We are all followers, aren’t we?
Especially in the on-line world.
We are all looking for that ‘silver bullet’. The ‘silver bullet’ that will make us successful and each day we are bombarded by emails and adverts trying to sell us the latest buzz or hot topic.
Ever fallen for one of those and it turns out to be just a re-hash of something else? But the advert promised it was easy.
Yep, I have as well.
Nowadays if I do sign up for a free report or free something and all I get is emails from the individual trying to sell me something else – I simply unsubscribe.
Of course, I expect some sales type emails – we all have to earn a living and some of the products which are recommended can be good and worth buying…but not sales email after sales email please – especially when you haven’t even used the product yourself.
But to be successful, especially on-line, I truly believe the quickest way is to follow someone who is already successful and who has already made the mistakes (so you don’t make them as well!).
So who do you follow?
I follow only a few because they have credibility and I trust them. They aren’t always trying to sell you stuff either – they give good solid advice.
So who am I willing to mention?
Darren Rowse over at ProBlogger is a must.
Yaro Starak at entrepreneurs-journey.
Then there is Terry Dean. Terry really helped me in my early days of starting an online business and I’ve followed him ever since.
I subscribe to all their blog posts.
Today in my email was one from Terry entitled, “Content That Leads to Sales”
Great title. It certainly caught my attention.
I write lots of content and if I can make a sale every now and then, that would be wonderful.
So I click in the link and see it is actually a guest post by a guy named Jimmy Brown (James Brown – cool name, I Feel Good!)
Never heard of this ‘guest posted’ Jimmy Brown!
Wow, it’s a long article – over 2500 words.
But I read every word.
It’s a great article and it turns out good ol’ Jimmy is an affiliate master and Terry recommends him.
Now I trust Terry but I go over to the Warrior forum and see if anyone has used Jimmy’s products before.
When it comes to spending money – it’s worth getting a second opinion. I think it is anyway.
Jimmy is getting great feedback from independent individuals.
I like what I am seeing and reading.
I go back to the sales page.
It’s a membership. You pay a monthly fee and you get a weekly lesson. I like that approach rather than one big package and not knowing where to start.
So I decide to sign up. I can always cancel if I don’t like it.
So it’s Friday July 31st and I have my first lesson from Jimmy the affiliate master.
Here’s a sneak view (schhh – don’t tell Jimmy!) on the front page and what’s covered in the first few weeks:
Every Friday, I shall give you an update on my affiliate progress (without giving too many of Jimmy’s secrets away of course – that would be totally unethical).
If you want to see what I signed-up to, check out Jimmy’s sales page by clicking here: The Affiliate Master
I’m now off to start this weeks assignment!
Oh and tell me – who do you follow?
I have been online since 1996 and in that time I have been involved in the development of almost 400 web sites for my clients. I have worked with a wide variety of vendors and I have to tell you that Andrew @ We Build Your Blog has far exceeded my expectations. In addition to his vast knowledge and expertise, he is a genuinely great guy, who always goes the extra mile. I highly recommend him, in fact I only recommend him now for web development.
Thank you Andrew for your patience in getting my website and on-line courses on-line and selling. You were fantastic in learning the delivery platform software that I had chosen and you were across the complexities quickly. Your detailed approach in setting guidelines and deliverables bought my focus back to where it should be and got the job done. Thank you for all your efforts it was a pleasure.
I
approached Andrew in February 2010, because I needed to enhance the way I communicated
my business. 
I've spent insane amounts of money in the past with former webmasters until I discovered Andrew Rondeau.
Having worked with Andrew on and off over the last year, I have found him to be very patient, helpful and easy to work with. He is also very knowledgeable, supportive and a true expert.
Andrew is an asset to our ongoing website and social media needs. He responds quickly, accurately, and cost effectively. Andrew plays a consultative role in many aspects to our online needs.
I happened to stumble upon Andrew's website (WeBuildYourBlog.com) while searching for blogging services that would help me start my very own blog. I was a total newbie when it came to the blogging world. Fast forward 3 months and not only do I have my own awesome blog, but friends and family are actually asking me how to start their own blog and I am able to set their blogs up for them! In only 3 months under Andrew's guidance I went from total newbie to being sought after. Thanks Andrew!
Andrew
has extensive knowledge about internet marketing, SEO and building web
sites/blogs. His course explained everything in an easy to understand
way and I now have a web site that is generating me new clients and
producing income from internet product sales.
Andrew is the real deal and he knows his stuff! His customer service is superb and he gets your work done FAST! You won't need to wait around for endless weeks to see results. Most importantly he works on the site as if it's his own, thus you are assured that you will get the best quality service. I now give Andrew all of my new and old sites to work on. Trust me; you cannot go wrong with this gentleman!
I
am very happy to provide a testimonial for Andrew Rondeau. All the parts of
the process of working with Andrew were a pleasure. He clarified what I was
wanting and he delivered it without fuss. He was courteous and prompt in all
his dealings with me. I have no hesitation in recommending Andrew to anyone
who wants work done on their blog.
