Secret to Success: My ongoing willingness to reexamine my beliefs, attitudes, actions and habits... and change them as needed. Those are the four things that keep us stuck at a certain level. Being able to change them means being able to grow...and to succeed, you need to be able to grow.
David Garfinkel

Brought to you in partnership with Rod Beckwith - http://mrjv.com

Education: Bachelor's degree in French

Year Started Business: 1985

Type Of Business: Business Education - "I have a free online newsletter, The World Copywriting Newsletter and offer e-books, seminars, speeches, teleseminars, and personal mentoring. I've also co-authored two books, Effective Sales Management and Digital Guerrilla Marketing."

Target Market: Business people who need to write advertising sales copy more effectively: entrepreneurs, other copywriters, marketing executives, anyone who has to get business results using the written word.

Number Of Employees: One

Hours Worked Per Week During Startup: 60 to 80

Hours Worked Per Week Now: 40 to 60

Favorite Business Magazines: Inc. (because it deals with real issues small business owners face, in a practical and interesting way); Fortune Small Business (good profiles, well written); The Economist (excellent writing, fabulous reporting, very good thought-provoker)

Favorite Business Books Or Authors:

• Failing Forward, by Robert Maxwell - "It really deals with the issue of failure as a necessary part of success in a way I've never seen before, or since. Very inspiring and practical."
  
  
• Rich Dad, Poor Dad, by Robert Kiyosaki - "This book turned my life around because of Kiyosaki's clear explanation of the difference between a business owner, an investor, a professional, and an employee."
  
  
• Marketing to Women, by Martha Barletta - "More than just about marketing to women, this book has some terrific insights and suggestions about how to make ALL advertising and marketing more effective. Also, great information for men about how women think, shop and buy, which is definitely different from how men do."

Relaxes By: Watching movies, getting together with friends, travelling

Keeps In Shape Physically: Exercising and walking

Favorite Part Of The Job: "I enjoy solving business problems and getting practical results by turning visionary business ideas (mine and others') into practical tools, systems, or processes. I like doing these things because they're fun and they add a lot of value in a business situation.

Least Favorite Part Of The Job: "Keeping up with administrative details. Takes too long and is burning for me."

Companies Admired:

• Google - "They really do everything right, and they're one step ahead of everyone else. I like their innovations. They're gutsy."
• Hewlett Packard - "There was a time when all my office technology was HP. It's not anymore, but I don't think I'd buy a printer from anyone else. There seems to be an extra level of dummy-proofing that goes into their engineering. The products are very reliable and high quality."
• GoDaddy - "Customer service is better than any other company I've ever bought from. Their products and services work well. Pricing is extremely competitive. They put so many of their competitors to shame by being easy to use and quick to fix problems."

Favorite Quotes:

The man who is a pessimist before 48 knows too much; if he is an optimist after it, he knows too little. - Mark Twain

Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

The important thing is not to stop questioning. - Albert Einstein

The Person Who Most Influenced His Life: "I would have to say it was Jim Rohn, the speaker who goes by the phrase 'America's Business Philosopher.' To my mind, he really is. Mr. Rohn has taken truths of achievement, character, and business success and boiled them down to nuggets, which are simple and memorable, but not simplistic. I live by many of the principles I learned from him.

Heroes:

Jay Conrad Levinson, author of the "Guerrilla Marketing" series, the best-selling marketing books in history - "I'm privileged that Mr. Levinson is my friend, and we have worked together on projects for eight years. He has taken an idea and conquered the world with it—a portion of the business world, at least. He has qualities I admire so much: vision, commitment, generosity, and optimism (in spite of what Mark Twain said! :)"

David Ogilvy, the advertising pioneer on Madison Avenue - "He was honest, tough-minded, and principled. I respect the way he lived his life and helped others in their careers."

Thomas Edison - "There are many reasons he is a hero to me, but I think the most important is that he almost single handedly created much of the technical foundation of the world we live in today."

Special Business Achievements/Honors: "I've been lucky in business in many ways. Publications like The Wall Street Journal and Fast Company magazine have written about me; as a journalist (before I started my own business) and later as a speaker, I've met some of the world's most fascinating people. My last real job was as San Francisco Bureau Chief for McGraw-Hill World News. The person I replaced had held that job for 40 years! I would say the achievement I am most proud of was at a convention called 'Storycon: World's First Summit Meeting on the Art, Science and Application of Story,' I was the only speaker from the world of marketing and advertising."

