(This is a reprint from my now retired print magazine. It was originally published in November 2005.)
Another really expensive internet marketing learning product hit the net in October-one that I am particularly interested in! I was disappointed to find out the price tag was nearly $1000.
Naturally, my disappointment is based on my current inability to make the purchase! It isn’t based on any suspicion that the product isn’t absolutely worth every penny.
But it does re-introduce the much debated topic: Are internet learning products overpriced?
Well, now, that depends on who you talk to.
One of the first high priced learning products I’m aware of is ‘Traffic Secrets’ by John Reese. When Traffic Secrets hit the web priced at nearly one grand-you could hear the collective shock resound across the internet.
Frugal minded Moms especially were verbal about their opinion that ‘no learning product can be worth a thousand dollars!’
The funny thing about this comment is that it would lead you to believe that they may have actually bought the product if it had been priced lower…. Say $500 instead of $1000? Probably not.
If it were offered at $250?
If it were offered rock bottom at $99.99?
The answer would most likely still be NO.
Truth be told-MOST of the Moms I know have never spent one single shiny penny on learning products. So their shock and disapproval of a $1000 price tag is pretty moot.
So why are so many Moms so darn cheap when it comes to learning products? And by learning products I’m including paid teleseminars, ebooks, audio courses, etc.
Some have a big fear that they might ‘get taken’. No one wants to shell out money only to discover that they already know everything that’s in the book. But this shouldn’t stop anyone-most of the learning products I’ve seen come with a money back guarantee. If you do happen to find that you could have written the book yourself-go ahead and request a refund!
Another big bunch are all convinced that everything they need to know about internet marketing is available online somewhere for free-so why spend money on learning?
There’s not much you can do about a cheapskate. I wrote an article about having a poverty mentality in business-it’s a really good one-look for it online.
The truth is that Moms who WISELY spend money on learning products MAKE MORE MONEY than those who don’t.
Do I think every Mom should jump up and go buy a thousand dollar learning course? No. We don’t start out in grad school do we? But we do need to start somewhere. There are some great ebooks, teleseminars and audio courses that you can learn a LOT from and they come with very reasonable price tags. Sometimes we just take content more seriously and are more likely to apply it when we’ve invested some hard earned cash to get a hold of it.
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Leslie Truex is the pajama-clad work-at-home mom dedicated to helping other moms live and work comfortably. She's the author of The Work-At-Home Success Bible and owner of 
Laurie Ayers is a WAHM from Michigan and a Star Director with 
I personally think there are a few really great free resources to get your started and once you’ve gottne through those and really worked them then you can add to your knowledge by purchasing select pieces. The 30 Day challenge I think is fabulous and the SEO course from J Walker.
I always counter the argument that you can learn it all online for free with “what’s your time worth?” It takes a lot of effort to comb through the dreck that’s out there, whether it’s merely outdated or flat out misleading.
Stephanies last blog post..My Son is Turning into a Computer Geek
The problem with the money back guarantees are, some people are worried that these claims are false and the promises will not be kept, or they will bring up some fine print, which of course, many didn’t read.
I agree with what Stephanie said about the time thing. Sometimes it’s worth it because it’s like paying someone to comb through and organize the information for you. But then again, another question is, how do I know if this “editor” is doing a good job filtering out useful information for you and present it in an organize and effective way?
And I’m obviously not a mom.
Kelly–
You’ve described me to a T! I get excited reading the sales letters of info products only to be let down at the bottom when they take “3 payments of $249.” I pride myself on being a pretty good researcher, so I don’t pay more than $20 for an ebook, etc.
That being said, obviously these products help people. I might be missing out hugely for not investing.
I think that I (and maybe other mothers) don’t value myself enough to invest large sums of money in furthering my business. I need to work on that.
Susan Payton, The Marketing Eggsperts last blog post..Internet Marketing Book Coming Soon! (It’s Still in My Head)
I think you are right that many of us don’t value ourselves enough to invest in proper tools like e-learning courses. I personally really value education and I have no qualms paying something for it. BUT at the same time, $1000 for any one course does not seem reasonable to me. I have seen programs I wanted to invest in but I won’t spend that much. I’ll evaluate each time and maybe work on spending a little more when it seems that there is a lot of benefit (probably not more than a couple hundred dollars at a time though!)
Laurie/HaloSecretarials last blog post..Tuesday Time Tip