Category Archives for General Archives

All About Your Hot Seat Opportunity

Just a quick note — I have posted the letter describing the upcoming “Hot Seat Workshop” seminar in March in a link attached to this site. To read it — and you need to jump on this if you’re at all interested — just go to www.john-carlton.com/Hot_Seat_Seminar.pdf

Note the underscores between the words “hot” and “seat” and “seminar”.

Stay frosty.

John Carlton
www.marketingrebel.com

The Workshop Is On

For some people — me, for example — hands-on learning is the only way to go.

I love this Information Age we’re in, because I love information. However, my office book shelves probably resemble yours — crammed with interesting information I fully intend to get to… when I have time.

As a teacher, I’m aware of the “gap” in getting info… and putting it to use in your life. That’s why all my courses and other material are aimed at providing shortcuts. I’m short on theory, long on action.

Still, the students who have zoomed to the head of the class fastest… are the ones who have sought out hands-on, personalized sessions with me. The easiest way to do this is on the phone, as a consultation.

But the BEST way remains face-to-face Hot Seat action. I’m a hard man to corner, however. I don’t offer on-site consultations, because I hate to travel anymore. No amount of cash will get me on a plane to come to you for personalized service.

However, twice in the past four years, I have given small “workshop” style seminars. I keep them small, because I connect with each attendee, and you can’t do that when there’s a crowd.

I’m offering a new workshop seminar — only my third one, ever, since I began teaching (and, as always, maybe my last one) — on the weekend of March 10-11. Here in Reno. There will be no other speakers, and no will try to sell you anything at the event. It’s just you, me, and the other attendees… getting down and dirty with the specifics of successful marketing.

My Insiders have already been informed of this event, and over half the available seats are reserved. I am now opening this workshop up to everyone else.

I call it a “Hot Seat” workshop. It will be casual, because we’re gonna work. This isn’t “take notes during a lecture”. Each attendee allowed in will have their own Hot Seat examination, by me personally. And, you will get to watch me work over everyone else (which is often the best way to get those critical “a-ha!” experiences that jettison you off on the fast-track to success). It will be brutal and effective.

This will sell out fast. It is not cheap. I am finishing up a letter that explains everything, and I will send you a copy if you will email me at john@marketingrebel.com, and write “Hot Seat info, please” in the subject line. (Otherwise, you stand a good chance of being deleted as spam.)

Things are popping, both online and offline. The sooner you establish your successful marketing-model, the faster profits will come flooding in… and the more secure your position in your market will be.

Competition is mounting and getting more vicious everyday, in every niche out there. The days when you could be success with sloppy marketing and weak concepts are long gone. Yet, the money is still there for anyone willing to take control of the opportunities available.

It’s fun when it finally starts working, too. Life changing. Freedom and independence and the life-style of your choosing are all within easy reach… once you get your basic marketing model fixed.

Let me know if you’re interested in this event. Don’t dither, or you could get shut out. This will be small, intense, and results-oriented.

And stay frosty.

John Carlton
www.marketingrebel.com

Free. Guaranteed!

In copy, the words “free” and “guaranteed” are both powerful and weak… both easily understood and completely misunderstood… and both essential to successful advertising and a good way to murder your sales message.

The problem — and the solution — is in a small detail that most rookies miss.

That detail is… proof.

Both words have been so overused and misused that, all alone in a piece of copy, they are pretty much meaningless. Even the most gullible prospects today know that a simple declaration that something is “free” doesn’t mean it’s actually free of strings. It’s free when you buy this. Free when you’ve saved up enough coupons. Free as long as you meet these requirements.

Same with “guarantee”. I see this a LOT when I critique copy for rookies — the word gets tacked onto the end of the headline, followed by an exclamation mark. As if the pure power of the word is so staggering, they’re risking the wrath of God just writing it down like that.

But they seldom explain what the guarantee is. And so it is meaningless bragging… much like that uncle who gets drunk at family gatherings and starts yelling to make his point during an argument.

Yelling is not being bold and convincing. It’s just yelling.

Smart writers know their reader is skeptical of these words… and immediately (as in the next sentence) explain what they mean by “free” or “guranteed”. Or at least allude to that explanation — so the reader knows the details are forthcoming.

The concept of the guarantee is the easiest to screw up. You make a promise to your reader, and then say you guarantee it. But what does that mean? Many writers use the word to imply that they are so confident, they will use the most powerful word they know to punctuate their promise.

But if there’s no meat behind the guarantee — if the consequences of NOT fulfilling the promise are not spelled out — then the word becomes limp baggage in your pitch.

The concept of the guarantee is all about reversing the risk in the deal. Instead of the prospect shouldering the burden of how good your product is… YOU take on all the risk. And not just with bragging — with real money, or a real promise of something that helps convince the reader he actually doesn’t risk anything if he gives your product the old “look see”.

At the very least, you need to guarantee a prompt refund. Even better, explain how there are no hoops to jump through, either — no forms to fill out, no questions asked, no delay. Even better, sweeten the deal so that he gets to keep most or all of the stuff even if he decides he wants a refund.

That’s what a truly confident salesman does.

And give him a long time to think it over, without penalty. The basic 30-day money-back guarantee helps to make the prospect feel safe, but still seems like he’s being rushed a bit. Ninety days is better. Six months is even more calming. And a year… well, the risk just evaporates when you know you have a full year to examine something before deciding if you want to keep it.

I even throw in a line, sometimes, about being able to return the product “in any condition”… so the prospect can actually use it during his guarantee period without worrying about having his refund denied. Sometimes I even insist that he return it beaten up and bruised.

That’s what shows real confidence. (“Why do I insist you use it as if you own it? Because I know that, once you see it in action, you won’t part with it for any amount of money…”)

Take away ALL the risk. Every scrap.

