The Step-By-Step System for More Sales, To More Customers, More Often

When asked who impresses me most in selling and persuasion…

I don’t mention a great statesman or politician or business leader or even a top sale closer…

No, for me, the greatest salespeople are the writers of persuasive sales copy!

One such person is Ray Edwards.

Lets face it, sales often gets a bad name – but not with Ray Edwards.

He is a master at taking the sleaze out of sales.

Earlier this month I was fortunate to have some time with Ray and interview him for our new series of Podcasts.

Two things in particular stood out for me…

1. The P.A.S.T.O.R Formula (a very easy to understand way to write persuasive sales copy)
2. Plus Ray has some very wise words about SEO Copywriting – top advice for all serious bloggers (19.55 min)

=> Listen to this Podcast several times. It really is that GOOD!

Free Ebook Reveals… The $2 BILLION Sales Letter You’ve Never Heard Of…
PLUS
A Free Copywriting Course

Ray Edwards – 5 Recommended Books on Writing and Copywriting

=> How to Write Copy that Sells By Ray Edwards (Get it!)

=> The Obstacle is the Way by Ryan Holiday. (fantastic book)

=> Deep Work by Cal Newport. (highly recommended)

=> Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott,

=> On Writing by Stephen King

Ray Edwards Podcast Transcript…

Barry Dunlop: First things first, Ray, and the most importantly, how did you get started as a copywriter?

Ray Edwards: It’s an interesting question to me, because I didn’t know that I was getting started.I was about eight or nine years old. I used to go to my grandparents’ house on the weekends, and they had this newspaper that they got every week.

It had the most fascinating articles in it, the most fantastic articles about how you could use certain pressure points on your body to relieve pain, and how you could absorb books in just a few minutes that other people spent weeks reading.

Only later did I discover, Barry, that these were not articles. These were long-form, direct-response copy advertisements, and they were written by Eugene Schwartz, the great copywriter from the ’50s and ’60s.

The newspaper was the “Weekly World News.” It was a tabloid, kind of fantastical, the newspaper that had stories about UFOs, the boy who eats his own head, and stuff like that.

Barry: [laughs] We had them in Ireland as well, by the way.

Ray: People love that kind of stuff. That’s why it’s at the checkout stand in the US at the grocery stores, because people buy them on impulse.Later, I got into the radio broadcasting business, and I began studying copywriting to help small business owners that we were working with — they were our clients — to help them bring dollars in the door.

Those kind of business people did not care about building their image or building a brand. What they cared about was getting the cash registers to ring so they could pay the bills every month. That was really the beginning of it for me.

Barry: Got you. I like it, actually, because if I look at my own life, quite often people ask me how I did this. I often answer, “Well, it was really an accident.”I’m sure that it isn’t really an accident, but you didn’t know you were becoming a copywriter then – but you where.

Possibly maybe the question I should have started off with then is, “How do you define copywriting? What is copywriting, and why is it so important to us entrepreneurs and small business people?”

Ray: That’s such a good question, because usually with half the people I talk to, I have to clear up the confusion about the word copywriting. Most people, many people, think that it refers to that little symbol after the title of a book, a piece of music, or a work of art that protects your intellectual property.

That’s not the kind of copywrite that we’re talking about. We’re talking about writing the words that sell products or services or ideas. That is writing copy.

It is really salesmanship or persuasion in print.

Barry: : I like that. “Salemanship or persuasion in print.”I always prided myself in being very good at face-to-face selling, and over the years, I always said to people who might congratulate me on my sales ability, that “The salespeople I really admire are the salespeople who can move you from far, far away by something they’ve written.”

Those are always the most impressive sales people to me.

In your book, “How to Write Copy that Sells,” which is a great book, you refer to the magic building blocks of sales copy. Would you mind giving a little bit of information on what are those blocks and how we use them?

Ray: Sure, I’d be happy to walk through the basics of that.What I discovered pretty early on is that there is an underlying formula to how to construct a persuasive sales message. The building blocks of a sales letter, the perfect sales letter…I’ll give you the basic outline of the sales letter. It starts…

Actually, with your permission, I’d like to back up. I think there’s a better place for us to go with this.

The building blocks are a little lengthy to describe, but there’s something I can give your listeners that I think they could start using five minutes from now to be more persuasive, not just in their sales copy, but in their emails and their conversations with people. Do you think that would useful?

Barry: That would be spot on. We’d absolutely love it. That’s what we like at IncomeSup, real actionable stuff we can take away today.

Ray: Good, because this formula that I’m about to give you, this framework, is really the foundation of the building blocks. If people want more information about the building blocks, they can refer to my book, which I think they can get on Amazon for eight bucks or something like that. Obviously, I’m going to get rich if I sell enough of those books.

[laughter]

Ray: Here’s the foundation. I call it the PASTOR framework. People look at me sometimes with the raised eyebrow when I say, “I’m going to give you the sales copy.” They’re like, “Do you want me to be a preacher? “My answer is, “No, this is about you thinking of yourself in the original meaning, context, of that word, which was to shepherd. The shepherd is in charge of caring for the flock, protecting them, feeding them, making sure they have water, keeping the predators away.”

I tell people, “If you will take that approach, if you will think of yourself as a shepherd to your customers, then you will never come across as pushy or salesy, because you’ll always be working in their best interests, to protect them.”

That’s the attitude that the word pastor is designed to invoke. The letters of the word pastor, P-A-S-T-O-R, actually stand for the outline of any persuasive messaging.

It starts like this.

The P stands for the person, the problem, and the pain.

You need to identify the person you’re writing to, the problem that your product or service is intended to solve, and you need to be able to express very clearly the pain that your person is experiencing, and you need to be able to express it in their terms, not in your terms.

What I mean by that — just a quick example — someone who is struggling to get into physical condition, into physical shape. Maybe they’re overweight, and they want to lose some pounds.

You might see their problem in the pain that they’re experiencing in terms of their cardiovascular health, the risk of diabetes, and so forth. You may see those as the big reasons they need to make this change.

They, on the other hand, don’t perceive that pain. That’s not what’s most real to them most of the time. What’s most real to them is the way they look, the way they feel about the way they look.

You need to talk about the pain the way it’s meaningful to your person. It’s a case of that old adage, that is, we sell people what they want, but we have to make sure we give them what they need.

Barry: Got you. That’s great.

Ray: The A of pastor stands for amplify, and this is where you stress the consequences of what will happen if they don’t solve the problem.

Barry, we are great creatures of denial. We are able to deny so many things.

I was a smoker for quite some time. I smoked a lot of cigarettes, about two packs a day, I was able to deny that that was really bad for me. That was creating a terrible risk for my heart. It was creating a terrible risk of cancer.

As I saw more and more people fall victim to those problems, I realized, “I need to stop this,” because the consequences of not stopping that behavior became more real to me.

That’s part of our job in the sales copy , to amplify the cost of not solving the problem.

The S in pastor stands for story and solution.

This is where you tell the story of someone who has solved that same problem using your solution, or even a solution like yours.

The T stands for transformation and testimony.

This is where you articulate the results that your product or service will bring, and you provide real, live testimonials to strengthen your case.

It’s really important to understand here that you need to talk about the transformation and not about the methodology.

The example I often like to give is if people buy the P90x weight loss and exercise fitness program, they are not buying the box of DVDs, the wall chart, and chin-up bar. That’s not what they’re buying.

What they’re buying is the six-pack abs, the muscular physique, the great-looking body that they really feel like they should have, the great-looking body that most people feel like they have, until they look in the mirror, and then they realize, “Oh, I look like that?”

They’re looking for that transformation. That’s also what you need to talk about in the offer, which is the next part of the framework.

The O is the offer.

This is where you describe exactly what you’re offering for sale. 80 percent of your offer talk, where you say, “Here’s exactly what you get,” 80 percent of what you say there is also about the transformation. This is where I see people mess this up a lot of time.

They talk about the methodology, the DVDs, the 800 pages of coursework, or the three-day seminar. That stuff, the deliverables, the vehicle that gets people to the transformation, should only be about 20 percent of your offer talk.

Finally, the R stands for response, and that just means you ask for one.

You ask for the sale.

Using those letters of the word pastor to build out the framework of your persuasive message works with any kind of messaging that you’re doing, including an interview like the one we’re doing right now.

Barry: I was almost going to say at the beginning, “Do you have a formula?” and here you give us one. I didn’t even ask you did you have a formula, and you’ve come right out with it. So many people try to make out that somehow you have to be some sort of special clever, if you like, or something like this. When you lay it out like this, it gives people like myself who, obviously, I’m fairly confident as a salesperson, but was never very confident as a copywriter. I think, “OK, well, I can follow a formula like that. That’s really quite straightforward.”

I know our audience would love that, Ray, and it’s really good.

If I may, I keep coming back to your book, How to Write Copy that Sells, but there’s something in particular that got my attention, which I think I know where it goes with this, but I wanted to get your clarification on it.

You mentioned in the book the secrets of writing blockbuster copy by watching movies. Can you elaborate? Can you go a little further into that? How in the world can I write really great copy by watching movies?

Ray: This is like the best news ever, right? You’re like this too good to be true.[laughter]

Barry: Something like that.

Ray: “I can watch “The Avengers,” and I can learn how to write copy?”

Barry: Yes.

Ray: There’s a Native American proverb that says,

“Those who tell the stories rule the world.”

I’ve written some blockbuster promotions. Some of my sales letters have brought in multimillion-dollar paydays for my clients and for me. Something that I recognized early on is that as I compared the successful pieces of copy that I had created, I began to identify the single biggest difference between copy that rocks, that really gets the job done and sells stuff like nobody’s business, is stories.

The way I came across this idea — which I’m not the first person to come across this, but I think my particular view of it is a little bit different.

I figured it out watching moves, and more specifically, watching movie trailers. You know, when you go to the theater, and they show the coming attraction previews, they have these super compelling preview reels that often more compelling than the actual movie itself?

Barry: I know I’ve gone to the movie and been disappointed. [laughs]

Ray: Yes, you walk out of the movie and say to yourself, “They put all the best stuff in the trailer.”

Barry: Sometimes. Not always, but sometimes.

Ray: Yes. I think that the secret of great movie trailers, and of great sales copy is something that I call the dominant story idea, or I call it the DSI for short. The formula — I’m into breaking things down into processes and formulae, and the formula that I see happening with the best, most successful movie trailers is they do three things without fail. There are other elements they may bring into it, but they do these three things without fail.

Number one, they give you the dominant story idea.

Number two a sample of the feelings you will get from the movie itself.

Number three, they provide proof that the movie delivers . I’ve selected a couple. In the book, I give a couple of examples. They’re older examples, and I do that because most people will recognize these films. If they don’t immediately recognize them, they were made so long ago that nobody will get mad at me for giving away the spoilers.

The first example I love to share is the movie “21,” which starred Kevin Spacey. The dominant story idea of this movie was a college math whiz professor uses his skills to beat the Vegas casinos, gets seduced by the dark side, and gets in trouble with some very, very bad guys.

The sample feelings are we see Ben Campbell and his innocent face. We see him start winning. We see him getting seduced by money, power, and very hot women, and then we see him getting into some really scary situations.

We’re already kind of tense, and thinking, “I want this guy to win, I don’t want bad things to happen to him.” The proof that the movie works is really social proof, because we see Kevin Spacey, Kate Bosworth, and Laurence Fishburne.

These are proven actors that we love, and some very compelling scenes. They’re tightly edited, only the best parts are shown, and in the background, we’re anchored to the sound of The Doors playing “Break on Through to the Other Side.”

We get all these feelings delivered to us, proof that the movie works, and we instantly get the dominant story idea. We could walk out of the theater and say, “Well, I’ll tell you what that movie is about. It’s about this guy who learned how to beat the casinos, and then they start chasing him down.

“He’s in trouble with the mob.” It’s very easy to describe the dominant story idea. When we’re writing our copy, we need to first of all, showcase our dominant story idea, “What’s the big idea of our copy?”

Number two, give sample feelings. If we look at movie trailer examples, in your copy, you need to show some scenes that will help the reader feel the feelings they want to get from your product .

To go back to the P90x DVD product, if you watch their ads on television, their infomercials, what you see is transformation after transformation after transformation. You see people who look maybe like you do now, and then you see those people transformed into what you want to look like in the near future.

That’s not an accident. If you look at those commercials very carefully, Barry, you will see that the Beach Body people have selected an assortment of individuals who pretty much look like anybody.

Anybody in the audience who’s watching this is going to find somebody that looks sort of like them. That’s not an accident. Then proof the product works are the before and after shots.

That’s an example of how to use this framework that movie producers use to pull people in and get their attention, and get them interested in the story.

Barry: Wonderful. This is absolute gold dust, this is. Assuming that I’m a rookie copywriter, or I’m a business owner, which is most of our audience, who might be writing a sales letter or a sales copy for the first time in their life, in your experience, what’s the biggest mistake people make when they first start writing copy?

