Is Wealthy Affiliate University A Scam?

Hey Jeff,

Thanks for chiming in with your personal experience with WA. It’s always good to hear from people that are already a member and gaining value from it.
I appreciate the additional recommendation you provided. I’m not familiar with the site in question but I’ll take your word for it. That being said, it sounds like this covers the article marketing information that WA already provides in their tutorials and what others have already provided in the spaces area of WA. But maybe they provide some additional information that wasn’t covered in these areas. That being said, I think it’s important to try to get the most out of your existing membership and the resources you’ve already paid for before buying additional material. It goes back to my tips about staying focused.

Because sometimes acquiring other resources may actually confuse you further but at the same time it can also help you. I just know that novices tend to be overwhelmed with this new opportunity so I prefer if they stay as focused as possible whether its WA or not. Hope that makes sense. But thanks again for your insight Jeff. I really appreciate it.

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Hi Shannon,

Thanks for the kind words. It’s always good to hear that the effort and honesty is appreciated. Feel free to email me offline with your blog address and I’ll take a look at it and give you some feedback.
I feel confident at the very least you’ll learn how to attract more people to your blog with the techniques taught by wealthy affiliate. But one simple way is to do what you’re doing here. Post comments on the articles of blogs related to your industry that already have a huge following. Provide useful information and feedback without blatantly self promoting your blog. Do that often enough on a popular blog and folks will start to wonder who this person is that is always posting useful and thoughtful comments on the articles. They’ll be inclined to click on your name and visit your blog. That’s an easy and free way to get more traffic. It takes time and patience to do it right. But you can build a good following that way. So keep that in mind.

You may also want to try the free technique I mentioned on my free affiliate marketing guide since your website is about working at home:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/affiliatemarketing

Good luck.

Hi Again Sharlita,

You’re welcome.
Thanks for chiming in. You definitely need to get back to your money making activities. lol You can still balance doing your research and make money. But I can see how researching can take over your time. I’ve been there and I’m still guilty of that from time to time. In any event, I’m happy to hear you’re up to the challenge of reading the material that WA will provide you. I tend to agree with you, with you about the motivation pushing you through the cons especially the reading. I know when I first started in this career I wasn’t a big fan of all the reading I had to do. But I also hated the idea of making someone else rich the rest of my life. So we all have our motivations as to why we want to do this. For some it will be enough to push them through for others it may not. Sounds like your kids will be a great reason for you. By the way, Congrats on your little girl. I’ll keep you in my prayers.

Hi Banakd,

Thanks for sharing your opinion. I can tell there is a lot of frustration behind your comments. I can’t say I agree with everything you said and you’re definitely entitled to your opinion. But let me just share my two cents about some of your points. They’re just my opinions as well so you can take them with a grain of salt.

Prior to the recent changes I agree that WA provided so much information that it was easy to get lost. I’ve already acknowledged that as being one of the biggest complaints in my review. Honestly I didn’t realize how much of an issue it was for people until I started getting a few emails months after that initial article. When I initially recommended WA I made the assumption that most people would just focus on certain areas of their site and be able to ignore some of the other possible distractions. I’ve taken enough of these online marketing courses to know to do that. But that was a bad assumption on my end. So my fault on that. I’m man enough to admit I should have been more proactive in terms of giving folks a heads up on doing that when joining WA.

That being said, communication is a two way street. I’m not a hard person to reach. I think anyone that has been on my blog long enough knows this. I’m actually one of the few people that personally respond to emails. So when people came to me with their feelings of being overwhelmed, I always responded and provided them clear direction as to how to proceed. Later I even took it a step further and would provide folks that would actually contact me with a little guide I came up with to keep everything focused. So I’m confident that if you would’ve have contacted me I would have been able to help you better maneuver around WA as I have with other folks. Fortunately with the new changes, I doubt this will be a complaint anymore. But I might just go ahead and create a video guide walking folks on the best way to proceed just to make sure no one experiences this again.

In regards to the forum, most people appreciate the fact that you can speak to other folks. Talking to others can often help clarify things you may be learning on the site. The forum was clearly toted as an integral feature of WA and part of the learning process. Your argument against it is like criticizing a school for having a teacher because you expect that you should be able to learn everything from the text book. The fact of the matter is some people learn differently. Some people can just pick up a text book and learn everything they need from reading it. Others can learn just by talking to others. While others can learn by a combination of both things. I don’t think the fact that the forum is part of the learning process is a bad thing considering these different learning styles. Some folks will make more use of it than others. But I think its up to the individual to decide which tools offered at WA are a better fit for their learning style. In terms of this fake member allegation I’ve never heard such a claim and don’t even know what to say about that since its never been an issue that has been brought to my attention as a concern.

In terms of your complaint about the 8 week plan, it’s not a forced plan where you can’t move on to other parts of it. If it were really about keeping you there for 8 weeks to keep getting money out of you, then none of the other parts of the plan would be available to you until after a given week was completed. That’s not the case. Members can freely jump from various parts of the plans as they wish. Lord knows I did. I just went directly to the parts of the plan where they started covering the money making techniques. Anyone can do the same. So I don’t even know how its a ploy to force you to stay for the 8 weeks to get money out of you. And even if that was the case a member could cancel at any point. So I don’t really get your argument about how this is a way to squeeze more money out of you since the plan isn’t set in stone. I’ve been on other sites where this is used on you. I’m not a big fan of it. But for certain people that type of stuff is necessary because they’ll try to run and haven’t even learned to crawl. I’ve consulted enough people to see that happen and they end up getting more confused because they didn’t learn the foundation first. But again WA doesn’t force you to do it this way you could bounce around from any area of the 8 week plan if you choose.

In terms of not applying what WA teaches with my own efforts and just promoting WA just for the commissions. That’s very disrespectful and just a flat out lie. I don’t just talk the talk, I walk the walk. One of the things that WA teaches is SEO and article marketing. My sites and articles rank in Google when you’re searching for a certain keyword, product or company. The same type of techniques taught in WA are what I use to rank for these various keywords. And just so you now I’m not pulling this stuff out my arse, Here are some examples:
Clixsense Scam:
http://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&channel=s&hl=en&source=hp&q=clixsense+scam&btnG=Google+Search

Work At Home Scams
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&safe=off&client=firefox-a&channel=s&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&hs=5ue&q=work+at+home+scams&aq=f&oq=&aqi=g10

Amazon work at home
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&safe=off&client=firefox-a&channel=s&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&hs=Xaz&q=amazon+work+at+home&aq=f&oq=&aqi=g10

I understand you’re upset but let’s not disrespect me. I haven’t built my name by just promoting all the junk under the sun. Anyone that has followed me long enough knows this. Folks may not always agree with all the opportunities I promote but I make it a habit of always personally trying what I recommend, making money with it before even sharing it with you folks. Then I take it a step further and document this stuff with video to further bring home the point I walk the walk. So let’s not make it seem I’m just a money hungry affiliate when I constantly provide free information to folks without asking a dime. I didn’t force anyone to join anything I recommend.

In any event, I appreciate you sharing your point of view. It’s always good for people to hear different sides of the story. I totally understand the frustration you felt when you were there. They could have done a better job of organizing the information. I think WA was just focused on over delivering because so many resources under deliver, that organizing the information in a better way took the back burner. That obviously has been addressed with the latest version of WA. But I don’t think many people would argue that they are a scam and the research out there confirms this. They have their weaknesses like any company. But they’re not trying to steal money from people and not give them value in return.

Again thanks for sharing your opinion. I think this all gives folks a more balanced view of the company and can help them make a better decision about it. Take care and thanks again for sharing. I am really sorry you didn’t have a better experience but honestly I wish you would have reached out to me like others have.

Hi Rhoda,

Thanks for chiming in. I feel you gave a fair assessment and some great advice. I have found that some people are able to better appreciate what WA has to offer after getting some of the basics from other resources.
Great comment.

Thanks again.

Wow Sharlita,

I’m totally speechless. You’ve hit it right on the head. I couldn’t have expressed it any better myself. I was really troubled by Banakd’s comment. For a quick second it made me question if I have failed my visitors and supporters. But you’ve made some excellent points. At the end of the day success squarely falls on our shoulders.

I experienced many of the things you said. When I was in college I also had a few professors that were totally disorganized. But I knew I needed to pass these courses that were being paid out my own pocket. So I tried to filter as much as I could from the material they provided in class. But anything else I couldn’t figure out I would supplement by reading the text books, asking other students or contacting the professor privately. I didn’t allow it to stop me because I knew I had to pass the course to achieve my goals. You’re absolutely right we all go through this in life whether in school, work, etc. The ones that succeed are the folks that push forward and try to find a way through the pain with the use of various resources at their disposal. There were a number of people that felt a bit overwhelmed with WA but they tended to reach out to me, members on the forum or the owners of the site. They didn’t just sit quietly by and let their frustration fester. They understood that they had invested in themselves, there was value in WA but needed a little more help so they did the logical thing and reached out to some others.

