With a recurring revenue business model, you’ll be able to generate a steady and reliable income every single month. Best of all, you don’t have to stick with just one format and can expand your network as you discover new demands for content.
The key is to always look forward ways to tie a product or service into a recurring revenue source.
You always want to incorporate your funnel into a recurring income source whenever possible.
In a previous article we looked at recurring revenue streams and membership platforms
In this article, let’s look at software, physical product subscriptions and online courses.
So, let’s get cracking…
SaaS stands for Software as a Service and is offered on a subscription basis.
The benefits are quite obvious to customers: in exchange for their recurring payments, they are given the ability to use the software while knowing that it is updated regularly and that they’ll gain access to prompt customer support.
From Drop Box and Adobe to mailing list providers like MailChimp and Aweber, many of the leading brands have incorporated SaaS into their businesses and for good reason: Doing so drastically increases their yearly income, while making it easier for them to provide value to their customer base.
For example, perhaps you run a community focused on teaching people how to build a successful blow. You could create a training program that teaches them how to launch a successful website, while promoting the tools they need to get the job done.
This might include SaaS based mailing lists, hosting for their blog, or perhaps design and graphic tools, as well as plugins. The possibilities are endless when it comes to making money promoting a variety of recurring revenue products.
There are dozens of important tools you can easily promote within your own content to generate revenue.
And for every new customer you send their way, you’ll earn a recurring income from their ongoing payments. Win-win!
You’ve likely heard of the Dollar Shave Club as well as other subscription boxes that focus on health, fitness or cosmetics, just to name a few. These are growing in popularity every single day.
Here’s how it works:
Customers subscribe to a service and in exchange they receive a box or products every month. The products vary but are usually all in the same niche or industry.
This format works well because recipients not only look forward to receiving new products every month in the mail, but they become part of a community of active users.
The downside is that creating a physical product subscription program isn’t always the easiest business to launch as it will require coming up with products and packaging as well as shipping and distribution partners, but don’t overlook the possibilities. There may be a way to simplify the program so that it works for your business.
For example, an author who self-publishes books via Amazon KDP could create a subscription program where readers can sign on to receive a new book every month via their exclusive book club.
While an author may not release a new book every month, they could easily send out some of their favorite reads, promoting other up-and-coming authors. The shipping costs would be minimal and it could even be automated through sites like Lulu.com.
How could you incorporate a physical product subscription into your business?
It’s time to put that thinking cap on and see how you could take advantage of this profitable opportunity!
Tip: You could also combine a membership program with a physical product subscription plan.
For example, you could sell access to an online training program that offers guides, tutorials and videos and provide them with a physical copy of the course via a book.
While courses don’t usually bring in recurring income on their own since many are designed on a platform that involves a student paying a one-time fee for access to the training, you can still generate consistent recurring revenue by focusing on a strong front-end sales funnel that directs students to other products and services.
For example, while your course may be a one-time charge, you could give students the option to upgrade to a monthly membership that offers tools and resources associated to the topic of the training program.
This could include additional auxiliary components such as webinars, printable downloads or additional workbooks that go beyond the scope of your course.
Start by thinking about a topic for your course, as well as the content formats you would feel comfortable creating.
This could include:
The key is to identify an ongoing demand for help with specific problems. Your course should always focus on one main niche so you’re able to create content that is in-demand, relevant and focused.
At the same time, you don’t want to box yourself into a corner. The topic you choose should be something you can see yourself still interested in a year from now.
By purchasing access to your course, they are given the knowledge needed to accomplish specific goals.
Most of the top-selling courses focus on one main subject and then they expand their program by allowing students to either purchase additional access to upgrades or by offering additional resources after someone has graduated from the course.
Don’t let anything stand in your way! Even if you aren’t an expert on the topic, chances are you still have something worthy of teaching and that people will pay money for.
Keep in mind that for your membership program to be successful, you need to come up with a strong hook.
A hook reels you in. It sets your program apart. It works at differentiating your program from your competitors and tells potential subscribers why they benefit from signing up for your program. It’s visceral and compelling.
Evaluate your membership program’s strengths and unique benefits.
