theprimebait wrote:
my question is,do you guys have any idea how to make a lower middle class income passively?not much.not even enough to raise a family.but just enough to still be ''poor''but live decentely?
thoughts?
With Winston's encouragement, I'll share a strategy that may seem counterintuitive, but works (for me)!
THE STRATEGY:
GIVE IT AWAY FREE....AND REQUEST DONATIONS
HOW IT WORKS:
Beginning in 1995, and every summer since, I've compiled all the free concerts happening in New York City and offer the listings free of charge on my
http://www.FreeSummerConcerts.com site. The listings are "unveiled" a month at a time. So, for example, you can't access the July calendar of events until the last week in June. However, the impatient New York resident/tourist can become a VIP by "donating" $10 or more and thereby receive ALL the summer's events in advance!
That's it!
WHAT HAPPENS:
The majority of people on my list of over 10,000 simply wait for my weekly emails to be updated about the week's events. However, quite a few donate the $10 to become VIPs. Some donate $5. And I've even gotten dollar bills sent by regular mail to my PO box! But, here's the cool part. Many people donate much more than the minimum! Some donate $20. Some donate $50.
The largest single donation so far has been $200! People start searching for summer events as early as January 1! I fully expect that I'll soon start receiving donations for the 2014 season in a few days but don't need to start compiling the events until mid-to-late Spring.
WHY IT WORKS:
- My lists are thorough and accurate
- I add a personal touch (commentary, suggestions) to the emails I send out
- Yes, all the information is readily available on individual event/promoter sites, but people don't mind paying to have all the listings in one place rather than having to do the compilations themselves
- The concept of being a "donor" appeals to a certain segment of the population--a segment that sometimes has cash to spare.
- I'm a nice guy with positive expectations
CAVEATS:
- this is ONE strategy of many that can create multiple small-but-cumulative streams of income
- there are, of course, other factors why this may/may NOT work for you:
your personality, expectations, credibility, track record, level of professionalism, site design, product, timeliness, geography
- It's "seasonally passive" in that I do the compilation once each year over the course of few weeks, and then everything runs on automatic. I spent hundreds of hours last year creating software to automate as much of the process as possible, and to allow for others to input events and even manage listings for their region.
NOTE: For the first few years, the site was completely free--just offered by me as a labor of passion--while my list of subscribers grew. One summer, however, I got up one day and just had the idea to place a donate button on the site. Within two hours, I got my first donation!....and then tweaked the strategy to what it is today!
BOTTOM LINE:
Place a "donate" button on your existing site. You might be surprised what happens!
P.S.
You heard it here first, but I might share this post on another passive income site, so you might start seeing it around!
For more ideas, check out my
Walt
And yes, I agree that people often miss this. Those who fully buy into the consumerism-driven mantra of "more more more" miss the secret: In the interest of true freedom, it makes much more sense to go minimalist and live on less than to strive to accumulate more and more wealth and more and more things in a constant pursuit that never ends.