How Can I Earn My Money?

What? You’re giving away all your products? How will you pay the bills?

A few people have asked me the same thing this week. They say what I’m doing flies in the face of conventional wisdom. They say…

• No one ever pays for something that’s offered for free.
• If you don’t put a price tag on something, no one will value it.
• It’s right that you should profit from your years of experience.

I’m sure there’s truth in all those things, and I’m grateful to my friends for reminding me. That is what conventional wisdom says.

I guess I’m putting my trust in some less conventional wisdom.

I know the world is not full of people who can see the value in something even if it doesn’t have a price tag.

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There’s no secret that I’ve made decent profits in the past from selling information. I’m just choosing not to do that anymore, for no other reason than because my heart says it isn’t the right way. I want everyone to have access to the best marketing knowledge I can provide, if they need it, irrespective of their ability to pay.

I believe in human nature. In fact, I’ve seen it in the past 24 hours, in the dozens of personal messages of support I have received, which have really touched my heart. (Thank you, you know who you are!)

So, in the spirit of marketing with full transparency, let’s answer that question: How will I pay the bills?

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The basic principle I’m working on here is that, in giving this information for free to the world, I will reach many more people. I want to make a real, big, difference! And, even if I’m paying the bills with easy, I’m not going to do that with a few dozen subscribers.

By reaching more and more people, I’m hoping to increase my reach, my brand.

And, by zagging against everything everyone else is doing, I hope to stand out in a world that’s full of noise.

I want lots more people to use my ideas and my methods, and I want them to help me improve them.

And I believe that, by doing that, I can continue to earn an honest living.

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Now, in any market sector, there are always people who want the DIY — “Do It Yourself” — option. They’ll typically have more time than money. Whether it takes the form of an ebook, a video course, or a webinar, they say, “Give me the information, tell me what to do, so I can go and do it.”

There are also those of us who want some assistance. That might take the form of a course with some coaching element, or maybe group support. These guys say, “I want you to collaborate with me, to help me to do it myself, and coach me along the way.”

And finally other people don’t want to do it themselves. They need it done now, and they need it done properly. I call this the “DFY” or “Done For You” group. They may have less time and more urgency, which makes it worth investing in a solution.

All of these positions are real, and they’re all one hundred percent valid. At different points in time, we’ll each find ourselves in any of these places.

DIY?

First, I want the DIY crowd to use my stuff, to get huge value from it, and in doing so to get to know and trust me. (They may choose to tip me. That doesn’t matter. It’s my gift.)

Just Need Some Help?

If you want a bit of help with your strategy, or guidance on any matter I can help with, I’ll be happy to give you an hour’s consulting over video for $200.

However, if you’d be happy for me to publish our session on my site and YouTube etc., I’ll do that for only $100.

(You’d be amazed what value you can get from me in an hour!)

Collaborate?

But there are people who, for whatever reason, need more than the information. And I’m there for them. That’s why I have my Inner Circle group for ambitious web professionals (currently closed), which you can read about here.

DFY?

Then there are the folk who need it done for them. For this group, I’m offering my services as a consultant. I would love to help you craft an amazing, inspiring vision for your business, or to plan a way to take your vision to market.

If you would like me to help you with your project, just email me direct, and we’ll talk.

Or maybe you need a full service, but you’re sick of getting ripped off by agencies, who promise the world and fail to deliver.

If that’s you, you should consider my Inner Circle project group (closed), possibly the most highly skilled, but certainly among the friendliest, web marketing professionals you could ever meet. We’d love to help you roll out an amazing campaign, hopefully helping your business to thrive for years to come.

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So that’s how I plan to pay my bills in 2015 and beyond…

• By giving you my best material for free and asking you to try it for yourself, instead of just telling you how great it is.
• Making myself available to you by the hour, to help however I can.
• Offering to be there to guide and coach you if you want to be an outstanding web marketing professional.
• And by providing a team of talented, honest, and friendly people who can help deliver your perfect marketing campaign.

(For more insight into this “stacking” model for products or services, check out my video on Ultimate Web Design.)