If you’ve perhaps been following along with my blog, reading the income + traffic reports I publish occasionally, then you already know a little bit about how I structure my business and earn a living. But, what I want to talk about with you today is the revelation that has really helped me in my first year of business. It may be something you already implement in your business or it may be something you want to explore more, and I hope I can help.
You see, it’s my new favorite word. Daredevil.
Wait. That’s my new favorite show.
My new favorite word is infopreneur.
A person who makes money with their mind. With their knowledge. A person who loves learning, loves teaching, and loves the feeling of helping others really get something.
And here’s the thing. Even if you’ve been overwhelmed/underwhelmed with scammy-seeming people selling sub-par information products, I want to assure you . . . you can actually monetize your infopreneurship in ethical ways that benefit others. You can explore things like a monetized blog or podcast, books and workbooks, and of course classes or coaching. I have some resources for you, ninja friend.
And whereas this post was originally written in early 2015 (when I’d only been “infopreneuring” on this site for about a year), I have learned a lot since then and want to point you in the right direction if you’re interested in changing your business model around so that you can change your lifestyle through passive income and low maintenance products.
Starter Infopreneur Resources:
1. I have a free 5-day email course on getting started in infopreneurship.
2. In the free 1-hour webinar shown below . . .
I actually go into 10 of my favorite ways to monetize your knowledge and I answer several questions that were submitted about infopreneurship.
3. In my free Monetize and Market Your Mind Mini-Course (with a 46-page workbook and 82-page slide PDF). . .
We take more of a deep dive into infopreneurship.
4. I have several posts on this blog that can help you:
- 3 Keys to Creating a Successful Information Product as a New Infopreneur
- How to Create an Epic Email Course
- How to Self-Publish Your Own Books as a Business Model
- Top 15 Creative Business Tools I Use as an Infopreneur
- 10 Epic WordPress Themes for Infopreneurs
- How to Create an Online Course That Sells
- How to Create + Host Online Workshops for Free
- 7 Types of Online Workshops You Can Host
5. I have an inexpensive book on How to Create an Epic Information Product in 3 Days.
Ahh, INFOPRENEURSHIP.
It’s just like that new phrase I made up that I’m really hoping will catch on with the kids these days.
Applied knowledge = power.
Shared knowledge = profits.
And now, let’s briefly cover two more things I’m hoping will help you. A few tips on what being an infopreneur is truly about and a personal “story” on one of the most profitable infopreneurial things I create—books—that make a great starting point for new infopreneurs.
Becoming an infopreneur is about:
- accepting that you have important information to share
- being okay with not knowing everything, but being willing to give what you do know and organize it in a way that makes it easy for others to digest
- learning how to manage your (limited) time to create products out of your knowledge–P.S. one key to this is simply creating every day if you can, even if it’s just a small bit
- discovering the types of products you most like to create and your audience most likes to consume
- . . . and hopefully having some of your information items at a low price point (why? see below)
Having information items at a low price point offers your audience a low barrier to entry into your world of excellent and useful information.
A few low price point items you can offer are:
- eBooks
- digital workbooks
- printed books
- mini-classes or email classes
And that’s what I want to get into with my personal statistics below. This is not to say that high-priced items can’t be successful, but I want to show you how low-priced items CAN and DID create considerable income for me in my first year of operating this site–I hope it encourages you to consider them.
In order to write an email to my creative superhero friends the other day, I decided to total up how much my business made in the past year from my printed books and the digital books (shown below). When I got the total, I didn’t want to share it; I just didn’t know how it would sound. But then I remembered that you and I are friends and that we can be extremely honest about this kind of stuff. It always helps me when I’m able to read real numbers and assess other people’s strategies. That’s why I love Pat Flynn so much.
So, I’ll just tell you. The amount my printed book and eBooks made in a year is $36,403.52. P.S. Thank you so, so much for grabbing copies of some of those books. I truly hope they’ve helped you in your goals.
Between my books, online courses, affiliate income, and a few other monetization strategies, I was able to create six figures in income with this byRegina.com brand in its first year. It wasn’t a goal of mine. It wasn’t even something I imagined. It naturally fell into place after a ton of hard work and focusing on valuable free content.
So when I totaled everything up, I realized that I wanted to start creating even more resources that will help you if you have similar brand goals. I’m cooking up a new, updated, 2017 workshop to help you create your first book (or 7th book, it doesn’t matter). Psst–make sure your signed up at the top of my site for Ninja Notes so that I can email you when this free workshop is available. And I’m revamping all of my courses to include the things I’ve learned in my second and third year of infopreneuring through this site and through new secret projects (on fitness and being an introvert) that I’ve been developing.
Okay, that’s all for today. I hope the resources above help you in your infopreneurial journey.
