So I have been reading a lot of the product launches lately, and I have noticed a trend that mirrors my experience in the small business software world – please bear with me, there IS a point to all this…

I have been involved with many companies in the past, who start off by offering fantastic value to small business operators, drastically under-cutting the prices of the big players in the market, and achieving a loyal customer base very quickly. Over time the software is improved, tweaked, and larger companies get interested in being clients/users. This in turn leads to an expansion in the company producing the software, and eventually a review of the business, producing processes more closely aligned to “big business” clients.

When this happens, the circle is complete; a small, efficient, bold-as-brass upstart is absorbed into the establishment, forgets its roots and foundations, and becomes yet another vendor of over-priced products. The original client base slowly gets forgotten.

So, let’s take this story and see how it applies to online marketing… to be honest, I am SICK AND TIRED of some of the stuff being pumped out lately. I have seen far far too many scenarios that go a little like this:

1. Person or Company X put out some great PR and hype in relation to how they provide free and cheap tools and information, that will really help the little guy share in the success.

2. Over time, various updates and articles start to talk in terms of “successful people spend lots of money on tools and education”. While true, and while valid – a LOT of this talk is grooming you to a mindset where you will happily pay money to these people.

3. Ultimately a new and improved service is launched, perhaps in conjunction with another “big name” – only now, instead of being a few bucks – it’s serious money. But hey, serious people will pay serious money, right?

What annoys me, similar to what annoys me with the small business software world, is not the people doing this – hey, if they want to move themselves into a, quite frankly, more lucrative but more competitive market, then so be it. No, what annoys me is that those people who need the cheaper solutions, who ARE serious but don’t have serious dollars to spare – these people get left behind every single time.

I will be brutally honest with you here – if you’re going to make a success online then you WILL need to invest time and money. If you’re on a limited budget then you are going to have to invest more time for sure.

BUT YOU DO NOT HAVE TO SPEND THOUSANDS!!!!

Sorry for shouting, but it’s true. Some courses and systems will cost you plenty of up-front dollars, or hefty subscriptions. Is the content worth it? More than likely, but that doesn’t make it any more affordable for the ordinary punter – and forget all that “can you afford NOT to do this” crap – it’s a sales/marketing device!

No, there is a vast “underclass” of serious online marketers with limited budgets, unlimited desire, and they keep getting crapped on over and over and over.

Do I have solutions? You bet – and in many ways perhaps this rant itself is a marketing technique. Ultimately I want to continue to make money, and I am not yet in the position where I can give everything away for free (though that would be nice!)

But do I have to rip people off in the process? NO WAY!

This why you won’t see recommendations from me for expensive things – my recommended traffic education is 30 bucks per month (a small percentage of what others charge for the same information), my recommended list building tool is under 10 bucks per month. My recommended mail software is the same low flat rate regardless of how many people in your list!

My own toolkit costs 17 bucks per month and I often give it away for FREE – if people partner with me, either through product purchase or my back end businesses, I reward them rather than ripping them off!

Realistically I would say it’s possible to arm yourself with adequate tools for less than $70 per month – and in all cases you can make money by referring others to the same tools!

This makes the task of funding much easier – for example when I first started taking this stuff seriously, I covered auto ship for a business and all my tool subscriptions by simply packing in smoking. For one of the higher priced solutions, I would have had to given up a lot more without doubt.

So, don’t buy into the hype, don’t get yourself into financial trouble – hook into my free email series, mail me, skype me, phone me or connect with me on Twitter. I’ll show you the affordable way to get this stuff going, and furthermore I promise that I, and Avallach Technology, will never abandon the little guy by chasing the corporate dollars.

THAT is my 100% money-back, cast iron guarantee, my “usp” and my total philosophy, all wrapped up in one.

I hope you like it – I know I do

Gaz