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WildView X35 Camera Review

2010 Wildview STC-TGLX35IR 5mp 35 count red flash Camera Review

Sorting through our 2010 list of cameras (like  MOULTRIE M 1100I GAME CAMERA )to test we had not listed any of the cameras from wild view. The past few years they have had this camera and just played with the strobe and red flash setups plus nudging the interpolation up and down to serve as being something different. These cameras have been about the same except there were some years where the trigger times had changed somewhat, depending on the version.

This is a un announced late comer for 2010 and they have made yet another change to the better. This is the increase in the emitter count in the IR array. The case is a little different in appearance also. Stacked on top of the new Moultrie L-20 they are about the same size. One of the big differences is this camera has video and the burst goes up to 6 where the Moultrie only has burst 2. This camera in the 09 IR-5 was a great performer with the UWAY ExtendIR-B black flash converter so that will be an area that we will test also with this camera. The arrival of this camera was seen mostly on EBAY and they were pushing this new arrival with a price of around $130 up to $149. The local Sams store had them for about a hundred dollars. It comes with four C cells and a 1 gig card for that price which beats the on line bid outfit by the cost of a sack full of 1 gig cards in price.

The six inch by seven inch flat black case got a new look with some horizontal lines and a little different look to the corners and edges. The new look with the larger array makes for a more business like look over the previous plain Jane look. At the top is the wide angle wrap around PIR sensor and below is the LCD window and camera lens. The Array is centered on the camera front. The camera is in the back so the small door is easy to open and service the camera and still maintain aim. The door has a full gasket and it is held closed by two heavy latches. With the door open the switch setup is in view. All are self explanatory (to include that dreaded minimum 1 minute delay) switch that everyone wished that it would go down to 15 seconds. To the right of the array is the programming buttons and the set button must be held to enter and exit the time/date entries. That operation is very simple and easy to do. The bottom inside is taken up by the four C cell battery holder that is under a plastic keeper. The SD card slot is under the door lip on the camera and it will take up to a 16 gig card. The right edge has the USB out for connecting to the computer. There is no TV out on this camera and that seems to be a trend in many new cameras.

I set up and did some walk tests (observed the green indicator in the test position and this camera appeared to do a good job sensing. The quick IR test showed a degree of IR burn on close targets, so we know this camera will pump some light down range. The trigger looked to be around two seconds un official. The day color looked to be above average and the zoom was sharp and clear. Our day range and 8 plate will tell us more when we get to that test. Here is saying that we hope the best for this cameras because the entries that are in this same price range have shown a lot of value for the amount spent so each camera needs to show its best to compete.

09-03-2010 update: We performed the trigger times and this camera did a very good job both with and without flash it came in around a second and a half. We preceded the day range where the color was a little weak but very natural. Further tests on the night range and 8 plate passed pretty good and the flash got good illumination out past the 50 ft marker. Our sensing tests showed that this camera has a mild case of the blur problem during the IR operations. The sensing distance was 30 feet at a temperature of 75 degrees. We then deployed the camera to catch the animals at the feeder and all went well except for the problem when the camera tried to shift from night to day. Wow, we have a serious whiteout problem with this camera. The first couple of pictures had a little detail then it just went to a total white set of pictures that lasted about 1.5 hours ( 80 pictures) when it did finally switch to color. This is severe enough to cause us to have to close the review on this camera.

10-02-2010 update: We have had this cam out and then back in which also included a trip back to Stealth where it received some doctoring. The original cells were in the cam all this time and there was there has been a lot of testing and evaluating going on. It also took 730 pictures and the set of cells lasted about a month. It has new cells in it now and has been put back out in the video mode to capture a few sample videos before we conclude this review. We will be reporting some more about a firmware update once all that data is released by the factory for consumer use.

10-13-2010 update: The firmware that was loaded on our unit which is the same as the now released firmware did a lot to dampen the white pictures but did about the same thing as what happened to the ill fated XLT Bushnell, which resulted very dark pictures in the day time. 

[madmusic-blog]

Keypad-Simple Steps to a Successful Installation

One of the many benefits to having a keypad on the outside of your garage door is that you don’t have to hunt around for a remote control in order to be able to open the door. This comes in particularly handy when you need to access the garage but the remote control is in another location, and it also comes in handy should the remote control go missing at any point leaving you trapped out of your garage.

Anyone who has been given the code to the keypad can then simply walk up to it and tap the numbers in, in order for the garage door to begin opening. The difficult part to the whole process however, is actually installing the keypad yourself but with the right guidance, help and tips you can easily get a keypad working on your door.

