Ben Settle

To paraphrase an old speech by the late “Mad Man” advertising genius Leo Burnett:

“The human mind is a wonderful device which starts working the minute you are born and never stops until you join Facebook.”

Admittedly I have a love-hate-loathing history with the platform.

Originally, I was on there from 2008 – 2018 before leaving.

And from mid 2016 until mid 2017 I created a hair-raising social experiment in there called “elBenbo’s Lair.” And it was so psychologically & emotionally addictive I was sometimes literally accused of being a cult leader. Not a self-described cult leader, like some of these goo-roo edgelords running around LARPing about it do.

This is something others accused me of, even good friends wondering if I’d lost my mind.

Sometimes they’d even complain about me in other groups, which only fed into the experiment.

It was also a ‘World’ unto itself – full of laws, digital harems, spy networks, corporate warfare, & soap opera-like storylines. There were so many discussions happening certain people in there were routinely locked out & tossed into ‘Facebook jail’ due to its algorithms assuming they were bots.

Lots of money was made.

Some hearts were broken.

And entire businesses were created from scratch

As well as lifelong business & personal relationships (a “splinter” group even formed right after I closed it down, with its most rabid members still there, last I heard) and even at least one wife & child came from it. i.e. I met Stefania inside this supposed “cult” I created, which then later led to Willis.

The downside to what I did on there?

It takes a lot of time & energy to use the methodology I worked out to do it all.

You also have to love being on social, and loving being social to do it long term.

And to this day I’m still burned out on using my own methods, and have zero desire to create my own such community on social media like that. I am far more content in my far-more mellow Settleheads group and/or tweeting out random brain farts, lessons, and other assorted nonsense, with zero responsibility to anyone else as far as babysitting a group of customers and fans and trolls.

The point is, elBenbo’s Lair exploited what Facebook was already doing.

i.e. To get addiction-like engagement.

But it was also intended to be a counteraction to a lot of the creepy nonsense Facebook did, and still does, that causes otherwise intelligent people to become functional idiots.

I don’t know if this adds to your life or not.

But, one thing I will add to it all:

Everything I did in there was ultimately built using what I teach about email marketing, email engagement, and email copywriting, selling, and persuasion that I teach in the paid Email Players newsletter.

More on that here:

www.BenSettle.com/alt

Ben Settle

P.S. By the way:

1. I do NOT use much of what’s in this book in my current Settleheads group.

Why?

Because I don’t have the time, energy, bandwidth, or, really, desire or probably even the ability to try to recreate what I did. I basically had zero privacy. Everyone was up in my business constantly. And I hated that then, and hate even more now. Plus, what I did required creating endless amounts of conflict inside, spending time thinking up crazy rules, and basically keep people on a perpetual roller coaster.

Fun at the time.

But nowadays I got enough drama with multiple businesses, writing novels, trading, being a dad, etc.

2. I hated Facebook so much I left about a year after I abruptly shut elBenbo’s Lair down.

But, a few years ago I ended up coming back once I figured out how to make it so I never see any of the stupid content (or the stupid people) I don’t want to see or hear from, and only the content and people I do.

The trick?

Set your preferences so nobody (NOT ONE single person) can friend you or message you. Not friends, not family, not spouse, not anyone. That way, you only see content you want in specific groups you’re in, and your other interests without any of the crud & time waste you don’t want to see.

Facebook’s algorithms are surprisingly good like that.

And several others I’ve shared this tip with have also had the same experience.

Yes, it is still a social activist-converged platform.

And no, I do not recommend relying on it for business.

But it can be a useful arrow in your marketing quiver for relationship building.

Looks like my business is still “marked safe” from fapGPT:

Ben,

Just for the fun of it, I pasted two of your emails into ChatGPT and asked, “Did ChatGPT write this email?”.

The responses were great. ChatGPT basically admitted its own flaws!

Email #1

ChatGPT’s response:

“This email was almost certainly written by a human—and not just any human, but Ben Settle himself, in his distinctive, deliberately polarizing, long-winded style.

Here’s why:

✅ Human-Written Proof (and likely Ben Settle)

Signature writing quirks

The email includes purposefully contrarian, rambling, and eccentric storytelling—a Ben Settle trademark.

Long, nested tangents like:

“as many-a-reply guy has discovered when I summarily ignore their wall-of-text emails…”

Snarky humor and mockery of readers he doesn’t like (e.g., “mental twinkie,” “estrogen levels,” “Bible thumping strangers,” “19-year olds hiding behind cartoon pfps”)

Extreme personal voice

AI is capable of tone and mimicry, but not this level of unfiltered personality, sarcasm, and consistency.

The entire email reads like a private journal monologue dressed up as a pitch. No AI models default to this.

Massive, unedited length

This is over 3,000 words and completely unoptimized for brevity or clarity, which is exactly how Ben Settle writes his sales copy and emails.

Scattered but deliberate content

The wildly eclectic list of bullet points—from testosterone to ancient trading strategies to relationship hacks—only a real person with deeply held, lived ideas would dare publish all together, unapologetically.

