Internet Marketer is a meaningless title.

I'm not sure I'd go as far as meaningless. Behind closed doors, it's a useful shorthand for a wide range of activities.

As far as using 'Internet Marketer' as a title to elicit trust, my usual question is:

"Cool. You're an Internet Marketer? How many Internets have you sold?"

Here are a few titles that can replace the dreaded "Internet Marketer" title

Online Business Consultant
Social Media Consultant
SEO Specialist
Direct Marketing Consultant
Online Marketing Specialist
Information Product Marketer

Joel

Has a good shortcut title IM and everybody know what it is.
A Metal Machinist is still called a Machinist regardless of whether he is hopeless and breaks the tools.
At least with "Internet Marketer" a person knows what field and area they dealing with.
Just a thought

Yeah titles are not really that critical to me. I think however, when you are writing posts and communicating in short attention span manners, people are looking for a way to pigeon hole the concept NOW. So, if you are looking for a forum on "Marketing" you are going to run into something entirely different from IM.

In person, I have had so many titles I am sick of it. As a business owner, if I use the term CEO all that gets me is my name on a list and a hundred salesman calling cramming "yes sirs" up my butt. At parties, when people ask what I do, I tell them "I'm the janitor" which is true; I have to make sure everything works and operates more than everything else.

If I am selling services to a client, and I have about ten seconds - I do internet marketing - BUT I follow that up with WHY it is I do what I do and how; so the title fades away into nothing.

When people start doing things with titles to be creative - that one gets me. "I'm a safety optimizing specialist" i.e. "I sell insurance as a telemarketer" - that one makes me laugh because its so transparent they are avoiding something.

There was a Greek philosopher that was often asked "what is it that you do for a living" would always respond with "I breathe". The essence is that people and your self included often tries to find some kind of tangible "Identity" and ultimately it does not matter. However, connecting with a audience that is trying to figure out what you do, and do that across a practically blind system, well then you are going to have to use the buzzwords, simple as that.

One of the best ways to answer the question, "What do you do?" is to do the following...

Instead of saying, "I'm an internet marketer," I say this...

"I help people double their profits and enjoy their business more."

Most people respond by saying something like, "Wow! Really? How do you do that??"

Basically, I just tell them the 2 main benefits that people get from working with me.

Then I go into a little more detail (because by now they are usually very intrigued)...

I've found that it sounds a lot better than internet marketer - and it's led to a few referrals for consulting too!!

Similarly, anyone can call themselves a web developer, a PHP programmer, a social media specialist, a public relations consultant, or pretty much anything else.

The overwhelming majority of job titles in the United States are unprotected. Any jackhole can get it printed on a business card and claim to be whatever he likes.

The major exceptions are doctor, lawyer, and realtor. Just about anything else, you can become just by standing up and slapping the label on yourself.

And as a business owner, you get to write the labels. Look at all the people here who call themselves "CEO" of their one-person company that doesn't make a dime in profit. What does that mean, anyway? Why is "CEO" such a coveted title? Remember when "owner/operator" was more respected?

My business cards don't have a title.

They just say "I'm kind of a big deal."

It's about as meaningful.

Love it. Using it forever and ever.

OP,

So what does it take for someone to be classified an Internet Marketer? 25K? 50K? 75K? per year of online sales.

If a guys sole intention is to market products online & get a sale, he makes a single penny, does that not make him an Internet Marketer?

How about the guy with 4 years of college, never sold a thing in his life, but he can pass a test based on theory?

The title doesn't pay the bills!

For many, some kind of vague title with the word "marketer" in it screams AMWAY.

Not knocking Amway. My neighbor works for Bill Britt.

I'm just saying...your average Wal Mart shopper doesn't have a clue what Internet Marketer means.

I went through the same problem when I owned my first web design firm. E-Business Consultant sounded a lot better than Web Designer when trying to close a $50k e-commerce gig. Everyone with a copy of Dreamweaver and a Dummies book calls themselves a web designer. Kind of like everyone with a $400 Nikon thinks they're a photographer.

