Welcome to Episode 84 of Praestabilis: Excellence in Marketing
Welcome Aboard! In Episode 84 I’m discussing the topic around… “Creating Passive Income Streams” and more specifically, becoming an affiliate marketer and creating your own information products. This was the strategy I learned when I started online in 2006.
We’re less than a week from closing out the first half of 2022, and a week from today it will be July 1st! Time flies when you’re having fun, and I’ll add that it’s even more joyous when you have passive income streams set up in your business. I discussed this on my recent “Ask Connie Anything” call (replay at http://AskConnieRagenGreen.com) and I’m going into much greater detail here today.
This month I’m traveling, grateful to spend time with family, friends, and colleagues I haven’t hugged in three years. During the years I worked as a classroom teacher and part-time in real estate, vacations were something I saved for a year in advance. While I was away from home, I had zero income coming in and it was tough making ends meet and also having some time away from work.
Once I started online, I understood the value of passive income and began to set some things in place. Early on, I was attending a live event in North Carolina with people whose names you would recognize. One of them made a comment that rendered me speechless…
“I make enough from recommending my autoresponder service to pay my mortgage every month.”
I was using that same service, yet I hadn’t ever thought about recommending it to others for passive, recurring income. That day I became an affiliate and began sharing my link with my community. Today, this is one of over a hundred resources I recommend to others regularly. You could do the same thing, you know? I’m at conniegreenhouse at yahoo dot com if you have questions or comments about this topic or anything else. And if you’re ready for an autoresponder service, start with a free account at https://ConnieLoves.me/AWeberFree – See how easy that is?
I categorize “passive income” as anything that comes into your PayPal or bank accounts without you having to do any additional work. Yes, you must set it up initially, so technically it’s something called “residual” income. Within my message here to you today, I’m setting up four new streams of passive income. I also share on social media – especially Twitter (I’m @ConnieGreen) throughout each day, and those updates are scheduled days or weeks in advance.
How can you get started with passive income? Start with affiliate income. Become my affiliate at https://AffiliateLinksandTools.com and get your personalized affiliate link for my “Action Habits Challenge” that is free. How will you earn income from recommending a free training? It’s the magic of “cookies” where everyone who comes aboard through your link will be cookied in for all future sales of my more than fifty current products, courses, and programs. I’m the “Marketing Madwoman” so yes, they’ll buy something from me and through you in the future!
I want to add here that I do not recommend you sign up for everyone’s affiliate program you find. Instead, look at what and from whom you are purchasing, and then join those affiliate programs.
And remember that affiliate programs like Amazon and many others do not create passive income. Instead, you’ll earn affiliate commissions on the day people purchase, but it does not carry over to future sales on their website. Make sure you understand the terms up front, so you won’t be disappointed down the road.
Continue setting up your passive income streams by creating your own simple products. Yes, I mean SIMPLE! Think of one small thing you know that you could share with someone else, and create it as a low-cost (perhaps $10) information product to sell online.
My first product was on the topic of how to write short – 250 to 500 word – blog posts on your topic. I explained how to write the post using a simple 5-paragraph model and then publishing it on your blog. Then, after a day or more, to give Google and the other search engines a chance to index that content to you, I explained how to share the same exact content to the article directories that were popular at that time.
That was in 2007, and we’ve come a long way since then. Blog posts are longer – 750 to 1000 words is best, and the article directories have gone by the wayside in favor of “syndication” sites such as Medium.com. I’m Connie Ragen Green on Medium, so please follow me there and create your own account. I also teach all of this and more in my longest running online training, Syndication Optimization. But I am digressing.
The point I’m making is that I shared information and details about something I was doing successfully and turned it into a product I could sell for the next several years. I did the work once, and then sold it more than a thousand times to others who were interested and would benefit from my experience.
While one eBook is not a business, it IS the start of what could be a lucrative business model for you. You can even earn income when you give your eBook (the Kindle version) away for free! Jim Edwards has the hands-down, best training available at http://eBookWritingProfits.com
* Take a look at the free eBooks in the Business & Investing category at https://ConnieLoves.me/KindleFreeBusiness
The next step in creating passive income is to set up an affiliate program for your products. Begin with your first simple product, as I just shared with you, and then each time you create a new product, add it to your affiliate offerings. I recommend Thrive Cart, at ConnieLoves.me/ThriveCart to get started.
The final step is to recruit affiliates who will recommend your products and courses to their followers. This involves networking and connecting and making some friends, and this is also the way to grow your business exponentially in the shortest amount of time.
I also recommend you create a free product that affiliates can recommend easily. Now, this wouldn’t be the same as a report or lead magnet or something people could already get for free on your website. No, instead it would be something of great value to the people you most want to attract. I have my “Action Habits Challenge” as a free training course at ActionHabitsChallenge.com.
Remember, the value to affiliates is to be able to recommend one of your products initially, and then be cookied in for future sales of all of the products you create over time.
Your passive income streams will begin as a trickle, but once you make the effort to grow your income in this way, those trickles will turn into a massively flowing waterfall! Set yourself up for success by setting a goal that inspires you, making a plan for putting everything into place, and giving yourself a deadline to reach a specific monthly amount of monthly income.
