Mindset Archives

The Immoral List Of Lies Told To Budding Online Marketers

Wednesday, June 2nd, 2010 at 1:21 pm  
Leave your comment

If you pay peanuts you get monkeys. Never a truer word was spoken. Budding online marketers are bombarded by the promise of untold prosperity and that they will get rich beyond their wildest dreams. If you are planning to build a home based online business please take heed and ignore the following lies.

Anyone can do it.
My gizmo sells itself.
You won’t have to sell a thing.
Our system is fully automated
Our system is “set and forget”.
You can make $1000 a minute.
Two hours a week is all it takes.
You don’t need a dime to get started.

You might say, “I know that and I’d never fall for it”. I hope your right. Doing your due diligence on business opportunities will certainly filter out most of these slick operators who can be very convincing. Believe me when I say that I speak from experience.

Your success will be entirely up to you. Follow your selection criteria for finding your online opportunity and approach this with the right mindset. The fact is that many people make money online and you certainly can too.

So, stop looking for get rich quick programmes and get some “skin in the game” and then you will have some real motivation for success. Educate yourself, find what works for you and seek a mentor/coach who you feel comfortable with. Nothing ventured, nothing gained!

I have found a great company that works for me with great people, great training, great results and great alliance partners. I am certain you can do the same. I encourage you to learn how to succeed in this industry, it is well worth it.

Ian Shilton

MLM Myth #6 "You can make money working as little as seven hours a week…"

Wednesday, December 30th, 2009 at 5:02 pm  
Leave your comment

Ahhh…another clever marketing ploy to appeal to the “get rich quick”, “time poor”, and just plain lazy prospect.

MLM Myth #6

Now this is simply a bald faced lie. Again, think about this logically.

Every person who steps into this industry for the first time (especially if they have no previous business experience of any kind), is faced with an enormous learning curve. We are not exaggerating, it is huge. Less a curve, and more of a Mt Everest in fact.

There is only one way to learn, apply and master new skills, and that is with time. And unless you are an exceptionally fast learner, you will need to be prepared to devote lots of it.

Now, don’t get us wrong, you can definitely start learning how to run your business in as little as seven hours a week, and if you have a very strong desire to start your own business, and that is all the time you have available to you, then you have to start where you are at.

There may be one exception to this statement, and that is if you have the capital to outsource your business set up, and your lead generation. But in any event, you will still need to invest the time in learning how to deal with your business once it has been set up and is running.

Now, many companies use testimonials in their marketing and promotion, where top earners talk about how they earn X dollars working only 10 hours a week.

It is important to understand a couple of things about these testimonials.

Firstly, without exception, the people who have been very successful in their business dedicated a huge amount of time to learning their new business, getting set up, and then running.

And it may be true that they have relaxed the pace a little, and are now working far fewer hours in their business.

But we know that the person who is inclined to go hard to make that kind of money in the first instance, is not likely to be happy resting on their laurels. They are more likely to be planning and working hard to take their business to the next level. It is the nature of the entrepreneurial beast.

Which brings us to another home truth. If you do not have the time to invest in building a business, or you are not inclined to spend the time it takes to build a profitable long term business, you should reconsider your motivation to start your own business.

There is no getting away from it. Successful business requires work that is smart and hard. In this industry, perhaps like few others, you can expect to put in the hard work once, and be paid for life. But there is no way around doing the hard yards.

We would be lying if we suggested otherwise.

Making a six figure income from home and only working seven hours a week sounds like a business that is too good to be true…and it is.

Respectfully,

MLM Myth #6 "You can make money working as little as seven hours a week..."

Ian Shilton, Duke Street, Myrtleford, Victoria Australia 3737.
Email Me Here: ianshiltonpromarketing@gmail.com
Meet Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/AboutMe
Join Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/Welcome
Ask Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/FAQ

NOW … If you are serious about creating a real, substantial, wealth building income for yourself, CLICK HERE. My colleague Jay Kubassek has an important message for you.

MLM Myth #6 "You can make money working as little as seven hours a week..."

Click here … to see Jay’s inspiring message.

MLM Myth #5 "We hold your hand and guide you every step of the way…"

Wednesday, December 30th, 2009 at 3:20 pm  
Comments (2)

This particular myth is twofold in its deception.

MLM Myth #5

Try and remember for a moment what it is that you are doing here.

Business.

And in business, as much as people in the same industry might network with each other and discuss what is going on in their particular market, do you really think that people who are in direct competition, in the same market place are going to share all their secrets?

It would not be the most savvy business strategy in the world, would it?

Now, you may put this proposition to a seasoned MLM or Network Marketer, and they will insist that this business model is different.

Because “If you make money, your sponsor makes money. It is in your sponsor’s interest to help you do well”.

And that is indeed the truth. Nothing untoward about that statement.

But stop and think for a moment. The top earners in any MLM or Network Marketing company have usually got very large teams of people under them. How else do you think they became top earners? And the way they generate their incomes (in the first instance) is from sales at the ‘front end’ of their business. This requires a substantial investment of time to plan and execute a marketing strategy that will yield that level of sales.

They have got their own businesses to run. Their own challenges and obstacles to overcome.

How much time do you think is left over to spend “holding hands” with new comers?

How many serious business people (in any industry), take the time to spoon feed their competition?

And to be blunt, a serious entrepreneur is not going to commit their time to someone who shows zero initiative or willingness to drive their own business hard. The fact is that ‘needy’ consultants will get the least amount of time from their sponsor.

There is a law called “Pareto’s Law” or the 80:20 rule that states that “80% of the results will come from 20% of the people”. In this industry, the 20% of people who are generating 80% of sales will get the highest level of attention from their sponsor.

Makes perfect sense doesn’t it?

