update: please note the update at the bottom of this post.
It has been a big week for bloggers launching products and making special offers.
AdSense guru Joel Comm has this week also announced a new product (or rather an update of an old one) called AdSense Secrets 4.0.
Joe’s written many resources for those wanting to improve their AdSense earnings and his book on the topic has been a best seller on Amazon.
This week he’s launched his 4th version of the product.
Before you visit his sales page – take a deep breath. It’s long, its full of sales talk…. but the product is only $9.95 (his previous ones have been $97).
Joe’s AdSense resources are always a great resource for those starting out with AdSense – so if you’re wanting to improve your AdSense performance or want a good introduction to it a $9.95 investment is definitely worth it.
If that’s you just scroll to the bottom of his sales page, skip the sale and click purchase – you’ll save yourself 15 minutes of reading an watching videos in the process!
update: friends I want to make a couple of clarifications to this post after reading the comments left so far.
1. I have bought the product and believe it contains useful information to those starting out with AdSense.
2. Joel Comm’s previous versions of this product were helpful in my own journey with learning about AdSense. Yes I learned some of what I now know about AdSense through my own experimenting and the reading of free information online about it but his books have helped me – as a result I am mentioning this latest version.
3. In signing up for this product there are a few ‘catches’ that I didn’t realize. As I mentioned in the post the long page is very salesy and as I encouraged you to skip through it – I skipped through it. This was a mistake on my part and I apologize for this. Please do read the sales copy and understand that there’s a membership program/monthly report with this that costs $29.95 a month which you are subscribed to when you sign up for this. You can unsubscribe at any time if you don’t want to be in it. I’m a little surprised and disappointed to see Joel doing this to be honest but it is mentioned in the sales page (see the ‘free’ bonuses).
I am sorry for not pointing this subscription cost out in my original post. It was a dumb mistake from me. Having said this I think Joel’s product here remains a worthwhile resource for those starting out with AdSense.
update 2 – Joel’s seen the error of his ways and has changed the process again meaning you’re not automatically subscribed to the ongoing reports. All seems to be good now.
I have an offer for this POS Joel Comm.
Offer $25,000
Boxing match
Joel Comm
vs
GolfSpy X
He wins = $25K
I win = $1 ans satisfaction of beating up a marketing bully.
PLEASE CONTACT ME
[email protected]
thanks for everyone’s thoughts on this. You’ll have noticed that I updated the post yesterday with some more thoughts and information.
Thanks Joel for the apology – I’m glad you’ve changed your approach on this.
If anyone purchased the ebook through my affiliate link and feels ripped off in some way feel free to email me. I still think it contains good information that you’ll learn from if you’re at the beginning of your journey with AdSense but if you disagree shoot me an email using my contact form and I’ll sort something out for you.
Word! no secret besides keyword stuffing and traffic. Had the book been titled how to use and get the most out of adsense it might have credibility.
Pachecus said:
Hey Darren.. Do you believe in this product? as you know, the unique way to make money with adsense is fresh content and big traffic.. nothing more…
I bought the book without going through the salespage when it first launched.
didn’t realize about the membership site policy.
how do i go about cancelling it off?
:X
Darren: ” Thanks for the valuable info”
I actually see no reason whatsoever why Joel should apologize. He did nothing wrong at all, everything WAS included in the sales page. People need to know to read everything before they buy, that’s shop online 101. In my opinion it is not Joel’s fault at all, If it was then every other Internet marketer should apologize for a “long” sales letter too. It makes no sense to blame him. If you’ve payed attention to everything that’s happened you will see I am right. Everything was include in the sales page, it’s your job to read it, that’s why he bothered to write it up.
Holy spam. I did watch the video (for entertainment value)… I almost thought the whole thing was a joke on how NOT to market your product…
I would never recommend something like this to friends and family… or on my blog.
But I respect that you gotta make a buck… and Joel probably needs a new car…
To tell you the truth, there are more good things to write about than this clumsy marketing website.
I thought there are two options – the premium and the basic. The premium comes with the monthly subscription and the basic is just the book. No?
I bought the basic for $9,95… heck, is there a subscription later on that I am not aware of?
Anyway, I have logged a ticket with them to say that I want to cancel any subscription that will come later. I don’t want any surprise and it’s really bad marketing for Joel.
@Carson: If you were like me who bought the book last week, there is only 1 order button.
Joel added in the 2 separate buttons for basic and premier package perhaps due to feedback.