Your task of the day:
Step 1: Identify an ongoing problem in your niche where people are actively seeking guidance, training and ultimately, a solution.
Step 2: Create a list of topics that you should cover in your course based on those common questions. Then, decide on the various formats you plan to use (video, printables, workbooks, etc.).
Step 3: Next, go through that list and narrow your focus so that you are targeting a specific segment of your market.
Need help identifying a problem in your niche or coming up with a topic for your course?
Here are a few ways to uncover possibilities:
Send an email out to your mailing list that asks what your readers need help with. You can either set the email so they reply with their own feedback, or choose 3-4 topics and create a survey that asks them to choose only one.
Search Reddit sub-threads as well as Q&A sites like Quora for popular questions and ongoing discussions. You want your course to be based on an evergreen, common problem in your market.
Search platforms like Udemy.com and Teachable.com to see what courses are selling and what kind of training is being offered.
Sites like Teachable will show you a breakdown of all lesson plans so you can get a feel for the scope of the training and identify what could be missing. Then, include coverage in your own course to stand out in your market.
Tip: Creating a training program is easy with sites like https://www.Teachable.com because you aren’t required to build your own website or learn HTML.
All you have to do is enter in your content or link to your videos and Teachable will compile your course so that people can move through it at their own pace while keeping track of their progress.
If you want to know more about creating a profitable online course, check out the featured resource below for a free report; download, read it and take action 😊
If you’re looking to boost your income, grow a loyal following and position your brand as the go-to source in your market, there is no easier way than by injecting a recurring revenue stream into your business. Trying to build a continuity program into your business is a must.
With recurring revenue, you can create a strong foundation for your business while taking advantage of the opportunity to incorporate additional income streams into an ever-growing community.
Plus, recurring revenue is consistent and predictable. Unlike other income streams, such as with one-off products or services, with a monthly or yearly recurring revenue platform you know what to expect. You aren’t bouncing from one product launch to another.
Instead, you can focus on growing your community and extending the value of your program. Instead, you are focused on a scalable business and stop trading your time for money.
This article will show you exactly how to join the recurring revenue revolution and how it can work in almost any niche or market.
You’ll also discover how to choose a format that focuses on long-term success so you can enjoy the benefits of passive income every month – all on complete autopilot.
And that’s just one of the many advantages of incorporating a stream of recurring income into your business.
Plus, it’s always easier to sell to existing customers than it is to convert new ones.
Are you ready to begin? Let’s get started!
You’ve seen the rise of recurring revenue streams in your everyday life. Blockbuster fell victim to Netflix; cable TV fell victim to online streaming services like Amazon Prime.
Everywhere you turn, companies are focused on building multi-million dollar businesses on the recurring income platform.
In fact, virtually every business can benefit from adding a recurring revenue stream.
There’s no doubt about it; now is the time to get in on the action.
To start, it’s important to come up with a primary benefit for your recurring income stream.
For example, with a spa package, someone could purchase a $100 package that gives them the ability to book 3 massage treatments, rather than the usual 2.
With an online business, you could offer access to advanced training or exclusive resources not available anywhere else.
The key is to highlight the benefits upfront. Customers sign on for recurring programs because they are getting more bank for their buck, or they are being given access to something unique, special and exclusive.
Or perhaps they are looking to save time or alleviate an otherwise steep learning curve.
Regardless of the format you choose, you need to come up with a clear benefit that will persuade people to sign on and stay subscribed.
Subscription-based programs are not only extremely profitable, as they generate recurring income, but they are single-handedly one of the easiest ways to gain traction in your market, and position yourself as an expert in your field.
You’ve likely seen this in action for yourself when you’ve signed up for a course or training program. The course instructor has positioned themselves as an expert on the topic simply by providing a clear, workable system to accomplishing a specific goal or task.
By providing step-by-step training in a specific niche, you will be able to secure your foothold in your market and become a leading source for quality information.
In other words, you become the go-to person in your field. They are phenomenal at increasing your customer outreach, maximizing exposure and managing a sales funnel so that you can leverage your ever-growing community.
