
Just today I had Michael Stelzner bitching at me via email.
The reason?
He doesn’t like the post I wrote about his website, Social Media Examiner.
- First he wanted me to leave a comment to his comment. I said no.
- Then he got mad and said that I should delete the post. I said no.
- After that he got mad and said I should write about this so everyone can see how I lack integrity.
So I’m writing about it.
Why on earth a guy that built a site from the ground up with $5,000 and got it to earn $1 million in one year would feel threatened by me I have no idea.
But he is.
Someone else that’s threatened by me is Joe Pulizzi.
He managed to write a post this week on the site he started, Content Marketing Institute.
Yes, these founders usually are capable of writing a post once a week.
This week Joe talked about wearable technology. He suggested that there are “opportunities for utilizing data from these devices to provide enhanced or personalized customer experiences.”
What the fuck does that mean?
What it means is that advertisers are going to try and hit the 39.5 million of you that have a wearable device.
Wow, isn’t that the last fucking thing in the world you want – an ad when you’re on your morning run or counting your steps up the stairs?
I said as much in a comment on the site. It got through…probably by mistake.
I went back to see if anyone replied to it later today and noticed I had a typo. I decided to edit that. When I went back a few moments later, the comment had been deleted.
Hmm, fishy. I’ll let you judge what the problem was (besides Joe’s ego being bruised):
Update: I'd like to point out that my comment on this site went through the next day. What you will have to watch for on this site are comments being posted but then not showing up if you refresh your screen or go back later. Another pitfall of moderation.
That’s what Search Engine Land said my comment was on a post on November 13 about eBooks.
Brent Csutoras had to come in and explain things, rile down a few folks.
As if getting 14 comments on a post is a bad thing!
If only the posts he put in his Google+ group got so many. A guy can dream, right?
Now, what is a bad thing is the advice this author gave. Sure, if you’re a beginner and thinking that eBooks are just the thing for you, then maybe it’s helpful.
But if you’ve been in the eBook business for a few years you know that most of that advice won’t do much of anything for you.
But…that’s the advice you have to expect from Social Media Examiner, Content Marketing Institute, and Search Engine Land…at least when the founders are around.
- They’re successful – they don’t need to impress anyone, or earn anymore money.
- They don’t need to go around to social groups and share content.
- They sure as shit don’t need someone coming around and making people think, ‘hey, is this site giving me the best information it could or is it jacking me around a bit?’
These sites have lost the hunger.
That is so fucking awesome that I cannot begin to describe how happy I am!
Do you know how easy it is to get past these sites?
Michael Stelzner is groveling to me in email – he is totally insecure in his success.
What else is his site insecure in? What else are the countless big sites insecure in?
We talked a lot about the Big Boys and how to topple them in my 2014 guidebook, Visit My Site, Bitch!
Those of you who read it got some good strategy points, the kind that you might learn if Sun Tzu gave content tips.
I hope you keep your eye on the ball.
Since I began going to my 18 sites I’ve seen the cracks, and how easy it is to split them open and cause doubt among the users of those sites.
It’s called disruption...though many of us know it as telling the truth.
It’s a technique you might want to use. Disrupt their content and their message.
It’s easy – just say what you think about the content!
So often these days the big sites are putting up shoddy content. When you point this out – when you effectively say the emperor has no clothes – they get defensive, start to cover up.
They take down your comments.
Clearly you're doing something right.
Keep them on their heels like that.