Carlos and Lupe Garcia Traffic Tactics Videos Reviewed
Edition #129
There’s been a lot of buzz in the internet marketing community (and the usual barrage of emails from the gurus) about Carlos and Lupe Garcia’s new videos showing how they get millions of visitors to their websites.
I saw them speak at Yanik Silver’s Underground seminar a few months ago, and I was very impressed with their paid traffic techniques. Another marketer recently mentioned in an email that Carlos and Lupe sold 30 memberships of a $25,000 coaching program at the seminar. Pretty compelling, eh?
Since everyone at the Underground seminar signed an NDA, I couldn’t talk about it. But now they’ve posted it publicly (including a video of the actual presentation they gave), so it’s open season.
It can be reasonably assumed that Carlos and Lupe’s free videos are a lead-in for a product that they will be selling in the near future.
Unfortunately, the slightly deceptive nature of these videos combined with their track record of pushing the envelope leads me to NOT recommend whatever they are selling (even though they haven’t launched it yet).
The first video starts out with Carlos saying, “Hey it’s Carlos and Lupe, and yeah it’s true, our websites pull in over five million a month onlineâ€.
What he should have said is “our websites USED to pull in over five million a month back in 2004â€.
Not a good sign when you can’t get past the first sentence without stretching the truth.
During the video he shows the Alexa traffic rating for one of their sites (mydietpatches.com), and says, “As you can see, this website is getting tons of traffic.â€
Hmmm… it looks like they GOT a lot of traffic back in 2004 but in the video their current traffic rank is 2,759,627 (not very good).
In case you’re wondering if I misunderstood his first statement about “getting tons of trafficâ€, he reiterates it by saying, “As you can see, we’re getting more traffic than Etrade, Mastercard, Pepsi, or Pizza Hut.â€
OK, so pushing aside the wrinkle their timeline, let’s take a quick glance at their business model.
They find a high converting product (such as cable descramblers or diet patches) and push as many orders through as fast as they can until they have to shut the business down. In other words, they “get away with it” as long as they can.
In the case of their diet patch business, you can find customer complaints peppering several online fraud-report sites, a lawsuit filed by the Illinois Attorney General, and a report (which I have not confirmed) that the FTC ordered them to shut down their business.
Since they were selling millions of dollars of the product, it’s no surprise that they’d have a bunch of complaints, but at the same time it seems clear that their profitable conversion rate was driven largely by hype and/or false claims.
OK, so pushing aside the timeline, the products, and their alleged lack of business ethics… let’s look at the traffic techniques.
Basically, they BOUGHT traffic in bulk from high level traffic brokers such as Yahoo. Their main form of traffic was banner ads.
Their video mentions doing a $163,000 deal with Advertising.com, a $370,000 deal with Fastclick, and a $300,000 Yahoo. They said they negotiated those deals on credit, most likely paying some money up front and covering the rest with profits made as a result of that traffic.
They took a well-calculated risk, having already tested the conversion rate of their product, and optimizing their offer.
They were playing in a league unknown to most internet marketers, where the big dogs dictate the majority all paid traffic on the web. And when you play with big numbers like this, you can make (or lose) huge amounts of money.
In case you want to watch the videos without having to go through a squeeze page, here they are:
http://traffictacticsrevealed001.com/pl_ar1/
http://traffictacticsrevealed001.com/pl_ar2/
http://traffictacticsrevealed001.com/pl_ar3/
http://traffictacticsrevealed001.com/pl_ar4/
http://traffictacticsrevealed001.com/pl_ar5/
I am NOT using any affiliate link. Also they posted the videos on Google video, so I could just embed them here but I figured I’d do the Garcia’s the courtesy of letting you check out the site for yourself since I’m not recommending the product.
So this one thing I will say: the method is REAL and the opportunity still exists, although I suspect it has changed in the years that have passed since the Garcia’s were playing at that level.
The question is whether or not this technique is applicable to your business. The answer is that it will only work if your product has true MASS market appeal.
Beyond that, you need to MASTER your conversion rate and backend monetization and be a slave to the numbers before you risk your shirt in the big game.
I have not personally used this method, but I’d be open to trying it if I found the perfect offer. However, I’d probably start small and learn from trial-and-error (or try to find someone who is currently active in the game), rather than giving my money to someone who is trying to make a killing selling information about how they played it two years ago.
Let me know what you think. Am I overreacting?
As always, you may leave your comments here on the blog.
Have a great day!
Hi Eric,
I absolutely agree. The saying that, “it takes money to make money”, applies here. Anyone who already has the available resources to be able to risk that much can do the same.
Rezbi
Eric,
Take a close look at their website terms. Basically, they reserve the right to sell your contact info.
Kind of files in your face after reading the “we hate spam!” statement on their first signup page, doesn’t it? Of course, it’s not technically spam, but it still irks me.
And while you can give them your email address in an instant, you have to send them a snail-mail letter to get off their list.
And silly me; I gave them my good email address.
They may be the nicest people in the world, but their website terms and one-sided tactics are way over the top for me, too.
Thanks for letting me state my opinion (and I’m glad to hear things from your perspective, too — and “good for you” for not jumping on the “me, too!” bandwagon).
Best regards,
Tom
Hi Eric,
Thanks for letting the cat out of the bag on this latest barrage of offers that I’m sure everyone is receiving multiple times off of many lists, I know I have. It upsets me that so many people fall for these offers.
Keep up the Great Work and the Great Tips from your Organization.
Sincerely,
Tracy Brown
Vertical Products
Hi Eric,
Your comments were truly honest to the core. Like you said, I would rather start low and the reach the top
through earn and learn methods.
Sincerely,
Suresh Vatakethil (A newbie)
You have a point Eric. John Reese was the one sending me email about this first and I trusted his word. I am not so sure anymore…
Eric,
Firstly it’s great to see “Eric’s Tips” back in my In Box.
I had seen part of the Garcia free video a few days ago. The first thing to jump out at me was the “stale data” you mentioned. This industry moves entirely too quickly to, in many cases, rely on three year old information. Additionally there was something that “just didn’t feel right” to me about the presentation.
Thanks, as always, for your take on things,
Elmer
Hi, Eric,
I totally agree with you! When I saw the chart, the traffic went up quickly then went down abysmally. it’s so short lived and in 2004(ancient in this industry)! They surely thought about the alternative way to make money from the past glory.
Eric,
I doubt that you’re over-reacting. This presentation reminds me very much of presentations I’ve seen in the past at seminars for brick-and-mortar companies. Almost all of those were aimed at getting people to recruit, rather than sell product. Not saying this presentation is exactly the same, but the hyperbole and the [old] success data is strongly reminiscent of those old presentations.
Oh, yeah … if someone tells me, “Yeah, we _are_ making …,” I expect them to have current data. I don’t really give a damn what they made last year or last decade. I want to know how successful they are *right now*. Of course, if they sell many subscriptions, they’ll be quite successful, won’t they [chortle /]?
