Two days ago, I saw the following tweet:
@tferriss so self-promo by referring to yourself in the third person can work. It’s ironic given the content of this http://su.pr/3BZbFL
This was in response to my tweet, which read:
Inc. Magazine – Tim Ferriss on the Pitfalls of Personal Branding: http://su.pr/3BZbFL
Ironic? Not really. Let me pose a question: what does a follower need to do if I write “My take on the Pitfalls of…”?
Before they retweet it (even with “RT @tferriss”), many will feel compelled to rewrite “My” as “Tim Ferriss’s” or “@tferriss’s”. Editing means fewer retweets. The same logic applies to some blog post titles, like this one, both for ease-of-sharing and SEO…
I have reasons for most of what I do.
David Siteman Garland dug into some of those reasons recently in an interview on Rise to the Top. He describes the content:
In this interview, I pick Tim’s brain on:
The shift from The 4-Hour Workweek to The 4-Hour Body. Why did he decide to go this route from a business, marketing, and personal perspective?
The business behind his books.
How has his perspective on marketing and promoting changed since the first book became an international phenomenon?
How he spent less than $10,000 and successfully took the 4-Hour Workweek to the New York Times Best Seller List.
The best approach for forming genuine relationships with bloggers.
The difference between hard selling and soft selling (and what it means for your brand).
How Tim Ferriss makes money.
An alternative to the typical “author model” of write a book and then speak/consult.
His advice for creative entrepreneurs like all of us.
Plus, much, much, much more.
###
Odds and Ends: Advertising Competition
Wow! More than 500 submissions, and there are a lot of good ads. It will take me and my small army a while to get through them all, so please be patient! Some incredible gems were produced and, more important to me, the creativity was outstanding. More coming soon, and thank you for the awesome performance.
The Tim Ferriss Show is one of the most popular podcasts in the world with more than one billion downloads. It has been selected for "Best of Apple Podcasts" three times, it is often the #1 interview podcast across all of Apple Podcasts, and it's been ranked #1 out of 400,000+ podcasts on many occasions. To listen to any of the past episodes for free, check out this page.
Comment Rules: Remember what Fonzie was like? Cool. That’s how we’re gonna be — cool. Critical is fine, but if you’re rude, we’ll delete your stuff. Please do not put your URL in the comment text and please use your PERSONAL name or initials and not your business name, as the latter comes off like spam. Have fun and thanks for adding to the conversation! (Thanks to Brian Oberkirch for the inspiration.)
Very interesting post! There’s a method behind most madness – or greatness.
Looking forward to going through the video.
Awesome article, the massive lee child advertisement at the top is cool as well. Would be annoying if lee child wasn’t the best action writer out. Is it a dynamic ad or are you doing a promotion for his publisher?
Haters gonna hate.
I’m really looking forward to having the 4 hour body arrive in my mailbox in December! Excited!
Oooo, really nice tip. I’ll definitely keep that in mind, it’s a clever hack.
LOL, so like the Seinfeld episode where Elaine’s BF keeps referring to himself in the third person.
I will try it and see if it works on non famous people.
George like his chicken spicy !
Great post, I love seeing these on twitter before the email blast! Gotta love technology.
Also, can’t wait for the new book – preordered signed copy coming my way!
Tyler
Hey Tim,
This video was very informative. Has to be one of my favorite videos of you. It really ties in a lot of the content in your other posts/videos, but you definitely add a new level of detail.
Thanks!!’
-Tyler
Tyler,
Glad you enjoyed it! It was a blast having Tim on. And it was definitely one of my favorite interviews I’ve had the pleasure of doing….ever. 🙂
I literally just made a valuable new friend using the information in this video 2 hrs after watching! Thanks!
I’d like Tim to do a book on ideal living next. A more personal one about travel, style, thinking patterns, philosophy, etc. He has efficient business management down, now health optimization next. What’s next? Consider it.
Dang, that’s one big book! Looking forward to 4HB more and more every day, Tim.
Great interview! Very informative information, especially the bit on networking through simple conversations and soft selling. I really liked the question and response regarding going through online channels to get the word out. I would have thought that offline marketing through well known media outlets would be the way to go, but you have shown another example of how doing what is counter-intuitive is often more valuable. Thanks for providing such great value and pushing yourself to greater challenges. Keep pushing! I hope that someday I can do the same in the fiction arena.
Why is this guy yelling all the time? Calm down!
Wow that is awesome you make enough for a full-time income off of amazon. I am looking into using amazon in greater ways this christmas season as well.
Thanks for offering your experiences, resources, and learnings. You could easily be more private and protect yourself from crazies, but you are willing to share for the benefit of others. Thanks!
