So there’s a new version of AdSense Secrets published, what’s the big flap about? Well, it’s been a while since version 3 and if you’re in any way into Adsense then you will know there have been a few changes. So if you already make money from Adsense and want to make more, or want a slice of the action for yourself, then you need this book. It is of course written by the best-selling Adsense author Joel Comm and what he doesn’t know about Adsense probably isn’t worth knowing.
So you get a renowned expert, and updated classic, what more do you want. How about a price of $9.95? And for us over this side of the pond that really equates to pocket change. You get a bunch of quick action bonuses, some of which may actually be useful to you. But don’t be swayed by the bonuses, get the book, I did.
It’s true to say that online marketers can have high expectations, work hard and spend maybe a lot of money, and still end up burned out, cynical and with nothing to show for it in the end. Why is this?
It’s to do with expectations. A simple Google search will provide more promises and guarantees of fabulous wealth than any one person can make use of in a hundred lifetimes. If you’re the sort of person who wants to make their own decisions, run their own business, then these options may look worthwhile if you buy the right course or follow the right program. Even normally cynical people can end up buying stuff just because they have hope. Hope that it will make a difference, and that hope circumvents their cynicism and normal defences because it might just work this time. Internet marketers are selling hope, not a course, not a program, just hope. Of course it is packaged in bright promises and pretty guarantees, but in the end all they are selling is the hope that by spending the money, you will be able to change something you have not been able to heretofore.
So is this unethical, or even a problem at all? No, it’s not unethical as long as the program can, or has delivered to the extent claimed. The border of ethical selling is some place around whether the results can be replicated for someone else, and if not, whether it is made clear that this may have been a one-off due to favourable circumstances or suchlike. The border is crossed when the results cannot be replicated, but it is still claimed to be an effective method.
Whether the way something is sold is a problem depends on how you view it. With eyes wide open and a mind in gear, you should first question what is your motivation for purchase. Is it something which will maybe be of use in the future (questionable basis for purchase), or something that will facilitate what you are doing or hope to do now. If it’s the latter then it needs to be something that will not detract from your primary focus.
Whilst spending money to make money can be a reasonable business tactic, you need to know how that money will come in and what to do when it doesn’t. If you have affiliate accounts and sell other companies goods,what percentage will you make on each sale and when will you recoup the money you are spending. Too many would-be marketers set something up and hope it will work. In all but a few cases it doesn’t because at least at the beginning you have to constantly check what is going on and make changes. Sure if you hit a deep pocketed niche you can make a killing pretty much automatically once you have set up sites to attract that niche. Trouble is no-one is going to tell you what a valuable niche is, they take a lot of finding before you even start to think of how to service that niche.
This may all come across as negative, but look on it as the antidote for the wild claims of easy money. Yes you can make a decent living on-line, but you normally have to know what you are doing and have some idea how you will achieve it, just like the real world in fact. Opportunities to sell on the Internet can only increase, make sure your expectations match reality and you can be part of it.
I am afraid that this is one of those questions that cannot be simply answered, but with a bit of common sense, and a ruthless attitude you can make the right decisions for yourself. If you have been involved with trying to create an online business for any length of time, you will have signed up to any number of Internet guru mailing lists. Inevitably you will therefore receive a very large number of emails offering you untold wealth because they have provided great riches for the gurus themselves, a good friend or someone that mentored them. A common thread running through them all is that if you follow the program or join the membership site, it is only a matter of time before you can ’sack your boss’ and go on holiday whenever you want.
Even without the healthy cynicism which is required to be in the Internet business, you have to figure that if it really was that simple, then surely many more people would be a great deal richer. The point is that you have to put a lot of effort into any business which you are hoping to support you by it’s income alone. Yes, there are many good ideas being pumped out to large and small email lists all the time, but the days of getting rich by doing little are really long gone. So what criteria can you use to evaluate any offer that drops into your Inbox?
1. Look at the offer and put it into the current Internet context. If it’s an old idea or a number of old ideas being recycled together, it won’t work and is not worthy of your cash.
2. Can you see how the offer will work with what you are currently doing. If it doesn’t, you will have to either build a parallel stream for your business, or dump what you have been doing. There are costs to both options you must weigh up. Think very carefully about buying something because you think you might use it in the future. It’s highly likely you won’t if you don’t have a clear purpose before you buy.
3. How many email lists are promoting the offer. If every list you are on is vying for your custom, there’s a big enough affiliate cheque involved to get gurus who claim to make very large amounts interested. Either it really is the best thing ever, or they are getting a hefty percentage for each sale.
4. Don’t be forced into buying because the price will soon go up. If it doesn’t give you any actual benefit, then it’s not worth it, regardless of how cheap it is.
5. The offer may actually be very valuable to you, but bear in mind every offer you get is either to make money or create a buzz prior to making money for the publisher. Whatever they say, they wouldn’t be offering anything if it didn’t benefit their brand if only to raise the visibility or acceptance levels.
6. Think before you click and if you can, go away and come back to the squeeze page and see whether it looks as good without reading the hyped up email first.
If you want to run a viable Internet business, you have to act responsibly and learn to make your own value judgements or your business won’t survive long, let alone grow. Except where you have paid a fortune to be personally mentored, you will not be able to get back to the guru and ask for advice every time you have to make a decision. So get used to making your own decisions, starting with what your business will actually be and therefore what you spend your money on.
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