Review of Pam Siow’s Free Introductory Seminar to Internet Marketing
Pam Siow’s preview
As part of my pursuit of additional passive income, I came to the conclusion that online business is one area that definitely fits my bill that enables me to get regular income while still keeping my regular day job. The question is really then “what business” and “how to start”!
It is those 2 questions that prompted me to seek out mentors and teachers to show me the ropes. This is my first of many series to talk about different business preview and workshops. To start of my venture, I attended Pam’s free introductory session on Internet Marketing Seminar. This is what I got away…
Summary:
The good: The session is full of useful tips and information on how to get started. Pam also sprinkled examples of how those tips helped her grow her business. The not-so-good: It got a bit confusing and pushy at the end. Would have been better if we were given a handout of the paid seminar’s content and details. In a nut shell: I think the preview provides good value but I think the paid seminar is best suited for existing business owners or those that have a good idea what they want to sell online.
I must say the 3 hours session is chalk full of good information. If you are new to internet marketing and want to get an overview of how internet marketing works, this is a good session to attend. She started off by giving us an introduction of her accidental path to this business and how by acquiring good internet marketing skills, enable her to earn a “5 figure” salary and allow her to have time to travel round the world.
She did that by framing the whole talk from her success journey point of view. Basically it is:
- Finding a money making business
- Don’t pick any business. Pick one that has demand and customers are willing to pay for it. She introduces several tools that allow users to quickly know the demand (Google AD words) and competition (Who turns up top in the chosen keyword search).
- Don’t just create a website.
- Create one that can convert visitors to customers. She talks about building a “online salesman” that can effectively communicate “how you can solve the readers problem” and “why the reader should read on”. Many sites just focus on content without really thinking how to design the site from a reader point of view.
- Start a join venture with other companies.
- That way you don’t have to go deep into the business and hold no inventories. This is how she got started. She essentially created a violin tutor agency site and have tie ups with several schools to offer that service. She will earn a commission for every successful student recommended.
- Systemise and improve the sales process.
- You want to create a system that can run on it’s own with minimum intervention. that will include making sure your site can convert sales and have a backend system to help you handle any inquires and questions. So you can go on holiday!
- Multiply profit.
- Once you have create a successful site, duplication is the next step. Either offer different solutions in the same industry or same solution in a different country.
Her paid seminars cost between $1500 to $2000 at this time of writing. It includes a 3 full day seminars plus video recordings, coaching videos, technical support etc. As mentioned, the whole package was a bit confusing and no handout was given. At the end when I left, I have learnt a lot from the session but I think it will be more beneficial for me if I already have a existing business.
Disclaimer here. I did not attend her paid seminar and I am in no way rewarded by her or anyone for writing this review. The views shared here are my own and in no way suggest anything hor.
Thanks for the review. It really helps cement my curiosity about all these self advertised courses and free talks in the local newspapers.
Hi Ceelin,
Thanks for dropping a note! Yes, there are more and more such seminars popping up in the newspaper recently. Just recently, I spotted a new ad that boost an “internet business” that promises more than a few thousand dollars of passive income per month without having any technical knowledge. So I suggested one of my friend to check it out and it turns out to be an affiliate marketing model which still requires you to generate traffic. So at the end of the day, if you don’t know how SEO or leads generation works, you will still not get any real income. Worst you are a few thousand dollars poorer from the sign up.
I still believe in the old fashion wisdom of “if it is too good to be true, it mostly is!”. 🙂
I attended Pam’s course too.
From a motivational point of view I think she did a wonderful job
However I do think her seminar is very packed with info – a little hard to digest unless there are assistants to help out on technical parts .
Overall I think the course is good but you can’t earn passive income unless you take action immediately during and after the course
Clara
Hi Clara,
Thanks for sharing your experience with her course! Always good to hear from first hand point of view.
Yes, for her to get to where she is now take quite a bit of hard work and determination. That I think we must give it to her. As for the content, I guess it really depends on what the student is hoping to get out of the class. But in general, did you feel you got more value out of what you expected?
I totally agree that the nothing will come out of the class if one don’t take any action. But that is true for any classes (paid or free) right? 😉
Recently I shared my concept of inaction to one of my workshop attendee. He cited that the “action” part is the hardest to get things started. I sort of agree but I think that one will need to settle one more step before the action. That is the “motivation”. Or the “why” question. A lot of people know that they have to invest or they need to have a passive income. But is the motivation or the “why” strong? If they are, then action will follow naturally. But if your motivation is weak, you will always be stuck in first gear. Pam’s motivation was to clear her big debt. If she does not do anything about it, she will be in big trouble. What is your motivation to start?
