‼️ Double Amazon conversion in under 5 minutes

October 05, 2023

NOTE: If you don’t see images below, be sure your email reader loads remote images

A ROLLER

  • 🏆 This week’s BDS Dream 100 Inductee

  • ‼️ Double your conversion in 5 minutes or less

  • 🚰 Project Nile changes to Amazon search leaked

  • 🌟 Changes to Amazon’s Vine review program

  • 🇧🇷 Seductive Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

  • 🍼 Fake baby in a stroller

STUMP BEZOS

Americans are expected to spend $12.2 Billion on Halloween this year.

How much of that will be on just pet costumes?

[ Answer at bottom of email ]

👺 The Art of Deception - 👶 Baby in a Stroller

I’ve been robbed three times in the 94 countries I have visited.

When you’re clearly not a local, you’re practically ringing the dinner bell for lurking pickpockets and thieves.

I take safeguards, but sometimes there is only so much one can do.

🇧🇷 Rio's Baby in Stroller Ruse during Carnaval

The vibrant streets of Rio de Janeiro pulse with life during Carnaval. The city, with its beautiful beaches and towering mountains, is definitely a sight to behold.

But it has its dark aspects. I had heard stories of the high crime rate, especially in the favelas. But I fell victim to it on the streets of Ipanema Beach.

Early one evening, as the sun set, painting the sky in hues of orange and pink, the woman who would later become my ex-wife and I participated in a bloco.

A bloco is a moving Brazilian street party during Carnival with music, a drum corp, dancing, and festive costumes. You and it parade up and down the streets in a mob-like fashion.

The music, the dancing, the sheer energy is infectious. But amidst the revelry, a clever ruse was at play. I got taken by a clever diversion of a fake baby in a stroller that was carefully positioned as the block rounded a corner to make me think I was about to accidentally bump the stroller and dump the baby to the concrete.

A 3-second diversion is all the crooks needed to go into two different zipped pockets of my shorts and empty them.

My iPhone and cash - gone. Luckily a credit card in another pocket was too hard to remove.

🇪🇸 Madrid's Organized Gypsy Criminal Rings

Madrid, with its rich history and bustling streets, is one of my favorite cities. On my way back from Morocco, I had an overnight layover there.

A major city square in the heart of the city was alive with activity as I checked into my hotel. But amidst the hustle and bustle, a silent predator lurked.

I had placed my bags, including my briefcase, in the hotel lobby next to the registration desk. I had several bags full of items I bought in Marrakesh and Fez, so I made a fortress of sorts, with the larger bags protecting a smaller one (my briefcase).

But after checking in, I found my fortress, just a few feet from me, had been breached. My briefcase, with all its valuable contents, was gone.

Within minutes my phone was being used and someone was trying to log in to my computer. I filed a police report. Luckily I had my passport and wallet on me.

I felt naked flying back to the USA the next day with nothing to carry on. Besides about $8,000 worth of computers, cameras and other gear, I also lost all the video and images I had shot in Morocco.

🇨🇴 Bogota's Betrayal and Rome's Redemption

Bogota, Colombia with its colonial architecture and cobbled streets, is a city of contrasts. On my first trip there, I hailed a taxi. At the end of the ride, I handied over a 50,000 pesos note for a 20,000 pesos fare.

The driver claimed I had given him only 5,000 pesos, showing me an 5K bill via a sleight of hand magic trick. Unfamiliar with the currency at the time, I handed over another 15,000. It was only later when counting cash I realized I had been duped into paying 60,000 pesos for a 20,000 fare.

But when a similar situation arose a year later in taxi in Rome, I was prepared. Recognizing the trick this time, I stood my ground, refusing to be fooled again (I now call out the demonization of the bill if paying in cash as I hand it over).

Sometimes, much like in business and selling on Amazon. amidst the most delightful moments, misfortunes occur. But you can't let setbacks deter you.

