Article by Charlie Wright
I promised to send this information AGES ago…
But since then other topics have slapped me over the head and screamed “WRITE ABOUT ME”. So I’ve taken a few weeks to get round to it.
If you remember, last month I asked readers the following questions:
· What do you like to see in a manual or course? Just the instructions… or more background information and education about why it works?
· What do you think of bonuses? Can there be too many?
The response was amazing. And as promised, here’s the verdict.
I’ll start with a reader, who says….
Why the ‘why’ should be separate from the ‘how’
“What I like is the 1 to 10 of how to put the process into operation. Maybe one or two pages on it to explain it, could even be more, but not all mixed together – that drives me insane. The big history of it all can be included but separately so that I can do my sociological learning and research on it when I am in that mode.
I like the statement that all should be able to be revealed in a one hour DVD, CD, video whatever, or 100 page information booklet etc. The thought of 10 hours of watching just turns me off.
Bonuses… Well one or even two that complement the system I am purchasing sounds like a good idea. But if there are loadsa bonuses I have to question what it is I am actually paying for. Also if they are all different types of biz opps I begin to wonder…
If the system I am paying for is so good, why do I need another 25 possible ways of making money that are so different”?
Good points. Well made!
Another reader agrees… sort of…
“A manual should do what it says on the tin”
“The question of what to put into Manuals (the ‘Why?’ as well as the ‘How?’) is relatively easy.
A Manual should do just what it says on the tin.
In other words, it should give full details of the product and how to use it. It should be sufficiently detailed to enable to purchaser to put the project into practice without further reference to anything, but not so detailed and complicated that the purchaser is lost in the first few pages.
In this respect, the writer of a Manual should always start with the premise that his potential reader hasn’t got the faintest clue what the author is talking about.
If a Manual author is not sure how simplistic to pitch the ‘editorial’ there is a simple litmus test that can be applied to the draft product.
The author should find three or four people – friends, family members, colleagues etc – who are completely ignorant of the product. The author should then sit these individuals down, one by one, and ask them to read the manual. The author should then ask the guinea pig to describe exactly what they would do to put the project into practice.
Better still, ask the guinea pigs to actually put the project into practice in a ‘live’ situation – under the author’s supervision, of course.
This live ‘test’ will very quickly reveal flaws in the Manual, which can then be tweaked and corrected, before more live ‘testing’.
As for D.V.D’s, Work Sheets, and other ‘goodies’, call me cynical if you will but I often find that these are added to ‘pad out’ a product, most often to try to build in extra value (and a higher purchase price, which equals more profit for the author) which simply isn’t there.
Again, the acid test is quite simple. Is the added ‘goodie’ essential for the correct implementation of the product by the purchaser? Does it add anything to the effectiveness of the product, or to the potential return on the purchaser’s investment?
If the answer to one or more of these questions is ‘yes’, then the ‘goodie’ is probably worth keeping in. Otherwise, leave it out.
If you do, you’ll probably save on postage costs anyway!
I hope you find these views useful.”
Yes, I did in fact. Thanks.
And I have to say, I tend only to recommend products that have either been around long enough for me to know that people like them, OR that they’ve been beta tested.
Can you have too many bonuses?
Or perhaps you agree more with this reader, who says…
“I have to admit that if I see biz opps, usually from the States, with an enormous spread of extra bonuses stretching into infinity, I immediately press ‘delete’. Perhaps an unwise decision but the reality is that, like most people, I only have a limited amount of time to spare.
Currently, I have a day job which involves a fair bit of travel, a family and the occasional need to socialise so I know these extra offers will just clutter up my inbox or filing cabinets. One big turnoff for me and I guess I am not alone.”
True. The issue of clutter is a big on these days. How many offers and promotions can you really deal with? And how much time do you have to consider whether a trading or business opportunity is for you?
Another reader agrees:
“I personally take several paces backward when an offer comes with Bonuses which come to several times the cost of the original offer. I tend not to want to know. Just give us the basic facts man!”
And a final word from this reader….
KEEP – IT – SHORT
“For me personally the bonuses must be on-topic… some out there are just plain awful…
How many though?
I’d say 2 or 3 maybe 4 at a push… but certainly not if they’re two hour videos. For me it would take awayfrom the product, not ADD to it.
As for the info in a manual course, personally I want to know a bit about the creator (are they actually in this field themselves?) and yes definitely a bit of background feedback as to why it works … but again … NOT twenty -five pages!!…”
That’s just a fraction of the response I got. But it’s fascinating stuff and I’m passing all this feedback onto publishers and product developers.