During all the years I worked in real estate, I chased the elusive dream of passive income. I did make money, but I can’t say more than 5% of it was truly passive. Instead of working hard for every dollar you earn, isn’t it finally time to work smart and set up streams of passive income that will pay off for years to come?
None of us dropped out of the sky and landed online; we all had lives before that time that are filled with people, places, events, experiences and more. You’ll want to share more about yourself with your prospects and clients as a way to gain credibility and create raving fans for yourself and your business.
This is the motto I lived by to build the business I love… “Do for a year what others won’t; live, forever the way others can’t.”
Remember that you are serving others as an online entrepreneur and author, and instead of looking for ways to do it fewer hours each week, look for ways to merge it into your overall lifestyle. You’ll create more free time and financial freedom for yourself and your family, all the while doing things you love.
My affiliate program details can be found at Affiliate Links and Tools.
- Writing – blog posts, short reports, focus guides, sales letters, books, and more
- Creating – products, courses, challenges, and events
- Marketing – I’m the “Marketing Madwoman” and relish this title! Marketing makes the business world go ’round, and I wish I would have embraced this concept sooner in my life.
- Mentoring/Consulting – I love working with individuals, organizations (for profit and non-profit), companies, and corporations to help them with their marketing, online and offline.
Pick up a copy of my book, “Time Management Strategies for Entrepreneurs: How to Manage Your Time to Increase Your Bottom Line” at https://amzn.to/37QfTWg
“Everything we do in our lives is preparing us for something that will arise in the future, even though we don’t yet know what that will be.” ~ Connie Ragen Green
Some of the things I engaged in during 2006, the first year of my online business were born of necessity. I was a new online entrepreneur with no prospect list or connections. Also, I did not have an information product or course or even an eBook to sell and start earning some income. I order to get my new business rolling and bringing in some money, I knew I’d have to get creative. I came up with few simple success strategies that continue to be effective today:
- I hosted a weekly “Ask Connie Anything” call. This was a teleseminar, so anyone could join me by simply dialing in to my conference line. They could also go to the webpage to ask their questions at any time, whether or not they were attending live. The replay was accessible from the same link, making this a stress free solution.
- Three times a week, I wrote and published a short post to one of the several blogs I had set up on a variety of topics. I hadn’t yet chosen my niche and was still experimenting with my ideas.
- I reached out to the people I was buying from through email primarily. If they had an affiliate program I joined it and then shared information about them with those who attended my teleseminars, as well as within and in the resource/author’s bio area at the end of each blog post.
- Create “to-do” lists with the goal of transferring no more than three or four items to your schedule to complete each day. It’s easy to become overwhelmed by an unlimited and growing list of tasks and activities you intend to complete… some day. Instead live by your schedule and watch your productivity soar.
Tell Stories to Become Three-Dimensional in the Eyes of Others
I’m a marketing strategist, so when I work with clients I ask them to look through their email messages and mentally divide them into two groups. The first group consists of the people with whom you are connected because at some point in the past you signed up on their list to receive more information. The second list is made up of the people with whom you have more of a relationship with, perhaps by listening to their podcast or other audio recording, or watching their videos on YouTube or Vimeo, or maybe you have met them in person.
Once someone has heard our voice, watched our video, or shaken our hand, they begin to become more three-dimensional in our eyes. Your goal is to make that happen sooner than later so as to accelerate the process with as many of the people you wish to connect with as possible.
Our stories are the fabric of our life. A story sets you apart from everyone else, makes you unique and memorable, and is all you have when it’s all said and done. When I was a young child a neighbor girl, seven or eight years old at the time, interrupted my mother in the middle of a story she was telling to ask, “Why do you have so many stories?” My mother hardly skipped a beat, informing the girl that “You’ll have stories too, when you get older.”
On that evening a part of me became a storyteller in training. Sure enough, it wasn’t long before I was telling stories about everything from what I did in school that day to what happened in the neighborhood. I wore my storyteller’s hat with pride and now I see that this one aspect of my life was preparing me for what I now do in my business and derive great joy from every single day.
The word “praestabilis” means outstanding and extraordinary and this is the goal for you as you make your way in the online world.
It took me until age 50 to step into the light and live an empowered life. I achieved this by leaving a job – classroom teaching – and a career as a real estate broker and appraiser to come online as an entrepreneur. I have no regrets about waiting so long, as everything unfolds once we are open to receiving it. There are three top strategies to help you move closer to an empowered life and they include…
- Writing – Every day, I want you to write! This includes blog posts, outlines, emails to your prospects, clients, and potential joint venture partners. Also, write short reports and white papers to show others who you are and what you know. Finally, write a book to solidify your expertise in your niche, and follow that up with additional books over time. Writing is crucial to our process of standing out from the crowd by sharing what we know and believe. Reach out to me if you’re interested in coming aboard for my “10 Week Author” program. Recent posts on my three blogs are at:
“Broken Compass Stories We Tell Oursleves” – https://mondaymorningmellow.com/broken-compass-story/
“The eBook That Changed My Life” – https://hugeprofitstinylist.com/ebook-that-changed-my-life/
“Marketing Secrets from Creative Sources” – https://connieragengreen.com/marketing-secrets-from-creative-sources/
- Speaking – I was the reluctant speaker, but once I got past my fears and insecurities you can’t get the microphone away from me. Speak about yourself and your topic to anyone who will listen. I began by speaking at my Rotary Club and I continue to recommend service organizations as a way to break in to speaking. Now I speak all over the world, in person and virtually on a variety of topics.
