Marketing Experts Exposed

As I write this, I’m at a seminar (it’s the Big Seminar, put on by my buddy Armand Morin).

I attend a lot of seminars.

I believe in doing that; it’s probably the best way of expanding your mind, your contacts, and your bank account.

I have noticed something, however.

A lot of people will leave a “live” seminar event full of excitement. Bursting with ideas. Ready to take on the world.

And then, when they get back home… reality takes over, and most of the “great ideas” will never get done.

Instead, they end up stressed out and ready to hang themselves using their own necktie (like the high-strung bloke in the photo).

Why?

And what do we do about it?

It Doesn’t Have To Be This Way

I just did a call with my friend Kirt Christensen, and we talked about the precise solution to this problem.

How to get things done. Finally.

On the call, we shared how you can clear out your “mental RAM” so you experience more peace of mind and less stress.

Part of what we talk about is the “Immersion Principle”. If you could invest just three days in “Immersion”, the payoffs could be near limitless.

On this unusual, “two friends talking”-style call, we also reveal:

• The two leverage points in your business that can skyrocket your profits.
• How to get your traffic boosted using a proven system.
• The keys to getting back to a “sane” work schedule (something less than 70 hours a week!).
• Secrets of using proven formulas to improve sales and profits.
• How to use a “3-day lock-in” to get PAST the bottlenecks in your business.

Grab The Recording Now — It’s FREE

There’s no obligation.

Not even a “squeeze page”…

Click here to optimize your business and reduce your stress.

I think you’ll enjoy this call.

And it could change the way you think about your business.

Heck, scratch that; it could change the way you do business.

The call is available for download here for a limited time (you really want to listen to it ASAP, you’ll understand why once you’ve heard it).

Many copywriters, both new and experienced, struggle with how much to charge their clients. In fact, it is a problem that many in the service industry face.

The dilemma?

Charge too little and you risk losing credibility in the eyes of your customers and potential clients. Additionally, the quality of your work, even if it is worth 100 times what they paid for it, will be seen as having diminished value.

Worst of all, when you charge too little, you may begin to resent the project, the client, or even your chosen profession.

In short, charging too little doesn’t do anyone any good, least of all you.

On the other hand, if you charge too much you run the risk of losing a potential client. You may lose out on opportunities to work with clients who could open doors and provide you and your business with an abundance of work.

The solution?

Olympic Factor Pricing

Athletes in the Olympics have the opportunity to win one of three awards: the bronze medal, the silver medal, and the coveted gold medal.

That’s how your pricing should work, too. When a customer requests a quote, you present them with a comprehensive package that includes three levels of pricing.

Here’s an example (and it’s only one example, so change it to fit your skillsets and services):

The Gold Level

This level includes all the bells and whistles. The “premium package,” if you will. You offer everything they’re asking for and more.

If they want a salesletter written from scratch, you write it but also provide them with the optin copy, order form copy, and confirmation page copy. You can also provide design elements, layout suggestions, and formatting, too.

(Make sure to denominate all these elements in your package, even add estimated values for each one. The object is to make the client understand that these add-ons are extras, have intrinsic value on their own, and are included in the Gold package only.)

This Gold Level pricing also includes the highest quoted fee of your three offers.

The Silver Level

This level includes basically what the customer has asked for and generally fits into your “standard copywriting package.” You also charge a bit less than the Gold level pricing but still more than the bronze level quote.

For example, it can be writing the salesletter copy (and only the salesletter), with some formatting and basic design suggestions. And just as with the Gold, you denominate each element in this package.

The Bronze Level

This is your barebones and least expensive offer. Perhaps it’s writing just the main copy and that’s it. Perhaps it’s rewriting existing copy. Or perhaps it’s critiquing it and giving the client a list of actionable suggestions to improve it.

No bells. No whistles. No extras.

However, don’t underquote, here. There is a possibility that your client will choose this level and you don’t want to be in a situation where you’re resenting the work and the client.

Why Three Levels Of Pricing?

When you educate your client on the value of your work, you give them something to compare to. Something concrete. Something they can chew on.

Instead of just having a dollar amount, he now has a concept of what that value is worth. Because he’s not comparing your price against another copywriter’s price. He’s comparing one of your services against another.

