Did you catch this?

In the June, 2001, issue of his "No B.S. Marketing Letter," Dan Kennedy reported that one of his Gold Members had sent out the exact same sales letter by both email and snail mail ... to the very same mailing list. -- Guess what? -- The paper & ink version out pulled the email version 3 to 1 ... on top of the response from the email.

As I have often said ...

You can make a fortune in mailorder without ever doing any marketing on the Internet - BUT - you can't make a dime on the Internet without knowing, understanding & using mailorder marketing methods.

Just shows to go ya ...

Jim


The Cold-Blooded Truth about Mailorder!

Hi Jim,

Fantastic point you make, and a great reminder. So often, we get caught up in "tactics, techniques, tricks & strategies," that we forget about the underlying fundamentals of marketing that have worked for over a century, and will still work next century!

I attended Kennedy's conference in April in Phoenix, and he touched on this very topic. We also touched on a related topic, which is very powerful, which is the concept of "object mailing."

Some of the attendees reported incredible results by inserting a relevant object into their direct, offline pieces to get their prospects' attention!

Thanks again for the reminder. I'd love to discuss marketing principles any day.

Best,

Jesse

> In the June, 2001, issue of his "No
> B.S. Marketing Letter," Dan Kennedy
> reported that one of his Gold Members had
> sent out the exact same sales letter by both
> email and snail mail ... to the very same
> mailing list. -- Guess what? -- The paper
> & ink version out pulled the email
> version 3 to 1 ... on top of the response
> from the email.

> As I have often said ...

> You can make a fortune in mailorder without
> ever doing any marketing on the Internet -
> BUT - you can't make a dime on the Internet
> without knowing, understanding & using
> mailorder marketing methods.

> Just shows to go ya ...

> Jim

> In the June, 2001, issue of his "No
> B.S. Marketing Letter," Dan Kennedy
> reported that one of his Gold Members had
> sent out the exact same sales letter by both
> email and snail mail ... to the very same
> mailing list. -- Guess what? -- The paper
> & ink version out pulled the email
> version 3 to 1 ... on top of the response
> from the email.

> As I have often said ...

> You can make a fortune in mailorder without
> ever doing any marketing on the Internet -
> BUT - you can't make a dime on the Internet
> without knowing, understanding & using
> mailorder marketing methods.

> Just shows to go ya ...

Hi Jim,

Thanks for that example. It seems to me that some of the most successful people online are those who came from mail order marketing....

By the way, I've found Jim Straw's products some of the best I've come across anywhere....

As many here know, my background is in science, as a physics academic. If I need a piece of knowledge in physics, I have no problem finding it in a book or journal somewhere....

BUT, I've realized that commercially valuable information is often different. People just don't publish commercially valuable information as readily as they publish other kinds of info. The reason why is that many people can make more money by using it themselves, by applying it, and at the same time hiding the information from their competition!

Which is why some of the products Jim Straw produces are priceless.... They give you solid, real, honest-to-goodness money-making information, things that have been done and which worked and were profitable, with all the info given which you need to make it work. That's not as common as you might think (with all the entrepreneurial books out there)....

So, thanks Jim, I'm grateful to you for having provided all this great info in your products, for us beginners to feed our minds with (and make a little cash too).... :)

- Dien




Jim Straw's Power Tools for Entrepreneurs....

Hi Jesse!

Jesse, your posts about leverage below (such as this one and also this one) have really made me think....

Jesse, is this how you understand using the concept of leverage? Let me first give an example....

First, what is a lever? A lever is a tool you can use to allow yourself to (for example) lift much bigger weights than you normally could....

So, for example, by yourself, using only your arms, you may not be able to lift a big boulder. You might be able to lift a small rock -- but not a big boulder, because it's too heavy.

HOWEVER, if you use a lever, you can use that leverage to lift a much heavier object than you could normally....

The way I see it, the way almost EVERYONE works is like trying to lift the boulder directly. They want to lift the big boulder -- that is, make a lot of wealth -- but they try to do it directly with NO leverage! No wonder they can't do it!

Those, however, who know about the concept of leverage use it.... They use leverage, of one kind or another, to easily lift that big boulder (or make those big profits)....

To better explain this, what I mean is that the average person, including the average small businessperson, is selling their time, and how much money they make is directly related to how much time they spend working. This is the connection you have to break!

It's NOT generally possible to break this as an employee. Practically the only way to break this connection between money and time is as a business person....

