Dear Marketing Consultant (or Soon-to-be Consultant):

Stan Freiberg, a Madison Avenue creative guy from the 60s, once wrote a comic song called "Everybody wants to be an art director."

His song parody lambasted the fact that -- back in those days - it seemed like everyone and his brother wanted to work in advertising.

Today, I could just as easily write a song titled "Everyone wants to be a marketing consultant."

The Internet is flooded with programs, courses, and boot camps promising to make you into a marketing expert -

-- in everything from branding and direct marketing, to e-mail marketing and search engine optimization, to pay-per-click advertising and PR.

But this isn't a pitch for one of those programs.

I have no intention of - or desire to - sell you another "become a master marketer" program.

At least not today....

In fact, I'm going to assume that you're already somewhat knowledgeable about marketing.

Maybe you even consider yourself something of a "marketing maven" - and, in fact, are precisely that.

But, I'm also guessing that after getting all hyped up about this field called "marketing" ...

... and investing hundreds of hours ... and thousands of dollars ... buying and studying various how-to marketing products....

You're now asking yourself: "How can I take my marketing expertise and make money from it?"

If you have a product you want to sell, then obviously, one way is to start a small business marketing that product.

But what if you don't have a product?

What if you don't want to start a company ... have employees ... rent office space ... calculate payroll taxes ... manage inventory ... and be burdened with the endless details of running a company?

Yet ... you still want to make money - a lot of money - from your marketing knowledge.

Then you might want to do what I did and....

Become an independent marketing consultant!

In 1982, I held a junior management position as an advertising manager with an engineering firm - with a salary of $27,000 a year.

When my boss asked me to relocate, I quit.

Not that enamored of finding another job, I decided to try and make money as a freelance "marketing consultant" - advising manufacturers on their marketing, and writing their brochures and ad copy.

The first year was a little shaky, although by the end of the year, I had made $39,000 ... about $12,000 more than my salary.

But the next year, I did much better, making around $80,000.

My third year, I hit the $100,000 mark ... and my income has gone up steadily ever since: last year, my one-person consulting business earned $672,282.

And let me tell you: it's enormously fun!

Unlike my corporate job, where I had to do whatever my boss asked me to do - and handle a thousand niggling little administrative tasks - in my consulting practice, I get to work only on projects that interest me.

And as an independent marketing consultant, I'm the "idea man." I come up with the creative solutions. But other people - the client's staff - has to handle the implementation ... and that's the part that always bored me to tears.

Best of all, with the explosion of awareness and interest in marketing, today the opportunities for marketing consultants are greater than ever.

Thomas Edison once said, "We don't know one-millionth of one percent about anything." Your clients only have time to learn their business. When they need specialized skills and knowledge outside their field - like marketing -- they turn to consultants, like you.

Discover what it takes to make $100,000 ...
$150,000 ... even $250,000 or more as a
freelance marketing consultant

You know marketing.

But what you may not know are the methods, techniques, and tricks for starting ... and running ... a successful practice as an independent marketing consultant.

Not to worry. My fellow marketing consultant, Frank Girard, and I have written a start-up manual to help you turn your marketing knowledge into a handsome freelance living.

Now, in our comprehensive guide How to Succeed as an Independent Marketing Consultant, we show you everything you need to know to succeed.

Including:

