Archive for the ‘Success’ Category

How to spot a fake testimonial

August 15th, 2010

Testimonials can be a very effective marketing tool. Kind words from happy customers go a long way in making potential clients feel good about your product, service, or company.

In fact, they are so useful, that many people cheat when it comes to testimonials.

I have to let the cat out of the bag here – very early in my writing career, I’d write “fake” testimonials for customers if they asked.

Being young, dumb, and broke, at one time, I’d write just about anything if you paid me to. And trust me, some people paid me to write testimonials. And sign them something like “Debbie K from KY” or “John J and Family, NY”. Or “Joe’s Pizza, NJ”

Notice the one common thread? Nothing verifiable. No “real” last names. No actual towns. No website links. Lots of “Dan F from NY”. But no “Dan Furman, Kingston, NY”

So, here’s some general advice on spotting a fake testimonial:

1 - No real last names. Or all the last names are amazingly common. In this age of the internet, pictures are even meaningless.

2 - No real cities. Or only big cities. Or all testimonials come from towns in the same 4 states (trust me, coming up with different sounding cities and towns is more work than most fake testimonial people want to do.) Obviously, a local business is exempt from this rule.

3 - No website links. This is the biggie. There should be a few testimonials with real, working website links.

I have a lot of testimonials on my website. Most have a link, all but one have a last name (the one requested it not be used, but I’m sure in the face of all the other proof I supply, I can be cut some slack there.)

Trust me – 15 testimonials and not one link to a business prettymuch means all the testimonials are fake (the only exception here is if the end users are completely non-business consumers, and even then, it’s very unlikely that not one of them owns a business.)

And, of course, it goes without saying that “Joe G, Alabama” really doesn’t think all that much of the product. In fact, “Joe” is the writer’s father’s name, and “G” represents his childhood friend’s nickname (Goober.)

It took me a long time to build up the testimonials I have. And I’m proud of them. Anyone who has real testimonials will tell you the same. That’s why I want to tell you how to spot the fake ones.

And no, I don’t write them anymore. It’s just not fair to the people who earned them.

<sarcasm> And now that my conscience is clean, let me get back to this term paper I’m writing for some rich kid. </sarcasm>

Posted in Copywriting, General Marketing, Success, Websites and Web Marketing | 2 Comments »

Honest business sometimes means not doing business

July 27th, 2010

Because of the nature of my business, I sometimes talk to startup entrepreneurs with a dollar and a dream. Which is fine. But sometimes, these dreams seem a little far-fetched to me. Usually when that happens, MLM or Network Marketing is involved.

Let me be plain up front – I am not a fan of MLM. Not at all. I think it’s a sleazy way of doing business, because the basic premise isn’t honest. The focus of the business is not on the products and services, despite what anyone says – the focus is on building a network.

Every now and again, I get asked to write sales copy for network marketers. I’m not one to turn down paying work, so if you want to hire me and take your shot with your MLM company, I’ll be happy to help (although if you ask, I’ll give you my opinion of MLM).

But, I *do* have to feel good about it. That wasn’t the case today.

This kind of thing I can get behind – we’ll sell product, we’ll have a page talking about “the opportunity”, etc – it seemed pretty close to a normal business. I was scheduled to start the project this week.

Then today, she e-mails me “the rules”, as laid down by the company. One of the products she’s selling is Sprint wireless service… but I’m not allowed to use the name Sprint. She’s also selling something called Clear4G, and I can’t mention that name either.

Huh? How am I supposed to sell a product online when I can’t mention the name? Sorry, no dice – I’m not doing it. I can’t in good conscience say to her “ok, here are your sales pages” when I *know* they aren’t going to sell squat.

So I call her and explain my point – she says “ok, how about just writing a lead capture page for the opportunity?”. We discussed it, but the same rules apply – I can’t use any names. I could just talk about “National Companies”, “Wireless” “4G” etc etc.

Yea, that’s do-able to a point, but you know, it’s not do-able by me. I don’t like pie-in-the-sky BS, and I don’t write for it. I also felt bad for my client – she was a bit bummed at these rules herself. The whole thing just didn’t feel right.

