How dependent are you on the advice and courses sold by the so called “experts” and “gurus” of Internet marketing?

If you are getting most of your instructions and advice from guys you’ll never meet that are good at writing sales letters and selling $900+ “shiny object” courses then I can quite accurately estimate how much you’ve made online so far…

zero.

How did I estimate that number with such brutal accuracy?

Simple - I read the email I get from readers.

Does that hit a little close to home for you? I know about this issue because I get email every day from people that feel “burned” by the very industry I’m in.

Some of those experts selling big courses are great guys with great ideas, but I have a new theory of success online that is based on having watched thousands struggle while only hundreds or even just dozens seem to succeed. I’ll tell you in a moment what the common factor of success is. It has nothing to do with which course(s) you buy by the way.

Before I reveal my one word success ingredient I have to rant about the industry I’m in…is that ok?

Here are some things that annoy me about this industry. Do you agree with these?

• It’s always the same guys with big email lists endorsing each others big launch products.
• Bragging about how much you sold of a ‘how to sell online’ course DOES NOT qualify you as an expert.  We are smarter than that.
• Why can’t your customers all get together and interact with each other? Anyone can start a discussion forum in 15 minutes. Do it. What are you trying to hide?
• After all the hype for weeks leading up to a launch why do you never bring up that same idea later AFTER the launch? (It’s because you’ve moved on to the next launch right?)
• Simply having a big mailing list DOES NOT make you a marketing genius worthy of my time and attention. The good idea that got you that big list does not make you an expert on all things Internet related. Stop pretending it does.

End of rant.

How is it that some DO actually go on to success in spite of these pitfalls and “shiny objects” that so easily distract?

My answer is one word.

Relationships.

You just don’t see that many lone wolf success stories online.

The people that I know that are making good progress online have a community of like minded people available to them that they can access anytime they need to. They share ideas, successes and failures. They speak openly and get the advice they need from those that have made it. They disagree, argue points, change their mind, and try new things based on what they learn and share with others.

Relationships are IGNORED by most online entrepreneurs, but not by me. For me they are CENTRAL.

My main membership website not only encourages this type of interaction…it DEPENDS on it.

Examples:

Each of my two membership sites has active, open discussion forums. I don’t keep my customers separated from each other.

On MySilentTeam.com we have a few dozen experts contributing to the site. These are top reputation people making money by means other than selling “how to make $” courses. I have a relationship with each one of them and our members are encouraged to do so as well.

We’ve just recruited 20 members of MySilentTeam.com and crowned them “content managers”. These folks are the ones keeping pulse of the content and instructional needs of the site based on their RELATIONSHIPS with other members.

I’m at the top of the org-chart. Not to brag, but my recent independent nomination as ‘the most trusted marketer online’ caps off a leadership team that is unquestionably the best on the web. After all, relationships are built on TRUST right?

It’s impossible to overemphasize how different MySilentTeam.com is as a result.

We FOCUS on (instead of avoiding) building trustworthy relationships online.

The one thing that many of the “experts” DON’T want you to do is hang out with other customers and compare notes about how crappy, complicated, lacking etc. their latest big launch product was. That scares them to death. This means they aren’t going to tell you how to pursue relationships with their other customers.

I on the other hand want that interaction. I recognize that the BEST IDEAS and most creative strategies DON’T COME FROM ME…they come from the synergy of an active online community that grows with or without my involvement. I benefit from the community as much as any participating member does.

Does that make sense?

I hope so.

If you like this free blog and newsletter I promise you will LOVE MySilentTeam.com.

Will you be member number 4,085?

…we are waiting for you!

Final tip: Don’t be a “lone wolf”.  There are also plenty of free forums online that you can use if you aren’t ready to invest in a community like MySilentTeam yet. The bottom line though is I just don’t see a lot of people out there making it on their own online. If you are trying to do that you need to find a community to spur you on.

Jim Cockrum
Proud Founder
MySilentTeam.com
A community of success built on trust

Please leave a comment, question or rant of your own below. We love feedback around here!

Use Twitter? Please Retweet using the button on the right!

Want to succeed in life or business? Hang out with people that are already doing what you’d like to be doing. Get into a conversation with them.

I just recorded an audio for you that is a “conversation” with me. After you listen be sure to take my one question survey and then leave me a comment below with your questions or feedback.

Here’s the audio:

Can’t see the play button above?
Here’s a link to the MP3 audio:
http://www.MySilentTeam.com/SilentJimdotcom-March2010conversationBlog.mp3

Links Mentioned in the audio (and other stuff worth seeing):

• One Question Survey
• Kevin’s Story  :A friend of mine that was nearly killed…and what we are doing about it
• MySilentTeam.com
• OfflineBiz.com
• Traffic Geyser: My Favorite Traffic Generation Tool
• My New Book: Best20Ways.com
• My recent “Home School Biz” Interview With Susan Whitehead Home School? Check this out!
• Proven eBay Course I  (We had a HUGE success rate…& Proven eBay Course II is coming soon)
• Most Trusted Internet Marketer…Me??
• Aweber.com (My favorite email list growth tool)

Have a question or comment about ANY of this? Click the comment button below and let me know about it…

Use twitter? Please click the green retweet button on the right!  Feel free to edit the post before tweeting.

