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Expert Secrets: The Underground Playbook for Finding Your Message, Building a Tribe, and Changing the World

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Expert Secrets helps people find their message and then create a mass movement of people who will pay them for that advice.

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Published June 2, 2017

About the author

Russell Brunson

36 books364 followers
Russell Brunson is a digital marketing entrepreneur, author, coach, and speaker.

He was born in 1980 in Provo, Utah, United States, where he grew up to develop an interest in business and other hobbies.

He long started developing his marketing skill when he was much younger as he would collect junk mails, used radio and television ads, seizing every business opportunity just to get as far as possible knowledge and understanding from the marketing world.

Outside marketing and business in general, Russell loved wrestling while growing up which soon turned a hobby for him.

In high school, for example, Russell was a state champion wrestler, becoming an all-American in his senior year, taking second place in the country at the high school nationals. This he continued into his college, learning valuable lessons about competition, hard work and the art of winning. He became one of the top ten wrestlers in the country at graduation.

Fast forward to this day, Russell Brunson has founded, and has also co-founded several successful companies, popularized some of the most effective sales techniques used in the world of marketing today, and had also published several successful books in the marketing category.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 258 reviews
Profile Image for Blahoot.
23 reviews4 followers
August 29, 2017
Expert Secrets is an obvious attempt to entice readers to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on Russell Brunson's ClickFunnels products.

I'm glad I read it anyways.

Half the book is Brunson's tactical advice on how to create the perfect webinar, which I have zero interest in.

I'm glad I read it anyways.

Everything Russell Brunson writes in Expert Secrets leads me to believe he's the type of guy who won't hesitate to embellish the truth to manipulate people into giving him their money.

I'm glad I read it anyways.

I'm glad I read Expert Secrets because, despite many blatant negatives, I discovered some powerful insights. For example, the concept of opportunity vs. improvement (see comic below, which I wrote about here). Concepts like this actually changed the way I market my product, which is something other more "respectable" marketing books didn't do for me.

While I may not find Brunson's approach to be the most tasteful, I can't deny he's had considerable success and there is quite a bit I can learn from him. To ignore him entirely for his flaws would be a mistake because this book contains a lot of valuable, dare I say, wisdom.

expert secrets comic
Profile Image for Annie.
931 reviews850 followers
May 31, 2019
This book is about branding yourself and creating an online business. There is a small section about identifying your expertise by filling in this statement 'I want to teach people who ___ on how ___.' An example would be 'I want to teach people who are trying to lose weight on how to follow the keto plan without giving up carbs entirely.' Most of the book is about how to market yourself and create presentations/courses/etc. that hook people in. There is also frequent sales pitches for the author's other services/products.
Profile Image for Bart Van Bos.
38 reviews3 followers
September 22, 2019
Although there are some valuable things mentioned in the book, readers can't deny that the book feels like another promotion vehicle for clickfunnels (and if you look online what clickfunnels is and you watch some of the youtube comments on it, you'll realise it's yet another sales spammer tool). I categorize this book in the genre "how to become a millionaire in one year". It's filled with highly manipulative nonsense, which is repeated over and over endlessly. Last but not least... it's all about the "execution" of sales... while adding value and having a good product is SO much more important.

Complete waste of my time... but I read it through as there are a few valuable things in there as well... but you'll have to swallow more bullshit then you might be willing to.
Profile Image for Mark Manderson.
566 reviews28 followers
July 6, 2020
One of the best books I've read for the online market.
So many tactics.
This IS MUST READ!
My top takeaways:
Your results are your credentials.

HOW TO SELL:

Encourage their dreams.

Justify their failures. 

Allay their fears. 

SECRET #1: BE THE ATTRACTIVE LEADER 

LIVE THE LIFE YOUR AUDIENCE WANTS. 

MAINTAIN ABSOLUTE CERTAINTY. 

BE PERSUASIVE!

Encourage their dreams.

Justify their failures.

Allay their fears.

Confirm their suspicions. 

Throw rocks at their enemies. 

SECRET #2: THE FUTURE BASED CAUSE. 

People want to plug into something bigger so YOU MUST CREATE THE FUTURE VISION! 

Be the person where they place their hope and faith. 

Create a mini manifesto such as "I am a..." 

I define my own destiny. 

I never give up or give excuses. 

I am unstoppable. 

I create my own luck. 

CREATE A BATTLE CRY

My name is... 

I'm part of a group of (underground entrepreneurs you've probably never heard of) 

We don't (rely on venture capital...) In fact our motivation is the exact opposite. We (serve knowing we can change lives.)

Were fighting against (big brands). We have to do things differently and smarter. 

People say what we do is impossible, yet we are a movement of miracles. 

We are (funnel hackers) and these are our stories. 

SECRET #3: NEW OPPORTUNITY. 

Your new opportunity must provide them a status increase. 

SECRET #4: OPPORTUNITY SWITCH. 

MARKETING:

I'm going to teach (sub market) how to (niche). 

HEADLINE:

How to (results most desired) without (biggest fear). 

SECRET #5: THE BIG DOMINO. 

Only have them believe ONE thing. 

If I can make people believe that (my new opportunity) is the key to (what they desire most) and is only attainable through (my specific vehicle), then all other objections become irrelevant. 

Ex: If I can make all people believe that funnels are they key to online sales success and are only attainable through clickfunnels, then all other objections become irrelevant. 

SECRET #6: EPIPHANY BRIDGE 

Never tell the prospect but by asking questions through stories they will achieve their own epiphany

Write out your core epiphany story that convinced you of the one thing? 

TALK AT 3RD GRADE LEVEL. When move above, use the "kinda like". 

Ex: key tones are kinda like millions of little motivational speakers running through your body giving you energy and making you feel awesome! 

The KEY is to SHARE YOUR EMOTIONS IN DEPTH 

SECRET #7: HERO'S 2 JOURNEYS 

Character. Desire. Conflict. 

