After reading around a bit on this forum, I get the distinct impression that you folks don't think very highly of ebooks and the people who buy them. Here's a question though: Do you ever write them just to take advantage of people? I mean, do you ever just grab some useful technique from this forum, turn it into an ebook, and sell it to gullible idiots? Is that acceptable behavior?
About ebooks
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I think they could be a very profitable way of writing a lot of nothing and making a few bucks, if anyone wanted to go that route. It's not very respectable, but then again neither is autospam bullshit.
Just because it's not very glamorous doesn't mean it's not profitable.
Free ebooks with a few nuggets of wisdom and recommendations to use your own products or buy other ebooks from you = free advertising. Pirates spread them on the torrent/ddl sites (or you can upload them yourself) and you don't even have to waste the bandwidth.
Just because it's not very glamorous doesn't mean it's not profitable.
Free ebooks with a few nuggets of wisdom and recommendations to use your own products or buy other ebooks from you = free advertising. Pirates spread them on the torrent/ddl sites (or you can upload them yourself) and you don't even have to waste the bandwidth.
as wfx said, an ebook is just a format. No one here has a vendetta against the .pdf (and/or whatever other extensions is being used now)
The problem, however, lies in exactly what your suggesting. Its disgusting that a lot of people will promise the world, knowing fully well that they cannot and will not follow through. It's messed up that instead of spreading the knowledge (and giving credit to the source) for free as it was given to you, or just saying something like "This is where you can find this information for free", that you would put a price on it and sell it as if its the best thing since humans learned to use fire.
If you come up with an idea on your own, you have every right to put whatever price you want on it if you wish to sell. If you're writing a definitive guide that doesn't seem to be available elsewhere, you have every right to put a price on it for your work. Just don't be surprised if someone else comes along and creates a guide or helps out in a way that is free.
If you're just taking someone else's information and putting a price on it as your own, that's scummy. If you're creating a general 'guide' or 'proven technique', and you're marketing it as something that will make you rich with minimal work (when untrue), that's scummy.
The way you make money, however, is your business. It's just that opinions are like assholes... and different people take different approaches on dealing with what they don't like.
The problem, however, lies in exactly what your suggesting. Its disgusting that a lot of people will promise the world, knowing fully well that they cannot and will not follow through. It's messed up that instead of spreading the knowledge (and giving credit to the source) for free as it was given to you, or just saying something like "This is where you can find this information for free", that you would put a price on it and sell it as if its the best thing since humans learned to use fire.
If you come up with an idea on your own, you have every right to put whatever price you want on it if you wish to sell. If you're writing a definitive guide that doesn't seem to be available elsewhere, you have every right to put a price on it for your work. Just don't be surprised if someone else comes along and creates a guide or helps out in a way that is free.
If you're just taking someone else's information and putting a price on it as your own, that's scummy. If you're creating a general 'guide' or 'proven technique', and you're marketing it as something that will make you rich with minimal work (when untrue), that's scummy.
The way you make money, however, is your business. It's just that opinions are like assholes... and different people take different approaches on dealing with what they don't like.
posted by Swifty:
A corollary to that is the problem that some people, especially around here, take a nearly psychotic level of aversion to any ebook regardless of whether or not they actually know anything about it, and lump all publishers of marketing/making money books into the same class.
Frank
A corollary to that is the problem that some people, especially around here, take a nearly psychotic level of aversion to any ebook regardless of whether or not they actually know anything about it, and lump all publishers of marketing/making money books into the same class.
Frank
That's a good point. But, the trouble with ebooks is that they're now like televangelists; the medium has become the message.
I'm sure there are plenty of honest and sincere religious people who are trying to use television to do what they think is right. But, so many scumbags and charlatans have abused televisied religious broadcasts to plunder the unsuspecting and gullible that the entire enterprise has gotten a terrible reputation.
So think of ebooks as the televangelists of internet marketing. A few are okay, but many are just trying to rip you off.
Frank, I see your point, but I've looked at / skimmed a relatively large number of ebooks. I can't say that I've ever purchased any, but that's beside the point.
95% of them, possibly a higher figure than that, are complete shit. They are comprised of "techniques" that are, always, freely available online to anyone who wants to search for them. Internet Marketing ebooks are rehashed garbage at their core. Next time you look at one, take note that generally, the first quarter (or more) of the book is ONLY about how great the person writing it is, how successful they are, and how their method is the best. This is a way of priming their audience to respect them before they read the rest, nodding their head in agreement and never regretting pulling out that credit card.
But since the information is generally so vague, it's more conceptual than actually informational, and these buyers don't actually get anything done. They then move on, disenchanted, until the next "great offer" comes along.
In my opinion, the reason it's a disgusting practice / business model is because it targets people - not all of them retarded - attempting to break into this industry. Your potential friends, associates, or business partners are being ripped off by these ebook sellers - and that's wrong.
