20/20 Challenge: Day 1 - alternativeSOHO

Side note: Please excuse the picture quality. I would have used my digital camera, but it had other plans which included not working properly. I guess I’ll be using some of that $20,000 for a new digital camera.

As I was telling a couple of friends, I have so much going through my mind that I have no idea where to begin when it comes to my Day 1 review. So, I’m just going to start where it feels comfortable and see where I end up. Fair enough?

The First Day’s Task

It’s the second day (remember, I’m counting Day Zero) of my 20k challenge and the only task for the day was to finish reading the 250 page manual. (Well, 453 pages in my case.)

It took me about 4 hours to get through the entire book; however, after I finished reading, I realized that the 453 pages of content could have and probably should have been edited down to 200 pages or less. And that includes all the screen shots, same font size and line spacing. Put another way, more times than I care to count, I found myself jumping over entire sections because it was entirely too fluffy — Angel Food cake fluffy.

In fact, if you decide to read the manual, just go ahead and skip the first 10 pages entirely; I’ll give you the one sentence summary:

It’s possible to earn $20,000 online, you just need to keep an open mind and follow the upcoming steps.

A certain level of hand-holding is necessary because the guide was designed to also accommodate newbies. But, I can’t suffer that argument so long as the same thing is repeated two-three times on the same page, sometimes verbatim, in those little “Special Tip” boxes. If that sentence or two is truly important, use a bold font weight and save trees.

Gross v. Net Revealed

Only 35 pages into the 20/20 Manual, the truth is revealed about the $20,000 figure being gross income from the project. Of course, there are some other figures thrown around to offset it; Figures such as $10,000, $20,000, $30,000 and a few others for effect.

How likely is it for someone just starting out with this method and following it to the letter to earn $20,000, even gross? Highly unlikely. I nearly fell out of my seat when I read the section on product pricing (Day 6), and I don’t mean that in an entirely good way.

Realistically, I’d say that probably 1 in 10 will hit the intended mark. It would be prudent to anticipate an income of $10,000 gross ($4,000 after expenses) and that’s if you can get a good product in place, proper sales letter, and sturdy JV sales force.

But, I’m not discounting the fact that it’s completely possible to earn the full $20,000 gross income. In that vein, I’m continuing this challenge with my eyes and mind wide open.

Incidental Expenses Stampeding Out of the Woodwork

Remember in Day Zero when I touched on the topic of incidental expenses and I mentioned having an extra $200 set aside in addition to the 20/20 Challenge package price? Well, I’ve just upped the ante to $400.

Now, it’s time for the explanation. There are expenses that weren’t mentioned in the sales letter, such as how you plan to keep track of your JV sales, how you’re going to handle technical support, how you’re going to manage downloads if you don’t want to be ripped off. Stuff like that. Of course, none of these expenses are absolutely necessary, they’re only necessary if you don’t want to spend the next 20 days working in your basement.

Plus some kickbacks from some of these incidental expenses will be making their way back to the author’s pocketbook*. At least 8 pages within the first 100 were just mini sales letters for various products. He touted one website so heavily that it bordered on a little suspicious.

Although he stresses that you can find a PLR product to rework for only $1.99 (what a steal), after visiting the recommended site, the average going rate for a majority of the suitable PLR products are about $5-$10 each. Plus, he mentions that you should expect to purchase at least 2-3 products before you find a winner. Of course, if you have your own product collecting dust on your hard drive, then you don’t need to worry.

Product Promotion

I mentioned previously that I combined the bonus marketing manual with the 20/20 manual when I had it printed. The 20/20 manual referred to quite a few of the “keys” found in the bonus manual, which lead me to believe it wasn’t that much of a bonus after all, but required study (or a potential upsell had he not included it as a bonus).

It’s also when I learned the links I bumped into on the 20/20 site weren’t an accident. That said, I’d follow some of the more dodgy marketing techniques with caution if part of your marketing plan is staying within the good graces of search engines.

58 Days will sneak Up on You

You have a limited amount of time to claim a refund if you don’t find value in the package. That amount of time is 58 days from date of purchase. But when you read the manual for the first time, you have this nagging feeling in the back of your mind that you may not be able to complete everything within that 20 day time frame. The manual even tells you that it may take you 40 or 60 days, maybe even months to finish – take your time.

The way I see it, if you’re brand new to internet marketing, are short on cash, and have a full-time job to support yourself, you can kiss either your sleep, quality family time, or refund good-bye. I fully plan to tell you how long each challenge task takes me, but you must make concessions for your own abilities. I can read and code relatively quickly, but writing takes me a bit of time; the same may not be true for you.

In all fairness, if I do earn back double the price of the package in net profit, then it would be worth it to me. Your standards may be different, so go into this challenge with your eyes wide open. Know what you want to achieve, and know how much time and money you can invest. If the latter two are “not much”, then I’d hold off.

But it wasn’t All Bad

I know that I’ve raised quite a few issues for only completing the first day’s task, but it wasn’t all bad. The screen shots littered throughout the book were helpful, and I also found value in the outsourcing advice. The checklists at the end of each day were also nice touches to help keep you on track.

And there’s a member’s only forum where you can bounce ideas off other participants, get feedback, find potential JV partners, and possibly make a few product sales. I’m still waiting on access to the forum, but I hear it’s good.

After all is said and done for Day 1, I will not waiver. I made a commitment to myself and others, so I’m going through this challenge day by day and following it to the letter (except the bits about “silent cross promotion” and any other sketchy optimization/marketing techniques).

*There’s absolutely nothing wrong with putting your affiliate link in your products if you believe it will be helpful. I was just taken aback by the mini sales letter style that accompanied them and was making an observation.

Today’s Expenses	$0.00
Gross Expenses	$282.03
Today’s Income	$0.00
Gross Income	$0.00
Today’s Time Investment	4 hrs.
Gross Time Investment	4.5 hrs.

Updates

• 20/20 Challenge: Day Zero
• 20/20 Challenge: Day 2
• What Makes the 20/20 Challenge Special?
• 20/20 Challenge: Day 3
• 20/20 Challenge: Day Four

Tags: 20/20 challenge review, 20k challenge, internet marketing