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Abstract

picture, it shows their path from there to here. Within the back story, the gurus will target your insecurities to prove their point. They will tell you that it’s not about the money, money is redundant. It’s all about happiness in life. They managed to get out of their hole by investing in themselves. And this is exactly what they are doing now. They want to help you invest in yourself as well. What a better way to invest in yourself than getting access to their online courses.<h1 id="6ea5">Online Courses</h1>Each online guru out there is offering online courses for you to consume. These online courses are the product of their experience and their know-how that they are sharing with you. You need to pay premium prices to get access to these courses. However, having these courses immediately behind a paywall will most probably push you away from them. So, these gurus found the best way around. It’s called free offerings.The gurus will offer a free online course, in which you can learn the easy steps to become successful. Some might offer a free e-book, free excel tables that you can use, mailing list to keep you always informed when they are offering something new. They will always offer something for free first.The reason behind this free offering is to get you hooked on the real product. So they give you a small taste first. And because you are such a nice person, the product they are selling (typically online courses) is currently on sale for 50% — 75% Off. It’s once in a lifetime offer. DON’T YOU DARE TO HESITATE.These gurus will sell you your goal depending on which type of gurus they are. They will help you become ‘infamous’, financially independent, they will help you in your drop shipping, Amazon FBA, you name it. They will coach you to be happier in life, how to think outside the box. Whatever you are looking for, you will find a guru that sells online courses to develop you in that direction.If the back story and the sale on the courses aren’t enough, the gurus will highlight testimonials and reviews from others who have purchased the courses before you. The reason behind this is to show you that others have done it before you and now they have achieved their goal. They are happy, making easy money and now live the dream. “It changed my life!!”, “the best investment ever!!” are typical sentences that you will be reading in these reviews.So, now you have bought the online courses and paid premium prices for it (even though it was on sale). This is still not enough for the gurus; they want to get you hooked.<figure id="fc03"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/1*bVu7g4dHlgtGYO78RWMi9g.jpeg"><figcaption></figcaption></figure><h1 id="01ad">Getting Hooked</h1>With the current platforms, it is easy to get the new audience hooked up. Instagram will link you to the YouTube page, the YouTube page will link to the Facebook group, the Facebook group will link to the online courses, the online courses will get you in the mailing list, the mailing list will have links to the YouTube videos. You get the point. Once you are in, you will be sent through a funnel to each platfor

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m of these gurus and it will help them generate more income. The more income they generate, the easier it gets to reel new people in because now they can promote more success. Think about it this way, when you are in, even though you are not actively promoting this guru, you’ve helped him to reel more people in. And the cycle will continue.But it is not yet done here, once you are in, they have to keep you in and it’s in their interest (for the money of course). Now, let’s talk about the steps of getting hooked. After the online course, come the live events, after the live events come to the 1-on-1 private sessions and much more. The idea behind these steps is to keep you hooked in their cult-like community of supporters and followers.<h1 id="8a6f">It Is Not All Fake</h1>Again, I have to remind you that not all gurus are bad and are scammers. But currently, it’s a trend on the platforms. Remember, a couple of years ago the trend used to be fake prank videos, and now it’s online gurus. However, hence it is really easy to fake being a guru, you and I have to keep an eye out.So, How to spot fake gurus? I found out a couple of traits that single them out. It might all be true for certain fake gurus, but if you notice one of the following traits you should run away.1- They will promote how easy it is to be rich, happy, etc. But at the same time, they will say stuff like: you need to put in the work, if you do not work hard it will not work. This sentence is used by them to push away the blame if their online courses didn’t work out with you. It’s not their fault, you are to blame for not working hard enough.2- They will single out and or brag about a certain item in their collection, located on their desk maybe. It can be anything: a model car of their dream car that they were able to buy with your money. A physical bitcoin might also be on their desk if we are talking about financial gurus. Motivational posters etc. are clear give away of a try-hard person.3- Now this is the most dangerous aspect of these so-called gurus. Fake gurus will promote conspiracy theories. Why? Their entire agenda is based on that the society does not want you to succeed but if you follow me, I will help you make it. So to promote this idea, even more, they will support current conspiracy theories because hey, the media doesn’t want you to be free, and COVID-19 (as an example) is just a way to put you back in your place.In the end, before you trust someone with your money and life. Think really about it and look for the signs. If something seemed too good to be true, then it’s a lie for sure. Remember the current online platforms give anyone an audience. Small investments in Facebook ads, can allow these people to directly contact you and target you with their promotions, testimonials, and courses. To learn more about this, you can join my online course .This article is for informational purposes only. It should not be considered Financial or Legal Advice. Not all information will be accurate. Consult a financial professional before making any major financial decisions</article></body>

The Rise of Online Gurus

and how to spot the fake ones

In recent years social media sites exploded with gurus, who claim to help people achieve their goals in life. These goals can vary from self-development, life coaches, financial gurus, Instagram experts all the way to health coaches and fitness trainers. These people found a platform to promote themselves and their offering easily online with platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Facebook’s (and Instagram’s) ads make it also easy for these gurus to reach their target audience or better said targets.

Looking into multiple gurus from different geographical locations (USA, Germany, and Dubai), it bothers me to see that their method of targeting the audience is very similar and, to be honest, it is a clear copy paste from each other. So, within this Medium post, I’ll try to highlight their typical traits so that you and your friends can easily spot them out.

Disclaimer: not all online gurus are scammers. But once you have read how easy it is to fake it, you might want to look at them from a different angle.