Wow, great post. I live the insights in posts like this. Always interesting to see the insights into celebrities lives, esp Tim 😉
You know… When seniors citizens refer to themselves in the third person it is a sign of Alzheimer..
I’m just sayin 🙂
You share so much great info Tim. Thanks. It’s very true that you can share all those “secrets” and most wont implement.
I discovered that after studying Marcelo Garcia for years. It is amazing how he gives away everything he does in his Jiu Jitsu books and videos and then comes out and wins tournaments using the exact moves he demonstrated. He has no secrets, just implements so much better than the rest. Very similar to your point.
Great interview.
Marcelo is a GENIUS. Hope to train with him more in 2011. Simply amazing, and a sweetheart of a guy.
Thanks for the post Tim.
TF,
Great video. I was taking notes when you were talking about launching the new book, we are in process of writing our book, so it was great to hear from you how you got the word out!
Keep rocking my friend, where is your next Mini-Retirement after the launch?
Jordan! 🙂
I really took your “evergreen” advice to heart.
I knew I found your content compelling, but your comment helped make the undercurrent of why more explicit. It’s exactly because even if I’m reading the post months and months after it’s publishing, it still has relevancy. This is going to be my new rule of thumb when blogging. Even more, imagine if we applied that rule to all of our actions…
Thanks for the video!
I can’t catch the book Tim recommended us to read on ‘marketing laws’?
Can someone share?
Thank you.
The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing
“The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing,” by Al Ries & Jack Trout
Although, be aware, the book was written something like 15 years ago and is heavily leaning on the “big advertising” model (TV, billboards, etc.)
Since power has now shifted to people rather than to advertiser, some of the “laws” have to be rethought a bit, or taken with some reserve.
Telein,
Can you recommend a more up to date marketing book?
There isn’t a real replacement for the 22 Laws book, but books that offer the most bang and golden nuggets are:
For in-direct marketing:
“Rework” by 37signals and “Delivering Happiness” by Tony Hsieh
For direct marketing:
Anything from Dan Kennedy – golden but sales-y
For internet marketing:
No really good comprehensive book, but you do have an AMAZING and free course by some Australians. They reinvent it every summer so the content is always fresh and has been going on for something like 5 years now. http://challenge.co/
Hope it helped 🙂
Looking forward to the 4HB. Found the guy interviewing you ANNOYING … but found what you had to say interesting and insightful. Calm.
Is there any chance you’ll be sharing the 150 pages of content that was cut from the book on this blog? It would be great to be able to read it. Heck, I’ll even pay for it.
Thanks for posting the interview. Can’t wait to read the book.
+1 for this request. Would pay.
Thanks, guys! I’ll definitely be sharing some of it. Good idea to think about repurposing in a more polished fashion. Hmmmm….
Hi Sir Tim! 🙂 Hi everybody! Wish you be better than yesterday! 🙂
it’s already about a week I am ill in a positive meaning :). It’s better call my Doctor 🙂 but unfortunately he is also unable to help. The Story is that I started to read your first book which is in old version and my World just turned – now I’m Ferris-holic . I’m reading your blogs your interview, the day before yesterday I participated in a Teleseminar Enlightened Business Summit, where I wanted to ask you questions but failed, but instead of that I became the single representative from Kazakhstan who posted in face book that I’m poor thing not sleeping because of summit:). The thing is that I started my own business in marketing consulting and representative services for tourism operators and Tourism Boards here in Kazakhstan, Almaty.
And after reading your book I have lots of question, but the main is:
1. How to apply your advices in service rendering sphere?
2. And I think it’s easy to work in USA and Europe, but here in former USSR countries I think it’s a bit difficult. So I would like kindly ask for a piece of advice? 🙂 ? Maybe we can make some interviews or reprinting for Russia, Kazakhstan markets (I mean Central Asia)?
3. You next book is coming soon only in December. My deepest congrats! But I suppose that this book will be translated into Russian later? Am I right? I can read English version but in your ALMOST native language perception is better. So when can we expect your book in Russian version?
With respect to you,
Rumiya
Hey Tim, great interview! I’m really looking forward to the 4-hour body. I’m having it wirelessly delivered to my Kindle here in Thailand. =)
Yes, you have reasons for most of what you do. Thanks for eventually sharing them with everyone!
Excellent point on publishing content that is “evergreen”. I think all content providers should heed this advice to one extent or the other.
Hi Tim;
Interesting post, found your book (4 hr w.w.)last week on Audible and thought I would give it a listen. Wow, it’s now the favorite in my collection, your right about the email and getting fat snip on the video. Your tips on taking control of email and voice mail is right on the mark and starting this Monday my voice mail gets changed. to let others know when I will be checking and returning both.
