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| May 15, 2006 7:41 pm |
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How to Eat, Sleep, and Breathe like an Internet Marketing Genius |
T.E.A.M. Mom!
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============== FEATURE EDITORIAL =========================
*** SPECIAL EDITION ***
Marketing Tips Newsletter
June 23, 2005 -- Issue 110
By Derek Gehl
"How to Eat, Sleep, and Breathe like an
Internet Marketing Genius:
What I Learned from My Good Friend and Colleague,
Corey Rudl -- Genius Internet Marketer, Inspirational
Leader, and Mentor to Thousands."
============================================================
Since the announcement of Corey's tragic car-racing accident
a couple of weeks ago, our office has received over 16,000
e-mails of support and condolence... and easily over 1,000
phone calls.
The entire IMC Team has been working overtime, responding to
every e-mail and phone message, one at a time, so we don't
miss any of your questions or comments.
In fact, I've had to throw some of the gang out of the office
late at night and send them home... We've all found it hard
to stop reading your e-mails.
"Thanks" doesn't seem an adequate response to the overwhelming
support and caring you've shown us.
(It's been rather humbling, really...)
So I hope you don't mind, but I've decided to write this very
special edition of our "Marketing Tips" Newsletter -- and
dedicate it to my good friend and mentor...
You see, over the last couple of weeks, a question that keeps
appearing in e-mails from everyone is, "How can I be like
Corey?"... "How can I think like Corey?"
It seems many of you are interested in learning MORE than his
secrets to Internet marketing -- you want to learn how to be
"like" him.
So I'm going to give you a bit of insight into Corey's
philosophies for business, success, and life.
These are a collection of the five most profound lessons I
learned from Corey over the last eight years, some of which
he loudly expressed to me (Corey talked loud and fast when he
got excited)... and some he quietly but effectively shared
through living example.
------------------------------------------------------------
Lesson #1: Failure doesn't "happen"; it's a choice.
------------------------------------------------------------
In Corey's mind, there were only two ways you could "fail."
You could give up and quit. Or you could decide not to learn
from your mistakes.
Corey believed failure was a choice. So Corey never failed.
He tested new ideas. He learned from what worked, and what
didn't. Then he applied those lessons to his next test or
idea, and he kept doing this until he got results he was
satisfied with.
Sure Corey made mistakes... Yeesh, I still cringe when I think
of a $90,000 mistake we made two years ago. And sure, Corey
would get really ticked off when stuff went wrong.
But Corey was also always the first person to seek out the
positive in every bad situation and say, "Well, what did we
learn from this?"
... And, more important, "Will we do it again?"
Corey firmly believed every costly lesson was going to result
in exponentially greater success in the long term.
And he was right.
------------------------------------------------------------
Lesson #2: Assume nothing, test everything
------------------------------------------------------------
Corey had zero respect for people who were content to assume
To him, it was a mark of laziness. So something everyone
quickly learned when working with him was to deal in nothing
but the facts.
If Corey asked a question, and you didn't know the answer, it
was one thousand times better to say, "I'll look into it and
get back to you," than "I think this might be the answer," or
"I assume this is right."
Theories, assumptions, and guesses were the enemies of success
as far as Corey was concerned. He believed you should either
go straight to the source for the answers (even if that means
paying thousands of dollars in consulting fees) or test it
yourself.
And as Corey taught me, sometimes you even need to test the
"facts." For example...
... A marketing strategy that you tested and proved to work
as little as a month ago may be a complete dud today.
(Retesting is ALWAYS worth the effort.)
... The customer demographics you collected through a survey
last year may have drastically changed. (Are they buying your
products for DIFFERENT reasons now?)
... And some of the most interesting statistics may be based
on flawed data. (Always read the "fine print," and if there
isn't any, ask for it!)
Before you make decisions, ask questions. Assume nothing.
Test everything.
And don't be afraid of offending someone -- even an "expert"
-- by questioning their logic. The true experts will applaud
you for this. And your questions will expose the imposters
for who they really are -- wannabes.
------------------------------------------------------------
Lesson #3: Make opportunities to learn, and take notes.
------------------------------------------------------------
It would be difficult to calculate exactly how much Corey
spent on educational materials each year... but I've done
the math and know it was roughly in the tens of thousands
of dollars.
Corey was constantly reading... On airplanes, on holidays, in
between meetings -- he was absolutely relentless. He would
read every business book, article, course, and marketing
campaign he could get his hands on.
