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FIB - Scams 101
Re: Michael Masterson/AWAI Copywriting Course Scam
Posted By: TheShadow In Response To: Re: Michael Masterson/AWAI Copywriting Course Scam (jimg)
Date: Wednesday, June 15, 2011, at 4:12 p.m.(pst)
>> This controversy has been raging for several years, as the long thread
>> attests. But here's another interesting note.>> One of the copywriters mentioned in connection with AWAI is Bob Bly,
>> Bly is also touted by McGraw-Hill, according to at least one web site,
>> as "America's top copywriter.">> On one a rather dated page of his blog, Bly replies to questions about
>> AWAI. He calls it a great course...and says the people behind it are
>> really great copywriters and direct marketers.>> As for the question of earning huge incomes for writing a few letters
>> a year, ole Bobby says that's "a bit more complex.">> But he's willing to answer it. In fact he has a 'program' that will
>> tell you exactly what the industry is all about...and how you can
>> capitalize on it. His program is called "The Copywriting Industry
>> Exposed" and it costs $97.
>> Oh yea, it's for sale through AWAI. (Hmmm, what a coincidence) His
>> other program "Getting and Keeping Great Clients" is listed on
>> AWAI for a paltry $125. (Hey, look! Another coincidence)>> Bly is also listed as a member of AWAI's "board"....or
>> whatever the group that hypes this stuff is called.>> So it would seem: writing legitimate copy is hard....convincing
>> wannabees they can make fortunes doing it is easy:o)Bob Bly is a bit of a mystery. Ford has known him since way back in the American Media Group days (late 80s), and I think Ford considers him a key mentor in the craft of writing deceptively. Bly has a more substantial reputation than Ford, with what appear to be some legitimate credentials. We know, of course, that Ford has no legitimate credentials whatsoever. Ford does have solid writing ability, but I believe it was Bly who taught him the ins and outs of writing deceptive copy in the direct marketing field.
Now of course, Ford was forced out of direct marketing when the government closed down American Media Group (for fraud) and issued a cease and desist order against Ford and his partner Joel Nadel (now deceased). That's why Ford went to Agora (Baltimore) and wrote for Bill Bonner for several years. After he accumulated enough capital at Agora, he opened AWAI back in his original stomping grounds, south Florida. Because of the cease and desist order, AWAI isn't a direct marketing firm, but a corporation offering correspondence courses.
Bly seems to be more of a professional at marketing, and may even have an actual work history in the field with real companies. He may have taken that experience to become something of a legitimate author in the field. Ford, for all his self-centered bragging, is strictly a dilettante, who's faking it, and winging it, in everything he does. He's never even taken a course in economics, and could not tell you in any detail how economies work.
Bly has associated his name with Ford's, which means he's got to be a scam artist of some kind. He might just be one of a slightly more knowledgeable variety.
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