Hey everyone,
I thought I’d share my thoughts on the whole affiliate marketing industry and explain some things that I think will help you make more money and avoid, what I refer to as, the dark side of internet marketing.
I’m just going to have a slight rant for the next few paragraphs so please bare with me while I vent a little (this post will help protect you from the greedy sharks online, so it’s worth reading to the end, I promise).
As someone who has now been in this business for a number of years and has an email list that is pretty decent sized now and growing rapidly, I tend to gain the attention of more and more other marketers. There are two types of marketers out there, the gooddies and the baddies.
Who Are the Bad Guys & Gals?
Well the baddies don’t go around in red costumes with little horns on their heads, they are much more subtle than this and therefore you need to be more careful when looking out for them.
Enough of the analogies for now, the baddies are the kind of marketers that really have no idea themselves how to make money online except by selling products to people in the IM niche! Yes I know it can be hard to believe that people can sell courses on how to make money online without actually knowing how to do it themselves, but unfortunately there are people out there like this.
The baddies also care very little about really helping the people on their email lists make money and instead just hammer them with emails, encouraging them in somewhat deceptive ways to buy, buy and buy more products. You can usually spot a bad guy or gal when they don’t give you any free content and training, so be aware.
Get ready for this next point as you might be shocked. Some of the baddies actually have bad guy and girl groups, where they all promote each others bad products regardless of what the product is like. Remember the baddies don’t care if you make money with these products, in fact they prefer if you don’t as this way you’ll be more likely to buy their next garbage product.
Checklist for Spotting the Baddies
- They only send out promotional emails
- Their own products are all theory with no evidence in them
- All their screen shots for evidence of commissions earned are Clickbank ones, because they only make money from Clickbank IM products and not a penny from other niches because they don’t know how to
- They usually don’t run live webinars with their list as they prefer to hide behind email where they can’t be exposed
The $37 Magic Software Scams
The classic products that the sharks are bringing out and selling on Clickbank right now are these junk $37 software products that promise that you will not have to do ANYTHING, no PPC, no SEO, no banners, no facebook, no offline marketing, none of that, as the software will do it all for you and can make you $125,000 in 6 months.
If you believe this garbage then you’re a fool, as this is nothing short from pure evil deception.
I know from other marketers that have spoken to these scammers that they don’t care at all about the fact that they’re lying on the sales page and that the software actually doesn’t do anything. Below is a fake conversion that I could have with the people that create this crap (conversation based on a similar true event)
Matt: “Hey Scammer, I saw you have a new software tool out that made you $125,000 in 6 months, that’s fantastic, one question though, last time we spoke you didn’t even have one affiliate site up, because you didn’t know how to make them, so how come, all of a sudden you have this amazing software tool that did it all for you?”
Scammer: “Hey Matt, yeah it’s pretty odd if you put it like that, because I still don’t have a clue how to make affiliate marketing sites and I never will because I’m way to lazy for that and so I just made this crap software tool and lied on the sales letter and used hyped up video with actors that I hired and people seem to be falling for it and buying my product….I’m so happy it worked!”
Matt: “oh wow, I must say I’m kind of shocked that you would do that, do you have any morals at all? How do you sleep at night knowing you are stealing from people?”
Scammer: “why would I care about the people on my list or anyone else’s list for that matter, I just want to get rich and I don’t care about the people….”
Matt: “oh double wow, now I am even more horified, so you actually don’t care that you are stealing from people and ruining their hopes, you just care about money”
Scammer: “Dude, why do you even care, Clickbank has a 60 day refund period, so if people are dumb enough to fall for my lies then they can refund, but I know most never do so that’s how I make money!!”
Matt: “I don’t even know what to say to you now, I am so shocked that people like you are in this business, and I intend never to work with you ever!”
So if you’ve ever been sent to one of these garbage products by someone, then you need to get off their email lists right now, because for them to send you to one of these scammy products, means that don’t give a rip about 
you and sold out for a a 50% commission of $37.
People please don’t fall for this garbage, as much as I wish it weren’t so, a lot of the top selling products in Clickbank now are scams, most of them are these terrible cheap $37 software products that claim you don’t have to do anything as the software will do it all for you and make you rich.
The reason these products sell well, is because they appeal to the lazy person in us all, we all want to get rich and not have to do anything for it, but anyone with a half a brain knows this isn’t reality.
Make a stand, and if you have then STOP right now and don’t ever buy these products again, and like I said if someone who’s email list you are on sent you to one, then get off that list immediately.
What About the Good Guys and Gals?
Now that we’ve talked about the baddies, let’s talk about the goodies, because although they’re unfortunately less common, they do exist out there and I’ve come to know quite a few of the goodies in my time.
The goodies still send out promotional emails, as there’s nothing wrong with buying good products, it’s just makes business sense to invest in your education, and a good guy or gal marketer can’t create all the courses on their own after all. don’t get confused if you see someone promote a $37 product to you, that’s not what I meant above, I mean the $37 SOFTWARE scams you need to watch out for.
However the goodies should always check the product themselves to make sure it’s good value, AND the goodies usually don’t only send out things to buy, but make an effort to provide free tips for their subscribers also.
Most of the goodies I know have some form of blog where they provide training and updates for their subscribers, much like this one you are ready right now.
Conclusion
I know a lot of you might want me to list all the baddies I know, however I’m not going to do that as that’s not going to help and you should be able to see through their lies now anyway.
