Ben Settle

Some wonder why I’m so cynical about goo-roos.

Do I have an axe to grind?

No, no… nothing that sexy.

But, my goo-roo cynicism is two fold:

1. I end up hearing lots of horror stories (from people on my list) about how they got ripped off, spent $2k or whatever on recycled garbage, or got stiffed for money owed (as affiliates, service providers, etc).

This stuff irks me.

And the other reason?

2. Something a former client once told me, who has masterminded with a lot of these goo-roos in the past. He goes, “Ben, one thing I’ve learned this year dealing with all my Internet marketing asshole friends is they’re all full of shit!”

Not MY words.

That’s what he said.

Then, he told me about some more dirt.

Like how, for example, someone may be making $10 million per year gross, but only netting 10% of that (specifically, we were talking about some of the “moving the free line” people).

Or how one goo-roo’s “7 figure launch” had like a 70% refund rate.

True, he could have been lying about this.

But I don’t know what the motive was.

(He does not even sell business-to-business).

More:

I don’t like how certain goo-roos disrespect copywriters.

Case in point:

A few years back, a guy in my mastermind group wrote a long sales letter for a VERY big name goo-roo.

He slaved over that thing.

And, it was a pretty good.

So what did the goo-roo client do? He took it to his other goo-roo friends and, since they drink their own kool-aid and think they know what they’re talking about with copywriting (hint: few if any of them do) they slashed it up!

It was a complete mess, too.

Like drunken carnival clowns wrote it.

It’s one thing if this IMPROVES an ad, but they massacred it.

So yeah, goo-roos suck.

’nuff said.

Ben Settle

P.S. Lately the private Crypto Marketing Lounge (for paying Crypto Marketing Newsletter subscribers only) has been buzzing with all kinds of great tips and topics.

We’re looking at each other’s ads.

We’re looking at each other’s ideas.

We’re even looking at each others’ wives! (Well, I’ll just leave it at that…)

To join the party, subscribe at:

Got some more headline fodder for ya.

They are from my favorite rag “Sun Magazine” and this last issue had an especially large amount of headlines that seemed interesting enough to write down (and share with you).

Anyway, they make great idea starters.

And you never know what they’ll morph into in your ads…

TITANIC SURVIVOR FOUND
ALIVE ON REMOTE ISLAND!

THEY’RE BACK!
‘ESP spies’ are hard at work helping
Pentagon foresee coming events

ROYAL CORPSE UNLEASHES
TERRIFYING CURSE…

GOV’T DOCS GAVE DEADLY
DISEASES TO PATIENTS!

BANISH BACK PAIN FOR FREE
No drugs… No exercise… No dieting…

DOCTORS USE PATIENTS’ OWN CELLS
TO MAKE NEW BODY PARTS

TORTURED TEACHER HAUNTS
DESERTED CEMETERY

WILL YOUR CITY BE NEXT?
Scientists and seers predict huge
disasters to hit U.S.

CREEPY MASK CLUE TO MURDERER!
Identity thief charged with slicing
victim to pieces

BURGLAR CALLS 911 FOR PROTECTION
FROM HOMEOWNER

BIRTHDAY BOY SHOOTS HIS FAMILY
WHILE THEY LIE SLEEPING
…with rifle he received as a gift

SUPERCAR CHANGES TOMORROW’S HIGHWAYS
…with a whopping 313 miles to the gallon!

Ancient Indian secret lets you…
SING YOURSELF LUCKY!

STRAP ON A HAIRCUT HELMET
– for the perfect short-back-sides…
with no nicks!

HIGH ON THE HOG!
Welcome to Piggy Island… where the waters
are brimming with swimming swine

FRANK SINATRA’S GHOST
APPEARS ON SATELLITE TV

SELF-OFFING CHICKENS!
Farmer’s amazing breakthrough saves having
to slaughter his flock

20 WAYS TO WASTE YOUR MONEY

TREAT YOUR VARICOSE VEINS NATURALLY
Easy ways to banish unsightly lumps

WANT TO BE A BETTER LOVER?
Free the wild sexual beast within you!

Hey, I didn’t say they’d make you more sane.