Thanks Ling. I wrote to Joel and here’s the reply from them.
“You didn’t order the subscription. You got the book only and you won’t be billed.
You may still get a free issue in the mail though.. we’re giving them to everyone.”
Cheers.
I think the BIGGEST lesson to be learnt here is to NEVER promote a product that you haven’t bought yourself.
As for Joel, I think he’s a greedy lieing git. If he makes that much money why does he see the need to deceive people?
And I don’t buy his apologies….he should have known better, and he probably knew EXACTLY what he was doing when he put the sales letter together.
i unsubscribed from all of Comm’s lists ages ago as all he ever did was try to sell me stuff and actually never taught anything useful. I’m glad I did and it shows I was right all along.
I bought the eBook. I’m sorry I did.
I chose the “basic” purchase option. The text on the button naturally led me to believe that I would not be “subscribed” to anything.
I was automatically opted in to a $29/month subscription. I didn’t appreciate that and I do consider it to be deceptive regardless of whether or not it was included in that obnoxious sales page.
Who would read the whole thing anyhow? I’m confident that Joel was counting on most folks speed reading and missing the auto opt-in.
I really don’t think that the basic purchase option should have required a physical address either. Another unethical tactic…boooo!
If that wasn’t enough, when I emailed my displeasure at these things, Joel was sarcastic.
Joel clearly lacks character and ethics.
I don’t believe a single word of his “apology”. Obviously, he is not to be respected or trusted.
Joel, I hope you get beat up several times by many different disgusted customers and non-customers. You’re a piece of crap.
“Joel, I hope you get beat up several times by many different disgusted customers and non-customers. You’re a piece of crap.”
I’m sorry that statement doesn’t reflect well on your character either.
Joel may have used a poor marketing tactic, but come on, it’s not the end of the world and I’m sure if you were charged he refunded it upon request.
~Shannon
Here’s some information on what it’s like to get OUT of the Joel Comm snare.
1) I was in the early batch — didn’t even KNOW I’d ordered the recurring newsletter.
2) When he ‘fessed up and “changed” his ways, he promised that we’d get something in the mail and it would be REALLY obvious.
3) Weeks later, something did come in the mail. It looked like junk mail. I almost threw it away which is what I do to 95% of the snail mail.
4) The return address was not a company. It was someone named Joel Comm. I had no idea who Joel Comm was, just that I’d ordered a book on AdSense and knew to watch out for something ELSE about AdSense that I didn’t want.
5) Something DID arrive via e-mail a company called InfoMedia which I’d never heard of but it said my credit card had been charged for something about AdSense. Finally, the culprit, SIX WEEKS later.
6) I responded to the e-mail. No response.
7) I went to the Joel Comm website. There was no way to reach him except in an AskJoel thing. I did and instantly got a message saying he doesn’t read them and this is not a help desk.
8) I went to InfoMedia. Nothing there, really, except that there would be something on the actual newsletter — obvious it said — that would make it easy to cancel.
9) Right. On the top of the newsletter in one of those little Post-It note looking things, the kind of thing you know to ignore because they’re selling you something you don’t want, in very small type, it says to call this number — 970.278.0011 to cancel.
10) So I called the number and instantly got into voicemail hell, including — finally — an option to cancel the thing I didn’t even order. But wait — they want to tell me the BENEFITS of this thing before I cancel. NO. I want to cancel and I want my money back.
11) After listening to all this, the voice robot says there’s a website for unsubscribing, bytegrabber.com/unsubscribe. I go there but it’s down.
12) I go back.
13) So it took an e-mail, a newsletter, a phone call AND a website to cancel something we didn’t even order???
WHAT A SCAM. No “nice guy” (as he claims) would treat people this way. Frankly, given the way we’ve been treated, I don’t expect a cancellation and that I will continue to have to fight this for months.
And the book I bought for $10 bucks? Never read, never even opened. I don’t want ONE WORD of advice from someone who would go to such lengths to trap people out of their hard-earned cash.
Odd. i waited for the newsletter, called the number, spoke to a very nice woman who canceled the order.
I thought I had cancelled way back and have an email to say so. I’m now worried because I received that newsletter with post it note too.
When I signed up for it, it was fairly easy to opt out of the newsletter.
I only paid $9.95 in total, and can say that it is definitely worth that price (I mean, come on, it would have to be pretty bad to not be worth $9.95!)..
To tell you the truth, there are more good things to write about than this clumsy marketing website.