Signing Up For Premium - Let The Lesson Begin.

I think we can agree that everyone loves to get things for free, but in many cases we find there is a cost associated in taking the next step. All of a sudden the expense becomes an obstacle to moving forward. A luxury car salesman once told me, "they love it and everyone is happy - all of a sudden it gets real when the sales contract and pen comes out".

Our cynicism, experience with the unscrupulous gets the better of us and we don't progress or move forward. In many cases that may have saved you some valuable time and money in the past. "Premium" at WA is a completely different situation, and with the amount of resources presented for free, signing up for Premium, at a discount, was a no-brainer for me. WA was different because Kyle and Carson earned my trust - they gave me enough first.

But in conversations with people in the WA community a thought occurred to me about the whys? and whats? being addressed about the Premium service. Signing up for Premium is in a sense a lesson as much as anything else I've read. I know some of you are saying where is he going with this?? I'm getting there.

In messages with other members, there seems to be a degree of concern on how to monetize our sites? How do I make this into a business? After all that's why the vast majority of us are here.

Just follow our mentors.

You start by offering quality information for free like WA, and you really do some good by providing something useful. I think its important to note that you can't just offer fluff. Smart people will see through it, and I believe there is an element of "karma" here. Whatever you believe in that keeps you doing the right thing, use it. After all - how else are you going to earn that all important trust. With this done you could then offer a subscription for your ongoing, and extended services. Not only does this monetize your site, but you have created an ongoing stream of income from each and every person who signs-up.

I liken it to real estate investing where you can buy and sell a property once for a nice profit, or you can acquire something that will become an ongoing stream of rental income. I have nothing against selling products online, but by creating an ongoing stream of income you will not only increase your revenue, but smooth it out a little bit. Consistent income is a pretty powerful thing given the peaks and valleys associated with straight sales. This is especially important to those of us who think this business might replace a job, or are looking at a retirement supplement; a consistent income, your own personal ATM is incredibly important.

What could be better than having an audience that has committed to you and your site and is asking you for more?

That's the first lesson I got from being encouraged to invest in Premium. This may have been obvious to some of you, but I never claimed to be a genius. I will however be following closely the genius that is around us in this community.

Here endeth the lesson I learned..