If you are interested or involved in any type of marketing for your company or brand, you can’t ignore the phenomenon that has revolutionized the way businesses promote their products and services. Basically leveraging the credibility and reach of prominent individuals across various social media platforms. That’s right, we are talking about Influencer Marketing.

What is it? How does it work? How did it start? How will it end? Or, will it end? And who are they? For this new series, let’s do a deep dive and see what we can learn and how we can help implement it into our own entrepreneurial growth.

The Evolution of Influencer Marketing

Influencer marketing is not a new concept. It has its roots in celebrity endorsements, a strategy used for decades. However, what sets influencer marketing apart is its accessibility and the diverse range of influencers available to brands. This means you don’t really have to be a famous celebrity…you just have to have a decent following due to your content that people are willing to listen to and follow.

Traditional celebrity endorsements were also typically expensive and reserved for big-budget campaigns. With the rise of social media, the landscape shifted towards micro-influencers, individuals with smaller but highly engaged followers. This allowed brands to connect with niche audiences effectively.

The explosion of platforms like Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and Twitter provided an incredible foundation for influencer marketing to flourish. These platforms allowed influencers to create and share content directly with their followers, fostering a more personal connection.

Influencer marketing became more sophisticated as data analytics tools allowed brands to assess an influencer’s impact, engagement rates, and audience demographics. This data-driven approach enabled more effective collaboration and resource allocation.

The Role of Influencers

Influencers are individuals who have developed a substantial and engaged following on social media platforms. They can be categorized based on the size of their following:

Mega-Influencers: These are celebrities or individuals with millions of followers. They often collaborate with major brands for large-scale campaigns but may have a less personal connection with their audience.

Macro-Influencers: Macro-influencers have a significant following, typically in the hundreds of thousands. They provide a balance between reach and authenticity.

Micro-Influencers: Micro-influencers have a smaller but highly engaged following, usually ranging from a few thousand to tens of thousands. They are known for their authenticity, niche focus, and stronger personal connections with their audience.

Nano-Influencers: Nano-influencers are individuals with a few hundred to a couple of thousand followers. They are often local or hyper-niche, making them suitable for specific, localized campaigns.

Do you personally know any of these influencers? Do you follow them? Why?

We’ll talk about some influencer marketing strategies next week and how with careful planning and strategy, you can boost your brand to a new level. But in the meantime, I hope I have helped pique enough interest for you to keep your mind open.

To be honest, I still have some mixed feelings about how much power we’ve given to those who are best able to curate their perfect social media persona. But I do believe there’s a way to embrace influencer marketing with authenticity and intentionality that fits your specific context, so you won’t miss out on the benefits it can bring your business.

Excited to talk more and figure it out together!

• Why an Online Digital Course is the best idea for passive income
• How to turn your knowledge into an online course
• What platform to use

• I first created a name and a brand for my project. I called it Better Golf Academy and the logo that I created is simple 3 different color circles: Orange, Black, and Red. The order of the colors is significant, as for most golf apps, if you bogey a hole, the default color of the score is orange, the par is black and the birdie is red. So, these colors represent a progression of someone improving from bogey to a birdie.
• I created a website. This is where I keep all my content, links to social media, and all my landing pages. I am bringing in traffic to my site through SEO as well.
• I created a Podcast. Basically, it’s just me on a mic for 20-30 minutes telling stories and teaching an audience about mental and game strategy. I try to be as entertaining as possible. This has become somewhat popular with thousands of downloads from all over the world. People reach out to me once in a while to thank me or just to encourage me. It’s been a fun experience. Here’s the link.
• I created a social media presence. I do Golf News videos and post them on TikTok, Instagram, and Youtube. I only started this about 3 months ago and I am organically reaching close to 1000 subscribers on Youtube and Instagram. I am having a hard time with TikTok, I only have 85 followers and the views on my videos aren’t as high. I think my audience is too young…lol.
• I collect emails. I created a handful of landing pages and incentivize people to download a lead magnet (some type of drill, check sheet, charts…) – giving  resources to help people in their game as a trade for their email.