What’s more… in my experience, having a few “strings” attached to just how free anything is… is acceptable to most readers, as long as the conditions are thoroughly and honestly explained. Sure, you need to buy something first… but since you have a long guaranteed refund period on that purchased item, and you can keep the free stuff even if you return everything else to get your money back… well, “free” fits.

It’s all about explaining things honestly, and making your explanation make sense to the reader.

The old saying “he could sell ice to Eskimos” has a deeper meaning — which is: Objections are not a deal-killer to a good salesman. (How hard do you have to consider before buying some clean, fresh-water ice for your evening cocktails, when it’s made clear that all the snow around you is dirty and mixed with sea water? For example.)

If what you offer fits your prospect’s needs or desires… then all that stands between you and a sale is the way you present the deal. You’re selling apples, I’m hungry and I want an apple… but I’m not sure I want YOUR apple. It’s your job to make it seem like a no-brainer to try one of yours.

If I don’t like it after the first bite, I get my money back. And I get to keep the apple anyway.

And you’ll even throw in a free second apple… because that’s the kind of guy you are.

Pleasure doing business with you.

Stay frosty.

John Carlton
www.marketingrebel.com

P.S. By the way… I realize the archives of this blog aren’t yet attached. They soon will be… and it’s a lot of good material. Going all the way back to the start, around a year ago. The tech person I’m working with is busy changing the host for this blog… and once that’s done, the archives will go up, too.

P.P.S. Thanks to everyone who sent me an email, glad I wasn’t abducted by aliens or drowned in a freak accident. Next time, though, post your comment here, on the blog. New readers like to see what you think.

Luck, Attitude, And The Feast

I’ve been pretty damn lucky in life.

Not lucky as in “wins all the time, against the odds.” Rather, lucky in that my attitude fostered a lifestyle that opened up a lot of opportunities for good stuff to happen. Once I started taking advantage of these opportunities, I took on the persona of a “lucky guy”.

What was my attitude?

Actually, it was more a lack of attitude. I don’t know if you’ve noticed this or not, but a huge percentage of the population walks around with a chip on their shoulder. People make up all kinds of silly rules that dictate who they can hang out with, what they can laugh at, where they can go. And they can get fairly riled up when other people violate these restrictions.

Standing next to your average pissed off, resentful, paranoid and judgemental person… and any lack of attitude becomes an attitude. Being tolerant and open to new or strange ideas definitely puts you in the minority in most crowds.

I get reminded of this whenever I refuse to let someone get away with insisting that life is hard here in the States… or that the “little guy” just doesn’t stand a chance against The Man.

Oh, please.

Fear change and opportunity if you must — and most people will — but don’t even try to make the case that’s just the way things are. Because it ain’t so.

If the wonders of this exciting new world of entrepreneurism and Web-based economies scares or depresses you… you can fix that. By adjusting your attitude, so you allow new information to enter your little world, and you stop nixing every possibility just because you’re not yet sure how to pull it off yet.

The key word is “yet” — there is NOTHING happening in today’s markets and economies that you can’t get hip to in a long weekend. Getting a site operating online is now simpler than driving a car. Understanding how to tap into even weird, off-beat niche markets is just a short mini-education away.

And the resources for figuring it all out are at your fingertips.

Sure, it’s a daunting task when you’re alone, and you’re not sure of what first step to take, and no one around you is supporting your quest for a better life.

So what?

All the really good adventures involve a little discomfort, and even pain, at first. Success does require effort.

But it’s not rocket science.

My Insider’s Club is crammed with some of the best people I’ve ever had the pleasure to know. Many are still skittish about this scary entrepreneur stuff… but they don’t need to be convinced it’s worth a shot.

I don’t deal well with people who can’t even admit that much — that the possibility they could make it, and even thrive, working at their own business, is just too much for their heads to bear.

That, of course, is the first big hurdle to be jumped — the raw fear of the unknown. It’s totally understandable — and totally okay — that most folks will just never get past that fear. The freedoms and joys of working for yourself is NOT for everyone.

However… if you believe it might be something you’d enjoy… but you’re having trouble getting over that first hurdle… let me suggest you start with your attitude.

Again, I was lucky. People have called me a rebel all my life, because my lack of attitude (at least their definition of attitude) set me apart.

It just never occured to me to care about another person’s politics, sex, age, race… or anything else that seemed to ignite such hostility in other people. All I cared about… was the “quality” of the other person. Their ability to laugh and make me laugh, and to add to whatever we were doing.

Most people, I’ve discovered, feel an inner duty to keep events under control. They don’t like it when conversations, or play, or ideas get beyond easy comprehension… and they will use all the negative tools at their disposal to continually bring things back to “normal”.

Which to me, meant “boring”.

My two best friends in high school were a Japanese American and a Chicano — a pair of the funniest and smartest free thinkers I’ve ever met. My two closest colleagues today consist of a man 15 years older than I am, and another guy 15 years younger. I count ordained clergy, penniless hippies, right wing and left wing office holders, anarchist artists, dopes, nerds, kids and sociopathic musicians among my friends.

I can’t necessarily get them all into one room at the same time — they might fight.

But individually, we’re all fine.

I pity people who restrict their friends to only those folks who agree with them on every subject. What a cramped, claustrophobic world they must live in.

They’re the ones with the real attitide. An attitude of intolerance, anti-intellectualism and a refusal to explore any idea outside of their comfort zone. To a guy like me, it’s a huge “screw you” attitude.

Whatever.

I’ve made a fairly substantial living being the guy who operates “outside the box”. Business owners pay me outrageous sums to come in and shake up their thinking… look at their marketing model with the eyes of someone far outside their cramped corporate culture… and, most of all, create new marketing that makes them quiver with anxiety.

If a client isn’t nervous about posting or mailing a piece I’ve written for him, then I know I haven’t done my job. World-class advertising isn’t soft and squishy, folks.

