Sell Your Knowledge Online. It’s The Easiest Thing To Start Business With. It’s Called Knowledge Commerce. Build Your Expertise Brand, Earn Big Money
Knowledge Commerce is a booming new line of ecommerce. You first discover, and then “productize” your own unique knowledge, talent, skills or passions – into ebooks, courses, memberships, webinars, virtual summits, consulting packages, and a host of other formats.
It’s an ideal business for solopreneurs. If you want to grow yourself into an exclusive and premium brand, and command market-dominating prices, this is your perfect opportunity. So get in early.
A lot of “wantrepreneurs” online – those who wish to start businesses – look everywhere but at themselves for a business idea to begin with. They don’t realize that what they know may have good demand among those who want to know what they know.
At Solohacks Academy, our roundups usually pick topics that most people would consider a question that begets inspiring answers. On a topic like selling your knowledge online, we thought it would inspire you to know that there are already millions of people out there earning through “Knowledge Commerce”, and there’s room for you too.
The route to success is simple. First, build an audience for what you know, by blogging and displaying your thought-leadership. Then, convert your followers and fans into buyers of your knowledge products like ebooks, courses, or membership sites.
Our picks for this Solohacks RoundUp include 10 great quotes from the blog posts of Lilach Bullock, Tomas Laurinavicius, Thursday Bram, Amy Morin, Tom Antion, Irfan Ahmad, Holly Reisem Hanna, Gladice Gong, Brian Wallace, and Josh Catone.
Contents
- Only those who offer real value and know how to promote themselves will be able to succeed: Lilach Bullock
- To succeed in selling your knowledge online you need to know how to present yourself in writing: Tomas Laurinavicius
- It’s worth noting that selling your knowledge isn’t exactly a get rich quick scheme: Thursday Bram
- One of the best ways to start testing your ideas is to start putting content out into the world: Amy Morin
- Most information creators forget that people like to consume their creations in various ways: Tom Antion
- Learn more about entrepreneurial tech to help you sell your knowledge and skills online: Irfan Ahmad
- Answering questions online isn’t full-time, but you may pull in an extra $500-$1,000 per month: Holly Reisem Hanna
- Offer advice to people 1-on-1 via email, phone or Skype – it’s the easiest online model to start with: Gladice Gong
- Cryptocurrency, computer science, karate, origami, and cooking are all skills people want to learn: Brian Wallace
- 37signals turned their expertise into three quarters of a million dollars in just a couple of years: Josh Catone
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1. Only those who offer real value and know how to promote themselves will be able to succeed: Lilach Bullock
Lilach Bullock in the article “5 Tips To Help You Better Sell Your Knowledge Online”:
There are so many different ways to monetize your knowledge: online courses, membership sites, webinars, e-books and whitepapers, consulting, speaking gigs, seminars and so on. So if you want to make the most of your skills and knowledge – and turn them into a successful, profitable business – it’s worth looking into alternative ways to sell your knowledge.
This will allow you to reach a much wider audience as well as help you set up multiple revenue streams. For example, if you’re selling an online course, you can also try creating and selling a book, even on the same topic; self-publishing is easier and more wide-spread than ever, especially because of Amazon and Kindle Unlimited.
Or, if you’re comfortable with one-on-one situations and love interacting with people, then consulting can be a great solution. There are numerous possibilities of branching out; you just need to find the right tactics for you and get started.
There is a lot of content out there, all battling for the same audience’s attention. While you might have a great online course on Microsoft Excel, chances are, there are dozens of alternatives to your course, maybe even on the same platform you’re selling your course.
So if you want to stand out from the competition and reach your audience, then you need to not only promote your content, but also demonstrate your knowledge and build trust. You need to find your own audience and build up their trust in you by showing them that you have the knowledge and skills and you know how to get your point across.Selling your knowledge online is now easier than ever – which is why the e-learning market is predicted to reach $325 billion by 2025 – but only those who offer real value and know how to promote themselves will be able to succeed.”