1. Udemy: Udemy is one of the largest online learning platforms, allowing instructors to create and sell courses on a wide range of topics. It provides a vast user base and a relatively straightforward course creation process. However, Udemy often runs promotions and discounts, which can impact your course pricing.
2. Teachable: Teachable is a user-friendly platform that lets you create and customize your own branded online school. It offers various features for course creation, marketing, and student engagement. Teachable also provides the ability to have more control over your pricing and branding.
3. Thinkific: Thinkific is another platform that offers course creation, customization, and marketing tools. It provides a flexible pricing structure and supports different types of content, including videos, quizzes, and assignments.
4. Skillshare: Skillshare is more focused on creative and hands-on classes. It operates on a subscription model where students pay a monthly fee to access the entire library of courses. Instructors receive royalties based on the number of minutes watched by premium students.
5. Podia: Podia is a platform that lets you create and sell online courses, digital downloads, and memberships. It’s known for its simplicity and all-in-one approach, making it suitable for solo entrepreneurs.
6. Kajabi: Kajabi is a comprehensive platform that includes tools for course creation, marketing, and sales funnels. It’s often chosen by professionals looking to create a full online business, including courses, membership sites, and more.
7. Coursera: Coursera partners with universities and institutions to offer more structured and academically-oriented courses. If you’re looking to create content with a more formal and academic approach, Coursera could be a good fit.
8. EdX: Similar to Coursera, edX partners with universities to offer a wide range of courses. If you have an educational background and want to offer more in-depth, university-style courses, edX might be worth considering.

• Course Creation: Thinkific provides an intuitive course builder that allows you to create courses using videos, audio files, PDFs, quizzes, surveys, and more. You can organize your content into sections and modules to create a structured learning experience.
• Customization: Thinkific offers customization options to help you brand your course site. You can choose from various themes, customize colors, fonts, and upload your own logo to create a consistent look and feel.
• Sales and Marketing: Thinkific allows you to create customizable sales pages to effectively showcase your courses. You can set up pricing options, payment gateways (such as Stripe and PayPal), and offer coupons and promotions to attract students.
• Student Engagement: Thinkific offers features like discussions, comments, and assignments to encourage student interaction and engagement. You can create assignments for students to complete and submit for assessment.
• Quizzes and Assessments: The platform allows you to create quizzes and assessments to gauge student understanding. You can choose from various question types and set passing grades.
• Certificates: Thinkific enables you to issue completion certificates to students who successfully complete your courses. This can provide a sense of accomplishment and value to your students.
• Analytics and Insights: Thinkific provides analytics and reporting tools to track enrollment, completion rates, revenue, and other metrics. These insights help you understand the performance of your courses and make informed decisions.
• Membership and Subscription Models: In addition to individual courses, Thinkific allows you to create membership and subscription-based models for ongoing access to content. This is useful for creating recurring revenue streams.
• Pricing: Start Package at $74/month and Grow Package at $149/month
• Customer Support: Thinkific offers customer support to assist you with technical issues, questions, and concerns as you set up and manage your courses.
• Ease of Use: Thinkific is designed to be user-friendly, with a straightforward interface that simplifies the process of creating and managing courses. It provides step-by-step guidance to help you get started.