To my mind, even though you say that the method is real, that the opportunity exists, it truly doesn’t for someone at my level. Perhaps Mike Glaspie or Mike Filsaime - or someone with equally large coffers - could do something with it, but I suspect it’d be a stretch even for them.
All in all, my BS meter reads 10 and my opportunity meter reads 0: I’ll pass, thank ye kindly.
Make a good day …
… barn
Very astute observations!
I ‘unfortunately would have been one to fall for the hype…. I didn’t do the due diligence that you did, and it could have potentially costed me more than I am willing to risk.
I agree with you as well Eric. They also mention having corporate credit with the proper DNB credit file, etc… This takes time to accomplish if you haven’t been working on it consistently for some time. I know because I’m doing that right now. There’s a very detailed process that you have to go through to get your corporation set up properly, and the lending institutions (and I would assume vendor credit companies like Yahoo, Fastclick, Advertising.com) are becoming more strict on their guidelines as well.
Hi Eric,
Trust you to give a real picture.
To be honest - I have just about gven up on these Video Tactics now. Release a few videos with Huge amounts of money being shown made - ( God knows when) and then suddenly - you get this fantastic hype blown totally out of proportion and evryone and is dog signs up.
Huge list of instant begging and salivating at the mouth ( just looking at the stats) and bingo -
Gone past this now. and when I saw your email I knew before I even rad it - what you would be saying.
Glad there are people out in this mad wild west who are not afraid of getting into the “bad books” .
Yes I realise also that these tactics can work - but for &*(^ sake - how many of us especially new comers are going to take such a risk with our credit cards and leverage it in such an insane way and especially without any experience.
I mean c’mon …these guys and many really believe that we read this course and a few emails and some live teleseminars ( wow) and its gonna make us traffic magnets , conversion experts. Just kick yourself in the teeth and get real.
Or keep reading Erics emails .
Opt out of everyones lists and stay tuned to the guys giving you the real meat - thats what I say.
Thanks for that inside info Eric. Even though I was doubdtfull about this from the first video ( astounded as I was at first) I did not know about the ftc rullings etc.
TAke care
Hamant
Thanks, Eric, for your honest analysis. I also saw these guys present at Yanik’s conference, and the thought that kept running through my head was, if they are making $5 million/month, why are they here trying to collect $25,000 from me? Something about the pitch didn’t pass the “smell test” for me. Personally, I think they are the epitome of modern day snake-oil salesmen. They overhype products of dubious value on a grand scale, make as much money as they can as quickly as possible, before moving on to the next venue. The irony is that the ultimate market for snake-oil salesmen is… other snake-oil salesmen. That is apparently where these guys are headed next.
-Gene
Hi, Eric!
Thanks for the great information. I just bought “AdSpy Pro”. Should I ask for my money back? If this is illegal and costs too much to implement, I will cancel this. I am a relative newbie but I have gotton some things done. If this creates many unhappy customers for false advertising, I will also cancel and not use this. The author listed is Jean-Philippe Schoeffel and Edwin Brian. Who are they? Do I have the packages mixed up? This softward is a SQL database with PHP code.
Thanks for your help. Best wishes,
Sara
Yikes! I read the above blog and thought it was for “AdSpy Pro”.
Sorry! I am an idiot!
Thanks for easing my mind.
Bese,
Sara
Eric,
One quick comment that Carlos made on one of teh early videos was that they were making 250,000 per month before they started the high traffic stuff. So they had some money to start the game with and the DB# etc is a bit easier to establish.
I for one have gotten real tired of the high priced coaching clubs, etc.
Thanks for your comments!
David
Hello Eric,
I really do appreachiate the time and ernergy you must have put into the research of this article.
The essence of the story is that the mass market is an attracktive market as “little” guys have the same power as the big dogs.
Unfortunately since now I haven’t found somebody to really go after it. Since our meeting on Mike Filsaime’s seminar, where I introduced digital video streaming as the mass product for the future, I was not able to make any mass traffic deals for the marketing thereof.
With a daily estimate of 200,000,000 video downloads the market becomes more and more interesting. Which other niche market has a size of 200 million potential sales per day??
As of today this market has a size of a few tens of million $, but is forcast to be $4.5 by the end of 2009, which is a nice chunk to grow for only a very numbered competing companies.
After you declared your willingness to check out the mass market, lets talk about the execusion and do it.
And for the record - who ever is interesting in a JV partnership, please get in contact.
Blessings and Greetings from Jerusalem
Ulf
Ulf- hey brother, I would like to touch base with you about the video project sometime in the near future. As you’ve probably seen , I’ve been delving into the video/entertainment world as well with the reality show. I’m probably too caught up in projects right now to be of much help, but it could be good to chat for a few minutes, even if only to share with you what I’ve learned so far…
No Eric
I don’t think you are overreacting. I noticed the dates myself and also noticed that they didn’t continue into 2007. RED flag.
This has all the smells of Pipeline Profits all over again. While co-reg, banners, and other high traffic forms are appealing - you are right - you really have to watch the numbers, be right on with your ad and have a super backend. Of course if you are using some form of deceit …………….well anyway…
My brief experience with these methods has shown me that its not a lucrative method for niche markets.
Many of my online stores such as http://www.DoodleMyShoes.com and http://www.SongsterCharms.com are too specialized to work cost effectively in those high traffic methods…..sigh…… I wish they did work.
I really admire you for telling this stuff like it is.
There is just so much crap out there right now and it seems like every guru is putting his or her seal of approval on all these products. You know what its done for me?? When I see a new product and its heavily endorsed by the big names…….. I just delete the page.
As for the people who paid $25,000 to be members of their coaching program…………….
I have prime real estate on the moon for them to buy….. but you have to hurry……..spots are selling fast…………………………………………………………………This offer will not be repeated
I found the tactic interesting when I watched the videos, but it’s definitely not a newbie or even middle-level tactic.
This would be a business model for someone extremely advanced in their understanding of what the numbers mean and how to convert visitors into buyers
Someone sent it out to me as a “law of attraction” video, which was really a clever (not so clever) ploy to cookie my computer just in case I buy.
Thank-you for issuing your “Buyer Beware” on this.
Hey Eric,
I too did LOADS of research on these guys. I even found the phone number to the “puppet masters.” You can too by gong to marketing-experts.com it’s all being headed up by a guy named Brian Hastreiter. I’m not trying to promote them just trying to provide proof that my words are not just opinions.
In fact the reason I called them was so I could uncover the dirt and then blast it all over the net…Turning me into a hero. It didn’t happen that way. They had very logical explanations for every single bullet (question) I shot at them. I was really trying to blow them up and ended up being shown the truth. I am now on the affiliate squad, the one thing I will say is that TrafficTactics is NOT for 99.9% of the make money online crew. It’s only meant for true players looking for a way to take their already giant successes even higher.
Here’s how it went down…
Concern #1
Why are you showing old stats?
