Ask me in March, cause April gets busy.

[MikePT]

Hi Gordon, I have another question for you.

Your top books on these topics?

- Starting/Growing/Managing/ a Mail Order Business selling all types of products;

- Advertising;

- Business in general;

Thanks.

MikePT

[GordonJ]

...the reader's awareness. In other words, beginners wouldn't get much from advanced stuff, likewise, experienced people would be bored by beginning information.

As for any BUSINESS. I think a foundation of understanding what a business is would help most. Even those who just jump in and get started and make some money, may wind up in a place they don't want to be in.

Some may knowingly swim in swamps, Perry Belcher comes to mind, and others may plead ignorance, the "didn't know".

So, a beginner should at least have an understanding of what a business is and what the obligations of that business are, ie, TAXES.

Perry Belcher was forced to forfeit his assets, others, like Gary Halbert went to federal prison, and still others, like Kevin Trudeau are still incarcerated...all of this because of either poor business practices or knowingly operating outside the laws.

Maybe a basic business book, like this one:

https://www.amazon.com/Starting-Busi...dp_ob_image_bk

Accounting can be an issue for many, and online businesses, like affiliate marketing for example, seldom address this. I remember a Warrior who soared to 100k a year, then in a matter of months, went down to less than 10k a year, imagine that accounting nightmare, eh?

Then there is the law. Another area oft overlooked.

A REAL business would have a lawyer and accountant at hand, not employees at first but for consultation. It is an expense that many wannabee business owners ignore.

My suggestions would then depend on what the person brings to the table with them. How much do they know? How much have they done? What experience do they have?

I know of at least 10 people who started a remote direct marketing business after being employees at SCI for awhile, being exposed to the daily activities and seeing first hand all the moving parts bodes one well to strike out on their own.

A beginner might do the one above. I still suggest 7 Steps to Freedom II, the math hasn't changed, his founder's story has a lot of insight.

Simple understanding MAILORDER would be Melvin Powers' HOW TO GET RICH IN MAIL ORDER. Basic, simple book. Good for motivation.

A more advanced Mailorder book would be SUCCESSFUL DIRECT MARKETING METHODS by Bob Stone and Rob Jacobs.

Books that I have found helpful were: from Jeffrey Lant: THE UNABASHED SELF PROMOTER & MONEY MAKING MARKETING. I am a Lant fan (of his writing).

IF someone was NEW to the jewelry business, I might suggest:

https://amzn.to/3qqDkck

My answers, like always, begin with INTENT. Once I know what that is, then I could make better recommendations, right?

Advertising would depend on the market, how it reacts now, what it does, who is doing well, then I might suggest one follow the successful examples.

Having seen the evidence; Three hundred million dollar companies, thousands of products, BILLIONS of dollars sold...it is hard to convince me there is something better than the NPGS formula for business.

The problem with it is, it requires some deep drilling down into it. To get to a 40 on a product is not an easy thing to do, although a 35 could give one a lot of profits.

Gordon

Originally Posted by MikePT

Hi Gordon, I have another question for you.

Your top books on these topics?

- Starting/Growing/Managing/ a Mail Order Business selling all types of products;

- Advertising;

- Business in general;

Thanks.

MikePT

[GordonJ]

There are many ways to analyze a business.

I start at the TRANSACTION. How and where does it take place? How does money or value exchange hands?

A look at the past. At SCI, some of the highest GPP or profits came from special events, like the raising of the TITANIC expeditions, or the LEGENDS OF NASCAR or LEGENDS OF COUNTRY MUSIC.

These brought in LOTS of money very quickly. These high priced items, over 2k each needed 50 sales to get 100k in...whereas,

The jewelry dept, selling 19.95 bracelets would have to sell 5,000 units. See?

So the CHOICE a business owner would make might be, fewer customers/higher ticket or many customers/lower price.

Harvey Brody only has a a few (relatively speaking) at maybe 125-150 whereas the SCI jewelry dept. has over 6 million.

Which one do you all think has more slop and mess?

When I was selling resume services for 495.00 dollars the average resume offer was around 49 dollars. So they had to do 10X the number I did.

In golf, I sold a bundle or package of golf lessons or a membership at 250 where as a teaching pro might get 25 for the single lesson.

In a mail order business, I would carefully examine and analyze all the steps leading up to the transaction and what comes after that.

Today, the thought of all of that, tires me out. Can't do it, or certainly don't want to.

My next/newest venture is an already tested and proven money maker by someone else, I just have to make a few presentations, and all the back end/back office stuff is handled for me. I only have one thing to do, tell people about it.

It doesn't get much simpler than that, the online equivalent might be affiliate marketing, but then you compete with millions or certainly scores of people hawking the same products.

But in the real world, I can offer a one of a kind, unique, NEW idea and let it be a take it or leave it offer...I just don't care. NOT interested in selling anything, although I am more than capable of doing that.

Once you look at the TRANSACTION, and then backward chain the events you get to the PROMOTION, and the time and place and to whom it is offered.

One reason franchises are still so popular (although a very bad year) is due to their MARKETING plans, pretty much a paint by the numbers thing based on proven methods.

If someone came to me and said, I want to start a pizza shop or I want to start a mail order business or I want to start an Internet business...

my first question would be; WHY?

I think the biggest mistake made across the board for new business start-ups is, they make the WRONG CHOICE at the very beginning.

It is too often based on what they know, or can do, and very little analysis of the business takes place. Locally, for example, in the last few years we've had several Martial Arts studios open AND THEN CLOSE, and all of them were competent teachers/instructors...but they all had a build it and they will come business mindset.