- Masterminding – Connecting with others for the sole purpose of reaching your full potential is crucial to life success. Find a Mastermind group to join, or start your own by inviting thought leaders to connect with you in this way. I have a group called the Incubator Mastermind that may be of interest to you.
Hopefully, you can see that what I’m sharing with on each podcast will make a difference for you as you build and grow your business as an entrepreneur, author, and marketer. Make sure to think of marketing as a priority and get into the habit of sharing your best ideas and resources with the people who are on their way to becoming your raving fans! I’m always just an email away at conniegreenhouse at yahoo dot com if you’d like to connect with me. I promise to help you keep it simple while you grow your online business.
Having an online business is a gift from God and the universe and something that I am thankful for each day. I urge you to consider earning at least part-time income from a home-based business and know that I am more than happy to assist you in getting started and growing a business as an online entrepreneur, author, and marketer. These are the areas I focus on each day so that I am able to give my attention to the tasks and activities that are important in my business:
- Writing – Every day, I want you to write! This includes blog posts, outlines, emails to your prospects, clients, and potential joint venture partners. Also, write short reports and white papers to show others who you are and what you know. Finally, write a book to solidify your expertise in your niche, and follow that up with additional books over time. Writing is crucial to our process of standing out from the crowd by sharing what we know and believe. Reach out to me if you’re interested in coming aboard for my “10 Week Author” program.
- Speaking – I was the reluctant speaker, but once I got past my fears and insecurities you can’t get the microphone away from me. Speak about yourself and your topic to anyone who will listen. I began by speaking at my Rotary Club and I continue to recommend service organizations as a way to break in to speaking. Now I speak all over the world, in person and virtually on a variety of topics.
- Leading – Leadership is an area I want you to embrace and pursue. We are all natural leaders, but many times this doesn’t come to light until and unless there is a crisis of some kind. Instead, look for opportunities to step forward and lead others to achieve their own greatness and worth. Community involvement is an excellent way to address issues you care about in a way that brings out your leadership instincts.
- Transparency – One thing I absolutely love about the internet is how it paves the way for all of us to be transparent. When I first came online with my business in 2006, I “Googled” myself to see what was there. I found a testimonial I had given for a real estate training I’d completed the year before, as well as the interview Parade magazine had conducted with me about my experiences as a classroom teacher in the inner city of Los Angeles. I understood at that moment that everything I said and did could be found on the internet, immediately or eventually. It’s up to us to make sure we are transparent in every way, and to use this as a way for people to find us online and perhaps do business with us.
Visit my three blogs at Huge Profits Tiny List, Connie Ragen Green, and Monday Morning Mellow. View all of my books here. Read about my Theme for 2022 and what I believe about goal setting and New Year’s resolutions.
I began back in 2006 with affiliate marketing. I did not have a list, and used my blog and my articles to get my name and message out to the world. I still earn an excellent income with affiliate marketing and it accounts for just over 40% of my income. You may become my affiliate at Affiliate Links and Tools.
Please connect with me on Twitter and let me know what you are working on so I may share it with my vast and growing audience.
Check out my most recent membership site, set up as a free and ongoing eCourse at https://ActionHabitsChallenge.com. Read this article I published on “5 Profitable Membership Models” at https://connieragengreen.com/membership-site-models/. Also, please visit my main site at https://ConnieRagenGreen.com and connect with me on Twitter at https://twitter.com/ConnieGreen.
My newest book is In Pursuit of Healthy-Ness: How I Reinvented My Life with Intermittent Fasting and in it I chronicle my journey of dropping over 130 pounds with this method.
I would love to know your thoughts on these concepts. Please visit my main sites at Connie Ragen Green and Huge Profits Tiny List. Connect with me on Twitter for the latest updates and announcements.
Get started with your own eBook empire by learning how to write an eBook from the person who continues to guide me along this lucrative journey. Take a look at How to Write and Publish Your Own eBook…in as Little as 7 Days from expert and author Jim Edwards.
Thank you for this opportunity to serve you as I share my beliefs, perceptions, and experiences as an author, online entrepreneur, and marketing strategist with you. Marketing has become the joy of my life as I continue to learn, grow, and share concepts with others.
I’m bestselling author, marketing strategist, and online entrepreneur Connie Ragen Green and I would love to connect further with you to help you to achieve your goals. If you are interested in learning how to optimize the syndication of your content, please take a look at my popular Syndication Optimization training course and consider coming aboard to increase your visibility, credibility, and profitability.
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