Answer:
They said “Honestly, we’re like everyone else…We don’t succeed at every single project we start. This happened to be one of our best from the past. We are 1.) not willing to divulge our current successful campaigns “for free to the whole world” 2.) Why would we show anything but our huge successes, after all we are trying to sell something here.”
Concern #2
What about all the complaints, FTC shut downs, and lawsuits?
Answer:
They said “It’s funny watching everyone dig us up and act like they “got us.” We are not stupid, we know about those reports, hell they happened to us! We knew they would surface and our explanation is when you move as much controversial product as we did…This is what can happen. A lot of the non-refund type complaints came from people who did not claim their refund in time…We had 30 day refund policies like everyone else and we stuck to them. This made people mad. Plus, believe it if you want but when you make this kind of money people will do whatever they can to try and take it away from you whether you are the pope or a scumbag. Same thing happened to Vince James and no one calls him a douche…It just happens that we are in the limelight now.”
Concern #3
People can lose a lot of money doing what you are teaching.
Answer:
They said “The same thing can happen in the stock market, real estate, and just about any business investing deal…Again, we are in the limelight right now so the finger is on us…We understand that and are ok with it. We of all people know that people can lose their butts with these kinds of rollouts. This is why we are not selling the course at a price that just any ole little guy can afford…This game we play is only for the big boys, the people that can handle this kind of heat. We teach everyone to test small, test again, turn it up a notch, test again, turn it up, test again…We try to take as much risk as possible out of it by testing each step of the way, but still maintaining confident big steps towards bigger rollouts then other people even knew were possible.”
I hope this gives people a good luck at the flip side of the coin. I have more info then this, if you really want more then hunt me down.
Onwards and Upwards,
Justin Brooke
http://www.mpyremarketing.com
http://www.30dayswithrussell.com
hi Eric, it´ s always the same: i found out, that many ads give out mails, ebooks and other little things for free, but if you joined (for free of course!), then they ask to upgrade(no matter how many $), but without upgrade you won´ t be into the biz. I upgraded into 2 programs only, one one-time fee, the other with a monthly fee. These programs will have results on the long time run (2-3 years).
I won´ t upgrade to TE either.
regards from Germany,
Peter
Eric,
I am always appreciative of the gurus who take the “political risk” and step out into the light by protecting those of us who might fall for “yet another new marketing scheme,” only to find out we’ve been ripped off…again. While watching the Garcia’s videos, I was intrigued by their approach to obtain massive traffic through the large search engines, yet red flags arose in my mind while watching the chart you mentioned when viewing the PAST years of traffic and PAST Alexa rankings. I wondered why they were showing past traffic, instead of current rankings and successful web sites. (That would be the REAL Golden Goose.) After reading your article, it was obvious that they finally came out with this approach to sell their “inside tips and tricks” because they are no longer as lucrative as they once were. After all, if they were so benevolent, why not share them a few years back? Now, making $25,000 from our hard-earned money is the way for them to pay for their new ventures, and I do not have the time, nor the funds, to put another dime into someone else’s pocket without receiving a genuine, financially feasible product or system. So Eric, thank you for elaborating on this method. It is not currently for me, given my current web sites and products. You saved me time, heartache, and another loan! Best Wishes, Adrienne
This looks just like the scam that Brock and Buck pulled off with their ill fated launch of Pipe Line Profits. Get a bunch of gurus to pitch a product they know nothing about while collecting a huge commission on the launch.
I wonder if their refund rate will match or exceed Pipe Line Profits.
G`day Eric,
ahhhh need more people like you around to cut through the BS, I was actually warned about this earlier than your email and somehow, i`ve missed the “promotion” of it totally … lol. As with just about anything, there will be a few who will step up to the plate and try it, good on `em if they succeed I guess.
Your not over-reacting though, man, 5 million a month they say, well just exactly how much of that is actually PROFIT? Wouldn`t surprise me if it costs 99% of that to make it which is still a tidy sum, but come on … hype hype crap. Just received YET ANOTHER email claiming a new system is launching soon and ohhh you don`t need a list or website or anything blah blah … yer right!!
It`s alright for people who have been in this game for along time, they know how things work but the hype surrounding most products simply sucks newbies in … then spits `em out broke and VERY disallusioned. Who said you can`t get away with (internet) murder!! I won`t even bother looking at the vid`s, leave it to those that can afford to lose it if they get it wrong at first.
Christopher
http://www.the-art-of-the-web.com
Eric,
Thank you for your candor! It is refreshing and I do wished that others would adopt the same ethical standards in their IM.
Those guys are playing with such high-roller amounts that I doubt many could even begin to compete in their world.
Of course, in the mean time, they have added another income stream——-YOU, as the subscriber.
I thank you for your honesty!!
Jack
Eric,
I am glad you brought this out for discussion.
I also noticed the stats they were showing in the videos were way out of date. I didn’t go any further with the videos after I seen the first one.
Your the only one I have seen use some common sense and see this for what it appears to be, and then let your thoughts be known to us.
Thanks.
Hey Eric,
Good call! I wacthed part of the video on the squeeze page. I knew from the first email I received that mentioned the $25,000 price it would be out of my reach anyway. I was dumbfounded at the amount of money they risked. I also niticed the old info and that they did not mention profits. It’s nice to see $10,000,000 in a month, but how much did it cost to realize that? I mean, I guess if you profit $1,000,000 it’s ok, but this game’s a bit too rich for me.
Keep up the good work.
Gene
Eric,
I agree completely.
I checked out the website they mentioned in their first video. It’s gone.
I checked out the Alexa rankings for that site, NONE found.
Banners are not that effective. Even with a decent banner it very hard to get a click through rate above 2-3%, and that’s before anything is sold.
I have never spent one dime on PPC or SEO or paid banner ads, but I still have a page 1 ranking as #2 in Google for a term with 54+ million results (Network Marketing Success).
How did I get that?
Optimization and plenty of good content.
Anyone with enough money or credit can do what they did and it’s not that hard. You just need to know what you are doing, make a good plan and stick to it.
If you know how to play the seo game and how to use the media for free PR and if you can keep up to date with the latest Web 2.0 stuff, etc., reaching a decent serp rank is very possible, even with a term that got millions of results like the one I mentioned - without spending a dime on seo companies, banners, etc.
They also tell you to ignore the search engines … Right! Great idea! But that’s a bit hard, right?
I have seen their powerpoint presentation which was free for download on their site, nothing special about that - if you have the money or the credit …
John Reese’s Traffic Secret mentions many of the traffic wamp up strategies they talk about - nothing new there.
Marvin Lovenfeldt, editor & publisher
The Network Marketing Success Ezine
http://www.networkmarketingsuccess.com
Gee, I think I’ll go for it. What the heck. I can add it to the $20k worth of product I still have since before front loading was illegal. After all, It’s only money. Sell the farm, withdraw my IRA and move to a foreign country where the IRS, FTC and attorney’s general can’t find me. Then bombard the internet with my outlandish claims and laugh all the way to the bank in Switzerland. NOT!
