By Judd Burdon
A Letter from The Person Who KNOWS SBI!
Better Than Anyone I Know...
Introduction by Ken Evoy
Judd heads up the group of SBI! owners who answer questions
from visitors.
Judd listens carefully, better than anyone I know. Then he
explains how SBI! meets the needs of the user. If it does
not meet their needs, he tells them so. He totally knows
SBI!, and understands what people need -- so all he does is
connect the two... if they don't connect, he says so.
Judd now has assistants who screen out the non-serious, the
"brain-suckers" who just want free consultations, etc. He
has to do this because it has been hard to keep the team of
SBIers up in numbers. Since they are all SBI! users, they
tend to start making too much money and drift away.
The price of success! :-)
But Judd is VERY special. I can't afford to lose him, so
I made him an offer he can't refuse (horse's head excluded).
With that intro, Judd sent me the following note after
reading my "vacation articles" in SBI! Xpress. I thought it
was brilliant and wanted to share this with you.
Here's Judd.
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Hi Ken
When I read your article "What I Did On My Summer Vacation"
about building a site on Nova Scotia Beaches, it dawned upon
me that you were right - your articles are actually
parables. The lessons to be learned here remain true for
EVERY small business niche - every "island of knowledge."
You know, one of the most common issues I see when people
call is that they think they know nothing. Or they think
that their knowledge is of no value, or that others are
probably already doing their idea. It's like they are in a
haze and can't see clearly enough to even decide how or even
whether to move.
Compare those types of people with the ones who "get it" --
their eyes pop open right away and this group runs with SBI!
full-blast and succeed, like your case studies at...
Case Studies
You already know, of course, how SBI! has changed my life,
well before I accepted your offer to come aboard...
I also have a few of "my own" case studies, folks who
originally chatted with me, unsure of how to proceed, or
whether to proceed.
Ken, there is nothing "special" about these people, and yet
there is EVERYTHING special and precious about them. What I
mean is that they really are "anyone." But they bring with
them motivation and a desire to win - an intention to win.
And then they simply went about and did it.
The beauty of SBI! is that there are millions and millions of
folks with the "BAM" you talk about.
-----KEN'S SIDEBAR-----
BAM = Brain And Motivation
-----KEN'S SIDEBAR-----
But "regular Web hosting" (or "old-fashioned hosting") simply
makes it impossible. And here's the shame of it all...
You know how so many Net marketers are criticized for their
too-hypey, get-rich-quick copy? Well guess what, Ken? The big
companies are the same. They just do it while working in their
Ivory Towers, in their $2,000 Gucci suits.
You know what I mean...
"Get a site up in minutes."
"Easy as 1-2-3 and your site will be up."
"Your store could be selling in 24 hours."
Baloney. There is simply no such thing as GET RICH QUICK. No
matter how good the copywriting, you're a sucker if you
believe it. And yet so many small businesses "put up a site"
and then - it's a slow, painful e-death.
Not us... CTPM works. It builds the foundation, upon which
monetization becomes more and more lucrative. But it takes some
time and effort. That's why people with BAM win. They put in
the time. They reap the rewards.
But I'm really getting off-track here.
Back to the lessons of your articles...
Anyone can literally build a site with SBI! on any idea,
passion or "island" of knowledge - and earn money with it.
Period. Here's THE perfect example:
I received a call earlier today from a lady on the SBI! toll
free phone number. She bought SBI! one year ago but has
done nothing with it. I asked "why" and she said, "Because I
still do not know what to build my site about."
Now Ken, I have a problem. You know that I don't have time
to do consulting - that's not my job. (I must admit the
only part of my job that is depressing is when people take
my time until I finally realize all they wanted was free
consulting.) But this lady was so sincere and in such pain,
that I wanted to help.
I KNOW there is ALWAYS something someone knows - even
though she still didn't know it. The Action Guide is great.
It asks and probes with all the right questions. But I
guess she just blanked out on herself.
It is always best to build a business on something that you
know and understand. Some folks can research and "become
experts." But for most people... you simply build a more
professional business if you know and love your material.
"REAL" content rings true to the visitor -- when Content and
PREselling are strong, you simply can't fail.
