Friday, July 18, 2008

When The Universe Is Trying To Tell You Something

Many people who teach law of attraction and abundance are faced with the issues that it always brings up in their lives. Just what are they attracting to themselves and can they listen to the messages the Universe is trying to teach them.

Social Media Marketing System
This article will explore the recent re-launch of the Social Media Marketing System (SMMS) and explain from an insiders perspective some of the issues and controversies that were brought to the surface during this process.

I spent four hours last night on the phone to Brian Campbell going over these details and analysing the successes and failures, taking the lessons that we learned so that we can improve on what went well and to avoid some of the tactics that are now obviously outdated and no longer as effective

Free training
Brian Campbell began the re-launch of SMMS over a month ago, during the first week of June, he had intended to bring the launch to a conclusion around summer solstice on 21st of June. Everything was running smoothly and in the first week about 800 people had signed up for the free training that he was offering.

A Spanner In The Works
Brian hit the first major snag just as he was just about to release a new set of trainings. His internet hosting company had let him down and he was forced to migrate servers. Which meant shutting down SMMS for 2 and a half days while he worked non stop to get the system up and running again. His main concern was to ensure the quality of service to all his existing paying members and he had no choice but to put the launch on hold while he dealt with these technical difficulties.

This was like putting a bucket of water on the fire, the momentum that he had built up until then was frustrated and he was forced to re-schedule his plans.

Tickets Already Booked
Brian Had already set the date for handing over the $10,000 cheque to John Chow in Vancouver , his flight tickets were booked weeks before and all the arrangements were set. He was forced to improvise and the media publicity that he had hoped from the $10,000 cheque couldn't be used as effectively as he had once intended

A Change in Direction
Brian then decided to change tactics and instead of going for the soft launch that he had had originally planned he chose to go for the all out in your face full frontal attack . Using the aggressive marketing tactics that have been so prevalent in the internet marketing world in the past.

A Viral Buzz
He launched P.R.I.S.M and created a huge Buzz on Facebook, the group grew extremely rapidly and had a massive viral effect because of the number of people who were posting on the group wall and making videos. His main leverage this time was not based on the quality of what he was teaching but was more focused on using scarcity tactics, exclusivity and the carrot of giving away another $15,000.

Old Tactics Leave Some People Jaded
It was a masterful display of the power that these psychological marketing methods can have over some people. And the were successful to an extent

I am not a personal fan of this type of marketing and in my opinion I think he may have turned a lot of people off. I had my reservations and maybe even damaged my own reputation by supporting him and promoting what he was doing to many of my own group members. It was a good learning experience and I know for future situations how I will choose to respond.

Many of those who have been around for a while are jaded by these old school strategies of false scarcity and emotional manipulation. Its exciting to watch but when the dust settles it leaves a strange taste in the mouth because they are not rooted in the principles of wealth and abundance that underlies a lot of what Brian normally teaches

The Rules Have Now Changed
Social Media has changed this whole game. Everything is much more transparent and real time comments and analysis expose the fact that a lot of people don't appreciate this way of operating.
What might have worked for the past 5 years no longer has the same effect, this was clearly revealed in the recent Stompernet launch and the subsequent backlash that was expressed on Rick Butts blog

John Reese who just launched his Traffic Secrets 2 course deliberately avoided using any type of scarcity tactic in his sales presentation. As a guy who tests and tracks everything you can be sure he is aware of the latest trends and this was the reason for his decision.

Bad Timing
The final difficulties that Brian faced were due to the setbacks and timing of his launch. This had pushed him up to the fourth of July Weekend and he needed to bring it to a conclusion before then.

The massive attention that he had hoped would go towards his sales letter was distracted by the holiday period which meant that the results that he had hoped for were slightly less than he had anticipated and while it was still successful and many new members joined SMMS there are still many people who could greatly benefit who chose not to participate. Let this be a lesson to all those who plan on launching a product or service in the future pay careful attention to the public holidays and social calendar so you can have everyone's full and undivided attention.

Health Issues
After 3 months of burning the candle at both ends Brian finally took a short break over the holiday weekend and gave himself the rest that he needed and deserved. He discovered that he needed more time to recharge himself and so instead of doing what most marketers would do, which is to bring in all those who were still sitting on the fence. Brian finally chose to sacrifice his original goals rather than burn himself out and damage his health. Having made this mistake in the past and being forced to take a year off from work and walk away from a $2 million business, he was not going to make the same mistake twice.

A Difficult Dilemma
When faced with the option of making more money as opposed to being fit and healthy which would you choose. This is a difficult dilemma and one that many people face because their financial success influences so many other areas of their life, and their family are lifestyle are often dependant on their income. Some are often tempted to choose money and work to the detriment of their physical health and well being and I will explore this topic in greater detail in a future blog post

Victim Of Your Own Success
Anyone who makes themselves publicly available can sometimes be the victim of their own success. With too many people demanding his attention and the pressures of running his existing membership and training program, Brian could no longer offer the personal connection that had been a major factor in the success of his initial launch. I know that in the future that he will be slowing down to focus more on the success of the existing SMMS members and building a solid base with PRISM and his recently released MIND programs

Takeaways and Conclusion
This article is a summary of my own personal opinions I am sure Brian will soon respond with his own version of events and while there are many minor details I missed out I hope you get the general drift. I learned some valuable lessons which are summarised below.

○ Honour the relationships that you have already spent time developing,
○ Concentrate on giving value to as many people as possible
○ Maintain the core principles that you stand for in everything you do
○ Always question whether a short term gain is worth risking your reputation
○ Health and well being are much more important than money
○ When the universe throws obstacles and barriers in your path pay close attention maybe you are missing something important
○ Timing and momentum are vitally important concepts to understand and apply
○ Even the best plans have to be changed at the last moment so learn to be flexible and improvise


I have received a lot of extra comments on my imported facebook notes you can read them all by clicking here - Extra Comments

4 comments:

Rick Butts said...

This is a very well written and well thought out piece. I really enjoyed reading it.

A good story is the best illustration of all!

I plan to link to you on my site - even though you already have a trackback.

Rick Butts

Nancy Perez said...

Great Article Ian
I think it explains alot about the situations that Brian Campbell has been experiencing and others have been wondering about.

At the end of the day, Brian is human like all of us and we must learn from our own mistakes and the mistakes of others as well.

Thanks for sharing this!

Nancy Arroyo-Perez

J. A. Colon said...

Excellent analysis, as always, the law of abundance is not to be denied.

I have learned a lot from following Brian's experience, and from the great oportunity to network with so many successful, and insightfull people.

Thank you again for another great piece.

Joe

Anonymous said...

Thank you Ian, for this beautifully well written article. You did a great job of telling it like it was and like it is.

I too got burned out from burning the candle at both ends for months on end and had to take a three week break to regain my balance, energy, and joy.

Could it be that the #1 law of prosperity is to "Honor Thyself?"

Fortunately, Brian has made such a contribution and is so clearly way over the line on the "pay it forward" side, that I personally, can forgive him even the most ruthless of tactics if need be. The man is a teddy bear with a huge heart and we all know it.

Thanks again Ian. I really enjoyed this article.

Alexandra Barrett