Posted by:
Clayton Makepeace
November 10, 2008
Issue #542
Dear Business-Builder,
So let me tell you a true story …
The year was 1976 and life was NOT good in America — and it wasn’t just because Disco was king and we suddenly found ourselves sporting silly-looking Leisure Suits.
America’s name was being dragged through the dirt world-wide. In the preceding 24 months, Richard Nixon had resigned in disgrace and Saigon had fallen to the Vietcong.
Our new president, Gerald Ford — the only man in history to serve both as vice president and president of the United States without winning a single election — was proving himself to be an affable dunce.
Our nation was still reeling from the effects of a vicious two-year recession. Unemployment was actually worse than it is today: Nearly 8% of our workforce was out of work.
As if to add insult to injury, inflation rates — our cost of living — had soared more than 17% in the preceding 24 months. Our money had lost nearly one-fifth of its buying power in just two years — and our president’s only solution was the idiotic proposal that we all wear lapel pins proclaiming “WIN” (“Whip Inflation Now”).
Then, just when most investors thought things couldn’t get worse … you guessed it: Things got worse.
Unsurprisingly, given the laundry list of woes just cited, millions of Americans were eager for “change.” So in November of 1976, they elected Jimmy Carter as the 39th president of the United States. And just to make sure the new president would have no problem getting his economic programs passed into law, they also preserved his party’s majority in both houses of Congress.
Now, you’d expect any fiscally conservative entrepreneur to be deeply worried … even depressed about the future at a time like that. But four men — Howard Ruff, Tom Phillips, Bob Kephart and Jim Blanchard — were not depressed.
Instead, they rolled up their sleeves and laid the groundwork for what would soon be massive personal fortunes.
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Posted by:
Daniel Levis
October 22, 2008
Issue #529
Dear Web Business-Builder,
People often ask me:
“Is there a method for getting inside the heads of a target market? You talk about the importance of understanding a target market’s desires, fears, frustrations, beliefs, and so forth … but how do I do that?”
This is a great question …
EVERYONE marketing online should be asking it. So I’ll give you my answer today …
Some marketers seem to be psychic. They just seem know what people want. I’m not one of them. And in my experience, most entrepreneurs are not.
Most of the business people I’ve worked with, even IF they’ve been working with a particular market for years, generally DO NOT have a good handle on what’s going on inside people’s heads when those people are online trying to solve their problems.
One of the biggest mistakes a freelance copywriter can possibly make is to take what a client says about their target market at face value. I say this from personal experience.
Your clients are either too close to their own businesses to be objective, or they just don’t understand the online dynamic.
There is a lot of guess marketing going on. And guessing probably isn’t going to give you the stellar results you’re looking for.
See here’s the deal. To sell effectively online, it’s essential you demonstrate extraordinary empathy for the people you’re selling to. He who demonstrates the most empathy wins.
And having an accurate read on your target market’s desires, fears, frustrations, and beliefs is the foundation on which that empathy is built.
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Posted by:
Carline Anglade-Cole
October 14, 2008
Issue #523
My husband and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary in an untraditional way. We decided to make October 8th a day of new experiences.
We began our day by visiting the “Dialog in the Dark” exhibit in Atlanta. Have you seen it?
It’s a very popular exhibit in over 22 countries around the world, but Atlanta is the first U.S. city to showcase this amazing experience.
For over an hour – you experience what it’s like to be visually impaired. A blind tour guide – and the cane you’re handed – help you “see” what it’s like to go through normal, every day activities as a blind person.
It was, quite honestly, an “eye-opening” experience.
Our guide, Derrick, showed us how to use our other senses to help compensate for our vision loss.
I don’t want to spoil the experience by telling you all the details – because if you’re planning to visit Atlanta, GA – make sure you include this exhibit as a MUST SEE (yes, pun intended).
In fact, here’s the website address with all their info – check it out: www.dialogtickets.com
Carline & Mick (center) with Scean & Derrick, their visually-impaired guides.
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Posted by:
Clayton Makepeace
October 13, 2008
Issue #522
Dear Business-Builder,
Did you know I can read your mind?
Yeah, I can.
Right now, for instance, you’re doing exactly what the headline above says you shouldn’t be doing.
You’re thinking worst case scenarios …
You’re thinking, “What will I do if this economy kills my job … or my client’s company? How will I pay the phone and utility bills? My mortgage, car and credit card payments? Will I wind up broke and homeless? What will I do then?”
Or if you own a business, you’re thinking “What if sales get so bad, I have to begin laying off my friends?” And worse: “What if I have to fire myself and close my doors for good? What will become of my family then?”
OK — so I can’t really read your mind. It’s just that I know that millions of other Americans are thinking about and worrying about the very same things right now.
And you’re right to. This economy stinks. It stinks more with every passing week. And tragically, millions of Americans — and millions of others around the globe — are already living your worst nightmare.
But there is a solution. And that solution is to pile up as much cash as you can as quickly as you can, beginning right now.
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Posted by:
Wendy Makepeace
October 6, 2008
Issue #517
Dear Business-Builder,
If you’re wondering where Clayton is, I dragged him all the way to Maryland for a wedding this weekend.
That’s ten hours in a car – both ways.
I even made him buy a new suit. Thankfully, he was a good sport about it.
Anyway, he didn’t have the time to write anything for The Total Package today.
But that’s okay, because I’ve been wanting to talk to you about something important …
The Total Package is growing like wildfire, and we’re looking to hire some freelancers to help us grow even bigger and faster!
This is your chance to work with Clayton and his team in a hands-on manner.
And it’s the opportunity-of-a-lifetime for anyone who wants to show us and the world what you’re made of.
So bring your ‘A’ game, and sell us on why we should hire you.
Here’s what we’re looking for:
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