If there’s a predictable way to double, triple or even get FIVE TIMES your investment when selling on eBay it’s by using local auctions to source your inventory.

Mr. Adron Wood is living proof.

We’ve just added another bonus to MySilentTeam.com for all members to enjoy!  It’s a brand new course about profiting from local auctions. It sell at his website for $197 (intro price in effect for a few days) and you can grab a copy TODAY (it just launched), or pick it up as a bonus for joining MySilentTeam.com

Finding profitable items to sell on eBay can be as simple as attending local auction in your community. You’ll have to know what you are looking for, and frequent readers of my newsletter and blog probably have a pretty good idea.  What you know so far is child’s play compared to Adron though. He has been making a killing for 10 years by attending occasional local auctions and snapping up the eBay treasure!

Newbie tip: When buying inventory to resell on eBay always check the expected sell price BEFORE you invest. You can do this by checking recent “completed listings” on eBay for a small snap shot of recent listings, or for a longer period of research time try hammertap.com or terapeak.com as research tools.

Get Adron’s course by clicking here and save $100 because it’s just been launched at an intro price, or…to save even more…

Join MySilentTeam.com and get access to all the great courses and bonuses that we are constantly adding. You’ll find experts, support, training, encouragement and the success tools you need to make 2010 the best online business year of your life.

Have a question or comment? Please click the comment button below and tell us your thoughts. Did you ever buy anything cheap locally and sell it for big bucks on eBay? Tell us about it!

Click here to read
In this newsletter:
===============
1. Jim’s bold predictions for the next decade
2. Price increase alert
3. Quick tips:
- There’s a goldmine in your own backyard
- The value of membership

Use twitter? Please click the green retween button. Feel free to change the tweet before posting it.

1. Being an “author” will slowly stop being a big deal. Pretty soon EVERYONE will be an author. Ten years ago the idea of having your very own print on demand self published book was outlandish. Ten years from now it will be common place. For now it’s still impressive to tell people “I’m an author”. Take advantage of that. Get your ideas out there NOW. Use YouTube, articles, a blog, an ebook whatever…but be an AUTHOR. Be an expert. It’s NEVER been easier.

2. Real world business will continue to be confounded by the fast paced business style of the Internet. Take advantage of this trend by joining OfflineBiz.com.  Members of that site stay up to date on what works online without having to be a technical nerd to make it all happen.

3. The car you drive, the house you live in, the ‘toys’ you have etc. will mean less and less compared to your “influence” as measured by your online audience. Strange things will happen in the world of business as the “little guy” destroys the big guy. For example, A 13 year old in a small town in nowhere Nebraska will bring companies like Pepsi Co. to its knees because of the loyalty and size of his audience on Youtube. Influence is the new gold standard. Grow your audience and give them reasons to be loyal.

4. Good ideas, great ideas, bad ideas, wrong ideas and all sorts of other ideas will continue to pound and distract the masses. To get things done you need a clear mission and you must follow a clear path with supportive peers along side. That’s what MySilentTeam.com is all about. Find a community and support it. Grow with it. Start your own community. For goodness sakes BE PART OF A GROWING COMMUNITY ONLINE.

5. It’s going to get harder and harder to be a “scammer” online. The honest and worthy will rise even more quickly and the bad guys will fall faster than ever. Honesty will be very self serving to the point that even the dishonest at heart will start to catch on and use these strange new tactics called “honesty and customer service” as a self preservation tool.  Customers are already demanding the twitter feed of CEO’s before they’ll buy a widget…it’s going to get worse (or better depending on your perspective).

6. There will be no such thing as “bad content” online. It will get harder and harder for junk to raise to the top. The good will get better and the bad will disappear.

7. Those reading this article will be followed by HUNDREDS or even THOUSANDS who are eager to learn the secrets of this online business world that they’ve always scoffed at. Suddenly WE are the smart ones that have job security while they are getting laid off from big companies (like Pepsi that was forced into layoffs when it got nearly shut down by a 13 year old a few paragraphs ago).

8. Thousands of new ways to profit from all of the changes will continue to FALL INTO THE LAPS of those paying attention. Change = opportunity. This is going to be a decade of massive rapid changes on and offline. Pay attention and enjoy the ride! All of this “change” is stirring up a lot of business possibilities!

What is your favorite prediction? Any questions? Did I forget something? Leave a comment - click the comment button below to read comments left or to leave your own. The wittiest/most insightful/most honest (in other words my favorite comment) will get a $100 credit towards MySilentTeam.com or OfflineBiz.com or my books…take your pick. I’ll give you 7 days and then chose a winner.

Dozens of  readers voted and we’ve picked a winner! Andrew and Doug (comment #2  and #49 below) received first place with more votes than anyone among our readers. Here’s the top 5 vote getters (comment number and the vote total):

#2 Andrew: (tie 1st/2nd)
# 49 Doug: (tie 1st/2nd)
#16 Susan: (tie 3rd/4th)
#47 Jan: (tie 3rd/4th)
#14 Carolan: 5th place

Andrew and Doug - contact us for your $100 credit towards OfflineBiz.com or MySilentTeam.com.