I also experienced the ridicule of others for spending time on things like surveys or reading emails where I was only paid a few cents or dollars. They said, “Eddy why are you wasting your time on such things? Focus on getting a job. Working at home is a dream. If it were possible than everyone would be doing it.” Obviously they were wrong. What I later learned is that not everyone is willing to exhaust every option to achieve working at home. Most people prefer to run before crawling. That could be for a number of valid reasons. But like you my desire to work at home was so strong, that I had no problem starting from the bottom and fighting my way up. Where everyone saw a few cents as a joke, I saw it as a start and one step closer to working at home. It showed me that it is possible to make money from home. I just needed to figure out a way to scale it up. Needless to say I did, and the rest is history. But again it was because I refused to give up or be distracted by anything that would get in my way.

As you alluded that was very difficult when I first started. There wasn’t a WA in the early 90s. I think there may have been some ebooks but I was hard headed and figured I could go it alone and succeed. I did experience some initial success but it came as a result of a lot of pain, frustration, failure and confusion. But to your point, I didn’t get bitter and give up. I had a goal to achieve and I refuse to let anything stop me. I also learned from my mistakes and why I later invested so much more time and money in courses from people that knew better than I did. Not surprisingly none of them were perfect. They all had weaknesses as well. But again I was determined to always gain some value out of any course. Whatever little value I gained I put it to memory and moved on to the next resource and was better off because of it. So like Rhoda implied maybe that’s why I had a better appreciation for WA. I had seen and used a lot of what was out there already and I feel that WA provides much of that stuff in one place for a reasonable fee.

In any event, I really appreciate you chiming in. I know some might see it as you trying to kiss up or come to my rescue. LOL But I think any one that has endured some of the experiences you shared regarding school and the non-traditional work at home opportunities can see the similarities regarding WA and what is necessary to succeed with it. I can sympathize with Banakd’s frustration, after all any of us that has been involved in this career will tell you its part of the rights of passage. As I expressed many times, if it were so damn easy we’d all be doing it. Sometimes when we get frustrated we take it out on others. Who hasn’t done that with their wives, husbands or kids. So I understand where Banakd was coming from. I just thought a line was crossed by some of the implications made about my character when I have a long history of trying to help people.

Thanks again Sharlita. At the end of the day, its great to have these discussions. It gives folks things to consider so they can make an informed decision and that’s what this blog is about.

You go girl! I’m glad you finally joined. I think you’ll definitely have a better appreciation for the material since you and I have talked about online marketing offline. You’re a go getter.
So I know you’ll run with this. But if you do have any problems while going through the material, you already know where to reach me.

Congrats Callie. I know you’re going to do well with this.

Hi Rhoda,

Agreed. In Banakd’s defense, I didn’t have to approve the comment to the public. After all I’ve deleted other comments in the past. But I approved that comment because I felt it may be a feeling that others may have so it provided an opportunity for discourse. Either way even though I don’t necessarily agree with everything that was said, it was an opinion I felt was important to bring to light. But I would have definitely appreciated being contacted via email regarding some of the frustrations at the time it was going on as others have done.

In any event, in terms of your question, you’re referring to Gazelle:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/2008/12/15/get-paid-to-recycle-old-gadgets-electronics/
I’ve seen quite a few people taking advantage of it. I have used it to get rid of my old PS2, Xbox and camera as well. You won’t make as much as you would by selling it on ebay or amazon but I find it’s less of a hassle. Good luck.

Banakd,

All is forgiven. lol My wife says the same thing to me. I tend to be a lot calmer writing my opinion than I am verbally. It’s funny I would often email my wife if I had something sensitive to discuss because I knew I would be less likely to offend her. So I totally understand where you’re coming from and I’m guilty of it too. Admitting our weaknesses is how we all grow. So I applaud you.

In any event, no hard feelings. I appreciate your continued support and your “fanism” lol. You were totally entitled to your opinion and I’m happy we all could share them together in a constructive way. Again thank you for your support, I really do appreciate it.

Callie,

I’m glad the guide I emailed you was a help. I knew it would be. Don’t worry about the questions. You already know I have no problems answering them especially from my rising protege.

You ask away. It’s the least I can do for trusting my judgment and joining WA.

LMAO, Don’t say that too loud. Next thing you know I’ll graduate from being called a “scam artist” to a communist because I want to give back to my fellow man with the work I do here.

In any event, I totally hear you regarding the choice you made. It was a very wise one. That’s one of the things I’ve argued in my top 10 reasons to avoid affiliate marketing article. If money is tight and you have other priorities, it’s better to handle those before venturing into this or any training. But I’m happy you thought enough of WA that you’d be willing to rejoin. It says a lot.

Thanks for the laugh and feedback. I appreciate it.

LOL.

Thanks for the mention although you spelled my first name wrong. Tsk, tsk. lol
I appreciate the continued support. I like your site by the way. Email me privately and I’ll give you some pointers.

You’re welcome Shannon. I think you summed up the best way to proceed when you get into WA very well! If you focus on the training center, you’ll be fine. For me since I’ve mastered most of the stuff in that area, I tend to hang out in the spaces area. But for newbies they should stick to the training area until they have a nice foundation and a good handle of one or two techniques. Great advice! Thanks for sharing. Let me know if you need help. I’m just an email away.

Sharlita,

It’s so refreshing to meet someone like you. You’re truly an inspiration. We share a lot of the same value system. I don’t know if you realize it but you already possess one of the most important traits of success. It’s your mindset. You refuse to accept failure as an option. You truly believe that you must do whatever it takes to succeed and if you don’t it’s on your own shoulders. Most people don’t think like that. Instead they find excuses as to why they can’t do something and it’s usually something external. I know I’ve been guilty of that from time to time. But ultimately the difference between people that are extremely successful and those that aren’t is this stubborn persistence that you already possess. They truly believe that they’re always a step closer to success. So I applaud you.

With this attitude the sky’s the limit for you.

By the way, I’m originally from Brooklyn as well. I attribute some of success and swagger to that as well. lol (Some of the most successful people came from Brooklyn. Must be something in the water. lol)

Sunflower,

Well said! You too have made some great points. You’ve also provided some tremendous advice for newbies entering WA! If followed, folks should be able to avoid the confusion or feelings of being overwhelmed. Something that stood out in your comment was the whole Wealthy Affiliate name causing you some concern because it sounds spammy. That’s the second time I’ve heard that this week. In hindsight I believe I felt the same way until I actually read their website and my research indicated they weren’t. Ironically their full name is Wealthy Affiliate University but I think the whole wealthy thing just sounds a little gimmicky. It’s sad that scammers have impacted our mindset and experiences so much that a legitimate word like Wealthy elicits the feeling of a scam. lol Hopefully most people will fight that initial feeling and actually do their due diligence before jumping to conclusions.

Mindset is such a powerful thing. I’ve been in this industry for many years and I wasn’t really able to achieve the level of success you see now until I changed my mindset. I’m here to to testify that Mind over matter is a reality. Don’t get it twisted you still need to TAKE ACTION but you’re less likely to do so if you have a negative & defeated mind. Sadly it’s easy to stay in that thought process because we all fill our minds with garbage everyday such as negative news reports, music, shows, etc. But if you treat your mind like you would your body where you work out and eat the right things, you would have great results. That’s why every week I try to watch or listen to something that uplifts me such as some Joel Osteen or The Secret. I know to a lot of folks feel that stuff is a bunch of hokie dokie nonsense. But not surprisingly a lot of those folks are the same ones doing most of the complaining about how life is unfair, what they don’t have, etc.

So I agree with you Sunflower, mindset is a huge factor to success and happiness with anything in your life. Sure it’s easier to feel that way when things are good, but when you can do it when things are tough is when you’re planting the seeds for success to sprout.

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Edgar,

Great to hear from you again. I can totally understand why you would drop out of WA considering the circumstances. I’m the first to discourage people from affiliate marketing or joining something like WA when bills need to be paid. It’s all about setting priorities. Affiliate marketing isn’t going anywhere and neither are your bills. So those always need to be paid before anything else. So applaud you. Its great to hear that you found so much value in WA that you came back. It’s just another testament to its value that folks are coming back.

I hear you about the 8 week plan. If I’m not correct, I think it may still be live on the site. Try using the search feature. But I definitely prefer the new lay out where the tutorials are clearly marked. But like you and many have said here, if people stay focused on the tutorials and avoid the distractions and they tend to do fine. I’m glad to hear you’re still at it. You have the right attitude. Feel free to email me privately if you want me to look at some of your articles and provide some feedback. Stay persistent. Eventually things start falling into place for those that are in it for the long run. Thanks to both of you for chiming in!

It does teach SEO and all the other fundamental techniques you would need to learn internet marketing.

Hi Bill,

Of course they do. That’s why I referenced losing commissions based on some of the things that would be mentioned in my review.

Afterall it really wouldn’t make sense to teach about affiliate marketing if you didn’t practice what you preach and teach your members how to apply the same techniques to recruit more members for your own service.

Hope that makes sense.

Your welcome Bill. I’m glad you found the article helpful. I want to make sure the right folks get in and have a better understanding of what they’re getting themselves into.

