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Who do YOU consider the Best "Offline" marketers?

by AP
21 replies
I would like your opinion as to who you consider some of the Authority "Offline" marketers on this forum.

I'll list some of the people I respect, I'm sure I'll miss a few but I will update as needed.

Maria Gudelis, David Preston, Andrew Cavanagh, Michael Hiles, DogScout, John McCabe, Michael Silvester, etc...

I'm looking for people who are actually involved day to day with Offline marketing working with business owners. Someone who has ACTUALLY worked in the trenches and understands this business.

Thanks in advance.
#marketers #offline
  • Profile picture of the author Andyhenry
    There are lots of us. What is it you want to know?
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    nothing to see here.

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  • Profile picture of the author MichaelHiles
    I'm not really an "offline" marketing guy.

    Just a marketing guy.

    Lately I've considered going into televangelism.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jagged
    I'd definately have to toss Shawn O'Riley's hat into contention here. I personally have learned a lot from him & he was an instrumental figure during the "cash cow" thread.

    Andy Henry, John McCabe & Maria Gudelis are all highly respected & have been a major influence on how I run my business...

    ....Ken
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    • Profile picture of the author AndrewCavanagh
      Many of the experts aren't selling products or giving advice.

      Or they don't seem to be working in the particular niche.

      David Cavanagh (who is not related to me) is an example.

      He built a couple of million dollar businesses long before anyone even heard of the "offline" niche.

      Also you should remember that people have been selling their services to local businesses since the internet began.

      Look in your phone book and in a city of any size you'll find web design companies (people who more than likely make a full time living or better selling their services to local businesses).

      There are a huge range of ways to make money selling your services to local businesses and no comprehensive experts (it would simply be impossible to know everything about every service you could offer).

      Like many people I find it a little amusing that people see the idea as something new (and even more amusing that some people name this "new" "offline gold" niche after one of my products...sometimes without even knowing that's what they're doing).

      More important than looking for experts is to simply look at your own talents and skills and find a way to use them to help local businesses.

      Everyone is going to have a different journey based on their own skill set and goals.

      The person who makes an extra $100 a week getting businesses listed on Google Maps is just as relevant as the person who builds a business that makes a six, seven or even eight figure annual income.

      It's a massive niche where nearly anything is possible and you just need to work towards the kind of business you want.

      Kindest regards,
      Andrew Cavanagh
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      Old School Copy Like This Is BACK & Converting Like Crazy!
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      • Profile picture of the author Jagged
        Originally Posted by AndrewCavanagh View Post

        More important than looking for experts is to simply look at your own talents and skills and find a way to use them to help local businesses.

        Everyone is going to have a different journey based on their own skill set and goals.

        The person who makes an extra $100 a week getting businesses listed on Google Maps is just as relevant as the person who builds a business that makes a six, seven or even eight figure annual income.
        Spot on Andrew, this is so true.

        There are "experts" in every branch of Offline Marketing, but I doubt very much you will find a true expert who has mastered each & every one of them.

        Become your own expert, learn & build your own business....one that fit's your expertise.....not someone else's interpretation of what it should it be...
        There are those who market to fortune 500 business...then there are those who cater to Joe's pizzaria & sally's hair salon....they ALL need our services just the same...
        I don't judge anyone by their yearly gross figures, I judge them by the value they offer...not only to their clients, but to those just starting out in the bsuiness..... Those are the experts to me...

        Good post Andrew, thanks...

        Ken
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        • Profile picture of the author JoeCool
          Fellow Warrior Keith Boisvert, hands down.

          Keith is the owner/operator of the website and forum located at www.LocalBizBuilders.com.

          This is a man that is on both sides of this market, both as a brick and mortar business owner, and as a consultant to offline brick and mortar businesses.

          In my opinion, out of all the Offline Marketers I have known and learned from for the past two years, no one has done more, or has given back as much to the Offline Consulting market, than Keith has.