All I’ll say is have a look at the email lists you are on right now and ask yourself whether you think this person is on the dark side of internet marketing or not. If they are not helping you in any way, then I suggest to look for the unsubscribe button and move on.
When I first started out online I bought a course for $2500 and it was a scam. The course was a over hyped, over priced and sold to me in a deceptive way. As you can imagine I can’t stand this form of marketing as it’s only good for the corrupt person selling it!
I would like to think of myself as a good guy and will continue to do my best to provide videos and posts for all my subscribers and recommend products that I know are good.
That’s all from me, sorry for the long rant, I thought it might be worth a laugh for us all!
Matt Carter
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Hi Matt 🙂
Thanks for the great info. Lately i receive many emails like this as i tried to look what there are promoting.
And totally it was just scam & hype. Some of them are big name in this IM industry. I tried to contact some of them just want to see how they can help me before buy the product but the result from the support are very disappointed and bad.
I actually start my own IM lately in 2008 through ebay. and the best part by selling physical product , its still have demand in market.
I really glad to find you as very helpful person in this industry. Keep up the good work and pray for your success..:)
CHEERS!
Matt Carter Reply:
March 14th, 2011 at 4:58 pm
Hey AynMaria
Yeah there are some dodgy marketers out there, don’t be fooled by how ‘big’ a name they may have, these are usually the worse of all!
All the best
Matt
I know exactly what you are talking about. I have seen a lot of these crap/scams lately and what shocks me the most is people recommending them, Just to make a buck. This is really insane. I had one guru send this scam offer to his subscribers, It was so funny to watch and as a guy, I must admit enjoying the whole video by this hired girl. Anyways, yall know what am talking about. The person that sent me/us these types of crap emailed us again, Following up and apologizing he didn’t listen to the whole video and saying he don’t agree with the sales letter but he knows the guy behind the software and it is an Ok software. This guy is actually ruining his reputation, he is a young fella that is following the bad groups because he has a product by himself that I think is quality. Here is what I do, I SUBSCRIBE from some of these evil one hit wonders who are targeting naive innocent people online. We are all human, please do onto your anybody as you’d like them to do onto you. You Rock Matt and I am glad I know of you. Keep the good work buddy.
hey so what ever sites are being recommended on clickbank are fake or bogus baddies spams sites or what ?
Hi Matt, hear you loud and clear! I share your sentiments. I’m all for trying something new, but unlike most? other people, I DO get my refund if the product does not deliver on the promises in the sales letter. I’m still a “newbie” and just cannot afford to buy products that do not work. My best advice to people, try new things, but make sure it delivers! I recently joined your list, must thank you for the value you’ve added thus far in my quest to learn internet marketing. You are one of the good guys, thank you!
Matt,
Spot on.
Here is what I do – I email every customer list offender and tell them in specific, in-your-face-terms how much I loathe their disrespecting their customers, and then I unsubscribe.
You know, someone ought to make a list of names of the most seriously egregious abusers of their lists. I can name five guys right now who used to email me J-V pitches DAILY (until I unsubscribed after weeks of deleting their email).
Well, onward.
JFB
Right on Matt, tell it like it is man! By the way, I have this awesome $37 uber secret product for sale that will completely transform your life, wash the car, milk the cow and make you 15 years younger (with a special bonus for the first 500 buyers (only 2 places left so hurry) that will transport you to another dimension making you like a god in the IM world overnight). Interested?
Thanks for your rant…. you took the words out of my mouth.
Jocelyn
Hey Matt,
Spot on! I hate those guys and I’m always warning my list NOT to buy anything that guarantees instant results especially the 3 clicks and you’ve made it bunch.
Even more annoying is that some of the big names promote this crap.
Precious few on the good side but you’re one of them.
Joe Hughes
You mean I can’t earn $125,000 by investing just $37 in software that will just do it all for me? Man. That sucks! I bought 10 of them thinking I’d earn 10x that! Looks like I’ll have to go back to McDonalds…
“Good webinar, but was really disappointed to see how your example sites have actually been promoted. I know you outsource but blog comment spamming is still spamming even if you pay someone else to do it! The links to your Alteril site for example are shocking. Do you know your outsourcer is blatantly spamming blogs..?”
Can you clarify please Matt – what does this mean ?
Hi Matt,
You are so right, and the situation seems to be getting worse. Every time I get an email these days I am thinking is this person for real or just another scammer?
You really need to do some digging to find the truth.
Great Blog
Lynsey
The trick is to figure out who is the scammer and who isn’t. And even some of the “good guys” lists start to become nothing more than a sales funnel. Good for them if it works, but if I signed up for info I want info.
A good read Matt. I’ve been scammed once, yes bought a piece of software that would amazingly “…bring a flood of traffic” to my sites, blah blah blah… Waste of money and the junk was sitting at #1 seller on clickbank for quite awhile, undoubtedly selling to we IM small-fry who are just trying to make a couple spare bucks.
I’ve never made a dime from clickbank but I love the physical product affiliate marketing, I’m only a part-timer so only making “pizza money” right now but still having fun.
Thanks again for a straight-up blog entry today!
Thanks for the info here about scams,I get a lot of those $37 ones too, on a daily basis,and I also noticed their clickbank”proof” was all dated 2009 or 2010,some even 2008!! No recent proof of earnings at all.Also,take a look at the amounts “earned” on them too,usualy all the same,ie,money taken from genuine people looking to make money.Ime gonna un-subscribe right now.