Looking forward to 4 Hour Body.
Every time I visit this corner of the web I feel very inspired in a way I can’t really find anywhere else. You are amazing at what you do. Thank you so much.
I know you are working on advertising/adsense on your blog. Not that you are asking, but in my opinion adsense is really not a good fit for you. It is giving you a fraction of what you could be making with advertising and the sheisty quality of the ads are not helping your brand/image. I say that out of love, honestly. 🙂
Install DFP by Google to manage your ads. Its free and easy to use. You can rotate adsense (or other networks) in when you don’t have private ads available. Outsource sales, management, and performance reporting. I have no doubt that there are many that would love to advertise here and would pay a premium for it.
Agreed on AdSense! I hope to have it gone soon. After the ad competition finishes, that is 🙂
Love the marketing tips. Some times in the Internet world you forget about face to face meetings thanks for the reminder!! Looking forward to the 4-hour body.
Awesome jacket 🙂
Good post.
Although I keep wondering where these ads are and then I remembered I have adblock on as I have for years 🙂
Wow, David really talks with some decibel backed energy. I have to keep changing my volume depending on who is talking. I’m pretty sure at 5:30 Tim makes a face and turns his own volume down.
Anyway, glad to see it’s a thick book. I’ll read it while binging through the holidays after a 7-month stint of rice and noodles in Asia, then put it into practice in January. I’ve lost 15+ lbs of muscle while backpacking and I’m pretty excited to try to gain it all back and then some in 2011.
I’m slugging my way through the video but this Malaysian wifi is not the strongest.
Collin – LOL, my apologies on the crazy volume level. Sometimes (errr often), I get excited like a crazy person.
Excitement is a goodness DSG! Keep at it… they say you’ll be a master at about 10,000 hours of practice. 🙂
At least you’re passionate man.
Jason
Tim,
Great interview. I love the way you don’t just have ‘an angle’, you do hundreds of things differently to anyone else. You’re an inspiration.
Like everyone else, I’m looking forward to reading the 4 hour body, even if nothing else, just out of curiosity.
I’m sure you are right about the broader appeal to the book. It’s not just that everyone is scared of getting fat. I’m happy with my own workout and fitness and I think it is that interest that makes me want to read it. Fit or fat – they’re all going to enjoy it.
you know what they say “opinions are like @ssh&les, everyone has one”
Such an excellent interview! Good job to both of you guys.
I can’t finish this interview Tim. The guy doesn’t let you finish your sentences. And he’s too loud.
Hi Tim,
Thanks for sharing again in this video the importance of being yourself and building real relationships to grow your business.
Continued success to you,
David
Dude Tim, you don’t need to defend yourself mate. You brand yourself how your brand yourself and it works. Enough said.
Once again great post Tim! Looking forward to read the 4 hour body.
Tim – Awesome having you on the show. And thanks for sharing it here. It is always fun to tell the inside story. Lots of fun on the interview.
Thanks for having me, David! I enjoyed it.
Here is a link to the Wikipedia ebtry to the The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing, it list all 22 rules just in case you can’t get hold of the book
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_22_Immutable_Laws_of_Marketing
Hey Tim/David:
I checked out the interview a few days ago on your site, and think it had some really useful content! I’ve struggled with the idea of personal branding before, in the sense that it feels weird to promote yourself in the third person, but it will inevitably be an important part of any business or entrepreneur in the future. As many people have said before, investors (or clients, etc) want to invest in a person rather than an idea.
Just a thought.
Great point about when writing: to refer to your ‘own name’ vs ‘my’ when stating an opinion or experience. I think it promotes the reader be open to new ways of thinking and learning. As a though leader for fitness in Canada, I have realized it is the best approach.
Thanks a million!
Fantastic interview! Very insightful. Always look forward to these posts.. nice work.
Why is david in Tim’s kitchen?http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fd-7a_wdVZk
Hahaha…. that’s funny. David’s not in my kitchen, though they look similar. That video is from my old house in San Jose, and I’m further north in SF now.
Haha, unless you get transported to St. Louis 🙂
I loved this interview. Tim validates what I knew (most of) and is truly in a place of helping – it looks very genuine. Thank you so much for sharing!
A very insightful interview, thank you David and Tim.
@Tim – You strike a really good balance between getting what you want and not grinding people in doing so. I think if more people stopped and thought about what they wanted to achieve from a social encounter rather than rushing about at conferences and meetings trying to hard sell then they might be a little more successful at what they do.