• Course Creation: Teachable provides a straightforward course creation process that allows you to structure your content using lectures, sections, and modules. You can add various multimedia elements such as videos, PDFs, quizzes, and more. The platform supports both video hosting and embedding from external sources like YouTube and Vimeo.
• Customization: Teachable offers customization options to ensure your course site aligns with your branding. You can choose from various themes, customize colors, fonts, and even use your own domain name for a professional look.
• Sales and Marketing: Teachable provides tools for creating compelling sales pages to showcase your courses. You can add pricing options, set up payment gateways (such as PayPal or Stripe), and offer discounts and promotions. The platform also allows you to implement affiliate marketing programs to encourage others to promote your courses.
• Student Engagement: Teachable offers engagement features like discussions and comments within course modules. This helps foster a sense of community and interaction among your students.
• Quizzes and Assessments: You can create quizzes and assessments to gauge your students’ understanding of the material. Teachable’s quiz builder allows you to create multiple-choice questions and other question types.
• Completion Certificates: Teachable enables you to issue completion certificates to students who finish your courses, which can add value to their learning experience.
• Analytics and Insights: The platform provides insights into your course’s performance, including enrollment rates, completion rates, revenue, and more. These analytics can help you refine your courses and marketing strategies.
• Pricing: Free Version, Basic $39month, Pro $119/month and Pro+ $199/month
• Customer Support: Teachable offers customer support to help you navigate any technical issues or questions you might have while setting up and managing your courses.
• Ease of Use: Teachable is designed to be user-friendly, making it suitable for both beginners and experienced course creators. Its drag-and-drop interface and step-by-step guides simplify the course creation process.

• Course Creation: Kajabi offers a robust course creation tool that allows you to create engaging and interactive courses. You can incorporate videos, quizzes, assignments, downloadable resources, and drip content to deliver a structured learning experience.
• Website and Branding: Kajabi provides website building capabilities, enabling you to create a fully branded online presence. You can customize templates, colors, fonts, and more to match your branding.
• Sales and Marketing: Kajabi offers advanced sales and marketing features, including customizable landing pages, sales funnels, and email marketing campaigns. It allows you to set up pricing options, offer upsells, and implement affiliate marketing programs.
• Membership and Community: In addition to courses, Kajabi allows you to create membership sites and communities. You can offer tiered access to different content and provide a space for students to interact and engage.
• Automation: Kajabi includes automation features that allow you to set up workflows and sequences. This can help automate tasks like sending welcome emails, delivering content, and following up with customers.
• Analytics and Insights: Kajabi provides detailed analytics and reporting to track your business performance. You can monitor metrics such as sales, revenue, engagement, and more to make informed decisions.
• Integrations: While Kajabi aims to be an all-in-one solution, it also offers integrations with popular tools such as email marketing platforms, payment gateways, and third-party apps.
• Pricing: Basic Package $149/month, Growth Package $199/month, Pro Package $399/month
• Customer Support: Kajabi offers customer support to assist you with technical issues, questions, and concerns as you set up and manage your online courses and digital products.
• Ease of Use: Kajabi is known for its user-friendly interface and the ability to consolidate multiple tools into one platform. Its intuitive design allows users to create and manage their online business without needing extensive technical skills.

We are living in the digital age right now where millions are making a full-time living (and beyond) through passive income. And according to our research, online courses are really making an impact without any hint of slowing down. 

So, where do we even begin? How do we take our experience and translate it into Digital Course Content? 

Before we start, a quick personal story. If you’ve been following my emails over the years, I’ve shared my obsession with camper van conversions and van lifers. Here’s the link. Do you know what else I did with that obsession? I purchased an online digital van conversion course. I wanted to know everything about van life to make sure I am fully prepared for what’s ahead…gruesome hours of laboring to build my van and even get a glimpse of what the journey would look like. This course gave me full confidence that I can do it and now, I know how to get from point A to my freedom of Van Life. Was the course worth it? Absolutely.

So, know this. You are not only teaching something you already know, you can be someone’s source of freedom. You can make a difference. Your knowledge can not only be valuable, but essential to others. 

Here we go. Here are some steps to consider as you turn your knowledge into a course:

• First, list out the unique experiences, skills, or transformations you’ve undergone that others can benefit from learning. 
• Jot down what exact steps you took for your own transformation (these will form the foundation and a framework for your course content).
• Structure your course to map your own transformational journey – where you started, the obstacles you faced, how you overcame them, and where you are now.
• These steps or phases will be your modules and the how-to will be your lessons.
• Create practical exercises, cheat sheets, checklists, worksheets, planners, and/or resource guides to elaborate on what you teach.

