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Saturday, February 25, 2006

EWEN CHIA Grows a Conscience! Or Does He?!

What follows is a letter Ewen Chia posted, a thinly-veiled SLAMMING of Rod Stinson and Chris Keohl's "1 Step System" that's been suggesting potentials of $500 per day or more using the Aussie 2Up method of downline building. NOTE: I'd appreciate a link to this article from any of you with a blog or a site related to internet marketing. Also, I know some people are drama queens and take the internet marketing celebrity guru scene way too seriously, so if that describes you, please feel free to tell Ewen about this directly. I'd email him but, as you'll soon see, his inbox is quite full.


From: Ewen Chia

Dear Valued Subscriber,

Seems my last email really helped a lot of people...

You don't really believe this do you? The thing with internet marketers of the celebrity guru subculture is that once they get a taste of the power of bullshit, they can't kick the habit.
Similar to any addiction, the addict eventually believes what he or she is saying and it makes them seem even more believable. And there's hardly anything more beguiling as a liar that believes himself. So how does the reader really know how many got helped and how Ewen verified that it was really helpful?

Now, some of you guru celebrity groupies might consider this nitpicking. It is not. It is meant to set the tone for the rest of this response.

Thanks for all your replies, I appreciate it. If I didn't reply you personally yet, I apologize as there're now more than 1,200+ unread emails in my inbox.

Maybe it's time Ewen took some of that money he's been making and bought himself a secretary.

Just to answer some questions:

I do not have an agenda or monetary gains from sending you that message, and I'm not trying to pitch another system as a replacement. It was simply information I wanted you to know about with no catches whatsoever :-)

There's a catch. So either he's lying, or he's unaware of it and I tend to believe it is the latter. But eiither he's a salesman or a public servant - not both.. So, you decide.

You may find it hard to believe that a marketer will do such a thing - but it's really about caring enough to take the time and effort to do so when permitted.

This is a kind of gibberish that some people seem to nod their heads with as if they understand it, but upon intense scrutiny actually means nothing. And upon close questioning, the people who agree with it turn out to not be so sure as to exactly with what it was they were agreeing.

In any case, caring is something totally different and rarely convenient. He is just continuing to groom his readership which is what all marketers do. It just makes him think he is being magnanimous to refer to his list grooming as caring. But without a doubt, there are list members who will believe him. And when someone like myself points this out, we are then accused of being cold, uncaring, unsympathetic or bitter and disenchanted. And to an extent, that is true...we're not bitter and disenchanted in general, but with having to deal with the results of letters like Ewen's which some people will think is either true or, at least, benign.

If you want to truly make it online, you've got to focus on setting up REAL lifetime businesses that work long-term.

Is this news? Here's a guy who comes from the school of ad copy that says things like, "High School Kid Makes $8,000 in 3 Days!" or "Stuff Your Inbox With Cash!" yet suddenly he's promoting sound business principles. It reminds me of how the Chinese restaurants in my area serve all the greasy, fattening, MSG-laden food to the locals who devour it gladly while in the back room, all the employees are eating healthy vegetables and rice. It reminds me of the family dog who smells the homeowners fabulous 7 course meal but then gets the same old dog food as it does every night.

Businesses which you can CONTROL.

"The most flexible element in the room
controls the situation." - ??

What does Ewen's statement really mean? Nothing.

Everything in life is inter-connected:

The tax structures change - it affects your business.
The building codes change - it affects your business.
Nature knocks your building down - it affects your business.

You're never really in control just because your name is on the deed. You're in control of a situation as per the other statement I quoted above - if you are the most adaptable, flexible element in the room. Ewen Chia has focussed mainly on "affiliate marketing" as long as I've known of him. Is selling others products your own business? You could argue it, but it's not. It's being a salesman or an agent without salary or benefits. If you want to call that a REAL business, " then you'd have to incorporate, get a DBA, yada yada yada. In theory, again, many people will nod with such statements which, in reality, are just fluff, and for reasons which will become readily apparent.

Now, can a business INCLUDE affiliate marketing? Sure! Must it EXCLUDE opportunities like "The 1-Step System"? Not at all. So why is Ewen singling out the 1-Step System as a stand-alone business rather than another stream of income to add to your growing business?! Can anyone figure that one out?! Is it really because, after hyping products like "STUFF YOUR INBOX WITH CASH!!!" for years, that he somehow magically grew a conscience?

Businesses which build YOUR brand.

Isn't this a guy who is constantly promoting affiliate marketing? How many affiliate marketers who are out selling others products have a shot at branding? "Sam Freedom" sounds like one, but what is Ewen talking about? He's cherry-picking good advice that has been said a million times. A hen can be trained to type the same thing out on a typewriter - but how is that relevant or caring as regards his belittling the "1-Step System"?

Businesses based on VALUE where everyone wins.

The old "win-win" philosophy. Nothing new here. But why is it regarding a rant on the "1-Step System"? Has Ewen achieved or verified that all of his customers have won? It's easy to repeat such words, but more difficult to achieve the results they suggest. Has he?

Anything that adds to the above is good, anything that takes it away is questionable. This is the 'secret' to zooming pass information overload and hype.

I'm sorry, that is funny. That is coming from the guy who wrote this:

" Once You're Armed With My Secret Toolkit That Has Helped Me Sell Over $832,697.85 In Products And Services In The Last 12 Months Alone, You'll Be Able To Trigger A Synergistic Chain Of Events With Machine-like Repeatability, Resulting In Huge Cash Windfalls As Fast As Humanly Possible… And Without Limit!

In fact, you’ll increase your sales so much faster than you would without this “insider” help… and do it so easily and effortlessly your friends will accuse you of robbing a bank!

Wow! NO LIMIT! And as FAST as HUMANLY POSSIBLE, too!
(Remember, someone has to sit around saying, "What Stupid Things Can We Say to Get People Excited Now?")

Anyways, that seemed like information overload and hype to me.