@David – Thanks for the interview, yeah the sound was a little loud in places and I think the criticism you’ve received here is unjust. I thought you asked Tim some great questions.
Cheers guys,
Freddie
Thanks, Freddie appreciate the kind words!
A wise man once said, “There are no statues erected to critics, f*ck ’em.” 🙂
🙂
Looking forward to the book…thanks for the info.
Bottom line- Tim’s doing things the old fashion way. Quality content and quality relationships. Gotta like it! MJ
What’s the proper way of using your name in a possessive anyway? Is it Ferriss’ or Ferriss’s? I think Ferriss’s is grammatically correct but that sure is a lot of S’s!
The brand (Tim’s…) stands for quality and authenticity in every aspect. I don’t even have to ask myself if that new book will be a good read, I trust it is. No let me correct that – I know it is.
How many brands have that much credibility. Apple,… who else?
I wanted to get the 4HB but just didn’t take the action, yet. However, hearing and seeing Tim speak about it … I’ll get it now. A quality product is always good marketing. But seeing and hearing entrepreneurs, CEOs, authors etc. being so honestly excited about their own products certainly adds to that.
You mentioned you’re not sure what’s next for you. My suggestion would be to move into the field of crowd-sourced medical trials. From reading your blog – and anticipating the book – I see many great new ways to improve a body. Yet sometimes the evidence is a bit too anecdotal “works for me and those N people” or doesn’t go into (long term) side effects enough.
Good clinical trials could help you figure out these issues, but they are insanely expensive and slow. Initiatives like 23andMe, PatientsLikeMe, Quantified Self and TrackHappiness all suggest that crowd-sourced medical trials might be the way of the future.
You have just enough capital to hire a couple smart people who can – together with your large following – make a difference here. Bridge the gap between Old Science and Web 2.0.
Hi Sjors,
You’re totally right.
This is a great recommendation and one I’ve thought about a lot. In fact, 4HB is a stepping stone to doing this exactly. I know the QS and http://www.curetogether.com guys very well. There are brave new worlds coming in 2011.
Exciting times!
Pura vida,
Tim
Volume schmolume; you asked some excellent questions of the guru. Thanks!
A really nice guy and a great interview.
Anyone else find the interviewer rather annoying. Tim is calm cool and collected and the interviewer is talking a million miles a minute rocking back and forth non-stop.
Cheers
-Adam
There’s a audio volume difference and probably an audio time delay in the interview. That probably explains 2/3rd of the effect.
Hey Tim,
You gonna let us vote on those 500 design submissions? I’d really enjoy seeing the artistry submitted.
Jamie
In a sense, for sure. More coming soon 🙂
Tim, nice new vid, I am aware this is slightly random – whilst watching I really wish to ask you a question – I’m presently in training for the military (in the United Kingdom) and also run my own lifestyle business. I get mixed opinions from people in the UK and US about whether I should pursue a career in the military : I am keen to ask your opinion on the military and also did you ever think about joining? (based on your fanatical interest in fitness, mental aptitude etc…)
cheers,
Sean.
Hi Sean,
I’ve considered doing military training (actually just did Special Ops training last week), but I haven’t strongly considering joining the military. I just distrust the motivations of the top decision-makers too much to entrust my life to their judgment.
It’s hard to ensure you’re on a just mission when you have no say in where you’re assigned.
Hope that helps somehow,
Tim
Tim,
Thanks for your reply, your answer makes a lot of sense and thank you. My reasons for joining are the sense of being part of something & having lots of survival/physical challenges to overcome – an ex-military guy said to me I should really consider other ways to fulfill my goals outside of a military career.
How do you get into Special Ops training!?
Or how would you get into activities (group based if possible) where you can do military type things without the force to do what those at the top decide…
thanks,
Sean.
Sean/Tim,
You didn’t ask me, but here’s my input anyway. While I’m not sure how the U.K. military is, as a U.S. military member, I’ve found that I can still experiment with the basic principles of lifestyle design, albeit with restrictions. While I was deployed to OEF, I started a business (failed miserably, but I learned a lot), and I know others in the military who run side businesses with their spouses. I’m taking baby steps toward a book right now, and I’ve been taking copious notes from Tim’s posts about the subject.
I think the biggest challenge you’ll find as a military member is that experimentation at work will require you to regularly buck entrenched bureaucracy. I’m a beg-for-forgiveness type rather than ask-permission type so this doesn’t bother me, though it would be dishonest of me not to admit that my rank gives me some clout and room to do so. Still, it’s a challenge that can be overcome if you can show folks (1) why it makes more sense and (2) how it still keeps them out of jail.
