New Article--"Produce--Reuse--Recycle"

Since Earth Day has just come and gone, I thought it would be a good time to share with those online marketers and infopreneurs out there how to really profit from the Reduce-Reuse-Recycle mantra. I call it Produce-Reuse-Recycle, and it goes a little something like this:

Produce

Produce your own information products. They can be ebooks, articles, autoresponder email courses, or teleseminars. Creating your own product puts you in control, and allows you to share your passion about the subject with your audience. It also puts you in the role of the Expert, a trusted advisor who knows the subject your audience is paying good money to learn about inside and out.

Reuse

Once you've created it, continue to put your stuff out there and keep promoting it. Every time someone new comes along, invite them to join your email list by giving them one of these products you've created.

Recycle

This is sort of the same as the Reuse element above, but different. When we're talking about recycling in this case, we are turning something meant for one use into something else meant for another. Here's how it works:

You can turn a group of related articles into an ebook.

You can record an ebook or article as a recorded teleseminar you can give away or sell.

You can turn that autoresponder course into an ebook or teleseminar series.

See how this works?

By Producing, Reusing, and Recycling, you are saving time and energy on your product creation. That way, you don't have to reinvent the wheel every time you need to roll out another product. Just make sure your list is large enough that any particular group isn't seeing the same information all the time, and don't give it to your list as an article, then turn around and try to sell it to them in an ebook, unless maybe it's only one small part they've seen before in a sea of new
material.

There you have it, a way to profit from your information products, without having to go back to the well every single time you need another money-making product.

Time Management

Due to recent tragedies both personal and public, I have been thinking a lot lately about getting things done. About making the time on this Earth you have count for something. About doing whatever it takes to do what you want to do most in this world.

Time management is a big issue, whether you're a regular working stiff or a stay-at-home freelancer. I'd like to open this up to your ideas on time management, and how you get things done in your life.

So please, give me your thoughs, tips, rules to live by in the comments section. I think everyone will benefit from each other's hard-won wisdom.

Are These Guys Crazy?

Ordinarily, sticking a rake handle into a blender is a definite warranty-voider, but two businessmen have turned it into their bread and butter.

Featured in the latest issue of Direct Magazine, Blendtec's George Wright and Tom Dickson created a series of videos where they throw everything from marbles to cell phones to pickled pigs feet, and yes, even rake handles into their blenders, with profitable results. The videos have appeared on YouTube, and thousands of people have submitted their suggestions for what to throw in next.

Web 2.0 stunts like this are growing increasingly popular. While I am a bit leery of the trend--what is the point of taking time to download and view what is essentially a commercial?--I admire the company's creativity. Also, as is quoted in the article, the blender actually does what they are showing it doing, and aren't relying on the usual television FX trickery that make us believe a car and ride along the ledge of a building or some other outlandish though visually interesting claim. They are building brand identity, while also causing the viewer to think, "Man, if their blenders can grind up a rake handle into powder, just think what it will do to the ingredients of my next smoothie."

So long as young children don't see the videos and try to perform similar stunts on a competitor's blender, without safety equipment. Advertising is fun, until someone loses an eye.