NOVEMBER 2006
Greetings & Salutations:
As I told you, I found a ho'bunch more questions I received
a couple years ago from wannabee publishers planning on publishing
an anthology of my answers. They never got published but
they are worth sharing with you.
Q: Is there a secret to recognizing
a product that is going to be a super-seller on the net?
A: Sorry. There
is NO secret because ... it can't be done.
I can't even count the times over the past 50 years
when I have found that one "great" product that I just
knew would sell like the proverbial hot cakes. Only to
be disappointed when the market didn't respond with orders
for it.
Anyone who says they can predict the super-sellers is either
a liar or a damn fool.
Q: Should I concentrate
on selling one product or have many related products together
on a sales site?
A: The best way is to
find one (just one) product that sells. Then,
find other similar products to sell to the saame customers
who bought the first product.
As time goes by, you will most likely change or adapt your
"lead" product but you will have built a stable of
similar or related products which will continue to sell
to the same audience.
Q: In your opinion, what
does it take to build a website that sells products well?
A: The only "secret"
to building a website that sells & Sells &
SELLS is to provide "real" value to those who visit
your site. It doesn't matter what type of products
or services you sell, as long as your "customers"
find real value in what you provide.
Q: Are acquiring resell
rights to information products the way to succeed in an online
business? Yes & No ...
A: It's like any other
product. -- You'll only make money IF you "sell" the
product. Just owning the rights won't make you any money.
By the way, for 50 years in the business community, it has
always been "resale rights" ... the term "resell
rights" doesn't really have any meaning in the "real"
business world.
Q: In your opinion is
it better to sell hard goods or just information ... how do the
returns compare relative to cash and time invested?
A: No difference.
Again, you'll only make money IF you "sell" the
product ... whether is a tangible or an intangible.
Q: I have authored a couple
of books and have been buffaloed a hundred times on the web as
how to sell them. I spent all the money I had ... I sold
3 copies. How does a guy really sell his books on the web
without spending an estate?
A: Ouch! -- How do you
sell anything?
Did you put out any Press Releases about the book? -- Did
you give away any review copies to people who might endorse the
book? -- Did you join any Discussion Groups that share a common
interest in the subject of your book? -- Did you participate
on any of the Discussion Boards or Forums? -- Have
you offered any 'free' articles, taken from chapters
in the book, to ezines? -- Have you done anything
to establish your credentials for writing the book?
You don't have to spend a fortune - but - you
do have to establish the credibility and value of the book
before you can ever sell it - or (like me) - establish your own,
personal reputation within the industry.
Q: What are some of the
resource venues for acquiring reprint rights?
A: Sorry. Can't
help you with that.
I have written ALL of my own material for well over
30 years. Have never bought or sold reprint rights.
Q: Do you feel an introductory
sales letter should be multiple pages, or is one or two pages
enough for people to digest in one sitting?
A: There it is ... the
ages old question of Long Copy vs. Short Copy.
The fact of the matter is, there is no right or wrong answer.
Sometimes, when I write a sales letter, the original draft
runs up to 20 pages. Then, I start weeding out redundancies,
unnecessary information, and chitter-chatter. Paring it
down. Tightening it up. -- The result can be from 2 to
6 pages long.
Whatever it takes to "sell" the product. -- I don't
decide whether to use long or short copy ... the product decides
for me.
Back in the early 1970s, Dean DuVall challenged me when he
said, "It's too bad no one can come up with a one-page
sales letter; not a flyer, that will really pay off."
So ... I wrote a one-page sales letter that sold
a $10/year subscription to my "Business Intelligence
Network Memos." It cost me about $85/thousand to mail
the letter with an order coupon and reply envelope; including
postage at 6¢ each First Class.
That one-page letter pulled a consisted 23% ... $230 return
... on every thousand mailed. Worked for nearly 5 years.
By the way, the 17 reports in my FREE Report
... were all originally writen as "Business Intelligence
Network Memos."
Q: What do you do when
you've invested a good deal of time and money into a product
that just doesn't sell?
A: In a song Kenny Rogers
sang; based upon an old Gamblers oath:
"Know when to hold'em. Know when to fold'em.
Know when to walk away. Know when to run."
The same holds true in business.
Q: Can you give a ball
park figure of around how much it would cost to start a mail
order business?
A: If you do it the
right way, as explained in my mailorder course ...
"Own Your Own Mailorder Business" --
... you should be able to start with $500 or less.
Of course, the more money you have to start the faster you
will be able to get rolling - BUT - as I explain in the
course, if you have too much money to start, you have a
bigger chance of failure. -- It is best to start with
just a little money, do it right, and let the business
pay for its expansion.
But, if you don't read my course and try to do it using most
of the garbage on the market about mailorder, you would have
to spend over $5,000 - and - you would probably lose that
amount.
Q: I have read that postcard
advertising is effective and economical - can you give
your views on this type of advertising?
A: Yes, postcard advertising
can be a highly effective marketing tool.
The problem is that most of those promoting postcard
marketing suggest you use really classy postcards with a ho'bunch
of sales copy, graphics and color.
Over the years, my most successful postcard mailings have,
in reality, been nothing more than long -- 50 to 100 words --
"classified ads" mailed to a highly selective, demographically
profiled list ... known buyers. The postcard
itself had a place for the recipient to fill in their name and
address and return the card to me for complete details by mail.
