Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Flogs, Fake Blogs, and Fakeosphere - I'm Sick of It

Have you heard of this marketing technique that is making people incredible amounts of money but is VERY deceptive since its a fake blog...also known as a FLOG or the FAKEOSPHERE. Be aware of these blogs that seem real but all the comments are fake and designed to convince you to buy their product. The best example of this would be for the acai berry products since the diet market is so large and there is a lot of money to be made there.

I just would never be able to sell something by purposefully lying to my customers and using manufactured testimonials. I'm sick of it. This is equivalent SPAM in the last few years - there was a HUGE outburst of people spamming for profits but now there are laws restricting that. I only hope that similar laws will come into place for these FLOGS and FAKEOSPHEREs so people are not continually sold by these fake advertisement appearing real.

Want to learn ethical and profitable marketing techniques from a real person? I recommend Russell Brunson. I've met him a number of times and he is a well respected authority in his field and an all around nice guy. Pretty much the coolest guy on the planet in my book. He's helped us start internet marketing and his methods have earned us six figures this year. Check out his latest product (FREE MP3 player plus shipping) at 12 Month Internet Millionaire


Here is an article that I recently read about the FAKEOSPHERE....

http://redtape.msnbc.com/2009/11/latest-web-trap-for-consumers-the-fakeosphere.html


A few ways to spot fake advertising for product scams: (but beware, as these scammers come out with new stuff all the time, as soon as they are figured out!!)

1 - Be cautious of any blogs advertising products where you cannot leave a comment.
2 - Read all the fine print and be sure you are not signing up for a great deal only to be scammed into a continuity program or larger payment in a few weeks. Good companies will make it obvious and clear (while providing detailed information and benefits) if they have a continuity program as part of their offer.
3 - If you are leary of using your credit card online, pay via Paypal or use a pre-paid credit card (with a very low balance) with enough to pay for your purchase.
4 - Google the name of the website to see if anyone has reported it as a scam previously.
5 - Don't get excited when seeing testimonials all from your town! This is one way scammers get you and is deceitful. Be sure there are a variety of testimonials from various locations and some should have websites listed too for the person giving the testimonial to future prove the validity of the person (this is especially true in internet marketing fields but not so much other areas such as losing weight, etc.)
6 - Use common sense. If it looks to good to be true and promises the world, it probably is!
7 - The main areas where scammers prey (so you need to be extra careful to make good choices): diet, weight loss, acai, male enhancement, gambling, make money at home)

Hope this helps! Remember its your responsibility to make good choices with online purchases and know what you are buying. Do your research before you make a purchase and be sure the company is listed elsewhere on the web, instead of just ads and a one page blog.

Jenn

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