If You Have To Ask How Much Work Is Involved...It's Not For You

19 replies
I guess this is my day for rants.

I question I get asked occasionally (thank goodness it's not often or I'd lose
all faith in people) is "How much work is this system of yours?"

This is kind of like a guy going to look at a Yacht and asking the person
selling it how much it is. If you have to ask the price, you can't afford it.

There are people out there who ask this question (how much work it is)
because they simply don't want to work...period. They're expecting the
process to be a simple "push a button" or maybe put up a blog and write
an article and make a gazillion dollars.

The standard answer I give people who ask this question is simple.

"I think you will find it is too much work for you and you'll get frustrated
and disgusted and ultimately ask for a refund. Therefore, I suggest you
pass on it."

You may not agree with my way of handling it (hey, it's my business and
I can handle it as I want) but I have found through 6 years of dealing
with lazy marketers that 9 times out of 10, that is exactly what happens.
They find it's too much work and ask for a refund.

This way, I save both of us a lot of trouble.

Are there exceptions? Sure, there is always that person who asks
because they have a full time job and can only put in so many hours in
their day. However, those people usually mention this when writing and
in their case, I'll tell them how many hours they should put in each day.
They can then decide if it's for them. But the person who just asks "how
much work is involved" they're usually just lazy.

I'm sorry if I am sounding like I am pigeon holing people but again, this
comes from 6 years of doing this and the track record of these sales is
abysmal to say the least.

But there is a bigger point to this whole rant and I'm going to make it now.
Please take these words to heart because if you are struggling, they may
provide some insight as to why.

If you find yourself as one of these people who asks "How much work is
involved" you need to look inside yourself and ask yourself why you're
asking this question.

Is it because you do have a full time job and can only put in so many hours
each day?

Or is it because you're looking for the "quick fix?"

I do have compassion for those who have other obligations.

I have no compassion for those who are looking to push a button. And it
that's you, maybe, just maybe, that's the reason why you're still trying
to figure out why you're only make $14 a month through Adsense.

Rant over.
#involvedit #work
  • Profile picture of the author Mark Brock
    Whenever I've sold anything (as an affiliate or my own work) about making money online I have always made it my point to make sure the reader of the sales page knows this isn't a quick fix to their financial problems.

    Hard work and effort is required on their part!!!

    Yes, this approach may have cost me sales but I'm confident that these sales would have been refunded anyway. Too many people hate the word "work".

    The only quick fix out there is to win the lottery (and that creates a whole load of other problems related to time travel to ensure you win)!

    Thanks for the rant Steven. I'm with you 100%

    Mark
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  • Profile picture of the author jay7707
    Well put Steve. I am so with you on this rant. Just by creating this one site I am about to launch, as you say it isn't just a simple "push of a button" your getting sales week in and week out. We are all here to help each other, thanks Steve. :-)
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    • Profile picture of the author Loren Woirhaye
      I've seen a lot of people come and go in the industry and
      here some of us are plugging away - working every day,
      writing, learning some new things.

      Yet many beginners I've tried to help... well, they just want
      to get the money. I tell them to read certain books and
      few do so. The level of commitment to sweating the
      details is so low in general.

      I also say: "This is impossibly hard to do it you try to do it
      all at once. But if you take it one day at a time you will
      get better and better," yet such wisdom often falls on
      shut ears.

      Perhaps it is mostly people who have freelanced or owned
      businesses before that succeed. I don't know any statistics
      but I do know that from my early 20s on I was going from
      hustling my own jobs as a carpenter and while times were
      sometimes tough I found I enjoyed the results of doing
      things that way.

      For most people "working without a net" is a profoundly
      uncomfortable situation. If they've been full-time employees
      or salary-earners trading the security of a steady paycheck
      for a life of testing, hustling, and spending their own money
      on advertising can seem like not such a good offer.

      People say they want to be financially free, to own their
      own businesses and so forth - but for most the CHOOSE
      not to adapt to it. It's not even a matter of whether
      or not a person is "cut-out for it" or not usually.

      I would definitely like to see more people I sell stuff to succeed -
      and I invite them all to the WarriorForum - and say it's where
      I learned my secrets... but they never come it seems.

      Basically, most folks are slothful.
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  • Profile picture of the author blackscorpion
    There was a time when I asked that question myself "Is it alot of work involved"? needless to say I never got off the ground. But I wisened up. It can never be too much for me right now when I can see a $5000 per month pay day down the road. I've learn now to outsource.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jim Pearson
    Steve;

    Your feelings are justified...Even in the business to business world companies are generally looking for the quick fix with the least amount of effort on their part.

