Warning – Avoid this Software Like the Plague

*WARNING WARNING**

Be careful what software you buy!

It’s a sad reflection on our industry.  There are people out there that will sell software that promises the earth, but delivers the reverse:- a Google penalty to your site.

The sad fact is that software marketers will sell stuff like this is because it’s an easy sell.  Anything that promises rankings at the push of a button, with content generated and rankings delivered automatically is what everyone wants.  This type of software offer sells in huge quantities.

Sadly, the various bits of software out there that promise this don’t deliver it.  They just wont work in Google today.  Maybe in 2011’s Google algorithm, but not today, no way.

Don’t be fooled.  Basically, software that spins and posts duplicate spun pages with perhaps different city names is a big big no no. This sort of strategy violates a number of principles from a Google perspective:

• Doorway pages
• Google detectable mass duplicate content
• Google detectable mass Spun content (you should never use spun content on a money site – rookies error – and always check/edit spun content manually)

(Quick note of clarification: we still use the good quality spinners we have recommended in the past in our own SEO, for minisite content – just be sure to use the spinner the way we teach).

And interestingly, for one recently released software, the proof site used in the sales video is already in Panda penalty!  We checked one of the pages which is indexed in their sales video (the page they actually show on their promo video), and for the search phrase, you just can’t find it in Google’s 1st or 2nd index.

Not only that – the town they are trying to rank in that sales video in has a population of 550 people, so they actually wouldn’t realistically have any competition.  What that means is if you built a page normally (not using the software), you would probably end up at the top of page 1 without any backlinks at all.

So, which is better?  1000 pages in 1000 towns and cites that won’t ever rank, generated automatically using software or a few pages added to your site manually doing it properly that will rank?

Please don’t waste your time or your money.  Be careful what you buy.

49 Comments

  • Amy Blain

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    Is there a software specifically that you’re referring to here, John?

    • John Pearce

      Reply Reply January 18, 2017

      NOt just one, Amy, there are lots in this category.

  • Philip

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    Thanks for the heads up John.
    Yes, I saw the promos coming out from all and sundry.
    Plainly a no no, but enough people unfortunately will be sucked in by the promise of easy rankings.
    Glad to see you look out for us guys.
    Phil.

  • Kevin Barham

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    Hi John – I was wondering the exact same thing. I saw a similar WP plugin a while back (being promoted by a big name in SEO) and I couldn’t find any of their proof sites that they showed in their video… and that was just 1 day after the product launch.
    Thanks for your post.

    • John Pearce

      Reply Reply January 18, 2017

      Thanks Kevin – yes. People are focussing on one piece of new software, but there are more than one pieces of bad software as you correctly identify!

  • Wes

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    Thanks for this. It’s refreshing seeing someone tell the truth in this industry instead of pushing the latest instant push-button riches doohickie.

  • Ivan David Lippens

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    You aren’t talking about the SpinRewriter program you guys promoted a while back, are you?
    Because I dropped some bones for that thing that I probably couldn’t afford, and I’ve barely used it.

    I was thinking about using it more, instead of hiring people to write articles.
    Any words of comfort? 😛

    • John Pearce

      Reply Reply January 18, 2017

      Ivan I am not talking about that, no. Spinners (there are good and bad, and the one you mention is basically the best) are really useful tools but you MUST use them the correct way, as we teach in the bonus you will have got with it.

    • Paul Coulthard

      Reply Reply January 20, 2017

      Personally I think all spinners are useless, tried them all and they all generate garbage

      • John Pearce

        Reply Reply January 20, 2017

        It all depends on how you use them Paul. We still use them, but not for money site content, and it’s important if you are going to use them that you use them the way we do, and teach.

  • jimmy

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    manual is always better, whaaaaatttttt 550 population???? i think on page optimization will do the trick alone with this town… lol

  • Stuart Woods

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    Checked out the website they built and looks like something primary school kids put together. Nothing on About Page or Contact Page.

    • John Pearce

      Reply Reply January 18, 2017

      Yes Stuart but there is more than one piece of bad software out there, don’t forget. This article is about bad software in general that does mass spun auto generated rubbish and is sold on a lie!

  • Tom

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    Your advice is spot on, John. I checked out the latest software being touted by all the local marketing gurus, then spent a few minutes looking at their example site. My first thought was, “My God, we have come full circle back to the days of spam sites with 1000’s of pages of crap content.” Surely Google will not let this pass without penalty. As always, thanks for your honesty and genuine integrity.