Self styled Internet gurus make money from the fees you pay them. If they have a formula for make millions from the Internet they will not be teaching you. All the leads that you see from the website demo of these Internet gurus were generated by themselves. It cost them very little to create 100s of fake email hotmail/gmail/yahoo accounts using na e-worker in Bangladesh and then pretend to make inquiries on their supposedly successful websites or those of their student’s when they initially launched their websites. The test is out of 100 students they teach how many are successful I.e make a profit after deducting the cost of the course after 6 months. No Internet guru wants this kind of scrutiny on their track record.
Hi Jumbo,
No question that there are less than desirable “gurus” out there trying to make a quick buck out of the desperate or the less knowledgeable. You will commonly see tag lines like “Earn $2k in 1 day” or “no computer knowledge require” etc. This is not unique to Singapore as it happens everywhere else in the world.
So the questions is who is it to blame for those who sign up? The “gurus” or the participants? I have been one of the “victims” myself and I hate myself for signing up and regretting it. But I got over it pretty fast (I don’t have a choice anyway) and learn the lessons the hard way. I learnt that:
1) If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. So never put yourself in a desperate position.
2) I need to get myself educated. Do my homework before any investment so that I can tell the difference between a “scam” and a really good opportunity.
What do you think?
Jumbo is very astute in his observation which I agree with. Pam attended Fabian Lim’s class. As a matter of fact, she was one of his students who gave a video testimony during his (Fabian’s) preview talks. Maybe he is not using that video anymore…
I also attended one of Pam’s previews. It seemed to be held at rented premises with very little logistical support.
I also have some doubts about Pam’s technical competency, especially about Adwords and PPC marketing.
If you see the various videos posted by her on Youtube where she promotes ‘Inner Circle Program’ to course participants, it seems that almost all successful people already have their own businesses and it only requires some on-line presence to ‘take it to the next level’.
HI Desmond,
I just came from Fabian’s preview and he is still using her video testimony! They are very up front about it and says very specifically she was a student. So if you want to learn whom would you rather learn from?
thanks for posting such objective views. I agree to being responsible about our own choice – who is to blame for falling into the scam… So in my research I found out that these internet gurus mainly depends on the traffic and good SEO in order to get rank highest and to get it they don’t tell you “in detail”. I’ve been to these paid seminars before, and unless you paid advanced course they won’t tell this secret – they will tell you basic ones – like submit to popular articles directory, but basic foundation don’t get you those results they have earned, so to get there, you gotta cough out more, which is what these teachers did and they are just cascading the cost further down onto the students… the vicious cycle never ends…. so like always, (at least lesson for me) never do anything that does not explain clearly things to you – a responsible coach or teacher will always support you side by side and not use exaggerated statements.
I attended Pam’s free preview seminar last week. A large part of the preview was conducted by her partner (or maybe her student). Like what Roland mentiioned in the first post, I did get good information about internet marketing during the preview. During the last part of the preview, Pam gave insights of the course content and drop the course fee from $3K plus to less than $2K. I was really keen to sign up but told myself that I needed a “cooling-off” period. Finally, Pam made everyone (about 20 pax remaining) to stand at one side of the room and proclaimed that the first 3 pairs to sign up will get the lowest couse fee (can’t remember the exact figure). They used the same tactic of having that partner to stand at the door of the room. Still some of us just go for the door and exit the office at Gateway East. I was still considering to register for Pam’s course in May 2013 until I read the feedback in this forum. Do we have anyone else who had attended Pam’s course willing to give some feedback?
Hi Cody,
Asking reminding folks to keep standing and having a guard to stand by the door very much like pressure selling! Pressure selling typically involve keeping you in a confined space and continuously bombard you with reasons why you should buy or sign up stuff. Sadly it is those who are more timid that get intimidated and gives in. Time share company uses these tactics very well with many buyers regretting after signing up. That is why CASE cited that they heard over 2000 complaints in a year and calling it their “number 1 concern”! They are now proposing to have a 5 day cooling off period in all time share contract. Read it here.
Now think about it… if their product is so good, why should they resort to use such pressure selling tactics? Hmmm…
I just attended the free intro seminar 2 days ago. Cody summarized it up right. I was in his shoes. The talk was indeed info packed and fast paced. Too short time and too much info? I think its designed to confuse and convince. Too much time spent on success “students” imo.
I liked the part on dropping the fee sequentially. It’s like telling you are an idiot not to grab this opportunity. I hate the part they made everyone stand at the back of the room and said to start finding partners AND you will get the special 12x mths installment price promo! It just reaked of pressure selling man! Believe it or not, 4 aunties started asking strangers if they can partner up! I did not commit on the spot. I was asked by Pam if I am committed to success! I was pissed indefinately!
I understand that she make most of her money through seminar rather than online marketing, the Sunday times ” me &. My money” columns editors should be more investigative and be responsible when writing of the person back ground before they publish these “unprofessional ” people like the recent few months ago that Gold Gurantee founder who become missing after investor ask for money…the editor should ask these persons to show proof they are credible person not scam or con man artiste…..
