More About Multiple Streams of Income

[A8ch]

This observation is in response to the article "Multiple Streams of Income: Internet Myth or Vital Business" posted in the Marketing forum. Since registered users are restricted from replying or adding new topics in that section, I decided to place it here.

The concept of diversification discussed in that article is fundamental to long-term business growth and survival. It's about not putting all your eggs in one basket. Spreading your product options is the most effective way of preserving and ensuring a continuous flow of income.

However, this approach ought not to be limited to product selection. It should be incorporated into your marketing strategy, web placement efforts, vendor sources, and to as many facets of advancing your business as you can imagine.

If you've been doing business for any length of time in this exciting virtual landscape we call the Internet, you are aware of how quickly things can change.

Consider this: Your site is optimized for a particular search engine that has the lion's share of the market. As a result of that, and your top ten placement in the search results for certain targeted keywords, you enjoy very high traffic activity.

If that search engine decided to alter their algorithm, or drop their partnership with another service, your site could be buried, or no longer included in the results.

In a flash your revenue flow would go from stream to trickle.

The same applies to advertising methods. There are several available for you to use. Some are more effective than others, nevertheless it makes sense to use as many different methods as you can afford. It helps you to get the best leverage for your budgeted dollars.

Vendors go out of business everyday. If you rely on one source for your product, service or affiliate program, that places you in a very precarious position, should they go out of business tomorrow. At the very least you should have potential replacements standing in the wings.

The very successful (and smartest) work-at-home entrepreneurs usually have many options at their disposal. So should you!

As another adage puts it: Variety is the spice of life.

[Jason Gazaway]

Hermas,

I completely agree with your thoughts.

Another strong point I'd like to mention is more geared for the complete work at home newbies out there.

I can honestly say that I myself fell into this trap and hope to steer others into the other direction, by learning from others' mistakes, and not your own!

When I first started, I thought I knew everything there was to know (within two weeks mind you), so I built my first website. Then after a month, I built another.. And so on, and so on.. Until one day I realized I had 13 websites, and all weren't doing very well for some reason..

I make this a point because this ties hand-in-hand with diversification.

Focus your efforts onto one thing at a time. Make it as profitable as you can, then "move on" and diversify. Get to a point where you like with your new "project", whether that be profits, search engine rankings, subscribers, or whatever else..

The main thing to remember is to diversify, yes.. But not until you are at a point in which you CAN move to the next while still being able to enjoy the profits/rankings/subscribers the other project is now reaping.

Indeed a good article.. And very good points Hermes..

Warmest Regards,
Jason Gazaway

[A8ch]

[greenrob]

Thanks a lot for the 2 interesting posts we have there.

I would like to add,

You will be amazed at the end of day with the power of focus if you master it.

[mkopps]

Very good comments above and sound advice. Also, don't lose aspect of what you do. In other words make sure you know what it is you are doing and what you plan to attain.

Ray Croc for example, built a successful hamburger franchise, but that is not his main business nor his most profitable. His main business is real estate. His hamburger franchise was just the means for him to acquire what he wanted.

You must have a plan, and it must be decided before you get started. Otherwise you will tend to run in circles until you get it right.

[silke247]

I was in a conversation on the ListGenesis forum a while back and the topic of niche marketing vs Multiple Incomes came up.

I thought I'd share my RDTs here:

The answer my Group have found to work best - for us - is to have multiple income streams - if you sell everything you hit every corner of every market! Something for everyone, everything for someone.

This is almost the opposite from the current trend in finding a "niche", but that method is just getting press these days (this month?) because of the general public hearing about something that most of us have known about for years.
There is nothing new about Niche marketing - look at how long Avon has been going - selling makeup to housewives.

(As Steve said on the MSH forum, "aren't you getting sick of the glut of Nicheology ads you see everywhere"? )

A lot of newbies and people from this generation think they have discovered Niche Marketing for themselves.

(A bit like the dozens of BAs for MDT you see because the newbies are the first person to discover "this great site that gives you free targetted traffic - I got 200 hits in 2 days!" The fact that they join as affiliate id number 3500 should indicate to them that there are a good few people there before them!)

(Similarly this generation of Martial Arts students with their UFC and KFC contests who think they invented cross training mixed arts contests. Boxing v karate v wrestling v Judo matches have been going on for decades. And Bruce Lee spent most of the 60s trying to spread the message that everyone should cross train and test it all out in all-out sparring. But that's another discussion for another day.)

Personally I sell wellness products and telcom products, alongside cleaning products and information products, as well as several other streams. We even sell pet vitamins!
So whatever you want to buy, you can find it from my site, and whatever you want to sell, you can find it from my site.

It takes a bit longer, and takes a lot more people, but it makes a lot more money.


Silke