How a Nonnative English Speaker with No Online Connections Went From Zero to 28K in 6 Months (ZTL Review)
OK so first time ever that I am coming out with the secret of my overnight (read months in the making) success story and while there are many contributing factors to the whole thing (hustle, sleepless nights and bucket loads of tea), I would put Ramit Sethi’s Zero to Launch program as one of the top.
Now before you moan and groan and point fingers in my face saying I am being a sleazeball by promoting an online program… let me be very clear, I am not being paid to write this review, I am not an affiliate of the program (in fact I am not an affiliate of any program) and I don’t have a covert affair with Ramit (as much as I like to tell you so)
I took the course in April of this year with no clear idea or plan on my positioning. I had the domain registered yes (just as I have 22 other domains registered to feed my crippling case of the shiny object syndrome) but beyond that..I was lost!
The first month I took ZTL, I pitched 12 blogs with nothing on my website except my 1-2 punch email promising them great content. I heard back from 8 of these places and got my first paying client through one of my guest blogs and with no “work with me” page (heck I didn’t even have a paypal account)
I didn’t think I needed a work with me page because “they” tell you it takes years to make your first dollar…so when I got that first email enquiry, I quickly put together a page, linked it with paypal and made it live. That was June of 2014 and that’s when I set a target to make 10K online before 2014 folds.
I am happy to report that I made almost triple that and 2014 still isn’t over. I also went from zero to 2,800 subscribers and 532 clients. All this with literally no online connections and sub-zero support from family & friends (I only told my parents & my husband after I got my first 5 sales) and most of my Facebook friends have no idea still.
A Bit about My Tangible Results
Went from a big fat zero to this:
- 2,800 subscribers
- $28,000 in sales
- 532 clients
- Featured in 20+ places including Inc.com.
But these aren’t the results making me lose my shit. It’s the intangible but making me giddy with happiness results.
A Bit about My Intangible but Positively Enthralling Results:
I’m not as excited about the dollars that I have made but the number of people that I have touched with the program, I have sold my programs and services to 532 people…that’s 532 people who I know will talk about me in a great way…532 ambassadors out there spreading great things about me…532 free marketing collaterals….how great is that?
Enthralling Result Number One:
Waking Up to see these completely unprompted testimonials my people are posting about me on social media:
Enthralling Result Number Two:
Receiving such emails when I am sitting in yet another boring daylong meeting:
Enthralling Result Number Three:
People writing to me telling me that them when they look at the price tag on my stuff, they secretly think “what’s the catch” but then buy anyway because I am THAT persuasive.
Enthralling Result Number Four:
Cracking 100 sales in 2 days (320 total) for the very first program I launched (this is the one I launched following ZTL to the tee). Releasing a 2nd program less than a month after the first and selling 308 packages in 2 weeks and a sales page that is converting at a whopping 38%!!
Enthralling Result Number Five:
Exceeding my target of 10K almost three times over.
Enthralling Result Number Six:
Doing all this with a full time consulting career, 2 kids and a house to look after…not to mention a husband who’s a darling but needs to be pampered..
Enthralling Result Number Seven:
Making my parents very very proud. They still can’t wrap their heads around the fact that people are paying me money for doing things on internet. They believe that the only way you can make money is by exchanging hours with dollars so seeing me making money while I am making a Bushra-shaped dent in their couch is kinda sorta miraculous!
Enthralling Result Number Eight:
Getting my first paying client without any “selling”.
Enthralling Result Number Nine:
The mindset shift that took me from “who’d buy from me?” to “I’m the best thing that ever happened on the internet”
Enthralling Result Number Ten:
Knowing with absolute surety that I will multiply these results many many times over in 2015. That I am just warming up and that I have scores of people backing me up and cheering for me as I crack my first million.
Why you should NEVER sign up for ZTL
So here’s my honest candid advice to you…if you are at the doubtful-floundering, no-idea-what-I-am doing stage, ZTL is for you
If you are cocksure that your way is THE way and that all people who tell you otherwise are either jealous of you or secretly want you dead…well keep doing what you are doing
I have had great results with the ZTL system, I trust the system and I go back to it again and again.
Hit me up if you have any questions!
Great review of ZTL, excited you had your story featured as a case study. From a fellow Ramit fan – just wishes! Is ZTL the only course you have invested in ?
Hi Bharat
Thank you so much for your kind words…I am excited too 🙂
So, I have invested in other programs too but it wasn’t until ZTL that I actually put it the knowledge to good use..mainly because it gives you an overall framework to work with versus specific tactics that work for some but not others. Hope this helps..
Ramit’s stuff is udeniably kickass, but it takes a gritty and dedicated sort of snowflake to get the results you did. So give yourself more credit, it’s more than deserved. 🙂
Congrats! I hope you break seven figures in 2015. Break them into tiny little pieces that fit right into your bank account. 🙂
P.S. For some baffling reason, third-to-last paragraph contains several typos. I highlighted them with underscores:
#1 and 2 – “your way _id_ THE way _an_ that all people”
#3 – “of _your_ or secretly want you dead…”
#4 and 5 – “well keep _owing hat_ you are doing”
Otherwise it’s a superb case study that has a ring of kick-up-the-butt kind of inspiration to it.