I think a military career is a personal decision contingent on what you want out of it, what you have to give, and your faith in your country. But, if you’re worried that you can’t continue experimenting with life and business while you’re in the military, given the factors I’ve talked about above, don’t be. If the U.K. military is anything like the U.S. military, I’m confident you can.
I don’t want this to become a dissertation, so I’m happy to talk more off-line about this subject.
Thank you for your comment, TG. This is a world I know little about, even though I have family formerly in the military (Marines, Air Force).
My friend said I didn’t understand what irony was. Which is ironic because we were waiting for a bus at the time.
Nice interview. I think the thing that should be taken away from this is “to get out and meet people”!! A lot of us sit behind our computer screens all day but never actually meet people in public. Go to BlogWorld, SXSW, local meet ups, etc.
Relationships are what makes the world go round!
Looking forward to the book. I hope the audio book is out at the same time as the hard cover 🙂
Tim,
Re: Your approach to meeting new and strategically appropriate people. Great advice right in line with what I’ve found in, “Never Eat Alone,” which I’ve returned to periodically. I’ve also found that in my professional life this approach has been a key attribute in the success I’ve realized to this point.
Charles
very insightful post
This is going to be an awesome book, but that other dude just wouldn’t stop jabbering. Dude I clicked to watch Tim not the other dude talk about himself. looking forward to adding your book to the shelf.
VDC
Great interview. I especially like your comment on writing evergreen material. I’ve never been one to write strictly for SEO, but your point really clarified for me why I am writing in the first place.
My new qualifying question for any topic will now be: Will this content be more useful to myself and to readers 1-2 years from today?
Hey Tim,
Awesome stuff, per usual. You caught my alarm when you said you’re only going to accept a limited number of speaking engagements. I am co-organizing a TEDx event at my school in Claremont, California and was really hoping to land you as one of the keynote speakers.
I plan on trying to get in touch with you regarding the details next week but felt I had to send you a heads up after I watched this video.
Anyways, living well and life is good. Thanks for keeping your “community” spruced with solid content.
Be in touch,
Brian
Tim,
With your new book focusing on the body and your attention to health and living well, I was curious your experiences in China. I have had many friends have to leave working there due to health issues with the air quality, etc and was curious your impressions on that through your travels in the region?
Cheers,
-Walt
Hi Walt,
I had a rough time in China and stopped running as a result. I would go running to improve my health and come back with black lungs. If I blew my nose, it was pure black in the Kleenex. Pretty gross. I can’t imagine the major cities have improved much.
Tim
Great book for anyone who doesnt know about it is
How to Grow Fresh Air – B.C. Wolverton
Also a great TED vid on purifying air in big cities http://www.ted.com/talks/kamal_meattle_on_how_to_grow_your_own_fresh_air.html
(obviously it’s an indoors thing, but may help in major cities within buildings nonetheless)
I just came back from Beijing after 5 months of being there and didn’t have too much problem. I have heard stories, but I think China is cleaning up, and a lot of my British friends I met there said it was the same as London.
Here is an article on China as a clean energy leader:
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iq_jPSuXyvc4bPrtbt4xoo1rHl5g?docId=CNG.e6ee2a6da857f12dd721e77244423759.201
“China’s investment in clean energy topped 35 billion US dollars in 2009 compared with 11 billion in Britain and 18 billion in the United States, and Jackson said it was set to increase tenfold over the next decade.”
You may not expect it, but the government really does care, it will turn around.
You always seem to be challenging yourself, I’m sure this book will be as good or better than The 4 Hour Work Week, it opened my eyes but I was not able to live the life you talk about in the book, mainly because of school; and life still getting in the way.
Great video, looking forward to reading your new book 🙂
Btw; Asked you a question about it here; http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2010/09/29/the-4-hour-body/comment-page-2/#comment-77776 (I don’t know if you check comments on ‘old’ articles..)
Great questions from the interviewer, although he was a bit overwhelming at times, maybe should take on the tips you advised on making friends first with common connections. It’s something I’ll bare in mind if I ever get to a position where I need to promote something big.
This was a great video! You mentioned how you were trying different advertising ideas on your blog to get better results.
I’m glad you pulled the book ad at the top of the page down because it was annoyingly to “in your face” for my taste. A smaller ad for the book off to the side would have been better.
One of the things that I have liked about your site besides all the great content is your not pushing a lot of ads in my face like a lot of sites do. These sites have a tendency to evoke an unpleasant visceral reaction in me. They make me cranky!
I was wondering, why do you want to upgrade from the Google ads? Maybe there would be some setup that generates more revenue but you said in the video that you have several revenue streams already and that the ads on this site generate enough income to meet all your needs. That sounds pretty good to me!
