If you have read any of my posts, you know I don't use these words loosely.

I'm a pretty tough nut to crack, and I've seen just about everything there is to see in the way of Internet scams, misrepresentations, deals, get-rich-quick schemes, and other snake-oil-salesman techniques designed to separate you from your money.

But, this is different. It applies to current businesses that aren't where they want to be as well as the new business owner "wannabee" who doesn't quite know how to start. It will also help the business that is about to go under.

Billionaire University

When I first heard about this I was very skeptical. I have heard of these types of sites before, and they are all designed for one thing. To separate you from your hard earned money with lots of promises and little performance. Your "teachers" are generally either unknown or are self-proclaimed gurus that make their money by taking yours.

Imagine my surprised when I watched the movie and discovered that the teacher is none other than Bill Bartmann, the 25th wealthiest man in America. Yes, he has a rags to riches story, but his total presentation is quite different. He doesn't try to sell you a lot of expensive information that you will probably never use, in fact, very early in the program he is quite upfront about telling you that you might just be better off with a job because you don't have what it takes to build a business.

Bill is also very upfront about what this will cost.

$100 for a one year membership to his website. Where can you get anything from a billionaire for $100? His seminars cost thousands of dollars to attend, and people willingly spend the money to hear what he has to say. You can now get this same information for $100. Most others charge this much and more for one tenth the information. And there is not a billionaire among them.

I'll let Bill tell you what his motivation is for doing this, and yes he is going to make money in the process. That is what business is all about. Some of this may be beyond your needs at the moment and some of it you may never use. He covers everything from starting a business from scratch to buying an existing business. He covers the good, the bad, and the ugly of everything he talks about. His tips are absolutely priceless and you will get your money's worth from any of the many movies that are available.

This is not a get-rich-quick scheme, this is not a "system" that is guaranteed to make you money while you sleep, this is not a multilevel marketing program designed to make your sponsor lots of money, this is a simple, down-to-earth training program to help you identify your business strengths and weaknesses and build a successful business the first time.

Just take a look at the movie. It will explain everything.

I haven't really seen anything bad in the program other than it may be a higher level than some people need. But the tips and ideas he gives are applicable to any business you might be thinking of starting. So, watch the movie. There's no cost for that, and it will give you a feel for who and what Bill Bartmann is (besides rich!).

For less than the price of a night on the town; for less than the cost of a monthly subscription to questionable sites; for a measly $100, you can learn from somebody who has really been there, done that, and is willing to share it with you.

Like I said, this is indeed the "Deal of the Century!"

Phoenix says this is a Must See!

Here are just some of the people who have positive things to say about Bill Bartmann:

Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu	Clarence Thomas	Sam Donaldson	Bill Cosby
"Mother Teresa"	US Supreme Court Justice	ABC News	Actor/Comedian

Read what they have to say when you watch the movie.

Thanks for reading.

This is Phoenix Rising, telling it like it is.

 

Tags --build a business business business training Internet Marketing success principles The Good The Internet work at home

Private Label Rights, The Best Way To Build A Business

It's got to be true because that is what all the gurus say, right?

Well, I've got good news and bad news.

The good news is: Yes, you can use Private Label Rights (or PLR) products to build your business.

The bad news is: Forget it. It's not going to work. At least, not the way you think.

First, What is PLR?

PLR is the easiest, and the cheapest, way to get a product that you can call your own. Someone writes an eBook or an article and then gives you the right to add your own name as the author, even changing the contents to make it more personal.

Then you advertise and sell the product as if you created it yourself. Kind of like having something ghost written. Many of the big names have written books using ghost writers. They come up with the ideas, and the ghost writer puts it down on paper. It's a good way to go.

So, What are the Problems with PLR?

First of all, that is the wrong way to build a business. Almost every business has failed because the owner thought of a good idea, spent time and money creating it, then tried to create a market for it. Just because you like something doesn't mean every one else will. That is not the way you build a business.

You first find out what the market wants, then you create a product to meet the needs of an already existing market. You find out what problems your market is having and you create a product to solve that problem. Then you can be successful.