Hi! I’m so glad I decided to do a search first before I commit!
I attended her free seminar last night with a friend. And honestly speaking, I almost wanted to sign up. She now offers installment plan! And like what Cody said, she had us stand at e back of e room and proclaim e first 4 couples who sign up can get it for $149x12mths per person! I did not notice if any of her bodyguards were guarding e door though. But I saw one lady who wanted to leave when it over ran, explaining to her staff for a min or two which I thought why shd she need to explain she need to leave.
I thought Pam was alright she shared tips but she was too fast and tended to repeat herself. She shared that there was this student who posted on her fb saying she made 42k RM in 7 days selling some god-knows-what-it-is rice cookers!!! It was incredulous! To e point like are these real? To give her credit, I think she did share some tips on Internet marketing. It’s almost similar to e photoshop n dreamweaver courses I attended.
Hi Lili,
Glad this post is helping you make a more informed decision! All thanks to you and all others that contributed.
Yar..if it sounds too good to be true, it is most likely so. This kind of “make $X hundred of dollars in 1 day” statement is very commonly by sales personal to “trick” you into thinking that you can consistently do it and retire in 2 years. Think about it. If that student make $42K in 7 days every week, means she will be making $2.2M in one year or about twice the salary of our minister! Please don’t fall for that trap. Yes, every once in while, you MAY hit those numbers, but will not be like that week after week. If not, all the rich people will be selling rice cookers laio! 🙂
Hi,
I went to both Fabian and Pam’s workshop and they are both ok la. The only thing is Pam is I think more clearer in terms of content and more generous with the amount. She is also not so technical.But I agree that the time i went to her 3-day event in march, the place was a bit ulu, the aircon fail and the Xsite pro teacher talk too fast for us to catch any ball. But overall i feel i got some good training. At first the SEO and SEM like alien language liddat but after a while it became very clear after some help from the helpers.
I feel it was a good experienc overall. But you all kenah block at the door meh? I though the guy at the door was a door man? He didn’t stop me when i want to leave leh… =P
Hi Jessica,
Thanks for leaving a note and providing feedback about the 3 day event. I am glad you had a good experience during the 3 days. Some unfortunately did not. So is this a case of expectation alignment or luck? I think it is more of expectation alignment. I think if you sign up knowing what you want and have the right expectation, you will be happy with the event. Problem starts when there is an over promise and under delivery.
Since you have attended the event, maybe you would like to share more about the content and what do you think was the most beneficial to you? Thanks!
Wow.. You are a seminar junkie Jessica!
You attended two internet marketing courses by the teacher and the student?
So you took ACTION?
So you got RESULTS?
I am more interested in your results.
Before you sign up for any courses, please ask them for proof. As there are a few speakers out there might not be making money online.
I’ve not attended Pam Siow’s seminar but have watched literally every one of her videos on YouTube as she was recently recommended to me from another successful entrepreneur, whom I’ve worked with for years. When I saw this forum I felt the need to comment as I don’t believe some of these concerns are the problem of the trainer per say. The information I’ve seen thus far is exactly what I’ve had to learn the hard way.
What has worked for me when I’ve attended seminars and walked away with questions (every teaching brings more questions) is to write each one of the questions down and come back to the trainer, contact their support or search it out myself. If you’re serious about making money online you need to take the bull by the horns and push yourself.
I don’t even know her but I’ve seen enough from Pam for free to know that she’s not talking about scam strategies, rather good business advice. If you say you’ve tried one or two of the strategies several times and found it not to work for you, that would be incredibly valuable to the person reading this forum. But I’m sorry to say but some of these comments sound like it is a question of serious desire from the participant to take action, not about the contents or the speaker.
Just my two cents,
BK
Hi BK,
Thank you so much for putting down your comments. Especially your advice of writing down the questions and taking the bulls by the horn. One will only learn as much as one is willing seek. so I am 100% with you.
I think Pam may know her stuff, but from the many comments I received, I think it a matter of over selling and under delivering. As a responsible trainer and coach, you need to make sure you set the right expectation for the paying guests. Be clear if the class is suitable for beginners and state very clearly what will be delivered. This will minimize misunderstanding and also makes good business sense.
I agree. Overselling, under delivering… From the way she talks i can’t sense sincerity in her words. Her face is almost expressionless and emotionless too………
Hi, thanks for sharing! I didn’t notice that part!
[…] and at the end they were quite interested. If you’d like to see a review on the course, go to this website. This guy did a good review on the […]
Hi everyone, I am an owner of a tuition business and I am one of those who have signed up and attended the 3 days of Pam’s seminar.
