By Jimmy Krug -

I don’t believe there’s such a thing as the “best” business model in any industry. You could argue that McDonald’s has the best business model in fast-food. You would have somewhat of a point there. Of course, they have the product that makes the model work for them. The model itself is useless without the right product.

If you’re thinking about starting a business online and working from home, the number of options that are now available may seem a little bit overwhelming to you. Keep in mind, most of the “easy-money” packages out there are loaded with information that doesn’t work, never worked, or used to work but no longer does so effectively.

Once you recognize this, you can stop chasing ghosts and start focusing upon building a real business (the kind that has the potential of being sold one day for a nice profit).

When starting something new, something you’ve never done before, do your homework! What’s right for someone else may not be right for you, even if you share a lot of similarities. I’ve altered my business model a few times since starting online. For me, the worst model was the one that was the most popular – the Affiliate Model.

The Affiliate Model

With the Affiliate Model, you promote someone else’s products or services in exchange for a commission. The main benefit of this model is avoiding the time and energy it takes to create a product or service, do market research and write sales copy. All you have to do is pick a product in a niche that’s selling well and start promoting it on your website or blog.

I’ve sold and continue to promote only a handful of affiliate products. The reason is simple. I don’t want to invest my time and energy promoting someone else’s brand at the expense of my own. If you’re looking to add a product or service to you existing line… the affiliate model makes a lot more sense.

I’ve watched several marketers implode their businesses by focusing 80-90% of their efforts marketing new affiliate products every week to their lists. It doesn’t take long to burn a list out these days with repeated sales offers.

Some people might disagree with me and that’s okay. I’m speaking from personal experience, having sold products online since 1998. Even so, this is a perfect example of why you have to think for yourself and not rely upon another person’s opinions as “gold.” We all know how that works out.

The Services Model

This is a great business model to use if you have a specific skill that’s in high-demand. The greater your skill set is, the greater the potential to create a very profitable business. The downside, however, is that you’re trading time for money. If you’re not working, you’re not making money. You can always outsource some of the work to avoid “maxing out” your billable hours if you get really busy and things start moving in the right direction.

There are a lot of businesses and individuals who will gladly pay for services that they want to avoid handling themselves.

Some people look down upon the Services Model because they see it as nothing more than trading time for money. On the other hand, if you’re trading time for “good money,” the final outcome will be dramatically different than the average working stiff punching a clock somewhere.

The Information Publishing Model

The Information Publishing Model is one of the most profitable models out there if you have the right kind of information. You build a list; develop products you own the rights to and more. Information products can also be used to market other products and services you offer. You can also, as I did, create information products to help other businesses to do the same.

Like the other business models, this model also has its downside. You’re responsible for the product creation, customer service, market research and more.

After years of researching different industries, I’ve found that just about any business type can benefit in some way, shape or form from producing their own information products.

The Drop Shipping Model

The Drop Shipping Model enables you to market and sell products that someone else produces and warehouses. Your responsibility is to collect the payment from the customer and send the drop shipping company their cut along with the customer’s shipping information. The manufacturer handles shipping for you.

The upside of this business is that you build a customer list. The downside is that there is usually a whole lot of competition! You’ll be selling the same product as dozens or more of other drop shippers in the same market. If you find a unique way of marketing the product, however, you can do very well.

The Consulting & Mentoring Model

The Consulting & Mentoring Model has the same basic pros and cons as offering a service. With consulting or mentoring, you’re once again trading time for money. There is a significant difference when it comes to compensation, however. Coaches and mentors aren’t cheap. At least, they shouldn’t be. Sure, some offer a program or series of videos that are inexpensive. There are some mentoring programs that have a do-it-yourself approach. They offer videos and other types of training materials. True one-on-one programs are a different thing altogether. They give you direct access by either email or phone (or both) to the coach or mentor.

To be successful, you need to have the necessary skills and experience in your chosen industry. Fake it till you make it doesn’t apply here.

Many people have asked the question, “How do I know what to charge for my services?” The only way to accurately answer that question is by researching your specific niche.

Most beginners are afraid if they charge too much, they won’t get any clients. If you charge too little, however, you’re perceived value will reflect that as well. If you’re a beginner, you may want to consider starting in the “middle” J.

Choose The Model That’s Right For You

Over the past 25-years I’ve spread myself extremely thin at times, trying new things while maintaining others. I’ve met a lot of people along the way who’ve done the same. Settling on one thing is nearly impossible for some people. If that’s you, don’t feel bad. Many entrepreneurs are addicted to what I call “the process.” I was one of them.

We love starting something new. We love trying new things. I can relate. I’ve been there. Sooner or later, though, it will do you a world of good to find what’s right for you and forgetting about the rest of the “stuff” that comes down the line.

Where do you go from here?

Go ahead and read the articles, books and courses to learn what works. Decide what path seems best for you when you consider all the options. Then forget about what everyone else has done and do your own thing.

By Jimmy Krug –

PLR (Private label rights) products and systems are very popular in the world of Internet Marketing. It’s easy to understand why. It takes time to write fresh, thoughtful, insightful content. Especially regularly! Try writing a quality monthly newsletter or blog. It requires some focus. Try writing a weekly blog for that matter! It may be easy at first, but after awhile, you’ll find yourself challenged in some way, shape or form.

I know, I’ve been there! There have been times I’ve been 600 or more words into and article, eBook or blog post – only to scrap the entire idea because honestly… it was crap. I’m not saying that everything your write and produce for your business (or your business in the making) has to be solid gold. It doesn’t. What I’m saying is, if you’ve been creating (or trying to create) content for any length of time, you know when you’re giving it your best and when you’re just filling space with fluff.

The PLR Shortcut

This is one of the main reasons buying private label rights to an existing product/publication is so attractive. All the hard work has been done for you.

Private label products have a place. If you really want to stand out in your niche, though, you have to have original content.

Does Stephen King Do All His Own Writing?

I used to wonder if Stephen King had a team of writers working under him like they have on TV shows and series. Over the years I watched in amazement as he churned out one novel after another. I heard that some writers bought story-lines and plots from other writers and basically “fleshed-out” the story. After reading his book “On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft,” however, I was finally convinced that King lived, breathed and ate his craft and was most certainly “doing the writing.”

Original content. That’s what he produces and that’s why his books are so memorable (if you enjoy horror). They’re infused with his personality.

Yes, buying something another person wrote and changing it however much or little has its place if you’re a marketer (as opposed to a full-time writer or author). Ultimately, though, what’s going to set you apart from everyone else isn’t the product someone else wrote. It’s your own, original content stamped with your unique personality that will ultimately separate you from the pack.

In my own business, I’ve purchased PLR products before. Most of them I rewrote because I wasn’t happy with the content once I started digging into it and analyzing it. Basic chapter titles and the main facts remained. Just about everything else was gutted and replaced it with my own content. These were publications I used to originally promote different services to offline clients.

If you’ve got a lot on your plate, PLR can (at the very least) get you headed in a focused direction.

For example, I understand how email marketing works. I can write a short or long (if necessary) book on the subject if I had to. Why would I buy a PLR publication on the same topic? It all comes down to saving time.

It’s All about Speed and Testing the Market

You can buy a PLR product, make your changes and have it live within 3-4 days. If the response to the short publication is good… you can go ahead and create a full publication, blog, video series, etc., for the topic. The short publication always precedes the long one. If the market doesn’t respond and it flops, you’ve lost days instead of months. This is a very simple way to test new ideas and markets.