Ex: Red riding hood. Cookies to grandma. Big bad wolf. 

Captivating character pursuing some compelling desire and faces insurmountable obstacles to achieving it. 

Build Rapport by making character a victim so you root for them, in jeopardy so worry about them, likeable so want to hang with them, funny to connect, and/or powerful so want to be like them.

Introduce the DESIRE for More! To win or retrieve or to stop or escape. 

Introduce CONFLICT to create emotion. 

5 Turning Points of Conflict:

The new opportunity that gets them to start their journey. 

Change of plans as gets clear on desire. 

Point of no return as fully commits. 

Major setback where looks like won't make it. 

The climax that determines the fate. 

SECRET #8: THE EPIPHANY BRIDGE SCRIPT. 

THE FRAMEWORK FOR YOUR STORY! 

BACKSTORY: what is your backstory that gives us a vested interest in your journey?

Where your reader is now (in pain). Must return to the beginning to make you relatable and show how you were hopeless.

DESIRE: what is it you want to accomplish? What is the external struggle you are dealing with? What is the internal struggle you are dealing with?

Share what you desired most. Internal struggle was from fear to courage. Vulnerability = Rapport. Get this from external struggle 7 levels deep! 

THE WALL: what was the problem you hit within your current opportunity that start you on this new Journey?

Kept trying previous methods and failed (wasn't my fault) and why I was willing to try anything new (or why created my own way) because of maximum hopelessness. SPEND TIME EXPLAINING HOW FELT. 

EPIPHANY: what was the Epiphany you experienced a new opportunity you discovered?

Something happens to show the path to follow. Describe the breakthrough. The epiphany that changed perception. Explain the idea. 

PLAN: what was the plan you created to achieve your desire?

Step by step action that took to result. 

CONFLICT: What conflict did you experience along the way?

Leaped forward on faith through the darkness and found the light was waiting right on the other side. Stopped shoulding and turned to the must. CREATE THE BATTLECRY! Describe the major setback and the final push through! 

ACHIEVEMENT: what was your end result?

External result. Went all in for final push. 

TRANSFORMATION: what was the transformation you experienced?

Internal result (who became). Created new stories. 

SECRET #9: FALSE BELIEF PATTERNS 

Know what false beliefs they may have. 

Figure out what negative experience they had that caused these beliefs. 

Understand their false story that is creating the doubt. 

Then create the epiphany bridge (someone you helped or your story how you proved yourself wrong.)

SECRET #10: THE 3 SECRETS 

THE CORE FLASE BELIEFS ARE THE VEHICLE, INTERNAL AND EXTRNAL BELIEFS. 

Ex: False belief 1 (VEHCILE) I don't understand how it'd work for me? 

Ex: False belief 2 (INTERNAL) I don't think I can build a funnel. 

Ex: False belief 3 (EXTERNAL) I don't know how to drive the traffic. 

Build Epiphany Bridge story for EVERY false belief. 

Ex 1: Show how it worked me me and others so prood it is the vehicle. 

Ex 2: Demo live to show how easy it is now as felt the same so designed it with this in mind. 

Ex 3: Show how to reverse engineer to get traffic. 

Then build a headline around how you debunk that. 

Ex 1: How to ethically steal over $1MM worth of funnel hacks from competitors. 

Ex 2: How to clone proven funnels in 10 min. 

Ex 3: How to get the same customers your competitors do to your funnel. 

SECRET #11: THE STACK SLIDE 

Show what they'll get. (Goal is to show 10x value for what you're asking.)

Masterclass ($9,997 value) 

Tools ($997 value) 

Tangible 1/2/3 ($297/297/297 value) 

Bonus (Priceless) 

Total value ($11,391)

White board everything you can create for dream client to get them their desired result. 

Tangible relates to the vehicle

Case studies on how they did it to show social proof.

Internal struggle: What struggle they think they'll have so give checklists, how to guides, swipe files, etc. 

External struggle: What struggle they think they have so give video course on getting traffic or other common barriers. 

Bonus is access to private mastermind group, 1 on 1 consult, etc. 

SECRET #12: THE PERFECT WEBINAR. 

The idea is to have a single point of belief that your message is built around and it is emphasized over and over and over again from a variety of different angles.

Part 1: Rapport. Encourage dreams. Justify failures. Allay fears. Confirm suspicions. Stone enemies. 

Part 2: The One Thing. Tell epiphany Bridge story. 

Part 3: Breaking and rebuilding belief patterns. 

Break and rebuild vehicle. 

Break and rebuild internal belief (they can do it). 

Break and rebuild external belief (what's keeping them from starting).

Part 4: The Stack. Let me ask you a question. 

Information alone, us vs them, only excuses. 

Handhold, reluctant hero. 

2 choices, say goodbye, if you only got. 

Break old habits, 2 choices, now/later. 

SECRET #13: THE ONE THING. 

Title slide: How to (create a 7 figure funnel in 30 min) without having to (hire or be held hostage by a tech guy.)

Intro/Rapport: 

Justify their failures. 

Ex: I'm guessing this probably isn't your first time. I want to start off by saying if you've failed at this in the past, it's not your fault. There's a lot of information out there and it can be confusing. Many times it's the information overload that keeps you from success. 

Allay their fears. 

Ex: If you've been concerned in the past that you just can't do it, I want to put those fears to rest. You can. You just need the right person to explain it to you. 

Throw rocks at their enemies. 

Ex: The big corporations out there want you to think you can't do it and will be dependent on the system. I'm here to tell you they're wrong. They have their own reasons for wanting you to think that but it's not true. 

Confirm suspicions:

Ex: If you've ever thought "why even bother" or the government wants you to fail, you're probably right. They don't benefit from you succeeding. That want to see you stay in debt and rely on them. The difference is we actually care about you and want to see you succeed. 

Encourage their dreams. 

