World Of Warcraft, WoW Hand Armor

Saturday, November 12, 2011

WowCrusher, Gold Speed Runs, What's the Next Scam?

Hey folks, Alto here.

Not sure how ya'll have been doing, but I myself am getting tired of this constant mind fucking that is going around. Buy this, buy that. Even hiding behind something that sounds halfway legit to try to get you to buy things.



Wait, wait, wait. I know what you are thinking as you read this and see ads on the side of the article. Or you remember back when I was pushing my gold guide or my personal coaching. I feel your pain. I see where you are going. Yup, I make a few bucks. I sold quite a few guides. I was paid for "coaching" folks on how to make gold. But you know what? I was legit about it. You could email me, talk to me in person on skype, or see me at the Friday night JMTC meetings (even a few folks have my personal phone number). I was out there. I wasn't trying to fuck anyone by a shifty sale.

Those that purchased either my guide or my time (coaching) know that my shit isn't and never will be cut and paste. I spent hours upon hours playing the game, talking to folks, reading patch notes, etc, etc, etc before I launched my products, making sure that if someone asked me a question, I had more information about what I wrote or advised them to do than they ever wanted to hear. I knew my shit. And that isn't being cocky by any means (or meant to sound cocky). It means that I was secure and 110% faithful that my product(s) was not a ripoff or a scam.

"But Alto, you also wrote for 20K Leveling". Yes sir/madam, I did. I was paid for my time just as if I was doing a coaching or contract work. You know what? Markco was a businessman. Sure we haggled on pricing, I wanted high, he wanted low. But, we came to a decision and all is well. 20K is a good guide. Not just due to me writing patch updates and the TuJ guide, but he started a great following with his tips. Shit, back in the day he is what got me started by reading JMTC. Well, him, Gevlon, and Cold (I think P3P and BiggJimm there somewhere too). However, the guide does have some outdated material (which we spoke about me updating, but it never happened before he sold the site). Overall, it isn't too bad. The thing is, as with any guide you purchase, unless it's updated today, EVERYTHING YOU CAN EVER NEED IN GOLDMAKING CAN BE FOUND ON THE INTERNET FREE!

I got off topic a bit there, but I think you see my point....Now lets talk about....Faid.

Faid recently reviewed WoWCrusher (If you don't know Faid, check out her blog- she's been on my blogroll since day 1). You can see the video here or on Nerf Faid's YouTube page:



I can only imagine how she feels about this whole "Speed run" thing. 77 bucks for a guide and a "free" entry into the 30 day "I made more gold than you" scam? Gimme a fucking break....but, who knows. That's my opinion, and well, take it or leave it.

"But Alto, speed gold runs have been going on for years..." So have the scams to purchase it. So are the hundreds if not thousands of people that have been scammed out of their own hard earned cash for something that could be done free. Maybe I should start one? FREE?!

I guess my point here people is to DO HOMEWORK when you purchase something. Make sure you know who is actually selling it (and that they aren't just a money grubbing bastard/bastardette). You know what? Google their name. Ask around. Get their email. Contact them. If it sends you to a "hop" or clickbank address, be weary. I used ejunkie, and it was the most legit, non scamming company for online sales that I could find. Clickbank is basically the go-to place for internet scammers. In fact, I am surprised that the EHackers haven't destroyed that site.

Anyways, enough of my little rant. BTW, is there such thing as a bastardette? Who knows. But nothing else fit there. Alto signing off.

27 comments:

Ven said... Reply To This Comment

Welcome back Alto :).

Everyone should use is head, like in real life, everyone should know this by now, if something is to good to be true maybe it is probably a scam.

There are con-artist, professional marketeers legit or not, and normal people, but only whit time can you really know a person, it takes years in my opinion.

If someone works for making a good product and support it,they deserve to have a reward for their hard work.

So just support who you think deserves your money, if you like, but in the end it all depends on you, in how deeps are your pockets, how do you want to play this game and what kind of person are you.

Admin said... Reply To This Comment

Well said Alberthus.

Xsinthis said... Reply To This Comment

I'm curious if Gold Queens current state and how markco (the real markco I think) is managing the blog has anything to do with that post?

