I’m going to start this episode by apologising to those who run legitimate courses and may be offended by things that I say in this podcast.

But I would also just like to say that if you are feeling offended, but you know that you’re offering quality content and have the right intentions, then why ARE you offended?

Just tap into that for a moment… just saying!

Well, I’m here today to discuss the bullsh*t around courses. Everyone and their dog has a course these days… yes, I’ve seen an actual dog selling a course on Instagram – it’s beyond silly.

The constant social media posts that tell us about how easy it is to create passive income with a course is crazy.

They show us all these screenshots of bank accounts with money just rolling in while they’re sipping spicy margs on the beach! WHAT A DREAM!!!

But of course, this is a load of BS. In fact, most of these guys are actually trying to sell a course on how to create a course.

It’s basically like one big Ponzi Scheme!!

You may think I’m exaggerating, but think about it…

Ponzi schemes are all about the new recruits – they need to keep onboarding new investors so that they can sustain payouts. Course creators selling cheap courses need to constantly onboard new students to keep their revenue flowing. The system then collapses when the market is saturated or people stop buying the dream.

A Ponzi scheme is all about selling the system rather than the product – the investment viability doesn’t matter… just as long as you sign people up.
Just like with this course BS – the material doesn’t need to be good because you just need to get people to pay for it and move onto the next one.

They both just rely on hype and inflated expectations.

Most of the courses circling around are just templates or frameworks that are so generic that they don’t actually teach much at all. Then, the “success stories” are just those few individuals that already had something good and they ignore the majority of those who struggle.

Or, they’re faked completely.

But when you look at the success rates of these courses, they’re in the single digits. It’s awful.

So, why am I creating this episode? Well, there’s an insane amount of bullsh*t with courses and many of the entrepreneurs in my network have complained about the amount of money they’ve wasted on these awful courses and what can they do.

So, I wanted to create an episode to highlight the bullsh*t, why it’s dangerous and what we can do about it.

First up – let’s talk about why most of these courses are bullsh*t. As I said at the beginning, there are plenty of people doing really legitimate courses. In fact, I’m starting my own Mastermind in a couple of months, which will largely be in person and really intimate.

Those who make the effort to differentiate themselves, spend time in person doing custom material are usually much more legit.

It takes time and effort if you’re getting to know all your students, tailoring the courses etc., so usually those with more personal programs are more legitimate.

But most of the courses you get adverts for online are just recycled content. Not only is it extremely difficult to track someone who rips off your course and resells it online, but there are now things such as “white label courses”.

They are entirely generated by AI and people can “buy” the rights to them and rebrand them and resell them as their own.

People are doing this as a way of making a quick buck.

Buy a pre-made course, put their brand on it, resell it and pretend its theirs.

And it all comes down to the aggressive marketing tactics.

The big financial promise – how they’re going to help you make £100k in just 90 days.
Scarcity marketing – just 5 spots left, or fake countdown timers
Emotional manipulation – by preying on insecurities or FOMO
Fake testimonials from those in private jets and mansions because of the course

If you look at these guys too, they’ve never actually obtained any credentials or expertise in the area but if they market it enough when these manipulative tactics, it won’t matter – people will not check.

The unrealistic promises of “how i only work 4 hours in a week” prey on the vulnerable and those looking for quick wins.

Now, I’ve been talking a lot about this on LinkedIn lately and many people are of the opinion that if people fall for this, it’s their own fault. Now, I don’t think that’s fair.

I do think that people do need to be educated about what’s legit out there and what’s not… hence my podcast!! But I also think that these creators need to take some responsibility and be honest.

But many people are not and are just looking for quick wins themselves.

It’s likely that they even bought one of these courses in the first place and realised how bad it was, but they were so impressed when they fell for it so realised they could do the same!!

Now, why is this dangerous to entrepreneurs?

Well, first of all, there’s the financial loss. Many entrepreneurs invest significant money into these courses, hoping for quick wins.