2. To succeed in selling your knowledge online you need to know how to present yourself in writing: Tomas Laurinavicius
Tomas Laurinavicius in the article “Seven Ways to Share Your Knowledge and Make Money Doing It”:
Just as businesses eagerly exploit additional income streams, individuals can and should do the same. Unfortunately, acquiring the skills to do so is often a long and arduous process. If you would like the extra income, but don’t have the time or resources to invest in additional training, there are plenty of ways to make money using the skills you already have.
Everyone tends to have that one quirky skill that’s used as a party trick or to impress your kids. Sometimes it’s a useless skill, but often it’s something you picked up while working to pay for college. Bottom line, don’t let that skill coupled with the accumulated knowledge go to waste.
Generating additional income through sites like JustAnswer is simple. On JustAnswer, simply provide evidence of your expertise in one of the several areas, answer questions, and get paid. Maven and CreatePool are similar platforms, but allow you to also do small jobs in your area of expertise. You set your rate with Maven and CreatePool, leading to the opportunity to earn significantly more.
Sites like PrestoExperts and SmallBizAdvice work on a concept similar to that of Maven and CreatePool, by giving you the chance to earn money giving advice or providing consulting services online. There is no shortage of sites similar to these, and many (like SmallBizAdvice) are niche specific, allowing you to target your services to an audience that is already hoping to work with you.
To succeed in any of the above, however, you need to know how to present yourself in writing. Remember that a side job is just that – something you do in addition to your day job. Don’t let it distract you from your existing obligations. That said, if you are ready to turn your side job into your day job and you’re making enough on the side to do so, go for it.”
3. It’s worth noting that selling your knowledge isn’t exactly a get rich quick scheme: Thursday Bram
Thursday Bram in the article “Sell Your Knowledge on the Side”:
Having a side line of income can come in handy — but not everyone is in a position to set up a full-fledged business or even take on freelance projects. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t any opportunities to make some money on the side. If you’re knowledgeable about a specific area, you can sell your know-how, rather than selling your time.
You’ll still need a little time, of course, but there are several ways to come up with ways to make a little money within your time constraints. It’s worth noting that none of these approaches are exactly get rich quick schemes.
In some cases, they may not even be get rich quick schemes. You have to have some knowledge worth sharing, although that list can be pretty long — you’d be surprised what some people are willing to pay for video game tips or basic technical support — and you have to be able to share it in a fashion that other people can understand relatively easily.
If you can handle those requirements, though, selling your knowledge can be a good way to bring in a little extra money. It doesn’t hurt that there are plenty of websites and online services ready to handle much of the marketing and promotion, and let you focus on your own expertise.
The pay goes down when you work through these sites, of course, but the amount of time you need to devote to finding clients and related aspects of being in business also goes down. It doesn’t hurt that being associated with a larger site also establishes your credentials a lot faster than you can if you aren’t already particularly well known.”
4. One of the best ways to start testing your ideas is to start putting content out into the world: Amy Morin
Amy Morin in the article “7 Ways to Make Money Off Your Knowledge”:
I spent most of my career working as a psychotherapist but I always had a side hustle. My favorite side hustle was a drop ship jewelry business. I sold high-end necklaces, earrings, and bracelets without ever physically handling the products.
I was excited to jump out of bed every morning to see how much money I’d earned in my sleep. I thought it was amazing that I could sell products that I never had to physically handle. It required zero upfront investment.
I loved being an entrepreneur but for a long time, I thought I needed to sell a physical product to make money online. But in 2013, I wrote an article that went viral (50 million people read it) and I realized I could make a lot of more money selling my knowledge.
It became clear that there were endless opportunities to make money based on what I knew. I created several different revenue streams. Some of those streams include physical products (like my books) and others included services or digital products.
One of the best ways to start testing your ideas is to start putting content out into the world. Start a podcast or a blog, share your ideas on social media, or create videos about your subject. Once you attract interest in your ideas, you can begin developing products that will help you earn money from your knowledge.”
5. Most information creators forget that people like to consume their creations in various ways: Tom Antion
Tom Antion in the article “How to Sell Your Knowledge in 28 Different Ways”:
Most information creators love to create. Many times they forget the people that consume their creations like to do so in various different ways. Instead of expanding the reach of their information, they just start creating something new.
