Beware of the Vultures

The economy is bad and getting worse. And it certainly isn't going to improve by much for a long time. Sure, the government will fool many with it's bogus data. But at the end of the day, millions will realize they just can't make ends meet. Some will adjust their spending behavior.  Others will look for new opportunities. Among these opportunities, millions will look to the infomercial gurus, who promise to teach you how to become rich if you buy their course or book. 

And of course we also have the "free" seminars; the guys who tour the nation with get-rich-quick scams.  You've seen them. They advertise on TV, the Internet; everywhere.  This group includes the government grant guys, the real estate gurus, and of course Donald Trump (who is not in attendence) and Robert Kiyosaki.

There are many more of course.  And they are all engaging in the most aggressive marketing campaign ever, because they know there are and will continue to be more desperate people looking for a way to make money. Just look at the Google ads that pop up to the left of this article (feel free to click on a few; it takes money from these crooks and sends it to us). 

Make no mistake. They are all snake-oil salesmen. Stay away.  I won't go into the details because I could write all day about them and I simply don't have the time. Besides, you need to convince yourself they are dangerous. One source is www.ripoffreport.com  Just type the name of the program or person and you will see the complaints. Note that for every complaint, you might want to estimate that there are 1000 or more out there. 

Alas, the reason for this article. I ran across an ad on Yahoo! for Robert Kiyosaki.  You might know him from his BS book "Rich Dad Poor Dad."  There have been reports that the book is made up. Others claim he reproduces the same material in several books just to get more book sales.  Kiyosaki is in the same group as the rest, as is Trump. 

What's funny is that Trump realized where the easy money was - marketing to sheep. But he only realized this after his TV show, which has become more of an hour-long advertisement for corporations than even American Idol.  

Well wouldn't you know Trump and Kiyosaki wrote a book together last year, although I'm willing to bet they used a ghost writer.  Why did they "team up?" Because Trump wanted to get more involved in marketing to the sheep, while Kiyosaki wanted to align himself with a perceived big name.

Sure, Trump is wealthy. But he is much less wealthy than he claims "I'm worth billions and billions of dollars."   But how much of that money was due to getting lucky during the real estate boom early in his career?  And keep in mind that his father was quite wealthy.  Sorry Donald, but anyone who can't make money in the casino business is a failure. 

Still, as far as the cheeseballs involved in mass financial marketing, Trump has more credibility. At least he made money before changing careers into a marketer. The others made all of their money by marketing to the sheep. 

But now Trump is doing the same thiing. So as you might imagine, for some loser like Kiyosaki to have a book with Trump is a big deal for him. 

Do yourself a favor. Don't ever waste money buying any books written (ghost-written) by marketing clowns on TV. And if you see good reviews, don't beleive them.  There are a lot of sheep out there. But if you don't believe me, by all means go ahead and check for youself.  Then if you disagree with me, the bad news is that you are a sheep.

If you think Trump's books are worth the paper they are printed on, you would be wrong.  The same goes of the rest of the marketing gurus. I remember hearing about his "big" book for many years - the "Art of the Deal."  I ran across it a couple of years ago in Office Depot and I took a look at it.

I was shocked how useless it was. 

It seemed like it was written for sixth graders. You see, that's how you sell a lot of books today.  You market yourself so you are known. Then you get some ghost writer to write a book fit for a kid because most people in America have been dumbed down.   

I've actually been to these seminars before for research purposes. And what I witnessed was disturbing. The attendees appear to be low-income, low-education, and just plain gulliable. I know some very sharp people who lack a formal education. Education doesn't give you common sense. That may be the most important attribute to have. 

Combined with greed and desperation,  the attendees are faced with the insourmountable burden of fending off the professional sales closers who try to get you to buy something or signup before you leave.  And let me tell you this. These guys are the best at what they do; taking your money. 

Maybe I should attend this seminar and do a writeup on it.  It might be worth it just to ask Robert some questions (if he's even present) since he seems to think he is some stock market expert.  He isn't even a real estate expert. But he is a marketing expert, similar to kevin Trudeau and the other infomercial guys. 

I might actually attend for the entertainment, but Robert won't be there. You see, Robert basically rents out his "name" to cheeseballs who try to sell you some bogus service. Meanwhile Robert sits back and collect money. Trump does the same thing.

Okay, back to work now. I just had to toss this around because it sickens me when I see vultures preying on the desperation of others.