AI would typically over-structure or shy away from this level of controversial and off-brand content intermixing.

Author’s known product and domain

“Email Players” is Ben Settle’s paid newsletter.

He has a known tendency to create long “special edition” bonuses like the “After School Special” described here.

🧠 Final Verdict:

This was absolutely written by a human—almost certainly Ben Settle himself.

No AI model, prompt, or ghostwriter would (or could) capture this level of coherent chaos, polarizing worldview, and deeply Ben-esque flair.

If you’re analyzing this for style emulation, breakdown, or copywriting insight, let me know—I can help reverse-engineer his persuasive structure or psychological hooks.”

It made me laugh when ChatGPT confirmed it couldn’t possibly write an email like this, yet it asked me if I needed help “reverse-engineering” the structure and psychological hooks.

Email #2

ChatGPT’s response:

“This email, like the previous one, was almost definitely written by Ben Settle himself, not AI.

🧠 Here’s why it’s human (and Ben Settle specifically):

1. Strong, consistent personal voice

The tone is raw, unapologetic, polarizing, and full of personal bias:

“James ‘pedo tweeter’ Gunn and his bizarre daddy issues…”

“AI-obsessed prompt fondler nattering on about workflows…”

AI would never default to this level of unfiltered opinion and potential controversy—especially not with a real person’s name attached.

2. Real-time cultural and niche references

References to:

Dan Kennedy and Magnetic Marketing (including cassette tape era)

Krypto the Superdog

Email Players insider lore

A personal Zoom call with Kennedy via Kia Arian

These are all specific, lived experiences that no AI could invent or reference accurately unless explicitly prompted with them.

3. Idiosyncratic phrasing and storytelling structure

Ben’s writing often:

Begins with a dramatic or countercultural hook

Meanders through anecdotes

Circles back to a lesson

Ends with a pitch or deadline-driven CTA

That style is replicated here with near-perfect Ben-ness.

4. Deliberate typos or quirks

“affinitly marketing” instead of “affinity” — he often lets little typos or off-beat spellings ride to maintain a “raw” feel.

Long sentence structures with nested thoughts, uncommon punctuation, and an “oral storytelling” rhythm that’s very hard for AI to naturally replicate. (Jameel note: “greased voice”)

5. Rhetorical jabs and polarizing filters

He purposely insults or filters out readers who won’t resonate:

“Probably you use so-called AI and watch TikTok videos.”

“Put this on the shelf, revisit, think about it…”

AI almost never writes like this—it’s too aggressive and high-risk for general audience content. But Ben uses it to attract his tribe.

💡 Final Verdict:

100% written by Ben Settle, not AI.

No ghostwriter or prompt could naturally produce the combination of deeply personal anecdotes, copywriting theory, brash tone, insider references, and culture jabs found in this piece.”

More proof, from ChatGPT itself, that it cannot write copy except for following safe templates, concepts, and ideas — all completely lacking personality — and with no way of creating the kind of vision and infotainment that you teach so well.

When I shared this on Twitter, a fellow summed it up best:

“Copywriting goals: Be so unapologetically yourself that even AI admits it can’t replicate your copy.”

To learn more about the paid Email Players newsletter that can help you do just that, go here:

www.BenSettle.com/alt

Ben Settle

So the paradox goes:

Every seminar you’ve done, you never strike me as this introverted loner guy you claim to be. You have a magic pull with the audience and they laugh at all your jokes. It feels so natural.

Are you secretly an extrovert, or have you picked up how to do talks/seminars so easily (while also disliking it) at a certain place, or person?

Or, 3rd option, have you just positioned yourself in such a way that to come watch you speak, they’d first have to go deep into your world and realize you’re actually pretty likeable – effectively culling the heard to get only the best and most engaged (the ones you’re most comfortable with) in your world to show up?

Let’s just get one thing out of the way off the bat:

I hate going anywhere.

Frankly, I dislike even leaving the house.

I haven’t even bothered to get the government’s stupid RealID or renew my passport. And I’m very much like how Superman’s mom Martha Kent describes Jonathan Kent in the Batman vs Superman movie:

CLARK KENT: How come Dad never left Kansas?

MARTHA KENT: Well, he just…You know how he was. “What do I need to travel for? I’m already there.”

This does, however, pose some annoying problems.

Like, for example:

A few years ago I did a live Q&A to a customer’s audience, and I was astonished by how excited, talkative, and all-around social they were compared to when I do live calls to my own boys & ghouls, who I sometimes wonder if they have a pulse at all, due to being introverts like me who just lurk and haunt zoom but never say anything, ask anything, engage with anything.

It’s why I don’t do much live stuff, incidentally:

All the dayem introverts.

I would do more live calls, training, whatever if I had lots of extroverts in my World.

But the vast majority are boring introverts (like me), who suck all the fun out of it.

Incidentally, the late Johnny Carson was a notorious introvert.

