Extra Income

What would you do with some extra income? Retire sooner? Take an extra holiday? Buy a new set of golf clubs? Give more money to your favorite charity?

As I write this I have been self-employed for 17 years. I have had some good years, and some tough years, but in general I prefer 'being my own boss', as it gives me a feeling of flexibility and control, and I get paid according to my effort. It can be much harder to make a living as a self-employed person than as an employee, but if you are willing to be disciplined, and 'get rich slowly', there are a few approaches that can work very well for a person who wants some extra income.

The three best bets, for my money, are:

• Build your own home-business website
• Network marketing
• Increasingly businesses are looking for part-time mature workers

Let's start with having your own Web-Based home Business

The Internet is unquestionably the most powerful communication tool the world has ever known. It is also a very powerful marketing tool, if you know how to use it.

In the early days of the net (and still too often today), techie people got all excited and made all kinds of claims about the power of web sites to reach people, sell stuff and get rich. 'If you build it, they will come in droves' was the idea.

Of course it was wrong. 99.9% of all websites get little or no traffic, are never found on search engines, and bring in NO money for their owners.

HOWEVER, there are ways to make money with a website. Sometimes LOTS of money, if you know the simple principles.

Principle #1: People come to the internet for Content. They do not come looking for you. Ergo... give them what they come for. Build a high-content, theme-based website, with LOTS of information about whatever it is you are excited about (product, service, hobby...).

Principle #2: Your theme-based topical content ranks high at the Search Engines, attracting free, targeted TRAFFIC... interested, open-to-you visitors.

Principle #3: Develop trust and confidence ("PRE-sell") by OVER-delivering relevant, original, high-value information to these motivated pre-customers.

Principle #4: Then, and only then… it cannot happen if you fail to first execute Content-Traffic-Pre-sell... MONETIZE your warm, willing-to-buy visitors in various ways. Sell hard goods, e-goods, your personal or professional services... or all three. Or become a "pure infopreneur" and earn substantial income without selling at all, through Google Ads, affiliate fees, finder's fees and other techniques. Then diversify into multiple streams of revenue to maximize income, growth and stability.

There is no magic formula for getting rich quick on the internet, but if you take your time, use the right tools, and build a properly-designed site, you could have a nice steady passive income well into your retirement years, and have some fun while you are at it.

The Best Small Business Package on the Net

As I mentioned, I have been a big fan of the internet almost since it started becoming available to us regular folks back in the 1980s. I have looked at many website packages over the years, and studied what it takes to create a successful site.

The best package, hands down, is

Site Build It!

• A domain name
• a Action Guide - the manual that shows you precisely, step-by-step how to build a web business, not just a web site
• a 'site manager' - an incredible tool that will help you pick the most profitable keywords to use in building your site
• an incredibly easy to use site building program, that lets you build a professional site without having to know any of the techie stuff such as html, javascipt, cgi, etc.
• it automatically lists each page you build with the major search engines as you build the pages
• a whole plethora of extra marketing tools and tips to help you maximize traffic to your site
• a newsletter mailout and database manager

Since I built midlife-men.com a couple of years ago, my traffic has steadily increased without me having to do any of the tedious things a webmaster normally has to do such as registering and continually updating my site with the various search engines, and doing continual research to find the best keywords (the Site Manager does that for me with just the click of a button).

There are more features I haven't even mentioned, but you get the idea... you can get a fast step-by-step demo of how SBI! works by going to the Quick Tour Slide Show here: http://quicktour.sitesell.com/

Not sure what kind of hobby, or product, or business you would want to build on the web? Here is a list of hundreds of successful SBIers... http://results.sitesell.com/ with every kind of website you can imagine.

And for an in-depth look at how some people have created their sites, and what they are doing with them, there are some case studies here: http://case-studies.sitesell.com/

And here is one more thing. If you want to hear Site Build Its 'inventor', Dr. Ken Evoy, you can listen to this radio interview that callers from all over the world tuned in to: http://seminars.sitesell.com/

And one last thing... if you want to compare SBI!s' feature set with Yahoo! Web Hosting Pro, Verisign Web Business Expert and Microsoft bCentral Professional, you'll see the difference is striking... http://compare.sitesell.com/

Alright... enough about Site Build It! As I said, the internet is one of the most powerful tools we common folk can use to build some extra income, and Site Build It! is the package to use. Site Build It!

Now, here are few other goodies to help you think about what you might want to sell on the net.

Here is a link to a FREE 'university' for online success...

Now, one more thing...One of the very best ways to make money with a high-content website is to create an e-book. Don't know where to start? Start with the

FREE Infoproduct Masters Course.

Here's what Dr. Ken Evoy, who created the masters course, says: "What's the most important part of Web marketing? Just about every marketing guru agrees... it's having your own proprietary product. And here's the good news... That product lies somewhere within you... but you're "too close to see it."

"This course shows you how to brainstorm, create, produce, and sell your very own infoproduct online... .... all in a mere 10 days. Follow this course and you will be selling an infoproduct online in just 10 days. Really."

Click here and send a blank e-mail to receive The InfoProduct Masters course... It's an intensive 5-Day e-mail course on creating, producing and online-selling your very own infoproduct.

Special Note: Be sure to put 'MASTERS' (without the quote marks) in the subject line. They get a lot of spam, and if the subject line does not have MASTERS in it (in capitals) their spam filter will eliminate it.

Ok. I think that gives you enough about building a web business to know how to get started. Now let's look at the second way to build extra income...

Network Marketing

Also known as Multi-Level Marketing, or MLM.

According to Michael Gerber, in his book

The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It, there are two 'turn key business models' available today, where the new business owner simply learns the systems, and takes over: Franchises, and Network Marketing.

Franchises cost a great deal of money (typically a million dollars and up), but network marketing doesn't, so I will concentrate here on network marketing.

Network Marketing is simply one of many marketing models. Retail is another, direct marketing through catalogues or 'junk mail' is another, travelling sales reps is another, and so forth.

The advantage of network marketing for the average person is:

1. you don't have to make a large investment to get started
2. you can work at home and keep your own hours
3. you can choose between literally thousands of companies and products, so can find products you are truly excited about selling.
4. Network marketing is rapidly gaining acceptance in society as a legitimate way to do business, so the old stigma that used to be attached to it is pretty well gone. It is the fastest-growing segment of the business community.
5. You can meet some really interesting people through network marketing. Some of our best friends are folks we met in our first network marketing venture. Seems as though the people attracted to financial independence have a little more 'spark' than average.

If you are diligent and business-like, you can make a LOT of money.

That being said, there are some down sides to Network Marketing:

1. Network Marketing companies, and even more so, people in network marketing, tend to exaggerate the ease with which you can build a business. Most people who join network marketing companies make little money, because they simply do not understand that network marketing is a business. Like all businesses, it takes work to be successful.
2. There are literally thousands of network marketing companies, and more starting everyday. It is important to check out a company's history, management, and financial backing before getting involved, just like you would any company you planned to become a partner in.
3. More than 70% of network marketing companies, just like any other start-up company, do not survive for more than five years. If you are going to join a network marketing company, check it out. See how long it has been in business.

I joined my first network marketing company a few years ago, and immediately made all the typical mistakes of a first-time network marketer:

1. I thought network marketing was a 'sales job', and as I have a bit of experience in sales, I phoned lots of people I knew, and sold them the product I was marketing. The surprise came when they in turn did NOT sell any to others, and having your team sell to others is the key to making money in network marketing. It turns out network marketing is really about relationships, and mentoring your new people so they can be successful.
2. I joined a fast-growing new company, and although I checked the credentials of the management team, and checked with the Canadian government's companies branch to make sure the company was doing everything legally, they still got investigated by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, and although the company was not officially found guilty of operating illegally, the owners agree to an out-of-court settlement with the government. Needless to say, the company is no longer in operation. This company said it was not a pyramid, because it had a product to sell, but the key is that the product might not have sold on its own had there not also been a 'business opportunity' along with it. (I have since learned to look for network marketing companies that make a significant percent of their sales to non-representatives (i.e. to people who just want the product, not the business).

Here are a few keys to success in network marketing that I have learned the hard way:

1. Very few of the people you recruit into your network marketing business will have what it takes to be successful. The simple fact is, you need an entrepreneurial spirit in order to have the discipline and drive to build an organization. Most people just don't have it. HOWEVER, when you do find an entrepreneurial-type person, they can make a huge difference on your bottom line. Many of the 'heavy hitters' in the network marketing world have only two or three serious producers in their organizations, and those folks make all the difference. However, DO NOT think you can just find a couple go-getters and relax. The secret is to recruit like crazy all the time, knowing that the vast majority of people you bring into your business won't have what it takes. DO NOT SPEND any time with people who are not working. GIVE LOTS OF HELP to those who are trying, but need to learn how to use your company's system. Network marketing is a business that takes a great deal of effort, just as any business does, but it can be very rewarding, and does not have all the headaches of a normal 'bricks and mortar' business... rent, employees, inventory, etc.
2. When looking for a company to work with, find one with a good track record, a product, or products that you personally like and feel enthusiastic about using, and preferably that are consumables, so they need to be replaced regularly. In your recruiting efforts, emphasize the value of the products, rather than the money-making opportunity. If people like the products, and are looking for some extra income, they will ask about the opportunity.
3. The internet is a wonderful tool for running a network marketing business. BUT DO NOT THINK THE NET CAN DO IT FOR YOU. Network marketing, like all businesses, relies on person-to-person contact for its success.
4. Use your company's 'system' for recruiting. The people in management have lots of experience, and have made all the mistakes already. No sense you making them all again.
5. Have clear goals for yourself and your business, and be prepared to work hard for at least three years to build up your organization. This means being prepared to give up some leisure activities in order to achieve success.
6. Read books about Network Marketing. There are plenty, and you can find a number in your local library. One of the best resources I know of is 'Ms Stud' (her real name is Kim Klaver). She has a number of excellent books, tapes and teleseminars on network marketing, and has the most common sense approach I have seen to building a network marketing business.
Click here to visit mlm911.com
7. One of the best ways to build a successful network marketing business is to build a high-content theme-based website focusing on the product(s) you are selling. You can read more about the concept here: http://networkmarketing.sitesell.com/ . (I use Sitesell for my www.midlife-men.com site. As I mentioned before, it is BY FAR the best web business package I have ever seen.)