It’s dangerous.

Attitude. I think about it a lot. I didn’t set out to be a rebel… it just so happened that by not caring much for the predudices and rules (especially the rules) of whoever was claiming to be “the authority figure” at the moment, I appeared to have a “bad” attitude.

Naw. I’m just thinking my own thoughts. Trying hard to see things as they are, and not as they “should be” according to some lame ideology. Or, worse, as other people wished things were, so they could stop being nervous about the uncertainty of it all.

Life is uncertain. Good stuff happens, bad stuff happens, and in the grand scheme we really only get to exercise a tiny little bit of control. You’re never gonna change anyone’s mind about anything. Idiots will never recognize the folly of their ways, and assholes will forever plague our plans and dreams.

Again, so what? The best entrepreneurs — the guys I know who are raking it in and living the good life — are mostly flexible and open-minded. Maybe not in all categories… but when it comes to opportunity and the possibilities of any given situation… they’re ready to entertain any thought or idea that has a chance to work.

If you’re feeling a little hamstrung in your life right now… check to see that it isn’t your attitude. Your prospects are very likely not like you at all… and if you can’t get into their heads and understand their perspectives, you’re not gonna do very well.

On the other hand, if you can get your mind around the Zen concept of having an attitude that’s really an “anti-attitude”… you’re going to finally experience some vicious-good juice coursing through your system. All those little dams in your body that are necessary to maintain your uptightness will burst… and what happens when you break free will, frankly, blow your mind.

It’s not something you can imagine before you do it.

You just gotta trust me on this one.

The feast of life isn’t open to anyone with their nose stuck up in the air.

And you know what? They wouldn’t understand what was so much fun at the feast, anyway.

Something to consider, as you toy with the next step you take, no matter where you think you’re headed.

Stay frosty.

John Carlton
www.marketingrebel.com

Not Dead Yet

Wow. I apologize for the month-long silence on this blog site… but I’m here, and if the Web Gods will give me a friggin’ break, I’ll begin posting every week again.

It’s not a particularly exciting story. One day early last month, my blog software decided it didn’t like being told what to do anymore. Kind of like the uber-computer Hal in the movie “2001”. I put four tech people on the problem, and no one could find a fix — the host blamed the application software, and vice versa.

As I watched from the sidelines, in horror, weeks bled away. People started emailing me, wondering if I’d been abducted by aliens, or had quit blogging, or what.

The Web, and all its wondrous abilities, is changing the world fast. Two years ago, my 84-year-old father had never been on the Internet… now he writes long, literate emails to everyone, and buys prescriptions from an online source in New Zealand. I used to be on the cutting edge, doing my banking and bill paying online. Now, the bank charges extra if you don’t do everything online.

However, misadventures like this are good reminders of how fragile everything is on the Web. I know some of the smartest and most tech-savvy entrepreneurs in the biz — guys earning fortunes online — who nevertheless still have their entire database vanish in a hard-drive burp, or get hacked by high school kids, or have their IDs stolen.

It’s the Wild West, and will be for the forseeable future… simply because there is no longer time for changes to settle in, and for all the unintended consequences of change to be realized and dealt with. The new rule is: If you’re finally comfortable with any application, you can bet it’s time for an upgrade or major realignment.

Which is doomed to cause all sorts of unpredictable havoc in your life.

It’s one thing to be kept on your toes. It’s another thing, though, to be constantly knocked off-balance.

Just one more reason to stay rooted in the classic stuff — good old-fashioned salesmanship, down-to-earth conversational copy, and becoming a go-to guy in your market. There will no longer be calming breaks in the information-overload flooding through every one of your prospects’ heads.

The best defense against becoming overwhelmed is to stay connected with reliable sources of good info. If you want to dominate your market, you need to be one of those sources. Part of the “reliable core” of the Web, where mysteries are figured out and handled.

I’m having a blast following the tribulations of huge advertisers finally trying to make the Web work for them — with their annoying pop-up nonsense, their desperate attempts to excite prospects with graphics and streaming video that won’t load, and especially their arrogance about never giving entrepreneurs their due.

It’s a wild free-for-all out there. Getting more unruly every day.

Just remember: The guys making the most money are taking advantage of the Web as a great delivery system for what you want to say. It’s not magic — just a really cool, really efficient (when it works) way to reach people.

If you’re in business, that reaching out needs to consist of a coherent sales conversation.

Anyway, I’m back. We’ll be futzing with the design of this blog, and I hope the archives will arrive intact… and, even more, I hope this new host and new software remains cooperative. I’ve got a lot to rant about, and I’m anxious to start posting regularly again.

We’re living in a real-time sci-fi novel. When it goes well, it’s the most fun I’ve ever had. When it goes sour, it’s like the zombies got loose.

Stay frosty. I’ll post again soon. If you have friends wondering what happened to me, please let them know I’m back, will ya?

Thanks.

John Carlton
www.marketingrebel.com

Snooze Tip

Quick piece of advice for struggling writers — never try to write while you’re tired.

Very simple tip, very much ignored.

It’s because the physical and mental mechanics of writing are not clearly understood by most people. Early in my career, I met up with bosses and veeps of marketing who demanded that writers working for them produce copy under ridiculous conditions that ruined any chance of real success.

Often, the guys in charge had never written a piece of copy in their lives, and never intended to. They regarded the ability to craft a sales pitch as something mysterious and magical… but not particularly special. It was just something the geeks with the typewriters did, and was not a talent worth any respect.

This kind of idiocy is rampant in business.

The worst example was a veep at a major agency I was doing freelance work for. He had two staff writers under his cruel command, and he insisted they work in a small, windowless room with their desks facing each other. No talking. Only one piece of paper allowed on the desk at any time. No photos on the wall were allowed, and when one of the writers brought in her own lamp to work under, he flew into a rage.

