I had purchased a used copy of "Ultimate Guide To Google Adwords" by Perry Marshall (circa-2007) from Value Village, read it, enjoyed the concepts...and proceeded to build a Google Adwords campaign for my brother's "custom house plans" business.
During the first 2 years, that Adwords campaign got us a 4X to 10X return on investment (ROI).
I wasn't charging him for my services because I was just learning Adwords, and because this was basically an experiment.
But, for a significant period of time, his best ROI was a return of $1000 for every $100 he put into ads (money paid to Google for clicks).
His worst ROI was a return of $500 per $100 spent on ads. (I guess maybe I should have been charging him after all!).
If I asked you to pay me $100 for every $500 I put in your bank account...would you do it?
In March of 2014 I opened Perry Marshall's book to tweak my brother's Adwords campaign once more.
In it I again noticed Perry's reference to one of his mentors - long time businessman and author of the "No B.S." marketing series - Dan S. Kennedy. So I checked him out.
Like Perry, he had a brutally honest, easy to read, hard-hitting style.
He made no effort to be politically correct about all the pathetic marketing advise strewn about by people who aren't earning their money by following their own advice.
Hence the "No B.S." title in his books.
I liked him immediately.
I bought numerous 3-4 figure marketing programs from him and GKIC...a company he built and sold, but is still connected to. (Glazer Kennedy Insiders Circle)
I loved the transparency and honesty in their training programs.
I appreciated how their core teachings were founded in time-tested principles that weren't dependent upon techniques or the latest tools.
There was no "get rich quick" stuff in their training. They made it very clear there was work involved.
They actually suggested that if I was like most people, I wouldn't do a fraction of what the training material recommended that I do.
GKIC became my "filter" for anyone selling "how to" information related to sales and marketing.
I also purchased training from a few other GKIC-connected people as well. I wasn't once disappointed with any of the purchases.
Which says a lot. The "marketing" world is full of impostors.
All this time I was trying to figure out how to put this information to use. What type of business did that look like? What type of marketing and sales suited my personality and my core strengths the best?
I knew I wanted a business I could still work at when I was 65. I knew I wanted a business that was needed everywhere. Or could be done from anywhere.
(Nova Scotia isn't exactly a hot-bed for economic prosperity.)
During this period of discovery, there was one fact of life that was becoming very clear to me:
As long as humans are on earth, there will be businesses run by people who are good at running a businesses, but are bad at marketing!
Which is great...because I don't want really to run a business with a bunch of employees. That's not part of my strength-set.
I just want to "make it rain" for people who do have businesses.
Analysis and strategy, ARE part of my strength-set.
In fact...Empathy, Analytical, Responsibility, Futuristic, Relater and Learner are part of my strength-set (according to Perry Marshall's Marketing DNA test, and Gallup Strengths-Finder test).
Translation: I understand numbers, facts, data and proof. But I also understand people, and can explain things to people. I can connect people and things.
The "Empathy" strength allows me to connect with the right customer through compelling writing...whether in ads, landing pages, sales letters, etc.
The "Analytical" strength allows me to analyze data and find stories, not just numbers.
Anyhow...
Regardless of what business you might be in...your biggest growth will come from being better at communicating why people should do business with you - instead of your competitors.