Some markets go through downward trends that last awhile. We’ve seen this amplified since 2007. If you’re in a market that’s trending downward, you’re not going see a great response resulting from your efforts. If you’re new to a market, don’t assume anything. Find people who know the market well enough and ask questions. Find out the good and the bad about the market you’re getting involved in, not just “how much money” is in it.

A few of my friends are public speakers. They get paid by corporations and organizations to come in and motivate their employees. They hired me to help them promote their products and services with online publications (eBooks, blogs, newsletters, etc.) As I worked with them, I began seeing patterns in the “speaking biz.” From the outside, it looked one way. On the inside, though, it was much different.

Every Niche Market Has Its Own, Unique “Headaches”

Let me be completely honest with you when I say this… on the outside, EVERYTHING looks different than it actually is in black and white reality. I don’t care what market you’re talking about. Every niche has its own “headaches.” You just have to determine which headaches you’re better equipped to deal with and which ones you’re not.

Article Blogging – How to Refine Your Ideas Even Further

I got involved with WordPress about six years ago. Actually, you can say I went “all in.” Seeing the way the Internet was developing along with the growing complexities of SEO and content creation, I came to the conclusion that in my case… either WordPress, Joomla or Drupal would provide me with the automated tools I needed to grow my business into the next decade.

After about three months of deliberating, I chose WordPress. Six years later, I’m thrilled with my choice!

Articles (or blog posts) are even shorter than special reports. You can experiment with a variety of topics in a particular niche and watch how your readers respond. Not that you will necessarily get a lot of comments about what you’ve written (spammers and backlink junkies aside). You can simply look into your control panel’s statistics page and see how many visits certain articles get as compared with others over the course of weeks, months and even years. All it takes is a month or two to know if you have a hit, near hit or miss.

You will soon realize that certain articles get a lot more traffic than others and you can adjust your strategy from there.

As you do this, you’re creating original content which can later be used in many ways. You can develop a special report from one or more articles. The articles can ultimately become chapters in an eBook or course. Articles can be turned into audio or video products, too.

The average blog article these days are only 600-700 words in length. In other words, they’re not full-length features like the one you’re currently reading. They’re much shorter.

With your blog, your content is basically archived forever – or at least as long as the site remains online.

Not only do are you creating original content that can be used today or further down the line, but you’re also branding yourself as a writer/publisher in a particular niche in the process.

It’s a win-win situation across the board.

It Pays To Be Original

Recently, I met journalist at a friend’s birthday party. The subject of the conversation eventually began revolving around the topic of Online Publishing, eBooks and Blogging. She told me, “I’d love to start doing something, but there are a million-and-one blogs out there already about every topic.” I agreed but added, “What do you think about the quality of information you’re getting or reading?”

Her response was priceless. “Terrible!” she said. “The quality of writing, the information, it is complete garbage 99% of the time.”

As I went on to explain to her, therein lies the opportunity. Many blogs are being written strictly for SEO purposes these days. The readability of the content is wrist-cutting bad (that’s really bad!). People NEVER return to these sites again. They’re a waste of precious megabytes.

Other blogs are created to be nothing more than “Ad Machines.” The content is fair. You may find one or two useful things here or there, but nothing to write home about. I’m talking about blogs in this section, but you can apply this to special reports or eBooks as well because we’re talking about the quality of the content.

The quality of content has spiraled so badly over the past few years (in favor of the quantity of content); you can easily become a standout writer/publisher in just about any niche you can think of today – if you focus and stay on topic.

It Takes Time, But Not That Much Time

Personally, I can write one or two quality articles – per niche, per month. That may sound like nothing but over time, let’s say six to twelve months, that translates into a quality blog, eBook or special report of substance. Is six to twelve months too much of a time investment? Not if there’s money to be made (in my opinion). Remember, this is how you test.

The first special report or blog article you write may not generate too much interest. Neither may the second, third or fourth.

If you’re consistent, though, from one month to the next, you’ll “suddenly” have a body of work you’ve created. The sum of your work will be greater than the individual parts as far as establishing your expertise on a subject. You can apply simple technique to any niche or topic. One writer I know did this on the topic of wine and wine tasting. That’s how he started. He’s now considered an expert and publishes a column in several magazines.

I encouraged one of my clients, a doctor (a regenerative medicine specialist), to use this system to write easy-to-understand articles about the type of medicine he practices and its practical benefits. Since starting his blog six months ago, his practice has increased its number of patients noticeably. He told me last week that he couldn’t be happier about the progress his business has made in such a short span of time.

Anyone with a little focus and patience can do this. You can, too.

Some Things to Remember

• Pick a niche and commit to it for 6 months.
• Decide if you want to create articles (for a blog site) or special reports (that you’ll market through a regular site, your social media profile, existing networks of friends and business associates, etc.
• Create one or two articles or special reports per month.
• Track your results. Use whatever tracking system (high-tech, mid-tech or low-tech) that you feel comfortable with.
• Adjust from one month to the next (tweaking your topic, adjusting your focus, etc.).
• Create or offer a product or service based upon all the info/data you’ve received from doing the above (or use all the above to market an existing business or product line).
• Repeat this process in another niche if you enjoy doing it as much as I do. If the niche flopped, find a new one and don’t give up!
• Dig deep and become “the” go to person in one or two niches. That’s the lifetime plan.
• Eventually, God willing, you can sell your business and enjoy your golden years in Florida, Arizona or the destination of your choice J.

By Jimmy Krug –

The ABC’s of any subject give you the basics you need to get started. Basics are very important because that’s the foundation you build upon. In some cases, you don’t have to go far beyond the basics to excel in your chosen field or area. Sports provide many excellent examples of this. There have been standout athletes over the years that excelled far and beyond their contemporaries by mastering and sticking close to the basics.

I’ve watched certain boxers over the years that broke records and achieved tremendous longevity in the sport by mastering the basics. They weren’t big knockout punchers. They didn’t have incredible defenses. They didn’t apply overwhelming pressure against their opponents. Bernard Hopkins and Joe Calzaghe are a few good modern examples. Neither had the flash of an Ali or Leonard. They didn’t have the defense of a Willie Pep or Pernell Whitaker. They didn’t have the punching power of a George Foreman.  Even so, they kept winning and winning and both hold records for most title defenses in their respective divisions.

During their fights, announcers would say, “They don’t do anything great, but they do everything well!”

The same could be said about champion athletes in other sports as well.

At the very least, you have to have the basics under your belt.

The Basics of Information Publishing

Let’s take a quick look at the basics of information publishing. It’s common knowledge that people come online looking for information. Although the model has changed over the years, publishing is a big business that’s only getting bigger. From PDF eBooks to Kindle, Blogs to Membership sites (and don’t forget publishing on-demand services) – there is no end in sight.

1. You have to pick a niche you’re knowledgeable in or in the process of becoming knowledgeable in.
2. You have to have the tools to write and create your finished product (Word, Open Office, Adobe Acrobat, etc.)
3. You have to have a website with a sales letter from which you sell your product from. You also need to secure a payment processor (Paypal, etc.)
4. You have to collect names and build a mailing list.

Those are the basics of the information publishing business. There are other things we could add, but you get the general idea.

If you never did anything else but still managed to do all those things really well, you could make money writing, publishing and marketing information products.

You could do a joint venture here and there to help speed up the sales and the list growing process… but all things being equal, even if you didn’t, you’d still develop a solid business over time if your product was good.

GETTING BEYOND THE BASICS

Now, let’s take a look at what exists “beyond the basics.” I call it the XYZ’s of information publishing. These are things you encounter when you’re in the midst of the process that people don’t always tell you about.

Problem: You discover you’ve picked the wrong niche.