Hi Bill,

Truth be told you shouldn’t have to invest any more money than your membership. Because WA provides you with all the most important tools and you can stick to the free techniques taught. However if you decide to venture into the paid techniques like PPC, then what you might dump into that varies greatly. Ultimately as I said in the article above, no one can predict how long it will take you to make your first dime let alone a few thousand. You’re taught the skills then it’s up to you to make it work until you make a dime. It’s just like how no one can tell you when you graduate college how soon you’ll get a job. That’s all up to you and applying yourself. It has nothing to do with how many hours you put in, etc. This isn’t a job. It’s a business and there may be countless hours of unpaid time before you can make it successful. I’m just being honest with you because that’s the reality and has been my experience when I first started. So if that is a strong concern for you, then you may not want to explore this option. That’s why I referenced the top 10 reason to avoid affiliate marketing in the article above: http://www.workathomenoscams.com/top10 If you haven’t read it, you should.

In terms of software, all their tools are web based. So your platform doesn’t matter as long as you have access to a browser, you should be fine. I also have a windows machine and I access all the WA information and tools with no issues.

So you should really give some thought as to my statements. If you’re going into this because of some type of financial duress, don’t. It won’t solve it fast enough for you. If you’re in this for the long term and willing to make this work until you succeed, then it makes total sense. Take care.

Sounds good. Glad to help.

Thanks. Like I said in the review. I don’t want the wrong people joining. So honesty is the best policy in this situation. But I’m glad you appreciate the candor.

You’re welcome Armen. Glad you can appreciate my corny sense of humor.

Hi MsLaura,

My whole website is created on using a software known as wordpress. It’s a free software that most bloggers use to manage their sites or blogs. It’s very easy to use and scalable so that’s why it’s the choice of most professionals and amateurs a like. I could have hosted it on WA. But I already had a host that I use. Since I have a lot more visitors than most, I needed a dedicated server.

That being said a lot of people do use WA hosting and site builder but you’re not married to it. You can use whatever you want to create your website. It’s just another added benefit for people that want an all and one resource for their internet marketing career. But as you get more advanced you’ll probably explore other options outside of WA site builder that give you more flexibility and scalability. But for folks just starting, what WA offers is very good to get your feet wet.

In any event, I hope this answers your question.

You’re welcome BM. Most new affiliate marketers are guilty of this. I think we all get stuck on following the letter of a given affiliate marketing course instead of applying some of our own common sense. But when you apply the techniques being taught by a company like WA with some of your own flavor and know how, it goes a long way.

Callie,
You’re always welcome. lol You of all people have access to me all the time, you should have just emailed me that question. lol

Hm,
Thanks for sharing your experience with WA!

Hi Erica,

I’m glad you could appreciate the review. Marketing isn’t an easy task although we all do it every day without realizing it. But it’s something that can be very profitable and rewarding when you have the right skill set.

Hi Ryllara,

I’m glad you enjoyed the review. It’s not surprising that most of the reviews you read were positive. Obviously they’re written by other affiliates like myself. But it’s also because WA is a quality resource. Because if it wasn’t, trust me bad news travels fast on the internet. That being said, I felt it was extremely important not sugar coat what to expect with WA. It’s better that people go in there with all the good, bad and ugly so there are no surprises. When you know what to expect you’ll have a better chance of success. Either way, I think the video walk through I provided will really help keep you focused. You can always email me for the guide as well if you join.
Take care and thanks for your comment.

Hi Angel,

It’s great to see you actually do your research. We preach that constantly here and why I have a page teaching folks how to do this:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/scams

In regards to your question, I encourage you to read the following article:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/aff it gives you a little history of how I got started in this industry. But the short of it is that I didn’t have an previous internet marketing experience. I barely knew how to use a computer when I first started. But I did know how to read and had the discipline to take action and never give up. That’s ultimately why I succeeded. If you’re willing to read and take action you can learn anything. When you landing your first job you probably didn’t have any experience either. You just learned your skills and gained the experience. This is no different.

The other thing I find interesting is that folks fail to realize you’re marketing all the time. When you convince someone to do something they didn’t want to do (i.e. your husband, wife, kid, boss) that’s marketing. But in most cases you’re not getting paid for it. So we’ve all been marketing from day one. The only difference with internet marketing is that you’re using a different medium and adding some more skills to the mix. The key to success is your willingness to do what it takes to learn and succeed. If you’re the type that gets frazzled by failure or obstacles, stay away from this opportunity. If you have an employee mindset, you should also stay away from this opportunity. This opportunity is meant for folks that are in it for the long term, willing to do the hard work and unwavering in their path. That’s why I linked to the top 10 reasons to avoid affiliate marketing: http://www.workathomenoscams.com/top10 The items listed there will really help you determine if you’re right for this. Having internet marketing experience isn’t a requirement. Will it make it easier, of course it would. But again it’s not required. You’ll gain the experience in time as you take action. Lack of experience in this industry is only to your detriment if you plan to go it alone, aren’t willing to read and not willing to action. Ultimately you know your work ethic. Judging by your past experience it just seems like you weren’t passionate about school or these jobs. Fortunately with this opportunity you can actually focus on an industry you have a passion for so that might be the difference here and why you may succeed.

However nothing is guaranteed. It still all falls on your shoulders.

I hope this helps. It may not be what you want to hear but it is the truth based on my experience. Good luck.

Michael,
I’m sorry to hear what has happened to your family. However I think your faith in God will definitely help you through some of the tough times. But that being said my advice to you is try landing an offline job first if possible. Building an online business doesn’t happen over night. It takes just as much effort as it did to build your insurance business if not more because of the learning curve. It definitely won’t solve your problems relatively quickly. That’s actually one the points I discuss in my article for the top 10 reasons to avoid affiliate marketing:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/top10 (You may want to read it, if you haven’t already.)

You may also want to explore traditional work at home jobs. We’ve listed legitimate companies on the following page:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/companies and every Friday we provide new leads here: http://www.workathomenoscams.com/category/work-from-home-job-leads/
So you do have options besides WA or building an ecommerce business. You just need to explore the best course of action for your family that will stop the bleeding. I can assure you that starting an online business won’t make it happen fast enough.

In terms of scams, just continue to do what you’re doing in terms of your research. Not sure if you read the following page and watched the video:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/scams if not, please do so as it will help you. This industry is filled with scams and you are going to find a lot of affiliate marketers that will promote products or services they never use or even believe in. You just have to use the same common sense you would if you were meeting someone on the street. If your instincts are telling you something is off about a person chances are you would avoid them. The same goes for folks online. Personally I’m skeptical of people that are too one sided either way about a given company. Every company has flaws so if someone fails to provide this information to me, I’m less inclined to trust their opinion because their intent is probably purely self serving.

In terms of knowing if I’m legitimate or not, you can’t know. But I think the fact that I’ve actually taken the time to respond to you and provide you other options besides WA should speak volumes. As you may have read in the review above, my intent is to make sure that the right people sign up for WA. Otherwise my review would read like so many of the other ones you’ve read where I would tell you WA is perfect and offer you all types of inflated bonuses to get you to sign up. That’s obviously not the case otherwise I wouldn’t include an article about why you should avoid affiliate marketing in the review.

But in any event, I’m not here to convince you of my legitimacy. Hopefully the information I have provided will give you some other options. I’m sure as you read through this blog you’ll get a better feel as to what I’m trying to achieve here which is to give people various options on how to make some money at home. Judging by some of the comments in my recent posts, the mission is being achieved:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/2009/11/10/work-at-home-no-scams-120-birthday-giveaway/

So if these folks can do it, I’m sure you will too. It’s just a matter of having an open mind, the willingness to explore various opportunities and the ability to take action on the resources provided on this site. I hope this comment helps either way. God bless you and your family. I’m praying that you’ll have better times ahead.

Thanks Walter. Glad you find the review helpful. Hopefully you’ll have a better overview of WA and not just the good.

Hi Rhonda,

In terms of focus, I’ve already walked through that in the focus video above. Please be sure to watch it if you haven’t already. In general I always tell people to focus on one technique like article marketing or SEO since it doesn’t cost you anything but time. Good luck.

Hi Ro,

I just did with the article above and the links I provided you in them such as the top 10 reasons to avoid affiliate marketing. I’m not sure if you actually read the article. But that would be the first start.
In terms of scams, there very easy to avoid if you know how to do your research, watch the video on my scam page:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/scams and scams will be the last thing you have to worry about.

Hi Brian,

First and foremost thanks for all that you and other soldiers like yourself do for us. It may not be expressed enough but we do really appreciate your courage!
In terms of your experience with internet marketing, trust me you’re in good company in terms of your experience. A lot of the most successful people have “failed” numerous times before succeeding. I prefer calling them set backs rather than failures. Because you can never really fail if you don’t give up. Obviously you know this very well and I’m preaching to the choir in that respect.

Its great to hear that your wife has started her business with Ameriplan. Bobbi is definitely a great person to work with. I’ve always been impressed by her responses which are balanced and honest. So you can’t go wrong with her. As long as you’re willing to put in the work and don’t mind being on the phone, I feel folks can thrive under her. So please keep us posted on your wife’s Ameriplan Journey. I’m sure the folks that read that article would love to hear about it.

