My goal for 2013 is to earn the equivalent of six figures annually in one month ($8333).
There I said it, now what am I doing about it?
To be totally open with you, blogging is really challenging for me and in the past I have done fine with out it. But I love it and I sure am glad to have found it because it is an opportunity to share my lessons as I work towards earning my goal of earning six figures of income and showing others how to and how not to build passive income. It also helps to solidify my thoughts about what works and what does not work and your comments and emails really help to make me want to do more.
Income reports are particularly awesome because they show where the rubber is hitting the road as they say. It is also an opportunity for me to highlight all that I have learned so far and how I will be putting my thoughts into action.
However in 2013, I simply can’t waste my time on blogging if it is not going to make a difference. I need to be more useful to others – YOU.
So far I have been finding my feet but I promise I am going to be become better at communicating what helps others achieve their goals.
For example, down the bottom of this post I want you to tell me what you want to know. Let me be your guinea pig this year.
In 2013 here are the most important things I will focus on for my websites:
1. Adding Value Online and attracting people
2. Not doing the stuff that does not make money
3. Sticking to one successful formula
4. Doing well in search
1. Adding Value Online
One thing I believe that has worked really well for me over the years is adding value or being useful. It is also what I continue to focus on which I discussed in my Useful Niche Site Strategy.
On the other side of the coin, there is a school of thought out there that you should put up as much content as possible and attract long tail keyword searches.
What should you do?
“Every two days now we create as much information as we did from the dawn of civilization up until 2003” Eric Schmidt, Google Co-Founder
There is an explosion of information and that we can only consume a limited amount of information on a daily basis, I am a strong believer that Quality will win over Quantity.
However, I also know that attracting traffic through creating lots of content (longtail keywords) also does work.
My revised focus #1 in 2013 is to have Quality and Quantity. I think a mix of really useful content with more interesting longer tail and easier to produce content will work well.
2. Not doing the stuff that does not make you money
In 2009, I had three part-time contractors to help with content creation and support and have always outsourced my web design. Outsourcing was one of the most important things I have ever done in my business and it allowed me to grow to a point where my business was bringing in nearly $400k/year while keeping total costs around the $50k/year mark.
When I employed my first part-timer to help me with creating content there was no oDesk, eLance or Fiverr. In my case my first hire came from my forum that I ran on my website. Nowadays it is so much easier to outsource effectively if you know how to use these tools well.
I am super excited by all these wonderful tools that are available to help us grow our businesses. In 2013, I will be testing and refining every kind of outsourcing platform.
So far I have used 99designs, Fiverr and oDesk with varying results. In the coming months I will also be engaging many new people and in the process I will be refining my ability to successfully attract and utilise people from all of these types of services.
My new focus #2 is to become really good at hiring, motivating and managing a dedicated team of outsourced individuals to enable me to focus on the important things for my online business – like making money.
3. Sticking to one successful formula
I like to keep things simple and get really good at those things. Many people online try too many things and wonder why they do not get anywhere. On the other hand, I have seen a few remarkable people online do well in a lot of things at the same time, but I find that these people are rare. Pat Flynn for example does iphone Apps, a Blog, a Podcast, Videos, Speaking engagements and he does it all at a very high level of excellence.
Since I am not banking on being rare or special, I will be focusing on useful niche websites and those alone – period. This blog is the only exception I have but it too will become useful and awesome as I refine what is working on my websites.
My #3 focus in 2013 is to stick to the simple things that I know make money online and get better at those things.
4. Doing well in search
I have a concern that any type of layered link building or anything that is unnatural could have a very limited lifespan. My August Income Report shows how my business took a dramatic nosedive due to SEO practices that were believed to be considered best practice at the time.
Here is what a Google insider said on an interview at James Norquays’ Blog, “Off site link building has dramatically changed since the recent updates. Anything that you can do automatically or at scale puts your website at risk.”
So far with Panda and Penguin, Google has focused on the easy spammy stuff but I feel pretty sure they are not going to stop there. I expect they will just get better at weeding out sites that in their eyes appear to be doing this automatically or at scale.
I know many people (some who I really respect) who are doing things that concern me but I hope it is clear that I am in this for the long term even at the expense of quicker income.
One big hint Google has made about the direction it is headed is Authorship which search engine journal spoke about recently.
Authorship
“Authorship is a great way to identify and highlight high-quality content,” Google Product Manager Sagar Chamber
It is moves like Authorship that makes me sure that Google will reward websites that build good old fashion reputations and very possibly red flag anyone who is found to do things unnaturally.
An example of someone doing the complete opposite to creating spammy links and doing well is Matthew Woodward with his Zero Backlink Experiment. In just a few short months his site is making thousands from focusing on adding value and simply networking like crazy within the community. I picked up some of his methods for my Ninja Marketing and I have absolutely NO doubt whatsoever his strategy is working as evidenced by the link I just gave him!
Ironically Matt makes most of his passive income from selling back link related affiliate software.
My #4 focus in 2013 is to find and execute legitimate ways to build natural links quickly.
So there you have it, my four main goals for 2013 that I think will help me make six figures again. The beauty of my goal is that if I can actually achieve them through these focuses, far more than six figures is possible.
Income for December 2012
Workgateways.com
This Month Income = $3314 Last Month Income = $3530
Difference = -6.1%
Jobaroo.com
This Month Income = $1475 Last Month Income = $738
Difference = +99.9%
RSACoursesOnline.com
This Month Affiliate Income = $20 Last month = $80
Difference = -75%
New Website Launched 15 December 2012
This Month Affiliate Income = $0
Grand Total Income = $4809 Last Month = $4345
Difference = +10.7%
In future months I will start including expenses, but for now they are pretty minimal although I expect that will change as I invest in outsourcing again and my own education.
Jobaroo.com
I don’t talk about Jobaroo much or Workgateways because they are old established websites and I think my examples of building a new websites from scratch are more useful. However I do continue to put effort into both these sites and that seems to be paying off most notably in Jobaroo this month, but traffic has also been increasing for Workgateways and the economy in the UK seems also to be a little stronger these days too.
RSA Courses Online – My Useful Niche Website
Only $20 this month. However, as I reported in my November report, by income for RSA courses was likely to drop due to the Geotargetting issues the site was having. The good news however is that traffic has been slowly returning, so I expect better months ahead.
In general the site has been making money from a very low traffic base and I think if I can build this traffic – good times are ahead.
In December my site was also reviewed by Jon Haver where he made twelve recommendations. I have applied many of these and excited to see how the site does after these changes. In an upcoming post I will be talking about the changes I made and why I think they could be awesome for anyone building a website.
To kick 2013 off I will be attending the NMX in Las Vegas. If you are going to be there let me know I would love to meet up for a coffee – or whatever … the rest stays in Vegas.
And the winner of my competition I ran for a copy of the movie “I’M FINE THANKS’ is Melissa L., who was on my mailing list. Congratulations Melissa, I have already emailed you for your address.
So What Would You Like to Read More or Less of?
I want to make a difference with this blog, SO now is your chance to tell me! Here are some ideas I had for the New Year.
– Do you want to see more about outsourcing? For example I am currently conducting my own case study – oDesk V eLance to see which one is best at helping to get content created.
– Do you want to know more about what I am doing to attract traffic naturally? White hat SEO and Ninja Marketing I believe is the future of doing well long term online. I am learning lots as I go along. Do you want to know what work and what does not?
– Do you want step-by-step case studies? What about instruction manuals to just get the job done?
– Alternately, what do you like and dislike? I am ready to rock the house in 2013 and I am keen for you to be part of it – is there anything you think I could be helpful with?
Happy New Year to You and may we all be a little more Cubicle Free!
Matthew Woodward says
Hi Quinn,
Thanks for the mention 🙂 Glad my examples have helped you out somewhat =D
cubiclefree says
Hi Matt, You are welcome!
I think your white hat example add serious value to others. I am working hard on setting my own examples….. time will tell.
However, I do have a burning question. From what I understand, you are a successful SEO and (a) tiered link building is something you actively do or have done BUT you are also actively executing a successful (b) white hat “ninja marketing” approach with your blog.
So, what would you recommend to a Good Friend these days who wanted to build a long term, sustainable business online but wants to also earn money reasonably quickly – (a) Tiered Link Building or (b) White Hat “Ninja Marketing”?
Don’t worry – no one reads this blog 🙂
Matthew Woodward says
Hii,
You need a subscribe to comment option, come to think of it so does my blog ^^
Thanks for your kind words – yes I actually have over a decade of experience with the web/marketing so have a bit of an edge of others but I’m by no means a master of my art – there’s always something new to learn/test/play with and my blog is essentially my play thing 🙂
I would recommend you drop me a mail through my site and we’ll talk on Skype 🙂
cubiclefree says
Awesome – Thanks for the info. I will be in touch after I get back from the New Media Expo in Vegas. I will be great to hear your thoughts.
Jeff Mac says
Great goals – will be awesome to almost double your income! Most of it looks to be pretty passive too which is impressive. I would really like more actionable step-by-step guides to actually building an online business. Outsourcing to help make money is also pretty interesting. Thanks! Jeff
cubiclefree says
Thanks for the feedback Jeff! The passive income is what excites me the most so I have to go after that. Outsourcing is probably going to be the only way I can achieve my goals so it may be super interesting for others as well. I can see how step by step guides might be good too.
Matthew Allen says
I definitely need to learn more about outsourcing and how to properly implement it into my sites/business. I’ve never outsourced anything and spent a LOT of time self-teaching myself everything I know about internet marketing and building websites. I do all of my own design and still do all of my own content creation. I know that I really need to learn how to outsource and I look forward to reading your instruction and findings on this blog in the near future.
I like how you printed your goals and tacked them up on your cork board. I still have some old goals up on mine and should probably update and do the same.
Matthew Woodward says
Sound like your on the right track to me, getting your hands dirty is the best way to learn!
Most of my coaching clients are in a similar boat where they have tried everything and have experience with all the pieces of the puzzle but struggle with putting the pieces together in the best way.
Take a step back and look at everything you have learnt, workout what your real passion/foundation of knowledge is and work out how to exploit that to its full potential – no cutting corners! Go all out with your balls out!
cubiclefree says
Thanks Matt (Allen) – Really appreciate your feedback. I am finding my goals are putting fire into everything I am doing. Highly recommended.
Thanks Matt (Woodward) for responding to Matt (Allen) – This is just another example of what I am calling Ninja Marketing…. You really understand the principles Gary V talks about in the “Thank You Economy” book. Unfortunately Gary’s book is mostly limited to discussing social media but it extends way beyond.
Ashish Khadke says
You are awesome quinn……
it is very inspiring…
thank you.
Kashif says
How do you monetize Workgateways.com and Jobaroo.com? I am also managing job site so wondering what’s the best way to generate steady revenue from it.
Thanks.
cubiclefree says
Hi Kashif, Over the years most of the income was generated from advertising of job postings and a database backend that matches travelling job seekers with employers. The database enables me to really help people get jobs and the clients to find awesome people. Recently the recruitment market in the UK starting to show signs of life again lately and I have started to get some good things happening again. I also make some money from affiliates – things like opening a UK bank account – which is typically hard to do. Basically any needs that people have I try to create a solution and work out the best way to make money from it at the same time. Quinn
Kashif says
Hey Quinn, thanks for the prompt and detailed response. My jobsite is for jobs in UAE so I’m not sure if it can be monetized like your sites.
Thanks for the inspiration though.
cubiclefree says
Hey Kashif,
There is no question in my mind that money can be made from your niche! Perhaps not in the same way as I have done but I would not recommend following what I have done anyway – follow the needs of people in your market. Its easy to do this online – forums and blog comments can help lead the way then you start building things to fill that need. After that it becomes even more fun because you can get feedback from your visitors and fans directly.
Quinn
PS Sorry for the slow response – I missed it the first time.