Every entrepreneur wants to make money, and making passive income is probably on the goals list of most business owners around. We like the idea of getting paid while not working (or maybe that’s just me).
Contrary to popular belief, creating passive income doesn’t mean doing zero work.
In order to be successful, it requires working intentionally and purposefully once with a plan to leverage that work over and over again. Passive income is all about strategy, and if done right, there are multiple ways to add multiple streams of revenue to your business.
There are two product categories to think about when it comes to generating income that requires little to no effort to earn or maintain: selling what you know and selling what you create.
Selling what you know is exactly what it sounds like: packaging your expertise into a product that can be sold.
If you enjoy teaching, consider creating a virtual “classroom” with online courses and on-demand webinars. If you’d prefer not to be on camera, audio training sessions are another great option. AMSE member and writer Gems Collins shares her three tips for starting your online course here. If your intended customer needs to be able to get their ideas on paper or learn a new skill, digital workbooks and eBooks are a great way to teach a lesson or provide step-by-step guidance for a specific topic.
You can also sell what you create.
There is a misconception that creative-type business owners aren’t able to put passive income to work for their business. Selling what you create and making it available digitally is the way to go if you want to maximize this type of income. If you’re a photographer, consider licensing your photos as stock photography. If you’re an artist, you can sell digital copies of your art! Products like graphics, website themes, templates, and fonts are ideal for passive income for B2B operations because there’s always a need for these types of products. Consider platforms like Creative Market and Theme Forest as hubs to sell your “mousemade” content.
Every product we’ve covered so far has been digital, but did you know that you can earn passive income by selling physical products as well?
With dropshipping, it’s possible to sell products like apparel, home décor, and even physical books. Similar to a traditional passive income product, there will be work required up front to design and add your products to the online store, followed by promoting and advertising your products in order to attract sales. It’s important to note that dropshipping services use multiple manufacturers that can change at any moment, so make sure your products are regularly updated so they’ll be available for purchase.
What makes passive income so alluring?
Because it gives business owners the ability to automate the sales process. While any of these means of passive income can be incorporated into any business, it’s critical to have alignment with your existing offerings. Once you decide what you’ll be selling, ensure that the technology can deliver the customer experience you want to create while allowing you to be as hands-off as possible.
Now that you know the options and the tools needed, turn your education into action. Make a plan and do the work to create passive income in your business…and watch your bottom line grow!
Moniek James is a veteran, military spouse, speaker, author, columnist, and serial online entrepreneur. Her passion is teaching small business owners and brands on how to leverage content marketing and strategy to deliver their genius to the world through her boutique marketing agency, Renegade Creative Media Group.
Moniek has been featured in the Huffington Post, Fit Small Business, VoyagePhoenix, and Vitality Magazine and believes that entrepreneurship is a building block to economic empowerment.
