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$XXXX in X days - can someone set me straight?

by Andyhenry
4 replies
Hi Warriors,

After all the hassles Frank Kern had in the past from quoting earnings potentials I was under the impression that it was illegal to tell anyone they could earn a specific amount yet I see a LOT of threads and WSOs making these sorts of claims. When I came to the forum today there were several threads with headlines like this.

Is this illegal and these people just don't realise? or is it ok?

I'd really like to know for sure as it's something I have avoided like the plague for years now. I don't even like sharing what I made, let alone telling someone else they can do the same, even if I think others could copy my strategies.

I'm sure a definitive answer to this would be useful to other members too.

Andy
#$xxxx #days #set #straight
  • Profile picture of the author King Shiloh
    Banned
    I have no problem with that if it's not just a hype or false claims.

    Is it legal? I don't really know but I have heard that there's a certain FTC law which states that marketers should always put a "Disclaimer" on their site to show that you are on your own if what they told you that you could make didn't happen.

    After all, there are many factors that should be considered before a conclusion could be reached that a product owner is making false claims. BTW, 70-99% score in a test is excellent.
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  • Profile picture of the author paulie888
    I think a lot of it depends on how the claim is worded. If the product owner is talking about his or her own results, I don't think there's anything wrong with that, as it seems that just about every one of the newbie-targeted IM products on Clickbank opens up with a video of someone logging into their account to show how much money was made within a specific period of time.
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  • Profile picture of the author CDarklock
    Originally Posted by Andyhenry View Post

    After all the hassles Frank Kern had in the past from quoting earnings potentials I was under the impression that it was illegal to tell anyone they could earn a specific amount yet I see a LOT of threads and WSOs making these sorts of claims.
    It's not, strictly speaking, illegal.

    It's just against FTC guidelines. And when you're breaking those guidelines, then you might be doing something illegal. It's not 100% clear, because the law is complex.

    The FTC is a complaint-driven organisation. If people complain about you enough to make the FTC sit up and take notice, then the FTC starts trying to decide whether what you've done is illegal or not.

    Of course, once you've got that many complaints, it's pretty much guaranteed that you're doing something illegal. They certainly don't want to tell all those complaining consumers "we're sorry, they haven't done anything wrong." So chances are they're going to make your life miserable.

    But nobody's reporting WSOs.

    I'd really like to know for sure as it's something I have avoided like the plague for years now.
    I also avoid income claims, because I think they're inherently fictionalised. I don't believe you can say "earn $X in Y days" with any kind of confidence unless and until you've handed your system to a half dozen people who did precisely that... without special treatment or coaching.

    So I don't make any income claims, either. And to be perfectly honest, it doesn't bother me one bit that other people use them. I think the kind of person who buys products with income claims has the wrong mindset for my products, anyway.
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    "The Golden Town is the Golden Town no longer. They have sold their pillars for brass and their temples for money, they have made coins out of their golden doors. It is become a dark town full of trouble, there is no ease in its streets, beauty has left it and the old songs are gone." - Lord Dunsany, The Messengers
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    • Profile picture of the author Andyhenry
      Originally Posted by CDarklock View Post

      And to be perfectly honest, it doesn't bother me one bit that other people use them. I think the kind of person who buys products with income claims has the wrong mindset for my products, anyway.
      That's probably true - my concern was really more about unsuspecting newbies coming to the forum and seeing these type of claims and thinking they're "marketing" and the way things should be done.

      Although Frank is really well known I imagine most people haven't been around long enough to remember the really bad patch he went through due to this sort of thing.
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      nothing to see here.

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