First on record I wish to state that my views are strictly personal, and based on the actions I had taken after the course, and my views do not necessarily reflect all of my fellow course mates.
I would like to share my personal view on how I feel the seminar has benefited me. I attended the course about 1-2 months ago, and it opened my eyes to the new universe I never knew existed, which made online marketing affordable and yet a level playing field for all. In the past, I spent lots of money on offline marketing but today – I saved about 80% on offline marketing costs, and get double the customer(students) leads.
I feel that Pam’s course is suitable to get one started, but it covers just about everything and hence there may not be sufficient technical depth, causing frustration to some. However, this is what I appreciated. She covered the portions of how to do it yourself, plus how to systemise your business – including outsourcing options! As a business owner, I dread doing all the technical stuff myself and I leveraged on the knowledge and resources in the course to yes, OUTSOURCE 🙂 I have since outsourced my website to be designed and the PPC (online advertising etc) – I never had a website before – and the potential is such an eye opener.
I hope my feedback is useful to fellow business owners.
Hi Peter,
Thank you so much for sharing! having a point of view from a participants always makes the conversation more real. You laying out concrete numbers of savings will definitely help the readers better appreciate the potential value. But at the same time I totally agree that the success will defer from person to person and businesses to businesses. In your case, since you already own an existing business, you are in a much better position to take advantage of internet marketing compared to someone who is just starting out to see what business to get into.
once again, thanks for sharing and I hope you do come back to visit this site time to time. Cheers!
Hello everyone! Thank you for sharing your experiences here, totally stepped back after reading all your comments.
I attended Pam Siow’s free seminar last Wednesday and:
– The teacher called Steve, he was pretty good teaching but full of “high 5s” which I didn’t like at all, because I was there to learn the most I could and go strait to the point which obviously they do not do since they would like you to attend the seminar.
I was really tempted to ask him if he owns a few websites, does he? but no time for questions only at the end he said.
– The seminar were offer at 12 x $ 167. Sincerely I was really tempted to do it and also payed the first, but after reading this and other reviews I will cancel.
– Yesterday they called me and I inquired about the number of people joining the seminar and they said that the max will be 60 this time (divided into 5 groups).
– After reading that she learnt this from Fabian Lim and she did not mention his name, I just think this is not a good thing, since if you learn something from a good professor you will always be mention him as your guru, mentor, anything, I know now is her “competitor” but come on there’s room for everybody!
– The seminar it self was pretty good it opened your mind towards something that you were not aware of (at least I wasn’t), I really enjoyed, but continue and how to continue is really an option.
Does Fabian Lim still doing seminars? Did anyone read his book? Is he related with “Life Mastery Resources”? Another place offering free seminar and this will be next week.
Thank you again!
To introduce myself, I am just an IT guy who does Internet Marketing for a SME firm in Singapore. I am also a Google Adwords certified consultant.
I went to Pam Siow Free internet Marketing Seminar after purchasing a voucher from Groupon. The class was packed with 40 people and was held at Parkmall.
I wish to share my honest review with everyone.
She showed us that we should use “Google Adword Keywords tool” (You can google this and get instant access to the tool) to search for demand online so that we could build the supply and make money (This tool is very commonly use in my industry). However, I am shocked by the way she presented to her audiences.
Point 1
She uses “Broad” match type searches to show the search demand. If you do internet marketing before, it is always recommended to use “Exact” match type searches in Keywords tool, as you are targeting a particular keyword to optimize it (Internet marketing is about building a niche website and avoid the big players, so must use “exact” match search).
“Broad” match is the default setting when using the Keyword Tool. What broad match means is that any time any part of the keyword shows up in a search phrase, that data gets added to the reported total searches per month. For instance, if the keyword is “sunflower seeds”, then any search with either “sunflower” or “seeds” or “sunflower seeds” in it will be added into the total volume. So the actual search terms “sunflower seeds” might only get 100 searches, while “seeds” gets 2000 searches and “fruit seeds” gets 600 searches.
So broad match search volume is an aggregate of all searches involving any combination of any of the keywords as well as other words you didn’t account for. It’s an inflated number when estimating search volume.
“Exact” match is the volume of searches returned when checking exact match keywords is simply for only that single keyphrase. So there are no aggregates involved, it’s only the total number of searches for just that exact phrase, typed exactly into Google, with no other words included. This is the most accurate number to reference when researching niches, as it doesn’t aggregate traffic you might not actually rank for and get.
She emphasize on doing niche topic so that can be rank easily and she doesn’t encourage “Exact” searches? Many internet companies uses broad searches to show their clients so that clients get excited by the huge demand online but this is not an accurate figure. I believe Pam Siow is also using this method to get her audiences excited so that she got more people buying her course.