Number of Months Before Achieving A Profit: "I struggled for quite a long time. I did have profitable months, but it wasn't for 11 years before I became consistently profitable."

Books/Tapes/Reports Authored: The ones currently available are:

Killer Copy Tactics - This is a complete audio and workbook course on learning how to write sales copy. It's broken down into short lessons with key points, and will help anyone who has to get business results with the written word.

Advertising Headlines That Make You Rich - "This is my first breakthrough product, because it allows people who have never written a good headline to easily adapt proven headlines for their own purposes. There's no better way to save time than to start out with a strong headline, and this product all but does that for you!"

eBook Secrets Exposed - "I co-authored this with Jim Edwards, and many people have told us this is the best single resource they've ever seen about using digital information online to market your business - either by writing an e-book to sell, or using an e-book as a way of marketing your business... or both!"

"We also show people six ways of creating ebooks without having to write a word. This e-book hit the No. 1 spot on ClickBank's prestigious Business-to-Business bestseller list: Immediate Money Immediately - Jim Edwards and I sat down and made a list of all the ways we were using the Internet to make money, and produced a simple manual showing others how to do the same. This e-book covers a number of basic techniques in much more depth and with much greater clarity than we've seen anywhere else."

Contact David At: david@davidgarfinkel.com or (415) 564-4475

GETTING STARTED TIPS:

I'm starting a home business next month. I have a maximum of $3,000 in start-up capital. Where should I invest it?

There are two skills you must learn:
1) How to sell.
2) How to get customers from the Internet.

I would definitely take some sales training and/or buy sales training books, CDs or tapes, and/or videos. Perry Marshall has the best material I've seen on using Google AdWords to attract business from the Internet. I would also find a few products you would like to sell on the Internet that have affiliate programs. Buy the products and then start selling them as an affiliate. The one product I'd definitely recommend, no matter what business you're in, is "33 Days to Online Profits" by Jim Edwards and Yanik Silver.

I've just started a home business. My spouse has given me six months to make it work. Any advice?

Don't try to reinvent the wheel. Start in a business you already know something about. Keep your risks low to start and use other people's systems, like with a multilevel or selling products through affiliate programs. Keep expenses low and look for ways to make quick, modest profits. Success breeds success. Learn as you go, and try not to make the same mistake twice.

They say it takes money to make money. Should I try to get a small business loan for my startup capital or just try to get by with my own limited finances?

It's really, really hard to make money with no money at all, but what you want to learn to do is to find the least costly way to do things and to "scale up" or expand as efficiently as possible. Better not to get a loan if you can avoid it, until at least you have a proven system for making money. One of the smartest entrepreneurs I know used to take teams into a room and brainstorm ways to do the same thing at 1/10 the cost, while providing 10 times the value. It's a brilliant concept and worth using whenever you can.

TECHNOLOGY & TOOLS:

How quickly do you adopt new technology for your business?

I used to get the newest, latest thing, but I like to give new technologies a little time to "shake out," since the earliest versions have bugs in them, are very expensive, and are often hard to use. I didn't get a cell phone myself until 2003!

Do you use a fax machine with a dedicated line?

I have one, but I only use it when I have to. I do almost everything now with e-mail.

How do you use e-mail in your business?

In just about every way imaginable. For contracts, to stay in touch with clients, project partners, vendors; to confirm meetings; to deliver content...you name it.

How do you utilize the Internet?

My business is based on the Internet. I have a newsletter (World Copywriting Newsletter) and a blog (World Copywriting Blog), and I sell most of my products and services with e-mail and by Websites.

How many of your own Website(s) do you have?

Right now, three Websites I own:

Newsletter
Blog
www.davidgarfinkel.com ... general Website for my business.

I plan to put up more Websites to sell other products. I use 1shoppingcart.com to accept credit card payments for consulting and coaching. I also sell the four products I mentioned - Killer Copy Tactics, Advertising Headlines That Make You Rich, eBook Secrets Exposed, and Immediate Money Immediately - via single-purpose Websites. However, I don't own the Websites, and I share the profits on those products with the partners who own those sites.

Do you use autoresponders?

I've written a lot of autoresponder minicourses for clients, and I plan to write some for my own products in the future.

If you use voice mail, what is your primary use for it?

I simply use it to take message from people who call.

Describe your computer system and how you use computers in your business.

