Make More Money is NOT

a Plan

The Start

•  I tell you this for the parallels you can draw from it – NOT to follow the exact same path

•  Started as a computer programmer •  Corporate career

–  Programmer –  Project manager –  IT Director –  CIO for public company – BEST time ever! –  VP fortune 500 company – Then we got bought out!

•  5 years of hell

•  Truly “golden handcuffs”

My Story

•  Didn’t even realize how unhappy I was •  OR how stressed! •  It was FINALLY time to part ways, after 5 years •  It was a crazy and emotional time. I was just shy of 40 and

I had basically achieved my goals •  Luckily…I had always dabbled in Internet Marketing •  I was a frustrated sales and marketing guy in many ways •  It was time to make a decision •  This is my path...but everyone can have one

My Story

What Drove Me?

•  Something of my own! •  Entrepreneurs make crappy employees for a reason •  FREEDOM

–  Time –  Geographic –  Financial

•  Pride, Ego…etc •  Stability ???

–  What my Dad told me

What Did I Really Want?

What Next?

•  Learn – Explore – EVERYTHING •  Opportunities?

–  Affiliate marketing –  SEM consulting –  eCommmerce –  Info product creation –  Kindle – not yet! J –  Content creation/marketing

•  This took some time – Wife (stay at home) and 2 kids in grammar school – NO PRESSURE J

•  A plan – a commitment – to me and my family

What Next?

•  Plan –  Laid out the whole next 12 months –  Put income goals out there –  IF I could meet them, I get to keep playing with building my own business –  OTHERWISE , I’d have to go back to “Corporate”

•  Obviously, I never missed a goal J •  Decided affiliate marketing was for me

–  Quick –  Instant gratification –  Traffic generation fast with adwords (back then!) –  FAST learning as testing and tweaking could be done immediately

•  Also decided on SEM consulting –  Bring in immediate cash –  LEARN and experience what others were seeing/doing

What Next?

•  LEARN and TEST and FAIL and SUCCEED •  Decided best way to learn was to program •  Built a whole paid advertising, affiliate marketing tracking

system from scratch…by myself •  NOT efficient, but GREAT way to learn •  MANY MANY hours •  LOTS of head banging •  LOTS of fits and starts

What Next?

•  The first full year was amazing •  Established myself as a $1 million affiliate and gained

some notoriety that gave me a platform •  Tim approached me as my first partner •  We built commission blueprint way back in 2007 and I got

my first taste of helping people •  I STILL have people come up to me and tell me about that

course and how it changed their lives – I was hooked •  From that moment on , it was SCALING and SYNERGY •  Everything we did, we’d eventually teach too •  And/or offer as a service

What Next?

•  Affiliate marketing –  Continued this in one form or another for 10 years

•  SEM Consulting –  Stopped after first year

•  Info products –  After first year, this became another consistent part of the

business –  Synergy – what we do we teach

•  eCommerce –  After first 2 years – Grown to 1/3 of our business –  Synergy – Traffic and niche overlaps

•  Software and services –  Synergy – what we develop and use, we sell

Expansion – Timeline for Me

Lessons

•  Take time to learn •  Take time to fail •  Take time to be frustrated •  Plan •  Set goals •  Hold yourself and get others to hold you accountable •  Partners •  SYNERGY

–  Maybe not how I did that –  BUT…using a funnel for both Ultra and FBA as an example

•  Rememeber WHY you’re doing this •  Put some pressure on yourself •  Learn from others, but find YOUR path – EVERYONE brings

something unique to the table

Lessons

Lessons

So What?

•  How to Expand? •  How to build the empire? •  ALL business models have pros and cons •  Diversity is critical in Internet Marketing •  MUST identify synergy points - CRUCIAL when working

with small staffs and budgets •  Traffic is usually the stumbling block - You guys have a

huge leg up here –  The synergy point could be using the traffic for more than one

funnel or opportunity –  Ultra ecom sales and then also increasing rankings in Amazon

for FBA sales OR –  Ultra ecom sales and then publishing an info product

Your Shoes

•  Growth – but to what end? –  Figure out what you’re trying to achieve, lifestyle wise –  What is an empire to you?

