When it arrived, I thumbed through it. The
first part, the story of Linky & Dinky, was
fun. But I found the second part, the "crucial
facts" I need to know, fascinating. To wit:

"Poor people (or people who appear poor)
get better deals."

"This one tidbit alone may change your life:
Flushable baby wipes. Works great on kids
and grown-ups."

"A joke you made up will come across much
funnier to your audience if you first attribute
it to someone known to be funny. For example,
'Jerry Seinfeld said...'"

And so on.

But a real thought provoker came when I read this:

"I try not to buy anything from anybody who is
trying to sell it to me. Be it gold coins, heating oil,
timeshares, pizza coupons, mutual funds,
exercise equipment, etc., because I just think
that anything worth buying doesn't have to be 'sold.'"

Hmmm.

Now, how is it that I knew of their book, and bought it?

They had to tell me about it.

And if you look back to the title of their book, you'll see
that it is a fine example of good copywriting at work.

So, did they sell me on their book?

If you go to their site at http://linkydinky.com/
and click on the link on the left, about their book,
you'll see some fun copywriting, and some wild
pictures.

Oprah reading their book? Hardly true. Bush
reading their book. No way. But Linky & Dinky
don't regard fabricated pictures as "selling."
(Actually, it's lying, but let's not quibble here.)

Again, are they selling me?

You bet.

All of it is designed to sell their book.

So, when the authors said they don't want to
be sold, what did they mean?

I suspect they don't like the huff and puff and
blow yourself up long hype that is out there.

I suspect they don't like people who won't
shut up about their product or service.

I suspect they prefer that a sale be made
on the first look of a product.

I suspect they hate it when they're offered
golf clubs when they despise golf.

I agree with all of that. I don't think good marketing drives
its point into the heads of those who don't want to hear it.
I think good marketing is always a match of product to
prospect. When it isn't a match, people hate it. They feel
they are being sold.

Said another way, junk mail is only junk when
it isn't relevant.

Is your marketing speaking to the people who
want to hear it?

If so, they'll regard it as welcome news.

If not, expect a fiery review in the next issue of
http://linkydinky.com/

Finally, I suspect that Linky & Dinky, like most
people, have a love-hate affair with money.

They hate having to sell and they hate selling,
but they also love money and what it can do
for them. This is warped thinking. Everyone
sells. Everyone. No exceptions. If you want to
argue about it, then you are selling me on your
belief. Again, we all sell. Own it.

As soon as you get clear that money is ok and
selling is ok, the sooner you can enjoy the process
and make money, too.

Thus ends/begins the lesson for today.