Eric,
Fortunately, I spotted that the Alexa data was way out of date too and therefore did not give them my contact details. I have great sympathy for some of the other people commenting on this post, it is this kind of behavior that gets IM a bad name.
What a good job that there are people like yourself and Joel Comm who can always be relied upon to tell the truth and conduct themselves in a professional manner. It is because of posts like this that your email always gets read Eric and that anything you recommend will get a fair look.
It seems to me that there is a growing resentment building against this blind promotion of any product/service regardless of its relevance or quality. There is already one comment here naming a previously well regarded industry name. The sooner it dawns on the big hitters that people are keeping score and that they will be held accountable for their actions the better for everyone.
Nothing can replace Honesty, Integrity and Ethical value in building any business. You can fool most people at one time, some people sometime but not all the people all the time. Once credibility is lost, it is hard to get back and there go your business.
When the gurus recommending some new products, are they thinking of their pocket or creating value to their readers? My friend once bought a $8000 coaching program from a internet guru but when he talk me what he got, they are stuff which I can get FREE from the Internet with a little time invested.
Talk about coaching program for $25,000, wonder what is it aftr reading your post Eric?
Yep, Eric you are completely right and I agree with you.
The marketer (MF) that is saying that they sold 30 memberships of a $25,000 coaching program at the seminar is an old friend of Carlos, they have an audio recording talking about the importance of outsourcing.
Recently Carlos came back to a forum after a long time without post almost spamming, he was using an old technique to place a link, asking for feedback about some videos he has showing how to use a kind of blog he is selling.
I think they were doing well, but times changed and now they came out with this story.
Behind these videos there is a big launch, but what will be sad is that you’ll see all those Gurus promoting the product even without try and test it.
This is our Internet Marketing world, full of lies. I hope some day it can change.
Eric, Thanks for the good info !!! I agree with you completely !!!
Tom and anyone else concerned about their (given) email address: I have a suggestion for you… If he has a link in his emails to edit your contact information, you could use it to CHANGE your email address (to a “JUNK” address), BEFORE you send the snail mail request for deletion from his database! THAT way he won’t even have your “GOOD One” at ALL if his system is automated!
Katarina, I trust John Reese !! I think that he probably just made a mistake by NOT reviewing the videos first (as Eric said some have).
Hi Eric,
Thanks for the great info, I think you are right on track here. I certainly wouldn’t get involved with a product like this either, the old stats on a new product would have turned me off right away, and the business practices of these guys, sounds like affiliating with them could hurt our reputations and we all know how easy that is to damage in this business. Not for me, thanks for your honest review, keep em coming.
Hype comes, rages and fades on a regular basis. There’s always some “guru” with “the next big thing” that he can flog unmercifully before moving on to the next must-have fad. That’s just a fact of life.
What really concerns me here is that the Garcia thing has been recommended by John Reese WITHOUT an affiliate link.
I’ve been steadily pruning myself off lists, cutting down to just the most useful/reliable, and Reese is on my shortlist for reasons that anyone who has watched him for years will be well aware of.
I believe Reese to be an honest man, and there can be no doubt that he is a very astute marketer and an above-average business mind. Also, these days he promotes almost nothing except his own upcoming new site.
So there’s the conundrum: He promotes the Garcias altruistically. If he says there is nothing in it for him, I believe him.
So while I’m inclined to agree with Eric’s summation, I have to ask: “What has Reese seen that we’re missing?”
That’s the question I’d REALLY like to get answered.
So Eric, if you have an address that will get directly to him, please ask John Reese if he would care to comment on our suspicions about the efficacy of the Garcia tactics today.
Best regards,
- Bill Hely
- Author: “The Hacker’s Nightmare”
- http://HackersNightmare.com
WHEW!!!
Leave it to Eric to get down to the bare bones of
a matter…….
It’s good to see that I’m not the only one taking
on the battle of exposing gooroos (NOT gurus)
for what they really are.
And interestingly enough, not a single gooro
has accepted my VERY public challenge to
show/prove that their various programs,
formulas, etc., that they hype and pump (and
charge newbies and anyone else that they can
get to pull out that credit card, big bucks for)
as the way to fame and fortune…..
Keep it up Eric, it’s tough going this route
alone, I enjoy the company! {grin}
Regards,
Stuart Halpryn
http://NetActivated.com
http://TheJVZone.com
Hey Eric,
This could be a very good training program. Carlos and Lupe seem to be very nice people. They might have a good product for some experienced high rollers. I agree the average new marketer should stay away from this type of thing. Thank you for pointing out that new marketers should be very wary of the claims and promises of a lot a websites. I know first hand how easy it is to get sucked into the hype!
Ted
Well said, Eric.
Actually, anyone with that kind of money and mindset (don’t mind bending the truth) should forget about internet marketing and just go into politics.
Seriously, there is nothing wrong with using leverage honestly. Still, the risk/reward ratio has to be comfortable for you. However, you need to do your market research and testing properly and carefully. It makes no difference how much traffic you generate unless you can convert it into sales and, more importantly, profits. That requires a viable product, good copy writing, well-designed web site, a server substantial eough to handle that kind of traffic, etc. etc.
I define a viable product as one that has merits equal to or exceeding the sales price and therefor a low complaint/return rate. I don’t consider a diet patch as a viable product. To me, that ranks right up there with snake oil and Florida swampland deals. If I’m going to the dance, I don’t want my potential partners to be the FDA, the FCC, the DEA, or ….
By the way, in the Garcia presentation, I must have missed the part about the product return rate.
Thanks for your informative posts, Eric.
Owdoac
Hi, Eric
If you were in the UK, the Queen’s will probably honour you with a knighthood (Sir Hulmlund…!!!) for your ‘clean-up the I.M bad seed’ action.
You are real hero…man!
Ray (Belfast)
Hi Eric
The points you made are well thought out and its to your credit that you thought enough of your subscribers to publish them.
Truth be told, most marketers really do think of how much money is in the deal for them first and then, if it looks presentable, offload it onto their subs.
Then, as we all know the guy who’s ’super fabulous, wont need to buy another guide/book/tapes/course ever again’ will return the favour by promoting whatever it is that marketer A has to promote.
Point is.The well known names on the net promote each others products in one neverending loop and none of them seems to have an unkind word to say about each others products.
Im sure the fact that most of them are good friends doesn’t help matters but over time it reduces their credibility.
One other fact. Most 2nd tier marketers aren’t earning much more than the national average wage but selling info is a lot easier than 9 to 5 once you’re ‘in the club’.
A case in point: When I got the marketing bug 5 years or so ago I signed up as an affiliate for a 2nd tier marketer. I spent around $500 to promote it and made $3,500 in sales over 2 weeks or so. My cut was 50% but as this was the marketers own affiliate program he controlled the payments. Long story short, it took 9 months to get my commission paid in monthly instalments and Ive stayed away from affiliate and make money stuff since. Fyi the info product was like Jimmy D’s ‘Emergency cash generators’ manual but Jimmy’s is a lot better. Whats really, really rotten here is that I kept silent even though new affiliates were being constantly recruited simply so I could keep getting my monthly cheques. So I sold my integrity over money that was already mine.