Photo: (c) John Marcus
Hi Regina– I LOVE your word Infopreneur. And I really appreciate your high level of transparency like Pat Flynn. I’ve had it on my list to write an ebook for a while and maybe this is the time to do it. I’ve been looking for a next big project 🙂 Thanks for the inspiration!
Jenn, thank you so much for stopping by and for loving that word. I’m so glad it was already on your list to create an eBook. Will it be about illustration or design? I love your beautiful site, by the way.
That’s a very good question, Regina! Makes me realize I need to think about writing way more seriously. I vaguely want to “do it all” but need to come up with a concrete plan 😀
I can’t wait for InfoBoMo to start. 🙂 I already had the goal of finishing my eBook/Workbook/journal by the end of May so talk about perfect timing. Thanks for providing such helpful content to your readers. I really appreciate it! Have a great week!
Hi Jennie! Thank you for taking the time to come comment. Woo hoo for great timing, too. I was just reading over your Letter Writing Prompts, which are awesome. Is your eBook on writing prompts by chance?
I’m sure I’ll love checking it out either way. Enjoy your week as well Jennie.
Hi again-funny you should mention that. I’ve been working on a different subject (creative retreats) but probably should write about writing prompts or something in that vein. That topic really resonates with my readers!
I am beyond thrilled to be a part of this with such AMAZING infopreneurs, and am excited to help people create + promote their first infoproduct!
You are just brilliant and so generous with your knowledge (it’s a business model that works – that you’ve shown that is inspiring *in itself* let alone the inspiration you provide through your infopreneurship)….I’m bookmarking to digest all of this when I have more time over the weekend…you’re going to help me go places, girl, I can sense it (I grew up in a time before social media and I need you to kick me up the butt and get me social media-savvy…one of my missing ‘keys’)…..THANK YOU…..can’t emphasise, quite enough, how very wonderful you are and how very valuable your approach/info is…..THANK YOU…..(When I’m up and running again count on me to donate laptop and cameras for your scholarship program….I can’t be the only domestic violence survivor who needs help to get back on their feet again….)….here’s to a great week, Helen
This is amazing. I know that I want to write a book at some point but I am still figuring out what to write it about and who will read it. Hopefully this will help me figure some of those questions out. Thanks so much!
️Regick, once again thanks for your generous spirit. I did not think I could enjoy blogging again until I ran into you. (Figuratively :)) But your sharing detailed information about what you do and how you do it and how much you make reminds me that nothing is impossible.
I love what you have accomplished in one year.
Keep up the good work and lots more good will follow.
Cheers,
Abbie
Congrats, Regina! That’s amazing. And you’re so good at what you do – I got a Gumroad notification last night about your new product and I literally squealed with joy.
I signed up the other day and CAN NOT WAIT to get started!! I’ve had this one particular idea in my head for a long time now and Im so excited to get started on it!
I’m super stoked about #INFOBOMO Regina! Looking forward to seeing what all it has in store and how by me participating in it, I can better serve my audience. Thanks so much for being so transparent and providing such useful content all the time. Your priceless and invaluable!
I think InfoBoMo will be just what I need to get started. At some point I need to stop thinking and just do!
Oh goodness! You’re wonderful. I need to get on that producing a product thing. Totally stored in my noggin’ for now, but I need to finally produce something….
I love the word Infopreneur. It has a really nice and catchy ring to it.
I remember having a lot of discussions with teachers during my studies about sharing knowledge, transparency and the changes in copyright laws.
I am a big fan of the “sharing” trend as opposed with keeping it all to yourself and protecting everything.
Infopreneur is perfect! Definitely more concise than “content curator” or “content marketer.” I’m sad that I can’t join the Infobomo but will keep an eye out for another session! I need to get my butt moving on products and passive income (Patt Flynn is also my hero).
Regina this may sound sudden but …
I love you.
No seriously, I love you! Hahaha. As a fellow blogger/business owner/infopreneur you have inspired me so much! I just did your ‘create a course in 12 hours’ thingy this past weekend and am launching my first workbook tomorrow! YAY! You lit the fire under my butt to just GET THINGS DONE.
Thank you.
Allison
http://www.livelaughwonder.com
This post sums up everything I love about you right from the first paragraphs. A couple of months ago I did a test to know what my skills and psychological type were. That you use words like “knowledge, learning, teaching, helping” and especially “ethical” make my heart melt. You totally nailed that part where you make your readers (me) feel like you’re talking especially to them. I love the infopreneur word as well. I’ve known I wanted to work in the “info” for some time now but I’d never imagine the “preneur” part. Fortunately, I’ve found you for that. I am so happy that you’ve made this much money only from the ebooks you’ve sold. And I am so proud to have and will again for sure contribute. If I were rich I’d have bought everything from you already. As an avid reader I don’t like spending my money on things that look nice but don’t provide enough quality content or teach things I already know. I’m glad it’s not the case with you. I already feel with all the work and preparation I’ve done, I’ve taken my blog to the next level. I’m pretty sure you are one of the next biggest bloggers out there and you made my day saying we -along with all the readers- were friends ! Congratulations 🙂
The timing for this could not be more perfect! I am in the process of rewriting a short eBook that I am giving away on April 30th (EEEEK!!) This is the perfect support system for me on my journey to getting it done!