Picking the right niche isn’t as easy as some people would have you believe. When I wrote my first booklets, “Car Buy Secrets” and “How-To Erase Your Poor Credit Rating,” I found out from experience that I didn’t have any follow-ups “in me” to continue in that particular niche profitably.

My Car Buying and Credit Repair booklets were a great way to get started in the publishing business. They become the foundation upon which my reputation was built. I remained in that niche for three years. Afterwards, I began writing in the self-publishing niche for business owners interested in publishing paper and ink booklets to promote their companies, products and services. It wasn’t long before my consulting service (the backend, money-making product) began developing.

I added all kinds of services to that business including SEO services, webhosting, graphic design, etc. It all started with a single booklet title (like a seed) and grew from there. Was that the plan from the beginning? Nope. I flew, basically, by the seat of my pants.

ADVICE

Test several niches if you’re not certain which one is right for you. Sometimes the only way you really learn is by DOING and experiencing all the little ins and outs. Reading about it is great, but doing it is where your education will increase by leaps and bounds.

Problem: You’re A Lousy Marketer.

As it turns out, you write and produce good information products. Heck, they may even be great! Only thing is – your marketing campaign results in “crowds of people” not buying your product. People just don’t respond to your sales copy.

There are plenty of sales letter formulas and examples you can learn from and borrow online as well as offline. There are also plenty mind-map examples you can find, too, showing you how the process works and what you need to do from start to finish.

The problem is, most people take “a little of this” and “a little of that” and splice it all together. The results are something that sounds like an overt sales pitch and I’m sure you already know, “People hate being sold to.”

The best salespeople sell just enough to make it seem as though the buyer is making an informed decision. They give enough information to make the next logical step a “buying decision.”

In person, if you talk to someone who’s a potential client or customer, you can talk to them and find out what they’re looking for and offer them a solution to their problem. You can provide them with a service to meet the need. You share the benefits of doing business with you and if you leave them with a good feeling, they’ll often make a decision to do business with you. That’s a simple business transaction.

That’s what you want to capture in your sales letter and materials.

It takes a little practice to get it right. Okay… it takes a LOT of practice to get it right.

ADVICE

Reverse engineer your publication creation method by writing your sales letter first. List all the benefits your readers will get by purchasing your product. Then, go back and write your publication outline to mirror the sales letter. While this method isn’t practiced by many, those who’ve struggled with creating a more effective sales letter/marketing package swear by this method.

A friend of mine who’s been publishing how-to books for many years told me this method has worked wonders for him (he hates writing sales letters).

MORE TIPS

1. If you don’t know how to make a decent looking website, use WordPress to create your website on your own domain. If you don’t know how to do that and don’t intend on building multiple websites over time, hire someone at fiverr.com to do the job for you. Sites on blogger.com and WordPress.org are not the way to go.
2. If no one or very few people known you exists, give your eBooks to local business owners. This is a simple way promote yourself, provide value to new readers and open the doors to a variety of networking opportunities.
3. If you’re WordPress site isn’t showing up the search engines under your keywords and phrases use the following basic plugins – (All-In-One SEO, Google Sitemap Generator, Maxblogpress-ping-optimizer).
4. If you can’t create a decent looking product box or book graphic, hire someone for $5 at fiverr.com – minimally. You don’t have to invest in software unless you enjoy the cover creation process.
5. Sales flat-line. If you send out a mailing to your list or do a joint venture and get less than satisfying results, don’t give up! There are people who will see you offer who (for whatever reason) can’t or won’t be able to purchase your offer initially. Keep your products out there and continue to market them. Change headlines; tweak the text or the offer, etc.

Is there anything that I know today that I wish I knew about the information publishing business when I started? I’ve learned so much over the course of time that one single thing doesn’t stand out. If anything, I would say to make sure you treat this like a business because that’s exactly what it is. Like any other business, you’ll need patience, organization and the ability to adjust to the changes that inevitably come.

There may be plenty of frustrations and challenges along the way, but the rewards definitely outweigh the effort. The technical methods may change, but the publishing business is here to stay.

By Jimmy Krug –

Online publishing has changed a lot over the years. One year in Internet time is like three years in “real time.” Things change quickly. Something that’s hot one minute is cold the next. Attention spans are getting shorter all the time. One thing hasn’t changed, however, and never will. People are still people and enjoy “escaping” from the hum-drum realities of everyday life. The Internet provides the perfect outlet for many of them.

As a publisher of non-fiction information, you need to realize that there are masses of people who use non-fiction content, just as others use fiction, as a form of escapism. It’s true. People buy books teaching them how to do things they have no real intentions of doing. The buy these books because they enjoy reading about “how” it’s done.

Let me give you an example. There are loads of single people who buy books on how meet and attract the opposite sex who never really intend on putting what they learn into practice. They just want to read about the psychology of how it’s done. You can buy books that will teach you the techniques spies use to obtain important information. Why would you buy a book like that if you had no intention of entering the world of “covert activity?”

The answer’s simple. The information is a form of entertainment.

Maybe one of the techniques you learn actually could come in handy one day, right? You may be laughing, but this is how many people think. I once bought a book that taught beginners how to make a simple, romantic dinner for two. I read it, but never actually committed to USING it. I thought I might, but by the time I was finished, I figured it would be better to go out to a nice restaurant instead.

THE RISE OF KINDLE

eBooks have come a long way since the 1990’s. With the advent of Kindle, the market has really changed significantly. Kindle books now outsell paper and ink books more than three to one and the numbers continue to grow every day.

I bought one for my father and my girlfriend over the holidays. Both are avid readers. Me? I just downloaded Kindle for the PC and read the books on my laptop. My girlfriend has a library like you’d see in one of those old English films with books lining the wall from floor to ceiling. She’s read every single book, too. I figured the Kindle would be good for her because there’s simply no room left for more physical books.

My father is getting up there in age. He’s 79-years old and has some arthritis. Holding the book open for more than fifteen minutes actually bothers his hands and sometimes it’s difficult for him to turn the pages easily.

Long story short, both of them love their new Kindles (The Kindle Touch $99). In fact, I did an informal survey of those I knew who bought the black and white Kindles with the e-Ink technology. Not one of them wanted to go back to purchasing paper and ink books again. How quickly things have changed in the last five years.

The publishing revolution is in full swing and if you’re reading this article, you’re in the perfect position to take advantage of it. If you want to succeed as an author, the odds of doing so have never been so much in your favor as they are today.

Kindle and the Amazon Publishing System is not just a here today – gone tomorrow “fad.” It’s the real deal. A few writer friends of mine have already published several titles and are making money with Amazon’s marketing and publishing system. It’s not difficult to get started either.

Here’s how it works.

1. 1.      Go to Amazon and signup for their Kindle Publishing Program: www.kdp.amazon.com/
2. Write your eBook in either Microsoft Word or Open Office. Make sure you insert a “page break” after every chapter so in the final formatting, Kindle will be able to read where one chapter ends and the next one begins.
3. Save the Word Document as a webpage (.htm & html)
4. Download Mobipocket Creator http://www.mobipocket.com/en/downloadsoft/productdetailscreator.asp This is the program you will use to convert your book into the final format for Kindle.
5. Choose “Import” to import your book.
6. Go to the “Cover Image” tab and click on the “Add a Cover Image” button. Then choose the image file you want to use as your eBooks’ cover and press “Update.” A good size to choose for your cover artwork would be 1280 pixels high by 846 pixels wide.
7. Go to the “Build” tab and click on the “Build” button to convert your manuscript file into the PRC format. When you are ready to publish your eBook, you can upload the PRC file into the Amazon Direct Publishing system.

Those are the seven basic steps.