Which Keypad Should I Choose?

Firstly it comes down to whether you want to buy a universal one. These are the most popular type of keypad but it’s worth checking to see if your garage door is compatible with the keypad. Most newer models of garage door should be so if you have an old one its definitely worth double checking with the owner’s manual and the specification on the universal keypad to see if your door is mentioned.

The second thing to do once you have purchased the keypad is to install the batteries into the keypad and then program it to the  door opener(for example: MIGHTY MULE MM360 ) Set yourself up a pin code that you will use for entry into the door. Usually a 4 or 6 digit code is used here, and you may have to repeat this code once more before the keypad stores the sequence of numbers that you have entered.

Testing and Installation

Now test to see if the garage door will open and close when you type in that 4 or 6 digit number that you told the keypad to program in. If the door opens and closes which it should do, then we are good to go forward.

Finally you will want to pick a good location on where to screw in the keypad, and most people tend to look for the doorjamb where you enter the garage from the outside. Fix the keypad in this location roughly 5-feet off the ground so it can be accessed by every member of the household.

Wired vs Wireless Types of Keypad

The next point that we want to address for you is the different types of keypad that are on offer these days. You can now choose between a wired or a wireless keypad setup and they both vary slightly. For a start the wireless keypad will cost you more money but it will be much tidier to the eye with no wires being fed in through the garage to the door opener.

Above we talked about setting up a wireless keypad but if you have saved yourself a bit of money and plumped to go for a wired unit then the setup is slightly different in order to get the two units communicating with each other.

The wires from the keypad need to be fed back through the garage and connected to the garage door opener so that they can connect properly with each other. Most people mount the keypad to the wall and then drill a small hole into the garage and feed the wires through this and then up along the wall on the inside.

If you spend some time planning out the positioning of the wire it can look tidy and you won’t even notice from the outside that it is in fact a wired terminal compared to a wireless terminal. The only give away signs will be on the inside of the garage where the wires connect to the garage door opener.

If you are installing a code on a wired garage door keypad then you will need to follow these simple steps:

Firstly unplug the door opener from the electrical outlet socket for a brief moment, and then go to the push button wall unit and take away the cover so you can press the Program/Operate switch across to the Program function.

You will now be prompted to input a code into the keypad that is mounted onto the wall outside you garage, so head back outside and do this. Once completed slide that switch back across to operate again, shut the cover and then turn the garage door back on.

This should now work a treat, but double check before you head off by typing in that code you entered previously to see if the garage door will open and close successfully for you.

[madmusic-blog]

GOAL ZERO SWITCH 10 MULTI-TOOL KIT Review

There are more than a few portable phone chargers to choose from out there. Goal Zero sets themselves apart by offering a complete multi-tool kit that not only charges your phone, tablet, or camera, but also includes a flashlight and fan tool. But what really sets it apart is the fact that you can recharge it with the included 7-watt solar panels to help reduce your environmental footprint. We take a look and see just how well it works in our GOAL ZERO SWITCH 10 MULTI-TOOL KIT review. 

SPECIFICATIONS

Switch 10 USB Multi-Tool Kit features:

11 Wh (3.7V, 3000mAh) Li-ion battery

USB port (output): 5V, up to 1.5A (7.5W max), regulated

USB port (input): 5V, up to 1A (5W max)

Weight: 4 oz (113 g)

Dimensions: 4.5 x 1 x 1 in (11.4 x 2.5 x 2.5 cm)

DESIGN

The GOAL ZERO SWITCH 10 MULTI-TOOL KIT is a sleek little device. It’s fairly small, lightweight, and well crafted. The kit includes the multi-tool/battery, 7-watt solar panel, micro usb charging cable, flashlight attachment, and fan attachment.  One end of the battery consists of a female USB plug where you charge your phone or attach the flashlight and fan accessories. The other end contains the male USB end to connect the battery to the solar panel for charging. One end of the battery has a 4 light charge indicator, and the other has the power button for the flashlight and fan. Goal Zero also tossed in a couple of small carabiner clips which can be attached to the solar panel to hang it up for better access to direct sunlight if required. The included solar panel folds up nicely, and a pouch on the back of the solar panel stores the battery and other accessories making it easy to store and transport.

