In this episode of Become a Media Maven®, I’m taking over and telling you how to make money from home… because I do!
I’m sharing details on how I built my business from the beginning as a “professional freelancer” to a business owner with a team and multiple streams of revenue that add up to multiple six figures.
Many people ask me what I do or how I make money from home… or anywhere with WiFi.
In the 12th episode of Become a Media Maven®, I’m sharing the breakdown of the four streams of revenue in my business:
I also talk about my goals moving forward, why they are my goals, and what’s on the horizon for 2019.
In this episode, you’ll learn how I did all of this from home… without even having an office.
Here is a list of resources mentioned in this episode:
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How to Make Money From Home
I’m going to break down the four streams of revenue in my business and how I built it into what it is in a little over three years. If you are interested in making money from home, then you are going to love this episode.
I must start off by talking about why I titled this podcast “How to Make Money from Home.” I do SEO research on keywords and people search “how to make money fast online” and “how to make money online for free” often.
I get it. We all wish we could make money fast online… but come on people! If it were that easy, we would all be making money online fast and for free. This is a testament to how lazy people are. So if you’re interested in making money fast or making money for free, then you should stop reading because that’s just not realistic.
That’s why I went with the title “How to Make Money from Home.” That’s exactly what I’m going to talk about – how I built my business from the ground up. I think it’s important for people to talk about how much money they’re making, especially if they’re in the business of helping other people grow their businesses and make more money.
Gross Income vs. Profit
I know when I hired my first business coach, I wanted to make sure she was making a lot of money. I wanted to make sure her clients were making a lot of money and that those clients were renewing with her. That’s how I hire my coaches.
That’s why I’m not going to tell you what I’m grossing. I’m going to tell you what my profits are. I often see people talk about how they have six-figure businesses or seven-figure businesses but they’re not profiting.
Someone I know has Facebook ads saying that she’s making a lot of money, but she doesn’t know that her assistant is telling everyone she’s in debt. She’s not making a dime because she’s spending seven figures to have a seven-figure business.
When you hear somebody saying they have six-figure launches, you need to take into account how much money they’ve spent to get there. Most people will leave that part out. It’s too easy to get online and post whatever you want, so don’t believe everything you read.
I tell you that I have a multiple six-figure business that I have built in a little over three years because I have profited multiple six figures. You will never hear me say I have a seven-figure business until I have profited seven figures because I think it’s misleading. If you do hear me say that, then I’m going to tell you I’m not profiting seven figures, but that my business has brought in seven figures.
Starting Your Own Business
I have four streams of revenue in my business, but it didn’t start that way. It started out with about 20 streams of revenue because at the beginning, you do anything and everything to make money. You throw a bunch of stuff at the wall and hope something sticks. Luckily, I had a good arm and lots of walls for things to stick on.
When I first started my business, I had been a TV reporter and anchor for ten years. I worked at a PR agency for six months and it was in that job where I realized nobody was going to give me the flexible schedule I wanted. Everyone wanted me to commute at least an hour.
I realized I had Wi-Fi at home. I could save my makeup and time, avoid the commute, and get a hell of a lot more done at home than I could spending hours sitting in an office with people I don’t like to make someone else more money.
I was getting a fraction of the money that was coming in when I was doing about 99 percent of the work, so I said, “screw this. I’m going to start my own business.”
Hire a Coach
In the beginning, you take whatever you can get and you don’t charge what you’re worth. I know a lot of people are going to disagree with me on that, but if you’re desperate to make money you will take what you can get. I was greatly undervaluing myself, and at one point, I had 19 clients on my own.
I was miserable for the first year and a half. I was working 12 hours a day and I was not pleasant to be around because I was constantly stressed. There were some months when I would make $11,000 and I got to keep it all because I didn’t have anyone to pay and I wasn’t using fancy-schmancy software.
People were just paying for my time and expertise. Then, I would have months where I would make a thousand bucks. It was very inconsistent.
During that time, I was soaking up all the free content online that I could. I don’t suggest doing that.
If I had to do it all over again, I would have invested in a coach. I had no strategy. I didn’t have a roadmap, so I had to slowly figure out what worked and what didn’t by trial and error.
