You run your work-at-home internet business in the way you know of for a reason. Maybe because you've tried many methods in the past and you think the one you run now is most suitable for your personality or circumstances. Maybe because it's the only way that you know of.
Or maybe because it's the easiest or least stressful way to make the maximum amount of money. While it's easy to say 'honesty' is the key to success blah-blah-blurrrr, sometimes you're not selling a thing if you are totally being yourself. What is an honest work-from-home internet business opportunity?
Did You Know?
- Customer Trust: 81% of consumers say trust in a brand is a deciding factor in their buying decisions (Edelman Trust Barometer).
- Brand Loyalty: 73% of customers remain loyal to brands because of friendly customer service representatives, which honesty influences (HubSpot Research).
- Transparency Impact: 94% of consumers are likely to be loyal to a brand that offers complete transparency (Label Insight).
- Return Policies: 92% of consumers will buy something again if returns are easy and honest (Narvar).
- Product Reviews: 93% of consumers say online reviews impact their purchasing decisions (Podium).
- False Advertising: Nearly 96% of consumers have encountered misleading information online (Fundera).
- Privacy Concerns: 88% of consumers say the extent of their data sharing is based on how much they trust a brand (PwC).
Who's The Biggest Fool?
Just like any other new starters, I had no clue when I was brand new to the affiliate marketing business. I wasn't making money, then I soon found my coach who told me that I was being too honest and vulnerable. He told me that my approach was totally wrong, I should be tougher, thick-skinned, pretend that I know it all, brag and bluff. Nobody would believe what a newbie says anyway.
...Which seemed to make sense at the time. The biggest problem I had was with the product he persuaded me to promote. It was an expensive 'work from home training' package that I didn't think was worth paying for. The video tutorials were somewhat abrupt, with very little support, overhyped with little content - basically pretty scammy. But who was I to judge? I was totally new.
And this is what my coach told me;
- 'Our' audience will be people who visit gaming/gambling sites and prize competition sites, because many of them often don't know what they're looking for, apart from ways to make money out of nowhere (easier to fool).
- But they're also extremely skeptical. They won't easily believe whatever you say.
- For that reason, firstly I need to learn a copywriting technique.
- Secondly, believe in this (scammy) product that I'm going to promote. If I truly believe in it, my words will naturally start to sound believable to others.
Wow, is it how internet marketing works...?
I tried my best to 'believe in' the product, quite blindly. I probably knew at the back of my mind that it would never work. If it worked, it wouldn't be sustainable. But you see, an honesty issue didn't cross my mind when I was inexperienced. I simply followed what my coach (i.e. an expert) was telling me to do as if there was no other option available. "If this is what everyone's doing then, I'll have to get on the same rails."
CyberCash Wonderland
SEO Truths:
How many honest marketers does it take to change a lightbulb?
Just one. But they'll also tell you it'll take 3-6 months to see the light due to algorithm updates.
To cut the story short, I gave it up. It was a 'work from home' product and I wasn't making a cent from it. I tried to believe in the product that wasn't working. Would I sell a pair of shoes that I feel uncomfortable with? I could never believe in such a pair of shoes even if I spent a thousand nights trying. I finally realized that I was only fooling myself.
Honesty Is Subjective
I learned great lessons from the experience though. both good and bad, such as;
- Targeting a particular audience because you think it's 'easy to fool', is a deception.
- A scam is a scam, listen to your heart and see what it says. The answer is clear. Trying to force yourself to believe that it's legit, is a stupid waste of time.
- But always look for a positive side of things - I'm not moving forward if I stay where I am full of doubts.
- A good copywriting technique makes a difference, and so does a bad clickbait (say "You Are The Winner! Click HERE" just to get people to click) - learned what I should/shouldn't say.
- Honesty is subjective - Users are free to decide that I'm being totally truthful or lying about the way I say things in the web space. Only I know what's really in my mind. Then it'll be a constant challenge to appear to be honest too.
Did You Know?
- Email Marketing: 68% of millennials say promotional emails have influenced their purchase decisions, highlighting the importance of honest messaging (Fluent).
- Influencer Marketing: 63% of consumers trust influencer messages more than brand messages, stressing honesty in endorsements (Nielsen).
- Customer Retention: It costs five times more to attract a new customer than to keep an existing one, underscoring the value of honest relationships (Invesp).
- Sustainability Claims: 66% of global consumers are willing to pay more for sustainable goods, but only if brands are honest about their efforts (Nielsen).
- Social Media Honesty: 85% of consumers say they need to be able to trust a brand on social media before they will interact with it (Hootsuite).