• Easy way to position yourself as a top guru or expert in your field ... with nothing more than your PC. Page 50.
• 12 reasons why becoming an independent marketing consultant may just be the best job in the world ... and 5 reasons why demand for marketing advice has never been stronger. Page 3.
• How to set your hourly billing rate for consulting services. Page 39.
• Which type of client is best to work with - small businesses or large corporations - and why? Page 7.
• Frank Girard's famous "certified dinosaur bone enclosed" letter for generating leads for his consulting services. It got so much attention, it was even featured on television! Page 47.
• 6 things your clients are looking to achieve when they hire you as their marketing consultant. Page 5.
• Must a marketing consultant have a working knowledge of all aspects of marketing ... or should you specialize in one narrow marketing discipline or technique? Page 9.
• At $5,000 an hour, Jay Abraham is perhaps the highest paid marketing consultant on the planet. Now you can get clients to hire you as their marketing consultant using Jay's "endorsement marketing" technique. Frank Girard got a $20,000 consulting assignment the very first time he used it! Page 43.
• How to get all the clients you need - without spending a single dollar on advertising. Page 45.
• 55 questions you must ask your client when conducting a "marketing audit." Work? Not much. And it leads to consulting success. Page 14.
• Should you make cold calls to get new consulting clients who need your marketing advice? Page 85.
• How the lottery can make you a rich and successful marketing consultant - without gambling. Page 49.
• What's the best way to charge for marketing consulting services - hourly, daily, flat project fee, or percentage of increased sales or profits? Page 37.
• 10 skills you need to develop or master to be a successful marketing consultant. Page 6.
• Should you work with local clients ... national clients ... or market your consulting services globally? Page 10.
• 16 marketing disciplines in which clients urgently need help from consultants like you. Page 6.
• Want a flood of new leads and sales? Create and mail a simple postcard just like this one. Page 80.
• 7 ways to ensure that clients are satisfied - even thrilled - with your marketing advice and consultations. Page 111.
• The client needs marketing help but isn't sure what they want. Here's the start-up consulting package you should sell them. Page 11.
• 4 steps to writing better consulting reports for your clients. Page 19.
• How to create a "strategic marketing plan" that will absolutely knock the client's socks off ... and get them to hire you as their regular marketing advisor. Page 22.
• 17 ways to make money as a marketing consultant by giving seminars, workshops, tele-seminars, and Webinars. Starts on page 52.

• Do you like to write? Add freelance copywriting as a profit center to your marketing consultancy. Page 27.
• How to write marketing proposals that generate maximum new consulting business in minimum time ... without giving away the store before you're hired. Page 107.
• 10 steps to qualifying prospects over the phone - and determining whether you want them as a client - before you invest your valuable time meeting with them. Page 90.
• 4 steps to closing the deal and landing your first consulting contract. Page 106.
• The client wants to do their own marketing. But they will pay you handsomely to set up and improve the performance of their internal marketing department. Page 29.
• 5 ways to convert a one-time consulting assignment into a lucrative, long-term relationship with each new client. Page 115.
• How to conduct a business-getting "drip marketing" campaign. Page 91.
• Teach and grow rich by delivering training seminars on copywriting ... market research ... sales ... Internet marketing ... and other marketing topics and skills your clients need to master. Page 30.
• 10 ways to improve your client's online marketing results ... and how to get paid well for each. Page 31.
• Make money helping your client select a new ad agency ... Web site designer ... PR firm ... CRM software provider ... and other marketing products and services they need. Page 33.
• Client leaves you? 7 easy steps to making them yours once again. Page 75.
• How to generate all the leads and clients you can handle by publishing a free monthly online newsletter. Page 65.
• What do your client's customers really think about - and want when buying - the products or services your client is marketing? There's a goldmine of profit in helping them find out. Page 34.
• Managing your sales leads and potential consulting assignments on your PC - which contact management software is best? Page 95.
• 18-point "issues and concerns" worksheet pinpoints what your clients want from you in minutes ... and can double or triple the size of your assignment. Page 103.
• M&Ms "melt in your mouth, not in your hand." That's their brand. Now you can charge heft fees to help your clients define and refine their brand image. Page 38.
• 10 pieces of information your database should contain about every prospect and client you have. Page 96.
• How to get more inquiries by writing and giving away free special reports and white papers. Page 71.
• 9 secrets for building your marketing consultancy to the quarter million dollars a year in revenue level ... and beyond. Last year, mine made $684,356 using only a few of these methods. Page 117.
• All consulting prospects are not created equal. Only spend your time on the ones in this category. Page 97.
• Frank Girard's 17 tips for achieving outrageous success as an independent consultant. Page 119.
• And so much more....

Grab your share of the $100 billion consulting market

According to research from Harvard Business School, management consulting generates about $100 billion in annual revenues worldwide - and more than $50 billion from the U.S. alone.

The U.S. Department of Labor says that approximately 8.5 million Americans identify themselves as independent consultants, contractors, or freelancers.

Self-employed consultants charge anywhere from $100 to $350 an hour. Larger consulting firms charge $200 to $400 per hour.

For marketing consultants, fees vary widely, based on experience, expertise, specialty, and type of client served.