With PLR you get a whole bundle of products, but none of them are really marketable.

The Big Problem is Quality

I don't know about you, but I will not sell my customers junk. If you've been reading my blog for very long you know that I have often had less than complimentary things to say about Cody Moya because almost without exception, the stuff he gives away and sells is pure junk. Some of it is usable if you are willing to spend many hours rewriting and correcting all the errors in English before you try to publish and sell it, but some of it is so bad it can only be trashed.

Perhaps the best example I have seen lately, (not from Cody, but from some other unknown publisher) was a book on fly fishing. That should be a good niche, right? Fishermen are generally pretty avid, and they like to buy new books with new ideas to see if they can improve their chances at catching fish. The first thing the book started talking about was bait.

Whoa, I thought this was about fly fishing, Fly fishermen do not use "bait" they use "flies." Artificial flies that they quite often make (tie) themselves. Then the writer went on to talk about fishing line and he described mono-filamenet line that is used by bait and spinner fishermen. Reels came next, and there wasn't a single fly reel among the ones discussed.

Now how can I use a book like that? I suspect it was a bundle that I got for free, or very little money, but regardless, it is totally useless and can only be trashed. It is too far away from reality to even be salvaged.

Unfortunately, too many marketers just buy and sell without even checking the product they are selling. Is is any wonder why so many fail?

PLR Floods the Market

You find a good deal on PLR products. A giveaway, or an OTO (One Time Offer - which, by the way are pure BS) that offers lots of free or cheap goodies. You can't wait to buy. Neither can thousands of others. So, by the time you get your product ready to market, there are a thousand other marketers doing the same thing with the same product. You don't have a very good chance of selling to a market that is already overloaded with the product.

Besides, most of the people you are trying to sell to have already been sold by the big guns.

So, how can you make it with PLR?

Glad you asked.

First, find a niche market. Anything other than the rabid make-money crowd will work. Do some research to see if there are actually people spending money in this market. If nobody is spending money, you are not going to change the market by yourself. I'm not going to go into the mechanics here, there is a lot of free information about finding a niche to sell to.

Second, search for products within your market that offers PLR of even just resale rights. If you can sell it, you can make money. PLR is better, but in the beginning just resale rights or even affiliate programs are a good way to go. Once you are making some money, then you can expand and eventually have your own product created (you could even use a ghost writer) that you can sell, or perhaps make available as a PLR product.

Time to Get Off the Band Wagon

The idea of getting on the band wagon means to join the crowd and do what everyone else is doing. Well, we need to be different. Be unique. Be yourself. Do something different. If you want to use PLR, be selective. Don't just buy it because it is PLR.

Let the dogs chase their tails buying one PLR product after another. If you will spend your time, and your money, doing some research into what the market really wants, you can then use PLR products wisely, and make a good living at it.

Thanks for Listening
This is Phoenix Rising, telling it like it is.

 

Tags --blog Internet Marketing The Bad The Good

New $15 Notification of Payment Received

This wasn't the first time that I received an email with such a subject line, but normally I just delete them without further thought.

Of course the idea is to make you think that you have received a payment to your PayPal or other account. However, the key that is missing is a name. Whenever you receive a message like this that is not sent to you personally, including your name, is obviously an advertisement, and quite often a scam.

I read the page

How would you like to stay at home and make $15 for every e-mail you process online? It's absolutely true and It is a very simple process and no special skills are required. This is a very unique opportunity and there is nothing else like this available anywhere. If you are looking for a real opportunity to make money, you have come to the right place! Sit down, situate yourself comfortably and get ready to be amazed on how easy you can start making money from home.

Sound interesting? To me it sounds like a scam. In fact, this is the first step in the scam. If you read further down the page you will find an offer to sell you this system for $15. Interesting! The person who sent me this email will make $15 if I buy the system. That's one way for them to make money. 

Is this a scam?