And he made it clear he wanted copy being written every time he stuck his head in the door. God forbid either of them got caught sitting back and thinking.

It was like a cell in a Stalin gulag.

No wonder they had to hire expensive freelancers like me. Those two staff writers couldn’t form a decent thought in that environment, let alone write brilliant copy.

Worse, though, was the way they were forced to show up each day at 8 a.m., with tie cinched (or, in the woman’s case, stuffed into panythose under a crisp dress)… and then slog away at writing until the scheduled breaks at 10, noon, 3 and then 5 were announced.

The writers were constantly complaining of feeling exhausted, but their pleas fell on deaf ears. How hard can it be to string a few sentences together, they were asked. Stop complaining. Write sales copy.

As a freelancer, I was under no restrictions to the way I wrote. All I had to do was meet the deadline… and, in those early years, I often wrote all night, and slept until early afternoon. I was experimenting with finding my groove, and I refused to force any writing at all.

David Ogilvy, the advertising legend who brought genuine excitement and classic salesmanship to Madison Avenue, wrote about the value of naps for a writer. He wasn’t referring to not being tired, but rather to using the power of your unconscious — his trick was to load up on information about a project… and then go catch forty winks, telling his mind to have something for him when he awoke.

It made sense to me. Your brain isn’t a muscle — it’s a complex beast different than any other organ on the planet. It can store, process, and create massive quantities of original material… whole worlds of possibility, vast universes of thoughts and ideas.

Western businessmen are loathe to try anything that smacks of mysticism, especially when the bottom line is at stake. They distrust anything they can’t physically control… so the concept of “allowing” the unconscious mind free rein with the sales pitch scares the hell out most of them.

And yet… it works. I’ve done it a thousand times (maybe more, over the course of twenty years as a writer). Stuff my head with info… and then go nap for however long my system requires it. Twenty minutes or two hours, it doesn’t matter.

And when I wake up, I make sure I’ve put a pen and paper nearby… because the headlines and copy will come gushing out. I seldom capture it all, but I’ve learned to get most of it.

While you’re awake — and especially while you’re struggling with ideas — you’re your own worst enemy. Our conscious minds can be stubborn things, mired in beliefs and protocols that handcuff real creativity.

Asleep, however, our deeper selves take over.

It’s the real “hidden genius” inside all of us — our unconscious mind.

You can do the stuffing of info while you’re tired. That’s more or less grunt work — read the reports, log the statistics, interview people on the phone.

But you should NEVER attemtp to do actual writing while stifling a yawn. For an experienced writer, being tired is a signal it’s time to take a long break, including a nap. Let things simmer, settle, and process themselves in your head.

For the inexperienced writer, however, panic often settles in. They just wanna get the thing written, and THEN they’ll take a break.

Foolish.

Tired, you will struggle with copy for three hours… and it won’t be anywhere near as good as the fifteen minutes of writing you do after an hour’s nap.

Even with morning deadlines looming, I never hesitate to crawl into the sack and fall into a dream. I still set the alarm for a few hours later, but I almost always jolt awake before it goes off — my brain is aware of what’s up. And it’s busy the entire time I’m snoozing, sorting through concepts and ideas and copy angles and especially headlines.

Doubt this advice if you must. Most of the struggling writers I meet are skeptical, and afraid to try it out. The Puritan “work ethic” has settled deep in our souls, and naps are considered a waste of time at best… and an evil cop-out at worst. I’ve had writers laugh at the suggestion. (Never the top ones, though.)

It’s not magic, kids. And it’s not being lazy (though I do consider myself mostly lazy… which is why I never hesitate to employ shortcuts like this).

It’s just using the tools you have.

Your brain is not a muscle. It’s more like a fantastic little city of libraries, warehouses, and think tanks. And every elf slaving away there is both smarter than you are, and yet dedicated to you completely.

Most of the writing you struggle to create while tired will have to be thrown away. It’ll be garbage.

Most of the writing I’ve captured after a “working nap” has stayed (with some editing) in my final piece.

Think about that.

Now, I’m gonna go curl up with the terrier and let the elves figure out another project for me.

Stay frosty.

Oh wait… almost forgot.

I’ve gotten a ton of comments about the seminar I’m starting to plan for this coming March. It won’t be just on copywriting. Right now, I’m considering the logistics of doing total marketing makeovers for all attendees — just roll up my sleeves and dig into each business as if they were actual clients. That means we’d cover the details of your Web presence (including your copy for Adwords and other traffic generation)… your entire marketing overview (which lists to hit, how to position yourself within your niche, how to mix in email with direct mail and other media, etc)… and, of course, your USP and specific benefits, promises and copy angles to take in headlines and body copy.

All specific and targeted to you, the attendee.

It’s a lot to cover, so if I do this, I’ll have to severely limit attendance. That also means the price might be a slight shock… but of course no matter what the entrance fee ends up being, it’s just a short-term investment in your future success.

If you’ve had a chance to read any of the testimonials from the folks who’ve attended my other two seminars (I so rarely give them), you know they go home on fire with ideas and specific plans. Not vague theories or stacks of notes that need “digesting”. Real, useable tactics and details that can be put in place Monday morning.

Plus, of course, watching me go deep with each project is a priceless education in “figuring marketing stuff out” — it’s how I got good at it in the first place. You can read every book on the subject, and even do it for your own biz… but the huge leaps in expertise only happen when you see the tactics applied to a whole bunch of different markets.

That’s why, in my first years as a freelancer, I immediately agreed to swap free copywriting for Jay Abraham in exchange for free run of his office. For several years, I never earned a dime from my work with him… but by sitting in on meetings and watching him consult and go through the process of taking raw material and turning it into actual marketing plans, I knew I was putting a fortune in the bank.