BTW your link to the Khan Academy over on your Facebook page has changed my life and given me hope when it comes to mathematics. I have started at the very beginning on the basic math lessons like he suggests and plan on working up to calculus! I’ve already learned some cool and useful stuff and I’m just a few videos in!
Thanks, Orville! I’m still figuring out the ad stuff. More tests to come. For Khan Academy — sweet! It’s a great site.
The title poses exactly the question I would like answered about many people like Tim. Not that there are all that many like that, but still… you typically hear from such guys (where are gals?) doing out of the ordinary-things only once they are successful and the fame feeds itself.
In that vein, I’m sorry, but my opinion of the 4HWW idea has just gone down a bit again. Do it once, like with BrainQuicken, and it can be just dumb luck; have an income that is enough afterwards, based on fame/notoriety, and it’s nothing that can be done by too many others. Almost the whole point of lifestyle design is moot when the leading figure lives like some business guru, off of fame.
That said, I think my problem is with the adoration. I’d also like to hear more about “ideal living” as you, Tim , see it – I’ll take somebody I don’t think I’d like but who has a special take on things over anybody who’d be nice and boring. There definitely needs to be more creativity and activity rather than TV coma. Even “dolce far niente” is more of a lifestyle design decision than what passes as a good life for many, nowadays…
(And since a comment somewhere about the comments regarding the TED talk, I think I would actually like Tim 😉
Running and not usually having a hard time in China, Gerald
Hey Tim, great post on travel! I’ve been traveling the globe the last 3 years and teaching English as my means of income. One of my good friends has been traveling for the past 7 years and compiled some amazing videos as a hobbie/education instrument. He doesn’t get the online recognition he deserves, but the amount of countries he’s been to and videos he’s created are really awesome to watch. I hope you and fellow travellers take some time to check out his youtube link listed above as a website.
I can’t freaking wait until your new book comes out. I am totally willing to assassinate anyone who opposes you to get an advanced copy.
Kick ass interview Tim! I am 1 month into a 3 month test of the Colorado experiment. So far so good on the progress. Will report back with results. Can’t wait to read the 4HB.
Scott
Hi Tim,
What kind of bottle are you drinking from in this video. It’s just that I’m looking for a good solid BPA-free one at the moment 🙂
Thanks!
Just a metal water can! REI has ’em…
Hi Tim,
Great video! I especially like your take on using a low-key, non-high pressure sales and marketing approach. I’ve paid for tons of business coaching to develop my martial arts school. My business coaches told me I needed a high-pressure sales approach and use marketing schemes that almost seemed like get rich quick and infomercial style. These styles didn’t jive with my personality at all and my results will terrible. I fired my business coaches one year ago and saved thousands of dollars per year.
I changed my approach to a rapport building, low pressure style were I give people plenty of opportunity to sample our program for free or very low cost and made sure they received tons of value in these programs. My enrollment ratios skyrocketed.
I think that the problem with a high pressure style is that it sounds great from the business owners point of view but it scares that hell out of prospects.
show host is sooooo annoying…
Just being me, David 🙂 Sorry it isn’t your style.
Tim – quick follow up to your final point in the video. What is your methodology for finding content that isn’t already saturated on AdWords/SEO? Most muses I brainstorm and run a quick keyword analysis on (100-200 keywords) are often prohibitively priced for the CR and CTR you used in Muse Math (1% CTR, 1.5% CR). The biggest stumbling block I am running into in muse development is that many of the muses I brainstorm have little or no opportunity due to AdWords and SEO saturation. Just wanted your quick thoughts good methods for how to find profitable niches that are still out there. Thank you very much.
Well, very interesting…personally I think your products are great. People are going to hate and criticize you no matter how COOL you are or how great your product is. There are people who only live in negative light always, maybe it is the way they were brought up or the way the society often negatively react to them in real life. These people don’t get enough love in real life, sometimes I wonder if they have any friends or ever go outside and socialize, let alone if they will ever lay with hot chics (but that beside the point) If you notice, people who speak out like that only live on the internet because they think they can say what they want and they are safe hiding behind the keyboard.
Cheers up brother, as long as the majority of people love your stuff then…you are doing people a great service!
peace!
I’m so excited by this book!! I would love to read it in french, do you think there will be a release in French soon or not?
I can read english but it seems to have technical stuff that i will maybe have difficulties to understand…
It would be so great…
I wait for your answer!!
Love the last two pieces of advice (the marketing book and timeless content)!
Thanks for the interview!
