Do You Really Want To Be RICH?

Caroline,

I am RICH!

(Well that’s my name anyway…)

Guess what? Started Blogging yesterday and have not even made my first zillion! Can’t believe it.

Now in reality, I’ve been publishing on the web for over ten years, but just started to monetize some of the things I was giving away for free for oh so long.

It does not happen over night, but the revenues are coming in now after six months of long hours and very hard work. I now have over a dozen active websites with good content and growing.

Much of that is thanks to your eBook on how to build WordPress websites. It was a god-send at just the right time.

Keep up the good work and make us all think.

Rich

Rich Hills last blog post..Want to Learn how to Trade FOREX?

I want to make a couple mil for my efforts, I won’t be greedy :)

I read on one of the investing blogs that if you smartly invest $1 million, the interest on that is about $80K a year without even touching the mil, so if I can make 1 or 2 mil, I’m good.

That equals to roughly $6K a month. I can live off that.

The way I’ve always seen it is that I need millions in order to generate thousands a month in investment income and quit my day job. But if I could generate thousands a month online, that would mean I don’t need the millions!

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@Rich, glad my ebook helped!

@Taffy, hmm yeah sounds like a plan! :-)

@Hunter, confusing, but true! I think :/

I’m working on getting comfortable with being rich. :) Over the last couple of years, I’ve realized that I want wealth, not just “to be comfortable.”

I still have some conflicting beliefs around that, and I also recognize that by any standard that makes sense, as a middle-class person in the developed world, I’m already very wealthy. So now it’s just a matter of improving the degree a little bit. ;)

Sonia Simones last blog post..The Toddler’s Guide to Salesmanship

Hi Caroline

You’re absolutely correct to question ‘Do You Really Want To Be Rich’.

I had a target of being a millionaire at 30. I missed that, so set my sights on 40. I’m 36 now, and realise that the striving to be rich has created the buzz, but not necessarily the happiness.

I now realise that building strong relations with family & friends, and doing good in the world creates greater happiness.

RCG

Renegade Conservatory Guys last blog post..Interview with Paul.com - an ex-Anglian saleman.

While it sounds contrary, I’ve always found that the less my income mattered to me, the more it increased. Because this has been consistent over 20 years or so, my goal with internet marketing isn’t to get rich — my goal is to be comfortable. The trick is not to change your definition of comfort as the money piles up!! :-)

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Caroline,

Feed kid, roof over head, travel to see parents now and then, plan for her college and my retirement, wear decent clothes. If my business provides that I’m good.

I wouldn’t turn down “wealthy,” mind you, because once you get over “comfortable” range, you can let go of worries like will-it-last. But I’m not hung up on it.

These last few posts have been real thought-provokers. You are in fine form!

Regards,

Kelly

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Great follow up post Caroline!

Let’s play around and think strategically for a second… my question would be, what can a List generate in income over 1 year?

Playing this out a little, let’s say you have a list of 10,000 people, and let’s say that you are “launching” 3 items a year that cost a buyer $500 each. If your conversion rate is 1%, then theoretically, you would generate $50k (100 x $500) per launch or $150k per year. In addition, more than likely, people will seek you out to do affiliate sales for them. Let’s say you are choosy and will only work with people and products that generate $1k in pmts to you. If you do this 2x per month, this would add another $26k.

Now, clearly we have a lot of assumptions here which are just for demonstration purposes but in this scenario, each user would be worth $17.60 annually to you.

So, using the data in our example, if you could figure out the right product/service mix and the right price points to come back to a $17.60 annual revenue per person on your list, you would need to have 4090 people on your list to generate $6,000/ month.

So, to answer my question above, with this data a 4090 person list is worth $72,000/year.

Caroline, great posting and I love the use of G Trends to show the numbers. It’s what I try telling people all the time, by sheer potential customer volume it’s easier to make lots of money outside of the MMO niche.

For every 1 person sitting at their PC right now wondering how he/she could make money online there are 5 people searching for lingerie to buy, 20 people searching for fishing or camping equipment and hundreds of people looking for coupons and “free shipping” deals on anything because people just like deals.

But, since you rarely hear or know the names of folks who are killing it in these other markets people often don’t see the potential out there and believe that MMO is where it’s at because that’s where the affiliate celebrity status lives.

