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Do Not Assume People Know What You Know

by Steven Wagenheim
20 replies
I will make this short, to the point and maybe it will sink in.

Today, I spoke with somebody over Skype about what he was doing online.
He told me what niche he was in and I said to him, "You do realize that
that's one of the most competitive niches online, right?"

His answer.

"No, I had no idea."

He had no clue how to research competition, or for that matter, that
there was even such a thing.

Point is, you know more than you realize you do.

Not every Tom, Dick and Jane online who wants to make money doing
this knows even the bare minimum basics.

The bigger point is, have confidence in what you DO know. Somebody out
there is going to need the information that YOU have.

No matter how trivial you think it is.

I am convinced beyond the shadow of any doubt that one of the biggest
reasons for failure among Internet marketers is lack of confidence in what
they know.

And I'm not just talking in the "make money" niche.

You folks in dating, debt relief, gaming, or whatever...what you know,
somebody out there DOESN'T know it and will pay good money to learn it.

All that's left is to just figure out how to bring bodies to your offer so
that they can SEE that you know more than they do.

Stop complicating the crap out of this process.

I could have easily made a consulting sale today but given this guy was
determined to make it in this niche, there was no point in my trying to
train him when he was only going to be banging his head against a stone
wall going for the kind of numbers he was looking for with absolutely zero
authority online in his given niche. The big players out there would eat
him for breakfast.

So I told him to save his money.

Yes, also know when you know enough that you CAN'T help somebody.

Your honesty will go a long way with them.

And it will sure beat the tongue lashing that you're going to get when they
come back to you saying that they did everything that you told them to
do but they're still not making money.

If you really know your stuff, then you knew the chances of them having
huge success going in was slim to none.

I'm not your conscience and ultimately if you want to take somebody
down a dead end road, that's your business.

But I find I actually make MORE money being straight with people.

Sorry, I've gone off topic a bit.

Look, if you've been hanging around this forum for a while, you probably
know more than a majority of the folks out there know.

Have some confidence and go out there and use it.

Again, do NOT assume that people know what YOU know.

They don't.
#assume #people
  • Profile picture of the author dawnbreaker
    I agree with you!

    At the first place I am one of them, Since I am creating my own website with my own html/css skills. And done many website without knowing what is SEO, keyword research, market competition and much more...

    Back on those days... AS LONG AS I CAN MAKE A WEBSITE, i think THAT'S IT, ALL I NEED TO DO IS SOMEONE find it on the search engine... But that was the lame of me...

    Now I am starting to learn the process or correct IM business...
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    • Profile picture of the author SantiSantana
      I have had a prime example of this recently. I was at my Local Development Agency, a place where they advise you if you are about to set up a business: legal stuff, businessplan making, things like that.

      When I gave the people there the outline of what I wanted to do, one of them said "and I thought I knew a fair bit about internet, I´m clueless!" which surprised me.

      The other one said " DO you think we could convince to give a starter course on your business idea for aspiring entrepreneurs here in the municipality?"

      I´m like "Are you serious? I just told you I´m at the beginning of a massive learning curve!" and she goes "Well... I don´t think you are at the beginning anymore and the offer to give that course for us still stands".

      Heck, at which point did I turn into a guru? WHy did no one notify me? where´s my check for this one?
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      • Profile picture of the author lanfear63
        Hi

        You are so right. I still consider myself average in I.M. skills. However having had some success running a useful website promo gig on fiverr recently I found that quite a few people were real noobies and a lot greener than me. Some asked for advice which I happily gave and refered quite a few of them out to the Warrior Forum.

        It really brought it home to me!

        Lanfear
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  • Profile picture of the author John Wilkes
    But if people don't know,what they do not know,how do you know what to tell them?
    (I just re read that three times after I wrote it, there is a serious question in there somewhere)
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    • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
      Originally Posted by John Wilkes View Post

      But if people don't know,what they do not know,how do you know what to tell them?
      (I just re read that three times after I wrote it, there is a serious question in there somewhere)

      John, let me ask you a question. If you were talking with somebody and
      telling them what you did online and they started asking you questions
      about what you did and how you did it, would you be able to answer their
      questions?