Well I am 18 year old (I started at 14), I play Call of Duty for 8+ hours/day occasionally and my business makes me 5 figures every month.

So I can safely conclude that Call of Duty doesn't have any effect on anyone's Paypal, Clickbank, Amazon or any other account.

"So what do you do?"

"I run an internet company"

I don't really give myself a title beyond that.

What do you do ?
I make money
How do you make money
same as you I work

Its not what you call yourself its what you do that defines you. Who cares what name you give it its still marketing on the internet. Hey i'm proud to be an Internet marketer!That's it in a nutshell. I'm sure a lot of people will disagree with me so if you don't think this info helps just discard it. It's my 100 thousand dollars' worth!

You are qualified if you make money online by marketing products or services. That is my definition of an internet marketer.

Its a weird thing, because half of the people think internet marketer means spammer and the other are immediately interested by how it all works

I find that a lot of people do everything they can to be called something other than an internet marketer!

I'm a brand builder for instance.

The term internet marketer was coined back in the early days when internet service like AOL first launched in the mid 90's. As the internet has evolved so have the terms we use also like blogger, content writer, seo expert, etc. As the internet continues to evolve I surmise there will be new terms to replace the ones we currently use.

I don't care about titles personally.

Generally, when people ask me what I do, they tend to
associate what I do to who "I am"...but I always stress
that what I do is NOT who I am.

There's nothing wrong with proudly wearing the title of
an internet marketer because with it comes respect, &
curiosity about who "you are".

In the beginning I thought that's what I wanted...

to be identified by WHAT I do.

But I learned that as you experience more and perhaps
have a little success, the title doesn't matter as much to
you as it did when you first started...

because in MY case I'm to busy doing than I am telling
people what I'm "studying".

Right now I'm creating a product on Postcard Direct Mail
marketing where I openly tell people I am NOT the most
successful at it at the moment.

But I DO love the business and I'm passionate about it to
the point where someone might consider me an expert in
the business -

In fact, I went to a seminar about Real Estate and, while
the speaker went around the room telling people to intro
-duce themselves, I told people what I did and ears perk
up...

I would openly tell them I wasn't making a full-time income
doing it yet...and saying that made them want to know
more...

it's weird...

you would think most people would run away from some
-one who is not yet having success, but honesty, passion,
and confidence MAKES people want to know even MORE...

regardless if you're successful now, or not. If they see you
are committed to something positive, they want in and will
support you along the way.

John Chow and his blog is a PERFECT example of honesty
because here was a guy who was PASSIONATE about inter-
net marketing, and people followed him from when he was
making nothing -- and continue following him with financial
success.

He's one of the few bloggers who wasn't afraid to document
his beginnings in a public forum, whereas MOST marketers
THINK having success is what ATTRACTS success.

I am living proof it does not.

It really all is in your "mind" and what YOU want to project
out to the world.

So if calling oneself a title makes you FEEL more confident,
than by all means go for it.

I'm not an "Internet Marketer". I'm just sellin stuff

I used to tell people I was an internet marketer, but they all assumed that that meant I sell porn, poker and pills.

So then I just started telling them I'm an internet writer and that satisfies their interest.

I knew someone who bought and sold paintings working from home and he had business cards printed with International Art Dealer under his name. His lack of experience eventually caught him out and I suspect this is applicable to any market.

Lucky I don't have Call of Duty then

Wow. Great discussion. Personally I don't place "internet marketers" very high on the status scale. The cost of entry is pretty low - even when you factor in the purchase of a hundred or so ebooks and a couple of mega courses. Many have been guided by "gurus" in pursuit of quick bucks and who continually give the impression that making money online is easy. They wouldn't be able to sell their products if they didn't hype the crap out of their stuff. So to a very large degree internet marketing is a case of "the dishonest taking advantage of the gullible."

The use of "internet marketing" to further the business goals of legitimate businesses is a completely different animal. We're not talking about selling cheap ebooks here. We're talking about delivering a service that real businesses are prepared to pay for because it advances their business objectives. How many "internet marketers" are able to do that? Not many I suspect.