Now, on to forms of leverage. For example, Jesse, you mentioned your employees.... Employees are a form of leverage, by using employees you can accomplish more.

For example, let's take someone who starts a lawn-mowing business.... How much money they can make is limited by how much time they can spend mowing lawns. If (say) they charge $20 per hour to mow a lawn, they can make a maximum of about $800 per week (for a 40-hour work week)....

However, what if they are able to get more jobs than they can physically handle? One thing they could do is then employ someone -- say at $15 per hour -- to mow lawns for them.... This gives them leverage. Suddenly, they're no longer limited to just how many hours they can work. In fact, the only limit is how many jobs they can get mowing lawns, and how many good people they can hire! They've started to break the link between their income and their time....

Jesse, now, your post really made me think of the following.... If you do something, and it's profitable (whether small or large), then you can often use leverage (of one kind or another) to increase that profit, so that it becomes a large profit. For example, in our lawn mowing business above, one person working by himself or herself can only make about $800 per week, which is about $40,000 per year.

Most people, if they started this business, would be stuck there. They would just earn that $40,000, year in, year out.

However, someone who knows about leverage knows then that, since they *are* making a profit, that they can use leverage to increase that profit.... Such as by taking on employees.

(Another way is to start a franchise, where you run the franchise which gets the jobs, which you then give to the franchisees, and you can guarantee to them a minimum income per week.... This is how one large lawn mowing franchise business I know of in Australia -- called Jim's Mowing -- operates.... People pay to own a franchise, and for that they get a guaranteed weekly income, and they don't have to look for lawn mowing jobs, because the jobs are given to them.... Jim Penman, who started Jim's mowing, started his own lawn mowing business in the way I described above. However, when he got more jobs than he could handle, he would sell them to others with their own small lawn mowing businesses.... Eventually, this grew into a large franchise business.)

What I'm trying to get at is that if you are making a profit without using any leverage at all, you can probably almost always increase it through leverage, of one kind or another....

There are many types of leverage. Taking on employees is only one kind.... Using commissioned salespeople is another kind. There's also capital leverage, by borrowing money or using the money of investors. And other types of leverage too....

The thing about leverage, however, is that with some forms of leverage you could also be increasing your risk, so you'd have to take that into account. Other types of leverage, though, it seems to me, can decrease your risk....

However, if you are a small, profitable business, then the way to grow is to think about what kinds of leverage can I use, to help break the link between money earned and time spent?....

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this!

- Dien

Hi Dien,

Thanks for taking the time to post such detailed and lucid thoughts on this fascinating and important topic. Some comments below, threaded into your message:

> Hi Jesse!

> Jesse, your posts about leverage below (such
> as this one and also this one ) have
> really made me think....

> Jesse, is this how you understand using the
> concept of leverage? Let me first give an
> example....

> First, what is a lever? A lever is a tool
> you can use to allow yourself to (for
> example) lift much bigger weights than you
> normally could....

> So, for example, by yourself, using only
> your arms, you may not be able to lift a big
> boulder. You might be able to lift a small
> rock -- but not a big boulder, because it's
> too heavy.

> HOWEVER, if you use a lever, you can use
> that leverage to lift a much heavier
> object than you could normally....

> The way I see it, the way almost EVERYONE
> works is like trying to lift the boulder
> directly. They want to lift the big boulder
> -- that is, make a lot of wealth -- but they
> try to do it directly with NO leverage! No
> wonder they can't do it!

*** Great example, and your definition is spot on! It's certainly no coincidence that the first 5 letters of leverage are LEVER :)

What's interesting is that most everyone would use a lever to lift a boulder, or a jack to raise a car. So without even necessarily knowing it, they are applying principles of leverage into their lives. Yet when it comes to leveraging oneself from a time and/or business standpoint, very few people know what to do, let alone take action on it.

Is this because they lack intelligence or motivation? Not at all! It's actually very similar to Kiyosaki's assertions about money not being taught in school, and people therefore just doing what is 'conventional', or accepting what they learn from their parents, etc.

And 'conventional wisdom' dictates that the way to earn money is through a job. A job would be an example of linear income -- trading time for money. But linear income is not limited to employees. Many highly skilled and respected professionals such as doctors, lawyers, and accountants, also earn linear income. Remember, no matter how high your hourly rate, you are still not leveraging yourself unless you create ways to get paid when you are not working.

Don't get me wrong...I have the highest respect for those who have a job, and carry it out with skill and enthusiasm. Leverage is not necessarily for everyone. But it sure can open up some amazing possibilities. More on that in a moment, below some of your other comments...