Ray: There’s absolutely one biggest mistake that wrecks and destroys most copy, and that is writing the copy for the benefit of the marketer instead of writing it for the benefit of the customer. We have such a hard time getting out of our own heads, and into the heads of the people we’re selling to. This is almost impossible to do without interacting with customers in some way.

Maybe it’s reading emails from customers. Maybe it’s reading your customer support desk tickets. The best way is to do it through talking with actual customers and listening to their language, the way they describe their problems, their situation, their life, and writing from their perspective.

One way to gauge this is to go through your copy and see how much of the time you spend focused on you, your awesomeness, your good product, your good reputation, your good track record.

These are all things that are important for people to know, but really, 80 percent of the copy should be about the problem that your customer has, how you’re going to help them solve it, and the pain that they experience.

Jay Abraham is the one who made the observation that if you can describe your customer’s problem in so much detail that you can describe it better than they can, they automatically assume you know how to fix the problem.

Barry: That’s wonderful. I get that, that’s clever.

Something that’s always fascinated me, Ray, about copy, and you will know the stats a whole lot better than me, is the difference between writing copy and also the headline.

In your experience, which comes first, the headline or the copy, or is there no right or wrong way for doing it?

Ray: Well, it’s like any art form, and copy is part science and part art. Sometimes the headline comes to me first, but usually that’s not how it works. I’d say 90 percent of the time I write the copy first, and the headline emerges. My experience is that the more time you spend in research, preparation, and writing drafts, the more discovery you do about the right language to use to express your main idea.

You need to have a big idea.

A corollary to not writing from the perspective of the consumer is not having a big idea that you can quickly sum up for people.

P90x, I don’t know that they would approve of how I’m going to describe their big idea, but I think their big idea is, “Spend 90 days working out so hard you will puke in a bucket, and you’ll look great.”

[laughter]

Ray: The unique thing about them is they were the pioneers of going the opposite direction of the whole market, which was to say, “This device, this exercise machine, this diet program is easy. It makes you burn pounds while you sleep.” The P90x people made their mark by saying, “This is really hard, but it’s worth it.”To get back to your question about which comes first, the headline or the copy, I think most of the time it’s writing the copy first, and the headline emerges, but as I said, sometimes it works the other way around.

I think every person has to find their own process, but that’s my process.

Barry: That’s very interesting, because a lot of our audience is bloggers. Generally speaking — this is not always the case — but bloggers quite often are into SEO, so quite often, they’ll write a title first, because they’ll have to include whatever term they’re going after for search engine optimization. They work backwards, which I know…It’s interesting, that your way seems much more genuine and sincere. It seems the right way. That’s why the question came up, because I wondered if there was a right or wrong.

What you’re really saying is there is no right or wrong, but you personally start with the copy, and then you go to the headline.

Ray: Yes.

Barry: Talking of the headline…Go on. Sorry, Ray.

Ray: I’m going to jump in for just a moment, because you just brought up something that I’m a little bothered by, that is this idea of SEO copywriting. I understand how important it is, but I believe that you have to focus on good writing first and SEO second. If you start by focusing on SEO, and you build your writing based on that, I think you end up with a lesser quality piece of writing.

It may not be true in every case, so I don’t want anybody to get angry with me, but I think if you start from figuring out, “What’s the message that I’m trying to deliver? What’s the change that I want to make with people?”

I have a concept I call your unique core thesis. I think for every piece of writing that you’re creating you need a unique core thesis. One way of describing it would be it’s the one idea that you want people to walk away from your presentation with. If they don’t buy anything, if they don’t remember anything else you said, this is the one thing you want them to take away.

If you can figure out what that thing is, it will shape the rest of your writing. After you do that, you can figure out the SEO part based on what you wrote. You’ll attract the people you actually are writing it for, which may be a different group than you started out thinking about.

Barry: That is brilliant, Ray. That is exactly the kind of information we need. You’ve put it better than I could have ever imagined putting it, so thank you for that. It really is good.You might well be able to get a theme here coming up, because I’ve got a bit of a fascination with headlines. [laughs] Maybe I should see a doctor about it.

Do you want to give us some ideas? Do you have any particular headlines that work really well for you, and maybe can you explain why they work so well? Why did you think they worked so well?

Ray: I said earlier this is part art and part science. The science part is learning from things that have worked in the past and being able to use those forms to guide your creation process, especially early in the game when you’re just getting started, either when you’re just getting started with copywriting in general, or maybe when you’re just starting on a project.You need to have a little bit of a kickstart. The headline is a really important piece of copy, because its job is to get people to stop and then read what comes next. That’s the job of the headline.

John Caples, who’s a legendary copywriter said:

“If you can come up with a good headline and lead” — the lead is the first part of the ad — “you’re almost sure to have a good ad. But even the greatest copywriter cannot save an ad without a good headline.”

I think the qualities that you are looking for in a good headline, there are five of them.

Number one, it grabs attention. It needs to make people stop and think. Here’s a couple of classic headlines that worked really well on this score, on the grabbing attention idea.

“Can you really be younger next year?” That’s a great headline for the people that it would appeal to. If you’re a 20-year-old, you’re probably not going to be interested in that, but if you’re of a certain age you might be interested in that headline.

“Which of these five mistakes do you make in English?” That’s another famous headline that was a real attention-getter and made a lot of money for the company that hired John Caples to write it.

The second quality of a headline that works is it screens and qualifies your readers. The third quality is it draws readers into the body copy. The fourth is it communicates the big idea, which we were just talking about a little bit earlier. The fifth is it establishes credibility.

You can’t always get a headline to meet all five of those criteria, but I usually try. I shoot for at least three.

You asked me, though, for some examples of headlines that work really well. I’m going to give you a couple that people can start with, and they can use them today.

The first one is the how-to headline. The key to making this particular headline work is you need to tie it to a benefit your reader cares about. You’ve seen these so often you may dismiss them, but they really work extremely well.

“How to write a blog post every day.”

That’s one of the best testing headlines that I’ve personally used myself.

“How to land more clients as a freelancer.”

You can see that those are directly tied to benefits that readers are going to care about. That’s the key to making that headline work.

I’ll give you three.

The second form of headline I would give you that would work really well is what I call the transactional headline. This is all about making a promise of a trade.

You say something like,

“Give me 30 minutes, and I’ll give you more blog traffic.”

You’re asking them for something, but you’re giving them something that is much more valuable.

“Try these five tactics for a week and be twice as productive.”

That’s a transactional headline.

Barry: Interestingly, when you’re coming with those headlines — again, maybe it’s because I’m focused on blogging — those are great, also, for SEO, actually. Those are terms that people might use or want to use when searching for the information that you’re providing. It’s actually brilliant. I have, obviously, got a big fascination with headlines. We’re going to change the subjects, just for a little bit, because I do know that you personally do a lot of, have in the past, done a lot of writing for print.

Would you say there’s a big difference between writing for a printed material rather than the Web, or is there no difference between the two? What would you say the difference was?

Ray: There is some difference, but I think there’s less than most people believe. The main difference is you can click on things on the web and go somewhere else and explore further.If you’ve been using a tablet or a touch device long enough, you’ll find yourself in a restaurant trying to tap things on the menu and realize, “Oh, that doesn’t work on a paper menu.”

That’s the biggest difference, is the clickability, and the fact that you can incorporate videos and things like that into your copy.

The actual writing of the text is not all that different, especially when you consider that I believe one of the main principles we need to remember is we need to think about, “What’s the context in which people are coming to our copy?”

If people are coming to the copy that represents your product, your company, or your service, and they’re coming to it online after having read an ad, say on Facebook, that’s much different than people coming to your copy because a friend of theirs sent them an email and said, “Hey, you’ve got to go check this site out.”

They have a whole different attitude , or they have a whole different set of desires, and so, you have to think about, “How are most people coming to my copy online?” and having to write in a way that responds to that context.

If you think about it, the same is true of something in print. If you’re sending a letter in the mail, you know certain things about what’s going to happen. They’re going to get the letter out of the mailbox, out of the post. They’re going to open it, or maybe they’re going to throw it away.

What makes them throw it away? You need to think about what the envelope looks like. It comes down — again, I know I sound like a broken record, if anybody remembers what those are, but…

Barry: I do. [laughs]

Ray: Thank you. Bless you, my friend. It comes back to understanding the life, the worldview, the context of the people you’re writing to, and delivering content to them in a way that’s relevant to them and their situation.

Barry: Got you. We’re going to go slightly off at a tangent now, just because the question’s come into my head. There’s a question which I ask a lot of entrepreneurs when I meet them, so I don’t see why I can’t ask it of a copywriter, as well. If it doesn’t stack up and doesn’t make sense, obviously, you’ll tell me so.

But if you could go get in a time machine, and you could go back in time 5 years, 10 years, 20 years — it doesn’t matter how far you go back, is there anything you personally…This is a very personal question.

Is there anything, not necessarily that you would do personally differently, but anything that you think, “We should have done this,” or maybe, “This would have been something to have done then.” Is there anything that you would like to add there?

Ray: In the context of my business, I would have started much earlier building an email list that I sent email to regularly. A lot of people will say, “The money’s in the list.” No, it’s not.

The money is in the relationship you have to the list. You can have an email subscriber base of 100,000 subscribers, but if none of them open your emails, guess how much that list is worth?

Barry: Nothing.

Ray: Exactly. Then again, you could have a list of 1,000 subscribers, and if all of them are rabidly waiting and paying attention for your next email, that is an extraordinarily valuable asset, so I wish, a lot earlier.

Barry: You seem to have done very well with the catching up, put it that way, Ray. I’ve been aware of you for quite some time. One thing I’ve been primarily aware of about is your very good reputation, because you know that we’re in a world today where bad reputations get around really fast. Your integrity and your honorability is something that most…

They’ll say, “Ray, a good guy. A good guy.” I congratulate you on that, because that’s the kind of thing that I’d like to think most people would say about me. Whether they do or not, I don’t know. I think I would like to acknowledge that, Ray, because I think it’s very important.

Also, and this is where we’re going to come back to something you and I are involved in in a moment, is product launches. People have different opinions about it.

Actually, can I just make a recommendation to everybody here? I think most of the IncomeDiary people will have heard of you now.

If you’ve not heard of Ray, I would seriously suggest you get on his list. Go to his blog. It doesn’t even matter if you get a link from IncomeDiary telling you about Ray, just make sure you’re getting email from Ray Edwards, because it’s an education. It really is.

Today I had an email from you. I want to pick this one up in particular, Ray, because I thought it was great. It relates to a product launch. It’s a launch for your product, The Copywriting Academy Online Coaching Program. Your subject line for it was, “My Clever Scam.”

It related to me, because quite often, doing what I do in business and did all my life, you quite often find somebody who tries to see the worst in you, and tries to assume that you’re a nasty person. Maybe you’re just there to take money off people, and maybe not even deliver any value.

I know that’s not the case for you, and hopefully people know that’s not the case with me. I loved your email, and how you went about it.

How do you handle, may I ask ? I’m sure you don’t get a lot of it, but you get the odd negative person. Does it ever get to you? Does it get you down? How do you handle it? Do you let it go in one ear, out the other?

Ray: Obviously, I would be lying if I said it didn’t get to me. It bothers me, because none of us likes to hear that people don’t like us for whatever reason. In this case, I think it was for no real good reason at all.My wife sometimes will say to me, “Honey, don’t burn down their newspaper stand.” What she’s referring to is there was a television show in America called “Frasier.” I don’t know if you’ve ever seen it.

Barry: Oh, indeed, yes.

Ray: There’s an episode in Frasier where — for those who don’t know, in the series he had a radio show. They were doing a focus group where they brought in all these listeners to talk about what they liked about the Frasier show, and what they didn’t.Everybody loved his show except this one guy, who just didn’t like it, and Frasier became obsessed with making that guy like him.

He started following him around and stalking him, and in the end of this comedic sketch, Frasier ends up accidentally setting fire to the guy’s newspaper stand. That’s what my wife is referring. She’s basically saying, “Let go.”

Barry: I’ll use that next time, because that’s a good explanation, actually. I’ve seen this a lot in life. You could have a hundred really happy customers, one customer who really doesn’t have anything to be unhappy about, but just is a miserable person, if you like, and you worry about them. Terrific. Thank you, Ray. That’s a great answer.

Coming back to the product launches, I think most people now are familiar with what I would call a product launch formula, if you like, of how they work. In your opinion, do these still work, or if they don’t, what needs to be done to them these days to adapt them to work in 2017? What’s your view currently?

Ray: They still work. They work better than ever, in fact, when you do them correctly. I think the problem that happens is people have seen product launches from the outside, and they think they know how to do one, and what’s involved.What they’re missing is the fact they’re looking at the tip of the iceberg, and underneath the water, there’s much more substance than there is above the water line. They don’t really see the internal workings.

Often, they’re watching a person do a product launch who copied what they’re doing from a person who copied what they were doing from another person, who copied it from another person.

