That would include you if you have created your own ebook, telecourse, membership site, software, plugin, checklist package, calendar or video series that you sell.

Well, one of my friends is someone who I brainstorm with regularly and who I feel is doing a LOT of things right, as evidenced by her multiple six figure income.

Melissa Ingold.

Well, Melissa is teaching a new course for infoproduct sellers that is being covered in five parts:

1. Simple Planning that Helps You Get the Right Things Done, Faster
2. How to Work Less and Less, While You Make More and More Money Consistently
3. How to Easily Use Email to Market and Sell to Hundreds or Even Thousands of People at a Time
4. How To Get Others to Sell For You with Affiliate Marketing
5. How to Create Easy Information Products in as Little as 3 Hours & Launch Them for the Greatest Impact and Maximum Profit

I thought it would be fun to ask Melissa a tough question about each of those areas. And, despite a nasty stomach bug, she got it done for us. She's cool like that.

Before we dig in, though, be sure to click here
-> Melissa's Info Publishing Success System

Melissa has a cool video on the page.

Here is our interview. I hope you find it helpful.

Simple Planning.

Nicole: Melissa, we both know the many quotes that essentially say “Failing to plan is planning to fail.” (Alan Lakein) However, I also believe that over-planning can be detrimental, too, because it limits you in your flexibility.

What is your view on planning, specifically for an infoproduct seller, and what mistakes do you see them making that cost them money in this area?

Melissa: I agree that there is such a thing as over-planning, because what happens is that you get so caught up in creating this wonderful plan for your business that you’re not actually doing anything. So over-planning by itself will cost you money.

On the flip side, you do have to plan to some extent because if you don’t, you’ll get sucked into the cycle of looking busy without actually working – if you know what I mean. I personally hate to-do lists because they’re so overwhelming, and looking at one gives me an icky feeling so I don’t use them. Instead, I use Basecamp to manage all my projects which has a built in calendar. And then for my actual planning, I use pen and paper and a blank monthly calendar.

As an infoproduct seller, it’s especially important that you plan your month out, because if you don’t, you’ll find that the month will come and go and you still won’t have your product ready. There are a lot of little pieces that go into creating and launching an information product.

For instance, will you need to record audio? And if so, who is going to transcribe that? What about writing your promotional blog content and emails? You can’t expect to have those things done overnight. So planning out what needs to be done and will help you move your project along quickly.

Nicole: I agree. I work with a loose plan. It allows me to make sure things are moving on schedule, while still having the flexibility to pop in a quick blog post like this to help my readers, too.

Working Less while Earning More.

Nicole: We both outsource in our businesses and have for years. In this area, what would you say is the myth that people buy into that holds them back?

Melissa: I’ve found the number one thing that holds people back from outsourcing is money. They believe that it’s expensive and that they shouldn’t be hiring help when they’re not making any or enough money.

And it makes sense, right? I mean why pay for someone to do something that you can do yourself for free? But what they don’t realize; is that it’s costing them money whether they do it themselves or outsource.

Scheduling content to a blog isn’t free just because you do it yourself. In fact, it will cost you more money to do it yourself than it would to outsource it, but most business owners don’t see it that way. They don’t understand that their time is money.

Knowing what an hour of your time is worth is so important, because when you see the numbers, it all makes sense.

Let’s say you want to make $50,000 per year. Here’s how we would figure out what your hourly rate is worth:

Income Goal: $50,000
Divide by 50 weeks: $1000 (2 weeks off for vacation)
Divide by 5 Day Week: $200
Divide by 5 Hours: $40/hr. (based on 5 hours of focused work time per day)

So your time is worth $40 an hour. If you spend 3 hours scheduling blog content, it costs you $120. Does it not make sense to hire a VA to do it for you for $15/hr. (a skilled VA can probably do the same amount of work in half the time, which will cost you even less money)? Then you can spend those 3 hours on money making tasks like product creation and marketing your business.

I’m going to end this question with a quote from Loral Langemeier about outsourcing, “Time can be bought through team.”

Email Marketing.

Nicole: You and I both earn a sizable income from our relationship with our lists. (Love you all!) The biggest struggle that I see that people need to overcome before anything is getting people to sign up in the first place. As an infoproduct seller, what has really worked well for you to grow your list overnight?