I have three computers in my business: one desktop and two laptops. The desktop is custom-built and has three hard drives, two CD drives, a ZIP drive, and a floppy drive. Because I do audio work and some graphics, I have 1GB of memory and a fairly fast processor. I have a Nikon Coolpix digital camera but don't use it much. I have a home recording studio - Edirol Mixer, two studio microphones, JK Audio Broadcast Host for studio quality sound on my end for teleseminars, and a number of other pieces - pro headphones, other mics, etc. My writing and recording in done all on the PC.

What software do you consider in the "must-have" category?

• A simple text editor - I use EditPlus.
  
• Microsoft: Word, Excel, FrontPage, OneNote
  
• For brainstorming and mindmapping, MindManager from mindjet.com
  
• For drawing, flow-charts: SmartDraw
  
• Photoshop for work on graphics

What other technology do you use in your business?

Cell phone, but I don't use it as much as most people

Name up to five personal favorite business URL's our readers can benefit from:

http://www.google.com - incredibly useful. You can find stuff and get information in an instant. Also good for spelling a word.

http://www.guru.net - another research timesaver. Set it up and you can ALT-click on a word to get correct spelling and definition

http://www.clipart.com - great drawings, photos, and "Web art" you can use on any project. Easy to use and very affordable. I use clip art for my newsletter and blog all the time.

http://www.yahoo.com - especially "My Yahoo," where you can set up RSS feeds and get updates from your favorite sites, all on one page. Some of the free subscriptions I have are: BBC World News, USA Today, New Urban Legends, and The Smoking Gun

Of all the technology you use, rank the top three.

E-mail - it's my lifeline to the world.

Phone bridge line with Black And White Communications. I do a lot of conference calls and having my own line is great. I recently got a very lucrative corporate speaking engagement five minutes after I put two people - one in San Jose and one in Boston - on my conference line with me. Even though they were a $2 billion corporation, they didn't have a conference line. I have 100 spots on my line and use it for paid teleseminars as well.

Audio Generator (http://www.audiogenerator.com) putting audio on the Web gives you all kinds of marketing and communication advantages. I have an account with Audio Generator and it's very helpful.

For example, when people subscribe to the World Copywriting Newsletter, I give them a free recorded one-hour teleseminar. With my Audio Generator and the virtual player buttons on my site, they can listen to the whole teleseminar right over the Web.

MARKETING & ADVERTISING:

How do you market on the Internet?

• Google Adwords.
• Write articles, which other people post on their sites.
• Joint ventures, where other people promote my products for a commission.

Approximately what percentage of your sales originate from Internet marketing?

80%.

How do you market in the print media?

I write some articles and some PR. For example, I recently wrote a chapter on advertising headlines that will appear in a new book in 2005 called "Success Secrets of the Online Marketing Superstars." Chicago publisher Dearborn Financial will release this to bookstores. And, when I launched my newsletter, I put out a press release. It has been posted on some Websites, but I don't know if any print media has used it. I have the background of being a journalist, and I edited an expensive print subscription newsletter called "What's Working Online?" about Internet marketing, so I know what kind of articles the print media like. Also, a couple years ago I wrote a series of articles for Sales and Marketing Management Magazine.

Approximately what percentage of your sales originate from marketing in the print media?

10%.

What other kinds of marketing do you utilize?

Going to business conferences has proven very profitable for me. General networking helps, too. I get referrals from friends and colleagues from time to time, although with my business the way it is now, I turn down more assignments than I take.

Do you recommend using a toll-free number in advertising?

Yes, depending on the kind of business you have. Toll-free calls are cheap these days for a business. And people will be more inclined to call you if they don't have to pay for it.

Where do you market? (locally, nationally, internationally, all three?)

Nationally and internationally. I don't have any clients currently in the San Francisco Bay Area, where I live, although I do have subscribers and customers for my products, but those are all via the Internet.

THE HOME OFFICE:

How should someone set up his/her home office to maximize its effectiveness?

I am not qualified to answer that question! If you saw my office, you would know why... :)

What, if any, ground rules have you established for yourself and family in order to operate a successful home business?

I'm single and live alone, so I don't have the same problems a lot of people do when they work at home. I turn off my phone when I'm writing and maintain a single focus on the task at hand.

What are some of the advantages to working at home? What are some of the disadvantages?

Advantages: no commute and it's cheaper (home and office expenses are shared under one roof). Disadvantage: you're never really away from the office.