Ex: That's why we're here. We know you have a dream and want to change and make an impact and want to show you how. 

The Ruler: New Opportunity share. Goal is to help them see this is the way. 

Ex: my goal for this presentation is to help two types of people. For the beginners, you'll get (opportunity). For more experienced people you'll get (alternative). 

Big Domino: 

Ex: My goal for this class is to show you how this is the only way for you exponentially grow your company. 

Qualify yourself: Share backstory 

Ex: Share where you came from and your external and internal results. 

Epiphany bridge 1:

Ex: Share the series of events that first convinced you this new opportunity was the vehicle. 

Liken the story to them. 

Ex: you probably don't want to be in the potato gun business, but funnels still apply to whatever you do. Most people sell (x) and here's why it's hard. My way makes it scalable helps you (y) to earn more. 

Caee study. 

3 secrets. #1: funnel hacking how to ethically steal from competitors. #2: Funnel cloning for how to copy proven funnels. #3: Traffic hack on how to get customers. 

SECRET #14: BREAKING AND REBUILDING BELIEF PATTERNS. 

Inspire and cause them to take action to change their lives, DO NOT TEACH AS IT'LL KILL YOUR SALES. 

State your secret #1, then to "let me tell you a quick story" and share epiphany bridge 1, then share epiphany #2. 

Show other people's results. 

"The goal thing is it just didn't work for me, it works for all kinds of people. Here's Joe. He always thought (false belief) was true but after he took that leap of faith and tried things this way, this is what happened... 

Break the related beliefs. You're probably thinking you need a lot of money to drive traffdicr right? Well you only actually need 100 clicks a day. You're probably also thinking you need to know how to code, but you can actually just clone other people's funnels on our site. 

Ex: "YOU'RE PROBABLY THINKING X, RIGHT?" JUST MENTION THE FALSE BELEIF AND GIVE A QUICK STORY OR A FEW SENTENCES ABOUT WHY THE BELEIF IS WRONG AND WHAT THE TRUTH IS. 

Reinforce the new belief as truth! 

Ex: So now I've shown you how (x). Isn't that awesome? 

Transition to selling. Show how they can actually get the results they desire the most. 

So I'd like to ask you a question. If you followed what I showed you, do you think you could be successful? 

SECRET #15: THE STACK 

Here's what your going to get... (breakdown all they'll get.)

Then give quick high level recap of each module. 

Show 3 Case studies! (Let me introduce you to... Then there's... And one of the most transformational stories is... 

Tue in who it's for (this is for those just starting out as well as those who are already successful and want to learn how to scale!) 

DESTROY THE #1 REASON PEOPLE DON'T GET STARTED. "You might be thinking you can't get started because... And here's why that's a mistake that will hold you back. 

Show your STACK slide of what they'll get and the value. 

Introduce the tools. (you'll be able to.. And you'll be able to get rid of...) 

Show how the problem is solved for them. 

Ex: I kept running into the same issue as I didn't know how to X, so I had to create (SOLUTION) for myself. 

Talk about how much time and money it cost you and how they're getting it for free. 

Ex: I don't want you to have to go through the same pain of spending countless hours and money to figure this out. I've already proven this works and going to give them to you. 

Break related beliefs about the tools. 

Stack more slides (tangible products that help.)

Tie in pain and cost. 

Ex: I had to go through (pain), but you won't have to as I'm giving you (tangible product) as a special bonus.

Ease and speed for them. 

Keep adding stacks slides of tangible products and keeps stacking. 

Move to IF/ALL statements. 

Ex: If all this did was X, would it be worth $? Now obviously I'm not going to charge you $, but if I did

I had 2 choices. 

Tue in to end result and ask what would the end result be worth? 

Drop the price. 

Justify the price. (Show how available on website for that price.)

Youve got 2 choices.. Do nothing and get nothing. Or take a leap of faith and test it out. 

Gurantee. 

Real question. 

Urgency/scarcity bonus. 

CLOSING AND CALL TO ACTION

Recap offer, countdown, price, call to action. 

SECRET #16: TRIAL CLOSES 

Constantly ask simple questions to get them to say yes over and over again. 

Ex: Is this making sense? Are you getting this? Can you imagine.. Isn't this cool? Right? 

Money is good. Would you exchange money for results? OF COURSE! 

Show them where most spend their disposable income on things that don't serve them and by spending on things that'll help them grow, they'll have long term fulfillment. 

Money replenishes so important to leverage it before time runs out. 

Break old habits: Show them if they don't invest today, nothing in their life will change. 

Info alone: I want to help you understand that info alone won't get the results, it takes coaching and accountability as well. 

Money and excuses: There are 2 kinds of people, those who are good at (X), and those who are good at excuses why they can't. If you make excuses, you're going to have a tough time. The good news is you get to choose. What is your choice? Are you going to be a doer or a dabbler? I'll walk you through signing up. 

Say goodbye: To the stress of uncertainty and not knowing what to do. You'll never have to guess again. 

Now and later: Paint the picture of where you were before and struggles, and then what life became like. 

Only issue is excuses. Probably nervous thinking I don't have the time. And if it's the investment, I don't know how to help you as it's a decision you need to make for yourself. I've invested 10 years and over $50k, but I've gotten back over $500k and a lifestyle I love. 

Reluctant hero: I'm not special. In fact I'm a slower learner than anyone I know and struggle with application and that's why I love this system. 

If only: If we stopped right here and and you only got 1 tool that you implemented that lead to your life changing, it's totally be worth it right? 

Nows the time. 

SECRET #17: THE PERFECT WEBINAR 

Promote Mon - Wed. Live webinar Thur. Replay Fri. Urgency/Scarcity Sat/Sun. 

Drive new traffic to same webinar. 

Do live every week and take all questions and create new slides answering those questions. 

The key to a high converting registration page is CURIOSITY! Ex: How to X without y! 