So I did the only thing I felt I could: I refunded her money. Even though I booked time for her, I could not keep this person’s money and do work I didn’t believe in. I’ll eat the time loss – I’ll be fine.

I may be $750 poorer, but I’ll sleep tonight. And I believe in Karma and stuff (that’s fodder for another post) – that $750 will come back to me.

Posted in Copywriting, General Marketing, Home Business / Entrepreneural Stuff, Success | 1 Comment »

Cigars and Scotch

July 17th, 2010

Yes, despite the title, this post is about work. Or more importantly, recreation related to work. Or maybe it’s just so I can say I wrote about cigars and scotch in my blog in a feeble attempt to claim a tax deduction on my latest vice purchases.

I just got back from the cigar store, having purchased two smokes – one for later tonight, and one for next week. I really like cigars a lot, but I also realize they aren’t that good for you, so I limit my intake to about one a week from April-November (once it gets cold out, I don’t smoke, as I smoke outside.)

Anyway, after tax, I spent 20-something dollars total for these two smokes. Got a Pardron 4000 Maduro that I can’t wait to try (that’s tonight’s smoke), and one of my old favorites, a Romeo Y Julieta Cedaro #2 (this is my go-to stick). Combined with this cigar burning will be a bottle of Glenlivit 18 year-old, simply one of the finest single malt scotches out there. The bottle retailed for about $90 here in NY.

This post isn’t to impress you about what I smoke/drink. To start, you likely don’t care, and I’m sure many people would say I’m stupid for spending $90 on scotch when the same size bottle of Johnny Walker Red is $15. And that’s fine. I do admit I have developed expensive tastes in this regard (I also drink fairly expensive beer and coffee), but really, I mention the prices to more or less make a point about work.

And that point is I noticed my tastes for this stuff rose along with the income I produced. Yea, there was a time in my life when I bought the Walker Red and convenience store cigars (MSRP $5 for 6). And that time was when I was working one of my many jobs, making $30-$40k. I also drove a used Nissan Altima during this time, and bought cheap “Skil” tools, a far cry from the nice truck and DeWalt drill I now have.

Now, let me tell you – the “top end” stuff is worth the money. It simply tastes/performs/drives better. It’s unlikely there are many scotch drinkers out there that actually prefer the Red to the Glenlivit 18 y/o. And there are likely no cigar aficionados that, given the choice where money was no object, would light up a Dutch Masters over that Padron that’s sitting in my garage. But when you bring price into the equation, things change. A 28 y/o Dan would have never, ever spent $90 on a bottle of scotch, no matter how good it was. Because 28 y/o Dan didn’t have that kind of money to throw around. Truthfully, 28 y/o Dan was pretty broke (good looking, but broke). Part of the problem was I was working for money, and not success.

In the end, when you boil it right down, technically, we all work for money. But it’s deeper than that for me and people like me (other entrepreneurs, etc). I don’t want just money. I can get money working at WalMart. I want success. For some people, success is millions. For others, it’s just a roof. And for others, it’s working at home with freedom while being able to afford some of “the finer things” (like nice scotch) without killing yourself workwise. Either of these are valid. For me, part of the taste of that cigar and scotch is the taste of success. And it tastes really good.

Stop working for money. Start working for success, however you want to define it.

Posted in Fun Stuff, Misc / Personal Stuff, Success | 2 Comments »

Are you a closet entrepreneur?

June 30th, 2010

I wrote this for a magazine once:

Entrepreneurs / business owners come in all shapes and sizes. In fact, the one defining trait about them is they are so indefinable. Some of the most successful entrepreneurs didn’t even go to high school, while others have dropped out of Harvard.

But, in my career as a serial entrepreneur (which is a nice way of saying that I’ve experienced success and spectacular failure both) I’ve found that there are certain characteristics that most entrepreneurs share.

