I realised something today…

It was 22 years ago that we first started our own business.

How the time flies!

I know that to a youngster (like my son or daughter), it would seem like I started in an ancient era.

No YouTube, no Facebook, no Spotify, no Netflix.

Mobile phones like bricks with no cameras or apps.

Only half the British population had access to the web, while internet users were still ‘asking Jeeves’ where to look for things online.

But while the media landscape has changed radically, business hasn’t changed much at all.

If you want to set up a profitable, long-term income from home, then you face the same stark choice as I faced back in 2003.

Because, like you, I was standing at a fork in the road.

To one side was a path which shimmered with potential riches, like a Yellow Brick Road made from gold.

It involved selling business opportunity-style products that promised overnight results and big money.

The aim was to rack up the maximum sales from inflated promises, send the customers some flimsy content, then pretty much disappear from view.

This first path was obviously the one that appealed to a lot of people.

And yes, a lot of them made a lot of money, very quickly.

In fact, some were earning millions within a year.

In their shouty sales promotions they showed off their sports cars and fancy houses, claiming that any customer could enjoy the same in a matter of months, with testimonials that seemed to prove it.

The tactics were always the same…

• Make the products just about ‘good enough’ to bag a sale without – technically – being fraudulent….
• Ensure that the refund policy was complicated, hidden from view or even non-existent.
• Avoid doing any customer service and remain unavailable for questions, feedback and complaints (unless people paid a premium).

The strange thing is – for a long while, it worked.

And if I’d moved over to the dark side, I could have made millions this way.

After all, I was a trained copywriter with a decade’s experience and loads of marketing knowledge from my time at a major direct mail marketing company.

So I had the skills and the tools to copy the get-rich-quick business models that were clearly making loadsa money.

But my success would have come from doing business BADLY.

After all, thinking about what this strategy involves…

• Failing to consider the needs of the customers, or to empathise with their fears and problems.
• Lacking the care and respect to deliver them genuinely useful, practical advice.
• Not following through on the promises made in the marketing.
• Refusing to accept responsibility for poor results or a disappointing experience.

So I’m glad that I didn’t go down this route…

Why Easy Money Comes at a High Price

You can make a lot of money from rubbish products that generate high sales and deliver very little.

But it comes at a cost.

Imagine the feeling of waking up every day to an inbox full of refund requests, complaints, negative feedback and angry threats.

And imagine being too worried to go online in case you’re being publicly pilloried on the internet.

All that guilt and shame, and for what?

Because things get even worse when the complaints begin to dry up and instead you get…

TOTAL SILENCE.

You see, when you create a business that’s designed purely to extract money from people, rather than help them, you quickly run out of goodwill.

Every time you fail a customer, they disappear and don’t come back.

What’s more, the glittering get-rich-quick path is full of entrepreneurs trying to sell the same thing in the same way to the same people.

So it’s a road of diminishing returns.

Which is why I’ve seen people go from million-pound product launches to total irrelevance in as little as 18 months.

The truth is, when you make your living from breaking the bond of trust with customers, you end up burning through goodwill like rocket fuel until there’s nothing left.

That’s not how I wanted to spend my career.

I wanted to create a sustainable and profitable long-term business with repeat customers who benefited from the products I made…. a business that would make me happy to get out of bed in the morning.

Thankfully, there was a SECOND path available to me.

It was a longer, emptier road which stretched up a long hill into a distant mist.

But I’m glad I took it – because if I didn’t I probably wouldn’t be writing this email to you now.

Why Taking The Longer Road Pays Off

I know it sounds old-fashioned, but I was raised to write thank-you letters to aunts and uncles who sent birthday gifts or Christmas presents.

I was taught to say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ – and to consider how my actions impacted others.

This mindset of empathy, courtesy and decency has shaped every email I’ve written… every product I’ve created… and every conversation I’ve had with a customer.

And it pays off.

I’ve now been in business for 23 years, and I’ve generated close to £50 million in sales.

But I didn’t do it by creating the flimsiest-possible products, making the most outlandish promises, and avoiding customers.

Instead, I’ve sent thousands of free emails, packed with advice, tools, resources and insights… and answered replies to those emails without charge.

I’ve worked with experts and trusted contacts to create multiple dozens of information products that deliver useful information in a way that’s easy to follow.

I’ve worked with thousands of customers – many of whom have stuck with me for years and sent me their inspiring success stories.

This is because they know that I’m always there at the end of an email to help them out if they have a problem or need some encouragement.

You could say that this style of business ‘requires more work’.

But the advantages far outweigh the extra care you take.

Because when you deliver what you promise in an honest way…

• You don’t need a giant audience (because you get repeat sales).
• You don’t need to spend as much time and money searching for new customers.
• You can upsell customers to higher priced, higher-value services that make more money (because they trust you)
• You don’t need to pretend you’re someone you’re not or hide yourself away for fear of reprisals.
• You don’t have to deal with lots of complaints and problems.
• You can enjoy your work and feel proud of your business.
• You can keep making money from a growing business for years (even decades, like me!)

All it takes is that extra effort to care about your customers and what you deliver to them.

If you take this lesser-trodden path, you’ll separate yourself from the herd of newbie home entrepreneurs trying to make fast money… and become one of the 5% who succeed over the long-term – and make a life-changing income!

After all, there’s so much noise out there with so many people shouting for attention from offers that sound the same.

So if you’re shopping around for a course or blueprint, always ask yourself.

Do they genuinely teach something useful – or just tease?

Do they have my best interests in mind?

Do they take responsibility if something goes wrong?

Do I feel confused and pressured by their offer?

And if you’re thinking about starting a home business yourself, make sure that you consider these questions when you make your products and services.

The Care Factor

The upshot is, you need to care about your customers if you want to succeed.

Because if you can show that you care, people will trust you.

That means they’ll buy again from you… refer you to friends… share your content on social media… open your emails… respond to your offers… join your invitation lists…

This directly impacts how much income you make, how fast your business will grow and how long it will last.

And if you need guidance on this, then let me share the code that I live by in my own business:

• Be honest about who you are, and be willing to admit your flaws as well as your strengths.
• Follow through on your promises even when it’s not convenient.
• Make things as easy as possible for customers when it comes to product delivery, refunds and support.
• Treat your free subscribers, website visitors and social media followers like paying clients, giving them something tangible and useful that helps them.
• Always assume there’s a real person on the other end of the screen when you communicate with customers or enquirers.

Of course, you’ll make mistakes now and then – I have made plenty in the past 23 years!

But if people sense that you genuinely have their best interests in mind, they’ll usually forgive you and stick around for more.

I believe that’s the secret to why we’ve been in business since 2003!

And I’m hopefully going to be here for a long while more, helping get you to where you want to go in life.