by Andy Jenkins on January 14, 2010
In my 9 years online, I’ve never had the chance to use a “The Death Of..” headline.
I do today. Scratch that one off my list.
Here’s the deal:
Ryan Lee just posted a short video, and a redacted letter that he got from his merchant account to his blog.
Esentially, Visa and MasterCard are putting the breaks on and in some cases killing merchant accounts that pitch “Free with paid Shipping”, “Free Trials”, and “Opt-Out (They call it “Negative” Continuity).
Here’s the link to Ryan’s Blog:
http://www.ryanlee.com/make-more-money/forced-continuity-and-free-trials-are-almost-over-read-this-now/
(It’s a LONG link, so if it wraps to 2 lines, make sure you copy the whole thing and paste it in your browser).
Do me a favor – watch Ryans Video and read the letter from his merchant account, and then head back to this blog post and tell me what you think.
My reaction is simple: WOOOOOOOHOOOOOOO!
While I hate that the bad apples are causing legitimate folks to have to jump through the odd hoop or two, the fact is, the real jerks are gonna be shut down cold. And if consumers can worry a little less about fraud, that makes the entire industry better.
Post your thoughts in the comments below…
May you live in interesting, strange, and slightly surreal times,
Andy
P.S. If you leave a comment on Ryan’s blog, please do tell him that I sent you to visit – he’ll like that, and send me In and Out Burger Coupons.
by Andy Jenkins on December 8, 2009
December 1st has come and gone, marking the day when the new FTC Guidelines for Affiliate Marketing Disclosure, Compliance, and Testimonial “Typicality” came into effect.
If you sell or endorse ANYTHING online, these guidelines DO affect you – from innocent AdSense to full-on product launch case-studies – the FTC is Big Brothering the HEYELL out of the web.
Or… are they?
Funny-Man and Hawaiian Shirt-wearing Voodoo-Child Jim Edwards actually wrestled a FTC spokesperson into explaining what this new devilry is all about – and he managed to crack a joke without blowing the Earth out of it’s orbit – which is a mighty trick for a government official.
Having said that – I MUST call shenanigans – during one part of the interview, Mr. FTC said that they cannot impose fines for violations.
Oh REALLLLLY????? I know some folks that might beg to differ. Regardless, it’s an interview worth listening to end to end.
TO get it, you must promise to do 2 things:
- Thank Jim Edwards for doing all of us this favor (You can leave a comment on his blog where the interview lives).
- Mention that I sent you. I think Jim wants me dead – so this is my way of showing him that there’s no hard feelings about burning down his…. oh never mind.
Here’s the link – No Opt in or anything!
http://www.igottatellyou.com/blog/ftc-change-interview/
Come Back here (To this blog) and discuss your feelings about the interview – I’d like to hear if you think it’s going to have a massive effect on your business or not.
by Andy Jenkins on October 12, 2009
“Every time I find the meaning of Life, they change it.”
~Author Unknown (But Damn Clever)
You know why I like change? Because I never really figured out what to do in the first place, so when shizzle changes, it’s like I’m getting a Do-Over.
Google makes sure we get “Do-Overs” all the time, don’t they?
They’re givers.
Stupid Google Changes that can HURT You
Last week, Leslie Rohde, Dan Thies and I conducted a Live Webinar entitled “Stupid Google Changes that can Hurt You“. I took many notes and was unnaturally silent. As promised, we recorded the Webinar, and it’s now available in bite-sized chunks of geekery and profoundness.
I’ve split up the webinar according to topic, and will be releasing each nugget over the next few days.
Bonus Tip
BTW, write this down: Since I’ll soon be turning up the volume on my How to Market with Video project, I thought you might like to know this little tid-bit:
The viewership on short, 10-15 minute videos – even when they are simply tiny parts of a larger overall presentation, it about 1000% higher than the viewership on a single long duration video. Because effective Video Marketing AND Video Training is ALL about consumption, take a moment and look at your current video releases and see if you’ve got some magnum-opus length videos out there boring your viewer to tears.
Parts 1 and 2 of “Stupid Google Changes that can Hurt You” is now available for your viewing enjoyment! [click to continue…]
