Hi, My Name Is Karthik
I Help Small Businesses & Startups Sell Online (And Make More Money)
Over the last 23 years, I went from being a fledgling techie 'entrepreneur' struggling to sell his software to a conversion copywriter and a direct response marketer.
Salesmen Are Liars
When you are thirteen and see someone cheat your family, you are enraged. You start to dislike everything about them. Who they are, what they did to your family, and what they did for a living. In my case, this guy was my dad's friend. He was a salesman. And that was one of the many ideas that shaped my little world.
2001
Software I Never Sold
In the early years of the internet, I downloaded pirated software through a dial-up modem to create my first software, 'product.' I did that to solve a problem at a company I interned. They paid me and referred me to my second client. And then it stopped. My aversion to selling got the better of me.
2002
SaaS'ified Not Satisfied
Joined the rat race of working in multinational companies. I did everything from writing code and filing for patents to managing and marketing products.
2016
Building a Brand
Starting a podcast during a career break gave me a break. After over a quarter million downloads in under eleven months, I began to drink internet marketing 'from the fire hose.' Start blogging, building an email list, tiptoe into affiliate marketing, and selling online courses.
2020
Salesmen Aren't Liars
After an extended career break, I learned the power of selling online. It was the year of the pandemic, and I binge-read every piece of literature on online sales and direct marketing.
From Zig Zigler to Daniel Pink, I sped-read through every book on sales and psychology. I consumed books and resources from John Caples, Gary Halbert, Jay Abraham, Dan Kennedy, and John Carlton to everyone else.
2021+
Nail Your Messaging
"Because your clients don't want to know if you understand them. They want to feel understood."
If there's one thing I learned from my years, it's this subtle line. Your clients look you up before they decide to speak with you. And they are not doing it to see how experienced you are or how good your products or services are. Sure, they do matter. But only once your clients feel understood. And that's at the core of everything we do today.
"The Mess Is In The Messaging"
Those Matryoshka words are not mine. I've heard someone use that phrase. And it's so true.
Nailing your messaging can be challenging without asking questions or listening. The first time I realized the power of questions in revealing your message was after a podcast in 2018. A few weeks after the interview, I received an email from my guest thanking me for the interview. It helped him create a TEDx Talk (!!).
Over the years, our interviews have helped clients in ways beyond their website messaging. Our clients have uncovered priceless data-driven testimonials, received product feedback, discovered new product opportunities, and created newer offers, amongst many others.
Thanks a ton for helping me narrate my story! The interview helped me define the structure and focus for a TEDx talk.
Robin Singh
FOUNDER, E-JUNKIE & PEEPAL FARM
Teaching an eight year old
One of my favorite hobbies as an eight-year-old was pencil sketching. Today you'll find me doing that with my son Vivaan. It's fun to have an eight-year-old at home. They are super curious and absorb practically anything you throw at them. And they are fast. He's nine today and even understands what's a good copy!
They say that eight-year-olds are the smartest people on the planet. And that's so true. When I started writing copy, someone told me, "think like an eight-year-old." And that's one of the best pieces of advice I've ever received.
You can't give them excuses. They know your soft spots. If I tell my son I'm too busy to work on his art project, he readily responds, "can we do it at 4 pm?"
Vivaan learning to sketch a stallion
It's Big. Hairy. And Audacious too.
When I started this blog and my first podcast, I only wanted to create content and have meaningful conversations. I hoped that those conversations would lead me to the right places. Perhaps open doors, which they did.
I transitioned from having no goal to becoming a content creator, which was nice. But it was not until I started selling courses that I felt genuinely liberated because I had a skill I never did or believed in before. Selling.
My BHAG today is to help more people make that transition and use my skill to help businesses make more money.
Does that sound like you?
I created a 90-Day Marketing Plan for you. Even better, take this quiz. In the end, you'll receive a customized marketing plan that you can use for your business.
PS: I spend a lot of time on my podcast. It's called The Launch Plan, and on the podcast, you'll get my fullest support in helping you further your interests in starting, growing, or even scaling your business. For example, one of my favorite episodes is part of a three-part series on 'How to Attract the Right Clients and Repel the Wrong Ones.' Here's a link to the episode. Please take a listen and let me know what you think.