KINDLE PUBLISHING VS. DO IT YOURSELF PDF eBooks

I’ve been selling and buying PDF eBooks for years. A lot more goes into the do-it-yourself process than the Kindle process.

The biggest hassle I’ve dealt with over the years is with automating the sales/download process. In my  own case, I wasn’t happy with just “hiding” the url of the download page. I kept looking for a system that was virtually 100% theft proof. There are also issues of customer service and support that go along with people losing their download links, needing questions answered, etc.

With Amazon, you don’t have to worry about any of that. All of that is taken care of for you. All you have to do is take care of the product creation and you’re all set. After that it’s hands-off.

The second biggest hassle with the do-it-yourself method is creating 3-D eBook covers that LOOK GOOD. Creating so-so ones or lousy ones is easy! The better looking covers take a little more time and effort to create. One of the ways around this issue is found at Fiverr.com. Just look for eBook cover design and you’ll find plenty of people who will design a nice cover for you for only five-bucks. You can’t beat that.

When I first started, however, I wound up buying several different Photoshop scripts, Box-Shot 3D and other cover creation programs.

I learned over time how to design and create my own product cover graphics. This was great and I don’t regret, hassles aside, having done so.

With the Amazon system, however, none of the special cover creation software or scripts are necessary. All you need is a basic “flat” book cover design. No need for 3-dimensions, drop-shadow effects or any of the other extras. As you can see, there are definite pluses with the Amazon System for beginners and veterans alike.

MARKETING

When it comes to marketing, the traditional method involves building your own website, getting traffic, building mailing lists, creating products and making sales.

With the Amazon system, traffic generation becomes a non-issue – as long as your topic is one that traditional readers gravitate towards. For example, most Kindle owners do not fit the business opportunity mold. They are not “Internet Marketers.” These are people who enjoy reading as a lifestyle. This includes people of every income bracket.

While I highly recommend having your own website/blog, if you’re just starting – you can still sell your own product without having one by partnering with Amazon.

My friend Joe is retired and writes both fiction and non-fiction. Recently, he wrote a series on famous Mafia personalities and published the first volume with the Amazon Kindle program. If you have an interest in that subject and look up “Mafia” or “Mobster” related titles on Amazon… Amazon will suggest other titles to you – including Joe’s. With this method, his book rose to #8 on the best-seller list for that category. Getting known and building a readership can be that simple.

This works with any subject matter. If you write a book that’s similar to a current best-seller (topic-wise), Amazon will help market your title to those who bought similar titles in that niche. That’s how it works in a nutshell. Amazon makes money when YOU make money. It’s an ideal business relationship with their current business model.

CAN YOU REALLY MAKE MONEY SELLING “CHEAP” OR INEXPENSIVE EBOOKS?

Here’s where the rubber meets the road. At the end of the day, is there really money to be made selling inexpensive eBooks? First, please take note of my use of the words “cheap” and “inexpensive.” In my world, cheap is something that saves money but skimps on value. For example, you buy a cheap lunch at McDonalds and have heartburn an hour later. You could have gone to the Chinese restaurant and had something with vegetables in it for around $8.00 for lunch. But, you start thinking about the economy, get depressed, and decide to save a few dollars. At the end of the day, did you really save anything? You ate a lousy lunch with little to no nutritional value because you were too cheap and in too much of a hurry to sit down and eat a healthier lunch. People waste money like this all the time.

Cheap eBooks have little to no value. The books and their authors are here one day and gone the next. Inexpensive books and eBooks, however, are much different. Inexpensive simply means the product doesn’t cost a lot when compared to similar products in the same market. If you create a good product that adds value to the readers’ life, believe me, they’ll be back for more.

The marketers of old used to be fond of saying, “It’s easier overall to sell 10 products at $100 per unit than it is to sell 100 products at $10 per unit.” That may have been true a decade ago… but let’s face it, times have changed. Inexpensive is in these days and will probably continue to be for some time to come. Selling in volume is possible when you have the right marketing vehicle in place. For many authors, Amazon is providing that vehicle.

People are heavily weighing value in their buying decisions these days. They aren’t parting with their money as easily or as indiscriminately as they did in the past. And when it comes to credit, the buy now pay later lifestyle has become a thing of the past for many consumers.

Obviously, there are still people making high-end purchases. The question is, are these people active in YOUR market?

SUMMING IT UP

Kindle is definitely not the route to overnight riches. With multiple titles, however, and other backend products/services available for your readers, it’s definitely worth considering. If you enjoy writing but hate marketing, Amazon may very well be the dream partner you’re looking for.

As for myself, I’ve been supplying online services (in some way, shape or form) for offline clients since 1998. It’s evolved into great little niche since then. Even so, when time allows this year, I will most certainly be jumping onto the Kindle ship to see where it takes me. If possible, I encourage you to do the same. You never know until you try!

On a final note, you can buy and read Kindle books without purchasing the Kindle reader. To download the reader software for your PC, laptop, MAC, etc. Simple go to Google and type – “kindle reader for pc, MAC, etc.”

By Jimmy Krug –

The eBook business – hot or not? Well, if you pursue it the way most people do, I would have to definitely say – not.

How do most people approach the eBook business these days? Well, most of the time they offer a lousy PLR (private label rights) product with the same information in it that you can get in 1,400 other places  Next, they email offers to the subscriber that have (at best) a vague or general connection to the original information they signed up for.

This is a surefire way to get crowds of people to either unsubscribe from a list right away or delete the emails without opening them.

I enjoy buying eBooks. I’m talking about “How-To” business topics. I read them mostly these days for the enjoyment factor. You could say I read them for the same reason people read fiction. I find it interesting reading about what other people are doing or have done in the past.

Most of the authors I’ve followed over the years use their publications as “frontend” products. If you’ve been around marketing for any length of time, you’re probably already familiar with the terms “frontend” and “backend” when it comes to direct marketing. The frontend  is designed to bring people to the table. This can be done with inexpensive books, CD’s, DVD’s, and other low-cost products.

The big money, however, is made on the backend.

I’m sure you’ve all seen the expensive weekend seminars advertised over the years? The people who attend these seminars usually do so after purchasing books, DVD’s, etc. A percentage of frontend buyers will invest in the backend seminar which may cost several thousand dollars or more. The business model was designed that way. No one is going to “walk in off the street” and sign up for an expensive seminar without first testing the product in its cost-effective form first. True, there may be exceptions, but they’re just that – exceptions.

That’s just one business model.

There are many others.

As you can see, there’s quite a difference between writing a book to make some money and doing it to make a living. To make GOOD money, you need to have a profitable business model in place that allows the potential lifetime value of a customer to be a significant one.

WHY NOT THINK – PUBLISHING COMPANY?

Today, thanks to the Internet, you can be the writer and publisher of your product.

Amazon has a service that makes it easy for you publish kindle books and paperback books via their on-demand service called CreateSpace.  Along with that, you also have the standard PDF publications people have been buying for years. The industry is wide open to a new generation of author/publishers.

The gatekeepers of old (traditional publishing houses) have lost their ability to control the industry. There is nothing standing between you and your market. All you need is a plan to provide you with the mechanics of making money.

In 1998, I began developing the concept of selling booklets (paper and ink) in bulk to credit unions. The booklets (Car Buying Secrets and How To Erase Your Poor Credit Rating) weren’t exactly ingenious titles or concepts. They fit a very tight niche. They were designed to help credit unions market their products and services to their members more effectively.

With this business model, the money was in selling bulk units. Making money in chunks is a lot better than making it in drips! There wasn’t really a backend to speak of, although my career as a consultant was basically born out of the experience. That wound up opening doors of opportunity in many other areas.