Point 2
When we asked about the website she built, she claims that she has a few. But only could show us 1 example – singaporeviolinlessons.com
She claim that whatever people search online and can find her. She tests the following keywords:
“Violin lessons for adult”
“Violin lessons for kids”
“Violin lessons”
If you run an “exact” keyword search, you will know that “Violin lessons for adult” and “Violin lessons for kids” has 0 exact searches online. Yes, ZERO!!
And as for “Violin lessons”, there are only 110 exact searches. As she conduct seminar every weekly, I believe all the 110 searches comes from her team and the participants who are searching on mobile.
Point 3
I notice that all her websites are all Exact Match Domain (EMD). EMD means that your domain name is the same as keywords. This was being highlighted by Google in September 2012 which Google will devalue EMD website. For more details, you can see here http://www.searchengineland.com/library/google/emd-update
In her seminar, she also claimed she assisted Gary Chua Group on leads generation. Guess what is Gary Chua new domain name? Yes, its http://www.realestateagentjobssingapore.com. EMD again. Surprisingly, if you Google “real estate agent jobs Singapore”, Gary website cannot be found.
And again, there are 0 exact match searches for “real estate agent jobs Singapore”.
How did Pam Siow generate leads for Gary when his website is not found on page 1?
Summary
I have tons of respect for entrepreneurs and her but was shocked by her poor examples. Base on what she shared, I believe her “5 digit pay” doesn’t come from internet as the searches for violin lessons are way too low. I have a feeling that her income are from all the students who attended her seminar as she is charging $1997 each.
Those who are really good in SEO and internet marketing are those companies where you Google about “SEO” or “internet marketing”, you will find them. Isn’t that the whole point? I tried to google related keywords like “SEO”, “Internet Marketing Course” and again, I cannot find Pam Siow “www.internetbizownersclub.com” website.
My personal opinion is Pam Siow is really a very good motivator/ presenter/ salesman. That’s all.
Disclamier
This post is base on my personal opinion after attending Pam Siow seminar.
Feel free to comment. 🙂
PS: I saw her offering “30 day unconditional GUARANTEE Full refund if you are not 100% happy” in her violin website. I wonder if she does offer this in her those participants who sign up her course.
Wow!! Thanks Paul for your very generous sharing! Hope to see more visitors like you spreading your knowledge to the wider community. kudos to you! 🙂
Just to add on to what Paul have said.
I do agree with Paul that she should not be using Broad match in her presentation. That is misleading.
However, it is also important to note that the data you found in Google Keyword Tool is not 100% accurate.
For some reasons, when Google says a keyword only has 110 searches per month, sometimes it can yield 1000s of searches instead. The reverse can also be true. Sometimes, Google may say this keyword has 1000s of searches, yet when you manage to rank for this keyword, you only get 50 searches per month.
The most reliable way to find out the number of searches a keyword has is to run a Google Adword Campaign for that particular keyword.
For example, you can run the campaign for 2 days. See the number of impressions. Then you multiply the figure by 15 to get a good estimate of the number of searches per month for that keyword. This may be a bit advanced for most beginners but I am sure Paul will know what I am talking about.
So I thought we should just give Pam Siow the benefit of the doubt. Most probably, what she said is true and she did earn $10k a month. Ultimately, before the Google Panda updates, it was pretty easy to rank a site with exact match domain.
Also, it is important to remember the value of a lead. If she is selling a lead for $200, you don’t really need that many searches to reach 10k per month. You just need to sell 50 leads.
I am not sure how much violin lessons cost. But let say it cost $200 per month and a student usually sign up for a year, the violin teacher probably won’t mind paying $200 per lead.
Hello Paul,
Thank you for sharing. I was also there in one of Pamela Siow seminar and I got to say that i totally agree with you.
I was very impressed by the host who started the seminar introducing about Pamela Siow. He is smart, knowledgeable and funny. Surprisingly, out of the 3 hours seminar, they spend 2.5 hours selling themselves. Only 30 mins of the seminar they talk about SEO. Isn’t this an SEO seminar?
Out of the 30 mins SEO seminar, the host only flash her website for 10 seconds showing that Pamela Siow website is top of google when he googled “violin lessons”. However, i noticed that he is signed in to his Google account. Once you signed in to your Google account, Google automatically remember your last visited websites and show them on the top. So what i did was, i use my phone to Google about “violin lessons” at the same time he flashes it. Pam Siow website was not ranked on top. Google it yourself or click here to see results https://www.google.com.sg/#q=Violin+lessons
Immediately i was turned off and left before the seminar ends.
Hello Alan,
I can sense that you are quite defensive over Pam Siow and i strongly believe that you are related to her. No offences. I declare that i have nothing to do with Fabian Lim (Pam Siow teacher – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FwY7XkRDsk).