Urgency and scarcity gets people to commit. 

Have a video on thank you page that shows how passionate you are and sell something that compliments the webinar upfront. 

Send indoctrination emails exposing false beliefs to increase curiosity for what they'll learn on the webinar. 

Send replay. 

SECRET #18: THE 4 QUESTION CLOSE 

Q1: Imagine I teach you everything I know and do everything I can to help you get the results. Now imagine we're talking 1 year from now. What would have to happen for you to feel happy with your progress? What would make you believe this was the best decision you ever made? 

Then follow up with WHY. 

Q2: Why don't you have it yet? What's been standing in your way and holding you back? 

If they blame others, move on. They must take responsibility. 

Q3: Think about what resources, connections, talents, or skills you have access to that not currently utilizing we could use to help you overcome your obstacles and achieve your goals. 

Keep asking what else. 

Recap for them "You told me you want X because y and you haven't been able to achieve that because of A and B and you said you have these resources you could use but haven't fully, right?" 

HOW MUCH MORE MONEY (LOVE, WEIGHT) IF YOU WERE ABLE TO ELIMINATE THE OBSTACLES AND LEVERAGE THOSE RESOURCES? 

Q4: Do you want me to help you? (then shut up) 

Great. Here's how it works. My fee is $X. I'm here to help. Let's go over the details now. 

SECRET #19: THE PERFECT WEBINAR 

Q1: What's the new opportunity I'm offering? 

Q2: What is the Big Domino for this offer? 

Q3: What special offer can I create for those who purchase? 

Q4: What is my epiphany bridge origin story? 

Q5: What are the 3 false beliefs they have about this new opportunity (the 3 secrets) and what epiphany bridge stories will I tell to break those false belief patterns? 

False belief (vehicle, internal, external) 

Epiphany bridge. 

SECRET #20: EMAIL EPIPHANY FUNNELS 

Setting up the email indoctrination process when they first sign up for your list. 

Use SOAP OPERA strategy where suck the reader in and then cutting it off so the next email can pick it up. 

SECRET #21: EPIPHANY PRODUCT LAUNCH FUNNELS. 

Same strategy of origin story. Email 2 is new opportunity. Email 3 is internal belief. 4 is external belief. 5 is the stack. 

SECRET #22: FILL YOUR FUNNEL. 

Narrow down your dream 100.

Ex: List owners who have emails/#'s of 20k plus dream clients. 

Dig your well strategy 1: Follow your dream influencers. 

Dig your well strategy 2: Known who they are and understand what's important to them. Then interview them for your podcast to give them a platform. 

Dig your well strategy 3: Once have relationship, ask them what project their working on that's most important to them at the moment. 

Promotion Strategy 1: Send monthly packages with info. 

Promotion Strategy 2: Target your ideal competitor and target their audience with specific ads you create. 

Promotion Strategy 3: Team up with influences to Co create. 
Profile Image for Nicoleta.
107 reviews18 followers
September 10, 2023
De o lună și ceva am început să lucrez la o pagină de Instagram cu scopul de a o monetiza. Am auzit de cartea asta de la un YouTuber pe care îl urmăresc și mă gândeam că mă va ajuta și pe mine cu problemele pe care le întâmpin în a crește numărul de urmăritori. Însă, tot ce a rezultat din această lectură a fost să mă facă să pun la îndoială toată ideologia pe care o adoptasem. Surprinzător, nu?

Îmi place să învăț orice, sunt curioasă din fire și știu o grămadă de lucruri despre tot felul de chestii, dar ce folos are dacă nu pot face nimic cu informațiile astea. Am dat la un moment peste un influencer care promovează ideea de Value Creator, adică o persoană care își folosește cunoștințele dobândite pentru a educa alți oameni, dar în același timp reușește să facă și bani din asta. Mi-a plăcut la nebunie ideea, mai ales că îmi doresc să am mai multe surse de venit, așa că am decis să trec la acțiune. Cred că e printre puținii influenceri care te învață să faci bani online ce au prins la mine, restul îi consider scammeri.

Ce nu am realizat însă e că 99% sunt la fel, chiar și cel ce îmi câștigase încrederea, adică persoane nepregătite temeinic, dar foarte bune la a influența masele să cumpere cursuri stupide. Nu sunt împotriva ideii de a face bani online, dar depinde cum o faci și nu e așa de miraculos cum o prezintă influencerii aceștia. Părerea mea e că trebuie să fii bine pregătit ca să treci în rolul de profesor, nu doar cu un pas înainte cum prezintă autorul cărții. Cursurile mi se par cea mai stupidă formă de a face bani, iar eu personal nu ți-aș da vreun leu dacă nu ai studii în domeniu ca lumea. Udemy, Coursera, Skillshare, Patreon sunt platforme ok de predat cursuri, dar nu cum prezintă autorul să ai site-ul tău unde îi jecmănești pe alții de bani. Mie îmi miroase a scammer disperat după profit.

Insistă foarte mult pe ideea că îi ajuți pe alții cerându-le bani, că altfel nu fac nimic după ce au învățat. Pe o parte e adevărat pentru că te mustră conștiința dacă ai dat bani pe ceva și nu îți dai interesul, dar nu cred că e un lucru așa de nobil cum îl prezintă autorul. Un alt aspect care m-a iritat e ideea de cult, să te plasezi în poziția de guru știe-tot, iar dacă mai adăugăm și frecvența cu care autorul și-a promovat afacerea pe tot parcursul cărții rezultă o enervare maximă. Recunosc că pe la sfârșit am mai sărit peste pagini, devenise destul de neplăcută și repetitivă lectura.

Concluzia e că renunț la pagina de Instagram. Nu vreau să îmi pierd integritatea încercând să vând lucruri stupide, iar acum nu sunt suficient de pregătită să ofer ceva cu adevărat valoros încât să cer bani altora. Totuși, voi continua să mă educ pe plan financiar și să caut modalități mai bune pentru a crea alte surse de venit.
Profile Image for Alejandro Sanoja.
313 reviews16 followers
March 2, 2019
This book is PACKED with valuable and actionable insights! Easy to read too.

