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Cool Lesson from Last Nights Apprentice

by Big Al
9 replies
I don't watch a lot of TV so last night I was well chuffed with my
decision to watch the Apprentice.

Our UK version is headed up by the likeable Lord Alan Sugar (cool
name right?)

Anyway ... usual story, two teams pitted against each other to prove
their raw business skills and see who could make the most profit.

So team A ... selling their product for £10 and increase the price
when they see the punters are liking it.

Team B ... have a similar product but struggling to sell it for £11
or £12 ... can't quite remember.

So they knock 25% off the price and see the sales start to pick up.

At the end of the day it's back to the boardroom to face Lord Sugar
and find out which team won the day ...

After selling 55 units ... team B lose by a measly £39 and the team
leader gets the sack! That slight reduction in price may have made
all the difference.

Say bye bye entrepreneurial career with a top UK firm.

Lord Sugar's words went something along the lines of ...

... You went looking for the easy sale and reduced the price instead
of working for the sale and trying to think of a way to make your
offer look more attractive!

Right now I got a product in the martial arts niche and it started its life
quite well and made some nice sales.

Recently it has tailed off and I was going to reduce the price ... classic
mistake right?

Looking for the easy way to bump sales instead of working on getting
me some more.

Instead I'll be working on the copy, improving how I present the offer
and watch how that works.

No luck ... then I'll add a bonus or two to jazz it up and see how that
works.

Still no luck ... then maybe I'll reduce the price.

I thought it was a cool lesson ... might have to watch more tv : )

Al
#apprentice #cool #lesson #nights
  • Profile picture of the author E. Brian Rose
    Good post. I am a huge apprentice fan. Does Lord Alan say "You're fired" or does he have a different catch phrase to dispose of the unwanted with?
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    Founder of JVZoo. All around good guy :)

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    • Profile picture of the author Dwayne K
      I need to get back into watching the
      Apprentice.
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      • Profile picture of the author Dwayne K
        Originally Posted by Dwayne K View Post

        I need to get back into watching the
        Apprentice.
        ...and that's a good lesson Big Al!
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    • Profile picture of the author Adam Sussman
      Originally Posted by E. Brian Rose View Post

      Good post. I am a huge apprentice fan. Does Lord Alan say "You're fired" or does he have a different catch phrase to dispose of the unwanted with?

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      "He elicits the same kind of admiration one would feel for a streaker at Queen Victorias funeral."

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  • Profile picture of the author 60MinuteAffiliate
    I actually would agree with that wholeheartedly. Originally one of the products I sell was sold for $37, I added to the package and made it much more valuable and it sells like hotcakes at $97.

    It's important to have faith in yourself and your product. If you create something that's valuable people will buy it.

    Regards

    Colleen
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    Want To Learn How To Make 7K A Month In Minutes A Day?

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  • Profile picture of the author Laura B
    Sometimes I think the biggest lesson that can be learned from the Apprentice is how NOT to get along with others.
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    Free ebook: Affiliate Marketing: Just the FAQs
    Affiliate marketing for brand spankin' newbies
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  • Profile picture of the author profitsforall
    It was questionable as to whether the sales caused the loss or the out of control costs.

    For example they bought about 100 dvds - working on having wastage, and working out the maximum amount they would need if they were running at full throughput. (bear in mind the cost comes off of the profit).

    It occurred to me that as they were in a shopping mall they could have gone and bought additional DVD's if it looked like they were running out keeping their costs to a minimum. And of course - the fact they started an hour late was pretty significant too.

    They should have won, but worked really hard to ensure they didn't
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  • Profile picture of the author Big Al
    @ E. Brian Rose ... yep it's a big finger pointing episode with "You're fired!"

    The first one screened over here was yours with Donald Trump and then we did the honourable thing and copied it : )

    Plus I'm about 24 hrs from jumping on your WSO just gotta finish one job first before rewarding myself : )

    @ profitsforall ... I agree there were lots of factors involved and lots of other lessons too. Was thinking the exact same thing about just going and buying some DVDs from the stores if necessary.

    The other lesson (for me) was about the offer.

    Both teams had were videoing people in front of a plain screen.

    The winning team had a toy car for kids to sit in and would then play a video of a race track behind the child so it looked like they were racing.

    The other team had a skiiing video so the prop was less visual.

    Reading into this - kids have no concept of money, they just wanted to sit in the car and pretend to race. Then the parents would buy the DVD for memories sake.

    Essentially they were marketing to people (kids) who had no concern or worry about spending money (a bit like desperate people or the affluent) and the parents bought on emotional (not logical) grounds.

    I know I'm over-analyzing it it a lot but all important considerations IMHO.

    Al
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  • Profile picture of the author LeeLee
    So will there be an Apprentice 2012 if Donald Trump really runs for President as he said today?
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    The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of nonessentials. ~ Lin Yutang
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