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My plan on how to beat the FTC rules

by Harvey Segal
24 replies
If you are worried that the FTC will clamp down on you
for exaggeration in your sales copy I have the solution.

Whatever your product create another sales page absolutely identical.

You just change one thing.

You give the product a title "Hot cakes".

In your original copy you can now truthfully say

"This product is selling like hot cakes"

Like it ?

Well I have lots of other similar titles you can use.

Watch out for a WSO soon.

Harvey
#beat #ftc #plan #rules
  • Profile picture of the author Jason Anderson
    Hilarious Harvey. Hope nobody actually tries that...LOL
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    • Profile picture of the author rosetrees
      or just sell hot cakes. Turn them into pdfs so you can sell them internationally - I'll have a chocolate one please.
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    • Profile picture of the author Fernando Veloso
      Originally Posted by Jason Anderson View Post

      Hilarious Harvey. Hope nobody actually tries that...LOL
      Bet someone will :p Better state you're not advising people to do this yadda yadda yadda...
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  • Profile picture of the author Mark Brian
    *is creating a product called Hotcakes/Crazy/Very Fast*
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  • Profile picture of the author Rob Whisonant
    LOL I love it! But in the long run why not actually be honest on your sales page? Seems like a no brainier to me.

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  • Profile picture of the author BradCarroll
    I'm changing my name to HotCakes. Not the most masculine sounding name but bizness is bizness.
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    • Profile picture of the author Kevin Riley
      Originally Posted by BradCarroll View Post

      I'm changing my name to HotCakes. Not the most masculine sounding name but bizness is bizness.
      Wait one minute! I've already trademarked the name. Already have my line of products out.

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  • Profile picture of the author David Chung
    China's the market of the future! You need to get your products selling like Dumplings!
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  • Profile picture of the author Martin Avis
    With reference to the OP, I do wish people would stop posting so-called 'advice' without providing clear video proof of its efficacy.

    I have actually carried out my own tests and have found that hot cakes do not, in fact, sell as well as warm or cold cakes. I sold hot cakes by mail order for a while and the refund rate was unacceptably high due to people opening the package and claiming that the cakes were no longer hot on arrival. Scammers!

    Affiliates proved to be a problem too. Too many chose the same affiliate id - an X - and so at Eastertime differentiating between batches proved to be a nightmare.

    In the end I had to swallow the losses.

    Which may explain why I've now moved on to the diet niche.

    Martin
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    • Profile picture of the author Stephen Crooks
      lol.. Very good.

      Originally Posted by Martin.Avis View Post

      With reference to the OP, I do wish people would stop posting so-called 'advice' without providing clear video proof of its efficacy.

      I have actually carried out my own tests and have found that hot cakes do not, in fact, sell as well as warm or cold cakes. I sold hot cakes by mail order for a while and the refund rate was unacceptably high due to people opening the package and claiming that the cakes were no longer hot on arrival. Scammers!

      Affiliates proved to be a problem too. Too many chose the same affiliate id - an X - and so at Eastertime differentiating between batches proved to be a nightmare.

      In the end I had to swallow the losses.

      Which may explain why I've now moved on to the diet niche.

      Martin
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    • Profile picture of the author Harvey Segal
      Originally Posted by Martin.Avis View Post

      Affiliates proved to be a problem too.
      So you think affiliates have a problem with hot cakes ?

      Well let me tell you about cookies.

      Harvey
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      • Profile picture of the author Martin Avis
        Well let me tell you about cookies.
        Oh they're not so bad - everybody loves cookie dough!
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  • Profile picture of the author bgmacaw
    Good idea but unfortunately 'hot cakes' are regulated by the FDA and using them in this context is illegal without full disclosure of their nutritional values.
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  • Profile picture of the author seasoned
    The FDA is against DECEPTIVE advertising! There is plenty of precedent to support that. So doing what harvey suggests IS a violation. In fact, that would make it CLEAR you are TRYING to deceive and could make things WORSE! When all is said and done, the FDA does NOT care what you say! It isn't about words at all! It is about PERCEPTION! Trying to use words, no matter how true, to give the wrong perception is breaking their rules.

    Steve
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    • Profile picture of the author Scott Ames
      Originally Posted by seasoned View Post

      The FDA is against DECEPTIVE advertising! There is plenty of precedent to support that. So doing what harvey suggests IS a violation. In fact, that would make it CLEAR you are TRYING to deceive and could make things WORSE! When all is said and done, the FDA does NOT care what you say! It isn't about words at all! It is about PERCEPTION! Trying to use words, no matter how true, to give the wrong perception is breaking their rules.

      Steve
      I don't think he was being serious.
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      Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm. -Winston Churchill

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    • Profile picture of the author Martin Avis
      Originally Posted by seasoned View Post

      The FDA is against DECEPTIVE advertising! There is plenty of precedent to support that. So doing what harvey suggests IS a violation. In fact, that would make it CLEAR you are TRYING to deceive and could make things WORSE! When all is said and done, the FDA does NOT care what you say! It isn't about words at all! It is about PERCEPTION! Trying to use words, no matter how true, to give the wrong perception is breaking their rules.