None of them actually went to the source, who is Jeff Walker, who created a thing called Product Launch Formula. He’s the guy who really has the latest data, because he’s at the center of this particular form of marketing.

The short answer is, I think you need to do product launches with intelligence, with grace, and for those who don’t know, it’s simply a matter of releasing a sequence of free, useful material that people can use and benefit from, whether they ever buy anything from you or not.

For me this is modern marketing.

You need to make your marketing valuable in and of itself, whether people buy from you or not.

I have a philosophy that if people don’t get something from my marketing that they can use, that benefits them, if they walk away from it saying, “Well, that was a waste of time,” then I haven’t done my job, because I believe that marketing is something we do for people, not something we do to them.

Barry: I love that. I think that’s the point, which I emphasize to people. In fact, I’ve said it to many people, because occasionally people will say to me — I actually would get emails, because people often just reply to the list email when we send it out, and say, “What’s he selling, and how much does it cost?” I would say, “Obviously, eventually Mr. X or whoever is going to probably try to sell you something, and that’s wonderful. However, that’s not what you need to worry about right now. Right now, he’s giving you a 30 minute video. There is a price to the 30 minute video.

“It’s 30 minutes of your time to watch it. It isn’t entirely free if you look at it that way. From the point of view that you’re going to have 30 minutes, and if you get some value out of it, it’ll be worth your 30 minutes investment.”

That’s what I like about product launches. In fact, I actually tell everybody to get on as many lists as possible, certainly of all the high quality guys, because there’s so much wonderful information that they’ll give away at no cost to you, except investing your time to watch it, or listen to it.

That’s something that I have really got from you, Ray. Sometimes, I look at what — and don’t take this the wrong way — at what you’re giving away, and I think, “Is the man really thinking right? [laughs] It’s almost too much.”

Like earlier on, you’ve given us this PASTOR formula, which is an amazing formula. If nobody does anything but just implement that PASTOR formula, they’re going to make money from it. They’re going to have value from it. All they’ve done is listen to two guys talking on a Skype call across the world, and they’ve got phenomenal value out of it.

I’m really grateful for you making the time to do this for the IncomeDiary audience, Ray. It’s really kind of you.

Ray: It’s my pleasure. If I may take just a moment, I want to button up this topic a little bit, because I think it’s important to understand that everything that happens to you in your business is an opportunity, if you’ll take the time to see it that way. The email that you referred to, the opportunity arose with me being really, honestly, Barry, I was upset with this person who made these comments about me online. Then I took a moment to calm down, and think about my spiritual practices, and thinking, “Well, this is not really the right way to respond to this. What’s the opportunity in this?”

I didn’t name this person by name, and I didn’t point out anything that would make them feel belittled. They’re not reading my email, because I made sure they were unsubscribed from my list.

I titled it My Clever Scam, and then I said in the email, “Every time we open the doors for the Copy Writing Academy, this happens. It’s just like it’s a full moon. The crazies come out.”

Then I said, “We had thousands of people go through my all-new free training. 99.9 percent of the people loved it, but there’s always a few jokers who just don’t get it, or maybe they do, they just like stirring things up, like the guy who posted, “Very clever scam, teasing before selling us something.”

Then he wrote in all caps, “SCAMMER.” I wrote — and I did get a little sarcastic here — I said, “How doth cluelessness show itself? Let me count the ways.

“Number one, if you think selling something is evil, then why are you watching a video about how to sell stuff?

Number two, did you not read the thousands of messages from other people who got great value from the series?

“Number three, well, you figured out my clever scam, which is to give away free stuff that’s so good, people want to buy my paid training.”

My message was, to my subscribers, if you become successful at all, you’re going to have these people show up.

These trolls are going to show up. I made the observation, “It doesn’t matter how good you are. I bet even Mr. Rogers had trolls. Take it as a sign that you’re on the track.”

Barry: That’s very good. I always say that to people as well. If you don’t occasionally sort of — I hate to use the word — “upset” somebody, or somebody says something negative to you, you’re really not trying hard enough. You’ve nailed it there. I, obviously, like everybody, see a lot of email, but I printed this one off.

Actually, I realized I only printed off the first page of it. I’m pretty sure you had a very clever PS on it. Did you have a clever PS, something about commies, or something like that in it?

Ray: I said, “I suppose I should be flattered to have a troll or two. This will happen to you. Want to see the free training that has Tommy Troll so upset? Go grab it soon. We’ll be taking it down in a few days.”

The PS said, “Yes, I might eventually sell you something, so if you hate capitalism, bunnies, and babies, you won’t be interested in this.” I made “be interested in this” into a link.

Barry: Indeed. That was actually, to me, the best part of the email.

As I said earlier, people, get on Ray’s list. If you don’t…Listen, you can hear the guy’s as genuine as he ever could be.

Look, the man’s saying, “Look, you don’t even have to buy.” He’s going to try reasonably hard to sell you something, but he hasn’t yet worked out a way to get the credit card out of your pocket and make it work.

Ray: If I could work that out, I wouldn’t do it, because that’s not a good thing to do.

Barry: Indeed, that’s not a good thing to do.

Many, many years ago, I remember a story I was told by somebody when I was starting out. Believe it or not, my entrepreneurial career started out as an Amway distributor. I remember my upline gave me this advice.

I had somebody, a family member, that was really laughing at me, and saying I was being silly to do this AMWAY thing”

My up-line explained, “These are the people you’re going to succeed in spite of.”

I found it a way to great way to turn it around. It was in spite of that person writing that really nasty email, or that person saying that nasty comment on Facebook. “You’re going to succeed anyway.”

They’re always going to live the life that they’re going to live, but the life they’re living isn’t going to impact on your life. Whatever they say, you’ve always got the opportunity to turn it around, and make it into something positive.

Ray: I love that. There’s a book I would recommend that talks about this, not just about emails or online trolls, but it’s about any obstacle that you run into in your life. The book is called “The Obstacle is the Way.” It’s by Ryan Holiday. It’s a fantastic book.

Barry: We will put a link to that in the show notes. That’s really, really good. In fact, actually, you raced ahead again there, Ray. I was going to ask you, apart from your own fantastic books, and I know you’ve got a number, is there a particular business book that you would say right now, “This is a book I’ve read recently. I really like it,” or even one maybe 20 years ago. Would you want to recommend a book?

Ray: I’m going to give you the one that is having the most impact on my life and my business right now. I’ve read this book three times, and I’m getting ready to do a fourth read through. It’s called “Deep Work,” and it’s by Cal Newport. The subtitle is “Rules For Focused Success in a Distracted World.”

Barry: Wow. Is it a big book, a small book? Is it a scientific book, or is it more of a…?

Ray: It’s not a boring academic book, but it is not small. It’s about 250 pages or so.

Barry: I think most of us can cope with that, just about.

Ray: In the notes to his book, he says, “One of the most valuable skills in our economy is becoming increasingly rare. If you master this skill, you’ll achieve extraordinary results. Deep work is the ability to focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task.“Now, first of all, that’s great copy. Secondly, I think this is an important book for us, just as people, because the world is full of so many distractions these days, I think it would be easy for most of us to miss our real calling in life.

Your calling, it may be to be an Amway distributor. Whatever it is, if you get distracted by too many video games, too much Candy Crush, too much Facebook, whatever the case may be, you may miss what you’re really put here to do.

This book is really powerful. It’s had a big impact on my business. Many of my colleagues and friends whose names most people would know who are listening to this, they’re all loving this book. It’s something we’re all sharing with one another. I would really recommend this book.

Barry: Thank you. I’ll be on Amazon as soon as this call’s over and ordering it. I look forward to reading it. I really appreciate the recommendation. Ray, just a summary, actually, I was going to ask you. You’ve given us so much, I’m thinking, “How do I describe this particular interview? [laughs]

Some closing thoughts, if you like. Thinking again, our audience, a lot of bloggers, a lot of small business people, a lot of people who, or want to be, I would actually say they’re wannabe copy writers. What’s your pieces of advice you would possibly give us, if you like, as your parting thoughts?

Ray: I’ll give you a couple of things. For those who want to write, or want to be copy writers, Stephen King in his book, “On Writing,” which is another book I highly recommend — even though it’s about writing fiction, it’s still a wonderful instructional guide for how to write anything really successfully. He says, ” to write good stuff, you have to write a lot of bad stuff,” and that the one thing writers who become good have in common is they write a lot, so I would encourage you to write a lot.

The second piece of advice I would give you comes from Anne Lamott, who wrote a book called “Bird by Bird,” another strong recommendation for reading. This is kind of colorful language, so I have to clean this up a little bit. She says,

“Give yourself permission to write crappy first drafts.”

When you do that, when you tell yourself, “OK, this is my first draft, and it’s going to be horrible, and I’m OK with that.” It relieves so much pressure that you can pour out the creativity that’s inside of you, knowing, “I’m going to edit this later. I’m not going to edit it right now.”

Then the final thought that I would offer is something that is a powerful, formative belief that I picked up from a legend in the field of motivational speaking. He’s really the guy who invented, I believe, motivational speaking, Earl Nightingale.

Earl Nightingale said something that I heard him say when I was probably 19 years old, and it’s had a huge influence on the rest of my life. He said, “The best definition of success I have ever encountered is this.

Success is the progressive realization of a worthy ideal.”

If you think about that sentence, it means that you can become successful today if you made a little progress toward a worthy ideal today.

=> Check out Rays website

The post Ray Edwards Copywriter – How to Write Copy That Sells appeared first on How To Make Money Online.

I started my entrepreneurial career in the Summer of 1982, selling door to door.

Some would call it ‘hard selling’.

But, the master sales closers I met, made it look easy.

Prospects fell in love with them.

They never had to close anyone hard.

Truth be known, I wanted to be like them.

I learned a lot from these sales mentors.

Strategies and techniques that have made me a lot of money.

You see, being a commission only sales person is not that different from being an Internet Marketer.

They both get paid by results!

To succeed in sales…

You have to convince your prospect you care…

Selling is not a battle with a winner and a loser, it is an encounter with either two winners or two losers.

This is an essential clarification.

One that is often missed by people who do not understand the true ethos of selling and persuasion.

The most successful salespeople really care about their customers and this comes across in everything they say and do.

Selling is not about tricking anyone, it is about helping people own products that make their life better.

Persuasion is not manipulation…

Persuasion is not manipulation – manipulation is coercion through force to get someone to do something that is not in their best interest.

Persuasion on the other hand is the art of getting people to make decisions that are in their best interest.

This clarification is essential because without it you will become nothing more than a Conman or woman!

Finally, in this introduction, I should also tell you about the salespeople I admire most…

They are called COPYWRITERS or as Ray Edwards calls them: Cash Flow Engineers!

To succeed in face to face selling is great but my ultimate admiration goes to those Master Sales Closers who master the art of selling from a web page, email or in PRINT!

15 Things The Best Sales Closers Taught Me About Selling Online

#1 Prospects rarely buy the first time you ask.

One of my early sales mentors explained that all the best relationships start with a No. (His wife had refused to marry him a number of times before eventually saying yes)

And so it is with selling, you will hear No more often than Yes.

How does this apply to making money online?

Consider an email sequence for a typical product launch…

a) a launch email… telling you about the product. Explaining how it solves a particular problem or pain. Normally, there will be scarcity, limited numbers of memberships etc available. This will be your first opportunity to buy.

b) a followup email telling you of a success story related to using the product and a reminder of everything that is included. Another opportunity to buy.

c) an FAQ type email, listing questions people are asking followed by answers. Another opportunity to buy.

That’s only three emails, most product launches consist of 5 – 6 emails.

And most of the sales come in the last few hours of a promo!

It is human nature to procrastinate.

It was that way for me as a rookie salesman back in 1982 and it is still the same today.

In a recent affiliate promotion, I was party to, 12.5 % of the sales came with the first email, a further 25% on the second email and a whopping 62.5% of sales on the 3rd email.

Imagine how things would be if the affiliate had only sent one email? And imagine what may have happened if the affiliate had emailed 4 times or even 5.

I do not advocate pressure selling.

However, if you believe your subscriber or prospect will benefit from your product and it is in their best interest to own it, you should take the time to explain your offering in detail and why it is in their best interest to own.

In any case, if your subscriber does not like your offering or is put off my your emails, they can unsubscribe.

The best internet marketers actively encourage subscribers to unsubscribe if they are not a buyer.

If your products help people save money, make money, lose weight, live longer or enhance their life in any way, customers will thank you for helping them to buy!

The best sales closer believes they are doing a disservice if they do not close the sale and the prospect has to buy elsewhere.

The top sales closers are almost evangelical in their belief in their product.

#2 Top Sales Closers, use Questions to Sell

I remember it like it was yesterday, the first time a sales mentor told me selling is asking, not telling.

He was quite clear – telling was a waste of time!

Asking was where the money is!

As soon as I started applying it my sales skyrocketed!

Example Questions:

What concerns do you have? [What is the pain? Why are you looking for a new car today? a new home? ]

What’s the most important priority to you with this purchase? [The No 1 thing they want to fix/solve]

What prompted you to look into this?

If you are selling offline and responding to an Internet inquiry ask:

How did you find our website?

9 times out of 10 the answer will be via GOOGLE.

You then ask, what search term did you use to find us?

The answers you get, allows you to adapt your sales presentation to the prospect rather than reciting some ‘canned sales pitch’

Above all, asking questions removes pressure in face to face selling.

How does this apply to selling online?

Clever copywriters ask questions in sales copy. However, there is one important distinction…

Only ever ask questions that prompt your prospect to give the answer you want.

In sales copy, the answer should never be ‘I don’t know’.

Here is one particular style of questioning you will often come across…

It is the open-ended question: “Who else wants __________________?”

This type of question works because it implies lots of people are already getting X result.

e.g.

“Who else wants to learn these secret copy-writing strategies?”

“Who else wants to learn a second language in 30 days?”

Questions need not be exclusively about making sales.

Many Internet Marketers use surveys to research buyers motivations prior to creating a product.

Tools that allow you to do this include Survey Monkey – but there are others.

#3 Top Sales Closers Know Facts Tell but Stories Sell

The best salespeople LOVE to tell stories … and they are great at telling them.

People remember well-told stories and in a competitive sales situation, the best storyteller wins!

Telling stories sets you apart from your competition and make you stand out.

Better still combine that story with the benefits of your product and you will create a memorable and positive association with your product in the customers head.

All the most successful companies have a great story (or two)

A great place to start is with a Founders story…

How the founder came to create the product.

Richard Branson is a great example of this.

Stories create curiosity.

Stories allow your prospect to experience ownership of your product or service in the present moment.

Stories give you license to say things to your prospects that might otherwise be risky or too personal that in turn trigger powerful emotions that motivate your prospect to buy.

and above all…

Stories allow you to make a personal connection with your potential buyers.

How does this apply to Internet Marketing?

Every great Internet Marketer has their own unique Founders Story.

What is yours?

Why did you create your product? What is the pain are you are fixing?

Tell your story!

#4 The Best Sales Closers are Great Listeners

“We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.” – Epictetus

If you stop and really listen the prospect will tell you why they should own your product. Especially so if you guide them with the right kind of questions. Importantly, the less you talk and the more you listen, the less pressurized the sales environment will be.

#5 A confused mind says NO!

The top sales closer is clear and concise in their communication.

The best sales closer talks low and slow.

They are not the fast-talking salesperson that popular culture would suggest.

Talking calmly and slowly makes it easier for your prospect to listen and believe you.

If you talk too fast and in a high pitched voice, you will come across as pushy and not trustworthy.

The top sales closer takes the time to explain everything in detail and clearly before asking for the order.

They use questions to discover what the prospect already knows and tailor their presentation to the prospects particular need.

If they use an acronym the top sales closer makes sure to explain what it stands for.

Above all, the top sales closer knows their product back to front and enjoy talking about it.

They know their subject so well that they could explain it to a child.

If you can explain yourself effectively to someone who has no background on the subject, then you will certainly be able to make a persuasive case with someone who does have some background.

How does this apply to Internet Marketing?

When you send out an email or write a blog post it is important to not assume anything.

Every email or sales page should explain why your subscriber should read it.

What did you promise them in the subject line? Are you delivering?

Tell them something cool. (Stories are good)

Above all:

o Explain the value of your offer
o Remind the reader what they’ll get out of taking action (remove the pain)
o Use bullet points to highlight the important parts of your offer.
o Make your content easy to scan

#6 The best sales closers know their stats!

The best sales closers know their stats!

At least weekly and often daily they will be comparing their closing rates and commissions earned.

As a 21-year-old Rookie, my first sales manager introduced me to CAPS.

Contacts | Appointments | Presentations | Sales

I knew that for approx every 20 cold calls (doors knocked) I would get one person to agree to an appointment.

Of those potential ‘appointments’ a certain number would fall to the wayside – typically 3 appointments would result in one presentation to a qualified prospect.

My closing rate of appointments to sales averaged out at around 2 sales for every 3 presentations, but even if it was only one sale per 3 presentations and the average commission per sales was $600, that meant I earned $3.33 per cold call.

(180 cold contacts | 9 “appointments’ | 3 Presentations | 1 sale for $600 commission)

600 / 180 = $3.33 per cold call

Not bad for a penniless 21-year-old back in 1982

How does this apply to Internet Marketing?

One of the most frequently used is EPC – earnings per click, but there are many more. Check out this link.

Knowing your EPC is particularly important if you do any pay per click advertising.

Additionally, you should know how many visitors to a web page it takes to get a subscriber and then in turn you should know what that subscriber is worth to you.

Or another measurement one blogger I know uses is ‘earnings per visitor’.

In this case, he earns 7 cents per visitor. Now when you have 400000 visitors per month that starts to add up! ($28,000 per month)

Smart marketers are more likely to focus on the lifetime value of a customer – some will even be prepared to lose money on their first transaction, but that is not something I recommend to you.

#7 Cover the objection before the customer does

Selling is about handling objections – covering of the reasons not to buy before the customer even thinks about them.

Every sale has five basic obstacles: no need, no money, no hurry, no desire, no trust. – Zig Ziglar

Average salespeople think that Objections are a bad thing which indicates that their customer is not going to buy.

But the truth is that Objections are in fact Buying Signals.

I mean, if you had no interest, you would not even bother to object!

The top sales closer sees objections as buying signals.

#8 Always remain positive – especially with nasty customers

Someone years ago said the customer is always right. I don’t 100% agree but in the main, it has been my policy to give the customer the benefit of the doubt.

Of course, customers can be scammers but my experience is that it a small percentage and it is best to “allow” for these occasional scanners as a cost of doing business.

In any case…

Statistics suggest that when customers complain, business owners and managers ought to get excited about it. The complaining customer represents a huge opportunity for more business. – Zig Ziglar

You never really know the true character of a business or an individual until something goes wrong. It is how you handle these issues that define you.

Handled correctly, the angriest customer can turn into your greatest cheerleader.

Remain polite and considerate – it pays handsome dividends in the end.

#9 Twist my arm but don’t break it

The best sales closers and copywriters use humor to sell

When faced by a customer wanting an extra discount old sales closer I knew would say:

“Twist my arm but don’t break it”

It got a smile just about every time and more often than not, the sale.

When you make people smile, they relax and often forget their objections.

Of course, there are plenty of other ways to handle price ‘objections’ – using humor is just one.

With the possible exception of the funeral business, humor sells!

Another example of humor, this time used in negotiation, is the I’ll throw in a pet frog technique.

Of course, you don’t have to throw in a pet frog, it can be any semi-ridiculous offer as long as it makes the prospect smile / relax.

If you can get a prospect to laugh, then you can get him to buy.

Humor does not have to apply exclusively to the closing process, it can be used in your marketing and lead generation as well.

For examples of how you may use it online, our friend Neil Patel article has a great article on using humor in your content marketing you should check out.

As Victor Borge said: Laughter is the shortest distance between two people.

#10 Connect at a Heart Level

When you are in the company of a master sales closer it is as though you have known each other all your life.

The master sales closer knows how to build rapport and create trust.

My friend and mentor Craig Ballantyne is a master at connecting with his audience and building rapport.

To demonstrate, below is a paragraph from a recent email promoting Craigs ETR Product Launch Course.

“The ETR Product Launch Blueprint isn’t like any other course out there. You see, Craig describes his students as his family. They don’t just give you a bunch of information and then let you sink or swim. Instead, they guarantee your success.”

The best sales closers make you feel like family – you want to spend time with them and you want to buy from them.

#11 Timid salesmen have skinny kids

Timid salesmen have skinny kids is a 1978 book by Judge Ziglar.

It is also one of my favorite sales quotes!

To succeed in selling you have to be brave.

Overcoming fear of rejection is perhaps the greatest obstacle for any salesperson.

Most people will have heard of Napoleon Hill and his book Think and Grow Rich

Less well known but highly recommended is his book “How to Sell Your Way Through Life” from which the following quote is taken:

Fear is man’s worst enemy. Like a demon of hell, it sits upon one’s shoulders and whispers, “You can’t write that. It will hurt your business; it will deprive you of an income. You can’t write this or do that because of public opinion. You must not express new ideas nor advocate new ways of doing business because people will laugh at you.

The top sales closers interpret No and rejection differently — they appreciate every no is one closer to a yes

They are not afraid to pick up the phone to call a ‘cold’ prospect. They have confidence in their ability, confident that whatever the prospect responds with they can handle it.

#12 The Top Sales Closer Has A Plan

One thing that sets the average salesperson apart from the top sales closer is how they plan their day.

Plans will change and delays will happen but whatever happens, the top sales closer will make the best of it.

Above all, the top sales closer does not confuse being busy with being productive.

For example, if an appointment gets canceled or changed around, the average salesperson will have a coffee or catch up on gossip, but the top sales closer, on the other hand, would use that time to prospect or follow up with an existing customer.

Time is your most valuable asset. Don’t waste it!

Discover How To Create And Live Your Perfect Day

#13 Scarcity Sells

This is a subject that divides opinion.

Using scarcity implies ‘pressure selling’, but is it?

In my experience when people really want to do something (this applies to relationships, everything) they will use any ‘excuse’ to justify it.

The salesperson/entrepreneur just has to provide the reason.

Let me give an example…

Some friends of mine recently released a new Plugin for WordPress. (a relatively expensive plugin)

From memory, they sold this Plugin on the basis that the first 125 copies were one price, up to 250 copies was another price and thereafter up to 500 copies was another price. After 500 copies, everything was full price.

Clearly, I was not as good a friend as I thought I was, as all 125 copies of the lowest priced option had gone by the time I knew about it.

I inquired would it be possible to but at the 125 copy price? But the response was clear, all copies had gone. (I bought at the 250 price)

There was a reason why my friends offered this special pricing. They had invested a significant amount in development and wanted to recover some of that cash ASAP – hence the special initial pricing.

There has to be a reason why the prospect must take action sooner, rather than later!

Another example…

Have you ever bought a Limited Edition?

We have limited editions of coins, cars, trainers, art print, watches and just about everything you can imagine.

This is an everyday example of scarcity selling!

A wise old closer told me to think abundance – but sell scarcity.

Wise words to remember in business and in life!

Very important – once an offer expires, it has expired! If I had been able to buy at the 125 copy example above that would have been False Scarcity – and that is wrong!

More copywriting gems!

It has been my privilege to hang out with some of the best sales copywriters on the planet.

There is never a dull moment.

In their writing they always…

Inject scarcity – Find a way to deliver this…via increased price, limited time, etc. [special price today only]

Give a guarantee to remove/reverse all risk. [I have a consulting friend who charges a yearly 6 figure sum – his offer is that if he can’t demonstrate how his services will generate at least 10 times ROI on his fee at year end, then he will return the fee]

Call to action – Be specific and tell the reader what they need to do right now

Give a warning that if they don’t buy, this is what will happen [i.e. the pain will still be there]

Still struggling with the ethics of scarcity selling?

Check out: Ethical Use of Scarcity to Light a Fire Under Your Prospects

It is unwise to pay too much, but it is worse to pay too little. When you pay too much, you lose a little money … that is all. When you pay too little, you sometimes lose everything, because the thing you bought was incapable of doing the things it was bought to do.

The common law of business balance prohibits paying a little and getting a lot … it cannot be done. If you deal with the lowest bidder, it is well to add something for the risk you run. And if you do that, you will have enough to pay for something better. ~ John Ruskin

#14 Sum Tertius

Sum Tertius is Latin for I am third.

One of my all-time favorite books on selling is The Closers.

It is not a politically correct book!

But if you are serious about understanding selling face to face, it is essential reading.

It was this book that introduced me to the concept of I AM THIRD.

In “The Closers” the author tells the story of an old sales closer called Sam Johnson and his mentorship of a young rookie salesman.

Sam wore a gold ring with the inscription “sum tertius”.

Sam’s explained that Master Closers put God first in their life, the other guy second and themselves always third.

For the non-believers, I have seen some variations of I AM THIRD, such as Putting Family first, the other guy second and yourself third.

Something Important…

Putting yourself third is actually how you become No 1 in sales and business.

It is a strategy I have used throughout my business career.

#15 Be honorable.

Don’t let greed for a sales commission get in the way of success.

What does that mean to a sales closer?

Well, this may surprise you, but sometimes it includes knowing when not to sell something.

I mean, if something is not in a customer’s best interest or the solution you offer is not the best option available you should have the integrity to let the customer know that.

Trust is a hard-won thing, it is precious, not something to sacrifice for a quick profit.

As my sales career progressed I became the master sales closer that prospects fell in love with.

But with that comes responsibility – a responsibility to always do the right thing and not abuse that trust.

I have always believed first and foremost that selling is about SERVICE and this quote by Zig Ziglar, in particular, resonates with me…

How does this apply to Internet Marketing?

For starters only ever promote products you believe in and have used yourself.