- False Claims: 59% of online shoppers have lost trust in a brand due to false or misleading advertising (Label Insight).
- Consumer Feedback: 77% of consumers view brands more favorably if they proactively invite and accept customer feedback (Microsoft).
As An Affiliate - Don't Try To Fake It
Affiliate marketers should never 'sell'. Because we don't have our own products - we are affiliates but also users. So our job is to help our fellow users by making recommendations. Quite obviously, you cannot have a good, honest, and unbiased opinion about a product that you don't know.
And if you're not interested in the niche (class of products), it will be virtually impossible to make a truthful judgment. Imagine you don't have a driver's license (if you do), and you don't even like driving. You build a car review website and talk about each car's performance, usability, and feel-good factor. It would take you a hell of a lot of time and effort to research and, essentially you'd be pretending to be a driving expert. Would the users - drivers - notice that you may be fake? Yes, they would.
Did You Know?
- Transparency and Sales: Businesses that are rated highly for transparency are 3.1 times more likely to experience sales growth (Sprout Social).
- Website Honesty: 70% of online consumers feel more comfortable making a purchase from a website that is clear and honest about the data it collects (Salesforce).
- Ethical Marketing: 84% of consumers say they seek out responsible products whenever possible, but clear and honest information is key to their decision-making (Cone Communications).
- Return Customers: 58% of consumers will spend more with companies that provide excellent, straightforward customer service (American Express).
- Word-of-Mouth: 83% of consumers say they trust recommendations from friends and family, making the honesty of their experiences crucial (Nielsen).
- Digital Footprint: 97% of consumers research a product online before making a purchase, highlighting the importance of honest information online (Bazaarvoice).
CyberCash Wonderland
"Save For A Rainy Day" Sale
"Our products won't stop the rain, but at least your wallet won't get soaked."
Huge Sale
"Actually, it's just 1% off, but we're really excited about it. Come on! The house is $1m. You'll still get $10,000, that's HUGE, right?"
Honest Work-From-Home Internet Business Opportunity
The only way to earn an online income regularly and consistently month after month, is by helping others while doing something that you know well. As I mentioned earlier, you can recommend a product to others and earn commissions only if you believe in the product. To believe in something means to know it very well and you love it.
It's not the kind of technique that you can achieve overnight. But anyone who receives proper tools and step-by-step training will have a chance to make a sustainable, full-time income online.
Wealthy Affiliate is one of the very few business models that provide honest work-from-home internet business opportunities to newbies because;
You might ask, how do I know this training platform itself is honest?
There's a simple answer to it - the scale of it. No other Internet business training course is as in-depth as this.
Others often don't teach the most integral parts, such as how to drive traffic to your website and leave the users feeling puzzled. Others may be equipped with a forum where users can ask questions, but because there are not enough members the answers are often likely to be biased. With this community, hundreds of experienced entrepreneurs are available to give you a hand, you'll get the best - most honest - possible solutions to your problems.
You can start free if you want to follow what I do - any questions don't hesitate to ask by leaving a comment below!
Interesting insights. I appreciate that everyone has a different opinion. It’s only up to the viewer to make a decision as to believe or not. At least a website allows the webmaster to express their opinion and if they want the viewers to believe them they need to be as transparent as they can.
I think there is only so much you can do. If you believe you are promoting honestly from the heart unknowing to the fact you really don’t know as an affiliate, of the product holder’s intention. They may be a duplicate copycat of someone else’s product years ago. It’s all up to the viewers decision.
Hi Hans, thanks for your comment. Yes you’re absolutely right. As an affiliate/content marketer, one thing is to stay honest, another thing is to try to appear to be honest…I guess it’s a skill to express. And the decision is up to the users!
ALL AFFILIATE MARKETERS ARE LIARS. I NO LONGER BELIEVE ANYBODY THEY ONLY PRETEND TO BE HONEST THEY MAKE ME SICK. THERE IS NO MONEY ON INTERNET BUT THEY ONLY TAKE YOUR MONEY.
Hi, thanks for your comment. Sorry to see you upset. Whatever’s happened to you, you must have had bad experiences on line. If you’ve been scammed, I think I know how you feel because I have been in the past too. But you know there are so many good people in this world, that doesn’t mean you can put an entire trust on someone because you really don’t know who the real people are online. Give it a rest for a few days/weeks. Hope you’ll feel better.
I found this post extremely useful. I don’t know what’s your problem but it’s not like he’s a liar you shouldn’t be behaving like a 5 yr old child here. Nobody can help you if you are screaming like that. Ask for your help and he will give you guidance ok?
Thanks Carmen, I appreciate your comment!
