Michael Gunn, list building expert and online marketer, has been online for more than a decade. It wasn’t until I connected with Dennis Becker (Earn 1K A Day founder) that I learned about what Michael was doing online. We finally met in person when we were both speakers at the 2012 Earn 1K A Day Seminar. His list building skills are extraordinary, and I was thrilled when he included me as part of his recent List Building Legends course. When he agreed to be my guest for this podcast I jumped at the opportunity.

Still working full time as a technology consultant and trainer for a public school, former teacher Michael Gunn is truly a ‘Weekend Marketer’ (I’m writing a book on this topic right now.) He exemplifies what it takes to build a six figure business while still working at a traditional job, helping out with his son’s football team, and spending time with his family. He’s very proud of the fact that he was able to retire his wife because of his online success, giving her the ability to be a stay at home mom to their son and to also help care for her elderly mother.

Michael and I discussed how he overcame ‘bright, shiny object syndrome’, and how it was Dennis Becker’s 5 Bucks A Day training that helped him to focus on what was important. He also credits this training with helping him with time management and strategy in his business. He had to get into the habit of making money online, and changing his thinking and mindset was huge for him. He shares how he has built massive lists in competitive niches in very short periods of time, and what it takes to be successful in Internet marketing these days. Be sure to take a look at his most recent program, List Building Legends.

Time management tips are appreciated by all of us who work on the Internet and constantly feel pressed for time. I learned long ago that it was more about managing our time in order to reach optimal performance and productivity, because we all have the same twenty-four hours in our days. People continue to tell me how productive online I am, and I know that this is a key factor in my huge success over these past few years. I wanted to share some of my best tips with you.

First, keep a record of how you spend your time each day. Do this for a typical workday and also for a day off. That will give you an indication of times throughout your day where you may be wasting time or not making the best of it in a particular situation.

For example, I have a meeting I attend every month that is held at a location more than thirty miles from my house. I live in the Los Angeles area, so I never know just how long it will take me to get there because of the traffic. I was leaving my house ninety minutes before the meeting was to start just to make sure I was not late. Sometimes I would arrive just in time to get in and take my seat, whereas on other occasions I would be there almost an hour early. Now I always leave ninety minutes early, but the difference is that I now bring my Kindle and a small notebook with me so that I have something to work on while I am waiting in my car. Over the past year I have probably created about two full workdays out of the time I would have spent just sitting and waiting for the meeting to get started without having any materials with me to work on.

Second, make a list of the activities you are doing on a regular basis that could be done by someone else. I used to dread waiting in line at the post office. I would justify this wait by checking my email on my phone or reading through my mail, but it was a weekly time waster more than anything. I found someone to help me with some other household errands, and she is now the person who goes to the post office once a week for me. By delegating this activity, I freed up six hours a month. It also feels good to be employing someone who needs to make some extra money, so it’s a win-win situation.

Third, schedule some time just for yourself each day. I found that by doing this I was much more productive throughout the remainder of the day. The best time management tips sometimes include things that actually take more of our time!

I’ve put together a list of the books I consider to be the most useful when you are looking for some serious time management tips reading materials. My new book on this topic is now available on Amazon’s Kindle here: Time Management Strategies for Entrepreneurs – How to Manage Your Time to Increase Your Bottom Line.

Gene Pimentel, domain flipping expert, is someone you’ll want to know. I recently met Gene and his wife, Roey, at an event where we were both presenting. I had followed him for quite some time before this, so I was excited at the opportunity to hear him speak about domains and domain flipping. I own almost 600 domains so I knew this was an interesting topic, and a lucrative one as well.

He started his business in the 1980s and was intrigued by the digital market as the years went by. He was able to transition into this field easily because of his business acumen and vast experience.

Gene describes himself as a ‘domainer’, which is someone who registers or buys domain names with the intent of selling them. The key to being a successful domainer is to get your domains to pay for themselves through monetization. This allows you to have an unlimited number of domains in your portfolio at no real cost to you, if you choose domains wisely. During our talk Gene shared many strategies that can be utilized to monetize domain names depending on the quantity and quality of the names.

Even though some of us have many domains, Gene explained that quality will always be more important than quantity when it comes to monetizing this income stream. Keyword research is crucial, and he is only interested in domain names that are evergreen. He looks for domains with keywords that people are willing to pay more for, and also keyword rich local domains. I know you will enjoy learning more from Gene Pimentel to see if domaining is right for you. You can see what he’s doing by visiting his all new site at Domain Profits Academy.