PERFORMANCE

Goal Zero claims that the battery will charge in between 4-6 hours with the solar panels or in 4 hours when plugged into a wall outlet. On the charging side, it will charge a smartphone once, a small camera twice, give a 25% power boost to a 7″ tablet, run the flashlight for 4 hours, or run the fan for 5 hours.

The Switch 10 is very straightforward, the attachments fit no problem and screw in place easily to secure them in place.  It was also easy to hook up the battery portion to the solar panel and by zipping it into the attached pouch it can be placed pretty much anywhere without having to worry about having to prop up the battery while it charges. Doing so also keeps the battery component shaded while it is being recharged by the solar panel. I ran a few tests from fully drained to fully charged and the best time I could get was 5 hours, with one charge taking around 8h due to it being overcast. As mentioned previously you can also charge it by plugging it into a wall and that took about 4 hours as per Goal Zero’s claims. If you purchase an additional Nomad 7 Solar Panel, you can also daisy chain them together to decrease the charging time required.

BATTERY LIFE

With the battery fully charged, I was able to fully charge my Nexus 5 from about 20% and the Switch 10 was still had one battery charge light lit indicating roughly 25% power left. I tested the flashlight and left it on for a couple hours and the battery was still showing 3 lights of charge, so I don’t doubt that you’d get at least 4 hours with the flashlight and 5 hours using the fan.

Goal Zero also mentions that you can keep the Switch 10 plugged in, or charge once every 3-6 months. It does seem to hold its charge well as I used it for awhile, left it with 3 charge lights on the battery indicator and a week and a half later it still had 3 charge lights.

ACCESSORIES

The flashlight on the Switch 10 is incredibly bright, and is adjustable from a wide-angle to more focused beam of light. You can also adjust the brightness to extend the battery life. The fan is pretty flexible, being made of a PVC plastic, and definitely generates a nice breeze to cool you down on a hot day.

PRICE/VALUE

The GOAL ZERO SWITCH 10 MULTI-TOOL KIT has an MSRP of $119USD on the Goal Zero website. While the charge capacity is limited to 3000 mAh and there are other chargers for cheaper that give you a much larger power bank, the fact that the Switch 10 includes and can be recharged with solar panels, as well as the addition of a flashlight and fan tool adds value.

[madmusic-blog]

The 'Why Before You Buy' Is Key to Connecting With Customers

Consumers today search everywhere to find what they need and want. They’re at home, they’re at work, and they’re on the go. This zigzagging customer journey makes it challenging for local businesses to discern why some consumers move in one direction while some move in the other. So, why do consumers choose one business over another? To answer the question, business owners must focus on three essential principles: knowing your audience, establishing your online presence, and making it easy for people to find you.

Know your audience.

Consumers value different types of information when they make buying decisions. Primary information consists of the critical basics like price, availability of the product or service and business location. Secondary information provides more context around the business and its offerings by satisfying additional questions or needs consumers may have. It includes testimonials, reviews, offers, photos or videos, and is typically obtained later in a search process.

According to The Why Before the Buy, a survey of more than 5,400 consumers conducted by YP (formerly YellowPages.com), in collaboration with Thrive Analytics and the Local Search Association, consumers rely almost equally on primary and secondary information -- 52 percent and 48 percent, respectively. But consumers who said their decision was based mostly on secondary information spend, on average, twice as much as those relying on primary information.

Not only do businesses need to provide basic information about a product or service, they also need to make available the secondary information that many consumers weigh when making buying decisions. In many cases, it’s this secondary information that tips the scales in favor of one business over another.

Establish a complete, accurate online presence.

Many of the reasons consumers cite for selecting a particular business are linked to the business’s online presence -- something that a business owner can control. By addressing incorrect or inconsistent information, encouraging customers to write reviews or sharing video or photo content, an owner builds and shapes his firm's presence and presentation.

Consumers won’t even consider a business with a poor online presence. Inconsistent information across the internet, inaccurate website content and wrong contact information frustrate consumers, often sending them to the competition. Businesses without a website, pictures, or ratings/reviews also miss out on would-be customers. So, just as there are key factors consumers consider before making a purchase, there are also factors that influence a consumer’s decision to avoid a business.

Make it easy to be found.

We live in an always-connected, always-on world. Mobile devices play a critical role in the customer’s journey, and businesses that aren’t making it easy for these on-the-go consumers to reach them are missing out. Although consumers may start their search elsewhere, they’re bound to use smartphones at some point. According to the Why Before the Buy research, among the top reasons consumers use a mobile device is the ability to find a business nearby. They also love the click-to-call feature, which allows them to contact a business quickly and directly. Smartphones are not only ideal for local search, they’ve also revolutionized how and where consumers shop.