I had seen several of Russell's ads online and thought that he was just "another online sales guy" and his "free book" offer was just a scam. I was wrong!

This this is a step by step map about how to create a business by selling your advice. As simple as that. It is amazing how much knowledge and wisdom is packed in this book. Russell references A LOT of the TOP BUSINESS BOOKS out there, which validates a lot of the strategies he outlines in this book.

Also, a lot of what he shares is a bit counterintuitive which is why I think is so valuable. For the next month, I'll be revisiting this book and putting into action most of the recommendations.

Some Of My Highlights:

"But information alone isn't enough. It's the skillful application of the right information at the right time that can change your life."

"I honestly believe that the greatest service you can provide for someone is getting them to buy something. The act of buying creates a commitment that causes them to actually take action."
Profile Image for Johnny Malloy.
76 reviews
August 17, 2017
If you are interested in digital marketing Russell Brunson has collected so many ideas here that it is pretty much a must read. His style of marketing is very aggressive - the book itself is basically an ad for his products. But there is so much good material and ideas here to draw from if you are looking to grow your business online. Not a huge fan of how he seems primarily concerned with being "rich" and hanging around millionaires and having status be so important to his life. But this is part of his overall presentation - other marketers will see these things as easily attainable and will buy his books and software. So well done - Brunson sells you on how to do marketing by selling you using that very same marketing.
Profile Image for Rose Moore.
29 reviews3 followers
April 4, 2021
this book has some basic marketing strategies, and once you read it you will be able to see easily who online is using these methods based on some specific wordings. I won't detail them here. If you want to make money at any expense of your integrity go ahead and read it. I mean this with no judgement. Its a hard knock life out there and I have seen these methods work for some of my entrepreneur friends. Be advised though, if your company is based on any sort of ethical standards you will lose it. Thats the cost of calling your company a 'cult-ure' and taking notes from jim jones.
Profile Image for Sandee.
42 reviews23 followers
May 25, 2024
Trash ass bro marketing

ETA there are some helpful tips in here, but they aren’t really my style.
Profile Image for Dil Nawaz.
313 reviews14 followers
April 2, 2023
In 2019, I purchased a bundle offer of his black box books, which contained a couple of pamphlets and two books: DotCom Secrets and Expert Secrets. The book may come across as promoting an MLM scheme, with a heavy emphasis on upselling and promoting expensive courses.

While the information presented can be valuable, it's important to approach it with a critical eye and evaluate how it can be applied ethically and effectively in your marketing efforts. Ultimately, it's up to the reader to decide if the strategies presented align with their values and goals.

The author heavily promoted his INNER CIRCLE throughout the book, which requires a significant financial investment of 25k USD to join. Throughout the book, the author emphasizes Click Funnels as the best marketing software in the world.

While the software may be effective for some businesses, it's important to consider whether it aligns with your specific needs and budget. Additionally, there may be other options on the market that can achieve similar results like "Elementor" which I use to design my client's websites. It's important to evaluate all available options before committing to any particular tool or software.

The author's main focus in the book is to sell the idea of making money through expensive courses and winning the beliefs of potential customers. While the book is titled "The Expert Secrets," the author's main goal is to promote his company's software, ClickFunnels, through various upsells and sales pitches.

Rana Dil Nawaz,
Karachi, Pakistan.
https://ocdil.blog
Profile Image for Lou Bichard.
4 reviews1 follower
September 9, 2017
A great marketing book. Especially from the angle of the individual wanting to invest in their own skills. The opening line: "Expert secrets is the second part of a journey you have already started" sums it up pretty well. I'll be reaching for this book again in the future when it comes to positioning a product or individual. A call to arms for individuals to capitalise on their skills and share them with the world. Russell offers some serious advice on positioning products and expertise.
Profile Image for Quentin.
47 reviews
May 18, 2023
Hyperactive marketing idiot blabbering and vomiting out anecdotes about himself and his cool successful friends without actually giving any useful advice. At least not so far. I am really having trouble getting through this book. I do not feel like Brunson spent much time editing this. Nor that he is interested in making this book a valuable read. It is an ad for sales funnels which I had to pay for and so I feel betrayed and ripped off. You are burning your reputation, Brunson.
Profile Image for Leah.
697 reviews101 followers
April 28, 2024
I'm getting into digital marketing so this book was helpful in implementing it.

It's heavily weighing on the funnels though granted Russell Brunson created Click Funnels haha

I feel like the book should have been marketed more about the maker of Click Funnels shares secrets or something. I'm surprised there's nothing of ClickFunnels on the cover because I didn't even know who the author was until started reading the book.

It's interesting about how to sell to people, what the constraints are, and how to help them, and how to create a community.
Profile Image for Ling.
88 reviews12 followers
February 4, 2022
Sách hay cho team kinh doanh: bán thông tin - bán khoá học, … Hướng dẫn tận tình, chi tiết, đặc biệt là các khâu liên quan thành bại của một webinar 👏😁
40 reviews4 followers
Read
February 3, 2020
Sách hướng dẫn chúng ta về cách để lãnh đạo, dẫn dắt người khác
- Sự tự tin chỉ dành cho đám con nít; sự tin tưởng mới giúp bạn trở thành một lãnh đạo, một chuyên gia
- Người ta có thể đáp ứng mọi yêu cầu từ những ai biết khích lệ giấc mơ, bào chữa lỗi lầm, xua tan nỗi sợ hãi, khẳng định những hoài nghi của họ, và giúp họ ném đá vào kẻ thù.
- Slogan của tôi: "Everything you can. Everything we can".
- Phải học cách kể chuyện: kể chuyện bằng cảm xúc chứ k phải bằng logic; thuyết phục ng khác bằng cx chứ k phải bằng logic.
Trình tự của một câu chuyện:
1. Câu chuyện là gì để khán giả phải quan tâm?
2. Bạn muốn đạt được điều gì?
a. Bạn gặp phải những trở ngại bên ngoài nào?
b. Bạn đã phải đấu tranh với trở ngại nội tâm như thế nào?
3 Bạn đã gặp phải rào cản hay vấn đề gì trong cơ hội hiện tại để bạn phải bắt đầu cuộc hành trình mới này?
4. Bạn đã trải qua khoảnh khắc thấu hiểu nào và bạn đã khám phá ra cơ hội mới nào?
5 Bạn đã lập kế hoạch gì để chinh phục mục tiêu của mình?
6. Bạn đã phải đối mặt với những rào cản nào trong quá trình?
7. Kết quả bạn đạt được là gì?
8. Bạn đã trải qua sự thay đổi nào?

