Entries Tagged 'Business' ↓

I mailed all the books today.

Here are some numbers I thought you might find interesting.

Total sales: 85 (34 within the U.S. and 51 international)

Total cost of postage: $583.60

Total conversion rate: 22%

That number comes from this calculation: 85 sales / 385 unique visitors to my blog during the promotion = 22% conversion rate.

The conversion rate may actually have been better than reported since not all unique visitors would have seen the promotion.

Note to customers: If for some strange reason you don’t receive your book within the next 10-14 days, please email me. My email address is underneath my photo on the right side of this page. Thanks.

-Ryan M. Healy

Popularity: 39% [?]

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This morning I woke up to a nice surprise.

Ed Rivis shared my book promotion with his blog readers while I was sleeping… and entrepreneurs from across the pond turned out in spades!

Turns out, Ed once slipped a couple discs in his back, so he felt obliged to support my “Save a Back” campaign.

If you don’t know who Ed is, you ought to spend some time reading his blog. Here’s a link:

==> Web Marketing Strategy for Small Business Success

In the mean time, I’d like to give you…

Another FREE Gift

A few weeks ago, Ben Settle interviewed me about how to fill seminars. Or “put butts in seats,” as it’s commonly said. He recently posted the interview on his web site.

The interview is only 25:16, but packed with tips you can use immediately to get more seminar attendees. You don’t even have to opt-in to get it. Just click the link below…

==> How to Fill Seminars: Free Audio Download

-Ryan M. Healy

Popularity: 44% [?]

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Well, today is my birthday. And as you might already know, today is also the last chance you have to get a copy of Million Dollar Marketing Secrets for $7.

This is a real book. It is printed on real paper. And it’s even sent using real postal mail.

Today’s message might persuade you to buy a book or it might just make you laugh. If either scenario happens, I have succeeded.

You see, as I mentioned in the first post announcing this “giveaway,” I have 14 boxes of books. Each box contains 32 books and weighs 24 pounds. Two boxes stacked on top of each other is 48 pounds.

At the end of September, I’ll be moving again. And I’d really prefer to move as few of these boxes of books as possible. As you can see from the picture my wife took this morning, lifting boxes of books can be really hard on your back. (Yes, those are my pajamas.)

So here’s my totally selfish appeal today. Save a back: buy a book. It’s kinda catchy, isn’t it?

Anyway, if you’re interested, you’ve got about 24 hours left. You can read all the details of this offer in my original post.

==> My Birthday Is This Week — Here’s a Gift for You

-Ryan M. Healy

P.S. If you’ve already taken advantage of this offer, thank you! I will be mailing your book on Monday.

Popularity: 40% [?]

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[Note: This Offer Is Now Closed. Thanks!]

So my birthday is this Thursday, May 8. I’m a bit secretive about my age, although I haven’t gone out of my way to hide it. (Some folks know how old I am, but they almost never guess right the first time.)

Ever since about age 16, birthdays haven’t really been a big deal to me. When my wife asks me what I want, I have a really hard time coming up with anything.

I’m the kind of guy who depends on his wife to tell him when he should stop wearing something… because it’s out of fashion or falling apart. I also rely on her to force me to go clothes-shopping, which is one of my least favorite activities I could possibly imagine.

Anyway, I have more fun copywriting and serving people than I do receiving gifts. Which is why I want to give you a gift this week.

My Birthday Gift to You

Here’s the situation. I partnered up with JP Maroney a couple years ago on a book project. I was one of 22 different authors. We each submitted a chapter to the book.

The title of the book is Million Dollar Marketing Secrets. Some of the authors include Clayton Makepeace (he wrote an excellent chapter), Tom Antion, Michel Fortin, Ray Edwards, Alan Forrest Smith, and (of course) yours truly.

The book is packed with dozens of marketing tips and strategies. Here’s a sample of what’s included in the book:

• How to Harness the Power of Testimonials to Increase Sales.

• 7 Keys to Making a Fortune Using Radio Advertising.

• How to Get Prospects to Close Themselves.