Good article Matt – there are SO many scams with “gurus” selling totally cr*p products. They should be in prison in my opinion for outright fraud. I saw one recently where the young British man in it was filming himself looking at this Clickbank Commissions for his updated product. The affiliate i.d was easy to pick out and it was his VENDOR i.d for one of his other “products” – not the method he was trying to sell.
I really like your Rapid Profit Formula by the way – haven’t been through it all quite yet but hoping it will help me with my Amazon UK affiliate sites.
Hi Matt,
Unfortunately, I’ve been down that road myself. It took me a little while until I figured out that there’s a lot of trash out there. I’m very glad I happened to find you and your teachings. Very professional and very informative. Thank for all you bring to the table. I’m a customer of yours for life. 🙂
Michael
Matt – I get tons of these crappy offers – they are literally clogging up my inbox and I don’t even know where they get my e-mail address from.
yeah, i almost bought one one of those scam products myself.
it was TOO GOOD to be true…
i wont mention the name of it but it was a “copy-paste-system” that works for you and i find it kinda hard to believe that it will make me rich that easily.
what do you think of these “copy-paste-systems” Matt?
i’d really like to know
Best,
Great reading Matt, couldn’t agree with you more. I’d love to know who that ONE scammer is, so I can warn my readers also.
There’s been such a rash of them recently I’m amazed Clickbank themselves dont do anything about it. Doesn’t help their reputation IMHO.
Thanks for the honest post Matt.
You are a genuine & genious marketer. I admire your work & product, and will highly recommend it to anyone starting out in as an affiliate.
Great post Matt.
Not everyone has the guts to actually say what you said but it is so true. I have received countless emails promoting these $37 products that will make me a £1million in a day (slight exageration) so I thought I would spend $37 on one of them to test what they had to say.
I made sure I did everything they said to the letter in their training that would get me the same massive free traffic they claim they get and through using analytics I discovered that I virtually got zero traffic and zero backlinks.
WHAT A SURPRISE!!
It’s a shame CB doesn’t shut these charlatans down but it is great that honest people like yourself are not affraid to warn us of them.
Again thanks for a great post
Matt,
I’ve recently become an enthustiastic member of the Matt Carter fan club, and just wanted to say that I agree with everything you wrote. The bad guys aren’t hard to spot after a while, but they take their toll until we get wise to their game.
By contrast, everything I’ve seen, read or listened to from you made sense, was verifiable (and I’ve checked) and so far has worked. I’m convinced you’re the real deal and that you have values that you live by, which puts you in an entirely different class.
Keep up the good work!
Mike
Yep… I was also scammed, not even once but many times… however Clickbank is very good they return the money. So I am not really afraid of buying from clickbank. The last vandor even didn’t want to refund to me… He switched my refund ticket toi technical support something like 7-8 times, talking to me about different software. Like I said that “your internet marketing software is bad, because of this and that… ” and they wrote to me that “I should wait a little bit and try my forex robot more longer” … though I didn’t bought forexr robot. At last I was tied and I said message to clickbank asking them to read our conversation, and the next day I wasx refunded… So clickbank to my mind is really reliable and they do refund…
There is a famous fella that sells kits for starting up your own computer consulting business. He also boasts that any existing company can increase their profits by following all his methods. After spending close to two hundred dollars all I got was some bad word templates, half assed sales letter and a whole whack more offers to ‘upgrade’ for even more useless information.
Just so you folks know, it’s not just the IM people taking advantage.
Matt, Thats why I keep following you. When I see your email come in I know your not just pitching me, your adding true value to my IM businesses. After being online for awhile you just know who has true character. Matt Carter has the heart for the people offers only the best tools, systems and advice. The dark side of affiliate marketing is one of the those gyms of IM marketing facts.
Thanks a Million Matt
Jason Stovall
Great post Matt, I totally agree. As of today, I have unsubscribed from 18 lists-some I have been on for over a year. Mainly because of the subject lines they feel the need to use like; You have a sale-Commissions pending- and many more deceptive lines that are not necessary and will not be tolerated. I sell Gods money! So everybody knows I am real and not out to scam anyone. got to go, it’s time to bounce a few more idiots off of my email!
Thanks Matt – you’re right on track and we do need to keep our eye open for all the junk that’s coming our way.
Nice post Matt!
It’s really funny that the baddies only make money with a scammy product on how to make money without ever making money in another way.
But there are others that make the same kind of scammy overpriced pretty worthless products in other niches!
I couldn’t agree more with you Matt. I’ve been posting a few rants myself and the one thing I”m grateful for is the ethical marketers out there. After being taken advantage of a few times and getting dozens of crappy emails every day, it would have been easy to just give up and decide that this was no place for me. I’ve been able to get a fairly diverse business going with sales on Clickbank, CJ, Amazon, and Adsense. It’s not a million dollars a year but it’s something.
Keep up the good work!
Great post Matt,
Keep up the good work, you are a great mentor to learn from because you are good at doing what it is that you teach (affiliate marketing).
Keep up the good work and keep on standing out from the crowd ; – )
As someone that has been on your list for quite a while, I can attest that you are definitely one of the good guys, Matt. Yes, I cannot stand the sharks as well .. the whole ironic “formula” of making money online selling (junk) products on how to make money online makes me physically ill …
Best,
Scott
This kind of crap makes me sick! I haven’t been online for long but I do have extensive experience in the offline world and this type of blatant lying and deception would not be tolerated. In fact in some cases it is down right criminal and would be prosecuted!