•  Diversity for protection •  Stability •  More and more Auto pilot – less and less work •  Doing more and more of what you LOVE •  Doing less and less of what you DON’T like •  Bottom line - long term freedom and happiness J

Driving Factors

•  Financial freedom to live my ideal lifestyle –  Help my kids –  Live in Key West with all the boats and toys –  House in North Carolina to be with family and friends –  My own flying –  Travel anywhere anytime

•  Financial freedom to be able to live the lifestyle but also save for a POTENTIAL retirement

•  AFTER reaching the financial goals –  Passion projects – helping people build businesses and teaching –  Building something important –  Spending time on things I enjoy

An Empire to Me

If I Were Starting Over

Step 1 – What’s an Empire to You?

•  What’s your ideal lifestyle? –  Describe it in detail –  Reach but let’s not say Bill Gates - let that take care of itself –  Lay out what you’d do each part of the year (a typical year)

•  Build a budget to support the lifestyle •  Add in 20% fudge factor •  Add in another 20% to save each year •  Don’t forget to account for taxes – these are NET

dollars we need •  THAT’s your financial goal of yearly income •  THAT’s your first target

What’s an Empire to You?

•  Example – Ideal lifestyle would cost $300k per year

•  Add 20% - $360k per year •  Add another 20% for savings $432k per year •  Account for a tax rate of 35% - $665k per year

What’s an Empire to You?

•  Plan on no debt other than a mortgage – if you want to own a home

•  Add in enough $ to pay your other debt off within first 2 years

Debt

Step 2 – How Long to Reach First Goal?

Give Yourself 2 Years to Reach

Run Rate

Step 3 – How Will You Get There?

•  FULLY plan out the first 2 years •  Start with 100k Factory Ultra –  Reach 100k in first 6 months of your plan –  Build a discipline around the work

•  After first 3 months of Ultra –  Begin researching your first Amazon product in your niche

(Synergy!!) –  Introduce your first product at the 6 month mark –  Introduce second product at the 9 month mark

•  After 12 months – Profit #’s –  Ultra – 200k per year run rate –  Amazon FBA – 150k per year run rate

How Will You Get There?

Step 4 – Decision Time

•  Partner ?? •  Ultra, FBA, Information Products, Affiliate

Marketing •  Ultra – Like house flipping •  FBA – Like building an apartment complex •  Information products – HAVE to have a passion

for it – Compliment to Ultra •  Affiliate marketing – more EXTREME house flipping – Compliment to Ultra

Decision Time – Year 2 Scaling

•  Get a partner after year 2 and reaching my financial goals

•  100k Factory Ultra –  Bringing in $300 - $400k per year –  Mature process –  Leveraging SEO, Pinterest, Instagram etc –  Driving the niche with synergy – traffic, data etc

•  Get some help – VA’s, outsourcers etc. •  FBA – Add in 3 new products over the year for a total of 5 or so

•  Information Products – Plan and develop one for the niche implement at the 1.5 year mark

Decision Time – What I’d Do

•  By end of year 2 •  Ultra - $300 - $400k •  FBA - $300 - $400k •  Information Product - $250 - $500k •  All the synergy stems from the ultra niche •  That would likely be enough for MOST folks J to meet

that initial financial goal

Decision Time – What I’d Do

Step 5 – Year 2 and Beyond

•  Stability •  Ensuring the income •  Focusing on what you LOVE to do •  Constantly re-evaluate the “empire” - make changes

to the budget – maybe change the business to support that

•  Employees and other help •  Partners •  Work LESS with same income •  Build something you’re passionate about – the financial growth will come but it’s more than you need

Year 2 and Beyond

This is NOT the Only Way

Questions?