So the next time you’re sitting in your cubical, staring at the fourth quarter spreadsheets while dreading another boring (and utterly pointless) meeting, read this short list and see how you match up with the entrepreneur mindset:

Entrepreneurs have little fear, and have supreme confidence in their professional ability. They are generally not afraid, for example, of losing their job. They figure “heck, I’ll just get another one.” If that sounds like you, you might be a closet entrepreneur.
Relating to the above, entrepreneurs HATE micromanagement. The best kind of boss a closet entrepreneur can have is one that says “Just do it, and bring me the results when you’re done.” The worst kind of boss a closet entrepreneur can have is one that says “See me after each step so I can check on your progress.” (*groan*… it hurt just to write that.) Unfortunately, boss #2 far outnumbers boss #1.
Entrepreneurs have little regard for arbitrary rules. The silly “you need to wear a tie even if you’re not seeing customers” rule comes to mind here. What’s up with that?
While not workaholics, entrepreneurs never stop thinking about work. This is because doing good work is important to them. If you find yourself coming up with a work idea at the Sunday BBQ, despite the best efforts of your six shrieking nieces and nephews to distract you, you might be a closet entrepreneur.
Entrepreneurs often feel like they are not paid what they are worth. However, they feel this way because they truly feel their work warrants better compensation. They don’t, for example, think they should make more because “Becky in accounting makes more and does nothing all day.” In fact, they don’t care what Becky makes (she’s an idiot anyway.) Entrepreneurs care about their own compensation deal, and nobody else’s.

All in all, an entrepreneur definitely marches to the beat of a different drummer. And although sometimes I’ll question whether this particular drummer took their medication or not, I can tell you that the rewards of being your own boss are substantial (and even when they aren’t, at least I can take off my tie.)

Posted in Home Business / Entrepreneural Stuff, Misc / Personal Stuff, Success | 3 Comments »

Business stuff I’ve learned – what you say, and what clients hear

June 15th, 2010

The title for this blog post is pretty self-explanatory. I’m going to talk about a phenomena that’s all too common in business, and one that every businessperson needs to learn. And this goes for all types of businesses, everywhere – this happened to me twenty years ago when I had my little direct mail advertising business out of my apartment in Montgomery NY, and it happened to me yesterday.

It’s the simple fact that service providers and clients are often not always on the same page. Especially when it comes to quoting jobs verbally. It’s not that clients don’t hear what you are saying, it’s just that they interpret it a little different.

For example, if you give a price range verbally, the lower number will ALWAYS be the price. If you give a timeframe, the fastest timeframe will ALWAYS be the one remembered.

And you have to be ready for this, because if you aren’t, it can get you into trouble. This is why we have written proposals – I do not get into quoting jobs verbally except in a very basic form. That’s because of the “what I say and what they hear” thing.

Perhaps an example would be easier to digest:

What I say to a client

Ok Mr. Client, here’s the project proposal – it will cost between $1,700 and $2,500. This will be for 8-12 pages of copy. I will start it the week of July 5th – now, that’s a holiday week, so it’ll likely start later in the week. But I will start it that week. The finished project will take approximately 1-2 weeks from the time I start. Even though it’s usually not needed, I will include 1 edit to get to a final version.

What the client hears:

The project will cost $1,700 firm, and not a penny more. That will be for a minimum of 12 pages of copy. It will be started Monday morning, July 5th, at 7am sharp, and you will continue working on it until it is finished. A July 5th e-mail at 10am asking how things are going will be promptly responded to with great enthusiasm. The project will be completely finished by week’s end. Furthermore, I understand that you will do as many edits as I see fit, even if it means a change in project direction.

Please keep in mind – the above is normal (I’m not complaining or blaming the client). In fact, when *I* am a client, I tend to do the same thing (I do try to catch myself… I’m just saying it’s normal to assume the most favorable terms for yourself.)

Dan Lesson: Verbal works fine for extreme basics. And even then, make sure you are ready for the above to happen – make your low number in the verbal the number you can really live with. But for official jobs, always do written proposals.

Posted in General Marketing, Home Business / Entrepreneural Stuff, Success | No Comments »

We know all about “the partner” lie

March 30th, 2010

Note for you new businesspeople: We’re wise to the “partner” ruse.

