MY JOURNEY THROUGH CHRIS MALTA eBIZ FOUNDATIONS COMPLETE ECOMMERCE TRAINING PROGRAM ONLINE TRAINING COURSE WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT. Are You contemplating an online presence? Maybe, you are about to be retired, or already retired, and want to establish an online presence: an online store to market something that peeked your interest, a niche that you felt unserved or underserved; to supplement your finances, or just to be in a position to say to your friends and associates, “Have you seen my website?” And into a dialog with them. Or, maybe, none of the above. But for whatever reason, private or public, you want an online presence, and you decided to have a web site developed. Good. You now think about the resources to accomplish this. You evaluated your own skills in the area of website development, and if current, no big deal, you just carry on to the end and invite your friends to the launch of your site. It is like you want to build a house, a dream house, if you are an architect and or builder, you just commit your thoughts to paper in the form of a diagram (blue print), and from that diagram you make a realistic estimate of materials, land, labor, and time. You might even supervise the actual operation to make sure everything is done to your satisfaction. You might even do all the work, or some of it, or even one of it. But you would always make sure that each stage of production is to your approval and satisfaction, before the next stage commences. However, if your expertise in this area is not current, or non-existent, you would look elsewhere to find the right expertise. Nowhere is more apparent to look than the online resources that are at your disposal to retrieve by carefully crafting search arguments that will return the answers you are looking for. But these answers are tailored, waiting for your search, and You do not even think of looking elsewhere because the online services are right there at your finger tip; they are intimidating, and enticing, all at the same time. Moreover, the enticement is reinforced by the supporting emails, and follow-up leaflets that flood your inboxes, and postal mail boxes. Once you have narrowed down your list of website builders, you will do your due diligence and select the builder that best meets your approval. An interview will take place between you and the potential website builder/trainer/teacher, and on agreement (contract signing) cash will change hands and training commences. During this interview, it is important to make sure that the teaching/training/work/ is in sync to deliver your desired and expected end product in the framework of your expected time, expenses, and other resources. The way to accomplish this is to ask questions to address your expectations. Be always mindful of the fact that they are in the business of selling courses and their primary and only objective is to sell courses, so they will tailor their presentation to do just that, even if it means being deceptive, not disclosing, or cloaking the full or complete extent of the time and expenses associated with their training programs. Below, is the detail of my journey through Chris Malta eBiz Foundations Ecommerce Online Training Program. It is just the facts as they happened, no opinion, no subjectivation, no objectivation, no conclusion. As you read it you will ask yourself “why didn’t I ask this and that, and so on”. These are the questions you might ask before signing. Make a note of them, and ask them. My Journey Through Chris Malta eBiz Ecommerce Online Training Program In February 2015 I received an invitational email from chrismalta.com to participate in a paid online seminar explaining the true ins-and-outs of an ecommerce website. It spiked my interest because I was then looking for precisely that type of information. On the fourth of March I paid the seminar registration fee, and a week after I was sitting at my computer listening to the presentation, narrated by Chris, himself. I was impressed. The presentation was short and spicy, and the call to action was built in. The gist of it was a briefing of what makes for a good website-presentation to the searcher, and how to lead that searcher to become a customer. The entire training would take a year to eighteen months. I liked it then. I would like it even more now, if the true disclosure of time and other resources was given. Chris called me on the telephone the next day, as a follow-up, and to get my views on the seminar, as well as to explain the cost and method of payment. During our conversation the idea of curriculum and syllabus kept going through my thought process so I asked him if we (the students) get a curriculum and detail syllabus. He explained that it is just what we have been over, and a syllabus is not really necessary. Subsequently, in August of 2018, I again asked for a copy of the detail syllabus for the course; I gave the reason why I wanted it, and this time I promptly received it (a twenty-five-page