Anonymous said... Reply To This Comment

i never liked the gold queen personally. There are tons of free resources out there for goblins new and old. Tons of great blogs etc etc. I would never pay real money to learn how to make gold. In a strange twisted way, it would definitely make much more sense to buy gold. At least you'd be getting what you wanted...haha. Not that I promote gold buying in any way --of course

Anonymous said... Reply To This Comment

Your post is a bit all over the place, but all of that is common sense. In my opinion if people fall for these "scams", they probably have bigger problems in life.

I have been taking most of the gold blogs I have been reading off my list, just because I'm tired of the drama, everyone pointing fingers at everyone else, and bloggers feeling the need to babysit their readers. I wish more of you could just be cool and continue to do your own thing instead, without getting involved in the community drama. It's lame, ridiculous, and tiring, and a quick way for one to lose respect for you, too.

Ven said... Reply To This Comment

Very good question you make there Xsinthis, very good indeed.

Admin said... Reply To This Comment

Xsinthis,

I was thinking the same thing until she commented back, then I just assumed (I know, I know..the saying...ass outta you and outta me) that she did it. Either way, it is kinda disturbing.

Anonymous,

We are all titled to our opinions. I agree with the cut and paste shit, it's just plain plagiarism. And you are right. Scammy bullshit.

Anonymous II,

Thanks for not directing at me....or you did...not really sure. Either way, you have your own opinion as do I.

Skantasm,

I am always all over the place...you should know that. Once again, opinions. Feel free to lose respect for me too. I write what I write, and everyone has the option to read or not. I have dedicated a ton of time into this blog, and most of my readers know and understand when I have issues/concerns. Thats what I do.

I give knowledge (some good, some not so much), and it always changes. I write about things that are happening. Here, there, everywhere. Hence the gold'ISH advice. =)

Anonymous said... Reply To This Comment

Thegoldqueen recently blogged about being attacked and stuck at the hospital, and Markco and warcraft econ took over her blog. Her posting pattern and content changed drastically after that post the 7th november. Question is, is this the fake "i paid 50k dollars for a site and a online persona" markco, or the old golddigger 50k dollar richer Markco that has not played wow for years making the new posts. My bet is on the first.

Admin said... Reply To This Comment

Anonymous III,

Yeah. That is an extremely bad deal what happened to GQ...horrible in fact.

As for the Markco, I am not even sure who is who now. Does he own foldberg twitter? markco@jmtc.com email? Markco's skype? His gmail? Shit, who knows. I am not sure if anyone does other than the two Markco's.

Some folks are said to have multiple personalities, and Markco just happens to have personalities multiplied. Wait...I am confusing myself now.

Markco selling 20K Leveling Guide= 37 bucks

Markco sells JMTC to MarkcoPartII= 50 grand

Not knowing which Markco is which? Priceless.

Anonymous said... Reply To This Comment

Obviously the "gold queen" lied about what happened to her. Just like Markco lies about everything he says now. Sold jmtc and his name? Yeah right. Now he's teaching others how to bullshit on the internet.

Admin said... Reply To This Comment

Anonymous...

Once again, everyone is entitled to their opinion, but I might add that rape is a horrible thing. An ugly, horrific ordeal. I doubt that she lied about something like that.

I spoke with her briefly the other day (while she was in the hospital), and although some things she does internet wise I am not keen to, I don't think that anyone could drop as low as to fake something like that.....

Toltec said... Reply To This Comment

Hey Alto,
I wish you hadn't lumped the wowcrusher and the speed run together. They unfortunately have T Dub Sanders in common, which indicates all of the things Faid notes in her awesome video. The new Marko blows and the old one "thought it was funny" when the new Marko deliberately misrepresented himself (as Foldberg1 on twitter).

Jonathan Kennins is the owner of the speed run guide you are referencing. I've known him for years now and am a member of his Massive Gold Blueprint program. He's a good guy, honest and the material is awesome. There is NO (none, zero, zip) copy and pasted material on either of his sites. The videos are all original and timely and uniquely Jonathan. The gold system Jon has is solid and worth the money I paid. The speed runs are something we in the membership have done a number of times and are a blast. The numbers stated are real. I'm on the teamspeak channel we use during the month they run.
There's a ton more I could write but I'd rather chat if you're interested.
The price of the new guide or MGB? I'd say try it out if you can afford it or as a blogger see if Jon will let you review it. It's the only way you can really determine it's worth to you.
In terms of linking up with Tony Sanders? It's the biggest mailing list known but it's dancing with the devil. His product is now WAY out there in the public eye. I'd just ask you (and def Faid) to give it a look.

