If you are truly passionate about blogging, you may feel a tinge of guilt when it comes to making money from your blog. This may be attributed to the fact that the Western culture often punishes anyone who says “I’m doing … to make money”. Of course, this scrutiny does not include a “9 to 5″ job, whereby it is accepted to do it just for money.In fact, it actually gains you sympathy and respect from “normal people”.
Nevertheless, blogging is neither cheap nor easy. You pay for your hosting, spend time on SEO and doing research for your posts. And that’s where the “Silver Coin” Method comes in.
You need it because…
Without it, you will only get enough Adsense profits to buy you a pint of beer at the end of the month.
When you do it right, you get to recoup everything you put in many times over. And this time you can buy a whole case, not just a pint. 
So what is it exactly?
The “Silver Coin” Method is a concept I teach to help people package their knowledge and experience into sellable units.
As someone who makes money by teaching people how to make money (quite a paradox, eh? ) I constantly have to find ways to help my clients convert their ideas into cash. So this is one of the tools I use.
The intention here is to solve problems that your readers deal with and present solutions in a way they can easily apply and understand.
OK, I like that, how do I do it?
It’s easy! First, identify whatever it is they are struggling with. Create a systematic method that anyone could apply and get results with.
Then you’re going to motivate them to actually take action. You do this by letting them see how much better their life will be when they use your techniques. You also give them a scenario that demonstrates all the horrible things that happen if they refuse to make you their Guru. ( Ok, they don’t have to make you their Guru but you get the point.)
The bottom line is, if you don’t motivate them, they will get stuck where they are.
Then the magic bullet…
You are now going to teach them your technique. At this point your readers should be pretty much excited about the potential benefits of using your method.
For this reason, they are more likely to listen to you. Give them the simple steps and watch as your inbox is filled with excited emails, full of gratitude.
Don’t forget to include real life examples they can relate too. For instance, by teaching you this, I am actually applying my own technique.
Finally…
Make sure you give your new piece of “magic technology” a cool name. Like the “Silver Coin” Method.
This allows you to put a price tag on it. “Download the “Silver Coin” Method Report for just $4.95”! It’s much more attractive than “Sign up to our newsletter and receive a free eBook on blogging”. Yep.
Once your concept is ready, you can give it away or sell it. Nevertheless, your readers will appreciate the elegance of your ideas. They will also be grateful for the fact that you helped them change their lives by taking action.
More importantly, they are going to become fans. They will re-tweet your posts, click on the Adsense ads and buy your eBook.
Finally finally(really )…
This method may not you rich but it can add a nice chunk of change that will put a smile on your face as you shake your pocket… And that’s why it’s called the “Silver Coin” Method.
Twitter: grantlylynch
says:
Interesting way of looking at making money from your blog
Corporate Photographer´s recent blog post ..Social media photographer
Twitter: barbaraling
says:
I feel not a twinge of guilt making money from me blog. Not a twinge.
But you’re right, lots of folks really do have that rather unique mindset. I think you cannot teach other ways regarding that – those folk have to really internalize it and learn it for themselves.
It’s quite the hero’s journey, really.
Barbara Ling, Virtual Coach´s recent blog post ..How To Do Those Cool Web 20 Colorful Popup Thingees in WordPress
Lucky you Barbara!
Where you always that way or was it a process?
You’ll be surprised to know that sometimes the fear can be “Oh, no people are actually going to give me money for my stuff!”
I went through that too when I started out, I was scared I couldn’t handle it if people actually “showed up”. In any case, a huge part of business coaching is getting people to believe in themselves and to set higher standard.
Jean Paul´s recent blog post ..New Kid on the Block – Google Adwords Call Metrics
Twitter: lavenderuses
says:
Hi Jean Paul
When I started my blog it was with the plan that I would eventually sell products that I could review and recommend. I haven’t rushed into it but have finally found the products I want on my site and have started selling offline and tonight the shop will be open online so this post is on topic. Thanks for sharing.
Patricia´s recent blog post ..Lavenders- Small Niche Big Ideas
Thank you and congratulations!