But alas, this is the wild west internet and for now it is just the price we pay for trying to learn this business. Another thing that just pisses me off is the 6 level upsell, downsell, sidesell, backsell, “i’ll do anything to get your money sell”. I understand marketing and this strategy happens every day in the offline world but, come on, it has become outright outlandish!
There, I feel better…LOL
Good observations Matt and keep up the good work!
Larry
Hi Matt,
Thanks for that post – I did as you said and managed to take myself off about 30 lists of ‘Baddies’ today. I saw how they were ganging up on me to buy the ‘crap’ you mentioned.
Now I have to save my mother from these lists of death – she is pretty addicted to them and has shelled out thousands because she wants to better her life.
I bought both your Rapid Profit Formula and Rapid Rewriter and believe your tools and methods to be phenomenally powerful. Finding the time to implement them is my challenge. My first project using your techniques had 4 sales from about 60 Google website hits. I was pretty stoked to say the least.
Cheers,
Haydn
Matt, since purchasing your Rapid Profit Formula recently, I have unsubscribed to all of my other email subscriptions except for yours and a couple others I trust. I have fallen for a few scams over the past couple years, but through your new course, I finally feel like I am actually getting the training I need from an honest person. It IS a lot of work – I have spent hours researching products to sell as an affiliate, but I love it! I know now I am going about it in a way that will ultimately help me make money online rather than blindly floundering. There is no “easy” way to make money if you are an honest person with morals to uphold. Thank you for being one of those people and for being willing to show me step by step how to find niches and build a website around a product that will sell. You are a breath of fresh air in my previously stale world!
Here, here Matt!
Bravo for hitting the nail right on the head. I’m so sick of those guys and it seems that the more unsubbing I do the more emails I get from new ones I’ve never heard of before. It’s just crazy.
Glad there are decent marketers like you around to show us the way and really care about others.
Cheers!
Sally
This is my personal favorite for those $1,997 products that seem so popular lately:
“people have paid me over $10,000 to learn the information in this course…”
which in a few months ends up being a free bonus for another $1,997 course (which also originally sold for over $10,000)
Good job Matt. I hope someday some honor may return to internet marketing, good luck
You have confirmed what I have seen over the last couple of years. I put so much into my trash folder without reading it that I should get my name off their lists to save my valuable time !!!!
great post. I too got stung but never again!
Hey Matt, it seems obvious that the “Guru’s” are getting desperate as more and more respected marketers are abusing their list and sending out links for all manner of crap products. I have had emails from people I trusted and have had to unsubscribe because of the garbage they are selling. They simply don’t care. Clickbank make to much money to care about the products they sell. The bigger the hype, the bigger the lie, the bigger the profit. Hard work, time and effort are the only way to make an honest living online.
Thanks Matt for your honesty and integrity. Hard to find these days!
I would like Clickbank to have some kind of restrictions or approval system or something for their products to keep all the scammers out.
You have given us much value and training for FREE! Thank you
Yes i think we all get sent these dishonest products and like you all those that send me them I unsubscribe from.
But why won’t you name them, is it fear of being sued, fear of retaliation or is it a darker reason in that you only make the post to make yourself seem a good guy without actually telling anybody anything.
The biggest problem of course is clickbank they Know these products are crap and obviously are only interested in making money not in if they are promoting anything of value. I personally think clickbank should stand up in the IM world and truly evaluate there products before allowing them to be listed.
seeya Ian
Good post Matt and I can vouch for you as one of the good guys 🙂
These $37 products you refer to suck – but Google Sniper 2.0 was an exception which you kindly made your list aware of.
Looking forward to your webinar
Spot on Matt! I saw exactly what you are describing last week, claiming their software could create money making sites in 2 minutes with no SEO, PPC or anything else. I’m only just starting out but I already know that this can’t be true.
Mick
Matt,
i think your post expresses what a lot of people feel at the moment. what saddens me is the fact that so called big boys in this industry who were meant to be pioneers, are ‘gurus’ and are actually supporting the merry-go-round fairytale. I have unsubscribed from quite a few lists receintly and glad to know there’s a new breed of teachers coming up (of which you’re one) who add good ethics to their business dealings.
all the best
Matt,
I agree and it amazes me the amount of $37.00 crap products that are hitting the market.
Maybe the good guys need to start their own group and begin naming names or at the very least products. Take the profit out of it for these folks. Maybe a weekly webinar entitled “Crap Products of the Week”. You, James and Brian probably see most of it before anyone else does.
Newbies are generally hungry for new info and the magic bullet so they are very easily pulled in by the offer of hope. These are the folks that really need the help.
Just a thought.
Hi Matt
Thanks for the opportunity to tell you what bugs me.
I have sent a simmilar letter to other so called big gurus
who also use this tactic…that is rampant in the IM marketplace.
The sneakey…tactic is the use of misleading subject lines
like “money in your account” “your download is waiting”
“activate your download” …when you haven’t requested
any download. Also emails that come from Support or
Order …”Urgent Customer update”
Even though you are on this list..I would consider these emails spam…and I don’t know what guru is teaching these
tactics… they are misleading and very unethical…I usually get unsubscribed but they keep coming as more and more emailers are are using these deceptive subject lines and “From” titles ……
Thanks for your training and Posts here
Take Care Ron
Matt,
Very timely Email as I am now starting to get angry at the types of offers people are sending me as it seems they insult my intelligence. I must confess that if it wasn’t for you and a few other marketers, my perception of the entire industry would be tarnished forever.
