Of course, there it was: The famous "You'll only see this offer once" promotion asking me to buy a better version of the free report for only $97. Now I don't know about you, but since I haven't seen what this person has to offer yet, I'm not about to hand over $97 on the chance that he's not full of hot air.

That was annoying, but I kept on, said "no thanks" to the purchase, and clicked the link to downl

Simple believability could be one of the most important elements of every promotion you send out. It doesn't matter if it's your web page, an e-mail, or print materials -- if your prospects don't believe in you, they aren't going to buy. Or in the case of fund raising, they aren't going to give.

We all know people who tell such tall tales that we take every word they say with a grain of salt. We might like them, and even enjoy their company, but we'll check the facts before we act on anything they've said.

I was promoted to write this article because I've noticed a lot of promotions lately telling a tall tale that simply destroys their chances of success. Their only hope is that their prospects aren't paying attention.

One of those promotions arrived in my in-box just yesterday. It was an offer for a free download, complete with the rights to let everyone on your list also have it for free. The idea was to build your list -- and build the promoter's list at the same time, of course. The report also contained plenty of affiliate links.

All that would be fine except for two things.

The first was a notation at the bottom of the original email. It said something along the lines of "Hurry, I'm only going to release 15 copies of this valuable free report."

Huh? You just told me I can offer it to everyone on my list. I'm sure you told hundreds of other people the same thing. What's the deal with "only 15 copies?"

That was the first clue that this marketer was not on the up and up. But, my name is on so many lists that one more can't hurt, so I clicked on to see what else he had to offer.

Of course, there it was: The famous "You'll only see this offer once" promotion asking me to buy a better version of the free report for only $97. Now I don't know about you, but since I haven't seen what this person has to offer yet, I'm not about to hand over $97 on the chance that he's not full of hot air.

That was annoying, but I kept on, said "no thanks" to the purchase, and clicked the link to downl

e them, and even enjoy their company, but we'll check the facts before we act on anything they've said.

I was promoted to write this article because I've noticed a lot of promotions lately telling a tall tale that simply destroys their chances of success. Their only hope is that their prospects aren't paying attention.

One of those promotions arrived in my in-box just yesterday. It was an offer for a free download, complete with the rights to let everyone on your list also have it for free. The idea was to build your list -- and build the promoter's list at the same time, of course. The report also contained plenty of affiliate links.

All that would be fine except for two things.

The first was a notation at the bottom of the original email. It said something along the lines of "Hurry, I'm only going to release 15 copies of this valuable free report."

Huh? You just told me I can offer it to everyone on my list. I'm sure you told hundreds of other people the same thing. What's the deal with "only 15 copies?"

That was the first clue that this marketer was not on the up and up. But, my name is on so many lists that one more can't hurt, so I clicked on to see what else he had to offer.

Of course, there it was: The famous "You'll only see this offer once" promotion asking me to buy a better version of the free report for only $97. Now I don't know about you, but since I haven't seen what this person has to offer yet, I'm not about to hand over $97 on the chance that he's not full of hot air.

That was annoying, but I kept on, said "no thanks" to the purchase, and clicked the link to downl

a free download, complete with the rights to let everyone on your list also have it for free. The idea was to build your list -- and build the promoter's list at the same time, of course. The report also contained plenty of affiliate links.

All that would be fine except for two things.

The first was a notation at the bottom of the original email. It said something along the lines of "Hurry, I'm only going to release 15 copies of this valuable free report."

Huh? You just told me I can offer it to everyone on my list. I'm sure you told hundreds of other people the same thing. What's the deal with "only 15 copies?"

That was the first clue that this marketer was not on the up and up. But, my name is on so many lists that one more can't hurt, so I clicked on to see what else he had to offer.

Of course, there it was: The famous "You'll only see this offer once" promotion asking me to buy a better version of the free report for only $97. Now I don't know about you, but since I haven't seen what this person has to offer yet, I'm not about to hand over $97 on the chance that he's not full of hot air.

That was annoying, but I kept on, said "no thanks" to the purchase, and clicked the link to downl

going to release 15 copies of this valuable free report."

Huh? You just told me I can offer it to everyone on my list. I'm sure you told hundreds of other people the same thing. What's the deal with "only 15 copies?"

That was the first clue that this marketer was not on the up and up. But, my name is on so many lists that one more can't hurt, so I clicked on to see what else he had to offer.

Of course, there it was: The famous "You'll only see this offer once" promotion asking me to buy a better version of the free report for only $97. Now I don't know about you, but since I haven't seen what this person has to offer yet, I'm not about to hand over $97 on the chance that he's not full of hot air.

That was annoying, but I kept on, said "no thanks" to the purchase, and clicked the link to downl

Of course, there it was: The famous "You'll only see this offer once" promotion asking me to buy a better version of the free report for only $97. Now I don't know about you, but since I haven't seen what this person has to offer yet, I'm not about to hand over $97 on the chance that he's not full of hot air.

That was annoying, but I kept on, said "no thanks" to the purchase, and clicked the link to download the free report. And there, in plain sight, was another offer to purchase the item on the "Only see this once" page.

By this time I was convinced that any advice this marketer gave would not be advice I'd want to follow.

My guess is that this was a newcomer to internet marketing who had read all the books about what needs to go into a successful promotion. Many of them contain a checklist to follow, and one item on the list is the scarcity factor. The trouble is, using it in this way destroyed his credibility.

What could he have done that would have been believable? Perhaps a limited time offer would work, but only if it was true.

I'm sure you've also seen those offers that say "You must order by midnight tonight!" Just for fun I've kept a few of those and gone back several days in a row. Seeing it there far after "midnight tonight" destroys credibility pretty quickly too.

Professional copywriters back up their claims with proof in many forms, because we know that everyone is skeptical. The buying public has seen so many offers that any hint of unbelievability sends prospects running the other way.

Amateur copywriters / marketers should be just as careful.

If there are only 15 copies, say so. But then don't sell or give away 1,500. And if there's a time limit, say so. But then don't keep offering your special after the time has passed.

Gaining a reputation for honesty is every bit as important in marketing as in your personal life. So don’t get carried away. Over the long run, your integrity is worth a whole lot more than a quick sale.

And not only that, honesty lets you