Melissa: Squeeze pages have and continue to work really well for me. I have a whole process that I use to set up a winning squeeze page, but I won’t go into that here. I almost wonder if people think squeeze pages are too ‘old school’, so they’re not using them anymore.

Anyway, if you’re not setting up squeeze pages to funnel traffic to your list on autopilot, you need start doing that right away. This is where PLR content comes in really handy because you can get packages that come with a squeeze page already written and a freebie report that you can use to entice people to sign up. And some even come with emails already written for you. So make use of that type of PLR to make fast work of setting up your squeeze pages. Set them up and then forget them…they’ll work for you while you’re off living your life.

Nicole: Hey guys. Melissa has some PLR sets that include squeeze pages on her site.  PLR for Internet Marketers

Having a Rocking Affiliate Program.

Nicole: Considering that I have been pretty much your top affiliate for years, I know you know how to run an affiliate program that is enticing to promote.

To that person who is totally overwhelmed by having their own affiliate program (or whose affiliate program is pretty stagnant), can you tell me what benefits you've gotten from investing time and energy into yours?

Melissa: Growth. My business continues to grow and grow because my affiliates are out there spreading the word and promoting my products for me. I have this great sales force that I only have to pay when they make sales. So it’s not like it’s going to cost you money on an ongoing basis to run an affiliate program, no, it’s going to make you more money than you can make on your own.

It’s impossible for you to market your business all on your own. You just can’t reach everyone, everywhere, which is why having an affiliate program is so beneficial to your business – it allows you to expand your reach beyond your existing market, which means you can help more people.

Expanding your Product Line.

Nicole: I always ask my Coaching Clients “What's next?” One infoproduct does not make a solid business. Having a line of products does.

That said, adding a second and third product typically confuses people as to what to create next – and then how to promote it. So, in a nutshell, how do you decide what product to create next in your line?

Melissa: I think it makes sense to build on what you’re already doing. For instance, let’s say you have an ebook that is an overview of marketing on facebook and you’re trying to figure out what product to create next. Why not do a quick survey asking your people what they struggle with most when it comes to marketing on facebook. Then based on their answers, you can create multiple products that solve their problems. It could be a webinar where you walk them through setting up their facebook timeline, or a series of videos about building their list with facebook, or whatever it is that your market wants to learn.

Your one product doesn’t have to be it…you can expand on it and create a whole bunch of different products around that one topic. So you lead from a $17 ebook, to a $27 webinar, to a $47 video series, etc. And then expand on that again with a membership site, coaching program, live workshop, etc. You can do the same with all the topics you decide to create products on. Don’t just plan for that one product. Look at the bigger picture and then break it down into multiple products.

What's Next?

Be sure to check out Melissa's program here
-> Info Publishing Success System <-
to see if it's right for you.

Talk to Me.

What are your biggest struggles as an infoproduct seller?
or
Got tips? Share your answers to any of the questions above.

Warmly,
Nicole Dean

Kelly asked…. “What are your thoughts on sugar and caffeine? Good, bad or you don’t care?

Hey girlfriend. Sorry it took so long to reply. I've had a heck of a sore throat this week. I think it's nothing but allergies, but it's making me just curl up on the couch watching HGTV much this week.

This “gimme” question is actually a tough one for me. On a recent blood test, my doctor thought I might be pre-diabetic. This would make perfect sense since every time I do the South Beach Diet, I drop 10 lbs in a week, so a low-glycemic diet might actually be what my body needs.

I'm straying from your question a bit, because, this also fits with that food plan I promised to tell you about. This would be a really cool idea for a Work at Home Mom to start if she had access to a restaurant kitchen.

I'm getting my meals delivered from a company called Fitness Solutions Now. The food is made locally and I pick it up every Saturday. I get 20 meals per week, which is 5 days worth of food. I eat every 3 hours and it's working quite well. I'm still exercising every morning, too, but I hadn't been losing at all doing just that even though I eat a healthy diet — soo… this is working much better. Plus, while Joe coaches football, I am pretty close to a single mom, so having my food ready in the fridge makes my crazy week a little more manageable.

