Issue #2104
- WEALTHY: Rumors can mean juicy profits for speculative investors (Andrew Gordon)
- HEALTHY: Get more of your body’s most essential nutrient (Jon Herring)
- WISE: Franklin P. Adams on making unexpected discoveries
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE:
- An easy, free way to reach millions of potential customers (Paul Lawrence)
- Why "yes" men are right (Michael Masterson)
- It’s Fun to Know… about playing-card superstitions
- Add "perspicuity" to your vocabulary
He’d Have Called Them Crazy – Or Worse!
With the Internet, it’s now possible to spend no more than a few dollars, write a couple of very basic ads, and have instant access to millions of potential customers all in a matter of minutes.
If anyone had told Jim Sheridan he could bank thousands in just 24 hours… without any product of his own… without spending a penny on getting it or promoting it, he’d have justifiably said they were nuts.
But Jim made a decision that he would overcome his skeptical nature and give it a go. Boy, is he glad he did! That one deal alone banked him $187,296 in one day.
Take a look at how Jim brought in over $187,000 in a single day!
- Patrick Coffey
Takeover Mania, Part 2
Takeovers are taking over the market. As I mentioned yesterday, there’s a way for your portfolio to benefit from this hot trend. But first, you need to understand what happens to the shares of participating companies.
When companies are about to be taken over, their shares usually rise (on the expectation that they’re being bought out at a premium). Even rumors of a takeover will elevate share price. When companies are preparing to buy other companies, their shares fall (on the expectation that they’ll be overpaying) – and, yes, this happens even at the rumor stage.
The trick is to "buy the rumor and sell the news." Let me explain. While rumors are still fresh and prices are just beginning to rise, buy the company that has become a takeover target. When the news confirms that the deal has either gone through or fallen apart (it doesn’t matter which), sell right away. To play it safer, sell even before then.
Now, this sort of investing isn’t for everybody. It’s for people who follow business and investment news anyway, so there’s not a lot of extra reading involved. And you have to be okay with the fact that you’re not always buying fundamentally sound companies. You also have to act fast – read, investigate, and invest in one sitting. The Internet makes this easy to do, if that’s your cup of tea.
Start off by investing small amounts for the first three to six months, while you get your feet wet. As you grow more comfortable and start raking in juicy profits, gradually increase the amounts you’re putting into these speculative investments.
[Ed. Note: Andrew Gordon, ETR's Investment Director, has authored several books on energy markets, global countertrade practices, and the hot growth sectors of China and Russia. A former professor of marketing and finance, he is the editor of INCOME, a monthly financial advisory service that uncovers income-generating stocks that promise safety (first and foremost), along with much-higher-than-average profit potential.]
"I find that a great part of the information I have was acquired by looking up something and finding something else on the way."
Franklin P. Adams
YouTube Can Bring Video Profits
I wanted to buy a how-to video for a partner-dance called the West Coast Swing, so I went to Google and did a search. As you’d expect, I instantly found 2,480,000 results, including quite a few sites that looked like they might have the professional-level show dancing that I was looking for.
What you wouldn’t expect was that a number of those websites were actually extension pages for YouTube.com.
Unless you’ve had your head buried in the sand for the past few years, you’ve probably heard of YouTube. It’s a website where anyone can post a video on almost any subject and make it available for the world to view.
At one end of the YouTube spectrum, you’ll find videos posted by silly teenagers to show off their pranks and shenanigans. At the other end, you’ll find serious "audition" videos posted by folks who are hoping to break into the entertainment industry. I know of many struggling actors/dancers/singers/comics who posted a video that became wildly popular – and, as a result, wound up with a deal with a major network or studio.
Based on my own experience, I can tell you that YouTube also has the potential to turn producing instructional or specialty videos into a fun and very profitable business for you. In my first video venture (where I was a partner), we began with under $100. Now, 10 years later, that business still makes over $250,000 annually.
If you are an expert in almost any field, you can produce a video to teach others some of what you know. You can star in your own video – or, if you’re camera shy, hire someone else. One of my most profitable videos features a certified exercise trainer teaching back stretches.
Almost anything that people might be interested in – from cooking to fishing to chess – can be a possible subject for your video. All you’ve got to do is produce it, market it, and reap the profits.
That’s where YouTube comes in. This free Internet phenomenon is a perfect marketing tool for instructional videos.
When I was searching for that West Coast Swing video, I assumed I would find a site where I could buy one. But, on a lark, I decided to take a look at some of the YouTube postings.
To my surprise, I found some excellent footage of the kind of thing I was looking for. Several of the postings had links to websites where I could then buy the full-length video. And because I’d seen samples of the material, I was confident that those videos would have what I wanted, so I ordered one.
It didn’t take me more than another 10 minutes to realize that I could be using YouTube to promote some of my own videos. I have several – including a basic instructional ballroom dance video – that I market. I posted a clip from that video on YouTube and, to my pleasant surprise, it immediately started getting views… and a few sales.
I don’t expect to get an avalanche of sales from this marketing strategy, but I do believe it will continue to be a steady source of extra income for me. Sweetest of all, these sales cost me nothing. There are no pay-per-click fees or profit-sharing deals. All the profits from YouTube-driven sales are mine to keep.
If the idea of using YouTube to market instructional or specialty videos interests you, here’s how you do it:
- Click to www.YouTube.com.
- Register yourself, and create a user name and passcode.
- Upload a clip of your video. (YouTube provides easy-to-follow instructions. I did it myself – and I’m not very Internet savvy.)
- List some keywords or search terms that are applicable to your video.
- On your profile, write a little something about your credentials and put in a live link to your website (so interested viewers can learn more or buy the video).
Using YouTube as a marketing tool is a fabulous way to earn some extra cash. Take a few minutes to try it out and see how it works for you.
