When I was a junior in college, I was one of the laziest bastards ever…

I really had no ambitions in life.  My days consisted of eating like shit, going to class, watching 5 hours of T.V. and then usually going out and getting drunk at night.  I would wake up the next morning all groggy-headed and usually repeat the same thing over and over…

I was content with my life, so I didn’t really care.

Then I read Fight Club and everything changed for me.

I was browsing some forums online, and came across a discussion of Fight Club.  The main idea of the book immediately caught my interest, so I darted to the book store and picked myself up a copy. Up until this point, I had read probably 7 books in my entire life – all of them for school, and none of them interested me at all.

I dove into the book, and finished the whole thing in a few hours.  After the first read-through, I sat there… pretty much stunned at what I had just read.

I realized everything I was doing in my life, and everything I wanted in my life was just like “Jack’s” character in Fight Club.

• I was materialistic.
• I was living a very mediocre life with no real ambitions
• I was looking for everything outside of myself to make me happy
• I never really felt “alive”

Trying to increase your Google rank that is like no other?

Over the last 10 years I have not really tried to protect my privacy. Its not that big of deal to me.

But I know that a lot of people get pissed when I show them our API from sources we aggregate data from on the PARprogram.

Don’t hate the player… hate the game =P

This morning while building out our system for consumers who wish to opt out, I thought people might find it useful to goto some of the sources directly to remove their data from them selling it.

Lexus Nexis

Lexus Nexis has been the go to spot for students, attourneys and about anyone who needs information about someone. If you have a Nexis terminal you can get an amazing amount of stuff. SSN, Birth, Mothers maiden name, everywhere you have ever worked. (where do you think credit companies get all this info?).

If you want to opt out of the Nexis database you have to go here first.

Nexis terminals are EXPENSIVE. And they want to keep all the data they can. So they do not make it easy for you to opt out of their database.

After you fill out that form it takes you to a page with all your information. You then have to print out that form and mail it to their physical address. They also recommend you fax it.

You also have to provide a copy of 2 forms identification as well as every place chronologically you have worked at for the last 10 years, and a utility bill.

You ALSO have to have a compelling reason why you are asking to be removed. They suggest a copy of a police report of someone threatening bodily harm.

A friend of mine just said that it was an “executive request” and it was all taken out. So I would suggest you go with that.

ADD SIDENOTE – Years ago my old house address was listed on alexa.com and I couldn’t get it off to save my life until Michael Gray suggested that I use the phrase “executive request” for removal. I did and it was removed days later.

So Lexus Nexis is a real bitch but its the most definitive place out there to get peoples info.

The others are easier:

Experian:

Experian is a large data seller and about everyone under the sun either buys or sells data to them. Its MUCH cheaper and we have been a customer for a long time.

They are a great resource to get phone numbers, household income, and tons of other data.

In order to opt out of their send a email to dataselect@experian.com with the subject line “PLEASE REMOVE”.

In the body of the email make sure you put:

• Please do not send me any promotional information from Experian.
• Please do not share my contact information with third parties.
• Include any phone numbers,  emails,  addresses you have lived, aliases and anything else you think is relavent (hey if your putting it together might as well include it).

The do not call list:

Ahh remember that awesome thing that was going to stop telemarketers in their tracks! – https://www.donotcall.gov/register/reg.aspx – Keep in mind that this is a publicly downloadable list and some people will argue that you are providing marketers your information…. thus defeating the purpose?

Here is some other things to opt out while your at it.

Acxiom:

Fill out remove request form
You will receive a “Privacy Guide” which contains the final opt-out form for you to mail in.

You can also request to install an “opt-out cookie” for targeted marketing: http://www.acxiom.com/products_and_services/targetedengagement/displayads/pages/relevance-xopt-out.aspx

Google Phone Directory:

Click here and make sure to enter all your numbers.
Remove all numbers used.

I tried to keep this focused to protect yourself from OFFLINE marketing. If you tried online then… good luck cause every website you visit has a privacy policy most likely that they can sell or do whatever with your data that they want.

Good luck

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This site is currently in the beginning stages but it has the potential to blow up big! LeadFerret is an online data base filled with businesses and their employee contact information that you can get for free.  The great part is if they don’t have a company/person you are looking for just let them know and they will hunt them down for you.

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Trying to increase your Google rank that is like no other?

Ever feel like your friend / enemy (aka frenemy) ranks everything they touch, using nefarious tactics?  Or your competitor keeps beating you in the ranks by spamming?  Or are they ranking and you just know they must be doing something sneaky, but you can’t quite figure out what?  Well, there is a reason some of us call the real definition of spam to be “Sites Positioned Above Mine”.  So how can you out them or get them some extra scrutiny?

First a disclaimer, if you plan to out a competitor, chances are good that your market area could come under the Google spam team microscope.  So even if you aren’t stating “Hey, I am the owner of ABC Widgets and I want you to know that Orange Widgets R Us is spamming” be prepared that all the ranking sites in that space could get some extra special attention by the powers that be at Google.  Those in glass houses should not throw stones ;)  And of course, there is that whole thing about karma to be reckoned with.

There is also the whole ethics thing where some people claim it is unethical to out any website while the other side of the coin is people claim it is unethical to NOT report spam.  To each their own.

But if karma be damned and you want to do some butt kicking to your competitors and frenemies, here are some things you can do to see your competitor banned from Google.  Do note that this will only work if they actually are doing something spammy.  If their ranks are from white hat SEO, these tricks won’t work.

Google spam report

In a world where your Google account ties you into this, it is best to find a nice proxy or coffee shop, sign up for a throwaway Google account and use the  spam reporting tool.