Just better at writing copy.

For more in-depth headline writing training, check out:

Specifically, the report inside about why many so-called “killer” headlines will do nothing but kill your sales.

It’s a doozy.

Check it out at the above link…

Ben Settle

Today I got something… special… for you.

Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about ways to protect my assets and sites, especially since I’ve been delving into higher risk markets involving health and fat loss.

Below is an interview with a top Internet marketing lawyer.

His name is Mike Young.

And he specializes in helping entrepreneurs grow lawsuit-free Internet businesses. He’s created several Internet Law products (a few of which I am VERY glad to own), has an advanced international law degree from Georgetown University and more than 16 years of real world legal experience.

So he’s the “real deal.”

Anyway, take it away Mike…

BEN SETTLE: What are the biggest mistakes you’re seeing Internet marketers doing online from a legal point of view?

MIKE YOUNG: The top mistakes made by online entrepreneurs involved failing to treat their company like it is a business. Instead, it is common to find newbie Internet marketers playing with their websites as a hobby. They will put up a website hoping to make some decent bucks but don’t take the effort to protect themselves in the process. This leads to lawsuits and even “friendly” visits from government agents.

BEN SETTLE: Why is it so important to have legal documents on your sites?

MIKE YOUNG: Website legal documents tell your prospective customers that you’re running an online business instead of a hobby. If you’ve taken the time to put the right legal protections in place online, chances are you made the effort to make sure your products and services deliver as promised.

Your privacy policy tells your prospective customer to trust you because you respect the information he’s providing to you when he visits your site.

In addition, by having the right website legal documents on your site, you’re also reducing your risk of being sued or investigated by the government. Even if you goof up, the fact you’re trying to do the right things when running your business makes you a less attractive target than the sleazeball who set up his website with the goal of cheating as many people as possible.

BEN SETTLE: What are a couple real life examples of what happened to people who thought they could get away with not having these documents on their sites?

MIKE YOUNG: This is a sticky one to get into because of attorney-client confidentiality. Here are a few general examples…

There are people who will never do business with you if your website is missing website legal documents because the site looks like a fly-by-night hobby instead of a business.

Not having a privacy policy is an invitation to be sued if you’re collecting any info and using it without disclosing what you’re doing. And it’s important to realize that your ISP might be automatically collecting some website visitor data for you even if you haven’t asked it too. Thinks like visitor IP addresses, search queries, pages, visited, etc.

Selling health-related products with blog posts discussing medical conditions can lead to claims you’re providing medical advice to customers without being a physician. Health disclaimers pretty much make this a non-issue.

Lacking the right legal terms can jeopardize your rights when someone decides to pirate content (text, video, audio, pics, etc.) from your website.

Not having the right disclosures on your website/blog can lead to a government agency coming after you for engaging in deceptive business practices when you promote a product or service as an affiliate.

Frankly, there’s countless ways that you can get screwed over when you don’t have the right website legal documents.

Does this mean you will get hurt? Of course not.

It’s a risk like playing Russian Roulette with a revolver that has one bullet in the chamber. You might get lucky…at least for a while.

BEN SETTLE: Where on a blog or website should the legal disclaimers go?

MIKE YOUNG: The footer is the primary place to link to them. Maybe 5% of blogs link to legal disclaimers in the sidebar.

The key is to use text that’s the same size (or bigger) and color as your main text on your site. Don’t hide it in 6 point font white text on a white background. That’s deceptive.

BEN SETTLE: What legal dangers should people know about social media sites like Facebook and Twitter?

MIKE YOUNG: For Facebook, assume that whatever you post there is no longer private and you no longer own exclusive rights to it. If you wouldn’t want your grandmother to see it on the front page of her local newspaper, don’t post it on Facebook. And don’t let your “friends” post it for you either.

For Twitter, the biggest risk is promoting products and services without the right disclosures. With the character limit, you’re kind of restricted in what you can say. Some use “spon” or “ad” as abbreviations to inform readers the tweet is piking something. The safe bet is to also disclose it on the sales page you’re driving traffic to with the tweet. Sending someone to a product “review” that happens to be an affiliate pitch without disclosing affiliate status is crossing the line.