In regards to joining WA, I would say don’t neccessarily forget everything you’ve already learned about internet marketing. Depending on where you acquired your education, much of it may still apply. Sometimes you learn a concept better when you’ve read it again but it was stated in a different way. For instance I read tons of ebooks about PPC. So when I got to WA I already knew the basics but some things were still a bit grey to me. But then when I went through their PPC course many of the points were repeated but it was done in such a way that was a lot more clear and then all of sudden a light went off. I had an ah ha, matrix moment where everything became clear. I applied what I learned and it worked. So my point is sometimes you may need to hear things a few times in different ways to get it. So all the money you’ve spent may not go to waste. Maybe reading the tutorials in WA will bring it all together in a clearer way.

My other suggestion is to stay focused on one technique. Try to master that first before even trying another one. You can briefly read them all over but then just pick one that seems to be the easiest for you. Take ownership of it and try to make it work. Once you’ve done that you can wash, rinse and repeat the same technique. Or you can move on to another one and see if you can experience the same success. I touched upon this in my video above about staying focused. Too often folks are biting off more than they can chew. So keep this in mind if you join WA.

In terms of personality, you definitely seem to have what it takes to make this work. Your analogy is perfect because it is true that you are in a metaphoric war zone when it comes to internet marketing. Considering your current situation this will seem a lot easier and safer. But it’s still hard work but you’re no stranger to that. So as long as you really follow through with your determination to make this work, it will one way or another. Sure you’ll run into obstacles yet again. But at least now you should have the support you need to work through them.

So get back to Brooklyn safely! (P.S. That’s where I was born and spent some of my early childhood. It’s a place that shapes you forever. )

In any event, I’m glad you appreciated the review. I’m happy to hear I’ve won over a new supporter. If you’re not already subscribed, I would encourage you to do so here:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/subscribe

Keep me posted on everything. Again get back home safely! God bless you and your family!

Alrighty then. I would have preferred to handle this privately. But it gives me the opportunity to address folks who may wonder why their comments are deleted or ignored.

As you pointed out I do have the right to delete or ignore any comment I want. Most of the times when I delete or ignore comments it’s because the person asked something that has already been answered on the site such as “I want to work at home” or “where can I find work at home jobs?”. Quite frankly these questions are just annoying because it’s clear these people are being lazy & not reading anything on the site. So I can’t really take the time to help people that aren’t willing to help themselves or make use of the resources I spend hours on to provide folks that are willing to do the work. After all there are links to the job section at the top of every page and on the right of the page in the job listing section. So give me a break. lol I feel sort of the same way about the scam question because I have a scam scam link at the top of every page and a great video that teaches you how to figure this out. However there are times when folks have actually done the leg work but need a second opinion. Usually this is because there wasn’t enough information or a definitive answer about a company. In this case I’ll answer those questions. I would argue this is usually the most consistent reason I delete or ignore comments.

The next reason is there are folks that are just spammers. I don’t think I need to say much more in that case.

Another situation that may cause me to ignore a comment is that it may slip my radar. We all know I have mad cow and it makes me forgetful sometimes lol. So you’ll have to excuse me. Between juggling time with my daughter, wife, you folks and my sites something is going to slip through the cracks. I’m only human so you’ll have to excuse me for that one. lol

And finally there are those people that repeat the same post several times. I’m assuming it’s because they’ve noticed I haven’t made it live yet.
Some questions involve a lot more time to respond. So I prefer just keeping them in moderation until I have a chance to give them my full attention. This was the case with your comment which incidentally was finally approved here:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/2009/05/31/top-10-reasons-to-avoid-affiliate-marketing/#comment-9609 3 days ago. My response is right below it. You posted the same comment on several articles, via email and in facebook. Frankly it was becoming annoying. However I probably should have just sent you a quick note letting you know I would get to it. So my bad on that. But at that point I was just annoyed because your persistence was bordering spam. As you can see you posted your comment on the 21st and I responded a day later which is pretty rare. So you can imagine my frustration when being barraged with your multiple posting, your email and facebook message.

In any event I figured all was cool because I had responded to your comment. But it’s obvious that you missed when I did approve your comment otherwise I wouldn’t be babbling on here. Maybe you’re juggling just as many things as I am too. lol

However even if I did fail to respond to your comment. It’s my prerogative. If that makes me questionable or fake in someone’s eyes, they’re entitled to their opinion. But it doesn’t take away from all the work and effort I put into this site to give folks like you many opportunities that are totally free. To suggest I’m only in it for the money is very disrespectful to say the least considering all the free content and job leads I provide here. Even if I was, that would be acceptable because it’s my profession. Most people aren’t actually passionate about their jobs, they’re in it for the money. Fortunately I’m in a situation where I get paid for what I love to do.

And finally most bloggers don’t even respond to their users. I’m probably one of the few that actually take the time to respond to 99% of the comments that are placed on this site. If I don’t it’s probably because the comments fall into the situations I mentioned earlier. In any event, I just wanted to clear the air. At the end of the day I’m bound to piss someone off because of an action I took or didn’t take or a misunderstanding. I’m not going to make everyone happy and that’s a reality we all deal with in life. I know that for the most part I’m helping people as demonstrated here: http://www.workathomenoscams.com/2009/11/10/work-at-home-no-scams-120-birthday-giveaway/and I’ll continue to do so. Hope this answers your question. That being said, Have a Happy Thanksgiving! I wish you the best in all your endeavors.

Hey Rhonda,

Apology accepted. Stuff happens. The day I have groopies is the day my wife will take a safety pin to my head & pop it because I wouldn’t be able to walk into the house. lol You’re just persistent maybe to a fault in this situation. lol. Sometimes our greatest assets can also be our greatest weakness depending on the situation. The fact you recognize this says a lot about you.

That being said, I’m a bit concerned with your patience. I’m not sure how much you’re going to like internet marketing because it’s going to take a boat load of patience. As I said in the article above, this career is a marathon not a sprint. The results aren’t always fast and instant gratification is damn near impossible. So you have to really be honest with yourself and question if you’ll have the patience it will take to succeed and learn this stuff. As good as WA is, there are going to be times where you may not get a response fast enough or at all. Although I think that can be avoided if one follows the advice I provided in the article above. Furthermore you’ll be able to email me assuming you can’t get a response from WA. But suppose you don’t get the answer? How will you deal with that? Will you freak out? Will you give up? That’s the type of stuff you need to assess.

Based on my limited contact with you, you do seem like a go getter. So maybe you’ll be like me and refer to a help section or Google something if all else fails. I don’t know if that’s the case. But you know yourself better than I do. So I really want you to give that some thought. I don’t know if you read my top 10 reasons to avoid affiliate marketing, but you may want to give that a look just to ensure this is right for you:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/top10

In terms of your question, about if I’m accepting people to sign up under me, I want you to understand this isn’t some formal mentoring by me. If you felt I did a good job of presenting the information to you, then it’s just a matter of clicking on any of the WA links in the article above and joining. Then I’ll get credit for it. If not, that’s fine too. If you do decide to use my link to sign up under me, I’ll be happy to email you my little WA guide. Just email me privately after you’ve signed up. Furthermore If you need help a long the way with WA I’ll be happy to provide you with assistance via email. But I ask that you actually try to make use of all the resources and people on WA first before emailing me since you’re paying for the site. It only makes “cents” to do this. lol I should only be emailed as a last resort or for clarification on something that may still be stumping you even after using the folks and resources at WA. If all that’s understood then I encourage you to join if you feel this career is right for you. Just keep in mind my earlier statements, the review above and the things I laid out in the top 10 reasons to avoid affiliate marketing. If it all still sounds appealing after considering all this information then you’re probably ready to venture into this. If some things don’t jive well with you, just fall back for the time being. Then consider exploring some of the other options I’ve discussed on the site first. Often times folks do that and then later feel more confident jumping into WA after they’ve made some money in other things and built their confidence. Either way you have options and the choice is yours.

Hope this helps. Take care.

I guess it’s going to be one of those weeks. lol Let me address all your points.

1. I’m not saying you didn’t email me. Maybe you did. But I never received it. But I went ahead and emailed you privately before posting this. So hopefully you get it and I can get my little guide to you. Tech happens. Not sure why you just didn’t try posting here sooner. But whatever.

2. As I said many times in my reviews and numerous times on the site, affiliate marketing is a long challenging process that is marathon not a race. That’s why I keep telling people to read the article I wrote about avoiding this industry. This way you understand the long road you have ahead. Some people will make a sale in a week, for others it may take a year or more. No one guaranteed that you would see results within in a month or any time frame. I’ve argued success will come for those who keep working at this until they are successful not based on some time frames.

So although I understand your frustration, this comes with the territory. That’s why I didn’t sugar coat what to expect and tell folks its going to be easy as pie. That being said, I’ll be happy to look over some of your articles. I find that a lot newbie articles are more about the sale and less about providing some value and that tends to lead to no sales. But if you email me some links of your articles I’ll be happy to look at it.