      Steve
      The only thing funnier than Harvey's posts is reading the replies from people who haven't read them properly.

      Shame on you Steve - after nearly 10,000 posts you should know Harvey better!

      Martin
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    • Profile picture of the author James Campbell
      Originally Posted by seasoned View Post

      The FDA is against DECEPTIVE advertising! There is plenty of precedent to support that. So doing what harvey suggests IS a violation. In fact, that would make it CLEAR you are TRYING to deceive and could make things WORSE! When all is said and done, the FDA does NOT care what you say! It isn't about words at all! It is about PERCEPTION! Trying to use words, no matter how true, to give the wrong perception is breaking their rules.

      Steve
      I think you mean the FTC.

      The Food and Drug Administration doesn't really care about advertising standards regarding non-drug related/non-health claim related products.

      James
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  • Profile picture of the author warriorsellingebooks
    Banned
    [DELETED]
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    • Profile picture of the author Killer Joe
      I think Harvey is on to something here.

      The first product I sold on niche marketing I named it "Sliced Bread". It didn't sell very well as folks could buy the stuff locally and didn't understand mine was a downloadable product on how to slice your market to make some bread.

      So for my second product I have honestly been able to say that "This Is The Greatest Thing Since Sliced Bread".

      In the eyes of the FTC if I hadn't used that name for the first product I'd probably be toast.

      KJ
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  • Profile picture of the author Elmer Hurlstone
    Originally Posted by Harvey.Segal View Post

    If you are worried that the FTC will clamp down on you
    for exaggeration in your sales copy I have the solution.

    Whatever your product create another sales page absolutely identical.

    You just change one thing.

    You give the product a title "Hot cakes".

    In your original copy you can now truthfully say

    "This product is selling like hot cakes"

    Like it ?

    Well I have lots of other similar titles you can use.

    Watch out for a WSO soon.

    Harvey
    Dear Mr. Segal,

    With bated breath I anxiously await the launch of your proposed WSO.

    Perhaps you'll be kind enough to entertain some pertinent questions.

    1. Will you use this strategy for the WSO? And, if so, how will you circumvent the traditional WSO protocol of only one WSO per product?

    2. Typically marketing launches, WSO's included, include a compelling bonus. May I suggest, for the "Hot Cakes" only side of the equation, "hot biscuits* and sorghum syrup"?

    This is a bonus that will surely resonate with those among us who proudly live in the Southern US.

    Humbly submitted,

    Elmer Hurlstone

    *Kindly note these would be "biscuits" as defined in AmEng usage as opposed to the BrEng usage which actually refers to cookies, crackers and moon pies.
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    • Profile picture of the author Martin Avis
      The Food and Drug Administration doesn't really care about advertising standards regarding non-drug related/non-health claim related products.
      Steve is probably right - the FDA are likely to be far more concerned about hot cakes that the FTC.

      Martin
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    • Profile picture of the author Bev Clement
      Originally Posted by Elmer Hurlstone View Post


      *Kindly note these would be "biscuits" as defined in AmEng usage as opposed to the BrEng usage which actually refers to cookies, crackers and moon pies.
      Moon pies are British, I think you might have confused it with moon cakes in China, which I tried to sell you or was it Peter Bestel. I was honest to say they were yucky, greasy, horrible, terrible.
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      • Profile picture of the author Tina Golden
        Originally Posted by Fernando Veloso View Post

        Bet someone will :p Better state you're not advising people to do this yadda yadda yadda...
        This may not be the kindest thing to say but do we need internet marketers with so little common sense?

        Originally Posted by seasoned View Post

        The FDA is against DECEPTIVE advertising! There is plenty of precedent to support that. So doing what harvey suggests IS a violation. In fact, that would make it CLEAR you are TRYING to deceive and could make things WORSE! When all is said and done, the FDA does NOT care what you say! It isn't about words at all! It is about PERCEPTION! Trying to use words, no matter how true, to give the wrong perception is breaking their rules.

        Steve
        You are either knowingly using the FDA and being funny yourself or you are humor-impaired. I can't decide which from this post.

        Originally Posted by John Waits View Post

        Consider this a fail of a plan.

        I would rather be honest than dishonest mate!
        You haven't been here long enough to realize that Harvey rarely posts a serious thread but surely you could get the humor in that post? I should think "hotcakes" would have given it away to all but the extremely humor-impaired.

        Originally Posted by tj View Post

        He cannot always hide behind funny postings - you should know that some people take it serious

        Timo
        Shouldn't those people be weeded out early in the game? I should think that would be a kindness...lol.

        Tina
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      • Profile picture of the author Elmer Hurlstone
        Originally Posted by Bev Clement View Post

        Originally Posted by Elmer Hurlstone

        *Kindly note these would be "biscuits" as defined in AmEng usage as opposed to the BrEng usage which actually refers to cookies, crackers and moon pies.
        Moon pies are British, I think you might have confused it with moon cakes in China, which I tried to sell you or was it Peter Bestel. I was honest to say they were yucky, greasy, horrible, terrible.
        Bev,

        Your British and Chinese "Moon Pies" are not our Southern (N.)American "Moon Pies".

        Please note this authoritative source on the subject:

        Moon pie - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

        Elmer
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