My gym said that your weight is decided 20% by exercise and 80% by diet, so I though that was interesting. The funny thing is that I'm eating a LOT more than I used to on this meal plan, and I've lost 5% body fat in under a month. So, obviously it's helping my metabolism to speed up and burn my food more efficiently.

So, to make a short story long… I do try to avoid sugar as much as possible, including fruit. If I do crave sugar or fruit, I make sure to get it in before 10 am so it's not spiking my blood sugar while I'm inactive at night or in bed. (Of course, my wine has sugar, but I'm not giving it up!)

Caffeine doesn't bother me much, although our mutual friend, Diana, has shared some interesting information about it that has made me try to limit my caffeine intake, as well.

The thing that I'm still confused about is the talk about how artificial sweeteners are bad for you, too. Diana has an interesting post about that, too. I'm undecided in that, other than the fact that I won't give it to my kids, so, maybe I shouldn't be drinking it myself. (Otherwise, I feel like a hypocrite when they ask and I say “No, it's bad for you” and I keep drinking it.)

So, that's my answer, girlfriend.

I know I've been pretty tough on you with my questions, so here's an easy one for you…

What's your favorite TV show these days? And, what do you do for fun?

Talk soon, my friend.

N

(Keep an eye on Kelly’s blog for her reply.)

I'd like to take a moment to congratulate my friend Paula Schmitt, “The All Sports Mom” & one of my columnists on publishing her book! Many of you follow Paula's adventures with her 4 sons and her daughter in her column in the Mom Zone.

I invite you to read her new book entitled Living In A Locker Room: A Mom's Tale Of Survival In A Houseful Of Boys. I know a LOT of you can relate to “Living in a Locker Room”. Although my son is only 8, we're already spending countless hours in the company of sweaty boys at practices and games. It's hectic sometimes driving from practice to practice, but we love it!

Working at home is such a dichotomy. On the one hand, we are home so we can spend time with our children. On the other hand, we can't spend time with our children because we are too busy working! It doesn't make any sense!

Like many of you, Time Management is one of my biggest struggles, along with Organization. Both seem to be getting more and more out of hand, the busier I get.So, how do we do it? How do we add time to our days? How do we juggle all the balls in the air without dropping any? How do we work from home and still find time to enjoy our children?

Today, you'll have access to a new section of ShowMomTheMoney that I've been working on, all about Time Management:

Enjoy the articles, and definitely check out the DayPlanners just for Moms. I hope you learn something from the section. I know I learned much putting it together. Come back soon as I'll have more info added.

Drop everything and come by the ShowMomTheMoney Ryze Network and post YOUR biggest questions. The members there know how to help!

Nicole

Today I was asking “Why work from home” in a slightly different light. Today, I am home with a sick puppy and am up to my eyeballs in ‘puppy puke'. Now, those of you on my ShowMomTheMoney network know that I'm new to this puppy thing. I was warned up and down about how much work a puppy is, and I thought “I have two children — how hard can a puppy be?!” Well, one difference is that newborns aren't born with fangs — at least mine weren't. So, in between changing the gauze patches on my shredded arms, and hours of puppy school, I fell in love with this furry poop-making machine. He was added to my list of “Why's”.

So, today, while I was composing my newsletter to send out to all the Moms on my list — about how to make more money from home, in the background I hear my furr-ball start to vomit — again. The thought that ran through my mind initially was WHY in the world would I want to be home to deal with this while my husband gets to sit in a quiet office all day. Why isn't HE dealing with cleaning up the 8th pile of puppy-puke?!! After I cleaned up the puppy, rubbed his head and got him clean blankets, threw in another load of laundry, and climbed into bed with my sick 7 year old and my 3 year old to read stories — then it hit me. A little bit (ok, a LOT) of puppy puke was sure worth it. And, when I made my third phone call to my husband to tell him about our day, it wasn't the puppy-puke I was telling him about…. It was the time Delaney said she was sure a “Hungry Marvin” (since I always call her a Starvin' Marvin') and it was how she wanted to plant some Jelly Beans (like in Jack and the Beanstalk) and it was how she and Mason were playing Life and the person who got the most parents into the car won — THAT'S Why I stay at home. And, if a furry little tail starts wagging when I walk into the room — that's sure an added bonus.

Until next time,
Nicole