Ray Edwards Show

This is the "On The Road" Edition of the show… recorded "live" in a coffee shop. Wow. Hey it just goes to show you: imperfect action beats perfect contemplation, every time. For those who are interested, here's the microphone I'm using – I wrongly said in the show it was a Logitech, but it's actually a Plantronics headset. Resources Mentioned In The Show Product Launch Formula Market Samurai And once again, if you have feedback or suggestions I'd really like to hear from you. What would make the show something you would NOT miss? What would make it a MUST-LISTEN? Click for the Podcast Audio: Click Here

The Story: Brand new Ray Edwards Show podcast — all about marketing and productivity. The Point: Getting the podcast off the ground, despite being on the road in the RV and despite slightly crappy audio. We've got two episodes in the can, and the audio turned out to be not as good as I would have hoped. BUT… in the spirit of getting things done, I'm releasing them anyway. Audio will get better, I promise. And if you have feedback or suggestions I'd really like to hear from you. What would make the show something you would NOT miss? What would make it a MUST-LISTEN? The Resource From "Tips, Tools and Tactics": Unique Article Wizard Click for the Podcast Audio: Click Here

Most of us work too hard to really get anything done. There are many studies that demonstrate that multimillion dollar CEOs spend less than 30 minutes per day doing the work they're actually paid to do. Why is this? It's because the higher we go in our levels of responsibility (and this is especially salient for entrepreneurs) the more likely it is we will be interrupted throughout the day by concerns, people, and tasks that are urgent (needs attention from someone immediately) but not necessarily important (needs high-level attention from the entrepreneur, CEO, or manager). This applies even if you are a freelance worker (or perhaps you started your own online business in your "spare time"). The key to success on a massive scale is to focus on revenue-generating activities as much as possible. Here's how you do that… Focus on Revenue Generation If you were to analyze your day, you would no doubt discover that less than 20% of your daily activity produces 80% or more of your total revenue. Another way of looking at this is to realize that 80% of what you do doesn't really contribute to your income in a directly measurable way. You may be familiar with this as Pareto's Law: "80% of the results typically come from only 20% of the activity". Instead of expending a lot of effort trying to change that 20% number to a higher percentage-save 50 or 60%-it might be more useful to consider simply eliminating the 80%. Sound almost impossible? In fact, you already know how to do this… Day Before Vacation Phenomena Have you ever experienced "the day before vacation phenomena"? You know what I'm talking about. You're leaving for vacation on, let's say, a Thursday. Have you ever noticed how that Wednesday becomes the most efficient work day you've had in many weeks (perhaps months)? Have you noticed how, on the day before vacation starts, you get 10 times the work done in a single day? You've probably also noticed the wonderful euphoric feeling you experience when you walk out of the office on that day… how you feel that everything is in its place, each task is handled, each responsibility delegated to a team member, or at the very least deferred until you get back. On those days, don't you feel more at peace, in control, and effortlessly productive then on 99% of the other days of the year? So there it is: your proof that you're actually capable of eliminating the 80% of normal time-wasting, revenue-depressing, stress-inducing activity that makes up most of your days. Dan, The "No Email Man" I have a colleague named Dan who doesn't do e-mail. I don't mean that he does "very little" e-mail… I mean he doesn't do e-mail at all. Doesn't have an e-mail address. Dan also doesn't have a cell phone. If you want to talk to Dan, you have to call him at his office; his phone is answered by his assistant who deftly protects Dan from time-wasting phone calls and appointments. In fact, Dan has very few appointments. Yet he is very productive, very receptive and open to talking with people, and runs a multimillion dollar business. He somehow manages to do it while living a sane, orderly, and peaceful life. So what excuse do the rest of us have? My 3-Month Experiment Just a few weeks ago, I wrapped up a three-month experiment. For three months, my wife and I traveled the United States in our motorhome. We ran our business in our "spare time" from that motorhome-using laptops, WiFi Internet connections, and UPS stores. While I will admit it was challenging at times, I can also tell you that on average for that three-month period, I worked about three hours a day (weekdays). Normally, my work day is anywhere from 8-10 hours long. It was startling to realize that I could maintain (actually not just maintain, but increase) my net income while working around one third fewer hours. Now that I'm back in my "normal" environment, I am remaining very conscious of how much time I spend working-versus how much time I spend "being busy", giving the APPEARANCE of work. You see, I already know it's possible to maintain my income working only three hours a day. I should be clear: some days are 12 hour days, and some days are zero-hour days. It only averages out to three hours per day-it's never as neat as exactly 180 minutes each day. But that misses the point. The point is: what on earth have I been doing with those other 7-9 hours each day? How bout you? What could you do with an extra 7-9 hours of discretionary time every single day? Think about that. Going Cold Turkey Last weekend I decided to experiment with my colleague Dan's lifestyle. My wife and I got in our motorhome once again, and drove about six hours to a lake in Oregon. We visited a state park… where there is no Internet service, and no cell phone signal. That meant I wasn't able to "sneak in" an e-mail scan, or send out "tweet" on Twitter. Going cold turkey was interesting. The first day I was a bit jittery. I experienced some "withdrawal" symptoms. The second day I experienced a feelin

The Question: Do I really need a guarantee on my website? The Answer: Yes. This is the only way to remove the biggest objection your prospects have to buying from you. Three Things To Consider When Creating Your Guarantee: 1. The length of the guarantee (the longer you can make it, the more credible your offer). 2. How you word your guarantee matters. If you can denominate your guarantee in a fresh way, it will be more effective. 3. Check with your merchant provider about the length of guarantee you're allowed to offer! Click for the Podcast Audio: Should You Have A Guarantee

The Question: How do I take online payments? The Answer: There are lots of options, including a very simple way to take online payments. Three Ways To Take Online Payments: 1. Use Clickbank (for digital products). 2. Paypal works for physical products. 3. For full-fledged merchant accounts, use iPowerPay. Click for the Podcast Audio: How To Take Online Payments

The Question: How do I test my copy? The Answer: It's not that difficult – don't over-complicate things. How To Improve Your Sales With Better Copy: 1. Model successful copy of companies whose ads you know are working (don't steal – model!). 2. Use multi-variate testing. Yep, sounds complicated. But when you use software, it's pretty easy. 3. Use software like Split Test Accelerator to do your testing. (NOTE: Multi-Track Generator is now off the market…sorry!) Click for the Podcast Audio: Get Started Testing Your Copy

The Question: What do I do if I have all the pieces in place, but I'm not making sales with my website? The Answer: Improve the architecture of persuasion on your website: change the words! How To Improve Your Sales With Better Copy: 1. Have your copy reviewed by a professional (NOTE: I no longer offer free consultations at this time – sorry!). 2. Make changes and measure the results. 3. Next step: start a rigorous testing regimen (more on how to do this next time!). Click for the Podcast Audio: When Marketing Doesn't Work