When you build a large list online, you could be tempted to promote all sorts of dubious offers just for the commission.

Don’t do that.

Your reputation and integrity are more important than any quick commission.

The Master Sales Closer knows that and you should too.

Be honorable, not selfish.

Commit to making the world and society a better place.

In the end, your opinions and what you think, count for nothing.

In life, you are measured only by what you do.

“Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody’s going to know whether you did it or not.” – Oprah Winfrey

Author Bio:
Barry Dunlop is a lifelong entrepreneur, Mastermind Facilitator and sales coach who launched his first Internet Business in 1998. He also invests in renewable energy technology, Domain Names and Website Flipping. You can follow / message Barry on Twitter

I have never worked a day in my life without selling. If I believe in something, I sell it, and I sell it hard.” – Estée Lauder

Save

Save

Save

Save

The post What The Best Sales Closers Taught Me About Selling Online appeared first on How To Make Money Online.

Search online and you will find no end of powerful quotations and articles on the qualities you need to be successful.

But with so much ‘success information” available, why do people still struggle?

Doing what we do at IncomeDiary we witness more than most some the obstacles and trip-ups that people experience.

We also witness a lot of SUCCESS and what works! And one thing in particular that our successful readers are always doing – is modelling success and noting what works – in fact for some it is close to an OBSESSION!

If you like please share, Blog, Facebook, Twitter etc….

21 Key Principles For Success In Modern Times

1) What You Focus On Is What You Get

Or put another way, Focus On What You Want, Not On What You Don’t.

If you focus on past failures or what is wrong with your life right now that is what you will create – more failure and regret!

But focus on something positive – having a successful business, achieving your goal – and that is what you will get!

And the number 1 enemy of business focus is: DISTRACTION

Just how much time per day do you waste on things not related to your purpose, your path? For most of us, it is far too much. In a world of Information Overload it is easy to get distracted with emails, pranks, viral videos, Facebook, Twitter etc.

Get yourself in the habit of asking – does this get me closer or further away from my goal? If it places you further away, stop doing it! In short, be clear with your purpose and focused on your dreams.

As Craig Ballantyne puts it…

Decrease the Daily Friction that steals your time: Do fewer chores. Cut your commute. Eliminate your obsessive time wasting habits. Plan your day. Script your schedule. Batch your work. Minimize your email. Go Device Free for 2 hours so you can think, and do a full day on weekends.

Open up more time for BIG thinking and taking action on what really matters in life.

And Winston Churchill put it perfectly…

“You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks”

Do not let information overload and modern day distractions distract your FOCUS!

2) Raise your Adversity Quotient!

In other words, the better your ability to handle adversity and the suck factor, the more you will succeed.

Accept that difficulties and challenges will happen. New products take longer to create that you planned, new websites are not ready when planned. These things happen and it is your ability to handle that determines your success or failure in the long term.

(Thank you to Bedros Keuilian for this definition.)

Will Smith also has a very wise observation for us…

“Throughout life people will make you mad, disrespect you and treat you bad. Let God deal with the things they do, cause hate in your heart will consume you too”

3) The BIGGER the problem you solve – the bigger your reward

Or take an existing solution and turn it on its head like AirBnB and UBER have done!

Make sure the problem you solve is one that needs SOLVING and those who benefit, want it and will appreciate it (and pay for it).

But – don’t imagine a problem! Too many entrepreneurs invest time and money in creating a service or product there is no market for (or not a big enough market for). Do your market research and be very clear on who your customer is – and if that customer will pay for a solution like you are offering.

If you are a Blogger what will your blog offer that the many other blogs don’t. What makes you different?

4) Join a Mastermind

A Mastermind Group is for business owners who want to improve their business and who are willing to put the effort in. A Mastermind Group is not a Networking Group or A Coffee Club – it is for individuals who are serious about growing their business and who have the discipline to follow through.

I have already written extensively on Mastermind Groups in: 17 Reasons Why You Need To Join A Mastermind Group

5) Keep Close to Your Core Business

Now if you are the CEO and have even just a few employees, never mind 100’s or 1000’s it is easy to get isolated from the front line. One way to keep in touch is to periodically work in your service or support departments – even if it is only answering the phone for a couple of hours per month.

One of the few TV programs I enjoy is: Undercover Boss – It amazes me more and more bosses don’t go undercover. Always be asking questions of your employees, customers, suppliers – it is amazing what you will discover from the simple task of asking questions.

6) Practice Gratitude Daily

Gratitude is such a powerful and positive way to look at life – make it part of your daily rituals!

Recommendation: Set aside the same time daily to do practice Gratitude to make it a habit.

What are you for grateful right now? Meditating with your gratitude list and giving thanks for all the positives in your life will uplift you even more than a big belly laugh!

Practice living mindfully – and stop worrying about past mistakes and the future. Live in the NOW!

Practicing Gratitude is the best cure for worry.

Karl Pillemer, Ph.D., is the keeper of The Legacy Project at Cornell University. When Dr. Pillemer asked 1,200+ retired people what they regretted they often answered, “I wish I hadn’t spent so much of my life worrying.”

Worry create anxiety and stops us from enjoying life’s precious moments and as often been said, most of what we worry about never happens!

7) Good Enough is NOT Good Enough

“Take action every day, surround yourself with winners, never peak, and always pay it forward.”

– Bedros Keuilians Rules for Success, Freedom, and Market Dominance

8) Exercise Daily

Walk, Run, Swim, Play – Just Do IT!

“It’s hard to beat a person who never gives up.” – Babe Ruth, Major League Baseball Hall of Famer.

“Do. Or do not. There is no try.” – Yoda, Jedi Master.

9) Your Best Ideas Come Outside The Office!

When faced with a major decision or problem, go for a walk, take a shower, do something different and let your creative process take over!

10) Give Back! Support A Cause

Businesses with a CAUSE are more successful than those without a Cause!

Making money and achieving financial freedom for one self is nice but the Human Condition requires more satisfaction that that.

My friend and mentor, Yanik Silver had transformed his business into a business with a cause. which he calls an Evolved Enterprise. And he’s calling on more entrepreneurs to do the same thing. In fact, Yanik predicts that if you don’t make this change, your business may not survive another 4-7 years.

Yanik talks about how business can be impactful TO THE WORLD along with making money. Evolved Enterprise is a highly recommended, must read book!

I have been fortunate to get to know Yanik Silver quite well – Evolved Enterprise has inspired myself and many others to re-evaluate how we do business. I have travelled with Yanik to places including, Iceland, South Africa, Mexico and Necker Island.

In Necker we were supporting Virgin Unite (The Virgin Charity) and were joined by Sir Richard Branson, Joe Polish, Matt Mullenweg (Founder of WordPress), Sean Stephenson and Vishen Lakhiani among others.

Perhaps the biggest Takeaway I got from my various meetings was that a CAUSE is something you should start with – not something you add later, when you are ‘successful’. What is Your Cause?

With Maverick Mastermind Group and Sir Richard Branson in Necker Island

11) Success is a Trickster!

Success is a trickster – It makes a fool out of all of us – if you let it.

What I mean by that is, especially when you start to have some success, you can believe that you’re a lot more gifted than you really are. I’ve made this mistake.

In my 20s, I was extremely successful in sales. I had never experienced failure. I was a remarkable salesperson. All I’d ever had was Big Money Success. After a while, you actually believe your own publicity, and you believe that everything you do turns to gold. Unfortunately for me it was not a never ending success story and in 1989 I lost a business I had founded along with all my personal wealth at that time.

Perhaps the most dangerous thing in the world for an entrepreneur, is to NOT experience failure.

Bill Gates puts it extremely well when he says:

“Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can’t lose”

12) Unplug Once Per Week – Go Device / Digital Free!

It is good for the soul – and it also makes you more creative!

13) Do not engage in confrontations with anyone, in-person or online.

This is a waste of time and energy. If I have caused harm, I apologize and fix the situation. And then I take a deep breath, relax, breathe out, and re-focus my efforts back on my work and goals. (Craig Ballantyne)

14) I am independent of the Good Opinion of others!

“If you work to minimize criticism, you have surrendered the beauty and greatness of what you’ve set out to build.” – Seth Godin

15) Always be learning, seeking, finding..

16) Modest is Good!

Some of the most successful people I know are also the humblest.

17) You don’t have to reinvent the Wheel!

Sometimes success is as ‘simple’ as taking an existing idea or way of doing things and putting a new spin on it. Think of UBER and AirNnB again!

18) Ask High Quality Questions.

The questions you ask yourself determine how you feel. (Ask rubbish questions and you will feel rubbish) Ask quality, empowering questions and you will feel empowered.

What am I happy about right now? What is good about this situation?

Albert Einstein is quoted as saying:

“If I had 60 minutes to solve a problem and my life depended on it, I’d spend 55 minutes determining the right question to ask. Once I got the right question, I could easily answer it in 5 minutes.”

The quality of our answers is dependent upon the quality of our questions. The more accurate and more specific our questions are, the more profitable and more beneficial the answers we get will be.

And even more important – if you ask the wrong question you are almost guaranteed to get the wrong answer – so like Einstein, take the time to work out the correct question.

Of course equally important and one that many entrepreneurs struggle with – when faced with a situation or a question, don’t be afraid to say you don’t know. Too many people bluff their way through life simply because they are afraid to admit they don’t know!

19) Do I want to be right or do I want to be happy?

20) Flaky People Exist – Get Over it!

It’s only a matter of time before you meet someone who’s always late, cancels important meetings at the last minute, and never acts on their commitments. These people can be called ‘flakes.’ Almost everyone’s acted flaky at some time in their lives, but chronic flakiness can be seriously annoying and disruptive.

Personally I try to avoid having people like that in my life. What do you do?

21) Be prepared with solutions for the obstacles in your way.

In other words, have a Plan B! (Plan C and D to!) I see so many initially successful people lose their way and lose their fortune simply because they had not foreseen a change in the market or worse still had assumed that because they had experienced so much success that it would naturally continue. (Remember Success is a Trickster!)

The graph of success is not a straight up arrow – it is upward trend with occasional dips along the way. Be prepared for those occasional dips and recognize them for what they are – signposts that you need to change and adapt to market conditions. All great entrepreneurs have had their ups and downs – have a Plan B!

Scott Belsky the entrepreneur and author perhaps best known for co-creating the online portfolio platform, Behance, Inc released this graph on the JOY of being a entrepreneur – Joy is not a straight up arrow either!

Be ready to control what you can, to conquer the chaos and cope with what you can’t control, and to concentrate on what really counts.

“If you want to change the world, first change your heart.”

– Confucius

Join a Mastermind Group For Your Future Success

I am quite different today compared to 20 or 30 years ago, or even 5 years ago. In a large part this is down to who I have associated with…

We are all a product of our environment and as I said before ‘You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.’ In my case I have been fortunate especially in recent years to spend time with some high quality individuals. My development as an entrepreneur and as a human being is down to the company I keep and the quality of mentors / teachers in my life.

Seek Out and Join a Mastermind Today!

Surround yourself with people you want to be like.

IncomeDiary is planning to launch a Mastermind Group.

To be kept informed on the launch please submit your details below.

IncomeDiary Mastermind – Advance Notice List

Name:

Email:

Author Bio:

Barry Dunlop is a lifelong entrepreneur, Mastermind Facilitator and sales coach who launched his first Internet Business in 1998. He also invests in renewable energy technology, Domain Names and Selling Websites. You can follow / message Barry on LinkedIn or Twitter

The post 21 Key Principles For Success In Modern Business appeared first on How To Make Money Online.

It wasn’t always this way: I used to struggle to get leads and only converted a small percentage of them into paying customers. But I’ve learned a lot in the last year and today I want to share it with you so that you can experience a similar boom for your small business, startup, or online service.

You’ll learn about the blog post that has earned me a ton of leads thanks to a little note that I added as an afterthought. I’ll also share with you a simple trick that my friend taught me that has had a huge impact on the percentage of leads that I’m actually able to turn into clients.

How to Attract More Leads Online

My clientele is about half local and half online. My local leads are more likely to become clients whereas I tend to get more online leads per month, so it all evens out.

The great thing about attracting business online is that you get to work with clients from all over the world. Last month, I worked for a company based out of Hong Kong. That’s the magic of attracting leads online (though admittedly it didn’t seem so magical when I was trying to schedule meetings with a 15-hour time difference).

From Interviewee to Lead

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: my network has been the single most important factor in my business success. One of the primary ways that I’ve expanded my online network is through interviews.

Last year, I helped conduct interviews with 20 of the world’s top online entrepreneurs for Web Domination 20. I gained a ton of insight into what it takes to build a successful online business, but I also formed a connection with the entrepreneurs we interviewed.

Four of the 20 interviewees ended up inquiring about hiring my company’s services over the next six months. That’s pretty amazing – especially when you consider that learning from these people and being able to share their advice with others was already more than enough incentive to interview them.

If you have a blog and you’re not asking the top people in your niche to sit down with you for an interview, then you’re missing out. It will expand your knowledge, create valuable content for your audience, build your network… and if you’re lucky you may just get some new leads out of it as well.