Because “it is in a sponsors interest to have their consultants do well”. And a smart sponsor will soon see that if a consultant expects to have their hand held, they are highly unlikely to do well. They will not waste their valuable time on someone who is on the fast road to nowhere.

The home truth is that if you are going into a business with the expectation that someone will ‘hold your hand’, you should probably reconsider this as an option for you.

No-one else can make financial success happen for you. As we discussed in MLM Myth #4, your success in business will be 100% up to you.

If your sponsor lives in a different time zone, is not able to speak to you when you have a problem, or to be blunt, lied like a pig in a bog in order to make a sale and sign you up, you need to learn where to go looking and find your own solutions.

In business, becoming resourceful, solution focused and ready to fail fast and forward are pre-requisites to success. These are skills that can be learn t, and over time and with practice, mastered.

There is no business environment on the planet where someone will ‘hold your hand every step of the way’. The most successful business people are resilient, self reliant and fiercely independent. Without exception.

It’s a jungle out there.

So, if it sounds too good to be true…it is.

Respectfully,

MLM Myth #5 "We hold your hand and guide you every step of the way..."

Ian Shilton, Duke Street, Myrtleford, Victoria Australia 3737.
Email Me Here: ianshiltonpromarketing@gmail.com
Meet Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/AboutMe
Join Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/Welcome
Ask Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/FAQ

NOW … If you are serious about creating a real, substantial, wealth building income for yourself, CLICK HERE. My colleague Jay Kubassek has an important message for you.

MLM Myth #5 "We hold your hand and guide you every step of the way..."

Click here … to see Jay’s inspiring message.

MLM Myth #4 "We have everything you need to be successful in this business RIGHT HERE…"

Wednesday, December 30th, 2009 at 2:44 pm  
Leave your comment

This one is a biggie from a mindset and personal development perspective.

MLM Myth #4

All MLM and Network Marketing companies will obviously put their best foot forward in their bid to sign you up. And to be honest, it would be a spectacularly stupid marketing tactic to point out all their short comings before you handed over your credit card and signed on the dotted line.

They want you to believe that you cannot fail if you join them, and the “secret ingredient” to your success or otherwise, is what they have to offer.

To be absolutely fair, there are some companies (very very few, we hasten to add) that do indeed give you a comprehensive home based business “tool kit” to help you get up and running. The better companies even teach you how to use the tools they have provided, and do indeed run “in house” marketing training programs for new members (bear in mind that the vast majority of these will be “old school” strategies, and as such are not useful to you at all in the Internet marketing age).

But to our mind, the entire claim that the company has everything you need to succeed is very shaky. And this is another reason why so many people struggle and ultimately fail in this industry.

What is the difference between the person who makes $50,000 per month working from home, and the person who maxes out their credit card and eventually gives up? How can that be so if they both sell the same product, have the same compensation plan, and access to the same training?

There is a reason why some people do well in this business, and others do not.

And it has nothing to do with the comp plan, products or training.

The home truth is that the “secret ingredient” to your success in this or any business is… YOU.

If you are desperately looking for a business opportunity because you want out of a job that you loathe, or you are in a tight spot financially and it is causing you distress, be aware that you are in a highly emotionally charged place.

Now, all buying behavior is essentially emotional. But you are not buying a pair of shoes to make you feel better because you are having a “bad hair day”, or a flat screen TV so you can feel proud and impress your friends when football season rolls around.

You are making a decision that will have an enormous impact on the way your life plays out from the moment you hand over your money.

If you are serious about going into business for yourself and working from home, take a deep breath, put your credit card away, and ask yourself these questions.

1. Do I have the commitment to learn, implement and master a new skill set?

We all have to go through a steep learning curve when we enter a new profession, and there is a generally acknowledged rule of thumb that it requires 10,000 hours to hit “tipping point” – or the point at which you have mastered your new skills.

Few people have the personal discipline, focus and patience to go through this learning process. Do you think you have this type of discipline?

Too many people are so busy trying to “get rich quick” that they forgo the hard work necessary to make money in any environment.

2. Do I have a realistic idea of what it takes to be self employed, specifically in Network Marketing?

And if not, who can I talk to, to find out?

3. How much time do I have to commit to my new business?

4. How much working capital do I have available to get my business started?

5. Am I receptive to new ideas?

This is VERY important. The more you learn, the more you grow, and if you are really smart, the more you will understand how little you know.

Being open to new ideas, and ready to change some long held beliefs will be critical to your success. The people who fail first and fastest are those who cannot or will not be taught anything new.

If you are looking at a business opportunity as a way of ‘saving’ you from a situation that is causing you pain, understand that your search needs to start inwardly first. If you answered the questions above in the affirmative honestly, and you have a burning desire to be in control of your own financial future, it may well be that self employment is a positive first step to making this happen.

But ultimately you will make this happen. Not a company, a product or a killer compensation plan.

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again. If it sounds too good to be true…it is.

Respectfully,

MLM Myth #4 "We have everything you need to be successful in this business RIGHT HERE..."

Ian Shilton, Duke Street, Myrtleford, Victoria Australia 3737.
Email Me Here: ianshiltonpromarketing@gmail.com
Meet Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/AboutMe
Join Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/Welcome
Ask Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/FAQ

NOW … If you are serious about creating a real, substantial, wealth building income for yourself, CLICK HERE. My colleague Jay Kubassek has an important message for you.

MLM Myth #4 "We have everything you need to be successful in this business RIGHT HERE..."

Click here … to see Jay’s inspiring message.

Some ramblings about insanity…

Monday, December 28th, 2009 at 11:17 am  
Leave your comment

I want to share with you the experience I had with a consultant of ours who dropped out of the business a couple of months ago. He was a guy who got started in the business all fired up with sky high hopes, dreams of travel, luxury cars, and a life of complete financial freedom and independence (can you relate so far?).