3. In terms of domain and site rubix, you’re not required to use it. You can use any website tool or hosting you want. I use wordpress and an another hosting company. But for newbies having site rubix and the included hosting is a good starting point and convenient. But if you need something more advanced with more features, just seek out another resource. However I wouldn’t invest in such things until you’ve mastered a free technique and niche that is making you money. None of this is set in stone, you’re at liberty to make adjustments with this stuff based on your needs. I expressed this in the review above as well as quoted here: “Nothing is set in stone when it comes to this stuff and don’t be afraid to adjust accordingly.”

4. And in terms of the PPC stuff, again I clearly laid out in my focus video above that folks should pick one free technique and focus on that until they can master it. In fact I believe I said avoid the PPC stuff in that video. I know how complicated it can be and the cost involved. It’s definitely not meant for newbies to jump in. But it’s not my fault if one decides to ignore the advice.

Since folks want to quote me this week. Let me get in on the action. I stated the following above: “Then select the technique you feel most comfortable with and just ride with that one until you’ve had some success with it. Then try another one. I wouldn’t run around doing all of them at once. I would also avoid the more complicated and paid techniques until you master the easy and free ones first. This will help you avoid a lot of headaches and get your feet wet. I feel this one tip is so important in getting the most out of your WA membership, I’ve gone ahead and created a video to help you with this. See it below:” I don’t know how much more clearer I need to be. So no you don’t have to pay for clicks like you said. That’s only the case if you choose to ignore my advice and focus on PPC instead of just riding with things like Article Marketing or SEO. Maybe out of frustration you decided that you would give PPC a try as well. But as you can see, it’s not easy and doesn’t speed up the money making process. This whole process involves a lot of trail and error until you get it to work. But it definitely doesn’t make “cents” to try paid techniques when you haven’t succeeded with the free stuff first. The exception is if you don’t mind losing money in the process of learning. But that’s a personal choice and again, it wasn’t something I suggested.

5. I never claimed to actively participate on the WA forum. I tend to lurk and read certain threads. I’m too busy managing my own blog and sites to be actively responding to topics there. I go in to check out the new resources, check my stats, respond to a pm and then I keep it moving and head back here so I can respond to comments like this one. When you eventually build a successful business you’ll find that your time is very limited and you need to choose it wisely to keep your company running and family happy.

6. In terms of people signing up under me, again that’s their choice and I definitely appreciate when they do. However folks should be signing up to WA because you’ve seen the value in internet marketing and feel that WA will help you succeed in it. It shouldn’t be because you’re expecting some personal acknowledgements from me.

Even if I wanted to personally thank everyone that signed up under me, I couldn’t. Here’s why. I’m not provided the names of people that sign up under me. I’m just provided the date, time, number of sales made and some numeric gibberish that represents the person that signed up. (Annoying I know.) So I don’t have the person’s name or email address that signs up unless they personally email me to let me know they did. When folks do this, I do thank them. So don’t worry I didn’t lose my home training. lol But maybe now you understand why I stated: “So if you decide to Join Wealthy Affiliate under me or have done so in the past, please don’t hesitate to shoot me an email privately and your boy will hook you up.” This way I’ll be able to know who signed up under me. Because I can then ask the person for the date of their sign up and to send me their emailed receipt to confirm their enrollment. In which case, I can then offer them my little WA Guide. (That’s what I mean by “hooking you” up. It’s slang and what I do here on occasion. lol) So hopefully that clears that up.

In terms of driving it home for you, I would encourage you to watch that focus video I included in the review above. Because I get the feeling you missed it. The guide I’ll forward you should help you as well. Then if you have some specific questions that aren’t already addressed by the folks at WA or their resources feel free to email me keeping in mind the tip I mentioned in the review above. You need to be specific and clear about your questions. See the examples I listed above in the review which will help you get the help you need. This way I and the folks at WA can better assist you. “Can you make sense of how things work?” is an ambiguous question that would probably be ignored in the WA forum and me. I explain why in the review above so be sure you go back and read it completely.

I’m definitely interested in seeing some of your articles. I’m hoping you didn’t just write 1 or 2 and expected to see sales rolling in because of them. I also hope you picked a niche you actually know about and have a passion for because that’s could be another issue. In any event, I hope this answers your questions and possibly helps anyone else that may be having the same feelings or thoughts. A month is nothing in this journey. You’re still learning at this point. That’s like going to medical school for a month and expecting to be able to perform surgery. It’s just not realistic. Keep plugging away but narrow your focus!

Have a Happy Thanksgiving.

Hey Bill,

Glad to hear it. I definitely think it’s important for this stuff to be out there because a lot of the reviews won’t be as frank as what you’re reading here. This makes for a better informed decision for everyone. This way people can make the decision that’s best for them and not for the affiliate that is just trying to get you to sign up to get their commission and not really to provide you the real deal.

Chris,

That’s a great point! As someone that has run a successful business for several years I’ve discovered that people are more inclined to chime in to make complaints than they are to post testimonials, comments or even saying thank you.

I know I’m guilty of this and most of us are. That’s why certain companies like car dealerships actively ask for feedback. For instance my car dealership will always call or email me after servicing my car. I’m asked to take a survey to describe my experience with their company. A few other companies I use do the same thing. This leads me to believe that folks won’t actively chime in unless they want to complain.

I’ve even seen it here. I had no idea how many people were finding jobs or making money with my recommendations until my recent contest:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/2009/11/10/work-at-home-no-scams-120-birthday-giveaway/

So it wouldn’t surprise me if there are a lot of folks that have experienced some success. But like many of us, coming back here and chiming in on it isn’t a priority or even a thought process. Maybe I’ll need to have a contest or something to gather that feedback. In any event, that was a great question. Let’s hope some folks step up and share their success story no matter how little it may be.

HM,

Amen! lol You’ve pretty much summed it all. Thanks for chiming in. It’s always good to have balanced points of view whether one is happy with me at the moment or not. Everyone benefits from it either way.

George,
LOL, You have me laughing over here. Patience is definitely a virtue. I’ll be the first to admit I do lose it from time to time. It’s manifested in my snarky comments and sarcasm. Sometimes it’s rears its ugly head via the delete button.

Then there are times I want to scream out: “Are you f’ing kidding me?”. But then I take a time out like my daughter come back in a few hours and respond to some of these “interesting” comments. At the end of the day this is the path I chose and I have to roll with the punches.

I’ve come to realize because I do actually converse with people online regularly there is a level of comfort that is created. Most of the times it’s a great thing because we have some wonderful conversations. Then there are times where folks cross the line and start “talking a little greasy” because it’s easy to do online and there isn’t much of a chance of repercussion. That being said sometimes these folks are making some valid statements. So I don’t think they’re all absurd.

But I appreciate the sentiment. It’s good to know I’m not the only one privately thinking these things. lol

Callie,
LOL
In any event, you already know what it is. I’ve vented to you enough times offline regarding some of these comments. I’m fortunate to have a great VA like you that lends me her ear so I can calm myself down. Otherwise I may have got real Bronx on some of these folks. lol

Jerral,

I don’t think I get your question. I think I’ve made it clear what my strongest recommendation for making serious money is which is affiliate marketing. However there is no such thing as a one size fits all business. So even with my recommendation, it doesn’t mean affiliate marketing is right for you. Some people will suck at affiliate marketing otherwise may thrive with another business. In any event, I hope I answered your question. If not please be a bit clearer. Thanks.

Bobby Bounds,

Thanks for the kind words. I’m happy you can appreciate the effort that has been forth here. I’m sorry to hear you’ve been scammed a few times as well. But it’s like a right passage that many of us go through before finding success online. Hopefully as you read through the site, you’ll find the right opportunity for you. If it’s WA that’s great, if not that’s fine too. We cover so many things here that you’re bound to find the right fit. Be sure you’re a subscriber so you don’t miss out on any information we may send out:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/subscribe Take care and thanks again.

Hi Michael,

Glad you’re finding the information useful. More importantly, I’m glad you found a job. This will definitely help you with your affiliate marketing career because you won’t rush through the learning process because you need to keep food on the table. In terms of your question regarding Shay. This definitely isn’t the place to ask considering I’m an affiliate of WA who has spent hours writing up this useful review, responding to comments. And then you’re asking information about another affiliate that you may want to join under. That’s like going to a local Lexus dealer and asking them what they feel about this other Lexus dealer down the street from them. It’s sort of disrespectful. LOL That being said you have to go with who you feel provides you the best value. At the end of the day I want you to succeed. Good luck.

Hey Michael,

No worries. I’m happy my example illustrated the situation more clearly. I felt as a sales person you could definitely understand my point of view here. No harm, no foul. Online discussion can be very helpful and sometimes things get lost in the translation and misconstrued. But fortunately we’re all adults that communicate effectively and things can easily be resolved. Like I said at the end of the day, I want you to go with whatever resource or person that you feel provides you the best value. I didn’t mean to imply it had to be me. But I appreciate that I’m in the running.

Hi Jerral,

Sorry to hear about your poor experiences with these other companies. But think of it this way, you went through those experiences so now you’re clear on what you don’t want or need. Always try to see the silver lining in any negative experience because there is always one if you view it in the right way.