When I later signed on with Gary Halbert, I accepted the generous money he paid me (including the royalties)… but I would have done the work for free, just for the opportunity to see how he operated. It was utterly different than Jay’s method… and that’s why I bring something unique to the table. I had the benefit of being mentored by two of the most wildly opposite geniuses in the biz.

Most of the “guru’s” out there will try to tell you there’s just one way to do anything. It’s nonsense — once you have experience in the real world of business, you are free to operate without restrictions (or a net). Because, as the wise old pro’s know, there is ALWAYS a way to make a project work… even if the accepted methods fail.

The winners in any market are the guys with the deepest bag of tricks. The ideologues go the way of the dinosaurs.

Anyway, I’m not yet accepting reservations for the seminar. Don’t even have the exact date down — sometime in March, here in Reno.

More on this as I figure it out.

John Carlton
www.marketingrebel.com

Maybe, Maybe Not

Being a sci-fi freak, I’m always interested in hearing what various experts have to say about “The Future”.

Mostly, it’s a useless exercise — the local weather guy can’t even accurately predict tomorrow’s temperature or rainfall. And I may be one of the few who actually remember what big-name political columnists insist will happen in any upcoming election… and, yes, they’re wrong so often they should be ashamed. And run out of town.

And that’s the short-term stuff.

Trying to predict how the world will look further down the road is pure imagination at work. I’m still pissed I don’t have the flying car and robot slave I was promised back in the sixties.

Still, it’s not a totally useless exercise… especially if your success is dependent on the continuation, end, or invention of something over which you have little or no control.

And there are people out there who get it right more often than not. They don’t usually get the big headlines and juicy talk-show gigs, though… because what they see ahead either isn’t very exciting, or isn’t very popular with the masses.

Remember — guys like Warren Buffett, Steven Spielberg, William Gibson, and even Steve Jobs were once ridiculed for their vision ahead. Laughed at. “Go for it, dude,” they were told, dismissively.

And behold, they were right on the money. And only afterward were they elevated to deity status. (In Jobs’s case, he made the trip up and down and back up again several times… each time being given the “final” thumbs down.)

So, one clue about finding good sources… is to not ignore the faint voices at the far edge of the discussion. Just because the talking heads of television and current media darlings say one thing, doesn’t mean that the truth can’t lie in the complete opposite direction.

That said… I want to relay two items about the possible future that you may want to think about.

First: The takeover of all media by the Web will increase to breakneck speed. Within months — seriously, it could avalance that quickly — your local newspaper could either go belly up, or become virtual, available only online. Same with your local cable television company. By next Christmas, most people will no longer sit down to watch television… they’ll be watching the Web.

Your phone book will become an e-book — if you want a copy to hold in your hands, you’ll have to print it out. The little racks at the grocery full of magazines will become monitors dispensing downloads. If you want a copy of Newsweek or Cosmo or The National Enquirer to fold up and take to the beach… you’ll have to print it out yourself.

And those publications will struggle to survive, even as virtual entities. Because they live on advertising… and when you can TiVo an e-newspaper and skip the ads, advertisers will seek other outlets.

I do not see any of this as an improvement on the way we live. I just see it coming.

And the reason I consider it relevant for marketers… is that a paradigm shift of culture-changing proportions will follow. Billions of ad dollars will have to go somewhere. For a time, there will be chaos, because almost no one is prepared for this.

If you’ve seen some of the increasingly lame (and even desperate) advertising efforts of large companies online, you understand what I’m getting at. The ad agencies handling those multi-million dollar accounts are just clueless.

The whole consumer culture needs a big damn shake-out.

Yet, it can be a genuine opportunity for avvy entrepreneurs. Because I’ll give you a hint, right now, on how the best will survive and prosper: By offering content. Real information and services through their Web pages, updated often. And lots and lots of personal communication.

Why? Because, as the old means of “culture communication” collapse, people will still crave information and a sense of being connected to the larger scheme. A tremendous need will arise for “Go To Guys” — essentially, Web sites that tell the truth, are generous with useful information, and help people stay in the mainstream.

That means your “herd” becomes more and more important — your house list of regulars. With the culture fragmenting, the more you can provide honest connection and a sense of community, the more indespensible you become.

Something to consider, as you forge bonds with your current prospects and customers.

We’re about to become tribal again.

Second: While the U.S. ecomony remains strong, and resilient… we are a total consumer economy now, and that means the rules have changed slightly from just a short time ago.

Our financial health depends on the ability of people to buy things.

And that ability has just reached an interesting point… because people have mostly exhausted their options for creating the cash to spend.

Most spouses are already working, so there are no “hidden” income opportunities left within families.

And they’re already working too many hours. Americans work more than any other country in the First World. There’s no room for a second job, or more overtime.

And, finally, the debt load has reached epic proportions. It’s not true, as some feared, that too many homeowners took out dangerous adjustable rate mortgages — most were sensible enough to secure locked-in rates at their historic lows.

But they have already taken out, and spent, their second mortgages. That means they’ve exhausted the equity in their homes… to buy new cars, or add on, or buy a second home, or — foolishly — to take a vacation. They’re tapped out… and if house prices tumble, they’re risking being upside down in their new mortgages, no matter how low a rate they snared.

This does NOT mean that wallets will slam shut across the landscape. The populace won’t suddenly go on a financial diet, just because the money’s gone.

But it does mean that the free-for-all party many markets enjoyed recently is over. The days of low-hanging fruit are gone for most marketers.

Who will win in the new paradigm?

Simple. Those who understand the secrets of classic salesmanship. When you’re dealing with starving crowds, you don’t have to be very clever or elegant hawking your Sloppy Joe’s. But when the crowd starts to consider every penny, you better be able to pull out your best salesman’s chops.

People will always need stuff.