A very likable man, who had experienced a modest degree of financial success in his previous business. He had spent a marathon 30 years in the construction industry, and had worked so hard physically, that it had ultimately taken a severe toll on his body. He looked to the Internet (as many people do) as a means of building another business, without working himself into an early grave.

He had never had any experience in sales, marketing, or working online. A complete infant, in that regard. But he did have time to learn, and the money to set himself up well, and position at a high level. He proclaimed himself to be 100% teachable, and someone who never gives up. I have heard these words often.

So he threw himself into the set up and marketing, absolutely convinced that he was going to make it big in record time. I admired his passion and commitment, but from early on, his expectations concerned me.

He started marketing, but had not completed his set up properly. When this was pointed out to him, he literally threw together an “About Me” page, which contained a very poor quality photo, and a “My Story” that was 95% business pitch. I suggested to him that he slow down, and take the time to do this well. After all, in business, it is vital that we put our best foot forward because first impressions are critical.

His response was “but that IS me”. He would not change what he had done.

Next, he posted dozens and dozens of free classified ads. His results staggered me. He had 194 visits to his landing page in 3 days. But not a single lead. He called me up, and complained that classified ads don’t work. You can see, from the results he got, that they do work (and he had obviously written some excellent ads, to generate that response). But when the visitors got to his landing page, what did they find? A blurry photo of a guy dressed in fishing clothes, lounging in a deck chair, beer in hand, in front of a faded wooden fence, with a blatant “join my business” style sales pitch to go with it.

I spoke to him about the importance of transitioning searchers from your advertising material to your landing page, so that you are delivering the information they are looking for. And then I taught him how to interpret the feedback you get from the market. For example, if you write an ad that sends 194 people to your landing page in 3 days, it is correct to assume that it was a compelling ad, right? The crack opened up when they hit the landing page, and saw the poor quality, unprofessional customization.

I was starting to feel really frustrated. He simply WOULD NOT take on any of the suggestions I made. And he was getting frustrated as well. He was working hard to set things in motion, and he did not generate a single lead from his efforts.

I was starting to wonder what he would throw at me next. And it was a doozy. He engaged the services of the SEOPROS to optimize his landing pages. This, despite the fact that CCPro had posted warnings to members that they were scammers.

I explained this to him, and he said that they had been really nice to him on the phone, and he was going ahead with it. Nothing I could say would convince him otherwise.

A week or so later, he got back to me again, and complained that the landing pages don’t work. His pages had been “optimized” for page one ranking in organic search, but again, lots of visits, and not a single lead. I took a deep breath (I am a patient person, but we all have our limits Some ramblings about insanity... and checked out his page. It had been butchered. It was certainly “optimized” but it reeked of scam. Buried on the landing pages were things like the day’s weather forecast for Chicago, sports results for ice hockey in Canada, and political news stories from Washington (consider that his keywords were “CEO level income potential Sydney). Okaay.

I walked him through this, and he vowed to get back to SEOPROS and demand they correct it. Naturally, their response was that all they guaranteed was page one ranking, and they had delivered. Case closed. So now he is another $5,000USD down. And not one single lead.

After this debacle, he emailed me to say he was quitting. He had stuck at it for less that four months.

When we join this business, we fill in an application form, where we are given the opportunity to explore whether we are suitable to do this business. The questions we fill out, relate to our level of determination, and our teachability. Everyone (that I have read), without exception, professes to be 110% determined, committed, teachable and focussed. Unfortunately, the reality is that few people actually possess these qualities, and don’t understand the importance of developing them.

We all start out with ideas in our mind about how we are going to do our business, and we become emotionally “attached” to our plans. Few people like to change their minds, because on some level, they feel that it is an admission that their previously held beliefs are somehow “wrong”. And let’s face it, no-one likes to be wrong.

Understand that part of the learning curve requires you to stretch yourself and process new ideas. And learning also requires change. Most people are uncomfortable with change, because by nature, change IS uncomfortable. I’m sure you can all relate to feeling overwhelmed with new information and frightened by higher expectations you suddenly have of yourself when you first got started. Being out of your comfort zone is confronting, and you can find yourself struggling, like a fish out of water. It is natural to want to reach backwards for the relative safety and familiarity of what you have always known and always done.

But in this business our goal is to move forward, so take a moment to contemplate this: Are you completely happy with the outcomes of your decisions and actions in your business to date? Are your plans delivering you the results you want? If the answer is “no”, then it may be time to really embrace new ideas and make changes. And you don’t have to start with huge bold leaps on your own. Simply following instructions and completing one new task at a time is a way of shaping change, one baby step after another.

After all, as Albert Einstein is famously quoted as saying “The definition of insanity is continuing a behavior with the belief it will result in a different outcome”.

If you want things to change, you must change. You beliefs, your behaviors and your plans. Embrace the discomfort in the short term, and enjoy the journey as you see how you ultimately determine your own script.

Make today a great one.

Cheers,

Respectfully,

Some ramblings about insanity...

Ian Shilton, Duke Street, Myrtleford, Victoria Australia 3737.
Email Me Here: ianshiltonpromarketing@gmail.com
Meet Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/AboutMe
Join Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/Welcome
Ask Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/FAQ

NOW … If you are serious about creating a real, substantial, wealth building income for yourself, CLICK HERE. My colleague Jay Kubassek has an important message for you.

Some ramblings about insanity...

Click here … to see Jay’s inspiring message.