Some models of these include affiliate marketing, information marketing, list-building, content publishing etc. just to name a few.


Again, I'm not putting down the said program, the "Aussie 2-up" structure or
other marketers promoting it
, some people have had great successes with it. It's just a difference of opinions depending upon which angle one is looking at.

Since you're my subscriber, I see it as my duty to share this with you.

What is the difference of opinion? He said others have had great success with it, so what's his problem? If it were just a difference of opinion and not a subtle put-down AND "some people have had GREAT successes with it" then why did he feel it was so important that it was a "duty" to tell you? Do you really believe Ewen considers it a DUTY...a matter of conscience to tell you?

Methinks it is just an attempt to CONTROL HIS BUSINESS (meaning YOU) from floating away to a product that will REALLY make you a LOT of money, a LOT Faster. Wait until I tell you a little later just how much my sponsor has made since Jan 31st....and this guys is NOT an internet marketer! Oh alright, it's $40,000.


The below email I received from one of your fellow list members reaffirms I did the right thing, and if I can help you make a more informed decision, it's all worth the time and effort.

It reaffirms nothing. If his reaffirmation is based on one letter from an unsuccessful marketer who, like so many of us, mistakenly and lazily expect that spending $1000 or more should yield us SOMETHING in the next month, then his original argument must be pretty weak. Rather than continuing to dialogue with this unsuccessful marketer to uncover possible flaws in his PPC, or general marketing, strategy, Ewen just takes it as fact that it supports his weak assertion that the 1-Step System must be flawed, ineffective, or, at best, benign. How weak is it to use a rant from an unknown entity whose actual marketing abilities are unknown as PROOF of conscience?

Here's the email:


Click the picture for a slightly less crappy version.

Have a great weekend!
Ewen Chia


SO LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EWEN'S ORIGINAL MESSAGE MEANT TO APPEAL TO THE LOSER IN US ALL.

Here's my original message...

"Read This Now Before Spending $597
Of Your Hard-Earned Money..."

TOO LATE! I BOUGHT IT RIGHT HERE!


From: Ewen Chia

Dear Valued Subscriber,

This is NOT a sales letter.

I'm not promoting a single thing here (I could do that and make 5 figures in days but I won't).

Was it necessary to let you know that he could make 5 figures in days? Yes, if he wanted to make 6 figures in weeks. By convincing even himself that he has a duty to inform you of something which, in his very own words, has worked out great for some people, he creates the possibility of making himself seem selfless, thereby endearing others to him.

"Isn't that Ewen fellow real nice? He thought it a matter of conscience to forego 5 digit earnings in order to warn us about something he says some people have had great success with!"

It really just decreases the likelihood that you will look at a VERY fine product, 1-Step System with a kind of support that Ewen can never give you. Ewen even said he had 1200 unread emails in his inbox. Perhaps yours is number 1200? Or 1199? Do you think his JV partners write to him at that address? In fact, I bet he'll read this letter LONG before he gets through those 1200 emails. Yet the 1-Step System is loaded with all kinds of videos and pdfs and support materials that make one-on-one support virtually unnecessary and YET they HAVE a support desk and they have answered my emails in less than 6-12 hours.

Is it just me who catches these bizarre, illogical statements? Is it just me who remembers that Ewen Chia is a SALESMAN and not a socially committed public servant?


It's a quickly put up message that may help you save $597.00 of your hard-earned money.

It might also PREVENT you from make $40,000 of someone else's well-spent money. But to borrow some clever wording from Ewen, "but this is just an opinion, depending on the angle from which one views it." Why isn't the cold logic that Ewen and other marketers of his ilk use, "JUST 2 SALES AND YOU'RE IN PROFIT!" equally applicable to this situation? Have any of his "valued subscribers" ever read "The Millionaire Next Door"?

Before I continue, I'd need to point out that these are my personal views, and I do not claim them to be the absolute truth. It's just something I need to share and I've no intention to put other marketers in a tight spot.

However you'll see why I HAD to write this to you shortly. It's a 'duty' so to speak.

Yes, marketers everywhere are depending on Ewen for their daily dose of good sense. Remember, what follows is not, as he says, Absolute Truth. He just feels duty-bound to share his PERSONAL views, in which his conviction was reaffirmed by one angry, unsuccessful marketer with unrealistic expectations. And Ewen says, without showing proof (and probably having none) that MANY people were helped by this letter of his that I am currently dissecting for you.

Here's the story...

(sleepy dreamy music)

You're (as I am too) probably being bombarded by many emails promoting a 'single step' program (which will remain unnamed here) where you could make $500 daily without doing a thing.

Now, emulating Ewen, what I'm about to say is not absolute truth, but just my personal views. In light of what Ewen has written, I feel duty bound to share this with you. It is just my opinion that were Ewen referring to one of his JV crony's promotions, he would not refer to the notifications everyone was receiving as "a bombardment." Just pay close attention to the choice of words and you'll continue to see that that is nothing more than a defensive business maneuver in reaction to...

A REALLY HOT PRODUCT!

I was intrigued to say the least and wanted to promote it, cos if I did I'd probably make at least $25,000 in the next 3 days from this.

He thinks you're too stupid to decide for yourself whether or not you want to give something a shot? Do you realize what the hidden message is there, folks? He thinks they are better with the bs than he.

"Isn't that Ewen great? He forewent $25,000 because he cares about me."

So I did what had to be done - pay the price of research.

How noble of him. Translated into non-hype English, we call it "a business investment."

Here's what I found...

In the broadest sense, this is a glorified affiliate program paying 80% commission on a $597.00 info-package, which is a series of ebooks, software and audio recordings.

In the narrowest sense, the 80% commission on a $597.00 product package is true. But Ewen doesn't tell all. There's also plenty of top-notch videos and marketing materials in the back office as well as a tricked out contact manager. PLUS, they do the selling for you on a high-quality tele-conference. In fact, I CHALLENGE you, REALLY, to listen in just ONE TIME and tell me yourself, on my BLOG or wherever, that it is not a Drop-Dead Amazing Tele-Call. Square Mark Joyner and you still haven't adequately described how slick and smooth this 37 minute tele-call is..

