Ben Settle

Many years ago I remember reading an old (late 2002 or early 2003) issue of Dan Kennedy NO BS Marketing letter, talking about the late E Joseph Cossman after he joined the choir invisible.

Cossman is an actual “legend” in this business.

And, there were many lessons to learn from his way of doing business.

The most Valuable (for me, anyways) that Dan Kennedy talked about was Joe’s commitment to doing what worked. Specifically, he would find something that works in his marketing and would use it over and over and over again with (as Dan put it) “zealous adherence, no deviation.”

This is contrast to most entrepreneurs these days.

Very few people have the self control to do what Mr. Cossman did:

Find what works, stick with it, and keep doing it over and over again.

(Regardless of opinions, lack of excitement, or new technology, etc.)

Instead, they enter the goo-roo casino on Flakebook, see the bright, shiny lights and loud noises, and are instantly distracted, change things that work because [insert name of their favorite goo-roo] does it, and then lose whatever momentum they had to begin with that probably would have taken them far.

Anyway, what Dan Kennedy talked about stuck with me.

And, has acted as a loyal guide when building my own business.

In fact, this idea of finding something that works, then doggedly sticking with it is mandatory if you want to profit from what I teach inside my “Email Players” newsletter. The “hard” part is never the implementation. That part is actually very easy, is fun, and works quickly. No, the hard part is not getting distracted by the brainiacs on Flakebook piking yet another Internet marketing prole-bait method for doing things, that may or may not even work for the goo-roo piking it, and certainly won’t work in conjunction with anything I teach.

This is why I advise people without discipline not to buy anything from me.

I’d rather they haunt someone else.

On the other hand, it’s perfect for people who understand the Value of consistency.

If that’s you, my newsletter might be a good investment.

Or, maybe not.

There are other reasons people shouldn’t subscribe.

And I write about a few more of them here:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

Long-time customer Morten (last name withheld by request) sends me the most Romantic Valentine’s Day present I could ask for — a live, wriggling example of how good-will emails break bank accounts:

…when I worked for the b*tch who copied your freebie as a bonus chapter for a book she (still) sells…

…she had me do a good will autoresponder of like 12 refurbished (but old) emails, and said I couldn’t put a sales link in the first 5-6 emails, because good will.

Result?

Hardly any sales from any of the autoresponder emails at all, not even the onces with sales link.

Shortly after that she created an autoresponder course in which she bragged/lied about how her own autoresponder sold like crazy.

And I was like…

What?

Why?

Why not just put a sales link in from day 1 and see the difference?

But she was in a hurry, so she just lied.

Now people are copying her stupid system, not knowing why it doesn’t work for them.

Bullshitters gonna bull

Thanks again for teaching me the real thang.

Just goes to show:

Crime doesn’t pay.

And, neither does following a criminal’s (i.e. people who plagiarize) marketing.

In fact, his email is proof-positive that:

Stealing content is will hurt your bottom line. Swiping emails (how do you “swipe” a personality?) will hurt your bottom line. And, yes, sending good-will emails will hurt ye olde bottom line. I know, I know… [insert name of your favorite guru] told you to do this from a seminar stage or whatever.

But, the proof is always in the doing.

Anyway, I’ll leave with this:

In my “Email Players” newsletter I don’t teach good will emails.

But, I do teach how to write emails that generate good will while selling.

And, this is especially true for the March issue.

Subscribe here, while you still can:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

A response to my email from earlier today:

(Giving dating and persuasion advice to a guy on my list)

Maybe this is just me, but if a guy I just started dating tried convincing me to go back to me ex, my response would be:

“No, I’m not going to. But since you lack interest in keeping me around plus the balls to break it off yourself, I’ll see myself out”.

I wouldn’t be attracted to some shmuck trying to push me back to a guy I just left haha.

Maybe it would work on some dumb, easily manipulated girls and guys. I can see how it would work in business though.

But the rest is spot on, and for girls trying to keep a guy too. All of your advice for guys has been given to girls (to use on men) in a book called “why men love bitches”. (Barring some very gender specific things haha)

Let us discuss how the real world works:

1. It’d be silly not to test someone who is recently single if you really like them, before wasting time on them. Unless, of course, you want to spend time with someone on the rebound.