On the low end, marketing consultants earn $800 to $1,000 per day -- minimum.

I charge $4,000 a day ... have no trouble getting it ... and know a number of consultants whose fees are even higher.

But let's say How to Succeed as an Independent Marketing Consultant enables you to start at the low end, and you charge clients $100 an hour ... $800 a day.

If you make $800 a day ... and you work just 125 days this year ... you'll gross $100,000 a year, charge $2,000 a day, and your income can hit $250,000 in a year!

So ... what is it worth to you to learn how to start and run a marketing consultancy that can earn you a minimum of $100,000 a year?

Well, I get $4,000 a day to consult or coach, so that works out to $500 an hour.

But I won't charge you $4,000 ... $500 ... or even $50 to help you start or jump-start your six-figure marketing consulting practice.

Because the cost of my comprehensive, 122-page How to Succeed as an Independent Marketing Consultant manual is just $39 - less than I charge for just 5 minutes of my time!

Best of all, How to Succeed as an Independent Marketing Consultant is available as a PDF e-book you can download and read immediately.

So there's no extra charge for shipping and handling ... and no waiting for the post office to deliver your book to you.

Click below now, and you can be on your way to launching your marketing consulting business literally within a few minutes!

Use it risk-free for 90 days

I am so confident that, if you know marketing, How to Succeed as an Independent Marketing Consultant can help you parlay your marketing knowledge into a $100,000+ a year income as an independent marketing consultant.

In fact, I guarantee it.

That's right: if you are not 100% convinced that How to Succeed as an Independent Marketing Consultant can help start or jump-start your marketing consultancy ....

Or you are dissatisfied for any other reason ... or for no reason at all ...

Just let me know within 90 days for a full and prompt refund.

And you can still keep the e-book absolutely free with my compliments.

That way, you risk nothing!

So what are you waiting for?

To examine my How to Succeed as an Independent Marketing Consultant manual for 90 days risk-free, just click below now:

Sincerely,

Bob Bly

P.S. "Why on Earth would you spend your time creating an instruction manual on how to make money as a marketing consultant, and then sell it for a measly few bucks to your competitors?" a bewildered colleague asked me the other day.

The reason, I told him, is that the demand for marketing advice so outweighs the supply, that there's no danger of me ever hurting my own marketing consulting business by showing you how to go into business and compete against me.

If it were otherwise, I would not share with you my secrets for turning your marketing expertise into a thriving consulting business, for fearing of shrinking my own market. After all, I have a family to feed!

With such huge need for marketing consultants, there's more than enough work to go around for you and me ... and, with the boom in Internet marketing, will be for decades to come.

But I urge you to hurry. Every day you delay is another day you're stuck doing what you're doing now ... and not earning a thousand dollars a day or more doing what you love ... solving marketing problems for eager, appreciative clients!

To get started today, just click here:

P.P.S. Order now and get a valuable FREE Bonus Gift - my 52-page Special Report, 17 Hidden Secrets of Business Success (list price: $29).

In it, you will discover:

• 5 ways to charge more for your product or service than any of your competitors ... and make buyers happy to pay it. Page 43.
• What Donald Trump can teach you about increasing response rates to your next direct marketing campaign. Page 22.
• The most common mistake made when creating guarantees ... and how to avoid it. Page 1.
• Easy way to virtually assure your prospect can afford your product or service before you quote your price to her. Page 11.
• How to close more sales by telling prospects NOT to buy from you. Page 9.
• What you need to know about creating a business card that sells. Can save you hundreds of dollars in printing and design fees. Page 31.
• And more....

To order How to Succeed as an Independent Marketing Consultant ... and get your FREE Bonus Report ... click below now:

Meet Bob Bly

With more than a quarter century of experience as a copywriter and marketing consultant, Bob Bly has written copy for over 100 clients including Phillips, Agora, KCI, 21st Century, Weiss Research, EBI Medical Systems, Sony, IBM, AT&T, Grumman, Crain Communications, McGraw-Hill, IBM, Intuit, and AlliedSignal.

McGraw-Hill calls Bob Bly "America's top copywriter." He is the author of more than 70 books including The Complete Idiot's Guide to Direct Marketing (Alpha) and The Copywriter's Handbook (Henry Holt), and writes regular columns for DM News and Early to Rise.

