In a previous post, I mentioned the idea of creating a product of your own and putting it up for sale.  Ebooks are a good way to earn extra income.  I’ve bought quite a few of them and I feel like they all (except for one) have been good value.  The best thing about these books is getting a look at a product that someone else wrote.  It gives you an idea of how you should set up your e-book and what kinds of things you should include to provide good value to your customers.

How do I Write An E-book?

You can outsource the e-book to a writer on Elance.com or one of the “hired gun” websites.  Think carefully about what you can write about.  Are you an expert in some field (or could you become one?).  Assemble an outline for the e-book and send it to the provider.  He or she can do some research and write a draft of the e-book for you to review.  Once you’ve gone back and forth a few times, your e-book should be ready to go.  It can be as fancy, or simple, as you want.  The important thing is to provide good value for the buyer.  Otherwise, you’ll have a lot of people asking for a refund! I produced an e-book a few years ago.  It was short and was intended to be a free giveaway to people who registered as a user on my website.  I never did distribute it.  However, the information is still applicable and just needs a few tweaks to come up to date.  I paid a writer on Elance $60.00 to put it together and produce a PDF file.  If you intend to sell your e-book, then you’ll need to put some real effort into it to be sure you have a good product.

How About Advertising?

Another thing I’ve mentioned is selling advertising.  I’m starting to get inquiries about selling ad space on 10 Minute Travel.  This is the position I need to be in; people contacting me to buy ads or guest posts.  If done correctly, ad payments can add up to a decent amount each month.  I’m learning that the key is to have a website that is busy and is growing.  Advertisers usually have a decent budget to work with and they are interested in either recurring ads or paid posts, so they get a long-term link back to their own website.  It’s all part of their effort to increase their search engine visibility.  If you position yourself as a reliable provider, you will eventually be able to sell advertising and earn a steady income from your site.  I’m just getting started and I will focus on this aspect of the business. So, in summary, it makes sense to have multiple income streams whenever possible.  Don’t place all your hopes on one income source.  If you are a writer and conditions change, you might find yourself without an income until things pick back up.  By having other income, you can always shift your attention to that while you ride out the tough times we all invariably face from time to time.  Think of how you can build at least three sources of income and work on them.  If one of them really takes off for you, then by all means concentrate on the big earner.  You’ll be glad you did!

How to Get Your Book Published Free in Minutes and Marketed Worldwide in Days
Test Your Niche Book First!
Travel Writer’s Guide (Trade Paperback Book)
How to Set Up and Market Your Own Seminar (audio series)

Hey, have you done something along these lines?  We’d love to hear your success story!!

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