Financially this is a massive mistake. What if you created marketing training videos for realtors? There’s certainly a market for that.
But don’t you think if you had an audio version, that you could get more realtors to consume more of your training as they drove around all day showing homes? Of course, you could.
If you are interested in maximizing the income from the knowledge you have, it’s imperative you put it out in as many ways as you can that make sense for your market.
Once you get done picking all the formats for your information that make sense for your market, you can have them translated. Depending on your topic and markets this can send your information around the world. The world will then send money into your account.”
6. Learn more about entrepreneurial tech to help you sell your knowledge and skills online: Irfan Ahmad
Irfan Ahmad in the article “Using Entrepreneurial Tech To Sell Your Knowledge”:
By 2026, the global e-learning market is projected to be valued at $398 billion, and earning a piece of the pie for yourself might be easier than you think. Start by thinking about your own knowledge base, whether professional or hobby-related, and whether there might be an audience interested in learning what you know. Once you choose your niche, there are a multitude of options available to you for packaging up and selling your skills and expertise online.
Adding a side job can increase the average American’s take home pay by 25% each month, but it’s important to understand that with knowledge commerce it can take a bit of time to build an audience.
In order to build your audience, you need to have a blog and a social media presence. These are the places where you will talk about the process of your work and gaining knowledge, and they can also at some point become another stream of revenue for your side business. Social media accounts with large audiences can be monetized through sponsored posts, while blogs with high readership can be monetized through advertising (such as Google AdSense).
When you are starting a side hustle, it’s important to carve out specific time to make it happen. Plan a schedule, put it in your calendar, and stick to it. Dedicate a work space that is free from clutter and ergonomically functional. Set a schedule for content and social media creation to keep things moving in the right direction.
Learn more about entrepreneurial tech to help you sell your knowledge and skills online .. below!”
Image courtesy: OnlineCourseReport.com
7. Answering questions online isn’t full-time, but you may pull in an extra $500-$1,000 per month: Holly Reisem Hanna
Holly Reisem Hanna in the article “10 Ways to Make Money Selling Your Expertise”:
Do you have specialized knowledge that others are always asking to pick your brain about? How would you like to make money selling this knowledge? If so, consider selling your expertise online; musicians, cooks, coaches, consultants, teachers, and entrepreneurs can all sell their know-how for cash.
Today, there are many online platforms and digital tools that can help you make money online just by selling what you already know. If you’d like to make money selling your expertise, here are ten easy ways to do so.
If you have extensive knowledge or passion for a particular topic, and enjoy writing, consider setting up your own money-making blog.
When you start a blog, you are starting a business, so you’ll have to spend a little money upfront to get started. Luckily, starting a blog is inexpensive, simple, and there’s no cap on how much you can earn!
Michelle Schroeder-Gardner started her personal finance blog (Making Sense of Cents) to share her journey of paying off debt and reaching financial independence. Today, she earns 7-figures a year while traveling the world in her sailboat and RV, pretty sweet, right?!
If you’re looking to make a little extra cash on the side, you can earn money by answering simple questions online. There are many platforms that are looking for experts who will log in and answer one-off questions from consumers who need answers in a variety of topics and subjects. While answering questions online isn’t going to earn you a full-time income, if you’re strategic, you may pull in and extra $500-$1,000 per month. “
8. Offer advice to people 1-on-1 via email, phone or Skype – it’s the easiest online model to start with: Gladice Gong
Gladice Gong in the article “How To Make Money Selling Advice Online: A Step-By-Step Guide”:
For online courses, you probably know that you’ll need to spend a lot of time to create your online course before you can sell it.
When it comes to selling your expertise and knowledge online, you should be relieved that you don’t have to create a 10-module course that comes with videos, audios, PDF downloads, worksheets, case studies, word for word scripts etc. All you need to do is to find people who are willing to pay for your advice. Then, you offer your advice to them 1-on-1 via Email, Phone or Skype. So, I would say that this is probably the easiest online business model to start with.