document titled ‘2018 Course Detail’). On March 25, 2015 I paid the cost of the training, and training commenced in April 2015. The training began as one would have expected, with the welcome and greeting. Course Section #5 called for the setting up of a legal entity business name, and establishing of bank account. Course Sections #2, #4, and #6 required the purchasing of Quick Books Pro 2015, and subscription to Lynda.com for Video training as listed below. The thing to bear in mind here is that Lynda.com courses have no reference material. It is a matter of playing the videos until the information is grasped or understood. This could involve playing the videos more than once. Any subsequent reference or lookup requires playing the videos again if subscription is still current, or renew subscription first.Windows 8.1 – 6 hours of video playing timeGmail Essentials and Learning Chrome – 2 hours video playing timeMS Word 2013 – 6 hours of video playing timeMS Excel 2013 – 7 hours of video playing timeGoogle calendar about an hour of video playing timeQuick Books Pro 2015 – 6 hours of video playing time. Course Section #9 required the purchasing of the self-contain-course-Book – Simple Market Research. Course Sections #10 through #34 covered marketing research, utilizing spread sheets, covering topics including but not limited to: Competition, Pricing, Niche marketing and advertising, Keywords, demographics and consumer identification, product qualification, and supply chain. Course Sections #35 through #39 required the purchasing of monthly subscription to Adobe Creative Cloud. Also required Lynda.com paid subscription for the following: Design Aesthetics for the web – 3 hours of video playing timeAdobe Creative Cloud Essential Training – 3 hours of video playing timePhotoshop CC 2017 One-on-One Fundamentals – 16 hours of video playing timePhotoshop CC 2017 One-on-One Advanced – 17 hours of video playing timePhotoshop CC 2013 Mastery - 10 hours of video playing timeAdobe Color CC Essential Training 3 hours of video playing timeIllustrator CC 2013 One-on-One Fundamentals – 12 hours of video playing timeIllustrator CC 2013 One-on-One Intermediate – 12 hours of video playing timeIllustrator CC 2013 One-on-One Advanced – 12 hours of video playing timeIllustrator CC 2013 One-on-One Mastery – 12 hours of video playing timeDeke’s Techniques 269 Video Training – 15 minutes of video playing timeDeke’s Techniques 270 Video Training – 15 minutes of video playing time. I completed the training up to course section #41, in August, 2017. The flood Harvey then came and destroyed my house and the fullness thereof. After setting up temporary domicile I contacted Chris Malta in September of 2017, requesting that due to my disruption, and the time it will take me to reestablish, I cancel the remainder of the course and be given a prorated refund. He informed me that the time has long passed for any type of refund, but I may resume the course when it is possible for me to do so. I asked him to give me the entire course work material all at once, since I have already paid for it, that I may or may not work on it at my leisure, he said no, that is not possible. I decided to resume the course. It took me until June 2018 before I was recovered from the effects of Harvey, to the point where I could resume the course. I contacted Chris. He informed me that too much time has elapsed to resume the course, but I may restart at the beginning of course section #10. At this moment I started contemplating whether I should drop the course completely, or restart at section #10. To make this decision, I need to assess what I have completed, and what I have yet to complete. So, I asked Chris to send me a copy of the syllabus, and explained why I need it. He promptly sent it to me, as mentioned before. Speaking from the syllabus, the part of the course that I have not yet completed lists 79 more sections and 37 more video trainings. Undoubtedly, these require additional expenses for video training subscriptions and or the purchase of software products (this level of detail is only given at the beginning of each lesson). Retrospect The original presentation to me was deceptive. Had I seen the syllabus, or, had I known the full extent of time, resources, and expenses associated with this course, I would not have signed up for it in the first place. Now I am faced with the options of dropping the course and losing the almost six thousand dollars, including the cost of the course itself, that I have already sunken into it, or resuming the course at a point where I would not only incur additional cost, but repeat most of those I have already incurred. Be mindful. The local municipal colleges and career schools are more cost effective; they are accredited, technologically current, staffed with distinguished teachers, and provide all the resources you will need for their courses, during and after. And there is never a discrepancy of course time-line and or content and expense.