5 Steps to Make Your First $1k Online
Many of the popular entrepreneurial online business models these days do work, but they require a large amount of advertising or effort up front. In others, such as affiliate marketing, you only earn a minuscule percentage of each sale.
While these models can and do work, a better way to make your first $1,000 online is to build a business focused on a service you excel in from which other business owners can benefit.
When you create your own business, you get 100% of the profits, and your income is not dependent on another company that could change their business practices or go out of business altogether, leaving you back at square one.
If you’re ready to take charge of your income and make your first $1,000 online through your own business, keep reading for five steps that will help you achieve this goal.
Think Like an Investor
The first step in any successful venture is your mindset. You cannot succeed at something that you do not believe will work. Entrepreneurs must have the mentality that they can invest money or time and effort into a venture and gain a specific return.
Investors do not expect immediate results. They are willing to do the work and then wait for positive results.
Think of building a business like being a gardener or a farmer. You put the seed in the ground, do what you need to take care of it, and trust that it will grow in time. It will not happen overnight, and if you decide that the seed isn’t growing fast enough and dig it up, you will likely destroy it.
Pick a Single Service
The second step is to choose a single way that you can be of service to people. Choose one skill that makes you feel excited or motivated and that you are already good at or are willing to learn.
It’s crucial to realize that you do not need to be an expert at this skill. You only need to be slightly better than the people you are marketing this service to.
The skill you choose can be anything that other businesses might need help with, such as managing their social media, writing content, or designing their website.
When pricing your service, estimate how much money a business can earn by having you do this service, and charge one-fifth of that. If you believe the business will earn an extra $500 a month in sales by using your services, you can charge them $100 a month. You can also look at it as they would save $500 of their own time and effort by paying you $100.
Pick a Beta Business
Once you have decided on your professional service, choose a small local business that you are excited to serve.
Get in touch with the owner or manager of that business, and offer them one month of your service for free or discounted. Tell them you are building your portfolio and offering a month of your service. If they are happy at the end of the month, you would appreciate a testimonial.
This gives the business a risk-free way to experience the benefits of your service, and at the end of the first month, they are likely to want you to continue your service as a paying client.
So in exchange for a free month of service, you have gained valuable experience, a testimonial you can use in scaling your business, and your first paying client.
Demonstrate Out to Five Other Businesses
Next, go to five other businesses that can benefit from the same services you offered the first business and offer them your services.
The trick is to promote your work with the first business through word-of-mouth. Doing so will show other businesses the value you can offer them.
Word-of-mouth marketing allows you and others within your network to share the testimonial and results from the first business. If you do public-facing work like social media management or web design, other businesses will likely see your work and the success you can bring.
If you feel you need more experience, you can offer your services to these businesses for free or at a discounted rate.
Offering a bonus is another way to add value and get them to take you up on your offer. Tell them that if they buy your service, you will offer a specific bonus on top of what they are already paying for.
Scale as Big as You Want
Once you establish your online business, it’s a matter of scaling as big as you want. Depending on the price you have set for your services and how many paying clients you have, you could make your first $1,000 online in just a month or two after your first beta month.
If it takes a little longer, do not worry. Forward momentum will build, and you will be doing something you enjoy from home and building an income that can’t be affected by the whims of other businesses.
Once you’ve built to a certain point, begin building a team of virtual assistants to do some of the work for you while you continue to scale your business with new clients.
Final Thoughts on Building a Dependable Income
As long as your income is tied to someone else’s business, you are subject to the success or failure of that business, and you have very little control over whether that business is successful.
To have income that can’t be taken away from you and is recession-proof, your own online business is the way to go. And the more clients you have, the more resilient your income will be.
If you need more help creating your online business, there is free training available that can help you get started or give you direction if you get stuck. Do not hesitate to reach out for help. Remember, you are investing in your business and trusting that the results will come.