The best blog builder, and the best blog maintenance, I've ever met is Andrew Rondeau. This fellow is an authentic professional in every sense of the word. He's lightning fast, knowledgeable, competent, a skilled listener. He goes the extra mile. He's able to share his passion for his work and products without being pushy. He as other great internet skills, too, but his most impressive attribute is mastery of website building.
Andrew
at WeBuildYourBlog.com is the most responsive and flexible person
I've worked with.
Andrew
is highly knowledgeable about blogs, and you can get your blog up and running
successfully and fast. Andrew has helped me immeasurably with
my blog and he is patient and good natured and a wonderful teacher. 
Andrew is highly knowledgeable about blogs and very customer service focused. I knew nothing about blogs and Andrew was very kind, patient, pleasant to work with, receptive and responsive. Work was delivered in timely manner and if I need anything done for blog again I would use Andrew. If you are looking for quality work, excellent customer service and someone that really gets YOU and your needs, I recommend Andrew!.
Without Andrew, I wouldn't even have a blog -- I would still just be sitting here, staring at my computer, feeling confused and helpless. With Andrew, I no longer fear confusion and it's impossible to feel helpless. He exerts any and all necessary efforts to resolve any problem or perplexity -- quickly, kindly, intelligently, up to and including IM exchanges in real time via skype. I would urge anyone at any level of expertise (or not) to make the most of his extraordinary talent.
Andrew was kind enough to offer up his own time as part of an initiative to make the world a better place, and I was one of the beneficiaries of that effort. He spent an hour with me working on improving my bounce rate; he suggested several helpful strategies. Most importantly, he helped me with some key processes to help speed up my site, which had bogged down considerably with overuse of graphics. Andrew helped me get set up with Rackspace, which helped so much. From a load time of almost 30 seconds, the site sped up to about a 6 second load. Thanks so much, Andrew!
I was introduced to Andrew by a dear friend Corinne Edwards and Andrew as transformed by blog in ways that have reaped results. My membership has gone up and my blog always looks clean and easy to read. Whenever I send Andrew a request to check out - it's ALWAYS prompt and easy to understand. In my humble opinion he is the BEST when it comes to knowledge of the blogging world.
The
end result is a fantastic site that is attracting a lot more attention
and visitors than my old one.
I wanted a stylish website that presented my original abstract art in a visually attractive way. Andrew came highly recommended to me as a "no nonsense" practitioner. He does exactly what he says he will do: I give him the parameters to work within and he provides a quick and precise service. You will receive nothing but the best from Andrew!
I
was impressed with the excellent service. 
Andrew Rondeau is the genius behind http://www.webuildyourblog.com.
Hi, Andrew Rondeau here and this blog, my blog, will not lie to you. I will give it to you straight.This blog is about blogging, the Internet and sharing my experiences and advice on
I especially like the problogger because he doesn’t hard sell anything
.-= David Stillwagon´s last blog ..Skeptics and Meniere’s Disease =-.
I used to trust Yaro Starak.
I am very sorry to realize that his “recommendations” are actually just thinly disguised affiliate marketing. This is the kiss of death if you wish to be seen an objective, unbiased teacher and advisor whose students are valued readers, rather than dormant “buyers” whose trust you secure to then later market to and cross-sell or upsell.
Lately he has been repeatedly promoting programs in his blog and his e-mails from the likes of Maria Andros and from Andrew Short. No where in his writing is it evident that he has personally used either person’s products or services. Rather he suggests his readers act on their “resonance” with the sales promotions! I fear his desire for high affiliate commissions has clouded his judgment and he is beginning to abuse the trust he has previously worked hard to earn.
I am very sorry to say I increasingly feel duped by Yaro.
Twitter: andrewrondeau
Hans,
Us bloggers have got to make a living and, sometimes, we will add posts that are recommending affiliated products. I think the big difference, this time, with Yaro’s posts you are referring to, is that he trusts the individuals providing the products.
One can always ignore such recommendations and read the other 99% of the blog posts that provide rock solid advice.
Andrew
Andrew,
Thank you for your thoughtful response!
I fully acknowledge that everyone needs to make living. I guess I just have an ethical dilemma which I would solve by full disclosure up front before making any recommendation of an affiliated product. That way the potential buyer understands the total picture.
Your final suggestion is an excellent way to move forward.
Hans
I haven’t had a problem w/Yaro’s promotions, he usually states when something is an affiliate promotion, and his policy pages pretty clearly spell out that he uses affiliate links any place they are available.
If you are going to follow an internet marketing or business blog, then you have to expect that links are going to be affiliate links.
Since Yaro provides useful information even when providing an affiliate link, this doesn’t bother me at all, and I will frequently search his site to see if he’s promoted a product I am thinking of buying so that he’ll get the commission.
.-= Blaine Moore´s last blog ..TD Banknorth Beach to Beacon 10k (2009) =-.