Customer Reviews

Zero to One Million: How I Built A Company to $1 Million in Sales . . . and How You Can, Too

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book offers sound advice about starting a business, but not waiting till everything is all perfectly lined up before you do so.
** In some ways it reminds me of Ready, Fire, Aim Ready, Fire, Aim: Zero to $100 Million in No Time Flat (Agora Series) but I like this one a little bit better. **

The author talks about how if you were going somewhere but waited till all the lights were green before you left the house, you would never leave. He also talked about how you could cross the country at night with just your headlights providing illumination. You would never know what was way up ahead but just as in business if you know where you want to go you can get there if you keep working at it, even if you don't see the whole path ahead of you yet.

** Some of the other good stuff is how you plan what you want to achieve in life, break it down to a strategy of what you want in 20 years, then break that down to what you want in the next year and use a 6 month or year as a tactic for gradually moving towards your long term goal. But he also shows how to use a daily goal or weekly plan to achieve your 6 month or yearly goal. In other words you break down your plans into daily, achievable bites that add up over time. **

Things like Passive Income are discussed and how to implement them into your life and business.

It takes a lot for me to be really impressed but this young man has produced a lot of wisdom in this book. I just hate how some people put it down without even reading it. They should be ashamed of themselves.

There's more in the book but as someone who takes their reviews seriously let me just say that this will be one of the best business books you can read if you are thinking about starting your own company and want some encouragement and tips for how to proceed.
I might come back and add to this review later on but for now this should tell you what it is about.

I was offered a copy of the book Zero to One Million: How I Built A Company to $1 Million in Sales . . . and How You Can, Too by Ryan P. Allis, and thought I would give it a look. What I expected was some "secret program" on how to quickly become a business success (like those ever work!) What it turned out to be instead was a solid read on what it takes to start and run a business, the trade-offs you need to consider, and just how much work it really is. There's no "secret" that he's trying to push or sell... it's just a sharing of reality.

Contents:
Part 1 - My Story - Going from Zero to One Million: Getting Off the Ground; Becoming an Entrepreneur
Part 2 - The 10-Step Process For Building A Company To $1 Million In Sales: Step 1 - Understand the System; Step 2 - Find Your Core Motivation; Step 3 - Evaluate Your Idea; Step 4 - Write Your Plan; Step 5 - Raise Funding or Bootstrap; Step 6 - Develop Your Product; Step 7 - Develop Your Marketing and Sales Strategy; Step 8 - Build Your Online Marketing Strategy; Step 9 - Build Your Team; Step 10 - Build Strong Systems and Scale
Part 3 - Steps for Success
Appendixes: Financial Vocabulary; Recommended Books; Resources for Entrepreneurs; The Mission of the Humanity Campaign; Join the Community at Zeromillion.com
Index

As I mentioned, this sounded like one of those "try my method and you'll always succeed" titles. These are generally the people who are making most of their money from selling their "methods" and not actually doing what they talk about. :) Anyway, Allis starts out by talking about the path he took from repairing PCs as a 12 year old in 1998 to running a software company tallying nearly $7 million in sales in 2007. Along the way, he dealt with partnerships, hiring, venture capital, marketing, you name it. Not too many 23 year olds can boast that level of education and experience (not to mention net worth) that early in life. This leads into Part 2 of the book, which covers the steps he took and the things you need to consider when starting and growing a business.

The information is valuable from Step 1 forward. He starts out by defining the difference between a lifestyle company and a high potential venture. There's nothing wrong with either, and it's entirely up to you as to what you want to do. But there are considerable differences in the amount of work, the potential payout, and the eventual exit strategy between the two. He's obviously gone the venture route, as that's the path that leads to the highest payout with the possibility of becoming independently wealthy. It also means you can fail big and lose it all. But that's how it works... high risk, high reward. Probably the closest he comes to a "system" is the MAR model for evaluating potential opportunities. That stands for Market, Advantages, Return. If you walk your business idea through those questions, you'll be forced to look at it in a way that strips out the emotion and determines the possibilities for success. Very good questions to ask BEFORE you sink your money into a business. Everything beyond step 3 is solid, time-tested advice and wisdom on starting and running a business from someone who's "been there, done that".

Reading this book and applying his principles and ideas does not guarantee that your business *will* top a million dollars in sales. But I can pretty much guarantee that starting a business *without* having this level of information thought out beforehand will dramatically decrease your long-term chances of success. You could try and make all the mistakes on your own, but why touch the stove when someone already told you it was hot? A really good read...

I love it when people write reviews stating that "something's fishy" because other people have opinions that differ from their own.

Basically, I've read through "New Venture Creation" and this book was like a "lite" version of that book. It has excellent information and it keeps you motivated to read the entire book, unlike other books based on Entrepreneurship.

Look... this book costs less than $12.00 and it's worth SO much more. If you're serious about building ANY kind of "serious" business online, this book is excellent!

And, I must state that I have NEVER met Ryan Allis in my life...I've heard of his business a million times - but never his name. You can be like "the guy" who always believes something is fishy because his opinion is different, or you can check out the book for $12.00 + S&H, and you'll be able to see for yourself.

I was not expecting it this book to be so full of great information, and it far exceeded my expectations.

Not because I didn't think it would be good, but because there was so much valuable information in the book. Information I have never seen before anywhere else, and of particular importance were all the different metrics that Ryan recommends that you need to track in your business.

It's a MUST READ for anybody growing a business, and has helped me focus on the next stage of our company's growth. As a two time Inc500/5000 company, we're always looking for ways to keep the momentum going, and this book has been a major driver and blueprint for us.

Brett Fogle
Options University

Ryan's book is a nice combination of his story and his "how to". More slanted towards those who want to take a business from start up to a medium sized exit strategy (as opposed to small / micro business) it's easy to read and has some great exercises. My only criticism was that I wanted to hear more about Ryan's business icontact and less about the company he was working in as teen. When you read it, grab a pen and paper though as the ideas come fast and you'll get the most by writing a to do list as you go.
Kirsty Dunphey, Author - Retired at 27, If I can do it anyone can

The book is simply amazing. Very detailed, open, and honest in every chapter.

As a web marketer and having an online business myself, I can assure that his sales and marketing strategies work. It does indeed show how you can really go from zero to one million. It's hard to imagine someone with so much wisdom and passion at such a young age. Thanks for sharing Ryan.

I have been on my entrepreneruial journey for 3 years now and I have read countless books and listened to countless audios on business and success. And I can say a lot of books give you a lot of "Rah-Rah" and excitement but you have no idea what next steps to take. I found that Zero to one Million gives you actual usable techniques that anyone can use to create huge success. You know exactly what to do and how to grow.

In my opinion this book is this generations "The E-Myth"

If you don't want to make a million dollars, that's about the only reason you should not read this book

Hi there!

Confucius once said, "The journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step." Indeed, `tis true. These words ring a lot of truth for you right now at this particular moment.

As such, I want to be the first to personally welcome you on this journey. What journey you may ask? Why, the journey toward your success of course. Congratulations for taking your first step!

Seeing that you are both reading reviews for this book and considering whether or not to purchase it, I can guess that you are probably searching for the secret to success, trying to discover how to make your life meaningful, looking to start your own business, and/or finding ways to strengthen your company and build its top-line growth.

Or wait, you tell me. My description above doesn't capture any of your reasons for wanting to buy this book at all? Well, no worries. Rejoice because either way you have come to the right place for your own personal development. And please don't be turned away by the sound of the title. It is more than a business book. It is not solely for aspiring entrepreneurs.

Zero to One Million: How I Built A Company to $1 Million in Sales . . . and How You Can, Too by Ryan P. Allis is a heartwarming and inspirational book that everyone must read. Anyone who takes the time to read it stands to gain something very invaluable. Some will call it your "second wind" or your "new breath of life." But in essence your life will be renewed. It will be more focused, more driven, and more meaningful.

In this guidebook, Ryan will show you with his own life story and by his own example that your life is your own. You can choose to be successful, and step-by-step he will teach you how--which really all boils down to planning and having a bias toward action.

Ultimately, the secret to success is that there is no secret. You must plan, act, and persevere. After reading this book, you'll come to realize that there are two necessary ingredients that not only put you on the path toward success but also give you a fighting chance at ever succeeding in life. These are (a) perseverance, which you provide as no one can give or supply you with this and (b) guidance, which you receive and seek from books, mentors, etc.

As you dig deeper and uncover the treasures within each page, you will find that this book will become a mainstay in your own personal library. This is because some of the contents will not make too much sense or come in handy until you start planning and organizing your life, researching a business idea, evaluating a business opportunity, writing your own business plan, and running your own company.

For these reasons and more, I believe this book deserves seven stars. Unfortunately, Amazon only allows me to give a maximum of five.

So don't wait any longer. Buy this book now, and begin your journey toward success.

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If the above reasons were not convincing or compelling enough, let me try one last time to persuade you. I do this because I truly believe this book will help you no matter who you are and where you are in life.

Here goes nothing...

To give you a taste of how great I think the book is, I read it three times in total. Every time I read it I learned something new. I know I will consult it again when I evaluate my business idea, draft my business plan, and run my own business.

I feel very lucky to have stumbled upon this book at my local library. Only a couple of chapters into the book and I was already impressed. Through his words, I could feel Ryan's desire--his genuine desire--to help me succeed. His warmness came through in a touching and unparallel manner. Like a friend, he told me that he cares and wants me to succeed in life.

Feeling that, I was convinced that Zero to One Million will help me, motivate me, and guide me in reaching my dream. Thus borrowing this book was not enough. I had to purchase it. I got a paperback copy of this book for my sister as a gift and the Kindle version for myself so I can review it wherever I go.

So go now. I encourage you to buy this book. Read it thoroughly. Enjoy it. Let it change your life. And don't forget to recommend it to your loved ones. Let their lives be changed for the better too!

The title (or anything containing the word 'million' for that matter) makes one wonder if it is more hype than substance, but the content proves otherwise. Good reference/guide to have when starting a new business.

First of all I would like to give Ryan 5 Kudos!!! This book is very informative. It takes away all of the guess work for businesses that would like to secure capital from investors as well as a lot of the start up cost and marketing for your business. I also love the information tables and action items in the book, that causes you to know only read the book, but actuall set some goals and move towards the goals and plans you have set to grow your business. In addition, his testimony is very inspiring of where he started from and all of the hard work he and his business parternter put into growing as well as the sacrifices they made in order to see their vision come to fruition! This book proves that you can make anything happen through hard work, consistency, perseverence from and day to day, faith and determination.