THE MODEL I’M CURRENTLY USING

Another way to run a profitable eBook publishing business is to use the publications to market other services you offer. Last year I began publishing short Internet marketing publications and used them to promote a variety of services to local, offline businesses. The response was great. I’ve enjoyed a very prosperous 2011 using this model.

If you know what you’re talking about in a particular niche, you can also use your publications to promote your own consulting service. I’ve met a lot of consultants over the past year. Most I’ve met, regardless of the niche, make an average of $100-$150hr.

That’s not too bad, is it?

A friend of mine is a restaurant consultant. She also provides publicity services such as writing press releases and sending them to local media outlets. Basically, she can do it all, so she creates a package for the restaurant based upon their individual needs.

That’s just one example. She, too, is getting ready to use books to market her services throughout the state of Florida.

Books, paper or digital, are great marketing vehicles. Blogs are great, too. Both can be used to build trust and familiarity with your brand. Building trust is what it’s all about in today’s market. Before anyone will be willing to send “big money” in your direction, they’ll have to trust you first.

CREATING YOUR PLAN

I’ve developed a variety of marketing plans for myself, friends and clients over the past years. There really isn’t a one-size-fits-all plan that good for every business. In my own case, the simpler the plan (the less moving parts), the easier it is for me to implement the plan and stick with it. With eBooks, it doesn’t have to be complex in the least and you can have full control over your product. You don’t have to invest in programmers (as you do with software) or inventory, as you do with physical products. Even if you decide to have a physical, paper and ink publication, you can use a service like CreateSpace that only prints the book after the sale is made. That way, there is no need to inventory anything.

Next, you have to decide on how you’re going to market your business. There are loads of tools out there with more popping up every day. Some people I currently work with are really big on social media. Other’s just use it to create backlinks and aren’t very active with it at all. You don’t HAVE TO do ANY ONE THING except attract the attention of those in your niche… and there are many ways to do that.

I prefer using blogs. Drawing traffic to a blog isn’t rocket science. Good keywords in the domain name is where I usually start. I do my research using the Google Keyword tool which is free.

I also use a few plugins (All-In-One-SEO, Google Sitemap Generator and Easy WP-SEO) to handle the on-page SEO for this site and others. On my home site, SimplePublications.com, I use a template that automates a lot of the time consuming tasks. This is a WordPress theme which, if you decide to use WordPress, will save you a lot of time.

It’s not exactly cheap at $97, but I wasted a lot more than that buying and testing all the “low cost” solutions. If you’re a do-it-yourselfer, there is a learning curve that goes with the territory. Each new software product and/or script you buy will require some focus (an occasionally some tenacity) to set up properly. Realize this going in. With some things, it’s much easier paying someone else to set things up for you.

At the very least, it’s good to have a “go to” person available, just in case you mess up.

If you’re a sole proprietor and just starting out, you’ll also want to have some basic accounting software you can use to keep track of who owes what… as well as your income and outgo.

Accounting software isn’t cheap. You can buy invoicing software if you have a very simple business structure instead of investing in a whole accounting package. That’s one way to save a little money. Another option is a free online service called Wave Accounting (http://waveaccounting.com/)

One of my friends is a lawyer. He runs his firm as a sole proprietor. When I asked him why, he said, “Because I don’t want to pay all the corporate fees to the state to run a corporation. I use a simple Schedule-C on my tax return.”

Naturally, I asked him about liability. His response was, “Liability for what? No food or drink is involved. I’m not in the health industry. What type of liability do I have to worry about?”

Of course, this isn’t legal or accounting advice I’m giving you. I’m just sharing with you what’s been shared with me. You need to decide what will work best for you.

DO IT YOURSELF, OR OUTSOURCE IT

As a habitual do-it-yourselfer, I prefer to keep most of tasks involved with my daily routine in-house. I do outsource things from time to time, but that’s only if my time is being consumed by “billable hours.” I never let laziness be the deciding factor as to whether or not I’m going to outsource any particular aspect of a personal business project.

Naturally, you can’t do everything well. I once heard someone give the advice, “Have you fingers in everything but your hands in nothing.”

That’s good advice to a point, but it’s not always practical.

At the end of the day, no one will care as much about your business as you do. If you’re going to outsource work, make sure you’re outsourcing it to individuals who have as much to lose (in terms of reputation) as you do by the job not being done correctly.

If you’re a little confused about business models and which one would work best for you, do a little investigating in your spare time. Visit sites, buy products, see how the marketing works and take notes. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Sometime one little tweak makes all the difference in the world.

Finally, stick with it. Most people fall by the wayside when things don’t go their way right away. Or they become bogged down with information overload. Prepare for adversity in the very beginning. If it doesn’t happen, great. If it does, you’ll be prepared.

By Jim Straw -

The biggest UN-kept Secret in the business community. — Go to your local public library.

I firmly believe that the biggest reason people fail in business … beyond greed (which always goes hand in hand with stupidity) … is a lack of understanding of the basic principles of ‘real’ business. — They fall for the con-games; again & again, simply because they do not know how ‘real’ business works; so, they accept the hype & b.s. as fact and pay the price for their lack of understanding.

Being a farm boy … son of a sharecropper (you’ve heard the story before) … I learned early in life that you can learn anything you want to know from books – and – since I couldn’t afford to buy books back then, I discovered the local public library.  In its quiet spaces, I found the world of business revealed and exposed in all its glory. — Over the years, what I learned sitting in the public library saved me from being conned countless times; simply because I knew from what I had read that ‘real’ business didn’t work the way the con-men told me it did. — Today, my personal library numbers over 6,000 books, booklets, manuals, & manuscripts, on every subject about business you can imagine.

So … to protect yourself from the scam artists, go to your public library and read, Read, READ & read some more.  Learn how ‘real’ business really works. — Learn the jargon of the business community (that alone will let you see the ‘con’ in the words the con-man uses to sell his scam). — Learn to separate the myths & lies from the tried & true.

In the business community — What you don’t know can’t just hurt you, it can kill you.

Of course, one of the most important things you need to learn is …

The difference between an “opportunity” and “information.”

An “opportunity” is a deal whereby your involvement and/or interaction directly with the promoter of the deal is suppose to allow you to make money.

“Information,” on the other hand, is only “information” until YOU turn it into an “opportunity” by using that information to do something you want to do.

I sell “information,” not “opportunities.”

To keep from being taken by the the con-men selling “opportunities” you need to keep the difference between “information” and “opportunity” uppermost in your mind.

As an example, in my mail recently, I received an “opportunity” mailing from a company inviting me to participate with them in the “Used Equipment” industry. — They will teach me how to do it, assist me in finding leads, assist me in selling what I find and even buy & sell for me (splitting the profits, of course).

The deal sounds fantastic.  If I hadn’t already been involved in the Used Equipment industry, I might even be tempted to buy their $695 plan – but – let’s pretend for a moment that I have no prior knowledge of the industry and am considering buying their “opportunity.” — What would I do?

Before I ever invested in their deal, I would go to the library and read (or at least scan) everything they might have on Used Equipment. — Then, instead of calling one of the references provided by the opportunity promoter, I would look in the Telephone Book Yellow Pages under the heading, “Used Equipment,” and physically call on some of the companies involved in the industry. — I would take the offer from the opportunity promoter along with me.

At each visit with a Used Equipment dealer, I would ask them what they thought of the deal. — Since I know the Used Equipment industry, I can guarantee you that each of them would offer to set up the same kind of buy, sell, split the profit deal for me … FREE!

Now, let’s take this example and relate it to the “information” offerings I make at my web site.