To give you a real-life example, here’s a broken-down structure module from the Vanlife Academy Course I purchased:

• Welcome (Course outline and intro)
• Preparing for Van Life (Budget, finding the right van, expectations..etc)
• Planning Van Build (Priorities, layouts, scheduling…etc)
• Van Build Theory (Electrical, Insulation, Plumbing..etc)
• Van Build (Interior, exterior, solar, wiring, windows…etc)
• Life on the Road (tips, issues, legal)

Can you imagine creating a course like this and selling it over and over again? I can. And I think you can too. 

As we said last week, you are an expert. I keep repeating that because so many of us tend to sell ourselves short. We don’t value our knowledge enough, but trust me: the stuff that seems obvious to you can be a revelation to someone else.

Don’t underestimate what you know. Seriously. You have something in you that will stop customers in their tracks. Stop depriving them of the opportunity to learn – and pay you for it!

Someone explained the definition of passive income to me a long time ago as “a way of making an income while you are sleeping.” Whoa!! That would be my dream job. Get it? Dream job. hahah. 

That doesn’t mean there’s no work involved – there’s a lot of time, energy, and work to set it up, but once it’s done, you launch it and watch the dollars roll in. Well…maybe not at first, but that’s the goal. Also, it’s not completely hands-off; it often involves some additional labor along the way, but not that much.

The official IRS examples of passive income used to be two things: A rental property, or a business in which you do not actively participate…i.e. royalties, stock dividends…etc. But not anymore. Passive income now takes many forms thanks to the internet. In fact, if you Google “best passive income ideas in 2023” you’ll get a list of what’s working and thriving in the market right now. But, let’s dig a little deeper and see what the #1 best passive income idea is out of everything out there. 

Ready? Drum roll, please… the number one way to make passive income is Digital Course Creation.

Basically, it’s a popular strategy of figuring out what you have or know that others can benefit from and making an online course available for people to learn from you. Simple as that. Have you ever transformed your garage into an office space from scratch? Have you ever finished your first marathon? Have you ever lost 25 lbs with a simple eating habit? Ask this question to yourself…”what have I personally achieved that I could teach others?”

Let me tell you why. The E-Learning market is projected to hit $848.12 Billion at a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 17.54% by 2030. The demand was valued at $210.1 Billion in 2021. The expected growth is phenomenal and there are no signs of slowing down. 

Why are e-learning and online courses so popular? Because people are curious, people love learning and they love learning in a non-traditional way: on their own time, in their own place, and at their own speed. 

And why are the people creating these online courses? It’s summed up into 3 categories:

1. They want to impact more lives with their message and create a lasting legacy.
2. They want to create a sustainable source of scalable income independent of how much effort they are willing to put in.
3. They want to ditch their day job or side-hustle and run a profitable business online that gives them more freedom.

Do any of these 3 jumps out at you? Which one? I would love for you to tell me more about it, but in the meantime, this is my new series called “Passive Income” where I, along with Amy Porterfield (Online Marketing Guru), will teach you all the ins and outs of creating an online course.

And before we go, let me address the big objection that we often hear: “But I don’t have anything to share that’s worthy of a course!”

That’s not true! Whatever industry or context you are in, you are an expert with unique insight that no one else has. You might not know it because it’s just part of your everyday life and you’ve been doing it forever so you take it for granted…but what you do is unique to a lot of people and they are dying to know what you know. Dive deep into the knowledge that seems so obvious to you, then get ready to share your journey and your findings. 

Bottom line: people want to give you money for your expertise. Please, just LET THEM. That’s what this Passive Income series is all about.

Have you ever set a goal on the outer boundaries of what you think is possible? Then systematically pursued it? If you have, then you know: when you completely and wholly immerse yourself in the process of reaching that goal, you find yourself at your best…at your peak.