- Phá vỡ niềm tin sai lầm bằng những câu chuyện thấu hiểu và giá trị mà họ nhận được
- TRANG 286: cách chuyển tiếp từ thuyết trình sang bán hàng:
Hãy để tôi hỏi bạn 1 câu hỏi:
Bao nhiêu trong số các bạn cảm thấy hào hứng với những gì chúng ta đã nói cho đến bây giờ?
Bao nhiêu trong số các bạn cảm thấy quá tải vì chúng ta đã đề cập quá nhiều nội dung?

=> Đến thời điểm hiện tại điều tôi nhớ và học được từ cuốn sách: Muốn bán hàng tốt phải trở thành bậc thầy kể chuyện: chú ý đến cx nhiều hơn là logic. Cx mới là thứ cuốn hút, truyền cảm hứng cho người khác. Hãy trở thành chuyên gia trong lĩnh vực mình theo đuổi.
Profile Image for Yvette Bowlin.
Author 2 books10 followers
April 5, 2019
One of the best business books I've ever read. And re-read. And re-read. Russell lays it out completely, thoroughly and simply. To follow his outline will have you running your internet marketing biz in no time.

This book offers the encouragement, motivation, inspiration and how-to that I needed to start thinking about what I do as a movement -- a chance to change the world.

Profile Image for Rihab Sebaaly.
171 reviews82 followers
December 20, 2018
My rating might change when I reas more business books... But for now, this book was extremely fascinated and I learned many interesting things because of it... I definitely have to reread it to be able to digest all the concepts and ideas discussed in it!
Profile Image for Malia Burcham.
2 reviews
September 20, 2022
Excellent book that is a must-read for anyone who is a business owner. Especially if you are selling information products. Really, the framework Russell teaches in this book can apply to selling any product. You just have to customize it and be creative.
Profile Image for Daksh Jindal.
161 reviews103 followers
December 7, 2022
Amazing marketing book that teaches how to make money ethically by scaling up your business through some really good hacks and help your customers by providing them maximum value at the same time. Loved it.
Profile Image for Jake Doberenz.
Author 8 books6 followers
February 25, 2024
Russel Brunson has probably helped my business more than any other author and this is only the second book of his I’ve read.
Profile Image for Jung.
1,426 reviews28 followers
Read
July 24, 2023
Use the knowledge you already possess to start and run a thriving business

You’re an expert at something. Full stop. No matter who you are, no matter what you do, there is something you know or something you can teach. 

And let’s take this a step farther. No matter what that something you can teach is, you can use it to start a business. Information is a powerful tool. It attracts interest, attention, and money –⁠ even if you don’t think so right now. 

This book will reveal the expert secrets you need to start with absolutely nothing –⁠ not even the concept of a business –⁠ and make it all the way through to owning a profitable company. I know you’re curious, so come on –⁠ let’s dive in.

-

Starting a mass movement

Right now, you might be uncomfortable taking on the role of expert. The author gets it. He, too, often struggles with that negative inner voice.

For many of you, the problem is likely that your unique abilities are so second-nature that you dismiss them. The author does this, too. He has a talent for looking at a business or product line and almost immediately understanding how its owner should be selling it. To him, this seems like common sense. But from other people’s point of view, he has a rare talent for which they’re willing to pay a lot of money. Your skill might not seem like a big deal to you, either – but it is to someone else, whether it’s playing piano or fixing motorcycles.

Once you’ve figured out your area of expertise, it’s time to drill down a bit deeper to find your audience. Almost all expert businesses are based in one of three core markets: health, wealth, or relationships. 

First, determine which of these markets you’re addressing. Then, find the submarket you’re addressing within the core market. For example, within the health market, you’ll find the submarkets of diet, strength training, and weight loss. Which one is yours?

After identifying your submarket, you’re still not done. Because the money isn’t in the submarkets, it’s in the niches –⁠ another level beyond the submarket. To find your niche, you might look at other experts in your submarket and see what they’re selling. What can you offer people that’s different and special? 

It’s super important to find your niche, because all the submarkets are already crowded with competitors. For example, say your core market is wealth and your submarket is real estate. There are tons of companies operating in the real estate market – but maybe not so many operating in the niche of flipping houses on eBay.

Once you’ve chosen your niche, it’s time to become a charismatic leader who can sell your product. The key here is to maintain absolute certainty about what you’re offering. This can take time, but one of the ways you can build up certainty is by publishing your messages daily through podcasts, Facebook, blogging, Snapchat, or whichever platform you prefer. 

The platform doesn’t matter as much as your consistency in publishing. When the author set out to publish videos on Facebook Live, he posted literally every day –⁠ even when no one at all was listening. 

Why? Because he was publishing not for an audience, but for himself. He needed to discover his voice and to see what topics and ideas people would actually respond to. Over time, you, too, will become better at creating and posting the things people care about, and your audience will grow.

