The lifestyle of a Barefoot Writer can look different to many people, but one thing is always the same: you get to live life on your own terms. You call the shots with how you spend your time, what types of writing projects you take on, and how much money you make.
And for some, those terms include how many hours you work.
Some Barefoot Writers only want to work a few hours each week.
Fortunately, there’s a writing opportunity that allows them to do just that…
Writing Money-Making Websites
A Money-Making Website is simply an information website on a topic you’re interested in, designed to attract web visitors who are searching the Internet for information on the same topic. Once they arrive at your site, they are then turned into a passive revenue stream, which means you make money whether you’re working or lying on the beach.
Unlike other Internet opportunities, you don’t have to be a technology expert or marketing wiz to make this work. With the software available today, all you have to do is write. If you can use a computer, email, and surf the Web – you can do this.
I’ll talk more about how you make money (and how much you can make) in a minute, but I want to start by answering the number one question I get asked:
“Sounds good, but what do I write about?”
The good news is, there are literally thousands upon thousands of topics to choose from.
You could write about one of the skills you’ve picked up from working over the years, a hobby you enjoy, or a favorite place you visit.
You could write about yoga… skin care… solar energy… Alaskan cruise travel… maybe you love horses and could write a site about all the different aspects of horse care…
You’re only limited by your imagination!
Karen Patry of Port Angeles, Washington, has raised rabbits for over 30 years. Last year, she started a website about raising rabbits. Karen’s goal for her website is to replace her income and support her husband and herself through their retirement.
Garland, Texas, resident Kerren Kuntzmen recently launched a site that provides business and marketing guidance to chiropractors. Kerren says she also has plans to start a site offering tips and advice on organic lawn care.
Glenda de Vries from Stouffville, Ontario, Canada, started a site to help provide women the inspiration they need to have a fabulous menopause.
New Bern, North Carolina, resident Susan Feiertag provides information for people to help them recover after they’ve had a stroke.
Two years ago, Don Kowalski’s doctor warned him that if he continued down the path he was on, he could develop diabetes, heart disease, and problems with his lungs. On his journey to get healthy (he lost 50 lbs. and quit smoking and drinking beer), he discovered the benefits of drinking smoothies. Soon after, he started his “Smoothie Insider” website.
You can do it for more than just the money…
Now, before I talk about how much money you can make with a website, I’d like to talk about the five non-money-related reasons why this is the ideal Barefoot Writing opportunity:
1. You’ll learn a lot about a topic you love
When you start out, you don’t have to be an expert in your particular topic (you just have to enjoy writing about it). What you’ll soon find, though, is that you’ll quickly know more about your topic than 99.9% of the people on the planet. And not only that, you’ll rapidly be viewed by people as being an expert on your topic.
2. You’ll expand your online business skills substantially
If you’ve been kicking yourself about learning more about the Internet and how to build a website, this is a perfect opportunity to expand your knowledgebase. You’ll learn how to do keyword research, link strategies, write content that ranks high with the search engines, write content that “pre-sells,” and on and on. It’s easier than you may think! If you make your living writing for the Web (or one day hope to), this is a great way to acquire a better understanding of how to improve your client’s site.
3. You’ll be helping people out
Your website will provide people with the solutions and information they are searching for. And you’ll be appreciated for it. Karen Patry has already started receiving complimentary emails about her site about raising rabbits. She’s had people tell her how impressed they are with her site and that it’s “the most informative rabbit site on the Internet.” She really feels she has found her calling.
4. It will make you a better writer
Writing is like everything else; the more you do it, the better you become at it. Plus, many people find that the more they write, the faster they’re able to write.
5. You can work on it at your own pace
You are in complete control of when you work and how hard you work. If one week you can’t find time to work on your site, it’s no big deal. It’s always there waiting for you. I have to warn you, though, as the months go by and the money you make starts to snowball, you’ll find yourself wanting to spend more and more time on your site.
Although doing it for the money is definitely a worthy reason, too…
Now let’s get to the #1 reason for creating a Money-Making Website…
The money you can make!
