I am far from getting rich, and my affiliate marketing income has dropped dramatically since last September, but I’m in this for the long haul and look forward to the months ahead when my revenue will rise, again.

I feel that I’ve been ethical and honest about the things I promote, but I look back and see that some things I liked a few years ago no longer look as good as they did then.

Does this mean that I have to find all my websites and everything I’ve ever published and see if they need to be modified and/or deleted?

I really don’t know.

Lynn’s post has given me something to seriously think about now that I’m getting back to work.

What do you think?

Act on your dream!

JD

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An affiliate program I chose not to join

August 24, 2008 by John Dilbeck · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Affiliate Marketing, Musings, Opinions, TV 

In general, I like to maintain a positive outlook on life and I rarely write posts that contain negative comments about companies and people I don’t know and with whom I have no personal experience.

However, in this case, I’m going to make an exception.

Again, none of this is based on personal experience or knowledge, and I’m sure there are at least two sides to every story.

This morning, I wasn’t feeling very well and I was moving slowly. I watched Meet The Press (still miss Tim!) and then Face The Nation.

I’d printed out the latest Five Pillar Affiliate Report, more on that in a later post, and had left the TV on as background noise while I read.

Then something caught my attention and I started watching the TV show – an informercial about Russ Dalbey’s “Winning in the Cash Flow Business” training materials.

From somewhere, I don’t remember where, I already knew a little bit about cash flow notes and, from my experience long ago, knew that making money by brokering sales of these cash flow notes based on the time value of money isn’t as easy as the show made it out to be. For one thing, a lot of people who have a cash flow note (from lottery winnings, settlements, lawsuit judgements, and so forth) prefer to get a monthly or annual check and don’t care about getting a lump sum, especially when that lump sum is a lot less than the total value of the note.

Have you tried to explain amortization to someone? That’s a lot easier than explaining the time value of money, especially when they have absolutely no interest in talking to you.

I’m not saying that money can’t be made this way, but it surely isn’t as easy as the infomercial leads us to believe.

But, what it did really well was to build excitement about getting lots of money easily. Then, there was the deadline designed to make you reach for your credit card. I don’t remember the actual price of the course, but if you bought it before the show was over (18 more minutes, nine more minutes, one more minute) there were bonuses, free shipping, and a discounted price that was purported to be about a quarter of the regular price.

Now, I understand how this works. The course is obviously a loss-leader and is designed to get you on their list. I suspected that it would be followed up with back-end upgrades and additional offers, so – even though I was tempted – I didn’t reach for the phone or a card.

Later, after reading the 5 Pillar newsletter and taking a nap, I got online and Googled “Winning in the Cash Flow Business.”

I was shocked by what I read on a couple of sites where people had posted their reviews. They were overwhelmingly negative with only a very few positive reviews.

Now, that may not mean as much as it does if you take it only at face value.

If I’m satisfied with a purchase and I learn something that works for me, I’m not going to be looking for a place to review it, unless it is really spectacular.

On the other hand, if I am dissatisfied with something, I’ll express my opinion.

The stories I read about this business were scary. Buy a course for $20 or $40 (it varies) and then someone calls you on the phone and pressures you to spend thousands of dollars. That’s unconscionable, if the stories the reviewers related are true.

There are people out there who must feel as if it is morally wrong to leave a sucker with any money in their pocket or any credit on their credit cards. I’m not saying this company fits that characterization, I don’t know, but there are others who are expressing that sentiment.

(You may want to read what Ken Evoy wrote about Success Stories And Mooch Marketing. Before you reach for your credit card, stop, think, and and perform your due diligence. Learn from the mistakes of others and don’t get suckered in by the glitz, glamor, and promises of easy profits.)

One of the things that caught my attention was that several people related that they had been scammed again (my emphasis).

What does it take to learn?

How hard is it these days to do some research online before handing over your hard earned money or easily spent credit?

Now, I don’t know if most of the stories the people told are true and accurate representations of what they experienced with this company. I don’t know if any of them are true.

But, I don’t have to burn my hand when someone tells me the stove is hot.

When you do a general search for something and the majority of the results on the first page warn of scams, pressure pitches, mistreatment, and not following through with what is promised, why on earth would you send them your money or associate with them in any way.

So, that was my mindset when I found the company’s official website.

As is my habit, I scrolled to the bottom to see if they have an affiliate program, and they do. I clicked on the link and read about it.

It looked great. Super Easy. Fast Payment. Big Commissions. Why Is This The Best Affiliate Program Online?

Yes, it was tempting.

In fact, I’m sure I could make money promoting this.

But I’m not going to.

As I’ve said before, “if it’s not good enough for me, it’s not good enough for you.”

I won’t buy it, so I won’t promote it. It’s just that easy. I sleep easier at night knowing that I wasn’t a part of someone being bilked for thousands of dollars.

Now, I don’t think I’m your parent or guardian. You’re free to make up your own mind and buy the product or join the affiliate program and promote it. It’s totally up to you.

Again, I don’t know if the stories I read are true or not. I don’t know if the company is reliable or not. I don’t plan to do any more checking.

Two aphorisms come to mind in a situation like this…

  • If there’s smoke, there’s fire
  • If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is

Maybe this stove is hot and maybe it’s not, but I’m not going to put my hand on it to find out. There are too many other ways to make money online that I know are legitimate and ethical.

I know that I won’t promote it and that’s the end of my story.

Act on your dream!

JD

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