Ben Settle

One of my favorite (and, quite possibly my oldest — not age, but time buying my bizarre products) customers Monique Nelson *finally* succumbs:

Somewhere around 10 years ago, I discovered this guy named Ben Settle. I stumbled upon him as he was just starting to come into himself as a now well renowned email marketing strategist. I have not only seen him learn and grow and become incredibly memorable and successful, but I have been able to learn and grow by learning from him.

And man, oh man, the things I have learned!

There is really no one else who I could recommend as strongly if you’re interested in learning how to write in any capacity. ESPECIALLY if you own a business. If you have clients, they need to hear from you, and you need to give them incredible material to read.

I have been learning from Ben’s daily emails pretty much since he started writing them. I’ve bought most of his materials and programs. And I’m now a paid subscriber to his monthly print newsletter.

In one single delivery, there is so much gold that I am fighting very powerful urge to highlight the whole thing sentence by sentence.

If you want to learn how to be more interesting, never have writer’s block again, connect with your audience on a very personal (aka successful) manner, and so much more, start following Ben Settle.

She’s right, of course, about how it ain’t just about emails.

My unruly ways work for any kind of writing and communication:

• Content
• Video scripts
• Sales letters
• Blog posts
• Articles
• Public speaking
• Podcasting
• Even novels (about to publish the 5th Enoch Wars book very soon, with the final two ready by year’s end)

The May “Email Players” issue is just around the corner.

To get it before it goes to print (the deadline), go here:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

Back in the January issue of the “Email Players” newsletter, I talked about the late, great “world’s most feared negotiator” Jim Camp — whose methods radically influenced my ways over the past 10 years.

One of his big things was to never, *ever* be needy.

Not on purpose (like some fools do on flakebook to be “authentic”).

And, certainly not because you can’t help it.

Why?

Because neediness causes you to make foolish choices when selling. It also can cause you to pay more for things you want (or get paid less for things you sell). And, lose several notches in your marketplace positioning over time.

tl;dr:

Neediness bad.

Non-neediness good.

In fact, just not being needy is like semi-advanced marketing “game.” So many marketers — including email marketers, and especially people prattling on about how awesome they are on Flakebook — are not only needy, but the more they pretend not to be needy, the more obvious they are and the less money they make, the more anxiety they feel, and the smaller their business shrinks compared to what it would be if they simply eradicated neediness.

Neediness is a deadly foe to anyone in the persuasion business.

But, it can also be your greatest ally, too.

That is, if you know how to harness it like I’m going to show you in the May “Email Players” issue. Yes, my fine-feathered little droogie — I am going to show those smart enough to be subscribed 3 ways (there are many more, but just these will make you lots of sales) to create neediness in your customers.

And before anyone asks:

No, I am not talking about using “tactics” to try to trick them.

I am talking about using principles that happen to make people needy regardless of what tactics you use. Principles I use all the time. And, principles you will be able to use, too, should you subscribe before it goes to print in a matter of days.

Here’s the linkage:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

“Email Players” subscriber Aaron Grossman sees an upshot in his business’s T-levels after applying my wicked ways:

“finally bit the bullet and started daily emailing few weeks ago. It’s pretty much a guaranteed number of clients onboarding with each email. I have to train more in-house practitioners to keep up with the demand and rehaul our entire system. Oh well. Ben, anytime you want bloodwork done it’s on us – however I suspect your T levels are just fine.”

What can I say?

Them’s the kind of problems I create…

The May “Email Players” issue goes to the printer shortly.

To give your sales a shot of Testosterone, grab your syringe, and grunt on over to this link:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

I hereby submit the following is true:

Last year a certain esteemed A-List copywriter succumbed to elBenbo’s diabolical wiles, and leapt into the darkest, most misogynist corner of his mind to subscribe to “Email Players.” This person is easily one of the most successful A-list copywriters on the planet. And, has lots of controls, including against some of the big legends in the direct mail industry.

Anyway, will this person last?

Will this person build a list?

Will this person mail said list daily?

(Using their unearthly copywriting skills and my evil methods)

Or, will this person grow tired of my obnoxious ways, and stay in the safe place world of freelancing?

Only time will tell, of course.

But you know what?