Can’t wait!
Oh! I had a question which I totally forgot to ask because it isn’t technically related to this post but I’m not sure where else to ask it, haha!
I was wonderding, is the kick-ass opt-in that you have on your side bar (the enter your name + e-mail with a photo of your 80 page e-book,) is that a widget that you custom made? Or a plugin? I have a WordPress.org blog and while I have an opt-in that I created by custom making an image and linking it to my sign up, I cannot for the life of me figure out how to get a custom one like the one you have where they enter their name + e-mail AND have a custom photo.
Does that long-winded question make sense?! hahaha.
And once again, thanks for being so awesome.
xoxo
Allison
http://www.livelaughwonder.com
Allison, thank you for the comment. For the signup, I use a plugin called MailChimp for WordPress Lite. I made the image myself, but I just plugged it into the widget they provided. Is that what you meant? If not, please let me know.
That does indeed answer my question, thank you! I searched the Plugins on WordPress and found one called, “Mailchimp for WordPress” and another called “Chimpy Lite – WordPress Mailchimp Plugin” which were the only two with a title like the one you mentioned, are either of those it? I didn’t see one called “Mailchimp for WordPress Lite.”
It’s nice to know that I don’t need to know code in order to create a nice opt-in, I just can’t find it! Haha. Thanks for your response!
xoxo
Allison
Yes, sorry. It’s this one: https://wordpress.org/plugins/mailchimp-for-wp/. The one called MailChimp for WordPress. I think when you install it, it adds the “Lite” because there is also a paid version that’s called “Pro.”
Perfect, thank you so much! 😀
So want to do #InfoBoMo! Will you be doing another session? I’m in the middle of your #ZerotoBlog course and LOVING IT!
I’ve been wanting to write an eBook as well and don’t want to bite more more than I can chew at the moment (as delicious as it looks, LOL).
Congrats on the launch Regina. I love watching the journey you are on and I hope one day I’ll get to tell a story even half as good as yours.
Actually when you announced that you would be doing this during the webinar you mentioned in the post, I kept thinking to myself ” What can I write about ?” I felt all the good topics had already been taken.
Well, I am currently lying here on my couch reading this (with my son’s foot literally in my face) and I have figured out what I want to write on.
I’ll be seeing you in the course, Regina & I am super excited to start.
Have a wonderful night.
I stumbled on your website through Pinterest, and so glad I did. I’m looking forward to getting to know you and your info, and to writing my first ebook, both for my Gluten Free Diva website and for my music work as well (http://www.ellenallard.com). Thank you for all that you do!
I was so glad to find your site, Regina. It’s been so helpful and inspiring. I was already planning to release my first ebook at the end of May so this InfoBoMo is PERFECT! Literally couldn’t have come at a better time! Thank you for sharing!
I love your blog! I am so grateful for all the information that you have given out. I am very excited about INFOBOMO. I have so much that I desire to get out to help mommies. I have been wanting to write a couple of Ebooks for so long and finally I have the push that I needed.
Thank you so much!
Infoprenuer is the best word I’ve ever heard. Why? It’s because it truly brought me to understand what I ACTUALLY want to do. I thought I wanted to be a traditional personal stylist, but really, I just want to equip people to be their own personal stylist. The amount of info in my head and the amount that I shove in there own a daily basis has just been waiting to burst forth!
Also I’m super excited for INFOBOMO!
I seriously had a goosiebumps when I heard the word Infopreneur! Perfectly describes what I’m interested in doing. Working on my site now, but I’ve been working on creating a down-to-earth health + aspiration planner (no calorie counting type stuff). It’s already outlined so this challenge will help put the pieces together without feeling overwhelmed! Thanks Regina
Regina I just love you. This post really touched me because you’ve proven in very little time at all how the universe rewards you for giving value and sharing with everyone. I’m changing some things in my business finally and can’t wait to start putting into practice some of the valuable content you’ve provided over the year. Congratulations again on earning six figures in your business and thank you for sharing your knowledge.
This is SUCH a great idea! I am actually hoping to publish a book for bloggers soon (read: start writing it soon, haha) so I think this would be a very helpful workshop! Unfortunately though this month is me wrapping up the end of the school year and can’t afford to add something else to my plate. :/ Maybe next time. But I did want to tell you that this idea is awesome. Like yourself. xx
I am so loving the Infobomo process so far! Thanks for all you do.