Write Blog Posts that Generate Leads

I’ve never written a blog post with the goal of it getting leads for my business, but many of my posts have done that for me anyway.

My most successful post ever at getting leads is ‘Ultimate Guide: How to Make a Successful Kickstarter Campaign‘. It’s an extremely in-depth resource (3,000+ words) designed to help anybody who’s interested in starting a Kickstarter project.

One of the sections is about making a great Kickstarter video. But by the end of it, I realized that I had really only scratched the surface about what makes a good video. So, I added this little note:

Still Have Questions about Video?

Video is my forte and I’ve produced a handful of videos for Kickstarter campaigns through my video production company. There’s too much that goes into a great video to cover fully here, so if you still have questions feel free to ask me a question in the comment section below and I’ll do my best to respond promptly.

I didn’t think much of it at the time, but ever since I’ve been getting emails from leads all around the world inquiring about my rates for Kickstarter video production. These leads have been especially warm and – after talking with them – I find that it’s because they’re impressed by the knowledge of Kickstarter that I displayed in the article.

You can use this same formula in your industry to attract leads. Write an amazingly valuable, in-depth article that will appeal to an audience of your potential customers. Then at some point in the article, let them know that you offer a paid service to those interested in benefiting further from your expertise.

Turning Leads into Clients

All the leads in the world don’t mean a thing if you can’t close the sale. When I first started out, I was letting most of my online leads slip through the cracks.

One of my big mistakes was writing long emails that included lots of complicated questions. Video projects are complex by nature, but it was my job to make it simple for the client. I didn’t realize that at first and the result was that I overwhelmed some leads to the point where they just didn’t reply back.

With each lead I’ve responded to, I’ve learned a little bit more about how to talk with somebody who’s interested in hiring my services. I’ve come a long way and today I feel confident that – as long as the our businesses are a good fit for one another – I can turn every lead into a client.

Seek First to Understand

When you get an email from a new lead, your instinct is probably to reply right away. But before you click ‘send’, make sure that you’ve done a little bit of online sleuthing into the identity of your new lead.

After a quick read-through of your lead’s website or LinkedIn profile, you can generally get a good feeling for the size of their business, their role in the business, and their likely objectives for the project. This knowledge will inform you as you consider the services you could offer them and the rates you will charge.

You may also get the impression that the person on the other end of the email isn’t likely to make a good client. Maybe you can glean from their website that they haven’t invested much time in their business, that their resources are very limited, or that they engage in shady business practices.

Not all leads are created equal – and some simply aren’t worth following up with. For those who are, the more you know about them and their business, the more likely you’ll be able to close the deal.

Get Them on the Phone / Skype

The best advice I’ve ever received about landing clients online came from Nicholas Tart. He told me that closing a sale over email is incredibly difficult and that I would have better luck if I instead used email to schedule a conversation over phone or Skype.

I tried this with my very next lead – and I closed the sale in that first conversation over Skype. Ever since I’ve taken up this practice I’ve enjoyed a significantly higher conversion rate.

Why Talking Voice-to-Voice is So Important

First, a phone conversation helps me to understand the client’s project and their needs better than email. I can ask questions of them and get immediate responses, one after the other (something that would probably take six emails over the course of a week otherwise). When I understand my clients better, I’m better able to offer them the right service at the right rate. Hence, more sales.

Talking to a potential client in person helps me to make a personal connection with the person on the other line. This is helpful in earning their trust – and trust is all-important in doing business.

The Shortcomings of Talking Over the Phone

While a phone conversation is great for getting the ball rolling, it isn’t the best way to seal a project in stone. After all, the details of phone conversation are quickly lost. That’s why I end each conversation with a promise to compile some of what we discussed into a project plan that I’ll send to them the following day.

The Power of Project Plans

I learned my lesson early on that it’s important to have some sort of written agreement between both parties that details the services to be rendered, the method and amount of payment, and all other important expectations of the project.

I used to call these documents ‘contracts’ but now I call them ‘project plans’. It may just be a matter of semantics, but I find that it’s made a difference both in how I prepare the documents and how they’re received by my clients. Project plans come off as more interesting – and less intimidating – than contracts.

What’s in a good project plan?

I start with a brief overview that describes the nature of the project and the services to be rendered very generally. Then I delve into the details for each service (broken up into Item A, Item B, Item C and so on). Next is a project timetable, followed by payment information.

At the top of each page is the full name of the client’s company and at the bottom of each page is the name of my company and all of my contact information.

Lately, I’ve been putting a lot of care and attention to detail in my project plans and the result have been spectacular. Clients see the quality of the project plan and rightfully assume that our work on their actual project will be of the same pedigree. More importantly, a well-made project plan provides answers to many of their questions, overcomes their objections to proceeding, and sets the whole project up for success.

Once your lead receives your project plan, they should have everything they need to make a decision about doing business with you. If you’ve presented yourself well up to this point, then chances are you’ve just converted your lead into a client.

The Single Best Way to Get More Leads and Clients

Just like how Michael Dunlop says that the best way to get traffic to your website is simply to write great content for it, the single best way to get more leads and clients is to do quality work. Do quality work and you’ll have a stronger portfolio, better testimonials, and more referrals.

For me, that means striving to make every video that we produce better than the one that preceded it. The result is that right now three of our clients are all referrals from one client we had last spring.

So the quality of your work comes first, but that doesn’t make the other strategies I’ve shared any less important. I’m interested in learning what techniques or approaches you have found most helpful in attracting leads and landing clients, so please feel free to share your responses in the comments below.

For more on offering an online service, check out my 20 tips for making money with a service business.

Photo Credit: MyTudut via Compfight.

The post How to Attract Leads and Land Clients Online appeared first on How To Make Money Online.

On November 28, Ziglar passed away at the age of 86. Below I’ve shared 11 inspiring business lessons from his life.

#1 First, Help Others

“You will get all you want in life, if you help enough other people get what they want.”

It’s possible to get ahead in life by taking advantage of other people.

But it’s far better (and easier) to get ahead by understanding what people want and then helping them get it. Once you’ve gone out of your way to solve somebody’s problem, they’ll go out of their way to help you achieve your goals.

The goal of every successful startup is to help as many people as possible as much as possible. When you create something that’s of great value to many people, your business is assured of success.

Note: here’s an in-depth article about the power of helping others and why entrepreneurs who give more, get more.

#2 Success is Lived

“Success is in the doing, not the getting; in the trying, not the triumph.”

Seeing success as an end goal is one of the biggest misconceptions of success. Success is actually an ongoing experience, more process than product.

According to Ziglar, the most rewarding part of becoming a successful person is the actual becoming. He said:

“What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.”

#3 Keep Moving

“Remember there is plenty of room at the top — but not enough to sit down.”

At his prime, Ziglar would speak at over 150 events each year in locations all over the world. In the process, he traveled over 3 million miles and wrote 29 books. Ziglar was always moving forward, until the very end.

This work ethic was a key to Ziglar’s success. So as a motivational speaker, he didn’t sell any “get rich quick” schemes. Ziglar told his audience, “The elevator to success is broken, but the stairs to success are always available.”

Many people have negative associations with hard work. But just as climbing the stairs can be more satisfying than riding the elevator, the work of success doesn’t have to feel hard at all. Ziglar said, “You don’t pay the price for success. You enjoy the price for success.”

#4 Actually, You Do Have Time

One excuse Zig Ziglar didn’t have much patience for was, “I don’t have enough time.”

“Lack of direction, not lack of time, is the problem. We all have twenty-four hour days.”

From Michael Jordan to Steve Jobs, every person that’s ever lived has had the same number of hours in a day, week, or year. The difference between people who achieve their ambitious goals and those who don’t is the ability to harness those hours purposefully and efficiently.

Next time you feel like don’t have enough time to do what you want to do, think about somebody you admire who’s accomplished that and more. If they could find the time, then so can you.

Learn to use your time wisely. As Ziglar said, “You can earn more money, but when time is spent it’s gone forever.”

Note: if you want to spend your time better, here are 7 surprising productivity tips for self-employed entrepreneurs.

#5 Make Motivation a Habit

“People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing—that’s why we recommend it daily.”

Ziglar saw people get worked into a frenzy at his events only for them to stumble as the days passed and their motivation faltered. That’s why he recommended that people think of getting motivated as part of their daily routine.

#6 Find Good Everywhere

“The healthiest of all human emotions is gratitude.”

Zig Ziglar was born prematurely in 1926. According to the doctor, he died nine days later but was revived in the arms of his grandmother. At the age of six, Ziglar’s father died and his younger sister died only two days later.

Perhaps it was because Ziglar grew up knowing extreme adversity that he became so grateful for what he had.

Ziglar has always emphasized the importance of your attitude (“Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude”) and he’s called gratitude “the most important and by far the most life-changing attitude.”

No matter how bad you think your situation is, you can still be thankful for what you have – whether that’s your health, your family, or simply the fact that you’re alive on this amazing planet. Ziglar says that appreciating what you have can help set in motion events that will give you more to be thankful for:

“The more you express gratitude for what you have the more you will have to express gratitude for.”

Ziglar liked to give the example of woman who hated her job — but then started to love it once she reminded herself every morning and every night of everything she liked about her job.

Note: if you’re an online entrepreneur, you may want to start with this list of 20 things to be thankful for.

#7 Over-Deliver

“When we do more than we are paid to do, eventually we will be paid more for what we do.”

This is a principle I’ve noticed at work with my service business. We were able to grow because we treated our $1,000 clients like they’re $10,000 clients.

Over-deliver in all you do — and soon you will be rewarded for the extra effort.

#8 Delay Gratification

With fast-food restaurants on every corner and high speed Internet in the palm of our hands, we live in a world of instant gratification. But instant gratification disappears as quickly as it comes — and it often does little to advance your long-term goals.

“The chief cause of failure and unhappiness is trading what you want most for what you want right now.”

If you always succumb to immediate desires, then you’re always going to be living from one fleeting pleasure to the next. Instead, take action in the present based on what you want most in the long-term.

“Discipline yourself to do the things you need to do when you need to them and the day will come when you will be able to do the things you want to when you want do them!”

This is especially important for entrepreneurs, who must often put in long hours up front in order to realize their vision. As the anonymous saying goes, “Entrepreneurship is living a few years of your life like most people won’t, so that you can spend the rest of your life like most people can’t.”

#9 Focus on Inward Change

“You are the only one who can use your ability. It is an awesome responsibility.”

People would often tell Zig Ziglar their problems with co-workers, friends, and spouses. But he would tell them, “You’re not going to change anybody else,” and that they should just focus on responding differently to others. People do what they want, whether you like it or not. Exerting your energy to try to force someone to do something they won’t or be something they aren’t is frustrating to both parties.

With that said, people may choose to treat you differently when you behave differently. Ziglar said, “When you choose to be pleasant and positive in the way you treat others, you have also chosen, in most cases, how you are going to be treated others.”

#10 Just Start

“People who won’t take step number one never take step number two.”

Sometimes beginning is the most difficult part of a project, especially when we get wrapped up thinking about all of the potential complexities and challenges. If you’ve been procrastinating something important, commit to taking five minutes and completing the first step. You may be surprised how much more do-able the project seems after you simply start it.

Note: if you’re thinking about getting started with blogging, check out Income Diary’s beginner’s guide.

#11 Character is Everything

“Honesty and integrity are absolutely essential for success in life – all areas of life.”

Zig Ziglar was a man of values. He conducted himself with honesty and integrity because he believed it was the right thing to do morally — but he also recognized that it was good business practice. As he explained, “If people like you they’ll listen to you. But if they trust you they’ll do business with you. ”

You might benefit in the short-term by deceiving and short-changing people. But it’s a losing game in the end:

“You can get everything money will buy without a lick of character. But you can’t get any of the things money won’t buy: happiness, joy, peace of mind, and winning relationships.”

Zig Ziglar’s Legacy

“Yesterday ended last night. Today is a brand-new day and it’s yours.”

Zig Ziglar, 1926-2012

When Zig Ziglar passed away on November 28, 2012, he left behind a family, an organization, and millions of people who have been inspired by his message.

It speaks volumes to the quality of his impact that Ziglar’s official website currently states, “In leui of flowers, please consider donating to a charity below in Honor of Mr. Ziglar.”

When you lead a life like Zig Ziglar’s, you keep doing good long after your time on earth is over.

You can donate here.

The post 11 Life-Changing Business Lessons from Zig Ziglar appeared first on How To Make Money Online.

Below I’ve compiled what I’ve learned – 20 tips based on my worst mistakes and biggest triumphs. You can learn how to run a successful service business much more quickly than I did by reading on.

#1 Network

People like to do business with someone they know.

My company’s first client was someone who I had met a few times through our shared publishing company. Since he knew me, he was willing to take a chance with us even though we had never made a commercial video. Fast forward a year and our most recent client is someone I met through a small business development group.