Please join us this Friday, September 21, for a webinar on how to turn your domains into fast cash.

I am regularly asked about my best blogging ideas to make money, but posting to your blog is about much more than that. Your blog is your ‘home on the Internet’ and should include as much as possible on your niche topic. There are so many excellent ways to find ideas for your blog posts. One of my favorites is to use Google Alerts to find relevant news and other postings about specific topics of interest to me and to my readers in a specific niche. I like to monitor online conversations in these areas to get inspired and to find new sites to follow. I also have alerts set for my name and for the titles of my books. That way I know very quickly if someone has mentioned me on their site and I can swing by to read their post.

Blog directories, such as Technorati and Alltop, are also excellent sources of new ideas in your niche. I love to find bloggers that I am not familiar with, or whom I have simply lost touch with over the past few years, to see what they are blogging about and to leave comments as a way to connect with them.

You may want to create your own ‘Top 10′ list of the people in your field who stand apart from everyone else. We all love to see our name in print, and when you recognize a colleague it can really make their day. This is an excellent way to build relationships with people you would like to know better and to do business with in the future.

Which blogs do you read regularly? You will want to subscribe to blogs in your niche to stay on the cutting edge and be aware of what the experts are talking about. This has been one of the ways I have stayed at the top and have been able to JV with so many big names on the Internet in recent years.

Brag about what you are doing in your business. Every time I come out with a new short report or write a book for Kindle I shout it from the rooftops. This is also the case when I will be speaking at a live event or come out with a new product. Be proud of your accomplishments and ask others to join in your celebration.

Give your readers your very best tips and resources. I have never held anything back, and I believe that is why I am fortunate enough to have so many raving fans. People know they can count on me to give it to them straight and to share what I know.

Open up your blog to guest bloggers. I didn’t do this for the first few years because I believed it would detract from my credibility. Now I see that it is one of the best ways to build readership with people who are already interested in your topic. I love Nicole Dean’s inexpensive training course on guest blogging.

Whether you are looking for blogging ideas to make money or just to increase your online visibility, these ideas will give you a place to begin. And as they say, blog about what you love and the money will follow.

When I think of Greg Cesar, classified ads, AdWords, and overall marketing strategies come to mind. The picture on the left was taken on the cruise ship during one of Jim Edwards’ events, and that is Greg in the process of winning a game of air hockey against Jim. Greg and I have been friends since 2008, when we met at Big Seminar in Atlanta. Since that time we have shared the stage on two different occasions, and I have continued to learn from him and have him share his knowledge and experience with my students.

During our call we discussed how most anyone can get started online with information marketing, and how Greg has taken his ‘out of the box’ thinking to new levels with this. I shared a ‘blast from the past’ with Greg as I pulled a twenty-five year old book from my shelf on how to use classified ads to build your business. He gives his insights on this and why, to Greg Cesar, classifieds as still make sense today. If you want to get your products in front of more people, this is an excellent way to do it, and at a very low cost.

My students continue to tell me how much Greg teaches them, and how he steps in personally to make sure their sites are earning to their full potential. He’s a born teacher.

We talked about the best niches to go into, how to best monetize your sites, and what type of sites are most effective when it comes to marketing online. Greg was also gracious enough to give me the link to a webinar we did recently that explains how you can move forward quickly with the approaches, systems, and methods he teaches as a part of his Creative Marketer course. This program is the most popular training he has, and my students love what Greg is teaching them there every month.

Please watch the webinar replay for our training on the Creative Marketer’s course, and be ready to take lots of notes.

Content creation was something I knew absolutely nothing about when I first came online. Almost overnight I found myself struggling to write articles, blog posts, and short reports. Once you get into the habit of creating content will give you an unlimited number of products to sell online. Creating your information product and building your online business can be simple and quick when you follow these steps for content creation.

Do Your Research

Before you even write a sentence of your information product, you should get your research done. I find the research component of my business to be quite enjoyable in that I am always learning something new. I also find resources that I will return to as I write more about my topic over the coming months and years. Get your research done before trying to write and you’ll end up with a better product.