With the advent of my Internet marketing, I simply added
the URL for my sales page at the bottom of the postcard
... right after the area where they could enter their name and
address for more information. -- Works like a charm. -- Every
time I make a postcard mailing, I get the usual response by mail
and send the respondents the printed sales material. At
the same time, the hits on my sales page go way up with resulting
orders.
Q: Can you tell us how
to get testimonials to validate ones' business when one is just
starting out in a business?
A: No need for me to repeat
myself. -- You can read my article, "What Do You Do When
You Don't Have Any Testimonials" -- at: Nov99.html
Q: What famous books on
direct mail would you recommend?
A: "Own Your Own
Mailorder Business - A More Scientific Approach" by ME
...
... of course.
After rereading 30 or 40 of the others, mine is actually and
honestly the best.
Q: Is offline success
(Mail Order) likely to transfer online as well or do you need
to adopt a different approach even though you may be marketing
the same product?
A: All of the sales
pages for my products, on my website, are nothing more than the
mailorder sales letters I have developed and used over
the years. Nothing was changed but the medium by
which they are delivered ... on the Internet rather than
by postal mail.
Instead of running classified ads to generate
leads to which the sales letters were mailed, I
simply use email messages to invite people to read the sales
page.
Nothing new ... just a new advertising media.
Q: Of all the topics that
you've written on, could you name a few that gave you the most
satisfaction in terms of knowledge and creativity?
A: Actually, each and
every one of my reports have given me a great deal of satisfaction
... simply because as I wrote them I relived the actually experiences
that lead to the writing of the report.
At the moment, I am absolutely thrilled with my latest
report, "How You Really Can ... Make Your Internet Fortune
As An Affiliate Marketer!" ...
... after I found out how easy it really is to make money as
an affiliate marketer, I had great satisfaction in reliving my
experiences to share with others.
Q: How do you structure
your books? -- When I try to write an ebook I find myself drifting
off topic, so in the end I give up in frustration. -- What is
your formula to stay on track and get the message across?
A: When I write, I don't
even try to stay on subject. I just write and write and
write ... including everything my itty-bitty mind comes
up with; no matter whether it is relevant or not.
Eventually, I feel I have fully covered my subject
... usually with a ton of pages covering everything
I have thought of while writing. -- Then, I print
a copy of everything I have written, read it over, and
put it on the corner of my desk for at least 3 days.
Three days later, I reread what I have written and cross out
some non-relevant parts, edit the relevant parts, move
sections within the piece to form a more logical sequence (all
using a red pen, in handwriting), and make the changes in my
text editor. Again, I print it out, reread
it again, and put in on the corner of my desk.
NOTE: I never delete any edition of my writing.
The print-out of the first draft and the print-out of the
second draft are kept together on the corner of my desk
and my text editor has versions #1 & #2 intact on my computer
... doing the same with each subsequent version. -- Some
of the stuff I delete from one piece may find itself in another
piece; or becoming another piece itself.
This can go on for 5 or 6 rewrites (sometimes more)
... with each version kept, so I can refer back to what
I had deleted from previous versions just in case I want to put
some of it back into the piece later.
At long last, I will have my final version.
Then, I print it out and put it on the corner of my desk
for at least a week without looking at it. -- After a week,
I reread my final draft to see if there is anything I need to
add or delete ... sometimes there are things to add or
delete but, most times, by then the final draft is usually ready
to go to typesetting.
Now, you know why I HATE TO WRITE ... I would rather
be doing it than writing about it - but - it pays
too well for me not to do it - and - it is the
only way future generations will be able to know how to
do the things I have done.
Q: How do you avoid fraud
when selling (mailorder & online) internationally?
A: Easy. Just tell
the truth without hype or b.s. -- If it's the truth, it can't
be fraudulent.
Q: On your website you advertise
a report "Make a Fortune - Just Snooping Around". --
Without asking you to give away all your secrets, can you tell
me a little about the sort of deals involved?
A: No secrets ...
just things you may not know yet.
In every community in the world there are abandoned
properties (NO ... not Real Estate). Everything from
equipment to fixtures; products to commodities. Stuff people
have no use for but still has value to someone. -- My report
simply tells what, where and how to find those abandoned
tangible properties and make money finding someone for which
those properties have value.
Can you stump the old master? --
Betcha can't!
Over the past 50 years (man and boy), I have made bundles
of money in direct selling, service contracting, wholesale merchandising,
entertainment (I was a professional Trumpet player, vocalist
& Radio Announcer), freight forwarding, import/export, retail
merchandising, warehousing, real estate, electronics manufacturing,
finder's fees, closeout merchandising, financial brokerage, business
consulting, steel fabrication, gold and coal mining, offshore
banking, mailorder, writing, and publishing. -- That being the
case ...
No matter what business you're in ... whether you're just
starting, well on your way, or at the top of the heap ... I've
probably been where you are, done what you are doing. -- So ...
Anytime you have a question about 'how' to do something in
your business - or - if you have any comments about anything
I've said in issues of this e-Letter; or if you want to add your
2 cents worth ... just "ask" me or "tell"
me.
Send your Questions, Comments or 2 Cents Worth
to ...
with "Question" - "Comment"
- or, "2 Cents Worth" in the SUBJECT.
If I, personally, don't have an answer to any question you
may ask, I will contact some of the professionals in your field
of endeavor (I will probably know one or more personally) to
get the real 'skinny' for you.
Note: If you want to ask a question anonymously
just tell me so when you send in the question. -- Nobody but
you and I will know who asked the question.
Copyright - 2006, J.F. (Jim) Straw. All rights reserved.