It's not MLM though it looks like it. The program is based on a structure called the "Aussie 2-up" where you'll have to pass your first two sales to your sponsor. The same applies to your 'downline' across one-level.

Who makes the most money? The experienced marketers with the list who get in early, and the creators.(apparently one of the creators had a similar program which is now on a parked domain page, go figure).

Go figure? I thought this was just personal views and not an attack. I've been marketing for around 3 years, and I can tell you there are countless big name marketers who have shelved programs that are on parked domains. That doesn't dismiss Ewen's shoddy work in this letter.

And, wait a second. Is Ewen trying to convince you that there's something wrong with
this
(or any) program because more experienced marketers make more money? Is the hidden message that he thinks his readership is full of inept people who can't break even with 4 sales per year (while having having 2 of those 4 go on to produce more sales via the 2-up?) What am I missing? It always seemed logical to me that the more experience you had as a marketer, the more you could put that experience to work for you. If anything, the Aussie 2-up actually HELPS LESS EXPERIENCED marketers do WAY better than a straight affiliate program.

Is Ewen selling communism? Is there something wrong with those who have worked hard to build the biggest lists reaping the benefits of greater profits than those who haven't? Does he, therefore, mean that if you haven't a big list, or no list that you shouldn't even bother attempting to win affiliates through something like signature files in forums, or by paying $200 for an ad in a hot ezine? OR BY EVEN USING EWEN'S METHODS FOR "STUFFING YOUR INBOX WITH CASH"!??!?!?!?!

So what is this really?

That's what I'd like to know. Why did Ewen get a hair across his behind about a program that uses the Aussie 2-up which he even admits has proven successful for some people? About
a program that affords the least experienced marketers the chance to benefit more so than if it was not an Aussie 2-up? About a program which allows experienceD marketers to leverage their hard-earned experience for exponentially greater returns? About a program with some very useful audios, videos, pdfs, contact management system, super professional tele-call for sales conversions and a responsive support desk?

WHY?!?!?

Is it because Ewen didn't think of it himself?
Let's See....

It's basic info-product marketing done very smartly. You get on a free teleseminar and get pitched with a time-sensitive deal to invest $597.00 on the package.

Ok, sounds good so far, right?. In fact, Ewen's fellow marketer, Mark Joyner, did the same with a far inferior product called, "The Secret Weapon."

My question is: Do you need another marketing package?

No, not if "Stuff Your Inbox With Cash!" had stuffed their inboxes with cash. But listen, marketers know that a big contributing factor to business longevity is the ability to reconstitute and repackage. There's no mystery there. So yes, people do need ANOTHER marketing package. And just notice that Ewen is writing AS IF the reader has already seen or bought a marketing package from someone. Mighty presumptuous, huh? But you can come to count on that because internet marketers, in general, copycatting their predecessors, love to make these little assumptions.

The income opportunity is very appealing, but as with all things, you do need to work on marketing it, even if it's a 'free' teleseminar.

BRILLIANT! GENIUS! CLAP! CLAP! CLAP! Where do I send my check for this amazing information?! There's only ONE step. Get people to the call.

My concerns are:


1. Quality of the product


Notice there's nothing SPECIFIC...just enough to make you doubtful. It's something many competitors attempt to do to their customers who are considering a 3rd party purchase. The fact is, if you got the 1 Step System's Marketing package then, when it came time for Ewen & Friends to BOMBARD YOU with emails, you might hear a little voice saying, "Do you really need another marketing package?" And I feel reasonably assured that for anyone who joins the 1-Step System the answer will be a resounding, "NO!"


2. Saturation of the product (which will likely happen)

Wasn't it widely known crony, Mark Joyner, who addressed the same concern with some other products by quoting some stastic having to do with with 70,000 or so new people coming to the web every day? Add that to the fact that some companies who have proven themselves successful once, can be perfectly capable of, and prepared to, reinvent themselves...roll out a phase 2....or a new line of product for charter members to sell.

3. Long-term future of the program

What about it? I can worry about the long-term future of a lot of things, but if I expect people to believe me (and if it's REALLY as a dutiful service and not just self-promotion) then I should give some very clear reasons for my concern. Instead, the way Ewen has presented this is to underhandedly suggest a negative possibility and then let his readers' imaginations go nuts with it.

4. Long-term returns on YOUR investment As I said earlier, these are my personal views and the program may work well for you.

What is the point of saying something like that other than to get people to think this is not a thinly veiled put-down? How can Ewen try to now bring this down to the "casual" level of mere personal opinion and say it might work well for some when he begins the whole thing by referring to it as a matter of duty. He tries to play it off as a matter of conscience by which he is duty-bound to inform you that he has some VAGUE, UNDEFINED personal questions. These questions are regarding something that he also admits has worked very well for some people and might work very well for the reader.

I hope you're understanding this. Ewen seems unable to just let you believe that this is nothing more than what it is.. A BUSINESS DECISION to put down another business' product. And guiding his conscience with reaffirmation of an unverifiable amount of "help" people have supposedly received, is one lonely, disgruntled, unsuccessful marketer pining about his questionably competent PPC campaign efforts.

From what I've found, I can't bring myself to promote this to you with a
clear conscience - so I'm not.

Excellent! That's $25,000 more potential for us. Oh wait, it uses the Aussie 2-up so that's more like $1,000,000 more potential for us. Alright, mate! Gotta get me a FOSTER'S!

Hope this resonates well with you and you've found this useful...

Somebody please tell me how in G-d's name this could have possibly been useful.

Have a good day,
Ewen Chia

PS. I'd probably have to remove this webpage anytime soon. Please do NOT share this page with anyone else, it's for your eyes only.