BEN SETTLE: What mistakes are you seeing Internet marketers making with testimonials?

MIKE YOUNG: Fake testimonials, testimonials that discuss atypical results as if the average customer will achieve those results, and testimonials by someone who gave it as a friend or in exchange for something of value.

The last is a bit tricky. For example, if you got a free ticket to a seminar that would have cost you $995, and you gave a glowing testimonial while at the seminar, you should have disclosed the fact you received a freebie ticket. And if you were the one comping the ticket and soliciting the testimonial, you’d want to disclose the circumstances too even if the person giving the testimonial failed to do so.

The government wants full disclosure of key facts so the person looking at your testimonial can make an informed decision.

BEN SETTLE: What is a DMCA Notice and who needs to have one on their site?

MIKE YOUNG: DMCA Notices are a way to provide information to website visitors that lets them contact you (or your ISP if necessary) to resolve copyright infringement complaints. Having a DMCA Notice with a designated agent to handle complaints is one of the easiest ways to stay out of court if someone thinks you’ve stolen their sales copy, photos, videos, etc. and placed them on your website.

Remember that there are some dishonest copywriters and web designers out there who will steal from other websites and charge you for “work” they never did themselves. Don’t assume that an infringement complaint is bogus until you’ve investigated it.

And if you’ve got a website that does business in the U.S., having a DMCA notice is extremely important…unless you just like getting sued instead of handling

BEN SETTLE: Will having the right disclaimers help keep bureaucrats and “sue happy” people off their backs? Or at least off their radars?

MIKE YOUNG: The right website legal documents reduces your chances of getting sued or hassled by bureaucrats. There’s always risk in business that you do online and offline. But legal documents make you a less attractive target than someone who doesn’t have them. If nothing else, the person considering making your life difficult will assume you’ve got a lawyer.

For some people, that’s enough to stop them dead in their tracks. It’s like locking your door, having a burglar alarm, a guard dog, and floodlights on at night. You could get burglarized but the thief is probably going to move on to easier pickings at some place with less protection.

BEN SETTLE: What happens if people don’t keep current, up-to-date legal documents on their sites, and how would they know they even need to be updated?

MIKE YOUNG: That’s like not updating your anti-virus software on your computer. Your website legal documents should reflect where Internet law stands and provide key protections against major risks. As for staying updated, keep in touch with the source of your website legal documents, whether it’s an Internet lawyer or do-it-yourself software.

Taking the advice of some “guru” non-lawyer is too risky. Many so-called gurus think building a big email list for piking products makes them experts at everything else, including Internet law. That’s silly and too dangerous to bet your business on.

There’s one jackass out there who is giving away his lawyer’s legal documents to anyone who opts into his email list. What’s scary about this is the documents are of questionable value, there’s no indication his lawyer ever gave permission for the documents to be given away, and there’s no way to tell if the lawyer owned the rights to the documents in the first place.

A couple years ago, another Internet marketer sold legal documents that were owned by an Internet lawyer. They were sold without the lawyer’s permission. The seller had to make a public apology and his customers paid $3,000 to $5,000 bucks each to the lawyer for using the documents without permission. What a costly “shortcut.”

BEN SETTLE: Why should people avoid using boiler plate legal forms or trying to write them themselves?

MIKE YOUNG: There are some risks that are simply unacceptable. Practice medicine without being an experienced physician? Fly a plane without being a pilot? Why practice Internet law without knowing what you’re doing?

The source of “boilerplate” legal forms says a lot. If you’re not getting them from an Internet lawyer, you have to ask yourself what exactly you are getting. Something old? Defective? And does the seller even have the legal right to sell them to you?

BEN SETTLE: Tell us about your legal form generator software?

MIKE YOUNG: Website Legal Forms Generator software quickly and easily generates privacy policies, DMCA notices and other important website legal documents in about 10 minutes. You simply type a few pieces of key information (such as your website’s name) and click the “Generate” button.

The software instantly creates all the legal documents for you. Simply upload them to your site and link to them in the footer. That’s it.

Here’s two key points you need to know.