Instead, you learn, you grow, and you build stronger. After all, every experience, good or bad, is a lesson in disguise.

Welcome Dan Ashburn to the Billion Dollar Dream 100

Every Thursday I announce a new member of the Billion Dollar Dream 100. They are pulled at random from a secret list These are the people you should follow and get to know in our industry.

Dan Ashburn is today’s inductee into the Billion Dollar Dream 100.

Dan is the co-founder of Titan Network, one of the top Masterminds for Amazon sellers. He hails from Birmington, northwest of London. He grew up in a middle-class family where his dad and grandfather ran a cardboard packaging business.

His early life involved a rebellious phase marked by partying. He moved with his mom to the Canary Islands, but was getting into trouble. So at age 16 he moved back to the UK, living on his own.

He delved into affiliate marketing and e-commerce, initially hosting and building websites for others and doing all kinds of side hustles.. At 17, he joined the British Air Force, with a deployment to Qatar. But IT-related civilian work was calling him to focus on SEO and internet marketing full time.

With partners, he launched brands on Amazon. Today he manages 8 figures in Amazon sales. Over time he added coaching, leveraging his expertise to assist others.

Three of the philosophies he emphasizes are for e-com sellers are:

  1. Clarity of Goals: It's essential to be clear about what you want in your business and life because without clarity, it's challenging to make progress.

  2. Commitment and Honesty: Once you've identified your goals, commit to them and be brutally honest with yourself about whether you're willing to do what it takes to achieve them.

  3. Resilience and Consistency: Success often comes after a series of failures. Stay resilient, persistent, and consistent in your efforts, especially in the face of setbacks.

Welcome, Dan to the Billion Dollar Dream 100.

💰 BILLION DOLLAR STRATEGIES
 → what you need to know to make moolah

AMAZON’S PROJECT NILE TO REVOLUTIONIZE SEARCH

Amazon is developing a revolutionary AI initiative named Project Nile, which is set to transform its online search experience.

Joseph Sirosh, a former Microsoft AI executive now serving as an Amazon VP, envisions Project Nile as embedding the expertise of a knowledgeable in-store salesperson into Amazon's search function, tailoring it to each shopper's distinct preferences.

The objective of Project Nile is to enhance Amazon's search bar with advanced AI, offering real-time product comparisons, detailed information, reviews, and suggestions based on search context and user shopping history.

It has been called a “conversational search agent for customers.” It appears that it may act like a SGE (search generative experience). It could display a full list of product related results in one quick moment individually tailored using Amazon’s immense database of historical customer orders and preferences.

Interesting Project Code Name

The length of the Nile river in Africa is 6,650 kilometers (4,132 miles), versus 6,400 kilometers (3,977 miles) for the Amazon river in South America.

What is Project Nile?

  • Objective: Project Nile aims to equip Amazon's search bar with advanced AI, providing instant product comparisons, detailed information, reviews, and recommendations based on search context and user shopping data.

  • Functionality: The AI-powered search will proactively present diverse options and details when a customer searches, eliminating the need to click on each product.

  • Implementation: Originally planned for a September release, it has been delayed. Internal tests are in progress, with a potential January 2024 launch focusing on the US.

  • Mobile First: Amazon identifies a significant opportunity to boost sales via mobile devices. Currently, about 80% of Amazon searches are mobile, but its conversion rate is lower than desktop.

  • Comprehensive AI Strategy: Amazon's AI efforts aren't limited to Project Nile. They've recently enhanced Alexa with improved AI and have made significant investments in generative AI, indicating a long-term commitment to AI innovation.

  • Challenges: Ensuring accurate search results is crucial. Amazon intends to address AI inaccuracies by employing human AI trainers to review AI-generated responses and using moderation tools for sensitive queries.

Implications for Sellers:

The new search approach seems to emulate how users research products on Google rather than Amazon. It's challenging to predict the exact changes to A9, but the semantic context of a product listing will likely become even more crucial for Amazon to extract specific product details based on customer searches.