Yeah, "..don't tell the owners of the 1-Step System that he's bashing their high-quality product and presentation that offers everyone from highly experienced marketers down to the least experienced to make a ton of cash...because he doesn't want them suing him."

Folks, now it's time for the SURPRISE QUIZ!

Was Ewen Chia's letter...
a) a conscientious call to duty?
b) a waste of intellect? or,
c) a thinly-veiled SLAM of Rod Stinson's and Chris Keohl's "1 Step System"?

Tune in for the answer in tomorrow's post,
Sam Freedom
PS. Make sure to check out my other blog:
Sam Freedom's 12DailyPRO Madness Blog!
and the home page of The Coolest Guy on the Planet!

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$500 Per Day to SHUT YOUR MOUTH!

The most important part of internet marketing isn't know when to open your mouth - it's knowing when to shut it. So when the "1 Step System" by Rod Stinson and Chris Koehl pretty much offered me $500 per day to shut up, I agreed it was time.

Just Click the Picture to See What I Mean.

Your marketing friend,
Sam
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Wednesday, February 15, 2006

Watch Your List & Wallet Grow!

I'm guilty. And there's no denying it. For 3 years, I've plumbed the internet depths and have not implemented the one thing that every single successful marketer both uses and recommends without hesitation:

STAMPEDE!!

(If you're not much of a reader, but want to just go straight there and try the DEMO, then click here. But keep in mind, there's an additional bonus offered in this post that you won't hear about there.)

Before I blow your mind with the main reason behind this post, I'll give you the short of why, despite having a responsive mailing list of over 15,000 friendly people, I never had an affiliate program. Two reasons:

1) I grew up in a family business and, therefore, had the ability to directly influence business operations most of my life. Outsourcing my affiliate program to an unknown 3rd party just didn't settle right with me. Besides, I'd heard some horror stories from friends using 3rd party solutions.

2) I had never found a script that turned me on. And believe me, I know how to search. I'd found a bunch but they were always lacking in some features that, while not ESSENTIAL, provided MAJOR, MAJOR convenience. I wanted the power of an affiliate program but, on principle, I didn't want to get bogged down maintaining things that I thought any cognizant programmer should have included in the first place.

So while everyone who had an affiliate program was making money left and right practically on autopilot (Liz Tomey, for example, who came onto the internet scene AFTER me but soon blew by me in earnings after her first major sale using affiliate program), I was doing 10 times the work to make 1/10th the money.

THANK GOD I LOVED IT!

It was only due to the fact that I really do love internet marketing with a passion that kept me in the game to the point where I began making significant returns. I remember my first $10,000 month yet Liz had already had a sale so huge that Paypal interrupted it just as a precaution! To say it was 3x what I was making a month was an understatement.

Why?

SHE HAD AN AFFILIATE PROGRAM!

It didn't have all the bells and whistles, but still she had one. And one might say she had a lot of affiliates, but the truth is she had a joint venture broker bring in a ton of big hitter marketers for a percentage of the sale. So it ain't about whether or not you have a list. It's about whether or not you have an affiliate program in place because the NEXT best thing to having a BIG LIST is having an affiliate program. That opens you up to so many opportunities.

But her affiliate program script stunk. It wasn't HORRIBLE, but it had its glitches and inconveniences and, as I said, I didn't need the headache of a program that had less than 100% of the features I felt any sane marketer would love to have.

But That Just Changed...

And boy, if you could tell how really happy I am right now because once again, I'm on the inside, early notice of a product so hot, so effective and so incredible that it's literally going to transform my whole business!

So What Is It?!?!


Along came MerchantTracMX...when I first saw it, it too was missing some of those key features that I thought should make an affiliate program "too good to be true." but it pays to have lots of good friends. My good friend, Lamar Owens, told the owners that he was interested in the script but only if he could have all of those key features programmed in to make a super new version. From what I understand, the answer was "Sure!" on the condition that Lamar help promote it afterwards.

What a dream! Get the affiliate program of your dreams as long as you give it a strong promotion afterwards!

Naturally, He Agreed!

And THAT is what you're hearing about BEFORE anybody else... I mean that. As of this moment, you are hearing this BEFORE anyone else. And rollout is scheduled either for later this evening or tomorrow.

But WAIT...You Need to Know This!

MERCHANTTRACMX is not just an AFFILIATE PROGRAM. It's an affiliate program MEMBERSHIP script. OH YEA!!! That means not only will you have the best affiliate program in all existence, but you'll be able to sell memberships for others to use the exact same program and you'll receive PASSIVE INCOME from them MONTHLY!


You'll get the BEST affiliate program software ever created PLUS the ability to make residual monthly income selling memberships to others for whatever you want!

UPDATE: Launch IN PROGRESS!! - There's a $100 Discount plus Bonuses for the FIRST 200 copies! Here's the link again: MerchantTracMX - See What a Top Notch Affiliate Program Membership Script Looks Like!

PLUS: There are VIDEOS all throughout that explain all phases of internal setup for you AND your members. There is also a GUARANTEED TO WORK Install offer for a small, reasonable fee, and the first 200 to get it receive one heck of a BONUS!

GO THERE NOW AND TRY THE DEMO!

Wishing you the best, as always,
Sam Freedom
PS. When you get your own Affiliate Program Membership Script, send me proof of purchase (mail it here) and I'll send you a rare gift that was only given out 1 other time in a very rare and big promotion.

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Tuesday, February 14, 2006

Internet Marketing and Breasts

(Great, here come all the guys searching porn tags at Technorati)

So pardon me ladies, but the question begs to be asked, "Just what does non-adult, mainstream internet marketing have to do with breasts?" Until today, I thought the answer was "Not much." Listen, maybe I'm just a boob who needs to get this off his chest, but I really needed to know. So, I called my bosom buddy, "Ben", a dedicated upper torso aficionado and invited him to lunch, from which I began to relay the events that brought me to this unsettling question:




"Ben," I began, "you know I spend quite a bit of time on the internet, right? I surf 100s, perhaps even 1000s of pages each day in search of the latest and the greatest, right? When I'm researching ad copy, checking out offers, and viewing testimonials, the only women I see are mainly post-menopausal women with some kind of flowery maternity gown on praising ebooks.