  • Richard Porterfield

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    1-18-17 Thank you for the timely, important warning! I looked at several blog entries for one sample topic offered in a sales page I received today. In addition to having spun content that Google would easily recognize, the badly-made paragraph breaks should have been embarrassing to any business owner and off-putting to any prospective customer. I’m thankful for the professional guidance of SEO-Breakthrough.

  • Frank Okun

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    John, I just purchased the software I believe you are referring to. There was another software that come out in 2014 that seems to be very similar to this one, which was recommended to me by another plugin developer. After doing some research, I tried to get in contact with the developer of that software to ask a few questions, but got no response. One article I did find said what you said – don’t go for it because it violates Google’s guidelines. I thought this new software would “meet” Google’s guidelines, but now I am skeptical.

    • John Pearce

      Reply Reply January 18, 2017

      Hi Frank yup, but it’s not just about Google’s guidelines, its about whether Google can detect you breaking their guidelines. That’st the key, and that’s what lands you in penalty. We all break Google’s guidelines if you are in SEO! But correct SEO is about ranking your site, and you dont do that if you get in penalty!

  • Manuel Taningco

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    are you talking about xxxxx, John? NOT to purchase it? I would like to know if this is the case

    • John Pearce

      Reply Reply January 18, 2017

      Hi Manuel – I don’t want to name any product names, (but yes is the answer). I hope that’s ok. You have all the info you need here to avoid them – there’s more than one piece of bad software out there.

  • Foma

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    Thank you soooo much for this post John and Chris. The pitch for the software which shall remain nameless, just didn’t sound right but at the same time, the offer was very appealing. There were also quite a few high-profile affiliates pushing it which added to the trust value. I’m so glad I read your post before I shelled out my hard-earned sheckels. Thanks again

    • John Pearce

      Reply Reply January 18, 2017

      Thanks Foma – a lot of the guys pushing this sort of software are not dishonest, they just don’t know SEO very well, so they don’t understand. They got pulled in by the angle too. 🙁

  • Alex

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    Nice article JP. I 100% agree with you. I myself have bought plenty of them. Not only are most of them a complete waste of time, but when you buy the really crappy ones, you will usually end up with either crappy support or no support at all.

    As a newbie I fell for the hype from these duplicitous marketers and also caught myself a healthy case of “shiny object syndrome”, Or as I call it: “the Newbies Bane “. I didn’t find the “cure” for a couple of years.

    Well I just put up an article about “internet gurus” today before I read your email inviting me to read this post. That just goes to show that we need more honesty in this business.

  • Alok

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    John

    totally agreed wasted enough money myself on a whole lot of useless tools & courses I won’t ever follow through.

    Great money spinner for internet marketers but DEVASTATING for those starting on their journey.

    UNSUBSCRIBE, UNSUBSCRIBE, UNSUBSCRIBE from those and you will be way healthier financially

  • Ian Sneddon

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    Hi John

    The software to which you refer is basically the same as a WP plugin called xxxxx, which was promoted by none other than xxx xxxxa while back and was being given away for free. (G search will turn up references to it for those who are interested). I tried it out on a domain I had had for about a year and was thinking of letting go and initially the pages did rank but quickly dropped out of the SERPS. I endorse your recommendation John and would advise caution about what you believe in sales page claims.

    Kind regards

    Ian

    • John Pearce

      Reply Reply January 18, 2017

      Thanks Ian and apologies for removing the direct references to another product. I want to keep this thread objective and unemotional. Thanks for the comment!

  • Ian Sneddon

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    No problem with your redactions John. Quite agree regards objectivity and lack of emotion.

    Kind regards

    Ian

  • George

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    Thanks for reminding us to follow our common sense and sensibility. I know better, but was convinced by the marketing ads that this new “shiny object” would help me save time & help rank client’s site quicker. I think I have changed my mind now. Thanks!

  • Allen Lundy

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    Hi John and Chris. I know the EXACT software you are speaking about. It was being promoted and is being promoted by some really large and well known individuals.

    I considered the software, but, the saying “If it’s too good to be true – it usuallly is” stuck in my head… After watching the sales video I already began to have visions of being banned by Google.

    The “sales copy” while looking and reading well, was basically a come on… give me your money, pitch.

    And, what made it even worse was the 4 Social Platform Sites that it was designed to supposedly integrate an work with. There were only a few references in the video, and only 2 or 3 single lines of text referring to them on the sales page and I wondered why… especially since it was the social media interaction that was “supposedly” going to produce and provide the great high PR back links.

