Today we’re going to talk about a touchy business topic: money.

I used to share a monthly income report which allowed you to see where and how I invest my money into my business, and which areas I get the biggest returns. (This post will discuss my earnings from August + September 2015.) The thing is, that’s not the whole picture, is it? This blog post outlines the honest truth about how I make thousands of dollars as a “blogger.” We’re going to talk about:

• WHY I was motivated to go from running a digital design agency to full-time coaching
• WHAT I did that stopped me from losing my sanity during the transition
• HOW much money I made through my digital info products in the last few months
• WHAT you can do to achieve similar results

The background.

I’m approaching the 4 month mark since I turned my creative agency into a creative academy. Running a creative business (web and graphic design) in my case, was so fulfilling at one point. I worked with extremely ambitious people who had amazing ideas. Towards the end of my run as a designer, I ran into issues with clients whom I had to forfeit balances on. Those clients solidified my decision to end my design career.

As a web and graphic designer BUSINESS OWNER (not freelancer), I had 20/20 vision when it came to seeing clients make business mistakes. They thought about the pretty things instead of the strategy that was going to make money. They became so fixated on the glitz and glam of their website that they didn’t actually do anything that would appeal to their audience. I saw these business mistakes over and over. People thought they knew what they wanted, but they didn’t. And because of that, they had an unfinished website or they had the prettiest website with zero profit.

I got tired of the phone calls that borderline insisted on free advice. I don’t mind giving out free advice, but I only do free when I’m in control of it. That’s the whole purpose of running a blog. I can give out free advice all the time which positions me as an expert.

[Tweet “There’s nothing wrong with free when you’re in control of it.”]

I decided to relieve myself of design duties and begin coaching because that’s what people in my space desperately need help with. After running an online business for 7 years, I had a lot of knowledge based on my failures and successes. I already had an audience and I switched my niche from designing for brands to teaching people how to build their brand.

The transition.

So how did I transition so seamlessly as a blogger?

First of all, I’ve never considered myself a blogger. I considered myself a designer with a blog. Now, I consider myself a branding  expert with a blog. I want people to think of themselves as experts with a blog or content creators that focus on a SPECIFIC niche. Your blog is just a content marketing tool (which is why I think launching a blog is silly). Blogs are ridiculously important, though. Why? Because it’s a platform for you to share your expertise in the form of content. You’re basically marketing yourself as a really smart person who knows what they’re talking about while helping people in the process. It’s that simple.

I built my authority online by creating free and paid content that people could use to become better and build their online business.

Within the couple months, I have made over $18,000 from my content alone. That’s about $240 per day. Not one dime of that money has been from design work.

I’ve sold a course, masterclass, live class and an eBook.

All of the content I’ve made money off of was based on teaching others how to build a personal brand in the digital space. Why? Because that’s my expertise. I can talk about personal branding ALL DAY LONG. I could never ever run out of things to say about branding. I know the ins and outs of it. I know so much on branding that I can give it away for free and still have enough to make an eBook, two classes and an entire course on branding.

That’s expertise.

I know a lot of people that are like this in the topic they’re passionate about. They study their passion. They eat, sleep and breathe their passion. And yet, they haven’t figured out how to position themselves as experts and monetize.

That’s EXACTLY why I created Content Creation Class. It teaches you the art of putting your knowledge out into the world in a way that builds trust with a loyal audience and attracts them to your paid products.

Second of all, the transition wasn’t seamless. The process for running a design business was completely different than running a coaching business and selling digital products. Making money wasn’t the hard part, but making money where I didn’t have to work 18-hour days was. There were days where I just had NO CLUE what I was supposed to be doing. I would stare at my computer screen wondering what to do next.

[Tweet “Making money isn’t hard. Making money without the burnout is.”]

I got an assistant (for the millionth time) because I knew I was working too hard. I had struggled to build my team in the past because I had no clear system. This time around I figured out that in order to delegate, I had to systemize how I ran things. What would be posted on my blog, how often would it be posted, what was the process in how it was posted and shared and promoted? I paid really close attention to my day-to-day activities, eliminated things that wasted my time and didn’t make me money or build my audience, and refined everything else.

That’s EXACTLY why I created Master Your Market. I created and refined processes, strategies and systems that helped me reach more people and make more money without working endless hours. There was a light at the end of the tunnel for each day, and it was so liberating.

So that’s it. That is the “secret”.

• I left a space that I no longer needed to serve after 7 years.
• I discovered a niche that was profitable for me based on what MY audience needed
• I blogged about things people needed to hear based on my expertise. When you talk about things you’re well versed in, people can see your authenticity, and you don’t have to go snooping around on other people’s blogs to copy their content.
• I eliminated any content that was not in line with my expertise. (I tried to be a style blogger once. Fail.)
• I created more and more content on different platforms on my expert topic… for free. (That’s what builds the trust.)
• I created more and more content through different mediums on my expert topic… for a fee. (That’s creating multiple streams of income.)

[Tweet “When you talk about things you’re well versed in, people can see your authenticity.”]

The reality

You deserve to be seen as an expert in your field, generate a loyal following and earn an income from your knowledge. Master Your Market teaches you how to do exactly that without burning out. It truly is about adding smart work to hard work.

I want you to be one of my success stories. I’ve had the pleasure of working with coaches, authors, speakers, and other content creators who have begun creating their first workshops or wrapping up the finishing touches to their online courses. Some have even created membership sites bringing them hundreds of dollars passively.

I want that for you. Because avoiding the topic of money – simply because you’re not making any – is played out. It’s time to be open about the conversation of money and start generating it. How much do you want to make? What do you need to create to make it? Who do you need to sell it to?  How many people do you need to reach to make that goal? Let’s do this.

Join the waiting list for my premium coaching program Master Your Market to be notified when I open up spots again. Spots are limited so make sure you’re on the list! And just a heads up, when you join the list, I’ll send you a free workbook on how to discover and narrow your niche!

Want to get in touch with me in the meantime? After joining the list, join my FREE Facebook group of other content creators who are building their online brand!