      And if they looked at you and said, "Wow, I didn't know that" wouldn't
      that mean that you knew more than them, no matter how trivial you
      might think it is?

      Look, if you don't believe in yourself, nobody else is going to.

      I'm not saying to go out and pretend you know things that you don't.
      But if you truly believe you know something, no matter how minute that
      something might be, somebody out there will pay to know it.

      Do you have any idea how many people would probably pay $5 for a
      PDF on how to FTP to a web site?

      Don't laugh. There are people who don't know how to use FTP.

      Problem with so many marketers is that they think they have to create
      the great American novel to make any money.

      They don't. All they need is one thing...one piece of information that
      others would be willing to pay for and they can make money.

      And I can prove it.

      A long time ago, George Sepich, of this very forum, sold a report that
      was like one page long. It was a report on where to find TONS of niche
      information.

      He sold it for an ungodly amount of money and people bought it.

      It was ONE link to ONE site and people paid a ridiculous price to get
      that info.

      You don't have to write War And Peace.

      Just have something, anything, that people will pay for.
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      • Profile picture of the author Bill Farnham
        Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

        They don't. All they need is one thing...one piece of information that others would be willing to pay for and they can make money.
        Steven, I completely agree with your premise. Most of us here know more about what we do than 99.99% of the general populous.

        But I think adding one caveat here would be appropriate...Don't go preaching to the choir. In other words, the folks who are in this niche already will scold you, scald you and chastise you for trying to make money off what will be considered rehashed info if you are a newbie trying to peddle that golden nugget in the wrong place.

        Just look at all the complaints about folks creating WSOs out of information that is readily available in the general forum. To somebody that has just bought their first computer it can be eye opening, but if you've been researching this niche for a few weeks it may not be.

        So what you are saying regarding, "All they need is one thing...one piece of information that others would be willing to pay for and they can make money" is certainly true.

        Just be careful of what audience you choose, though. Make sure you are at least a few steps ahead of them and not on their same level knowledge wise.

        ~Bill
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    • Profile picture of the author dawnbreaker
      Originally Posted by John Wilkes View Post

      But if people don't know,what they do not know,how do you know what to tell them?
      (I just re read that three times after I wrote it, there is a serious question in there somewhere)
      We need to be honest with them... Tell them that this is the right process instead of letting them continue what they were doing wrong... But if they dont believe on us... then its time to refer them to another person... and if they still don't believed, then that's not our problem anymore.
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  • Profile picture of the author John Wilkes
    Wow, what an opportunity, do it!
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  • Profile picture of the author John Wilkes
    Good Points, I can see that by spending so much time on forums where most people know more than me, it is easy to forget how much I have already learnt, compared to a complete beginner.
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  • Profile picture of the author John Wilkes
    Yes, How do you know, what people do not know.
    (I done it again, it keeps coming out like a saying by an old Zen master, sorry!)
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    • Profile picture of the author dawnbreaker
      Originally Posted by John Wilkes View Post

      Yes, How do you know, what people do not know.
      (I done it again, it keeps coming out like a saying by an old Zen master, sorry!)
      To answer your question. I think its the time when you give them set on instruction without asking a single question about the instruction you give to them!
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  • Profile picture of the author christopher jon
    With great knowledge comes great responsibility
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  • Profile picture of the author John Wilkes
    Right, to put it back on a more practical footing.

    I suppose you could just put it out there on a blog post and ask for a donation for a cup of coffee or post your amazon wishlist. I think most people are generous if you give them something useful.
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  • Profile picture of the author Matthew Shane Roe
    Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

    I will make this short, to the point and maybe it will sink in.

    Today, I spoke with somebody over Skype about what he was doing online.
    He told me what niche he was in and I said to him, "You do realize that
    that's one of the most competitive niches online, right?"

    His answer.

    "No, I had no idea."

    He had no clue how to research competition, or for that matter, that
    there was even such a thing.

    Point is, you know more than you realize you do.

    Not every Tom, Dick and Jane online who wants to make money doing
    this knows even the bare minimum basics.

