This is not what you think. Honest. We’ve caused a bit of a stir over the last few weeks with our post about the MoneySavingExpert forums. You can read about their Machiavellian moderation here but this is different. This post is not what you’re used to so feel free to move along if you think you might be offended.
Firstly, Martin Lewis is to our knowledge not a homosexual. However, many people think he is. The money saving expert front-man comes across as camp, effeminate and a little quirky. Alternatively, it could be a barrymore style cover up (a life of heterosexuality, marriage and children) only to end up ‘coming out’ in 1995 and having an entry in urban dictionary – an eternal legacy.
The reason for this post is not to antagonise or incite a reaction, it’s purely to do with internet analytics (!) There are many people asking the same question.
So, looking at the wisdom of the crowd, we present two cases:
Searches for “gay” arriving at Insiders View (this morning)
Capital One
Credit Made Clearer
lovemoney
Relationship with Your Money
CashQuestions
Personal Finance Problem Solver
Life Cover
Insurance Made Easy
{ 35 comments… read them below or add one }
Gay rumours, Martin Lewis, Michael Barrymore, disguised in search stats …nothing like a bit of good old fashioned journalistic integrity George!!
A lot of users have pointed this out before,its probably that he bats for both sides,good luck to him if he likes a little marble fudge
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=marble%20fudge
@jan, let’s keep it marginally clean, can we!
@George
sorry
Well I think that this page makes everything very clear.
The fact that you decide to writes something controversial about Martin Lewis hours after another post about him became popular means that obviously your baiting to get visitors from MSE.
You don’t have any integrity so any MSErs please don’t take the biat!
Leave immediately
@Mike
No no no no no,everyone who wants a say without being banned or posts removed come and post on here,MSE is now a dictatorship
@larry the mse junkie
If you want that then set up your own site. You can create a forum in seconds at sites like http://www.forumer.com/
Just don’t give any help to these opportunists.
The original “Disgruntled Members..” post was written a week ago but the second they saw that gave them some traffic last night they put up a post “Is Martin Lewis gay”
If that’s not baiting and a synclinal way of trying to get more traffic then I don’t know what is.
@Mike
We’ve been getting traffic from the “disgruntled” story consistently since it was posted. You’ll notice the comments from the public started way before yesterday.
As for “opportunists” <<< opportunism op’por·tun’ism opportunist n. One who takes advantage of any opportunity to achieve an end, often with no regard for principles or consequences. >>>
So Mike, what are we gaining from this? The original post was a response to a new wave of disgruntled MSE forum members who claim they had their voice taken away. So we gave them a place for them to voice their views without moderation. This follow up post is purely George finding something amusing in the searches we’re seeing as people come to our site. It’s a lighthearted commentary on what the public are typing into the search engines.
We’re not selling anything and we’re not making money out of people visiting our site. So how are we opportunists? …but that does sound like a very, very familiar business model!!!
@jan
George is just jealous he didn’t think of it first
Hmm, I feel this article is a bit SEO opportunistic.
@Ernest
You say in the blurb at the top “this site has evolved in to providing you with news and latest tricks on internet marketing and SEO.” and then pretend you don’t know one of the top tactics to get blog traffic is to be controversial in order to get people to comment and link to the debate?
You also comment that “Is Martin Lewis gay” is a top search. Hmm wouldn’t be that your trying to get this post to be up to the top by writing a post of the same name? – that would be SEO
Which is it? You don’t know anything about internet marketing and SEO in which case the blurb at the top is a lie?
Or you do know and that’s exactly what you’ve done here?
“So how are we opportunists”
forgot to comment on this part.
Don’t tell me that this post wouldn’t have appeared if you hadn’t noticed a spike in traffic from MSE and thought “Hmm. If we bash MSE/Martin Lewis a bit more we’ll get loads more”
@Mike – finish your sentence why not. They would get loads more what? Ernest has already said they don’t make tons of money. I had a quick check and they don’t seem to use affiliate links at the moment. A bit of Adsense quite a way down the page and an audience who’ll know what Adsense is. So what would they benefit, other than commenting on a public trend to search for “martin lewis is gay”.
I’m not an seo expert or internet marketing genius but if they already had traffic coming on a particular phrase, why would they need to write another page?
Give over Mike. It’s harmless fun. A bit of entertainment to lighten the disgruntled mood.
@moneysavinguru
Many sites don’t put up adverts at first. There are countless startups spending staggering amounts of money without making or trying to make a penny – that comes later after you’ve got good traffic.
“Give over Mike. It’s harmless fun. A bit of entertainment to lighten the disgruntled mood.”
No. The post above is a cynical tactic – and to prove I’m not a Martin Lewis apologist I’ll tell you that I though the exact same thing when Martin Lewis picked on Carol Vorderman:
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/secured-loans-petition
It’s the exact same thing – picking a fight with someone bigger than you to try to get noticed.
@Mike
Up until the last post I agreed with you. To draw parallels, between this blog and with CV petition, imo, is wrong. CV petition was for a good cause. It appeared unwieldly, at the time, because of her business interests being addressed inappropriately, IIRC. At this point in time, it would be unfair not to mention that no one on the forum was allowed to launch attacks at CV, inorder to further the cause. Martin, not only had forum supporters but was just in how he conducted the campaign, imo.
