While on a flight to California - my first time ever there - I was reading a book about money and how it works (I highly recommend it for anyone, especially for Gen-Y and Millennials).  It gave some pretty sad statistics about how we (we meaning nearly every person in this country and around the world ) are not saving enough, planning for our future in retirement, and most of life’s unexpected detours that will inevitably happen.

The biggest part of the problem is that only a very small percentage of schools - high school and college - teach financial literacy.  Most people think they will start when they have more money, and then when they do, some other excuse comes up, and before you know it, you are wondering where all that time you thought that you had is gone.

One of the best recommendations, of course, was to start a side business.  You can do anything from selling that world-famous chili recipe you have worked on so long to perfect, to making furniture in your garage.  Essentially, any skill or talent you possess can be transformed into a side hustle.

Most of you have heard about people that make money online selling all kinds of things - or really anything.  Well, what if you didn’t have that perfect thing to sell?  If you have looked online at all, you know that there are tons of courses online about selling online.

Sure, it can be scary, and it is hard to find someone to trust.  But with a little research, you will find that there are plenty of legitimate people that will really help you get started.

I tried lots of things, and some worked okay, but I didn’t connect with it or it only lasted for a short time until the hype passes or it just dies out.

After some trial and error - okay, lots of error - I found something that is great for beginners and experienced people.  Affiliate marketing. 

It has been around, well forever.  Now, we have the internet and the ability to sell other people’s products and services online.  You don’t have to create the product or even service it.  Marketing has now become easier than ever with so much help online and social media to advertise on. But how are you going to manage all of this without the confusion of jumping around from one site to another?

You know that I have been talking about it for a little while now.  It’s called Estage.  It’s a platform that was specifically built by and for affiliate marketers.  

A couple of key points are:

- Everything is located at one domain.

- It focuses on building a community of followers.

Why is it important to use one domain?  You own it and no one can take it away.  No one can tell you, you can’t use this word or that because it violates TOS and they shut you down.  Also, it is an asset that you can later sell.  This is huge.  Ask if any other platform can say that.

Why is it important to have a community?  Again, you own it.  The “List” is yours.  Other sites you are only renting your list of followers.  Whoever’s site you are using is who your followers belong to.  (Not really your followers then, are they?)  And when you have your own community you can show them new products or services that you have without paying for advertising.

If you’ve been contemplating a side hustle with the potential to grow into a business, we’re thrilled to invite you to our upcoming free webinar. This webinar will offer a detailed guide on the process of transforming your side hustle into a thriving business.

Please leave a comment what you are doing to gain financial literacy and if you have a side hustle that supplements your income.