Top Earners "secrets" finally revealed…

Monday, December 28th, 2009 at 11:16 am  
Leave your comment

A couple of weeks ago, I went to Las Vegas for the M2 conference and Pro marketing day. They were fabulous events. Record attendance for both companies. Over four days, hundreds and hundreds of people from around the world had gathered together to learn how to manage their money, market their business, and to network with their peers.

And one of the things that struck me while I was there, was the frenzy around the top earners in the industry. It is quite extrordinary. People genuinely want to meet the successful people they see online, which is really lovely. But there is more to it than that, I am convinced.

I find that while I am away, I seem to spend a lot of time “training” people. Out in the hallways between sessions, at mealtimes, and even in the queue for the bathroom. And while I might be in the middle of recommending a resource we found useful or a strategy we used, freqently people interrupt and ask “That’s great, but what is your secret?” or “I have been in the business for twelve months, and I am not getting anywhere, and you made money so quickly”.

And this is where it becomes clear to me that many people (too many) have an enormous disconnect between expectation and the reality of running a successful business. There are many reasons why this is the case, to my mind at least.

Firstly, the reasons why people are attracted to this industry (primarily, no boss) are also the very factors that make this such a challenging business. It takes an extraordinary amount of self discipline to be self employed, but even more so to work from home. I mean, you don’t even have to get dressed before you go to work if you don’t feel like it. To a degree, I feel that a high level of self discipline is something that must be inherent before you get started. I have seen few people cultivate it through practice over time.

Second, people are led to understand (through the marketing) that this is an easy business. That has always been the case with MLM and Network Marketing at least. How many millions of people have been attracted to the “This business is so easy, virtually anyone can do it” or “This product is so good it sells itself” type of headline? Again, a reality check is in order here. There are few people who are successful in business of any kind, for a whole range of reasons. And having been in brick and mortar business before, I can say that this business is infinitely more difficult, because there is no immediate traffic for your business. And competition for traffic online is fierce.

Third, havent we all been seduced by the promise of the “Four Hour Work Week”? Brilliant book and concept, but once again, the promise does not match the way the world spins. Most of us coming into this business have to learn a whole new skill set (some more than others, depending on your background). And to master a new skill set requires time. And lots of it. I highly recommend “The Tipping Point” by Malcolm Gladwell, where he talks about the concept of 10,000 hours. There is a long held theory that it takes 10,000 hours of learning and execution to master a skill set. And I believe this to be true. There are no short cuts. Many people seem to spend 10,000 hours trying to figure out how to get out of doing the 10,000 hours, that they wear themselves out with the act of avoidance.

At the Pro marketing day, Michael Force (top earner in both companies) spoke very candidly about the success he has enjoyed in his business, and made one point crystal clear. He described himself as a Type A personality (meaning extremely highly driven and competetive). And he attributes this to his success. He described himself as a workaholic, and now that he has a young baby, he is re-training himself to get out of the office to spend time with her. I think this admission came as a real shock to many people. He makes it look so effortless, but the reality is the exact opposite.

When we see some of the top earner stories, we also need to know that there is always a story behind the story. For example, all of the top earners were high performers in their previous careers. Or perhaps they had a strong background in sales. Maybe they had been with another MLM and brought their entire downline with them. And I don’t say that to take away from their success. Without exception, these are people who have been dedicated, driven and diligent, and have worked extremely hard.

All of these people have also experienced the overwhelming tsunami of information we have to process and make sense of when we get started. They too have wandered aimlessly through the labyrinth of possibility, before deciding which direction to drive their business in, hoping that it would be a good decision. They also had many, many moments plagued with frustration when they hit a technology glitch. But what is common to all of them, is that they are not afraid to make mistakes, they understand that things will not be perfect first time around, and they know they have to fail fast, and fail forward in order to get down to the business of making money.

So two thoughts to leave you with today. Are your expectations realistic? Have you really put in focussed, high quality hours learning with a specific plan in mind, or have you spent a lot of time skating around online, trying to find the quickest, easiest way, only to wind up on You Tube blubbering at the sight of Susan Boyle singing “I have a dream”? (yes, that last example relates specifically to me, I confess:-).

Are you comparing yourself to others in the industry, and beating yourself up that they made $30,000 in their first 30 days, and you have been in for months and have not made a cent? If so, stop right now. Comparison is the thief of joy. If you have genuinely dedicated yourself to learning the business, celebrate the gains in knowledge you have made, and temper your expectations. In our brick and mortar business, we worked for an average of 70 hours per week, for 50 weeks of the year, for five years before we were even profitable. And that was a great result. It did not occur to us that it should have happened faster, because we had so much to learn.

Focus on your gains, fail fast and forward and make today a great one.

Cheers,

Ian Shilton

Respectfully,

Top Earners "secrets" finally revealed...

Ian Shilton, Duke Street, Myrtleford, Victoria Australia 3737.
Email Me Here: ianshiltonpromarketing@gmail.com
Meet Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/AboutMe
Join Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/Welcome
Ask Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/FAQ

NOW … If you are serious about creating a real, substantial, wealth building income for yourself, CLICK HERE. My colleague Jay Kubassek has an important message for you.

Top Earners "secrets" finally revealed...

Click here … to see Jay’s inspiring message.

Some disturbing things I do while I'm on the phone.

Monday, December 28th, 2009 at 11:15 am  
Leave your comment

So did the headline compel you to read on? It’s actually not my own headline, although it is quite risque, which is absolutely my style ordinarily Some disturbing things I do while I'm on the phone. . I have to give credit here to a brilliant direct response copywriter called Ben Settle. And I’m going to share this story with you now because it contains not one, not two, but three fabulous take aways. Sorry, I won’t be throwing in a complimentary set of steak knives if you continue to read on.

Ben is an internationally known and respected copywriter who both develops his own products, and writes on behalf of other business people.