          Join the forum, you won't be disappointed.


          Best Regards,
          ~ JoeCool
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          My Favorite Charity .:: www.Unitus.com ::. Helping Third World Entrepreneurial Families Help Themselves.

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  • Profile picture of the author skorpion
    Anybody who can convince a stubborn business owner to purchase advertising that they dont understand is a pro in my book...Its not as easy as everyone makes it out to be. But of course it can be done, I am doing it full time and it took me a while to get there.

    my personal "offline imer" has to be Jamie Garside aka GoGetta
    old timer, Dan Kennedy
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  • Profile picture of the author ppbiz
    Kyle Tully is really awesome. I have used his stuff to grow my offline business massively this year. He is actually out there doing it day to day and gives you stuff that you can plug straight into your business.
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  • Profile picture of the author DogScout
    Maria is really, really good.

    You can look in the yellow pages, then call a few and play client. Most, 75-80% still think on page SEO is 90% or more of the equation! (I checked). At least around here in the Nation's capital. And none I found did any off-line work! And not one of the 15 I met with included Google maps, business listing or Yahoo & Bing business listing either. Most never heard of article submitting and/or commenting and had only a vague idea as to what RSS even was! So the door in that field (at least here) is still wide open. (Found a page one article on a commercial keyword with one comment my client agreed with; but the commenter from 2000 miles away, didn't explain why he felt that way, a comment, a few lines of why and a link to his site. Took less than 3 minutes and led to a huge contract!)

    And Yeah, Dan is the man. Don't limit your marketing (read :selling) to on-line or your cutting yourself very short. You (or your team) can be all things to a small business at a decent price to them that will feed you very well. And marketing is NOT the point. The point is sales. Nissan motor spends millions on marketing and Toyota spends millions selling. 'Marketing' is nothing without a sale.

    (And thanks for including my name in the OP, even though I am a rookie. Lol.)

    Maybe the biggest thing to consider is, it is possible to deliver 20 times the client's perceived value with little effort. Perhaps due to being ripped of so many times. I do not have one client that hasn't been taken advantage of at least once. So for me, trust is the largest obstacle I have to overcome; which is why I do a lot of up-front work on a handshake with no money changing hands until later. That is a good way to get burned, maybe, but I have yet to get burned doing that to gain trust.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mark Riddle
    I am far from an "Offline Expert" but I started promoting internet marketing to local retail and service businesses in 1996 long before the dot com bust. I got out of it, and have again returned to it because its fun!

    There are many factors to consider when choosing who to study and follow, I would say there is NO ONE PERSON that has all the answer, and even when you read and study the information people here on the forum and elsewhere teach you can start to find the methods and systems that resonate with you and your personal desires and style.

    There is a great mistake implied by your question, the question of Which ONE to follow.

    There is No The ONE
    There is only choices.
    When limiting your thoughts to "THE ONE".
    You have guaranteed failure.

    There is no single answer, There is no magic bullet, What is good for me, might be a total mismatch for you.

    The true shortcut to success is surrounded by focus persistence and continual evaluation.

    Mark Riddle
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    Today isn't Yesterday, - Products are everywhere if your eyes are Tuned!
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    • Profile picture of the author Amrak
      Maria Gudelis, Kyle Tully and Tim Castleman. They all teach slightly different methods, and they are all awesome. I have learned a tremendous amount from each one of them and highly recommend them and any of their products.

      However, if you really want to watch a marketing MASTER at work, watch Maria....she can sell pretty much anything to anyone....she's really incredible.
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      • Profile picture of the author explosion
        Kyle Tully and Maria Gudelis. Like Amrak said they have slightly different styles(which is great), but both are top notch professionals who know their stuff! There's not a question I have asked Kyle that he has not responded to in full and gave me more gold nuggets of info in return. They're two of the main reasons that I'm making offline marketing my bread and butter!
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        • Profile picture of the author MikeHumphreys
          Saying who is best is like saying who we think is the prettiest woman in the U.S.A. -- there's a lot of well-qualified and deserving candidates.