More useful resources for the information junkies:

☠️ YOU GOTTA SEE THIS
→ DOUBLE YOUR CONVERSION in 5 MINS or LESS

On last week’s Lunch with Norm 500th episode, Amazing.com’s Mike McClary showed how to get strike through pricing (ex: $49.95) on your Amazon listings.

You first have to anchor your listing price by getting sales within the past 90 days at your listing price, then create a sale price. It’s not as hard as you think and you can do it by getting some sales for a few days using coupons.

Watch this video to follow Amazon’s rule on exactly how to get the strike pricing about 80% of the time.

🎲 AMAZON SELLER FEUD
 → Test yourself against your peers

BDSN polled 160 Amazon Sellers.

Take your best guess what your fellow sellers thought the answer is to the question below (not necessarily the correct answer).

TODAY’S QUESTION: 

In an Amazon company meeting, who always has a seat at the table?

Wait a few seconds for the photo below to reveal the top answers.

This tool solves a very niche problem, but if you have it, you're going to love it.

To create an Amazon affiliate link, you typically have to do it one product at a time manually inside the Amazon associates dashboard. 

It you can be cumbersome to create a lot of affiliate URLs at once. This Google Sheet workbook will let you generate custom Amazon associate links simply by pasting lists of standard Amazon product URLs or Amazon ASINs.

 

NEW AMAZON VINE PRICING TIERS

Amazon announced a new flexible pricing structure for the Vine review program. It still up to 30 reviews per ASIN, with no guarantee anybody will even take you up on reviewing your product.

The new structure now offers three tiers:

  • $0 tier (free) for enrolling up to two units per ASIN.

  • $75 tier for enrolling between three and ten units per ASIN.

  • $200 fee for enrolling between 11 and 30 units per ASIN.

This episode of the Serious Sellers podcast features Ami Pandya, Sr Manager of Product Development at Amazon. She talks with Bradley and provides more insights into the Amazon Vine program you might find interesting.

🗣️ COMMUNITY SHOUT-OUTS
 → Tidbits from readers who share the newsletter

💸 AMAZON PROFITABILITY SECRETS IN ORLANDO

Back for round 2 after a successful event in Chicago in early August (Kevin spoke at it), the guys over at the eCom Summit are hosting another summit in Orlando, Florida on October 17-18.

Fifteen industry experts will be teaching actionable workshops over two days. The Summit’s USP: they got rid of speakers and found mentors.

The line-up is impressive, including Colin Campbell, Brandon Young, Carlos Alvarez, Gracey Ryback, Josh Hadley, Jon Derkits and many more!

Use code BDSN when securing your Ecom Summit ticket and get $100 OFF your ticket purchase!

🎠 MASTERMIND IN RIO DE JANEIRO DURING CARNAVAL

Billion Dollar Seller Summit speaker Antonio Bindi is a former dentist, MDS member and an 8-figure Amazon seller living in Brazil.

He’s always wanted to host a Mastermind / Experience that coincides with Rio’s Famous Carnaval celebration, which this coming year is February 8-16, 2024.

He says it will be “business networking and wild partying all in one trip.”

He’s in the process of determining interest and is inviting sellers who might want to come to answer a few questions to help him plan the details.

If the event crystalizes, Kevin plans to be there (last Carnival in Rio I went to was in 2010 and it was a blast - see travel section below).

🧳 TO TRAVEL IS TO LIVE 
→ here’s looking at you kid

My “why” has led me to visit 94 countries and all 7 continents. I create my life and work around my why. Not my why around my business.

I hope to inspire you in your journey of business and life with photos, a short video I filmed, and a brief description of my time there.

Seductive Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Parade float during Carnaval in Rio (video shot by Kevin)

2 minutes in Rio at Carnaval

Gorgeous, dramatic, and always abuzz, Rio de Janeiro seduces with its stunning mountains, legendary beaches, samba street parties, and beautiful people.

Brazil’s second largest city is home to celebrated Ipanema and Copacabana beaches and the largest Art Deco statue in the world — the 700-ton Christ the Redeemer standing atop Corcovado mountain.

The city’s protected rain forest in Parque Nacional da Tijuca contains waterfalls, caves, and knockout vistas, while the Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro is a tropical oasis bursting with sun-loving flora and fauna, including 134 soaring Imperial palms

There is no better time to feel it’s spirit than during Carnaval.

The week leading up to Carnaval is filled with "blocos" or neighborhood street parties, characterized by drum corps, dancing, and music.

The main Carnaval parade spans four nights at the Sambodromo, an 11,000 seat stadium built specifically for the event.

Cheap seats go for about $30, but decent seats usually start at $300 each with box seats going for $10,000 and up. The word 'seat' is a misnomer, as you really don't sit. You dance for an hour, sit for 10 minutes, dance for an hour, sit for 10 minutes. It’s super fun.

Here's how it works:

• Saturday night: the "B" level schools parade in the Sambadromo.
• Sunday night: six of the 12 "A" level schools parade
• Monday night: six more of the 12 "A" level schools parade

The following Saturday night: The top 5 "A" level schools parade again, along with the winner of the "B" level. Then an overall winner is proclaimed.

It is very prestigious in Brazil to win. The only thing more desirable in Brazilian culture is to win a World Cup in Soccer.

Samba schools prepare for months, and their performances are meticulously judged. Carnaval is a vibrant, energetic spectacle with participants in elaborate costumes and the crowd singing and dancing in unison. A total blast!

🥃 PARTING SHOT

“Napoleon once said that a genius is someone who can do the average when everyone else around him is losing his mind.”

✌🏼 Peace out compadres!

Don’t forget to refer a couple friends to get the 186 hacks PDF.

See you Monday with more awesome insights!

The answer to today’s STUMP BEZOS is
$700 milli

NOTE: If you don’t see images below, be sure your email reader loads remote images

A ROLLER

  • 🏆 This week’s BDS Dream 100 Inductee

  • ‼️ Double your conversion in 5 minutes or less

  • 🚰 Project Nile changes to Amazon search leaked

  • 🌟 Changes to Amazon’s Vine review program

  • 🇧🇷 Seductive Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

  • 🍼 Fake baby in a stroller

STUMP BEZOS

Americans are expected to spend $12.2 Billion on Halloween this year.

How much of that will be on just pet costumes?

[ Answer at bottom of email ]

👺 The Art of Deception - 👶 Baby in a Stroller

I’ve been robbed three times in the 94 countries I have visited.

When you’re clearly not a local, you’re practically ringing the dinner bell for lurking pickpockets and thieves.

I take safeguards, but sometimes there is only so much one can do.

🇧🇷 Rio's Baby in Stroller Ruse during Carnaval

The vibrant streets of Rio de Janeiro pulse with life during Carnaval. The city, with its beautiful beaches and towering mountains, is definitely a sight to behold.

But it has its dark aspects. I had heard stories of the high crime rate, especially in the favelas. But I fell victim to it on the streets of Ipanema Beach.

Early one evening, as the sun set, painting the sky in hues of orange and pink, the woman who would later become my ex-wife and I participated in a bloco.

A bloco is a moving Brazilian street party during Carnival with music, a drum corp, dancing, and festive costumes. You and it parade up and down the streets in a mob-like fashion.

The music, the dancing, the sheer energy is infectious. But amidst the revelry, a clever ruse was at play. I got taken by a clever diversion of a fake baby in a stroller that was carefully positioned as the block rounded a corner to make me think I was about to accidentally bump the stroller and dump the baby to the concrete.

A 3-second diversion is all the crooks needed to go into two different zipped pockets of my shorts and empty them.

My iPhone and cash - gone. Luckily a credit card in another pocket was too hard to remove.

🇪🇸 Madrid's Organized Gypsy Criminal Rings

Madrid, with its rich history and bustling streets, is one of my favorite cities. On my way back from Morocco, I had an overnight layover there.

A major city square in the heart of the city was alive with activity as I checked into my hotel. But amidst the hustle and bustle, a silent predator lurked.

I had placed my bags, including my briefcase, in the hotel lobby next to the registration desk. I had several bags full of items I bought in Marrakesh and Fez, so I made a fortress of sorts, with the larger bags protecting a smaller one (my briefcase).

But after checking in, I found my fortress, just a few feet from me, had been breached. My briefcase, with all its valuable contents, was gone.

Within minutes my phone was being used and someone was trying to log in to my computer. I filed a police report. Luckily I had my passport and wallet on me.

I felt naked flying back to the USA the next day with nothing to carry on. Besides about $8,000 worth of computers, cameras and other gear, I also lost all the video and images I had shot in Morocco.

🇨🇴 Bogota's Betrayal and Rome's Redemption

Bogota, Colombia with its colonial architecture and cobbled streets, is a city of contrasts. On my first trip there, I hailed a taxi. At the end of the ride, I handied over a 50,000 pesos note for a 20,000 pesos fare.

The driver claimed I had given him only 5,000 pesos, showing me an 5K bill via a sleight of hand magic trick. Unfamiliar with the currency at the time, I handed over another 15,000. It was only later when counting cash I realized I had been duped into paying 60,000 pesos for a 20,000 fare.

But when a similar situation arose a year later in taxi in Rome, I was prepared. Recognizing the trick this time, I stood my ground, refusing to be fooled again (I now call out the demonization of the bill if paying in cash as I hand it over).

Sometimes, much like in business and selling on Amazon. amidst the most delightful moments, misfortunes occur. But you can't let setbacks deter you.

Instead, you learn, you grow, and you build stronger. After all, every experience, good or bad, is a lesson in disguise.

Welcome Dan Ashburn to the Billion Dollar Dream 100

Every Thursday I announce a new member of the Billion Dollar Dream 100. They are pulled at random from a secret list These are the people you should follow and get to know in our industry.

Dan Ashburn is today’s inductee into the Billion Dollar Dream 100.

Dan is the co-founder of Titan Network, one of the top Masterminds for Amazon sellers. He hails from Birmington, northwest of London. He grew up in a middle-class family where his dad and grandfather ran a cardboard packaging business.

His early life involved a rebellious phase marked by partying. He moved with his mom to the Canary Islands, but was getting into trouble. So at age 16 he moved back to the UK, living on his own.

He delved into affiliate marketing and e-commerce, initially hosting and building websites for others and doing all kinds of side hustles.. At 17, he joined the British Air Force, with a deployment to Qatar. But IT-related civilian work was calling him to focus on SEO and internet marketing full time.

With partners, he launched brands on Amazon. Today he manages 8 figures in Amazon sales. Over time he added coaching, leveraging his expertise to assist others.

Three of the philosophies he emphasizes are for e-com sellers are:

  1. Clarity of Goals: It's essential to be clear about what you want in your business and life because without clarity, it's challenging to make progress.

  2. Commitment and Honesty: Once you've identified your goals, commit to them and be brutally honest with yourself about whether you're willing to do what it takes to achieve them.

  3. Resilience and Consistency: Success often comes after a series of failures. Stay resilient, persistent, and consistent in your efforts, especially in the face of setbacks.

Welcome, Dan to the Billion Dollar Dream 100.

💰 BILLION DOLLAR STRATEGIES
 → what you need to know to make moolah

AMAZON’S PROJECT NILE TO REVOLUTIONIZE SEARCH

Amazon is developing a revolutionary AI initiative named Project Nile, which is set to transform its online search experience.

Joseph Sirosh, a former Microsoft AI executive now serving as an Amazon VP, envisions Project Nile as embedding the expertise of a knowledgeable in-store salesperson into Amazon's search function, tailoring it to each shopper's distinct preferences.

The objective of Project Nile is to enhance Amazon's search bar with advanced AI, offering real-time product comparisons, detailed information, reviews, and suggestions based on search context and user shopping history.

It has been called a “conversational search agent for customers.” It appears that it may act like a SGE (search generative experience). It could display a full list of product related results in one quick moment individually tailored using Amazon’s immense database of historical customer orders and preferences.

Interesting Project Code Name

The length of the Nile river in Africa is 6,650 kilometers (4,132 miles), versus 6,400 kilometers (3,977 miles) for the Amazon river in South America.

What is Project Nile?

  • Objective: Project Nile aims to equip Amazon's search bar with advanced AI, providing instant product comparisons, detailed information, reviews, and recommendations based on search context and user shopping data.

  • Functionality: The AI-powered search will proactively present diverse options and details when a customer searches, eliminating the need to click on each product.

  • Implementation: Originally planned for a September release, it has been delayed. Internal tests are in progress, with a potential January 2024 launch focusing on the US.

  • Mobile First: Amazon identifies a significant opportunity to boost sales via mobile devices. Currently, about 80% of Amazon searches are mobile, but its conversion rate is lower than desktop.

  • Comprehensive AI Strategy: Amazon's AI efforts aren't limited to Project Nile. They've recently enhanced Alexa with improved AI and have made significant investments in generative AI, indicating a long-term commitment to AI innovation.

  • Challenges: Ensuring accurate search results is crucial. Amazon intends to address AI inaccuracies by employing human AI trainers to review AI-generated responses and using moderation tools for sensitive queries.

Implications for Sellers:

The new search approach seems to emulate how users research products on Google rather than Amazon. It's challenging to predict the exact changes to A9, but the semantic context of a product listing will likely become even more crucial for Amazon to extract specific product details based on customer searches.

More useful resources for the information junkies:

☠️ YOU GOTTA SEE THIS
→ DOUBLE YOUR CONVERSION in 5 MINS or LESS

On last week’s Lunch with Norm 500th episode, Amazing.com’s Mike McClary showed how to get strike through pricing (ex: $49.95) on your Amazon listings.

You first have to anchor your listing price by getting sales within the past 90 days at your listing price, then create a sale price. It’s not as hard as you think and you can do it by getting some sales for a few days using coupons.

Watch this video to follow Amazon’s rule on exactly how to get the strike pricing about 80% of the time.

🎲 AMAZON SELLER FEUD
 → Test yourself against your peers

BDSN polled 160 Amazon Sellers.

Take your best guess what your fellow sellers thought the answer is to the question below (not necessarily the correct answer).

TODAY’S QUESTION: 

In an Amazon company meeting, who always has a seat at the table?

Wait a few seconds for the photo below to reveal the top answers.

This tool solves a very niche problem, but if you have it, you're going to love it.

To create an Amazon affiliate link, you typically have to do it one product at a time manually inside the Amazon associates dashboard. 

It you can be cumbersome to create a lot of affiliate URLs at once. This Google Sheet workbook will let you generate custom Amazon associate links simply by pasting lists of standard Amazon product URLs or Amazon ASINs.

 

NEW AMAZON VINE PRICING TIERS

Amazon announced a new flexible pricing structure for the Vine review program. It still up to 30 reviews per ASIN, with no guarantee anybody will even take you up on reviewing your product.

The new structure now offers three tiers:

  • $0 tier (free) for enrolling up to two units per ASIN.

  • $75 tier for enrolling between three and ten units per ASIN.

  • $200 fee for enrolling between 11 and 30 units per ASIN.

This episode of the Serious Sellers podcast features Ami Pandya, Sr Manager of Product Development at Amazon. She talks with Bradley and provides more insights into the Amazon Vine program you might find interesting.