Promoting success

All of the online gurus will promote their success to you through their posts on Instagram and YouTube. They will post about their labels’ clothes, cars, travels, and success. They will post a single picture on Instagram and its caption will be 20–30 lines of self-exploration and thought. You will read lines such as I would have never believed that I’ll reach here in such a short time. All that it took was hard work, determination, thinking outside the box., etc. etc.

Every post, every story, and every live broadcast is about their success or mental peace. Everything is directed towards you to see how happy, and successful they are.

They will always remind you if you want to be like me, I’ll help you reach this goal. However, you need to invest in me and in whatever I’m offering. Don’t get me wrong, anyone who is providing a service can ask to get paid for said service. The question is: is this service worth it?

This promoted success will get you thinking: how can I be like him and how can I make it? He had a better start than I. I won’t make it. Then comes the back story. Keep in mind posting about success the way they do can easily be faked. All it takes is 3000$ to get some nice clothes, rent a nice car and have a couple of photoshoots.

The Back Story

Typical sentences you will hear from the gurus are: I used to be a loser, I used to be a loner. I wasn’t good at school and I wasn’t able to go to a good college. I wasn’t happy in my life. I couldn’t imagine working from 9 to 5.

The important aspect of the back story is to show you and the others that they are just like you. They used to be in your shoes. They used to have a dream and now they have achieved it and they will help you to achieve yours as well.

The back story of the gurus typically paints a picture, it shows their path from there to here. Within the back story, the gurus will target your insecurities to prove their point. They will tell you that it’s not about the money, money is redundant. It’s all about happiness in life. They managed to get out of their hole by investing in themselves. And this is exactly what they are doing now. They want to help you invest in yourself as well. What a better way to invest in yourself than getting access to their online courses.

Online Courses

Each online guru out there is offering online courses for you to consume. These online courses are the product of their experience and their know-how that they are sharing with you. You need to pay premium prices to get access to these courses. However, having these courses immediately behind a paywall will most probably push you away from them. So, these gurus found the best way around. It’s called free offerings.

The gurus will offer a free online course, in which you can learn the easy steps to become successful. Some might offer a free e-book, free excel tables that you can use, mailing list to keep you always informed when they are offering something new. They will always offer something for free first.

The reason behind this free offering is to get you hooked on the real product. So they give you a small taste first. And because you are such a nice person, the product they are selling (typically online courses) is currently on sale for 50% — 75% Off. It’s once in a lifetime offer. DON’T YOU DARE TO HESITATE.

These gurus will sell you your goal depending on which type of gurus they are. They will help you become ‘infamous’, financially independent, they will help you in your drop shipping, Amazon FBA, you name it. They will coach you to be happier in life, how to think outside the box. Whatever you are looking for, you will find a guru that sells online courses to develop you in that direction.

If the back story and the sale on the courses aren’t enough, the gurus will highlight testimonials and reviews from others who have purchased the courses before you. The reason behind this is to show you that others have done it before you and now they have achieved their goal. They are happy, making easy money and now live the dream. “It changed my life!!”, “the best investment ever!!” are typical sentences that you will be reading in these reviews.

So, now you have bought the online courses and paid premium prices for it (even though it was on sale). This is still not enough for the gurus; they want to get you hooked.

Getting Hooked

With the current platforms, it is easy to get the new audience hooked up. Instagram will link you to the YouTube page, the YouTube page will link to the Facebook group, the Facebook group will link to the online courses, the online courses will get you in the mailing list, the mailing list will have links to the YouTube videos. You get the point. Once you are in, you will be sent through a funnel to each platform of these gurus and it will help them generate more income. The more income they generate, the easier it gets to reel new people in because now they can promote more success. Think about it this way, when you are in, even though you are not actively promoting this guru, you’ve helped him to reel more people in. And the cycle will continue.

But it is not yet done here, once you are in, they have to keep you in and it’s in their interest (for the money of course). Now, let’s talk about the steps of getting hooked. After the online course, come the live events, after the live events come to the 1-on-1 private sessions and much more. The idea behind these steps is to keep you hooked in their cult-like community of supporters and followers.

It Is Not All Fake

Again, I have to remind you that not all gurus are bad and are scammers. But currently, it’s a trend on the platforms. Remember, a couple of years ago the trend used to be fake prank videos, and now it’s online gurus. However, hence it is really easy to fake being a guru, you and I have to keep an eye out.

So, How to spot fake gurus? I found out a couple of traits that single them out. It might all be true for certain fake gurus, but if you notice one of the following traits you should run away.

1- They will promote how easy it is to be rich, happy, etc. But at the same time, they will say stuff like: you need to put in the work, if you do not work hard it will not work. This sentence is used by them to push away the blame if their online courses didn’t work out with you. It’s not their fault, you are to blame for not working hard enough.

2- They will single out and or brag about a certain item in their collection, located on their desk maybe. It can be anything: a model car of their dream car that they were able to buy with your money. A physical bitcoin might also be on their desk if we are talking about financial gurus. Motivational posters etc. are clear give away of a try-hard person.

3- Now this is the most dangerous aspect of these so-called gurus. Fake gurus will promote conspiracy theories. Why? Their entire agenda is based on that the society does not want you to succeed but if you follow me, I will help you make it. So to promote this idea, even more, they will support current conspiracy theories because hey, the media doesn’t want you to be free, and COVID-19 (as an example) is just a way to put you back in your place.

In the end, before you trust someone with your money and life. Think really about it and look for the signs. If something seemed too good to be true, then it’s a lie for sure. Remember the current online platforms give anyone an audience. Small investments in Facebook ads, can allow these people to directly contact you and target you with their promotions, testimonials, and courses. To learn more about this, you can join my online course .

This article is for informational purposes only. It should not be considered Financial or Legal Advice. Not all information will be accurate. Consult a financial professional before making any major financial decisions