Are You Chasing Ambulances?
October 22nd, 2009 | 
Author: A friend of mine and I were talking about some nice money deals that came his way recently and he said, “Yeah I don’t like chasing money.” I agreed. When you’re chasing money, it makes you feel kind of dirty – like an unethical lawyer chasing ambulances.
I know you’ve seen the marketers who chase money landing in your email inbox.
They promote anything and everything – site unseen – just to make a quick affiliate buck.
They tap into niches they have zero interest in and no desire to learn about – just because they heard it’s a hot niche.
They take shortcuts because they don’t care about the consumer. They spin articles using trash tools that make the end result unreadable. Why? All they care about it harnessing that keyword phrase and getting a clickout (on their link).
Can you make money chasing money? You sure can! In fact you can probably become filthy rich doing this.
But where do you draw the line? Or do you even HAVE a line?
I’m one of those people content with making less if my morality stays intact. But there are many who aren’t.
If you are having to buy from people to learn the ropes of this business, are you going to pay an ambulance chaser or someone who has your best interests at heart?
There are MANY decent marketers who teach others. They may not have the big names attached to their lessons or the fancy videos or websites, but that doesn’t mean their information is not valuable.
Some of the best people I’ve personally learned from have had no affiliation with any big names. They haven’t shoved a ClickBank check (Photoshop anyone?) in my face. They have just delivered solid content to me time and time again.
Whoever you choose to follow, make them prove themselves to you. Don’t let yourself get impressed by the luxury watch they’re wearing or the video they made from Fiji. You don’t know what they did to make that money – and if you did, you might not be as impressed.
Go on quality of their products and how they treat their customers.
Those are the only two things you need to know to choose who to follow. And once you begin leading in your niche, don’t do “whatever it takes” – do what you can do while staying true to who you are.
Tiff 
Posted in Internet Marketing
This is a great post – these are the kinds of things I think about in my web career all the time. It’s so easy online to think things are fine. you get so used to affiliate links that sometimes you think you should push each and every link you come across, and forget about the REAL people who need the REAL product. Is that product you’re promoting really it? I always try to ask myself those questions, and I am also like you: content to make less money and keep my morals.
Well said. I’ve been trying to make a living online for years but still haven’t quite reach there yet. I’ve study and learn a lot about affiliate products and marketing but I just can’t force myself on chasing the ambulance. Sometimes I just hope that I can be more evil so that I can earn more money. But than I won’t be feeling happy about that. Guess I just have to do it the slow and happy way.
Tiffany:
Great post! You know, I wish every internet marketer I know was like you.
You tell it like it is. And everything you sell is first class. Keep up the good work.
Love it! and I second that!
Hey Tiffany
great post, I’m not so sure if many of these marketers operate with any kind of ethic.
Ural
Tiff,
This is an awesome point. I wish you would take just a few people and show them how to get started in this business. Most of the so- called GURUS don’t do most of what they teach.
Thank You for this post and for being true to who YOU are.
Be Well,
Mark
This is exactly why I came here to buy your book about Product Reviews. I trust that your values match mine and I know I can make your information required reading for the Budding Freelance Writer group that I mentor. Thank you for staying true to yourself.
I totally agree, Tiffany. There are as many ways to make a dishonest dollar as there are people willing to use them. Slow, real, honest and ethical is the way to proceed. Any other way just won’t feel right.
Great post Tiffany, I certainly have been on the receiving end ,and wasted money on products that have proved useless.
Unfortunately when you are starting out online, it is difficult deciding who is a genuine marketer and has their readers interest at heart .
I hope I never succumb to this !
Fantastic article! I wholeheartedly agree that promoting “site unseen” Clickbank products is a really bad idea, especially stuff in the ‘make money’ niche, since most of it is scammy.
On the other hand, I will dabble in physical product niches I have no prior knowledge in (especially when producing content) for a lot of reasons – one being that I increase my knowledge of the niche/products through research, which allows more effective writing and promotion in the future.
I’m one of those who only pursues money for financial independence and security – not ‘more stuff’. That allows for less stress and more family and fun time. If materialism is your driver, I don’t think that ever ends well!
However, even this has resulted in some ‘Ambulance chases’ in the past, and wasted $’s on WSO’s – half of which end up telling me something I already knew.
Tiffany, trust has to be the most expensive and the rarest commodity around. It’s the reason all of your posts get opened, and every course you recommend ends up in my hands. You’re a rare and wonderful person, and you are greatly loved.
Wow Bobby thank you! You’re a sweetheart
I second that!
Hey Tiff,
I totally agree… in this day and age and the economy the way it, too many people have turned to chasing money. It’s a sad state of affairs. Many have lost their perspective and have become greedy in the process. Fraudulent scams and worthless info is everywhere. I love it when I discover an internet marketer with integrity (like yourself) who share valuable info especially with those who are struggling. And there’s a lot of ‘em out there too being supportive and sharing their successes if one only looks. Thank You for being one of them!
Linda =}
Excellent post Tiffany and very valid thoughts. Al Capone once answered the question “why do you rob banks? with “because that’s where the money is” and as a previous commenter suggests this is where you find many lazy affiliates promoting IM products with their spammy emails. The ones that say “hey I found this great product that will XYZ and put megabuks in your bank account. Go check it out!” and add a link. Those are easy to spot and fully deserve use of the unsubscribe link.
On the other hand for affiliates in whatever niche (health/relationships etc) you are working in it obviously pays to go where the money is and promote products that people are actually buying. Here of course you need to align the product with your own ethics since the articles on your website where you promote the product via text links or banners become a reflection of you the webmaster. The question then is do you want junk or quality products featured on your site? Also with your mailings to your list do you want to provide value with quality content or send spammy one-liners. Check Tiffany’s emails for an example of how to do it effectively.
Personally I’m not a big fan of Clickbank products, preferring to deal direct with vendors or reputable networks, but in the IM niche it is well worth going to the CB marketplace and looking at all the “big launch – over-hyped” products of yesterday now stagnating with zero gravity. Many of today’s “shiny magic button” guru products are going to be amongst those tomorrow.
IMHO quality always beats quantity regardless of what topic we might be discussing.
yeah I’m totally agree Tiff. I’ve read a ridiculous ebook teaching that if you’re teaching IM in IM niche, you must appear success and showed your fancy toys to your subscribers i.e. $$ screenshots, sports car, exotic island you’ve been visiting, etc. I mean, who the hell even care if you really have these stuff or just making them up? I think subscribers don’t really interested how big you are as much as they’re interested in how this marketers’ emails gonna help them. content matters.
Yeah I’m perfectly content with my childhood home, my minivan and my ugly brown couch cushions – seriously. lol
You drive a min-van! Dang, Tiff, I didn’t know you were doing that well
I say while looking fondly at my Hyundai.
Great post. Sometimes it’s easy to forget that there really is more to life than money. The funny thing is, it’s often people who start doing well that become obsessed with making more and more. Instead of taking time to enjoy what they have. Life is too short to not take some time to enjoy the moments. I think I’ll go walk on the beach now.
Rose