As for the question of your post, it’s all relative. What you see as a goal today won’t be enough when you reach it…but that’s okay because then you’ll have a new goal in mind and the experience to work towards it with.

Scott Bannons last blog post..Time for a mea culpa minute

Caroline, I love this conversation! But I have to disagree with the implications of your graph.
As a former real estate agent, I’m here to tell you that most of the searches are non-converting. In other words, they are purely informational searches. While the researchers may be in the market for a home, the National Association of REALTORS (in America) state that most people “begin” their search online. The reason is that they DON’T want pushy sales people bugging them! Once they get what they want (usually at the expense of hopeful agents), they contact cousin Bob, who just got his license, so they can “help” him get started.

In contrast, someone who searches “Web hosting” is more likely in the market for a hosting company RIGHT NOW and those searches are probably converting at a greater rate than the real estate searches.

No comment on the IM searches :)

Cheers,

Mitch

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I think you raise a really valid point, Caroline. My main aim in life has little to do with money - what I really want to create is time. Time free of the constraints of a full-time job, where I can choose when to work, I can work from home and have that freedom to do the things that really matter to me. I hope that by building an income from my work online, I can achieve this goal within a few years. How much money does that mean? Enough so I can pay all the bills, have savings for my old age, pay off a house, and not have to stress about any of these things, ever.

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@Mitch, you raise a great point, but I would add only if you’re looking at it from a former real estate agent’s perspective.

However, a savvy Internet Marketer or Digital Information Product developer is going to look at that chart and see a goldmine of people doing just what you said they are, seeking information.

Just like the people searching for “internet marketing” are doing, except that there’s an 89 to 1 ratio there, and fewer of the searchers in the real estate market have been jaded already against information products the way those in the marketing crowd have been.

Scott Bannons last blog post..Time for a mea culpa minute

@Scott, I stand perspectively adjusted :)

I see your point and, as this blog is about Internet Marketers, I should consider the view from that side.

Since you used the term “jaded” in the same sentence as information products, I would like to know if you meant that a savvy Digital Information Product developer will exploit the naïveté implicit in this “underexposed” sector.

One final thought: can you factor in niche saturation to adjust that 89:1 ratio? Is that niche sewn up by the big media buyers?
How likely is a newcomer to “get rich” with real estate infoproducts?

Cheers,

Mitch

Mitchell Allens last blog post..Father’s Day Introspective

@Mitch, no, exploitation of the market was not at all intended. I was actually commenting more on the difficulties someone entering the internet marketing niche faces by that statement. A truly savvy marketer would do the opposite and attempt to build a reputable presence in a good market for the long term payoff.

People who are marketers, or who aspire to be, tend to view sales copy differently than non-marketers. Much as I’d expect actors and directors view movies differently than the average fan. It’s human nature to look “behind the curtain” when you know the curtain is there.

So a large portion of the marketing crowd will naturally view offerings and sales copy with a more analytical eye, which can make selling a product–even a really good one–more difficult. That’s all I was referring to with the jaded comment.

As for niche saturation, that would take a lot of research to determine so I can’t honestly say.

And on getting rich as a newcomer, who knows? I’m sure that anyone willing to do the research, work and learning involved could have success, but only because I believe that’s true of any market. Beyond that, how well you could do would again require knowing more about the market than I do, so I can’t speak intelligently on it.

@Caroline, I do apologize for seemingly monopolizing your comments for this posting :)

Scott Bannons last blog post..Time for a mea culpa minute

I agree with Tim Ferriss here… you don’t have to BE a millionaire to live like one. Life is to be experienced and enjoyed and that’s worth far more than 7 or 8 figures in your bank account. You don’t have an unlimited amount of time - spend it wisely.

Great post Caroline, I like the fact that it answers all those “Make Zillions selling xxx” claims. I am doing 30DC challenge this year, I’m not interested being in filthy rich, or even leaving my job (which I LOVE).

My aim is simply to find a way to make a comfortable living online so that in the next few years I can leave my job, which although great is still a constraint on my time, and be free in terms of both time and money to pursue the myriad of different projects that I would love to do.