Why?

Because what a girl says she would do/will do is often not the same as reality.

This applies to your customers, too, incidentally.

Don’t sell what people say and think they want, sell ’em what they’re buying…

2. The irony is, whenever a woman says, “that only works on dumb girls”, thinking we’re talking about tactics when we’re talking about principles of influence and persuasion (like qualifying a lead, not being needy, etc), these things “work” on them most, in my experience.

This is one reason men should never take dating advice from a woman.

As comedian Dante Nero so eloquently puts it:

“If you want to know how to hunt a deer, ask the hunter, not the deer…”

i.e. Don’t ask a woman how to attract them.

Ask a man who demonstrably can and does attract them.

3. All the books/websites now trying to apply men’s self improvement to women are shooting women in the foot. There’s a reason I openly tell women my Villains book, for example, will make them less attractive to men in some cases.

Guys are simply not attracted to the same attributes women are.

This used to be common sense.

But, as the saying goes… common sense ain’t common.

All right, enough of this prattling.

One of the things I teach in my “Email Players” newsletter is how to use the laws of psychology, influence, negotiation, and persuasion in emails.

All of which applies to your other marketing (and personal) endeavors, too.

Here’s the link to subscribe:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

Came a question about dating and persuasion Sunday night:

Very quick background: been talking to this girl for about 4 weeks now. Have had 5 dates but I wouldnt consider us dating because she’s been traveling on business a lot and we havent talked much lately. The first two weeks it was hot and heavy.

I hit her up and saw her today for the first time in 10 days. It was fun, got lunch, had a great makeout session. She said she was free all week to hang out so I texted her a couple hours later saying “Good seeing you, and yes just give me a call and we’ll get together for some homemade dinner and the office marathon” (she was saying how we need to watch the office). I tend to overpursue women by asking them out too much so I threw the ball in her court with that text. I’m sure it’s cringe worthy, but I want her to chase me… I fully intend to not contact her until she contacts me.

But…….

Question: With fuggin V-Day coming up, I’m not sure if I should call her on that day or just pretend it doesnt exist. I know its an “emotional” day for women, especially since she’s recently single. Would reaching on that day be a case of overpursuing again? Did I fug up?

I’m a recovering mushcookie so I know you probably cringed reading this but I’m trying to get better and actively dating/meeting girls lol. I usually lose girls after 2-3 dates but this one has stuck around so far to 6 dates. Progress :b

Thanks elBenbo

My advice:

• He cares way too much about it all, way too soon (or he wouldn’t have had to ask).
• To help get his mindset right, he should find something fun to do tomorrow that he really wants to do, regardless if she wants to go with him or not, and leave his phone at home.
• Another option is to make plans with another girl for that night now, before he hears from her. That way he’ll be in a position to choose, and literally not care either way if she comes around or not or even texts him back or not.
• What’s important is he doesn’t pedestalize or supplicate out of fear of loss or a scarcity mindset. And, that he shows zero neediness. Chicks can sense neediness a mile away.
• He should also assume the flake. Thus, why he should make plans that are more fun to do than hang out with her (whether he invites her to tag along or not), so he almost hopes she does flake. The purpose of this is to shift his state of mind to genuinely have outcome independence, like her a little less than she likes him, and, thus, not be needy, which will only increase her attraction for him.

More:

He should also test her constantly to see if she’s still in to her ex, since she’s recently single.

Best way to do that?

Try to persuade her to give her ex another chance and get back with him. Not just half ass it, either, but really let her go and try to get her to go back.

If she goes or ponders it, he dodged a bullet.

If she doesn’t and is genuinely over her ex, her attraction level will soar for him. He’s basically anti-needy. It’s Jim Camp psychology trying to get a no, while also qualifying the lead.

That way, it’s a win-win for him regardless of what happens.

Anyway, many persuasion lessons embedded in this email.

(That apply to email, sales copy, face to face selling, all manners of influence.)

I hope you caught them…

In the meantime, to learn more about my “Email Players” newsletter go here:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

One of my favorite persuasion stories:

When the late, great Jim Camp (who was known as the world’s most feared negotiator — and a tremendous mind in the field of teaching persuasion) was a young man, he got a job hawking $100 water filters door to door in a neighborhood with terrible water.