I totally disagree with your statement “For some reasons, when Google says a keyword only has 110 searches per month, sometimes it can yield 1000s of searches instead.” If this happens, why would google have this tool in the 1st place? You even said “Sometimes, Google may say this keyword has 1000s of searches, yet when you manage to rank for this keyword, you only get 50 searches per month.” – From 50 to 1000 searches, that is 1000% difference (not 100% but 1000%). We are talking about Google here and I know companies are willing to pay a lot of money for data and statistic. So you are saying that Google statistic is not accurate? For you info, the host also uses Google tool at the beginning of the seminar.
Lastly, if there are 110 searches, and you claim that it is possible as $200 per lead x 50 referral = $10k. Now you are assuming 110 customers all visit Pam Siow website (i disagree as she is not ranked on top) and there is a 50% closure rate (That statistic is definitely too good to be true!). I believe a more realistic closure rate is 1% or lesser. Take note that people are googling “violin lessons” (something very general) and not “I 100% want to take up piano lessons now”.
Just my sharing.
Hi Melissa,
hahaha… you spotted one of the “trick” that internet marketers used to show their site is in the top rank. You are spot on about Google remembering your search history. You have very sharp eyes! 🙂
[…] For those who followed my blog, you will know that I posted a review of a similar Internal Marketing seminar by Pam Siow about one year ago. That post attracted many comments and feedback from both trainees and potential trainees. If you have not read it, you can find it here. […]
Hi I have went to the preview in Malaysia briefing by Jarvic and has placed 10% of deposit (package RM2500) for the upcoming seminar before google about her previous seminar.
In fact very excited and looking forward to the seminar before reading the comments and feedback. Now I am stucked on decision of to go ahead or burn the 10% deposit.
It is very easy to get people who are long thinking of setting up a website for selling product and yet worry about the initial high setting up cost to commit and this free briefing about setting up with minimum cost is quiet attracting.
In the package they included teaching the setting up website which you can have as many as you can which attracted me to sign up. Understand from the feedback here saying that the wordpress website is free on the net. For those who attended, may I know during the course, did she guided the step by step of setting up for dummy? or a ready website sample just teaching add & edit from it?
Well, I have various product in mind that I wish to try to sell online and with the thinking of attending the course I can start execute with minimum cost and time waste.
Any dummy who has attended and found it good and useful pls comments.
Or Expert, shall I just save the money and self learn from internet?
Hi Stormy, I have not attended the seminar but set up several WordPress Pages myself. Yes, you can quite easily set up a WordPress page for free, but that is only one part of the equation. After you have set it up, you will need to think about marketing your site and designing your site correctly. Not really an easy task if you want to do a good job. I can safely say that getting awareness is one of the most important and also hardest thing to do. That is why every online seller definitely need to understand SEO. Alternatively, there is another way to sell quickly. That is via your country’s different online selling market places. For Singapore we have ebay, sgselling.com, stclassified.com etc. Those online selling sites offers causal sellers a very fast and easy way to get your good online and start selling. You can think of them like a digital supermarket. they will do the marketing, display and check out system for you. In a nutshell, if you have a product in mind to sell, I think this course will benefit you better compared to the rest. But like many other things, how much you get up will really depends what happens after the course. 🙂
I just want to share a website building class i attended for $850 using wordpress (cms) 2 days hands on course. 2 days of information overload step by step very detail web building skill. Be it affiliate marketing or promoting your own products or services knowing to build your own website is the 1st step to enter the internet marketing world. check it out yourself at http://www.webuildyourbusinessonline.com
Hi Steven, thanks for sharing!
I attended the course. Totally disappointed, some people even walk out of the class room asking for refund and they did get their refund.
My opinion not worth the money and time as well.
Hi Roy,
Sorry to hear about your disappointment. Maybe you want to elaborate why the seminar was not worth it? So the rest of the readers can get a better idea of what to expect. thanks!
Hi
I am a student of Pam’s course in 2011 and subsequently even sign up to her inner circle/advance course. I would like to share my own experience and some of the voices of people in my group – joined the course and the inner circle.
I must say the basic course is quite informational, once you take action you will get started with a website with some traffic. BUT usually a person value something useful or not, is first with the price – if the course is at S$500 dollars I would say it is worth it. because I know those who made results and come out to teach in the beginning (before they got rich and famous) start with $500. but charging at S$2000+ to me is not worth what she taught in the class. At one point last year, the price of her course was $900.
secondly, when we attend a lesson, most importantly is the attitude and ethics of the teacher. Humans are not perfect, we make mistakes, but if the teacher is unethical then whatever mistakes she made she will run away with it. That’s what happens here. I am not saying her course is no good because of her techniques are no good. (someone mention above that her google search techniques is not exact, it’s true… her techniques taught are not getting good results) It is the ethics of the person – she has the substance/knowledge which she learnt from Fabian and really made $$$ from the techniques, but she is NOT sharing it in her classes – at least not fully. This is after I found out after these 1.5 years, and paying more courses to learn from other experts. one of which is Fabian seminar.
