Ben Settle

A few years ago I had a conversation with a family member (who shalt go unnamed) about why I think the idea of throwing “deadbeat dads” (i.e. dads who don’t pay child support) into jail is completely idiotic, makes no sense, and does nothing but harm the kid(s).

Why would I say that?

Three reasons:

1. If he’s in jail, he can’t pay anything anyway

2. When he gets out of jail, his job prospects are going to suck even worse, so assuming he starts paying again it won’t be as much as it could be

3. The child now has the stigma of having a father who is in jail

(yay!)

Who exactly does it help?

That is, other than scum bags who profit from jails?

(I am very much against the idea of any kind of prison — there is no crime that either public flogging, restitution, or the death penalty doesn’t take care of depending on the severity and nature of the particular crime.)

Anyway, she couldn’t refute my position.

But, I was still called an asshole, anyway.

And, well, just shows nobody ever “wins” an argument.

What does this have to do with your marketing or copywriting or emails or business or making more sales or anything even remotely related to such?

Probably nothing.

Unless, of course, you are able to read between the lines.

While you’re doing that, I want to tell you another jail-related story.

This one about a conversation I had with a convicted felon who has been in 9 different prisons, had a crap upbringing, has made lots of mistakes… and is now one of the world’s top sales trainers, and lives in a penthouse in the middle of Dallas with neighbors that include movie stars, rock stars, celebrity athletes, etc. Believe it or not, he survived those 9 prisons in the South as a 130 lbs 19-year old, often the only white guy in the place in most cases (yes, the racial stuff you hear about prisons is true), and he did it with nothing but hardcore persuasion skills.

And guess what?

You can hear his story on tomorrow’s Ben Settle Show podcast.

(Lots more lessons “between the lines” in this one.)

Watch for my email tomorrow.

In the meantime, download prior episodes here:

www.BenSettleShow.com/blog

Ben Settle

A couple months ago a few people had some delivery issues with the “Email Players” newsletter. And, so I went into the facebook group for customers and said to tell me if theirs hadn’t shown yet.

Specifically, I said to send me their address.

Turns out only a few people had delivery problems after all.

But, one blue light special who is not a paid subscriber sent me his address thinking he’d get a free issue. I bet if you were to open the dictionary and look up the definition of low class jackass, you’d see a picture of this guy.

Does he think elBenbo doesn’t check these things?

The low class jackass types are nothing if not amusingly predictable.

In fact, over the years I’ve become like the eye of Sauron — with my gaze fixed on all the silly little things freebie seekers like him do that keeps them from making it anywhere in business. Even if I had been asleep at the switch and blindly sent the issue to him, he wouldn’t have benefited from it. He sure as hellz wouldn’t have valued it. And, he never would have profited from it.

Why?

Because the information isn’t meant for him or people like him.

It’s for doers.

Movers and shakers.

And, yes, action takers.

For everyone else?

To paraphrase John Adams:

“It is wholly inadequate for any other”

More info here:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

Recently my pal and best-selling sales author Ryan Stewan said:

“Tonight I had the pleasure of another so called sales trainer, threaten to come to my house and “f— my b— tch let’s hope he shows up because worldstar needs a new viral video.”

I gotta admit:

Ever since I met Ryan I’ve been jealous of his haters.

I mean, this guy is a master at rattling cages.

No matter how much I try to stir up trouble with my own lists, I can never get the raw hatred, contempt, and vileness from my haters as Ryan gets from his. If I did, I’d be turning every single one of them into my own personal marketing “interns” as blogger (and another guy who can get the wagging tongues of his haters quivering in anger) Mike Cernovich calls his haters.

The more nonsense one of his haters spews, the more sales he accrues.

It’s a beautiful thing to behold.

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

But, I will say this:

In an upcoming “Email Players” issue, I’m going to be showing you an email someone wrote me once in the dating niche I sometimes sell in, that rivaled one of Mr. Stewman’s haters. And, I also show you an example of a subject line (perhaps the single best subject line template I’ve ever written, and I believe will get you more opens than any other subject line you’ve ever tested if you try it) that I used to turn that seething hate mail into sales.

But, that’s down the line a bit.

(Not sure which issue it’ll be featured in yet.)

BTW, speaking of Ryan Stewman:

He and I (and a handful of smart speakers) are both going to be giving trainings at my ex-copywriting apprentice’s “Biz N Brewz” event next week in Portland.

He’ll be teaching stuff about sales & persuasion.

Me?

I’ll be teaching how to clear 6-figures per year writing just one email per day.

It’s something I’ve been doing for years.

And, it’s such a hot topic right now that I’m in preliminary discussions (nothing has been nailed down yet, just talking about it at the moment) with the prestigious AWAI to create a product with them on that very subject.

There’s still some time left if you want in.

Go here for the details:

www.BizNBrewz.com

Ben Settle

P.S. Apparently, some people think I’ve been making up all these stories I tell about my ex-copywriting apprentice. She says several people have actually Facebooked her asking if it’s real (and if SHE is even real) or just something I made up for shitz & giggles.

