Why I predict 2018 is going to suck
Published: Thu, 12/07/17
So sayseth the economists at Goldman Sachs.
Along with:
“near-term recession risk ‘still looks fairly limited’”
Whenever I see any rosy mainstream financial economist predictions, my horse pewp detector goes off at full bore, and I immediately assume the opposite. For one, some of these people are in bed with some of the most vile politicians (and their minions in the media) in history. And two, the economy works in cycles. If that is the case, then it doesn't matter whose brand of kool-aid you drink (democrat or republican), we’re due for not only a recession, but probably even a depression.
Will my prediction of a sucky 2018 economy be right?
Or, will I prove to be as wrong as Bernie was about Venezuela’s income equality?
Either way, it never hurts to be prepared.
And, if this sort of thing gets you spooked (only the paranoid survive…) now’s the time to take action. The time to dig that well of yours is before the draught, not before.
So what are some ways to prepare?
Besides emailing attractive offers to a receptive list each day?
That depends on who you ask.
The wagging tongues of Flakebook (especially cryptocurrency affiliates) will tell you “BitCoin!”
Others will say, “Save!”
Still others will say “gold and silver!”
Or “Stocks!”
Or “real estate!”
And so on, and so forth.
Me?
I’m not an expert (or even an ex-spurt) on these matters. But, I prefer to invest in my business, first. Then, use those profits to invest in other things I actually understand.
(And not in things I don’t.)
That includes things like:
* Audio programs that keep my inner game strong
* Books & newsletters that make me better at persuasive communication
* Tangible assets that can’t be erased with a push of a button or a blip of a computer
* Real estate
* Businesses (both my own, and, most recently, a biz in the golf niche)
* Creating my own intellectual property (info products I create & license to others to sell, as well as content designed to be distributed by other companies to their audiences — like Amazon/Kindle — which leads them to getting them on my list, so I can offer them more)
* Building my audience (and my relationship with it) and personal brand in as many different kinds of media as possible. (I’ll be talking more about this in an “Email Players” issue next year.)
* Subscribing to identity theft protection services
* A solid "pitbull" legal team waiting in the wings, lest it’s needed some day
* And, most recently, investing in having multiple merchant accounts that give me good, low rates and fees (which can add up big time), and prevent my business from being shut down overnight on a bureaucratic brain fart
In fact, let’s yap about that for a second.
Hardly anyone talks about it.
Yet, anyone who relies on one of anything in business is playing with fire.
(i.e. Dan Kennedy’s “one is the most dangerous number” philosophy)
But, this goes quintuple for merchant accounts.
All it takes is one banker to look at what you do, not understand it (you’d be shocked how many merchant accounts don’t really “get” what we all do selling online, with email, etc), and declare you too high risk — justified or not, then shut you down without even telling you.
It’s happened to many people I know.
And, it’s a scary thing.
Imagine everything going great one minute, with sales coming in, then one morning waking up to a pile of failed transactions because your merchant account shut you down.
Even worse:
Sometimes after you’re shut down, they put your name on a special list.
And, because you’re on that list, it’s hard to get another account.
i.e. your business is literally wiped out with a push of a button.
These are a few reasons I like to invest in having lots of merchant accounts. And, it’s why I recently asked the great Glenn Livingston about offering his service (which includes chargeback help, and other perks where they have your back), where they match you up with the ideal merchant account (his network is big), that can get you low rates, and that are far less likely to shut you down on a whim, for no reason, or any reason at all.
Yes, I am an affiliate for Glenn's service.
(And, also, a client — I just set my 3rd one up with them this week.)
And no, you don’t pay any more fees as a result.
But, what you will get if you use his service and send me your first statement, is a copy of a new product I recently created called:
“The Email Players Lifestyle”
It’s for established businesses (with an offer and a list, not for newbies or anyone just starting out), who wants to “convert” that business into something like mine — where you spend a fraction of the time you spend on your business now each day, while making far more sales than you do now.
Only one person has this product so far.
(I sent it to my podcast announcer dame as a thank-you gift.)
And, I won’t be launching it until next year.
Even then, I probably will only offer it to “Email Players” subscribers.
(And it’ll likely be priced at around $200-$300, or so.)
But, I’ll give it to you gratis, shipped to your doorstep, when you get a merchant account via the above link, and send me your first statement (to prove you did it and are using it — and yes, you can blur out any sensitive info).
To get the ball rolling, use this link:
http://www.EmailPlayers.com/merchant
Ben Settle