Let’s pretend for a moment that YOU have just received a mailing offering an “opportunity” in exporting … buy, sell, split the profits. — So, you go looking for “information” about how exporting is done.  You go to the library … read some of the massive tomes written on the subject.  Then, you read my offer telling you that you don’t need to know most of what is in those books. — You would buy my “information” to learn how I did it.

Or — use the internet to “buy” books & information on the subject of interest to you … like Amazon.com. — Believe it, or don’t, I still “buy” over a $1,000 in books & publications every year … even though I get that many, or more, as review copies.

Here’s another lesson I have learned.

When there seems to be tons, upon tons, of information on the net about a subject, you can just about bet your bippy that the vast majority of it is hype & b.s. — because — if the subject has that much interest, every petty con-man in the world jumps on the bandwagon with their rendition of what they themselves have read; in order to sell their useless “opportunities” or valueless
“information.”

That’s like all those people selling information about “Making a Fortune on the Internet.” — Some of them even have the audacity to post on the Discussion Boards asking, “How can I make my site sell more?” — Then, when you go to their web site, you find out they are selling information about (or an opportunity to) Make a Fortune on the Internet. — They can’t do it – but – they can teach it.

That should keep you thinkin’ fer a while – and – remember …

I “IS” an expert … “x” being any unknown quantity & a “spurt” being a drip under pressure.

By Jimmy Krug -

Marketing. The subject’s been done to death in some circles. I’ve read more books than I can count over the years and yet there are only two lessons (written by unknowns) that really stick with me above all the others. When I say, “stick with me,” I’m referring to their value and practical use.

Yes, I’ve read Claude Hopkins and the modern writings of Jay Abraham and Dan Kennedy. I’ve read more authors than I care to mention. Even so, it was the writings of a little known booklet author back in the 1980’s and another who wrote an article on sales letters in an obscure publication whose advice had the greatest impact. I’ll get to exactly what their marketing advice was in just a minute.

Information is only as good as your application of it. You see, knowing what to do doesn’t mean you’ll do it correctly. It doesn’t mean you “get it right” each and every time. I don’t think you could find any better examples than you will in sports. You can watch golf videos and take practice swings all day long. Once you step out onto the actual course, however, it suddenly becomes a different game.

Some athletes are lot better in practice than they are in the actual game. The pressure creates a different dynamic.

When I was a kid I stumbled across a tutorial designed to teach kids how to draw Mickey Mouse. I immediately  grabbed a pencil and paper and followed the instructions. The end result was a picture that didn’t resemble Mickey Mouse to the slightest degree.

In my case, the instructions required more hand and eye coordination than I had at the time. The only way to develop that or any other skill is by practicing. I didn’t want to learn how to draw Mickey that badly… so that was the end of my animation career!

Writing was a different story. Over the years, I’ve done a lot of writing. That includes in school and beyond. By the time I finally got around to writing my first eBook back in the late 90’s, the skill had already been developed to the point where I was comfortable sitting down and pounding away at the keyboard.

When it came to creating the cover for the eBook, however, that was another story altogether. I bought some software and a how-to manual and followed the instructions to the best of my ability. The final result looked amateurish, but it was the best I could do with what was available to me at the time.

The next cover I wound up creating didn’t look much better. By the time publication three (along with cover three) came around, I had enough money to outsource the design. I didn’t, though. I was so determined to make the cover designing skill a part of my personal repertoire; I decided to do it myself! My third effort came out great. I was very happy with the finished product.

At the end of the day, what I was after were “presentation and design skills.” No, I wasn’t looking for cutting edge. Clean and professional was my goal.

Keep in mind; I’ve always been a “do-it-yourselfer.” When I first started, I couldn’t afford to outsource anything and wound up doing everything myself. I also kept all the money I made! Those are the pros.

The cons were – I invested time and money buying special software and learning how to use it correctly.

Let me tell you, it was a very expensive, time consuming education… but I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t enjoyable in many ways, too. If I could go back and do it over again would I do it the same way? Definitely. I’ve monetized every single skill I learned over that period of time and will hopefully continue to do so for years to come.

During the initial training period I also purchased and digested an endless stream of books, tapes and courses. Eventually, I got to the point where I found myself reading the same things over and over again.

When I take into account all information I’ve read, collected and reviewed over the years, there were a handful of priceless truths I found that really tied the loose ends up for me more than all the rest of the information put together.

Here they are.

The first priceless truth was, If you want to sell high end products or services successfully – you must first “bring people to the table” with less expensive, frontend products. On the frontend, you may have an inexpensive eBook or publication. The next price point up may have audio recordings or video. On the backend, you may have personal consulting, a weekend seminar or a BIG course with all the extras included.

In other words, you don’t start off with pricey seminars or expensive couching right out of the gate. Until you become a known commodity, the risk/reward ratio is too imbalanced.

People may be willing to risk $30 with you on the frontend… but they won’t be willing to risk $1,000 or more unless they’re able to first test the waters with minimal risk involved. You see, it’s all about risk at the end of the day. People are used to be lied to. They’re used not getting what they’ve paid for. You must prove to that you’re not going to take them down the time worn path of disappointment and disillusionment.

When I first started, I really didn’t have any backend products in mind. This was a mistake. On the other hand, when you’re learning – you’re going to make mistakes. Learn from the mistakes of others. Don’t trying reinventing the wheel. Life is too short.

The second timeless truth I learned involved writing successful sales letters or sales copy. There is an emotional “payoff” that occurs when someone becomes a buyer of your product or service. Whether the payoff continues after they use the product is another thing. Effective sales copy creates a positive emotion between the seller and prospect. What about logic you ask? Although your sales copy should certainly make sense, logic seldom closes the show.

When you’re reading material you enjoy, your brain fires neurons which create what’s called a “natural high.” The more you continue the activity, the more your brain continues to produce the “feel good” emotion. This is true about anything we enjoy doing or reading.

During the reading process, people can actually become “addicted” to the emotions triggered by the content. Years ago I was hooked by a direct mail ad I read for a commodities trading course. The writer put all the technical terms into easy-to-follow layman’s terms. It was something he said anyone could do, so I sent for the free information.

The copy made me feel that I would be able to do something I’d never done before in my life – trade Commodities and Futures options like a “big shot.” I was 22 years old and the thought of making my living, sitting on the couch trading options from home sounded like the perfect business. Once the package came in the mail, it had the stories of dozens of people of all ages and backgrounds that were happily making money as a result of the course.

In plain English, the copy allowed me to create the picture of a brighter, better tomorrow within my mind and the positive emotions that followed had me reaching for my wallet.

Did I do any research to see how legitimate the product was?

Did I read any reviews?

Did I consider any pros and cons?

Nope.

At that point, I felt so good thinking about “tomorrow” I grabbed my wallet and made the purchase. The end result was, the risk involved was a lot deeper than I was originally led to believe. Truth be told, I believed what I wanted to believe. I never did much with the material because I didn’t have the necessary investment capital.

Good, bad or somewhere in between, emotional triggers are responsible for more buying decisions than you can image. The more “addictive emotions” your sales copy triggers, the more the buyer feels good about the purchase, and the more sales you’ll money.

Yes, thousands of dollars later, those simple truths have done more to help me than all the rest put together. I could expound on them further, but I think you get the basic idea!

By Jimmy Krug -

Learning how to make money is a skill just like any other skill. There’s really nothing “mystical” about it as some people would like you to believe.  It’s similar to planting a garden. You have to choose an area, prepare the ground, plant the seed, water it… and finally, protect it so it can grow. With experience, you learn to choose the areas you “plant in” a lot better.

