Many people tell me that $1,000 or $2,000 extra dollars a month could really help go a long way, and it would be great to build something THEY OWN.
And it’s true!
Are you trying to make money online but you’re too busy working your 9-5 job?
I’ve been there.
Many people tell me that $1,000 or $2,000 extra dollars a month could really help go a long way, and it would be great to build something THEY OWN.
And it’s true!
Instead of constantly building up someone else’s business, the internet provides an opportunity to build up your own thing.
Well, I’ve got news for you.
I was one of those people.
Back in 2014, I was working full-time as an accountant trying to advance my career but I was bored.
Bored with the same old routine, same old office, and the same old paycheck.
I needed something else to work on, something else more exciting that could be mine, and help me make extra money on the side.
At the time I was also was getting excited about the idea of being an entrepreneur.
I watched all the videos and read all the books.
Gary Vaynerchuk, Pat Flynn, all the greats that have done it and now preach about it.
It sounded amazing.
And I was motivated.
But I was also afraid.
I was afraid of failing, wasting money/time, and perhaps worst of all looking like a failure to all my family and friends.
PLUS, I was working full-time, how on earth could I do it?
But…
I took the plunge.
I decided to invest a bit of cash to push me to keep going.
I knew that if I spent some money, it would force me to stay accountable.
So, I called up a marketing agency and wanted to have them help build me a website and branding package.
I figured these guys were professionals and would set me up for a good start.
This was my first mistake, which leads me to tip #1.
Tip 1: Learn From Other People’s Mistakes
The first step is CRITICAL and that is, learn from other people’s mistakes.
You may not know many people that are currently successful with internet marketing or entrepreneurship in general.
But you do know me or at least you will eventually (here’s a link to my about section).
I’ve been in internet marketing for over 4 years.
In May 2018, I made between $7,500-$8,000 between all the websites I own, and I am STILL working full-time believe it or not.
Of course, it didn’t start this way.
I made a sh*t ton of mistakes like…
- Paying more than $100 for a website… bad idea #1
- Starting my first business in E-commerce… bad idea #2
- Buying too much physical inventory… really bad idea #3
- Focusing on more than 1 project… normal but still bad idea #4
And I’m still making mistakes, but the point is to learn from them.
One of the worst mistakes I made early on was paying WAY TO MUCH for a website. See below for a screenshot of the first half of the invoice.
I did not need to spend that money, a lesson that I won’t forget for some time.
Tip 2: Start Learning ASAP
This one is more of a general observation I see with people I talk to who SAY they want to start making some money online but don’t actually DO anything.
Their job is in the way or they’re perpetually tired.
When the topic comes up they’re eager and excited, but the burst of motivation soon dies down and they slip into inaction.
Bad bad bad.
If you really want to start building something, you NEED to start today.
The path is long and you will fail multiple times before you start seeing results, so start the process and begin.
Just get started.
I recommend you take 30 days and just consume every bit of content you can on internet marketing.
SEO, email marketing, landing pages, funnels, etc.
Give yourself permission to be a student for a while.
Learn the terminology and what other people are teaching.
When I first started, this is what I did.
I gave myself permission to LEARN.
I recognized that I didn’t know much, but I knew I was CAPABLE of learning it.
Just give me some time, and I’ll get there.
So, I started reading everything I could get my hands on.
Some of it was good and actionable, other stuff wasn’t so good, but you don’t know until you just start digging in.
Be a sponge.
It’ll improve the quality of your questions so you can get more out of conversations with other people who are doing it successfully.
Tip 3: Deeply Reflect On What You’re Good At/Known For
This is one you’ll hear me say quite often simply because the process is so long.
The niche of your first website should be one that you wouldn’t mind writing about for free for a while because chances are high that you’re going to give up.
If you pick a topic you’re not really interested in, the project will just feel like more work.
You’ll come home from a long day at your normal job and then have to open up your laptop to do even MORE work?
That’s a formula for failure.
If you align your strengths and what you already find interesting, it makes every other step that much easier giving you a greater chance to succeed.
If you like to fish, build a website around fishing.
If you like to cook, build a website around cooking.
You get the picture.
There are markets for just about any topic you can think of.
