Over the past few weeks, I’ve been diving into the world of digital marketing and online sales — mostly while exploring ways to earn a little extra income (and, hopefully, something that could become passive in the long run). The idea of resigning from your 9-to-5 job and making a living off affiliate marketing or quickly creating a few digital products in Canva or Playground (with the help of AI) and selling these on the myriad of platforms out there, including Etsy, Shopify, Systeme.io, etc. is dominating social media platforms like TikTok. I think this is driven by the tough and uncertain economic and social conditions that we live in. Most ordinary people – and maybe some not so ordinary – are struggling to make ends meet and the desire to earn a little something on the side is very common. These types of “opportunities’ are not known as “side hustles” for nothing and generally refer to supplemental income opportunities pursued in addition to doing a primary job – what we would have called “freelancing” not so long ago.

One of the first things I realised is that the idea of “passive income” is — for the most part — a myth. As the word “passive” would imply, this would be income generated without or with very little ongoing work – like interest accruing on money invested. Sure, you can create income streams that require less day-to-day effort — but they’re rarely hands-off once your products are out there. Building passive income often involves a significant upfront investment of time, effort, and resources. Many people are drawn to the idea of setting up a passive income stream and then doing nothing to maintain it. However, this is often unrealistic. Even with passive income sources, there can be ongoing maintenance, adjustments, and potential for unforeseen problems that require attention.

Another issue that I have identified is that not all people have the skills, knowledge and experience to design and create a digital product – not even with the help of AI. Writing an AI prompt that actually produces a high-quality, sellable product — something that convinces real buyers to part with their money — has become an art in itself. In fact, many PLR and MRR vendors are now selling ChatGPT Prompt Bundles – pre-written prompts – to help the uninitiated create digital products.

In the third place, the payoff on your investment takes time. Although some affiliate marketers or digital creators may hit a sweet spot and make sales very quickly, for most of us this will take time. I have spoken to various digital marketers and some have only made their first sales six or seven months into their journeys. Even some honest TikTok creators warn newcomers about this.– you need to have patience and keep on working at getting your message out to the public or posting new products and your shopfronts consistently – and by that, I mean almost daily.

If you’ve spent enough time on TikTok or similar platforms, you’ve likely come across self-proclaimed digital marketers promoting easy ways to make money online. You’ll see phrases like:

• “Earn R5,000 a week selling digital products.”
• “Affiliate marketing changed my life.”
• “No skills needed — just your phone and 30 minutes a day.”

At first glance, the offer sounds appealing. You’re led to believe you’ll be learning how to sell simple digital products — maybe PDFs, templates, or affiliate links. It sounds clean. Straightforward. Even achievable.

But the moment you engage — whether by commenting, clicking their link, or replying to their message — the conversation suddenly changes. You’re no longer being guided into affiliate marketing or digital product sales. Instead, you’re being pitched a crypto trading platform. Or a high-risk investment scheme. Or a ‘mentorship’ programme that costs money upfront but offers little transparency in return.

This is the Bait-and-Switch — and It’s a serious red flag. Let’s be very clear: If someone promotes one business model and then, once you’re hooked, shifts the conversation entirely — they’re not selling a legitimate opportunity. They’re manipulating trust to redirect you into something you didn’t ask for.

Even worse, many of the genuine marketers on these platforms have had their profiles cloned. Their videos are stolen, their names copied, and their audience tricked. So, you might think you’re responding to someone with a proven track record — only to be speaking to a scammer hiding behind a fake account.

I have also seen a growing trend — especially across platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and WhatsApp — of people selling digital marketing courses without having any real background or experience in the subject.

It’s important to point out that there’s nothing wrong with selling a digital marketing course. In fact, there are some incredible programmes out there, created by experienced professionals, that can genuinely teach you the foundations of online business, paid ads, social media strategy, and more.

The problem starts when people buy those courses — not to learn — but simply to resell them.

They never apply what’s inside the course. They never test, practise, or build their own skills. They go straight from being a buyer to being a seller. No insight, no personal proof, no value-added knowledge — just a price tag and a new audience to pitch to.

What you’re really buying is the same course, repackaged again and again. You end up with hundreds (sometimes thousands) of people online selling the same course, using the same graphics, repeating the same copy-paste script — and offering no backup, no support, no after-sales guidance.

It becomes less about actually learning digital marketing and more about creating a chain of sellers — all pushing the same material in the hopes that someone else will buy it, without asking too many questions.

And who does this model attract? Desperate people looking for a quick win, who genuinely hope this course will help them escape financial pressure.

What’s missing? Real support, real learning, real mentorship. Selling a course without offering guidance is not only lazy — it’s unethical. If you’re going to sell a product that claims to teach people how to build a business or earn online, you should either:

1. Have gone through the process yourself, so you can answer questions and provide direction,

OR

2. Work with someone who has, and offer the course as part of a mentored or supported experience.

Otherwise, you’re just selling hope — and in most cases, the only people making money are the ones at the top of the chain.

Let’s call it what it is – selling without skill. This trend creates a false idea of what digital marketing is. People begin to think that digital marketing means reselling a course or “just posting a link” — without ever learning how to market, communicate, build a brand, or serve a real client.
And sadly, this just adds more noise to the already overcrowded online space — making it harder for honest, skilled marketers to stand out.

If you’re serious about entering this space, invest in learning, not just selling. Understand the strategy behind what you’re offering. Ask yourself:

– Can I explain how this works?
– Can I help someone if they get stuck?
– Have I personally benefited from the course I’m selling?

If the answer is no — maybe it’s time to pause, learn, and come back when you can add real value.

This last point — The Rise of Resellers — brings me to something else that really needs to be addressed: the serious lack of basic sales skills among many of these sellers.

Just this past week, I had another one of those all-too-familiar encounters — someone approached me with the usual copy-paste pitch, completely ignoring my questions and my very clear request to cut to the chase and tell me what exactly they were offering. I’m not an easy sell, and I make that known upfront. I don’t need the emotional language or lifestyle bait — I want the facts. What’s on the table? What’s it going to cost me?

What’s the return?
Instead, this person focused entirely on trying to reassure me I’d make R10,000 to R20,000 in just 2 to 5 days, while letting me know she’d be entitled to a 10% commission on my earnings. No real explanation of the offer, no clarity, and certainly no attempt to understand whether her offer was even relevant to me.

That experience reminded me of a major issue: many of these resellers have never had any actual sales training. They’re not doing market research. They’re not asking questions. They’re not identifying needs or pain points — they’re simply pitching, hoping something sticks.

So, if you’re serious about improving your results — and not just pushing offers blindly — the rest of this blog is for you. I’m going to break it down simply, practically, and with no fluff — just tips that actually work in the real world.

Chris Vermeulen

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