Ancient Roman business world-building secrets

An Email Players subscriber (not sure he wants me mentioning his name) asks: “I’ve gotten a ton out of contemplating and applying your higher order concepts of world building and putting the market first. However, I often feel a tension between the two, and I’m not always sure at what point putting the market first becomes chasing the market instead of leading them, or compromising my own voice or ‘mask of authority.’ Kind of an abstract question, but I wonder if you have any insights about how those two relate (or if maybe my question reflects a misunderstanding on some level… )?” My answer: You still have to serve the market first and foremost. But the trick is to do it on your terms. Bring them in and give the best experience you can. If they leave? Let ‘em go — they’re not your problem anymore. Focus on the ones who stick around in your World. Consider them to be under your care and protection (the ancient Roman legal definition of “client”, I hear tell.) That is it. That old school Roman approach is how World-Building begins. That’s the whole “secret” if it can even be called that. Certainly it is how I’ve run my business for over 22 years and grown Email Players for 13 years: "Bring them in, give best experience you can, focus on the ones who stay" It goes beyond the newsletter though — and I say this for the pedantic boys & ghouls on my list. This applies no matter what you sell or who you sell to or what market/niche/product/service category you’re in. The approach above of “serve the market, give great experience, make it easy to want to stay or to leave” applies to everything in my business where I am dealing with people: books, courses, vendors, JV partners, business associates, even personal relationships (friends, family, romantic, whatever it is). As far as giving great experiences go: That’s where thinking comes in. I was just talking to Stefania about this last week, how since hopping back on social media a year and a half ago, it’s astounding how absolutely watered down, shallow, typical this industry is getting. I lived in a bubble after getting off social in 2018, and when I came back it was like the flakeocaplyse ensued in my absence. So the good news is, it’s not hard to give good & different experiences. Take, for example, the comicbook-style ads I create and teach about. They are not just “ads” if done right. Nor are they only merely a catalog in comicbook format. Although both are absolutely true. No, they are much more than that. They are also pure infotainment. They are also pure selling. And, yes, they are also the perfect vehicle to engage in what I have been doing and teaching off and on for over 20 years now: World-Building. And it doesn’t start with swiping, copying, or worse, prompting AI. It starts with one thing and one thing only: Doing something you think is cool. Yes, you are serving a need/want and delivering benefits. But that is just the beginning. Your sense of fun, excitement, passion by focusing on something you think is cool — regardless if it’s been “approved” by the goo-roos in your industry who couldn’t give a flying rat’s puckering booty about you — will permeate into everything you write, everything you say, and everything you create, produce, and do and “trickle” down to your market. It won’t happen overnight. Nothing that actually works long term works that fast to my knowledge. It’s a day by day, week by week, month by month, year by year, and, yes, decade by decade thing. You do stuff that both serves your market but that you personally think is cool and then let that trickle down to your audience, become a reason to keep engaging with you, and, ideally, keep buying from you. Do it right, and you are not delivering mere “marketing.” You are delivering an Experience. All right enough. I could go on and on about this topic. And in a way I do — in the August Email Players issue where I dive deep into this subject with real life examples from my own business you can study and be inspired by to go forth and use in your business ventures. With no mindlessly copying, swiping, prompting necessary. In fact, to do that is to defeat the purpose and look just like the rubbery little idiots swarming your DMs on social media. Moving on: The August issue is the 13-year anniversary issue and I wanted to do something extra special for my best boys & ghouls (i.e., my Email Players subscribers). And so it is not only a double sized issue (clocking in at 40 pages vs the usual 20 pages), but I am also including a valuable 68-page bonus with the August issue (so if you’re one of these blue flame specials prone to reacting with “OMG! too much info! I have TikTok brain and can’t keep up!” please, kindly, push off..) called: “Email Players Annual #3: Copywriting Conversations with God” This oversized (literally — in both size and page count) Annual issue bonus exists outside the normal continuity of the newsletter. And I wrote it to both commemorate the newsletter’s 13-year anniversary and give my best boys & ghouls something that can help them navigate the withering inflation and failing economy using ancient wisdom for success, selling, and persuasion that goes back 100s and even 1000s of years that can work for nearly any kind of business — and whether you’re a sinner or saint, pagan or atheist, including even if you’re so fragile you call the