In today’s digital world, the decision to buy from one business over another can occur without hints or clues. Complicating matters, consumers may similarly stop considering a business without any warning. It is more important than ever for local businesses to know when, where and how to reach consumers who are looking for them. Failure to do so could mean losing opportunities.

[madmusic-blog]

17 Tips for Increasing the Selling Power of Your Ad Copy

Whether you’re doing the writing yourself or you’ve decided to hire a writer, see if you can glean some valuable insights from the following list of 17 methods.

1. Use present tense, second person. When we read any kind of promotional copy, our favorite word is “you.” When we see “you,” it means the writer is talking directly to us. It encourages us to picture ourselves with the product. There may be times when it’s appropriate to use the third person -- for example when talking about “those people” who don’t have the finer taste or understanding that “you” do or when explaining the faults of the competition. In general, try to stick to “you” and speak in the present tense as much as possible, not about the past or future.

Don’t say: Buyers will experience vibrant health with a daily dose of aloe vera juice.

Do say: You experience vibrant health with a daily dose of aloe vera juice.

2. Use a simple style of writing. The purpose of your ad is to sell a product or service, not to impress the reader with your brilliant writing. Also, you want your writing to carry the readers along without putting up any roadblocks to their under­standing or interest. If your writing is dense, flowery, or filled with complex images readers can’t relate to, you’re going to discourage them from moving forward.

3. Use simple words. This is similar to the previous point. If your writing is loaded with long, pompous words that most people don’t understand, prospects won’t keep reading because it seems like too much work. Make it easy for people to read the ad, get the message and want to follow your call to action.

4. Give free information. To get something, you have to give something. To get your readers’ attention, you have to give them something to ensure it will be worth their while to read your copy -- and one thing you can give them is free infor­mation. Tell them something useful right at the beginning. You can even write that part of your letter in editorial style, rather than making it obvious that you’re trying to sell them something.

Another method is to promise at the beginning that they’ll find valuable information later on in the piece, e.g., “Keep reading for the list of 10 foods you should always avoid if you suffer from heartburn.”

This is especially easy for online marketers, who can offer a downloadable free premium. Online marketers today have also figured out that if they don’t give away a lot of free information before getting read­ers to the point of sale, there’s a big chance they’ll lose the prospect before getting to the moment of truth.

5. Make your copy specific. We’re so accustomed to seeing wild advertising claims, especially on the internet, that we don’t really believe them anymore. To counteract skep­ticism, one ad expert advises saying, “97,482 people have bought one of these appliances” rather than “Nearly 100,000 of these appliances have been sold.” The first statement sounds like a fact. The second sounds like copywriting bluster. Simply put, being more precise with exact numbers or “real data,” rather than rounding up or being general, will always enhance your copy.

6. Write long copy. You’ve probably heard that copy can nei­ther be too long nor too short, just too boring. But if it’s done intelligently, longer copy does a much better job of selling than shorter copy -- if it’s laid out attractively, it’s always more effective.

And you can get the best of both worlds by using headlines and subheads to create a smaller, quicker-to-read piece within the longer piece. Then you’ll appeal to the “skimmers” while still providing plenty of sales talk to those who were interested and want more information. This is especially important when sending emails or setting up web pages. These can be difficult to read if the copy isn’t broken up.

7. Write more copy than you need to fill the space. Write more copy than you need, then refine it down -- copy gets better when you start long and then cut it because it gets tighter and more to the point. Don’t worry about length while you’re writing. Just put down all your ideas in as much detail as you want. Then go back and edit, refining as you go, taking out the excess, rephrasing and getting your points in the most efficient order.

8. Avoid helping your competitors. Don’t spend a lot of time talking in general terms about how great your type of prod­uct is. Talk more specifically about all the great features of your own product.

Let’s say you’re selling a home cleaning service. If you spend most of your pitch describing how nice a homeowner’s life will be with someone else doing the cleaning, they might agree, go online to see who else is offering cleaning services in the area and end up hiring someone else! Instead, use your copy to focus on the great features of your cleaning service and how you’re so much better than anyone else.

9. Make every advertisement a complete sales pitch. Don’t assume your prospect has ever read anything else about you or knows anything about the advantages you offer. Don’t talk about half the things that make you stand out in one piece and the other half in another promotional piece. For all you know, you’ll only have this one shot to make this sale or get some­one to your blog. Always make the most of it.