First off, let’s look at how you can generate revenue from your website. There are many ways. Here are the top four:
1. Google AdSense
This is one of the most popular ways you can make money with a content-rich website. Google Ads are “contextual.” Contextual means the ad that Google displays on your page is determined by the content of your page. Which is great because it encourages people to click on an ad on your website. And once they do, you make money!
2. Other advertisements
Google AdSense, of course, is not the only game in town. There are dozens of other companies, such as Chitika and Konterea.com, who will pay you when people click on the ads you display on your site.
3. Affiliate products
The beauty of a Money-Making Website is that you don’t have to create any products. You can sell other people’s products on your site. There’s no inventory to count, product to ship, or customer support required. You just sit back and collect the commissions. For instance, if your website is about water purification, you’d want to become an affiliate of a company that sells water purifiers.
4. Selling your own products
Of course, if you want to sell your own stuff and keep 100% of the profits, that’s great, too! A popular and profitable way to make money is by writing and selling e-books on your website’s topic. Birgit Bradtke, who runs a site for people looking for information about Kimberley, Australia, sells her “Destination Kimberley” guide for $27 on her website. It’s a big money-maker for her.
How much money can you make with a website?
We’ve talked about the “how.” Now let’s talk about “how much.”
Allow me to paint a scenario for you… imagine how nice it would be to have an extra million dollars in the bank.
Let’s say it pays you 5% interest each year, which translates into an extra $50,000 a year. That’s over $4,000 coming in like clockwork every month without you lifting a finger.
Writing a Money-Making Website is a way to make that scenario come true for yourself – only without you having to have the million dollars! And you only have to put in about an hour’s worth of writing each day – if you want. You can take a day, week, or month off – the money will still come in.
It’s a way to generate the type of income we all love and strive for – residual income. Residual income is money that comes in whether we’re playing golf, throwing horseshoes, enjoying a cocktail, or having an afternoon siesta.
Before I give you examples of the type of money some of you can make with your website, I want to make one thing perfectly clear…
This is not a get-rich-quick thing.
It’s a building process. The more content you add to your site, the more your traffic will grow. And the more traffic you have, the more money you’ll make.
Brigit, whom I just mentioned, brings in over $10,000 a month from her Kimberley, Australia, travel site during the peak travel season (during the quietest time of the year, it drops to about $7,000 a month).
Richard Bergman, from Ontario, Canada, created a website about decks and fences that features some of the products that he’s designed. It brings in $2,000 (sometimes more) per month. (Richard says he’s only begun to scratch the surface when it comes to monetizing his site.) Aside from the money, good things have happened to Richard as a result of his site. He picked up a big U.S. distributor for one of the products he designed.
One page on Tomaz Mencinger’s vacuum site brings him affiliate income on sales of 3–5 vacuums a day. All told, it translates to about $400 a day (or over $12,000 per month). Tomaz says, “The freedom is unbelievable. I was working for tennis clubs and academies for maybe 10 years. Sometimes I had to go to work and work with people I didn’t like to work with. Now I choose who I want to work with, when I want to work, and how much I want to work.”
And, of course, there’s web expert Nick Usborne who, depending upon the time of year, brings in anywhere from $4,000 to $8,000 a month from his coffee website. His website has grown to the point where he only spends a couple of hours a week maintaining it.
How do you get started with a Money-Making Website?
Like anything, the fastest and easiest way to get started is to tap into the experience of someone who’s been successful at what you want to do.
Fortunately, Nick Usborne has done the legwork for you. He’s tested, tweaked, and refined his Money-Making Website system and put it all together in his How to Write Your Own Money-Making Websites program – a step-by-step guide on how to write a successful, content-rich, income-generating website.
If you want to be a Barefoot Writer who works just a few hours each week, consider writing a Money-Making Website.
It doesn’t take long to get one up and running, and once you finish writing the first one, it’s very easy to repeat the process again and again to create additional revenue streams for yourself.