I wish I had had somebody who could walk me through what to do with all the information I was consuming and how to apply it to my specific situation. I was just doing everything I could to bring in money.
Being a Professional Freelancer
I called myself a professional freelancer because at the time that’s what I wanted to be. Then I had lunch with a man named Stu who has his own PR agency in South Florida. Stu told me, “Stop calling yourself a freelancer. That’s like calling yourself a housewife. People don’t take you seriously. Call yourself a business owner.”
Something clicked for me after that conversation. I started calling myself a business owner and building more of a PR agency model. This is my first stream of revenue that I’m going to talk about because it’s responsible for most of my income.
If I had to guess, I would say 80 percent of the money I bring in is from my PR agency and it’s only possible because I have a team.
Spending Money to Make Money
I brought on somebody to help me, and even though I was making a little less money because I had to pay her, it was worth it because I was less stressed. I could focus on other things because I had more time.
You have to let go of control, you have to put other people in charge of certain things in your business and you have to let go of money because you cannot scale a business if you are not willing to spend money.
I think a lot of new entrepreneurs are scared of spending money. They’re afraid they’re going to put it out there and get nothing back. You have to get over that fear or you are never going to grow.
I have a team of about six now. Most of them are publicists. I have a social media person, a web person, and an assistant. If I’m away for a few days, it is such a relief to know that the agency can run without me. I’m still involved. I’m copied on every email and I’m still talking to clients, but I’m not doing it by myself. That’s not just good for me and it’s good for the clients.
I’ve doubled my income every year since I started three years ago. I’ve made about half a million dollars in the three years I’ve had my business and I don’t think I could have been doubling in size like I have been in these last couple of years if I hadn’t invested in a business coach.
It’s scary. I get it. When I first invested, I put down $15,000 on a credit card. I did not have $15,000 just laying around, but if I hadn’t invested in that coach, I wouldn’t have been able to double my business in the next two years.
I suggest getting out of your comfort zone, putting some money on a credit card, and doing exactly what you’re told to do.
That’s my PR agency model.
Teaching What I Do
I created a media mentoring program and this is my second stream of revenue. This is probably responsible for about 10 percent of my income.
This is because I’m dealing with new entrepreneurs who, again, don’t feel comfortable spending money, but they need to get the word out about their businesses. So I put together a plan to get them some coverage.
This is a long-term game. You are not going to make money fast. This is like playing the stock market, but if you stay with it for at least six months, you will start seeing results.
I’ve had clients who are not making any money get coverage on the Today Show and get in front of four million people with a side hustle, so if you can see the benefits of that, but you’re not willing to spend $347 a month to get those results, then I can’t help you.
In the media mentoring program, I’m still doing private mentoring. It’s not a group program. You get one-on-one, tailored, customized coaching.
In 2019 I will probably start doing group coaching because I can’t coach that many people privately. I’ll be talking about this program at an event in San Diego in November, so my schedule will be full with private clients.
That’s my second stream of revenue.
Always Have a Side Hustle
My third and fourth streams probably tie when it comes to bringing in money. One is TV hosting.
I do some stuff with Lifetime TV. They have a few morning shows. One is called The Balancing Act and the other is called Designing Spaces. I also do some work locally in Palm Beach, Florida for the Palm Beach Civic Association.
Then I mix a little bit of the hosting with my lifestyle blog, which is my fourth and final stream of revenue. My lifestyle blog is a fun creative outlet.
I get emails and messages on Instagram from people who want to work with me and that’s how the lifestyle blog makes money. A lot of the TV hosting stuff that I do, I get because of the lifestyle blog. A lot of the lifestyle blog stuff that I get is because I am a TV host.
Those are my four streams of revenue. I have the PR agency and the media mentoring program, I’m a TV host, and I have a lifestyle blog. Those are all under the media PR umbrella and I think that’s why they all play off each other.
I’ve had people reach out to me for coverage on my lifestyle blog and then they turn into PR agency clients. I’ve had people find me for TV hosting gigs because they found my lifestyle blog. A lot of people want an “influencer.” If you want to know why I’m putting that in quotes, make sure you check out episode number eight on ways to work with influencers because Angela Cruz and I get into that. A lot of people want an influencer as a TV host because they share it with their audience and it gets more views.