Once you have some success and experience with 1-on-1 private coaching, you can move on to do group coaching, workshops, masterminds or seminars where you can leverage your time and make much more money.
If you have done everything right, you should have gotten at least a few sales. But, our goal is to tweak our system to get as many sales as possible. How do you do that?
You get feedback from people who have gone through your email sequence but never bought the coaching program. Ask them for help by sending them a short survey to fill up. From their feedback, you will gain some insight as to why they never take up your offer. So, you know how you can improve your offer to get better conversions. Then, you optimize your system until you get a conversion rate that you are comfortable with.”
9. Cryptocurrency, computer science, karate, origami, and cooking are all skills people want to learn: Brian Wallace
Brian Wallace in the article “How to Sell Your Knowledge in the Digital Age”:
For people wanting to start their own small business but don’t know where to begin, the place to start is asking yourself, “What am I knowledgeable or passionate about?” The age of social media and global connection, as well as inflating tuition and limited resources, has created an opportunity to capitalize on what experts are calling knowledge commerce.
Knowledge commerce gives people the opportunity to share their passion or expertise with eager students from around the globe as either a side-gig or a full time job. Knowledge merchants create a brand, post regularly on social media, and teach on a variety of subjects.
Physics, economics, cryptocurrency, computer science, and even karate, origami, and cooking are all valuable skills people want to learn.
The knowledge market gives individuals the channels to put their skills to use while also making passive income and creating a fanbase.
Whether you’re a full-time parent, a college student looking to making a quick buck, or a lifelong hobbyist wanting to share your passion, the knowledge market is the perfect place to turn your mind into the engine of a small business.”
10. 37signals turned their expertise into three quarters of a million dollars in just a couple of years: Josh Catone
Josh Catone in the article “5 Ways to Sell Your Expertise Online”:
Sharing your expertise and becoming a thought leader in your industry can help you to attract new customers and develop lucrative, long-term business relationships. Beyond that, however, your expertise can also be utilized as a separate revenue stream in its own right.
In 2008, the folks at software company 37signals announced that they had turned their expertise into revenue streams worth more than three quarters of a million dollars in just a couple of years.
The lessons and skills you’ve acquired over the course of building a successful business have immense value to your peers. People will pay for that knowledge if you offer it via a consulting service. By setting aside a few hours each week or taking on a couple of consulting clients, you can build a healthy secondary revenue stream and potentially be introduced to unique investment opportunities.
Webinars might be the ultimate way to sell your expertise. By holding a paid webinar, you’re literally charging people to watch you talk about and demonstrate whatever it is that you have to share. Because you’re offering people access directly to you (the expert), webinars are worth the money to your peers.
If live events aren’t your cup of tea and static e-books don’t convey your message clearly enough, another way to sell your expertise is by offering an online course. You can include multimedia in your courses, additional reading material (maybe you could even include your e-book as required reading), and provide tests so that participants can assess their progress.”
So What Are Your Thoughts? Do Share!
This post is incomplete without your input. The community of Knowledge Commerce solopreneurs would feel galvanized to hear from you … so do share your thoughts on this topic with us, in the comments field below this post.
Related Articles From Our “The Basics & Power Of Knowledge Commerce: Guide”
- What Is Knowledge Commerce? Why Is It A Red-Hot Business?
- Knowledge Commerce Benefits: How Solopreneurs Can Gain Big
- Knowledge Commerce Products: What You Can Create And Sell
- Knowledge Commerce Challenges That Can Rattle Solopreneurs
- Knowledge Commerce Myths That Solopreneurs Must Disbelieve
- Knowledge Commerce Money Making Potential For Solopreneurs
- Knowledge Commerce Resources To Ease The Solopreneur Life
- Knowledge Commerce Roadmap To Start And Run Your Business
- Knowledge Commerce Skills Every Solopreneur Must Acquire
- Knowledge Commerce Case Studies: Solutions For Solopreneurs
- Online Business Idea #1: Knowledge Commerce By Solopreneurs
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