Pat Flynn
Editor’s Note: The content regarding eHow is no longer relevant. Please visit our Getting Started page, which we keep up to date with advice for getting started with earning money online. (Updated 10/2015)
This is the second of a series of reports that I will post each and every month summarizing my progress. I’ll first mention the major events that may have happened within the month that could have made a difference in my earnings. I will also break down the sources of my income so that I can keep track of how each one is doing. Lastly, I’ll conclude with the most important things that I learned and what I have planned for the near future. I’d love to respond to any questions or comments that you may have. Thanks!
Important Goings-On for November
- Began writing articles for eHow.com
- Hired help for better Search Engine Optimization of my blog at GreenExamAcademy.com.
- Asked for and posted testimonials from those who have purchased my ebook.
- Started exercising again, this time with a personal trainer.
- Ran a poll on Intheleed.com which told me that 80 percent of the people who bought my ebook would pay for an audio version. I am now converting my ebook into an audio guide.
- Bought a USB microphone to explore the realm of podcasting. It hasn’t shown up yet.
Note: Items with an empty difference percentage were not present on the previous month’s income report.
Definitely a record month for me, in all categories. I attribute the increase in ebook sales and AdSense earnings on GreenExamAcademy.com to a few things:
- Basic word of mouth. I can see more and more people being satisfied with my product (both the ebook and the website), and word is spreading. If you can create any word of mouth publicity with your website—that’s gold.
- The SEO help that I hired for at the beginning of the month. I specifically asked for certain keywords to rank higher for me, and those keywords are now at or near the top of the search results. I’m getting more and more organic visitors (aka. from search engines), which directly correlates to my traffic, page views, AdSense earnings and ebook sales. Wonderful!
- I simply asked my ebook customers for a review. This is a two-fold method. One, I got suggestions that could make my book even better, which is always a good thing. And secondly, I got some rave testimonials, which I put on my ebook sales page for future customers to read.
Important Things I Learned in November
- Working from home is difficult. It’s really easy for me to have days where I don’t work at all, and days where I work 18 hours straight. The tv is right here next to me, and poor man’s Tivo (youtube.com) is just a click away. The best thing to do is write your schedule of work ahead of time—a week or even a day in advance. I’ve done a poor job of doing this, and I know when I start my results will increase—and I’ll probably feel more accomplished too.
- The Key to EVERYTHING is “community.”This is why I think eHow.com is such a great website—it has a wonderful community, and that’s why the site and it’s users are so successful (and rank high in Google Search). Community is just as important in your own blogs and projects. If you can create a loyal community in your own blog or website, you’ve created potential for passive income.
- Ask them what they want. In your “community,” the best thing to do is ask them what they want. I wrote about a guy named Fred who lost thousands of dollars because he didn’t ask his potential customers what THEY wanted. You can’t just assume your idea or product will be well received. You have to ask, or in other words—test. Regarding my ebook, I was lucky enough to have people ask me to write a book. If I was smart, I would have asked them first, and I could have started selling my ebook even earlier.
- I need health insurance. Now that I’m not working for an employer, I do not have health insurance. This is a big no-no, and NOT smart. Sometime this month, I’ll go over how to find the best health insurance plans if you are working from home.
- Generating a Passive Income Online Saved my Life. Seriously, it has. Without my ebook and AdSense earnings, I would not be able to stay afloat after my lay off, especially with all of the expenses I’ve had to pay for my wedding in February. What a blessing this all has been.
What’s Next
Well—I have to get health insurance, that’s for sure. But furthermore, I’m going to work hard on my audio guide this month, in hopes to have it finished and on sale by January 2, 2009 (crosses fingers).
Next, I’m going to explore some podcasting. I’ll probably test it out on this website, and I hope you’ll have a listen. I’m not sure exactly what I’ll talk about, but I’d love to highlight some eHow articles that I find and give credit to their writers. I think that would be a cool way to help people out, and get more people to listen to the podcast.
Oh, and Christmas shopping, of course.
To My Loyal Readers
First of all, thanks for reading my blog. I’ve made it to 50 subscribers! That’s awesome! If I can get to 100 subscribers before the end of the year, I may have to hold a contest.
Next, feel free to check out the new photo of my fiancee and me in the sidebar. We’re getting married on 2/21/09, so the 2-2-1 on the Ladanian Tomlinson jerseys do have significance. (I always point out that it also signifies “two to one”, like two families becoming one, but April hates when I say that . . . haha. Cheesy!) Also, there’s a new poll in the sidebar as well to participate in.
Please feel free to leave any comments, suggestions, criticisms, shout-outs—whatever you’d like. I’d especially like to hear any plans you may have for the near future that will help you earn more passive income online.