Another great thing about the membership model is that you can create a flagship program that is geared towards helping your subscribers learn about one topic, and then work towards expanding your program as your community grows so that you are keeping subscribers moving through your sales funnel.
There are many ways to build a successful membership program. Begin by considering the commonly asked questions in your niche. Perhaps someone needs help with graphic design. Rather than spending all your time teaching people how to master a specific software program on a one-on-one basis, you could create a membership site that offers access to video training that shows them how to use a third-party product to enhance their business.
Then, not only are you generating recurring income from your own training program, but you are also able to make money via affiliate marketing.
There are a few popular models used to create membership websites, including:
Evergreen Content Model
This is where your content is released in the same sequence regardless of when someone joins your program.
For example, someone who joins in January would receive access to the first month’s content immediately, and then in February they would receive access to the second month’s content and so on.
A member who joins in February would still receive January’s content as month 1. Every member starts at the beginning of your content cycle and then progresses as the month’s go on.
With an evergreen content system, the content is released sequentially based on each customer’s join date.
The only downside to this format is that you may struggle to offer group coaching as students will be at different stages of your training.
Current Month Access
This type of membership platform is based on the current month. Someone signing up in January would receive access to that current month’s content.
If someone signed on in February, they would only gain access to that current month’s content. So, every member is given access only to the latest update.
You can further monetize this style of membership site by giving members the option to purchase access to archived content separately.
This model helps to increase the value of every customer because they are purchasing access to current content while being able to purchase additional access to unlock prior months or advanced content. This format works well if your content is segmented so that each month’s content can stand alone and isn’t dependent on previous lessons or training.
All Access Pass (Content Buffet)
This format usually involves providing members with access to all previous content as well as new content on a monthly basis as long as they are a paid member.
Typically, you can price these membership programs at a higher price point because subscribers are gaining access to all the available content, regardless of when it was released.
Programs that run this way would include programs like https://www.Lynda.com where you pay for access to their training database and can then browse through their full library of courses and training material that continues to grow.
Consider the different formats available so you can determine what would work best for your target market.
For example, the weight loss market is a popular one for membership programs (example: Weight Watchers), because their monthly program guides someone through their journey from the very beginning until they’ve reached their weight loss goals.
Their monthly membership never ends either because even when someone finally reaches their goal weight, they are then transferred into a membership program designed to help them maintain their weight.
And another valuable part of their community is in the groups and forums members gain access to. In these areas, they can find an accountability partner, personal online trainers and coaches that help them stay on track.
With this type of platform, you are not only able to generate income monthly from the recurring membership fees, but you could easily expand your membership program to offer additional upgrades, such as access to weekly meal plans, community support, fitness strategies and customized weight loss plans.
You should look for a membership software solution that offers quick-set up, a user-friendly admin panel, security and of course, flexibility regarding content options as well as payment processors.
I personally recommend ProductDyno, available at:
ProductDyno works for all digital product formats, including the ability to sell monthly content in whatever format you choose, as well as the ability to sell licenses to software, themes, designs or plugins.
The admin panel is intuitive, and they offer prompt support and regular updates so you can rest assured you’re given access to in-demand features. It’s simply one of the easiest ways to get your membership site off the ground with minimal cost and effort.
Bonus Tip: Once you have your membership program off the ground, you could offer personalized coaching access to a small group of students. You could choose to offer this only once a year when you have time or offer it on an ongoing basis.
Courses are a great product to put into your membership platform and if you want to know more about creating a profitable online course, check out the featured resource below for a free report; download, read it and take action 😊
You know that if you want to increase your sales and expand your outreach, you need to position yourself as an authority in your market.
In a previous post on Authority Marketing, we talked about the importance of knowing your audience through market research so that you can position yourself in a way that people relate to, resonate with and believe in. And we also covered being where your audience is here.
One of the easiest ways to position yourself as an expert in your niche so you can maximize your outreach and income is to create share-worthy content.
What does this mean?
This is also called pillar content because it’s the strongest, most engaging material found on your website, blog or within your marketing campaigns and funnels.
Ideally, your content should always focus on 3 main things:
Connecting with your readers. Your content needs to resonate with your audience, so they begin to see you as an authority or expert on the topic. This means that your content needs to be well-researched, actionable and comprehensive.
Persuading your readers. Your writing needs to motivate them into taking action, even if that simply involves returning to your website again, subscribing to your newsletter or sharing your content with others.
In order to persuade readers, you need to earn their trust and convince them, through your content, that you are an expert on the topic and that they can learn something useful from you.
Exciting your readers. Your content should invoke excitement and convince people that you have something valuable to offer that will improve their lives in some way.
So, begin by thinking about what your primary objective is.
Identifying your content’s objective before you start writing it is extremely important and will ensure that your material is direct, informative and hits the target.
Once you know what your objective is, concentrate on conveying your message in a concise, direct manner.
Create exceptional, highly-targeted content that people will want to share because it speaks to them directly, communicates a positive message that supports your brand and demonstrates your knowledge on the topic.
And above all else, it explains to your audience what’s in it for them.
You want to gain the respect of your market so you can build an authority website that people turn to again and again, and you’ll do that by producing top-notch content that helps your audience in one specific way.
And if you are suffering from writer’s block and have no idea how to create shareworthy content, go to the source!
Take down notes! Write down anything that comes to mind whether it’s an idea for a killer blog topic, or ideas regarding content structure, format and style. It’ll all come in handy later.
One great tool that makes it exceptionally easy to research your competition so you can find the top content in your niche, collaborate with influencers and gain access to content insights that will help you generate fresh ideas is by using BuzzSumo.
They offer a free version so check it out: http://www.BuzzSumo.com
Now let’s look at some platforms that can help you out…
These two platforms connect journalists with experts. HARO stands for Help a Reporter Out. These “matchmaking sites” hook journalists up with experts who can answer their questions and help them with their research.
ProfNet is designed for public relations experts who want to pitch their organizations to journalists. You set up your profile on the site and set preferences for which types of queries you’re interested in.
HARO will deliver an email three times daily (5:45am; 12:45pm: 5:00pm EST) to sources, listing dozens of queries from reporters looking for experts.
They’ll describe the type of story they’re working on and list what expertise they’re looking for. You can reply to the queries and give your qualifications.
Let them know why you’re the perfect person for that story. In addition, HARO is free but offers a paid selection with more filtering options.
There are a couple of other similar service as well. SourceBottle includes a searchable database of active queries so you can hook up with the right journalist. PitchRate is mainly for bloggers and website owners, but it’s the same sort of game: they’re looking for experts to comment or post articles on their sites.
Here’s some advice from a HARO writer (Ritka Puri):
Focus on the story instead of your bio. “I care about what the interviewee has to say and am less concerned with how many patents the person holds.”
Make and keep journalist relationships. When pitching, mention whether you’ve worked with a journalist before.
Answer the question in a direct way. Don’t just ask if they’d like to interview you. Give them a direct reply to their question so they can decide for themselves.
Be personable and helpful. Your contact should contain a friendly introduction, a fun fact, keywords or bullet points that describe your story, and humility!
Press releases are still incredibly viable marketing tools, so be sure to check them out. They’ll help you get attention, generate buzz and create brand awareness.
Here are a couple resources to look into:
And here are a couple of articles to help you create the most effective press release for your business:
https://neilpatel.com/blog/ironclad-rules-for-press
https://www.shopify.ca/blog/how-to-write-a-press-release
If you want to know more about leveraging the power of authority marketing, then check out the featured resource below for a free report that expands on this post; download, read and take action 🙂
So, you’re anxious to reach those goals you’ve set for yourself and your online business, but you quickly realize that there’s only so much time in the day. No matter how hard you try, you feel as though you’re always one step behind.
One thing becomes very clear: You need a plan.
Without a system designed to place a value on each hour you spend working on your business, you’ll find yourself frantically scrambling to meet deadlines, follow through on launches and prioritize what is most important to your business.
This article has been written to help you get more done in less time by levelling up your productivity score quickly and easily.
The strategies contained in this article are designed to help you learn to value your time, make informed decisions about the kind of work you’re focused on and ultimately, beat the clock.
Let’s begin. There’s no time to waste. 😊
One of the reasons so many people seem to struggle to gain traction in their business is entirely due to the way they manage their daily activities.
This typically points to one major problem: People are stuck in an employee mindset!
They’re so used to that 9-5 grind that they aren’t equipped to adopt an entrepreneurial mindset, which will help them make the transition so they can train themselves to focus on the most important tasks: prioritizing their time and assigning value to the time they spend building their business.
As an entrepreneur, you’re solely responsible for your business, so your ability to value your time and make every minute count will have a major impact on how successful you’ll be.
Fail to make this important shift in the way you spend your time, and you’ll always struggle to get to where you want to be.
Thankfully, it’s not all that difficult to break that cycle and transition your way of thinking from that of an employee to a boss. It starts with preparing yourself for the realities of being an entrepreneur.
This means you need to:
Set Realistic Goals. You must be honest about what you’re capable of getting done on any given day. Then you need to determine how many hours you’re willing to invest in your business and then assign those hours to specific projects.
Break tasks down into smaller, focused projects. Tim Ferris, author of “The 4-Hour Work Week”, refers to this as “chunking”. We’ll talk more about the importance of this in a bit because it’s a great way to boost your productivity and get more done in less time.
Cut out Distractions. Your work environment will change drastically from what you may be used to as an employee, and you need to optimize your workspace so that it’s supporting a focused, productive workflow.
Identify the Truth Behind Procrastination. This is one of the hardest things to acknowledge at times, especially if you’ve gotten into the habit of procrastinating for reasons you aren’t aware of.
We’ll talk more about this in an upcoming chapter because it deserves a section of its own. It’s that important.
Be Ruthless in Prioritizing. Does your email really need to stay open while you work so that all those notifications cause you to continuously check your inbox?
Now let’s take a closer look at how you can learn the chunking technique, which will immediately boost your daily output and keep you focused on meeting your goals.
For years, I would fire up the laptop and start my day doing several different things at once. I’d check email, then maybe do some writing, then head over to social media, and then back to email yet again.
Chunking is where you decide to focus on just one major task at a time (or even per day). Depending on the type of business you’re involved in, this might include one day exclusively focused on graphic design, then one day dedicated to marketing.
Consider creating a detailed task list of all the important aspects of your business; the things that keep it all afloat and absolutely require your time.
This can be tricky because we tend to things all things are important, but the reality is, they’re not.
When it comes to any business, there are a handful of critical tasks that need to be taken care of daily, and the rest just adds a little more gas to the tank. They can be done later once the main tasks are out of the way.
You need to learn to place a value on every ounce of “fuel” you have left. That’s where chunking comes into play.
Don’t be tempted to multi-task because this is a productivity killer! So many people make a big deal of being able to multi-task, but all you end up with are a number of tasks that are partly done and an increasing amount of frustration because you never seem to be able to clear things off your to-do-list; sticking to one task at a time is much more productive, believe me!
And remember, one way to stay productive is to be focused and many people struggle with this. If you want to learn more about staying focused, check out the featured resource below for a free report; download, read it and take action 😊
There is more to hosting a webinar than simply having one. You need to ensure that it’s fun, informative and useful too. When people go to a webinar, they know that they’ll get a sales pitch eventually. But what makes them come back is the actual content outside of the sales pitch.
Plus, if they choose to purchase due to your sales pitch, the product must be fabulous. If you offer your audience amazing promises, you need to live up to them.
There are many types of webinar software that you can choose for your webinar marketing, and the one you choose will depend on personal preference mainly.
Once you have your ideal platform, you need to focus on the content so let’s look at some ways to make your webinars shine and make people want to sign up for your products or services.
* Make It Educational – Every webinar should offer a message that educates the audience on something they need to know and can put into action right away. If the message is informative and gives them something they can do without even buying your offer, they’ll want to see more from you and may eventually buy your products or use your services.
* Keep the Message Clear – If your message isn’t crystal clear to your audience, they may leave your webinar confused. You don’t want that to happen. You want your audience to be able to digest the information in an understandable way.
* Be Entertaining – While you’re getting them the information, it’s important to also not make it boring. Be lively and entertaining. Share a story that they can relate to. Show your humanity to them and they’ll want to know more.
* Pick an Awesome Topic – This is really the most important part of the webinar. Your topic should be something that makes your audience excited to learn more. In order to choose the right topic, you need to match your expertise with what your audience needs.
* Give Attendees a Special Gift – Approximately 75 percent of the people who sign up for your webinar will not attend. But you can boost attendance if you give those who attend something no one else will get. Make it something people will talk about.
* Host It at the Right Day and Time – Knowing your audience will also help you know the perfect day and time to host your webinar. You may ultimately choose to host more than one in order to cover all the bases.
* Create an Awesome Information Page – This is not a sales page, but instead a page that lets those who have signed up for your event know what exactly will happen at the event. You can mention the freebies you’ll be giving away during the webinar and the information you’ll cover more in depth.
* Follow Up – When someone signs up for the webinar you should have an autoresponder set up to immediately thank them for signing up, sharing the information page and other information that will encourage them to attend the webinar live.
* Send Reminders – Sometimes people do not attend the webinar live simply due to forgetting. Some webinar systems have the ability to set up reminders, but even if it doesn’t you can set them up with the autoresponder system.
Of course, digital events aren’t the only way to reach your audience. You can also go in person to local events, and these can be used to network with potential business partners or to find new customers.
Here are a few pointers to keep in mind when attending a live event.
Building your business with networking is important, but you need to make sure you do it right.
This list is by no means exhaustive, but it gives you some idea of local event etiquette!
* Thoroughly practice your thirty-second elevator pitch. You need to get this down so you can get all of the points out that you need to express to people in just thirty seconds. It should be second nature, so when you meet people on the fly you can tell them what you’re all about.
* Social media is great, but so are face-to-face meetings. When your online contacts are in the area, plan time to meet face to face. Attend regular meetups in your area as well. Those face-to-face meetings are great for making connections.
* Have a good handshake. A handshake says a lot about a person. Make it a good, firm handshake.
* Always have your business cards at the ready. You really never know when you’re going to meet someone, so be sure you carry business cards with you at all times.
* If you make a promise, then be sure that you follow through on it. Follow up with the people that you meet. This is going to build those relationships you made nice and strong.
* Keep in touch. Have regular meetings with your network and be sure to offer them your assistance when asking for their help on something. If you’re having an event, then invite the people in your network too.
* Ask for help. If you’re looking to expand your business, then you need people to help you get the word out. Make sure you ask your network to help you out with spreading the word on whatever you’re working on or whatever you need help with.
* Set goals. Having measurable goals in your networking will help keep you on track and get your business where you want it to be on a specific timeline.
* Be grateful. Saying thank you to your contacts will go a long way in showing your appreciation for what they have done for you.
* Find ways to give back to your network. This is a great way to show appreciation, but it also builds those relationships even stronger when you can help out those who have helped you. No one wants to feel used, so that’s why it’s so important to give back.
* Hard sell. If it’s the first-time meeting someone, then you shouldn’t do a hard sell on your product. This should be a time of getting to know you and what you are all about, not about getting money out of someone for your product.
* Monopolize the time talking about yourself. You should be finding out about the person you’re meeting rather than telling them all about you. If you show interest in the other person, then they will be more interested in you as someone who listens.
* Drink too much. Give yourself a two-drink maximum when you’re networking. It will make sure that you are coherent when you talk, and that you don’t say anything you later wish you hadn’t.
What networking advice do you have for local events?
OK, there are some handy hints to maximise your efforts in both local in-person events and webinars and I hope they were useful to you.
Any type of webinar or sales presentation relies on good sales copy and there are many pitfalls and mistakes that inexperienced copywriters can make. If you want to know more about avoiding these and other copywriting mistakes, take a look at the featured resource below where you can download a copy of a free report, Copywriting Blunders, so you will be forewarned and can make your copy more effective. Download, read it and take action 😊
