Purchase Fake Authority? No Thanks

The Most Popular Content is Not Necessarily Best

About 6 months ago I had the opportunity to purchase fake authority in order to better sell my wares and mad skillz as a personal finance writer.  Here is the funny story of how that went down and how to take free content with a grain of salt. Oh, and in a similar vein my buddy and fantastic blogger Q-FI put up this hilarious post a couple of days after this one came out.  I urge you to chug on over and check it out:  FU FI. And here's another one written by ESI Money a couple of years ago.  I just read it for the first time today but the findings smell similar to what I'm saying here:  Beware of Fake Money Experts With No Accomplishments.

Freddy Smidlap:  Honest, Capable, Fearless

A couple of years ago, just for kicks, I made a Freddy Smidlap LinkedIn profile.  I figured that you never know when some open minded fund manager might come across one of my articles posted there and think "Shit, this guy is making better selections or has better ideas than the pointy headed analysts and fund managers we employ!"  Funny, eh?  But it don't cost nothin' to just chuck it out there.  And... it's not like I am actively looking for a new thankless J.O.B. anyhow.  It felt like a no-lose situation just to see what might happen and that part is still true.  Then one of my 4 connections contacted me on the email machine with a business proposal. Timmy sort of sent me a cold call message on the LinkedIn asking if I was interested in being featured in any national publications like Fortune, Forbes, etc.  Now, I can sniff out a business proposition pretty well but I have time on my hands so I agreed to chat on the phone with him for a few minutes.  He was explaining how I could build my credibility and "brand" via some national exposure AND increase my sales.  Before we got to any pricing discussion I told him I didn't have any products like financial advisory services or money courses for sale.  This is just a hobby for a guy with free time and a decent mentality for investing.  We thanked one another, wished each other luck, and parted ways.

Related Rant:  Certified Money Coach Shit Merchants

The final proposal to purchase fake authority

This is a transcript of the final push to sell me some credibility:

Just thought I would try reaching out one last time to see if you would want to be featured in the media. I can get you published on major platforms in as little as 14-30 days. You can use these features to establish your authority and credibility and also increase your brand equity. Can I interest you in a short call? If so, my calendar link is below for you to schedule a time that works for you. 

My reply

timmy, we spoke before.  unfortunately i don't pay to market myself.  that's why i make good investments so i don't have to rely on selling myself to anyone.  i'll teach you how to invest if you like.

all the best,

freddy

I have to say I always knew it was possible to fully use multi-channel marketing if you have something to sell.  I also have nothing against a person trying to sell whatever services or affiliate junk as part of their business.  I really never learned all those aspects of a little blog before I started spewing ideas out into the internet world.  I would just caution anyone (probably not the fully formed adult readers of this blog) considering giving up their hard earned cheddar to some services marketed directly to them.  My first question is:  how the hell do I know if they are any good?  You rarely see a scorecard for whatever it is they are shilling.  One of the rare exceptions I have encountered is the Motley Fool Stock Advisor Service.  They have kept transparent score of every recommendation for the past 20 years, with great results.  This is my review and relevant statistics:  The Smidlap Motley Fool Stock Advisor Review. The rest of them I just don't know about.  Some claim to have worked in this or that capacity but were they any good of just flamed out?  Remember JaMarcus Russell?  He was a top quarterback of the Oakland Raiders around 15 years ago.  He was just terrible, but I suppose he could legitimately promote himself as an NFL quarterbacking "expert."  Sure, he had that job at one time but wasn't any damned good at it.  How can we know or attempt to know which self-promoting salesperson has real expertise and authority?  Beats me!  I only know I see the term "expert" self applied quite often.

Here's one other good one to throw into the rant mixing bowl.

George Carlin used to say  "Somewhere out in there is the world's worst doctor.  And he has appointments scheduled all day today!"

How did certain sources get to be the most popular?

I always find it difficult to differentiate between slickly marketed popularity and real expertise.  I suppose when the content is free it doesn't matter and a smart reader can judge for themselves whether or not to return for another helping.  It's when there is money on the line where I would want to decide who purchased fake authority and who really has the goods.  I also know my investing courses targeted at one-armed Samoan lesbians never really got off the ground.  Irish lesbians need not apply.  I thought I had targeted and underserved niche but may have gone to narrow in scope.  Even with Timmy's paid help I don't think I would have had much success with the concept so now the one-armed Samoan lesbians are stuck with trying to figure out what to do with their money only using information sourced from the evil patriarchy!   In all seriousness I should have written the Malevolent Missy Investment Series as its own website "Malevolent Missy Invests."  I think with a little cartoon picture of Missy like the young people use she could have been an anonymous sensation.  The interest could have been so much stronger with the advice written in the first person with a little touch of wide wonder and some spending shame thrown in for good measure.  Doesn't it sound so much better than revealing her as a fictional character (even though the real Missy has done quite well with the same strategy) written by a crusty 50 something male oppressor curmudgeon?  I'll bet a first person Missy would be celebrated and able to sell ice cubes to Eskimos along with her investing courses.

You may have suspected could purchase fake authority, now you know

The whole game reeks of the pay-ola schemes from the heyday of music on the radio.  The since outlawed practice was when an artist or artist's management would have to pay popular DJ's to get their songs onto the radio.  See any parallels?  Before people go and plunk down hard earned cash for advice from very popular internet authorities I hope they ask themselves if the authority was purchased or the credibility is real with proven results.