************************************************ Make Money In My What?
Read Through The Hype Of Multi-Level Marketing ************************************************

Picture this. It could have been written by Rod Serling.

A man shows up at your door. He is wearing a mask, so you can't tell who he is. He is representing a business - but he won't tell you what the business is. He wants you to give him $150 to become part of this business. No, he still won't tell you what the business is. But, he will tell you the business is not in business yet. It's in pre-launch.

The masked man (not the Lone Ranger®) goes on to guarantee that you can make $10,000 a month (after 12 months) with this business that is not yet in business, or you get your money back. But, this anonymous stranger offers no contract. You ask where you write in order to get your money back. He gives you the address of a vacant lot. The mysterious stranger continues by saying that he will build your business for you. You ask, "how?". You are told that is on a need-to-know basis only.

Question. Do you give this man your $150?

So, why do people fall for this exact type of scene on the Net every day? Don't fall for the whistles and bells of bad Internet Marketing. Here are some of the tell-tale signs to beware of.

1. Really, You CAN Make Money In Your Underwear.

Just the other night, I saw a re-run of a commercial with Michael Jordan pitching Hanes®. I've also seen the Victoria's Secret® models, both in magazines and on television. These people make money in their underwear. You and me. We would get committed.

Don't believe the hype. Yes, you could sit in front of your computer and work at your home business wearing only your underwear. After all, it is your home. But, the key is - IT'S A BUSINESS. And, if you don't treat it as a business, the only person making money will be the person who took your money. And, they wear more than their underwear when they take your money to the bank.

The line, "Make Money In Your Underwear" is about as old as the Net itself, but it is still used. Don't be the fool who is parted from his money. Real, legitimate businesses don't bother with this kind of misleading hype.

2. Make Money While You Sleep ! ! ! ! ! !

Re-read the previous section. Yes, the Net is available 24 hours a day. But, this is still mis-leading hype used mostly by get-rich-quick schemes in an attempt to convince you that the Net will make money for you.

Rule #1. The Net does not make money for you. It can provide a new medium, and access to many more potential buyers than ever before. But, you must make the effort. Those who make money from the Net while they sleep, are those who work hard on the Net while awake.

Like before, it's still a business, and to make money, you must work for it.

3. The Number Of !!!!'s or $$$$$'s Has No Relationship To The Number Of $$$$$ You Make. Really !!!!!!!!!!!!!

I get messages like this in my mailbox every day, you probably do, too. It never ceases to amaze me the way people write some of the ads. I guess they use excessive punctuation to make up for the lack of anything to say. Just because they fell for this - don't you fall for it.

$$$$$$$$$$$$10.00 is the same as $10.00. If their "programs" were worth joining, the emphasis would be on the product. They would also call it a business instead of a program.

4. And, The Dollar $ign I$ Not A Letter Of The Alphabet. Not Even In Bu$ine$$.

Again, an appeal to the "Greed Factor." Because they substitute a dollar sign for the 'S' everywhere in their sales letter, they think you are stupid enough to think this means you will make a ton of money. Why not? They were probably stupid enough to fall for it.

Once again, legitimate business opportunities don't pull this sort of thing. Their products, and their endorsements allow the program to stand on it's own merit.

5. BEING IN ALL CAPITAL LETTERS DOES NOT MAKE IT MORE IMPORTANT.

In the old days, someone decided that on the Internet all capitals was the same thing as shouting. I've never really understood that philosophy, but - being in all capitals does make it much more difficult to read. Why would someone send, what is to them anyway, an important email that is difficult to read?

6. If It's Going To E X P L O D E, It's Probably A Bomb.

Enough said. If I had a dollar for every email I've been sent about a program that was going to 'explode', I would have a good income. On the other hand, if I had a dollar for each of these programs that is still in business, I might be able to buy a pizza (with only one topping).

7. If They're Making So Much Money, Why Is their address, I-Can't-Afford-My-Own-Domain@hotmail.com

I just hate it when an email comes telling me how much money they have made in this program. And, the return address is a free email account. Domains can be had for less than $35 per year, depending on who you register with. When I get these emails, they don't even get opened. The delete key is used.

8. Letters From Legitimate Businesses Don't Begin, "This Is Legal Because ..."

Do you really want to join some program where you have to quote (or misquote) postal regulations in an attempt to convince people what you're doing is legal, and not this weeks version of mail fraud. Have you ever heard Bill Gates say, "What we're doing is legal because..." OK, bad example. But, the point is - if you have to defend your products legality, do you really want it as a product?

9. Real Testimonials Have Names, Not Initials, and....

If a testimonial only has a persons initials, how do you know the testimonial wasn't just written by the person trying to take your money? You don't. Real testimonials have the persons name and address. And, on the Internet, at least an email address. Real businesses with real products or services that conduct business in an ethical manner want you to contact the people who give testimonials. These businesses have nothing to hide, and are proud of the way they do business.

If you don't have a way to contact the person writing a testimonial - it doesn't matter how good the testimonial sounds, the fact is - it's worthless.

10. Real Businesses Have Contact Information. Would you join a business where you have no real idea who is running it? Lot's of people do. What if there's a problem? How do you contact the company? Do you contact your sponsor? Do you even know who your sponsor is? Don't send your money to "them," unless you know who the "them" really is.

********************************************************** Dan Levy is the webmaster of Take "My Freebies ... Please!" which has been online at http://www.den-tex.com/ since 1995.

This article is not in the "public domain", but permission is conditionally granted for re-distribution. Conditions being: this article is left intact with no edits (including this paragraph), and this article must be distributed free. The following notice must also be attached:

Copyright© 2002. Dan Levy. All rights reserved. http://www.den-tex.com/
Comments to: webmaster@den-tex.com **********************************************************