Thanks for all of the great value you provide.
I have for the first time started unsubscribing from these corrupt marketers list.
Hey Matt,
It is an age old problem. Greed! Usually infiltrates everything sooner or later. I appreciate your straight forward posts.
By the way I just recently purchased your rapid profit course.
I would highly recommend it to anyone. Very refreshing to get the straight scoop on physical product marketing.
thanks again
Matt…Here’s something I started doing last year:
If it’s a real “cheepee” offer I scroll to the bottom to see if they’re offering an Affiliate link….looking to shotgun this offer all over.
If it does, I don’t even bother to read any of it. Why? Well, when I receive the same sales pitch from 40 different marketers I just kind feel it’s a scam coming at me.
Stanley
Hey Matt,
This is so true. That’s why it is so powerful to have a real product that helps people build a business and solve their problems. Just think of how many problems we could solve if some of these hashers put their energy to more productive efforts.
Thanks for your work!
Kater
well guess what as soon as i wrote my previous comment I got the latest with a link to hehehe instant cash empire do me a favor!
you can always tell when you get this rubbish as it will have a video that you cannot go forward only pause with some moron twittering on about how hoe he so wants to help you yeah I’m sure.
well SajP onlinebusinessacademy another unsubscribe
seeya Ian
HI Matt, Quite a timely post, with the focus on $37 software. The latest trend being promoted online is for marketers to get some sort of software built to promote. (Of course there are some legitimate tools which can help) It really is easy to fall victim to the scammers, since I seem to get their emails right when I’m taking a break from some frustrating computer task! SO, in marketing terms it is the right message at the right time.
I found that being clear in WHY i’m frustrated, and WHAT I want to help me out of that state helps. Self awareness is a good weapon. P.S. I’m loving your course.
Good comments; much appreciated. I haven’t been scammed through buying super duper software, but I have been duped in a different way. In the past I would use sites like Fiverr and Justafive to have someone build back links for me. It can be pretty tempting stuff for a newbie (which I still am); ads that allege they’ll get you a zillion back links to your site for $5. My thought at the time was if this is a bunch of double talk; well, I only spent $5. However, I’ve often wondered how much damage was done using this approach. If you elect to use Fiverr and Justafive for back linking, I would suggest to be careful about who you pick to complete your “gig”.
hi matt,
ive been looking into im for about 2-3 weeks.
i came across a few who seem ok, but i was impressed with you and also chris farrell.. heads or tails.
p.s im so new to this ,i have info overload.
This post made my day, not only due to the truth within your content……but also because of the comments below your article.
People up in arms about the “bad marketers” that promote shoddy products and spam them all over the internet………..posting comments purely to get backlinks to their clickbank style websites revolving around selling that non-existent dream and one click solution to riches.
Further proof of the direction our industry is heading…..and the irony in these comments is almost too much for me to handle.
Thanks Matt…take solace in the fact that your opinion isnt lost on ALL of us.
Right on Matt, I’m sick and tired of it all but in the end these scammers aren’t building a sustainable business and will lose out in the end!
Love your course by the way! Not sure this is the place but with writing reviews on CB products is it best to purchase the product? The reason I ask is because for amazon you gave a great in depth method!
Take care
Matt s
Sorry to say but if people are daft enough to think that a $37 bit of software is going to turn their affiliate marketing around and start earning them, money then they deserve what they get….
Note to david Martin, whats the URL for the product, I want to buy it 🙂
Thanks Matt-like the info your giving. Always tring to improve. newinavations.wordpress.com/feed/
The answer is that every time you get an email advertising this type of software then just unsubscribe from that persons list. Any sales page that doesn’t describe the product or what it does is a scam. It’s like going into a supermarket and buying tins without labels on. You have no idea what it is but you won’t be hungry after you have eaten it.
Thanks for all the videos and info you keep sending out. I don’t think I have had one sales email, apart from your own products, from you.
Thanks,
The best we can all do is unsubscribe to their list and encourage other to do the same.
I am really wish Click bank would bar these people, I know phoney earnings statements are against their TOS.
Where the heck is the FCC and what are we paying them for?
This is in response to the “blog spamming” comment. Yes I actually agree that is what people do. It’s what Matt probably does (it is part of his course) and it is indeed everywhere. It does raise the question as to whether it is wrong. I know that scamming is wrong because you are taking someone’s money and giving them junk. Of course with Clickbank’s return policy the need for “buyer beware” is almost a thing of the past. So even that could be considered a minor problem.
But blog spamming might be some guy putting “nice post” on your site in return for a link. Or maybe he tries to sneak in a Viagra ad but you can always reject those comments (I always do). But we didn’t invent the Google ranking system and if Google wants to monopolize the world’s search results by counting blog comments then what is morally wrong with our strategy to post them?
Hi Matt
Thanks for the great info, I must say that you an Mark Ling are two of the “GOOD GUYS” and I truthfully enjoy receiving your emails.I purchased your product Rapid Profit Formula,thou i have yet to jump in with both feet.Betwwen your product and Mark Ling AffilioBlueprint 2.0, I think that I have a DAMM good chance of succeding at internet marking.
Thanks again !