You have worked hard and it’s really nice that you are taking things to the next level!
Jean Paul´s recent blog post ..New Kid on the Block – Google Adwords Call Metrics
Digging the fancy name!! So true that it is all in the “packaging.” I am one of those who feels guilty – like I am selling out – but at some point it would be nice to reap a small dividend from my blog…Just gotta keep plugging away and come up with some clever packaging. I struggle with the fact that I am not a niche blogger. Often times I think niche blogs lend themselves to generating income more than open-ended blogs…which means I need to find some way to make mine more value added.
Excellent post.
carma´s recent blog post ..A Non-Hairy Situation
Hey, I appreciate your comment. I’m sure there is something your visitors have in common that you can offer to them.
The important thing is to have a clear vision of what you want – one way or the other you can make it happen.
Jean Paul´s recent blog post ..New Kid on the Block – Google Adwords Call Metrics
Hey Jean Paul,
I really like your idea of using a cool name instead of the typical “Sign up for my newsletter…” I think everyone is doing pretty much the same thing and using a more unique name is sure to attract attention. And although it’s pretty much the same thing, people are more curious to subscribe and get your product even if they need to pay for it.
bryanps´s recent blog post ..The Weekly Blog Pulse – SEO Wannabes- Product Creation and more
Exactly! It also shows that you stand by your product. I remember explaining to a client while I was charging more than twice than my nearest competitor. She stopped me and agreed to pay because I demonstrated that the cool name represented the value I was going to offer.
All the best man!
Jean Paul´s recent blog post ..New Kid on the Block – Google Adwords Call Metrics
“It’s easy! First, identify whatever it is they are struggling with. Create a systematic method that anyone could apply and get results with.”
That doesn’t seem so easy to do..you still need to create a method that will work for everyone. I find it hard to achieve that
Alexa Stone´s recent blog post ..DenTek Comfort Fit NightGuard Review
Absolutely true! It is hard even to find something that works for few, not to start talking about many or even worse, everyone. You also need to keep in mind that your inbox could easily get full of problems and situations when your solution cannot be applied.
What you are trying to say is another form of saying: You need to give your readers some value for free.
Very simple and ancient blogging technique
Get Happy Life´s recent blog post ..Don’t Be in Rush – Ever
My apologies, maybe I didn’t make myself clear. When I say “anyone” I do not mean “everyone”. What I mean is “anyone who is seriously looking for a solution to a specific problem”.
The truth is a lot of people do not start their blogs or sites with a clear vision of how people will benefit from reading their stuff. It’s OK to start and then get your vision later but you must always keep in mind that people must benefit from it somehow, it could even be entertainment value.
However, the most common approach is to simply write articles good enough to attract search engine traffic and make some money from Adsense. In other words, most bloggers are not successful because they are not working hard enough to make their mark on the world.
There is another hard truth; you have to educate yourself properly about online marketing and how to create useful information products. It is easy to setup a blog but without extended education you are likely to fail.
Many people hate to admit it but you need an equivalent of full time university study to become the best. And then you have to keep getting better. Because this is new to many people they think it’s different because it is less formal. It’s not.
So, it’s not even a choice, you absolutely must continuously strive to understand your readers better. If you can’t add value in anyway you may want to become better at what you do so that you can become more useful to them. After all, they can easily read another person’s blog.
Lastly, it’s not just a “technique” . It is a method that you can use to communicate with people. It is not a trick and it is not a bribe. My post applies to all your content. You want to get paid, you must do what it takes for people to be happy with what you give them.
And yes, it may be difficult in the beginning but if you don’t do it what are you going to offer them.
Cheers,
)
(I think I just won the contest for the shortest comment ever
Jean Paul´s recent blog post ..New Kid on the Block – Google Adwords Call Metrics
This is a good method of turning your site into a business. I suppose ultimately ‘free’ is not a business model.
Joseph Condron´s recent blog post ..Harry Houdini- The First Celebrity
Hello Joseph,
I guess by definition… it doesn’t.