First, these website legal documents were created by me based upon the latest key changes in U.S. Internet law. If you have U.S. customers, that’s important for reducing your risks.

Second, my law firm owns the registered copyrights for all of these documents and has licensed the documents for use in the software. This means that customers can use the software legally to create legal documents for websites they own.

Pretty cool, eh?

I have Mike’s legal form generator software and I love it, use it all the time for multiple sites, and it’s one of the best investments I ever made.

In fact, I like it so much, I’m an affiliate for it.

And, if you buy it from my affiliate link:

… I will give you some rare bonuses.

(Just email me your receipt to collect them).

And here they are…

Bonus 1: Gary Halbert Secrets From Beyond The Grave
(Length: 1 hour 57 minutes)

This is a 2 hour interview with Doberman Dan Gallapoo about the real life marketing “adventures” he had working with the late copywriting genius, Gary Halbert. Includes “nuts and bolts” training as well as surprisingly deep success tips you won’t easily find anywhere else.

If you’re a Gary Halbert fan, this’ll be like solid gold for you.

Bonus 2: How To Make Ten Times More In Copywriting Fees:
(Length: 46:37 minutes)

This is a lesson I once taught about a secret way to make ten times more fees from copywriting clients. This is without playing any negotiation games and without getting any resistance whatsoever.

When I was a broke newbie this info helped pay off my car!

Bonus 3: Sales Letter “Jam” Session:
(Length: 1 hour 12 minutes)

This was a “round table” talk between myself, Doberman Dan Gallapoo, and Caleb Osborne (a copywriting whiz who won Clayton Makepeace’s “best ad” contest in his $7k seminar… and who makes a TON of profit for his clients in multiple competitive niches like dating and health products).

And it’s all about the exact processes we use to write ads.

Including little-known ways to make writing easier, more profitable and more FUN.

Bonus 4: The $997 Email Mini-Manifesto:

This is a 5 page email I sent to some (prior) business partners about email strategies I use to stand out like a sore thumb in peoples’ inboxes. It was written totally “off the cuff”, yet one of the guys said this information could easily be expanded into a $997 course.

Will it really be worth that much to you?

I honestly don’t know.

But this info has been worth much more than that for me.

Bonus 5: How To Get Booked Solid With Clients In 30 Days:
(Length: 1 hour 15 minutes)

This is a lesson by John “Angel” Anghelache about getting freelance copywriting clients. John used these exact techniques when he was a total newbie to nab assignments from guys like the late Gary Halbert, Michel Fortin, Yanik Silver, David Garfinkel, Peter Stone, and more.

This is perfect for anyone who wants clients — fast.

Again, this IS my affiliate link:

But, if you order from it this week, I will give you all the above bonuses free.

Just email me your receipt for your bonuses…

Ben Settle

I flabbergasts me how little people use email.

They’ll spend weeks writing a sales letter and testing it to a high polished shine… but won’t spend more than 20 minutes crafting a simple email designed to sell a product or service.

It’s lunacy, IMH(BA)O.

And it’s robbing them of lots of sales.

For example, I have a site that converts at around 3% (give or take), but the auto responder emails are converting at over 15% (and that number is always rising).

Each message takes about 10 minutes to write.

I write one email per day.

(Most are 200 words or less.)

And then… I forget about it.

The result?

Five times more sales than the “naked” sales letter alone.

Look, this analogy may not be perfect, but I kind of look at selling online like knocking over a soda pop machine. You have to rock it back and forth over and over for a while, letting the momentum build up, before it finally goes down.

And it’s usually the same with selling online.

You MIGHT make that first time sale.

Especially if your ad is tops.

But if you’re not following up over and over and over… relentlessly… building up that momentum… you’re leaving mucho dinero on ye olde table.

Anyway, here’s the point:

Want more sales?

Follow up more.

To see how I do it, go to:

Ben Settle

It’s funny how people still haggle over long copy.

They think “Web 2.0” has changed the need for people to want all the facts and details about a product before buying (especially when selling to an ice cold prospect). Or to hear a story they can step inside and relate to. Or simply to bond with he or she who is selling to them in the first place.

Long copy isn’t always best, of course.

But sometimes it’s necessary for maximum sales.