Wowww Oleg..I have no idea what’s going on in that paragraph….cant thank you enough for the heads up!
and thank you so so much for your lovely words..you totally made my day 🙂
You’re welcome. 🙂 I’ve also subscribed, and loving your Toolkit. It’s such an excellent example of a super-focused, very useful subscription bonus.
You aren’t going overboard with tons of overwhelming information, or pad out the pdf with useless fluff, but deliver exactly as promised. When I’m making a great bonus for my subscribers, I’ll think of your toolkit and strive for a similar level of as much value as possible in as few words as possible. 🙂
Hi Bushra. I have a question – just how straight-up studying was involved in your ZTL experience? You mentioned the ability to take critique, and the other mental shifts you experienced – those could be classified as skills as well. But how much subject-study (e.g. persuasion & psychology) was involved? Or was there none – that is, you were already subject-fluent in the area of your business?
Thanks so much for dropping by Faizan. So I was well-versed in the subject yes, having studied the subject for years to use in my consulting work…what ZTL did was it showed me how to use that knowledge in a strategic way and frame it in a way that would make it digestible and usable for my ideal buyers. I was a bit all over the place (a problem with anyone who consumes too much content) but ZTL forced me to focus so that it addresses specific pain points.
Hope this helps 🙂
Btw, autocorrect keeps changing your name to Buddha. It is very persuasive! Lol.
I appreciate the review and relate to you so much because I also have a ft consulting biz, 2 kids and frizzy hair on many a day. I’ve been considering ztl but haven’t committed yet because most of my online biz ideas are product based. Do u think a product based entrepeneur could get the same value out of the program? I’m interested in the process and refinement of my overall concept..
Kick ass mamma!
LOL Angie, Buddha…oh how I wish…I do need some peace of mind 🙂
So no I will not recommend ZTL for a product based business, the dynamics are very different and ZTL is very info product-centric. You can use me to refine your idea, hit me up any time 🙂
From one half-crazy mom to the other..much love!
I’m a Ramit fan and hovered over the ZTL buy now button, but felt I better finish the other pricey copywriting course before I invested in anything else. The thing I love about this review is getting to SEE you on video…I hear your voice in my head when I read your writing, now I have a picture of you as well. I’m thankful I came across your course 3day3k and took it. You over deliver and your way of speaking is right up my alley. Cheers to your success, big things to come for you in 2015!
Ohhhh Kelly…I was having an exhausting sort of day, I should have read this comment earlier…You are simply the BEST!!
[…] Bushra goes from nothing to having hundreds of clients with Zero to Launch […]
Hi Bushra
Can you give me an idea how much this course costs and where I can buy it? I am not able to get much information on the ZTL site.
Thank you
Hi AL
It cost me around $2K I think but not sure what price it will be this time.
Hope this helps.
Bushra
Hi Bushra: How did you go from 0 to 100’s of subscribers without using your friends, contacts, or Facebook? Could you give an example of something concrete you learned in Ramit’s course that made you achieve this success? Thanks!
Hello Met
I did everything he told me to but his suggestions are at a strategic level. You choose your own tactics, I tried every list building tactic out there. Most effective being social media posts, guest posting, giveaways and FB ads.
Hope this helps 🙂
Thank you for your honest review of ZTL – your story is so compelling and I can relate to a number of components of it (getting burned by woo woo programs, wanting to protect the reputation I’ve established in my city etc) It’s really helped me make my decision to sign this week.
Thanks so much Fi for your lovely words and for your openness!!
I think you will love the program, see you in the group 🙂
Hey Bushra! Your review was right on time and on point. I’m a project management consultant and usually deal with strategies/scenarios to bring successful outcomes to my clients, so it was GREAT to watch your review to hear the nitty-gritty of the level of work involved with ZTL. I gravitate to the “give it to be real” type information. So, your experience definitely resonated with me in my own work and how I’ll be able to use ZTL to the fullest (good, bad, and ugly) to build a sustainable, scalable online business. I look forward to posting my own results as I got through the program. Let me know if you need any guest posts for your blog….I’ll be ready soon! 🙂 Keep up the great work!
Hey Gina
Thanks so much lovely..so glad you found this useful!
I am right here whenever you are ready 🙂
hey bushra.great review and such an inspiring story.iam impressed by the content on your site,keep up the good work and all the best in your business.
Thank You so much Allan for dropping by and for your lovely words!
Your landing pages are impressive. By looking at them, I’m sure your courses are as well. Part of your success it seems is being able to execute rather quickly. Did you already have an outline of a course before you even took ZTL? My question really is – a lot of online courses can put you into analysis paralysis. In ZTL, does Ramit go into the NITTY GRITTY of how to create landing pages and digital products that sell that you can actually implement right away?
Hey Brenda
Sorry responding too late (ZTL closed already)
OK so no I had no idea AT ALL what I will offer prior to taking ZTL and the course did help with that yes!
