It’s official!

Now in it’s third season, Donald Trump’s killer television series “The Apprentice” is officially a “franchise.”

With new seasons in the making, a clothing line that carries “The Apprentice” brand, DVD’s in production, and mega-fortunes to be made, it’s no surprise that the king of real estate… a man who knows a good thing when he sees it… is involved.

I like Donald Trump a lot.

Mostly because I learn something new from him every time I watch him in action.

One of the barbs critics aim at Donald Trump is that he’s a shameless egomaniac who can’t get enough of the spotlight.

Well, they may call it egomania, but from my perspective… it’s a brilliant business strategy.

I’ll admit it: I’m a marketer.

My job is to make people sit up and take notice of my clients (and their products or services), and to deliver a “brand” message at every opportunity.

That’s exactly what “The Donald” does.

If that makes me him an egocentric, self-congratulatory target for media pundits, who cares?  Because it also makes him a “household name”…in households from Bangor, Maine to Bangkok Thailand.

Brand recognition is the foundation of every marketing strategy.

If you’re a small business owner, YOU are your brand.

That means you must sell yourself as well as your product or service.

Trump understands the concept, and what’s why you see his brand Trump on everything.

You’ve got to be willing to get name out there… Willing to say, “Hey look me!”… Ready to stand up for yourself, believe in yourself, and blow your own horn…

Loudly and as often as possible.

Have you noticed that each episode of “The Apprentice” includes a segment devoted to a current Trump project?

This as an opportunity for “The Donald” to billboard a success story.

Week after week, he tells millions of people, “I’m a great real estate giant and here’s the proof.”  Take a tip from “The Donald”…

You’ve got to be your own full-time marketing campaign 24 hours a day… because nobody else will!

Especially if you’re an entrepreneur.

When you’re the own of a business, especially a new business, it’s kind of like being a parent.

Before your business can “talk”… before your “little one” has grown and established a reputation that literally “speaks for itself”… you need to be the “spokesperson.”

How long will this last?

You may not want to hear this, but the answer is — forever.  You must always be ready to carry the banner for your business and your success.

So, before you give Donald Trump “two thumbs done” for shameless self-promotion, consider how his ego… and his knack for savvy marketing… is a real asset to his business empire.

If it’s good enough for “The Donald,” it’s good enough for me… and YOU, too. The next time you sit down for the next episode of the “Book Smarts vs. Street Smarts” season of “The Apprentice,” open your mind.

Instead of picking at the negative traits of “The Donald” or his “top guns” Carolyn and George, think about their success and ask yourself…

What can I learn from this guy? How does he marketing himself? How can I adapt this concept to me and my business?

The truth is, if you can’t get at least a handful of “golden nuggets” from this super-successful entrepreneur, you may be hopeless.

What I’d like to do is share some of the key marketing insights I’ve learned from Donald Trump and “The Apprentice” that you, too, can use in your business.

Before we get to the marketing insights, however, there’s a bigger business concept that you need to understand.

I’ll give it to you the way I like best… straight…Lok-ed and loaded” to blow your mind:

You have something to learn from people of any age, any background, any education, and any level of success.

The candidate on “The Apprentice” can’t hold a handle to Donald Trump’s success.  Yet each week, they pull rabbits out of hats, rising (more or less) to meet the challenges presented to them.

Every new task makes them better in business as they evolve, refine strategies, and respond to what they’re earning.  There’s no better formula for success than the flexibility and resilience they demonstrate.

So don’t just focus on “The Donald” for your weekly dose of marketing magic.

Keep an eye on the candidates, too! You never know who’s got something to teach you.

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Apprentice Marketing Lesson #1 – Too Much Is Never Enough

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Actually, “too much is never enough” was a successful slogan from the early days of MTV, but it could just as easily be the “poster child” for marketing.  You can never connect with consumers too frequently.

There’s a marketing truism out there:  To sell a prospect, you’ll need to make repeated contact.  That’s why most direct mail campaigns use a minimum of three messages, why magazines put as many as five subscription forms in each issue, and why “The Donald” says the word “Trump” as many times as he can in every episode of “The Apprentice.”

Does it make a difference? Can it make “The Donald” even more successful? Definitely.

In the 21st Century, every consumer is bombarded with advertising messages…up to 3,000 a day for some people.

After a while, they just tune out. Or, if they don’t tune-out, consumers are often so distracted that they don’t really hear or see a marketing message.

It’s more effective to send three mailers to 1,000 prospects than one mailer to 3,000though the cost is the same. Another approach is a “timed” or “sequenced” campaign.

In this kind of campaign, message #1 is a teaser. #2 is the “guts” and a gift offer. #3 gives ordering instructions. The sequenced approach allows you to generate both expectations and recognition.