If they don’t stick with it, it ain’t gonna be because I didn’t do my part to make this person the best they can be in elBenbo’s Army. And in the May “Email Players” issue I show the exact same advice I gave this incredibly gifted copywriter on that fateful day when they enlisted in “Email Players” for getting a side-gig (using just daily emails) going that will eventually (if not quickly) dwarf their fancy-shmancy control income with the world’s biggest and most prestigious direct marketing publishers.

But, a word of warning:

What I reveal is almost deceptively simple.

I daresay it’s the single most simple email-driven business template ever created.

And, as “Email Players” subscriber Shane Hunter remarked when seeing it:

“$5 says nobody does this plan, even though plenty will talk about the ‘value’ you have bestowed on this fine day, Ben.”

Anyway, the May issue goes to the printer soon.

Here’s where to subscribe to get it in time:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

Recently, a fine, upstanding citizen on Flakebook declared about selling with email:

“…you actually have to give a crap about your subscribers. That’s a secret Ben Settle forgets to share.”

Well, I’ll be *triggered*.

I had no idea I was being so neglectful.

No idea I was engaging in sheer, uncircumcised marketing malpractice.

Someone slap the cuffs on elBenbo!

Blind me with pepper spray!

Clearly I have been asleep at the switch all these years forgetting to tell people to care about their markets. Except, of course, in daily emails (like when I tell you the importance of bonding with your list, not bull shytting them, being transparent, not hiding sales pitches, not trying to manipulate with dorky “ninja” persuasion tactics, etc), Email Players, Crackerjack Selling Secrets (first chapter), 10-Minute Workday, CopySlacker, my podcasts, and pretty much any podcast I’m interviewed on when the topic comes up.

Yeesh.

And people wonder why I mock Flakebook.

Anyway, that’s not the first time that’s happened.

Nor will it be the last.

But, one thing will remain constant:

I’ll be using the blue light special’s who say idiotic things, half truths, and outright lies about me to my advantage via my daily emails to make even more sales.

And you know what else?

You can (and should) just as easily do the same.

Enter my “Email Players” newsletter.

It shows you how to write email people look forward to reading and buying from.

Which, makes turning lies about you into sales.

Here’s the righteous link:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

“…your father lived by a philosophy, a principle, really. He believed that if you could do good things for other people, you had a moral obligation to do those things! That’s what’s at stake here. Not choice. Responsibility.”

— Ben Parker
“The Amazing Spiderman”

Not sure what’s with this quoting the Amazing Spiderman two days in a row thing.

But, hear ye this:

Another oft-asked question chucked at me when being interviewed on podcasts is “How long should I wait to sell in my emails?”

Answer:

Why wait?

Listen, Papi, do you have a product/service that can genuinely help your list? If you answered no, then why are you selling it? If you answered yes (the correct answer) then what good does it do them by keeping it a secret and pretending to not be (gasp!) selling something?

I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again:

(And *keep* obnoxiously saying it)

You have a moral and ethical obligation to at least let people know your product/service exists if it is going to solve a problem for someone.

I’m not saying you have to hard sell it.

I’m not saying you have to shove it down their throats.

I’m not even saying you have to make it elaborate and detailed.

I’m simply saying tell ‘em the option to buy something that will help them with whatever problem your product/service is there, and they can take it or leave it, your toes will be tappin’ either way.

Simple?

Of course.

Which is why so many people refuse to do it.

So much safer and secksy to hide behind the skirt of “good will” emails, playing Twister trying to pretend you are a good guy and thus won’t sell anything (which makes zero sense), or tucking your pitch safely in the P.S. instead of making it prominent.

Anyway, you’re gonna do whatever you’re gonna do.

But not selling isn’t doing anyone any good.

Not your suffering prospect.

Not your boring emails that just “give Value!”

And, certainly, not your dwindling bank account.

All right.

Enough of this.

To learn how to write emails that sell in a way where people look forward to reading and buying from them, check out:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

“In the future if you’re going to steal cars, don’t dress like a car thief man”

— Spiderman
“The Amazing Spiderman”

One of the most-asked questions whenever interviewed on podcasts is about the “look” of emails.

In other words:

Mine are plain text.

(Or *look* like plain text)

I don’t doll ‘em up with pretty images.