Great post Tim! I feel many of the techniques can work for a variety of business areas – not just books. However, how would you go about soft-selling and building relationships if you have a website with a service to offer?
Tim’s desire for “evergreen blogs” that will putatively be of interest to readers for years to come reminds me of something Truman Capote said in the book CONVERSATIONS WITH CAPOTE. He was both praising and criticizing Tom Wolfe: “I like Tom Wolfe. He’s written some wonderful things…When he’s swinging with it and not getting too full of chicklets, he’s amusing. I wouldn’t mind that, except for his own sake. I know it’s going to die. That’s why, myself, I always stick to a strictly classic writing style, where everything is timeless. Nothing is going to date it–not the quality of the writing, not the subject. I always felt very strongly about that, and it’s hard to do, it’s hard to know what it is you’re doing. Tom Wolfe is just not going to last. I love some of the things he’s done, they’re just terrific…but you won’t think so in years to come.”
The issue isn’t just that Americans are more ignorant than other people, it’s that so many of us our PROUDLY ignorant and joyful about it. It’s voluntary, not due to a lack of information as is the case in some places.
Remember the 2004 election, when Bush got a lot of mileage out of ridiculing Kerry for suggesting that he might require some kind of “global test” of US military invasions before doing them?
If the entire world disagreed with a new war that should not be cause for the US to hold back and reconsider. Kerry, to his shame, shot back that, of course, he would NEVER consider such recognition of international public opinion when making military decisions.
Does anyone really think this kind of discourse is common place in any other countries outside of North Korea?
Hey Tim,
I’m skeptical about your new book. Your desire to do something different is going to be bad for you. It’d be doing too much like your friend Kevin Rose did with his website.
Ive been in the fitness industry for years and am really looking forward to your book! Have a few friends I’ll be buying it as a Christmas present for.
Thanks Tim for the great post. Really enjoy reading your stuff
Tim,
In the interview you mention The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing. Good read; thanks for the suggestion. However, one of the laws cautions against “line extensions.” An example given was A-1 Chicken Sauce. Given this “law,” how do you defend your choice to go with “4 Hour Body” for your next work? I was thinking maybe because we’re talking books and not perennial products, you don’t have to worry about diluting sales of your cash cow?
Kurt
Hi Kurt,
Good question.
I think that there are product extensions and then brand extensions. The former: Coke and Diet Coke. The latter: Branson’s Virgin companies. I think doing line extensions out of financial desperation (as is typical) is a bad idea. The 4-Hour Body is a conceptual brand extension, but that’s probably as far as I’ll take the “4-Hour” theme.
Only time will tell how audiences react!
Best,
Tim
Tim,
Any recommendations for healing lower back issues or would you be open to the latest non-invasive minimal procedures?
Thanks!
Geoff
Hi Geoff,
Lots coming on this in the new book. If you can wait until Dec 14, I’ll have a lot to say.
Best,
Tim
Hey Geoff,
The link to your blog is a virus of some sort and wreaked havoc to my system.
Thought you might want to know.
AJ
Hola Tim
Vivo en Perú; lado oeste de Latinoamerica; me entere de tu libro “La semana laboral de 4 horas” por mi mama que vive en España. En un viaje que hice a BsAs Argentina al fin lo pude encontrar. Desde que lo termine de leer lo practico y releo todos los días, ya se ha convertido en mi biblia favorita. Encontré muchas cosas ciertas como: que perdemos mucho tiempo con tanta información basura; gracias a tu libro llegue a comprender la adicción por la información que tenia. Además, como funcionario público era perversamente eficiente al crearme tareas para mantenerme ocupado.
Mi profesión son los sistemas de información. hace 6 mese que renuncie a mi trabajo de funcionario público, tengo 38 años y 4 hijos. Mi esposa esta por dejarme quiere que regrese a mi trabajo y mis amigos dicen que estoy “loco-crazy”. La única persona que me apoya es mi madre. Ella te conoce.
Lo primero que sentí fue mucho miedo; sobre todo por las deudas, el colegio de los niños, la comida, el gymnasio, las salidas de fin de semana, el pago de la casa, auto, los viajes, etc. Ahora ya no hacemos eso; pero en en verdad desde mucho antes de leer tu libro ya sentía esa necesidad de mandar todo a la mierda. Esa vida no me llenaba, en lo absoluto.
Al final, nadie se ha muerto. Los chicos siguen en el colegio, las cuotas se siguen pagando, mi mujer trabaja mas horas y esta bancando el 70% de los gastos. Pero al final me dio todo su apoyo y estamos juntos en este proyecto de desprendernos de tanto para obtener mas.