Prospects look forward to hearing from you.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that you need to keep hammering away at the eyes and ears of potential prospects. But the main reason for this many not be as obvious as you think…

By repeating your marketing message over and over, you “imbed” that message in the consumer’s mind. Then, when the consumer needs what you have to offer, they’ll think of you first… even if aren’t actively marketing to them in the moment.

The goal is to make yourself the automatic go-to solution for a problem whenever that problem occurs.  The consumer’s sub-conscious will do the driving.

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Apprentice Marketing Lesson #2 – Sex Sells, But Too Much Sex Repels

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The candidates chosen for “The Apprentice” are uniformly attractive, articulate, and the kind of people that most other people enjoy looking at.

The producers of the show — including Mark Burnett who produces that other mega-hit “Survivor” — know that sex sells on television.

Sex sells in marketing, too.

During the second season of “The Apprentice” when “The Donald” pitted the men against the women, tasks were routinely won thanks to sex appeal… women’s AND men’s.

(You may recall that the men’s team used one of their attractive members to flirt with and win over a table of gay diners during a restaurant challenge.)

But if you weren’t watching closely, you might have missed the episode where sex didn’t sell — big time… and THAT is the point of this mini-lesson.

In one of the last episodes of the second season, candidates were challenged to sell candy.

On one team, two blonde women donned matching red leotards and flashed — their smiles only — at male prospects.

Sales were brisk because, as we all know, sex sells…and for most men there’s nothing sexier than a leggy blonde.

The other team was struggling, so with just minutes to spare before the end of a task, one team member offered to drop her skirt as a way to convince male passersby to buy her candy.

They bought… in droves.

They weren’t buying candy, of course, they were buying sex… just like the guy who finds a car suddenly irresistible because of the leggy swimsuit model that’s advertising it at the Auto Show… and just like the guys who bought from the blonde “twins” on the other team.

The problem with the “buy my candy and you can see my buns” approach is that it was over the top.

As “The Donald” pointed out in the boardroom, the candidate wasn’t selling candy… she was selling sex literally, with a candy bar bonus.

That, my friends, is why so many marketers are referred to as prostitutes… and why the candidate who dropped her skirt was dropped from the show at the end of the task.

As “The Donald” put it so eloquently: You’re fired!

The skirt-dropping candidate was fired despite the fact that she had fulfilled her mission — to make money.  Why?  By over-selling sexuality, she left a negative over-all impression.

Sex is powerful stuff…use it wisely and sparingly.

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Apprentice Marketing Secret #3: Cross-Promotion

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I’ve talked about this concept until I am blue in the face, but I still meet prospective clients who stubbornly say, “My product is such a winner that I don’t need to partner with other businesses and give away any of my profits.” That’s insane!

Or more delicately “No man is an island”…and no business is either. There’s not a company on earth that can survive without a constant stream of qualified prospects coming through the door.

So it doesn’t matter what industry you’re in or what product/service you make available, whoever you are…

Tying your product to another popular product, service, business, or person is always a winning marketing strategy.

“The Apprentice” has featured cross-promotions with Burger King, Pepsi, the Planet Hollywood restaurant chain, and other well-know, extremely successful businesses.

If these super-corporations benefit from cross-promotions, doesn’t it seem logical that your business can, too?

The biggest trend in high-end marketing today is film and TV cross- promotions. Ever since E.T. gave Reese’s Pieces a huge boost, marketers have aggressively tried to get their products “placed” in films and television shows.

Having a good product or service is NOT enough…although it’s certainly “Job 1.” Quality and value bring your customers back for more. But how the heck do they do how wonderful your stuff is if they haven’t even bought from you yet?

In order to make a sale, you need someone you can sell to. To achieve that you need effective marketing systems to get these people in your funnel in the first place.

Cross-promotion is the key.

Customers who are already “sold” on the business your partnering with become, essentially, pre-sold on you.

And cross-promotion allows you to expand your marketing reach without spending any additional marketing dollars.

Can you imagine how much Burger King would have to pay for a 15-second spot during “The Apprentice.”

By appearing within the show in a carefully negotiated cross-promotion, Burger King gets all the gain (aka the audience) with none of the pain (advertising expenses)

What did “The Donald” get out of all of this?  In addition to finding a company willing to let his apprentices take over their business for the day, consumers will now “think Trump” when they purchase one of the burgers promoted on the show.

Clever, huh?

You’re Fired… Fired-Up, That Is

I’ve “distilled” the essence of just three of the effective marketing concepts that Donald Trump has accidentally shared on “The Apprentice.”  They’re the same strategies he uses in his own business, but he’s let the cat out of the bag and now his secrets are YOUR secrets

If you’re inspired by what you’ve read here and would like to go deep into Trump’s mind, “The Donald” has written several powerful books filled with stories, anecdotes, secrets, and amazingly effective techniques for making it to the top… and staying there through thick and thin.

*Trump: How to Get Rich
*Trump: The Way to the Top
*Trump: Surviving at the Top
*Trump: The Art of the Deal
*Trump: The Art of Survival

Did you notice that each book leads with the word “Trump”? He never misses an opportunity to promote his brand.

I told you “The Donald” was a master marketer!

And consider this: if you can beg, borrow, or steal just one or two ideas from a man who’s sitting on a billion-dollar empire… ideas that could jumpstart your business empire… wouldn’t it be worth 20 bucks? (Less if you get a second-hand copy on Ebay).

This is your chance to be “The Apprentice” of Donald Trump… to learn from the master… without worrying about getting fired on national television.

Dan Lok

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A former college dropout, Dan Lok transformed himself from a grocery bagger in a local supermarket to a multi-millionaire. Today, Dan is one of the most sought-after business mentors on the Web, as well as a best-selling author. His reputation includes his title as the World’s #1 Website Conversion Expert.

To find out what Dan is up to now, visit him at: www.WebsiteConversionExpert.com

I’m in the middle of reading this book you may have heard of…

It’s called “The 4-Hour Workweek” and it’s written by a 30-year-old millionaire named Timothy Ferriss — and this sucker has been flying off the shelves from coast to coast.

The book’s philosophy essentially boils down to this…

If you manage your time, your goals, and your priorities effectively, it’s totally possible for you to generate a comfortable, full-time income working just 4 hours per week.

Goodbye trying to fit your social life around your 9-to-5 job, and hello freedom and prosperity!

Seriously though — who doesn’t want that? No wonder this book’s become an instant best-seller.

But since releasing it, Tim Ferriss has come under some serious fire from prominent entrepreneurs who are whining (let’s be honest) that designing your ‘ideal lifestyle’ of minimal work and maximum play is not that simple… that it takes YEARS of hard work, blood, sweat, and tears to make that happen.

But I beg to differ!

I’ve know many people who have started their own moneymaking Internet businesses from scratch. (In fact, I count myself among their number!)

And I can tell you this without a shadow of a doubt:

The success people like us have achieved did NOT come as a result of how much time we’ve spent working on our businesses, but what we’ve DONE with the time we’ve spent.

For example: Someone with clear, intentional goals and a step-by-step action plan will accomplish wayyyyy more in 60 minutes than someone who is mired in information overload and analysis paralysis will accomplish in 8 hours.

I’ve seen high school drop outs, retirees who are downright scared of computers, and even teenagers achieve *massive* success on the Internet ‘working’ as little as 4 hours per week… and in some cases, even less than that!

It’s possible — I’ve seen it, I’ve done it, and I’d like you to do it, too.

To discover how we did it, click here now:

Here’s another secret for you…

You don’t have to know it all, learn it all, or spend days at a time researching your next step to generate a full-time income on the Internet. You simply need to surround yourself with people who have the expertise that you don’t, and let them steer you along towards success.

But where can you find such experts willing to openly share their expertise and stand over your shoulder as you grow your own moneymaking website? Click here now to find out more about this Insider Club!

The year was 1996. The month was June or July if I recall correctly.

I was on the road speaking in two cities a weekend on the topic of Internet marketing with my friend Jonathan Mizel and my new friend (at the time) Declan Dunn.

It was a sweet gig. We’d speak in a city on Friday. Drive to another city. Speak again. And on Saturday night we got to go see the city.

Things that stand out in my mind are rainy days in Seattle and buying coffee at a coffee stand in the parking garage at the Seattle airport. (I dare say the ONLY coffee stand in an airport parking garage in the U.S.)

The taste of Chicago sticks in my mind because it’s a spectacular event.

New York was a city I was scared to speak in but later loved because the people are wonderful.

I could go on and on about St. Louis, Miami, Nashville, Boston, LA, San Francisco, Cincinatti, and many other cities with great memories.

Anyway, the point is, my new friend Declan Dunn heard my speech on how to write sales letters 4 or 5 times.

Before you know it, he’d whipped up his very own pithy sales letter for his product.

One night in my hotel room when we were hanging out he asked me what I thought of it.

In no uncertain terms, I told him it was a wreck. And why it was a wreck.

Next weekend he showed it to me again.

It was better. There were a few tweaks needed.

Next week, my eyes popped out.

He came back with a letter to die for that sold great guns after he put it up on his web site.

That was the last time I ever critiqued or needed to critique a letter for Declan. In short order, he was spitting out copy at furious rates as good or better than I could write.

I remember an interview with the late comedian Red Skelton once. Talking about up and coming comedians, he said, “the cream rises to the top.”

