‘Scuse me while I get bent out of shape for a sec…
Coercion is a very strong word.
But there’s a measurable percentage of folks on the web who aren’t against using it to get to your cash.
If you’ve seen past posts from me, you know I’m fiercely against marketing trickery of any kind, that forces people to make a rushed decision because of some bullshit “scarcity” or FOMO.
Two recent stories I’ve seen that generally just make me mad are below. They’re a-hole moves because they’re purely designed to siphon money from people, and I didn’t know they were a thing until I read these:
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I saw this ad “in the wild.” After vomiting in my sink for a couple of minutes, I opened my laptop and wrote something.
“Stop playing business on hard mode.” 🤮
This implies that there is, indeed, an EASY mode to business. And I’m sure that the Hormozi power couple are the ones who have the secret to unlock it.
They make you wonder, Wait… am I missing something? Or am I just fucking stupid? Should I just quit everything and start a goat farm? They chip away at your confidence, self-worth, and joy in what you do… leaving you feeling useless. And that’s when they suck you into craving the quick fixes they peddle.
They know EXACTLY what they’re doing, and it pisses me off beyond measure.
Running a business is hard. It’s meant to be hard. Having another human pay money for something you offer is not easy. A business is meant to be chaotic.
So, please, don’t believe their BS. They’re f*cking with your brain on purpose to sell you stuff you don’t need when your self-worth is down to 0.
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I was offered a “LinkedIn Growth” service this week.
Here is how it works…
A company will use a click farm to amplify your posts.
They have more than 3,000 bot profiles to amplify your posts.
They will like, comment and repost.
That triggers the algorithm and real people start to engage.
They offered me a minimum of 50k impressions per post and an average of 5,000 new followers per week.
To make it work, I had to broaden my message so it was more relatable to a wider audience and pay $1497 a month.
They shared they do this for some well known names.
Do I want 5,000 followers per week? – Yep
Do I want 50,000 average impressions? – Yep
Do I want to broaden my message? – Nope
Would I be 100% terrified of being banned or caught out – Yep
Makes you ponder how much of the internet is artificial hype.
This is what a click farm looks like.
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Me again.
These offers are money makers. They’re also horcruxes that break off a tiny piece of the owner’s soul every time they make a sale.
I’ve been burned more than once by these Volderdorks – it’s hard to spot because like I’ve said before, they’re really good copywriters. They know how to pull at your insecurities and your lizard-brain to make you buy crap you don’t need.
They’ll always be around, but you don’t need to play that game. There’s more than enough useful stuff you can offer, and far more than enough people who need it.
Don’t got nothin of value? Don’t be selling nuthin… Got value? Sell it to people who can use it. And keep your soul ✌️
For self-employed creatives, normal business traps are easy to fall into and overcomplicate things - but they’re totally avoidable when flying solo.
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