It seems one of the greatest challenges for those new to the world of Internet Marketing is to know who to trust when it comes to who they are, what they know and have they truly accomplished that which they claim to be an expert at?
Here are a few recommendations on how you can minimize getting sucked into the next “get rich quick” scheme and find those who are “the real deal”.
1. Listen to what your mom used to say…”If it seems too good to be true, it likely is.”
2. Running a business on the Internet is like running a brick and mortar business. You are running a business. Period. There are likely no shortcuts and if these “experts” are telling you there are and you don’t have to work at this, turn and run the other way….fast!
3. Anything you are going to be successful at takes time, effort and energy. If someone says you only have to buy their program with no work involved, that’s a bunch of baloney.
4. Before simply taking an “experts” word that they are the greatest thing since sliced bread, do you homework. Google them, check with your colleagues, research their product offerings. You can get some amazing information by going into forums specific to their market and expertise. How do you find the forums? Go to Google, put in “forum + (whatever the topic is)”. This should bring up some great information.
5. Realize that those of us making six and seven figures a year work for what we have. We have systems in place and we do what I recommended in point #2. We treat our business like a business. We have been around long enough to earn the trust from our market.
With as easy as it is for someone to put up a website or blog and create the illusion of position, you are well served to be leery of many of the so-called experts. Do your research before plopping down your hard-earned money.
Once you do know that someone is the real deal and can be trusted, the next step is to put into action what you learn from them.
As much as you experience frustration from not knowing who to initially trust, experts experience frustration from people who buy their programs and then turn those programs into dust collectors.
Do yourself a favor, if you have programs you have purchased and have not done anything with them, take them down from the shelf or open the file on your hard drive, put some time aside to review the information, apply at least a few of the recommendations and watch what happens. You may be surprised at how quickly you can get results with a focused and committed effort.
In success,
Kathleen Gage
The Street Smarts Marketer™
Hello Kathleen,
I have made a strict rule for myself to go only by referral, thus preventing me lots of troubles!
For example:
=> Eva Gregory introduced me to The Blog Squad.
=> The Blog Squad introduced me to Kathleen Gage (you!) and Mari Smith.
=> Kathleen Gage (you!) introduced me to Willie Crawford and Connie Ragen Green.
I could go on and on, but I think you get the point!
There’s a lot a good people on the internet – professional experts willing to help us being successful online… but we definitely have to choose wisely. Referrals help me in this regard.
Chantal Beaupre
LifeSuccess Consultant
Excellent point Chantal. Thank you for sharing your insights.
Kathleen Gage
The Street Smarts Marketer
Yes, I learned of Kathleen through the Blog Squad, and I buy through recommendations as well. Last week I bought the book Kathleen recommended from Masha Malkan, and while I was there, I bought Happy for No Reason. It’s a great community to be in touch with!
It’s amazing how things do connect Dorothy. And how much we do rely on the recommendations of others.
Thanks for your post.
Kathleen Gage
DaJobSucks thanks you for your participation in our weekly Business and Work from Home Blog Carnival. Sorry for posting the carnival a couple hours late, we will get it right next week.
Thanks for posting on your Business and Work from Home Blog Carnival. Much appreciated.
Kathleen Gage
The Street Smarts Marketer
Before listening to an “expert” Google their name checking for scams or if there is bad press.
“firstname lastname” +scam
“firstname lastname” +”rip off”
You can find a lot of interesting information on Google.
Thanks for the tip Cindy.
There are times when an affiliate of someone will use “shock” methods such as posting something like,
Is so and so a rip off? Don’t let them get you!” Then they go into why the person is not a rip off and use their affiliate link to attempt to get buyers.
I don’t like this strategy in that even though the expert may not be a rip off this is there for all to see and often the only thing someone will see is the question of them being one
Great recommendation Cindy. Thanks for the post.
Kathleen Gage