I sold that product for $12.95 in Tower Books, but most copies ended up being sold over the Internet.  Folks with shell accounts would buy it for their friends who couldn't use shell accounts.  Back then there was no way to securely accept credit cards over the Internet, so most orders were placed by FAX, phone or postal mail.

Dale King: James, in your article "Split-Testing Sucks" you wrote, It isn?t the first time I disagree with 98% of marketing ?gurus? and it probably won?t be the last." Would you mind explaining that statement?

James Brausch: I have a different approach to marketing that most of the self-proclaimed "marketing gurus".  That very word tells you their approach.  The word "guru" is a word used by three major religions to describe their religious teachers.  I don't consider marketing a religion.

I take the view that marketing is just another science.  If you want to find out what works, you can just do a study and find out the facts.  You don't need gurus, shamans, rain dances, seances or any other contact with the spirit world.  You can just do a statistical analysis of what works vs. what doesn't work.

So then why wouldn't I disagree with the "gurus" 100% of the time? Simple.  Sometimes they get it right.  They claim that testimonials on a sales letter increases profitability.  I did the study.  That's exactly right.  I agree with them on that point because it is factually correct. A much higher percentage of profitable sites have a testimonial on them than unprofitable sites.  No problem.

Most gurus claim that adding bonuses to a sales page increases profitability.  I disagree with them on that.  It is factually wrong. Offering bonuses has a very high correlation with unprofitable pages, not profitable pages.

It isn't a matter of disagreeing with them so that I can be controversial. I just disagree with them when they are wrong.  That turns out to be about 98% of the time.

Since they are in full control of their religion and they are just making crap up, I think it would be easier for them to change their religion to be more factual than it would be for me to change the facts of the universe to suit them.

Dale King: Some Internet Marketing experts advise newbies to steer clear of certains areas of Internet Marketing, like selling e-books on how to make money, advertising services, SEO services, copywriting, etc., because it's too competitive. Do you agree with that assessment?

James Brausch: I agree on the moral point.  You don't have the right to teach something that you don't know for yourself already.

However, I don't think you should stay away from those markets if you have something to offer.  They are great markets.  They are markets with a huge need and are clogged with a bunch of scams.  If you have something to offer, get in there and balance it out a little.

Dale King: How is Internet Marketing different now, as opposed to when you first got started online?

James Brausch: The Internet has changed a lot.  Socialism used to rule on the Internet and anyone with any commercial interest in the Internet was shunned.

Now, .com domains outnumber .org, .net, .edu and .gov domains combined. Marketing hasn't changed though.

Dale King: How important has goal-setting been to your overall
success?

James Brausch: I don't set goals.  I used to buy into that crap and was always slacking off because I had already exceeded my goal... or beating myself up because I hadn't reached a goal.

I now prefer to live life as fast as I can for as long as I can... and then I rest.

Dale King: How important has reading been to your overall success?

James Brausch: I'm not sure I could ever give enough credit to reading.  I do read about 2 books a week and realize that is more than most folks.  I sometimes notice when I get inspiration from a book, but think I often just don't notice.

I think it's important to note that such inspiration sometimes comes from science fiction books, sometimes the scriptures, sometimes a school textbook that I pick up.

I don't have a TV and I am virtually certain that IS a critical success factor.

Dale King: If you could recommend one book that all Internet marketers should read, what would it be?

James Brausch: I really liked Seth Godin's Idea Virus.

Dale King: In your opinion, what technology has changed Internet Marketing the most over the last 5 years?

James Brausch: It's just marketing.  I don't think technology has much to do with it. 

We use words to sell.  That hasn't changed since at least 1925.  Sure, the words change, but the method to find out what words currently sell... that has been the same since 1925 or earlier.

Sure, it's faster to get a database of profitable ads and unprofitable ads by taking slices of Google ads across a couple weeks of time.   The technique is the same as in 1925 when newspaper ads were studied in the same way though.  Marketing doesn't change very much due to technology.

Dale King: What new technology do you see changing Internet Marketing over the next 5 years?

James Brausch: I really don't see marketing changing very much.  The rules are pretty much in concrete.  They are based on humans, not technology.

Dale King: What  person has influenced you the most in your lifetime, and how?

James Brausch: My grandmother.  She was a legitimately good person with every quality I could ever hope for in myself.  I greatly admired her and often try to model myself after her.

Dale King: If you could give my readers one piece of advice, what would it be?

James Brausch: Sorry... it can't be one thing.  I can break it down into three things though.  In all the mentoring that I do, I have notice that three things cause 98% of all failures:

1. Not taking action.

2. Not taking focused action.  Jumping from one project to another without
finishing anything.

3. Not following a proven path.  In almost all cases (unless you want to be the first man on Mars or something like that), there are others who have done what you want to do.  They are often very willing to help you along the same path.  Use them.  Follow proven paths.

The other 2% you probably have no control over.  Yes; it's possible a lightning strike will hit you today or you will suddenly fall unconcious with a deadly heart attack.  So what?

If you avoid those 3 things above, you have an excellent chance of success.  Just take action, focus and follow a proven path.

Dale King: Thank you very much James. I appreciate you taking the time to do this interview.

James Brausch: You're welcome!  Thank you for the opportunity.  Let me know if there is ever anything I can do for you.

James can be reached at http://jamesbrausch.com