    But on a profitable side note...(even though these individuals or companies who buy our products and/or services blame anyone but themselves for their lack of success)...they still pay us for our products and/or services. They give us a very good profit & pay for us building profitable relationships with the individuals & companies who really want to grow their business & will put the time in necessary to do it.
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  • Profile picture of the author Loren Woirhaye
    Perhaps, too, Stephen, your business is set-up not to
    milk your Cash-cows as much as you could be doing.

    My key axiom when selling make-money stuff is "Without
    investment there is no commitment," so the more the
    buyer invests the more commited he will be to getting
    results - and at least you get paid if he loses interest.

    Dan Kennedy is big on "compliance" - when you take on
    a client (according to J. Abraham a client is somebody
    under your protection, so that's what I mean) it is your
    responsibilty to the client to be accurate in the information
    you provide, bill them enough that they take your
    advice seriously, and if they don't comply, you get rid of
    them.

    Because - when you bill 'em and they don't do what they
    say you have a situation that maybe puts you out of
    integrity (if you've promised results) but more importantly
    you are sowing the seeds of an unhappy customer saying
    you took his money and didn't help him.

    I suggest you start charging more and fire the whiners -
    or at least move in that direction.

    Also - if I were you, and as prolific, I would just start self-publishing
    real books with my content and sell them on Amazon... stop
    developing most of the mid-range $50-100 products your customers
    whinge about buying and separate the buyers from the rest by
    selling coaching or something from the back of the book.
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    • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
      Originally Posted by Loren Woirhaye View Post

      Perhaps, too, Stephen, your business is set-up not to
      milk your Cash-cows as much as you could be doing.

      My key axiom when selling make-money stuff is "Without
      investment there is no commitment," so the more the
      buyer invests the more commited he will be to getting
      results - and at least you get paid if he loses interest.

      Dan Kennedy is big on "compliance" - when you take on
      a client (according to J. Abraham a client is somebody
      under your protection, so that's what I mean) it is your
      responsibilty to the client to be accurate in the information
      you provide, bill them enough that they take your
      advice seriously, and if they don't comply, you get rid of
      them.

      Because - when you bill 'em and they don't do what they
      say you have a situation that maybe puts you out of
      integrity (if you've promised results) but more importantly
      you are sowing the seeds of an unhappy customer saying
      you took his money and didn't help him.

      I suggest you start charging more and fire the whiners -
      or at least move in that direction.

      Also - if I were you, and as prolific, I would just start self-publishing
      real books with my content and sell them on Amazon... stop
      developing most of the mid-range $50-100 products your customers
      whinge about buying and separate the buyers from the rest by
      selling coaching or something from the back of the book.

      Loren, I do have a coaching program, but I am so picky about who I let
      into it that I hardly ever let anybody in. There is a rigorous screening
      process that everybody has to go through.

      I have found very few people interested in coaching who either.

      1. Will pay what I ask
      2. Are dedicated enough to follow through.

      And that's fine, because personal one on one coaching is a lot of work and
      I don't do it for people who aren't serious. Truth is, time wise, I earn more
      per hour selling digital information products than selling coaching services
      simply because of all the time that's involved.

      I give coaches who do it for a living solely a lot of credit. I'd never want it
      to be my full time income.
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  • Profile picture of the author googleplex
    hahaha I agree with a lot of whats being said in this thread.
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    • Profile picture of the author Kamran
      One of the main reason why many people come to the online world looking to make money is because they want to escape the hard work involved in the offline world. Although, I agree with Steve, I must add that if you give a fixed amount of hours (doesn't have to be many hours) everyday with dedication you can definitely achieve something
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  • Profile picture of the author Loren Woirhaye
    I know you have a coaching program Steven. If it's
    more work than you want to put in that's a good reason
    to work from a different angle.

    I know you are coming up in the guru-game, willingly
    or not, so it makes sense to study what the veterans
    like Dan Kennedy are doing with it. He doesn't even
    really do seminars anymore but he has the front-end
    books (scads of them) that upgrade buyers to getting
    some shockingly profitable info-products. The keystone
    of the structure though is his massive prolificacy as a
    writer. He puts out a newsletter every month which
    is 'hella work to put together but it keeps him right there
    in your mailbox.

    Just musing. You gotta develop things as you go and
    choose the path that feels right. In the end when you
    reach a certain level you have the ability and right to
    choose who your customers are.
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    • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
      Originally Posted by Loren Woirhaye View Post

      I know you have a coaching program Steven. If it's
      more work than you want to put in that's a good reason
      to work from a different angle.

      I know you are coming up in the guru-game, willingly
      or not, so it makes sense to study what the veterans
      like Dan Kennedy are doing with it. He doesn't even
      really do seminars anymore but he has the front-end
      books (scads of them) that upgrade buyers to getting
      some shockingly profitable info-products. The keystone
      of the structure though is his massive prolificacy as a
      writer. He puts out a newsletter every month which
      is 'hella work to put together but it keeps him right there
      in your mailbox.