So, let me continue. I asked her if she had any passions,
hobbies or something of interest to her.
She said "NO."
Anything in her current job, past job, etc.?
Do you love any particular kinds of magazines or books?
(I love that question for uncovering interests.)
"No."
"No."
"No."
"No."
It almost sounded like she was determined that the
answer was going to stay "no." ;-)
I knew that she must have some knowledge that is in demand
so I popped the question...
"Anything going on with the family or kids."
Pause.
Pause.
Ah-ha. "What?" I asked.
"Yes".
She is a mother and has raised 2 children. Her teenagers
had problems - no need to get into all the details. But she
had worked hard with her kids and learned a lot about these
areas. So I asked her...
"Are you the only Mom on the planet with these problems?"
BINGO!
Lights went on.
"You mean I could do a site on that?"
Well, one light went on. So I tried to light the rest of
the house that it is our brain.
She has knowledge, passion. Others need what she knows.
She could definitely build a site that helps other mothers
deal with their troubled teens. As always, it's all about
CTP - and there's loads of good content opportunity, with
reasonable demand and lowish supply.
The Monetization, afterwards, would be easy. She could sell
"prime info" in e-books, affiliates to suppliers, Google
AdSense. And this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Her new site would be generating $500 to $1000 per month
just on the above ideas -- in a matter of 5 to 6 months.
Now that does not sound like a lot of money for 6 months
work, say 5-10 hours per week.
But it's the base.
-----KEN'S SIDEBAR-----
So many people want to reach my daughter's
level and prominence in a month. I'm
sorry...
The real world, the business world, does not
work like that. SBI! eliminates all the
barriers (tech, brainstorming, research,
Search Engine mastery, etc.), but you still
have to BUILD your business. When you do,
you'll have a real, growing, breathing
business that snowballs and earns you more
and more.
But you have to put the effort in. SBI!
merely reduces that level of effort, and
takes away the barriers that would block all
but the very smartest folks. SBI! truly lets
BUSINESS people succeed.
Nori took two years to get where she is, but
she only worked about 2 hours per week on her
site (1 good page per week). An adult working
7-10 hours per week should be able to reach
Nori's level in 6 months, but it still takes
6 months! No way around that. This is REAL
business.
But remember... once you start to grow, it
just seems to keep piling on. More and more
content builds more and more traffic. More
and more links to you. It all just cascades
and grows. You find one good monetization
model. Then another. And now..
Nori's adding a store. I never dreamed that
she would open an online store... at the age
of 15.
But you have to be persistent and willing to
build. Heck, we've been working non-stop at
SiteSell for 6 years now. And it, too, just
keeps building and building and building.
I hate to be rude, but...
If you're not willing to pay the price of
work, you're looking at the wrong monitor.
Stick to TV -- you'll be happier because "Get
Rich Quick" will only disappoint you over and
over. And if you ARE working hard and
failing, get Site Build It!. It is the
missing ingredient.
And what if you work hard at SBI! and still
fail? Not very likely, but Judd brings up
some good points a bit later. So let's leave
him to pick up the thread, first, about the
woman who didn't know where to get started.
-----KEN'S SIDEBAR-----
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Guess what? The caller told me that this is amazing and a
wonderful idea. She is going to dig back into it and MAKE
IT HAPPEN.
Ken, I do my best to explain this to everyone I speak to on
the SBI! "Have a Question" site...
Ask your questions here
It is really amazing to see the people who really get SBI!.
They grab it by the horns and really take off - just like
you say. I can hear it in their voice.
I have an idea for the others, for all SBIers actually. How
about a forum where they could bounce off each other and
pick up the kind of key help that I just provided?
It's a shame for those visitors to the SBI! sites who don't
"get the message." What a loss as they doom themselves to
old-fashioned Web hosting, often (believe it or not!)
because their Webmasters are stuck in their old ways of
doing things. Folks really should use our Webmasters if
they don't have time to do it themselves...