He we so introverted he got nearly paralyzed with nerves before each and every show he did during his 30+ year reign as the undisputed High King of Late Night TV entertainment. He was “the guy” who all the other A-list celebrities would clamor to meet and rub shoulders with at parties, but who he’d avoid, and often do the Irish Goodbye preferring solitude. He was also the guy whose “altar” all other late night TV comedians would bow at, despite being an introvert.

Obviously, he didn’t let his introversion get in his way.

And if you’re like that, you need not let it get in your way either.

Although, one of the beauties of email is you can do it regardless if you’re a social butterfly or a hopeless shut-in.

To learn more about the paid Email Players newsletter go here:

www.BenSettle.com/alt

Ben Settle

Your pal & daily email horror host has been accused many times of being a “luddite.”

Which I think, really, is not very fair.

“Luddite” doesn’t even BEGIN to describe me, and falls way short.

Although I do own a couple software companies, so there’s that, at least. But the “prototype” for my way of thinking and successfully doing business as a supposed luddite regardless of today’s volatile technological change is:

Ralph “Papa” Thorson in the movie “The Hunter”.

It was Steve McQueen’s last movie.

And the story was also based on a real life guy who was a modern day bounty hunter. In the movie Papa is a 50-year old guy who is way behind on technology and only getting older, slower, and more out of touch with the times each day. Yet, he always gets his man when given an assignment to bring someone in by applying relentless almost machine-like consistency vs brute force.

Papa’s pregnant woman Dotty (20-years younger than him) even complains about his contempt for new:

DOTTY: You ought to let your hair grow out. It looked a lot better when it was longer.

PAPA: I’m too old for that.

DOTTY: You like old things. That’s all you care about. You don’t like anything that’s new.

PAPA: New things are no good.

That is a nearly identical conversation Stefania (Millennial, easily distracted by new) and myself (Gen X, longing for the internet to go back to being plain text) have almost every week, it seems, lately, which got me to thinking about this.

Again, I highly suggest watching the movie.

Papa’s format – his unique way of doing business – may be old fashioned, just as his job as a bounty hunter was old fashioned. But he was good at it, did business HIS way, and had people competing to hire him and pay him lots of money because he had such a high success rate and bringing people in.

Ain’t no different today in the world of constantly-changing business & technology.

My approach to business is similar to Papa’s.

And, in many ways, so is my Email Players methodology although it can be “adapted” for nearly any business format, in my experience – old, young, or in between.

To learn more about that go here:

www.BenSettle.com/alt

Ben Settle

So wrote a Hollywood producer about the state of the entertainment industry.

And I not-so-humbly add to that list:

* Everyone’s got a brand but nobody’s got a business.

* Everyone’s a critic but nobody wants criticism

* Everyone has game but nobody’s in a relationship

* Everyone has a course but nobody knows how to teach

* Everyone’s got a book but nobody’s got readers

* Everyone’s efficient but nobody’s effective

* Everyone’s got AI but nobody’s thinking

* Everyone’s a philosopher but nobody’s got a philosophy

* Everyone’s a “founder” but nobody’s found success

* Everyone wants to lead but nobody wants to serve

* Everyone has an audience but nobody’s performing

* Everyone’s talks about storytelling but nobody has a story

* Everyone’s got Google but nobody knows how to search

* Everyone’s a marketer but nobody understands marketing

* Everyone has a platform but nobody says anything

* Everyone’s online but nobody’s connected

* Everyone wants money but nobody wants to pay

* Everyone’s a writer but nobody wants to write

In my opinion:

If all, some, or any of the above apply to you, then realize this is part & parcel of living in a time where everyone’s got knowledge, but nobody’s got wisdom. Everyone’s got skill but nobody’s got craftsmanship. And, yes, everyone’s got an opinion but nobody’s got a solution..

All right I think I’ve pontificated enough about that.

On another note, there is something else I want to teach here.

Currently I have ownership in 4 businesses:

(1) My print book & newsletter business of course

(2) A software company selling our BerserkerMail ESP & Learnistic mobile app technology

(3) A “hybrid” software/coaching company for businesses about selling options trading education with a stock scanner/tracking/courses/community

(4) A print newspaper which is an anomaly in and of itself these days, and I admittedly don’t put much time into yet, though that’ll change as the next round of elections ramps up

I also write, publish, market, and sell my own fiction/novels, too.

I bring all this up because of this important detail:

And what I write about in my paid Email Players newsletter is ultimately based on the experiences of building/growing/sustaining/exploiting the craziness amongst the businesses mentioned above, and is essentially how I do that prepping and also profiting from it. And the info I have prepared in 2026 especially in Email Players, is amongst the most important & timely info I have to share.

Info not learned from “books and courses.”

And certainly not from any mastermind/seminar/coach/consultant.

But from 24 years of raw experience & pain, setbacks & triumphs, discoveries & accidents, good timing & bad timing, and clawing my way out of the pits of despair when it looked like nothing was happening or worth continuing and it was all going to hell.

At the risk of sounding like some idiotic fapGPT-prompted analogy:

“Email Players is not just knowledge it’s wisdom!”