          I could name a dozen copywriters off the top of my head that have been writing direct mail and offline marketing for their clients for many years. Some of them are members of WF... others aren't... most of them just choose to continue to fly under the radar of the average internet marketer and make their offline clients millions of dollars.

          There are also a number of WF members who aren't copywriters but have been helping grow offline businesses quite successfully for many years. I can't even begin to name them all without forgetting to mention someone who is equally worthy so I won't.

          I will tip my hat to them and say keep up the great work.... you are a vital key to help revitalize the economy in whatever part of the world you live and work in.

          Offline marketing is a huge arena with a lot of areas of specialty. For example, just in terms of direct mail, some of the gurus are Dan Kennedy, the late Gary Halbert, Ted Nicholas, Joe Sugarman, and Ben Suarez. Clayton Makepeace and Michel Fortin are also brilliant about direct mail when they choose to talk about it.

          Now a bit of a rant...

          Some of the recent "experts" are the same people who were busy asking for newbie advice on their "expert topic" in copywriting and marketing forums just 2-3 months before branding themselves as an "expert". I'm not going to name names but the guilty parties know who they are. I wouldn't call them experts but rather savvy marketers who saw a hot IM trend when it was starting... jumped on it... and are riding the trend as much as they can.

          End of rant.

          My advice would be to study the people who have been doing the type of offline marketing you want to learn and have been doing it well for years. They can teach you the ins and outs of the offline marketing weapon you want to learn... not a one-dimensional or flash in the pan method that doesn't work for every single client case you'll encounter.

          Take care,

          Mike
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          Kickstart Your Copywriting Business: How To Get Loads of New Clients FAST!

          Kick-A$$ Eight-Figure Producing Copywriting Gun For Hire | Marketing & Copywriting Blog
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  • Profile picture of the author Susanna Dodd
    I don't mean to sound dumb here but I used to be one of those on again off again marketers. Where every time it seemed to get hard I bailed out and took a break to regain my thoughts. So I don't consider myself a newbie since I've been at this for 5 years, but I am illiterate when it comes to the in depth "how tos" and stuff.

    All that being said, what is the difference between an offline marketer and an online marketer? Also, who are these people you list that you read on and why should I read up on them?
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    • Profile picture of the author Susanna Dodd
      Originally Posted by Mr. Goof Off View Post

      1. There is no difference between an offline and online marketer except the method in which they make money. Kinda like asking what's the difference between a millionaire lawyer and a millionaire doctor.
      Thanks.....was having a moment. That makes sense. I was not thinking of the fact that the IM would market offline too....duh.
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    • Profile picture of the author MichaelHiles
      Originally Posted by Mr. Goof Off View Post

      1. There is no difference between an offline and online marketer except the method in which they make money. Kinda like asking what's the difference between a millionaire lawyer and a millionaire doctor.
      ...
      Hence the point in my first response.

      I was a marketing guy before the internet was even commercialized doing direct mail and predictive dialing call centers for financial planning companies. I've been helping businesses develop marketing and sales processes since 1987.

      What a giagantic percentage of members of the WF don't understand is that there's really no distinction between "online marketing" and "offline marketing". Marketing is marketing. The tactical level tools that are used might be different, but in the end, it serves the same purpose.

      Marketing is just simply something that is done to make sales easier in some fashion.

      I think a lot of warriors also get confused about these functions as well... advertising and selling is not "marketing" in the actual business sense. It is a little more confusing because some of the marketing and sales functions are served by the online activites that we all know and engage in.

      By traditional definition, the guys that are "marketing" are the ones creating the affiliate programs as a channel for their core product or service.

      Affiliates are engaged in "selling".

      Understanding the distinction may help clarify a lot of things for people... or simply give rise for some kid whose pinnacle of marketing success in life is that he sells 4 ebooks a month to tell me how I am wrong.
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