It starts with laying the groundwork and focusing upon an objective. That’s how businesses are built. Some people aren’t interested in starting a business, though. They’ll tell you they just want to “make a few bucks.” They have a slot machine mentality that would rather wander around from one game to the next, dropping coins in a slot, pulling a leaver and crossing their fingers.

Over the years, the Internet has become a carnival of heavily hyped products being sold to starry-eyed, hopefuls… especially in the areas of Internet marketing and SEO.

One of the most popular ways to make money online today is being an affiliate and selling someone else’s products. There’s nothing wrong with this business model. For more information, check out the affiliate programs and offers at Amazon.com, CommissionJunction.com and Clickbank.com for ideas.

I have a strong bias, however, in favor of creating your own products and controlling everything from the product rights to the price points. In the long run, selling something someone else controls is fine… but not at the expense of having your own products and building your own reputation.

In my own experience, nothing beats having the ability to create the supply that satisfies the demand. This is doubly so when that product is information. It was with this in mind that I entered the information publishing business back in the 1990’s.

Today, I develop products today the same way I did when I first started.

It all starts with research.

I begin with the Barnes and Noble or Books-A-Million stores in my hometown. I prefer start my research there (with either one). I actually find this method to be faster, believe it or not, than starting the process online. I simply walk through the store and take mental note of all the latest trends and topics with books and magazines. I walk from one section to the next.

Remember, large publishing houses have teams of people keeping up with trends, what’s hot, what’s not and where people’s interests currently are.

Sure, you can do the same thing on Amazon, but you’ll get the big picture “live” by doing it this way with almost no effort at all. If I see anything of particular interest, I’ll take out my cell phone and snap a quick photo of book covers, titles or even magazine headlines.

Sometimes an idea for an eBook will evolve into a new business product or service. I’ve been using eBooks to promote offline business products and services for years now with good success. I’ve come up with more ideas in bookstores than any other place I can think of. In fact, having too many ideas has been a problem I’ve dealt with more than just a few times.

Sometimes you can fall in love with the product creation process itself when you become comfortable with it. The sky becomes the limit. The problem is, we live on the ground, not in the sky. Marketing what we’ve created isn’t always the most enjoyable process in the world. It can be like eating vegetables when you prefer hamburgers.

It’s the rest of the groundwork that comes after the product creation; however, that completes the process and puts money in the bank.

When I first started creating my own publications, I was more of an “idea man” than I was a businessman. In other words, I’d write about a topic that I personally enjoyed without a whole lot of thought about how I’d ultimately market the product. Sometimes you can actually “get it right” with this approach. But most times, you won’t. The mystery that seems surround the product creation process from a beginner’s standpoint can often consume their focus. The marketing can almost become an afterthought. Like most people, I found myself wanting to run before I learned to walk.

WHAT’S THE MOST IMPORTANT THING?

You may wonder, what’s the most important part of the process? Is it the sales letter or the product itself? To be completely honest, they’re both important.

The marketing sells the product. The product in turn sells YOU. If the marketing is poor, very few people will buy the product. If the marketing is good but the product is poor, very few people will buy anything else from you ever again.

You need both.

After I’ve done my bookstore “research,” I then go online and take a look at my potential competition. In some cases, I don’t care what the competition is because the product is being designed for my existing client base.

In most cases, a single eBook is not the “end all” in the equation. The eBook may lead to a series of eBooks, a paid newsletter, a membership site, audios, videos, etc.

The idea behind all the above is to create a series of comprehensive solutions for a particular market or niche. Don’t get caught in a “hit or miss” proposition, changing products and markets with regularity because the grass suddenly looks greener somewhere else. Like any real business, you’ll get out exactly what you put into it.

Providing QUALITY solutions, guides, roadmaps and blueprints is what separates top notch information publishers from the hoards of “me too, microwavable solution” products and publishers that pop up with increased frequency. They’re here today and gone tomorrow. They’re gone because once their products get reviewed and those reviews start getting indexed by Google… they’re finished.

No, you can’t keep a bad reputation under wraps these days for very long. Those days are gone.

WORK WITH WHAT YOU HAVE

One of the biggest mistakes you can ever make is to pay TOO MUCH attention to what someone else is doing. There comes a point in your business life when you have to stop following “the leaders” in your field and start being one yourself. I talked about this principle in detail in “The Secret Path” course. As long as you’re following someone else, you’ll always be (at best) a step behind.

Start where you’re at and work with what you have. Learn from doing… not just reading about what someone else did.

Realize this, no one knows as much as you think they do. I was given that advice about a long time ago and the older I get, the more that advice continues to prove itself out. Build a business that’ll last a lifetime. It’s all starts with laying the foundation.

By Jimmy Krug –

Miracles are a not-so-common occurrence. I guess if they were, they wouldn’t be called miracles, they’d be called something else. In the world of marketing, though, “miracles” seem to be a more common. Miracle cures, miracle programs, miracle products – all of these promise to do what the common products and programs don’t.

Over the years, I’ve bought my share of miracle products.  None of them ever lived up to my expectations. Of course, one might say that my expectations were too high. For me, I considered it to be a part of the learning process – examining the entire process from start to finish. I’ll be honest when I tell you it can be a very expensive education. At the end of the day, though, most educations are.

When it comes to business success, what you need is –

1. A little bit of intelligence
2. A plan that makes at least a little bit of sense (see point one)
3. A way to get started (no matter how small it is)
4. A whole lot of perseverance along the way.
5. A little bit more perseverance to add to the larger amount described in point four above.

If you want to speed up the process a little bit and shorten the learning curve you can add in one more…

1. Guidance from someone who’s done it before.

Guidance doesn’t eliminate the learning curve, it just helps shorten it. Most people don’t have the luxury of enjoying what you might call “custom guidance.” Custom guidance is one-on-one, personalized guidance. I’m using the word “custom” because it’s a fairly easy word for most people to relate to. There’s standard and there’s custom.

If plug-n-play doesn’t work for you, you need a custom solution. When you think about it, life usually dishes out one “custom” situation after another! No two are exactly alike. Because no two situations are alike, it stands to reason that no two solutions are exactly alike either. That’s part of the reason why most information type products and courses don’t exactly live up to most people’s expectations. The author is writing or creating the product based upon their own personal experience and the reader is looking for specific answers to their own experience which, of course, is different from the authors.

A book or course can give you important information you’ll need to successful. Your own insights, however, enable you to apply what you’ve learned to the specific situation you find yourself in.

Never forget, your situation (business or otherwise) is completely unique. Although it may have similarities to others you’ve read about or have experienced in the past, it’s unique to your current time and place.

Once people realize this, they respond (most of the time) according to the pattern that’s consistent with their personality type.

Intellectual people will often submerge themselves in hours upon hours of research and study. The downside is, the available options increase right along side of the additional information and data. Before long, information overload makes deciding on a course of action even more difficult than before.

Action types are different. This kind of person usually has multiple plans in effect – all at the same time. Like a horse race, whichever positive opportunity happens to nose itself ahead, that’s the one that gets the most attention (at least for the moment). The downside is, as the race continues, it often becomes clear that no one horse has a clear-cut lead over the others. While some may certainly be out of contention, others are not. Therein is the problem

Procrastinators are completely different. They don’t take any action at all. Usually, they distract themselves with a myriad of other things to avoid dealing with the roadblocks they’re experiencing. They’re masters at escapism.

Throughout my own life, I’ve been guilty of doing all the above. As a result, I’ve experienced the downsides firsthand.

There’s an upside however, to all three courses of action – as long as you realize you can only hold any one position for so long.