Either that, or they're mostly only head shots or distance shots and just about anything other than what I was about to find....bare with me."






I turned his laptop so he could see it as I started typing in a web address. "So is it a coincidence when in one day, I come across not only ONE busty testimonial...





....but TWO?!?



HOW ABOUT ON THE SAME WEBSITE?!
(DON'T BE SHY, CLICK THE LINK)

I THINK NOT!!!

So I'll lose a few readers. So what? In light of the recent Mohammed cartoons (nice segue into a popular technorati tag), I figure it's more important than ever to let my pert and perky side out for a day or two, to cleave myself from the Tree of Political Correctness, to just BUST out and enjoy the right to free spreech that my ancestors died so that I could have.

So grab some JUGS of wine! And, grab some CANS of beer! And let us give a toast to INTERNET MARKETING, BREASTS and FREE SPEECH!

HEAR, HEAR! HEAR, HEAR!

Ben? BEN?! C'mon, snap out of it, Ben...

Warm wishes on this nippy winter day,
Sam Freedom
PS. Make sure to check out my other blog:
Sam Freedom's 12DailyPRO Madness Blog
and the home page of The Coolest Guy on the Planet!

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Sunday, February 12, 2006

Last One to Jail is a Rotten Egg!


Maybe some people didn't take me seriously in the prior post, "Sam Freedom Supports Denmark!", when I said that our Right to Free Speech is truly under attack. Only a month ago, you could post a sarcastic jab at anyone anonymously so as not to incur the retribution of some of the web's more "animate" characters.



But No More!
Annoy someone anonymously and you're goin' BYE, BYE!




Click here then meet me at the courthouse!

Sam Freedom

Cartoon Courtesy of This Related Blog Article
PS. Makes you wonder if THIS innocent situation would qualify!

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Friday, February 10, 2006

Sam Freedom Supports Denmark!

Enough of the Madness!!
Warning! Do not click the picture!

denmark, mohammed cartoons, danish, free speech
For those of you who are just "happening" onto the scene, welcome. This has been, by tradition, a blog about internet marketing. It thrives amidst an "internet marketing subculture" which, even many of those in it will attest to, embodies its own special brand of madness.

Products' values are often exaggerated, original advertisements are copied and resent to us countless times ad nauseum, we're basically regarded as a flock of sheep, and those of us in this arena, if we are honest, will admit that quite often we think and act like a flock of sheep. Those who imagine otherwise will, at worst be offended, and at best will go off in search of others similarly in denial.

But our own little circle of craziness pales, and begins to even take on a kind of "cuteness", in comparison to a madness that is creeping across the land. There is an assault on the right to free speech. One culture that systematically endorses killing people for perceived offenses is trying to subvert a culture that supports, for better or worse, an individual's right to speak freely in a system that will not put that person to death for his or her views.

There comes a time when the comfortable road we once travelled forks, and we can no longer go straight ahead. We must decide which fork to take. We may delay the choice for as long as we can, even until it is virtually forced upon us, but choose we must. You must pick and your actions must follow your words because "..by their fruits ye shall know them."

It's not the government to blame. It's not the Muslims to blame. It's not Islam or Christianity or Jews to blame. Blame is truly the mark of the powerless. Instead, we need to hold ourselves accountable and realize that good words are not enough. It is deeds that matter, and if we are to blame anything, let it be ourselves for being complacent and not shoring up our words with supportive deeds.

At least, by blaming ourselves, we can do something about it. If you begin to change, then the whole equation changes. Some forces will attempt to recalibrate the situation, perhaps even personally attacking you, but what good is it to go around saying you believe one thing, and then doing another? Who will respect someone like that? Only others who don't do what they say will find another hypocrite attractive.

So, for starters, my blog is marked. I'm going to be supporting my Danish allies for a while. I won't presume to tell anyone else what to do, but that is what I'm doing in light of current events. One Danish newspaper is not the Country of Denmark. So let's wake up - there is a much larger war going on than you probably even know.

Feel free to copy the flags for your own use. And even if it never occurred to you to purchase something Danish this week, please have a look at the Danish websites below and perhaps, instead of wasting $97 on another trumped up Mark Joyner manual, you'll go on, what I call, "THE BIG ADVENTURE" and try something new. Like order something. What a surprise it will be to discover what Danish food is really like and how much you actually enjoy it!

(If you have a blog, or a site, please link to the post and notify me in the comments section. Anyone who links to this post will get a link back at the bottom of this post after notifying me. That is a link back in this post which is more valuable than in the comments.)

SUPPORT RIGHT-MINDED PEOPLE WHO SUPPORT FREE SPEECH.


Sam Freedom
PS. Make sure to check out my other blog:
Sam Freedom's 12DailyPRO Madness Blog
and the home page of The Coolest Guy on the Planet!


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Wednesday, February 08, 2006

12DailyPRO and STORMPAY Release Joint BS Statement

Stormpay and 12DailyPro have allegedly released a joint statement. It's in an online newspaper but who really knows if it's true or what it really means. It's just more smoke as far as people are concerned. I still maintain there's hardcore heavy-duty sociopath(s) in the mix somewhere, but I will be glad to be wrong about that:

STORMPAY AND 12DAILYPRO JOINT STATMENT

ALSO, because this is taking on large proportions with new news everday, I have created a blog specifically for this news. It can be found at

12DailyMadness Blog

Sam

Sam Freedom"s Internet Marketing Controversy Blog

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If YOU Are the VICTIM of a SCAM...!



This should be a great start. Let your voice be heard!
Please do not assume someone else will do the reporting!
Those who might be victims in the future COUNT ON YOU NOW!

Sincerely,
Sam
ps. If you, or someone you know has been a victim of identity
theft, then I've also blogged this article here:
Christmas Time Means More Identity Theft.