I was listening to a training call between Ben Settle and Dr Glenn Livingston one day, and Ben was talking about the headline that has generated more opt ins for him in his business than any other. And it was the headline I lured you here with today (picture me rubbing my hands together in a faux evil gesture).

But by way of explanation, Ben was referring to the fact that when he speaks on the phone, he picks up and waves around a hand gun that he keeps on his desk. Now, don’t be alarmed, Ben is not a gun toting homicidal maniac. The gun serves a very practical function.

Research has shown that when you engage your hands in a physical activity, it stimulates the creative centre of your brain. Ben said that when he is on the phone, brainstorming with clients, he has his best ideas and breakthroughs when his hands are busy, waving his hand gun around. You can imagine that he does not employ this tactic when he is meeting people face to face. I’ll go out on a limb here and say that it would probably make most people feel quite uncomfortable.

And don’t think for a moment that I am suggesting you dash out and purchase a hand gun for the purpose of stimulating your creativity. Any physical object that you can roll around in your hand would do the job equally well. A stress ball, a smooth stone or similar would do the trick. A friend of mine rolls a cricket ball around in his hand while he listens to training. Swears by it.

Also, don’t discount the impact and importance of getting away from your screen on a regular basis, and grounding yourself, particularly outside. Feeling sunshine and fresh air on your face, walking on the grass or sand with bare feet, or getting your hands dirty in the garden engages and connects your mind and body, and helps you to find perspective. Actually, I’ll amend that by saying you will find perspective only if you are actually looking for it. It won’t happen by osmosis.

As entrepreneurs, it is critical that we develop the skill and habit of looking for solutions, rather than becoming bogged in problems. You will be astounded at how powerful this is when you come back to the screen.

So that was takeaway number one: engage in physical activity regularly, even while talking on the phone or listening to training in order to stimulate your creativity.

Takeaway number two refers to the headline. I tend to labor this point, but only because it is that important. A powerful headline is what will compel someone to read your article or not. In fact, most people will read only a headline, a caption (underneath a photo) or the PS message in piece of writing, as long as they are intriguing or seductive. So these are the power points of every piece of writing.

And takeaway number three? Take everyday situations and weave them through your writing (or videos, if you are using videos to market your business). Because this gives readers an indication of what kind of person you are and it gives them something to relate to.

On a more practical note, it gives you material to write about. If you are brand new to business, you can use this technique to talk about what information you found useful and what was confusing. You can use this to share things you have learnt along the way (successes and failures), whether it is technical information or more esoteric mindset material. In any event, other people will be drawn to your honesty.

This is where you can create a feedback loop, and build relationships with people who read your posts, which is brilliant for building your business. This is where you can invite people to interact with you on yMy Blog, to share their thoughts and even ask you questions. This process positions you as a leader, and regular interactive activity on yMy Blog also helps to improve your ranking in organic search. Happy days.

Make today a great one.

Cheers,

Ian Shilton

Respectfully,

Some disturbing things I do while I'm on the phone.

Ian Shilton, Duke Street, Myrtleford, Victoria Australia 3737.
Email Me Here: ianshiltonpromarketing@gmail.com
Meet Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/AboutMe
Join Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/Welcome
Ask Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/FAQ

NOW … If you are serious about creating a real, substantial, wealth building income for yourself, CLICK HERE. My colleague Jay Kubassek has an important message for you.

Some disturbing things I do while I'm on the phone.

Click here … to see Jay’s inspiring message.

Where does the REAL potential lie in the Home Based Business Industry?

Monday, December 28th, 2009 at 11:11 am  
Leave your comment

As many of you will be aware, Cameron and I started our entrepreneurial journey in a community newspaper, in a small country town called Maleny, in Queensland. The notion of owning a newspaper was driven very hard by Cameron (who has ink in his veins, I swear). The subject first came up five years earlier while we were on our honeymoon, driving through a gorgeous little town in New South Wales, called Bellingen. It was the most stunning countryside, lush and green, with a picturesque river running through it. As we were driving along, Cam said that it was his ultimate dream to own a newspaper in a country town just like Bellingen.

So flash forward to 1996, and we were visiting Cam’s brother, who had just bought a supermarket in Maleny. We had driven through Maleny, which is a ‘picture postcard’ beautiful town. It is surrounded by rolling, lush green hills, dotted with contented dairy cows. As we headed back down the mountain to our home on the coast, looking out over the Glass House Mountains, Cam said, “Imagine if we could buy the newspaper here”.

The idea kept bugging us (actually, it bugged Cam more than me, I was completely terrified at the very idea, I had no idea how to run a newspaper). So we spent some time making enquiries, and decided to make the owners of the local paper an offer.

We took the necessary bookwork to our accountant to complete a due diligence, and his verdict was not what we wanted to hear. As far as he was concerned, the price we were being asked to pay, was far more than what the figures indicated the business was worth. In fact, he thought it was not a good idea to move forward, unless we could significantly bring down the price.

We had our heart set on this business, and we asked him to go and negotiate with the owners on our behalf. So he did, and during the course of the meeting, he asked them why they had put such a high price on the business, when it clearly did not have the trading figures to support the asking price. And their reply was “because it has potential”.

He remained unconvinced, and made the comment that it was not the business which had the potential. We didn’t know what he meant by that, and at the time, we thought he was raining on our parade. We thought we could see exactly what they meant. The paper was almost like the Bible in town, everyone read it. It was in a growth area, with very little competition, as far as we could see, we would own the territory. So, despite the best advice we could get, we decided to go ahead with the business.

Within a month or so of taking over, the company which eventually went on to buy our business from us, set up in opposition and sent a troupe of advertising sales reps all over our territory. Scary stuff, given that our sales rep was me, and I had no prior experience, and had a 13 month old baby in tow while I was working most of the time (we couldn’t even afford child care at that point).

