Get Good Karma
Megalomania & Spam ( or said differently – why spammers love my blogs)
According to Wikipedia:
Megalomania denotes an obsession with, either in the form of irrational perceived need for, or preoccupation with one’s own estimation of having and/or obtaining, grandiosity and extravagance (especially in the form of great fame and popularity, material wealth, social influence or political power, or more than one or even all of the aforesaid) and accompanying complete desirous and bombastic abandon.
I think I have some of that. Which is okay – I’m sure you’re a bit screwed up too and I’m not judging.
But it took me a while to be sure. And spammers actually saved me a few hundred man hours of intense pyschotherapy to figure it out.
I mean – I’m usually not the first to know much, it took me a bit longer than I’m comfortable admitting that lots of my blog comments were spam.
Most of you have been reading this blog for a while – and I’m a pretty nice guy, right?
I’m humble, smart, friendly and fun – but it might not be a big surprise to find out that I’m a big fan of my own stuff.
I don’t think that’s a bad thing though. Knowing what you’re good at and doing it is pretty important in by book.
Look at Jay Z for example.
He probably would make a terrible CPA, or professional soccer player.
But he’s a damn good rapper, and while I understand half of what he says, I can appreciate the artistry of excellence.
So I guess I’m never surprised to find a boatload of comments in my moderation que that say things like:
"Thanks for writing, I truly liked reading your most recent post. I think you should post more frequently, you evidently have talent for blogging!"
Or
"I was just searching for about this when I came upon your post. I’m simply dropping by to say that I truly enjoyed seeing this post, it is very clear and well written. Are you planning topost more on this? It appears like there is more great material here for future posts."
Most people see that and think "SPAM"
I see that and think "THANKS!"
I almost hate to delete them – and it wasn’t until I saw the same hot blonde chick leaving comments on all of my blogs that I realized they weren’t really for me.
Even though I really do have a talent for blogging – which is just amazingly coincidental.
So keep this in mind next time you think I have all the answers.
9 Comments to "Megalomania & Spam ( or said differently – why spammers love my blogs)
Let me say it and believe me this is from the bottom of my heart “-
“You really are talented in writing”
Keep it up Ian! If you love your own stuff, other people especially your readers might fall in love with them too! I know I do
Yeah dude, I can’t wait for your next blog posts – I check the site multiple times a day haha
Thanks Raimi! And if technology ever catches up to match blog owner pyschology, those are the kind of comments I would approve even if they ARE spam..:-)
Thanks, Chris! ( and per the Clickbank vs CJ thing – don’t sweat it too much – it’s a preference thing for me but lots and lots of people obviously do very well with selling their stuff, so not to worry if that’s more comfortable for you!)
Hey Ian,
I think I’m going to use Clickbank some more then since I feel a bit more comfortable with it.
I have a quick question for you -
With those video opt-in pages, how “Related” does the video have to be…
For one of my niches, the guy actually makes a few of his own videos related to the product, but I’m worried because he does talk about his own website and about himself a bit. Will this scare off my visitors?
I mean, it would just seem weird to me to have a video that says “Hey my name is Mr. Blahblah” and then they subscribe and find out that I’m Mr. Heyhey, and not Mr.Blahblah
So will this effect me and my subscribers very much?
Thanks again Ian!
It’s not ideal, no……but it wouldn’t be terrible if you’re selling his product – it would still *work* on the front end – especially if you are redirecting to his sales page thereafter – but……it would most likely *confuse* your subscribers after they got your first email, and if they are paying attention, would notice you arne’t the same dude..:-)
( although – on your thank you page – you could simply tell them their free bonus/report/etc is on it’s way – and how much this program has benefited you, your life/business/etc) and how you were just like them, etc – and now a passionate evangelist for his product. To be honest though – I wouldn’t “force” it just to use nice templates – you simply want to either have, or wait unitl you have an offer that is super conducive to that style offer/launch/promotion.
Also – if you do the above – you obviously want to make sure- in that scenario, that he does NOT have a squeeze page set up for his traffic as well – or the whole thing would get screwy in a hurry.
Still – the BEST use for that sort of opt template is where there are “generic” reviews – or product promotions that aren’t neccessarily branded or watermarked. ( which most aren’t) There are tens of thousands of videos you can grab from any number of shared enviorments – slap the code on the page – and your opt in rates will go up so exponentially as a result – making the process of getting more sales accidently easy. ( just about EVERY CPA “free trial” offer uses video – simply because it works – and obviously all of the IM style promotions do too – but in the smaller hobby niches – this stuff hasn’t yet exploded – hence, there is no *blindness* to the technology – and you’ll find your sign up rates can double using this styles opt in. )
As an example – I actually was working with set up a promotion with a doctor who is a friend – and doing some business coaching – and he took a look at the squeeze page we created using the template and was blown away.
( I bought them – the deal is killer – I actually checked out the guy’s blog who put them together just to try to figure out WHY he would be selling them for so cheap – it’s INSANE to be selling those for 47 bucks – I had been using some older style opt in’s for a CPA offer that were doing really well – and are totally fugly compared to his stuff which are super sweet!)
Makes sense – I honestly can’t STAND this niche anyways… I just… can’t market it haha..
I dunno what to do at this point, CPA offers sounds interesting, but meh…
Anyways, thanks again
I really love this blog post. I just happened to be experiencing an existential crisis, which you resolved with your post. Your post was eloquent, pithy, and has great potential for creating world peace.
If others would only recognize the value in this blog post, there would be less wars, famine, tidal waves, and respect for human rights around the planet. Even people who have never heard of you, and those who never get to read this post will benefit from the magnificent message it contains.
There is currently a debate raging in physics representing the long standing problem of quantum gravity. This post clearly and concisely resolves this debate, and shortly, I’m convinced the scientific community will rally to award you the Nobel Prize, not for writing (which you clearly deserve as well), but for your scientific achievement.
I would close this comment with a plea to all your readers. Although the permanent solution to child abuse and neglect is contained within these words, I fear it will require a massive effort to convey this to the mental health community at large. Thus I would ask that people make an extraordinary effort to distribute the post far and wide, clarifying the solution at all turns.
I can’t thank you enough for this magnificent post. I am humbled by its beauty, enthralled with the scope and power of its message, and motivated to dedicate the remainder of my comparatively meaningless life to evangelize on your behalf.
It takes an especially acute intelligence and an unwavering comittement to read deeply between the lines to truly capture the spirit of what I was going for here…..and you have clearly managed to do it – even adding a layer of complexity that I hadn’t even considered –
(i.e. – the post conventional, world centric cosmological ramifications – and yes, I do agree the basic seeds for global peace and personal transformation ( encompassing both the "I", "We" and "They" on the Wilberian model of evolutionary conciousness) are somewhere deeply embedded in the spirit of this short post)
Thank you for reminding me that I have this gift. I only serve a good greater than my own.