But they won’t buy from you just because you asked nice.

Think about this as The Future gains on us. The changes will be fast and furious… won’t always be logical or predictable… and yet you can thrive if you’re flexible, aware, and able to persuade through a world-class pitch.

For some, what’s ahead will be a nightmare that shocks and crushes. For others — the smart ones — the future is gonna be a blast.

I might even get that robot slave I’ve always wanted.

Stay frosty.

John Carlton
www.marketingrebel.com

Been There

Most of the people I consider my “e-colleagues” — in other words, the guys who have the Web wired, and are making major bucks with their online efforts — are too young to have ever experienced a real recession.

Or a genuine economic panic.

I’m not bragging. At the last big seminar I spoke at, I enjoyed the respect I garnered from my many years in the front line trenches of advertising… but jeez, I was fifteen years older than the next oldest speaker. That’s just… annoying as hell.

Still, you’re only as young as you think you are… and since I never really “grew up” in the sense most people consider the concept, I’m not all that freaked out over being the wise ass with the salt-and-pepper hair. To my mind, I just have more stories to tell. Better ones, too.

And this is one of those stories.

The last vicious recession worthy of the name experienced in the Western economy was just after the first Iraq war (back when W.’s daddy did the honors). Almost fifteen years ago. To the thirty-something business moguls I deal with, that’s ancient history. To the twenty-something upstart entrepreneurs, it’s a hazy rumor that happened while they were watching Sesame Street.

That recession, however, was brutal enough to cost Bush the Elder the election… but it was still considered “medium-mild” by economists. Like an earthquake that only knocks a few buildings off their foundations — nowhere near “Hollywood-level disaster” status.

You wanna talk disaster? I left college and entered the job market in 1975, during the worst economic downturn America had seen since the Great Depression. Nixon had slapped on federal price and wage controls, gas lines went around the block, and Bears chewed up Wall Street something ugly.

The gas lines came back in ’79, when OPEC used the Iranian revolution as an excuse to starve us. (And, I kid you not, that was the first time it was finally deemed “okay” to drive a foreign car. Detroit was still pumping out behomoth gas-guzzlers — the typical sedan drank a gallon of gas every dozen miles or so — oblivious to the reality of the market. My little Datsun truck was a life-saver for a broke guy like me.)

A few years later, the economy went south again. There used to be these cute little quasi-bank institutions called “Savings and Loans” — and they became fodder for the new kind of pillage coming from the investing class. Imagine going to your bank one day to cash a check, and finding out the doors are locked, your money’s gone, and no one seems to be responsible. Or care much about it.

This happened, folks. An entire nation-wide financial institution, wiped out by uncontrolled greed (fueled by sudden, purposeful rule changes coming out of Washington).

This was around the time I started freelancing for the financial newsletter industry. So, hey, I know a little bit about the way things went down.

In fact, I had three — count ’em, three — direct response packages in the mail, all for Bullish advisors, on Black Friday in October, 1987. The day the Dow lost an arm and a leg.

On the following Black Monday, I hung up my financial writing spurs, and went back to more stable clients.

If you’re too young to remember any of this, don’t sweat it. I’m through with the short history lesson — I just needed to establish my bona fides to make a larger point.

See, I was immersed in the financial world at that time. The world seemed to be imploding — AIDS, the Cold War stare-down getting really nasty, role models telling kids that “greed is good”… and gold hitting $800 an ounce.

The mood of those mid-to-late eighties came back today in full fire-breathing color… when I saw a headline saying that gold had just topped $500 an ounce for the first time since 1987.

I bought two Kruggerands just after the $800 peak, for around $500 an ounce. Everyone I knew was hording silver dimes, rare coins, and as much gold as they could lay their hands on. Mortgage rates had recently hovered around 20%(!), several of the oldest and most stable U.S. airlines had just been dismantled through hostile take-overs (because greed-heads wanted the pension money) (I’m not making this up)… and I briefly succumbed to the panic.

And bought a couple of gold coins.

At a price that immediately collapsed… and hasn’t been touched again until today. Almost two decades later.

So what’s my point?

Hang on. It’s about the Web.

It’s important.

See, back then, I wasn’t running around scared. Hell, I’d grown up with ICBMs pointed at me. I was born during the Korean War, hit puberty during the Cuban missile crisis (“duck and cover”), went through high school in the late sixties — I’ll never run out of stories about that trip — and limped out of college just as Vietnam was ending. I lived in Silicon Valley during the years it was the prime target of Russian spying. And, as I said, I slagged finanical advice for much of the go-go eighties.

Crisis was my life, dude. I ate crisis for breakfast… and sipped a beer with it at night.

When the Great Dot Com Stock Market Crash rocked the globe at the turn of this century, I yawned. I had friends watch their fortunes vanish, right there on their computer monitors, and knew several businessmen who — having bought the hype that “the good times will never end” — had leveraged themselves to their eyeballs… and were now leveled onto their asses.

I don’t like seeing good people get hurt… but I had been wondering for a very long time why otherwise smarkt people were buying all the “we’ve reinvented the economy” nonsense. You don’t reinvent an economy. It can change, even mutate, under your feet… but nothing YOU do will ever make a ripple.

What was it Greenspan warned everyone of, just before the dunk? Irrational exhuberance?

People thought they could control Fate solely by being really, really goggle-eyed positive. And ignoring bad stuff.

For several years now, I’ve been telling anyone who’ll listen that the Web has been going through a Gold Rush period — where the lack of rules and standards (and especially the lack of seasoned Big Companies competing) meant that almost any wild-hair scheme could succeed. And you could make a fortune slapping up silly Websites… because the Big Boys were not yet paying attention.

It was fun. A lot of people made a lot of money. And good for them.

And there’s still a lot of money to be made.

But… it’s not so much a Gold Rush anymore. The change happened very recently, and was spurred by economics.