In any event, based on some of your questions, It sounds like you want a job where you put in a set amount of hours and get a certain amount of pay. If that is the case you should be visiting the following pages:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/category/work-from-home-job-leads/
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/companies
http://www.workathomecareers.com

To be honest I don’t know of any business that doesn’t involve selling. Otherwise it wouldn’t really be a business, it would be called a charity. That being said you should probably focus on getting a job or trying some of the non-traditional work at home opportunities I’ve mentioned many times on this site:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/recommendations

Stay away from WA or most home based businesses for that matter because it will involve some selling.

Now with that said, I suspect you’re probably turned off by the idea of “selling” because you weren’t properly trained. I’m guessing the opportunities you got involved with pushed the hard sale angle. Meaning tell folks to “buy, buy, buy, my product that I don’t believe in” and make me tons of money. And after you do that go and Recruit your family and friends and turn them into drones too. Sadly a lot of home business opportunities push these type of tactics. But here’s the thing you’re the boss in those situations. Just because a company you’re working with is pushing tactics you don’t agree with, doesn’t mean you need to follow them. I hear about new marketing techniques all the time. But I don’t follow every one of them. I pick and choose the things I know are good and can be used properly and just ignore the other crap. Most people go into these home based business opportunities or training courses following everything to the letter of the law and that may work for some people. But it may not for others. The key is to “do you” which i discussed in the article above.

For instance when I was in school I was the type that did more listening than writing a lot of notes. I found that I learned better that way because I was able to pick and differentiate what information was important to digest and what was fluff on the fly. But then there were students that literally wrote down everything the teacher said because they were better able to process information that way. At the end of the day, usually we would both get similar grades. Why? Because we used what worked best for us. By the way I thought it was totally idiotic to write down everything the teacher said. But I couldn’t knock folks that did this because they received good grades. My point is the same scenario applies to any business you may try or any skill you learn.

You also have to change your mindset about it. I hated the idea of sales but I realized that I’ve been involved in sales from day 1. The first time I went on a job interview I was selling the best product I knew which was me. lol When I went out on a date with one of the hottest chicks I knew I was selling myself. (That’s my wife.) When I convince my little girl it’s better that she doesn’t kick the dog, I’m selling something. So we all sell. It’s just all how you view it. On this blog I don’t consider myself a sales man. I view myself as a regular dude that gets paid to provide solutions that people have requested. After all if you’re on this site it’s because you wanted to find some way to make money at home. This may mean a job, a home business or some other type of money making money opportunity. My job is to provide you with the best solutions I think may help you. Some of them will be things that make me money and some won’t. Either I’m fulfilling a need. Folks will appreciate that and most will take action on something that does make money or they’ll tell their family and friends about me. Then those folks might take action on something that makes me money and helps them.

The goal is to put yourself in front of people that have a problem. Then provide them with solutions that help them first and foremost and preferably makes you money. When you do this everyone wins. You won’t feel like a greasy sales man pushing snake oil. And your visitors will love you for it. The hard part of this is reaching these people or network as you call it. But that’s a skill that can be learned with any good internet marketing course. The fact you’re reading this review on this site isn’t by chance. It’s a testament that learning this skill works.

In any event, I’ve yammered long enough. I just wanted to address some of the things you mentioned. I think at this point in your life, you may feel a little burnt out by all these businesses. So you shouldn’t really be pursuing more of them until you’ve cleansed yourself of the after taste. Focus on jobs and non-traditional work at home opportunities for the time being. This way you start rolling in that guaranteed money you’re looking for. Because building a business isn’t guaranteed money for most. It’s only guaranteed if you keep working at it until it succeeds. Since most people have an employee mindset that is fixated on set hours, salaries, etc it’s hard to have the stomach and patience required to build a successful business. That’s why I always tell folks it’s better that you have some money coming in with a job before pursuing something like affiliate marketing or any home based business. Because chances are you ain’t seeing a dime right away. That won’t sit well with someone that comes into this like an employee. That type of stuff is what lead me to write the article “top 10 reasons to avoid affiliate marketing” which I mentioned in the article above as well. Based on some of your questions, I’m not sure how thoroughly you read my wa review, but it might be worth the read at a later date when you’re ready to jump back in the saddle.

I hope you found this long ass comment somewhat useful.

Good luck.

Michael,

I went to college as well. Although it may not be evident with my awful grammar and spelling. lol That being said, I still had to pay the college first out of my own pocket with cash or a student loan. Then I was given the option of delaying the first re-payment of my loan for 6 months after my graduation. Once that time frame was up, I had to pay or request another deferment. But the fact of the matter is the money had to be paid FIRST one way or another before I started classes. I couldn’t just pop up to class and tell the professor, “Hey I’ll pay you back when I get a job.” So there is a difference and I think you know that very well. The point of the statement was that education requires an investment. Fortunately 99.9% of the folks that read this article got the message. lol

Terri,

Thanks. I’m glad you found us as well. Hope this article helps you.

Kat,

You’re quite welcome. Glad the information has helped. Just remember this opportunity isn’t for everyone http://www.workathomenoscams.com/top10 so be sure to really explore all the other options available to you. Good luck!

Hi Malcolm,

Glad to hear you’ve learned a bit. But I would definitely encourage you to read through the site some more over the next couple of days and start taking action on some of the opportunities that may interest you. Like you I’m self taught using a computer and a great deal of my initial internet marketing skills were learned that way as well. But I personally think it’s a good idea to take baby steps first and then jump into the pool of internet marketing. Determine if you like some of the other ways I’ve listed of making money first:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/recommendations After doing that for a while and getting your feet wet then you might want to consider affiliate marketing. But be sure you read the following article first: http://www.workathomenoscams.com/top10

I hope this helps.

Hi Livvy,

Your words are overwhelming and very much appreciated! I too look forward to hearing your success in whatever work at home opportunity you end up with. I’m just happy to be in a position to provide folks like yourself various options to help them live out their dreams. Take care and good luck with your upcoming ventures.

Hey Ernest,

Glad you stumbled on the site. I hope you find it even more useful as you read through it. In terms of affiliate marketing you can start as many sites as you want. It still doesn’t guarantee you’ll make more money.

Usually people that create a lot of unrelated sites don’t have a clear focus and their content reflects this. They’re just slapping up sites that have little value. People visit those sites and won’t take any action because they can see you have no real knowledge of what you just slapped up on the web. With that said I’m not saying you can’t make money with this strategy. Some people throw up 100 throw away sites and may earn $1 per month with each site and hey that’s $100 per month.

But I wouldn’t do it. I think it’s better to focus on something you know a lot about and have a passion for. Build an authority site around this. Assuming you’ve employed internet marketing techniques to get people to your site, they’ll be more inclined to take action on your affiliate recommendations because you will come off as a trusted resource because you are. That effort will eventually translate to a lot of money. I’m a perfect example of this. But to each their own. You can do whatever you think will help you succeed.

Either way don’t go into affiliate marketing thinking it’s going to happen over night or immediately. It takes time to build this business. If you’re not in a position to be patient to make this work, seek out a work at home job: http://www.workathomenoscams.com/jobs As I said above, it’s better for folks to get into this industry if they’re willing to make this work no matter what. So be honest with yourself. I don’t know how much of the article you read, but I would encourage you to go back and read it, including the comments listed here. I think if you do, you’ll have a better idea of this is even an option for you. Good luck.

Hi Yolanda!

It’s Eddy by the way. lol
Glad you enjoyed the information on WA and the other material on my blog. I like the fact that you’ve really taken your time to research various options before finally making a decision. I think that’s definitely the best way to approach a given work at home career or business. This way you can really feel out if it’s the right decision for you and not necessarily what someone is trying to push down your throat. In any event, I look forward to your progress. You have a lot of good information listed in the review above and the comments here. Considering you’ve been researching this for a few months, I’m confident that you’re going into this with the right attitude and realistic expectations.

Good luck and keep me posted.

Congrats Chris!
I’m confident it will provide you with a great wealth of information to help you succeed. But ultimately how you apply that information and put it to practice will determine your outcome. If you’re ready to work and don’t accept failure as a reality you’ll make it. Keep me posted.

Hey Bonnie,

You had me cracking up over here. I’m glad to hear that you’re exploring your various options even though you have a job. You can never be too safe in this economy. In regards to your question your age has little to do with learning something new. Age may cause you to take a little more time but that’s not guaranteed. I was a young spring chicken when I started this and it took me years to master what I do now. But it was because I didn’t seek out help from courses, ebooks and other people. When you have a goal and are motivated you can learn anything. You weren’t born knowing how to walk or talk. Nor were your born knowing your current job. Necessity forced you to learn these new skills. If this business (it’s a business by the way, not a job.) is what you really want than you will do what it takes to learn it like you’ve done countless times in your years of life.

You’re the only one that truly can answer the question if this is something you can learn. Obviously I feel that anyone can do it if they put their mind to it and really want this. And I’m just basing this on my personal experience and humble background. But I don’t know you from a hole in the wall. But you do. So you know what you’re capable of and that’s what you have to base your decision on. I’m the first person to say this isn’t for everyone which is why I wrote the following article:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/top10

It’s also why I give my visitors so many options to make money at home like jobs:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/jobs or other non-traditional work at home opportunities: http://www.workathomenoscams.com/recommendation

My guess is between all these options one is always bound to find something that fits their needs. In any event, I hope this answers your question. At the end of the day you have choices on this site which I’ve mentioned above. Just pick the ones that are best for you. Take care and good luck!