> Those, however, who know about the concept
> of leverage use it.... They use leverage, of
> one kind or another, to easily lift that big
> boulder (or make those big profits)....

> To better explain this, what I mean is that
> the average person, including the average
> small businessperson, is selling their time
> , and how much money they make is directly
> related to how much time they spend
> working. This is the connection you have to
> break!

> It's NOT generally possible to break this as
> an employee. Practically the only way to
> break this connection between money and time
> is as a business person....

> Now, on to forms of leverage. For example,
> Jesse, you mentioned your employees....
> Employees are a form of leverage, by using
> employees you can accomplish more.

> For example, let's take someone who starts a
> lawn-mowing business.... How much money they
> can make is limited by how much time they
> can spend mowing lawns. If (say) they charge
> $20 per hour to mow a lawn, they can make a
> maximum of about $800 per week (for a
> 40-hour work week)....

> However, what if they are able to get more
> jobs than they can physically handle? One
> thing they could do is then employ someone
> -- say at $15 per hour -- to mow lawns for
> them.... This gives them leverage. Suddenly,
> they're no longer limited to just how many
> hours they can work. In fact, the only limit
> is how many jobs they can get mowing lawns,
> and how many good people they can hire!
> They've started to break the link between
> their income and their time....

> Jesse, now, your post really made me think
> of the following.... If you do something,
> and it's profitable (whether small or
> large), then you can often use leverage (of
> one kind or another) to increase that
> profit, so that it becomes a large profit.
> For example, in our lawn mowing business
> above, one person working by himself or
> herself can only make about $800 per week,
> which is about $40,000 per year.

> Most people, if they started this business,
> would be stuck there. They would just earn
> that $40,000, year in, year out.

> However, someone who knows about leverage
> knows then that, since they *are* making a
> profit, that they can use leverage to
> increase that profit.... Such as by taking
> on employees.

*** Again, right on the mark. If I had to choose one single quote, to sum up the power of leverage, it would be the following from Billionaire J. Paul Getty:

"I'd rather have 1% of the efforts of 100 men, than 100% of my own efforts."

This goes right along with your comments about having employees. Paying employees, or subcontractors, to carry out certain tasks for you, is certainly a viable and basic model for creating leverage.

But here's something that's not the most comfortable point to discuss, but extremely important:

If you have an employee working for you, you have to calculate your return on investment on that employee, just as you would on any ad or marketing campaign. This may sound somewhat cold and callous, but the truth is that you can only have people working for you if it is profitable. It is incumbent upon you, as a business owner, to calculate exactly what each employee is worth, as compared to what you are paying them.

Now getting back to your point about "breaking the link between time and money," here's another very interesting fact to consider.

The entire *concept of creating info-products* was spawned by the principle of LEVERAGE!

Think about it for a moment. Why do people create their own products? It's so they can take their expertise, and be paid for it up to infinity, rather than be paid only for the number of hours they are able to work. It goes hand in hand with your lawnmowing example. An info product creator is limited only by the number of units that he or she can sell.

> (Another way is to start a franchise, where
> you run the franchise which gets the jobs,
> which you then give to the franchisees, and
> you can guarantee to them a minimum income
> per week.... This is how one large lawn
> mowing franchise business I know of in
> Australia -- called Jim's Mowing --
> operates.... People pay to own a franchise,
> and for that they get a guaranteed weekly
> income, and they don't have to look for lawn
> mowing jobs, because the jobs are given to
> them.... Jim Penman, who started Jim's
> mowing, started his own lawn mowing business
> in the way I described above. However, when
> he got more jobs than he could handle, he
> would sell them to others with their own
> small lawn mowing businesses.... Eventually,
> this grew into a large franchise business.)

> What I'm trying to get at is that if you are
> making a profit without using any leverage
> at all, you can probably almost always
> increase it through leverage, of one kind or
> another....

*** Bingo! You hit the nail on the head. Virtually any *non-leveraged* activity can be translated into a highly leveraged revenue stream. This is the entire thrust of what I aim to do on a daily basis for ourselves and our clients.

> There are many types of leverage. Taking on
> employees is only one kind.... Using
> commissioned salespeople is another kind.
> There's also capital leverage, by borrowing
> money or using the money of investors. And
> other types of leverage too....

*** This is one area of leverage where I'd be extremely interested in expanding discussions. I'd love to hear your thoughts (or anyone else's) on what investment vehicles, real estate ventures, or anything of the like, produce the greatest return, or highest leverage, and why.

