Is Smart Money Methods A Scam? [Hint: Not A Smart Choice]

 

Welcome to my Smart Money Methods review!

Is it a smart move to spend your money on Smart Money Methods — another make money online opportunity promising riches? The site claims it is, but I beg to differ. So is Smart Money Methods a scam? Keep reading to find out the answer.

SMART MONEY METHODS SUMMARY

Product Name:Smart Money MethodsFounder: Mark FosterProduct Type: TrainingPrice: $37-$199Best For: People who want to make money with affiliate marketing through Amazon

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Summary: Smart Money Methods promises far more than it can possibly deliver, starting with the blaring headline across the top of the home (and only) page on the website. There it makes the preposterous claim that you can make $7,500 today so long as you’re willing to sign up and part with your money right now.

Truth is, Smart Money Methods doesn’t provide any specific steps or plan to achieve this goal, so you’re left to your own devices to create and implement a money-making strategy. Most of the information provided in the “training” can be found elsewhere for free, so you’ll definitely want to pass on this one.

Rating: 1/10Recommended:No

WHAT IS SMART MONEY METHODS?

The method sold by Smart Money Methods is a bit of a mystery since the website doesn’t offer any description of what you receive after making a payment. Thus, it’s hard to file a complaint or call something a scam if you don’t even know what you’re paying for in the first place.

Instead of solid information and facts, the Smart Money Methods website features big promises of quick, easy cash and questionable testimonies from supposed customers. It’s only after you pony up some cash that you find out what you’re actually getting.

Turns out this course only offers simple lessons in affiliate marketing and tips on how to use social media to promote a website. The supposed training just gives you a very basic overview and doesn’t offer any in-depth information or actionable steps.

Smart Money Methods doesn’t come with classes, support, personal assistance, step-by-step training or any of the other necessary information to build a thriving, successful online business.

You could say it’s the equivalent of paying for a brochure that describes a class, but not for the class itself. In short, Smart Money Methods just sells rudimentary information on affiliate and social media marketing, far from enough to springboard your business.

HOW DOES SMART MONEY METHODS WORK?

There’s no specific program or method taught in Smart Money Methods. It’s up to you to absorb the paltry content, research the topics deeper on your own, and then create an actionable plan.

As mentioned, all you get is basic information related to affiliate marketing, with a focus on how to use Amazon’s affiliate program known as Amazon Associates.

After paying for the Smart Money Methods training, you’ll receive a PDF file that explains how to join Amazon’s program, how to select a niche, how to set up a website, and how to set up affiliate links. None of this information goes into detail or provides specific steps.

For example, you’ll learn the very basics of setting up a website such as choosing a host, purchasing a domain name and selecting a design. But what you don’t learn is how to create the actual site itself, something that can be daunting even for tech-savvy consumers.

And you don’t need Smart Money Methods to figure out how to join Amazon’s affiliate program and use their links — all that information is freely available on Amazon, not to mention thousands of blogs and YouTube videos.

Selecting a niche and learning how to set up a website are both topics that require in-depth training if you hope to make money from your venture.

Upsells and More Upsells

The standard base package doesn’t offer any information on other types of affiliate programs, how to market your website or the best ways to use social media. And the upgrades aren’t much of an improvement. All you’ll receive is a series of super short YouTube videos that fail to lay out a specific plan or provide any detail.

At a cost of $199, the first upsell, Smart Money 2.0, includes about 15 videos totaling about one hour of content. Much of the training repeats the information found in the PDF document, just with some new information sprinkled in, such as how to to use YouTube and Instagram to help promote your affiliate site. But once again, it doesn’t provide the depth of information needed to truly promote yourself on these sites.

At a cost of $177, the second upsell, Smart Money Pro, includes a combination of PDF files and videos. Focusing on social media, the training is slightly more in-depth and does give a few actionable steps to take, but still seems overpriced for the amount of information provided.

WILL YOU MAKE MONEY WITH SMART MONEY METHODS?

If you only use Smart Money Methods to build your business, you’re not likely to make much money, if at all. It simply lacks the amount of information you’ll need to start a successful venture.

Also, this course’s so-called “method” only focuses on a single affiliate stream: Amazon. While Amazon is undoubtedly a powerhouse of online sellers and might play an important role in a successful affiliate business, it’s not a wise financial decision to put all your eggs in one basket, especially since Amazon has been known to ban affiliate accounts with little to no recourse. [source]

Sure, it’s possible to use Smart Money Methods as a jumping off point to start generating income online. A complete beginner may find some useful information for getting started and subsequently build a website that makes a good income.

But let’s face it, that’s not likely to happen without lots of trial and error and spending lots of time seeking out more in-depth information elsewhere.

Smart Money Methods also doesn’t offer any sort of support or feedback, which is crucial when trying to overcome some of the obstacles to making money online. Whenever you have any questions, want someone to review your new site, or just need a little extra help, there’s no one there to support you.

Even veteran website owners rely on the expertise of others when they want to grow their business, so it makes it that much more challenging for a beginner who doesn’t have anywhere to turn to with questions.

In short, it’s unlikely you’ll be able to make money relying solely on Smart Money Methods. Yes, you might find some of the information useful, but it’s far from complete. If you want to make a good income, you’ll have to spend a great deal of time outside of this program.

SO… IS SMART MONEY METHODS A SCAM?