Sigo los principios de tu libro y tengo toda la confianza en mi mismo.
Gracias por compartir tus experiencias. Espero tu próximo libro en español, aunque para ese entonces ya seré un experto hablador en ingles.
Gracias
Jose, muchisimas gracias por tu comment! No need for miedo. Si tienes el apoyo de su esposa, you’ll be totally fine. Please keep up the good work y un abrazo gordo desde USA!
Pura vida,
Tim
Thanks man for the video! Interesting stuff. After reading your 4 hour workweek, I racked my brain for a while trying to figure out stuff a MUSE, but I realized I was like a little kid who planted a seed and kept looking to see if the seed had grown yet (read that in another book), but that’s what I was doing!
Tim,
I read a lot of business books so, I d’loaded the immutable laws. Must say, very shocked that you recommended this book. I couldn’t find a single law that was still applicable. Instead of just telling you you are wrong and departing, I thought I’d share some marketing resources I find far more relevant:
> Seth Godin in general but specifically Tribes. I know you like quotes so here’s a gem from Tribes: “Now, when we envision our dream jobs, we’re imagining someone who reaps huge rewards as a result of her insight. Or someone who has control over what he does all day, creating products or services that he’s actually proud of. It certainly involves having authority over your time and your effort and having input into what you do.”
I’ll go ahead and note here that the sheer volume of his work means that there is some less inspired stuff out there. Still, Tribes is a good one. I know you mentioned that you don’t read business books in 4HWW but that seems odd since you did read immutable laws…
> In specific refute to the immutable laws, Free Agent Nation. This really is an absolute must for you if you haven’t already read it.
Something important happened between the publication of the 22 immutable laws and today: the web. It’s really as simple as that. I’ll try to put it succinctly but again, refer to the above resources. They say it better.
The internet has made it possible for people to find and connect to each other in stronger and more specific ways. I am no longer limited by my local resources. The best metaphor I can come up with is music. The mega-bands have stopped mattering (just like the mega-brands). I can fine-tine my exact musical taste and find everyone that fits it with ease. If you have talent, someone will find you. Recently, my brother-in-law’s band from Cleveland came up on Pandora. He’s not the top 1, 2 or 3 (He’s probably not even in the top billion) But, I could buy his record and tell all my friends regardless. I don’t really know who listens to Top 40 anymore in music or in the brands they adhere to.
Most of my fashion is from local Chicago designers. My food is local. Even my linens. I’m not on some crusade to be local, I just like the stuff. Sure, I have an XBox and Apple everything.
The reason I bring up Free Agent Nation is b/c while the laws might, maybe matter over at Microsoft & Apple, they don’t matter to the majority of us. Even those of us who work at big corporations don’t want to. We want to be our own, tiny little brands. And these tiny little brands are what hold the power. The cutting edge of innovation is no longer in the hands of the corporations. It’s us little people.
Tim,
Any idea when we will see the new book on Audible?
Dear Tim,
Thank you for the great video.
You mentioned that creating ever-green content is the best thing you can do for your blog, which I completely agree. However, many people are visiting your blog mainly because of the success of your book.(secondly, because you are a interesting guy) Unfortunately, most people do not have a best selling book to draw in visitors. What are the ways an average joe can effectively promote his/her blog to achieve the same blogging success as you have?
Thank you
Very valuable information. Thanks.
Nice interesting book, and i love the 15 minutes to bring women to orgasm, I am glad you didn’t make it 4 hours!
Kisses
Angelicka
Great blog post. It inspired me to finish up my book and work on this business idea that I have been thinking about for awhile. I hope I have something good to report back in 6 months.
Wow thanks for the post. I’ve been dreaming of having my own web business for years. I just bought your updated book online for inspiration.
-mark
Tim, I am always looking for more ways to promote my website. Thank you for your help and support.
I am creating “information” for my Muse. Unfortunately, it’s taking For-EVER! 🙁
I want my vacation now.. I guess I am learning patience 🙂
~Holly
I hope this isn’t hijacking but would like to know if a self help ebook would be a good muse idea. It would be updated over time with input from others but have some ideas that would make it stand out from others, it would combine elements of science and spirituality, with logic and some psychonautics as well. I have a website up with some articles and was going to start one with wordpress, that would be more legitimate as my current website is a free website done on webs.com.
It’s partly inspired by your books and the work you do.
We were actually discussing your first book the other day at the forum I usually hang out at and I remembered to check out if there is any update from you – which there seems to be, a book focusing the body. I’m not a body builder – fitness type of person, so hope I can still benefit from it. But fair enough, I”m a health junkie, so that might count for something 🙂
~Maria