He followed the company script word-for-word.

He became the best objection answering man the company had.

And, he knew all the sales “tricks” marketing proles get the warm fuzzies about.

The result?

In two weeks he didn’t make a single sale.

In fact, he said he couldn’t even get anyone to hear him out at all — making him talk with them through the crack of a barely opened door.

So what did he do?

He threw the stewpid sales script away.

And, instead of going into the typical sales speak when someone answered the door, he simply said something along the lines of “How does your water treat your hair?”

What happened?

Suddenly, doors flew open.

Wallets came out.

And, he said he made more of the green stuff doing that part time than he did as a full time commercial pilot!

Anyway, I consider that one of the greatest persuasion stories never told.

It’s not about your product, it’s about your prospect.

Their world, not yours.

Their vision/problems/desires, not your product.

Apply this in your ads, emails, and sales copy and you can’t lose.

So simple.

So obvious.

And, so profitable…

Anyway, another master of negotiation and persuasion (shrieks from his haters on Twitter notwithstanding, as they, ironically, do exactly what he wants them to do) is President Trump.

Except, his ways are a lot sneakier than Jim Camp’s.

And, they take a lot more guts to pull off.

But, if you are someone who isn’t afraid of being aggressive in your emails and sales copy, I reckon you will love the March “Email Players” issue I have cooking up for you.

To subscribe in plenty of time for that issue, go here:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

One of my favorite business/marketing lessons from the great Stan Lee (actually, his first boss, Martin Goodwin) was about the importance of realizing how much perception can affect your sales.

For example:

When Stan first started working in comics he was writing tons of titles.

He cranked stories out like a machine.

And, he was the only writer.

Which was a problem.

As he explained in his book “Excelsior!”:

“Later, when I was writing a whole mess of stories in every issue, Martin decided it shouldn’t look as if Timely [Marvel Comics original name] could only afford one writer, so I adopted additional pen names.”

A small thing?

I don’t think so at all.

In fact, there’s a lot of wisdom in it.

It reminds me of Dan Kennedy’s “full parking lot” phenomenon — i.e. nobody wants to buy from a store or go to a doctor or hire a law firm, etc with an empty parking lot.

Call it petty if you want.

But it’s absolutely true.

For better or worse, perception is extremely important.

It’s one reason I email my lists daily — relentlessly, and without pause, apology, or worry. The perception is, I have a lot more to say than my competition who aren’t mailing daily, or who treat their lists like booty calls — only mailing when they have something to sell.

There’s so much opportoonity for people who are consistent.

Who aren’t lazy.

And, who simply show up each day.

The beauty of my email methodology is, you can arrange your day so you wake up, bang out a quick email, and be done with the day, if you want, while seeing your sales go up.

To write emails like this, check out my “Email Players” newsletter.

It’s a whopping $3.23 per day.

(Less than half the cost of a sugar coffee at the cafe.)

And, you can learn more about it right here:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

A few weeks ago, I came across a Tweet from a guy named “Illimitable” that was invaluable to anyone in direct marketing or business.

What did he say that was so all-fired important?

Two things:

1. The advice “be yourself!” is awful advice for people who haven’t developed themselves

2. Those of us who have developed ourselves don’t need to be told to be ourselves

And you know what?

This is one of the best reasons I’ve seen for doing daily communication with your audience. I don’t care if it’s with daily email, daily video, a daily podcast, daily social media’ing, daily blogging, or whatever poison you choose.

The more you communicate, the more you develop yourself.

And, you do it in multiple ways:

Your “voice.”

Your personality.

Your thoughts about your market and niche.

Your tone.

Your opinions.

Your points of view.

Your unique philosophy about your industry, etc.

And the list goes on.

Obviously, I’m biased towards daily emails for this.

Especially if making sales is the the plum your after picking, Laddie-buck.

Anyway, to learn how to write emails people look forward to reading and, most importantly, buying from, check out my “Email Players” newsletter. It’s 16-pages of wall-to-wall content each month that, if you apply it and don’t let it collect dust like a bible on a coffee table, can not only make you significantly more sales in a very short period of time, but will automatically develop you in all the ways above.

