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Separating the Experts
From the Pretenders
by Ron
Knowlton
It pays to learn from "the experts" if you are
serious about
marketing your products or services on the internet.
Who are "the experts"? And who are
"the
pretenders"?
Knowing the answer to this question can make
a monumental
difference
toward your ultimate success or failure.
And success is what it's all about, right?
Success
ultimately is measured
in $$$$$$$.
Are you making money? If not, then you're
back to the
drawing board.
If you're following poor advice from the
wrong source,
then you're wasting
lots and lots of money.
How
To
Tell "the Pretenders"
1)
They sound too
good to be true. They rely on glitz and glamour to pull you
in, but offer
little proof
their system or method really works.
It's
all hype, hype,
hype! It sounds good on paper, but . . . "Where's the
Beef?"--to
borrow an old
advertising slogan.
Or
to put it another
way, where's the money?
Now
I must at this
point offer one exception. There are many new ideas. Some of
them are
exceptional. Some
are not. But without much proof, there is little or no way of
knowing what
is what.
*You are
left at that
point to your own judgement. It's a gamble
... make sure it's a good one!
So
here comes my
second point:
2)
Find proof that
claims made are real and legitimate.
How?
Are
there
testimonials?
Newer products and
services won't be to this stage yet--so go back and read my
exception
again.
Read
the
testimonials. Are they specific or glowing
generalities?
Here are examples of both:
"With your service, I was able to
increase my
response rate by 50%.
My orders increased from one or two per day to four or
five!"
Notice how specific this testimonial is. The
service
provided this
customer with a benefit and it was measureable.
Here's an example of a glowing
generality:
"I love your service! It's the best I've
seen on the
internet! I plan
to tell my and friends and associates! Everyone should
benefit from this
great
service!"
See the difference?
The glowing generality offers only an
opinion. There is no
proof that the
service works or offers any great benefit at all.
Two of the best marketing courses on the
internet are
offered by Corey
Rudl of "The Internet Marketing Center" and Ken
Evoy's
"Make Your Site
Sell".
Now what you have just read is my opinion.
Sure, I've read
and used both
systems. Want proof? Would you like a second (or third, or
fourth)
opinion?
Type the names Corey Rudl or Ken Evoy into a
search engine
(I did this
with dogpile.com--one of my favorites). Your search will
return dozens of
other websites.
If you start clicking on the different sites, you will find
other website
owners
trumpeting (offering testimonials) of the great value and
effectiveness of
both of these
marketing courses.
My point here is that both Corey and Ken are
well-known
and well-respected
among marketing professionals. Each has a proven track record
and you can
easily check
that out.
Just dig a little deeper and quickly you'll
learn who
"the
experts" are and who "the pretenders" are.
Just remember my
exception
(above), though.
----------------About the
Author-------------------------------------
Ron Knowlton is the owner of http://www.soaringprofits.co
m/
Helping small business owners effectively promote and develop
their
websites. Check out
the "Success Library", "Great Traffic
Builders",
"Promotion: The
Basics", and free "Website Resources"! Stop by
and
subscribe to the Soaring
Profits free email newsletter at http://www.soaringprofits.co
m.
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