Sam Freedom"s Internet Marketing Controversy Blog

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Tennessee BBB Speaks on Stormpay!

The BBB has just issued this press release - StormPay.com Freezes Accounts
The Better Business Bureau of Middle Tennessee alerts the public to the business practices of StormPay.com of Clarksville, Tennessee. During the first six weeks of 2006, StormPay.com has generated more complaints to BBB than any other Middle Tennessee or Southern Kentucky business.

In the past seven days, BBB has received 18,926 inquiries from consumers around the world checking on the reliability of StormPay.com.

Complaints filed by consumers from around the world state that StormPay.com has frozen their online accounts and will not release funds due. StormPay.com is an online payment processor which acts as an intermediary in the processing of funds between a web site and a customer. “Since the end of January, BBB has received over 180 complaints from users of StormPay.com” says BBB President/CEO, Kathleen Calligan. “A review of complaints filed by users indicate that the company is holding in excess of $460,000” explains Calligan.

An email sent to at least one complaintant by StormPay, states in part “…should you choose to attempt to recover your funds through other means, that conduct will result in the forfeiture of any refund…”

The majority of complaints filed with BBB, concern StormPay’s freezing of accounts from users who participate in “auto-surfing” programs. An “auto-surfing” program reportedly generates money to the user every time a user visits a participating web site.

It is the position of the Better Business Bureau that auto surfing programs can post a financial risk to participants. Often “auto-surfing” programs are thinly veiled pyramid schemes cleverly devised to participants.

Due to the complaint volume, international scope of participants and amount of money involved, BBB is requesting the assistance of federal authorities for further investigation.

---
Further, the Leaf-Chronicle has wrote -
(http://www.theleafchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060207/NEWS01/60207003)

BBB issues alert on StormPayMiddle Tennessee chapter reports surge of complaintsThe Leaf-Chronicle The Better Business Bureau of Middle Tennessee today issued an alert regarding StormPay.com, an online payment processing business, in response to over 180 complaints filed since the end of January.“A review of complaints filed by users indicate that the company is holding in excess of $460,000,” explains BBB chapter President/CEO, Kathleen Calligan. The BBB said it has requested the assistance of federal authorities.Steve Girsky, StormPay owner, and John McConnell, president of the Clarksville-based business, are diverting the blame for the situation to a Web merchant with whom they’ve been associated, called “12dailypro,” which they say is being investigated by law enforcement.For more on the story, see tomorrow's edition of The Leaf-Chronicle. Originally published February 7, 2006

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Sunday, February 05, 2006

The Case for a Sustainable 12DailyPRO


There's no shortage of people who rave about 12DailyPro and there's an even greater number of people who are either skeptical or 100% certain there's "no way" it can work. The latter are convinced there is no possibility other than it being a ponzi scheme.

Admittedly, at a glance, it certainly seems like the latter are correct. I mean who the heck can pay out "12% per day" and keep it up indefinitely? Well, welcome to the world of marketing folks. If you're here, you're here to learn, so do your best to keep an open mind.

I'm not asking you, or anyone else, to believe that 12DailyPro was NOT a ponzi, or that it was even sustainable long term. Instead, what I'm asking you to do is to LEARN from the ideas I'm about to present to you. This is to help you think in new ways, to think analytically, rather than
like a native who thinks that this "fire" must be from "the gods.

Point #1 - Earn 12% Per Day.

It's been said before: They pay 12% on your principle, BUT they TAKE your principle from the start and you don't get it back. You only get the 12% earnings per day back which comes out to something like 3.6% per day PROFIT. Subtract Stormpay fees and the time from Day 12 to Day 17 (or 19) when your returns are "pending" and it comes out to something like 2.32%. So 12DailyPro is only on the hook for 3.6% per day.

Point #2 - They Don't GIVE 12% Per Day. It Must Be Earned.

With 350,000 people in the program, don't underestimate the amount of people who either FORGET to do their daily surfing, or go away and don't have a computer to use, etc. There can be any number of reasons why a person doesn't autosurf on a given day and all mean that 12DailyPro is not always paying out to the max.

Point #3 - They Sell Advertising.

Even I was about to purchase some. Let's see...350,000 PROVEN BIG SPENDERS....PROVEN AFFILIATES.... TRAINED TO WATCH ADS EVERYDAY. Hmmmm, how much would you pay to get at a list like that? Forget lazy thinking, "But that's AUTOSURFING, it's the WORSE kind of advertising. People can just run it then walk away. True, but I don't. When I sit down to use my computer, I'm sitting down to use my computer, period. So I start the autosurf and then go about my business answering emails, etc. Every time a new ad shows, it pops to the top screen and I actually see it. Out of 350,000 people, I'm confident a lot of others are seeing it. And as I said above, we are a 350,000 strong list of big money spenders who know how to get referrals and are trained to watch ads everyday.

Point #4 - Some People Just Can't Follow the Rules.

Some people just aren't happy making $2300+ profit every 12 days. So they try to open up multiple accounts which is against Terms of Service and eventually they lose their investment. If they are willing to break the rules, it's due to greed, and that greed never lets them cash out early...they are usually LET IT RIDE type people. Anyways, when those people get caught, they lose their accounts, end of story. If just 100 people out of 350,000 get caught with $12,000 each month, that's $1,200,000/month 12DailyPro has extra to fulfill their obligations.

Point #5 - Venture Capital.

If a company such as 12DailyPro had begun, theoretically, with $2,000,000 venture capital (perhaps they get it from fleeing other failed ventures, who knows) and that money is invested in medium risk investments, that can help fund any shortcomings in the earliest days. When you think about it, a company like 12DailyPro could, theoretically, operate at a loss of $50,000 per month for 40 months with that kind of capital. Or at a loss of $100,000 per month for 20 months...theoretically of course. I'm just giving you something to think about.

NOW, If that weren't enough....