Bottom line? I really wanted to point out to others How much strength of character it takes for you Eric to call a spade a spade and really tell it like you see it.
I for one, really appreciate, Thank you Eric.
Hello Eric,
Well, I must say, you sort of burst the bubble on that one.
Don’t get me wrong - I’m not complaining.
People like you who tell it like it is are few and far between these days.
Thank you for giving us a heads up about things we might otherwise fall for.
We want to believe things like that because they are exciting. However, when you go beyond the hype and really look at all aspects, it loses credibility.
Thanks for sharing your sense and wisdom with the rest of us (at least those who care to listen).
All the best,
Gordon
Wow, thanks so much for the heads up i’m really greatful for your input, and your wonderful newsletters.
I totally agree with your assessment. It blew my mind that they took a HUGE risk by buying a bunch of traffic up fron on credit, on the hope that product sales would offset the costs. This is totally different from using leverage in a fixed asset like real estate, where you have a physical asset that won’t go away. In their approach, buying banner ads was a one shot deal - if it didn’t pay off in orders then they could have lost a huge sum of money with no asset to show for it after only one month. This is kind of like taking your life savings and putting it all into a currency futures bet. People I know used to call this “airport approach to investing” - make a super risky investment, pack your bag and go to the airport to wait. If the bet pays off, then go to Tahiti on vacation and enjoy your new wealth. If it doesn’t pay off, just go anywhere and disappear so your creditors won’t find you.
Anyway, I would never use such an absurdly risky approach to getting traffic.
Thanks, Eric, for your honest review - how many people will go into credit card debt to follow the process they espouse? Stay well away from it - if you can’t pay your way, stay away!
All the best,
Alan
I found there speil quite amazing load of rubbish to say the least
Why would anyone give up time to spread such nonsence when they say they have Millions of dollars there method of passing back and forth was a tactic so you and anyone one for that matter had no chance of comprending from one para graph to the next regars to you and your great coloum
Tom
Hey Eric,
As always, thanks for your candid comments. I admit that I did give them my info initially. The funny thing is that I did it without watching the full video. In fact, I couldn’t deal with the long drawn out presentation that really provided nothing of value. I only entered my info thinking surely this was going somewhere, but I was wrong. Each video is just self-promoting hype.
I will say that from I can tell, they are targeting advanced marketers with this product. My concern is more with the affiliates who, as you pointed out, may not have done their due diligence and are aggressively promoting it to their entire lists which consist mostly of newbie marketers who have never earned a dime yet.
My biggest complaint with this launch so far is that it is just a waste of my time. I have better things to do with several hours than to watch a video of them trying to justify their own credibility. If you are going to sell high ticket items, you should not have to edify yourself, it should go without saying based on your reputation. Just show us that product!!!
I don’t know what their entire product will consist of or what the cost will be, but despite everything that has been stated, I still would be open to learn how anyone created a $5-10 million per month business online. I also would be interested in learning the mistakes they may have made along the way to get off track.
Thanks and well done Eric! We all appreciate and look forward to your independent opinions and reviews. You’re truly one of a kind!
This looks like the internet version of “spray and pray” marketing which you correctly pointed out, can only be done with products that have a mass market appeal and is generally done by the big boys with big budgets. This is nothing new and anyone (with lots of cash) can do it…no genius required.
I was shocked to read the nitty gritty details such as old stats from 2004. Geez! One year online is like a century in the real world. Things can change so rapidly. Looks like their “credibilty” just took a dive.
Personally, I have yet to purchase a big ticket product or coaching program online, and wouldn’t have even considered this one. Once all the hype is over, most of these things can be purchased for cents in the dollar (which is when I might purchase them, if they’re good!).
I honestly believe that serious business products or ideas that are genuine or innovative will work for a long time, and they’re the ones we should use and apply. I don’t know about you, but most of these promotions that are full of hype and BS, just end up in the bin and the list of gurus that I subscribe to has been trimmed substantially over the past few months.
Thanks again, Eric.
Thank you Eric for your always refreshing take on things. I was in no danger of giving away the farm to participate in whatever they are going to offer because I already gave it away to a few gurus before them. It looks like a lot of us are becoming weary - and if what Justin Brookes said is true about his conversation with them, then shame on them all. I believe the comment was “This game we play is only for the big boys, the people that can handle this kind of heat. ” If they know the tactics are risky and are pricing the course to keep the small guys out of danger, then why on earth are they encouraging folks to plaster their lists with the video links and hype? Just take a look at some of the posts on their blog - there’s a lot of desperate souls who think they have just been thrown a life preserver and may risk more than they can afford to get out of their rut. It’s a long-used play on peoples’ psychology and they are doing a great job of it with those heady figures. These video presentations should not be seen by “the little guys”. These folks need to start acting like savvy sales people and get out there with prospects eye-to-eye (or at least on the phone), buy free dinners and everything else that professional salespeople do to woo big money contracts. Jeez…
Thanks Eric…It did look too good to be true.But some will buy. And with the outdated strategy they will wonder what happened.
Thanks for your integrity.
Sandy
Honesty is a powerful tool for credibility. You’ve demonstrated it on two counts with your email and this entry. There are too many fly-by-nighters who think they can make money using people, because the internet puts them at a distance from what they’re doing, so kudos to you for setting standards that protect the newbies and innocents online. Your estimation went up a few notches in my eyes.
Oh, and I found their answers to the 3 concerns enlightening as well:
Re Concern #1
When they say “We are 1.) not willing to divulge our current successful campaigns “for free to the whole world†this shows just how their attitude swings. It’s not about delivering value, it’s about protecting themselves from being scammed. Hmm. You know how they say the things you hate or fear from other people are the things you don’t want to face in yourself??? Most people show recent stuff, and it’s not that hard to blur out a domain name when you have concerns about the screenshot. It’s accepted practise, such as they claimed to have followed in your 30 day guarantee. So why not follow it this time? Could it be that in saying “2.) Why would we show anything but our huge successes, after all we are trying to sell something here.â€)” they’ve just given a blanket admission that they HAVEN’T HAD ANY HUGE SUCCESSES LATELY.
Re Concern #2
They admit to handling controversial product and expecting fallout from it. Could this upcoming product be another such?? “We had 30 day refund policies like everyone else and we stuck to them. This made people mad. Plus, believe it if you want but when you make this kind of money people will do whatever they can to try and take it away from you whether you are the pope or a scumbag.” - I was online back then, and no, not everyone had 30 day refund policies. In fact, there were a lot of unconditional guarantees, a few of which I took up, only to find another product from the same source that met my needs better later. That’s the point of a guarantee. Customer satisfaction. NOT PROTECTING YOU FROM HAVING PEOPLE “DO WHATEVER THEY CAN TO TAKE IT AWAY FROM YOU” especially considering it’s their money in the first place. Again, more evidence your mindset is clearly more oriented to ripping cash from people than providing service.