Here’s the link to read more about it:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

That is to say, blatantly transparent.

Today is the deadline to get the February “Valentines Day” Email Players issue, and below is the blatant and transparent sales pitch for what you get:

• Why there is more sales (and lovin’) in seeking disapproval than seeking approval.
• A client “break up” insurance plan so you don’t panic or go belly up in your business if you lose your clients and customers all at once.
• The “for real” law of attraction you’ll never see the crystal-worshipping shrews & mush cookies on flakebook talk about in their boring videos and livestreams.
• The dead comedian’s secret to making your emails (1) far more interesting than everyone else you compete with in the inbox (2) practically unforgettable and (3) likely to nab you war more sales than you’re getting now.
• What the unpopular Star Wars character Jar Jar Binks can teach you about making yourself more attractive to women and also clients/customers.Why so many email marketers get “friend zoned” by their lists and clients. (With their audiences saying how much they looooove their emails and content, but still buying from someone else.)
•  The secret of the middle aged mush cookie who picked up the 23-year old hottie (and the startlingly profitable business lesson embedded within what he did.)
• How to instantly calm an angry client (or woman).
• Why not caring if someone buys or hires you is like “catnip” to the best clients and customers… and a secret way of making sure people know you don’t care that’s been used by master negotiators for centuries. (While your insecure facebook friends are loudly pounding their chests about how they “HAVE ZERO FUGKS TO GIVE!”, simply do this and make them all look like the posers they are, with you being the only choice to buy from.)
• How to trigger a (healthy) “jealousy reflex” in your woman to keep her from getting out of line and causing you drama. (Full disclosure: This won’t work for women to keep their unruly men in line — it’ll do the opposite — but for guys, this will do more for your “relationship management” than all the relationship counseling, game-playing, or dorky Dr. Phil sooth-saying in the world.)
• How to get almost instant obedience from your woman… and your clients.
• The biggest branding mistake copywriters who work for well-known companies often commit. (And an example of a copywriter who works for big companies, but brilliantly keeps his personal brand in everyone’s psyche.)
• What to do if you’re a man who always ends up with low class jackasses, and wants to be with a higher quality person for a change. (I learned this from an old, not-for-sale, and almost impossible-to-find Dan Kennedy recording, and it works for getting the best clients and customers, too.)
• And a ho bunch more…

Plus, I’m including a bonus insert training titled:

“How Neediness Is Choking Your Bank Account — While Strangling Your Attractiveness To The Opposite Secks!”

A fun time will be had by all with this.

But, only if you’re subscribed to my “Email Players” before I send it to the printer today.

Here’s the link to get it while you still can:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

I am not sure I am supposed to reveal this person’s name or not.

(For reasons that’ll be obvious)

But, behold…

How To Benefit 2-10x From An Email Player’s Subscription:

I wrote a badass sales page for a client. He paid big bucks, and I’ve got a royalty agreement in place.

Problem is: after the initial launch, this typical shiny-object-obsessed client focused his attention on “other projects”

Projects that didn’t involve me.

He went cold on me. And while I enjoyed the retainer/royalty agreement – money for nothing is a poor business strategy.

My devious solution?

Get him to subscribe to good ol’ elBenbo’s Email Players Newsletter.

Without ME having to convince him of his silly ways, he’s now given me a raise – both because now I’m writing his daily emails and in the backend because we’re making more overall sales.

All without me having to talk him into another project or tell him directly.

Anyway, this Christmas, the gift comes back to the giver. This “swipe and deploy” strategy can be very lucrative for the copywriter who’s about to get canned because his clients aren’t as focused on the big picture as they are.

Something more:

There’s been a pleasant trend afoot with copywriters, coaches, and other service providers insisting their clients subscribe to “Email Players”. (The above is just one of many, and one of my subscribers even gifts it to her best clients.)

Speaking of clients:

The February issue goes to the printer soon.

It’s got all kinds of ideas (proven) on how to attract, make more fees from, and get along better with high quality clients (while SPURNING the low quality ones).

Here’s the link:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle