Ian Stanley Copywriter Review (2024): Does His Email Marketing Strategy Really Work?

TLDR – Is Ian Stanley The Man To Kickstart Your Ecommerce Business?

I really like what Ian Stanley is doing here. He’s the email revenue guy, and he provides courses that offer a fast track to success for email marketers.

Like Ian, I fully agree that there is money in sales letters and email marketing. If you can write winning emails, someone will likely pay you to do them.

But what I’m not clear on is how this translates to the mega-bucks, super-passive income that Ian describes in his videos.

Now, I’m certain that Ian is great at what he does, and I’m sure the stories he tells are fully legit. But I worry that they may give budding writers and entrepreneurs false hope.

Ian describes how he knocked up an email in six minutes, which earned him $6500. Compare this to the average hourly earnings for email writers in the US, which is about 24 bucks an hour.

This is not just a slight discrepancy. It’s like comparing the Grand Canyon with a crack in the sidewalk or Niagara Falls to a leaky faucet.

I’m 100% certain that Ian will help you become a better email marketer. But is he going to 270X your income one-tenth of the time? Yeah, I’m not so sure about that.

I’m sure it did work for Ian himself. But that doesn’t necessarily mean his advice is going to work for everyone. For most people, I’m guessing it won’t…

Taking Control Of Your Time, And Your Life…

If only there were some way to take all those great ideas about working smart, not hard and taking back control of your life, and applying them to a more sustainable business model…

Actually, I believe there is…

With local lead generation and Digital Leasing, I was able to do exactly that.

Through Digital Leasing, I set up my first digital rental property… basically a simple website that generates leads in my chosen niche.

By leasing this website out to local business partners, I found myself with a regular income of $2k a month. And that’s just for one site…

These days I run quite a few more of these sites. I’m clearing a solid level of income, in exchange for just an hour of my time each day.

I can do all those things Ian talks about.

• I can make time to focus on my family.
• I can live the travel/remote lifestyle dream.
• I’ve got the time and money to tick off all the things I want to do in life.

It’s just that I’m doing it through a proven business model that’s way more stable than email copywriting.

I actually think Ian is talking a lot of sense. But in my personal experience, there are better business models in which to apply these values.

And that business model, for me, is local lead generation.

Hit the link right here to discover more about local lead generation and Digital Leasing today.

Area	Rating	Description
Time Investment	2.8 out of 5 stars	Ian makes it quite clear that you should just be trading your time for money. And I guess his methods are supposed to support this. I think he manages this here and there, but some aspects of running an ecommerce business will always be time consuming.
Level of Control	2.7 out of 5 stars	Control isn’t too bad with this one. Ian will give you some good skills to help you stay in command. However, selling things on online ecommerce platforms is always slightly difficult to control.
Ease of Implementation	3.0 out of 5 stars	Like with the time investment, implementation is supposed to be easy with Ian. It looks like he largely manages it, but I’m not sure if all of his methodology will be quite so effortless.
Profit Potential	1.9 out of 5 stars	There’s a lot of information here, and Ian has definitely been busy. I wonder if it’s going to be enough, however. Profits are always hard to come by in ecommerce, and this is still likely to be the case, even with Ian’s great teaching.

Who Will Benefit From The Ian Stanley Course & Who Won’t?

Ian says if you can send an emails to friends, then you can make this work. But is this really the case?

You Might Be Interested In This Course, If…

• You love the dream lifestyle that Ian lives.
• You enjoy the process of copywriting.
• You don’t mind applying for a course with little introductory information.

You Probably Won’t Get Much From This, If…

• You’re looking for a more stable business model.
• You don’t have a writing background.
• You’re unsure if Ian’s methods are enough to help you hit those big numbers.

Discover the industry’s finest in my detailed article on the best Digital Marketing Courses & Gurus.

Ian Stanley Copywriter: Your 1,000 FT View

What’s going on behind the curtain on this course?

Business Model: Email Marketing

The business model is email marketing. You write an email, send it out to a mailing list, and you count those sales as they role in.

That’s the best-case anyway. Not everyone is going to score success with this model.

Just keep in mind…

1. Most email writers are making up to $24 an hour… this is not nothing, but it’s not quite the $6500+ in six minutes that Ian talks about in his videos.
2. Most people don’t even open promo emails… a good open rate is about 17%, and most fall way below this.
3. Even if people are opening your emails… the average conversion rate is just over 15%. You’re going to need to produce a lot of emails to make an impact here.

The Ian Stanley Review – Who Is The Guru?

Ian Stanley is a lot of things… top salesman, email marketing expert, global traveller, and dream-liver.

His story is an impressive one. After learning the ropes of email marketing, he rebranded himself as the Persuasion Hitman… also the title of his new book. While this is tongue in cheek nickname, it does give you a good idea of what he does.

No… not the hitman part. The persuasion part.

He’s master in the art of selling, nurturing, persuading and converting. And that’s what’s helped him to achieve the awesome life he’s living these days.

How Much Does The Ian Stanley Email Marketing Course Cost?

There’s a lot of content to deal with here, but how about that Ian Stanley email marketing cost?

• The Standard 80/20 Course costs $197, as a one-off payment (reduced from $297)
• The Premium 80/20 Course costs $497 (reduced from $591) as a one-off payment. You can also split this over three payments of $197, which kicks the cost back up to the original price.

• The Persuasion Hitman book is FREE… you just pay shipping. I’d expect to be upsold if you do take Ian up on this offer though.

• Not everyone can get on the 90 Days To Freedom course. You’ll need to apply before you learn the cost.

Is There an Ian Stanley Scam You Need To Worry About?

At first I was a little alarmed by what I found in my research…

It’s actually pretty hard to find Ian Stanley’s websites. I had to do a bit of digging before I found his book and his courses.

But once I did, it all seemed pretty legit. The guy is a proper business man… he’s managed to succeed, and he believes he can help you do the same if you purchase his training.

I don’t imagine it’s that easy to score the same kind of success, but that doesn’t make it a scam! I’m sure you’ll learn some skills with Ian. You might even have a bit of fun along the way.

For a much more stable path to semi-passive income, though, I’d recommend looking somewhere else.

My Personal Opinion On Ian Stanley And His Email Marketing Course

So I spent a bit of time checking out what Ian has to offer, and here’s what I really think…

I really like a lot of what Ian is offering. Getting that time/money equation right is crucial… it’s the only way to live a happy, fulfilled life.

And sure, he’s got a bunch of great advice to help you get there. From creating a strong email list to learning to set clear boundaries, and targeting the highest average order value for each transaction… yeah, you’re definitely going to learn something here.

But Ian is out to sell the dream lifestyle. I’m talking travelling the world, living life to the full, doing everything you ever dreamed of. And I’m just not sure that email marketing is really the horse to back in this race.

Remember, this is a market where people are mainly earning a couple of dozen bucks an hour. It’s not lifechanging money. I guess Ian’s sales message content and email templates could help you push your earnings a little bit… but tens of thousand dollars a month?

That’s the dream… but for most people, I think it’s going to stay that way.

I actually prefer something that’s a bit more accessible to most people… something like Digital Leasing.

With the semi-passive income I get from leasing out lead gen websites, I’m able to…

1. Win back control of my time…
2. Secure a solid income for myself and my family…
3. Make a genuine difference for real people…

This last point is super important. When Ian talks about upping your pricing even if it makes you a little uncomfortable… I get it. This is a bold strategy, and it’s definitely worked for some people.

But with Digital Leasing, there’s no need for this kind of gung-ho pricing. You’re changing the lives of local business owners in your area, and they are only too happy to give you up to $2k a month because you’re offering a massive return on their investment.

Whichever way you slice it, local lead gen just seems far more sustainable…

Click here to discover more about Digital Leasing today…

What’s Inside The Ian Stanley Courses?

Let’s take a peak at what we’re working with here…

The 90 Days To Freedom Course

The 90 DTF course is about living the laptop lifestyle through

• Learning how to develop an almost-passive income in only three steps.
• How to support small businesses as you make money yourself.
• How to increase income without increasing the workload.
• Developing a recurring and predictable income stream, month after month.
• Using formulas and templates to write emails quickly and easily.
• And much more…

The course is application-only. So you’ll only learn a little bit about what’s in store before you sign up.

The 80/20 Course

This course is focused on getting your email marketing copy just right. Here’s what Ian Stanley is teaching…

• Writing email copy quickly by finding your natural voice.
• Maximizing opens, clickthroughs, and sales with great subject lines.
• Using alternatives to split testing, which Ian describes as BS.
• Sending emails at the right time to optimize sales.
• Getting inspired with the right music.
• Defeating writer’s block by stocking up on ideas.
• Using the right first sentence to hook your readers.
• Getting the copywriting psychology just right.
• Putting the right number of words in your subject line.
• Defeating writer’s block, again, with the “Sean Connery” method.
• Welcoming customers with the right email content formula.
• Producing the perfect email for your autoresponder sequence, in only 15 minutes.
• Getting punctuation just right, so people actually read your whole message.
• Understanding your goals and targets with email marketing.
• Bypassing the research as you come up with email ideas.
• Drawing from your real life events to come up with email copy.
• And more.

There’s also a few extras to enjoy here…

• A couple of guides to the philosophy of email writing.
• Updates delivered daily through the working week for a whole month.
• 25 minute handwriting exercises, delivered every day.
• Support for building your 10 day autoresponder sequence in only four weeks.
• A timetable for calibrating your autoresponder.
• A resource of 71 subject lines and email formulas to apply to your niche.

The ADVANCED 80/20 Course

If you pay the premium price, you’ll get all of the 80/20 content, plus…

• Another two guides, this time to writing “kick-a**” emails.
• More than 600 subject lines to use.
• A demo for “over the shoulder” email writing.
• A collection four webinars with Derak Johanson and Ian.
• The chance to double your conversions with “frankensequence” training.
• Using split testing properly (this sounds a bit contradictory to the other content, but we’ll let it slide)

The Persuasion Hitman Book

The Chapter	What’s It All About?
Introduction	The first part of the book is a bit of backstory on Ian himself. He describes this as “How The Persuasion Hitman Was Born”.
Rule 1 – Set Clear Boundaries	Here, you’ll learn about the first of Ian’s rules, which is giving yourself clear parameters in which to work. Ian also tells you all about his first ever sale.
Rule 2 – Get The Highest Average Order Value On Every Purchase	No two sales are equal, and Ian believes you should always be trying to maximize your average order value. To illustrate this, he shares a story of how he made money selling lemonade as a youngster.
Rule 3 – Time And Money Are Not Related To Each Other	This rule is very close to my heart… you should never confuse working long hours with working successfully. Ian offers a great example, telling you how he used to get paid 50 bucks an hour to watch TV back when he was 12.
Rule 4 – If Your Prices Don’t Make You Feel A Little Uncomfortable, You’re Not Charging Enough	This is an interesting one. Here, Ian tells you about how to push the boundaries with pricing, stepping a little out of your comfort zone. Again, Ian has got the examples to back this up. How does making five grand in 30 seconds sound?
Rule 5 – You Need To Sell Feelings	Cry and Buy is the motto here. Ian talks about how to pull on the heartstrings to encourage sales. There are eight core emotions to learn about here.
Rule 6 – Always Do The Math	You need to be constantly weighing up your profit margins and identifying opportunities to push these margins further. In this chapter, you’ll also discover how to nail down your salesperson skills in only two weeks.
Rule 7 – Combine Short Term Cash Flow With Long Term Revenue	I agree with Ian big time here. You need to be securing short term cash flow to keep everything in order, while still achieving long term revenue. The lesson here is turning one sale into many sales.
Rule 8 – One Line Can Completely Change Your Sales Message	Ian’s copywriting skill shines through in this chapter. He shares with you the one sentence that he says can make or break your messaging.
Rule 9 – Use The Same Language As Your Prospects	This is Ian’s “non-secret” weapon. Basically, find out how your leads speak, and start speaking like that too.
Rule 10 – Find Your **** Moment	Now Ian is getting a bit secretive. This makes sense… he wants you to buy the book after all! Here, he teaches you how to be unpredictable in your selling, to achieve predictable sales.
Rule 11 – Sell What Customers ****, Give Them What They ****	Sell what they want and give them what they need? Or the other way around? You’ll have to buy the book to find out I guess!
Rule 12 – Tell The Right Stories	Storytelling and narrative methods are key to selling. In this chapter, Ian clues you in on the most profitable stories to tell in your messaging.
Rule 13 – The Secret Rule	The Secret Rule! Ian doesn’t give anything away here… I just hope it’s a good one.
Conclusion	It’s time to wrap things up. Ian recaps what you’ve learned so far, and gives you another final mission to work on.
Epilogue	We’re not quite finished yet. The last part of the book is the epilogue, where you discover what comes next on your journey.

I’ve also reviewed Grace Lever’s “The Doers Way,” which offers a practical approach for female entrepreneurs but faces criticism for poor customer service and hidden costs.

Additionally, my review of Online Landlord Biz highlights its strong training in digital real estate and lead generation, though it focuses heavily on paid ads, which might be challenging for beginners.

My Ian Stanley Copywriter Review: What’s The Conclusion?

Thank you for joining me on this journey. I think overall it’s pretty clear that Ian has done really well out of email copywriting, and I’m sure he can help his students achieve a bit of success themselves.

But can he help you hit those same dizzying income figures and envy-inducing life freedom? I think for most people, this is going to be pretty difficult.

Instead, I recommend something a little different…

What Is My Top Recommendation For Making Money Online In 2024? 

Online businesses? I tried the lot… Amazon FBA, dropshipping, affiliate marketing…

I even made a bit of money here and there, but it wasn’t sustainable.

And it was taking up all my valuable time.

But this changed when I found Digital Leasing.

The guys behind Digital Leasing taught me how to build my own local lead generation site. I selected a niche, optimized it for organic leads, and leased it out to businesses in my local area.

These businesses really needed the leads I was sending them. So I was getting between $2k and $3k a month off this single site… every month.

Let’s check this out in a bit more detail. Here’s what you’re getting with Digital Leasing…

1. Close To Passive Income: Once everything is set-up, you’ll be running your sites with just a few clicks and a few minutes a day. You finally got that freedom you always dreamed of.
2. Making a Real Difference: I suppose email copywriting can make a bit of a difference, but not like this… with Digital Leasing, you’re helping real people keep their businesses afloat, and helping your local community thrive.
3. Easy Scaling: Digital Leasing gives you the tools and the skills to set up your local lead gen sites. Want to add another site and another income stream? No problem… there are so many niches out there crying out for a great lead gen service.

Ready to give it a try?

Get started on your Digital Leasing journey today!