I did what I normally do when I question a site. I started searching for information on the web. A search under "cashdirectly.com review" brought me the following information at http://bytemi.blogspot.com/2007/11/cashdirectlycom.html: 

I have seen on rebate processors many times, but this is the first time that I have seen it as e-mail processor. www.cashdirectly.com claims that can make $15 per email you process? They also state that you will receive 10 to 25 e-mails a day from them. I did my usual searching and found absolutely nothing on this company, so I figured I would make the $15.00 investment and worse case scenario I would be the first person to do the review. Guess what! This is what they do not tell you.The emails you're sending out are actually ads, people have to buy what you're offering in these ads in order for you to get paid. So instead of you making $15 for EVERY email you send out, you only make that money if someone responds to your email ad, and pays you. This means you'd probably have to send out anywhere from 50 to 100 ads or more, to get just one person who's interested and actually pays.You really have to work for that one $15 payment. If you've tried to make money online with anything, I'm sure you know how time consuming and expensive it can get placing ads. There are some free advertising methods that work OK, but for the most part in order to make money online, or anywhere, you have to spend money first.I would not invest in the program, in the long wrong you are going to work really hard and only get $15 for your effort.

This is a direct quote from her site, errors and all. It merely points up what I have been saying all along. 

Before you send you money, check it out.

The Internet is filled with promises of wealth if only you send … Think about it. If that was the case, wouldn't everyone be rich? Get rich quick and easy is not something new. I'm 60 something and I remember a time well before the Internet. (In fact I remember the Internet before Al Gore - although he tried to take the credit for inventing it ). I once purchased a book called "The Lazy Way to Riches" which was filled with warnings that started out "Our lawyer told us to tell you…"

There is no lazy way to riches, even on the Internet. Yes you can make money, lots of money, but you have to put forth effort to do so. There is no such thing as turning on your computer and having it spit out money for you. It just doesn't work that way. You don't become a journeyman on your job by reading a book or snapping your fingers. You gain experience by making mistakes, investing time and sometimes money, and doing whatever it takes to learn the skills that make you the expert. Marketing on the Internet is no different.

Be careful folks, it's a jungle out there

Do your due diligence. Check it out. Look for scam reports and reviews before you make a decision. But let me give you one other warning. A scam report does not necessarily mean a scam. Some people report anything that doesn't give them instant money as a scam. So, read the reports carefully. A single scam report may just be sour grapes. A multitude of scam reports is a good indication of a problem.

If you want to start your success apprentice training, check out http://YourTurnToBeSuccessful.com. It's a new site and still under development, but it has some good potential for anyone who is serious about success in life.

This is Phoenix Rising telling it like it is.
Thanks for reading.

 

Tags --email scam Internet business Internet Marketing make money on the internet Ripoff scam The Bad The Internet The Ugly work at home

I don't think I've ever talked about Simpleology in this blog.

No special reason, and I actually should, because I'm a firm believer in changing yourself to bring about success, and Simpleology is one of the best free tools available to help you do just that.

Mark Joyner, the founder of Simpleology, has an outstanding understanding of the learning process and he uses almost the full range of techniques to help you to learn in the quickest amount of time.

Now Mark has started blogging

Mark is kind of a latecomer to the blogging scene, but he has attacked it with the same thoroughness that he approaches everything he does. He has now added blogging to his stable of subjects.

Stay tuned for my full evaluation once I get my hands on the course and can give it a try.

Thanks for reading.
This is Phoenix Rising telling it like it is.

Tags --Internet Marketing

Brett's products are still a DO NOT BUY

Here's what has happened.

I reported the problems I was having with Brett's programs to his help desk. I heard nothing.

Finally, I got the following email from Brett.

Phoenix,

For Audible, we released an updated version that has been tested and verified to work. Please download it here, uninstall/delete all old install files, and reinstall over it.

http://www.content-vault.com/xxxxxx (link deleted)

Let me check with developers on Gift Store. I'll get back to you shortly…

-Brett

Fair enough, I'll download the program and give it a try.

So I did.

Guess what

It still doesn't work

I have two problems with this scenario. First, Brett should have installed and proved that the program worked on his own computer before he sold it to someone else. Then, when he found that there was a problem, he should have gone back to the programmer to get it fixed (which it appears he did) and then he should have installed the fix on his own computer to make sure it was really fixed (which he obviously didn't do).