    What an eye opener that was. A $47 software, to even begin to provide the smallest hope of working would need these social platforms, and they would cost an AVERAGE of almost $400 (that’s hundred with a capital H) PER MONTH.

    So, now, even if this software was worth the original amount, and it actually did what it was supposed to do, and Google actually “loved” the sites it created, and wouldn’t ban me, I had to spend $400 dollars a month to get the FULL BENEFIT of more than 1 website of content.

    I don’t know about you, or anyone else, but, if that doesn’t scream RUN AWAY… I don’t know what does.

    So, I ran away, unsubscribed from the person promoting this “software” and went back to writing some articles to use on the Power Ranker software for next month.

    Thanks for keeping us in the know about SEO and the right way to do it.

    Allen

  • Judith Hoffman

    Reply Reply January 18, 2017

    Hi John,

    I have passed the link to this post on to a couple of FB contacts via private message. One of the two is actively promoting a product that appears to fit the description.

    I really appreciate your post.

    Best Regards,
    Judy

  • Abegunde Michael

    Reply Reply January 19, 2017

    Awesome Tips John. Backway pages are a No No for google. But the only reason i would buy these kind of plugins is for competition analysis. If a badly spun content and an awful onpage can rank for local keyword on the 1st,2nd or 3rd page, then its super easy to rank for. And If there are people paying for adword for the keyword term, then its profitable enough. All i need do is to build a local site, targeting that town or city with same keyword that ranked with the mass page creator. I think for those that already bought it, do not discard it yet, you can still use it to find easy to rank keyword terms.

    • John Pearce

      Reply Reply January 19, 2017

      That will only work until your site gets hit by a site-wide penalty, which wont be long! I think there are easier ways to do competition analysis. Also, Adwoords is a good indicator, but only if you are searching from the same location and it doesn’t tell you about traffic volume.

  • Mark

    Reply Reply January 19, 2017

    I don’t see the point of this post. You say “avoid this software like the plague”, but you don’t say which software. Simply replying to AmyBlain “NOt just one, Amy, there are lots in this category.” isn’t really helpful.

    You clearly have a product in mind, one that launched the very same day as your post, so why not just say so??

    C’mon John, man up!

    • John Pearce

      Reply Reply January 19, 2017

      It’s about professionalism, Mark, not manning up. You have all the info you need here to avoid many crappy products that fit the description I have given.

  • Carl Riedel

    Reply Reply January 19, 2017

    Hi John, I was pointed to this post by a friend. I think you are right in saying that most mass page builders out there are not what they promise to be. But I can guarantee you that the one I use, (and I will NOT mention which one here to keep the thread objective and not promote stuff) has made me enough money to afford 13 Holidays last year! And this is NO JOKE. I live in London, UK. You should have my email and website you can contact me anytime and I’ll let you see what and how it does it.

    Thanks,
    Carl

    • John Pearce

      Reply Reply January 19, 2017

      Hi Carl I’d be happy to take a look at it! Please email me at john [at] jpteach.me

  • Aaron Webb

    Reply Reply January 19, 2017

    Great post John, continue keeping up the good work and looking forward to the next tools coming out soon that you had spoke of about 2 weeks ago. Btw, SEO Breakthrough’s PBN system is already producing results for my client and loves it. Thank you for everything!

    • John Pearce

      Reply Reply January 19, 2017

      Hi Aaron – glad you are already getting results! We don’t call them PBNs remember, but ministies, but I know what you mean! Great work.

  • Neil Basford

    Reply Reply January 19, 2017

    Thanks for the warning and the sound advice as usual.

  • Scott Iverson

    Reply Reply January 19, 2017

    Really appreciate your input on this subject. When my inbox became swarmed over by offers for this new software, I had to check it out. Once there, my first thought was, “I have seen this movie before”. Combined with your email about the above blog post made the decision to pass pretty easy. Also, did what you suggested and googled the keyword (using a chrome incognito window) and I could not find ANYTHING about the site built using the software.

    I emailed back all of the guru pitchmen who sent me that offer with my findings while chastising them for promoting crap products. Surprise, surprise, no reply from any of them.

    Thank you very much John for your insight

  • WebMarketingAgent

    Reply Reply January 19, 2017

    Hi John,

    Absolutely great and caring of you to expose these online marketing crooks for what they are. It is sad that many newbies and even seasoned marketers fall for these type of software that promises the moon and the sky, but it will ultimately get you in trouble with Google.