While I think it COULD be enough if advertising sales were strong and it was managed very well, but as I see it, there would be almost no margin of error. It would be like dancing on the edge of a blade and even a slight error could send it toppling. So then what would make it super-incredible sustainable even after, let's postulate, operating at a loss of $50,000/mo for 10 months, but having developed a HUNGRY list of 350,000 LOYAL, BIG-SPENDING, AFFILIATE AD-WATCHERS? What would make this not only WORK, but explode into a barely conceivable amount of growth and money....?

Point #6 - Make It All Private and Unveil a PHASE TWO.

Phase 1, "Earn 12% per day" becomes private. Those already in get to continue doing the same - even possibly at a lesser, but still acceptable percentage like 8% per day. Since payments were always on time and 8% is still an unrivalled return then few, if any, would complain. But now all of those "CHARTER MEMBERS" are ACTIVATED....they are turned into an ACTIVE sales force of 350,000 people.

I keep emphasizing that these 350k+ people have shown a propensity towards big spending, towards risky behavior, towards getting others to sign up, and towards watching ads for their reward. Just imagine offering such a group 40%-50% commission for any referrals to PHASE 2 advertising packages.

And just who do you think will be watching those ads? THE CHARTER MEMBERS. And maybe the non-charter members who buy advertising through PHASE 2 will be offered a DISCOUNT on their ad package if they just watch 12 ads per day. Are you getting this now.

IN CONCLUSION

Quite often we act shocked or surprised when things turn out other than expected. To buffer the shock, the easiest thing is to blame or lash out at someone. It requires more effort to reflect and certainly not everyone even knows how, or that there is such a thing as reflection. Just pleasure, pain...suffer, blame. But we can try things like looking to nature for answers and solutions to our confusion and problems.

In this case, I pondered the transformation of a butterfly. In many cases, companies like 12DailyPro are not intrinsically evil or deceptive. They just fail to build a proper cocoon and so the transformation never takes place.

Just something to think about... :-)
By the way, check out the 12DailyPro Madness Blog!


Warning! Do not click the picture!

denmark, mohammed cartoons, danish, free speech

Sincerely,
Sam Freedom
PS. POST YOUR THOUGHTS!


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Saturday, February 04, 2006

12DailyPro - Our Condolences to Pepe IV

Poor Pepe IV. You don't know Pepe IV, but this picture was supposed to go into his scrap book as a glorious occasion. It was taken mere moments after Pepe pawned the highly collectible Zoot suit that his late father, Pepe III, left to him that he received from Pepe Jr. before Mexico had repopulated Texas and Arizona.

Pepe Jr had received it, decades prior, from a wealthy business man living just over the U.S. border, in exchange for veterinary-grade steroids and some highly prized jimson weed The suit has a current value of $6,000. Pepe IV used the $6,000, in the good name and honor of Pepe III and Pepe Jr., to buy the maximum number of upgrades allowed in 12DailyPro just before the companywas put under investigation and their assets frozen. Pepe IV was not available for follow-up photos, and rumor has it, from a Santeria priest, that Pepe Sr. is rolling over in his burial site at the ancient city of Tenochtitlan once inhabited by scores of Toltec shamans who, locals say, would have never approved of any of this.

Our condolences go out to Pepe IV."

Sam Freedom"s Internet Marketing Controversy Blog

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12DailyPRO RESPONDS!!!

Latest from 12DailyPro regarding Stormpay's response to it's members (see previous post). Who is telling the truth? All I know is that for 9 months, 12DailyPro was paying out on time religiously. Then eGold was axed as a payment processor and eGold never, to my knowledge bad-mouthed 12DailyPro. It wasn't until 12DailyPro, wanting to keep options open to its members and not be hostage to one payment processor, introduced EMO (Electronic Money Orders) to the mix that Stormpay issued a Clint Eastwood-style "There's only room for one sheriff in this town! Be out by tonight!" ultimatum that sparks began to fly.

12DailyPro apparently agreed to axe EMO and go Stormpay-only in deference to what was immediately the best decision for the majority (75%) of 12DailyPro members. Then Stormpay allegedly freezes 12DailyPro's accounts and ever since then every last one of 12DailyPro's 350,000 members have been pulling their hair out and popping Prozac while trying to figure out exactly what happened, what is going to happen, and frankly, whether or not they'll ever see their money again.

So go whip up some microwave popcorn then sit back, relax and as Big John McCarthy says before every single Ultimate Fighting Championship bout.....

FIGHTER ARE YOU READY? (PAUSE)
FIGHTER ARE YOU READY? (PAUSE)
LET'S GET IT OOONNNNNNNNNNN!!!
We wanted to take this time to update everyone on the status of the program and the recent happenings. We know you are all anxious for information. We have spent the entire day trying to forumlate the best strategy for how we deal with the current issues facing the 12daily Pro family.
"1. StormPay did finally respond to our attorney's request for information. They informed him that the reason they have suspended our account was at the behest of their bank. This is completely different than the reason they released to the StormPay members, being that they were concerned about autosurf business models.
2. StormPay also made additional false statements in their email to users. The email claimed that we refused to provide information on our business model. This is false. Mr. McConnell of StormPay fully understood our business model from the day we began processing transactions with them, in May of 2005. In fact, Mr. Connell just this past Monday asked if he could fly down to meet us and explain why we should choose StormPay as our only payment processor. And as we posted in a member news item a a couple of days ago, Mr. McConnell blatantly attempted to blackmail us by threatening to freeze our account if we did not remove our other payment processor within 45 minutes.
3. We have also become aware of some very disturbing news about Stormpay, including the fact that they have a very negative rating with the Tennessee Better Buiness Bureau, with dozens of claims against them. They company was also issued a cease and desist order by the State of Tennessee for financial related misdeeds. StormPay has also begun randomly seizing funds from user accounts, and are currently not honoring some users withdrawal requests. We believe that this is for the same reason they refused to release our funds, because they do not have the funds.
4. In a conversation we had with Stormpay and their attorney this past Monday, Mr. McConnell revealed to us that Stormpay acts as a 'lender', which is not what they state in their terms of service. He went on to exlain that they money in users accounts in not completely backed by real funds. When I inquired where all of our funds were, he changed the subject.
5. At this point, it seems that StormPay may have begun to randomly refund some members money. Unfortunately this puts us in a very difficult situation. As they have blocked us completely from access to our account, we have no way of knowing who is receiving refunds and who is still owed. They are creating a situation by where we cannot accurately determine which pending withdrawals need to be cancelled because they have already received refunds from StormPay. In essence they are creating a situation by where they are spending our company money at their own discretion and not providing us with the information we need to meet our obligations to all our members. If indeed our account is frozen, StormPay should not have access to spend those funds until after an investigation is completed.
6. That said, we are actively trying to determine what legal actions may be at our disposal to try to retrieve our funds so we can issue refunds to all members with any pending withdrawals or active upgrades. In order to insure that as many people can be paid as possible, we will only be paying refunds, not any surf earnings or commissions. At this point with Stormpay holding our funds, we are unable to provide a time schedule for this refunds.
7. Until that time, we will continue EMO payments as we are able starting with the oldest expirations, this would be members who chose to receive their previous E-Gold payments to EMO. Again, we cannot promise any timetable on how fast this payments will be made, but know we will make them as we are able.
8. You will notice that we have suspended new membership and upgrades. We need to take this time to focus on solving our issues with StormPay and getting you all back the money that they are holding under false pretenses. We will continue to update you here as we have more information. "
Sam