Hi Matt as always you never fail to deliver good.. content for your e-mail subscribes you are always giving out good info, and resources.
That is really an eye opener my first time purchase was a total rip off and the second as well but I persisted because
I have always liked working at home but never knew where to start you and a few goodies have given me a good start . even though I have not yet made a $ 1 on line yet, I know I will in due time as I am still on the learning curve
Thanks
Hey Matt!
I think you are awesome. Its become very hard these days to fine Honesty in people for a minute I had begun to think that they don’t exist anymore. But with you it’s different after reading a lot of your work I have been very pleased to know that there is someone who cares for others and will continue to follow you. I also have gotten caught up in those $37 dollar programs but requested for a refund. I received them all but with some it took between 7-14 days before they returned my money but I’ve learned a lot with you to watch out for them. As long as you stay around to keep me informed. Thanks a million 🙂
Matt
Great post as always. I just had to comment as this post echoes my sentiments exactly and is reflected in an article I did several months ago here http://shoppinsight.com/business-start-up.
As you can see I’m pushing your product as well. It’s worked for me and I cannot recommend it enough, but I’m trying!!
Forgive my cheek but I thought you might like to correct “so please bare with me while I vent a little” in your post. Sounds awfully interesting though.
Take care
Regards
Matts,
Thanks for the post. Some People love to live on others’ mystery but they forgot that anybody who must destroy others to live will have destruction awaiting them at the gate of their own success.
They are using “promoting the promoters’ strategies” in the wrong way to push fake products out there.
Here’s some other things to look out for with these scammy and crap Clickbank products:
1. If you close the sales page without buying you get an exit pop up offering you the same product for $27 instead of $37
2. If you do get sucked in (which is not difficult because often the sales copy is very clever) you get presented with anything up to 5 One Time Offers before you get to the download page – each one telling you you need that to suceed despite what it said on the sales page – and often up to 5 times the cost of the original product you just bought
3. Again if you do get sucked in, all of a sudden you’ll find yourself added to lists of people you’ve never heard of, who claim you opted in to your list and often make it as difficult as possible to unsubscribe – then you get beseiged with emails from them recommending similar products.
4. If you click on the Affiliates link at the bottom of the sales page you will be told how you’re going to make most of your commissions from the One Time Offers rather than the product itself
How do I know this? Because I’m one of the mugs who got sucked in but at least had the sense to get refunds from Clickbank.
Dunno if Matt will allow this to be published but in case he does I’m sending this anonymously and naming the products that I can testify from actual personal experience fall into this category:
– Auto Traffic Hijack
– Auto Traffic Monopoly
– Xtreme Traffic Arbitrage
Hi Matt,
Thanks for the information. It’s totally true what you are saying. I like your videos very very much, and hope to learn more from you in the future. However, please don’t talk so quickly !!! I am Dutch and I cannot always understand what you say. Please take notice of the European people who still have to learn from the English spoken countries in this business !
I actually bought quite a lof of software and programs. The one you sell is very good in comparison to the price. I checked another one, it is called Income infuser. These guys are the real goodies as well. Their price is actually quite cheap in comparison to others. I made my first website with their help. Please allow me to give it here : http://www.onlinemoneybizz.com because I am quite proud of it. It offers a very very nice video training on every aspect of IM FOR FREE !!! I haven’t earned one dime yet from IM, and hope I ever will, but I think one day I will get there, with all the help I can get from you and these guys as well.
Talk to you soon ! Keep up the good work Matt ! Thanks for your replies on my requests.
Warmest wishes,
Marjolein
Nice Matt, totall truth. Its very appieling to get rich quick and easy. I actually fell for those software scams few times myself and had to get refund.
I swear the scammers will not see the light for long, because there ‘s no place for them under the sun. Nice post Matt, I’m with you.
Best Regards,
Felix
Super Matt That’s why I’m on your list. Anyone that gives free training along with good information. I have a small list and just made first sell on ClickBank March 1, 2011. The best way to be successful is to help others. If I sell something that works for me and others I can sleep at night. Thank You for all the great posts, Paul
Matt,
You are not the first to call attention to the scam make money programs out there. One can look at the Warrior Forum for discussions on this as well. Reason the programs exist is the hungry crowd who wants to make money and gets pulled in by the big numbers and supposed ease of how to make the big bucks.
All the offers seem to be the same – guru bashing, price point of $37, click on the exit and will take ten to 20 dollars off, super easy money making software, screen shots of earnings and mostly what the program is NOT as opposed to what it is. I admit to buying and asking for a refund for some of these.
Here is the scary part that bit me BAD. I got on a list to get coaching and it drained me financially with no return on investment. So watch out for those calls for a coaching program, too.
These are typically “blind” offers too, meaning they never tell you what it is that you are buying, only what it is not.
Then when you exit the sales page, you get a special $27 offer. But since they are giving 2/3 of that to affiliates, you know that is not where they are making their money.
The money is in the upsell – – after you pay $27 for this miracle software (“3 simple steps – install software, activate software, get paid!”), you are told, to really get the best out of it, you want the “premium” version ($97), and after that, you want to subscribe to the monthly “elite” members package for only $47 a month, and then you will really be rich!
If I get one of those offers now from anyone, big name or not, I consider it an insult to my intelligence and unsubscribe, period.
Matt is on my shortlist of the “good guys” in the IM arena.
Hi Matt,
I have a neighbor. Whenever there is an offer like ‘send me $10 and I will send you $5000’, she will sign up.