Two very recent news stories sum it up: On November 19th, the Wall Street Journal more or less announced that newspapers as we knew and loved them… are now in their graves, waiting for the dirt to be shoveled on. The smart papers, like the Journal, the Washington Post, the New York Times, and a few others, are going online in a big way now. Soon, there will be no more paper-rustling at the breakfast table.

Just the faint buzz of the DSL line.

Of course, there are many online e-mags, blogs and all sort of other e-media waiting for the “Old School” journalists, and the battle has begun in earnest.

As someone who cares about information, and about truth… I have a horse in how this all plays out.

The other story is from the Post. November 21st: The United Nations makes a bid to “control” the Internet. By taking over the registration of domain names from the U.S.

Now, that ain’t gonna happen just because they asked nice.

But the writing’s on the wall, kids. China is desperately trying to control blogs and incoming news online. Up-for-election Congressmen in the U.S. are voting for laws that will make the Web obedient to their Puritanical peeves. When was the last time you visited your bank? You’re likely doing most of your bill-paying online… and all your money is just blips on a hard drive somewhere.

Perhaps in India.

I’m not panicking. I don’t panic easily — not because I’m brave, but because I’m so jaded.

The Web is changing, and changing fast. Google’s stock is out of control, considering that MicroSoft and Yahoo are gunning for their share of the search engine market. That’s like being the biggest and baddest guy in the local bar, and getting all the respect… and then hearing a couple of hard-ass bikers are now in town, and they’re comin’ for ya.

Hey, it’s like living through a real sci-fi novel. If anyone tells you they know what’s gonna happen, get as far away from them as you can. (My favorite pre-Dot Com Crash go-go financial advice book of 200 was “DOW 30,000!”)

But you don’t have to run around blind and crazed and freaked. If all the conspiracy theories in the world all come true tomorrow, then maybe we’ll be UFO food, and none of this matters.

However, if the economy is as flexible as it’s shown itself to be — over and over and over again since the Industrial Revolution — then you shouldn’t be losing sleep over the possibility of a Neo-Nazi take-over of the West Wing.

Instead, you should keep your wits about you. Stiff upper lip and all that. All we have to fear, is fear itself, and all that other time-tesed jargon is pretty good to remember. Whatever doesn’t kill you, blah, blah, blah.

Personally, I am financially diversified up the yin-yang. (I’m even considering stuffing money into coffee cans and burying them in the back yard… except I’d have to shoot the neighbors if they saw me…)

And I’m still very close to many of the young entrepreneurs who work magic on the Web, because it’s the only marketplace they’ve ever known or cared about… and they do what they do very, very well.

However, the smart ones also stay close to grizzled old veterans like me, and Halbert, and Kennedy.

Cuz we’ve been there, man.

Experience is like insurance, in uncertain times.

Things are getting interesting. Consider yourself blessed to be living in such exciting, fast-moving times. In another life, you could have been tending corn on a peaceful farm somewhere far from the action.

Now, the action comes to you, online.

Okay, I’m done.

If gold goes up another fifty bucks, I’m selling the Krugs, though. on eBay.

Stay frosty,

John Carlton
www.marketingrebel.com

Thank You

I know a lot of people get pissy during the holidays. The crowds are unruly and rude, the roads are clogged, the pressure is on and stress goes through the roof.

I really lucked out, though — I thoroughly enjoyed my family while growing up (my twin cousins and I are still best friends) (and we still marvel at the adventures we shared as kids)… and later on, I hooked up with friends who know how to cut through the bullshit and get to the calm, pleasurable center of special occasions.

I don’t care if the turkey’s burnt or underdone, I don’t care if the weather is perfect or sucks, and I don’t care if any particular guest has a coping problem.

Because all I care about is the opportunity to reflect on where I’m at, and what I truly do have to be thankful for.

Seems odd that we had to create a holiday to do this… but I’m all for it. The football is fun, the way merchants try to make festive messes in their stores is entertaining, and my memories of being taught all that crap about pilgrims and Indians still makes me smile.

But, as I head into my upteenth holiday, I’m amazed — yet again — that I’ve survived my rollicking past, and have somehow arrived at this place I inhabit now. Teaching, writing prolifically, wired into the red-hot center of the Web… I’m just stunned at my good fortune.

And I’m not taking any of it for granted. There were many, many other paths I could have taken over the years… each one leading to God knows where. I have close friends no longer with us, and others in various stages of disrepair, and I know (now, after feeling invulnerable for most of my life) that every new lap around the calendar is a gift.

I love this season. For me, it’s not just leaves turning and the landscape going bare under the coming snows. Rather, it’s a time for renewal, a time to refill my soul with gratitude and, yes, even more amazement at the ride we’re all on here.

I’ve been depressed, and I’ve been insanely happy, and I’ve been everywhere in between. It’s a journey, and you gotta find your own mojo and learn how to deal with your own physiological and emotional idiosyncracies.

Nobody has it down “perfect”. Everybody bleeds, and everybody screws up now and again. Getting it all into perspective helps calm you down. All this will pass, no matter how unyielding and overwhelming it seems at the moment.

I know the holidays are difficult for many folks.

But I hope that this time, you remember to take a deep breath, get centered… and take it all in. Living life well requires a healthy appetite for every detail, both the good and the bad.

Enjoy yourself.

And stay frosty.

John Carlton
www.marketingrebel.com

Telling The Truth

I’m going through another maze of medical “opinions”… this time trying to find a vet who’ll give me some straight talk about the condition of my dog’s health.

I’ve sat down with dozens of vets over the years. Interesting breed of professional — they are, typically, the most educated and least paid in the medical field. The best go through as much schooling as “human” physicians do… and though they aren’t officially sanctioned to work on people, I would not hesitate to seek care from one in an emergency.