But we knew that if we were to compete, we had to be better. We had to build strong relationships with our advertisers. Offer them better value, and teach them how to make the most of their advertising budget.

As time went by, it became obvious that our work had paid off. Advertisers were not buying the opposition paper, and eventually, it got shut down. We committed ourselves to making constant and incremental changes and improvements to our product and services and expanded our business to include a tourism magazine which we published annually.

As the business grew, so did the challenges, and we had to continue to grow and change ourselves to meet them head on. We would never have made it if we didn’t. In 2006, we were approached by a large media company to buy our business (ironically, the same company which had set up in opposition to us ten years earlier). They made us an offer we couldn’t refuse, on the basis of “the potential of the business”, and we gladly stepped out, and eventually into the world of e-commerce.

But it got me thinking about potential. And when I saw the way the company ran our old business (and lost a lot of advertising revenue in the name of ‘streamlining and efficiency’), it gave me a flash of insight about potential.

I realize now, that that our accountant was right. The business did not have the potential, but we did. And that is the same in every business.

So many people go into a business venture, and they think that their product, system, company, sponsor, training (or any other external factor) is going to be the key to their success. In reality, you hold the key. It is within you where the potential lies, and no-where else. There is a brilliant book by T. Harv Ecker called “The Secrets of the Millionaire Mind”, and in it he talks about the difference in self talk between the poor, the middle class and the very wealthy. And it looks something like this:

The poor think ” I wish that I could have success in my life”. The middle class think “I hope this works out for me”, and the very successful think “This is going to happen, because I will make it happen”.

You can see, quite different self talk going on here. So, what is your self talk? Making change and moving forward requires some serious and honest self analysis. How do you see yourself in the context of your business? Are you looking externally for solutions to move you forward, or do you recognize that you already have everything you need right now, to build the business and life of your dreams? When you take your focus off external factors, and start to own your beliefs and actions, and eventually the results you are getting (or not, as the case may be), you will see significant changes start to take place. The nature of those changes will be completely up to you.

Make today a great one.

Cheers,

Respectfully,

Where does the REAL potential lie in the Home Based Business Industry?

Ian Shilton, Duke Street, Myrtleford, Victoria Australia 3737.
Email Me Here: ianshiltonpromarketing@gmail.com
Meet Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/AboutMe
Join Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/Welcome
Ask Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/FAQ

NOW … If you are serious about creating a real, substantial, wealth building income for yourself, CLICK HERE. My colleague Jay Kubassek has an important message for you.

Where does the REAL potential lie in the Home Based Business Industry?

Click here … to see Jay’s inspiring message.

You’re affirming yourself until you are blue in the face…so why aren’t you rich yet?

Monday, December 28th, 2009 at 11:06 am  
Leave your comment

It is a Friday night as I write this post, and I have had a pretty full throttle day on the phone to people who have recently joined the business.

These are people who have made the decision to join after being in our system for months. By the way, this is a little testament to the power of an automated information driven system – when the time is right for the right people, they will make a firm decision and join, with or without your specific input.

But I digress (you must be used to this by now Youre affirming yourself until you are blue in the face...so why arent you rich yet? . I had all kinds of thoughts about writing a post about SEO techniques (we all need to learn them, right?), but I can’t stretch my head around that right now, it is Friday after all. And it occurred to me, that the posts that I get the best feedback from, are those that are about mindset. This is the information that people seem to tap into the most (as a little aside, I love to hear your thoughts and comments, and I would love you to post them in the comments section of My Blog for other people to enjoy as well. You just click on the link at the bottom of each email to see where you can leave your comments).

I’m not sure why it is the case that people relate to mindset information the most. Perhaps of all the skills we need to master to become fully fledged, financially viable entrepreneurs, this is the most mysterious and esoteric. I mean, we can all stand in front of the mirror every night affirming that we are “rich and successful and attractive” until we are blue in the face. But what is the ingredient that gives this affirmation meaning? What is it that breathes life into this statement so that we start to see evidence that we are indeed all of these things?

I have given this an enormous amount of thought. Why do some people fly, and others flop? Why do some people, regardless of what they say to themselves and what they do, never seem to get out of the gate, while others make their success (and all the material trappings that come with it) seem effortless?

And I have lots of thoughts about why this might be the case. I suppose the most obvious place to start would be with your upbringing. And specifically your “parent tapes”. So what are parent tapes? These are the beliefs that we take on over the course of our upbringing, from our parents. And they are as varied and unique as each of us. But, there are some common themes that people bring into adulthood with them, that I believe will help shape your experience of the world.

Now, I base my thoughts on my University studies in Behavioural Science, my work in child protection, and my experiences in business.

The first is around your own ability. Unfortunately, there are many parents out there, who instill in their children a lack of belief in their own ability to excel in the world. And the sort of talk that plants this seed of belief sounds like this:

“You are so lazy”

“You never finish anything”

“Why can’t you concentrate?”

It’s a shame you aren’t better at X”

“You’ll never be good at X because I wasn’t”

etc etc.

Very damaging stuff. And parents aren’t the only ones who are guilty of making these comments to children. Teachers can also do some serious damage with poorly chosen comments. I have a particular memory of a primary school teacher referring to me as “ten tonne Tanya”, and a high school teacher questioning whether an essay I had put a lot of effort into was “All your own work”. Gee, thanks.

As adults, we tend to take on these beliefs and opinions as truth. And through our own thoughts, decisions and actions make them true. Now, here is the beautiful thing about being an adult living in a free and democratic society: We can change our minds about this at any time we like.

That’s right.