Yes.

She’s real, and she’s fantastic.

And if you want to meet her yourself, then come hang with us in Portland where we’ll be learning for a few hours each day, then piling into hummer limos to go brewery tasting around the city.

How’s that for an event?

Here’s the link again:

www.BizNBrewz.com

One of the things you see copywriters do is put the dorky little “as seen on” logo at the top of their ads.

“As seen on…”

Then logos of major news sites, publications, shows, etc.

Sounds good, doesn’t it?

Like a great idea?

Like “killer copywriting”, even?

I’m not saying it won’t increase conversions.

But, when people haven’t actually been seen on those places except because they ran paid ads there, it’s not really true. Yes, it’ll work on the weak-minded and hyper buyers who buy everything. (The one that amuses me most is when people put “as seen on Clickbank”)

But the skeptics?

Which make up as much as 2-5 x’s more people than hyper buyers?

There is a much better way to use credentials like that.

(Assuming they are true.)

A way I’ve used to make ads that would otherwise seem mundane and boring sound suddenly exciting and, dare I say it, sexy? A way I taught the Ben Settle Show announcer chick in today’s podcast. A way you, too, can use, as well if’n you want.

You can learn all about free here in today’s show:

www.BenSettleShow.com/blog

Ben Settle

P.S. During this 4-part series you’ll have a chance to get my re-released “Copy Slacker” product at a huge discount. Make sure you listen carefully if you want to get your greedy, sweaty little hands on it for $200 off this weekend only.

One of the things I taught the Ben Settle announcer chick while hacking away at your sales letter with reckless abandon was the “genie secret.”

What’s the genie secret?

Well, let’s put it this way:

Back in the golden age of direct response (B.I.E. i.e. before the Internet era) the old school marketers used to do things quite differently than most of today’s whipper-snappers online do when writing their ads.

For one thing, they used to create their ads first.

Then, the product.

There was one guy in particular (can’t remember his name) who used to write an ad, run it in newspapers, then, if it got lots of sales he would scramble to create a product to fulfill all the claims and promises in his ad (I believe that’s illegal these days, btw, so don’t try that at home…) Basically, guys like that would (and some still do, although they don’t try to pre-sell with those ads) pretend they had unlimited, genie-like powers to grant their market anything, write an ad selling it, then create a product that includes as many of those claims as possible, then adjust the copy for the stuff they couldn’t fulfill on.

Thus, I call it the genie secret.

You can call it whatever you want.

(I recently did this for the work at home market, we haven’t tested it yet though).

More:

This tactic also can be used to create what is one of the hardest parts of a sales letter for a lot of people, too — the all-important opening paragraph.

But worry ye not.

elBenbo has your back.

Because, in today’s Ben Settle Show podcast (part 3 of a 4 part series ripping my show’s announcer babe a new ad hole on the air) I show you this tip, how to use it, and, how to have peace the rest of your life (maybe).

Here’s where to download/listen to it:

www.BenSettleShow.com/blog

Ben Settle

P.S. During this 4-part series you’ll have a chance to get my re-released “Copy Slacker” product at a huge discount. Make sure you listen carefully if you want to get your greedy, sweaty little hands on it for $200 off this weekend only.

Last year I drove back into the golf market.

And, since it isn’t information I’m selling (which I was selling before) but something completely different, that nobody else is (at least not using the format and mechanism we are), I had to re-examine the market a lot more closely.

In other words…

There are no competitors to study.

No ads I can analyze to see how they approached it.

And, no swipe file of ads to raid for guidance.

Ordinarily I’d have been flying blind.

But, I wasn’t.

You see, my fine feathered little droogie, your boy elBenbo has an ace up his sleeve when it comes to learning about what a list (and market) wants so he can better sell to them — specifically in the headline.

An ace I rarely see anyone else use.

An ace I learned by observing an ooooold school ad agency.

What is it, you ask?

Well, what I did was, I used this trick I learned by studying what the old, “mad men” era Norman B. Norman agency would do to get inside their market’s head and psychology when they created their ad campaigns, and applied it to our Facebook group.

(We don’t even have a list).

The result?

I got TONS of market intel.

I know exactly what their objections are. Exactly how much they want what we’re offering. (Without even knowing it exists yet.) And, exactly what to say in a headline when I’m writing an ad.

It’s the ultimate market research/headline writing shortcut.

And guess ye what?

I reveal exactly what it is and how it works in today’s “Ben Settle Show” podcast — which is part 2 of my scathing critique of the show announcer chick’s sales letter.

Here’s where to listen/download it immediately:

www.BenSettleShow.com/blog

Ben Settle

P.S. During this 4-part series you’ll have a chance to get my re-released “Copy Slacker” product at a huge discount. Make sure you listen carefully if you want to get your greedy, sweaty little hands on it for $200 off this weekend only.

Recently I put Misty the Ben Settle Show announcer chick on the hot seat.

(And recorded it.)