MANAGEMENT STYLE:

What part(s) of your work do you farm out?

Web design, transcribing, audio editing, other technical things. Some research for projects.

What part(s) do you feel should never be farmed out?

Depends on who you are and your strengths. For me, those things are: coming up with the basic concept of a product, campaign, copywriting assignment; most copywriting; strategic thinking about the business.

Do you encourage or discourage Partnerships? Why?

I like them, when I can focus on what I do best and the other partners focus on what they do best. They look easier than they are—other people often require special handling when you are least inclined to give it to them. But I would encourage partnerships because when they work well, the "whole" is greater than "the sum of the parts."

Do you encourage or discourage hiring family members? Why?

It doesn't really apply to me. But I've seen it work well in the businesses of many of my friends.

When legal issues arise, what's your usual response?

The first thing I do is get as much information as I can, and then I make a decision accordingly. I'll only call my lawyer right away if the situation looks dire.

MONEY & INVESTMENTS:

What are the advantages of earning a lot of money. What are some disadvantages?

Advantages: You have more choices; you have "walk-away power" from many situations; you can get stuff you've always wanted but couldn't afford or couldn't justify getting before; you have freedom and flexibility. Disadvantages: You can get "drunk" on money, and it can cloud your judgment. I've seen people get way too full of themselves all of a sudden when they start to make a lot of money quickly. Also, it's easy to lose touch with the reality of your customers when you are in a different financial universe than they are. This makes it harder to sell more effectively.

Another advantage/disadvantage: You have to learn new skills, attitudes, and mindset when you have more money. If you don't, you'll almost surely lose the money fairly quickly.

Best general tax advice?

Get the best accountant you can find.

Best general investment advice?

Learn what your level of risk tolerance is and how much patience you have and act accordingly.

You're in business already, and you've just received a windfall of $20,000. What would you do with it?

• Put away a portion for taxes to be paid.
• Invest 10 -20% in gold.
• Use some of it to buy an asset to make more money with.
• Take a small portion and splurge!

THE ROAD AHEAD:

In five years I'll be...

Doing what I'm doing now, but on a much larger scale.

In 10 years I'll be...

Innovating new concepts and systems in direct marketing.

POWERFUL IDEAS:

What was the motivating factor that drove you to start your own business?

I had gone as high as I could go in my industry. I wanted more upside reward potential in my job.

What role, if any, did your family play when you were getting your business off the ground?

None directly, although they were worried about my sanity. :)

What motivates you now to continue building your business?

I love what I do, and I want to do more of it in a way that will serve more people.

What's the best thing about being self-employed?

The freedom, the opportunity, the flexibility...and the people I meet.

How often do you read books and/or listen to or watch tapes for improving your business skills or knowledge?

All the time. It's vitally important to my success. That's true for everyone else I know who is doing well and happy in their own business.

The most underrated activity in business is…

People skills. The ability to get along with other people is paramount. Few people really have it. Those who do can use it to compensate for any weakness.

The most overrated activity in business is…

Having an advanced degree from a prestigious school. It's important in getting a good job, but I have never seen it make a difference for an entrepreneur.

What was the biggest obstacle you had to face when you were launching your own business? What's your biggest obstacle now?

When I started, the biggest obstacle was getting clients and paying bills. Now, my biggest obstacles are finding the time to do what I want to do and finding qualified people I can delegate to help me accomplish more in less time.

If you had to start your business all over again, what would you do differently?

I would have learned how to write advertising sales copy six years earlier.

What was your worst business decision?

I won't name names, but there are a number of occasions where I decided to work with clients and partners even though my intuition told me not to. I had hell to pay.

What was your best business decision?

To learn copywriting and create products to help other people learn it.

What do you consider to be the main keys of your success?

My ongoing willingness to reexamine my beliefs, attitudes, actions, and habits... and change them as needed. Those are the four things that keep us stuck at a certain level. Being able to change them means being able to grow...and to succeed, you need to be able to grow.

What's your success philosophy?

Create value for people who want it and are willing to pay for it...and all good things will follow for you.

What about you has changed the most since finding success in business?

I'm a much happier and more enthusiastic person. Also, I'm much more creative and willing to be adventurous and take risks in ways that I wasn't before.

What is the legacy you hope to leave?

I want to be known as the man who helped millions of people get their businesses in better shape because they felt confidence and command over the copywriting process—whether they did it themselves or supervised others in doing the work.