I joined SFM in 2014. At that point, it had only been running for four years. I didn’t know what to expect, but I had been burned several times online with a series of business-type courses that promised to help me make money. My lack of experience at the time and my desperation were partly responsible for some of my failures. But also, many courses taught tactics that were already becoming outdated.
Some of the courses I bought taught how to get your website up in the Google rankings. If you’ve ever tried this, you know it’s not easy. It is true that it was much easier 20 years ago. But now, getting your website ranked is getting a lot more difficult.
So back to The SFM. When I joined I decided I needed to start over and even though I had learned a number of skills, I still hadn’t made any money online. With the exception of buying and selling on eBay, the other strategies I tried didn’t work.
After joining, I was immediately impressed with the information I was receiving. The “overdeliver” strategy clearly worked on me! I also benefited from joining someone who helped me make my first couple of high ticket sales. This happened after a few months. However, I did not fully understand the business system or what was involved. Although he had made a couple of quick sales, without much work, he had not been entirely responsible for those sales. The affiliate who referred me had set up a Facebook advertising “co-op” and helped a number of people get some traction.
After my first few sales I stopped advertising and just took the money! This seemed like a lot of money to me back then. It was a couple thousand pounds. Now I realize that I should have reinvested it in advertising, which is what I’m doing now, now I understand the business better.
Having achieved an ‘early win’ gave me confidence in the trading system, which is one of the main selling points of what SFM offers. It also offers top notch training, more so now than in 2014 when I joined. Now, I am a member of several private Facebook groups where I can sit and look ‘over my shoulder’ at those who are successful in this business.
Don’t get me wrong, this is not an easy business to learn. Some of my main problems have been my “grab it and run” mentality and my scarcity mentality, which has prevented me from taking some big steps. The SFM training program is very well suited to this. In fact, one of his main strengths is undoubtedly his ability to install an ideology of personal growth. Without this, you’ll really be fighting some internal battles as I definitely have. This will hold you back if you don’t overcome your mental barriers to success.
It’s not for everyone either, you have to admit. The business system itself is expensive and, for some, prohibitively expensive. But for anyone who wants to live full time off the internet, I’d say The SFM is a good place to go. However, you will need to work hard and invest, and it is not an easy journey. But it offers something many want: a digital business system that can be run from anywhere. The possibility of financial freedom, no matter how far away you think it is.
If you just want the training, I’d say it was well worth the money at the lower levels as well. I had a kung fu school that was failing when I joined and now it is doing very well. I attribute that to much of the learning and understanding I’ve gained from the SFM training and education platform.
However, you can’t expect to make a living if you only join at the basic level. Only by reaching the Elite level will you at least be able to access the higher ticket product commissions. But if you want to learn some digital marketing and mindset skills, it’s worth the training and the community, even if you don’t want to do a full-time career. The community alone is an enormously powerful resource and has benefited me both personally and professionally.
After my first couple of high ticket sales, I decided to focus on blogging and the cheapest strategies to generate traffic. I just didn’t have a budget to risk advertising. I decided that if I got free traffic, the sales would be worth more in profit, which is true. The problem is that the strategy I used (blogging) is not the best, particularly in a very competitive niche like affiliate marketing and “make money online”. I know there are people who do well with social media marketing and other free strategies, but I didn’t go down this path.
The people who win real money with The SFM are the ones who go all-in. They position themselves at the highest level of the business system and promote SFM as affiliates at the partner level. This means that they can earn the highest possible commissions from the business. Some products sell for $35,000. Those at the top level can earn 40% of this in commissions, but need to purchase the product themselves to have it in their ‘online store’.
There is also a lot to learn. I thought about making it work real fast and sitting on a beach counting my money. But as I persevered through the difficulties, I changed and understood that it is a business like any other. It’s not a magic formula for instant riches. Just a business model with products inside that anyone can sell.
To place the most expensive items in your own personal online ‘store’, you must purchase them yourself. Reading the reviews I found today about SFM, I see a lot of skepticism. Many say it is a scam. Well, it’s not a scam, it’s real. But it’s easier to say it’s a scam and not have to do all the work to make it happen. There are many people who are making it work for them and creating amazing lifestyle businesses of their choice.
SFM started in 2010 and recently partnered with Microsoft Lynda (under the umbrella of LinkedIn companies). Microsoft Lynda now offers its own 6,500 training courses as part of the SFM curriculum.
DigitalMarketer (the world’s longest-running and most respected B2B and B2C marketing training company) has also partnered with SFM and now offers its own training as part of the SFM curriculum.
I don’t think these companies would associate with any organization that doesn’t provide great value, is well established, and isn’t 100% legal.
Since I joined The SFM in 2014, I have seen huge changes in myself. I have had to face myself and see my own limitations as an impediment to moving forward within the business. Your way of thinking and mindset have a lot to do with whether you can succeed with entrepreneurship. It is much, much easier to dismiss something as a scam, than to look inside and grow along with a business.
If I had given up on my trip, I would have missed out on a bigger opportunity than I could have imagined at the time. I fought and fought, but much of my struggle was due to my lack of understanding of the business model and my own limitations. I was programmed with a poverty mentality that brutally fought against spending money. Going into the space of knowing what I need to spend to win was a huge change in my mindset.
I’m far from the best performer in The SFM right now, but what I’ve learned about myself and my inner limitations is invaluable for the rest of my life. I will continue to learn and never give up, so watch this space, you doubters!
For those who are thinking of joining The SFM and doing so would mean severe poverty, I suggest you first get yourself into a better financial position. I managed and took risks, but it’s not easy. However, if you’re set on this business, there’s no reason you can’t make it happen. But if you can’t afford it, I suggest another program if it’s going to put you in debt.
The SFM program is more than a sales funnel with digital products. It is an “all-in-one digital business system and training platform.” The goal is to make long-term digital entrepreneurs who can maintain an income and prosper from selling products over the Internet. That means there is a lot of work to be done. done, if you’re going to make this a full time life.
It is definitely not for the timid. Expect to be pushed and expect some discomfort if you’re going to do what you need to make it work. Also remember that affiliate marketing is about performance. Nobody owes you their life! You need to take charge of yourself and your business to make it work! Good luck!