Anyway, August 2026 will mark the 15th year of Email Players.

A print newsletter like mine, especially at its price (which would cost FAR more if I’d kept up with inflation) simply does not last that long if it’s not delivering far MORE than what is promised, or if it merely regurgitates someone else, or if it does not legitimately change businesses over time for the better.

I keep hearing about even long-running subscriptions/memberships closing down in this space.

But mine is still going strong, and there are reasons for that.

More info here:

www.BenSettle.com/alt

Ben Settle

Below is a question about the recent Bargain Bin of Bonuses 4 sale.

My customer who asked it makes lots of good observations.

And my answers to her questions are like a naked look at my business’ “privates”, that make many of my offers work so well (across multiple businesses – not just this one you see here), and be so well received, in totally obnoxious CAPS below:

Hi Ben,

I am an email players subscriber (using a different email address from this) and wanted to share some comments about the “customer experience” I had with this bonus offer.

First, I noticed many of the tips you have given out for our own offers:

– your offer content sales pages are almost completely bullet points

[YES – AND SOON I WILL HAVE AN ENTIRE EMAIL PLAYERS ISSUE DEDICATED TO THIS STYLE OF SALES PAGE WHICH WORKS PHENOMENALLY WELL, AND FAR BETTER THAN THE SLICK, BROKEN UP, BORING, SAAS-STYLE 2025-STYLE PAGES MOST COPYWRITERS FAP TO WITHOUT EVEN KNOWING WHY]

– the font is different from what most people use

[YES, I REMEMBER A BUDDY ONCE SAYING I WAS “BURNING PEOPLE’S EYES OFF” BY USING SERIFF FONTS ONLINE.

HE WAS JUST PARROTING GOO-ROOS.

COPYWRITERS ENSLAVED TO SILLY RULES ARE FAR TOO PEDANTIC FOR THEIR OWN GOOD.

THEY LITERALLY CANNOT THINK BEYOND 2005 WARRIOR FORUM-LEVEL CHECKLISTS]

– the pages are FULL and bright and almost hard to read – so it feels like there is so much “stuff” I would get if I just accept the upsell offer, how could I skip it???

[YES, I OVERLOAD PEOPLE WITH REASONS TO BUY.

MANY YEARS AGO I HEARD AN INTERVIEW BETWEEN THE LATE, GREAT, BRILLIANT COPYWRITER CLAYTON MAKEPEACE AND EMAIL PLAYERS SUBSCRIBER AND WORLD’S GREATEST LIVING COPYWRITER GARY BENCIVENGA MOCKING THE IDEA OF HAVING AN ALL-ENCOMPASSING  “USP.”

I.E. “UNIQUE SELLING PROPOSITION.”

WHY NOT FILL YOUR ADS WITH AS MANY USP’S AS YOU CAN?

HENCE THE BULLET STYLE SALES PAGE I WILL BE TEACHING IN MINUTE DETAIL IN THE NEAR FUTURE IN EMAIL PLAYERS.]

– multiple upsells with a price I ‘couldn’t refuse’

[YES]

– the descriptions of the content for each of the bundles are clear and intriguing

[I CERTAINLY HOPE THEY ARE…]

– no fluff (thank you!)

[WHO HAS THE TIME?]

– and you build on your buyer’s use of the unique app you have (and I already have some of your other content in)

[THE LEARNISTIC MOBILE APP IS CRIMINALLY UNDERRATED AND UNDERUSED.

MOSTLY BECAUSE WE HAVE NO ‘ADVOCATE’ RUNNING AROUND MASTERMINDS AND SEMINARS TALKING ABOUT IT.

NEITHER TROY BROUSSARD – WHO CREATED AND DESIGNED IT – NOR I HAVE EVER HAD THE INTEREST IN PLAYING THE ONLINE-GOO-ROO-HAUNTING-THE-MASTERMIND-ROOM GAME.

PLUS:

ONLINE MARKETERS ARE MOSTLY A BIT DULL-WITTED, AND NEED A BIG NAME GOO-ROO TO GIVE THEM PERMISSION TO USE ANY NEW TECHNOLOGY, EVEN THOUGH MOBILE APP TECH HAS BEEN AROUND SINCE 2009 AND DELIVERS CONTENT WHERE THEIR CUSTOMERS ARE ALWAYS AT:

ON THEIR PHONES.

WE CALL ‘EM “PHONE FONDLERS.”

PEOPLE TREAT THEIR PHONES LIKE GOLLUM DOES THE ONE RING.

THEY ARE ALWAYS CHECKING ON IT, ALWAYS HOLDING IT, ALWAYS MAKING SURE ITS NOT LOST AND IS SAFE.

THEY USE IT FORO EVERYTHING, AND TAKE IT EVERYWHERE, AND PANIC IF THEY DON’T REMEMBER WHERE THEY PUT IT.

IT’S A LITERAL ADDICTION.