One last note: it's geared toward players who have struggled making gold, not gold gurus; so keep that in mind.
Thanks for reading if you made it this far.

Admin said... Reply To This Comment

Toltec,

Thanks for taking the time writing this comment. Had I read this from you first, I might have taken it a little bit lighter, but the post that GQ did seemed more like a big ol' chunk of spam to get sales, as that seems to happen over there more often than not. Money is one thing, but I thought she was a bit of a different blogger, but it seems I might be wrong.

I would like to find out more about the gold run, but from my understanding it was more about selling than something that was actually fun.

Alot of my readers aren't rich, and many of them that have the funds are very weary of purchasing anything...they prefer to get free stuff, and you are right; maybe I should talk to this cat and see if that run is legit. If you have contact info to holler at him direct, I would appreciate it (send to my email or holler it on a twitter DM to me).

And as always, I do read your whole comment, and I thank you for clearing a few things up. Your word to me is golden bruddah.

Jonathan Kenins said... Reply To This Comment

You really need to check your facts before making public comments!

Gold Speed Run is my membership site, just launching. I've been running organized Gold Speed Run events in WoW for four years, and I'm about to run another... Gold Speed Run VI. These are always free for my members. Everyone who has participated in the past (many hundreds) has loved the experience and learned a lot.

I don't generally give away my memberships for free... would you??

There aren't any other organized Gold Speed Run events. I invented the format.

If you'd like to find out more, just sign up for my (free) series of preview videos, they tell the whole story.

- Jon

(Jonathan Kenins... a real person who has been teaching WoW players how to make a lot of gold for 4 years)

P.S. where did you get the $77 number? The Gold Speed Run membership fee hasn't been announced yet, and it's WAY less than that.

Kano said... Reply To This Comment

Dear Alto, for a long time you have been a mark in the blogs i constantly read, just like faid ( where she had nuked my realm's glyph market heheehe *fists in air ), and i kinda agree with you in some points.
We keep seeing a ton of gold scam guides, as the example stated in faids review - awful awful move on wow crusher.
And what i speak below i speak from experience, i have bought at leat 5 gold guides around, the 20k guide is good but not the best, i was a avid listener of the podcast back then, when Markco had the JMTC. It was good but not the best.
Now, about the Jonathan one.
I'm sorry that you feel that way about a guide that you haven't even tried, and reviewise, i think u shouldn't "judge by it's cover", i know that there are real scammers out there, but not all of them are one, heck, is easy to say "Alto's guide is a scam!".
Well with that said, i must defend Massve Gold Blueprint and Jonathan. As Toltec said, there is zero copy / paste and 90% of the content are videos that Jonathan makes at least every week, so you are not buying something with a fixed content and once every 6 months updated, like 20k is. There is where i learned the routines, the ins and out of the gold playing on wow, and that Gold speed run dude, let me tell ya... That thing is AWESOME, is the most fun time i've had in gold playing , and you know how bored we get in end content in wow. I won last one in single faction category, and in 30 days i had generated 300k (ish) in gold, from zero, from fresh start, i think Toltec can vouche for me, as he will recognize the name Khrazer.
Another thing that Toltec stated, that many of us have some ( or a big ), knowledge in gold making and the MGB thing gets from ground and basic up, from flipping peacebloom to higher items.
So, all in all i know that there is gold scammers out there, but i must say "Bad Alto", as in reviewing somethin as a bad guide without even trying.
If i had to choose where to spend my money on guides, DEFINATLEY wouldnt be on the 20k nowadays and yes on MGB plan.
-Khrazer

Admin said... Reply To This Comment

Johnathan,

This blog has always been 100% legit. I say my opinions, and that can be good or bad, as you can see. As I wrote in the post, I come back from a few month hiatus to a complete and there is an utter collection of spam sales around every corner. I am sure that you can understand if you have seen it unfold.

I am a bit twitchy, even reading your comment "These have always been free for my members" then a sentence later is "I generally don't give away memberships for free".

So what I am understanding is that there is nothing free about the run unless I am a member then, correct?

The $77 number is what I saw when I googled about the speed run, and that was for the membership to MGB if I remember correctly, which talked about the run being involved. That is where I got it from.