Re concern #3
I found it very interesting that they said “This is why we are not selling the course at a price that just any ole little guy can afford…This game we play is only for the big boys, the people that can handle this kind of heat.” - rephrase that to “we’re targeting people who can afford to throw away this kind of money, and freely admit that they are facing a good chance of losing it”. Yes, people can lose money on the stock market and property and the like, but only if they venture in uninformed and follow blindly the dictates of a scam artist telling them that they are learning “secrets”. If you do your due diligence, then these markets are perfectly capable of delivering safe and solid returns. Is their product going to do the same???
One final word: I do wholeheartedly believe that the internet has huge potential for replacing the old 9 to 5 drudgery, and am actively working to find out how I can do it. I am not, however, willing to throw away my ethics to achieve this. Thanks again for opening my eyes, Eric, and proving that there really is no need to do so. I will certainly be following your recommendation on this one, and am going to be opening your emails a lot quicker in future…
Crystal
http://www.crystalsquest.com
Hi Eric,
No over-reaction. Doing some research into this, I found that they did indeed drive a tons of traffic, but the cable descrambler didn’t work and the diet patch was almost a placebo. They apparently claimed they were there for the traffic not to support the products being pimped, but that sounds was too slimey for me to even consider getting into. Thanks for verifying.
I’ve had the same thoughts and reservations. The ONLY thing that makes me give them some benefit of the doubt is that some very big marketers, Yanik, MF, JR, etc. and saying they have some good info. I am really confused as to why these marketers seem to stand behind them, so I’m waiting to see how it all turns out.
Do they have more current data but are not willing to share? Can they explain the complaints and the FTC rumor? Do they feel comfortable putting gullable marketers in line to lose everything if a campaign flops and they have leveraged it to the hilt?
Some big marketers were behind other disasters too, so it’s not a slam dunk when “so and so” recommends something. I’m just not happy with what I see so far. Even they clean up all the grey areas I’m not going to spend $25,000 just to hear more detailed stories.
Hi Eric!
I totally agree with everything you have said here.Their schiesters (definition:1. schiester 1. One who will win at all costs, using trickery if necessary.2. A trickster.)
I watched all of the videos and while watching I always had that feeling in the pit of my stomach to “WATCH OUT!” The old data spoke for itself(it was old! 3 years at that!) Their presentation was “Patchy” and thay portrayed themselves just as I took them for “FAST TALKERS”.They were speaking so fast that you really couldn’t get any whole content out of it.
My past experience with Carlos was about outsourcing when I was trying to get my website up and running.I had sent him numerous emails concerning good venues to look in for outsourcing projects, and do you know I NEVER got one reply.People that should tell you something right there!
And even in the information they were showing in the videos you could tell they were sporadic lines of information “Spikes” if you will and not consistent.Heck,They can’t even get a video to play all the way through without having to send you a link to a revised one and then it starts in the middle!
NOPE! Not for me or my pocket.I will stick to the tried and tested forms of marketing and ethical means.
Eric, is it alright if I publish the link to your post to my list so they can read it also?
David Canham
Online Software Solutions
No, Eric, you’re not overreacting. I, too, got bad vibes from watching those videos. I also noticed the outdated info. Why are they showing that? Where’s the 2007 info? I didn’t even watch the whole video… I was turned off.
Thank you for not recommending it like so many others are.
Hi Eric,
At this stage it is hard to tell if you are overreacting. I have watched some of the videos and also was not impressed by the fact that they are showing stats from sites and sales that are a bit dated. Maybe they are protecting current income streams.
Buck Rizvi of Pipeline Profits fame seems pretty impressed with these guys. He has said he was first in line to pay for the 25k coaching program and Buck also mentioned Yanik Silver has known the Garcia’s for several years. The potential for up to $3000 in commissions might have something to do with what they are saying.
cheers
Robert
Hi Eric,
Once again you’ve done an outstanding job seperating yourself from the typical online gurus and I definitely appreciate your candor. Erictips is one of the emails I always look forward to receiving and this latest one did not disappoint. I really liked how you dug into this a bit and point out how old their traffic stats are. If I wanted to strike gold only once, I’d rather try options trading or some other vehicle. But for us folks wanting long term success online, you’re doing us a huge favor by pointing out the pitfalls in this offer. Likewise, I admire you for being fair enough to post the non-affiliate links to their site so we can decide for ourselves.
Thanks again for being a breath of fresh air in this business!
Best regards,
Michael
Are you overreacting? Probably. Co registration (not the buying of leads, the actual advertising of an opt in link on someone elses website) is as old as the internet, yet still works amazingly well. Trading links with other websites is also very very old, yet still works amazingly well. And anyone with half a brain knows deep relevant content will always win in a search engine war and has since the search engine was born.
Believe it or not, I personally know someone who ***still*** uses FFA techniques to advertise their business and makes about 6k a month at it. I won’t mention their name here, but ***that*** surprised me!
I wouldn’t be too surprised if the tatics Carlos is pimping still work for someone. What you should be asking isn’t will it work, but can you make it work for you? Not every tatic will work for everyone, you should be developing a business strategy tailored to your unique business instead of jumping on every bandwagon that comes along.
Hi Eric,
Great information. Very impressive research.
Were you a private detective in previous career by any chance?
Amir
Hi Eric
I am glad that you have written this article. Yes, I do believe that though it worked in 2004, it might not be that useful to everyone. Using money to make more money is okay but as you have said, if your product or service is not meant for mass audience, you might make a big loss. Guess this type of risk is too high for anyone of us to take. Thanks for your frank opinion.
I wondered if anyone was going to openly query the dates!
It was the first thing I noticed when I watched them days ago….and I couldn’t help but think - Times change quickly on the internet!!!
I must admit that I respect your views on not promoting it Eric…….But I was saddened by an email I received from a ‘Big Name’ marketer who was promoting it ….. particularly because it doesn’t seem more than a few messages ago that he stated things would have to be great now before he considered promoting.
Personally - I’ll stick to promoting only things I’ve tried or know a personal friend who has.
It might not make me a fortune - but it keeps my conscience clear.
Regards
Randy Smith
Marketing Bargains & Freebies
Did John Reese also just make a mistake when he pitched Pipeline Profits to then? That’s all I see here is another PP. This is being pitched to people that have no business even thinking about this sort of marketing.
What Carlos and Lupe are pitching is not a scheme or a scam. This is how the big players play. Just because it is above your level does not mean it is a scheme.
Did you hear the guy talk about testing, testing and more testing? You would not roll out an offer at this level unless you had thoroughly tested it extensively, and already knew it would convert.
I just love how the mindless heard is so quick to label something a fraud just because they don’t really understand it.
I was quite disappointed that it was John Reese who recommended this “Carlos and Lupe scheme“.
The video was not professionally made, was it? Is that the official video of Yanik Silver’s Underground seminar?