What they say
about Bob Bly

"One of the best copywriters in the business."
--Michael Meanwell, author, "The Wealthy Writer"

"Bob Bly is one of the most successful copywriters in the world. I've used his services and purchased a lot of his materials -- and always profited from both."
--Bob Serling, President, Idea Quotient

"Considered one of the best copywriters in the country."
--David E. Wright, President, International Speakers Network

"There's no better copywriter than Robert W. Bly, the man I call the 'King of Copy.' He can teach you more about the art and science of marketing than anyone I know."
--Richard Dean Starr

"20 years ago, when Bob Bly starting teaching copywriting, the field was deeply shrouded in mystery. Now, thanks to Bob, learning copywriting, though still a tricky proposition, is much easier."
--Ken McCarthy

"For over 25 years, Bob Bly has set the gold standard in results-oriented business-to-business writing."
--Roger C. Parker, author, Looking Good in Print

"Perhaps the most famous copywriter of all."
--Apryl Duncan

"When it comes to educating his fellow copywriters and marketers, Bob Bly is the master."
--Dianna Huff

"Bob . . . Just got the copy and advertisement you did for my new book . . . It's great! You are good! Great job . . . you have tremendous insights into what excites and what sells!"
--Don Libey, Libey Incorporated

"In my opinion, you are the best copywriter in the software industry."
--Judy MacDonald, Director of Marketing, Direct Response

"I've spoken to a thousand copywriters over the years and Bob Bly is the best. He knows what he's doing."
--Joe Culotta, Natural Medicine Co.

"I am happy to report to you that your piece outproduced the 4 other packages we tested against it. I want to talk to you about another project...."
--Nick Roumi, Pacific Coast Funding

"The original ad insert of 'Wall Street's Loss is Your Gain' continues to kick butt -- pulls 12 to 15 subscriptions a week. Not bad for a $500 investment made 5 months ago."
--Charles Mizrahi, Stealth Stocks

"As a marketing professional, for 17 years I wrote my own promotional material. But I am not a professional copywriter. It wasn't until I took my own advice that I started getting the results I deserved. With Bob Bly, I got what I wanted - in the promised time frame - with re-writes - and the results I wanted. Thanks Bob!"
--Mark Amtower, Amtower & Company

"I found your ad copy compelling, powerful ... even entertaining. You really communicated the 'feel' of the message we are selling. Thanks for such great work, Bob!"
--Ashley Earnhardt Aiken, Thomas Nelson Publishers

"Bob wrote the most ballsy ad in the history of Dynamic Changes and it set sales records this fall. People couldn't stop themselves from responding."
--Richard Scheffren, Dynamic Changes Hypnosis

"Last year you did all the copy on the What Would Jesus Eat brochure. It was wonderful and I believe is one of the reasons that the book continues to do so very well.
--Pamela Clements, Thomas Nelson Publishers

"A special thanks to Bob for doing a superb job and making this work so well. I felt like a brilliant puppet in your hands."
--Michael Masterson, AWAI

"Even though he refuses to admit it, Bob is THE Direct Marketing guru...or, at the very least, he's mine."
--Jill Perri, American Consultants League

"I am thrilled with your package, it is doing great -- will roll out as the control."
--Chris Gast, Intuit

"Great job on the Turnaround Report; it's been a huge success. We've had an incredible product launch, with hundreds of free trials in the first week."
--Marc Stockman, TheStreet.com

"Just to let you know we have been using your 8 ways letter and brochure that you did for us last year with great success. We decided to double our monthly direct mailing. Things are really taking off. I can only attribute that to our increased direct mail program. Thank you for helping us get an effective package together."
--Ray Hardee, Engineered Software, Inc.

"Your e-mail to promote ETR pulled double the response and three times the gross revenue of the control, with a 45% increase in average order size."
--Lisa Bruette, Agora Inc.