• 5 Steps to Connect Product Benefits with Prospects’ Most Powerful Response-Boosting Emotions.

• How to Create Windfall Business Profits with the Power of Leverage.

• How One Transaction Can Make You Independently Wealthy for Life.

• Plus 16 more chapters I haven’t yet mentioned!

And because it’s my birthday this week, I’d like to give you a copy of this book for only $7.

Why So Little? And Why Now?

Since this was a group self-publishing effort, most of the co-authors paid money to create the book. I bought 500 copies at $3 each. Do the math. That’s $1,500 for 500 books.

Plus, I paid around $250 in shipping to have the books delivered to my house.

So far, I’ve used the books primarily as incentives. For instance, last summer, I gave away a free copy to the first few buyers of my report on how to get copywriting clients. And I’ve given copies to close friends and family members.

But I still have a LOT of these books left.

And I’ll be moving again at the end of September. So I really would prefer not to move these books again.

That’s why, in celebration of my birthday, I will give you a copy of my book for only $7. That includes shipping.

Considering that I’ve already spent $3 for each book, that’s a pretty good deal.

The only catch is that this offer will end first thing Friday morning (5/9/08) when I wake up. (My birthday is on Thursday, May 8.) So that means you have between now and early Friday morning to order.

I Have at Least 448 Copies Left!

As you can see in the picture, I’ve got 14 unopened boxes of books. Each carton contains 32 books. So I have a minimum of 448 copies left.

I doubt I’ll sell that many, but now you can see why I’d rather “give” them away now than haul them to a new house later this year.

Plus, it’s a nice perk for you. If you’re like me, you love books. And anytime I can get a quality marketing book for less than ten bucks, I’m all over it.

Heck, the chapter Clayton Makepeace wrote is worth $7 all by itself!

So Here’s How to Order

Just click the handy-dandy PayPal button below to pay $7 for the book. And MAKE SURE your address is correct. Because that is the address I will mail your book to.

International Customers: If you live in Canada or anywhere in the U.K., you can take advantage of this offer, too. No extra charge. (If you do not live in the U.S., Canada, or the U.K. and would like to order, please leave a comment below and I’ll get in touch with you privately.)

Canadian Customers: If you are a Canadian customer, I will mark your package as a “gift” so you don’t have to pay GST. (After all, this is a gift from me to you. I’m only asking you to chip in to help cover my “hard costs.”)

Alright, enough of my yammering. Here’s the PayPal Order Button.

[This Offer Is Now Closed. Thanks.]

My Best,

-Ryan M. Healy

P.S. Remember, the deadline for this offer is Friday morning, May 9, 2008. I will be packing all book orders this weekend and mailing them out on Monday morning (5/12).

Popularity: 47% [?]

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Today, the VeriChip Corporation launches their first direct-to-consumer marketing campaign for human-implantable passive RFID chips.

The identification system has been dubbed “Health Link” because its purpose is to store patients’ health and medical information and provide an “information bridge” between patients and hospitals.

When a patient becomes unconscious or is unable to communicate, emergency room doctors and nurses can instantly access private health data by scanning the Health Link RFID chip implanted in your arm.

Although the cost of Health Link is not mentioned in this press release, the use of the word “subscribers” indicates the business model will operate on some kind of subscription basis.

Questions:

1. Would you personally promote or market this product to the public?

2. Would you subscribe to this service as a consumer?

3. Why or why not?

Please leave a comment below. Thanks!

-Ryan M. Healy

P.S. Interesting that the VeriChip is headquartered in Delray Beach, Florida… the same place where AWAI is based.

Popularity: 33% [?]

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Last week I asked, “Does transparency hurt business?”

With a few extreme exceptions, the consensus was no, transparency does NOT hurt business. In fact, it is a good thing in many cases.

But what about a lack of transparency?

What about the fabrication of a “grand illusion”?

Turns out, people respond quite negatively when they discover the truth. Many feel like they’ve been duped–played for a patsy.

Which is why I think you should read this post immediately (and the comments too).

• The Grand Illusion: The Real Timothy Ferriss Speaks

-Ryan M. Healy

Popularity: 52% [?]