We do not have to take on what anyone else says or thinks about us. In fact, if you are at all concerned about what other people think of you, you have a lot of work to do on your level of self belief. Trying to keep other people happy is a certain recipe for failure. Trust me Youre affirming yourself until you are blue in the face...so why arent you rich yet?

Neither do we have to create a “story” around what other people think, or why they might harbor the beliefs that they do. It simply dosn’t matter. You are in control of your own thoughts and actions. You don’t have to justify why someone else thinks or behaves the way they do. You can choose to let go of any belief that is not serving you right now. And this is what you must strive to do. Your development as an entrepreneur depends on it.

The second (extremely important) is around your attitudes to money. Yep, I said it. MONEY. Now, for some people, this is a particularly dirty word, depending on the types of messages you were given about money as you were growing up.

So many people are brought up to believe that wanting more money is greedy and wrong. Others are led to believe that people with money are bad, and that they only got to achieve their wealth by exploiting others.

At the same time, there is a great deal of envy towards people with money. As a culture, don’t we LOVE to see a wealthy person come a gutser? (think Tiger Woods).

I often hear people talking about their income goals, and whenever I hear someone say “I’m not motivated by money” I feel compelled to respond with “That’s great, because you will never have any, I’m not really sure why you are going into business”.

These are beliefs that you need to identify and LOSE sooner rather than later, if you intend to become an entrepreneur. This type of introspection can be painful (actually, it usually is painful, as it often brings to the surface all sorts of demons).

But as I see it, the successful entrepreneurs are people who have identified and conquered these beliefs as a matter of priority. They are people who are able to identify their own particular skills, strengths and successes (and not necessarily just in business – in their career, in sport, or as a parent or spouse) and transpose them across to their business life.

They are people who are resourceful, independant and who search for the solutions, rather than allowing themselves to get bogged in the problem. They do not dwell on what is going wrong, but rather, they focus on their successes.

And finally, I think that part of the reason why some people just never make it in business, is because they don’t really know what they want. That will probably sound like a ridiculous thing to say, but think about it for a moment. To say “I want to make $500,000 per year” all sounds pretty fabulous. But at the end of the day, money is just paper. You must dig deeper. What does the money represent to you? What choices does it give you? You must take the time to really nail down what you want from your life, and then fit in how the money will enable you to realize this.

It might be to build your dream home, it might be to spend more time with your children. It may be to donate money to your favorite charity, it might be to own 100 pairs of Jimmy Choo shoes. Whatever, it doesn’t matter. What is vital here, is that you are honest (and this will come back to your beliefs about money) don’t just come up with what you think you should want to do with your money. Or you won’t have a genuine passion for it.

Be specific. And for goodness sake write it down. Remember that using your hands stimulates the creative centre of your brain, so immediately, your unconscious mind will go to work to find ways to make things happen.

Remember, this is an evolutionary process. It won’t happen overnight. But stay focused, be consistent, and have faith in your own ability to have, and be, and create whatever you want in your life.

Make today a great one.

Cheers,

PS And remember, I love to hear your thoughts and feedback, so don’t be shy, post them on My Blog for everyone to enjoy.

Respectfully,

Youre affirming yourself until you are blue in the face...so why arent you rich yet?

Ian Shilton, Duke Street, Myrtleford, Victoria Australia 3737.
Email Me Here: ianshiltonpromarketing@gmail.com
Meet Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/AboutMe
Join Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/Welcome
Ask Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/FAQ

NOW … If you are serious about creating a real, substantial, wealth building income for yourself, CLICK HERE. My colleague Jay Kubassek has an important message for you.

Youre affirming yourself until you are blue in the face...so why arent you rich yet?

Click here … to see Jay’s inspiring message.

Self Employed And Rich 1

Tuesday, December 8th, 2009 at 1:59 pm  
Comments (2)

The most valuable piece of advice you will ever get

So you want to fire your boss (or your employees)? You want to make a fortune from home, spend more time with your kids, doing the things you love, and retire in style? Have millions invested — your money working for you? Live a life of luxury and leave a Legacy?

Who doesn’t?

Well we have some GOOD news and some BAD news for you…

The BAD news is that it’s not as easy as it sounds to setup and build a successful online business with a strong passive income.

If you are looking at an opportunity that promises to be “so quick and easy that anyone can make $$$$$ online in only a few hours per week”, avoid it like the plague. The word that applies to this kind of “opportunity” is SCAM. On that note, “quick”, “easy” and “free” have no place in the same sentence as “lucrative business opportunity”. And the type of person who is lured by these promises is not someone you want to do business with either.

Have you considered the following?

  • How do you generate leads?
  • Do you use offline or online advertising?
  • How to you effectively follow-up with your prospects?
  • How do you know if there’s actually a market for your product?
  • How large should your marketing budget be if you want to make $50k/month or more?
  • How do you make ads FTC compliant so that you stay of out hot 
water with the Government?
  • How do you leverage your time with a personal assistant?
  • Where do you find one?
  • What should you do with the money you make so you don’t blow it all like most people do?
  • How do you train your team so that it duplicates your success?
  • How do you leverage your time and resources so you’re not working 70 hours a week?

There’s a lot to it, but the good news is that we are here to help you, and we’ve got some of the best of the best in the world at our back when it comes to this type of business.

If you’ve ever pursued a home business 
before, then this information is going to 
feel like a completely honest, open, and revealing breath of fresh-air, compared 
to some of the information (ie rubbish) 
you’ve probably heard in the past.

We’ll go as far as to say that you’re going to find the next seven days unforgettable.

Today is your introduction. Before we get into the good stuff in the coming days, we want to just share a dose of reality with you to set the framework for the future editions to come.

You’ll find that for better or worse, nothing will be held back. We’re going to walk you through our marketing process. We’re going to show you how we create our leads. We’re going to let you see our websites and explain their purposes.

