How to Turn a Marketing Agency Into 7 Figures of Passive Income
Hey there. Tim here.
Th recent episode of Ted Lasso was my favorite of the series. I couldn't stop laughing.
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1. How to Turn a Marketing Agency Into 7 Figures of Passive Income
Let me tell you about a moment that changed my outlook on money.
In 2012, my two best friends and I were pulling out of a gas station. These were the early days of our business. We were young and hungry and clueless.
We pulled onto Linton Ave (in Delray Beach) and Josh and I were talking about how weird it was that we were making money. It was small money at the time, but it was new and exciting. We both talked about how we were going to save our money, and then Bryan said something that totally changed everything.
He said "that's cool, I'd rather put that money to work."
At the time, I had no idea what that meant, but the seed was planted.
Since then, over the last 10 years, I've made millions and created 7 different profitable income streams.
How did I do it? By putting my money to work. Let me show you how.
Step 1 - Generate Cashflow
This is why I believe starting an agency (or a service business) of any kind is so crucial. Agencies don't require any upstart capital. All you need is a client, then you have a profitable business.
My agency is the lifeblood of everything I do. My agency generates the cashflow needed to invest in other projects and to create growth at scale.
Your first step is to generate cashflow. Nothing else matters until you have some sort of mechanism that puts money in your bank account.
In the beginning, this should be your full focus.
Step 2 - Buy Back Your Time
The goal is to replace yourself as quickly as possible.
When you start your agency, you will be doing all the work. It's tempting to see the profits as your money. But you need to rid yourself of that thinking.
The profits are nothing but resources that allow you to hire people and create systems that automate the workflow.
This is a long and arduous process. It's painstaking to find the right people and create the right systems that make your involvement unnecessary, and the temptation is to say "whatever I'll just do it myself."
Stay disciplined. Keep your eye on the prize.
This process could take years and as you grow, you need to continue fine tuning your process and your team.
Step 3 - Reinvest the Profits Into New Companies
When Bryan, David, and I started making real money with Stodzy, we could have spent it on cars and watches. But we didn't, we continuously reinvested that money into ourselves.
We built ...
- DetoxLocal.com
- MedicallyAssisted.com
- YourFirstStep.com
Then over the years, I've branched out personally and created other assets. Most notably ...
- Copyblogger.com
- YourBoulder.com (not yet profitable)
- DigitalCommerce.com
- TimStodz.com
- TheBootstrapper.io
All of these companies generate more cashflow. Honestly, it's more money than I know what to do with.
Simple, But Not Easy
This week, I got a message from a subscriber who was asking for advice. He said "you make it look easy."
I promise you, it has not been easy. But it has been simple.
The reason I have been able to execute is because of my focus, my lifestyle, and my temperament. I don't party. I don't drink. I don't do anything other than build my companies, workout, read, train Muay Thai, and go hiking with my wife and kids.
If you want to create wealth for yourself, there will be no room for anything else.
At least, that's been my experience.
2. Don't Be Afraid of A.I. - How to Thrive as an Entrepreneur in the World of Infinite Leverage
On this week’s episode, Ethan and I talk about AutoGPT, and what it means for your career as a content creator.
If you're not paying attention to A.I., you're going to be left behind.
Click here to listen to the full episode.
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4. How to Delete Zombie Pages to Improve Your SEO
This week is the start of a new YouTube series on SEO.
Over the last three years, most of the time spent on Copyblogger has been organizational. I've been building my product base, building The Academy, building Digital Commerce, and more.
I'm finally in a position where I can refocus on the SEO of the website. This is going to skyrocket my growth.
I am going to be documenting as much of the process as I can and publishing it on YouTube.
The first step is for me to start deleting old and useless pages, better known as "zombie pages."
Click here to watch the full video.
P.S. - Sorry about the glitchy mouse. Idk why loom is doing that. I'll have it fixed for the next video.
5. How Being Different Lands Me So Many Contracts and Deals (Members Only)
I had an interesting experience that highlighted why being different is better than being better. I was told recently to be more professional. What's funny is that I was the one who closed the deal while the "professional" companies didn't.
It really got me thinking about advantages, and our preconceived notions about how business should be.
Being different is why I able able to get so many contracts signed.
This week on The Bootstrapper, I show you how to be different and why it's so important.
Click here to read the full article.
Readers of this newsletter get 34% off membership to The Bootstrapper. Click here to take advantage of the savings.
Final Thought
My role in my business is changing.
It's no longer necessary for me to be hustling 24/7 and that makes me uncomfortable.
Who am I if I'm not working my ass off? It's basically my identity. I'm the hard working, blue collar kid from Philly who shows up day after day and puts in the hours.
But that's not where my time is best spent anymore.
The most important thing for me to do is act as CEO. CEOs make decisions. My job is to make the right decisions.
We have almost 20 employees. It's imperative that I focus on the high level aspects of my businesses right now.
And that's okay ... even though it doesn't feel like it.
Love you guys. Talk to you next week.
Tim