Things have got to change

You can't be involved in Internet marketing education for very long without becoming dismayed at the lack of ethics of some of the prominent players:

Bogus resumes and made-up biographies, out-of-control plagiarism, and rampant fraud against consumers. It's become an epidemic and many of the "big" names are involved...

There's even a school (several of them actually) where wanna-be "gurus" go to learn how to put on seminars that have no content so they can focus on the only thing that matters to them:  pitching books and tapes and expensive "coaching" programs from the podium.

A student from System 2006 just sent me a book his wife wrote called "Trust and Honesty: America's Business Culture at a Crossroad."

The author, Tamar Frankel, is a law professor and was involved in laying the foundation for ICANN, the entity that regulates domain names world wide. Among other accomplishments, she's been named a Faculty Fellow of the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University.

Frankel points out that there has been a overall decline in business ethics across the board in recent years.

Is dishonest business behavior new?

Of course not, Frankel states in her book, but what is new is both the scope and the mass acceptance of unethical behavior as "normal."

Frankel quotes another attorney who specializes in fighting fraud in the health-care industry (a $100 billion a year problem.): "The real tragedy is not just the proliferation of fraud. The tragedy is that the public seems to have accepted fraud as another way of doing business."

This is obviously not a good state of affairs.  It not only injures consumers, it also drives good people out of the marketplace, or keeps them from entering it. The net result: a poisoned marketplace.

Is there a solution?

Frankel says there is.

The decline in business ethics is not set in stone. It's the result of a culture change. And just as the culture has changed for the worse, it can also change for the better.

Where does it begin?

Right here. Right now.

It begins with recognizing that deception and fraud is not "normal" behavior. That falsifiying credentials and making up "success" stories is not OK. That presenting the work of others as your own without giving proper credit is not OK.  That selling an expensive "empty box" to your customers is not something to brag about, but to be ashamed of.

If the consumers of Internet marketing education were to demand more from the industry, and be less accepting of the current climate of sleaze fostered by what amounts to a handful of devious high-profile individuals, we'd all be a lot better off.

It's in our power. We do not have to - nor should we - accept the current state of affairs. Thanks to Tamara Frankel for writing this important and timely book.

Comments

[Jerry Dyas]

I have attended a few seminars in the past month. You can always get ideas from anything (even a guy reading a book to you) but I have a negative reaction to the pitch fests that occur. When someone speaks to me for an hour and a half and ends with a pitch I get turned off. Did this guy give me some steak or did I just get the sizzele? (One speaker even said that he tells people what to do but they have to pay him to learn how to do it.)
If I want someone's service I will go up to talk to them. But I didn't spend thousands of dollars plus travel and be away from my wife and kids to get sold all weekend.
And if the host of the seminar is getting a big cut of the action then what is the purpose of the seminar anyway?
Most know it's not right and here is the test. Have them say that the weekend seminar will have all these great speakers BUT THEY WILL ALL BE SELLING THEIR SERVICES AT THE END OF THEIR TALK! Then people can choose to attend or not. The fact that this is not told tells me they know no one would come or the attendance would be low.
It borders on unethical in my opinion. Shame too becasue a lot of the speakers really know their stuff.

[Joseph Occhino]

Ken,

Great article (post). What we need to do is "expose" these people by naming names. It's unfair and arguably our OBLIGATION to do so. Of course, there has to be no room for doubt over their actions (libel and slander can get you in trouble).

However, many newbies and even experienced IM's who are legit...and have a heart to truly help others...are falling for their schemes everyday.

I have first hand experience with a man who claims to have written copy for over 20 years. His pitch was for joining his monthly "coaching" club, trying it out for a $1 for 14 days.

Daily, I would get e-mails from him, reading each one with interest and paying attention to his style.

Then one day, I got an e-mail that looked very very familiar. Turns out, he stole the copy word for word from an e-mail that Michael Masterson had sent as part of the AWAI "Early to Rise" daily feed. (I am enrolled in their copywriting course and get the feed daily).

When I questioned him about the "similarities" I was promptly removed from his e-mail list, never got another one from him again...what a great way to get off of someone's list...no need to opt out, just expose them! You'll never have to worry about spam from them again! ;-)

At the recent System 2006, we discussed alot of this at the networking events and at the lunches. There is definitely value in knowing who's real and who's not. Please continue this track and let's try to figure out a way to legitimately expose them.

Joe

[Ken McCarthy]

Joe,

This naming names thing is interesting.

I attended a high level domain name conference last winter in Silicon Valley. They have the same problems we do. Fly-by-night fakers who appear out of nowhere slinging all sorts of BS and ripping people off left and right.

The host of the conference - a major heavyweight in the domain name world - said "it's time to start naming names guys."

There are legal issues of course.

One simple way to handle this might be to simply track the biographical claims of some of the worst offenders and post them to the net.

It's amazing how many of them floated into the industry and built reputations on a sea of total BS.

Many of these guys have made outrageously fraudulent claims about their careers that can easily be confirmed - or proven false.

Some day... maybe soon.

Ken McCarthy

P.S. The copywriting world is full of this kind of chicanery.

I had so many bad experiences with some of the 'new generation' of copywriting gurus, I put on a special course to help my clients avoid being taken, recognize real copywriters, and write their own winning ad copy.

http://www.kenscopyclinic.com/order.html

[Jack]

Jerry,

There are degrees of this.

I don't mind someone telling me a little about their services after hearing a great talk.

What I can't stand and what I do think is unethical are people who design talks not to share info but only to sell.

Worse, if you have a question for them, the answer is "it's in the package" or they just blow you off.

Jack Rutelle

[Sean Woodruff]

I agree with Joe. There's no need to talk about the problem in generalities. If it truly is a problem there needs to be specifics.

As far as "legal issues" go, if the person being exposed is truly an empty box they will not have a leg to stand on. The problem with fearing "legal issues" is that it is always the guy on the right side of the "legal issue" that is fearful.

In the end, if we allow the market to be FREE it will work itself out.

[Stephen Lahey]

Speaking as a small business owner who is new to Internet marketing and copywriting, I have to say something: I got burned a number of times, and until I discovered The System Seminar I wondered whether anyone in this space could be trusted. Thank goodness for Ken McCarthy.

Ultimately, I think that the real key to changing the ethical landscape is oversite and education. What about establishing a consumer watchdog group that has no vested interests and can publish objective reports on the products and services available?

[Glenn Sheiner]

Ken,

I think that it's easier psychologically to BS somebody online than in person.

Unfortunately, as society gets increasingly digitalized and depersonalized there is less social cost to BS. If you tried to BS someone in your neighborhood, chances are your reputation would get ruined very quickly via cocktail party chatter.

So, there's more at stake with personal interactions.

Anyway, it's good to know that there's a collection of ethical marketers/publishers in the System Club.

[Mike Moore]

One root of this issue is the gap between good copywriting and the quality of the product the copy describes. The marginally scrupulous can write copy that bears little resemblence to the quality and subtsance of the actual product, i.e. "hype." This mismatch between copy and substance is particularly prevalent in the Internet Marketing genre because, by definition, they pass through the "ah ha" moment of understanding the power of effective copy.

As with all things in life, "power" is always associated with "responsibility." Balancing the power of copy with the associated responsibility to use it ethically is the definition of integrity and maturity.

The appeal of the System Seminar is the role you play in assuring the faculty's commitment to maintaining this balance.