Never in my wildest dreams did a pandemic cross my mind when I began learning how to sell products online. In fact, the reason I wanted to learn how to sell online was that I was attracted to the lifestyle flexibility, the ability to pursue professional growth at my own pace, and the ability to earn based on my actually productivity was exciting. Before I get into this episode I want to say that making money online is possible, you don’t have to talk about blogging to do it, and it’s not hard and it’s not easy. Making money online lands in the middle of the hard place that exists between doubt/hard work/and luck. With the large majority of the world being quarantined at home, experiencing job instability, and wanting to avoid being exposed to the Coronavirus, if you’ve ever been interested in working from home, selling products that you’ve created online, or just curious about how this stuff works-this episode is for you. How this episode works I will talk about content creators and non-content creators during the show. This episode will also talk briefly about selling during tough economic times.
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Are you interested in learning how to work online selling what you already know? Watch the following webinar where I break down different online business tips than the ones shared in this episode. Go to the show notes to sign up and watch it today. *Please note this webinar will be live on April 7, 2020 at 6:00 pm MTN, then the recording will be shared via the link*
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Show Notes
- Before I get into this episode, I want to make it clear that you have to do the work. It’s not necessarily hard, but some aspects of working online or selling what you know can be boring…until the money starts coming in. Remember working online includes the word “work”
- In order to get started it’s important to take on inventory of what you actually know-that can be sold online and doesn’t require physical products. I’m making the distinction of not selling physical products because currently it’s very difficult to source physical items because of disruptions to the supply chain. It’s also easier on you to sell services or digital products because they don’t require: going to the mail box, making sure a physical product has actually arrived.
- There are a couple of ways to make money online selling what you already know as a content creator.
- Coaching people and helping them get specific results that they are struggling with but you know how to get them to the results.
- Blogging/Vlogging/Podcasting-All of these have the potential to make money, but it will take longer to make money doing these because you will need to grow an audience, listenership, viewership. You’ll also need to develop consistency. However, what I love about making money via content creation is the passive income on the back end.
- Affiliate marketing-You basically make money sharing your favorite goods and services. You share an affiliate link with your audience (disclosing your affiliate relationship) and you get a percentage of the sale if someone purchases an item using your affiliate link
- Create a course-I sell a course “Make Money with Ebooks” where I teach people how to make money passively through the sale of ebooks.
- Write Ebooks-fiction or non-fiction
- Sponsored content on your platform
- Podcast episode
- Vlogs
- Blogs
- Take some time to consider what type of help are people needing and where do your skills intersect with that need?
- Do websites need content? If yes, do you enjoy writing?
- Are you good at editing audio? Then, you may want to help people/businesses edit their podcasts
- Are you currently an administrator and rock at organization? Maybe you could use those skills as a virtual assistant. My friend Kayla Sloan founder of the course $10KVA details how and she also gives students access to qualified client leads. I’ll include a link to the podcast episode where we talk about becoming a virtual assistant.
- Do you understand how to do SEO?
- Are you an educator and have a solution for parents who now have become homeschool instructors?
- Do you already teach a fitness class? Why not online? This one innovation to the Coronavirus has been one of my favorite changes and I hope it continues after
- What is it that people need help doing that they can no longer go to someone else to have done.
- Hairstylist! Could teach hair styling/hair care classes online.
- Braiding and natural hair care online classes have been a huge hit
- Teach cooking courses
- Online tutors-parents did not sign up for homeschooling! Teach math, reading, science, etc.
- Budget consultant/Budgeting Course Creator
- Tax preparation
- Fitness course geared towards specific communities
- Big Booty Yoga
- Yoga for POC
- Yoga for Men
- Frugal meal prep-Book or Series of Videos
- Frugal Specialty food prep lists/cookbooks for those of you eating:
- Vegan
- Paleo
- Gluten-Free
- Hairstylist! Could teach hair styling/hair care classes online.
- Who are your clients?
- Oftentimes the product will eliminate the type of clients you’re not serving. For example:
- I’m not a vegan so vegan meal plans aren’t for me.
- My ideal clients for my Ebooks course/coaching are people with a digital presence or community that they would like to serve. Ideally, they have been blogging/vlogging/podcasting for at least a minimum of 6 months which is when most people quit. If they haven’t quit then I know they will be able to focus on the work needed to create ebooks.
- These people invest in trainings.
- My ideal clients for my ebooks:
- Romances-woman who need an escape based on the specific romance genres that I write in.
- Non-Fiction-People who need an answer to the specific question that they need help with
- Oftentimes the product will eliminate the type of clients you’re not serving. For example:
- You have the product or service-how do you sell it…without pissing people off? Selling right now can feel a little confusing. On the one hand we’re hearing about the job loss numbers, then we’re hearing the President wanting to get people back to work quickly because of the economic damage occurring each day of the pandemic. What should you do?
- Make sure you’re very careful of your marketing copy. Write down all of the examples of bad marketing that you’ve noticed in the past 2 or 3 weeks that pissed you off, felt awkward, or made you uncomfortable.
- Be of service-You’ll notice that all of my business ideas were based on helping people with their current needs.
- My friend Amanda Abella who runs a program called “Persuade to Profit” made the observation that money always flows, now it’s flowing differently.
- Many people are struggling financially and many people are not-this has always been the case. I lived in a studio with my mom during a recession while working at Starbucks and going to graduate school. I know how this feels.
- There are 325+ million Americans. The reality is that business owners need to serve a very tiny percentage of people in order to make a difference to them and to you financially.
- Use the right language for the people that you’re looking to help. This is called “copy” it’s the language used to sell products. In fact, as I work on this episode, I’ve just watched a really affective Hyundai car commercial that talked about the current crisis, how they’re working with future customers, and basically sharing that people are stressed. People-they’re selling cars! I don’t want to own a car and I felt like buying one.
- Watch your favorite influencers who seem to be getting the language “right” and resonating with you in their tone.
- Take notes of really effective language, commercials, or deals.
- Be 100% committed to your product and the solution that you’re providing in the event that someone gives you pushback about selling products at this time. How can the economy get back on track if we don’t generate income and employ ourselves and other people?
- How much should you charge? That depends. There a number of variables to consider:
- What is the product?
- Are you providing a service? Please DO NOT get paid hourly if at all possible. Create packages so that you can provide the service and help other people. You’re getting paid for results and your expertise.
- Is this an ongoing subscription? Or, a one time thing?
- Offer payment plans. Most course related tools provide that functionality.
- It took me awhile to charge what I currently do now and that was because I realized I was undercharging for the service I was providing. Figuring out pricing is an ongoing process.
I hope that this episode got your wheels turning. Now is the perfect time to start your online business. Don’t forget to watch the “How to Make Money Online Selling What You Already Know” webinar.
Or, if you would like to speak with me, schedule a free 2o minute clarity call today. The scheduling link is in the show notes. Please take care of yourself.
Schedule your meeting with Michelle
Resources Shared
- Kayla Sloan–$10KVA course
- Kayla Sloan–Podcast episode
Do It Ugly
What are you waiting for? Now is the time to launch your course, podcast, vlog, or book. It doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to be done.
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