At the end of the day, focused action is the only thing that brings above average results.

If you’re like most people in business for themselves today (online or otherwise), there’s one constant that seems to present all the way across the boards. You have LOTS of competition! Name anything worth doing and it’s a given – there are lots of people doing it. Reaching new customers and clients while keeping the current ones happy is a full-time job in any niche.  This is doubly so when you consider the advent of social media marketing.  All of this has resulted in an ever-increasing stream of “miracle” solution products, services, books, courses, videos, etc.

A few years ago I met someone who built their business by using Facebook almost exclusively. They didn’t use the paid ads or any of the “miracle” facebook Fanpage products currently on the market. They did it the old fashioned way. They stayed “on message” and had a good product they shared with thousands of friends and fans of their business page.

They built their Facebook presence without any gimmicks. When I introduced them to my knowledge base, they adopted press releases and email marketing to their mix.

A short time later I met a guy who does the same thing using Twitter (almost exclusively). He’s a blogger and teaches people how to make money blogging. He has about 80,000 followers. He uses Twitter to promote his affiliate offers. Unlike most affiliates, he only focuses on two products. He also markets these product on his blog along with his own course on blogging.

He told me it took him about a year to develop a full-time income using this method. I asked him if he was on Facebook. He was. But here’s the thing… he doesn’t spend very much time or energy marketing on Facebook. Why? Because he’s already “hit” with Twitter, so he’s digging deeper, mining way more out of the service than most of his competitors occupying the same niche.

These are two cases of individuals who made above average progress by staying on a main path and minimizing the amount of detours or “shortcuts” they took on their way from point A to point B.

It takes time to build a presence on any network. It doesn’t matter if you’re talking about the “old fashioned” discussion boards, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or any of the others you might care to mention.

It’s like being the new person in town or in the neighborhood. It takes a little time to become established. For some, it takes longer than others.

This brings us back to the original point. If you need more business sooner rather than later, don’t fall into the trap of looking for a miracle cure products, programs, books, etc.

Instead -

• Take responsibility for your own progress. Don’t invest your energy into blaming other people, circumstances, etc. Today is a new day. Chalk up yesterday to experience.
• If you need to take a break to clear your mind, go ahead. Just set a time limit on your break so it doesn’t last indefinitely. Give yourself the days, weeks, etc. you need to hit your own reset button. Do something else during that time and clear your mind of the problem.
• Examine the facts surrounding the issue and make an honest assessment about where you are and where you need to go.
• Talk to others who have more experience than you do. The people who’ve been there can provide the type of guidance that only comes from having “walked the walk.”
• Make a decision, take action and commit to the “failure is not an option” way of thinking.

The best tools you’ll ever have at your disposal aren’t available for immediate download. They aren’t hidden in the latest software product or money-making system. They’re within you, waiting to be developed.

By Jim Straw -

The late, great P.T. Barnum once said …

“The great secret of success in anything is to get a hearing.  Half the object is gained when the audience is assembled.”

Understandably, most of the  marketing gurus focus their efforts on teaching you how to “get a hearing” … how to write dynamite headlines … how to use “bullets” … how to use envelope “teasers” … how to grab the reader’s Attention, spark their Interest, flame their Desire, and ask for Action.  But …

They seem to overlook the fact that they are directing 100% of your effort toward only half the requisite formula.

Because … as P.T. Barnum said …

“Half the object is gained when the audience is assembled.”

When the  marketing gurus finally … if ever … hit upon the subject of “assembling an audience,” they focus on mailing-list selection, demographic profiling, and lead generation.  They either forget, or don’t realize, that fully half the purpose of the ad-copy is to “assemble an audience.”

Mailing-list selection, demographic profiling, and lead generation … although easily confused with “assembling an audience” … are really more in the realm of “defining” an audience.  Once an “audience” has been “defined,” it still has to be “assembled” in order for your message to “get a hearing.”

Actually, I think the marketing gurus really know about assembling an audience … other than the mechanics of “defining” the possible customers … but, it really is a rather difficult concept to teach. — So, let me use an easier example to explain what I mean by “assembling an audience.”

Here are three headlines for a “sales letter” about an up-coming Elvis concert …

Attention: Rock & Roll Fans!

Attention:  ELVIS Fans!

ELVIS!!  Live!  In Concert!

It would appear that all three of those headlines would get Attention – but, which one of them would do the most to “assemble an audience.”

Let’s take a closer look …

Attention: Rock & Roll Fans! — “includes” everyone who considers themselves a “Rock & Roll Fan” – but – it “excludes” everyone and anyone who doesn’t consider themselves a “fan.”

The headline “defines” a general audience.  Attention-getting – but – whose attention?

Attention:  ELVIS Fans! — “includes” only those who consider themselves to be “fans” of Elvis – but – it “excludes” anyone who really isn’t a “fan.”

The headline, again, “defines” an audience – but – this time it is only a very small segment of the potential audience.

Beyond that, both of those headlines might well turn-off some of its intended audience. — Those people who might just enjoy some of the Rock & Roll music … or some of Elvis’ hits … but, subconsciously, they don’t want to label themselves, or be labeled, “fans.”

ELVIS!!  Live!  In Concert! — not only “includes” Rock & Roll Fans and Elvis Fans, it “includes” those people who have only heard about Elvis … people who enjoy seeing any performer or entertainer “live” … people who enjoy going to  concerts (of any kind) … and people who like to socialize by attending public events – but – it would “exclude” only those who didn’t share any of the above mentioned attributes.

The headline is “inclusive” enough to attract the attention of a huge audience … with varying reasons to be interested … and only “excludes” those who wouldn’t be interested for any reason.

By the way, nobody in the entertainment field would write a “sales letter” to invite people to a live concert.  (Besides, Elvis has left the building.) — I just used it as an example, in order for you to more easily understand the concept of “assembling an audience.”

When I sit-down … or stand-up, for that matter … to write ad-copy for any kind of product or service, the first thing I do is “define” the audience from which my customers will come.

Sometimes, I use the “definition” of my chosen audience as the premise for my headline, bullets, and body-copy to “exclude” everyone else. — Like a couple years ago, when I wrote an ad for an Air Purifier used in trucks, I used the headline, “Truck Drivers Stink!” — Since the product was “specifically” being sold to Truck Drivers, I purposely “excluded” everyone else.

Other times, I use the “definition” of my chosen audience to “include”  everyone who might have even the slightest interest in the product or service …  “excluding” only those who would have little or no interest at all. — Like the lead-line I have used for over 11 years to sell subscriptions to my business opportunities newsletter, “If you have a few minutes, I’d like to tell you how I became a millionaire … maybe it will help you in your business.” — Using that lead-line “includes” anyone, and everyone, engaged in a business of their own … and those people who might want to be.

Then again, I might use a “non-defining” headline that allows my audience to “define” itself … like my “Self-Liquidating (Arbitrage) Loans” — http://www.businesslyceum.com/SLLoans.html … when I know there is an audience but I can’t “define” that audience specifically. — I simply let them “define” themselves.

Which ever method I use, my purpose is to “assemble an audience” … an   audience who will, hopefully, include enough people who will applaud my performance … send money … to make my efforts profitable.

By the way, the “Truck Drivers Stink!” ad got a lot of comments … good and bad, positive and negative … but it didn’t make any money because the product was over-priced (a point I brought to my client’s attention before I wrote the ad).

So – no matter what the  marketing gurus might tell you – remember …

Before your message can “get a hearing” it must FIRST “assemble an audience.”

As I have said, over and over, “Ad-copywriting is more art than science.” — That’s why all of us old  masters are right … and all of us are wrong.