10. Urge the reader to act. Every promo­tional piece should have a clear call to action: Act now! Call today! Order while supplies last! You’ve spent your entire piece getting your readers’ attention and explaining why they should want your product or service. Now put the bow on the package -- tell them what you want them to do. And if you can add a sense of urgency by telling them it’s a limited-time offer, supplies are limited, or these special prices can’t last long, all the better. Without a clear call to action, the rest of the piece, as good as it may be, could be a complete waste.

11. Put captions under illustrations. As advertising expert, David Ogilvy once said: “More people read the captions under illustrations than read the body copy, so never use an illustration without putting a caption under it. Your caption should include the brand name and/or the promise.”

12. Use mail order methods in direct mail advertising. Rules of good advertising, e.g., a strong headline and opening sen­tence, work for every medium, including online advertising.

13. Overstatement vs. understatement. Avoid advertising blus­ter. Give supported facts and go for believability.

14. Avoid trick slogans. Don’t use slogans that are obviously untrue. Ad expert John Caples offered the example of a mint manufacturer whose slogan was “On every tongue” -- an obvious impossi­bility. A more effective slogan would have been “The flavor lasts.”

15. Get help from others. Find a sounding board to give you honest opinions on what you write.

16. Don’t say that a salesperson will call. You’ll cut down responses to your offer for a free item if you tell prospects you’ll be following up with a call (or a letter or email). Don’t tell them your sales plan. Caples said this could reduce responses to coupons by 75 percent.

17. Study the selling copy in mail order catalogs. At the time Caples was writing ads, mail order catalogs had the best copy­writers. His advice simply meant you should learn how to write great copy by reading the best. That’s great advice to follow today in your own medium.

[madmusic-blog]

Why Does Multi-Level Marketing See Millennials as Easy Pickings?

Two days ago, something weird happened to me. I was mistaken for a millennial. It’s not the first time that someone has thought I was younger than my chronological age, despite my grey hair, paunch, and irascibility. But this time the person mistook me for a millennial because of my writing. Never mind the current enthusiasm for millennial bashing: I considered it a compliment. Millennial bashing is what Alex from A Clockwork Orange describes as “old age having a go at youth,” occasional barbs that may be hurtful to those delicate flowers who are cut too close to the quick, but that are for the most part harmless…until now.

The errant document was an email. In it, I was given the full court press by someone trying to rope me into the multi-level marketing dystopia. It went on and on about how I, as a millennial, could get rich quick without really working all that hard. I just needed to get other people to work hard for me.

Color me skeptical.

Now, I have a long history of really unskilled con artists trying to rope me into what’s now being branded as "social selling." I remember years ago a nice but dim bulb (it seems the smarter you get the meaner you get) approached me at work. One morning, out of the clear blue, this coworker said, “I like to help people make money.” Without thinking I fired back, “Then why don’t you help yourself make money? You have four kids, a wife who is a stay-at-home mom and a job that pays less than an unreliable paperboy. You need money more than I do.”

I am not paranoid, but I was born with a healthy skepticism. Even as a child I grilled my parents about Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny; I needed to know what exactly was in it for them. (As an adult, when my daughter asked me what the Tooth Faerie did with the teeth, I told her he sold them to a tooth broker who sold them to a guy in Hong Kong who forced little children to make jewelry out of them. If you’re going to lie, especially to children, you ought construct an elaborate backstory that paints a rich if unlikely tapestry of characters and detail.) So, it is through that lens of skepticism that I view all “social marketing.”

The email targeted millennials, who it described as loving the hustle. By that I assume the author meant the fast pace of the modern world, not the 1970’s disco move that is making a half-hearted comeback and must be eradicated at all costs. The missive went on to justify social selling to millennials, because “full-time jobs are no longer enough for this ambitious generation, as millennials diversify their income with side gigs like social selling --"

Stop right there.

First of all, full-time jobs are no longer enough for most people starting out, not because they aren’t intellectually challenging or fulfilling, but because they practically pay in magic beans. The benefits (sic) can barely be construed as benefiting anyone, except greedy business owners, and the 40-hour work week ceased to exist in the 1980’s. So now, besides being paid less, full-time employees work longer, get less paid time off, and have to pay more out of pocket to access their benefits. Let's cut the crap and call it like it is -- young people aren’t getting their basic human needs met by a lot of full-time jobs and must take on extra work just to make ends meet.