But I’m not saying there’s anything inherently wrong with those who wish to make zillions, good luck to them ;)

Kate Saltfleets last blog post..Summer Solstice

Hi Caroline,
After a long time of studying online marketing i have seen people trying to get rich. Chasing the money. I don’t believe in chasing money. I do believe in being honest helpful and excited about something. Thinking of others first.
I used to sell clothes before i became a mom. I went from house to house and sold a loooot of clothing– i was just a teenager then.
My customers would buy again and again from me. You know why? Because i was so honest with them. I told them when something did not look good on them and tried to find what was the best for them. My profit margin was not dishonest. I truly cared about each one of them.
That’s what people need to do: think of others and truly care about the people that are coming into their website looking for information and solutions to their problems.
I have been doing a practice free blog but i plan on making websites around topics that i know and love. I plan on helping people with it- i believe that the caring shines through. I have faith that one day it will make an income.
Blessings to ya,
Eren

Erens last blog post..Lynn Terry:Birthday Poem for a Friend

@Scott, okay, then…thanks for your thoughtful comments.

Cheers,

Mitch

Mitchell Allens last blog post..Father’s Day Introspective

Hi!

I think we probably have to pay uncle Robert Kiyosaki a visit once in a while. And refresh our memory on the old cashflow-quadrants. (I admit I dont really practice all his advice - just skim here and there to understand the gist of the book)

When we (me only?) talk about being rich, I am actually talking about being financially free / Financial Freedom.

If we havent reached the million dollar milestone, that is fine, we can still live happily our entire life. Heck, even nuns can live happily without owning anything!

However, if you are now 36 (like Caroline & me), that means you have to work like a slave for at least 24 more years, depending on the pension age of yr country.

Trust me, no matter how much you LOVE your J.O.B or H.O.B.B.Y , after you reach 40, you do not have the enthusiasm or excitement in your work anymore. You will be looking more at being an investor (i.e. let the money work for you… it is so cliche… yawn now!)

So for me being a Millionaire is not about flaunting your new ferrari to the neighbours, it is about being financially free and having the ability to pursue our other interest in life.

For me that other interest is collecting-dinosaur-bones, locating ancient-sunken-ships, Digging Egyptian/Roman/Byzantine/Greek Treasures (and donate all findings to their Muziums). And none of these can actually make money (not easy money, you are more likely to lose). It is just for fun and to live life to the fullest!

@Sonia, you raise a very good point there, and that is the subject of another post that I have written an outline for. Right now, I am at the stage where I am simply commited to earning a full time income. The thing with money is that it is linear, you can’t earn six figures until you’ve earned 5, and can’t earn 5 until you’ve earned 4 and so on. So I just concentrate on the next goal only.

@RCG, yeah for the longest time, ever since I was about 16 I remember telling my parents, “I’m going to be a millionaire one day!”. But as I get older I find that money simply isn’t at the top of my priority list anymore. My goals have shifted and that is simply not a goal for me anymore, but it might be one day.

@Annie, after studying the Law of Attraction that makes perfect sense to me. If you have a real attachment to something, a real ‘need’ for something, you tend to push it away because subconsciously you’re focused on the fact that you don’t have it yet. When you let go of the need it can flow more easily.

@Kelly, there’s a hierarchy of needs. Somebody struggling to feed their kids isn’t going to be too concerned about whether or not they can afford a sports car for instance. But of course as people’s lower level needs are met, new ones emerge.

@CFO Strategist, you know I used to crunch numbers in the way you just have ALL the time :-) It’s fun but these days I just go with the flow. There’s still a question to be answered though, how do you generate the 10k list in the first place? I have two lists at the moment - one of my newsletter and one for Stumble Rush and between them they amount to just over 500 people, so I have some work to do :p

@Mitch, thanks for that clarification. As I said, it’s not an industry I know anything about! However, the point wasn’t so much about real estate specifically, more just to point out that there are probably loads of other lucrative industries out there.

@Jess, if you figure out a way to create time, I imagine you would be the richest person in the world! But in all seriousness, yes I know what you mean. I have now managed to sculpt my life such that I am in control of every second of my time - I have no obligations on my time other than the ones I have created for myself and I love that.

@Scott, oh don’t worry - it’s lovely to see the conversation continuing in the comments - it’s what a blog is all about! Carry on :)

@Kate, what worries me is the people who want ‘zillions’ when they aren’t even making a living. I think those people are setting themselves up for a fall by having expectations that are too far from where they stand currently. People who achieve millionaire status very quickly tend to lose it just as quickly. I think it’s all about mindset and as one’s income gradually increases the mindset shifts towards more financial abundance and it grows more gradually and is more likely to last. Well that’s my theory anyway!

@Eren, yes I agree. Money is generally exchanged for some kind of product or service so if you can provide genuinely value in a way that people appreciate then the money flows more freely.

@Badrulnazar, hmm I believe we are all different and have different desires and goals. As I approach 40 I do want spare time to enjoy things but I also know that if I didn’t have some kind of ‘work’ to do, my life would have no purpose and I would die emotionally. If I am honest, I believe I will be doing some kind of ‘work’ for as long as I am physically able.

Nice point there caroline… I think with real estate, while the money is big, it can also require a lot of work and would take a long time b4 the money starts flowing..

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On the ethics, greed and so forth. My resolution is: I’ll be delighted to get rich from making friends and providing great value.

On money and happiness. Once the basics are covered it takes a very great deal of money to affect happiness. Eg those who win the lottery and have enough for the rest of their lives aren’t happy for the rest of their lives, or even terribly long at all.

I want to make enough to have reasonable security and an average life style. My luxury will be to buy interesting books. I can then get on with other interesting projects. My biggest ambition would be to found an acupuncture college that is about learning not money making - but that may well be impossible.

If I make millions or billions great, there are many worthwhile places to put it. I doubt I will somehow. I want enough to live from a few hours work each day so I can devote my time to other interests.

@Melvin, I think that’s true of any industry!

There’s a fabulous story in the 4 Hour Work Week - where a Harvard MBA is vacationing in Mexico and sees a guy bringing in a few fish in his boat - working just a couple hours in the morning.

The man reports that this is enough to feed his family, sell the rest for what he needs, fool around with his wife in the afternoon, and go play guitar and have a couple beers with his friends in the evening. He is satisfied.

The MBA lays out a plan where the guy would work harder, grow to a fleet of fishing vessels, make so much money he’d move to New York, go public, and finally after 20 years sell out for millions.

“What would I do then? Asked the Mexican fisherman.

“Well,” says the MBA, “you could retire to a little fishing village in Mexica, fish a little, fool around with your wife and in the evening go into town and play guitar with your friends…”

I’m hardly the picture of altruism or character - but I’m not in this to make a million dollars.

“The eye is never filled with seeing.

The ear is never filled with hearing.

And he who loves money will never have enough.”

The Bible

Great set of articles Caroline…

IMHBAO
Rick Butts

Rick Buttss last blog post..Tribal Seduction JP Micek Video Response

Great blog Caroline. Love your style… and thanks to Rick for flicking me over here… I will have to subscribe to your feed!

As an Internet veteran (been full-time employed online since 1995) I’m yet to discover those millions. Basically, through Adsense, affiliate marketing and some web design/hosting, I make enough to get by each month - somewhere between $3k to $4k.

Now I really don’t want to be earning millions… seriously!

While it might be “nice”, one thing I’ve learned over the past 13 years (of surviving on a lot less) is that large amounts of money really aren’t that important to me, and I’d probably still be doing what I am now even if I had it!

But what IS important is cash flow at the end of the month! I really hate having to be dependent on my Google check arriving by a certain day!

One reason I ventured into IM was to improve on that situation… and like many, even after 12 months “at it”… I’m still waiting to see some regular black on the income ledger from IM.

But I am very persistent, and am quite happy to keep plugging away, slowly developing my content, and building a following in this niche. Hopefully (at 53) I’ll live long enough to achieve something LOL

And I do actually enjoy doing this. It certainly beats working for a living, most of the time anyways!

Cheers
Stephen Spry

@Rick, thanks for posting that - I have read the fishing story before and it always makes me smile! Incidentally, what’s IMHBAO stand for?

@Stephen, thanks for stopping by. It’s always great to hear from somebody who is actually doing it and making a good living - it’s very encouraging for the rest of us who are still trying!

Being a fan of Rick Butts, I can attest that IMHBAO = in my humble but accurate opinion. :-)

Great stuff here, Carolyn. I left a six figure corporate cubicle to follow my own path on the internet and I love it. Wouldn’t change it for the world and I know there is much more I can be doing. Every day I show up and every day it gets more profitable. The flexibility of my life and my ability to control my schedule is worth a million dollars just in itself. So, I guess I am an internet millionaire working on my second million. :-)

Together, we are stronger.
Vicki Flaugher, the original SmartWoman

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@Vicki, lol I love the acronym. Yeah for me too the freedom that I have in terms of my time, and well everything really is something I cherish every day.

Each and everyone wants to become more richer, the info is quiet useful!!!

tkada.coms last blog post..Picture of the Day-Actress Monalisa!

Hey Caroline,

I have been saying that so long (In my humble but accurate opinion) that turned it into an acronym and started using it.

Someone suggested I buy the domain and lo and behold it was available. http://IMHBAO.com - of course, now I have 1001 domains I’m not using!

I’ve considered using it as a Dennis Miller type rant site but don’t want to dilute my rants - although I have strong opinions on nearly all topics - we will see.

For now, I’m open to how best to use this little peccadillo of a term - and if I can get it worked into the lingual franca of the web and used widely, with me as the catalyst?

Rick Butts

Rick Buttss last blog post..How Much Money is Enough?

@Rick, I think it’s great, it certainly made me laugh. No clue what you could do with the domain though heh. I too have noticed that I have fairly strong opinions on things but I also recognise that an opinion is nothing more than a warped perception of reality as perceived through the filters of our minds. That’s why everybody’s opinion is different!

Most people are never going to make a full-time or even part-time income off a blog. For most people any money made from blogging is just spending change. If you invest it, by the time you retire it could be worth a lot though.

I am so glad that Rick butts pointed me to this Blog. Outstanding.

Re Scott’s post:
“For every 1 person sitting at their PC right now wondering how he/she could make money online there are 5 people searching for lingerie to buy, 20 people searching for fishing or camping equipment and hundreds of people looking for coupons and “free shipping” deals on anything because people just like deals.”

I agree.

I have been a peddler for almost 50 years, enjoying a comfortable lifestyle, always spending less than we earned.

The Internet is adding nicely to the cash stream by providing products to people who want them.

Most of which we create.

Nothing has changed, the Internet just allows us to create relationships with so many more people so quickly.

Thank you again for your exciting Blog

I blog about “financial freedom”, wich is the most important in this and other businesses.

I’m not rich, but i’m financially free. My online business, a passive income, generates more than my expenses (food, rent, car insurance etc)

Really like Your free e-book but miss the explanation of HoW to install it on another host without “1 click install”. Thus, it’s a “no brainer”. Good job!

/Patrik

Patriks last blog post..Use WordPress for Your Mini Sites

@Chuck, thanks, I’m glad you’re enjoying the blog!

@Patrik, yeah once you reach the level of financial freedom, I think the extra money on top of that won’t mean as much as reaching that level.

Mark Mason has the right idea - membership sites bring in constant revenue.

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I don’t think you have to create your own products if it’s not something you enjoy. I have yet to (though I want to write a book eventually), and I make six figures from my blogs and websites. In the last 12 months I’ve almost hit that with Adsense alone, and I’m quite lazy (do this part time), so don’t believe for a minute that you can’t make good money with niche content sites.

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@Lindsay, you have almost hit six figures with AdSense alone? That is fantastic! I am just starting to experiment with niche AdSense sites so that is very encouraging. I had somebody on Twitter moaning at me yesterday about the evil that is AdSense and how nobody makes any money with it - maybe if he pipes up again I’ll send him in your direction :-)

I am still thinking hard for ideas that could make me rich. I am still experimenting with several websites within several niches and find out which ones work best for me. It’s for sure that one has to work hard(building website, promoting, etc.) and be patient untill you see any effect…if any at all. Yet it is very rewarding and I have learned a lot in the affiliate business.

Yaro Starak really has it going:-) I hope to be rich someday and kill my day job like you did.

By the way Caroline, I see you have the old Bluehost Banner…you might want to update it(if you are still a Bluehost affiliate) because Bluehost now offers ”unlimited web space and bandwidth” which is much more attractive for visitors on your website.

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@Andre, thanks for the info about Bluehost - I didn’t know they had a new banner! And yes it can be hard work in the beginning but I find that it gets easier and easier in time.