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The six-week masterclass

So you’ve chosen a niche and you know a little bit about what you want to share. But you still don’t have anything to sell. And that means you still don’t really have a relationship with your audience. That relationship is not established until they pay you. So where do you start?

What you’re going to do is create a masterclass. During it, you’ll teach a small number of people about your new opportunity. This will become the core curriculum for the people who will be paying you soon – but first, you’re going to test it with a beta group, for free.

To do this, first pick a six-week window when you can deliver your class. Then, start building some of the marketing material for the class. That’s right –⁠ the marketing material comes before making the actual content for the classes. 

The reason for this is simply that you need to teach people what they actually want to know! So you’re going to ask them just that. All it takes is creating a very simple web page that asks, “What is your #1 question about (your topic)?” On the same page, offer people a free ticket to the beta group of your masterclass if they’ll tell you their #1 question.

Once you have the page set up, start promoting it by telling everyone you know. Post it on Facebook; text your friends and family. Then look at your submarkets and look for people already in them. If your niche is about flipping houses on eBay, look for forums about real estate investing, become part of those communities, and start participating in the groups. 

Then, wait until you’ve got about 100 responses to your survey. Out of those 100, you’re going to identify eight to ten questions people are asking over and over. These questions will become the titles of the modules in your masterclass. 

For example, when the author ran this survey for his “How to make a potato gun” product, a frequent question was “What type of pipe do you use?” and “Do the PSI ratings on the pipes matter?” That question got folded into Module #2, “How to Pick the Right Pipes.” 

Use the questions to create an outline for each of the modules, and use the answers to create the content of your class! Then all that’s left is actually teaching it. You can set this part up by creating a Facebook group and using Facebook Live, which are both free.

After you’ve completed your masterclass and have some results that prove what you can do for people, it’s finally time to start selling things and making money – which is what we’ll get started with in the next section. 

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Make them believe

Once you’ve got the content you’re going to sell, it’s time to create beliefs in the minds of your followers. If people believe in what you’re telling them, you can influence them in a positive way. And the best part is that you actually only need to get them to believe one thing.

The one thing, that is. The one belief that will erase all potential objections that might stop a client from purchasing your product. So ask yourself, “What’s the One Thing? What is the largest domino of belief that we need to knock down?” Every product has one, and if you can successfully identify it, people will have to buy what you’re offering. 

For example, for the author’s company ClickFunnels, his One Thing was, “If I can make people believe that funnels are the key to online business success and are only attainable through ClickFunnels, then all other objections and concerns become irrelevant, and they’ll have to give me money.” In other words, when someone believes they need a funnel and his company is the only way they can get one, then they have to buy ClickFunnels. 

After you’ve got your statement, you can start using it to create belief in your One Thing. 

To do that, you’ll need to figure out how to break down as many of your potential customers’ false beliefs as possible. To use a weight-loss example, say you think that one of your potential customers’ false beliefs might be, “If I try to lose weight, I’m going to be miserable.” Now that you’ve identified that potential false belief, imagine what experience they might have had that caused them to develop it in the first place. For instance, maybe it’s that they tried to lose weight last year by cutting carbs and ended up miserable. 

Next, it’s your job to find a story from your own or someone else’s life that shows how you once shared a similar belief or story, but that you now have a new belief system and the old one was wrong. By following these steps, you’ll build up a solid inventory of false beliefs and stories you can use to combat them during your webinars – which we’ll discuss in more detail next.

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The perfect webinar

A common mistake people make is thinking that because their content is so good, people will automatically want to pay for it. Unfortunately, things don’t really work that way. To get paying customers, you need to work on sales. Fortunately, the author has already done a lot of that work for you with his perfect webinar tips. Note that these don’t apply just to webinars –⁠ they can also be used for video sales letters, stage presentations, email sequences, and more. The overall goal is to get people to believe in your One Thing.

In the beginning, you should build rapport with your audience and get them excited. There are a few especially good ways to do this. One is by giving you and your audience a common enemy. For example, during his presentation, the author might throw some shade at big corporations to align himself with his audience and distinguish his own company from the corporate enemy.

In the next part of your webinar, you should identify the One Thing you want your audience to believe and tell your origin story. You want to give people the same epiphany you had when you discovered the opportunity yourself. This is your first chance to knock down the big domino of belief.

Next, you’ll deal with breaking and rebuilding people’s false belief patterns. We discussed how to do this in the previous section. In this step, you’re discussing various beliefs people have that are preventing them from moving forward with your opportunity. One way to phrase that is “You’re probably thinking (blank), right?” as in “You’re probably thinking you need a lot of money to drive traffic, right? Well, actually, you only need 100 clicks a day.” 

After this part, you’re moving from the content section of the presentation to the sales section. You’re presenting the stack slide –⁠ the place where you stack up everything the customer gets when they decide to buy. For example, you might list out, “Masterclass –⁠ $9,997 value,” “Tools –⁠ $997 value,” and so on, adding up the value of everything your customer will receive in total at the end. The goal is to show that you’re giving 10 times the value of the asking price. 

Finally, you want to add urgency and scarcity by offering your audience a bonus upgrade that’s only available right then. Offer something special to a certain number of people or for a certain amount of time, or both. This could be an upgraded account for people who sign up for a certain deadline, or access to a special masterclass event. 

As a final note, this webinar should be something you do and redo every week. Don’t make the mistake of only holding the webinar a few times and then trying to offer your customers something new every month. It’s much better to direct your efforts toward driving new traffic to the same webinar every week –⁠ just rinse and repeat.

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The funnel

Early in his career, Chet Holmes was selling advertising for one of Berkshire-Hathaway’s law magazines. In spite of the fact that Chet was making calls and sending out materials every single day, their magazine was the worst performer out of all those in their industry.