    The bigger point is, have confidence in what you DO know. Somebody out
    there is going to need the information that YOU have.

    No matter how trivial you think it is.

    I am convinced beyond the shadow of any doubt that one of the biggest
    reasons for failure among Internet marketers is lack of confidence in what
    they know.

    And I'm not just talking in the "make money" niche.

    You folks in dating, debt relief, gaming, or whatever...what you know,
    somebody out there DOESN'T know it and will pay good money to learn it.

    All that's left is to just figure out how to bring bodies to your offer so
    that they can SEE that you know more than they do.

    Stop complicating the crap out of this process.

    I could have easily made a consulting sale today but given this guy was
    determined to make it in this niche, there was no point in my trying to
    train him when he was only going to be banging his head against a stone
    wall going for the kind of numbers he was looking for with absolutely zero
    authority online in his given niche. The big players out there would eat
    him for breakfast.

    So I told him to save his money.

    Yes, also know when you know enough that you CAN'T help somebody.

    Your honesty will go a long way with them.

    And it will sure beat the tongue lashing that you're going to get when they
    come back to you saying that they did everything that you told them to
    do but they're still not making money.

    If you really know your stuff, then you knew the chances of them having
    huge success going in was slim to none.

    I'm not your conscience and ultimately if you want to take somebody
    down a dead end road, that's your business.

    But I find I actually make MORE money being straight with people.

    Sorry, I've gone off topic a bit.

    Look, if you've been hanging around this forum for a while, you probably
    know more than a majority of the folks out there know.

    Have some confidence and go out there and use it.

    Again, do NOT assume that people know what YOU know.

    They don't.
    A post like this and not a single thanks , looks like I needed to change that

    Steven, thanks for this. While I agree with it, I do have some trouble with this myself (as does most I assume..)

    Just goes to show that self confidence is something that will help you go a long way in this business
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    • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
      Originally Posted by Skid_Roe View Post

      A post like this and not a single thanks , looks like I needed to change that

      Steven, thanks for this. While I agree with it, I do have some trouble with this myself (as does most I assume..)

      Just goes to show that self confidence is something that will help you go a long way in this business
      No thanks needed. Just understand that you have more to offer people
      than you realize.

      The key is figuring out what that is and THEN how to get that information
      to them.

      As a consumer, I am constantly looking for info on a number of things,
      some of it for which I pay nicely.
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  • Profile picture of the author TSDMike
    Steven this is so incredibly timely for me you have no idea. I so needed a kick in the ass and this is definitely it.

    To contribute, I actually wrote a blog post a few months back that is very relevant: You Know More Than You Think You Do.

    Check it out if you care to.
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    Web Marketing, SEO & Wordpress Site Development in Grand Rapids, MI
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  • Profile picture of the author Janice Sperry
    Great post and I totally agree. It is a good reminder to start with the very basics with most people. I have even been surprized a few times at how little some of the long time Internet marketers know. (Not talking about here at WF but among my friends.) I know a few that have done well but would not understand half of what the great posters here are talking about.
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  • Profile picture of the author Nickolie0990
    Money is attracted to action, and the worst piece of content you will ever produce will always be better then never producing the content in the first place.
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  • Profile picture of the author XtremXpert
    Great post. I realized the same thing some time ago.
    I think I'm the only one in this town who makes money online at home. People keep telling me to get a real job even though I've done this for the last 3 years, they say that if money could be made this way, everybody would be at home in front of their computer. Now I'm starting to teach a friend and I see that things so simple to me others have no idea how to do.

    I just got few ideas on how to monetize some of my knowledge.
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    Optimizare SEO
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  • Profile picture of the author Nathan Walker
    Steven, I can't agree more with you. When I first got into researching IM, I had no clue what I was doing. I knew what I wanted, but didn't have the knowledge to get there. Yet I still dove in...and failed. But I did learn. I went from scratch and learned some of the ropes for IM and I am now a few weeks from releasing my own product(H&F-highly competitive yet, like you said, I have knowledge to offer). I highly advise new comers to take their time, save their money, and learn the basics. Otherwise you will find your desire depleted and you will give up
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