cops or your therapist when someone so much as wishes you a Merry Christmas at Walmart. You can read more about that in the P.S. below if you choose. But the deadline to subscribe is in two short days. To get in on time while the gettins’ good, use this link: []( Ben Settle P.S. Some of the secrets found inside the bonus Email Players Annual #3: Copywriting Conversations with God bonus I am sending with the August Email Players issue include: * A line in the book of Exodus that is, word-for-word, arguably the single most profitable marketing lesson ever written. (I first learned about this in 1999 when selling MLM and foolishly ignored it. But when I got into daily emails years later, it helped propel my business forward in ways and at a speed that, speed that, frankly, I still don't believe sometimes..) * How to trick your trolls & haters into ramping up your email inbox deliverability… and without them even realizing it. * Denzel Washington’s creepy insight into whether trolls and reply guys are just assholes or are actually possessed by demons. * The CS Lewis method to converting scoffers, doubters, and even hostile unbelievers in your offers to becoming some of your best and most loyal customers/clients. * A little-talked about way (discovered by brain scientists some years back, I believe, but don’t quote me on that) to write headlines and subject lines that are almost neurologically impossible to ignore. * The angry boomer secret Jesus Christ used to go viral — where people told everyone they knew about Him, spread the word about Him, and got people talking about Him. (I don’t know if he does it on purpose, but I notice Dan Kennedy does the exact same thing these days.) * A secret way of using Biblical genealogies to find out if a guru you want to buy from or hire is full of crap or not. * Persuasion secret of an Old Testament prophet who converted a bunch of devil worshippers who wanted to kill him. * How to get away with teaching and saying controversial things on woke and converged platforms (like YouTube, Facebook, the ever-growing list of ESPS, etc) that kick people off for saying anything that goes against the Narrative. * A Biblical persuasion method Jesus taught in the book of Luke that, 2000 years later, Bruce Barton (son of a preacher and the second “B” in the billion dollar BBDO advertising agency) used to convince US Steel to keep paying his company through the nose for advertising when they insisted on killing the contract. * The ingenious secret Jesus used to create the biggest and most influential religion in world history that has also been used by a controversial filmmaker to create some of the biggest and most influential films in cinema history. * A powerful secret for growing a better and more response email list that Old Testament farmers used for growing better and more abundant crops. * A totally violent & disturbing copywriting tactic that works like gangbusters to get attention… but that you should avoid reading if you have a weak stomach. * Ezekiel’s “dung eating” lesson for how to sell with stealth — and in a way that can work far better than just lobbing benefits and claims at your list. * What Genesis chapter 5 teaches about how to preserve your business and protect it from being “Rings of Power’d” by your heirs. * An eerie red flag (straight out of the book of John) to look for if you want to identify the rats, bad actors, and other treacherous “Judas” types when choosing who to do business with. * What to do if you want to “exorcise” trolls and reply guys off your list. (Hint: Jesus, the Apostles, and Old Testament figures were never “nice” to evil — they always got rough with them, cast them out, rebuked them, and in Old Testament days even beheaded them!) * What the Bible says about how to go from always being scared of what’s going on in the world to having the world scared of you. * The violent lesson found right inside the book of Revelation about having a tight, responsive, and profitable email list. * One word that can help rile up large segments of your list (and it’s not even profanity) when you have to get their attention and nothing else you try works. * Advice to businesses who sell MLM offers who don’t want to be shunned and laughed at by friends, family, and peers. Real life story about this: There was once a party full of elites and A-list celebrities in Hollywood, yet everyone was gathered around a little old unassuming lady waiting in line to talk to her. The reason they loved her and ignored the celebrities? Because she was a sex therapist… no, I’m not saying to talk about sex in your marketing. That would be missing the point. But inside you’ll see a way to tap into the same force of persuasion the old lady did to potentially be “the person” people wants to consult about whatever your offers do vs being the person everyone avoids.) Anyway, there’s a lot more in this 68-page “Annual” edition. And you can read it free, my 13-year Email Players anniversary gift to you, simply by being subscribed to Email Players by the deadline in just two short days from now. Here’s the link: []( This email was sent by Ben Settle as owner of Settle, LLC. Copyright © 2024 Settle, LLC. All Rights Reserved. No part of this email may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission from Settle, LLC. Click here to [unsubscribe]( Settle, LLC PO Box 1056 Gold Beach Oregon 97444 USA