EPISODE 39 OF THE MARKETING SOLUTIONS PODCAST: The Rise of the Fake Guru

Sonya McIntyre-Reid:

Hey, guys. I am going to have a little bit of a ranty episode today, but it's something that is really, really getting to me, or not getting to me, but it's just annoying.

            I was sent a video a few weeks back called The Rise of the Fake Guru and, oh my gosh, this sound grab from TikTok sums up my response perfectly.

Audio:

I'm glad you brung it up because I've been dying to talk about it for fucking hot many. First of all...

Sonya McIntyre-Reid:

Sorry, let me explain. For years, I have been so fed up with these fakeroos that are making so much money online selling courses about things that they have not even made money on themselves, or maybe they did once upon a time for a short period, but they don't anymore. It's like the coaches that make money coaching other coaches, or the people who make money through selling people courses on selling courses. It just triggers me for some reason.

            Now don't get me wrong. I want to emphasize that I think online education is the bomb.com. My issue with this industry is not the selling of online courses. Online courses have helped me learn basically everything at the generous rates results for our clients.

            My problem with these fake gurus is the deceptive marketing. Framing it as though everyone who buys the course will gain financial freedom if they just do the work is a clear deception. The majority of students will not attain that goal, and yet the gurus will peddle their courses as though it's near-guaranteed. So often you jump on these webinars and there's always a line about, "You have to put in the work, blah, blah, blah." This does not negate the other 50-plus minutes just spent trying to make it look like that it's an easy game, right?

            So I've worked there's a bit of a formula to being a fake guru, in case you wanted to try it for yourself or, more importantly, so you can identify when you are being sucked into something that perhaps might not generate you the results that you're wanting from the course. So I'm going to break it down for you so you can be on high alert because, guys, it is a jungle out there.

            Alrighty, let's dive in. Step number one, pick your niche. This is where you get to choose the topic of your choice, preferably it's a fad and something that could be promoted under the categories of wealth or health, or anything that allows you to target people's dreams. Some of the most common niches used by few well-known gurus, Kevin David, his Amazon FBA drop shipping, Dan Lok, sales, Tai Lopez, Sam Ovens has a consulting course I was very tempted to buy at one point, Amy Porterfield, Marie Forleo, Samuel Leeds, he does real estate investing. I mean, I've thrown whole heap of name at you, I'm sure there are some people in your space that do come to mind.

            Step number two, create your course, preferably you have some experience in your niche. The most ideal route in most cases is to pick a niche, start a business in your niche, get a little success, and then create your own online course because, after all, that is where the real money is made. If you don't have any expertise, you can always hire an outside expert to give you a helping hand. You see, the course isn't what matters the most here. What matters the most is your online marketing for this particular course.

            Step three, market your course. This is the most important part of the business model. Without marketing your online course properly, you won't be able to make a lot of money from it. Start by writing some advertisements on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, et cetera, and begin by selling them a dream. Tell your audience that you are also broke and in debt, but after starting and certainly here, you began making six figures, millions, traveling the world, becoming financially free, having a laptop lifestyle, et cetera, et cetera. Tell them to join your free training where the main goal isn't to teach them anything, but to get them to ask more questions. Remind them of their dreams, remind them of their backstory or your backstory and, finally, go in for the hard sell, where you create scarcity and a sense of urgency in order to get them to buy your ridiculously-priced course right now.

            Step number four, profit. With the right marketing, you should now be seeing some of that sweet, sweet profit fly in from your online courses. But why stop there? The real way to make millions from online courses is to create an entire ladder of products. You want to upsell your students as much as possible. Get your students hooked on your products. You never tell them the truth. The real reason you're so rich is because of all the products you've sold them, not because of the drop shipping or Amazon FBA business that you're selling to them.

            Are your online courses worth it? Well, I think online courses are brilliant, personally. They've helped me create this podcast, learn about marketing and personal finance, but none of these courses that I really achieved some amazing results from have promised me financial freedom or a laptop lifestyle, and they certainly did not cost me thousands and thousands of dollars. The moment you see these fake gurus peddling and pandering to your deepest desires and really trying to sell you on an emotional level, just run. It's never worth it.

            Here's my commitment to you. I will never put out any form of training or course that is not something that we aren't actively doing for clients in our agency. I will never create courses and not be practicing what I preach. I will never solely be an education company. How can you be in touch with what is working right now when you haven't worked with clients or been in business for years? It just doesn't work.

            That's my promise to you. Stay on high alert, guys, and stay tuned. Because I am looking forward to teaching you what we actually do with our clients in our agency, and I don't want to be a fake guru.