Take telling a story, for example.

Ever hear of the musician Meat Loaf?

He has a song that sold like gangbusters almost 10 minutes long!

It’s called “Paradise On The Dashboard Light.”

And it’s just one LONG story.

It’s about this 17 year old whipper-snapper who’s in the car with his girlfriend, he wants her to “give up the goods”, but she refuses unless he promises to love her for the rest of their lives.

At first, young Meat Loaf resists.

He even tries getting her to agree to let him decide later (haha).

But she refuses and makes him decide NOW.

Finally, in all his teenage hormonal angst… he gives in! He promises to love her and marry her and be with her forever, and swears to God and on his mother’s grave he’ll love her until the end of time.

Then, after she’s given up the goods… he has regrets!

He can’t stand her anymore.

But, do to his promise, he can’t leave.

And so… he starts praying for the end of time…

Anyway, it’s a long song.

And, at the time, made big album sales.

Thus, the power of stories.

And that’s why, if you’re not using stories in your ads, emails, articles, videos, whatever you market with… you could be missing out on a lot of sales. If you want to learn how to tell stories in your ads, then check out the new (and improved) “Copywriting Grab Bag”:

It covers several ways to tell stories.

But not just any stories.

Stories designed to sell.

Profit ye from them.

Ben Settle

Problem with working at home is being a blob.

It’s oh-so-easy to plop your butt in a chair for 3 or 4 or 10 hours a day and completely mangle your body in the process with potentially deadly blood clots growing in your legs, messing up your circulation and (if you’re a man) damaging your prostate, testicles and other bits & pieces of your “nether region.”

Think I’m joking?

It happened BIG TIME to one of my friends.

He spent several hours per day creating a product and screwed up his legs so bad he is in near constant pain (and he’s not even 30 years old).

The solution?

I call it the “email workout.”

(With mega creative titles like that, how can I go wrong?)

For me it’s email, but it works for anything you’re working on (articles, sales letters, blog posts, programming, research, wasting time on social media sites, whatever).

Here’s how it works:

Every time I finish a task, I do the following:

• A set of pull ups

• A set of chin ups

• A set of pushups

Many cool things result.

Yes, there’s exercise and circulation.

I also get LOTS more work done, too.

(Way more than I would otherwise.)

But besides that, there is a creative benefit — it forces me to get away from work and, sure as shizzit, just like Gene Schwartz taught, ideas come slipping into my mind for whatever I’m working on.

This comes in especially handy with big workloads.

Like, for example back in February.

Between client work and my own projects I was writing well over 25-30 articles/emails per day (plus sales letters).

Brutal.

But this routine got me through it with my legs intact.

The key is doing a set of 3 exercises (doesn’t matter what kind — just short intense reps) after each “action.” By action I mean, you write an email — you do a set. You write an article, you do a set. You write a page or chapter, you do a set, etc.

You can also just do it every 30 minutes if that’s easier.

Anyway, that’s the email marketing workout.

Not the cleverest of titles.

But that’s all I got.

For more email secrets (for making sales, not muscle), go to:

Ben Settle

Recently, I had an interesting talk with Doberman Dan.

Actually, it wasn’t a “talk.”

It was more of a “type” since it was via email.

Anyway, we were rapping about how most Internet marketers have absolutely no balls whatsoever. They whine, complain and screech about the dumbest things “My autoresponder raised their fees! 100 people unfollowed me on Twitter! Goo-roo Bob won’t return my emails! Nobody will joint venture with me!” and 100 other sniveling complaints.

What got us talking about this?

His wife.

For example…

Doberman Dan’s wife came to the US from Columbia, couldn’t speak a word of English, and yet built a solid residential cleaning business from scratch — going door to door. (She even had the police called on her a few times, talk about culture shock!)

Can you imagine any goo-roo fanboys doing that?

The ones droning on about “push button” systems?

Yeah, right.

Anyway, the point?

The Internet has turned people into certified, “Grade A” candy asses — and I sometimes can hardly even believe what some people whine about online.

It’s almost embarrassing.

Anyway, let’s face it, we got it easy.

Opportunities that didn’t exist 10 years ago ABOUND today.