Chet knew he needed to change something in his strategy. So he looked at the list of the 2,000 advertisers he was working with and discovered that 167 of them were spending 90 percent of their advertising budgets with his competitors. Chet defined those 167 advertisers as his “best buyers” and switched all of his marketing focus to them instead of the other 1800. It took four months for something to change, but finally he landed his first big account. By his sixth month of using the strategy, he’d landed 29 of the 167 advertisers, doubling sales over the previous year.

Chet’s concept is called the Dream 100, and it refers to the 100 people who already have your ideal customers. You’re going to use a similar strategy in your own expert business to drive traffic into your funnels.

To do it, start by figuring out where your Dream 100 is congregating in the existing submarkets and niches to which your business is related. For the author, he realized that the people who were controlling his traffic tended to be list owners, bloggers, podcasters, or social media influencers. 

Once you’ve identified 100 people who already have the traffic you want, start building relationships with them. Follow them, send them friend requests, subscribe to their email lists and blogs, and buy their products. Put yourself on their radar so they’ll know who you are before you ever make your first real request. 

After you’ve built up relationships with your Dream 100, it’s time to start leveraging them to gain access to their followers. 

The easiest and best way to work with your Dream 100 is to get them to promote you to their followings. The author sends everyone on his Dream 100 a physical newsletter and package in the mail every month with information about his company’s special promotions and how they can be part of them. Not everyone on your Dream 100 is going to promote your products, of course, and you may not even be able to get many of them on the phone. But keep marketing, because even a single “yes” can potentially put you in front of a huge audience, netting you massive profits. 

There are many other ways to drive traffic and fill your funnels. But all of them should be built on the foundation of your Dream 100. By mastering this strategy, you’ll constantly be able to fill your funnels with new people. 

-

Whoever you are, you have the ability to start an expert business using knowledge you already possess. In the beginning, you’ll need to create a niche that you can use to attract passionate customers and build a mass following. By creating content that delivers the knowledge people are looking for, you’ll build up a loyal base. Then, to drive sales, you’ll create webinars that knock down people’s false beliefs and make them feel the only option is to buy your opportunity. Finally, you’ll identify and make use of your Dream 100 to drive traffic into your funnels –⁠ and that’s your expert business!
Profile Image for Alex.
149 reviews22 followers
August 20, 2019
Can't recommend this enough also! Will be reading this again soon
Profile Image for Justin Wiebelhaus.
98 reviews7 followers
April 18, 2022
A quality book on developing a niche, building a following, creating a funnel, and running webinars. One of the biggest takeaways is coming up with a new opportunity instead of just slight improvements for your product. You want people to see this as a change in the way they do things, not just "a better... more improved..." I also liked finding the right niche in the "prolific zone" not being a piece of common knowledge and not being on the extremes. Also, a big theme is becoming a leader/ expert in the field you are in which I think is huge. Also learning to tell great stories is a great takeaway.

Something that I didn't love was that it was a huge promo for his program but I knew that going in. It is literally one of the methods he describes in his book. I also did not like the hard-selling, objection handling, and product pushing aspect of his webinars/ sales process. I personally am more of the mindset of it is better to find if there is a need instead of focusing on making the sale. On the flip side, Russel states "If I can make people believe that funnels are the key to online business success and are only attainable through Clickfunnels, then all other objections and concerns become irrelevant and they have to give me money". I think that having conviction in your product is great but it seems like he has a mindset that his product is the only attenable way to be successful online... which obviously is not true. Even if click funnels are a great way to make money it is not the only way. I also think some of the sales tactics of scarcity and urgency are fabricated in this industry and can be deceptive and unethical even if they help increase the compliance of the buyer. I think that salespeople who fabricate these things justify it because they think the ends (getting the customer to improve their lives through the product) justify the means (unethically fabricating timelines, scarcity, and urgency). I just don't think that is a good business model because it dilutes the trust of the whole industry. When I am on click funnels landing page and see a countdown timer I know that is just a technique not truly the end of a promo.

All in all a good online marketing book. I would suggest people read just the first half of the book!
5 reviews
December 23, 2017
Well I admire Russell for how he thinks and what he has accomplished, this book pretends to be more helpful than it actually is. It is a good primer for marketing but it tries to be all encompassing, and he basically claims that this is THE secret to marketing ANYTHING. The reality is, marketing and sales are much bigger than the system he advocates using, and by focusing so much on a one size fits all solution it leaves one wondering - how can I actually apply this? The answer is not clear because the book intentionally steers you away from incorporating other sales and marketing techniques in with what is offered here. Overall - I recommend for somebody trying to start a business ON THE SIDE that wants a quick solution they can implement with a clear system to follow and can spare some money for advertising.
Profile Image for Stephen Smotherman.
Author 5 books17 followers
January 26, 2021
This is a great book with tons of brilliant ideas on how to best communicate what your "expert-based" business has to offer your potential customers. Yes, he talks about his paid software program here and there throughout the book, and while that might turn off some people (I'm talking to you - one star reviewers), he'd actually be doing a disservice if he did not work his program into the conversation. The great thing about this book is that it's not a 200 page infomercial... but a 200 page masterpiece of better serving your potential and current customers, with a few brief mentions of his paid program sprinkled in. This is the second book I've read from this author and I personally do not use his paid program, but can still take home a truckload of actionable content to add to my own "expert-based" business.
Profile Image for Sergiusz Golec.
165 reviews8 followers
June 23, 2018
[+] Great intro into an info-business (of the Experts).
[+] Several great concepts, including "Red vs Blue" ocean, 3 markets (wealth-health-relationships), The One Big Domino (of belief/obstacle/aim), Epiphany bridge (story of AHA moment(s)), Samples of the sales scripts and webinar business plans. I saw it many times live, and now that book helped me to understand the backstory of many "selling" Celebrity-Experts behaviours.

[-] Author tries to sell his other products, a lot. Top 1 - the Funnel system.
[-] Status (upgrade & update) is the aim not for everybody. Some people are far from that Ego subject. That is why you may find some content irrelevant and some - missing.
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