[Ed. Note: Paul Lawrence is a produced screenwriter, direct-mail copywriter, and business author. He is also the creator of the Quick and Easy Microbusiness System, ETR's program for starting a business for under $100.
Learn more of Paul's video-business secrets HERE.]
Let the Demise of the Dollar Lead You to 1,000% Gains
As the dollar continues to erode, so will the accounts of those who rely solely on the usual stocks and bonds. But the demise of the dollar won’t be a calamity for everyone…
Click here If you want to learn how to protect your wealth… AND make the kind of gains that most people could never dream of… returns like 5,131% in just 30 months!
Reader Feedback: "This report is the first step in changing my life."
"Lack of motivation has been my biggest problem over the last couple of years, and it has held me back from achieving my true potential. I am constantly told that I am intelligent, that I am smart, that I have a lot of potential to achieve great things, but I just haven’t had the drive to take those action steps mentioned in your report, ‘How to Get Motivated, Change Your Life, and Start Living in 11 Simple Steps.‘ I am educated, I work in sales earning $100 000+ a year in commissions, but at the end of the day, I have no drive, no ambition, and I am often depressed.
"I want to thank you for the report. It has put some things in perspective for me, and I will follow as many of the tips as I can. My happiness is up to me, and I feel that this report is the first step in changing my life."
- Pearl Carrasco
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
How to Respond to New Ideas
As a boss, you don’t want people "yes-ing" your ideas when they have legitimate concerns about them. On the other hand, you don’t want people "no-ing" them simply because they see problems.
Hire and promote employees who "can do." Fire and demote those who can’t. New employees who are smart enough to see problems with projects and bold enough to mention them should be rewarded for their perspicuity – but corrected about their role.
Just the other day, I had what I thought was a very good idea for a new product. "Don’t do anything more with this till you’ve talked to me!" I urged in an e-mail. When I explained my brilliant idea, a very bright young lady recited 22 possible problems it might create.
Somewhere along the line, she had been rewarded for such behavior.
I should have been gentler. Instead, I was blunt. My response to her was one that I recommend you use when you find yourself in a similar circumstance: "I am not, right now, interested in hearing about the possible problems this idea will cause," I said. "What I want to know is whether you think this idea is good. If you agree that it is good, I’ll leave it to you to implement. And when you do that, I’ll be happy to hear about the problems – but only after you have figured out solutions for them."
Contrary to popular business mythology, "yes" men are right. There is nothing phony or fatuous or sycophantish in saying "yes" to new ideas or initiatives. It marks you as a positive person. Someone who is willing to take on a challenge. Someone to be relied on.
The next time you encounter a new idea – and this applies equally whether you are in the role of the idea-maker or the idea-taker – do the following:
- Listen to it with complete sympathy.
- Understand its business purpose.
- Ignore, for the moment, all the potential problems you see in it.
- Consider only whether it can achieve its stated purpose.
- If you believe it can, say "yes" to it.
- If you suspect it can’t, ask questions that demonstrate its weakness.
Make Water Your Drink of Choice
By Jon Herring
Water is your most essential nutrient, and every system in your body depends on it. Unfortunately, chronic dehydration is widespread… and there’s a convincing hypothesis that it is a root cause of many degenerative diseases.
To achieve optimal health, make water your drink of choice. Unless you’re exercising, your body cannot process more than about eight ounces per hour, so it’s best to drink it in small sips throughout the day. Not only will adequate hydration improve your health, it will also suppress your appetite and help metabolize stored fat.
Whenever possible, avoid tap water unless it has been filtered to remove fluoride and chlorine. Best to stick to spring water from a trusted source.
It’s Fun to Know: Playing-Card Superstitions
Gamblers are a notoriously superstitious lot. Here, for example, are a few things that poker players dread:
- The four of clubs is known as "The Devil’s Four-Poster Bed," and is believed to attract bad cards later in the game.
- Aces and eights (a pair of each) is known as the "Dead Man’s Hand," and is reputed to be the hand "Wild" Bill Hickok was holding when he was shot dead.
- Looking at your cards before the dealer is finished passing all of them out brings bad luck. So does picking up your cards with your left hand.
(Source: Snopes)
What If There Was A Way To Legally Beat A Traffic Ticket?
“When Attorneys Get Speeding Or Traffic Tickets, This Is What They Do… No Points, No Increased Premiums & Definitely No Stupid Driving School. These Tricks Work Like Magic.”
If you’re like me then the simple sight of a police car in your rear-view mirror is enough to send shivers down your spine, but…
When the lights start flashing…
There Goes That Safe Driver Discount…Right? Not anymore…
- Patrick Coffey
Word to the Wise: Perspicuity
"Perspicuity" (pur-spih-KYOO-ih-tee) – from the Latin for "to see through" – is clarity of insight or judgment.
Example (as I used it today): "New employees who are smart enough to see problems with projects and bold enough to mention them should be rewarded for their perspicuity – but corrected about their role."
[Ed. Note: Become a more persuasive writer and speaker ... build your self-confidence and intellect ... increase your attractiveness to others ... just by spending 10 VERY enjoyable minutes a day with ETR's new Words to the Wise CD Library.]
Michael Masterson
Copyright ETR, LLC, 2007
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Thanks for the great instruction on making videos. I just uploaded my first one the other day and see where I can improve on it. Also great to know about the poker superstition. I play poker at the Laughlin, NV casinos across the river and I’ve been making a couple of these mistakes…I’ll know better now
Great article on the video tips portion. There’s a company that automatically distributes videos to 35 video sites including YouTube, social bookmarking, social networking, blogs and podcast directories called Traffic Geyser. For the same amount of work you’d do to upload once, it’ll go to more than 70 locations.
You can try it free at http://trafficgeyser.net/lead/tgtrial