Trust me, when I give you my price and you say “Hey, that sounds great. Let me bring it to my partner, and I’ll get back to you”, I know I’ll never hear from you again.

Not that I’m complaining – I know you don’t want to say “I can’t afford you”, and you’d also rather not say to me “your price is too high”. I get it – you’re just trying to be nice. But I just thought I’d tell you that us experienced businesspeople are totally wise to the lie. We know there’s no partner. Most of us used this same line at one point as well. (edit: I realize some of you really have a partner and are right now thinking “but… but…”. Trust me, I don’t mean you

And trust me, you’ll stop using it the minute it gets used on you. In fact, it’s kind of a right of passage. Once the partner line gets used on you, it’s one sign that you are truly in business.

Posted in General Marketing, Home Business / Entrepreneural Stuff, Success | No Comments »

Another video I like

March 10th, 2010

You freelancers / work at home / service people will LOVE this.

Posted in Fun Stuff, Home Business / Entrepreneural Stuff, Misc / Personal Stuff, Success | 1 Comment »

The cure for insomnia

February 1st, 2010

Ok, I’m about a month into this sleeping thing I mentioned in an earlier post, and it has been fantastic. It’s made me look at insomnia and the like a little differently. At least in my case.

Quick recap: I had horrible insomnia, which started two years ago when I began “getting up earlier” to be more businesslike in my business. At least I thought it was more businesslike. A month ago, I nixed that, and followed my heart/body in wanting to stay up until 2-3am, and sleeping until 10-11am.

I’ll fall short of saying “my experience is everyone’s”, but I am also convinced that if one goes to bed / gets up when they really want to, they won’t be as apt to have sleeping problems. I know it worked for me, and I had AWFUL sleeping problems. Because I’d turn to the clock and say “@#$%, I gotta get up in 5 hours. PLEASE fall asleep”.

But now, I look at the clock and say “it doesn’t matter” (because it truly doesn’t), and I fall asleep. Plus, I go to sleep whenever I am truly tired enough to sleep, not when I have to. This is a huge revelation for me – I feel like I hit the lottery.

Now I understand that this is not useful to millions of you out there. You have your life setup where you have to get up at 5am or whatnot to get to work, etc etc. But this is useful to millions of others who, like me, kind of have options. I work for myself – work starts when I get here. As long as I can realistically converse with other people during “some” normal business hours, it makes zero difference if I’m here at 8:30am, or 11am. Let me repeat – it makes no difference.

If you have insomnia, yet can realistically set your life up to follow whatever your body’s natural sleep pattern is, I strongly encourage you to give it a try.

Posted in Fun Stuff, Home Business / Entrepreneural Stuff, Misc / Personal Stuff, Success | No Comments »

a nice little quote

January 26th, 2010

I sometimes hear little motivational quotes or the like that make a lot of sense to me. I just read this one a few minutes ago. It was in the sports section of the NY Times – Joe Namath left a note for Mark Sanchez (the current NY Jet QB), which had this little nugget on it:

Focus on your priorities. If you chase two rabbits, both will get away.

I really liked that, and wanted to share it. Because I’m guilty of chasing like… nine rabbits sometimes.

Posted in Fun Stuff, Misc / Personal Stuff, Success | No Comments »

I want to start a business, but I don’t know what type of business to start…

January 18th, 2010

I get asked about this all the time – people want to start a business, but they don’t know what type of business to start.

Here’s what I would do… in the next six months, make it a goal to make some money. Not start an official business, but just make some money. In other words, figure out how you can make some money doing/selling/offering something.

It doesn’t have to be a lot of money or anything profound, either - it can be setting up a table at the local flea market or doing computer repair on Saturdays. Use your talents, use your imagination; but go make a few bucks some way, some how.

Then, once you do that, try and make some more money. Maybe change directions. Maybe improve on what you did. Maybe do something different. Whatever. But go make some more.

And go where that leads you.

Posted in Home Business / Entrepreneural Stuff, Success | No Comments »