Organize With An Outline

Getting organized is one of the most important parts of writing quickly. Your outline becomes a road map, and with it you are finally just filling in the blanks as you write about your topic. By writing out an outline first in order to organize your research, you will be able to work through your projects quickly. You won’t have to stop and think about what to write next because you’ll have your outline to follow and it will flow smoothly.

This is how I have been able to write so many books. Each one is based on an outline and I simply fill in the blanks until I am finished explaining and teaching my topic.

Use Storytelling To Share Your Experiences

When I was first online I started sharing stories of what it had been like to work as a classroom teacher while also doing real estate part-time for the previous twenty years. This was the beginning of a content creation and marketing strategy known as storytelling, and I was not even aware of it at that time. I continue to use myself as a case study for everything I am able to achieve in my online business so that my students can learn from both my failures and my successes.

You will also want to share your lifestyle with your readers, so include some detailed information about what you do when you’re not on the computer. I share the work I do with charities, my travels around the world, and my pets.

Don’t Edit As You Write

Our brains are complex organs, containing both creative and critical components. The critical side of your brain can get in the way when you are trying to write by getting you to stop and make changes after every thought you write down. Your writing will go faster and smoother if you can put your inner critic on the shelf and just write for a specific amount of time. You’ll find that your writing will go more quickly when your critic is quiet during the writing process.

Once you have finished your writing for that period of time, then go back and read it out loud to decide what you need to change, edit, or rewrite. This content can then be repurposed into information products and courses to bring you passive online income for years to come. Be diligent about maintaining your content creation strategy over time.

Internet marketer James Jones is someone you want to know. He started online back in the 19080s with bulletin boards, and then moved on to services with AOL, Prodigy, and CompuServe. That’s where he started placing classified ads during the mid 1990s and had his first website by 1996. Later he worked at a bank where he was able to learn more about computer software and programming before going out on his own in 2002. The message here is that James was willing to work for a company in exchange for the knowledge he would gain that would help him later on in his own business. As soon as his online income surpassed his offline income, he knew he was ready to make it as a full time entrepreneur.

James thinks of himself as a problem solver. When he reached 500K a year he knew it was time to start hiring employees. He credits this with allowing him to further increase his income as he replaces himself over and over with people who can take over specific tasks and responsibilities.

We discussed his program on Kindle Triangulation, one that helped me immensely with my books on Amazon. He has studied this extensively and has been selling his writing on Amazon for almost four years now. It’s important to note that he learns by actually doing, something we can all learn from. He predicts that Amazon will make huge changes in what it allows to be published, including requiring authors to have their own ISBN numbers and copyrighting of content.

James is now getting into gaming by creating app and interactive programs. He is also creating a series of eBooks that will spin off into games.

His advice to people who want to get started online is ‘Do something!’ He believes that you must get your business started so that you can learn what works and what doesn’t. He recommends ‘failing more’ to make sure what you are doing involves taking enough action on a regular basis. He also wants us to re-evaluate what we consider to be a failure. Don’t give up too soon. Failures are just learning experiences that move us closer to success.

Learn more about James Jones and what he has to offer by taking a look at this site. He offers a $7 product each week as part of his special.

This is a guest post from my friend and colleague Jim Edwards. Be sure to leave a comment to let him know what you’ve learned from him about eBooks and affiliate marketing.

I hear this all the time.

“I’m an affiliate marketer, why do I need an ebook?”

I think that’s a great question, because it shows you want to concentrate on what you’re doing and avoid distractions. However, no matter what you sell as an affiliate, having your own ebook(s) as part of your overall business strategy makes too much sense to ignore.

In fact, here are 10 outstanding reasons why every serious affiliate marketer should strongly consider creating their own, original ebook as fast as possible.

1. Profitable Income Source

Other than software, ebooks are the single most profitable thing you can sell online. Why, because other than credit card charges, they translate into pure profit (no printing, no postage, no waiting).

As an affiliate, you only keep a percentage when you make a sale. As an ebook author, you keep 100% of the profit when you make a sale.

2. You’re In Control!

Your own ebook gives you something to market that you 100% know you can trust. You know the author (YOU) and you know the quality of the material. As an affiliate, even if you trust the merchant you sell for completely, you still give up control of the customer and the customer service. With your own ebook, you keep control.

3. Reason to Promote

Your own ebook gives you a reason to run promotions. You can do your own sales. You can do your own webinars. You can use article marketing, blogging, Facebook and more to promote your own product!