They believe the creator who have sold them the dream. They’ve been following them for months and they constantly produce all this beautiful content and show how successful their lives are. They MUST be telling the truth, right?!

No, this is all part of the fake it til you make it play.

But followers will believe the dream. After all, these content creators have studied storytelling and they’re all telling a GREAT story. Now, when they promise they can do this for you, why wouldn’t you believe them?

It’s not even the amount of money lost, but it’s the time and the energy that goes into doing these courses.

All that time invested in a course that isn’t even good quality is time spent away from your actual business and working on getting real sales.

Plus, it can create paralysis or overwhelm from overconsuming poor-quality material.

We haven’t even got into the subject of misinformation yet, which is what I’ve been discussing online a lot lately.

There have been some articles coming out about creators possibly spreading misinformation and the danger of this.

If someone is buying a course from someone who’s supposedly an expert, they will likely believe everything that’s in their course. Understandably so. You’re paying for a course to learn – why wouldn’t you believe it.

But incorrect legal advice, financial management or marketing advice can have real negative consequences on people’s businesses.

I’ve definitely had a really bad experience with bad advice in the past. I totally trusted them when I shouldn’t.

Sure, I chose to believe them and it’s on me a little bit. I’ve learned my lesson. But I don’t think it’s right that they’ve now destroyed several businesses with their advice.

All of this just erodes trust in the space too. Those who are making legitimate, credible and quality courses will have to work even harder to prove themselves and stand out amongst the noise.

As often, the ones who have the worst products are the ones who shout the loudest.

So how can you sniff out the bullsh*t?

First of all, actually check up who are running these courses. What have they done in the past? Don’t just believe their Instagram profile because they have lots of followers and engagement. Remember, all of this can be bought.

If you don’t know about this, check out the “Vanity Metrics BS” episode.

Check how many years they’ve been in business, what certifications they have etc. Have they partnered with any well-known brands?

Take a look at their content too – are they providing any genuine insight up front? Or are they just recycling other people’s materials? Are they just giving away generic information?

Because those who are legitimate have REAL stories to tell and not just generic anecdotes.

Look for REAL testimonials too – not the fake ones. And how do you know they’re fake? Well, there are bought ones which are usually very generic or overly positive. Actually look up people who have purchased the courses. Track down the ones who have the public profile and ask them.

Most people are very happy to share their experiences. Engage with their community and check who they are and whether they have legitimate businesses too.

If the only people purchasing the courses are profiles that look like bots or beginners who can’t tell the difference whether material is good, then maybe give it a miss.

There are really great people out there – it’s just super difficult to find them.

I’ve definitely purchased a lot of courses in my day. I’ve rarely even done most of them either. And I think this is the issue.

If the creators don’t even care about whether you start/finish the course, then they don’t really care about your wellbeing.

Some of them have never even sent me an email and i”m paying a yearly subscription. To me, they have no care about their community and as long as my credit card works, that’s all that matters.

There’s a lot of BS out there, but hopefully some of these signs will help you sniff out what’s BS and what’s not.

But if you’re looking to do a course and are now worried that people will think you’re also full of BS, then I totally get it. I’m in that situation now.

With N0BS, I’m running all these events, masterminds and various courses for entrepreneurs. But many people may just think I’m full of crap like the others putting content out there.

It’s so difficult.

Sometimes the uptake hasn’t been what it should be.

So what I’m focusing on now is doing things slowly. Getting a few QUALITY people on board to show them how great it is and then getting them to provide testimonials and using that to show the world what we can do.

It’s not easy out there and it’s soooooo loud.

But each week, I plan to help you find the signs you need to sniff out the bullsh*t and help you through the rocky road that is entrepreneurship.

If you found this episode helpful, then please do share with others and leave a review, as it really helps the podcast!

But that’s it from me for now and until next week, please keep sniffing out the bullsh*t!