/soapbox.
posted by elime:
True, and I don't deny it. I think that the problem is that people are seeing the term "ebook" and assigning all of them to the 95% figure. It's like the old "1%" adage about bikers in reverse.
More to the point, it's like taking a sample of all currently popular music and saying, "Well, you'll never find anything worth listening to on a CD. It's all bullshit. 95% of these so-called 'artists' are just flash in the pan idiots mimicking what everybody else is doing, just to sell CDs."
I realise that it's more than the medium itself, and that the ire of critics is raised by stuff like sales pages WITH TYPE THIS BIG promising massive riches and that kind of thing. But even among them you'll find winners and the problem is how it's promoted. "You'll never find anything worth buying in commercials. 95% of the people who make them are just marketing school grads just doing what they can to catch your attention long enough to get you to buy something. Commercials are bullshit."
I guess my point is: Pretty much 95% of everything is fucking crap; why pick on ebooks in particular?
posted by eljean:
Hey, have you read any of Marshall McLuhan's stuff? I just started getting into his works, having meant to for years. (just wondering because it was MM that coined the phrase "medium is the message" and the televangelism analogy.)
Frank
True, and I don't deny it. I think that the problem is that people are seeing the term "ebook" and assigning all of them to the 95% figure. It's like the old "1%" adage about bikers in reverse.
More to the point, it's like taking a sample of all currently popular music and saying, "Well, you'll never find anything worth listening to on a CD. It's all bullshit. 95% of these so-called 'artists' are just flash in the pan idiots mimicking what everybody else is doing, just to sell CDs."
I realise that it's more than the medium itself, and that the ire of critics is raised by stuff like sales pages WITH TYPE THIS BIG promising massive riches and that kind of thing. But even among them you'll find winners and the problem is how it's promoted. "You'll never find anything worth buying in commercials. 95% of the people who make them are just marketing school grads just doing what they can to catch your attention long enough to get you to buy something. Commercials are bullshit."
I guess my point is: Pretty much 95% of everything is fucking crap; why pick on ebooks in particular?
posted by eljean:
Hey, have you read any of Marshall McLuhan's stuff? I just started getting into his works, having meant to for years. (just wondering because it was MM that coined the phrase "medium is the message" and the televangelism analogy.)
Frank
That's exactly where I got it from. McLuhan was prescient. There's so many useful things you can learn from him, although its heavy going at times. You really have to know your history and your psychology to get the full benefit of it.
I couldn't agree more.
The problem with ebooks, however, is that you have to pay $37.99 to figure out if it's crap. So, you end up spending $759.80 ( $37.99 x 20) to find the 5% that' s worth reading.
With a crap website, or a crap book ,you can learn the truth in the first two minutes of surfing or reading at a bookstore, without having to pay the price. So there's an actual high cost to sifting the little bit of wheat from the chaff in the ebook.
posted by DelJean:
No kidding ... like wading in mud at times. I was turned onto McLuhan reading Neil Postman years ago but never got around to actually getting hold of any of his stuff. Not to continue to push way off topic, but I am very fond of Postman -- I've never before seen a writer whose conclusions are more at odds than mine, yet who seems to agree on a lot of the problems which lead to the conclusions. Postman and Vonnegut hit me that way.
Frank
No kidding ... like wading in mud at times. I was turned onto McLuhan reading Neil Postman years ago but never got around to actually getting hold of any of his stuff. Not to continue to push way off topic, but I am very fond of Postman -- I've never before seen a writer whose conclusions are more at odds than mine, yet who seems to agree on a lot of the problems which lead to the conclusions. Postman and Vonnegut hit me that way.
Frank
If you like McLuhan (as anyone into media theory and appreciative of Postman should be), give Guy Debord a try. Be forewarned though, it's some heavy-handed French-y pessimism and quite a slog. You might need a drink at hand.
Hey all,
Well as a total cherry I will be honest and say yes I bought one ebook package. As stated here it is mostly shit and allot of useless information. Allot of disinformation and none of which really helped me in my quest to understand this thing called internet marketing.
I have begun trying to read as much as i can, but problem is still the same. I am not sure what i should be reading and know what to read and in what order etc.
Is there any legit roadmap to follow. legit information written for us dummies.
Listen, I really need to learn how to do this and get some income streams formed and coming in. So any help would be appreciated. Having a hard time figuring things out.
thanks guys...
Well as a total cherry I will be honest and say yes I bought one ebook package. As stated here it is mostly shit and allot of useless information. Allot of disinformation and none of which really helped me in my quest to understand this thing called internet marketing.
I have begun trying to read as much as i can, but problem is still the same. I am not sure what i should be reading and know what to read and in what order etc.
Is there any legit roadmap to follow. legit information written for us dummies.
Listen, I really need to learn how to do this and get some income streams formed and coming in. So any help would be appreciated. Having a hard time figuring things out.
thanks guys...
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