If this gold speed run is free, then I retract any statements I have made and would look forward to promoting something of this sort, so please let me know the details.

If payment does have to be made, then I see it as a good promotion tool to snatch people and get them to pay for a product to compete. I don't agree with the bait-n-switch style, but hey, Do whatcha do.

Admin said... Reply To This Comment

Khrazer,

I appreciate your comment, and it's nice hearing another review on his product. I would still like to know about the speed runs, and if they are for [paid] members only, as it would be a great thing to promote and follow up on.

This wasn't meant as a review, as you are right, I haven't seen the product. What I based my opinion on was the promotion side of it... as for reviews, I love doing them, I just am not able to as most folks that I have asked to review a paid product will only do so on a "contract", meaning that only if I agree to positively promote it (other than zygor, which I reviewed, wrote, and still use when I level a toon).

I am sure that is the last thing that Mr. Kenins would want to do after his comment...

Toltec said... Reply To This Comment

The Massive Gold Blueprint was started way back when as something like "30 days to 10k gold in WoW." I wasn't a member then so I only know what I've been told. Jon's "system" if you will is a paid membership. I paid significantly less than 77 dollars for a lifetime membership.

MGB is a ton of instructional videos that guide you through goldmaking in WoW. It's about working the AH. In my opinion it is a no-fail method if you follow it.

I've blogged in the past about community in WoW and how it keeps you in the game. MGB is my "home community." There is an active forum for members similar to JMTC and more recently as Gimp mentions The Consortium. Jon added a Teamspeak channel as well which is populated by people such as myself that are available most of the time for advice, chat, etc.

During the Cata launch we were on TS and got many realm firsts... it was an exciting time.

The speed runs have been something Jonathan has run 1-2x a year for fun and enjoyment for members. Some of the feedback Jon and the TS peeps received is that entering the MGB site and seeing 100's of videos that take quite a bit of time to work through left people wishing there was a shortcut to getting some gold to work with right away as they "worked the program" and watched the videos. We in the TS channel serve that function by providing quick start-up tips and pointing to particular videos to address certain concerns. But not everyone gets on TS to utilize our varied expertise and we're not on 24/7, so some of our members in the EU and Oz would be hit or miss.

Jon realized that with the speed runs he has done, including videos, pdf's and daily updates he actually had already created that shortcut version that people seem to want.

He developed a product that will show people how to make a bunch of gold and have fun doing it with the new site. Here is where I'm going to talk out of school and perhaps get in trouble. By giving lifetime memberships in MGB Jon doesn't have a recurring income. He only gets paid when new members join. I tended to recommend his product, but not to anyone on my own server, because I preferred not having anyone else know the system.

The new product is being offered at a lower cost then the MGB system, making good information available to more people about how to make gold. If that feeds into people wanting to grab the MGB membership as well that's awesome! For Jonathan, for the MGB community and for the person making the leap. If not, they will learn how to make lots of gold in 30 days. The new program is a bit of Jon returning to his roots with a 30 day program.

As for me, I'm damn good at making gold. I'm past the 1/3 mark on my way to goldcap using primarily only glyphs (I like a challenge and a twist). What I gained from my first speed run was fearlessness. I realized that I could completely blow it... I could completely blow my gold reserves and lose everything; or be hacked and lose everything and not quit the game. I could have 20 or 30k in a month without breaking a sweat. For my 2nd speed run I competed (and lost) and made over 80k in the 30 days. It may have been more. The last time I acted as a coach in the TS channel and I plan to do the same this time around. Khrazer above did win and set a new standard in terms of what can be done in 30 days.

I encourage people who have difficulty getting started making gold in wow to check it out. Thinking of you Alto... if you have enough time to compete I would love to see you and the others test your chops. The community alone is worth what I paid. I also like our dysfunctional blog family and I know this blog is also your very own community... there's only so many hours in a day. If I had the real world cash I'd pay to get you in there as I respect what you do and it would be great to show you another community.

Cheers.

Admin said... Reply To This Comment

Toltec,

I am interested, and think it would be something worth looking into. The thing is, every thing that I click on, or attempt to view to take a glance at what the run is about takes me to a "buy this" page.

Maybe my google search isn't good enough, or everything on it refers to members only. If you have contact info for Johnathan or want to give him my info, I would appreciate it. Just shoot me an email.

Thanks again,
Alto.

