"The TEAM! NONE of us is as strong
as ALL of us!"DON'T
Join the Big Dogs Program!...
It's SATURATED!Note: Like the previous article, this article is also a reprint - this time from one of the June, 2001 Bulletins. That fact that it appeared over a YEAR ago is almost humorous. Today the Big Dogs program is stronger than ever, and the fact that we are now over a year old actually makes us an "old, established company" in Internet terms. We CONTINUE to do incredibly well, and our affiliates CONTINUE to make money, and I am proud (and somewhat humbled) by the fact that "my" Big Dogs are a force to be reckoned with on the Internet.
(sigh)
Y’know, folks, I’ve been in a number of business online and offline since 1971. Several of these ventures have made use of affiliates or distributors or salespeople or agents – whatever you may wish to call them. And down through the years the most FRUSTRATING question I get from "newbies" is…
"Gee, am I getting into this business too late? Is the market saturated?"
And, apparently, the Big Dogs program is no different. Even though the Big Dogs program was launched on March 24 – LESS THAN THREE MONTHS AGO, and the very idea of "saturation" at this early stage is so ludicrous as to be absurd, I nevertheless get a few people a week who come out with, "I’ve seen a lot of ads on the Internet for Big Dogs. Isn’t it too late to get in?"
Now, folks, I DO understand that that sounds like a perfectly legitimate concern to a person who is inexperienced in marketing. Let me answer that with a few analogies…..
Any of you ever hear of a "little" company by the name of AmWay? Love ‘em or hate ‘em, AmWay has been around for over 35 years, and (deserved or not) they still carry with them a certain negative aura. Yet they’re still around and they continue to grow – at the rate of over forty THOUSAND new distributors every month! And you can just bet that back in 1970 there were a few AmWay distributors who felt that the AmWay program had reached a saturation point. (These folks, by the way, did NOT become millionaires as did MANY other AmWay distributors from that period of time.)
Right now Big Dogs is acquiring 2,000 new affiliates a month. So…it looks to me, if the experience of AmWay is any indication, like we could be putting on 20 TIMES that number and STILL not reach that so-called "saturation point."
Now, I live in the town of Altoona, Pennsylvania which has a population of around 50,000. During it’s heyday in the late 1940’s and 50’s, when it was one of the principal railroad towns of the nation, the population was actually DOUBLE what is today, and yet there are more restaurants in town today than there were 40 years ago! I’m sure you’ve had the same thought in YOUR particular town – just when you thought that your area was "saturated" with fast-food places, ANOTHER one springs up!
Speaking of restaurants, an associate of mine years ago by the name of Jim Stevens was fond of telling this story: Back in the 50’s he was looking around for a business to get into. He was approached by a friend of his about a new franchise opportunity, but he declined the offer with these words, "Gee, Ray, I think I’m going to pass. The country is already saturated with restaurants, and I don’t think your idea has any long term potential."
Jim’s friend’s name, by the way, was Ray…Ray Kroc. And the franchise opportunity that Jim turned down at the time because the market was "saturated" was a completely unknown company by the name of McDonald’s – ever hear of ‘em?
There is a company on the Internet by the name of Six Figure Income – I’m sure you’ve seen their ads. Although hardly as old a company as AmWay, by Internet standards Six Figure Income has been around for quite a while. The figures I’ve seen vary, but current estimates place their total membership at between 1.4 and 1.5 MILLION. If we assume that they are now "saturated" at the 1.5 million member mark and are not going to grow any more, then that means that at the rate the Big Dogs organization is growing, we have "only" 62.5 YEARS left before we reach "saturation."
62.5 years? I think I can live with that!
And there are other factors at play, as well. Each day, 100,000 MORE people go on the Internet for the first time. Of course, not all of them are in our market – the business opportunity seekers market. But if just 1% are biz-op seekers, then that means that every day we have 1,000 brand new prospects for the Big dogs program.
I think I can live with that, too!
You see, my friends, the fact that we are seeing more and more ads for Big Dogs is a good thing – a VERY good thing.