I took her main offer/sales letter and burned it to ashes.

Then, helped her rewrite it from scratch… from the ground up.

As she described it:

“’It’s like he ripped me a new asshole and then pulled a new sales letter out of it’

^^ my closing reaction to a 90 minute sales letter teaching session with Ben Settle For the purposes of teaching, and massive conversion, I volunteered my sales letter as tribute. I let Ben burn it to the ground only to watch him summon it from the dead like a Phoenix from the ashes. From my sales letters charred remains, he created an irresistible offer that only a crazy lady would turn down. I might even frame it. Jonathan Rivera weighed in too and made sure to record this totally raw podcast episode for your listening pleasure.”

Anyway, the first part of that recording is now live.

And, I show you perhaps the easiest way ever invented to write a story for your ads.

You can download it free here:

www.BenSettleShow.com/blog

Enjoy the BBQ…

Ben Settle

P.S. During this 4-part series you’ll have a chance to get my re-released “Copy Slacker” product at a huge discount. Make sure you listen carefully if you want to get your greedy, sweaty little hands on it for $200 off this weekend.

Nothing to do with email, copywriting, marketing, or bid’niz.

But, here’s an announcement anyway:

I decided to put the first novel of my 7 book “Enoch Wars” series up on the Internet free.

No opting in.

No banner ads.

No registration required.

I simply thought it’d be fun to give people a, uhm, taste of what these books are about by giving the first book away gratis in plain text format anyone can read on any browser (even if you have a web browser from 1997) — with or without any special software, devices, or gizmos.

The link is here:

www.ZombieCopBook.com

Again, I don’t know if it’ll help your marketing at all.

(Although it might, who knows?)

But, an awful lot of world class copywriters, marketers, and bid’niz people have raved about it.

For example:

“a fun, entertaining, engaging, and compelling read that draws you in and keeps you turning pages”
– Bob Bly
(A-list copywriter & bestselling author of over 80+ books)

“I couldn’t stop reading”
– Dan Gallapoo
(World Class Copywriter For Agora Financial & Other Prestigious Direct Marketing Companies)

“Extremely engaging and makes you not want to put it down”
– Eric McMillan
(World’s Leading Pay-Per-View Ad Marketer & traffic guru)

“To keep up with Zombie Cop, book writers and Hollywood are going to have to step-up their game. The bar’s just been raised”
– Greg Perry
(Oklahoma’s #1 used & rare book dealer & world’s “most published” author of computer books)

“Reading [this] book and designing the cover were a lot more fun than most of my work!”
– Kirk Douponce
(Book cover designer for all the world’s biggest book publishers, such as Simon and Schuster, McGraw Hill, Harper Collins/Zondervan and Thomas Nelson)

“If you’re into ruminations about the secrets and mysteries of ancient times, Sacred texts, and the never-ending saga of supernatural battles of good and evil — again — you. will. love. it.”
– Caleb Osborne
(Full-Service Advertising Agency Owner)

“Most satisfying book I’ve read in months…Bought it on Thursday and was done by Friday night”
– Yoav Ezer
(Owner of one of the world’s most prestigious services for helping authors get published)

“the characters, though demented, almost had this dry sense of humor in their thoughts. I was getting a kick out of their own self talk. Plenty of fight scenes… plenty of gore”
– J.E. Clair
(Head copywriter for some of the highest selling companies on ClickBank)

“Surprisingly a lot of depth to this book — layers upon layers of bad guys, layers of story lines, and of course, a sense that there’s another book to come”
– Stephen Dean
(One of the most prolific copywriters in the Northwest US)

“Totally gruesome, twisted stuff. LOVING IT TO PIECES.”
– Jim Yaghi
(Computer Scientist, Leading Google AdWords & Traffic Specialist)

Anyhoo.

Yes, the book is deranged.

No, it’s not a “nice” story full of unicorn farts and sunshine.

And, of course it’s not intended for people under 18 yrs old.

But you know what?

I daresay my free novel will be the most entertaining read of the year for you.

And if not?

I’ll give you your non-money back.

Bon Appétit…

www.ZombieCopBook.com

Ben Settle

“Email Players” subscriber and rapper Drew Morisey nails it:

“Need to get back in the swing of things on daily emails. At this point I’m busting out about 4-5 a week which is better than most of my competitors, BUT what should be mentioned even further is that I sort of converted ElBenBo style format into my YouTube videos, and my business has grown from 1.5k a month to 5k a month in roughly three months. I’m too lazy (and now with a bigger business, overworked!) to do the numbers but I would hazard a guess that Saint Settle’s lessons had something to do with this… the format even works with YouTube videos (assuming one has the audience)”

Yep.

It’s ALL the same.

The same methods I teach for writing emails can be adapted to video, social media, articles, blogs, podcasting, and any other media. All you need is a list/audience/followers, and you’re good to go.

Anyway, time’s almost up to get in on the March issue.

She goes to the printer tomorrow.

Giddy-up and get it here:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle