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How To Make Over $100,000 Every Year With Your Own Catalog Selling
Problem-Solving Information Products

by Dr. Jeffrey Lant

In just the last week alone, two mail order entrepreneurs have approached
me for help in selling their problem-solving information products, in this
case books. One had priced his product at about $15, the other even lower.
They wanted to create a direct response campaign for their products. But, in
a couple of minutes, I was able to show them how unlikely it was for them to
make money selling a single information product by mail.

The Facts

Their expenses, you see, include:

. the actual cost of the product;
. designing, laying out and printing the sales literature;
. renting names;
. mailing house costs, and, of course
. postage.

These real costs are considerable. Beyond them, however, you must consider
the cost of the time and effort it takes you to fulfill your orders and
generally oversee this kind of business.

Where's the profit in all this with a single product selling for $15? Hard to
see, when you consider that Lant's rule of thumb is that you must break
even at .5% (that's one half of one percent) response.

Why, then, do so many people keep thinking they're going to make their first
million in mail order selling just one product at a price that's certain to doom
them? There are lots of reasons including the continuing American desire to
get rich quick, lack of knowledge about how mail order works, and just plain
obstinant stupidity.

The truth is that selling information products by mail is a goldmine... but not
when you're selling just one... or two. The only way to fly is by creating your
own catalog of problem-solving products. This is how you get the economy of
scale you need to succeed.

Why Catalogs Make Sense

It's easy to see why catalogs are the only way to go. Consider postage, for
instance. If you mail two pages of marketing information about one book
third class (bulk rate), you pay 16.7 cents each. If you mail 16 pages of
marketing information about 130 info-products and services (as I do each
quarter), you pay... 16.7 cents. It costs you 16.7 cents in postage alone to
promote your single product. It costs me .00128 cents per item in postage
costs. Who's ahead in this game? Granted, you'll probably make more from
your single item than I will make from any single item in my catalog... but in
the long run, by focusing on a single item you're far more vulnerable. After
all, if someone doesn't like the single thing you're selling... you're finished. If
someone doesn't like the single thing I'm selling... there's 129 other choices!

Likewise, the cost of your renting names to sell a single item (another major
expense) is the same for you with one item... or for me. And though your
printing costs will undoubtedly be less for a single item... you are paying a
far higher price proportionately for that item, than I am for 130. This is why
you can't expect to sell a single item... or even a few items... and make much,
if any, profit... unless those items sell for $40 or more apiece.

Deciding To Establish Your Own Catalog

Once you're convinced that the economics of mail order are in your favor
only if you create a line of information products, it's time to decide what
kinds of problem-solving products you'll sell. Make no mistake about it, the
people who make money selling problem-solving info-products specialize in
one field or another. They may decide to concentrate in personal money
management, health, education, small business development, nonprofit
organization management, or any one of dozens of other topics. But they all
specialize!

As you consider the decision about what to specialize in, consider this:

. You need an Ultimate Benefit. Ultimate Benefits are what your customers
really want to have. Such benefits involve: security, friends, prestige, money,
health, sexual fulfillment, self-esteem, etc. Think of Ultimate Benefits as
being absolutes... things that people want from generation to generation.
These things never change... and they therefore provide you with an
ultimate reason why people will buy from you once... and keep buying from
you in the future. By contrast, benefits are comparative and always
changing. While being financial secure may be the Ultimate Benefit you're
selling, sometimes you may provide information on buying gold... sometimes
on investing in real estate as circumstances change.

Knowing what Ultimate Benefit you're delivering is crucial. When you know
what people really want from you... you'll know whether any given product
you review makes sense for you. Will it help people achieve the Ultimate
Benefit you deliver? Or does it take you off the track? The products sold by
superior information sellers are all linked... all offer the same Ultimate
Benefit. This gives you synergy and reinforces in your prospects' minds what
you can do for them. In short, it's your niche.

Selecting Your Market

Sadly, most people selling info-products focus on the product (particularly if
they've created it!), not on their markets. The smart people in this business
look to markets first... then find the appropriate products afterwards,
knowing that markets are always more important than products.

Smart info-sellers are looking for markets that:

. are large and, if not growing (optimum), at least stable;
. projected to remain stable, and hopefully grow, in the years ahead;
. have clearly identified prospects with clearly identified or identifiable
wants;
. can be reached again and again and again because of the easy availability of
mailing lists, publications, advertising sources, etc.

If these conditions cannot be met, you are looking at the wrong market. If
these conditions can be met, it's time to start looking for products and
making deals to distribute them.

Getting The Right Products And Deals

America is the land of how-to. It has been for generations. Our countrymen
want to know how to do things... want to know how to eradicate their pains,
prevent losses, and achieve aspirations. Out of these desires literally
thousands of new problem-solving products are born each year, including
books, booklets, Special Reports, newsletters, and audio and video cassettes.
How do you know where to find them... and how to make the best deals in
representing them so you make money?

Let me say unequivocably that while there are thousands of such products
created annually and that finding them is not particularly difficult,
discovering good products you can represent with a sense of pride and
enthusiasm is not arduous. This is because much of the problem-solving
information that's produced is second-rate, or worse; it tells you what to do,
not how to do it. In other words, it does not provide the step-by-step details
and precise information the prospect needs to be able to achieve what the
title of the product promises. Thus, the real problem is finding the kind of
thorough how-to information you need... and making the kinds of deal with
its producers that will enable you to make money.

Where To Look For Products

The key to succeeding in mail order information selling is to find problem-
solving products that are not generally known and widely available through
mail order and retail outlets. What you want are products that are thorough
and useful... and difficult to find. Once you've selected your market and
Ultimate Benefit, it's time to begin the search for such products. Locate them
by:

. searching through Books in Print (published by R.R. Bowker Co and
available in most bookstores and libraries). Here's where you find a complete
list of the books currently available; a companion volume lists forthcoming
books... another good place to look so you can get the jump on your
competitors.
. scanning Publishers Weekly. Its pages are crammed with ads for books...
and three times a year it offers a catalog of the new listings of publishers.
. reviewing Literary Marketplace. This annual lists the names of all
publishers creating at least three books a year. Get their addresses and write
for catalogs.

Additionally, you must review the newsletters of such professional
publishing organizations as The National Association of Independent
Publishers, Publishers Marketing Association, and COSMEP. Here you'll find
more product listings. Also, clip ads from newspapers and professional
publications, review bibliogaphies in products you like, and leaf through
publications in bookstores. The search, you see, is never ending. Later, as you
become more established, you can send out notices of your search for
products to the periodical publications listed above; because they cater to the
publishing industry whose members are always looking for new outlets for
their products, your notices are very likely to be used... and you'll find info-
producers seeking you!

Requesting Materials You Need

When you're in the catalog business, you're also in the computer business.
You'll need a good data base program for list management (D Base IV will do
nicely), and a good word processing program. Here's where the latter comes
in handy. Since you're going to be dealing with lots of information sources,
create the template letters you need now. The first letter you need requests
sales literature from an info-product producer about a given product... or on
a given subject you're interested in and asks that you be placed on his
mailing list.

Your second letter requests review copies of selected items and establishes
your credibility. It's important that you establish who you are, what you're
doing, how often your catalog comes out, and how many people you send it
to.

When you start out in the catalog business, don't be surprised to find that
this kind of letter isn't answered. Info-product producers (as I well know!)
get lots of requests for freebies. Thus, until you've proven you can really sell
products... and not just think of selling them... show your common sense by
indicating you'll happily take slightly damaged copies to review... or pay at
least the common discount price (40-50% off retail). Most producers should
be receptive to such an offer.

Finish this letter by asking for the producer's discount and payment terms.
These will either involve his drop-shipping (here, you send your order plus
check to the producer; he ships), or your warehousing. Warning: until you're
certain you'll really be able to sell any individual product, it's always a good
idea to have the producer drop-ship for you. Why? Because you aren't
committed to stocking merchandise and tying up your capital in their
product. On the other hand, you may well sacrifice some of your discount if
you don't warehouse. In any event, whenever possible, you need a discount
of 50%, though if the price of the item is sufficiently high and the publisher
niggardly, you can probably live with 40%. Anything less than that is simply
unthinkable!

Crafting Your Catalog

One way and another, you'll soon be reviewing many problem-solving
products. Before making any final selection, make sure the product conforms
to your theme and delivers the Ultimate Benefit you need to be known for. If
it doesn't, it's the wrong choice.

Now, start writing your catalog copy. For a full-scale treatment of how to
write this crucial client-centered copy, see my new 480-page book CASH
COPY. In the meantime, here are a few key points:

. all copy must be "you" oriented... speaking directly to your buyer;
. all copy must be rich in benefits... not features; that is, it must tell the
buyer precisely what he gets when he uses the product... not just what's in
the product;
. copy must be short... action oriented... enthusiastic... and upbeat. People are
looking to you for solutions!
. copy must be personal. Your catalog should read like an extended letter
between you, an old friend, and the person receiving it.
. the copy must offer incentives for immediate action... and for buying more.
Your objective is not merely to sell one thing to your buyer... but to sell
several.
. items in your catalog should be numbered. People feel compelled to read a
complete list of numbers, where they easily skip over words.
. your copy should contain the testimonials of people you have happily used
the product; (in the beginning these can come from the product creators).

Frequency & Format

L.L. Beans, one of the country's largest and most profitable catalog houses,
became vastly more profitable when it started mailing much more often, at
least 10 times a year. When you're starting out, you probably won't be able
to afford to do that, of course. But you can and should mail at least quarterly
with the largest possible catalog you can assemble. In practice, this means a
catalog of at least 8 pages (a signature) featuring 60-70 items. As soon as
you can, increase your size to 16 pages. This will cost more, but you can keep
your costs in line by printing on newsprint. This will enable you to print
many more catalogs and take full advantage of the cost efficiency of larger
press runs. To liven up your look, by all means add a color (blue or red are
best); the cost is minimal.

Lists

If finding the right products is one of the great problems in building your
info-product empire, finding the right lists is the other. Here I wish to speak
candidly to you: you must buy quality lists. This means lists of tested mail
order buyers from reputable sources. Avoid the fly-by-night operators who
sell mailing lists of uncertain quality. They are a waste of your money. What
you want is to develop a relationship with a responsible list broker... tell him
precisely what you're trying to accomplish... and let him offer a series of
suggestions after he's researched available lists. Such lists do cost money, but
they are worth it, especially when you consider that from your buyers you
generate your own house list of buyers, the best list you can possibly have...
and the one which will deliver the greatest and most lucrative return.

Last Words

Many people dabble in information product selling. Most make no money at
all, indeed actually lose money. Don't be one of them. I assure you there are
millions to be made in mail order... by carefully selecting an Ultimate Benefit,
selecting a large and growing market to cater to, avidly searching for
suitable information products and going to the mat to get the best discount
deals for them; by creating a client-centered catalog, mailed regularly, that
speaks directly to your prospects as a knowledgeable friend and helper. If
you're willing to do this, you'll join the ranks of America's million-dollar
mail-order dealers. If you're not, you'll keep trying to figure out how to
make your fortune selling just one item at $15 or less. God help you.

Resource Box

Dr. Jeffrey Lant is well known as proprietor of the quarterly Sure-Fire
Business Success Catalog, 50 Follen St., Ste 507, Cambridge, MA 02138 or by
calling [phone]. Ask for your free year's subscription to find over
130 ways of making your business more profitable. When you want to create
catalogs and any other kind of flyer, brochure, cover letter or other
marketing communication, use Jeffrey's newest book CASH COPY: HOW TO
OFFER YOUR PRODUCTS AND SERVICES SO YOUR PROSPECTS BUY THEM... NOW!
(480 pages, $27.95 from the Sure-Fire Business Success Catalog).