How true that is. Dec went out to consult with American Express and other big name companies. Today he is a very in demand seminar speaker for good reasons. Basically, he’s a hot shot marketer who gets paid big bucks just for sharing the wealth of his knowledge.

I can’t take ANY credit for his success. Other than I held a light up and said this is the path you need to take to make this letter sell your stuff.

What does this have to do with you?

I don’t know how high you can jump or what altitude you can soar to. But like Jonathan Livingston Seagull in the novel by the same name, you’ll never know how high you can fly unless you try.

And it certainly helps if you seek out a little sage advice along the way.

A few well-chosen words here or there about your sales letter, marketing strategy or product idea could be the catalyst you need to turn you from a green copywriter wet behind the ears to an in demand pro that gets paid thousands of dollars to tap out a few words on a keyboard.

I wish I had a lot more Declan Dunn’s and Jim Edward’s to talk about.

Maybe you are one of them.

If writing sales copy is a major struggle for you as it once was for Declan then you need to check out:   AWESOME SALESCOPY 

Have you ever visited a site, like what you see… and then told your friends about it?

OR

Have your friends ever told you about an interesting or useful site they’ve visited in the last 30 days?

I’ll bet this happens almost every day, or at least weekly. Believe it or not there is actually a method to this madness. These seemingly random acts of “kindness” or referral may actually dramatically impact your business.

OK Dan, so what are you talking about, right?

I am talking about Viral Marketing. Viral marketing is key to your business. It is a simple and effective tool you can use to drive traffic to your site, without spending thousands of dollars implementing more expensive marketing tools.

How can you take advantage of viral marketing?

The easiest to make your visitors tell their friends and relatives about your site is by implementing a “tell-a-friend” script.

If done correctly, a “tell-a-friend” script is one of the most powerful traffic-generation strategies you’ll ever use. And it’s FREE!

Here’s how it works…

You ask your visitors to enter the name and e-mail address of friends and relatives they think will be interested in your site. Then, the script automatically sends a personalized e-mail promotion your site to all their friends from the visitor.

Now how are you going to get your visitors to enter the names of their friends and relatives that may have an interest in your site? Simple… Give them an incentive. Make them an offer. Tell them WHY they should refer their friends.

You can’t just expect your visitors to enter information. Remember they are giving up some of their free time to refer other people to you. You have to make it worth their while. You have to sell it.

If you want to watch the way I do it, go to:   Tell A Friend

Don’t forget, you also have to provide your customers with practical and useful content. You want information on your site your visitors truly believe will benefit their friends.

After all, they don’t want to look like an idiot, and neither do you! If you don’t provide good content, in fact if you provide anything but the best, I don’t care what “bribes” you offer… your visitors won’t refer anybody to you.

By doing this you can simply and easily virally grow your list automatically!

Where do you find “tell a friend” scripts? You could get some free tell a friend scripts if you do a Google search.

This is the script I use is:

http://www.tafpro.com

And if you technical dummy like me, you can ask Paul to install the script for you.

A simple twist to this strategy is you can have a tell-a-friend contest as well. A protégé of mine did a tell-a-friend contest that was extremely successful. He increased his traffic by 5-fold in that week. How?

What he did was very simple, stating whoever referred the most visitors to his site in that week would get a free IPOD. Slack, eh?

Let me you another killer viral marketing strategy that very few people use.

Giving away a free e-book is a pretty common strategy. But what I want you to do is to create an e-book for your AFFILIATES to give away to their lists.

Let’s say you have a 20-page e-book. Instead of asking your subscribers to pass it along (which is not very effective) you encourage your visitors to join your affiliate program. Then you let them customize and brand the e-book with their own affiliate links for your products!

Now, they’re motivated to tell everyone about you. Now they’re motivated to pass it along the e-book to every single soul they know. Why? They are getting something out of it!

That’s not all. The people who read the e-book might also become your affiliates, they will go to your sites, create more customized e-books and they too will pass those e-books to more people.

Do you understand the power of this? That’s viral marketing on steroid!

If you’re still a little confused, check out.  Viral PDF

And see the various brandable e-books I offer my affiliates.

And the people who read your e-books are much better prospects because they’re pre-sold on your materials. So they’re much more likely to buy from you when they hit your sales page.

So what are you waiting for? Start cranking your “viral marketing” machine today. You’ll see that your traffic and sales will grow steadily with absolutely no work on your part.

Like the infomercial guru Ron Popiel said, “Just set it and forget it!”

Sincerely,

Dan Lok

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A former college dropout, Dan Lok transformed himself from a grocery bagger in a local supermarket to a multi-millionaire. Today, Dan is one of the most sought-after business mentors on the Web, as well as a best-selling author. His reputation includes his title as the World’s #1 Website Conversion Expert.

To find out what Dan is up to now, visit him at:  Website Conversion Expert