Shadowbolts said... Reply To This Comment

I think it's safe to say you got the details about the MFB speed run aliitle wrong. The Wow crusher scam everybody knows about its just a shame it took ages for somebody to say anything anout it...

I have to admit i love the way how you rip into other paid guides now that you have got of your high horse and stopped selling yours. Again every gold guide i have seen its all the same crap so although you may not have copied and pasted your guide together it certainly was not original

The term pot calling kettle black comes to mind. Yeah you made a few bucks and you tried to make personal appearances but your still no better than the rest of them.

As for MGB its not a Gold quide its a system and its a whole community.

Admin said... Reply To This Comment

Shadow,

I am not on a high horse. Although I have stopped the sale on mine, it's not permanent. It's on hiatus until I have my new setup. It was and is extremely original (you must not have seen it).

"Tried" to make personal appearances? Not sure what that is about, you lost me on that one...

As I mentioned before, everyone is entitled to their own personal opinion. You have yours. I have mine.

My whole dig was on how the promotion was made. Period. I felt that it seemed a bit "scammy". Can you blame me?

Sincerely,
Alto.

Admin said... Reply To This Comment

You are just angry Adam. Go eat a butterfinger.

Greygamer said... Reply To This Comment

I only just found this post while trying to find some solid information about the gold run. Whatever you might say promoting it on GQ blog certainly brought it to my and others attention.

I havethis blog on my reader but must have missed this post.

Interesting comments all round but ...very short on details. There is a fee but nobody will tell you what it is. You can sign up but they want your email details.

My viewpoint is spending more than a few dollars on a guide is a waste of money. The paid for guides serve a purpose, not everybody wants to spend hours trawling through information which may or may not be valid for their particular circumstances.

Yes this info is largely on the internet, even the secret stuff is probably out there lets be honest.

I am not saying that Johnathan does not offer a great service, but if he came around and did the washing and cooking and played the game for me while I asleep I still wouldn't pay more than a few dollars.

As for WoWcrusher ...$17 a month for a guide well at least they were up front about the price. Nicely exposed from Faid. Didn't GQ do some unpaid video work for it?

I am deeply suspicious about anyone who is not upfront about what they are offering and for how much.

Too many of these scams poping up at the moment, and too much RL greed involved.

I like the GQ blog but not the infomercials. Very shocked about what happened to her all the same, please people stop saying it is made up. Not very considerate.

Roamtheland said... Reply To This Comment

Regarding the Massive Gold Blueprint and the Gold Speed Run-Note that while the MGB costs $77 to join and is very detailed, the offer that Jonathan Kennins had on his "Gold Speed Run" was only $27. However there has been a big problem with this...the promise was 30 days of videos etc released on a daily basis, and unfortunately he was unprepared for a months worth of videos. Many new members of the the GSR have posted their frustrations with not being able to access the days they have paid for. For some reason support tickets go unanswered and Jon is blaming their email programs for not receiving an answer to their questions. It looks as though people are now posting their support questions in the MGB forums. There are answers from others speaking on his behalf I guess (assistants?) that Jonathan will have it all fixed AFTER the speed run is over. This is quite frustrating as the advertising was to be part of the speed run as it progressed. I believe the ultimate frustration comes due to the absence of any public acknowledgement that there are problems with his offer and he simply wasn't ready to do it properly. In that case it would behoove him to simply state the issue publicly rather than try to hide the fact that it AINT WORKIN! It's weird because it gives the impression of this "club" where the founder is some sort of "do no wrong". I agree that the man has worked tirelessly on his MGB program and has good intentions and great information, but his skills in customer satisfaction (and human nature for that matter) have musch to be desired. The moral of the story is-the Massive Gold Blueprint program is in place and well established, but be wary of the Gold Speed Run program as it is bugged, incomplete and not very well supported.

Admin said... Reply To This Comment

Thanks for the input Roam!

It just seemed a bit shady, not even sure if the cat really answered above in comments or if it was one of his "assistants".

Anyways, I really appreciate hearing the update.

Alto.

iiimjiiim said... Reply To This Comment

Sometimes I get the feeling there is this whole other side of gold-making that I gave absolutely no idea about. Walled gardens and all that. It's funny the effect money has on things.

Anonymous said... Reply To This Comment

Well, if it means anything, you were right about the speed run. Big giant scam. Nearly half of it never got made.

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