Silly me, immediately after the course, I signed up to the inner circle – advance course, I was attracted to it because on the screen it listed so many benefits – can get internet assignments through her, and alot of attractive things but in the end not fulfilled. Adminstration was bad – didn’t receive emails on the classes, and was told classes are not planned and only informed 2 months in advance, then only 3 weeks in advance we were told to attend class. Apologies were made, but still no improvement and the learning was slow. (yes, those students which she said made thousands $$ were business people in Malaysia who already got client base). I gave her chance to improve, now waited 1.5 years I am thinking of going to CASE and report the business method. Students around me who complain about her attitude and unprofessional management only say and didn’t do anything. So I am thinking I will need to report to CASE to make it more official so more people can be warned – make money online, or anything in life cannot be exaggerrated – always go back to one principle in life – who are you, what you are made of and how can use it to expand. I think I have a strong case in CASE because of so many incidents of not fulfilling the course stated, and unprofessional behavior – who in the business field who really make money have a seminar that doesn’t plan 6 months in advance ? the classes that were mentioned to be delivered should be informed to students the schedule so they can plan to commit to attend. And this she always mentioned in her mouth – one must plan big for business. Alot of inconsistencies in her business practice and what you act out in real life. So go in at your own risk, what you want to learn from her. Superficial thing ok. Deeper stuff, be warned.
Hi ,
Had to agree with Desmond that Fabian is better at the technical aspects but not so forth coming. He still keeps some of his skills to himself. In fact, the important thing about internet marketing is the “after the seminar guidance.
Who will be guiding you after you complete their course? you are a baby who now wants to learn how to walk. What happens if you fall down? If there is no guidance after the seminar, you are back to square 1. In internet marketing, you still need someone to help you with the technical aspects. So if you are looking for any internet marketing seminar, make sure you:
1) make friend with a graphic designer ( both are important. The gurus will ask you to outsource but it is too hassle to ding-dong back and forth with these people and they dont understand what you want. Wastes too much time. I know it because I have been there and done that)
2) You need to also make friend with an IT savvy person to help you with your website if you are not IT savvy, You will be groping in the dark if you dont have such friends.
If you have such persons, then you are ready to roll, look for the products to sell and just focus on marketing.
Good Luck everyone!
2)
Hi Dory,
Thanks for sharing your experience! totally agree with your recommendation. If you ask me, one of the most beneficial thing about attending the seminar is network. do talk to all your course mates and you will be surprise about their background. Most often than not, most of them are more than willing to help each other out. So go forth and network! 🙂
Where is Pam Sow now? Can anyone enlighten me?
Hi Loretta,
She is still around but no longer conducting internet marketing courses to the public. I heard that she is now focusing on corporate or smb segment.
I heard she is now based in Malaysia doing the same thing she did in Singapore Anyone knows why she gave up such a lucrative business in Singapore to be based in KL doing exactly thesame thing?
Hi Gina, Is she based there now? But not a surprise, as Malaysia is a much bigger market than in Singapore. Maybe there is less competition there? As with any business person… you go where the opportunities are. 🙂
[…] With that kind of email title from Jaz Lai, how not to be tempted to sign up?! So I went to the preview and see for myself if his program can really do what they say. And also compare it to courses offered by other internet guru like Fabian Lim and Pam Sieow. […]
hi there roland. indeed a good review site you have here. I hope you continue to bring unbiased reviews to the netizens online.
from comments of various internet gurus made by readers here, there are some very valid concerns that has to be addressed in this landscape. Namely , expectations have to be set from the onset so both sides know what is in store. This stops unreasonable expectations to be formed.
However i also see many unreasonable comments by past seminar attendees that are stopping them from making sustainable income online.
My History
i have been in the online marketing landscape for years (coming to 7 years). Though i have never been in the Internet Marketing or Make Money Online niche , i have used the internet (and various online techniques) to build a few different passive income streams that are run by partners, which gives me the time to pursue the things i like , guitar, photography, film-making…
Though i have not taught I.M, i know many in the industry, having been featured in a few national best-sellers as a successful case study for running successful online businesses.Hence i have met, shared drinks, and ideas with many of the gurus you mention here.
All really nice people from my interactions with them.
Though i was offered many times to coach and teach I.M i have always said no, because this particular industry in my opinion is such that, to succeed you have to promise the moon, and even if you don’t, clients expect hand holding even after a coaching program ( but might say you are salesy if you refer them to an upsell). This niche is ruled by Greed and Fear.
Also preview seminars will always have people who are not satisfied as a section of attendees would be totally new, while another section would be experienced. If you go too fast, newbies would be lost, too slow, the experienced will say they already know all this..haha..