"We're very pleased! The piece you wrote has at 43 days resulted in 204 orders and 165% ROI. I have submitted a new mail plan for a rollout for 200,000+ pieces. You'll be getting a royalty payment for this."
--George Rayburn, The Dan Ferris Power Report

"It was a pleasure to work with you. Your stuff just works. You are the best money I've ever spent. Thanks a million!"
--Gail Coopersmith, Coopersmith List Consultants

"Your copy was right on target and played a major role in one of our most successful new product launches."
--Joan Damico, GretagMacbeth

"We're still running both projects you did for us last time. They're still pulling. Great stuff.
--John Leper, Stanford International

"The first four times your half-page, 2-color ad ran in Chemical Engineering, it was the highest inquiry generating ad in the magazine. It even outscored full pages and spreads."
--Bob Berner, Robert K. Berner Associates

"We still are using [the package you did for us]. It still beats all challengers to the control."
--Mark Friedman, Medical Economics

"Potence insert is looking good, currently projected to achieve a 3.64% response with a $60 (three units of purchase) average order."
--Glory Kneass, Drs. Preferred

"The Internet direct mail you wrote for us got an excellent response: 7.55% from a rented list of hard-to-excite prospects."
--Ken Paston, Studebaker-Worthington Leasing Corp.

"Bob, since working with you last fall on the plan to position Unique Truck as a source for all shop equipment, we have cut our catalog mailings 60% with no drop in sales. I look forward to a long relationship."
--Dick Stillwell, President, Unique Truck

"Sizzling stuff... very compelling... top shelf. Thanks for your quick turnaround."
--Patrick Kephart, MasterMedia

"All who reviewed your copy agreed it was terrific. Certainly it's the best DM copy I've ever had to work with, because you've hit the rare combination of good writing and a good knowledge of what you are writing about."
--Lois DeLong, American Institute of Chemical Engineers

"The copy is very good and certainly a fresh improvement on what we've done in the past. Thanks again for your help... the campaign was very successful."
--Scott Thompson, Federal Employees Almanac

"Congratulations. Your Forecasts & Strategies ‘Internet Infrastructure' package is a winner... your piece is doing almost twice as good as our ‘Y2K Sample Issue' mailing. I am looking forward to working with you again in the future."
--Chris Marett, Phillips Publishing

"Bob Bly, our marketing consultant, helped us produce over 8% response in less than 2 months after we started a marketing campaign. Not only did we get good numbers, we got inquiries from the cream of the crop on our target list. And, we generated about 350% increase in dollar business over the previous year."
--Sheila M. Anderson, President, Commercial Property Services

"The advanced renewal you wrote for Utility Forecaster is doing great! Mailed 4/29... 5.2% response (as of 5/27) and an average sale of $116. Thanks!"
--Lori Bethea, KCI Communications

"Your #10 direct mail package for Sarnoff's Samurai Strategies has beat the pants off the control by more than 3 to 1. Congratulations and keep up the good work!"
--David Yale, M&PA

"The letter is good... approximately 10% responded."
--Stephen S. Flaum, Flaum Consultants

"Here is a contract for four separate direct mail packages. The More Than a Gut Feeling for Sales direct mail package is getting an excellent response—a very big thank you for your help on that project."
--Tiffan Yamen, American Media

"The direct mail package looks great! Thanks!"
--Tammy Ray, Marketing Director, McGraw-Hill Book Clubs

"You sure write powerful copy!"
--Fred Weiss, Studebaker-Worthington Leasing Corp.

"Bly Rules!"
--Murray Raphel, Raphel Marketing

"Mr. Copy."
--Markus Allen, Publisher

"There is no greater authority on business-to-business direct response copywriting than Bob Bly. What impresses me most about Bob Bly is his knack for making things clear and simple."
--Scott Miller

"Bob Bly is among the most accomplished self-employed copywriters in recent years."
--Steve Slaunwhite

"Bob Bly is probably the best business-to-business, high tech. industrial, direct marketing copywriter in the country."
--John Clausen

"Perhaps the most famous copywriter of them all."
--The Writer

"[A] freelance writing dynamo...."
--Writer's Digest

"One of the great copywriters in the direct marketing industry...."
--Ruth Stevens, author, The DMA Lead Generation Handbook

"...[a] copywriting giant..."
--Freelance Writer's Report

"Bob Bly is a human machine who has been outputting high-grade direct marketing copy for decades. I've read a few of his numerous books and have learned much from this pro."
--Larry Chase, Web Digest For Marketers

"Renowned direct marketing practitioner and prolific author Bob Bly [is] nationally recognized for his control-beating copy. [He] knows how to write for results."
--Kansas City Direct Marketing Association