Hi TSilverCoin,

You’re welcome! You have a great attitude. Past failures just mean you’re that much closer to success. Don’t view it so much as a bad thing. Some of the most successful people are “serial failures”. The only difference between them and other people is that they don’t give up. It sounds like you already have some things in common with these folks. It’s good that you’re taking action on some of the other opportunities. I think it’s a better path to start off with. It builds your confidence while building your income. I find that most people are more inclined to give bigger opportunities a shot after having some initial success with the smaller ones. So I think you’re on the right course of action. WA isn’t going anywhere. If you decide it’s the right choice for you then it will be here. But in the mean time, definitely just run with the wealth of information on this blog and all the other great opportunities. There is plenty of other options out there. Just keep pushing forward as you have been doing. Set backs are temporary, how you view and react to them will determine your life. But it sounds like you already know that! Continued success to you!

Hey Jean,

Welcome to my site. I’m really happy you’ve found the information very helpful so far. I’m confident you’ll learn a lot as you read through various articles and the comments. There is a wealth of information here if you’re willing to read. You’re very welcome and I look forward to hearing about your success! If you haven’t already, I would encourage you to subscribe to our site: http://www.workathomenoscams.com/subscribe

and visit the following page since you’re interested in MT:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/2010/02/15/how-to-make-money-typing-at-amazon/

Either way good luck on your endeavors.

LOL,

Hey Bonnie!
You’re welcome. I’m sure the pages I listed will help you.
In any event, I won’t argue about the age. Being older than dirt is hard to argue against. lol
Take care.

Hi Clive,

You’re quite welcome! Glad you found the review to be so useful and honest. That was the goal. lol
I can totally relate to your feelings about the pushy, greasy cars sales man approach that some affiliate marketers take and teach.

Just keep in mind what I said in the review above. “Do you!” Just because a technique may suggest doing something you don’t feel comfortable with, doesn’t mean you need to follow exactly how the other guy is doing it. I learn a lot from various resources and what I always try to do is adapt the things I learn so they fit my style and personality. There is no rule that says you need to be sleazy to be a great affiliate marketer.

Take my review above as an example. Instead of writing the fake reviews that so many affiliate marketers use to promote companies,I took a real approach at the risk of losing sales. Why? Because I don’t like when people sell me pipe dreams! So why should I do it to others? I know this industry is hard and that’s why I try my best to scare the bejesus out of people in my review so it weeds out the folks that aren’t meant for it. To my surprise being honest has actually proven to attract more people to this particular company and industry. Maybe folks are Sado-masochist. lol But I bet it has more to due with the fact that people have a better idea of what to expect and can appreciate that I didn’t make this all sound so sweet like so many of the other reviews and sites they may have read before this one.

So in this situation I took the technique of “writing reviews” mixed with some SEO and my true honesty and it’s lead to a lot of folks wanting to give WA a shot even though I’ve made very clear this is going to be hard. So I’m a perfect example of applying techniques that can be misused but using them for good. Here’s a good analogy that sums this all up. Fertilizer can be used as a bomb by a nut bag to blew up a building. But in the hand of farmers it can be used to grow crops that feed millions. I liken myself to the farmer using this stuff for the good of people. You can too! Hope this makes sense and answers your question.

And by the way, WA doesn’t teach you to be sleazy. They teach you sound internet marketing principles not gimmicks.

Hi Clive,

You’re welcome! No there are no refunds. But you can cancel at any time. You can try it for a month and cancel at any time if you don’t like it. If you do like it then you can switch over to the yearly payment program to save some money if you want. But if the refund policy is an issue, I totally understand. If you have more administrative questions, just use the faq link above and contact WA directly and they can answer more of that stuff.

At the end of the day, I know you’ve been burned by other companies but don’t let that experience make you assume that everyone is out to get you. Otherwise you go into situations with a jaded eye and looking for problems. Because you’re in that mindset you WILL find these issues which in most circumstances would be considered minor in the grand scheme of things. But because you’re already looking to pounce, it’s magnified to mythical proportions. So this is just something to keep in mind as you look into various opportunities on the web.

I hope this makes sense.

Hey Clive,
You’re welcome!
Congrats on taking a chance on this and yourself! I’ve just emailed you.

Good luck.

Don,

I’m so sorry to hear that you’ve lost your job. I hear this every day and it always has the same effect on me. It disgust me and pisses me off at the same time because I’m sure there are probably some high level managers or executives that are getting paid more than their worth and getting bonuses right now as we speak. You’re absolutely right what you do will never be enough for them or appreciated in the way it should be. With that all said I’m happy I’ve given you some options to think about. How nice will it be when you are able to tell you wife that! Trust me it’s the best feeling in the world. The day I sat my wife down and said, “Baby you don’t have to go back to work!” was one of the best day of my lives. The other was when I told my step father, give me all your credit card bills. I’m paying them all. The sky’s the limit Don. I’m living proof of it. So you do whatever it takes to make your dreams come true. Thanks for sharing your story with me! I’m looking forward to hearing your happy ending.

Hey Mike,

Thanks for the kind words. I do a little “sumething sumething”. lol Great question about where I am. Well you’ve found me. lol I spend most of my time here on my own sites responding to questions here. I’m still a member of WA and I do lurk a lot in the forums and read the daily blog posts. But it’s easy to get caught up in there for better or worst as described in my review. Quite frankly I want to spend as much of time managing my own sites and helping my people here. After all I’ve spent over a decade trying to build these sites to the level they are. So I feel my time is better spent adding more energy and value here since they are my business and livelihood. The folks that I have referred to WA I speak to via email. So if they need me, they know I’m always an email away or right here on this blog.

That being said, I hear what you’re saying and I’ll see what I can do to be a bit more active over at WA. Ironically I’ve been talking to Kyle & Carson behind the scenes regarding this and they have some ideas of their own on how to do this. lol In any event, it’s always great to hear from a fellow WA member. But if you need me, now you know where to find me.

LOL, It’s my business. I have to be. But thanks for understanding where I’m coming from. There are a lot of good experts already participating on the forums. Trust me I lurk and read their stuff. Even I learn some new things from them. So I don’t know how much more value my two cents would add. lol My advice is pretty basic and consistent. Build an authority site based on a passion, love or expertise you have. Provide a lot of value via your free content before ever asking for anything. Make good recommendations on companies that you are affiliated with and aren’t. Drive targeted traffic to your authority site (My preference is obviously SEO.) Wash rinse and repeat the add value and making good recommendations part regularly and you’re pretty much doing what I’m doing. Ain’t really much more to it from a game plan point of view. So that’s pretty much all I would be adding to the forums at WA. lol

By the way, I did qualify for the Vegas Conference but I had a conflict because I was away in the Dominican Republic for some relaxation. The day I was returning would be the day I would have to hop back on a flight to Vegas and my body couldn’t deal with that back to back flying. So I told Kyle I couldn’t do it. I spoke to one of the participants and he said he learned a lot. So God willing, I’ll be there next year. I thought I might get an honorable mention on their vegas conference page but apparently not. lol

What Up C.S.!
Thanks for the kind words man. I’m glad you could appreciate the realness I was trying to bring across regarding WA. I think that is the problem with too many affiliates. They’re trying to sell instead of inform and provide options. People are grown ass adults, you treat them as such and they make the right decisions for themselves. This usually ends up being paid back to the affiliates that have taken the time to educate.
In any event, I’m glad you can see the value of WA. I totally agree with your about the price being a steal compared to what you would pay for such knowledge in college and other comparable courses.
Thanks for hitting me up here as promised. lol Keep us posted on how you’re doing with WA.

I totally agree with you C.S. but for some reason there are a lot of affiliates that think the opposite of how we do and continue to flood the web with pushy and misleading sales tactics and information.
At the end of the day the tides may be turning. The FTC has sort of forced affiliates to do the right thing now. In any event, I’m looking forward to your progress and success. I know how passionate you are about your niche and that you will add a lot of value which is going to lead a lot of money for you. So keep doing your thing!

Hey Andy,

As a grown ass man, I feel your pain brother. But as I said in the article above, affiliate marketing is a business. It’s not a job where you’re guaranteed to make certain type of money within a specific time frame. A job works like that. This is why I always tell folks if that’s what you’re looking for then visit the pages I have created to help you find that:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/jobs
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/companies

To me it just sounds like you need to get some of these bills paid relatively quickly and want to help your wife out until you get back on your feet. So with that in mind I would suggest visiting my recommendations page:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/recommendations

there are few options that may help you with that and they’re free. The amazon turk program listed there seems to be a consistent easy money maker for most people. I also have a top 10 list of quick ways to make money on my recommendations page as well. So my suggestion given your situation is to explore all these other options first. As I’ve said in my top 10 reasons not to become an affiliate marketer: http://www.workathomenoscams.com/top10 , financial hardship is a bad motivator. It will cause you to rush through things and make poor mistakes. Or you can end up losing more money that you don’t have. So until your situation stabilizes, avoid investing in something like WA or any type of money making opportunities that are claiming to have some magical solution. Because trust me there aren’t any.