Now From My Successes ( And Failures Too Obviously) Here Is A Cheatsheet To Learn All You Need About Marketing Online
I have spent literally over $30,000 in various courses and all these info can be shortened and comes down to these few resources
1) Direct Response Website Design
You need to know how to design a website that converts readers to subscribers and customers, even most designers don’t know
Go to Unbounce and read all the blog posts and best templates, print them out ,learn them by heart and outsource these.
2) Paid Advertising ( Google Adwords and the likes)
Most of my businesses run via Google Adwords, grab Perry Marshall’s extensive book on this. For those who really want a beginner’s guide, check out Lynda or Udemy. These sites have good courses for beginners.
Get a 3 day trial subscription to Whatrunswhere, a spy site that shows the best running image (display banners) ads all over the internet for any industry or niche. Download them all and see the similarities and learn how to make display ads work for you.
Facebook marketing (Newsfeed ads) is also awesome currently. If you are a wedding vendor, you can target people who have just been engaged. If you are in the dating niche, you can target singles of a particular age group. If you are a nightclub promotor, you can trigger ads to appear to users who have liked other Club pages.
With retargeting options, which is advanced, you can target people who have come to your site via Google and not bought so that your ad appears in their Facebook newsfeed (with a discount coupon ad for example). In the same way, you can do this vice-versa.
3) Outsource, Outsource , Outsource
Learn all the things above and then outsource, to sites like Elance. You can get someone to design your site for a few hundred and setup Adwords/Facebook ad campaigns for around the same.
It is important to learn the stuff mentioned and then outsource them. Never outsource Expertise, only Execution.
4) Don’t Be Lazy , Pickup The Phone
Just because you want an online business does not mean you do not use your phone. Make calls to industries you want to work with. Cold calling is a must and businesses are always looking for ways to increase their leads/income. This is how major online businesses like Groupon, Zalora, etc were able to partner with thousands of businesses.
5) Fail , Fail and Fail often
Don’t be afraid to fail.Not every business will succeed, not every joint venture will work out, but you glean valuable info from every attempt you make.
Optional
6) SEO
i don’t believe in SEO due to the constant changes by google and also because its slow to see results but if you must Check out Moz and read all their stuff on Local SEO, they are very accurate.
7) Coaching
After all these if you still want to get info from experts, join credible paid forums like StackThatMoney that you pay monthly for and get to interact with other real marketers, not newbies.
Good Luck!
Hi James,
Thanks for your generous sharing of your cheat-sheet. I am sure the readers will benefit from some of your suggestions. I like point number 5. I should strongly encourage everyone to try their hands on setting up a site and learn directly from the journey. Nothing beats getting your hands wet. Oh.. warning.. first time setting up will very likely be a failure. But that failure will earn you experience medals that money can’t buy! Solider on!
Hi,
Interesting article.. I find that Fabian Lim is better than most internet marketing teachers
I have personally learnt from Sam Foo (affiliate marketing expert so-called), http://internetbizresources.net/about-sam/, he charged about S$8000 and I went for it coz i wanted to learn.
(Comment deleted on request by Sam. Also I want this forum to be objective and not defamatory in nature. Hope all readers understand.)
Hi. I am a ‘fellow attender’ of sam foo’s course.
(Comment deleted on request by Sam. Also I want this forum to be objective and not defamatory in nature. Hope all readers understand.)
Best Regards
Ashley
Hi Ashley,
Good for you!! I statute you for standing up for your rights and taking action!
Hi Ann & Ashley,
I attend Sam’s preview recently and is contemplating if i should proceed with his course. Group of 4 coaching at $6k. Would you be able to share your experience? Privately, if not here ?
baywater9@yahoo.com.sg
Hi Ashley
I am jeff , I interest in Sam foo affiliate marketing course ,
Can I know more info about his coourse?
Please contact me asap at shtan2004@yahoo.com
Thx in advance
Hi Ann, I am joining Sam Foo’s course this 28 Feb 2015. Have already made a deposit of $1K. Can I get more details from you?
(Comment deleted on request by Sam. Also I want this forum to be objective and not defamatory in nature. Hope all readers understand.)
Hi all, I have been contacted by Sam Foo (conducting courses on Affiliate Marketing) and mentioned that some of readers comment is defamatory in nature. So to protect the reading community, I have deleted off some of the comments. That way, we try to keep this forum objective and not personal. Please let me know of any feedback about my decision. Thanks for the understanding.
Hi Ann
I am jeff , I interest in Sam foo affiliate marketing course ,
Can I know more info about his coourse?
Please contact me asap at shtan2004@yahoo.com
Hi Roland. Is there any way I can get in contact with Ann?
(Comment deleted on request by Sam. Also I want this forum to be objective and not defamatory in nature. Hope all readers understand.)