In fact, nearly every single client I’ve landed has come from my personal network.

If you’re having trouble finding work, you could double your marketing efforts, redesign your website, or reconsider your sales tactics. But it would probably be a lot easier and more effective to change your networking habits. It’s as simple as becoming more involved in your community, going to events, or joining an organization.

#2 Recurring Work is the Best Kind of Work

If you keep landing one-time jobs, you’re always going to be looking for new clients. That’s fine when you’re just starting out, but it makes growth very difficult.

Recurring business is a foundation that allows you to hire full-time employees and spend less time pursuing new accounts. So start thinking of ways that your clients could benefit from receiving your service month in and month out.

#3 Under Promise, Over Deliver

Good companies meet their clients’ expectations. Companies destined for greatness so exceed those expectations that their clients jaws hit the floor.

That means pulling all-nighters to put on that last coat of polish and add features that your client never paid for. That’s the type of service that earns you repeat business and word of mouth referrals.

#4 Get a Contract

A company contacted me last fall through the contact form on my website. Over the course of a few emails, we discussed a video for their home page and agreed to terms. But I didn’t get a contract from then.

Long story short, this was a big mistake. Trust me when I say that if you can’t get somebody to agree to a contract, then you don’t want to work with them.

#5 Don’t Overpay Yourself

You start a business to make money, but if you’re personally taking every penny of profit then you’ll have nothing left over to invest in your business.

Think of your business as a hard-working member of your team who needs to get paid just like everyone else. My partner and I divvy up our earnings 1/3 for him, 1/3 for me, and 1/3 for the company. This policy has allowed us to invest in better equipment and pay contractors for projects up front.

Obviously, you need a salary that pays for the bare essentials. But the more you invest in your company, the sooner you’ll be able to make a salary befitting a CEO.

#6 A Good Partner Can Be Your Best Asset

Taking on a business partner means splitting the ownership of your company in half. But the right business partner will more than double the company’s profits, so it won’t matter.

#7 Ask Questions

I’ve developed a list of questions that I ask all of our new clients: What’s your company’s story? What are the biggest objections of your prospective customers? What is the specific action that you want a viewer to take after viewing your video?

The more you know about who a client is and what they want, the better you’ll be able to help them get it.

#8 The Customer isn’t Always Right

Don’t get me wrong. You should bend over backwards to make your customers happy, even when they’re being a little bit unreasonable.

But often the customer is wrong about how you can best help them. When your client thinks you should do something that you know isn’t in their best interest, it’s your duty as an expert in the field to put your foot down.

Don’t tell them that they’re wrong. Take their idea into consideration and then explain the way you envision doing things. They’re hiring you for your expertise. After they hear all of the well-informed benefits of proceeding your way, they’ll forget they ever had a different vision to begin with.

#9 Do Something You’re Willing to Stay Up Late For

Last week, my partner and I were finishing up a video project on a limited schedule. Looking back on it, I realized we had been working 10-14 hour days.

But we hardly noticed the long hours while we were putting them in because we were so thoroughly immersed in all the creative and technical challenges of producing an animated video.

It’s a tired point, but it’s true: do something you love and you’ll actually be able to put in the necessary work.

#10 Choose a Growing Industry

With a commitment to excellence, you can start a thriving service business in any industry – even if it’s on the decline.

But why not choose a fast-growing industry? Starting a company in a growing industry is like running downhill. There are more clients and fewer competitors.

#11 You’re only as Good as Your Portfolio

When you’re trying to land a client, it doesn’t matter what you’re capable of doing for them. It matters what you’ve proven you can do. So the more impressive and diverse your portfolio is, the easier it will be for you to get lucrative work.

Think of each project as an opportunity to enrich your portfolio. You may find that this influences what type of work you take on and the quality of the work.

If you’re looking for your first project, then you’ve got nothing to prove your value. So you may need to work for free just to get started.

#12 Get Feedback

Have you had someone tell you that you’ve got a piece of food stuck in your teeth?

It’s an awkward moment, but my guess is you were happy they let you know so that you could do something about it.

The same concept applies to a service-based businesses. You could be making an embarrassing mistake with your clients or letting them down in an important way, but you won’t know unless they tell you.

That’s why you ask. I have a ‘Client Feedback Survey’ that I ask companies to fill out after I’ve worked with them. One of the questions is, “How could your experience with this project have been improved?”

#13 Ask for Endorsements

Our ‘Client Feedback Survey’ kills two birds with one stone because another question on it is, “What would you tell a friend who’s thinking about employing our services?”

The answer to that question usually makes for a great endorsement. To a prospective client, there’s little more persuasive than reading a hearty recommendation from someone who just worked with you.

#14 You Don’t Need an Extravagant Website

A website is a huge asset for any business. It’s both a place to provide helpful information for your current clients and a virtual salesperson that works 24 hours a day.

But for most service businesses, a fully-featured and robust website isn’t necessary.

Ideally, the site would have a blog, a login area for clients, and rank at the top of Google for ‘video production company’. But for now, it’s serving our purposes elegantly. It’s a place people can go to learn more about our service and it garners unsolicited leads every month.

#15 You’re Always Looking for New Clients

It’s good to feel a sense of satisfaction when you land a new client.

But don’t let that fool you into a false sense of security. If you stop pursuing more clients just because you have a project on your hands, then you’ll have no work when the project is complete. That means you’ll probably have costly dead time before you get another contract signed.

Always be looking for your next client – even if your company’s next availability isn’t until six months out.

#16 Don’t Expect to Earn a Full-Time Income Right Away

I don’t think any entrepreneur should expect to make living wages their first month of business. Or their second. Or their third.

It’s possible, but it also puts a ton of unneeded pressure on you and your business. Worse still, the desire to make lots of money up front could cause you to skimp on essential investments or rush through projects that deserve your full attention.

I recommend that you start a service business when you either have another source of income, like a part-time job or a healthy nest egg in your savings account. That way you can give your business room to grow at its own pace – and you won’t go hungry if a client is unexpectedly late on their payments.

#17 Your Primary Job isn’t Providing the Service

I run a video production company, but I spend less than half of my time making videos.

I spend more time meeting with current and prospective clients, developing business materials, establishing systems, and doing the million other little things that come with running a successful business.

If you want to spend all of your time providing a service, then you should become an employee. Only start a business if you’re ready to be a business person.

#18 Always Be Learning

Whatever your service, you can – and should – be doing it better.

Don’t take your improvement for granted. Actively get better by seeking out training videos, reading relevant books, and challenging yourself with each new job.

#19 Hire Character, Train Skill

There’s nothing more important to the growth of a service company than the quality of the people that you bring on board. But while it’s a good idea to hire people who are technically great at what they do, that shouldn’t be your number one priority:

Integrity, honor, reliability, work ethic, adaptability, passion, and the desire to learn cannot be taught.

#20 Nothing’s More Important than the Quality of Your Work

There are no small contracts, only small companies.

If you treat each $1000 project like a $1000 project, then you’ll keep getting contracts for $1000. But if you start treating each $1000 like a $10,000 project, then pretty soon reality is going to catch up to the quality of your work.

See each new project as an opportunity to make a statement. Nothing will accelerate the success of your service business better than excellent performance. You never know who may see your work or when you’ll get a big break.

Read more: ‘7 Secrets To Achieving Mega Online Success’

The post 20 Tips for How to Make Money with a Service Business appeared first on How To Make Money Online.

Today I would like to introduce you to the first entrepreneur I ever met – Barry Dunlop (my father)

Barry is a lifelong entrepreneur – dedicated to living life as an adventure and curing the world of fear.

His Twitter Profile describes him as an Entrepreneur, Investor, Master Salesman, Blockchain Enthusiast and Thinker

Among the businesses that Barry has built up are:

1) A successful Home Improvement Contracting Business (remodeling, home extensions, replacement windows etc)

and…

2) Created the largest Online Leads Generation business for the home improvement industry in the UK – A business that was responsible for generating $100’s of millions in sales value, yet only had 4 employees. (A business, Barry successfully exited in 2008 )

Barry has always been one for quotes and this is one I have heard him repeat many times:

Success Is A Trickster – It will Make A Fool Out Of You If You Let It

In other words don’t let success go to your head or inflate your EGO so big that you stop doing what made you successful in the first place.

Barry is also an occasional contributor at IncomeDiary and some of his posts include:

How To Have a Perfect Day

21 Success Principles in Modern Business | 17 Reasons To Join A Mastermind Group | Secrets to a Happy Entrepreneurial Life

Enjoy the interview – as always I welcome your comments below.

Very best wishes

Michael

Barry Dunlop Interview

Barry can you describe your business history (how you made money) and what you are doing in business these days?

First of all, I describe myself as a salesman and serial entrepreneur. I’ve certainly been in business a long time. I was born in 1960. I went into business for myself at the age of 21 but really I’ve been an entrepreneur since way before this. (I grew up as a Farmers Son in the 1960’s in Ireland and you learn a lot about hard work and business in that environment)

Primarily I’ve been involved in sales related businesses. I was an exceptionally successful direct salesperson, selling home improvements in the UK and earning a substantial income in my early 20s doing that.

I’ve also had business failures, which means things like the bank comes and takes the house back. (It happens!)

I’ve also built up businesses again. (I believe it is especially important when you appear very successful to point out the failures and the the downs as well as the ups, because it is in my opinion how we handle the “downs” that eventually qualifies us to experience the “ups”.)

I have been down on the deck at least once and possibly two or three times. Every occasion I still get up and come back fighting. I don’t mean that in an aggressive way, I just mean that that’s what us entrepreneurs do.

And indeed I hope and believe that a lot of people listening to and reading this interview should be able to resonate with that, because that’s the one thing that I find runs through entrepreneurs. Whatever the world gives us, somehow we just take it – almost with a smirk on our face and we just get right back up.

These days I am primarily an Internet entrepreneur. In 1998 I set up a company in the UK which was the first lead generating company in the UK which specialized in generating leads for the home improvement industry.

For those of you in other parts of the world, that means leads or inquiries for things like replacement windows, sun rooms, kitchens, bathrooms. Fortunately I had clients who were desperate for leads – they had commission hungry sales people to keep busy.

One thing which I learned early on, especially in lead generation, only generate leads for people who really, really need them. And it sounds a bit corny to say that, but believe you me, I find people generating leads for people who don’t believe they need them, or don’t feel they need them.

I can assure you one thing, in a direct sales or any sales commission environment, they never have enough leads; they always want some more. And actually, that was why I had so much success with the website, the fact that so many people would need the leads. And if they didn’t need the leads, obviously I wouldn’t have had a business.

Barry with Mike Geary in Mexico – Baja Racing January 2009

Yes, I did go on to make a substantial income with it, over a one million dollars a year income. I did this with actually just four employees.

But one point I always liked to make to people is that it’s not the fact that I only had four employees or I made this amount of money but more importantly it is the point that the business generated in excess of a 100 million dollars worth of sales (when you add up the sales volume of the sales from the leads). I am very proud of the ripple effect and how many people were employed as a result of the sales the leads generated.

What am I doing right now?

Well, as you know, I sold that particular business – and, yes, it did make me enough money, in fact, it probably made me enough money to retire.

But to be retired, not actually doing what I love which is being an entrepreneur would be a real struggle for me.

I have various real estate investments plus I am the lead investor in two renewable energy businesses – I would rather not disclose them here but one other business I will mention is that I am a pretty active domainer / domain name investor. I do invest in .com domains, but recently with a business partner, I’ve been investing in a lot of .co.uk domains.

In common with property prices and real estate prices across the world, there’s been a substantial drop, or a fairly significant drop, in the value of domain names recently and I believe right now is one of the best time to buy good quality Generic Domain names at good prices.

I’ll give you just a flavor of some of the domain names myself and my partner own. We own the domain name fit.co.uk – which is a pretty awesome domain name. First of all it’s three letters or three characters. Anybody who knows anything about domaining knows that’s a pretty awesome thing. And FIT and FITNESS is a huge MARKET.

It is a .co.uk, which is one the most popular country based domains in the world. It’s second in only, in my opinion, to having a .com. And it’s about fit or fitness, so it’s a phenomenal market. There’s about a million things we could actually do with that domain name.

Barry in Dubai 2008 — Photo also includes Dean Hunt, Sean Roach, Andrew Lock, Russell Brunson, Mike Koenig, Ernesto Verdugo

Other domain names we own is ran.co.uk and also directsalesman.com

Also, I’m pretty passionate about public speaking. I don’t consider it my business. I do speak in public; I enjoy speaking in public. And I believe a lot of other people would enjoy speaking in public if they were given the right training, the right incentive, and the right help.

So that is possibly a website we will develop in the not too distant future. Next question?

As an experienced entrepreneur what are some tips you would give to startup entrepreneurs?

There’s lots and lots of things I could say but actually the TOP TIP is really a very simple one – and also it is a TIP that I know you have repeated over and over on your website. Quite simply – It is TAKE ACTION!