In the advertising world "exposure equals acceptance." OFFline statistics indicate that the average person does not react to an ad until they are exposed to it five to seven times. ONline that figure is much higher, and advertising experts tell us that on the Internet a person needs to be exposed to an ad over TWENTY times before they take action.Now, as many professional marketers do, I glance through my "junk" email box a few times a week to stay in touch with what’s happening on the net. And believe me, I receive THOUSANDS of emails each day in that box. Do I see Big Dogs ads? YOU betcha! About one in every three hundred! (I took the time this week to actually do a count) To us, of course, it SEEMS like a lot because they’re "OUR" ads, so we have a tendency to spot ‘em over all the other ads, and it SEEMS like more than a mere one third of ONE percent.
Market saturation for the Big Dogs program? Talk to me about it in twenty years!
"No thanks, Mr. Ford. I don’t think I want to get involved with one of your franchises. By 1930, everyone in America will have an automobile, and the market will be saturated."
This week I received an email from one of our new people who stated...
"Gee, Stan, every time I open by mailbox that I receive posts from the FFA networks in, it seems like 40% of my messages are advertising the Big Dogs!"
Well, this one statement is grounds for a LOT of comments that I'd like to air.....
First of all...it's sorta like that old "is the glass half full or half empty" adage. The optimist looks at the glass and sees it as half full, while the pessimist looks at the glass and declares it half empty. It's a matter of perception, isn't it, and for the pessimist, NOTHING is going to change his mind. Personally, when someone tells me that 40% of the FFA ads are Big dogs ads, MY reaction is.....
"What! ONLY 40%
- why that's less than HALF!
You guys aren't working HARD enough!"
Secondly...let's assume (for simplicity's sake) that 1,000 marketers post ads on the FFA networks each day. (It's a whole lot more than that, but remember, we're trying to keep it simple) Let's further assume that YOU ARE THE ONLY MARKETER POSTING A BIG DOGS AD! All things being equal, when the "newbies," the folks that are looking at FFA ads for the first time (and there are THOUSANDS of them each week!) open their email box, your chances of someone clicking on your link and joining the Big Dogs program are just one in one thousand, right!?
Now let's look at it from the reverse point of view. Let's say that ALL one thousand of those ads are ads for Big Dogs. Now, when the "newbies" open their mailbox all they see are 1,000 Big Dogs ads. Does this change your individual chances for someone to click on YOUR link? Not at all! It REMAINS at one in one thousand - your chances of a click are the same as if you were the only one advertising Big Dogs!
But WAIT just a doggone second!
We're not putting an important factor into the equation! The Big Dogs program is essentially multi-level in nature, isn't it? So, let's say that you have a mere 10 people in your downline, and each of THEM are posting the SAME ad with the SAME headline for Big Dogs. Your chances for a click have just increased 1,000 percent, haven't they!?
In multi-level marketing, when when of your downline advertises, it's virtually the same as when YOU advertise!
In fact, it can be even BETTER!
Oh, you may not receive the $8.72 commission on the sale of the ebook but so what? That "newbie" who joins the program under one of your downline generates a RESIDUAL income for you. In other words, over the long term, it's actually better for one of your downline to sponsor a newbie than for YOU to sponsor that same person! FFANET, for example, pays their highest commission on their THIRD level, so once again, it's better for your downline people to sponsor than for YOU!
A lot of our leaders have already recognized this fact, and have drastically cut back on their OWN promotional efforts to devote time to developing the skills of their downline people. Gary Sargeant is a very good example of this. You may have noticed that he is not at the very top of the leader's board like he used to be. Oh, he's still among the leaders, of course, but "The Sarge" is playing it smart. He wants to have a dozen "Gary Sargeants" out there carrying the ball and building his all-important RESIDUAL income!
Thirdly..."repetition automatically builds credibility." When you are the ONLY person advertising Big Dogs, that hardly builds credibility in the minds of the prospect, does it? BUT...when that same prospect sees HUNDREDS of Big Dogs ads, whaddya think he's gonna think!?
I had a conversation with one guy two weeks ago who said,
"Y'know, Stan, I've seen ads for Big Dogs since you guys stared back in March. At the time I didn't think too much about it. But then when I saw more and more ads for it, I KNEW it was something I had to join!"
