Lee's
Answer
A little bitter, eh? I don't blame you at all! Let's face
it, being the independent thinker you are I suspect you will
never be completely happy working for someone else. I will
also tell you that it isn't likely you'll get rich, either.
Maybe it's time to become your OWN boss. Sometimes when you
want something done right you have to do it yourself. Sometimes
when you want something done at ALL you have to do it yourself.
Here's a couple of suggestions for turning your ideas into
money.
Self-Publish. Have you every thought about writing a book?
You could always self-publish. Years ago the Johnson brothers
(Johnson & Johnson) set out to promote their ready-made
antiseptic surgical dressings (which were revolutionary at
the time). To promote the product to the skeptical medical
professionals, the brothers wrote and published a series of
highly regarded books that educated the medical community
about the threat posed by airborne bacteria, and sales soared.
You can get started with less than it would take to make a
film or cut a CD.
Self-Produce a CD or Audio Tape. Bill Mayer, the author of
the self-published book "The Magic In The Right Question"
found that audio cassettes were an untapped source of profit.
"Im selling my books at the back of the room for $15.00.
I asked myself, 'How can I best capitalize on the same speaking
opportunity?' I created a tape series and started selling
them for $59.95. I figured if I sold 100 copies at $59.00
I'm a lot better off than if I sold 100 books at $15.00 a
pop. And what if I bundled them together?" So in addition
to being paid to speak, he also sold books and tapes thus
making the most of each speaking opportunity. The other advantages
of producing audio tapes are that they make a great gift (as
a thank-you or a door prize) and are a way to reach a lot
of people who need advice. An audio tape can also build your
credibility and even make you a celebrity in your field. Use
them instead of (or in addition to) brochures that nobody
reads. Prospects can listen to tapes while commuting. They
are cheaper and easier to produce than ever. (Taping a live
performance is the easiest way to go.) Keyboardist and composer
Rob Mullins has an impressive resume (including a Grammy nomination)
which can all be traced back to his self-penned, self-produced,
and self-marketed "Soulscape" album. He ran his
own record label out his basement before becoming an in-demand
performer
Self-produced videos. Video may have killed the radio star,
but videos are something you can use to promote yourself.
Give them away (like a brochure) or pack them with content
(they teach, inform or entertain) and sell them. Maybe do
both. You could demonstrate your proficiency at, say, cooking,
painting, crafts, landscaping, playing the guitar, giving
tips for hairstylists and sell these. The same tape can double
as a brochure by simply including it with your press kit.
Do it all yourself. Maybe the best do-it-yourself story is
about the Dave Matthews Band. The band was able to sell half-a-million
copies of their early releases on their own label, Bama Rags,
as well as tons of tees and other memorabilia through mail
order and at live shows. Of course, The Grateful Dead and
Phish have also created a cottage industry with back-of-the-room
business.
Be a performer. Rent out a hall and play for pay. (The profits
come directly from the door.) The exposure can really pay
off. When Kathy Najimy arrived in New York, she didn't have
an agent, a manager or a publicist. What she had was cajones.
She called everyone who was anyone from Saturday Night Live
to The New York Times and invited them to see the fiercely
funny feminist play that she and friend Mo Gaffney wrote and
produced. To her surprise, people actually showed up to see
The Kathy and Mo Show, and a career was launched.
Be a promoter. Finance your own tour. Sara McLachlan founded
the ground-breaking all-female touring music festival (and
grossed $28.3 million in 1999). Miri Ben-Ari, a jazz violinist,
along with pianist Eric Lewis started hosting jam sessions
at the Upper West Side club, Cleopatra's Needle, which has
turned into the place to be on a Tuesday night attracting
some of the city's top musicians.
Run a gallery. Be an exhibitionist. Don't wait for a gallery
to put on a show for you, do it yourself. You could use (at
no charge) a coffee house, church, library, bookstore, hotel,
your studio, a mansion, restaurant, or your home. Invite everyone
including fans, friends, critics, clients, peers, buyers and
the media. It could be a fund-raiser (a great publicity angle).
Come up with a vehicle to show off your talents‹a screening
for your film or a reading for a short-story book.
