Posted by:
Clayton Makepeace
April 12, 2010
Issue #904
Dear Business-Builder,
My dad was old-school all the way. As a male chauvinist of epic proportions, he firmly believed that men were created to give orders and that women and children were created to take them.
And because Mom was an old-fashioned gal, she was pretty much OK with that.
And by “pretty much,” I really mean, “NOT AT ALL.”
Sure – she’d follow Dad’s lead so long as she agreed with him. When she didn’t agree, Mom used what she called “psychology” on him, exercising copious amounts of persuasion and a fair share of stealth tactics to get her way.
And every once-in-a-while, when all else failed, she’d get “that look” in her eye. There would be a certain inflection in her voice and a set to her jaw that made it clear to everyone – Dad included – who was really in charge. (What can I say? She was a redhead!)
I called that look “The Eye of The Tiger” – and whenever I saw it, I knew I was just one false move away from seeing a mild-mannered, middle-aged minister’s wife go ninja on my ass.
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Posted by:
Clayton Makepeace
November 23, 2009
Issue #805
Dear Business-Builder,
I’m getting a little bit worried
about this whole “copywriting guru” thing
Seems like every time I open my browser and Google “copywriting” or “marketing,” my b.s. detector begins screaming like a banshee these days.
You can’t throw a rock on the Web without hitting a self-proclaimed marketing or copywriting expert …
- Guys and gals nobody ever heard of preening as “legendary” marketers or copywriters without presenting even a shred of evidence that any client ever even hired them — let alone that they’ve ever created a single winner …
- Folks who have never promoted anything but their own products who pass themselves off as authorities …
- “C” and “D” level copywriters who really should shut the hell up, go to school themselves and hit a few out of the park before sharing their “pearls of wisdom” …
- Folks who don’t even DO marketing and couldn’t tell you what’s working and what isn’t — right now, today — if you held a gun to their heads.
And — surprise, surprise — every blessed one of them has something to sell you. And more often than not, they charge truly outrageous prices for their products.
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Posted by:
Clayton Makepeace
November 20, 2009
Issue #473
Dear Business-Builder,
You could write faster.
Scratch that: You SHOULD write faster. Especially your first few drafts.
Because the quicker you get a solid first draft into your greedy clutches, the more time you’ll have to get to draft #21.
You know; the draft that actually makes your copy good.
Plus, as a general rule, the faster you write, the more money you make. Write twice as fast; make double the money.
Simple — right?
So are you ready to get greasy-fast?
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Posted by:
Clayton Makepeace
July 17, 2009
Issue #508
Dear Business-Builder,
Not long ago, The Redhead and I hopped into the 911 and went tear-assing down the mountain to Atlanta for Carline Anglade-Cole’s Copywriting Boot Camp.
The object of the exercise was twofold: 1) To spend an all-too-rare evening with Carline Anglade-Cole and her amazing family and 2) To rub elbows with a gaggle of Total Package readers who happened to be in attendance.
We had a ball.
Not only did I get lots of nice, warm hugs from my friend and her daughters Milan and Tiara … a manly hug and a slap on the back from Mick … and a hearty handshake from their son Chatham … I also got to meet a bunch of other family members (all drop-dead gorgeous, of course).
Plus, I also got to spend time with some of our readers. And as you might expect, to answer some of the most pressing questions they have on their minds now. Since we also get these questions in our feedback box almost daily, I figure it might be a good thing to tell you what I told them.
For instance, one attendee who was still training to become a copywriter was already thinking ahead …
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Posted by:
Clayton Makepeace
May 28, 2009
Issue #483
Dear Business-Builder,
The great investor Warren Buffet has a net worth of about $62 billion. That’s sixty-two thousand million dollars.
If your net worth is $10 million, Warren is 6,200 times richer than you.
If you’re worth $1 million, he has 62,000 times more money than you do.
If your net worth is $100,000, Mr. Buffet is 620,000 times richer than you are.
There are people whose businesses grow a hundred, maybe even a thousand times or more faster than yours does. For every new customer you attract, they attract 100, 1,000, maybe even 10,000 or more.
There are people who look, feel and perform ten, twenty, even thirty years younger than you do …
Who have far greater success in love and relationships (OK – maybe just in sex) than you do …
Who live better for less, have greener lawns, clearer skin, more hair, thinner waists and smaller butts, better-behaved or more successful kids, more friends or are more successful in some other area of life than you are.
Sorry – but you know it’s true. And no, I’m not trying to depress you – just trying to make a very important point.
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