What Firearms Instructors Really Sell

Firearms training services, like any other business, have to effectively market their services to stay in business. They trade their time, knowledge, and expertise in exchange for monetary gain from their students. However, if you think that firearms trainers actually "sell" gun safety classes and shooting lessons, you couldn't be more wrong.

How Effective Businesses Market Their Services
In the field of marketing, astute business owners sell the "benefits" - not the features - of the goods and services that they offer for sale in the marketplace. For example, in the 1980's the Domino's Pizza empire did not really sell pizza; they sold piping hot delivered food which was guaranteed to be at the customer's doorstep in 30 minutes. No one could have ever accused them of serving the best tasting pizza.

In a similar vein, FedEx does not really sell package delivery services. Instead, they sell guaranteed over-night delivery. Their slogan was, "When it absolutely positively has to be there over-night."

What Firearms Training Providers Do Not Sell
Firearms training services do not sell protection. In fact, no one can guarantee that a specific individual will be shielded from an attempt on his safety. History has repetitively shown us that even the most powerful can be brought down with a rifle from a solitary predator.

There have been many attempts to sue police departments for their "failure" to prevent heinous crimes from being committed against helpless victims. In court case after court case, the rulings have always been that the role of the police is to only keep and preserve the general peace, arrest suspects, and to investigate crimes. That's it.

Furthermore, when it really comes down to it, the police couldn't protect you, even if they really wanted to do so. They simply can not be everywhere. However, if they could be everywhere at all times of the day, would you really want that? Personally, that scenario sounds like being under the constant supervison of the government. You can't have freedom in a police state.

Fireams training services do not sell the right to keep and bear arms. All citizens of the United States already have that right conferred upon them as a birthright courtesy of the Second Amendment. It is not too surprising that not too many people know that it is perfectly legal in most places - including Michigan - to strap on and carry an openly displayed handgun without a permit of any kind. The government is not interested in its citizens knowing about and exercising their rights.

Firearms training services do not sell James 007 Licenses To Kill. A Concealed Pistol License, issued by the state, only authorizes you to carry a concealed firearm "on or about your person." No one has the right to indiscriminately kill another. However, as I have shared with many of my students, criminals care very little about the law and will kill, rape, rob, assault, and stalk anyway.

All citizens, with or without a CPL, have a right to self-defense when presented with a threat to their safety. So, do not think for a minute that because you don't have a CPL that you can't defend your life. Admittedly, defending your life with a firearm is much easier than without one. But since most people lack the will or the knowledge of the legality of carrying an openly displayed handgun, it is effectively a right that is by default lost.

What Firearms Instructors Do Provide
Firearms training services provide their customers ultimately with independence. As a consequence of taking a course that prepares them to carry a concealed firearm, they are exercising more responsibility over their own safety instead of expecting someone else to do it for them.

It is rude to ask someone - like the police - to do something for you that you are unwilling to do for yourself. Personally, I don't think that the police make enough to do the job that they do. It is a dangerous and often-times a very dangerous occupation. Something inside of me tells me that they have an ingrained disdain for those who do not value their own life and the lives of their loved ones enough to do what is required to achieve safety.

Today, our country's economy is teetering upon collapse, the state of Michigan is closing down prisons, Detroit has been crowned both "The Murder Capital" and "The Most Violent City In America," and Kym Worthy - Wayne County Prosecutor - has accused Detroit Police of under-reporting crime figures to the FBI. As troubling as times are today, they will only get worse.

Concealed Pistol Licensees have an option should they ever be confronted with unprovoked violence from a dangerous predator. There are no guarantees as to how a show-down will play out, but having a chance to protect yourself is significantly better than having no chance at all.

The handgun is the ultimate equalizer. Now, the aged can defend against the old - the female can defend against the male - the solitary person can defend against the many.