Host your own show. Be a cable guy. There is a handyman who
has his own cable access show (he landed a large building
supply store as his sponsor) that reaches a potential million
homes. Bruce and Sharon Asakawa have turned their green thumb
into a blossoming business that includes a garden center,
weekly syndicated radio show, lectures, contributions to magazines
and a new book.
Sell a booklet. It could be as simple as collecting information
and repackaging it (quote book or directory). Series of articles
can turn into a booklet or in a workbook from a seminar you
did. Self-publish or publish online (books on demand or e-books).
It adds to your credibility (can lead to consulting), promotablity
(publicity and public appearances), profitability (residual
income, back of the room sales) plus it is a fantastic marketing
method.
Be an Internet provider. Jon Franklin teaches creative writing
and has written four books and won two Pulitzers for journalism.
He is also an entrepreneur. At first he sold his own books
directly to readers on a pay-per-read website he founded called
Bylines. He then began adding other good writing and made
it available to readers and gives writers a 60 percent royalty.
His goal is to cut out publishers and printers.
Open a school. In 1992 Christopher Lowell decided to leave
his high-paying job as a marketing executive to open his own
home design store and school in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. To promote
the school and store he started producing and hosting a show
for local television that taught the audience how to decorate
on a limited budget. The show, Interior Motives, was picked
up by the Discovery Channel and became a BIG hit. (It's now
called "The Christopher Lowell Show".)
Be a magazine publisher. Publish a magazine, e-zine or newsletter.
Author Howard J. Ruff promoted his new book by sending a $2.00
off coupon to the readers of his newsletter Financial Success
Report. The promotion worked well. It got people to buy the
book from the chain stores (that's the only place the coupon
was valid) and drove the book up on their best-seller lists
and eventually the "NY Times Best Seller List".
Start a catalog company. When you sell one thing, there is
a good chance you can find other things these same people
want and need. You can create them or acquire them, like other
books. It is easy on the Web. You can link to Amazon.com and
get a commission without having to do any of the detail work
or stock anything. Sell your products and pick up other people's
products, too.
Open a store. Your own store. You are probably sick of hearing
about my retail stores by now, so here¹s a story about
No Limit Records owned by Master P. He peddled grass-roots
rap through his store because essentially the chains didn't
want to deal with some of the gangsta rap. His store turned
into a record label and Master P's self-produced first album
(which he sold in his store and from the trunk of his car)
sold over 100,000 copies. You can sell T-shirts, hats, mugs,
jewelry, calendars, cards, software or posters. Price/Stern/Sloan
adapted their bestselling book on Murphy's Laws to a desk
calendar and sold over one million copies. Wingbow Press put
out a deck of Tarot cards to accompany The Motherpeace Tarot
Playbook by Vicki Noble and Jonathan Tenney.
Syndicate a column. So many writers are living their dreams
by being able to write their own columns, only I doubt their
dream was that it would be on the Internet, but so what.
Invent something. Want to be the next Parker Bros.? Dave Kapell
was a struggling songwriter who drove a cab to make ends meet.
That is, until he invented the Magnetic Poetry Kit. (He used
to write songs by using magnetic words on the fridge and on
other metal objects before discovering other uses for his
invention.) He began by bringing his poetry kits to parties.
He first sold them at fairs and then local retailers began
selling them and before he knew it, he sold more than a million!
Produce a product. Victoria Jackson is the cosmetic queen
and founder of the cosmetic line that bears her name. You
may have seen her late at night on an infomercial chatting
with actress Ali McGraw. Frustrated that she couldn't find
make-up she liked, she developed her own line with a cosmetic
chemist working in her garage. Gary Erickson was on a 175-mile
bike ride and couldn't stomach another nasty tasting energy
bar. He knew he could make a better bar—and did. Cliff
Bars are big business.
Be a clothing designer. Helmut Lang had no formal training
in art or design but that didn't stop him from making clothes
for himself. People saw him wearing his custom designs and
asked if they could buy them. His first few commissions were
from friends and he specialized in apparel for formal events.
Soon he had his own show and was blowing people away with
his back-to-basics approach.