Just pick something you give crap about and continue onward.
Tip 4: Copy A Formula That Works
Yep, you read that right.
COPY a formula that works.
Seriously, DO NOT try to come up with something original.
This is another mistake I made and one that I try to help other folks avoid.
This goes double for people who are already busy as heck with a job, babies, etc.
And it’s funny because TV shows like Shark Tank that motivate you to get started also motivate most people to start something NEW and UNTESTED.
You watch Shark Tank and see a group of entrepreneurs presenting their new cup holder that can hold your drink in the pool and you think to yourself, I could do that.
I could make something better and more original.
Wrong.
Don’t do that.
Can you?
Maybe.
But the chances that you’ll succeed are so small and the risk of wasting time is so high that you should instead focus on a proven system that works.
When you’ve built something that works, you can then turn your attention to something more untested when the stakes aren’t so high and you’ve gotten the requisite experience to analyze a product and judge whether it’ll work for a target market.
Wasting time going down the wrong path is what I did for a long time, and I want to help you avoid the same mistake.
Tip 5: Maintain Intense Focus
This one is REALLY important.
Maintaining focus.
When you first get into internet marketing and learn about all the possibilities, a nasty disease known as “shiny object syndrome” creeps up.
It’s something that I’ve dealt with MULTIPLE times over the years.
It sneaks up on you while your reading a new article about a cool new idea someone else has implemented.
You read about all the ways that idea has helped them…
It seems so simple.
You click download and start reading more about it.
Down the rabbit hole you go and you are now NOT working on your original project.
Three weeks later after you’ve learned more about the idea, you’ve decided it’s not for you and pick up your original project.
That’s three weeks gone and all momentum lost.
Ugh.
There will be SO MANY IDEAS.
There is no shortage of ideas, but a shortage of execution of those ideas.
The key here is to pick one formula that is proven to work (see the previous step) and then execute RUTHLESSLY.
Write the content.
Promote yourself.
Drive more visitors to your website.
Rinse and repeat.
This is a formula that works.
It isn’t sexy but its tried and true.
Tip 6: Outsource The Work
Okay so now we’re getting a bit more tactical.
For people busy during the day, you NEED to get good at outsourcing because you’re too busy to do most of the work yourself.
Time is the biggest bottleneck and it should be something you tackle early on.
Once you have a defined system down for creating content, outsource it.
Once you have a defined system for promotion, outsource it.
There are entire websites like Upwork.com that are dedicated to helping you find freelancers, manage them, and pay them all done through the platform.
Out of the tips in this list, I would say outsourcing the work is what made everything possible and is what is helping grow my websites.
I used the money from my job to fund the people to do the work.
Of course when you outsource a whole slew of additional problems arises like…
- Quality assurance: Because your outsourcing will that reduce the quality of your content?
- Cost: Can you afford to outsource?
- Project Management: Can you keep your workers busy and on track with their tasks?
All of these things should be considered, but in the end, you will NEED to outsource.
Tip 7: Invest Money
My last tip is to invest some money.
When I first started back in 2014 I spent $7,800 on a website and $20,000 on inventory.
This LOCKED ME IN.
I did this because I knew that if I didn’t, I would always kick the can down the road and start next week.
Because I spent money (a lot of money) I forced my brain to kick into action.
I had to figure out how to get the money back.
How do I market myself?
How do I get customers?
Because I had a lot of skin in the game, I went into work mode.
Now you don’t NEED to invest as much money as I did.
In fact, I would advise against it.
But I would spend money on the project.
This makes it REAL and not some fairy tale hobby that you might eventually sort of get around to doing one day.
To be honest, for people who want to get in, the best money you could spend would be on coaching.
Either with me or someone else.
Mainly because you literally have no idea where to begin.
No ideas on what tools to use, systems to implement, etc.
You just don’t know what you don’t know.
Coaching can help with that and start you down the right path.
Final Thoughts…
And that’s it.
Seven quick tips for folks who work full-time but want to break into internet marketing.
I hope they were helpful and started to get you thinking about how you can get started.
Learning the skills needed to make money online was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
Once it “clicks” you can start to see all the possibilities and ways to earn online without constantly trading time for money.