In reality, you are creating not only higher perceived value but also higher intrinsic value. In other words, you’re boosting the perceived value not only of your services but also of the Gold package itself.

A good example is the price of gasoline.

If you tell me to choose which gas to put into my car with the following options (and since I’m Canadian, I’m using metric examples, here):

Premium Gas: $1.10 a liter
Better Gas: $1.03 a liter
Regular: $0.99 a liter

The only logical choice is to choose the cheapest solution because price is my only metric. However, if you tell me I have the choice of:

Premium Gas: $1.10 a liter
Has 94 octane (which means it burns better and more efficiently), cleans the engine as it burns, contains less pollutants, includes gasline antifreeze for the winter months, and perhaps includes a discount on car wash with 25 liters purchased.

Better Gas: $1.03 a liter
Has 89 octane, less pollutants, comes with free coffee at coffee bar with a minimum of 15 liters purchased.

Regular: $0.99 a liter
Has 85 octane.

This way, I know why the higher one has more value (not just higher price), and why the cheaper one is, well, cheap. You’ve given me more information to appreciate the value, as well as more information to compare each other with.

The same holds true for your copywriting services.

The Olympic factor gives your customers not only a choice but also a basis for comparison, and it increases the perceived value of your offer overall. Your Gold offer has the highest perceived value, and your Bronze offer, the lowest.

Which offer will your client choose?

When I used to teach marketing at a local college, I taught my students about a concept called the “price-quality continuum.” Meaning, people will either choose a product based on where it is in this continuum.

Whether it’s the low-end of the continuum (i.e., lowest price), the high-end (i.e., the highest quality), or somewhere in between, people buy according to what they feel is aligned with their values, desires, and goals.

With only one option, you serve only one type of customer at the expense of the other. But offer more than one, and you have the ability to cater to a wider spectrum of buying behaviors.

Doing so, you’ll likely find that the majority will go for the Silver (middle) option. These folks want the best of both worlds: good quality at a reasonable price.

However, many will choose the Gold level because a lot of people will want the best there is. Those are the quality seekers on the price-quality continuum.

Yet some people will, without a doubt, go for the cheapest solution. They are the deal seekers. But if they do, they do so with the full knowledge that they are getting less.

And that’s the key!

The real beauty of the Olympic factor pricing strategy is that it also stops the grinding away process after your service has been rendered.

Your customers won’t complain (most won’t, anyway) because, buttressed with the higher one when they made the choice, they know that, if they didn’t get more, they should have chosen the higher one to begin with.

It puts the onus and the responsibility of the decision — and the end result — firmly in their hands. Not yours.

The End Result

By incorporating this Olympic Factor Pricing strategy into your business, you’ll find a number of clients choose your Silver level package and be quite happy with it because you’ve educated them on the value of your work.

You will sell more of the Silver package, which is your standard offer anyway, because they don’t need to shop around. You’ve done that for them.

Plus, you’ll be able to demand and justify higher fees, and your clients will be more content with their decision and the price they paid for your work.

behavior, client, copywriting, fee, marketing, olympic, positioning, price, psychology, quality, shopping, value

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Related Articles at The Michel Fortin Blog:

• Break Through Writer’s Block
• I’m Deeply Saddened
• No Such Thing As A Starving Copywriter
• Is Copywriting a Masculine Skill?
• Studying Roots? Or Picking Fruits?
• Lowball Puts You Behind The Eight Ball
• Gary Halbert And Michel Fortin… Part Deux
• Email Mini-Makeover Case Study
• The Success Doctor is 10 Years Old!
• Slapping Salesletters Together Slaps Back

Howdy.

I just fielded a GREAT question in the Marketing Rebel Radio Rant coaching club Forum… and I liked my answer so much, I decided to share it here with everyone else. (It’s an excellent “taste” of the quality of info/advice/insight you get in that club, too.)

One of the “forum rats”, as we affectionately refer to each other, posted the question that is on the mind of most business owners’ when they first encounter the concept of “learning” to write their own copy.

Essentially, that question is this: “Really, why should I bother to learn the skills of writing copy at all?

When you look around at the mega-wealthy, they OWN things and manage from the top.