There are bad ones, no doubt… but the good ones are really good. Maybe it’s because they love animals so much — if you hate fur, you’re not a good fit for the job. You gotta enjoy getting dirty.

At any rate, I’ve learned a ton of important stuff from hanging around vet’s offices. My little adventure this time through the system took me to the UC Davis vet teaching hosptial… where the head of oncology spent over three hours with us.

He wanted to make absolutely sure we had every question answered, and answered to our satisfaction.

Compare that with my friend who found himself in a Miami emergency room with a life-threatening condition last month. They saved his ass… but the doctor spent all of two minutes with him, and if my friend didn’t know how to Google for his own information, he would still be in the dark about what actually happened. And how to keep it from happening again.

So, over all, I’ve been very happy with my experiences with animal docs.

However, there is still one nagging, very bothersome complaint: Though I know some of these vets well… it was like pulling teeth to get the truth out of them.

They all have a natural tendency to want to “coat” bad news with jargon. They also downplay the bad side effects when they’re urging us to go with one treatment method. The only way I know this, is that by boning up on info ourselves, and playing “dumb” with each new vet we saw, a better picture of what was going on emerged.

The truth — defined as what the broad spectrum of possibilities were, rather than the narrow opinion of any one vet — was elusive. It was only at the university hospital… and only at the very end of a long and grueling discussion… that the head doc finally leaned back, actually threw up his hands… and told us the truth about what was going on.

Basically, he said “If this was my dog…” and then delivered his educated opinion. I won’t bore you with the details, because what’s important here is this delivery of straight talk.

The vets are very much like many marketers. When you’re steeped in the details of anything, it gets more and more difficult to nurture absolute opinions, and you start including all sorts of disclaimers. A rookie consultant — and I’ve been around a few — might say “You do this and then this… every single time.” After twenty years in the biz, though, I find myself starting every piece of advice with “It depends on what outcome you want…”.

I say this because I now know that “truth” is dependent on the variables of the situation. There’s is seldom just one answer.

There are no — or at least very few — absolutes in anything. Two plus two always equals four… unless you’re dealing with amoebas that merge and purge, and then you may end up with three, or one, or a dozen. Staying with math, pi can be described as a rather small, tidy number… or a monster several hundred numbers deep. Which answer is the “truth”? Depends on what the question is.

And, I’m sorry, but if your politics involve principles you consider absolute — no matter what — then you’re a deluded idealist. The current government is full of ’em… all trying desperately to stuff square complex problems into round simple holes. It doesn’t work so well.

In marketing, ask yourself which camp you fall into — either trying to convince your audience that the answers to their problems are simple and absolute, or that the answers are so complex they need a guide like you. And then step back, and re-examine that position as a prospect.

You know what I’ve found? Most folks just want the truth as it applies to their situation, no matter how brutal or unpleasant it may be. They distrust rosy pictures that deny anything could ever go wrong. They bristle not just when they’re lied to — which is unforgivable — but also when misled.

And yet, they are seldom treated with straight talk.

Long ago, I decided that when I critiqued a piece of copy — a service I offer my Insiders — I would do it the same way I critique my own copy. Which means, there’s no flattery involved. It’s just a straight-on “does it work” assault, run through my Bullshit Detector and my Innder Salesman. If the copy doesn’t meet my high standards, it most likely will not produce world class results.

And so I am not shy about trashing your effort if it’s bad. There’s money on the line. There are other places you can go if all you want is someone to stroke your ego. I won’t do it — if you’re gonna send an ad out into the bad old business world, it needs to be all grown up and ready to meet the skepticism and disbelief and outright hostility of the real market. Or it will bomb.

That’s all I’ve ever done, in my newsletters, my blog, and my teaching events: Just lay it out, and tell the truth, as precisely as I can.

Now, there are many markets where telling the truth will get you burned. Politics, for example. The diet market, for another. (There is and alwasys will be a niche for truth-telling in both examples… but the main part of each audience will never appreciate the truth. They want to be lied to.)

I was shocked when that one vet just opened up and spoke to me like I was a peer, minus the soft soothing tones he obviously used for most people. I wanted the straight dope, and was ready to hear the worst. Turned out, the worst wasn’t anywhere near as bad as I’d feared.

Now, finally, we can decide what to do… armed with good info.

In the movie “A Few Good Men”, Jack Nickolson (playing a Gitmo commanding officer) famously said “You can’t handle the truth.” It was a stunning moment. And his opinion, I’ve discovered, is shared by many people in positions of power.

But the Tom Cruise JAG lawyer disagreed. He didn’t say it, but his stance was “The truth will set you free.” That isn’t true across the board, because, as I said, there are many people who really don’t want to hear the truth, not ever.

Still, it’s worth spending some time figuring out what stance is best for your particular market.

I’ve always advised people to aspire to become the “Go To Guy” in their market… because few markets already have someone in that spot. And, being a Go To Guy means you must have a handle on the bottom line truth… and be willing to explain that truth in a way that informs and empowers your customers.

It’s not the easiest row to hoe. We’re not brought up to appreciate the value of the truth, and we’re not taught to respect it. (I haven’t gone through medical school, but I’ve spent enough time with doctors to know that they do NOT believe you — as the patient — deserve to know everything. Too many of them believe M.D. stands for “Medical Deity”, and that you should just take their advice and shut up. The only way to avoid nasty surprises is to get hip. You only get the “peer” treatment when you prove to him that you know nearly as much as he does.)

This is not a simple subject. I wish it were.

Do what you believe is right. In my experience, however, the truth is always better than delusion. If it’s bad news, you’re not going to shed more tears than if you were “protected”.

It’s funny, in a way — here we are, deep in the Information Age, and truth remains a rare thing.

Ah, the irony.

Stay frosty.

John Carlton
www.marketingrebel.com