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I was on the phone with a blog reader of mine yesterday. We were talking about a possible joint venture. During our conversation, he mentioned to me that he thought my transparency may be hurting my ability to attract clients.

What did he mean by “transparency?”

In this case, he was referring to another blog I write. It’s a blog about debt reduction. I haven’t tried to hide this blog; but I also haven’t promoted it to many people who know me.

His thought: If people know I’m in debt, wouldn’t they be less likely to hire me?

I guess we could ask this question of other issues as well: If people know I’m a Christian, wouldn’t they be less likely to hire me?

Or how about: If people know I like snowboarding, skateboarding, and motorcycling, wouldn’t they be less likely to hire me? (”That Ryan, he’s such a hooligan!”)

I’ve thought about this issue quite a bit. And I have wondered, “Was it a bad decision to use my real name on my debt blog?”

I haven’t really fully answered that question yet.

But consider this:

• Gary Halbert did hard time in jail. That didn’t seem to hurt his ability to get clients.

• James Brausch is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. As far as I know, he still grosses over a million dollars in revenue per year.

• John Carlton was fired from every job he ever had (or nearly). He still commands hefty five-figure fees for the copy he writes.

Obviously, some things will definitely hurt your business. For instance, a scandal à la Eliot Spitzer.

But other “negative” things seem to have little or no effect. Possibly even a positive effect.

Why do I say positive?

Because I believe people want to know that those they respect and esteem are normal folks, just like they are. They want to know about their failures, their foibles, their unusual beliefs and interests.

Why else do tabloids sell so well?

Why else do Carlton-esque hooks attract so many readers? (”Man with no legs and no arms drives golf ball 500 yards… by swinging a club he holds with his teeth!”)

It all comes down to real people succeeding and doing big things in life.

It’s about being human and becoming great in spite of your humanity.

It gives you hope.

“Hey, if so-and-so can do it, so can I.”

That kind of thing.

So… what do you think? Is transparency a good thing or a bad thing for business? Leave a comment below and let me know your thoughts.

-Ryan M. Healy

Popularity: 48% [?]

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On March 6, 2008, Blair Singer interviewed me about the role of copywriting in sales.

If you don’t know Blair, he is a member of the Robert Kiyosaki Rich Dad’s Advisors team, and he has authored two best-selling books in the series: Sales Dogs: You Do Not Have to Be an Attack Dog to Be Successful in Sales and The ABCs of How to Build a Business Team that Wins.

What’s more, Blair is an excellent speaker, salesman, and business growth expert. (One of his areas of expertise is how to increase sales in six weeks or less.)

After I got on the phone for the interview, I quickly discovered that Blair is an excellent interviewer as well. He just has a natural way of engaging and asking great questions.

The subject of our call was… what else? Copywriting! We covered a lot of ground, including:

• The difference between copy and direct response copy.

• How to evaluate your sales and marketing process and identify the weak links.

• The most important lesson I’ve learned from working with more than 60 clients.

• The essential elements of a powerful sales message.

• In-depth analysis of a Guthy-Renker advertisement.

• What makes the difference between a mediocre sales message and a great one.

• The secret to attracting qualified buyers.

• And a lot more.

I’ve decided to offer this audio interview for free as a way of saying “thank you” for being one of my loyal blog readers. You can either listen to the streaming audio using the player below… or you can download the MP3 and listen to it at your leisure. Enjoy!

Download Blair Singer Interview
(53 minutes, 31 seconds)

-Ryan M. Healy

P.S. There are no product pitches during this interview. I do mention my copywriting services and RyanHealy.com at the end, but you already know about that web site.

Popularity: 29% [?]

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Fact #1: Words can be copyrighted; ideas can’t.

Fact #2: Original ideas are about as rare as 10-karat diamonds.

“Idea theft,” as I’ve called it in the title of this post, has been on my mind for a couple of reasons.

The first incident happened a few months ago when a good friend of mine expressed anger about a guy who had “stolen” his ideas and created an information product similar to what my friend had already created.

I understood his anger and frustration, but pointed out that ideas can’t be copyrighted.