Sometimes the difference between success and failure is just the fact that somebody took action and the other person didn’t. I might have alluded earlier that there’s a lot of bright and clever people in the world. In fact, almost every day I’m just being blown away by the new intelligence, as I sometime refer to it.

It’s just the awareness, and the fact that there is indeed a world full of many very, very clever people. Now, I’m trying to be modest here, because I actually don’t particularly think, as I said earlier, I am one of life’s really clever people. But I am one of life’s really great action takers.

And sometimes I haven’t really worried too much about getting it perfected. In fact, if I have a second tip for entrepreneurs here it is this one: good enough is good enough.

I have a friend who just recently started helping me with video production. He said to me, “Barry, don’t worry about the video being 100% right. If you get it 70% right, that’s fair enough. Just get on with it.”

And that reminded me of a tip that I received from a friend very early on in my entrepreneurial career. Actually, I’m surprised more people don’t say this, because it’s actually fact. He said: “To be a millionaire, Barry, all you have to do is be right 51% of the time.”

As long as you’re right 51% of the time, you will be a winner. Put it this way, if you had 51% odds, you’d go to Vegas and bet all day long.

A lot of people are obsessed, if you like, with getting everything lined up 100% perfect and correct and spot on. And that actually is probably the thing that you shouldn’t do. OK, the website might not be the best, most attractive website in the world, but hey, get it started, get it out there. You can fix it later, you can improve it as your knowledge and skills improve.

Honestly, Michael, I could go on all day with further tips and further advice. But those are two that will really stand out. If you just follow those, you’ll be way ahead of the game anyway.

Actually there is a third tip. The third tip is sometimes less is more. So that’s why I’m not going to give loads of tips here. Just take action, get started, and don’t worry about perfection. 51% is great. I go in for a little higher some days myself, and hey, some days I actually do better than 51% [laughs] But frankly, 51% is fine. Get on there, get out there.

Barry – you have run both online and offline businesses – which do you prefer?

That is a funny but good question I actually say this to people, “Once you’ve had an Internet business it almost spoils you for any other kind of business.” Because you really can’t imagine any other business.

Now I am involved in some offline businesses. I’m a property investor, and I enjoy property investment. But that requires substantial amounts of cash to be a property investor. And I’m a domain investor, which is sort of an online business, but to some extent it’s also an investment business rather than an online business. Which obviously again requires a fair amount of cash.

So for me it’s an easy question to answer. Of course I prefer online businesses. I like online businesses because one, you can set up tons and tons of online businesses with little or no money.

But as a little aside I would just make this comment. I have noticed a few of my online business friends who are making good money online are then investing that money offline to make even more money. Possibly with property investment or domain name investment for example.

Barry – you now now travel the world a lot, you are a member of several mastermind groups, you have spoken at seminars etc – tell us what that is like?

Well, it’s wonderful, Michael. It’s really fantastic. It’s part of my dream, again. It’s part of what I’ve focused on. Some people wouldn’t like to travel so much. I’m not suggesting everybody will want to do that. But I personally always have been a traveler.

My first career was in fact all about traveling. I left home when I was just 17 to join the Merchant Navy. In some places in the world it’s called the Merchant Marine. I sailed around the world as a Marine Engineer.

So I’ve always had a passion for visiting new places and doing new things. Certainly I’ve been able to do that as a result of my online success. I now travel the world quite a lot and enjoy it a lot. Every month I’m going somewhere, and every month I’m meeting new friends and making new connections.

I actually find that it makes me more creative. The more I travel, the more I’m inspired by things I see in other places.

“The World Is A Swipe File!

I’m not sure that everybody knows what a swipe file is, but basically a swipe file is a file where you store ideas / inspiration that you “swiped” – perhaps from an advert in the newspaper, or something you’ve seen online, a magazine ad, something on the TV, in the cinema. Wherever.

So one day you’re looking for inspiration, you’re looking for a bit of creative juice, if you like, to help you with your business. So you go to your swipe file, you pull it out, and you see what other people have done – and see if there is an application for that in your business?

Now of course you’re not going to copy exactly what they’ve done, but you will hopefully get some idea or inspiration that you can use in your business.

I have swiped loads of ideas as I travel. As you travel you’ll see things that work in one city or country and take that idea to another city or country.

This is great for entrepreneurs. In fact, as an entrepreneur, if you see something that’s working particularly well in one country, you might say, “Hey, can I be your representative in my home country?” Or a licensee, or you take it over and you actually expand the same idea in another country.

That’s the one of the advantages of being an online entrepreneur and traveling the world, and it’s certainly one that I recommend to people.

Barry I have heard you say this “Winners are Givers” – can you explain this a bit more?

One of the other things that I’m passionate about is the fact that I like to give back. Actually I believe personally we can give back by giving back of ourselves to help other people – not just charity.

I certainly know as I go back over my life there’s been many times in my life when people have helped me out. Now that doesn’t mean they’ve necessarily helped me out financially. But they’ve helped me out with a kind word or a bit of inspiration or an idea.

So inspiration is giving back, in my opinion. I’ve been inspired by many people. I had a friend, a gentleman who is no longer with us, who I met in the early ’90s, who was a profound influence on my business career, and in fact, on my business ethics. A gentleman called David Mills.

Nobody’s every heard of him, but that man left an everlasting impact on my life. There are a number of people like that.

And, of course you have got the more famous names like Tony Robbins, or Zig Ziglar, or Tom Hopkins who were big influences on my life. Another phenomenal influence on my life, and I believe a great giver, is a gentleman called Stewart Wilde.

Stuart Wilde wrote a book, which I actually read in 1990, called “The Trick To Money Is Having Some,” which is a cute little title, “The Trick To Money Is Having Some.” It is an amazing book about the ENERGY of money and attracting it into your life.

Barry Dunlop and Stuart Wilde – author of The Trick To Money Is Having Some

If you get the opportunity I would recommend to anybody out there to go on Amazon and buy The Trick To Money Is Having Some. First of all it will make you chuckle, and two, it will give you some insights about money energy and will help a lot of people.

Anyway, I appreciate that I am getting slightly off track here with what the question is because I believe in giving and giving back.

When I first was in business, and first went down the personal development route, a lot of people would say, “Barry get around winners, associate with winners.”

And you know there is a lot of truth in that. In fact, actually I still would agree, associate with winners. But recently I have been thinking about this, and actually I have made a more important distinction.

These days I would say: Get around people who are givers.

What I mean by this is that I have actually discovered that Winners are Givers.

Givers are people who will give inspiration to other people, something that I passionately believe in. I certainly believe that I give inspiration to other people. And I am hoping that people who will be listening to this interview, or reading this interview are inspired by it. Because I believe we have an obligation to give back.

That is one of the reasons why I am doing this interview with you Michael.

It is to give back, because I am very passionate about what you are doing and I am very passionate about young entrepreneurs. I am very passionate about helping people break free from restriction – especially financial restriction.

I like to help people experience their dreams – the dreams that probably they give up on and decide they can never achieve.

Associate with givers, but can I just make one thing clear. It does not mean that in GIVING, you give of yourself all day long.

If I didn’t watch out, there are plenty of people who would take all my energy and try and have me spend all day long trying to sort them out. I call them energy vampires. (Actually most of these energy vampires are more in need of Therapy than coaching)

I give back in relatively small amounts of chunks of energy at a time, and I continue to give back in relation to how quickly and how significantly people take action. If somebody comes to me for help, especially about an entrepreneurial issue, or something like that, and they come back to me next week and I discover they hadn’t taken action last week, they will probably find very quickly that I will withdraw the help.

I might give you the second attempt, or even the third attempt to try and help you out of whatever place you are stuck in, but truthfully it comes back to where we started in the beginning, just take action, you must take action.

Finally Barry – you know some people say you have been a huge help to me (and of course you have been) – but also some people imply that my entrepreneurial success is more down to you than me. Can you put the record straight

Good point Michael — especially these days because I am pretty sure Michael Dunlop is more famous online than Barry Dunlop.

That obviously is something that I am very proud of.

Michael – if I have given you a gift then I like to think that I have given you the gift to be yourself.

When I was at school / college and I wanted to be an entrepreneur and work for myself it really was frowned upon. You were going to get a career, you were going to go to university, pass all sort of exams and all that sort of thing and have things after your name. I just decided not to do it. I decided to be an entrepreneur.

I am not saying my parents actually discouraged me, I wouldn’t say they actively did that. But I don’t believe they were as enthusiastic about it as possibly, looking back on it now, as they should have been. I have always been enthusiastic about you being an entrepreneur, Michael. And possibly I have inspired you a little bit and maybe I have given you a little help along the way.

Michael – you amaze me with your ideas. I’d say 95 percent, maybe 99 percent of what you are doing is entirely of your own self, getting out there and doing it. You did what I mentioned earlier in this interview – You took ACTION — and you did not ask me or anyone else’s permission to do so! Well done.

Michael – I hope everybody is enjoying what I have had to say here. I know I like to talk and I imagine I have gone on for much longer than you needed me to go on for.

If people want to know more about me they should check out:

Web Links for Barry Dunlop:

=> BarryDunlop.com

=> Hashgraph Video

=> Midascode Ltd

The post Barry Dunlop, Maverick Entrepreneur and Master Salesman appeared first on How To Make Money Online.

I run the company I founded, Projects Abroad. We are the world’s largest gap year and volunteering organization, sending around 5,000 young people a year from developed countries to work for between a week and six months in developing countries. We have offices in over 30 countries, 350 staff worldwide and a turnover of about $18,000,000.

You are currently living what I call the Internet Lifestyle, what does the Internet Lifestyle mean to you?

I’m lucky to have a job which enables me to travel to do interesting and worthwhile work in exciting countries. I’m not sure that my lifestyle is really an Internet Lifestyle. The Internet is an important working tool for me as for most of us nowadays, but that’s about it. We have an IT Department though and they’re developing new things all the time.

Ever year your business allows you to travel to dozens of countries around the world, what is it like working on the road?

I usually try and get through several good books when I’m travelling, especially at airports and on long journeys; you go mad if you try to work all the time. Also, you need to sleep a lot because otherwise the jet-lag gets to you. Of course, I do work on the road as well – I’m answering you from India after all, and nowadays in business we just expect to be able to communicate with everyone from everywhere – it’s the single big business change of the last two decades.

The Internet Lifestyle allows you to work any hours you like, what’s the biggest benefit of this for you?

I’m not sure about this. You still have to work basically when other people work, and I’m not one for working lots of evenings and weekends unless there’s something major happening.

The great thing about your business model is that you make money by helping people, what’s been the best result of the influence of your company in these gap year countries?

It’s desperately difficult to choose one thing. I suppose you’d have to generalize and say something about brining people and cultures together which I think is massively important in the 21st century. But I’ll also pick our wildlife reserve in the Amazon rainforest, our clinic in a South Indian village, and our housing project for villagers in rural Ghana.

What would you say is the biggest single reason for your success?

We respect our customers, the young people who pay us to work to help others and for their own self-development; they’re brilliant, exciting and interesting people, and we try to meet their requirements for work, try to fit in with the time they have available, and so on . And we respect our partners in the developing world. We really spend our time trying to match the skills, aims and interests of our volunteers to the needs of our partners. We care about what we do and we believe in its value.

You are known as the authority website in the Gap Year niche. What advice would you give a new webmasters to dominating their niche?

Think about your customers all the time. Empathise with them!

I understand that you have been offered a large amount of money for your company, how come you turned it down and retired early?

What am I going to do? Play golf all day? I think I can double or treble what we’re doing in the next few years.

What advice would you give to people just starting out with an online business?

Know your customers. Concentrate on work that you enjoy doing. Make sure you leave enough time to do non-work activity – sport, reading, drinking …

If you could go back in a time machine to the time when you were just getting started, what advice would you give yourself regarding making money online?

Remember that you’ll make mistakes which will cost time and money. It’s a racing certainty! So charge enough money to make sure you have enough reserves to carry on regardless.

What is the best advice you have ever been given?

One fundamental one:

Always remember your mission. Believe!

And one other:

When you start to do well, don’t relax. Innovate!

Thanks very much for the interview, Have you any plans (personal or business) that you can share with us about your future plans / goals / lifetime goals?

Sure. We are always doing a lot of new things. This year, we’re starting in Japan, Israel and Sweden for recruiting volunteers and in Tanzania and Fiji as destinations. We’ve opened a community centre in Sri Lanka, a mobile clinic in Mongolia, a human rights centre in Cape Town – and lots of other things. We keep innovating. This afternoon, we’re working on our new online magazine here in India..

My lifetime goal is to have done some things that have improved people’s lives and which I have enjoyed doing. I don’t want to sound sanctimonious but I’ve got enough money. If we make some profit in a good year, that’s great and we’ll re-invest most of it and keep a little back as a reserve. I like living comfortably but I have absolutely no ambition to own a Ferrari or to swathe my wife in diamonds – though she looks nice in one or two small diamonds …

The post Peter Slowe Interview – Running the World’s Largest Gap Year Organization appeared first on How To Make Money Online.