And that got me suspicious. When the Carlos presented the Alexa charts, I realized I was wasting my time.
So what if they got a spike in traffic for a short time in history and was higher than Fortune 500 companies?
That is not the business model for websites that I built and will build. I want consistent traffic that will grow over time. Carlos and Lupe traffic model is not for me but I think it will be suitable for Get-Rich-Quick scheme.
Eric, thanks for the info. It’s this inability to know who or what to trust that has driven me away, at least for the time being, from the internet marketing business. I’m still on a few lists but what I’m seeing is not encouraging.
Hi Eric,
I am glad someone else is hearing alarm bells. I watched a protion of the intro video. When I see something of as poor quality as the video I watched, I don’t just assume that who ever made it didn’t know how to focus the equipment. I tend to lean the other direction and assume it was produced out of focus for a reason, like they really didn’t want you to be able to clearly see the time line dates, etc. This isn’t a new tactic. Milk the cow until she goes dry and then sell her quick. I count about two thirds the “How To” material on the web falls in that catagory. “It worked when I was doing it but now that there is no money in doing it that way, I will sell the info and keep my income stream for a while longer.” No thanks! I guess I am just cynical.
Thanks for the confirmation.
Ken
Hey Eric
I commend you for your stand.
Honestly speaking, I think there’s nothing technically wrong with the product but then when the finer details of the traffic strategies are not mentioned (ie costs, mass appeal products, risks, etc), then it’ll be selling on too much hype.
Sure the smart ones will figure out what’s in store and if they do purchase it, it’s to open up their eyes or they already have something in mind on how to profit from the strategy.
But for a lot of people, they buy it on the premise of huge traffic because believe it or not one of the major problems faced by IMers is getting traffic. When they go through the course, and darn, they’re hit with the reality. To hype it too much would be a disservice to the customers.
Keep up your excellent review.
- Melvin Ng
Hey Eric,
I didn’t finish watching the video because the claim of getting that tremendous amount of traffic just kinda reminded me that I had more important things on hand to do, so I clicked the button on the top right hand corner.
I agree with your point about the need to master the conversion process before traffic even means a thing.
Thanks for the honest review again.
-Kang
Eric,
As usual, you’ve described the situation as it is. A narrow band market is a risky market and the graph told it all. You are still among the best there is and I personally thought your review displayed the ethics that I admire in you. There simply are not enough “ethical” marketers to impress me. I find many lesser known people to be the most worthy and you, my friend, are at the top. Thanks and keep it coming!
Clay Dean
Hi Eric,
I am glad you have spoken openly about the Garcia’s
I for one will not touch anything with Carlos Garcia’s name on
as a few years ago I had a problem with him and it took a
year and me going to his forum to warn others before he agreed
to give me my money back and take me off his list.
Good on you Eric keep up the good work
Sandra
Hi Eric, thanks for your wonderful and frank comments, finally, someone bold enough to stand up and speak.
Yeah, when I first viewed the video, I spotted some of the key flaws you highlighted, I threw it aside and did not read another mail from those “gurus” telling me that I MUST view this video.
I hate people promoting products that they have not used them for a reasonable length of time, how would they know whether the product is good and worth of their subscribers’s investment, well, they just want to make money. This is certainly not fair to their subscribers.
Cheers to you Eric, keep your comments coming. Bravo.
Best regards,
Keith Lee.
Illinois Sues Diet Patch Promoters
Advertisement
This article below mentions “Guadalupe Bejar” - is that as in “Lupe” Garcia
Also - think at least twice - are diet patches healthy for people?
Is that a “good thing” that someone is able to get the masses to “suppress” their
appetite with some type of reactivity from a “patch”- even if it is herbal or not
actually a “drug” per drug defintions today - but if the body has an appetite-
why “suppress” it or “change it” - maybe the body is crying out cause its
undernourished and overfed (by non-nutritive junk or other unsuitable foods)
anyway…just a few comments
good for you , Eric, you’re the first one I have seen who had the guts to come
out and say it!
November 11, 2004
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has filed a lawsuit alleging that a Nevada corporation, operating out of Cook County, lured consumers from across the country with “magic” weight loss claims and “free trial” offers advertised on its Web site then fraudulently billed the consumers for hundreds of dollars of unwanted and ineffective weight loss products.
The lawsuit charges Diet Patch, Inc., and Guadalupe Bejar, its president, with multiple violations of the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act.
Madigan alleges Bejar conducted business out of her suburban Chicago home, using a Tinley Park post office box address and the Web site http://www.mydietpatches.com,/to run her business.
According to the lawsuit, the company used false advertising to promote and sell its products. The complaint charges that the Diet Patch Web site made numerous unsubstantiated weight loss claims including, “An easy to use product that magically melts off ugly fat, gets rid of flab and cellulite without ‘dieting,’ calorie counting, or strenuous exercise” and “With The Amazing Diet Patch you don’t even have to think about losing weight, the patch does all the work for you!”
Hi Eric,
The first thing i did when I heard about them is do research on the diet patches. I, too, found the complaints and that turned me off instantly. I am soo sick and tired of everybody jumping on the darn bandwagon. It really is making me sick to my stomach. But you know what - because of these tactics, I have learned to quickly ignore the emails and hit the delete button faster and faster.
I took me years of reading that crap to figure out that If I want to be successful, I have to pay attention to a few and ignore even more.
Thanks Eric.
Eric,
Thank you for bringing all this to the surface. I also can’t believe I gave my good email address too, I’m wondering if there’s any way to stop them from giving my email address out.
Crooks. Any time you seeing people making their fortunes in the weight loss industry (covers Buck and Butthead’s Pipeline Profits and the Garcias Traffic Tactics) strap down your wallets people. Most drug dealers are more honest than the diet pill pimps.
Thanks Jon for digging out the info that the Cable Descrambler didn’t work and the diet patches were near placebo.
And Eric - thanks for finally calling out one of these scams for what it is. You’ll be getting a few fewer Christmas cards after this post. What are those Fight Club rules again? Pam. No one talks about Fight Club.
Surprised to see people citing, JR, MF, YS - John Reese, Mike Filsaime and Yannick Silver - as credible witnesses. All of them are bilkers. John Reese consults to the top tier on how to fleece your boots. Mike Filsaime sells defective product found in better executions as freeware or open source. Yannick Silver gives a platform to people like the Garcias - and made his own money selling hot air (public domain riches). Whoever cited Joel Comm as one of the good guys has got to be joking - that guy sends out more affiliate pitches than anyone, outbatting even Eric by at least three to one.
Wake up people! Smell the coffee and go and buy J. Paul Getty’s How to be Rich ($6) and update it with Scott Fox’s hardcover Internet Riches ($10) at Amazon. Those two books have more practical money making wisdom in them than all of these $297 (and up) courses put together.
Ladies and Gentlemen, still be careful. That someone does the right thing once is only an indication that person is capable of doing the right thing, not a guarantee of future performance.