I can only tell you how happy I am working from home on my
SBI! sites. I guess I just understand SBI! and how it works
-- not bad for a 25 year old ex-asphalt-paving guy ;-)
Light in the Window
I also want to share my own parable with you - I call it
"Light in a Window". (People have told me that it has
helped them to understand better what they are really trying
to achieve.)
A few nights ago we were driving home from dinner. It was
late and I saw a light in the upstairs window of a
neighbor's home. It caused me to stop and wonder.
See, not that long ago my window light in my basement office
was also burning late into the night. I wondered if my
neighbor's late nights were being fuelled by the same
passion that had been fuelling mine only a couple of years
earlier. My desire to create a better lifestyle and escape
a job that I had been unhappily trapped (asphalt business)
in for years kept my window light burning late into the
night.
I had just begun my own business. It started small. It was
unfamiliar. I was searching for ways to build my small
Internet Business into something that would someday give me
freedom from having to work for someone else. Freedom from
having to commute. Freedom from having to work long hours
for what someone else thought I was worth. Freedom to have
fun. Freedom to travel. Freedom to spend time with my
family and Freedom to ultimately smile.
I wasted a lot of time with more than I care to tell you.
And I kept slogging asphalt. And hating it.
But all the hard work and false starts, all the nights of
burning that midnight oil paid off when I discovered "Site
Build It." It included absolutely everything for me to
build a successful online business, and the day came when I
was able to make that change in my life. My small online
business grew to replace my corporate paving income, and I
now spend most of my time doing what I love to do - helping
people make the same discovery I did.
Helping them to freedom. As you say, Ken...
"A life of passion."
I wondered, as I pulled into my driveway, how many other
window lights were being fuelled by someone's desire to
change their lifestyle and work with knowledge that they
had. And then I thought about the "two kinds of flickering
screens" that exist in this world.
Some people, frankly, are simply better off watching
a different flickering screen - the TV. Yes, everyone
WANTS more. But most are not willing to REALLY do
anything about it. They try this, they move to that,
but they quit at the first obstacle.
And then there are those who simply decide...
"I will win with SBI!."
The barriers are gone.
If you bring BAM, you MUST succeed.
I don't know many people who have worked hard at SBI! and
failed. But it does happen, usually due to a mistake caused
by not following the Action Guide.
A sad case the other night... someone registered a domain
right away and then refunded. Since you only register your
domain name (THE perfect domain name) on DAY 5 of the SBI!
process, he obviously had not followed the Guide but just
"jumped in" and ignored all instructions.
Then he e-mailed me and said that "SBI! couldn't meet his
COMPLEX needs." Heck, if you can't follow the Action Guide,
I'd hate to think of that person trying to succeed at
something COMPLEX.
Because SBI! is as SIMPLE as it can be.
Not easy.
Simple.
Business is not easy. It takes some work. But if the user
supplies that, AND follows the Action Guide, s/he simply
must succeed. Folks looking for "quick and easy" money will
be happier with the flickering screen in the living room.
The rest of us? The people I talk to, who are willing to
bring BAM to the table, thank you profoundly for SBI!. They
toil, with passion, in front of the flickering screen that
is building lives they WANT and LOVE to lead.
-----KEN'S SIDEBAR-----
Wow! Thanks so much, Judd.
My favorite quote on the prime importance of
DETERMINATION, ACTION, and PERSEVERANCE....
"Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence.
Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent.
Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.
Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts.
Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent."
-- Calvin Coolidge (1872-1933)
30th president of the U.S.A.
Back to Judd...
-----KEN'S SIDEBAR----
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Yes, Ken. Your daughters, Nori and Yuki are right. Or I
should say that your "vacation ramblings" that Yuki started
in your mind were spot-on. The lessons that we can all
learn from anguilla-beaches.com and Yuki's idea for a
Nova-Scotia-Beaches site are far bigger than travel sites.
Everyone has an "island of knowledge." Even that Mom with
the troubled teens.
Even me - Asphalt Man who now has four profitable sites.
My life is changed forever. I could quit sitesell.com
(I'd never do that -- I love this too much), erase ALL my
sites, move to Bora Bora tomorrow, and I KNOW I could
start another successful online business that would more than
support me and my family.
Now THAT is freedom.
All the best,
Judd Burdon
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