      Just musing. You gotta develop things as you go and
      choose the path that feels right. In the end when you
      reach a certain level you have the ability and right to
      choose who your customers are.

      You know Loren, you sound as bright as that Winchester dude from
      M.A.S.H.

      But nowhere near as pompous.
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    • Profile picture of the author D.K. Magnus
      Some of the blame goes to the way IM products are marketed.

      Every newbie has read the hype: Make X amount of dollars a month by answering emails in your pajamas 2 hours a day.

      I'm not saying this about you Steve.
      I appreciate the fact that all of your advice revolves around realistic expectations.

      If I had payed attention to advice given by people like Steve, instead of believing the hype, I would be further ahead on my business.

      I also would have saved alot of money on WSOs.
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  • Profile picture of the author jacstone193
    Good points guys !
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    • Profile picture of the author MaskedMarketer
      That's just part of the mindset of the industry you choose to work in

      That's the type of people you're attracting with your marketing and advertising

      Besides ranting, what else are you doing to try to fix you're situation?
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      • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
        Originally Posted by MaskedMarketer View Post

        That's just part of the mindset of the industry you choose to work in

        That's the type of people you're attracting with your marketing and advertising

        Besides ranting, what else are you doing to try to fix you're situation?
        What I do is tell people up front that this isn't a push button solution. I
        can't help it if other marketers feel that's how they have to promote their
        products.

        As for fixing it, the only way to fix it is for people to change their mindsets.

        This isn't my problem...it's theirs.
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  • Profile picture of the author talfighel
    I get a lot of emails from people who want to make money online with MLM or affiliate programs but when it comes to WORKING and investing money, they tend to run away.

    These people want to make it online but again, they are not willing to do what ever is necessary.

    Tal
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    • Profile picture of the author bombdiggity
      I wonder how many people took what you said to heart, and then decided to take action just to prove to themselves that they could do it (like a reverse psychology type of thing)? It'd be an interesting statistic to see.
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      • Profile picture of the author Neil Morgan
        Good post Steve.

        Again

        I think the "how much work is it?" question highlights the fact that that most people probably would be prepared to work if success was guaranteed at the end of it.

        But, of course, success cannot be guaranteed.

        Sure, there are people that just aren't prepared to work.

        But there are others who are prepared to work, but need to be convinced that it will be worth it.

        Cheers,

        Neil
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  • Profile picture of the author Anthony Smith
    I agree with you Steven, some people are simply happy with making a residual income of $300-500 a week, and would rather be watching tv then building their business. i firmly believe in the opposite, i wouldn't be here if it wasn't for hard work and dedication to the IM cause. i want to make other IMer's as much money as possible, as well as make myself as much as possible in the process. good post, good rant, good fun.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ben_Curtis
    My thought is that casinos and the lottery (and lawsuits,) make so much money because people are looking for that big win without work. Hey, I like that: big-win-without-work. sorry--off track.
    At the beginning, I did not realize how much work and time IMing would be, but I've never been afraid of work, so I stuck with it, and I plan to do really well as I continue learning.
    Most people, in any endeavor, just don't want to work that hard, or learn what they need to know to succeed.
    That's why a person who is a super-success is still such a marvel to us. We recognize that he was willing to do what others were not and now he has more of what he wanted.
    It's in all of us to do the same if we persevere.
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  • Profile picture of the author bannerdemers
    I probably speak for a lot of newbies when I say that the work involved usually isn't the problem, it's the fact that it is assumed that any individual knows exactly what to do just by reading these courses. Too many times the education resourses just aren't there, leaving the newbie just broke and confused, just another frustrated chump.
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    • Profile picture of the author D.K. Magnus
      Another good point.

      In the beginning I bought alot of WSOs and read and read trying to understand the language. Its easy to tell someone what they should do, but if the wording used is foreign to you, you can't move forward.

      I had a computer programming class(don't remember the language) taught by an instructor who worked in the programming field. He taught the class like he was speaking to his colleages, not people taking a beginner's course. I along with alot of other students dropped the course because we couldn't understand him.


      Originally Posted by bannerdemers View Post

      I probably speak for a lot of newbies when I say that the work involved usually isn't the problem, it's the fact that it is assumed that any individual knows exactly what to do just by reading these courses. Too many times the education resourses just aren't there, leaving the newbie just broke and confused, just another frustrated chump.
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  • Profile picture of the author zeppb
    I agree with you completely Steven. I still remember when I first emailed you about one of your ebooks. You were very upfront and pretty bold yet was just giving true facts. If I had been one of those lazy people I would of probably have gotten offended and never purchased. So it's good that you are blunt because it really does get rid of the lazy people that would of just ended up asking for a refund. (As you can see i'm still here and loving IM! )
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