AND PEOPLE TAKE THEIR PHONES EVERYWHERE:

CAR, GYM, BEDROOM, WALKING, RUNNING, VACATION, RESTAURANTS, THE POST OFFICE, GROCERY STORE, WHEN SHOPPING, POOL, BEACH, HIKING, CYCLING, WORK, COMMUTE, AND, YES, EVEN IN THE BATHROOM AND IN THE SHOWER.

THEY AIN’T TOTING THEIR LAPTOPS OR IPADS AROUND LIKE THAT.

IF YOU WANT TO BE WHERE YOUR CUSTOMERS AND LEADS ARE, BE IN THEIR PHONES.

MEANWHILE:

WE PRACTICALLY RUN OUR ENTIRE SOON-TO-BE 8-FIGURE LOW STRESS TRADING BUSINESS THROUGH IT.

EMAIL PLAYERS SUBSCRIBER DANIEL THROSSELL RUNS HIS ENTIRE BUSINESS THROUGH IT, AS DO SOME OF MY OTHER CUSTOMERS.

I OFFER ACCESS TO MY FREE MOBILE APP VIA LEARNISTIC TO ALL NEW OPT-INS TO MY LIST, TO GET THEM IN, WITH 30+ HOURS OF CONTENT.

AND AS YOU CAN SEE, I AM STARTING TO HOST MORE OFFERS INSIDE IT.

INCLUDING A BRAND SPANKING NEW COURSE (9-HOURS LONG) IN JANUARY.

INCIDENTALLY, LEARNISTIC IS ALSO CLOSED TO NEW CUSTOMERS, UNLESS REQUESTED.

LET ME KNOW IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN LEARNISTIC AND I WILL PUT YOU IN TOUCH WITH OUR CEO THE GREAT JOHN WOOD, WHO KNOWS THE APP BETTER THAN ANYONE AND, YES, RUNS HIS OWN SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS THROUGH IT PRIMARILY.]

Second,

It was a great lesson in how to implement the tips/training/info you give us in your emails and monthly newsletter.  So consistent.  Such a great example of that flow.

[WE AIM TO PLEASE IN SETTLE’S SACRED SALES SANCTUARY..]

Third,

Very fast and simple delivery of the e-products and invoice.  I didn’t have to search around for anything, it was there exactly as promised.  And a direct email contact if I had any questions.

[YES, I WANT TO GIVE THE KIND OF EXPERIENCE I LIKE TO HAVE BUYING.

I DON’T ALWAYS GET IT RIGHT, BUT I DARESAY I DO IT BETTER THAN MOST IN MY SPACE AND AM ALWAYS THINKING OF WAYS TO DO IT BETTER.

IN FACT, IN JANUARY EMAIL PLAYERS SUBSCRIBERS WILL HAVE DIRECT MOBILE PHONE ACCESS TO ME WITH QUESTIONS, IN ADDITION TO EMAIL ACCESS THEY ALREADY HAVE, AS AN ATTEMPT TO RAMP UP THE EXPERIENCE OF DOING BUSINESS WITH ME.]

Top notch customer service as you teach.

[* TIPS EMAIL PLAYERS CAP]

Thanks!  Looking forward to actually digging into that content.  Should keep me busy and out of trouble for a while…

If there is anything in this email you would want to share with your readers that’s fine with me, just leave off my last name thanks.

Shelley

All right, I probably just said more than I know.

More about the Email Players newsletter here:

www.BenSettle.com/alt

Ben Settle

Came a comment:

Hey Ben,

I recently just watched a YouTube video by a well known creator in the online business space about how to grow an audience, and in it he was saying that people who do daily email don’t care about actually changing anyone’s life and they only care about making a quick buck off you.

He thinks long-form weekly newsletter content is how you actually create value and build a long-lasting audience.

What are your thoughts on this?

My thoughts are guys like him are projecting.

I’ve been relentlessly – never skipping a single day, to my knowledge in all that time – writing/sending daily emails for 17-years straight. And my biggest regret is it took me 6+ years to start doing daily emails at all (didn’t start until 2008) after being inspired by the great Matt Furey’s original email course.

That’s a lot of writing,

Way I see it:

Even if I’d only been writing one email per day during this time, that’s over 6,000 emails. Assuming the average email is one page (many are 2, 3, 4, even 5, and as long as 16+ pages in a few cases long – this email is pushing 2,000 words), that’d still have been well over 6,000 pages of content, but is probably more like 10k – 15k pages due how long most are. And assuming each email takes only 10 minutes (I enjoy it – and savor it, and often spend 30+ minutes or more when not in a time jam), that’s at probably somewhere around 100,000+ minutes or 10,000+ hours.

But the reality is I cannot say the exact numbers off the top of my head.

What I can safely say though, is this:

I’ve written at least 10,000 – 15,000 emails in the years just to this list. Especially considering I often write way more than one email per day – and also especially when writing multiple campaigns each month.

I publish well over 700 emails per year, give or take, on average.

And this does not even count the 1000s of emails I collectively wrote doing client work.

Or that I sometimes write for Low Stress Trading.

Or that I’ve written for various other ventures I’ve been involved with.

