Beware of Internet Get-Rich-Quick Schemes: A Look At The “Internet Marketing Center”
August 18th, 2008I had one of my clients tell me she had gone to a workshop held by the “Internet Marketing Center” and that she was glad she went because she gained some knowledge about internet marketing techniques. So I decided to check out the website of the organization to see if it might be of help to my clients. This blog article gives just a brief overview of what I found.
The “Internet Marketing Center” has a home page that is designed folks who want to make fast money online. While the home page changes over time, on the day I visited, it had this statement:
Wow, quite impressive.
“His online business brought in more than $90,000 - in the first six months!”
Sounds great doesn’t it?
So I looked around a bit more and noticed this tiny link in the footer of the website:
Hmmm. An “Earnings Disclaimer”. So I clicked on the link. Here’s what I found:
This was so incredible, I’ll repeat some of it here, adding my own emphasis:
“And you should also know, that the testimonials here illustrate extraordinary results and unique experiences which do not apply to most customers who use our products and which you should not expect to achieve. Also, we do not promise, guarantee or imply that you or your use of our products and services will improve your operation, raise your internet profile, or increase your revenues.”
I was dumbfounded. That on one part of a website, namely the home page, a company could put information like making $90,000 in 6 months, and then on another page, state that you should not expect to achieve this result. And then go further to state that they aren’t even trying to imply that you will have success. Not trying to imply? This is simply ridiculous. The definition of imply: to indicate or suggest without being explicitly stated. They explicitly state that others make tons of money - and then say they’re not at all trying to imply you will too. Then why is it on the home page? Why does it say “Learn how to be like David”? This doesn’t imply that if you follow their program you will be “like David”?
While I’m really glad that my client found the seminars that were given by this company useful, after seeing this company’s website claims and disclaimer, I can’t ethically recommend their services to others. Any company that makes incredible claims only to have a disclaimer that says “no we didn’t mean to imply any of that stuff we implied earlier” should be avoided like the plague.
Jill--------------
J. Olkoski
Aldebaran Web Design, Seattle
Jill Olkoski has a BS in Engineering, a BS in Computer Science and an MA in Clinical Psychology. She delights in using her advanced technical, psychological and interpersonal skills to help small business owners develop cost-effective and successful websites.
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