Everything that is going to make you decent money is going to require work. Don’t let desperation ever cloud this truth. Take it from a brother that has been down and out and made stupid mistakes because of it. I hope this helps you out. It may not be what you want to hear. But it’s real talk that you need to heed. Good luck brother and keep me posted if you try my other suggestions.

Israel,
Thanks for chiming in with your feelings regarding WA!

James,
Don’t feel bad, you’re not alone. In fact, I find a lot of newbies get caught up in minor details like this. It’s one of those things where you need to remind yourself that these little details aren’t going to get you any closer to making money. With a wordpress theme, just pick one that comes close to what you want. You can always come back and upload a new one or even hire someone to change one that comes close to what you want. At the end of the day, it’s your content that is going to make you the money. Just find a theme that is basic. Google has probably one of the simplest designs on earth and makes billions of dollars. So why re-invent the wheel. Keep your design simple and focus on your content. If it works for one of the biggest companies on the earth, it will work for you. So don’t let things like design and other small nuisances get in the way of taking action and getting out there.

WA can’t do that for you. They’re just going to teach you how to get in front of folks and make money. But ultimately pulling the trigger and being disciplined enough to ignore minor details comes from you. Hope this helps.

Hi Rufnus,

Use the FAQ link and email them directly regarding this question. I believe the answer is yes though. But it’s better to know for sure. Hope this helps.

Hey Eric,

Thanks for the kind words and sharing your opinion about WA. I agree with you, the community is the heart of WA. The only way you’ll fail to get anything out of WA is if you fail to truly take advantage of the community. So I’m totally there with you. Speaking of which, I accepted you as a buddy in WA. Take care and thanks again.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts Rufinus. I really appreciate it!

Hi Gabby,
Like anything in life it’s what you make of it. If you’re willing to work hard, not give up, apply what you learn then it can be very rewarding. Obviously I’m living proof of this since I work at home full time and my wife no longer needs to work outside the home. So that’s not really the question here. The question is are you willing to put in the time to make this business successful and have the delayed gratification to see it through. If not, it’s not for you and you should just focus on a job:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/jobs

In terms of time, I’ve already addressed this in the article above. So I won’t repeat what’s already been stated. I gather you’re looking for some immediate income so I think you should avoid this since it’s a business not a job. Considering your need for some immediate income, I would encourage you to visit my recommendations page:
http://www.workathomenoscams.com/recommendations

Good luck.

Hey Ed,

Thanks for coming back and sharing your honest opinion. I really appreciate it buddy. I think it’s good for people to read this. Honestl, I think your experience just lends credibility to some of my observations that this isn’t for everyone and it’s not easy.

That being said I want to address some points you made.

I don’t think you need to go to college to take some business or marketing courses to be successful at internet marketing. However in the same breath, I don’t think it would hurt you. I studied sociology and minored in psychology. On face value it doesn’t seem like it would help a person succeed in business or marketing. But I have found that it made me understand people better and thus allowed me to be a better business man and marketer because I didn’t view folks as numbers or sales. So my approach tended to be different than folks that may have and thus it helped separate me from the pack.

In hindsight if I could do college all over again I would have actually taken more computer courses and yes probably a few business courses. But for a person that didn’t do any of that, I still managed to learn this stuff. But a lot of that was a function of my resolve. I knew that there was money in this industry and I wanted my share and would work to no end to achieve it, which obviously I have. So it goes to show that those courses aren’t a requirement to achieve success with this industry. Will it help, It might? But I think a better requirement is having the resolve to succeed. Some of the smartest and successful professionals never went to college. So I don’t neccessarily think that because you didn’t go to college you’re not sharp or a professional. Because there are a lot of folks that graduate college that may be book smart but not really business smart or successful. So we have to keep all of this in mind. At the end of the day I agree with the fact that it’s always great to invest in more training because it usually means more money. But there are various ways to get training and it’s not limited to college. I’m living proof of this.

In terms of this business being saturated, it probably is. But so are many other business and people can still make a decent living. Yes it’s about carving out your niche. My niche was make money or work at home. It’s one of the most saturated and competitive niches in the online world. I was no body in this niche and to many folks I still am. But it goes back to what you and have suggested. I was very passionate about this niche. I lived and breathed it. So to me it made sense to be here because I was already always researching new opportunities and scams for my own personal development. Creating a website about it was just an extension of something I already loved doing. At the time I didn’t know how competitive this industry was. I just knew I liked it. I was just happy getting a few visitors to my site applying some of the basic techniques. I was making a bit of money with the little visitors I had. Then I just did the simple math and deduced I just need more visitors to make more money. So I learned new ways of doing that. Eventually l learned SEO and now you’ll see my sites are in the top 10 or 5 in Google for work at home and various other competitive keywords. Maybe ignorance was bliss. Because early in my career, I knew nothing about competition or niche. I just knew that this is the subject matter I liked and I was going to work on it. Everything else in terms of research and traffic I learned a long the way. And even when I discovered it was competitive it didn’t deter me because I really liked my subject matter. Furthermore I felt I had real value that I can provide.

There are literally millions of sites about my very industry. Many of them look better than mine, have cooler technology, etc. Some may even have some better content than me. But here’s what they don’t have, me. They don’t have my unique personality or perspective about this industry. That’s basically my USP (Unique Selling Proposition). No one can clone me and my personality. A big part of marketing aside from the technical aspect has to deal with the personality behind the marketing effort. Apple is really the company it is because of Steve Jobs personality. Yes they have some other great people and technical competencies but I think it really has more to do with his personality. The same applies to this business. You’re always going to have competition and lots of it depending on the niche. But that’s life and why this industry isn’t easy. But if you focus on an industry you love, you’ll continue to plug away because you were doing it for fun or the love before doing it for profit. The money is now just an added benefit. So you’re more inclined to stick with it until you succeed.

The problem is too many people come into this industry and start promoting nonsense or niches they really don’t love. They do it for a few months and decide to give up. At that point it’s a function of poor decisions by that individual not the industry as whole. And I’m not saying you did this Ed. I’m sure you gave it your all.
But I find that folks are more inclined to give up when they don’t focus on passions or niches they love.

Yes many niches are going to be competitive but there is always enough of the pie to carve out for yourself because the internet reaches billions of people. You’re telling me that if you don’t work hard enough and stick with this you can’t reach a tiny portion of them. Even before my sites made it into the top 10 for these competitive keywords, I was still earning some decent money because I was still able to find ways to get some visibility to my site via classifieds, forums, flyers etc. So ultimately I think this all boils down to a few things:

1. Focus on an industry, passion or expertise you have. It should be something you would probably be doing even if you didn’t make a dime. You won’t be so inclined to give up with something like this.

2. Pick products, services, etc that you actually feel provide value and that you would actually use. If you wouldn’t use the stuff you promote why would anyone else would. It doesn’t matter how much they pay you because you want make a dime.

3. Diversify. Don’t just promote pay per sale products, they’re often very difficult to convert. Try CPA or pay per lead companies as I described in my article above. Diversify in how you promote as well. Ezine Articles is being a pain in the ass, move on to another article directory, or try something different like forum posting and promoting via your signature. Or visit blogs related to your industry and post useful comments and folks may click on your name which becomes a link to any site you enter in the url field. The point is keep trying different things to see what gets you the best results. I still do this now. Sure I’m great at SEO. But I still do other things to give me more visibility. Something doesn’t work, its on to the next one. Something does work I tweak it and scale it up.

4. Resolve. If you really think this industry is for you, you work at it until you make it work. Even when I wasn’t making a lot of money with this, I didn’t stop because I knew there was money to be made. But I had bills to pay so I worked on this while still holding a full-time job. I also still engaged in other online opportunities that made me money. This way I would still have money coming in while I mastered this craft. It’s hard to stick through with something when you don’t see immediate results. But that’s also the reason a lot of folks are employees rather than business owners. A business owner often sees little or no profit when they’re first building their business. But like a patient farmer they know that by planting the seed, a bountiful harvest is on the horizon even if the dirt looks barren. Delayed gratification is huge with this business.

5. Training. I don’t care where you get it from. But it’s just something necessary to succeed at this type of business or any type of high level career. If it were something easy than training wouldn’t be necessary.

In any event, that’s just my take. However I’m happy you chimed in because I think you did a fair assessment of your experience with internet marketing. I’m confident that you actually worked hard at it instead of hoping that others would do all the work for you. At the end of the day we’re all going to have different experience. Mine was success after a lot of hard work and patience. For others they may never see a dime. But that’s reality of any business. However at least you can say you gave it your best effort and it wasn’t for you. Now it’s just a matter of finding what is.

But I do appreciate you sharing you story. It’s a great confirmation of what I’ve been saying about how difficult this business can be and it’s not the answer for everyone.
Thanks again for the balanced feedback Ed! I really appreciate it!

P.S. I agree about the annoying lingo that these marketers use. But I think every business does this. In corporate america I remember being in meetings and they would