Aggressive Marketing

If you get an email with a title like 'Don't Ever Trust Me Again!' and continues along the lines of '... then you don't have to take my advice ever again!'

My advice is - Don't *

Perhaps it's because I'm skeptical of the number of "miracle" products, "great deals", 'limited time offers' or 'incredible packages' that are advertised online every day. Perhaps it's because I have bought more products than I can possibly use for now. Perhaps it's because there are probably more people trying to sell this particular package than the number of packages that are available. Or, perhaps it's because I received an email with almost identical content from too many different sources. Whatever the reason, don't make the same mistakes as I have in the past.

* It may be a good deal. It may be exactly what you are looking for. But if you receive emails with exactly the same content from different sources, think carefully before you buy. There are some good internet marketers that I have every respect for. However, there are an increasing number of 'marketers' that show little thought or consideration for others. They will take from you but offer nothing in return. You may disagree with the last statement. If you buy a product from them and you are happy with that product and they are happy with the money earned from selling you that product it's a win-win situation.

That's all well and good until you look more closely at the process. To do this, other factors must be taken into account. These include cost, value, convenience, time, and most importantly trust. You've probably heard of the phrase. "The money is in the list". I wouldn't disagree with that and it's easy to see why many of the "big list" hitters are successful in the percentage game. But unless they offer you something more than somebody else's 'sales pitch' ignore them. Many of these people come and go. Make sure they don't go with your money.

With regard to the email in question, here is a quote from a 'trusted' ezine that I subscribe to "This is only of interest to you, Bryan, if you really need some brand new products to sell. If not, don't bother." At least, this is honest and straight to the point. I know who I'd buy from. On occasion, time may be more important than trust. If this is the case, then make sure you have a use for the product before you buy it. We are all guilty of impulse buying. It can be all too easy to buy something that will seldom, if ever, be used.

If you subscribe to an ezine or newsletter, it's often useful to keep tabs on the sender. By doing this you will learn to recognize if the content is original or simply a copy of someone else's work. You'll also quickly discover if the sender is only interested in using you as a means of earning a 'fast buck'. This is obvious if there is little or no content, excessive affiliate URLs, or emails that are repetitive or delivered more often than necessary.

If you like the newsletter or email subscription, that's great. If you don't, you can usually 'unsubscribe'. If this fails, then try 'whitelist' filtering to weed it out. If you think the email is from a spammer, then be careful. Don't click on any URL or 'unsubscribe' option, and unless you are absolutely sure of the originator, never open an attachment.

If you use eBay or PayPal, you will no doubt be aware of the fake or spoof emails that are periodically blasted out. Well, the spin cycle has begun again. A good tutorial on spoof emails and how to recognize them can be found at http://pages.ebay.com/education/spooftutorial/index.html

Tip - If you have your own website, don't use your default address for your PayPal or eBay account. Use a different address and you will quickly spot the spoof email in the 'To' line of the email.