> The thing about leverage, however, is that
> with some forms of leverage you could also
> be increasing your risk, so you'd have to
> take that into account. Other types of
> leverage, though, it seems to me, can
> decrease your risk....

*** Here, I can only speak from personal experience. And I can say without question that the more leveraged I've been, the LESS risk, or exposure I have had. A large reason for this is because leverage, in many ways is synonymous with diversification. The more leveraged you are, the more people, ideas, documents, money, etc. you have working for you at any given time. Therefore, you are not solely dependent on any one income producer, as you are with linear income.

Thanks again, Dien, for your input on this topic. It's certainly one that I'd be interested in continuing to talk about!

All the best to you and your mom...

-Jesse

> However, if you are a small, profitable
> business, then the way to grow is to think
> about what kinds of leverage can I use, to
> help break the link between money earned and
> time spent? ....

> I'd love to hear your thoughts on this!

> - Dien

Dien,

One of the biggest ways the info-product producers seem to be able to leverage themselves is through an affiliate program. For instance, Jim Straw has offered an affiliate program whereby you can simply post a link to Jim's site with an id tag, and any sales generated from that link will earn you a commission. (I think you are already one of Jim's affiliates...)

Cory Rudl, Allen Says, Ken Evoy, Marlon Sanders...just about any of the "names" you can think of on the Internet have large afiliate programs. They not only leverage themselves by producing a product which they sell over and over again--they extend that leverage with an affiliate program. They "share the wealth".

The application of the lever is certainly something to consider. The same amount of "work" applied to a project using a "lever" can produce a much larger result than a singular effort applied to the project alone.

There are several software programs available for adding an affiliate program to a project...can you or anyone else recommend the "best" one?

Be blessed,

JDB

P.S. I'm glad your mother is better. I will keep her in my prayers.


Leverage your sales efforts with auctions...

Hello All!

Wow, this (and other recent) discussions on Leverage have certainly gotten me thinking!

I also had this vision, reading the interaction between Jesse and Dien, of you two having a deep discussion on business principles in a meeting somewhere in Hawaii...hey, its nice to have a vision to go towards, right? Seeing as you both appreciate Hawaii so much! What could be leveraged there?! *Putting on my thinking cap*

Anyway, I digress!

One of the ways I use Leverage actually combines some of the lines of thinking I have been integrating into my work through a piece from Gordon's Pictogrigm's on Finances. Looking at RESOURCES differently, such as TIME and MONEY and the "Stuff we Possess right NOW to create more abundance."

As a writer, I take each piece that I write and use it in as many different forms as possible and make as many things from it as possible, thus leveraging a one-time-exercise into a much larger possibility.

For example: whenever I write a Personal Development article, I publish it first in my ezine, Discovering Your Passion. Then I send it out to other publishers for use on their websites, ezines, etc. I also use the content of my article in my individual coaching sessions, teleclasses or audio-programs. I can use an article as a foundation of a chapter for a book or course. My tips articles are now being woven into a tips booklet.

My articles also are one way I promote my services. They brand me. They have brought me opportunities to speak, to appear in publicity pieces, and I have made COUNTLESS connections with people ALL the world over from people who have read my work and connected with me from there.

This week, as I have had a rather challenging time emotionally, my mailbox has continued to be filled with email from people who write thanking me for the impact my writing has had in their lives. Folks I have never met all over this planet tell me that what I have written has made a powerdul difference for them. This then creates MORE leverage for me because it provides fuel for me to keep on keeping on....

Continuing the thinking process over here...

With Purpose and Passion,

JULIE JORDAN SCOTT




Dare to Discover Your Passion, Decide to Live Your Destiny!

Hey Julie!

Thanks for joining this scintillating discussion on Leverage! Just be warned that fully utilizing the power of leverage, or even talking about it for that matter, can get your blood boiling, heart pumping, and all sorts of other fun stuff :)

With that important disclaimer, I proceed :)

Great visual you had about Hawaii. My mind has already transformed me back to Maui where I was just a 2 short months ago (wistful sigh). Dien, what's your favorite spot on Hawaii? Isn't it just complete paradise over there?

In fact, as I alluded to in my last email, real estate is one of the most proven and powerful forms of leverage out there. So I'm sure you won't be surprised to hear that my mind is seriously gravitating back to the Maui condo concept we discussed...