"Bob Bly is in the upper echelon of direct mail and e-mail copywriters and he's an all-around direct marketing guru. In addition to hundreds of successful campaigns for technology clients, Bly has authored or co-authored more then 50 books."
--Bruce Hadley, softwareceo.com

"Bly is probably one of the world's most famous and experienced copywriters. He is also a noted authority on the creation of online copy and online trends."
--The Compulsive Reader

"Bob Bly is a world-class copywriter."
--Paul Hartunian

"I've known Bob for a long time. His stuff is terrific."
--Johne Forde, Copywriter's Roundtable

"Bob Bly [is] a prolific advertising genius."
--Joe Vitale, "Mr. Fire"

"I went to Amazon.com and got a copy of Secrets of a Freelance Writer. Wow! ... I loved it! Packed with info. The book had a 'readability' about it that took away all my fears, put me at ease, and made me feel that I wasn't treading on foreign soil. I kept saying to myself, 'I can do that, I can do that!'"
--Ronald J. Rich

"Your books served as a complete reference when I started my own freelance writing business a year and a half ago. By following the advice you laid out, I quickly reached goals that I had set for year three of my business within the first year. My philosophy is, if you've written it or recommended it, I want to read it."
--Carla Jahnson

"I own a copy of The Copywriter's Handbook, which is priceless. Thank you for making this information available to those of us on a shoestring."
--Mary Klaebul, Memphis, TN

"I own Secrets of a Freelance Writer: How to Make $85,000 a Year and The Copywriter's Handbook. Both are great. You did a great job of getting to the nitty gritty. I admire and respect what you have done."
--Derek A. Chilcoat

"FYI, you started me off with your tape series on freelance copywriting, and I'm an avid reader of yours."
--Scott T. Smith, Bozeman, MT

"Having read two of your books, Secrets Of... and The Copywriter's Handbook, I am now taking the leap. If not for the strong encouragement of your books, I might not have jumped. Thanks again for the road map that your books offered."
--Eddie Adelman

"I am a great fan and avid reader of your books. When I first started out in this copywriting business nearly ten years ago, your Secrets of a Freelance Writer was my bible (it's so dog-eared, some of the pages are coming apart). You continue to be a great source of inspiration and education."
--John M. Mora, Plainfield, IL

"Thank you for all the books you've written over the years -- I have enjoyed many of them, and profited from what I've learned. I've been reading Become a Recognized Authority in Your Field this past month -- it's helping me really do the things I've always wanted to do."
--Michael Knowles

"I read Write More, Sell More a few years ago and loved it."
--Steve Slaunwhite

"The first time I read your book Secrets of a Freelance Writer I laughed at the fact of picturing myself as a business writer. The second time I read it, I made over $1,000 in a week. I'm laughing for a much better reason now."
--Grady Smith

"I loved your book The Copywriter's Handbook. It has sincerely helped me in my business and is worth every penny I spent on it!"
--Brian Maquire, Portland, OR

"Had I not discovered your Secrets of a Freelance Writer and The Copywriter's Handbook, I would still be a frustrated, unfulfilled hack. Thank you for saving me from that! I appreciate you sharing your knowledge with the rest of us and allowing us to take a piece of the pie. I already love this new career that I never would have discovered without your guidance. Thanks."
--Elizabeth Hanes

"I wanted to thank you for The Copywriter's Handbook and Secrets of a Freelance Writer. Both books are informative and inspirational."
--Ken Harrison

"I have read your books Selling Your Services and The Six Figure Consultant and I really appreciate the wealth of knowledge you have shared in both of these publications."
--Leah Beth Mills, Farmingville, NY

"Thanks a million for my life!!!"
--Alan Zoldan

"Your books The Copywriter's Handbook and Secrets of A Freelance Writer helped me start work as a freelancer. I can't tell you how many times those books saved my skin and got me confidently through unfamiliar materials. I am very grateful for your expertise and generosity."
--Lorraine Thompson

"Well, Bob did it again, just as I had hoped. He delivered a superb lecture this morning. Some arrived late, but no one left, no one lost interest, and most stayed afterward to pester him with questions. It was a rousing success."
--Barbara Armentrout, DMAW