I have spent a while of 48 years in this world, and I have seen just that there are people who love to be fooled. They won’t learn no matter how many times they fall. They start seeing enemy in you if you try to warn them.
All respect to your firm stand and courage to issue such a warning.
Once there lived a wise lady who put it like this: “Do good to people and they will knock out your teeth. But keep on doing good nevertheless.”
Egil
“The reason these products sell well, is because they appeal to the lazy person in us all, we all want to get rich and not have to do anything for it…” – absolutely agree. Knowledge of the humans’ psychology is the strongest weapon in scammers’ hand.
Great post Matt.
A few others are making similar posts on their blogs. I ranted a while back on a post Andrew Hansen made on the same topic. Some guy responded that I didn’t know squat about marketing and I should learn marketing lessons from the scammers. He then wrote that you can’t call them scams because it really depends on how you define lying!
The other caution to add is to the people who promote any product as an affiliate with no knowledge of the product or person selling it. I’ve purchased several products from people that I thought were pretty decent but unsubscribed from their lists because they promoted obvious scams.
Hey Matt,
Luvin your new course…People like Shane @ impact actually do name the crap products. I know its a risk naming products and or people, but in truth if you want to stick you head above the parapet, then sometimes flak comes your way.
These scammers are not that different to bullies, they are better being named & shamed, or at least their products should, rather than telling us how we should watch out for them.
Yeah I know its easy for me to say as I won’t be the person to take the flak. I know you wouldn’t want to JV or work with any of these types so “in that sense” there is no loss for you.
I have received quite a lot of “I’m sick of the scammers” type emails lately but the only ones I see actually doing something real about it is Shane, Dr Andy and maybe 1 or 2 others.
The whole keeping a secret about crap procucts or the people that make them, are what allow them to keep plying their crap to the unsuspecting.
Again I just want to say that your products are top class and it might be easy for me to make this post as there are no negatives for me.
But surely that’s how we find the people that we choose to look up to and trust in any area of out lives, by finding the people that lead by example.
Thanks for your affiliate course, it is top notch… All the best.
Hugh.
YO! Matt great post yet again. There are far too many shady geezers in this game I’m glad to say though that us legit guys are fighting back.
The worst is that so many of the big names just don’t give a damn it’s all about the money rather than the value!
Nice one 🙂
This happen to me i paid $1345.00 to make a web site and never make $1 whit the web site and they said is a courses help me make money i have to paid for this and one year money back 1 year not make any money and they not refund my money so i give up well this is my ……!!!! thanks for you post this is good for new people and thanks for all the free help you give for other people, i know yo are a good person and good teacher i recommend to people you programs and you courses, i not write English very well i hope people can understand . good buy now
Hey Matt,
You are spot on! I am sorry to say that I have been scammed a few times. I can’t believe the # of scammers there are out there now. I just make sure now that there is a really good refund policy before I buy, so I try now to only buy clickbank products so I know that I can get a refund if I have been scammed.
Hey Matt,
In the past few months, I’ve had well known marketers promote pure junk to me. I was so surprised at these “so called” upstanding marketers, when before they offered value. Must be greed, I don’t know, but, I have unsubscribed from them all.
I thank you Matt, for sharing incredible value in your free training, as well as, in your paid training. Don’t ever change the way you do business. Your one of the “FEW”, people can trust online.
Staying Real,
Ron Brantley
Hi Matt,
Unfortunately, even the “good” guys can’t tell the whole truth, or they would never sell anything. A key difference between the “good” guys, and the dirt bags, is how they rationalize what they do. The dirt bags basically figure that if they don’t rip off any given person, somebody else will. They blame the buyer of their products for being stupid enough to believe the hype. They are evil cowards who “hide” behind computers because they don’t have the b-a-l-*s to do business with anyone face to face. The good guys understand that they must rely on 1/2 truths to sell virtually anything that takes effort, work and LOTS of time. And, even then, many will fail. IM is, at best, an imperfect science. But the key difference is intent. The good guys INTEND to basically provide something of value. Value never enters the mind of the dirt bags. Unfortunately, 80%-90% of online marketers lean dangerously close to the dirt bag ideology. The few good guys/gals suffer for it.
Such is the way of the world.
I am compleadly agry with you Matt and I do not realy undertand why there is no regulatory organisation on global scale who are will represent the rights of customers I have foll to the trap of very expancive corses that not deliver the good trainings thay do ing even worst they just given you basic information that can be found in 100 baks ebook and I payd 2100$ – thay name is Achive Technology from Utah -shame on them . Do not buy nothing from them they scamers.
Matt,
You have to wonder how good a product is when it is priced at $37 and the affiliates promoting it are giving away the farm and are offering $4000 bonuses. It makes my head spin when I see that kind of deal. You now that there has to be some pretty major up sells, down sells, cross sells, side ways sells … you get the picture. Sure puts my red alert up when I see these!
Anyway, keep up the great posts. Thanks.
Hi Matt,
Amen, brother! You hit it on the head! I am so sick of the junk, B.S. garbage out there, I am about ready to stop all of the e-mails coming to me. But then I realize that there are a very few legitimate marketers out there who, like yourself, tell it like it is. When are people going to wake up and realize that there is no magic button, no magic software and no magic pill to make millions and gazillions of bucks at the push of a button? It takes some work, folks. Unfortunately, though, there will still be lazy bums out there who still fall for the magic 7 or 12 click button scam. Don’t do it and get off your behind and get to work! Thanks, Matt, for telling people the truth and keep up the good stuff!
