Could you describe what you do and how you earn your living John?
Officially, my title is Founder and CEO of TTZ Media Inc. However, I’m best know as the guy who makes money online by telling people how much money I make online. I earn my living by creating websites that help solve a problem.
You are living the life so many desire, The Internet Lifestyle! Can you tell me what the internet lifestyle means you to and how its changed your life?
Living the dot com lifestyle is like living the dream. The dot com lifestyle is about more than making a lot of money. There are many thing you can do to make a lot of money. The dot com lifestyle is about time freedom and location freedom. Most people who make a lot of money have very little time to enjoy it. In addition to that, they’re tied down to one place.
With the Internet, I have time, money and location freedom. I can be anywhere in the world and as long as I have access to the Net, I can make money. Right now, I am in Shanghai for a month long Asia trip. Just because I went away doesn’t mean paycheck stops. Try doing that with a job. :)
What advice would you give to a new blogger trying to drive traffic to their website? Could you share an example of the effects?
The most effective free way is to guest blog for an A-list blogger. Find the biggest blog in your niche and send them a guest post. If it gets accepted, you’re get some nice targeted traffic as well as bump in your brand because of the power of association.
I understand that you run three large websites, JohnChow, The Tech Zone and TTZ Media. How do you manage to run three really large websites and still have time for family and fun?
With the exception of John Chow dot Com, the other sites pretty much run themselves. TTZ Media is fully automated. The only thing I do is approve new affiliates and set up the mass PayPal payment every month. I have staff to run The TechZone. I spend an average of two hours per day running the John Chow dot Com blog.
The key is to automate and deligate. Too many try to do everthing themselves. If you do that, you’re falling into a trap. You think Bill Gates can run Microsoft all by himself? The sooner you can let go and get others to help you, the better off you’ll be.
When you first started blogging did you model yourself on anyone? How did you learn how to be a “Problogger” and do so well with your first blog?
I got into blogging for fun. I never intended for the blog to make money or to become a problogger. My blog grew because I applied what I learn from running high traffic websites to blogging. The marketing methods used to promote a regualar content site works with a blog as well. John Chow dot Com was my first blog but it wasn’t my first site. Experience counts.
Month after month you have been earning over $30,000 from your personal blog which is crazy! If someone is new to blogging and are looking to make money from blogging, what advice / tips would you offer?
Treat your blog like a real business. Because of the low barrier of entry, most people don’t take their blogging seriously because they don’t have much to lose if they fail. I mean, you can start a blog for zero dollars. However, a blog can make serious money if you take it serioulsy. Ask yourself this questions. If your blog cost $100,000 to start, would you be running it the way you’re running it now?
Don’t be afarid to test new revenue channels and models. Advertising is just one of many ways a blog can earn money. Never put all your eggs in one basket. Try to run as many revenue channels as possible while still preserving the user experience.
Capture ever lead that comes to your blog. If you don’t have a mailing list, get one now. Down the road, your list will not only be a huge source of traffic, but income as well.
Working less and making more money sounds like a good deal to me, have you got any tips for getting more done in less time?
Think passive income. Over the last year, I haven’t raised my ad prices and I haven’t added any new ad spots. Yet the income of the blog keeps going up. This is because a big chunk of the blog’s income comes from affiliate programs that offer passive income. For example, if I refer a new publisher to Market Leverage, the will give me 5% of whatever the publisher makes. Over the years, I’ve referred thousands of publishers to different ad networks that pay me a percentate of revenue. The reason my blog income keeps increasing is because I’m still getting paid for stuff I did years ago.
The really nice thing about going after passive income is it requires no extra time commintment. You do the work once and get paid forever. It’s also not dependent on the blog. If my blog were to go down today, I would lose my advertising income but the passive income will keep coming in.
What advice would you give to people just starting out with an online business?
Just like with making money by blogging, treat your online business like a real business and take it seriously. An online business has so much greater protentail than any normal business but it cost so much less to start. It’s a real some that most people associate high start up cost with seriousness.
If you could go back in a time machine to the time when you were just getting started, what advice would you give yourself regarding making money online?
Don’t do it all by yourself. You’re just buying yourself another job if you do that.
What is the best advice you have ever been given?
If you can make something for a little less than your competition, and sell it for a little more, then you’re doing OK.
Thanks very much for the interview, Have you any plans (personal or business) that you can share with us about your future plans / goals / lifetime goals?
My short term goal is keep growing the business. Mid term, I want to set up a schoolarship to provide post secondary education to deserving students. Long term, I want to set up my own foundation to fund causes that I believe in.
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