🗣️ COMMUNITY SHOUT-OUTS
 → Tidbits from readers who share the newsletter

💸 AMAZON PROFITABILITY SECRETS IN ORLANDO

Back for round 2 after a successful event in Chicago in early August (Kevin spoke at it), the guys over at the eCom Summit are hosting another summit in Orlando, Florida on October 17-18.

Fifteen industry experts will be teaching actionable workshops over two days. The Summit’s USP: they got rid of speakers and found mentors.

The line-up is impressive, including Colin Campbell, Brandon Young, Carlos Alvarez, Gracey Ryback, Josh Hadley, Jon Derkits and many more!

Use code BDSN when securing your Ecom Summit ticket and get $100 OFF your ticket purchase!

🎠 MASTERMIND IN RIO DE JANEIRO DURING CARNAVAL

Billion Dollar Seller Summit speaker Antonio Bindi is a former dentist, MDS member and an 8-figure Amazon seller living in Brazil.

He’s always wanted to host a Mastermind / Experience that coincides with Rio’s Famous Carnaval celebration, which this coming year is February 8-16, 2024.

He says it will be “business networking and wild partying all in one trip.”

He’s in the process of determining interest and is inviting sellers who might want to come to answer a few questions to help him plan the details.

If the event crystalizes, Kevin plans to be there (last Carnival in Rio I went to was in 2010 and it was a blast - see travel section below).

🧳 TO TRAVEL IS TO LIVE 
→ here’s looking at you kid

My “why” has led me to visit 94 countries and all 7 continents. I create my life and work around my why. Not my why around my business.

I hope to inspire you in your journey of business and life with photos, a short video I filmed, and a brief description of my time there.

Seductive Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Parade float during Carnaval in Rio (video shot by Kevin)

2 minutes in Rio at Carnaval

Gorgeous, dramatic, and always abuzz, Rio de Janeiro seduces with its stunning mountains, legendary beaches, samba street parties, and beautiful people.

Brazil’s second largest city is home to celebrated Ipanema and Copacabana beaches and the largest Art Deco statue in the world — the 700-ton Christ the Redeemer standing atop Corcovado mountain.

The city’s protected rain forest in Parque Nacional da Tijuca contains waterfalls, caves, and knockout vistas, while the Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro is a tropical oasis bursting with sun-loving flora and fauna, including 134 soaring Imperial palms

There is no better time to feel it’s spirit than during Carnaval.

The week leading up to Carnaval is filled with "blocos" or neighborhood street parties, characterized by drum corps, dancing, and music.

The main Carnaval parade spans four nights at the Sambodromo, an 11,000 seat stadium built specifically for the event.

Cheap seats go for about $30, but decent seats usually start at $300 each with box seats going for $10,000 and up. The word 'seat' is a misnomer, as you really don't sit. You dance for an hour, sit for 10 minutes, dance for an hour, sit for 10 minutes. It’s super fun.

Here's how it works:

• Saturday night: the "B" level schools parade in the Sambadromo.
• Sunday night: six of the 12 "A" level schools parade
• Monday night: six more of the 12 "A" level schools parade

The following Saturday night: The top 5 "A" level schools parade again, along with the winner of the "B" level. Then an overall winner is proclaimed.

It is very prestigious in Brazil to win. The only thing more desirable in Brazilian culture is to win a World Cup in Soccer.

Samba schools prepare for months, and their performances are meticulously judged. Carnaval is a vibrant, energetic spectacle with participants in elaborate costumes and the crowd singing and dancing in unison. A total blast!

🥃 PARTING SHOT

“Napoleon once said that a genius is someone who can do the average when everyone else around him is losing his mind.”

✌🏼 Peace out compadres!

Don’t forget to refer a couple friends to get the 186 hacks PDF.

See you Monday with more awesome insights!

The answer to today’s STUMP BEZOS is
$700 milli