4. Sell on Amazon

Everyone knows about Amazon. And, having your ebook on Amazon means you are a real, published author. If they can find it on Amazon, you’re the REAL deal as far as 99% of the people in the world are concerned. The days of needing a traditional publisher to be considered a “real” author are long gone!

5. Conversation Starter

People love to talk to authors, especially published authors! When people find out you’ve written a book, they’ll go out of their way to want to engage with you, whether in person, by email, or through social media.

6. Credibility Builder

Nothing screams “credibility” like being a published author. Period! Legitimately putting the title “Author” after your name is a real game changer for you professionally.

7. Increase Affiliate Sales

One of the most effective ways to make affiliate sales is to link to affiliate products in your own ebook.

KILLER TACTIC: Teach someone how to do something manually or step by step in your ebook, then provide your affiliate link to a piece of software, tool, or service that does it FOR them (EZ Button). I’ve made a TON of money using this single tactic for over a decade!

8. List Builder

I never met an affiliate who didn’t ultimately realize they needed their own list of followers. Whether it’s an email list, RSS subscribers, or social media followers, your own list is the fast-track to making LOTS of money as an affiliate.

You can use your ebook to build not one, but TWO lists. You can use your own ebook to build up a list of buyers of the ebook, along with special report subscribers who haven’t bought yet.

9. Networking Tool

Affiliate marketing and networking are basically the exact same thing: making new connections with people around a central theme or topic.  Nothing helps make a new connection (in-person or online) like offering them a copy of your book to start the relationship! Again, this ties in directly with the credibility and authority having your own ebook brings you.

10. Build an Affiliate Base

You can build up an affiliate base without your own product. But what better product to offer than an ebook, the most profitable thing you can sell online? Why not build up your own sales force of people to do for you exactly what you do for other online merchants? Having your own ebook enables you to do just that in an authentic and business-building manner!

By the way, creating an ebook is EASIER than most people ever imagine. You can do it in a couple of days with the right strategies. Lots of people do it every day! And, if you’d like to join them, check out the new, updated, and revised classic that helped launch the entire online ebook movement “How To Write and Publish Your Own Ebook… in as little as 7 Days!” at http://eBookWritingProfits.com.

Jim Edwards

Selling online since 1997, Jim is an Internet Marketing Expert, Author, Elite Mentor and Coach

He specializes in helping individual entrepreneurs, small business owners and authors to understand how to use technology to build your online business.

Jim is the author of dozens of ebooks, hundreds of webinars, over 1,000 blog posts and articles.

His flagship ebook “How To Write and Publish Your Own eBook… in as little as 7 Days” – newly revised and updated with V2.0 – has been helping book and ebook authors create their own best-selling ebooks since 2001! Get more information about Jim and how he can help you get more readers, make more sales, and skyrocket your credibility here ==> http://eBookWritingProfits.com.

When you hear the name James Roche, information products may be the first thing that comes to mind. But James is about so much more than that. He’s a master coach and strategist and has helped his people to grow their businesses in a major way. He partnered with Ali Brown in 2008 in order to serve an even larger audience.

James and I discuss relationship marketing and how he came to connect with Ali and some other people in order to grow our businesses in a huge way. He also shares how he met Melanie, his wife and soul mate. You’ll love his story about the wedding cake. Then we moved on to the topic of creating successful information products. James is an expert in this area, so I encourage you to takes notes as you listen to this podcast interview.

He believes that you must talk to your clients and prospects to be able to identify the problems and solutions of the people who will want to buy your products for years to come. It’s a dialog between you and your market, where your information product solves the problems they are dealing with in their lives.

Finally, we discussed James’ take on the trends and changes the Internet is undergoing as it applies to online entrepreneurs. Things are easier now when it comes to the technology. We are now in Web 3.0 and everything is more niched with micro-communities. We are able to be a personality and share our own style with our tribe or community. Part of our USP (Unique Selling Proposition) is standing out and providing value to others. As online pioneers we have the opportunity to share our viewpoints with others and build a following of people who know, like, and trust us. It’s about so much more than just providing information to others. James encourages us to be ourselves and be interesting while also providing great value. It becomes more about lifestyle and storytelling than traditional marketing.

You can download a Free Special Report from James Roche and learn more about how he can help you to achieve your online goals.