Susan, Jan and Carolan - contact us for a $25 credit towards either!

Use twitter? Please click the green retweet button!

UPDATE: Jan 6th, 2009

The price has increased for this product at MultiProfitWebsite.com, but by using THIS LINK or either of the other two links in this blog post you will continue to get the discount (the lowest price ever offered by John) as a favor for my readers!

Here’s the original blog post:
=====================

I’ve decided to endorse John Thornhill’s Multi Profit Website Builder

Here’s a link: Site Builder

I didn’t participate in the big launch of John’s product back in October ‘09 because I needed time to check it out first.  Everyone that works with me in this business knows that I’m not a “scratch my back I’ll scratch yours” kind of guy when it comes to product endorsements. This has lead to some hard feelings by some in the industry, but I don’t really care.

At the end of the day I answer ONLY to my readers and subscribers. An endorsement by me means that I LIKE THE PRODUCT. It does not mean that I like or dislike the person that recently did or didn’t do me a favor.

In other words just because someone has promoted one of my products DOES NOT mean I will promote their product. Even if the guy on the other end is someone as amazing as John Thornhill I still have to test the product out myself and see how the market reacts BEFORE I’ll jump in!

Bottom line: I’m endorsing it!

Here’s John’s VERY COOL site builder that is constantly improving and already loved by many of my best customers (several glowing reviews among customers on MySilentTeam.com).

FYI: There will be NO discount for MySilentTeam.com members (rare I know, but true), and the price WILL NOT be lower ever than you see right now I’ve been told

For those that REALLY follow my online advice here’s an audio explanation with a lot more detail of the reasons WHY I’m endorsing John’s product:

…and if you don’t see the above play button here’s the MP3 version of the same message: Why I’m endorsing John Thornhill’s Multi Profit Websites

As always I welcome your questions, feedback, and thoughts. If you have been using John’s site builder let us know what you think! Click the COMMENT button just below.

Use twitter? Please click the green retweet button

If you think you are getting exposed to TOO MUCH information about online marketing and Internet business ideas try spending a day in my shoes!

Here’s how I manage it:

Can’t see play button? Here’s the MP3 Version

Have a question or comment? How do you deal with information overload? Please click the comment button and let us know.

Below is an email I got literally minutes ago. My response to the email is below that.

What do you have to say to Tim? Leave a comment below and lets support Tim with our encouragement this Christmas season.

Jim,
My wife Linda bought me your book “Silent Sales Machine” in hopes it would help my need to be successful at a online business.

I find myself in  a position of being disabled, but still with a drive of not being disabled. I just cannot accept that this is all there is.

While not having the income yet to do much of anything, I still have the drive, but I really don’t know what to do with it. I am still in the process of reading your book.

I am a slow reader these days, and would love to share with you my thoughts.

Thanks Jim for sounding like you care, and look forward to reading the rest of your book.

Best Regards, Tim

My reply back to Tim:

Tim-

The beauty of Internet business is that success isn’t reliant on gender, sex, education, technical skill, looks, physical abilities, or even intelligence! (Trust me I have proof!)

There is a world of opportunity out there and I hope something you read in my books, blog or sites inspires you on to bigger things than you ever imagined.

Hang in there and make your mind your sharpest tool. It’s all you need in this new world.

God Bless you and Merry Christmas!

What do you have to say to Tim? Leave a comment below…address it to Tim if you would please.

Use twitter? Please click the green button on the right

Remember that “stunt” auction that I told you about in my December 15th blog post is going like gangbusters!

With two days still left there have been over 5,600 views, 60+ bids, and it’s in the top 10 most watched auctions on eBay shooting towards number one! If you stop by be sure to click the “watch this item” link at the top of the auction!

Right now I can just hear you saying… “good for you Jim, but what’s in it for ME??”

There are several things in this for you even if you are just a free reader of my blog.

Here’s a list of some lessons and good info you can glean from my auction…

GROW YOUR LIST!

I have a new product coming out first quarter of 2010 that is all about email list growth from the perspective of someone that has done quite well in that arena…ME! As a member of either membership site (MySilentTeam.com or OfflineBiz.com) you’ll get a MASSIVE discount on this new course.

If it seems like I’m always giving you more reasons to be a member and stay a member of my membership sites there’s a good reason for it…It’s a matter of giving you FAR MORE VALUE than you are paying for. The Internet makes it all possible and you can use the same power of leverage to build your online business.

Have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS (or insert the holiday you celebrate here) and a WONDERFUL new year. Let’s make 2010 great together!

Almost forgot…the latest radio show is now online here.

Please leave a comment below - I love to hear from my readers.

Click here to read
In this newsletter:
===============
1. Jim’s latest crazy eBay stunt
2. The Christmas gift that pays back
3. Quick tips:
- Jim’s favorite traffic generating software
- How to make your dreams a reality