Like a crime boss. They want someone hit, they send out Guido.

Hard to imagine Donald Trump chewing a pencil, coming up with a dozen new headlines.

So… why bother to learn copy, if your dreams are big? Wouldn’t that time be better spent playing Monopoly-style biz boss, amassing property and holdings and moving and shaking?

And just hire the best writers to do your copywriting work?”

And here is my answer:

You ask a very good question. It’s so good, in fact, that it mimics exactly how I’ve been postioning my copywriting course lately in seminars.

My general message is this: Sure, you can (and probably will, in some cases) end up hiring writers to do the bulk of the writing for you as you grow your biz.

However, just as a crime boss hires hit men to do the dirty work… chances are, the boss still knows HOW to do the hit himself… and probably spent mucho time in his “rise to power” days actually doing just that. (Very Shakespearean, these modern crime lords.)

Same with biz.

ALL the top multi-millionaire marketers I know — from Jay Abraham to Dan Kennedy, from Eben Pagan to Frank Kern, from Rich Schefren to Mike Filsaime — know how to write killer copy.

And, for the most part, they still handle the important jobs themselves. Even though they may hire out the less-than-critical projects. (Eben — who will gross tens of millions this year — recently spent weeks sequestered, alone, in his home office pounding out copy for his recent launch. Wrote every word himself.)

The reason for this is fundamental: If you don’t know how to write good copy, how will you be able to JUDGE whether whoever you hire has done a good job?

If you are clueless, you’ll be at the mercy of your freelancers. You won’t understand what’s needed, you won’t know if the copy submitted is any good, you won’t be able to set real deadlines… you’re just a babe in the woods, vulnerable and potential lunch for every predator who catches your scent. (And even good, ethical writers will take advantage of you, because it’s so easy. Never forget that the writer/client relationship is inherently hostile – each person wants the best deal for themselves, and wants to do as little work/pay as little money for the process as possible. It’s the nature of the world.)

Just like a crime boss who has no idea how hits happen. The freelance killers he hires (if they know he’s clueless) will jack him around, take forever, botch the job, etc. It’s the stuff that built the Sopranos lore. Remember: Tony did his own hits, when he wanted it done right. (Like offing his cousin.)

There is NO other skill in biz more important than writing copy.

Period.

Show me a CEO who doesn’t understand advertising (which is built around the copy), and I’ll show you a screw-up about to tank the stock. He may get the recognition, but he’s utterly dependent on whoever he has doing the actual marketing… and his entire existence rests on the competence/incompetence of that hired dude behind the scenes.

Shudders all around. Sleepless nights. Ulcers and early death.

But hey — he didn’t “waste” any valuable time learning how to write copy.

Same with politics. The guys who rock as politicians write most or all of their own speeches. The hacks hire it out, oblivious of how embarrassing and exposed they become when their ghost writers put the wrong words in their mouths. (Plus, they get that “deer in the headlights” look whenever they face the press without a script.)

You ever see an actor on his own in an interview? Fielding tough, unexpected questions, they reveal that they are not even close to being as witty, or charming, or smart as the characters they play.

The power of writing has never been proven more important than the way network and cable television has nearly shut down entirely due to the current writer’s strike. Leno, Letterman, Stewart, Colbert, et al, are funny dudes… but they rely on writers to provide the bulk of their show’s wit. (Slight twist here: All those guys COULD write their own stuff, if they had the time, though. They are all seething bastards when it comes to judging the quality of their hired writers, because they know what they want. Thus, they produce high-end shows that rock. But pay attention: During free-form interviews, they are on their own, and they’re “writing” their own witty, funny stuff AS THEY TALK. This, too, is writing copy, even though there’s no typing involved. When you understand HOW to write what you need, you eventually get good enough to write it in your head as you talk. You become a living, breathing copy-producing monster.)

No copy, no action. It really is that simple.

Operation MoneySuck demands that you spend your precious (and very limited) time honing your most important chops. And yes, amassing the outside fortifications of larger and more efficient businesses is important… but they will crumble without the foundational support of killer copy. (All the largest mailers in the world — Rodale, Phillips, Agora — were started by people who understood and wrote copy. Some have stumbled along the way, whenever non-writers gained control and lost sight of basic salesmanship. Great lesson there.)