Sure, a big open space with a few mats is about as low OVERHEAD as a business can get, but the COST of

ACQUIRING A NEW CUSTOMER is most often the biggest expense in any business.

And it is the thing overlooked. I start at the transaction, and then from the gross profit per transaction, I would take 50% off of that, at least, for new customer acquisition and seeing all these little stores come and go tells me, they didn't do the right math to begin with.

TRANSACTION and the steps to get there.
Minus costs.
Gross profits.
Minus overhead.
Maybe equals net profits.

Yet, thousands of new businesses are started every year, and hey, a few of them will even make it.

Gordon

[MikePT]

As expected, a detailed reply.

I agree with you on taxes and law, this is something that makes the difference. Poor importance is given it to them, and simultaneously is not rocket science to understand it — although public Government balconies here (my experience) are chaotic on helping with understanding taxes and laws.

Is chaotic. Seems to me nowadays is worse than of 50 years ago , even there in America.

Thanks Gordon

[MikePT]

Gordon do you have any experience on having off-line vending machines?

Is a passive income business that attracts me.

Thanks.

MikePt

[GordonJ]

Even more important than Real Estate is the location. I had a JV Partner, we had several...then we didn't. The locations either disappeared or we were "muscled" out by deeper pockets.

Keeping them stocked, keeping them secure, collecting the dough...hardly PASSIVE (although it was for me, cause I was the bank, again, until I wasn't).

You must have TRAFFIC. Profit margins, gross, about 50% in USA...plus gas for vehicle, insurance, etc., and a reliable supplier.

If I were to do something like that today, I'd be more likely to invest in a "route" for a rack jobber, the problem there is float time, you have to extend credit to the convenience stores.

Today, in USA, I'd take a look at mobile homes and again, location is everything there.

Real passive income is when you do nothing, and the money keeps coming. Not a lot of those with high returns, although, much safer, Certificates of deposits, etc.

Gas and Oil leases or rights of way are passive as are Cell Tower leases.

I'd due some serious research before I got into vending machines.

Gordon

PS And of course, TOLL POSITIONS with Intellectual property is great, albeit, somewhat harder to come by, but available. Gary Portnoy wrote a little ditty for a TV show called WHERE EVERYBODY KNOWS YOUR NAME the theme for the show CHEERS. Gary has been able to live very comfortably for years, from the royalties of that one song.

OH, my uncle, Frank Yoder made about 150k a year by leasing his plant patents too. That is PASSIVE baby, passive.

Originally Posted by MikePT

Gordon do you have any experience on having off-line vending machines?
Is a passive income business that attracts me.

Thanks.

MikePt

[MikePT]

Real passive income is when you do nothing, and the money keeps coming.

You are right .

Thanks Gordon.

[unpinkpanther]

Originally Posted by GordonJ

Got questions?

Think I might be able to help?...

So, here you go. And get this, it's FREE too (I don't take money anymore for my time, but I give it away as I want).

Gordon

I'm speaking of cryptocurrency

I used to quickly brush off anything crypto as a "scam" but it's becoming too pervasive to completely ignore.

My questions specifically:

Based on your experience in INVESTING in general, which aspects of cryptocurrency do you see as viable for investors?

And what loopholes should an investor avoid?

Thank you

[GordonJ]

Originally Posted by unpinkpanther

I'm speaking of cryptocurrency

I used to quickly brush off anything crypto as a "scam" but it's becoming too pervasive to completely ignore.

My questions specifically:

Based on your experience in INVESTING in general, which aspects of cryptocurrency do you see as viable for investors?

And what loopholes should an investor avoid?

Thank you

I mostly follow one of my mentor's advice, Dick Buchholzer, who said he didn't invest in what he had no control in.

When you invest in a bldg, you can control it as for appearance, etc.
When you invest in a business, you should be in control of it.

When you turn your money over to someone else to use, to manage then you have to calculate the risks.

There may soon be a day when crypto is the primary way of exchanging value, but I doubt I'll see it. It is, today, in my opinion, a step or two of playing the lottery (although I am getting 22% roi on my lottery investments when they stay below 1k)...

So the questions are, what can you afford to lose? How much is going into high risk? How much is safer or protected? Are there better options for your money?

There will be that Bernie Madoff character down the road, or the gov't which operates crypto and confiscates the bank. It is a wild west show at this point and I would argue that the TIME it takes to learn how to trade crypto, could be better leveraged for higher ROI than what it is today.

I suspect INFORMATION about it, would be my choice for entering the market, and maybe start with an interview of an established trader, one who has been at it five years at least and is showing substantial ROI.

As an investor, I might be willing to put a nickel out of every dollar I would invest into some sort of crypto. But I'd put 5X that into food supply industries.

I don't like Wall Street or letting other people use my money, but for many it is fine, although I know of many a retiree who lost their pensions in the housing collapse. As a chatteler, lots of opportunity to buy low when the bottom falls out of any markets. Might be able to pick up a Maserati on the cheap when the Crypto Guru surrenders to the (pick one) IRS, FTC, LBJ or whomever.

I strongly advise a deep immersion into EDUCATION, which could be the foundation of an information product, APV even, before I put my wallet at risk. But that is just me.

Gordon

[MikePT]

Gordon, what magazines can you recommend to someone read to following business trends/opportunities?

I would like to follow a good magazine to keep the eye on business trends and get some ideas, in particularly on small business.

Thanks.