Apparently, John Chow is trying his hand at viral videos. Not sure he should go into it full time. This one may go viral, but why? Are we laughing with you John or at you? For those of you who can actually stand to watch the video to the end, I think his point is something like “I can make a shitty video go viral and get a bunch of shitty traffic.” The point he may be missing is that a lot of videos go viral because they are either funny, informative, beautiful, etc. to watch. They give the viewer something that they think is worth sharing. Perhaps this is the best that Chow can come up with, but I wouldn’t want this one to be on my resume … Anyway, this is John Chow … talking shit.

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FROM: JOHNCHOW.COM: Misleading Credit Pricing
Something that Entrecard needs to work on is its pricing system. For the longest time, I was the most expensive blog in the network. Now I’m not even on page one. This is because of members mass dropping cards in order to inflate their price and build up their credits. The current number one site cost 466 credits per day but has only 72 RSS readers (he wisely removed the FeedBurner count from his blog).This gaming of the system is making it hard to tell which sites will deliver traffic and which sites won’t send anything. I wouldn’t spend 466 credit to advertise on a blog with only 72 RSS readers but all his spots are sold. People think high price equal quality but for many Entrecard member sites, that is not the case. Until Entrecard figures out a way to prevent gaming of their system, you should check out the site more to prevent having your hard earned credits wasted.Get 200 Entrecard Credits

Entrecard allows me to send any credit amount I want to another Entrecard user. So, the first 35 Entrecard users who writes a recommendation for me will each get 200 credit add to his account. That’s still not enough to buy a spot on this blog but it’ll get you a lot closer. You don’t have to use the credit to advertise on my blog - feel free to use it to buy space on any of the 2,500 blogs in the Entrecard system. In order to write a recommendation and get the 200 credits, you need to be an Entrecard member.

John Chow, of all people to complain about gaming the system, is doing exactly that. While bribing people with a measly 200 Entrecard credits to give him an Entrecard review, he bemoans the fact that he is no longer on the front page of Entrecard for his category. He belittles the higher priced blogs that are on the front page by speculating that they are just worthless mass card droppers and that your points are better spent on a “quality” splog like his. I recently read one blogger who paid for an ad on Chow and received a whopping 43 visitors from the ad. Whoooop didooooo … 43 visitors.

In reality, the leaders of the category “Making Money Online” are some hard working dedicated bloggers who post quality content and work hard to drive traffic to their blogs as opposed to such banal content as what they had to eat today or bribes for Entrecard recommendations. In the top 3 listings are the likes of Problogger, one of the top blogs on the Net, famous for it’s quality content.

Of course, John is no stranger to gaming the system. Bitch Slapped by Google, banned by Digg and Technorati, John is a Master Gamer. Gaming the system only seems to bother him when the tables are turned and someone else is on top. See also: John Chow Buys Comments | Evil Blog Promotion Ideas | Evil Blog Contest | John Chow Stuffs Cookies — Pretty obvious that Chow’s evil gaming methods have made his blog popular rather than quality content.

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With all the problogger sites making obscene amounts of money, it is only natural that other bloggers aspire to follow in their footsteps. Often these bloggers have achieved (at least in their own minds) Guru status. They are the leaders and everyone else, the followers … the wannabees. In a way, I’m a wannabee also. I wannabee rich. By the same token, I’d rather etch out my own path to fame and fortune than go the same route as many of the so called A-listers. I visit them often to see what they are up to and more often that not, they fail to capture my attention. Obviously, they are good at profiteering, but not very good at being interesting. As an example, I’ll use one of the most successful blogs on the Internet … John Chow’s blog. I don’t personally have any gripes against this guy, but to me, this blog is just plain boring. If I have to see one more post about what he eats, I will throw up. Latest topics and headlines from John’s blog:

1. I am featured in the February issue of Entrepreneur magazine. You should be able to find it at your local newsstands now. My article is on page 52. Here is an actual quote from that article: “His blog remains a somewhat banal combination of his money count and what he had for lunch–the blogging equivalent of Seinfeld, the show “about nothing.”

2. The second post is a guest post with some advice on writing:

#1 - Don’t Ever Talk About Being Dugg/Reddited/Stumbled
I don’t know … take a look at the discussions about what social media can do for traffic and you’ll see that maybe this is a good topic if presented correctly.

#2 - Don’t Disclose Failure Unless It’s To Make a Point
Sorry, I disagree. How do we learn if not from our mistakes? Why not share this info so that others can benefit?

#3 - Shout About Your Successes
Used incorrectly, this often just smacks of arrogance and is a real turn-off (see previous post on this)

4 - Write with Authority
Only write with authority if you are an authority. To do so without qualification will just bite you in the ass

#5 - You Don’t Need To Tell The Truth All The Time
Why?

3. The third post down is: First Production Corvette ZR1 Sells for $1 Million
All I have to say is wtf? I came here for the secret. Give me the damned secret.

5. Dine Out Vancouver 2008 - Raincity Grill
Oh my God Noooo … not another meal

The reason they have such a strong following is because they’ve achieved the level of financial success that many bloggers hope to achieve and people keep reading hoping to glean just one golden secret that will launch their site into A-list heaven. Usually, that secret never comes but people have got to believe in a dream so they keep going back to find it.

I ran across this post today by a blogger that just oozes interesting and it is so true … the one thing that many people fail to realize, is that you can’t teach interesting, and unless you’re interesting, your blog probably isn’t going to reach the level of fame and marketability that the A-listers have. Read the rest of this entry »

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There must have been a day when the big name blogs were interesting … otherwise how would they have gotten so rich and famous? I make it a habit to visit other blogs to see what they’re blogging about, and maybe gain some insight into what makes them money. I am consistently bored disappointed when I visit John Chow’s blog, but tonight takes the cake. The newest post is a guest post by John Cow and it is the most arrogant post I’ve ever read on a “make money” blog. Here are some highlights:

Here’s something to think about when you’re dealing with an ‘Internet Celeb’. (Oh we’re so full of ourselves)

1) We’re all just people with a blog. Don’t treat us like rockstars or behave like groupies.
(Glad they told me that … my knees were getting sore from groveling at their hooves feet)

3) Don’t overdo it. Some people just keep mailing and mailing and mailing. At a certain point we’ll get fed up with it. Wouldn’t you? We don’t have all the answers either and we use Google, just like you.
(Ah … such a quandary … the life of a “celebrity cow.” All those annoying, adoring fans. What’s a cow to do?)

4) Its fine if you appreciate our blogs, we love to have you around as a reader and participant in the comments. Just don’t act like you’re worshipping us
(Unless I’m begging you for votes).
(Now they tell me … after I’ve built a shrine in my foyer)

5) Appreciate the fact that you’re not the only one that tries to build some sort of relationship with the blogger. The more known a blog is, the more people will try to do the same. And unfortunately we just can’t all be friends.
(There goes my dream of world peace. Why can’t we all just get along?)

Well, you got the link. Read it for yourself and see if it doesn’t smack of one arrogant cow. After this enlightening, informational post, we get to read one product review after another … we know what John Chow eats and where he eats it (call it “What’s for Chow” John Chow), plus the never-ending ” Web Celeb” contests … they all seem to be running for something and soliciting votes for the latest honor to be bestowed on them, from who has the most subscribers to who has the best design or blog name. Yawn … time for a nap. So tell me, where is the interesting content that people are subscribing for? Where’s the useful tips for making money online? Where’s the beef?

Here’s a post I found today that sums up my feelings and a great Facebook group to join if you feel the same.

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