And while there are admittedly times when I “recycle/repurpose” emails… the older I get, the less interest I have in doing that, unless under excruciating time crunches… not just for reader Experience, but also my own Experience – as I enjoy writing emails.

It’s like eating dessert first for me each day when I write them.

So even considering that, I have no problem saying 10,000 original emails.

And, again, probably much closer to 15,000.

And for the AI geek chorus reading this:

These were all written by me, with my brain, not some generative so-called AI tool.

Anyway, what’s the point of all this?

If I was doing daily emails just “for money” or if I “didn’t care”, I’d have skipped a lot of days when things are fat & happy especially. That’s just human nature. Plus, I am no different than you or anyone else, where there are days where I’m just not feeling it and would prefer to do something else or anything else BUT write.

Even doing fun stuff loses its novelty at times.

So there’s more to it than just “money.”

If anything, I’ve been writing LESS emails this year.

As I wrote in an Email Players last year:

I am more interested in quality than volume, even if more volume technically would potentially make more more sales – and it very well might. BUT… those short term sales would chip away at the long term sales that can only come via a strong relationship with my list. Especially as they’ve been getting bombarded with nonsensical generative so-called AI emails and, arguably worse, cold emails sent by absolute spammers who have to constantly warm up new IPs and buy aged domains just to keep their stupid, skeevy little games going while desperately insisting on social media how much it “wOrKS!”

None of that will last, in my opinion, by the way.

Google, Yahoo, etc are punishing such emailers.

So I suspect that particular situation will resolve itself.

We will see.

And so those who are doing things the right way need only riiiiiide out the current wave of stupidity perpetuated primarily by goo-roo burnouts and social media anons who were born after the year 2000 and still live in their moms’ basements.

Back to the point:

To me it’s all about the relationship first.

I don’t do the “sell the click” shtick.

I sell the relationship – which I have found gets the clicks, which leads to sales.

I call it the “relationclick.”

And in my experience:

You get that not buy sending LESS emails, nor do you get it by sending too many emails, as the law of diminishing returns kicks in eventually – or else you’d see people sending hourly emails. No, Chachi, you get it by sending the right kind of emails, with the right kind of intent, in just the right kind of volume/frequency… with the right message, to the right person, at the right time.

Something you can only discern, really, by writing and sending…. daily emails.

Every list is different, just as every business and marketer is different.

Those looking for hand-holding or a “system” probably didn’t find this very useful.

But then again, nothing I teach will help them people anyway.

They’re fooked and don’t even realize it.

As for the grownups who can think & act autonomously?

That’s where the November Email Players issues shines.

You can read more about what’s inside it below in the P.S.

Otherwise, to subscribe while you still have some time to get in for it, go here:

www.BenSettle.com/alt

Ben Settle

The first time I saw Paul Hartunian work his magic was in 2002.

I don’t even remember where I got the ratty old VHS tape from, where I saw him teaching a room full of business people how they could get literally millions of dollars in media publicity for the bargain basement price of 15 cents.

i.e., what it cost back then send a FAX.

But he was going through the audience, one-by-one, briefly listening to what they do, then just brain storming out one incredible idea after another they could use for a press release to get all kinds of free publicity – including radio interviews, TV interviews, and full page newspaper ads that’d normally cost tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of dollars if that space was purchased as advertising.

I don’t think I ever saw so many people in an audience taking notes so fast.

By the end I was sitting there trying to figure out how to afford his dayem course.

But alas.. it was $800.

Which was about $795 more than I had at the time.

So instead:

I just kept watching that video where he gave the “what” to do, but not the “how” (you needed his course for that). And it was, in many ways, the first and most valuable direct marketing/copywriting/email lesson I ever learned, and the “fingerprint” of it is still in all my emails, ads, books, newsletters, videos, articles, podcasts, and other content to this day.

I, of course, hopped on his email list right away.

And while I didn’t realize it at the time, he was also teaching me advanced email game.

Every single email was about tips for getting free publicity.

He gave away all his best ideas, experiences, and thoughts – free, in the email.

But, what he did not give you was the structured “how to” of it.

So all it did, week by week (he sent weekly emails, if I remember correctly), was make me hungrier for his course, more obsessed with being able to afford it, and even day dreaming about all the ways I’d use it.

When I finally could afford it, I was “all in” on it.

I went through it at least dozens of times – both the manuals and 6+ hours of audios.

For months I ate, breathed, and crapped publicity.

His training for writing tight, irresistible press releases reporters had almost no choice but to respond to had some of the best tips I still use today for my bullets/fascinations, headlines, stories, and closes.

I even wrote about this last May and June in the Email Players newsletter.

Specifically:

The direct mail test panel we used for Low Stress Trading that got 5x the industry average for response (that nobody thought would win) was written not like an “ad” but…

A press release.

And it was 100% inspired by what I learned from Paul Hartunian.

Not long after I practically memorized his entire course chapter by chapter, verse by verse, and precept upon precept, I took advantage of the two free press release critiques he gave away with it. The first press release I sent was for a client in the self defense niche at the time. And Paul spent a lot more than I was expecting on it, giving me all kinds of invaluable tips for the headline and the close (he liked all the bullets…)

I still have that critique.