For instance, I wrote about overcoming inertia last week. Does that mean I’ve cornered the market on that idea? No way! Anybody can go out and write similar articles or create information products about that idea.

What people can’t do is copy the words I wrote verbatim. That’s a violation of copyright law.

So you can express the same ideas, but you have to do so using your own words.

Go to the business section of any bookstore and you’ll see literally dozens of books all covering many of the same ideas, strategies, and concepts.

If I want to go out and write a book about business growth, I can do so without breaking any laws–even if there are already multiple books that already talk about that subject.

Get this… Pamela Dodd and Doug Sundheim wrote a best-selling time management book called The 25 Best Time Management Tools & Techniques. If you go to Amazon.com and type in “time management,” their book will likely appear first, ahead of David Allen’s Getting Things Done.

How did they accomplish this?

Simple. The bought the top 20 time management books based on Amazon’s ratings, read them all, and “stole” the best ideas they found to write their own book, which quickly became a success.

This, in my opinion, should not be viewed as stealing. This is synthesizing. It adds value. And it’s how every person on planet earth operates.

I could not write a single word if it weren’t for all the books I’ve read, all the teachers I’ve learned from, and all the people who’ve contributed to my life. Am I “stealing” from them? No. It’s simply how we learn, process, and share information.

Now, let’s talk about the second incident that prompted me to write about ethics today.

I recently signed up for a service based on the recommendation of a fellow blogger. The results the service can provide are really fantastic, but the set-up instructions and help files are pathetic. A quick scan of the private forum confirms this seems to be the consensus among most of the users.

As you can imagine, this opens up the door to competition. If somebody has a great idea, but is deficient in the execution, then aggressive competitors are likely to smell an easy kill.

Here’s a general recipe for business success: Identify a problem, find somebody who is already solving that problem, then copy the idea behind the solution, and improve upon the solution. Sometimes summed up with these timeless words… Make a better widget.

Again, nothing wrong with this. It’s been done thousands of times and is routine in business.

So where do we cross the line? Said another way…

At what point are we acting unethically?

Everybody’s moral compass will be a little bit different. I, for one, would feel uncomfortable buying somebody’s ebook and then “rewriting” it in my own words. This happens all the time, even though I would not personally do it.

I would feel more comfortable reading multiple books or ebooks and then writing a book of my own based on what I had learned.

Whatever I wrote would contain ideas I had learned, plus my own style, my own unique perspectives, etc. By doing it this way, I would ensure that my creative work would be sufficiently different from the source material to be definitively my own.

Crossing the line…

Let’s get back to this “second incident,” which I mentioned above. As I already said, the service under scrutiny is lacking in some respects, and that has opened the door to competition.

But I am not here to criticize the service provider; I’m here to criticize an infiltrator. And in this particular case, I believe the ethics line was crossed.

I witnessed it this morning when I received an email that APPEARED to come from the owners of the service I am subscribed to. Here is a copy of the email with the name of the service blanked out.

Hi,

We see you are using __________.

A group of us have got together and wish to improve this great service, with our help. We are sure, like us, you love the system, but wished it was little less stringent.

If you are interested in a free account or just want to know more please fill in the form at http://___________.com

We just need your name and email, but you can include your likes, dislikes and any improvements you think can be made.

Work is already underway and any help or ideas will be greatly received.

Thanks,

Your ________ team

In each case where I’ve included a blank, the name of the service was used verbatim. Basically, whoever sent this email (and I believe I know who sent it) is pretending to be the service provider. He is inviting me to a “new and improved” service, which is not in any way affiliated with the original service I signed up for.

This kind of behavior is totally unethical and unacceptable.

Want to copy an idea and improve it? I have no problem with that.

But it has gone too far when a person hacks into a private community, steals customer email addresses, and then spams them with “new and improved” offers… all while pretending to be the original provider of the service!

This is not just idea theft…

It is customer theft & identity theft, too!

If there is a lesson in all of this, it is this: know what is lawful and unlawful. Know what is ethical and unethical. Determine for yourself where you will draw the line.