Martin (the weasel) lewis is a puff imo, but fair play to the old queer,he saved me 5 pence once on a cup of coffee from woolworths cafe,trouble was it was after they shut down.
Quite possibly the funniest post I’ve ever seen on a business website/blog. Top work!
@jan
“likes a little marble fudge”
ROLMAO
I read this blog alot.
But this post and subsequent comments are outrageous.
Some of the comments are just stand up homophobia under the guise of a little laugh. I’m shocked TBH – especially with the last few comments.
And I came on here for industry insight and comment. No more.
You’re acting like bigots from down the local. What’s going on?
@warburs
it may be that those commenting have offended you however we want this place to be open and honest, however much we may disagree.
I wasn’t referring to you guys. It’s the fact you’ve condoned it on the site you host and moderate. There is open and honest (I agree) and then homophobia – no grey line.
I’ve moved on anyway.
@warburs – we’re not condoning it and in fact I asked to keep things clean but I understand where you’re coming from.
@warburs
I can’t see any homophobia tbh,whats wrong with being gay?It does’nt bother Martin so why let it bother you
http://environmentalthinker.blogspot.com/2009/07/is-money-saving-expert-martin-lewis.html
If you are concerned with the website moneysavingexpert as I think many people are then this is the most effective way to fight back, gather information and prove his business ethics do not add up.
Surprised to read the headline, lightened my day no end.
Think I will try drag hunting next !! far more visible than a fox, any comments about cruelty and I will have defer to drag racing just not good at running in high heels, life can be a bitch.
Not sure where this is coming from or where it is going…
I have to say that when i first saw on tv martin i said he must be a sausage jockey
Deffo an uphill gardener, not that there is anything wrong with it (unless you are Catholic of course)
Tried to pull him for a bet in a club in Leatherhead last February, turned his eyes up and went back to his enormous del-boy-esque cocktail.
He is far too well presented to be straight… although he hasn’t got a clue about what he is talking about most of the time. Right place at right time, not synical or anything but not really a modern day Robin Hood, just getting fatter on wads of cash earned by fuelling the ambulance chasing community……..
Well, I love him – don’t care what you say. He’s yummy!
I suppose it doesnt matter if he is gay or not but perhaps if this speculation continues and he doesnt catergorically deny it you have got to start asking questions.
Back to the original Q?
no he isnt gay,
his partner (female) is a drop dead stunner !
Can’t blame him, if I was him I would carry a taser as well !!
top puff
If you are industry insiders why aren’t you investigating the confusing emails he sends out to not far off 4 million people with misleading hype like this week ’see the credit cards anyone can get.’
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/latesttip/
‘See the cards anyone can get’ links through to this:
Use ‘expensive’ credit cards.
If you can’t get credit, sadly, the solution is apply for hideous 30%-ish rate credit cards offered by the likes of Barclaycard Initial, Capital One Classic*, Monument, Aquacard* and Vanquis*
You can also try the special Smartsearch from comparison site MoneySupermarket*, which effectively assesses your credit worthiness (a bit like our Credit Checker), then tries to match you up with the best card.
How many suckers have clicked the Vanquis link, or Capital One Classic or Aquacard which are marked as affiliate links so pay him when you click. Vanquis makes it absolutely clear to affiliates promoting its card that it does not approve everyone. The terms for affiliates :
http://www.affiliatewindow.com/merchant_directory.php?action=showmerch&mid=1269
Vanquis says:
However, we are very keen to stress that this does not imply that we are able to approve applications from customers irrespective of their present or previous circumstances. We have stringent and specific criteria that potential new customers must meet in order to be accepted, as well as applying all relevant money laundering and other regulatory validation tests to any new applications.
Some examples of the criteria that an applicant must satisfy are:
Applicants for a Vanquis Abacus Card must be UK residents and over 18
Applicants for a Vanquis Blue or Gold Card must be UK residents and over 21
Applicants must be registered on the voters roll
Applicants must not have an outstanding County Court Judgement against their name or one that has cleared within the past year
Please note these are examples only and are by no means the only criteria that new applicants for a Vanquis card must meet
If you wish to disclose these terms please link to our website http://www.vanquis.co.uk
Promotion of the Vanquis card
Vanquis has provided a variety of banners which may be used to promote the Vanquis visa card for your website.
Please note that Vanquis (and you as a credit broker in promoting the credit card) is bound by the provisions of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 and licensing requirements of the Office of Fair Trading. (See the Office of Fair Trading website. http://www.oft.gov.uk/Business/Legal/CCA/default.htm)
It is therefore essential that should you promote the credit card beyond the use of the banners, then any copy must be approved by Vanquis beforehand or your participation in the programme may be immediately terminated.’
So as industry insiders have you asked Vanquis what it is doing approving copy that is so misleading? MSE says it is authorised to sell insurance products by the FSA, but there’s no evidence I can find on his website that he’s licensed with the OFT to promote credit cards.
You know, I like Martin, I think he has a good heart.
MARTIN LEWIS IS OF COURSE GAY.
I am sure he doesn’t deny it. Not too bad, not to sinister – who cares.
What i care about is that the guy is seriously fraudulent and encourages people with not a penny in the world to basically go to loan sharks.
Why is this guy so well in with the FSA that they turn a blind eye – is he giving them “favours”.
FSA – i have reported this guy many times, TAKE ACTION NOW
John