Michael
Hi Matt,
This is an excellent and timely post. I have been inundated with these scammy emails for several months. I’ve unsubscribed from all of the offending lists, but I think someone has sold my email address on a list somewhere because I’m getting stuff from people I don’t even know…
I have to agree with Paul Flood as I have also had to unsubscribe from lists I had previously thought to be “professional”. That having been said being alert and aware is key to knowing what is and is not of value. If you can’t find enough relevant info to make a calculated decision that it’s right for yoour business – don’t buy…
Hooray Matt.. You said it all and it is so true. There are a lot of scammers out on the internet, and they don’t care about anyone but themselves and their bank account. To become a successful affiliate marketer takes planning, time, effort and energy. We can say nothing but that we are extremely happy with your products. Thank you for being so honest and true.
Maike
Thank you very much Matt.
God bless
Hi Matt,
Great post! It’s funny, I just did another post on this last week after I saw the crazy product about the former stripper. That was just so over the top that I had to blog about it.
I only work with credible people (currently Gauher Chaudhry on a special project) and hopefully you one day Matt because you are one of the exceptional ones out there.
Thanks,
Jay
Hey Matt,
Sorry to say that I have been caught in those scams a few times. Fortunately for me, I have always been able to get my money back.
Now I try to only buy clickbank products, strickly due to their generous return policy in the event of purchasing yet again another scam.
Great post. Keep them comin…
Hi Matt! So true. If I see another one of those cheap software programs I am going to through my MAC. Every week I get these emails and I roll my eyes. I fell for these scams a few years ago. Luckily it was a program through Clickbank so getting my money back was easy. What intelligent business person sells software that makes $5000 a week for $37? Thanks for the post.
“Scumbuckets to the left of me… Scumbuckets to the right… Here I am…stuck in the middle with you…” Thank God…otherwise I would lose complete faith and hope that there’s anyone left that has personal morals and business ethics online. I have unsubscribed from over 50 lists in the last 30 days, many whose names you would readily recognize, because of “bait and switch tactics,” $37.00 crap products I’d be so ashamed to have my name associated with I’d disappear…and maddening up sells that never end where the attempt is to make you feel like your life is worth about two pennies if you don’t fork out another $500-$1000 for products you can’t possibly go on living without–just to discover that those high end products are a bigger piece of crap than the front end product for which you paid $37.00. It’s time we all band together and raise our voices so loudly we can’t be mistaken for just another dumb ass “mark.” 1) Don’t buy into these “con jobs.” 2) The moment one of these “dark side” offers come into your mailbox–unsubscribe and 3) Take the time to leave the marketer a clear and unequivocal piece of your mind. And finally 4) Let the honest marketers know as well you will only stay on their list as long as they remain honest. The Internet, even after these many years is still “the wild frontier” of blatant lawlessness by the few who breed fear and mistrust in the heart of honest consumers everywhere. The only way it will ever change is to “stop feeding the steely beast” and kill it with the steely knife by slicing off its economic tentacles.
Tim R Walls
Hi Matt,
As having been a victim to scammers, I’ve learned the hard way that scammers come in all shapes and sizes. I was disappointed to catch on to some of what are considered big names in the market.
You are absolutely right; it becomes easier spotting these scammers as they work in groups to help each other rip people off. I will admit some are pretty slick and entertaining.
Getting refunds is no problem but getting the time back spent on this scammer garbage is not replaceable. I value my time and use that as a gauge when viewing new products. If it’s a three button click to $127.000.00 per day or month it’s a dead give-a-way to save your money and time.
I for one would to see Clickbank with a better system in place. At the very least they should request documentation to the legitimacy of the product.
The bottom line is that scammers give the industry a black eye at which the good guys also become victims by association.
Just venting.
Good post, keep up the good work.
Hey Matt,
Appreciate the rant. It is scary to look at the top IM products on ClickBank and their popularity. So many people are getting hurt.
The list of people I am receiving email from is getting shorter and shorter, as I have been busy unsubscribing from a lot of scammers lately. They not only steal your money, but your time too.
One the other hand, I always look forward to hearing from you because you never fail to provide great value. Thank you for being you.
I have a testimonial almost ready for you – just waiting to get through all the Rapid Profit Formula videos. Let’s just leave it at “Wow!” for now…
Nice to read this post.
Thank you Matt
Hey Matt,
I wanted to say thanks for venting exactly the way I fee about what you term as the Baddies. We’ll a better name for these scammers is “Pimps” because you are absolutely correct in how to spot them. All hype and no substance.
If anyone is serious about the IM affiliate business model and if you are a complete newbie, follow Matt’s advice. Way too many sharks in the water and you have to be on your guard. Good job Matt.
Hi Matt,
I’ve been following you for a little while now and love everything you have to say. I am part way through your minicourse and am blown away by the high quality of this free content.
I agree with everything you say here about the marketers just trying to make a quick buck without ever having walked the walk. One campaign used a gimmick with sexy girl showing off things that were actually not true (phony mansions, phony parties, etc). I’m in the process of catching my formal education in science up with marketing and it is a lot of work sifting through the detritus.
I am glad that by some happy accident I came across Mark Ling’s site then yours. I’ll be getting the Rapid Rewriter because I’m about at the point of needing it. Thank you for all you do. Bless you.