“I’m always amazed that people seriously believe that they can make $1,000 a week stuffing envelopes. Evidently, greed and the ‘something for nothing’ ploy are too much for the bon bon eater to resist. What the mooch doesn’t know is stuffing envelopes is a sophisticated, highly mechanized operation that is run by legitimate businesses that specialize in mass mailings. The possibility of them using a bon bon eater is not only remote, it’s a joke. As a biz-opper, you look at bon bon eaters as a joke — a profitable joke.”
— Biz Op: How To Get Rich With “Business Opportunity” Frauds And Scams
Thanks to a reader named Lester, I found out about the book Biz Op, written by one Bruce Easley in 1994.
Biz Op claims to be an inside look at how Easley made a killing by cheating, lying, and scamming his customers, often in violation of state and federal laws.
“Yeah right,” I said.
“Why would anyone publicize that information if it were really real? Even if Easley wasn’t afraid of the legal consequences and the retribution of his burned “mooches”… why not turn his confession into a business opportunity itself, and sell people ‘The Lazy Way to Riches’ for $197… instead of selling a book about defrauding people, through a regular book publisher, for a few bucks apiece?”
I don’t know the answers to any of that. But I have no more doubts that Biz Op the book is legit.
There’s the fact that Easley was written up in the NY Times (“You too can be a successful criminal!”).
There are his appearances on daytime shock shows like Donahue.
But most of all, there’s the book itself.
It’s got insider jargon I’d never heard of. Like mooches (any sucker dumb enough to hand a bizopper his or her money)… bon bon eaters (stay-at-home moms who respond to envelope stuffing offers)… and singers (relatives you pay to pick up the phone and act as social proof for your biz op).
And then there’s all the familiar detail of the marketing approach and the copy. In a nutshell, Easley’s biz op offers were:
1. Irresistible (a promise of riches outside your normal grasp, and an opportunity to escape your current life)
2. Easy (you don’t have to do anything… or the work will be trivial)
3. Safe (there’s a money-back guarantee plus all these other people say it’s a great opportunity)
4. Urgent (somebody else in your market is interested and we need to tell them by tonight if it’s them or you)
I saw a YouTube video recently of Magnus Carlsen, the current world chess champion.
Carlsen was shown different positions on a chess board. Each time, within a few pieces being put on the board, he recognized the position as part of some famous historical chess match. He even recognized the setup from the chess scene in the first Harry Potter movie.
My point is that there’s value in knowing the history of your field. That’s why I’m telling you about Biz Op the book.
Don’t scam people. But there’s value in studying mooches, singers, and bon bon eaters. Because Easley’s 4-part checklist above is the essence of what makes for a good direct response offer.
Make your own offer as close to that as you can… without lying, cheating, or breaking any laws… and you’ll have a real shot at profit.
At least that’s my theory. Which is why I organized my own offer as I did.
I’m talking about my Copy Riddles program. For the right person, it should be irresistible (“breakthrough copywriting skills in 8 weeks or less”)… easy (“just follow the instructions and do the exercises”)… and safe (“there’s a guarantee, plus all these other people say it’s great”).
And what about urgent?
Well, Copy Riddles is open until this Sunday, July 4, at midnight PST. After that, it won’t be available for months.
So if you want to find out about this exciting opportunity before it becomes unavailable…