Anyway, YOU do indeed practice leverage in your work, with great skill and precision. Articles have this amazing ability to take on a life of their own, and yours are certainly no exception. Now if we can just productize your '21 days' program as we've discussed, it'll be like leverage on steriods :)

Julie, thanks again for joining this discussion! I welcome additional thoughts from you, Dien, John, or any other "Closet Leveragers" out there!

All the best,

-Jesse

> Hello All!

> Wow, this (and other recent) discussions on
> Leverage have certainly gotten me thinking!

> I also had this vision, reading the
> interaction between Jesse and Dien, of you
> two having a deep discussion on business
> principles in a meeting somewhere in
> Hawaii...hey, its nice to have a vision to
> go towards, right? Seeing as you both
> appreciate Hawaii so much! What could be
> leveraged there?! *Putting on my thinking
> cap*

> Anyway, I digress!

> One of the ways I use Leverage actually
> combines some of the lines of thinking I
> have been integrating into my work through a
> piece from Gordon's Pictogrigm's on
> Finances. Looking at RESOURCES differently,
> such as TIME and MONEY and the "Stuff
> we Possess right NOW to create more
> abundance."

> As a writer, I take each piece that I write
> and use it in as many different forms as
> possible and make as many things from it as
> possible, thus leveraging a
> one-time-exercise into a much larger
> possibility.

> For example: whenever I write a Personal
> Development article, I publish it first in
> my ezine, Discovering Your Passion. Then I
> send it out to other publishers for use on
> their websites, ezines, etc. I also use the
> content of my article in my individual
> coaching sessions, teleclasses or
> audio-programs. I can use an article as a
> foundation of a chapter for a book or
> course. My tips articles are now being woven
> into a tips booklet.

> My articles also are one way I promote my
> services. They brand me. They have brought
> me opportunities to speak, to appear in
> publicity pieces, and I have made COUNTLESS
> connections with people ALL the world over
> from people who have read my work and
> connected with me from there.

> This week, as I have had a rather
> challenging time emotionally, my mailbox has
> continued to be filled with email from
> people who write thanking me for the impact
> my writing has had in their lives. Folks I
> have never met all over this planet tell me
> that what I have written has made a powerdul
> difference for them. This then creates MORE
> leverage for me because it provides fuel for
> me to keep on keeping on....

> Continuing the thinking process over here...

> With Purpose and Passion,

> JULIE JORDAN SCOTT

Hi John,

> One of the biggest ways the info-product
> producers seem to be able to leverage
> themselves is through an affiliate program.
> For instance, Jim Straw has offered an
> affiliate program whereby you can simply
> post a link to Jim's site with an id tag,
> and any sales generated from that link will
> earn you a commission. (I think you are
> already one of Jim's affiliates...)

Yes! It's true.... Many big online successes seem to use affiliate programs....

I see affiliate programs as an online version of a commissioned sales force.... Having more people out there selling your stuff on commission can certainly help with sales and profits (and is a great form of leverage).

> The application of the lever is certainly
> something to consider. The same amount of
> "work" applied to a project using
> a "lever" can produce a much
> larger result than a singular effort applied
> to the project alone.

Yes! I agree with you here! :)

This whole discussion has certainly gotten me thinking about using leverage in a greater basis in my own activities.... At the moment, I only use a little bit of leverage, but I need to think and work at it more.... These discussions have certainly helped me realize that it is almost impossible to earn an highly above-average income without using leverage!

> There are several software programs
> available for adding an affiliate program to
> a project...can you or anyone else recommend
> the "best" one?

You can "do it yourself" with your own software, which may be the best option if you can accept credit cards already. I must admit I haven't looked at the software to do this myself, though, yet.... (Any good suggestions?)

However, there are also programs where you can "outsource" your affiliate program. The company will handle everything, all you do is promote, pay your fees, and deposit your checks.... :)

One option is Clickbank -- www.clickbank.com . I've used Clickbank to take orders before, and I've had no trouble. They've been around for a while now.... However, you have to pay a joining fee to use them, but apart from that you pay them a percentage (rather than a flat fee).

Another option is the Affiliate Tracking Network -- www.affiliatetracking.com . They charge flat rates I believe. Another advantage here is that you can change the percentage you pay each individual affiliate, which permits some negotiation and flexibility.... I believe this is what Yanik Silver uses for his affiliate program.... It's a good idea to compare the two options (at least)....

What other software or companies providing affiliate tracking services can you use? (The floor is open to suggestions! :) )

> P.S. I'm glad your mother is better. I will
> keep her in my prayers.

Thanks John, it means much to me.... :)

- Dien