  • Rudy Labordus

    Reply Reply January 19, 2017

    You know I love you guys – brilliant, thought provoking and genuinely helpful. Thank you for your constant stream of wisdom. But can I say that ‘being professional’ and not calling out specific software is not actually as professional as you might think. Firstly by not calling out the software you’re actually doing your followers a disservice.

    It’s like saying alcohol is bad. Well, yes and no. Drink it in moderation and it’s OK. But those pop drinks filled with alcohol are especially bad because they’re designed for kids. As an example – one of these popular drinks is mixed with red bull which is particularly popular – the mix of sweet, guarana and alcohol is an attractive and dangerous mix for teenagers.

    Sure you don’t need to mention red bull specifically, but avoiding specific examples doesn’t make you ‘more professional’. In fact it does the opposite. It actually removes accountability because you’re now just talking about ‘all things’ and no one can call YOU out when you’re being generic. Leaving out specifics actually makes your article weaker.

    Being generic makes fact checking harder too (and we should all do more of that these days).

    But here’s where it really got me (and the reason for my comment)…

    When people try to use your article to help others, they get easily shut down because your article is too vague.

    We saw a great example of this just this morning in the your Skype group… When someone tried to use your blog post as a tool to help protect others, they were shut down because your blog post was too ‘generic’ and was not specifically talking about any one product. I see that as a wasted opportunity. You had the potential to save hundreds of people from not only wasting their money upfront, but also save them down the track from losing their site(s) as a result.

    If you look at the source code of the sales page in question, find the vimeo link and watch it at the source (on vimeo), you’ll see that as of today over 2,000 people have watched that video. TWO THOUSAND PEOPLE. How many people and websites could we have saved by being courageous enough to call out a specific vendor?

    OK so let me rephrase that in commercial terms. How many more people would have come here and met you for the first time as a result of calling out a bad product. How many more customers would that have brought in because you were courageous enough to stand up and be counted. If you can’t see the value in helping others that aren’t your own subscribers, then look at it as an opportunity to grow your base and bring in new subscribers. Your existing subscribers will do the work for you by spreading your words.

    Be courageous John and let your light shine a little further than it already is. It has little to do with ‘being professional’ keeping the name of a bad product secret.

    Anyway just my 2c. 🙂

    • John Pearce

      Reply Reply January 20, 2017

      Thanks for your comment Rudy. I do not think your analogy correct, though. I have not just said “alcohol is bad,” I have said exactly what kind of “alcohol is bad” – and exactly why. I think I spelled it out.

      I too was frustrated by the reported conversation in the skype group. Frankly, if you don’t that a product like Serpify fits exactly the description I’ve given above, then I’m not sure what else to say! So maybe you are right, if this isn’t clear in my post, I need to be clearer. I’ll give it some more thought.

  • Carlos Cortez

    Reply Reply January 19, 2017

    Hey there John,

    I have seen many of these products get thrown into the air and try to create that authority.

    What hurts the SEO builders is that one click formula that they promise. I don’t like it, and I have started to expose them…

    Awww, what a wonderful feeling when I do. I don’t like people that do that, and I have purchased many products that promised that, but i’m done with that.

    I am glad and happy you posted it, I know you have followers that wanted to purchase promises, and glad that you stood up to say ….”wait a minute,”….

    Thanks,

    Carlos….

  • Jeffrey

    Reply Reply January 20, 2017

    CRAP!!! I just bought this cloud based software!!! I know they’re gonna fight me tooth and nail for a refund….man!!! Should’ve know when their OTO is for additional training on how to use the software. A 6 week training webinar! Six weeks!!! So good luck using the product as is without the $67 OTO training!! To MANY con-artist in the marketing arena.

  • Sean Drayton

    Reply Reply January 20, 2017

    Fantastic post John and great feedback from all who commented. Thoroughly enjoyed the read and everyone’s passion for caring.

    Good on you all

  • Joseph Okunbor

    Reply Reply January 20, 2017

    Thanks for the post, John. I’m glad there are nice people like you guys out there who would actually tell the truth rather than make a couple of affiliate sales.
    I saw the demo of one of them, the site they were building links from gave me the first No no.
    Come to think of it, I think some of us are trying to run away from the work that produces the result to rank a page, that’s the only reason someone would buy a push button create a 1000 page software and go to Hawaii while it ranks itself.
    Crap!

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