There is another possibility

It could be a problem with my host in the way that it runs scripts, but two things keep me from considering this at the present time. First, the program will not run as it is written. I have demonstrated that in the following message that I posted to Brett's help desk. Second, I am running a number of scripts from my site without problem.

Here is part of the message I sent back to Brett.

I will keep you informed as to the outcome.

First let me state that I am not a novice. I am a retired computer engineer and I have installed many scripts. While I have never programmed in php I do understand code and I can see when problems do exist.

I downloaded the new version of audible and completely removed all traces of the old install, including the database. I then started over following your step-by-step instructions to the letter.

Everything works fine to the point of logging in. After logging in, I selected step  1 to download the database. I was immediately suspicious when the download window asked me if I wanted to save the file from my server rather than the audible server, but I went ahead and clicked on the download button. My suspicion was confirmed when the downloaded file turned out to be 205 bytes. So, I looked at the file. Here is the contents:
<b>Fatal error</b>:  Allowed memory size of 33554432 bytes exhausted (tried to allocate 33292288 bytes) in  <b>/home/thewalto/public_html/pg/audible/admin/download_csv.php</b> on line <b>6</b><br />

Since I have 2 GB of RAM in my system and only 49% is being used, I knew memory wasn't the problem. So I looked a little further.

First, the database is not a comma delimited file, it is tab delimited. Whether that creates a problem, I don't know,  but it was just something to keep in mind. I actually downloaded the file manually so I have the database on my desktop. It is over 30Mbytes in size. The file that is starting this process is in the admin directory and is called uploadfile.php. Strange name for a file that is downloading a file, but perhaps it is a control program that does more, so I decided to look at it. Yep, there it is, another file called download_csv.php. So this is a control program calling the others. OK. Let's look at download_csv.

The first thing I notice is that the file is called download_csv which may be looking for a .csv or comma delimited file. I already know that won't work. But when I look at the file the programmer did change the download line to echo file_get_contents("http://download.audible.com/affiliates/all_products.txt") which is looking for the right file. However I noticed another line above it which said header("Content-Transfer-Encoding: binary"). Interesting. We are downloading an ascii file, why is the programmer using binary mode. That is generally not a good idea. Shouldn't really be a problem, but why isn't the program able to download the file? I don't know the answer to that one but there may be a limitation to html downloads with php. Anyway, I downloaded the file manually using my ftp client - FileZilla. I now have the file on my desktop.

Step 2. Since the file is over 2 MBytes, the limit for my web host to upload, I did the upload manually into the data folder as instructed. Easy enough for me, what what about someone with limited skills in this area? Anyway, on to step 3.

A pop-up window opens and - oops, crash time. Let's find out why. I checked the data folder and the file is there with write permissions open to the whole world. Not necessarily a good idea since now anyone can go in and change the file, but at least I know it will work. So, the database is there. Why then am I getting an error?

What I ultimately found

During the installation the user is instructed to set the permission of a directory called splitred to 777. My system doesn't like the idea that anyone in the world can write to the directory so I ultimately had to set it to 757 in order for it to work. Actually, the normal setting for a directory is 755 which allows the owner to make changes but no one else. Unfortunately, a new user who has no understanding of the Unix operating system would be at a total loss in this case.

Having the ability to find and download the file manually, and the ability to read and understand my server logs has enabled me to get the program working. Could you do the same? If the answer is no, you don't want to buy this program.

Customers do talk

I am not a vindictive man, but I think what is happening in the Internet marketing arena is criminal. It's all about money and not about business relationships. What people don't realize, is that money is fleeting. If you don't treat your customers right, there will be no money. Customers do talk, and they do tell their friends about good and bad service. Unfortunately, the bad service gets more press than the good.

Now it remains to be seen what happens with the Gift Store. Unfortunately, it's pretty late to get it working for Christmas, but once it is up and running, it may prove useful.

Thanks for reading.
This is Phoenix Rising, telling it like it is.

Tags --bad customer service bad service blog Brett Ingram Internet Marketing internet scam Ripoff scam The Bad The Internet