(Note: Remember that this article was first published over a year ago. TODAY - in June of 2002 - a single day doesn't go by that I don't receive at least one email from someone who is joining the program BECAUSE we are still around! The really SHREWD marketers quite often wait until a program is AT LEAST a year or two old before they join! Now let's continue.....)
Repetition builds credibility!
Number four...I am constantly asked for "examples of ads" and various headlines for promotion of the Big Dogs program. You may have noticed that we provide just ONE example in the ebook. There is a very specific reason that we DON"T provide more ads.
WE WANT YOU FOLKS TO BE INNOVATIVE AND COME UP WITH YOUR OWN AD IDEAS!
If a "newbie" sees fifty subject lines for the Big Dogs, all saying, "Revealed! Secrets of the Big Dogs," THAT builds credibility for the program. BUT...when he sees your subject line that perhaps VARIES a little - maybe, "What's the Big Deal with This 'Big Dogs' Thing, Anyway!?" which link will he click on?
In the fifth place...we try to very specifically point out that using the FFA networks is just the FOUNDATION for your marketing efforts, NOT the end-all-and-be-all of it! That's why we include the TopEzineAds ezine directory among the CHIP programs - and there are at least ten thousand ezines on the internet devoted to opportunity seekers, with more springing up every day! That's why we discuss opt-in lists in the ebook - I can't even venture a guess at how many of THESE there are, but they, too, number in the tens of thousands - and again, with more springing up every day.
Each different resource that we point out to you "dogs" approaches a DIFFERENT segment of the marketplace, and NONE should be ignored. Let me give you an example.....
A friend of mine owns the largest new car dealership in the area. His name is pretty much a household word in town. He advertises consistently on every radio station in the area. But he ALSO advertises on TV, in the daily newspapers, the many weekly papers, and yes - he even has his own website. He recognizes that each different form of advertising has it's OWN individualized prospect base, and he recognizes that he must take advantage of ALL of them!
Sixth, and finally...I want to make a comment that may be misconstrued by some. I DON'T mean it to sound harsh, and I DON'T mean it to sound unfeeling. Nevertheless, I feel it needs to be said - and anybody that's experienced in marketing and management will tell you the same thing.
Whenever we "old pros" hear the old, "Is this program saturated?" question, it IMMEDIATELY sends red flags up - and in many cases tells us right off the bat what a person's chances are for success in ANY program. You see, there are a lot of people who have unsuccessfully tried a dozen different businesses - online, offline, and underline (if there is such a thing) - and SUBCONSCIOUSLY they are looking for a reason - a justification - for another unsuccessful venture. "Saturation" is always a very convenient scapegoat!
Just one year ago, my very first online venture was FFANET. Now if there's any program that should be saturated, FFANET should be it. Virtually everyone on the Internet has at least HEARD of FFANET. At the time, though I was too naive and just outright STUPID about Internet marketing to know the difference. Believe me, friends, not ONE of you could possibly be as utterly clueless about the Internet as I was - I was lucky to know where the "enter" key was! But I plunged ahead anyway. Needless to say my first two months were embarrassing, to say the least. But today, just one year later, I have one of the largest ProMember downlines in the FFANET network. Even though I no longer have time to promote FFANET, each month the "magic" of the Big Dogs program adds an additional one hundred MORE members to my FFANET organization.....
.....a program that by all accounts SHOULD have been "saturated" a long, LONG time ago!
I would be the first to say that we've been very lucky with "Secrets of the Big Dogs." Big Dogs was never designed to be an Internet phenomenon (which it is turning out to be). Four months ago I felt that I'd be happy with 100 ebook sales and 10 new Alpha Dogs each month.
Here and now, just three months later, you folks are doing that in a DAY!
We're lucky enough to have attracted genuinely talented, hard-working people who are really FLYING with the Big dogs program - and I wish I could personally thank everyone of you. We're lucky enough to be in the RIGHT program, at the RIGHT time - a program that continues to break records at a dizzying pace!
Saturation? Talk to me in twenty years!
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