Core expansion is far different than extension. Extension is often referred to as franchising, licensing, line extension, or branching out — also known as conglomerating. In this context, I am referring to expansion by division.

If you’re a specialist in your field — which I hope you are after reading this book — and you offer only one type of service, you can expand from within by dividing your core (your product or service) into multiple, smaller components.

This helps to do 3 things. 1) It doesn’t take away from your category or specialization. 2) It increases your hit ratio when targeting clients, since some of them might be interested in your entire package while others may be interested in only a portion of it. And 3) it increases the aura of expertise you project because you refrain from spreading yourself too thin.

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I know that the yellow pages’ people will hate me for this, but your yellow pages’ ad, although an essential part of your entire marketing machine, doesn’t have to be of a large size, in color, prominently displayed, or tied-in with other gimmicks that the yellow pages salespeople have to offer. While necessary, the yellow pages should only be used as support systems.

The concept of this entire book is to teach you that creating top-of-mind awareness (not “institutional” advertising) should be your main marketing goal. When people have seen your ad, heard about you, or have a need for your services at any particular time, your contact information may or may not be available to them at that particular moment. Therefore, you want the yellow pages to back you up and not use them as a full-blown marketing medium.

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Here’s a bonus commandment. I thought I’d make it a bonus because 11 would sound a little funny, wouldn’t you think? And it is indeed a bonus since, with all that you have learned, you would never be as effective if I didn’t give this extra piece of advice while implementing the first 10.

I can never stress enough, whether it’s in this book or in my seminars that, in order to create endless streams of new, repeat and referral business, you must turn every single nook-and-cranny of your business into an effective marketing system. Everything you do must become a marketing activity.

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A question that’s often asked of me is from freelance, junior or aspiring copywriters about how to get started in the copywriting business.

It’s not about how to write copy specifically but about the marketing aspect of the business.

John Angel, another copywriter who’s one of my best junior copywriters, and I will be creating a product very soon specifically for marketing for copywriters.

But here’s my shotgun answer…

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