While it might not be an outright scam, Smart Money Methods is less than upfront about what you get for your money and tells some outright lies about potential profits. Its marketing methods are also less than honest.

When you pay for the Smart Money Methods training, you receive a PDF file that offers some insights into making money online. Unlike legitimate websites that tell you exactly what you get for your money before making a purchase, you can only assume you’ll receive what you’re promised to get from Smart Money Methods. When looked at it this way, you could say Smart Money Methods isn’t a scam. After all, you paid for something and received something.

But that’s not the only part of the transaction. To get you to make a purchase, the website makes some pretty outlandish claims. First, you’re led to believe you can make more than $7,500 in a day. That’s a pretty staggering amount. It’s also completely unrealistic.

Even hard sellers on Amazon and eBay didn’t start out with sales like that. Everyone has to start somewhere and it takes a long time to build up a successful online business, whether it’s an affiliate business or a retail one. Anyone telling you otherwise is fooling you.

Besides the over-the-top claims about income, Smart Money Methods also tries to convince you that they offer something scarce. In other words, the site claims you’re one of a lucky few to have the chance to join their program. That’s patently untrue.

Every time you go to the site it tells the same story: limited spots, act now, etc. In reality, the company will sell their training program to anyone willing to fork over his/her money. There’s no limitation and no reason to jump into it unless you’re the owner of Smart Money Methods trying to get people to hand over their hard-earned cash at a moment’s notice.

Fake Testimonials

The testimonials given by Smart Money Methods don’t have the hallmark of genuine reviews. Each one has a similar story, a similar tone and is just generic enough to be relatable to a wide audience.

Generally speaking, legitimate reviews of a company or product come from a wide range of viewpoints, convey different information, and don’t always produce tidy little marketing soundbites.

More Shady Tactics

Another tactic used on the site is questionable. A small box in the corner continuously pops up showing other supposed recent purchases, often showing locations near you…

This is similar to a tactic used by door-to-door salesmen who take down the name of your neighbor and then try to convince you to buy something by throwing your neighbor’s name into the conversation and telling you your neighbor didn’t miss out on a great deal so neither should you.

Smart Money Methods also doesn’t offer any information about the company, where it’s located, or how to reach someone if there’s a problem — all information any legitimate business should have.

If something goes wrong, or you have a question, or simply want to know what you might be purchasing, there’s no way to reach anyone by phone, email, chat, or any other method.

All in all, the lack of clear information, outrageous claims, questionable testimonials and reviews, and the false implication of scarcity aren’t the trademarks of a legitimate, trustworthy business.

PROS OF SMART MONEY METHODS

• Smart Money Methods does provide some training in exchange for your money. If you’ve never heard of affiliate marketing, didn’t know that Amazon had an affiliate plan and don’t want to take the time to research it, the program may have some value for you. It may also help a complete beginner who’s overwhelmed by too much information at one time to get started on a site.
• thumbs-upThe second upsell, for $177, does provide some useful information on using social media to market your affiliate website. It goes into deeper detail, covers several different social media sites and offers up some actionable steps that will help get visitors to your site.

CONS SMART MONEY METHODS

• The information provided by the program isn’t sufficient to build a thriving online affiliate business from scratch. The basic plan provides only a shallow overview of what such a business might look like. The expensive upgrades don’t include enough information to make up for the lack of training in the original PDF document.
• Training materials are limited to PDF documents and short videos. No interactive training is provided. There are no forums, guides, action checklists, or any of the other types of materials that make an affiliate training program successful. Also, there’s no one to reach out to if you have a question, problem, or complaint.
• Although the third upsell does provide some useful information, it’s grossly overpriced at $177. The vast majority of the information provided by Smart Money Methods can be found for free through simple Google searches, available in the form of articles, videos, blog posts, and training provided by companies who accept affiliate marketers. For example, Amazon has an entire page of tips dedicated to helping their affiliates succeed, and that’s in addition to complete instructions on how to join and set up links and banner ads. Many blogs and interactive forums are also dedicated to the very topic of affiliate marketing. If you want a detailed plan and step-by-step instructions, you can find sites that offer such training for much less than the $199 and $177 upgrades Smart Money Methods tries to sell you.
• The unbelievable earnings claims are also a black mark against Smart Money Methods. Even if the training does provide a small amount of overpriced useful information, the fact that the site makes outlandish promises is a major red flag and is a clear sign to keep looking elsewhere for legitimate information with realistic expectations.

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CONCLUSION

Smart Money Methods isn’t recommended. The training is insufficient, the claims are greatly exaggerated, and there’s zero support or assistance available if you need it. There are too many legitimate marketers and companies who can help aspiring entrepreneurs build successful websites to waste time and money on a site like Smart Money Methods.

SO, NOW WHAT?

Feel a bit disappointed after reading this review? I don’t blame you. But rest assured, there really are legitimate training programs out there to learn affiliate marketing. And there’s one I always recommend above the rest and it offers EVERYTHING Smart Money Methods doesn’t:

• Sold step-by-step training teaching you all you need to know to get your affiliate marketing business off the ground.
• 24/7 Support as well as an active Live Chat to assist you whenever you need help.
• No upsells. Fixed price is included with everything up front.
• A proven system that’s helped launch countless successful affiliate businesses worldwide.

This platform also includes fast and reliable web hosting, domain registration, a keyword research tool and a host of other great features.

NOW IT’S YOUR TURN!

What are your thoughts about Smart Money Methods? Leave your questions and comments below!