Hi Ray, this is a piece of very good advice for all of us. It makes me realize how important it is to be honest when it comes to affiliate marketing. You have to promote what you believe to be the best for your audience and be as helpful as you can. I’ll keep it mind. Thank you for the great article.
Hi Hitesh, thanks for your comment, I appreciate it. If you need any help don’t hesitate to ask at any time. I’m here to give you a hand too, you know!
Interesting article. Being honest or not can only be judged by the person himself.
But it doesn’t always work with business. One sometimes to tell white lies to keep customer relations smooth. Thanks. All the best. Yoan
Hi Yoan, yes perhaps that’s true. You can’t be 100% honest, and it’s all up to you to judge if you’re being 100% unbiased. The main thing is your willingness to help others! Thanks for your comment.
Hi, very interesting blog. I was almost shocked to learn what your coach told you, I am aware some people keep such an ignorant attitude towards running campaigns but they don’t last long unless they learn. You have addressed your mistake and improved your business since then. I would like to congratulate you for that. Keep up with good work because we are all behind you.
Hi Sara, thanks for your comment. We all experience learning curves, mine was years ago and I just explained it as an example from the early days in my career. Any questions don’t hesitate to ask at any time. Thanks, all the best to you!
Hey Ray, I find your post really interesting and also informative because for everyone it’s hard to find honest work from home opportunities. You try to be as honest and trustworthy as you can then from other people’s point of view for some reason you might look or sound fake When one thing you said wrong, it might wreck your relationship with the audience.
But like you say, honesty is a subjective matter. When it happens, it happens I guess.
It’s a mind boggling article. Thanks for that. All the best. Dex
Hi Dex, if you say something wrong, you’re right, you might lose trust from your audience, but I wouldn’t worry about it too much though, I’d rather talk everything from my heart than to stay safe by providing good but biased reviews. Thanks for your comment, I appreciate your input!
Hi Ray, I see exactly how you feel because I think it’s very hard to find honest internet marketers. Every time I watch a Youtube video it starts with an advert telling you to make money online. They are all the same and I don’t believe any of them.
Hi Freddie, I see what you mean, I think that’s because YouTube runs ads based on your behavior/niche. If you log back in with another Google account (if you have) you might see a totally different type of ad. But yes I agree with you, MMO ads do my head in!
hey i like your website i am looking for honest reviewers i spent too much money on dishonest s—. no more wasting time i need a real job online.
Thanks Markie for your comment. If you can tell me what you need a little more specifically I can give you a hand!
Hi Ray, I find your publication very interesting because I was in almost the same position a few years ago.
I was told to promote some survey for cash sites but to tell my subscribers that they could make $10000 per month with it. I got hundreds of referrals but I hardly made money from it. Also some subscribers quit because they couldn’t believe what I said. I don’t blame them because I was lying but I was told to lie by my boss. I didn’t know what to do at that time.
Today I’m clear of all that but I’m willing to start an honest work from home business.
I’m glad to find your site because I really appreciate your straight from the heart honesty.
Thank you for your publication. Best regards,
Hanisu
Hi Hanisu, thanks for your comment. We all learn something valuable in the beginning, and keep learning I guess! Thank you for sharing such an experience with us, appreciate it! All the best to you with success!
Hey, about your coach, it’s interesting to hear that story. What’s happened to him now if I may ask? You don’t treat your audience like goods then they’ll treat you the same. That’s pretty bad. Good to hear your honest opinion now that counts.
Hi Richard, I don’t know what’s happened to the coach to be honest…! Yes, engaging with people with respect, basic in general, basic in business also. Thanks for your comment!
Very nice article, thanks! I found it extremely interesting. Because there are so many affiliate marketers who are dishonest, all they are after is a commission. You are telling the truth. Congrats!
Thanks Karen, I appreciate your comment!
Hi, I totally agree with you about honesty in terms of serving an online business opportunity to others. Everyone has different ideas and if they truly believe one business which turns out to be dubious to others there is nothing you can help with it. Thanks for the intriguing article.
Hi Yahya, thanks for your comment, I appreciate it. I’m glad to hear you agree!
There are so many opportunities that claim you can make money but they are not being totally honest.
I can tell from the quality of it. There are only 5 -6 training videos and they don’t answer questions I ask.
I agree honesty is subjective. If they think that kind of low quality service is honest, let them be but I don’t want to get involved.
Thank you for your insightful article.
Joe
Hi Joe, thanks for your comment. The quality of “make money from home” training depends on the price it charges, I suppose you get what you pay for. If there are only a few video tutorials it’s not worth paying money for. Thrive University for example, offers tutorials for free.