Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Correcting a Mistake
I corrected a mistake today. Yes, I make them. In fact, I make plenty of them. This one was a product I bought that was not what I expected it to be.
I learned of a new, free, training program on affiliate marketing through a trusted source. I'm always looking for new techniques and strategies, so I figured it was worth a try. Boy, was I wrong!
Upon signing up, I was immediately hit with a choice: "Do you want just the free information? Or do you want to upgrade to the advanced version for only $37 and get a lot better training?"
I opted for the upgrade. Immediately, I was hit with another choice: "Do you want to get just the advanced version? Or do you want to get the finest affiliate training anywhere with the super-advanced version for only $77 more?
The double upgrade set off warning bells in my head. This was starting to sound like a sales technique that I have grave reservations about, but I bit again. Fortunately, they haven't developed their ultra-super-advanced version yet, so I was spared any further upgrade attempts.
I entered the private membership area. The entrance had nothing about training except a small link at the top that said, "Training Materials." The entrace to the membership area was dedicated to hyping up how much money you could make by getting everyone else you know to sign up for the site, too.
The page was impressive. They obviously had put a lot of work into it. I wish I could say the same for the training materials.
The single training page was a jumble of poorly described MP3 links. I listened to few. The interviews were on a basic level and broke no new ground beyond the interviews those same marketers have had floating around the Internet for free for years.
I planned to check out a couple of the initial training sessions, but more red flags and questionable practices convinced me that enough was enough. I got my money back.
I hope, though, that what I gained from my mistake can help you avoid similar experiences. Here's what I got from it:
1. Go into any potential purchase with your eyes open. I learned of this training program through a person who has always given me solid, quality advice. Nobody's perfect, though. No matter how comfortable you are with a recommendation, use your own judgment about whether a purchase is right for YOU.
2. Get suspicious when you're pushed to make multiple upgrades BEFORE you know what you're getting. The fact that someone offers another product or a higher level of service isn't automatically a red flag. But if a seller really twists your arm to keep you climbing the ladder of cost before you've ever seen what you're getting, it's probably because he knows his product isn't worth the higher cost.
That kind of pressure is just the opposite of one of my favorite training sites, Trafficology. Quality sites like Trafficology are not afraid to show you what you get, giving a two month free trial before you ever pay a cent for their marketing training. They know that their product is so good that you'll gladly pay to keep accessing it.
3. Beware when you buy a product for one purpose and the seller immediately shifts the emphasis to promoting their product instead. That's not to say that any product that mentions their affiliate program is bad.
But if they're more interested in getting you to promote for them than in giving you what you paid for, all you're doing is helping them exploit others with a product that they don't believe in themselves.
4. Never be afraid to walk away from a deal if your warning alarms go off. I was looking for a good affiliate training tool and I let my fear of missing out on something good supercede my common sense.
Should I have put on the brakes when my gut started to warn me that things were not right? Definitely! But my mind kept telling me, "This has got to be good. Look at all the good things it promises. This might just be a better affiliate training tool than anything I recommend. I owe it to my readers to check this out. I might never have this opportunity again." Never talk yourself into a purchase on the basis of fear.
5. Be a strategist instead of an opportunist. It's tempting to run a business by simply reacting to what happens around you. That was what I did wrong.
I got swept up in an opportunity that sounded good. But all it did was to take valuable time away from pursuing my STRATEGY for long-term growth. People, jumping from opportunity to opportunity without an overriding strategy is NOT the way to build a business.
Know where you want to go. Plot out your path to getting there. Don't let "the next great thing" divert you from your path. If you purchase something, purchase it because it fits your overall strategy for success, not because you're afraid of missing out on something if you don't.
You'll get a lot farther with a well-planned strategy than with all the false opportunities that pop up around you.
Jeff
I corrected a mistake today. Yes, I make them. In fact, I make plenty of them. This one was a product I bought that was not what I expected it to be.
I learned of a new, free, training program on affiliate marketing through a trusted source. I'm always looking for new techniques and strategies, so I figured it was worth a try. Boy, was I wrong!
Upon signing up, I was immediately hit with a choice: "Do you want just the free information? Or do you want to upgrade to the advanced version for only $37 and get a lot better training?"
I opted for the upgrade. Immediately, I was hit with another choice: "Do you want to get just the advanced version? Or do you want to get the finest affiliate training anywhere with the super-advanced version for only $77 more?
The double upgrade set off warning bells in my head. This was starting to sound like a sales technique that I have grave reservations about, but I bit again. Fortunately, they haven't developed their ultra-super-advanced version yet, so I was spared any further upgrade attempts.
I entered the private membership area. The entrance had nothing about training except a small link at the top that said, "Training Materials." The entrace to the membership area was dedicated to hyping up how much money you could make by getting everyone else you know to sign up for the site, too.
The page was impressive. They obviously had put a lot of work into it. I wish I could say the same for the training materials.
The single training page was a jumble of poorly described MP3 links. I listened to few. The interviews were on a basic level and broke no new ground beyond the interviews those same marketers have had floating around the Internet for free for years.
I planned to check out a couple of the initial training sessions, but more red flags and questionable practices convinced me that enough was enough. I got my money back.
I hope, though, that what I gained from my mistake can help you avoid similar experiences. Here's what I got from it:
1. Go into any potential purchase with your eyes open. I learned of this training program through a person who has always given me solid, quality advice. Nobody's perfect, though. No matter how comfortable you are with a recommendation, use your own judgment about whether a purchase is right for YOU.
2. Get suspicious when you're pushed to make multiple upgrades BEFORE you know what you're getting. The fact that someone offers another product or a higher level of service isn't automatically a red flag. But if a seller really twists your arm to keep you climbing the ladder of cost before you've ever seen what you're getting, it's probably because he knows his product isn't worth the higher cost.
That kind of pressure is just the opposite of one of my favorite training sites, Trafficology. Quality sites like Trafficology are not afraid to show you what you get, giving a two month free trial before you ever pay a cent for their marketing training. They know that their product is so good that you'll gladly pay to keep accessing it.
3. Beware when you buy a product for one purpose and the seller immediately shifts the emphasis to promoting their product instead. That's not to say that any product that mentions their affiliate program is bad.
But if they're more interested in getting you to promote for them than in giving you what you paid for, all you're doing is helping them exploit others with a product that they don't believe in themselves.
4. Never be afraid to walk away from a deal if your warning alarms go off. I was looking for a good affiliate training tool and I let my fear of missing out on something good supercede my common sense.
Should I have put on the brakes when my gut started to warn me that things were not right? Definitely! But my mind kept telling me, "This has got to be good. Look at all the good things it promises. This might just be a better affiliate training tool than anything I recommend. I owe it to my readers to check this out. I might never have this opportunity again." Never talk yourself into a purchase on the basis of fear.
5. Be a strategist instead of an opportunist. It's tempting to run a business by simply reacting to what happens around you. That was what I did wrong.
I got swept up in an opportunity that sounded good. But all it did was to take valuable time away from pursuing my STRATEGY for long-term growth. People, jumping from opportunity to opportunity without an overriding strategy is NOT the way to build a business.
Know where you want to go. Plot out your path to getting there. Don't let "the next great thing" divert you from your path. If you purchase something, purchase it because it fits your overall strategy for success, not because you're afraid of missing out on something if you don't.
You'll get a lot farther with a well-planned strategy than with all the false opportunities that pop up around you.
Jeff
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