My pages are my own feeble attempt at web design so happy to hear you consider them impressive. ZTL does not go into the nitty gritty of page creation or design etc. It is strategy based but does offer a solution (accelerator I think) that you can use right away. I didn’t opt for that so all my pages are done by me. Will be happy to share my resource list, just drop me a line 🙂
Bushra, as a fellow South Asian, your story, to me, is fascinating. Among the many ZTL alumni whose reviews I have read and websites I have seen, yours looks by far the most polished. Did you spend a lot getting all this designed, and who did your sales video for you (if you don’t mind sharing)?
It almost seems like you were primed for success even before you took ZTL. I’d be interested in your thoughts about that?
Hi Vikram
So glad to connect 🙂
OK so my whole entire business is totally DIY, the website is done on Themify and the sales video I put together myself in 60 minutes using videomakerfx. I am the queen of DIY 😉
From start to finish it took me maybe 2 weeks to pout everything together after I became clear on my idea but didn’t want to lock myself in a brand or website that couldn’t grow and change with me…so I am making changes as I go through my first year of biz.
So not exactly primed for success in the sense that I had never made a single dollar online but was hell-bent on proving to myself that you can in fact make money online so there was that mindset..I was like a mad woman on a mission and you know how women are when they lock in a target 😉
Hi Busha, congrats! Your story is very inspiring. I’m stuck on which hosting to use – people recommend WPEngine, although I see you are using BlueHost? How did you decide which hosting plan to use?
thank you!
Dear Amanda
Thanks so much for dropping by and for your message. So I went with bluehost without any research, literally bought it because it seemed OK and a friend was using it (happy with the service btw)…Don’t get too bogged down by these details, just choose one and if you aren’t happy you can always switch 🙂
Best
Bushra
Hi Bushra,
First of all congratulations on having such an awesome website and business model. I’m debating about ZTL course. Does this course help you and teach you to do customer market research? Also does this course help you find “Idea” that you can use to build online business? I’m completely clueless both about idea and how to find prospective customers.I’m ready to put in all hardwork,time and effort. Just need help with finding the “Idea” and method to find and connect with prospective customers. Can you please help answer these questions?
Thank you,
Mehul
Thanks Mehul
Yes ZTL goes into extreme details about both things that you are worried about. In fact, most of ZTL emphasis is on idea identification, validation & market research. Hope this helps.
“I’m the best thing that ever happened on the internet”
Haha! I LOL’d at this!
Such a great review. I just started the course last night. It’s the most I’ve ever spent on a course but have no doubt it will be the best course I’ve ever done!
Thanks again for the review and way to go for your success!
Dear Bushra,
Thank you for your energy, knowledge, and on purpose care for people in this internet new world. You are an inspiration. Will definitely share this info with my lovely wife. We will benefit from the luck of finding you in the massive and routinely similar internet land.
I wish for continued health and happiness for you and your loved ones.
Dear Bushra,
Thank you so much for your review. It was the most helpful review I have read. I spent 3000 dollars for consulting and soon found out it was total fraud. I am still in shock and angry at myself by choosing wrong thing and this makes me hesitate to sign up for ZTL. Also I am a graphic designer and live in Asia. My market has to be my country because i am not a English speaker. Do you think ZTL will work in this situation? Any advice will be appreciated. Thank you.
Hi Bushra,
I might be commenting too late, as your review is from more than 1 year ago. I just learnt about ZTL a couple of weeks ago, and I feel so enthusiastic about it that I cannot wait for it to open again. It is your experience and some of your peer’s that make me feel it is a great program. You are very inspiring, your business is very inspiring and I can only congratulate you and be jealous!
I have been using some of Ramit’s free material to come up with an idea, but what he offers (find 20 things your are good at, and then organize them in regard of their prize/market) is not helpful enough to me. I have two ideas (or better “areas of expertise”) but don’t know how to transform them into profitable products. Does he get more specific in the program?
This is a main question to me, and I would very much appreciate if you could answer it for me.
Thanks a lot,
Amaya
Hi!
First off, I love the review of this course.
I’ve been debating whether or not I should get this program and such; however, I’m always so hesitant about it (even though it has nothing but glowing reviews).
So I’m wondering about a few things:
1.) Is it mainly info products in the form of ebooks or online courses? Or both?
2.) I work a job that takes up 60+ hours plus of my time with a 2 hour commute each way. So is it a program that will allow me to work on my online business with only 5-10 hours a week?
3.) How competent does a person have to be in order to do this? I’m not really confident on my skills or what I know. I know I love reading about mind-hacking/peak performance, but I’m not sure if that is enough since I may not know enough.
Sorry about all the questions. I understand that online businesses take time to grow. The top 3 things that I value most in this world are spending time with the people I love, my time to pursue other passions, and finding ways to help others realize their potential in life. I just want to know if I’ll still get good results based on the questions I asked. Thank you so much for review and I hope that 2016 was an amazing year in terms of living your lifestyle to the fullest!
Jack