I’ve wrestled with the paradox of the value for money of information products for many years.
I’ve bought plenty of excellent books for £10 and I’ve also paid hundreds of pounds to hear someone teach a small part of what is in a book in a day or even half day seminar.
Sometimes I’ve felt ripped off. Other times I’ve thought that I’ve had great value.
I’ve had to think about what makes the difference.
If you are an Internet entrepreneur then you need to differentiate your business.
The very way that the search engines work means that when the potential customer types in a search phrases, Google and the others will do their best to find the most relevant pages.
That groups competitors together.
And if you don’t communicate how you are different, the customer can be moved to think that the product or service you provide is a commodity.
That’s bad news. Any buying decision in these circumstances comes down to price and availability/convenience. You need to find ways that make your Internet business look and feel different. Take a look at the 7 Big Questions to help you to brainstorm ideas for :
I’ve recently moved my detailed review of the Business Growth System from Rich Schefren to my Online Profits blog.
This isn’t your usual “get rich quick on the Internet” training program because it takes a very strategic look at building an Internet business and differentiation is a key element.
Rich Schefren has put together a super free presentation – From Frustration To Freedom (affiliate link) – which is well worth watching if you want to build a differentiated Internet business or even if you want to study the process of selling with webinars.
Mobile Local Fusion is an interesting program marked by Ryan Deiss and created by Laura Betterly.
Mobile Local Fusion – affiliate link
Its primary purpose is to help those interested in earning money by providing Internet marketing services to local businesses succeed with promotions for Google Places and Mobile marketing. [continue reading…]
These details on the Product Launch Formula from Jeff Walker used to be a popular lens on Squidoo. Unfortunately they’ve tightened their policy about affiliate marketing and I expect it to be deleted. Rather than delete the information which has attracted a lot of traffic, I have decided to move it to this blog.
Rich Schefren was one of the very first Internet marketing gurus I encountered online.
Unusually it wasn’t through his legendary free reports that I became a customer. I went straight into the Business Growth System after seeing the product launch email. I had no choice but to buy the day before I went on a two week safari holiday.
Like most people who get caught up in the Internet marketing world, I then indulged myself on plenty of other gurus but I’ve always kept a close eye on what Rich is doing.
These days I have learnt to focus my attention on just three – Rich, Glenn Livingston and Ryan Deiss.
They are three different characters with different perspectives but if they don’t have an opinion about a subject, it’s probably much more hype than substance and therefore not worthy of my time.
I’m excited about Digital Marketer Lab from Ryan Deiss.
What sets Ryan Deiss apart from most of the other Internet marketing gurus is that he is active in many different niche markets but shares what he finds works as a by-product of his success.
You see, Ryan is big on the boring task of testing.
You could do it yourself if you’ve got the time, the mentality, the presence in different markets, the traffic and the imagination to do it…
Or you can piggyback on what Ryan Deiss has done and is willing to share in Digital Marketer Lab (the link takes you to my more detailed review on my Online Profits blog).
Digital Marketer Lab – affiliate link
Rich Schefren made his name with his Business Growth coaching program.
>>> Business Growth System Review – Rich Schefren Coaching
Since then he has launched products like the Business Acceleration Program, Maven Marketing and the Guided Profit System.
He’s also had a monthly membership club called the Founders Club that, in my view has never received the attention that it deserved.
I was watching or listening to Rich Schefren recently and he talked about his positioning as the “guru to the Internet marketing gurus” which he picked up from someone.
I think that someone is me.
I did a quick search on “guru to the Internet marketing gurus” and many of the references come from my blogs.
You see Rich Schefren has been the business coach to many of the biggest names in Internet marketing, a place where the word guru is often used because of their mystical powers to make money.
It’s a very strong personal brand and positioning which no one else can claim.
It’s ironic really because while Rich has built this great personal positioning, I’d say his main product – the Business Growth System – is poorly branded.
It’s a great course if you’re a serious Internet marketer, rather than someone who plays at it to make a bit of pocket money. (Read my Business Growth System Review).
But the name is bland and I bet many people struggle to remember what Rich’s coaching system is called.
In contrast, look at what Jeff Walker has done with the Product Launch Formula. It’s a very tightly focused brand, even though the words are still generic.
Or Frank Kern and Mass Control, full of sneaky psychological tricks to get people to buy.
Or Mark Joyner and Simpleology. I wish I’d thought of that name although I’m not so keen on the book which carries it.
A quick check on Google for search volumes is revealing – exact matches for global search
Business Growth System – 36 per month (and 46 for Rich Schefren business growth system)
Product Launch Formula – 1,600 per month (and 320 for Jeff Walker product launch formula)
Mass Control – 1,000 (plus an extra 590 for Frank Kern mass control and 91 extra for mass control Frank Kern and 260 for mass control 2.0).
Rich Schefren, Jeff Walker and Frank Kern are three of the biggest names in Internet marketing in recent years. This is confirmed by the Alexa.com rankings (Alexa is an independent source of traffic rankings) and is a great way to check on the credibility of anyone who claims to be an expert in the Internet and social media.
Rich Schefren with StrategicProfits.com is ranked at 12,965
Jeff Walker with ProductLaunchFormula.com is ranked at 24,031 and Jeff has just finished another of his launches for PLF so traffic spikes sharply in the last couple of weeks.
Frank Kern with MassControlSite.com is down at 54,267.
Rich Schefren is getting more general traffic but it’s not brand related.
The problem is that his Business Growth System is a business growth system. Product Launch Formula is a business growth system and so is Mass Control.
A strong brand name can become a generic term – think hoover and xerox – but a generic name can’t become a strong brand name.
Who do you trust in Internet marketing?
The big gurus including Frank Kern, Mike Filsaime, Jeff Walker and Andy Jenkins are under attack as members of the Syndicate by the Salty Droid blog and others. This is a mastermind group or “cartel” depending on who you listen to. It’s become popular to “have a go at the gurus”.
One man I trust and who has stood above the shenanigans that has been going on with the big product launches for the last 18 months to 2 years is the man known as the “guru to the Internet marketing gurus”, Rich Schefren. [continue reading…]
Top US business coach and consultant Paul Lemberg (founder and chairman of Quantum Business Coaching which has changed its name to Axcelus) has teamed up with Internet Marketing training company StomperNet to bring you FormulaFIVE.
FormulaFIVE
I was a consultant, small business coach and advisor based in Birmingham, with over 35 years business experience, including more than 20 years as self employed.
My main business qualifications are:
– Chartered Accountant
– MBA
– Certified Guerilla Marketing Coach
My main interests are in helping business owners who are stuck get unstuck by thinking more clearly about their issues and possible solutions.
I no longer provide professional business coaching but I will be sharing more ideas on my blog and will continue my popular business book reviews.
I can be contacted by email at Paul@BusinessDevelopmentAdvice.com
The Six Steps Profit Formula
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