Take advantage of them.

And if things go wrong?

Hey, it could be worse.

You could go door to door…

Ben Settle

P.S. One of my other friends was saying how after using The Street Smart Email course, his income went up a full $150.00 per DAY (just by sending emails the way I teach).

That does it.

I am WAY underpricing my course.

And I’m likely going to raise it to $995.00 soon.

So if you want it at its current price, sally forth on over to:

Here’s an interesting question that came in…

“Ben, what if someone buys one of my products and then repackages the information inside and creates their own product based off of my hard work? What can I do?”

That’s a great question.

I used to struggle with this, too.

In fact, every now and then someone will buy my Copywriting Grab Bag product or my Street Smart Email product or my Crypto Marketing Newsletter and then teach my content as if they invented it or even know what they’re talking about.

Yes, goo-roo fanboys have no shame.

And no common sense, either.

You see, all they do is hurt themselves.

And when you understand that, they don’t annoy you as much as they amuse you. (Although it never hurts to sic the legal dogs on them, too, of course — something I’m going to start doing… copycats take notice…)

But either way, it all boils down to reputation.

And also credibility, too.

Unless the rip off guy is actually GOOD at what he teaches (walks the walk, and not just talks the talk…) he will eventually look like a fool.

It may not happen today.

Or even tomorrow.

But it WILL happen.

Especially if enough people buy his “sloppy seconds” product, see how the person really doesn’t know the subject as well as they pretend (because they haven’t logged in their 10,000 hours or even 10 hours, doing what they’re teaching), and then start spreading the word.

So if you excel at what you teach, you’re safe.

Especially if they aren’t that good at it.

(And just reading a book or course will not make someone an expert — they have to log in many hours DOING before being taken seriously as a teacher…)

That’s why I don’t sweat it.

Copycats are really weaklings.

They make you look good.

And, eventually, make you sales…

Ben Settle

I don’t do much consulting these days.

Yes, I have a little blurb on my site for consulting but I rarely do it (and turn down probably 9 out of 10 requests, even when they have money in hand). Some people have even offered to fly me to their location and do all day consults with them.

Those requests are always denied.

Why?

Am I crazy?

No… I’m just too pressed for time.

I know that sounds strange, but I routinely have something like 5 or 6 different writing projects going on at all times (including 2 of my own sites, an ongoing JV, and a client who has me on retainer), and just don’t have the time.

Well, guess what?

I could use a break.

A little change of routine to recharge my batteries.

So next week, I’m shelving a few of my writing projects, and doing consults for those interested. Plus, as a “hat tip” to the would-be consulting clients I’ve shot down, I’ll do them at 50% off.

Here’s the deal:

For next week only, I’m doing 60 minute consults for $250.

That’s one solid hour, each.

And they can be about anything I’m qualified to discuss — emails, marketing, copywriting, publicity (offline), article marketing, Internet marketing, audio marketing, affiliate marketing, positioning, selling, product creation, book marketing, launching your products… and anything else I’m qualified to talk about.

We can discuss your emails.

We can discuss your ads.

We can discuss your product.

We can rap about launching your product.

It’s all up to you and again, as long as I’m qualified to discuss it (i.e. anything I have written about in these emails over the years or that you’ve observed and wonder how you can do it, too) we can.

And, next week, it’s 50% off my normal rate.

But, there is one small “catch.”

I have no clue how many people are interested in this.

Maybe nobody is.

Or, maybe dozens of people are.

I just don’t know.

So I’m “capping” the number of people to 5 (just one person per day next week, and next week ONLY — if you can’t do this next week then you’re out of luck).

So if you want in, email me immediately.

As for the details…

Just send me a brief (one paragraph or less) description of your business — who you are, what your URL is, what you sell, and what kind of questions you have. If I can help you, I’ll give you payment instructions (all payments are due up front) and we’ll set a time.

Also, one more thing:

There are some businesses I cannot help.

If that’s your case, I’ll let you know upfront.

Ben Settle

P.S. For ongoing “virtual” coaching (via my print newsletter) for just 90 cents per day, check out The Crypto Marketing Newsletter at: