Summary

The article outlines 12 essential elements for making money online through content creation, including mastering a content form, leveraging social media, and having reliable tools and mindset.

Abstract

The author emphasizes that making money online is not as complex as it is often perceived. The journey begins with choosing and mastering a content type, such as writing or video production, and consistently practicing it. Utilizing established platforms for content distribution is recommended over building one from scratch to avoid initial struggles. Engagement on social media is crucial, with the advice to post native content to adhere to platform algorithms and maximize visibility. The article suggests finding a mentor already successful in the desired field to emulate their strategies. Reliable internet and a functional laptop are listed as practical necessities. Inspiration for content can be drawn from consuming a single influential podcast. A positive attitude and the ability to elicit smiles from the audience are seen as key to success. A simple landing page with an email signup is essential for building a subscriber list, which is vital for sales conversions. Offering products or services for purchase, such as coaching or online courses, is the final step, with the reminder to handle the financial and tax implications of online earnings. The author concludes that a genuine passion for the work and showing love to the audience are fundamental to long-term success.

Opinions

Entrepreneurship is accessible to anyone willing to see value in their offerings and charge for them.
The complexity of online business is often overstated; even those without entrepreneurial backgrounds can succeed.
Content creation is the cornerstone of online income, and mastery of a chosen medium is essential.
Starting with an established platform can mitigate the challenges of building an audience from scratch.
Native social media content is favored by platforms and can lead to greater content exposure.
Learning from successful individuals in the field can provide a blueprint for one's own success.
Investing in reliable internet and a good laptop is worthwhile for the efficiency they bring to online work.
Podcasts can serve as a rich source of inspiration and ideas for content creation.
Positive audience engagement, including a welcoming profile photo, can significantly impact one's income potential.
A focused landing page with an email signup is a powerful tool for direct marketing and building customer relationships.
An email list is a direct line of communication for marketing products and services.
Offering value through various forms of coaching, events, or digital products is key to monetization.
Love for the work and the audience is a driving force for sustained effort and success in online ventures.

The Only 12 Things I Need to Make Money Online

A short list you can copy and paste — so you can work less, stress less, and relax more doing work you enjoy

When people think about money and the internet, they lose their minds.

Business is nothing more than the courage to charge for something. That means you see value in yourself first and foremost. You think what you have to offer is worth paying for.

But making money online is made out to be complicated. You gotta be born an entrepreneur, you know. Bullshit. No, you don’t.

If an average Joe like me with a 9–5 job can do it then I’m pretty sure your Golden Retriever puppy dog can do it.

These are the only 12 things I need to make money online. Use these if you don’t know where to start.

A Content Type

Making money online starts with content. Make your choice: writing, videos, audio (podcasts), illustrations, or photography.

Become a master in that art form with weekly, or ideally, daily practice. Don’t overthink it. If you’ve only got ten minutes to practice then that’s fine.

The doing is more important than the outcome. Do more, be more….you know the drill.

Someone Else’s Platform

You need a place to start publishing content. The biggest mistake people make is trying to set up their own platform. Starting from a place of zero with no idea what you’re doing is not for the faint-hearted. By using an established platform, you can access the how-to guides that already exist.

You can own your platform later. For now, lease it off someone else in exchange for giving them content.

1.3 Social Media Platforms

I’m crap at maths, hence the 1.3. One will do. You’re smart.

First comes publish, then comes….share. You’re getting this already!

Choose a social media platform you’re already on. It’s an easy way to start and removes the resistance. Always publish native content. What does that mean? Don’t paste links that take people off the social media platform. Why?

Social media platforms are like an evil stepsister and they’ll block your content from being seen by the majority of people if you do. Follow their rules. Bow down and give them native content, oh tribal one.

Later, when you have a product/service, you can then use this platform to buy ads and expand the amount of dollars you can earn if you choose, or not.

A Human Already Doing It

You are the average of the five….OK that’s a lame quote. Let’s move on.

You need a person who is already doing what you seek to do. If you can befriend them without looking like a creep, then do so. Otherwise, live like they do through the wonders of the internet.

See how they do it. Buy their products and analyze the entire process: marketing, sales, emails, quirky remarks, etc.

It’s easier to watch someone for free than pull your hair out trying to guess.

Reliable Internet

I started with shaky internet that produced a lot of frustration. Buy good internet even if it costs the earth. I went 4G to get away from the high-speed internet myth that exists in Australia. Sometimes your phone can have the best internet known to humankind — who knew?

A Laptop

Not fancy either, amigo. I use a 2012 MacBook Pro that I bought off a guy who looked like he was selling his kidney when he saw me take it off his hands for $800 — it was an emotional day for him.

Fancy is a distraction.

One Podcast

A podcast is a funnel of ideas for the content that is going to make you money.

I started with the Tim Ferriss podcast. Actually, not much has changed. The ideas that are shared on his podcast are so good that I don’t need any other podcasts. So, I deleted all the others, as Timmy Boys will do.

Podcasts are a phenomenal place to spark your curiosity for content.

A Smile to Die For

How you make people feel has a lot to do with how many hundred-dollar bills you’re going to take home.

Deliver people smiles.

The more people who smile with what you do online, the greater the opportunity you will be presented with. Don’t forget to smile in your profile photo on social media too.

A Landing Page

This is a single web page with one button. The point is to have a distraction-free page with only one action a person can take.

The action you need to make money online is the box that says “insert your email here.”

An email address is an opportunity to have a conversation.

Conversations lead to connection. Connection leads to help with a problem. Solving problems is how you make money online.

An Email List

You need an email list to make money online. It’s how you talk to leads, prospects, customers, raving fans, and repeat customers.

The idea is you collect emails, send emails to them, and occasionally offer something that you charge money for — and there’s no need to hide it. You don’t feel guilty paying your doctor for medical advice, so why should you feel guilty charging money for a product/service you’ve created that helps people?

Something to Charge For

Here are some obvious options:

Coaching
Consulting
Public speaking
Social media advice
A curated mastermind
A live event (post health crisis, of course)

Content money-making ideas

A premium paid newsletter
Curated content
An online course
A physical product
A book on Amazon
An eBook sold on your own website

A Way to Receive Money

Accepting money is crucial, obviously. Do the ID check of whatever payment platform you choose, and check out the fees. Then, don’t forget to remember the taxes you have to pay later on. Death and taxes are guaranteed, even for peeps making moula online.

A Lot of Love

“Goddamn it. Why’d you have to say that, bro?”

Cause it’s true. You have to enjoy what you’re doing enough to ever make a single dollar from it. If what you choose to do online is nothing more than a money-making scheme and a down payment on a Lambo, I promise you that you’ll give up.

There is a barrier to entry with this whole making-money-online-thang and you won’t cross the threshold of effort — or time in the game to make it — if you don’t love what you’re doing.

Showing the people who are willing to pay you — and those who refuse to pay you — a lot of love goes a long way too.

How you treat people is how you will be treated. Love is the best treatment. People remember it for the rest of their lives. That’s an impact that will far surpass your online bank balance.