And let me encourage you to always err on the side of caution. If it doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t, even if the law may allow it. Act in such a way that you can be proud of the work you have done… and still sleep well at night.

And if you decide ethics don’t matter, and you believe you can act however you want in the name of profit, then be sure to watch your back. What goes around comes around…

-Ryan M. Healy

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More choice is better… right?

Wrong.

That’s the conclusion of Barry Schwartz in The Paradox of Choice.

Common sense says increased variety and more freedom of choice will make people happier. But studies show it does the exact opposite. It actually makes them unhappy.

Why is this?

It’s because if they make a decision, they will continually contemplate all the other choices they “sacrificed.” They will wonder if they would have been happier had they made a different decision.

This paradox of choice not only affects happiness; it affects the bottom line as well.

The rule is simple. The more choices you give a buyer, the less likely it will be that he will actually make a decision to buy.

Choices overwhelm people. Too many choices offered at once produce inaction.

In other words, if you give a person too many ways to say yes, you will make it easier for the person to say no. Making a decision is hard work. It’s emotionally taxing. The more choices and variables involved, the harder it becomes to decide.

Make choosing easy!

Instead of offering a bunch of choices, offer one choice only. The choice is to either buy or not buy. The prospect must then decide yes or no. That’s it!

In almost every case, you want to make the decision to purchase as easy and simple as possible.

Buy or not buy; call or not call; request more information or don’t.

Here’s a real-world example…

On Tuesday, a client sent me an email asking me to review a rough-draft postcard. She wanted to know my thoughts, specifically about a free bonus gift offer.

The card encouraged people to register for their choice of 10% off or a free report worth a similar amount. Here is how I responded:

Offering two options is complicated, both from a decision standpoint (”Which one do I want?”) and a fulfillment standpoint.

I’d suggest going with one or the other.

If you offer the report, put a value on it.

FREE Report
(a $49 value!)

The discount might stir up some complaints by people who register after the Early Bird deadline, but before receiving this discount. If they are on your list, they will want the discount too.

On the other hand, you can send the report to everybody who’s registered as an “unannounced bonus gift.” This will reduce refund requests and put the law of reciprocity in your favor.

Ultimately, I encouraged my client to offer both the 10% discount AND the free report. I also told her to use a deadline to get people to take immediate action.

What my client had originally suggested would have created an unnecessary choice for the buyer. It might have depressed the response rate or even caused customer service issues. Can you imagine, “I got the free report, but I didn’t like it. I would have preferred the 10% discount. Can you refund me the 10% instead?”

But by combining the bonus gifts, we simplify the buyer’s choice.

It’s either yes or no.

Furthermore, it’s either yes or no by a specific deadline. This is the kind of simplicity you want in all your advertisements and sales messages.

Does this mean you always give a person just one option? No, not necessarily.

As Michel Fortin has pointed out, you can get the fees you deserve by offering what he calls “Olympic Factor Pricing.” In other words, provide three different levels of service to accommodate people with varying budgets and needs.

This is critical when you are selling high ticket items, but less critical (I feel) when you’re selling products or services less than $100. If the price is low, offering multiple options only complicates a decision that doesn’t benefit from complication.

What Joe Sugarman says…

One time Joe Sugarman wrote a newspaper ad selling a watch. His client wanted to sell three styles in three different colors for a total of nine different watches. Joe wanted to only sell one watch: the men’s watch in black.

Joe and his client agreed to an A/B split-test. The results were surprising…

When both versions ran, the ad that featured only one men’s watch out-pulled the other version that featured nine models by a surprising 3 to 1 ratio. In short, for every watch we sold from the ad that featured the nine styles, we sold three in the other ad that showed just the one black watch. (Advertising Secrets of the Written Word, p. 162)

Even prior to this split-test, Joe had told his client, “…offering a customer too many choices [is] a dangerous thing to do.” (p. 161)

This only serves to illustrate the point I’m making. If you want to improve your sales, take away your buyer’s freedom by giving him fewer choices. Not only will he be happier, you’ll make more sales, more money, and more profit.

-Ryan M. Healy

Popularity: 44% [?]

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