We’re going to show you how to build a pipeline of prospects, and then how to market to them correctly using automated tools, and then finally, we’re going to show you how to leverage personal assistants that will cut your work load to just two or three hours per day.

Our goal, is that by your 7th day, this business, our team, and what we do will become REAL to you.

Too many times, too many people get sucked into hype and taken by empty promises like, “This product literally sells itself”.

Well guess what … That kind of talk and positioning does nothing but attract bad karma, false expectations and lazy losers with a lottery mentality who don’t want to DO anything. But before we go any further into that topic, let’s step back and take a quick look at your options…

95% of all home businesses are usually found in the network marketing or direct sales industry.

While they have many similarities, the primary difference is the compensation model. We prefer the direct sales model because it’s MUCH easier to replace a full-time or six-figure income compared to any other type of home business.

  • Secret 1: Choose DIRECT SALES over “M L M” if you want to generate a large income quickly.
  • Secret 2: Understand how you will really make your money and build your mini-empire.

You see, a business opportunity is really nothing — not an opportunity at all. In fact, it’s just an agreement on a piece of paper. The vast majority of people who end up starting a home business do so because they get all hyped-up about some “super” new product that they think will overtake the market and make them millions in the process.

The fact is, that’s not how it works.

The only way you’re ever going to make REAL money… I’m talking $250,000, to multiples of that, is to do one single thing…. and if you’ll sit back and really absorb the meaning of what I’m about to share with you, money will never be an issue for you again.

So here’s the most valuable piece of business advice you’ll ever get….

“Increase your personal value to the world.”

Yes that’s it: “Increase your personal value to the world.”

Did you ever consider that the amount of money you make is a direct measure of your worth to society?

Well it’s true, and if you want to increase your income, you’ve got to increase your value to others. Once you do that, money starts coming at you like wouldn’t believe. Business becomes a piece of cake. It all comes down to “social dynamics.”

You see, people like to work with, learn from, and buy from people who can offer them real value. People are looking for a leader, that is, someone they perceive as being able to help them to get what they want.

And guess what, if you are perceived as a leader in your field, the product or business opportunity becomes secondary in the eyes of your prospects.

It’s an instinct and a part of our very genetics because associating ourselves with people of means and power (i.e. leaders), increases our chances for survival and prosperity. In essence, when you increase your value to others, you never have to “sell” anything. People approach you. Your become a prosperity magnet.

On the other hand, if you don’t have any real value to offer someone, they’ll take their business elsewhere. That was our problem when we joined our first network marketing company. We had no experience of network marketing, we hadn’t made any money in it, so how on earth were we going to persuade anyone else to join us? And that’s the beauty of CarbonCopyPRO, because it enables even complete novices to plug into a proven system… and Put That Proven System To Work, For You.

Joining CCPRO was when everything changed for us. Even though we had no value of our own to offer our prospects right from the get-go, what we did have was a turnkey, automated marketing system that allowed us to make sales as soon as we opened the gates.

With CCPRO we weren’t faced with the daunting prospect of training any new team members ourselves, because there was already a team of experienced trainers, a forum of colleagues and a back-office of video and telephone tutorials on hand to do it for us.

The truth is that until CCPRO we’d secretly been 
scared of recruiting anyone because we had no idea what we were supposed to do with them if we did.

I mean, if we didn’t know what we were doing ourselves, how on earth were we going to help our new team members? So that huge problem was eliminated at a stroke with CCPRO.

What it meant was that even though we hadn’t yet “increased our own personal value to the world” we were able to tap into the value of the system and increase our value by association. But while CCPro provides a powerful “leg-up” in terms of offering value to your prospects, the “personal value” maxim still applies. In fact even more so when you are working online. People love automated systems, but they also love to do business with real people. And make no mistake, building strong personal relationships is critical in any type of business.

Whatever business you’re in, it’s vital to constantly increase your value. The more value you bring to the table, the higher your earnings will be.

So where to start?

The first place is in your head. If you’ve never been a successful business owner before, how can you expect to think like one? The answer is, you can’t. It’s simply not possible.

That’s why it’s imperative to prepare your MIND for success.

In order to increase your value to the world at large, you need to increase your personal value to yourself first, i.e. in your own mind.

“Think And Grow Rich” is a classic, as is “Secrets of the Millionaire Mind”. Bookshops are full of these types of self help books (as is e-bay, for those on a tighter budget). And they are invaluable. Just reading this material is not enough however. Every day, it is vital that you put what you learn into action, and become the leader you would want to follow. Simply having the discipline to do this will position you ahead of 97% of other people.

Once your mind is ready, education is the next step to increasing your personal value to the world. And education in the home business industry means knowing how to MARKET.

A knowledge of how to make marketing work is why so many entrepreneurs choose to work with CCPro. As some of the top income earners in the industry, we obviously have a lot of value to offer sharp, ambitious people. And we’ll sharing more of that value in tomorrow’s edition of Self-Employed And Rich …

Find out why less than one in one thousand people will ever make six-figures in this industry, and what you can do to ensure you’re in the winning category.

Respectfully,

Self Employed And Rich 1

Ian Shilton, Duke Street, Myrtleford, Victoria Australia 3737.
Email Me Here: ianshiltonpromarketing@gmail.com
Meet Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/AboutMe
Join Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/Welcome
Ask Me Here: http://IanShiltonMarketing.com/FAQ

NOW … If you are serious about creating a real, substantial, wealth building income for yourself, CLICK HERE. My colleague Jay Kubassek has an important message for you.

Self Employed And Rich 1

Click here … to see Jay’s inspiring message.

 Page 1 of 2  1  2 »