Eric,
Thank you very much for your research and comments. I had passed on this once I saw the price tag and the amouint of money they were using. Way out of my league. But I have bitten on way too many similar programs. I wish I had seen something like this on them (I won’t name names), it was my own mistakes. You are makiing a significant contribution…I would like to see more, I’d even pay a fee (Hint).
G’Day Eric and friends,
Boy have you got some nerve!
Not being a newbie I wasn’t taken in by this one either as a matter of fact it made me very angry.
But I must admit, I don’t have your courage.
I wrote an article in my newsletter over a year ago called ” The Sins Of Omission.”
I thought that was pretty game at the time. I don’t want to hurt anybodys business
but felt the scales had to be evened out a bit for the poor unsuspecting newbies,
of which I was one not so long ago.
Fortunately now I have a high traffic site. Guess what, Ive posted step by step instructions on
how I did it - all for totaly free.
The best tip I can give - if it’s called a secret run away as fast as you can.
Hip, Hip Hooray, and as usual Eric you “Really Shake The Truths From The Lies”, in this snake oil business of internet marketing. The hucksters out there in “Make Believe We Are Telling You TheTruth”, land just meet their match in your “Hold No Punches and Tell No Lies” newsletter.
Thanks to you, I won’t be pouring “Good Money After Bad” down this dark rabbit hole in “Alice I’m Going To Get Rich On The Internet Wonderland”.
Lawrence Bethel
http://www.precisionemedia.com
Hello eric,
Thanks for the great info. You’re right and I totally agree with you.
By the way, a few days ago you did give us information on AdSpyPro and GoogleCashDetective, but you probably overlook another player “AdwordsTycoons” which launched last Tuesday. AdwordsTycoons sold at $1497 plus $99.5 shipping and handling.
The group call themselves “AdwordsTycoons” team without showing WHO they actually are.
I wondered whether or not they are SCAM ?
Could you please visit the site and investigate if they are a real deal ?
If so, why their price is so high ? Is there any considerable differences from AdSpyPro or GoogleCashDetective that they can price the product that expensive ? Worth the price ?
Of course, if they are scam, you can get your subscribers awared, the same way you normally do.
Best Regards,
Hey Eric,
Thanks for the heads-up and for being willing to “go against the flow!” I did similar research to yours and was surprised to see so many “Big Name Gurus” promoting this when there is so much negative press about the Garcia’s former business.
Contrary to what some have said, Banner Advertising still works but is dependant on several factors… Site placement, quality of copy, tasteful use of animation, call to action, etc. If you want to get started without having to “bet the farm,” try Google’s “Image Ads” which allow you to place banner ads on Content Network sites and which don’t require a contract to place the ads and test them.
Kevin
http://www.freeppcupdate.com
Hi (again),
Sorry, I forgot to give you the prodcut URL, here you are :
http://www.adwordstycoons.com/private1.aspx
Thanks,
Eric,
Again, a no-nonsense review. To be honest, the videos seemed like so much hype that they scared me away anyway! Man, teach me how to make a few thousand a month and we’ll worry about making the millions later.
Why are so many high profile internet marketers endorsing this business model? If I’m correct, many of them belong to the Stompernet Team which teaches building for longevity not the quick buck. Nevermind. I already know the answer. Greed. Theirs and ours.
Later.
Eric,
I appreciate the research and information you have provided on yet another so called coaching programs. It seems the higher priced the coaching program scam the more hype it generates and the more lucarative it becomes for the so called internet marketing guru community.
We need more people like you to expose the realities of these kind of coaching program schemes.
I really do hope this is as low as the current batch of Mega-Bucks-Milk-The-Punters-For-As-Much-As-Possible launches ever get. Truly appalling.
The conversion rates for their banners were actually very low, particularly when you consider the wide appeal of the rubbish they were selling. Everybody is talking about the dates, but that’s not really what’s important here - banner ads then are no different to Google image ads now. Ads are ads - they’re either good or bad and their ads were obviously pretty poor performers. On the number of impressions they used they should have made far more money than they did, but that’s what happens when you sell garbage. Any ‘guru’ should have spotted that obvious point and Reese, Silver, Johnson and all the others pimping this at present really do need a serious unsubscribe lesson to prove the point.
If something works and makes money then, generally, doing a lot more of that thing will make even more money. Nothing there worth $25K. Carlos and Lupe Garcia found a way of getting a lot of advertising on credit and that’s really the ’secret’ they’re offering and it’s a very, very dangerous piece of knowledge. To anyone even remotely interested in what they have to offer just don’t go there - you’ll be landing yourself in exactly the same problems, only worse, as those who went with Bip and Bop and their Drainpipe Losses program. Instead look at those low cost programs - like AdSpyPro and others - that help with your testing. That’s the real way to start making profits.
Aloha Eric,
Hi its me Richard from your internet coaching club with joel comm, I wanted to first thank you for answering my questions with the club, and to thank you for your honest review of this product. I have been trying to make a dime online for quite a while and I find it really helpful to see you helping out newbies such as myself. I know that your site will be a great help to me and many a newbies in the future. To see all of the posts on here, is truly showing me that people do listen to you and that if people are listening than you must obviously know what you are talking about.
As many of you have stated, too much money spent on too many gurus, selling the dream. I just got finished going through a 7 day seminar, many of you may have also attended, and at the end of the 7 day seminar, I was pitched to, on each and every day. So this was a preseminar to the mass riches that this one individual had made from us. For me, I spent my last dollars because I had believed that it would finally give me that edge that I was looking for that could help me to generate some income really quickly. It turned out to be the exact opposite, I was expected to dish out even more money.
Sad to say, I wish that there were more honest individuals such as yourself teaching us newbies how to make any type of money online and trust be assured that I will keep on working on my blogs and working on the traffic to my blog. I noticed that you were telling me that I could make some good money with adsense, but someone told me that the adsense phase is not as good as the selling of the affiliate products. I also noticed that you do not have adsense here on this blog. So i’m going to try and take a different approach then adsense unless you could advise a better way. But thank you once again for your honest review on the garcia’s.
Aloha,
richard
Hi Eric,
Thanks again for the honest reviews. You are the IM mareker that respect so much. Keep up good work. Salute.
cheers,
flwong
Eric,
I have always appreciated your candidness. I’m certain you are rich, but you are not a pimp for every Tom, Dick, and Lupe. Mazel tov!
What they seem to be saying is that you can make oodles of money following their strategies. Maybe. But I want to know how to make oodles of cvash honestly by following a system which is not going to be tapped dry with the launch of a new product or shut down by regulatory authorities.
I tried the $1 trial of Stompernet, and although I couldn’t afford to continue, it is clear as day that their site and staff offer bullet-proof ideas which will endure. Lupe and Carlos offer onlyr smoke and mirrors which are far beyond the reach of most of us.
Carlos and Lupe seem genuine, but that is their marketing hook. Keep up the vigilance, Eric, so that the fools (like me?) and their money do not part.