Next, I’m not sure it’s fair to categorize all millennials as ambitious. I have met some who by age 30 have a solid stock portfolio, hold interests in cool businesses like microbreweries or performance venues, and are driven to succeed. I anxiously await the day when they wrest power from the decrepit rulers of this country and set us on a course correction. But I have also have met people of the same age with the ambition of a slug, who behave like spoilt, entitled, attention-seeking bags of puke. I, for my part, was in the latter category at their age.

No one has ever described me as ambitious. Although by all outward appearances, my teen years led some people to the erroneous conclusion that I was a go-getter. However, I must say that I never felt entitled, specifically owing to my parents actually saying, “You aren’t entitled to anything.” While some fathers imparted the wisdom they had acquired over decades, talks with my dad usually focused on the mono-theme of how I needed to, Get off my lazy (let’s say rump). Stop sleeping to 1:00 p.m. and get a job. Of my six siblings and me, I was the only one, who as a teen, my parents had serious doubts would ever make a living doing anything.

Despite all the doubting, I was working three and sometime four jobs at a time. Why? Well it wasn’t because I was ambitious: I was required to pay my own way through parochial school, buy my own clothes, and pay for whatever food I ate outside of the house. Was I ambitious? Heck no. I just liked having money much more than not having money. To make that happen, I had to do more than work at my full-time, poverty-level-wage-paying job. Car repairs, gas, insurance, and beer all cost money, so I hustled. For the record, I never enjoyed the hustle. But, as one friend observed, “You are never going to find a job petting a millionaire’s dog and watching his TV,” and at least so far, he has been right.

And another thing.

It was the line, “as millennials diversify their income with side gigs like social selling,” that actually made me laugh out loud. It as though Marie Antoinette, when told the peasants had no bread, had spun it, “The peasants are more health conscious than ever before and are recognizing that too high a percentage of bread in their diets just isn’t good for them. They are losing weight, and we have all but eradicated obesity among the poor.” While true and in French, Marie’s take would conveniently ignore the larger problem.

Multi-tiered marketing is right for some people. A sociopathic slime ball from my high school class purportedly makes a tidy sum (of course the sole source of this information is his incessant bragging), and I know a handful of people who successfully dabble in multi-tiered marketing. In fact, my sister actively sought out a product she was having trouble finding and became a distributor. She never bothered bugging her family and friends about becoming part of her down-line, she just wanted to buy the product. I bought from her regularly.

My ex-wife (rest her soul) sold Tupperware, and I have the largest private collection of Tupperware in the world. I love Tupperware and will smack a stranger in their filthy maw should they disparage it. So I wouldn’t say I am against social selling per se, but I am alarmed that the predators in these companies, promising big payoffs to young entrepreneurs, aren’t telling millennials that the only way to make real money is to build a network below them. Doing that takes a certain amount of moral ambiguity.

Warning to millennials.

So despite my rambling preamble, here is what young entrepreneurs need to know about social selling:

I have never met anyone with an IQ above 75 who has stuck with this for long.

It is an incredible amount of work.

The money isn’t that great. When you factor in the amount of time and effort you must put into it, the average person isn’t making all that much; were it not for the fact that it is illegal and immoral, you would be better off robbing convenience stores. (Do not rob convenience stores.)

Many of your friends and acquaintances will come to resent and despise you and your poor man’s carnival pitch.

Now, having said all this, let me just head off the angry emails from the predators claiming to be legitimately helping ambitious, hustle-loving go-getters. I know that there are many, many people who have become wildly successful in social selling. One need only look at the income statements of the multi-tiered marketing giants to understand that a lot of people make a lot of money doing this. So, in many respects it’s like real estate, insurance, or any commissioned sales job, you control how successful you are. Then what’s the difference? Full disclosure. The real estate and insurance industries have far more successful entrepreneurs who do in fact use social selling to be successful. Word of mouth can mean the difference between becoming a millionaire and a broke, washed-up salesperson. But realtors aren’t fed a pack of lies when they are recruited. Yes, they are told that they can make millions if they work hard, but generally they are told just how hard it is that they will have to work, and they aren’t generally fed a line of bull how they will get rich overnight. Too many of the more predatory multi-tiered marketing companies (and certainly not all of them are that) appear to be misrepresenting the likelihood of success, not unlike the sleazy agent who promises the naïve young starlet she will be a leading lady when he secretly plans to move her into porn.

So listen up millennials: the birds of prey are circling; they mistake your desperation to survive with stupidity, and they take you for easy pickings. Prove them wrong. Do it for me.