All you need is Wi-Fi and a Dream
To bring this back to how to make money from home, I have never had a home office. I don’t rent office space. That would be a complete waste of money for me.
All of my publicists are spread out. Most of my team is here in South Florida, but I have publicists based in New York and Arizona. I have clients who are earning national coverage. They’re not a local brand. That’s why I don’t have an office.
I want to work with a variety of people in a variety of places. Why would I spend money on a building, pay for rent, insurance, lights, phones, and everybody else’s equipment when we all have laptops and computers with Wi-Fi? It’s simpler for me as a business owner and easier for my team because they can work from wherever they feel comfortable.
I’ve had two homes since I started my business. In my first home, I had a corner in the family room where I did everything and now I have a beautiful wall of built-in bookshelves. This has been a dream of mine. The sliding ladder is going up soon.
This is where I’ve built my business, so you can do almost anything from home. All you need is Wi-Fi or a library. One day I lost power so I went to the library and kept on keeping on because all you need is Wi-Fi.
You can build any business from home, but please stop searching for how to make money fast online and how to make money online for free because if you’re looking for something quick and easy, it’s not going to happen and you’re being lazy.
I built my business by working a hell of a lot. In the beginning, I wasn’t strategic because I didn’t know how to be strategic. When I started getting personalized, one-on-one help, I started doubling my business and it just kept getting bigger and bigger and bigger every year.
Making Money Goals When You Work From Home
I’m not a name brand clothes or bags kind of person. I’m not a fancy car kind of person.
Everybody has their lottery plan, right? We all just didn’t win the mega millions for 1.6 billion unless you’re that one person in South Carolina who’s listening, congratulations to you. My big lottery plan is to go to the spa and get massages, facials, manis and pedis. You don’t need a million bucks for that.
My husband’s goal is to eat a lot of food… and I know that sounds weird. I agree. It’s odd, but he likes to eat food so he would go to Lucky’s Market and Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s and get a whole bunch of food and cook it and eat it. You don’t need multiple six figures to do that.
When I break down what I want money for, it’s not to buy stuff. It’s for a sense of freedom – if I want to take a day off, I can go to the movies. I would like to buy an investment property. I live in South Florida. I’m a big Chip and Joanna fan, so I want to buy a fixer-upper. When you make your money goals, you have to be clear on why you want that money and how much you want it.
I have consistently been profiting five figures a month for a year and a half now. That gives you a sense of comfort, but when you get to that point, you have to stop looking at what the fun, sexy thing is to do next. You have to keep doing the boring stuff over and over again until you have that consistent income. You have to check your Shiny Objects Syndrome. If you can do that, you will make money and you can do it from home because again, all you need is Wi-Fi and a dream.
I Want to Hear Your Questions
If you have any questions about anything or you want me to get specific about something, please let me know. I would love for you to send me an email at Christina@mediamavenandmore.com.
You can also comment on an Instagram post at @ChristinaAllDay. I’m on Twitter at @ChristinaAllDay and I do want to hear your questions. I want to grow this podcast. It’s new. This is only episode 12 and you can help me do that.
If you like what you’re hearing, please subscribe if you haven’t already. I also want you to leave me five stars and a review because my podcast is new. It’s hard to get bumped up in the search and if you leave me a review and five stars, that moves me up a little bit so more people can find it.
I want to get some people into this three-day media class. You can do that by going to mediamavenandmore.com/publicity. It’s just three days. It teaches you how to pitch. You have to do PR on your PR to make a profit, so I’m going to show you how you can turn that publicity into profit in three days.
I’m going to take some time away from my business to work on more fun things like my lifestyle blog. In 2019, I think we’re going to be focusing on a YouTube strategy. In a couple of weeks, we’re going to hear from Sunny Lenarduzzi who is a YouTube star who teaches people how to make money on YouTube by selling their online courses. I’m super excited for that interview.
We will cross that bridge when we come to it. We’re still in 2018. We have more than two months left to go.
I hope everyone enjoyed this solo episode. I am looking forward to next week when we are going to hear from my good friend. She’s also in one of the coaching programs I’m in. Her name is Alexis Caldicott.
I hope everybody has a Happy Halloween. I’ll see you guys next week.