And Corey didn't just read material related to Internet
marketing; he made a point of studying OTHER industries, too
-- both online AND offline. He was always looking for new
strategies and marketing ideas that he could pluck from other
industries and apply to his businesses.
It was all this reading that would frequently spark his
"genius" ideas...
But I think the key to this secret is that Corey made TONS
of notes about everything he read and kept all his thoughts
in a couple of "master project documents" that he'd refer
back to every month, looking for new ideas (they were
literally hundreds of pages long).
That way, even if an idea didn't work today, he had record
of it so he could refer back to it sometime in the future.
Corey knew that "genius" doesn't just happen -- you need to
look for opportunities to learn, and keep track of your
thoughts. Your best ideas will frequently be sparked by
new information, or new approaches to old information.
------------------------------------------------------------
Lesson #4: Seek out great teachers, and be a great listener.
------------------------------------------------------------
Corey firmly believed that if you want to fast-track your
success, it's critical to learn from those who have gone
before you... even if you just have the opportunity to learn
from their mistakes.
So Corey made a point of seeking out teachers and mentors,
and asking for their advice whenever he had the opportunity
-- even if that meant paying hefty consulting fees for
their guidance.
As far as Corey was concerned, you should always learn from
the best. Find people who are getting the results YOU want
to achieve, and ask them to mentor you.
And Corey was never afraid to ask "great people" for advice...
He was never concerned about looking dumb. And he never
needed to be the smartest guy in the room. Corey was always
focused on learning. So he was a student of everything...
and almost everyone.
Corey was always asking people around him for feedback...
What mistakes was he making? How could he improve as a leader?
As a marketer? How could he be a better public speaker?
It takes guts to ask the people around you for feedback. But
it takes wisdom to openly listen and learn from it.
------------------------------------------------------------
Lesson #5: Define your own success and live with passion.
------------------------------------------------------------
Corey's biggest frustration was that so many of his clients
and subscribers just let life "happen" to them. I can't
tell you how many times I heard him rant over the years, "They
have dreams... but they don't set GOALS! Why don't they set
goals and take action???"
One of the most inspirational things about being around Corey
was his belief that absolutely anyone can be successful.
You just had to meet Corey once to know he wasn't just
spouting the "anybody can start a profitable Internet business"
line because it sounded good.
His enthusiasm... his actions... every word he spoke
demonstrated his core belief that absolutely anyone can
be successful.
You can learn anything... be anything... do anything.
If you decide that your age, background, and education limit
your potential, they will. But if you decide that you can
do anything, you will...
Corey really believed that you just need to set goals that
you're excited about, and then take persistent action.
It's absolutely shocking what ONE step a day... just 10
minutes a day... one hour a day... can accomplish over one
month... three months... six months.
Just imagine where YOU would be in six months if you dedicated
even 20 minutes a day to working on your business... learning
new strategies... or building a "swipe file" of marketing
ideas!
Success isn't determined by genetics. It's about persistent,
consistent action. And Corey really got that.
------------------------------------------------------------
Final Thoughts:
------------------------------------------------------------
Honestly, I could write a book about what it was like teaming
up with Corey for the last eight years... and perhaps one day
I will. It was one helluva ride...
Today, though, I wanted to give you at least SOME insight
into Corey's personal philosophies for business success
because I'm hoping they will inspire you to...
* Choose success
* Test something new today
* Make opportunities to learn
* Seek out great teachers
* Define your goals, and take action to reach them
These are the philosophies that Corey inspired the entire
IMC Team to run his company with... and these are the
philosophies that we are continuing to move forward with.
Corey's legacy wasn't just cutting-edge marketing strategies
or industry leading software -- it was the inspiration he
shared with thousands of "real people."
And that's the legacy I personally plan to continue.
With that said, keep an eye on your inbox next week; we're
going to be doing something really special in memory of Corey.
And be sure to watch your e-mail in July, too, because we're
going to be releasing a mind-blowing interview recorded in
late May between genius offline direct marketer Dan Kennedy
and Corey...
Until the next issue of "Marketing Tips," I wish you success.
======================================================
Copyright 1996-2005 by The Internet Marketing Center.
All rights reserved.
http://www.marketingtips.com/newsletters
======================================================
The Internet Marketing Center
Attn: Newsletter Subscription Dept.
1123 Fir Ave
Blaine, WA
98230
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