Sam Freedom"s Internet Marketing Controversy Blog

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Friday, February 03, 2006

STORMPAY SPEAKS (on Paid Autosurf Industry)

Dear StormPay Member,

Please read this news update as it contains important information concerning your StormPay account as well as spends from your account to the "Auto-Surf" industry.Traditionally "auto-surf" is a "traffic exchange" industry as to where persons gain traffic credits for promoting their URL (website address) in exchange for viewing websites offered by others. Any monies taken in on these types of "traffic exchanges" are normally for upgrades to have your URL (website) shown at a higher rate of exposure. For an example of how a true auto-surf works, you can visit http://www.autohits.dk/ or other sites comparable.

"Paid to click", or "Paid to Read" types of sites are normally where an advertiser pays to have his/her ad displayed and the end user gets paid a portion of the advertiser dollars for clicking on and reading/viewing the ad. The end user who is being paid for reading/viewing the advertisement does not spend any monies to participate. An example of this type of service is StormPay's own "StormClix" where participants are not charged to view advertisements and are rewarded an account credit for viewing the advertisement.It has recently been brought to the attention of StormPay Inc. that the current rash of new Auto-Surf and Paid to Read accounts are NOT operating in the traditional manner.

Further investigation by both StormPay and other outside investigational organizations/law enforcement agencies have have drawn early conclusions that these types of programs are nothing more than well hidden "Ponzi" or "Pyramid" schemes. While many of you may not agree, or wish to agree that these programs or illegally operated ponzi's, there are many facts that that are unavailable to you, or that may have been hidden by the operators of these programs. Please note that StormPay's user agreement has always banned merchant accounts for these types of activities.

Throughout the investigations into these programs, StormPay has asked the "Merchant(s)" to provide a detailed explanation of the workings of these programs including how profit margins and customer payments are made. These questions were asked point blank by StormPay while on a conference call with the owner/operator and their attorney. The requests for information from the "merchant" were simply denied leaving StormPay no choice other than to report those findings to the other organizations who required the information from StormPay. These findings and reports caused the seizure of funds of the merchant(s) StormPay accounts until all legal matters are resolved. Please be reminded that this could have been avoided if the merchant(s) could have, or would have provided information proving no illegal pyramid or ponzi activity.


[Sam: Why didn't Stormpay do something about this
the first 9 months? Could it be the millions in fees
they stood to make EVERY 12 DAYS?]

Furthermore, investigations and calculations show that these merchants were already at an "upside down" point where they are/were not able to meet the financial obligations made to their program participants. These merchants who were already failing to make good on their claims seem to now be using StormPay as their "Scape Goat" for the failure of their own pyramid or ponzi scheme. These programs are always doomed to failure and for that very reason, deemed illegal. Please site the following from StormPay's user agreement:"17. Get Rich Quick" Schemes: Get Rich Quick Schemes are prohibited resell items by StormPay. Get Rich Quick schemes include any type of self-employment, start-up businesses, or investment opportunity where the claims of profit or returns on investment are unrealistic or unsupported.

By law, if a business opportunity costs $500.00 USD or more, the promoter is required to support any claims regarding earnings or profits with written documentation.Pyramids don't pay. StormPay Inc. and the Federal Trade Commission caution consumers about clubs or programs that promise quick money for recruiting new members. Don't bank on the pyramid promise that someone else will pay you. For more information on get-rich-quick schemes, visit the FTC at http://www.ftc.gov/.

We know that the most prominent question in your mind is "What happens to the money I sent these programs?" Answer: At the moment any funds frozens in these merchant's accounts are frozen and not payable until all investigations are completed. At such time investigations are completed, any remaining funds will be released to the merchant's, or refunded to the purchasers, based on the outcome of the investigations.

Please be aware if determination is made that these are ponzi schemes, a great deal of the funds received by these merchant's will have been used to pay obligations to those who joined earlier into the programs. In other words, they will have used your money to pay other members thus creating a deficit of funds needed to refund all users. Please be patient while investigators decide the best procedures for handling this serious situation. Contacting your credit issuers or banks requesting chargebacks only compounds the problems for all involved, including the merchants and their customers, and delays returns of any funds. These actions could also be punishable by law.StormPay will keep you updated of developments as information is available and allowed to be released.

StormPay Inc."

This is big stuff. I'll keep you posted.
Sam Freedom
PS. In the meanwhile, check this out:
http://bostongolfonline.com


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