And it still takes me to school about my ads, emails, and other ad copy, not just press releases.

The second press release was for a book I wrote about dogs.

I spent weeks writing, re-writing, tweaking, tightening, and reading that press release out loud. When I sent it to Paul to be critiqued, he got back to me with a much shorter critique. It was barely a few sentences. And it said there was nothing to improve.

Next step:

Send that sucker out to the media.

So I followed the instructions in his kit for building and/or buying a media list, and started FAXing it to radio stations all around the United States. I think I FAXed about 1,000 of them. Paul was mostly against using email to send press releases because in his experience and his students’ experience… emails simply didn’t have as much chance of getting read by reporters wanting to call you back, talk to you, grill you for information to share with their audiences.

i.e., give your business lots of free “advertising.”

Reporters were getting inundated even back then with often 1000s of emails per day.

And fewer and fewer people were FAXing, saying it was outdated, arcane, whatever.

Thus:

That meant that FAX machine was way less crowded.

Which meant press releases sent to it were more likely to be seen.

Which meant they were more likely to be responded to.

Around that time he even told a story about one of his coaching students who had FAXed a release that resulted in a bunch of free publicity and sales for the business.

But, the reporter said:

“we actually prefer email, hardly anyone FAXes us press releases.”

It was a perfect example of “don’t ask the deer how to hunt it, ask the hunter.”

But back to my first press release campaign:

One of the things Paul recommended to newbies at publicity was to only send your press releases to SMALL radio and TV stations and newspapers. He said the reason for this was to get your confidence up and to do lots of interviews. Get all the nerves out, and get comfortable with the process, before going for the bigger media outlets.

When I got my first “bite” on the radio stations I could barely sleep.

I don’t think I did sleep, now that I think about it, that first night.

But right after that 8 minute interview I took a look at the site’s ad rates:

$25 for a one minute spot.

I could hear Paul’s voice (exactly as he said it in the course):

“Nobody’s listening”

So I kept sending out press releases, kept honing my craft, kept writing different angles and bullets and headlines, and kept doing more interviews. Over and over and over again for the entire Summer. And it was like that mobster in the movie “True Romance” explaining how the first time he killed someone he threw up. The second one was no Mardi Gras either, but it was more “diluted.” Now he does it just to watch the expression change.

So it has been for me ever since with doing interviews, speaking, talking to thousands of people live.

Teen Settle was so shy he could barely even get up in front of a class to recite a report.

These days?

I try to have fun with hosts just to get them to throw me curve balls for the hell of it.

And it was another life lesson I learned from Paul:

Just get in your iterations when learning and doing things you want to get great at. I’ve applied that to everything important ever since. And it’s why I go through courses, books, trainings, whatever it is, a minimum of 10 times. And often 20, 30, 40 times if it’s something I really want to get good at.

Whatever the case, I was hooked after that.

And later, when podcasting became more popular, I also used what Paul taught to get booked on shows.

I’d send press releases using his system to get on almost any show I wanted.

And not just shows for business, but for that book about dogs, too.

In fact, the biggest for that I got on was an Animal Planet affiliated show. I remember that one being frustrating. Not because it was a bad experience, but because the host went through my ad and just started asking me about all the bullets, asking me to reveal the secrets while apologizing for asking, but she just had to know.

I didn’t have the skill to handle that sort of situation in an interview then.

But it was a good problem to have…

I also learned a lot from Paul about running a print newsletter.

I subscribed to his print newsletter for years before he retired it about ten years ago. And there were a lot of little things he did I took notes on. When it came time to do my own print newsletters those little things I took notes on made it all go a lot easier, smoother, and more profitable.

Speaking of ten years ago:

Around that time, word must have gotten around to him about what a fan I was of his, because he sent me, totally out of the blue, a big box one day with his Public Speaking course tapes as a way to say “thank you.”

But probably the #1 most important lesson I learned from Paul:

“The world is changed with a checkbook”

Not good thoughts, or good vibes, or likes, retweets, or any other airy fairy woo-woo hootenanny people do on social media to virtue signal that have zero impact on anything or anyone.

No, it’s that nasty checkbook.

To illustrate his point he told a story in his course about how they had just rescued a puppy who had been thrown out a two story window. The puppy’s leg was broken. And when he went to the vet, the vet didn’t fix it up by being paid in Facebook prayers or “sending good thoughts!” or whatever.

Paul had to pull a checkbook out and write a check.

I’ve never forgotten that lesson either.

In fact, here’s something else to think about:

Next week I am being interviewed by a magazine about using World-Building in the business of fashion. It ought to be interesting, to say the least. Me, of all people, talking to the media about fashion..

But what I learned from Paul about interviews will be applied.

There are certain things he taught and did that make doing interviews not only a lot more fun (for you and the reporter/host), but a lot more profitable, too. And if you do it right, they tend to want you to come back again later. That’s key. Because, again, this ain’t about fame and glory. It’s about the checkbook. And at the end of the day, media publicity – big outlet or small podcast – is about growing your business.

So that, too, is yet another lesson from Paul Hartunian.

All right, I’ll end with something related.

And that is, he refused to give interviews on PBS or NPR.

i.e., the government, tax payer funded platforms.

Reason why was, he said they were jerks about letting you give out your contact info. And about six years ago, I was graciously invited by Russell Brunson to speak at his Funnel Hacking Live event.

And I was all ready to do it… until I read the fine print:

No promoting yourself.

Not even just a website to a free opt-in with nothing for sale.

They told me it was “tacky.”

Well, I don’t know what kind of pitch fest goo-roo bums they’d trotted out on stage prior to think that.

And I figured they had their reasons for the policy, and respected his decision, he has to do what he has to do, especially an event that big.

But, to me, what’s more tacky is getting people all dressed up with nowhere to go. If I give an audience great info, and they want more, it’s only doing them a disservice by not showing them where to go to get more… before they get distracted by something or someone else, and in a way that lets me CURATE them my way.

Something I can’t do with letting them Google me on their own or whatever.

I want to bring people in who come correct or not at all.

Which is one reason why my list not only gets high inbox deliverability, but I also don’t deal with a lot of idiots my peers do. And Paul, indirectly, taught how to curate like this with this attitude about those not allowing you to give out your contact info and media rejection (refusing to do an interview) if they don’t play the game.

Anyway, I haven’t even gotten into all the other publicity “miracles” Paul performed.

Like, for example:

How he (a Jersey man) literally sold the Brooklyn Bridge for $14.95.

Not to mention how he got on all the big national talk shows at the time, including the biggest like Johnny Carson, and how he got so much free publicity and non-stop coverage and reporters begging for him to be on their shows (as he taught, publicity begets more publicity) he once had to literally leave the country just to keep his privacy and sanity.

It’s all well worth Google’ing.

Here, I just wanted to give my own personal experiences with Paul’s teachings, and try to give you a look at some ways I’ve used to help grow my business that you might have picked up from reading about it.

I have literally used what he taught nearly every day for the past 20+ years.

And I will continue to do so for the next 20 years.

So RIP to the old publicity master.

I highly suggest you do a serious study on him.

And, if possible, find his courses and other products.

It’ll almost certainly be money well spent.

Ben Settle

P.S. Pretty much everything in my free mobile app in the “Acoustic Settle” channel is interviews. And, in many ways, they are all a result of what I learned from Paul about handling, profiting from, and working interviews.

If you don’t already have my mobile app, you can get it free here:

www.BenSettle.com/alt

I saw a news report not long ago with the headline:

“#MeToo backlash: More male managers avoid mentoring women or meeting alone with them”

Under the photo accompanying the headline it said:

“After more men say HR personnel have advised them to avoid being alone with women at work, “I really think we are facing a very serious crisis for women in getting promoted,” Sheryl Sandberg says.”

My response to people like Sheryl Sandberg is simply:

No shyt, Sherlock.

What did she and her ilk think was going to happen?

A lot of people used to ridicule, mock, even get angry with the late preacher Billy Graham for never meeting with a woman alone without his wife present. Same with former Vice President Mike Pence.

I don’t even like Pence and find him to be a total putz.

But he was wise to have that exact same rule even as the media shrieked at him over it.

More:

The last 25 years have been one endless string of having to ride out the time between bouts of propaganda & the masses of normies who need to be told how to think catching on. Everything from the 9/11 war grift… to banking & mortgage schemes… to #Metoo slanders… to masks/jabs… to crypto/NFTs… to a four year run of war & big pharma propaganda never seen before in the history of the US… and, most recently, the so-called AI corporate Narrative that has created a ponzi scheme so ingrained in the economy now it’s almost single handedly propping the stock market up on its wobbling, pipe cleaner thick legs.

The cycle of these events seems to get shorter with each, at least.

And so in a year or two it’ll almost certainly be something else.

I’m rooting for it to be UFOs..

Whatever the case:

It helps to train your brain to reject anything you see your social media friends buy into by “default.”

I won’t say they are always wrong, or that the crowd is always wrong. That whole “even a broken clock is right twice per day” trope is true. But it is wrong a helluva lot more than it is right. And the media is always, without a doubt, either lying or misleading/misdirecting something.

I don’t think anyone in the media is even capable of reporting without bias at this point.

If they were, they’d die in ratings because the proletariat now demands to be entertained and distracted via a constant, 24/7 state of being in an endlessly alternating adrenaline/dopamine loop.

I can’t even make fun of it or mock it whole cloth.

One of my most valuable email teachings essentially trains businesses how to do that with email each day. I just don’t teach doing it via lies and deceit like the media does. They way I teach it creates sales, happier customers, and helps close such loops.

Will not explain.

As far as detecting and rejecting bull shyt narratives goes:

I like to think my paid Email Players newsletter helps with that.

More on that here:

www.BenSettle.com/alt

Ben Settle