I’m signing up! Hopefully it’s not too late for me to try and catch up, but I’ve been wanting to get a jump on this forEVer. Nothing like throwing yourself into the water and hoping you float, I guess! Whoo!!
I love how transparent you are on your blog. I have been trying to become more transparent myself. INFOBOMO is such a great Idea and hopefully I can do it!
More helpful content from Regina! It’s no surprise at this point. Thanks for all the workbooks and guides and courses! I have bought about 6 of them and downloaded numerous free materials. They are so easy to apply, and they produce results. Excellent quality stuff. Too much of the other online business building guidance is not truly actionable.
Your Income Reports are some of the most inspirational tools I own at this point. Knowing your recent Jan 2015 report activity, I pasted your April 2014 income report on my Macbook screen background as a constant reminder of how great things can happen in just a few months if you focus on unselfishly delivering great stuff to great people.
I’m getting so much out of the #ZeroToBlog course, and now even more epic guidance comes at us… with your focus on how to create Info Products!
Among the successful infopreneurs out there online, who blends the following qualities better than Regina?
+ Generous, Detail-oriented, Action-oriented, & Personable.
Cast your votes, people! #InfopreneurOfTheYear2015Yo
Thank you! You deserve all of your success and happiness.
Thanks for sharing such nice information.
I have question is i am started blog about celebrity news ,
information and pictures can suggest me marketing strategy to my blog .
present my blog at 16lkh alexa rank
You are truly an inspiration and a beautiful person wrapped into one. I read your blog daily for new motivation and courage to keep going. A BIG thank you. Thank you, thank you. Keep doing what you’re doing. Every single post is valuable and helpful. I appreciate you and what you do for aspiring infopreneurs/entrepreneurs.
Regina CONGRATS!! I love everything you do and you are so nice for letting us see your income reports. It truly helps. I’m a bit intrigued with this post though because you say that your books made you $36K in a year, but that’s a 5 figure number, so I’d really love to know what helped you make the rest of the income to hit the beautiful 6 figure mark?
Thank you so much for all you share and teach!
Laura
I missed the last one, I wasn’t quite ready. When is the next one?
Hello Regina,
I love your word infopreneur. Great invention! I think I introduce this word in the Netherlands for what I do.
I like your blog.
Els
Shout out from #AggielandTX!! Regina, I am in love with everything you have here. I literally just stumbled onto the blog today and feel like I found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow! Although, I haven’t seen a rainbow in some time around here, I found the GOLD!! Your transparency, the level of detail in your posts, your hilarious dialogue with yourself, and the beautiful graphics perfectly fixed within each and every post keeps readers like myself engaged and guaranteed to return time and time again.
As I said, I am within my first 20 min on your site and I already have 3 pages open and looking to get into SEVERAL of the courses you have offered. I really appreciate what you are doing for the infopreneur community and look to implement some of these things with the “artrepreneurs” I work with! (I swear I am not biting your style, I think we are cut from the same cloth!! 😉
I look forward to divulging into the past works you have posted here as well as getting the work you have coming this year!
Warm regards from a fellow Texan!
Alex P.
Regina,
Wow, I could really relate with this, especially with being a woman of many loves and passions, often times pulling me in multiple directions. I love your website. I’ve been browsing it for several months now. Thank you.
Amazing! I just thought up the word “infopreneur” this morning and decided to google it, only to find out that it is an actual already existing word. My God! I want to actually begin to sell information online and that was what made me wrack my head for what I would call myself. And here you one, already in the business and using the word-INFOPRENEUR
You are the person I have been looking for.
Thanks.
Amos
You are so awesome!!!! I’ve been on your site all night soaking up all of this information and for once im not scsred to pull my debit card out and buy something….lol….
Thank you so much for all of your awesomeness and keeping your products an an affordable price.
Im buying eeeerrthing…lol.
Hi Regina. I’ve been blogging for about 9 months now and have been doing a lot of reserach to translate my skills and knowledge into commercials. I’m so glad I fouund you online and have gained so much a)knowledge and b) confidence from your posts. Blogging can really test your patience when it come to seeing the light of success and profit.
I’m still in the early stages of establishing my brand and I’m sure the tag of an Infopreneur will help!
All the best to you!
Wow, Regina! Just stumbled this on Pinterest and I remember reading “Don’t get sucked into the 6-figure..” post first, but since my mindset is different and I’m ready to grow, I read this. I tend to go off tangent when reading blog posts in my head, and I just thought of my opt-in for my new brand to go with my recently published website planning workbook that went for sale, which is a checklist. Thank you, Regina. Once again, your posts have jogged my memory
I love your word infopreneur. Great invention! Thanks you for this post