Jesse Willms picture appeared on ABC's 20/20 News Program. Click to Watch the entire segment from the show that aired on Dec. 11, 2009.

Last night, I was tipped off that ABC’s 20/20 program was airing a piece on Internet Marketing practices that go way beyond just adding a little “umph” to their efforts.

What I wasn’t prepared for, was Jesse Willms being outed on National TV.  Follow this link  to the ABC 20/20 website (scroll down the videos in the middle of the page to find the video titled “Slick Web Sites Use Photo Tricks” then you will have to suffer thru a 60 second pre-roll ad, supplied to the website by AOL’s Adsonar) to see the entire piece, which includes among other things a hotel in Poland that online looks like a peaceful chalet to vacation at, but in reality sits only meters from a nuclear plant’s cooling tower.

The story they focused on weight loss and Acai Berry sites that use allegedly deceptive images and testimonials for promoting their products.  They even had the story’s reporter visit Jesse Willms Just Think Media headquarters in Edmonton.  The story recounted how Just Think’s Wu Yi tea websites used the image of a woman without her knowledge (they took if from her blog) and then when her grandmother’s friend saw her image in an ad and made her aware of it, and she contacted Wu Yi’s offices, they offered her $1000 to use the images which she accepted.  She never used Wu Yi to loose the weght according to the ABC 20/20 story.  The images of her before and after the weight loss were the result of 8 months of daily exercise and calorie counting.

The story goes further into alleged deceptions perpetrated by Jesse Willms companies in marketing tooth whitening, weight loss, acai berry.  The 20/20 report suggests that there are many people who want their money back.  They even interviewed the Better Business Bureau about the 1000+ complaints he has racked up.  They made a big deal about the F rating, but almost every online seller of supplements starts at an F rating with the BBB simply because of the niche they are in.  The same holds true for business opportunity type merchants as well with regards to their BBB rating.  The ABC 20/20 story “Slick Web Sites use Tricks Photos” laments the lack of any attempt to resolve those complaints by Mr. Willms or his employees.

I met Jesse Willms only once, and at the time he was at a conference.  He and I enjoyed a beverage together and discussed a strategy for his sites that allowed him to leverage multiple networks distributing his product simultaneously.  That strategy was later implemented by his Agency of Record Network for the Wu Yi tea offer.  Unfortunately it appears from the ABC 20/20 story on Dec. 11. 2009, Jesse Willms allegedly used fraud and deception to make the sites he controlled convert better – allegedly doctoring photos and using stock images bought at iStockPhoto and other online image shops.

I have never promoted any product of his, and would be wary of any network that felt dealing with this type of campaign would help them in their long term goals.  It is my opinion that when networks actively make the decision to run these campaigns it seriously lowers the image of our entire performance marketing sector.  Which in turn reflects poorly on all of the professionals who make their living in this highly effective slice of the Internet Marketing pie.

If you are a publisher who knowingly promotes Acai Berry using the techniques described in this manner, you need to get some hand soap and wash up.  These types of campaigns make it tougher for legitimate advertiser’s campaigns to get through the flack this type of promotion fosters.  If you expect to continue being a professional affiliate, you should consider the long term implications of your actions.  Running deceptive advertisements, as the ABC 20/20 story alleges that some websites do,  only invites additional scrutiny in all aspects of our business.  If you haven’t been out in the sunshine for awhile, the FTC is gunning directly for these type of “over the edge” marketers and will pursue injunctions against them continuing their business’ online.

As a Publisher, you can have actions taken against you for promoting these types of campaigns.  If you need to review how the FTC feels about this, feel free to review Jim Edwards recent interview with an FTC official, posted on his blog.

If we want this segment of internet marketing, performance or cost per action (CPA) marketing, to see any growth, we will have to police our campaigns to make sure they are in compliance and are from trusted advertisers whose practices abide within the rules of fair play and transparency.