And, they look complete boring and non-secksy.

Why do I do this?

Many reasons.

For one, I’m lazy. I simply don’t want to spend the time coding links and split testing every daily email I send out and then analyzing the results and all that hooey. Nothing against anyone who does. But, split testing “OMG, opens!” is a complete waste of time if sales is your scoreboard in my experience. And, while clicks are a lot more useful, what I measure is sales and, even more importantly, monthly sales trends. This gets me called irresponsible by a few well-meaning guru types. But, then again, if I cared what they thought I’d be licking their boots at seminars for a scrap of attention and participating in all their dorky little affiliate contests.

So that’s one reason.

Another?

It’s the principle of making my advertising not look like advertising.

At a glance, I don’t want to look like advertising.

I want it to look like — even for just that split second when they open it — that it could be a personal one-on-one email from Yours Unruly.

Yes, people might know it’s a list email.

But, you never know…

Anyway, there’s nothing new about this.

Guys like David Ogilvy, Gary Bencivenga, Gary Halbert, the great magalog copywriters, etc have been doing this for decades. A lot of Internet (social media especially) types think they’re just old farts whose stuff is irrelevant.

But, we know better…

I simply apply their stuff to email.

Speaking of great magalog copywriters:

The May “Email Players” issue (which goes to the printer soon) contains a bonus training from one of the single best (with the track record to prove it) A-list copywriters on the planet.

An A-lister who many have never heard of.

(Is just finally putting themselves out there to teach.)

And, who uses this principle all the time.

To get the next issue be sure to subscribe here in time:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

elBenbo is a Baggins not a Took

Recently I did the unthinkable to most people I told about it:

I turned down a speaking gig in Italy.

Gasp!

Oh noes!

“Ben why wouldn’t you want to go travel to Italy and Europe?? Are you daft, man!”

Yes, daft.

And, also not the world traveler type.

I don’t even like traveling inside the U.S. much less want to be on a crowded plane for 12 hours or whatever. Plus, I don’t like leaving my dog for long periods of time anymore since she got the arthritis recently.

But, those are just superficial reasons.

The main reason is I simply hate leaving home.

I *like* where I live — this small coastal drinking town with a big fishing problem. Even with the brutal wind and rain these last couple years, I dig on it. Like Bilbo Baggins, I don’t really want any adventures, they make one later for dinner, yo.

Instead, I prefer to be at home.

In my chair by my warm hearth (I don’t have a hearth but if I did…)

Eating and amusing myself with whatever.

elBenbo is definitely more of a home-body Baggins than an adventure-seeking Took.

Thus, I don’t have this American bug to have to travel everywhere.

Anyway, I don’t know why you should care about this, either way.

Except, it illustrates that when you have your email game down tight, where you get up, send an email, and are basically done with the main part of your day, you can pick and choose any kind of lifestyle you want — whether it be holing yourself up like a paranoid recluse (like Yours Unruly) or traveling all over hellz and gone.

To learn my email methods go here:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle

A couple weeks ago I attended the only mastermind I will get on a plane to go to, unless I’m doing a training or speaking on something at someone else’s mastermind (such is my loathing of travel).

I had three big takeaways from it.

The first one is, you can never have too many merchant accounts.

The second, I got some ideas on investing I hadn’t thought of before.

And, the third was the 5 “F’s” of success.

It was an exercise my friend Trevor Mauch (the guy who sold me on moving to the Burgle originally) had us do.

Here’s how it works:

Write down these five words:

• Family
• Friendships
• Fitness
• Finances
• Faith

On a scale of 1-10 you write a number that fits how satisfied you are with those 5 things. One thing I realized doing this exercise is my finances are at a 3 (maybe a 4, I dunno…) With finances, it’s not about how much you make, but how well what you make is working for you.

It was a huge ah-ha for elBenbo.

And, so it was for others in the room with the other F’s.

Some realized their family life should be much better.

Or that they need to get their bytch boy arse into the gym more.

Or that their friendships are being neglected.

And so on, and so forth.

It’s a good exercise.

And, I highly recommend you do it.

With some of the above, learning and using my email shenanigans can make a huge difference — especially if you want to get time back.

You can learn my wicked ways here:

www.EmailPlayers.com

Ben Settle