Copy is salesmanship-in-print. Selling is what you do. The largest and most efficient business is just an empty shell if it cannot sell what it produces.

Learn the craft.

Stay frosty.

John Carlton
www.carltoncoaching.com

P.S. One last point: The idea that you can just hire the “best” writers to do your copy has a big hole in it.

Why?

Because, the “A List” of top writers is only around two-dozen names long. And they are all pretty much booked through eternity. No amount of moolah can get them to write for you, until you start offering partner-sized equity in your biz.

The “B List” of writers are also booked solid, most of the time. If you intend to pay for your most important copy, you may as well hook up an umbilical cord from the writer to your bank account… because you’re gonna pay a LOT (even if you can’t find an “A List” writer to do your job).

Worse — there’s a mob of untested, unproven, and weak-skilled freelancers out there masquerading as grizzled professionals… charging huge bucks to write lame-ass copy.

So you can’t tell from their fees how good they are.

You can shell out gold for peanuts… unless you know how to judge good copy.

The only way to do that: Learn the craft.

Don’t make me come down there…

advertising agencies, Carlton, copywriting, crime lords, entrepreneur, freelance copywriters, marketing, outsourcing, salesmanship, small business marketing, Trump

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Just a little note to let you know that I’m in Raleigh, North Carolina all week, as I’m recording a new product with my friend Armand Morin on blogging.

We literally go step by step through the process of setting up a blog, adding all the plugins, tweaking it, driving traffic to it, and of course, monetizing it properly.

I will return next week, and have a few new articles for you. In the meantime, did you check out my coaching program? A few openings are left. At least take a moment to read it. There are some great copy lessons in there, too!

(I also added a few extra pictures, including one of me playing my new drumset — like the photo at top of this post, which was taken at my 40th birthday party gig in a local watering hole in Ottawa, Ontario.)

Click here for the complete details.

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Related Articles at The Michel Fortin Blog:

• How to Craft Cash-Creating Climactic Copy
• Killing Time Can Be Therapeutic
• John Carlton And Michel Fortin
• Rotting The Basket
• My Name is Michael, I Got a Nickel…
• Nothing Can Take The Place of Persistence
• If Long Copy Stinks, Think Soap
• Answers To Questions, As Promised
• Email Mini-Makeover Case Study
• Risk-Reversal’s Role Reversal

Howdy…

Let me share with you an important re-discovery I was just bludgeoned with about the nature what is “true”, and what is manufactured bullshit.

It’s a version of “truth” I believe is critical for all marketers and seekers of success (both in life and in biz)… and yet remains shockingly elusive and hard to nail down.

Why? Because some very dedicated people do not want you to get hip about it.

Here’s the story: Technically, I just got to share a stage with Richard Branson of Virgin Airlines/Virgin Records this past weekend.

Maybe “virtually” is the better word, though. I was in Phoenix, at Joe Polish’s stunning Super Conference, and I pulled a shift onstage chatting with Joe and then putting the audience of 700+ though their paces writing some headlines.

Branson was “on” the following day, via satellite. Very cool technology — totally live (well, almost, with a 3-second delay bouncing the images and sound off the orbiting junkpile up there) — and amazingly intriguing for a live audience. I had no idea a real audience could be held captive so effectively by someone’s huge head on a screen, broadcasting from half a world away.

But it works.

And I gotta tell you: I was prepared to NOT like Branson, and was ready to bolt the room the second he bored me.

Why? I’ll get to that in a moment. But by the third or fourth minute of his talk, I found myself really liking this guy… and thoroughly enjoying both what he had to say, and how he said it.

By the time he finished his “speech” and generously began to answer questions from the audience, I felt bad that he and I would never have the opportunity to hang out together. I felt that simpatico with him.

Later on, I thought about my prior feelings about him… and how they had been formed.

Bottom line: I was duped.

By the media, and probably also by corporate monsters who hate his message of independence and responsibility for taking care of the world.

The Man (the icon of the beasts who control this world) loathes rich people who attain success by alternative means, and then insult the Power Structure by challenging the “pillage and rape” methods they use to acquire and hold dominion over markets, populations and the “reality” most of us experience through media. (The beasts really, really, really want us sedated and mollified by the value-less aspects of such things as Youtube and Facebook, which act as opiates to keep the bulk of society from questioning anything The Man is doing.) (There IS some value to Youtube and Facebook, of course… but they’re not exactly sterling examples of enlightenment.)

Branson’s main ventures have all been centered on his experiences in modern life… and how he found them lacking and in dire need of updating or complete revolutions. Air travel has sucked for several generations, and so he created Virgin Airlines, which apparently rocks. (I’ve never had the pleasure, but my partner Stan gives it 10 out of 10 stars.) He created his record label to fill the huge gap of taste and relevance that the Big Ugly Record Companies left open… and they have despised him for it ever since.

Now, of course, he’s doing amazing things to try and make the world better… and The Man is apoplectic with rage for the effort. (Branson had Nelson Mandella and Kofi Anan of the UN ready to go to Iraq and convince Saddam to step down and go live in exile in Liberia — which would have been a bloodless, peaceful coup that accomplished everything the Bush administration said it wanted — but the day they were ready to leave for Iraq, the war started and it was too late. I remember this getting scant media attention — at least here in the US — and being completely squelched soon after. The Man hates being second-guessed.)

All this has reminded me, yet again, of the unpleasant responsibility of enjoying the privileges of a free society: We can NEVER take the word of those in power as gospel… and we are saddled forever with the need to stay vigilant and challenge authority on every major point.

The media has not been totally unkind to Branson… but the general attitude about him (if you never actually listened to his side of the story) was skeptical and sneering. Rich do-gooder guy, who was a self-admitted “party animal”, trying to ignore the rules the rest of us have to live by. Deserves to be taken down a notch or two, the little bastard.

Which, of course, is an ABSURD notion for a guy like me to have in his head at all. Heck… I never play by the rules, and I distrust authority with the best of them.

In fact, my entire teaching style is centered on “waking up”… ditching the zombie lifestyle The Man prefers you to stumble though life with… and claiming your place at the Feast.

So what I’ve come away with — from this little exercise in awareness — is the POWER of the media in this regard. I hadn’t bothered to go deep, and get the story myself. To be fair, I’m a tad busy to be doing my own research on everybody in the news… but in this case, we have a guy who is knocking himself out trying to do the right thing in many, many ways that require courage, vision and piles of his own money… and I allowed the snarling media to gobble up his basic message and keep the BEST part of it away from me.

Entirely my fault. I dozed, and got snookered.

The truth will always be slippery, hard to nail down, and subject to misinformation and propaganda.

Still, it’s worth remembering who’s in charge of most of the “news” you are spoon-fed. Rich people who have a stake in you NOT becoming rich, too. They got theirs, and aren’t too happy about you getting yours.

It’s a good thing to spend just a little more energy to get a better view of any story by uncovering alternative news outlets.

And it’s also a good thing to remember how nasty The Man can get when riled. I have zero interest in any kind of “real” fame specifically because of this. I’m fine with the very minor celebrity status I enjoy on the seminar circuit, and among my subscribers and clients and customers. It’s like having a big, raucous, fun and interesting extended family to hang out with.

But the kind of fame that would regularly get you on the front page? Forget it. You instantly become canon fodder for a heartless media that doesn’t care a whit about truth or serving the Greater Good.

Me? I’m gonna get Branson’s book and read it right away.

The dude has me intrigued… and I feel I owe it to him.

Stay frosty,

John Carlton
www.carltoncoaching.com

Carlton, copywriting, entrepreneur, Internet, life lessons, living life well, marketing, misfits, Richard Branson, small business marketing, Virgin Airlines, Virgin Records

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On January 6th the KaChing Tank will open.

We have selected the first Tanker and there are still 5 slots open for the January class.  If you don’t make the January cut, don’t despair - we’ll be rotating 4 Tankers in and out each month and will maintain 12 Tankers at any given time.

Now, what does this have to do with the Constructs?

Well, the Tankers will be a vital part of the plan which will start unfolding more aggressively in January.  More on that soon …

News flash: If you are neither on, nor in need of, attention-deficit medication… you’re probably at a serious disadvantage marketing your business online.

I’m not judging anyone here — I’m just making an observation.

A few weeks ago, I was sitting at a big sloppy banquet hosted by one of the top online entrepreneurs. Very nice restaurant, and we had a back room all to ourselves.

Seated around me were a dozen other rich, respected online entrepreneurs — mostly men in their thirties, and one or two women in the same age group. Everywhere you turned, there was another fun and invigorating conversation going on.

I really like my colleagues in the online marketing world. And I appreciate the fact that, while I’m much older (and I’ve been around the block about a thousand more times), we all have so much in common that we treat each other like equals.

Which mostly means we engage freely in totally uncensored conversations that are hilarious, revealing, and often amazingly profitable.

At this particular dinner, however, I had a sudden realization… and was able to field-test it immediately with the people sitting around me.

That realization was this: While we have much in common as marketers and advertisers and just being cutting-edge creative types… we ALSO share another trait that I almost NEVER used to see in the pre-Web days of direct response advertising.

Once I tell you what this trait is, it will seem obvious.

But few of us have ever put a finger on it before.

Wanna guess what this trait is that so many online entrepreneurs share?

It’s…

… being a misfit.

And not just a run-of-the-mill misfit, either.

I started asking my table-mates, point blank, if they had ever been diagnosed with ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), OCD (obsessive/compulsive disorder), or any of the other less common “social outsider” categories that doctors seem to love using to catalog people.

Everyone started sharing their private histories… and it was eye-opening.

I’m not gonna name names here. (Insiders will probably be able to guess who I’m talking about… but then, they probably also share the same diagnosis.)

I just think this is an important insight to online marketing success.

There were brilliant people at this table… and at least one honest genius, IQ-wise. There were technical wizards, stunningly talented thinkers, writers with breathtaking talent, and lots of super-savvy guys who had learned to “game” the online system so massive quantities of moolah flowed in their direction.

Often with little extra work.

And yet, in the offline world, nearly all of them would be STRUGGLING to hold down a regular job… or, in some cases, possibly forced out of “polite” socieity altogether.

These people were misfits. Literally, they didn’t FIT in the mainstream world very well at all.

Some of the brightest ones had common memories of being forced into “special needs” classes in school. Many were dropouts, because their intelligence was overlooked and understimulated.

For the ones who were most successful… the birth of the Web presented SALVATION.

Many started online as gamers — staying up late (or for days at a time) dodging dragons and shooting aliens, sharing the new fantasy worlds with an ever-growing community of other misfits. They got to know each other, started exploring the capitalist possibilities of the Web, and traded in games for marketing.

While the Web frightened and confused traditional businesses, these younger guys were fearless about code, software, building sites and everything else in the new virtual world-wide city center.

I got into freelance copywriting because I was a notoriously bad fit in the corporate world. I can’t stand wearing ties (they literally chafe my neck), and I’m a flagrant night owl — which, I have now discovered, is something else I share with many of the best online entrepreneurs out there.

As far as I know, I do not have any attention deficit problems… yet, I can enjoy long and chaotic conversations with the worst of them, and I even enjoy the non-linear thinking.

So, I dunno, maybe I’m ADHD, too. Can you have a mild case of it?

Actually, I kinda doubt it really exists. Getting to know these brilliant, wacky online entrepreneurs leads me to believe that — in the bad old pre-Web days — there simply wasn’t a place for them.

“Normal” society hates misfits, cuz we make uptight people uncomfortable. (I’ve been fired from almost every “real” job I’ve ever had.) (With good reason, too — I refused to play by stupid rules, and I still consider the REAL insane people to be the ones who surrender their individuality to The Man for a paycheck.)

The Web has nurtured a fabulous explosion of entrepreneurial opportunity… and now smart misfits can work their own hours, dressed however they like, from chaotic home offices, doing whatever funky project they dream up.

You can make your own rules, and change them daily. You can obsess to your heart’s content, or be as lazy and distracted as you like (once you’ve set your systems in place) and still rake it in.

The entire playing field has changed, drastically. In traditional corporate environments, the people who rise to positions of authority and power (and high salaries) are often the jerks who know how to play “the game” at work. Kiss ass, take credit for other people’s efforts, avoid responsibility for failure, stab co-workers in the back, etc.

The biz-as-usual soap opera.

Online, however, you’re essentially naked except for your brain. There’s no corporate game to play… and none of the skills that normally shoot a person up the ladder are relevant.

Online, being good looking, or suave, or a good worker, or even likeable won’t win you any victories.

Online, the misfits have the advantage. They can create their own attention paradigms, set their own standards, and take their biz directly to people who want what they offer… with nary an intervening newspaper, magazine, television standards and practices attorney, politician, store shelf position, billboard or sweet talking salesman to harsh anyone’s mellow.

I don’t know if anyone else has fully understood the implications here. Maybe I’m slow getting on the band wagon… but the other entrepreneurs I’ve talked to have all agreed that no one’s really noticed how many true misfits there are at the top of the online world.

There’s room for everybody, of course.

But I think I now see why so many wannabe entrepreneurs I counsel are having trouble getting traction onine — they need to get in touch with their Inner Misfit.

It’s a brave new world… and I, for one, welcome it.

Misfits of the world, unite!

And stay frosty,

John Carlton
www.marketingreble.com

ADHD, attention deficit, Carlton, copywriting, entrepreneur, Internet, life lessons, Madison Avenue, marketing, MeFi, misfits, OCD, salesmanship, small business marketing, social outcasts

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If you remember, a few months back I launched my email-based coaching program. Shortly thereafter, I’ve reached the number I wanted to enroll in the program, and so I closed the doors.

Since then, however, I’ve wrestled with the idea of reopening it to allow a few new members. Why? Partly because I’m very picky when choosing people with whom I work closely, and partly because I’ve received numerous requests asking me about it.

In fact, since closing my doors I’ve received 52 requests to join my program.

Yes, fifty two! I counted them.

So I’ve relaunched my email-based coaching program, but only to a few select applicants. With this program, you can ask me unlimited questions, to which I will answer personally — as long as your subscription is active.

Here’s what this amazing programs includes:

1. Direct, Unlimited Email Questions

This program allows you to ask me as many questions as you wish, one question at a time. I will personally respond to your question within 24 hours (except on weekends, holidays, and business trips).

Your question can be as general or as specific as you wish. But since I only allow one question at a time and take up to 24 hours to respond, obviously better questions will command better answers.

You can ask anything about Internet business, traffic generation, product creation, marketing, positioning, motivation, Web 2.0, blogging, success, time management, multimedia, outsourcing, and particularly copywriting.

You can use me as a sounding board to bounce ideas off of, get suggestions on how to optimize a certain aspect of your business, or receive action-steps to better your copywriting and marketing skills.

But above all, you can ask anything on copy itself.

You can have me go over any salesletter, check out any website, review any autoresponder copy, strategize any business process, etc.

For example, stuck on a headline? Lost in bullets? Looking for a story, angle or hook? Want to make a better offer? Seeking suggestions for split-testing your copy? Then run it by me to see what I think and how YOU can improve it.

2. Access to Any of My Digital Products

This program also entitles you to any of my electronic products. Ask for any of my products that are delivered via the web, and I will send it to you.

Whether it’s an audio, video, digital information product, piece of software, membership site, or whatever, it’s available to you. As long as it’s delivered online and your subscription is active, ask and you shall receive.

And this is applicable to any product I’ve launched in the past, or any new products I launch in the future — provided, of course, that your subscription is active when I do launch it. (In fact, I might let you become my beta-tester.)

However, this does not include physical products, resell rights, products created in partnership with others, products of which I’m an affiliate, seminars, or other services, including copywriting itself.

3. Shared Copyrights

With this program, you are welcome to reprint the answers you receive. You can give a copy to a freelance copywriter working on your copy. If you want to turn your coaching sessions into a product you wish to sell, go right ahead.

Here’s an example: my coaching student, Stephen Dean, compiled his answers into a product he sold — which did extremely well, too.

If you do reprint my answers, you must give proper credit when doing so. This doesn’t mean you must link back to my site, although I would appreciate it. But you cannot claim authorship.

(But if you do sell such a product, the profits are 100% yours.)

Also, you may never use any of my answers, products or coaching in any way that’s illegal or unethical. For example, you cannot spam, defame, or break any laws or regulations. You are liable for damages in such cases.

Only serious marketers need apply.

Here are the conditions you must meet to be considered for this program:

• You have an established business selling existing products/services;
• You are ready to do what it takes to take your business to the next level;
• You have at least a basic understanding of marketing and the Internet;
• You should not submit originals as materials will not be returned;
• You are not allowed any extensions or substitutions, for any reason;
• You or your business is not engaged in illegal or unethical practices;
• And you are responsible for any direct, out-of-pocket expenses (if you need to fax, call long distance, mail, buy additional software, or whatever, it’s your responsibility, not mine).

After receiving your commitment, you will receive the special email address to contact me right away. If your application is refused or if you fail to meet the above conditions, you will be notified within 24 hours and your fee refunded.

You might be wondering, “Why email?”

Since this program requires a smaller upfront commitment than, say, an actual critique or consultation (critiques run from $1,000 to $3,000 each, and I charge $500 an hour for consultations), it is therefore scaled down.

Also, experience shows that offering anything more than email can be detrimental to your success. Phone calls, forums, instant messengers or Internet chats are too easy to use as excuses for not taking action.

I want a high success rate from this program, and that means I also need you to take action. Even though I’m prepared to provide you with the inspiration, tips, and tools to succeed, I’m here to coach you, not coerce you.

I refuse to be the cause of your failure.

The program is not organized in a way where it is my job to teach you. It is your job to learn. You and you alone are responsible for your success. That’s why I will only agree to answer questions, and to do so strictly via email.

(And expect me to forgo any social graces. “Pick my brains” as many times as you wish. But I will be brutally honest with you, and won’t sugarcoat anything.)

Plus, email forces you into really forming your question.

The process of thinking about your question and writing it down pushes you into action, and action is critical to achieving success with any program.

Besides, if you can’t take the time and make the effort to think your question through and write it down, how can you have the time or the willingness to take the action necessary for your success?

In fact, as part of the coaching program, you will have “homework” to do. You are going to make yourself accountable and must take specific action steps.

So be warned: I might recommend programs, books, courses, websites and software from time to time. It’s up to you to decide if you want to take the actions necessary to achieve success.

Finally, there are NO refunds with this program.

However, there are no long-term contracts, either. You can cancel anytime, and if you do, your subscription (and monthly recurring billing) will stop immediately. (I can also cancel at any time and for any reason.)

But if you do quit, it’s not my fault. Remember, I refuse to be the cause of your failure. I’m not here to teach you. It’s up to you to succeed or not, and to make the best use possible of your investment in yourself.

Remember, you work with me and me alone. I answer all emails personally. This program is not done through some third party. My time is limited, and therefore email is the best way to leverage that time, for both of us.

I might do group coaching calls, teleseminars, or even call-in days from time to time. But these will be on an ad-hoc basis and not guaranteed.

You may have a product or not. You may have a business or not. You may be a copywriter or not. It doesn’t matter. In either case, only serious marketers may subscribe. You and you alone are the best judge of just how serious you are in achieving the success you deserve.

Your monthly fee will be billed immediately and each month, automatically. You will also receive my special email address within 24 hours. Once you get it, think of the most significant question you could ask, and ask it.

(Do not share this email address with anyone.)

You can remain subscribed for as long as you wish, and you can cancel anytime. But join now, and you lock in your position and your investment will never increase, since the price will go up as more people enter the program.

At this time, I plan on having around 30 people, in order to focus my attention on serious individuals only.

UPDATE: The first 21 spots are now taken. The rate has been increased, as promised. The longer you wait, the higher the rate will be. The rate will never be this low in the future. So I urge you to at least check out the website for more.

So I strongly suggest that you lock in your membership now and keep your subscription active, as you will not be offered this low rate again in the future. Your fee will never increase, for as long as your subscription remains active. You, or I, can cancel at anytime and for any reason.

To learn more about this program or to join, visit the website.

advice, blogging, branding, business, coaching, consulting, copywriting, email, help, internet, marketing, multimedia, question, student, success, web 2.0

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