Google does use the reporting tool for spam checking, so particularly if it is a clear cut case of regular old spam that just hasn’t tripped the spam filter yet, this should be your first stop.  Google has asked for more reports post-Panda and post-Penguin, so include as much details, hit submit, then start watching.

For posting post-Penguin spam specifically, you should read this tweet from Matt Cutts, head of Google spam.

To report post-Penguin spam, fill out https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/spamreport and add “penguin” in the details. We’re reading feedback.

Drawback to the Google spam report method is that it can take a long time to have any effect, it it does at all.  So really, if you want to see that site crashing and burning, you need to do one of these more, ahem, extreme spam reporting tactics.

Slip a note

Slyly hand Matt Cutts (or anyone else on the spam team) a piece of paper with the URL if you run into any of them at an event .  While webmaster central team members can be used, note that they deal mostly with webmaster problems, and not so much with the spam end of things.  But it can be effective, especially if it is some new kind of spam.

@reply Matt Cutts

Matt seems to read most of the @replies he gets.  Use a throwaway Twitter account, and make sure you use a tiny URL type service (preferably one that does a blind redirect), because your competitor can discover what you have done if you go this route (along with all those people who follow all @mattcutts activity, both send and received) even if they can’t figure out who you are.  Bonus points if you use a tracking URL shortener that shows you the click stats.  Wait until you see clickthroughs originating at Google, then nuke the @reply spam report.

And it is always fun to have a look at some of the @mattcutts tweets (and comments on Google+) and see what is getting outted, there are usually a few anytime you take the time to look.

Send an anonymous hat tip

There are some SEOs who refuse to participate in any outings (at least until the outing has been done, then it’s considered fair game) while some love to do nothing more than get the publicity by outing someone, especially if it is a large site or big brand.  Find one of those who love the publicity and notoriety of being the one to out someone, and send them the anonymous tip.  Proxies and anonymous email addresses are your friend, unless you don’t care if the person you chose tries to figure out who you are – after all, that person just might know the owner of the site you are attempting to out.

Go to a conference

A conference is a great place to bend the ear of industry celebrities and Google employees.  Choose a few targets, carefully drop a “You wouldn’t believe what ____.com is getting away with.”  Be sure to mention things like “really sneaky” and “never seen this kind of spam before” to arouse curiousity and ensure they remember to look.  Everyone loves to check out cutting edge spam that hasn’t been caught by Google.  To remain truly anonymous though, flip your badge around or do your dirty work in the bar

Post on your favorite SEO forum

Again, proxies and anonymous emails/usernames are your friend.  Post on forums with titles like “check out this clever spam that is ranking”.  It might hit the spam bin, ironically, for outing a website, but chances are enough eyeballs will see it and even more people will report that site to spam or someone will out it more visibly.

Post on your favorite SEO blogs

Same with forums, leave a comment on a high traffic SEO blog.  Just make sure it is either an edgy blog that will publish an outting comment or someone who will do the outting for you after reading it.

Report to the hosting company

Is the spam obviously spam?  Report it to the hosting company, as many hosts will disable accounts hosting clear cut spam.  Might not solve the problem permanently, since hosting companies are a dime a dozen, but will cause some headaches and could see the site deindexed for a while if the owner doesn’t notice it has been disabled (you would be surprised how often that happens, especially if it is a huge spam farm network).

Go big or go home

Is your competitor a big brand or well known name?  Public outings in the New York Times successfully saw JC Penney go down in a (temporary) firestorm.  If the name is big enough, contact reporters who have done outtings in the past.

Trace the spam

Don’t forget to trace back the spam – and trace it forwards.  You never know where it leads, and even the best spammers can leave an accidental footprint.  The bigger story might not be the site that is giving you problems in the rankings, but the well-known SEO company or consultant that is behind the spam.

Looking for an SEO service that won’t get you banned?

Former Playboy and Epic executive Michael Sprouse is in the house to co-host todays ShoeMoney.tv show. Today my guest will be mobile advertising expert Toren Ajk.

Should be a good one don’t miss it! 1pm CST on ShoeMoney.tv

BTW you have a few more days to grab my latest video series – The Local Internet Marketing Blueprint for only $49!!

Trying to increase your Google rank that is like no other?

Hey, Justin Goff here…

I’ve made a living as a product owner and an affiliate for the past 5 years.   Now, one of the easiest ways to make money online is to be an affiliate for another product.

And while I recommend being an affiliate marketer to a lot of new people, once you know what you are doing you should really be making your own products.

Whether your product is something like a DVD, a vitamin supplement or even something common like phone chargers – having your own product gives you SO much more control over what you are doing.   Along with that, there’s a few BIG reasons to have your own product.

1.  Your affiliates build your email list

When you have affiliates that make sales for you, you’re collecting a buyer’s email address everytime they make a sale.  This is the KEY to having a long term business online.   Once you have a customer, you can make new products to sell to them, and continually market new stuff to your list.

2.  You have a “backend” for every sale you make

Every sale you make as an affiliate is usually a 1 time payment for you if you’re an affiliate.  But when you actually own the product, you can make the same sale and then you can also make more money on the backend since you have a new customer.  This allows you to spend more money on advertising, which can get you even more customers.

3.  Affiliate marketing without a list is NOT a business

If you have NO email list or no way to contact people who have bought products through your affiliate links, then you really don’t have any REAL assets in your business.

People who have emails, physical addresses, Facebook fan pages etc… all have real assets that allow them to continually market to the people who buy their products.

If you’re just starting out, affiliate marketing is a great way to get started.   But once you understand what you’re doing, I would definitely look into making your own product.

This is the best way to build yourself a real business that will last.

- Justin

Looking for an SEO service that won’t get you banned?