With our Peak Performance series, we’ve covered these key principles.

• Stress + Rest = Growth
  • Periodization
  • Stress
  • Rest
• The power of developing optimal routines and systems
• Purpose

Everyone is unique and we all reach the peak of our growth differently – it needs to fit our unique style and specific demand of our goals. There are many ways to get there.

For me, what I am learning through all this is that I first need to show up. It’s been said and observed that the real secret of world-class performers is not the setting of goals and doing the daily routines that they develop…but the fact that they stick to them. They show up…even when it’s hard, even when they don’t feel like it, even when there’s a great excuse not to show up. 

I remember sitting in my car as I was stopped at a red light staring at a guy who was jogging in the pouring rain. I thought to myself, it’s a great day to run on a treadmill dude…but he showed me something more. He demonstrated to me what showing up looks like. It’s the process of sticking to the commitment no matter what. 

This interesting strength of showing up has a twist…it can only come from deep within, often rooted in something…something beyond ourselves, something more important than myself, something more beautiful, something more powerful and something more meaningful than I can explain or even understand. 

What’s your something? What’s something that will make you want to run in the pouring rain?

Whatever it is, here’s my last piece of advice for you: START NOW. I could write a whole other blog about how one of the biggest enemies of peak performance is procrastination (maybe I’ll try to write that next week…) 

But seriously – I recently heard this conversation with Tim Pychyl, an expert on the science of procrastination – according to his research, the key to defeating procrastination is getting started.

So what are we waiting for? A rainy day?? Even if it’s sunny outside, your run in the rain can begin right now – it all starts with showing up. 

Let’s go to the peak!

You’ve heard these crazy stories before. The real, documented cases of ordinary individuals displaying incredible feats of strength in times of emergency, including instances of people lifting cars to save lives. These incidents are often referred to as “super-human” or “hysterical strength.” When faced with extreme stress or life-threatening situations, the body can release a surge of adrenaline, which temporarily enhances physical performance beyond normal limits.

One of the most well-known cases of this phenomenon occurred in 1982 when a 20-year-old college student named Angela Cavallo lifted a 1964 Chevrolet Impala off her father, who was trapped underneath the car after it fell on him while he was working on it. Angela’s extraordinary display of strength and determination saved her father’s life.

Another remarkable case happened in 2006 in Tucson, Arizona, when Tim Boyle lifted a Chrysler minivan to rescue a six-year-old girl trapped underneath the vehicle after it accidentally rolled over her. Boyle’s quick action and immense strength played a crucial role in saving the child’s life.

So…this begs the question: does our body really carry the ability to perform such extraordinary strength? Is it in all of us? If so, how do we tap into it? The answer is yes, somewhere deep within, our body is able. But on an ordinary day, during ordinary circumstances, the body shuts down well in advance of its limits. Fear, fatigue and pain act as protective mechanisms for our bodies. These sensations signal to us that if we continue with an enormous challenge, there’s a good chance we’ll fail or injure ourselves…so it forces us to stop.

Until…

We transcend beyond ourselves, like when a circumstance forces us to find a PURPOSE beyond our “self” into something that’s bigger than ourselves. A determination to do everything possible for others in these situations can make a way for you to perform at your highest level.

So, what do we learn about the secret source of reaching our Peak Performance?

• Our own “ego” or “self” serves as a protective mechanism that holds us back from reaching our true limits.
• When faced with great challenges, our ego is biologically programmed to shut us down, telling us to stop and protect ourselves.
• By focusing on a self-transcending purpose, or a reason for doing something beyond our “self,” we can override our ego and break through our self-imposed limits.
• To the extent you can, link your activities to a greater purpose when you are faced with challenges and your mind is telling you to quit. Ask yourself why, and if the answer is for someone or something greater than myself, you’ll be more likely to push onward.
• Thinking less about yourself is one of the best ways to improve yourself.
   

There’s something so poetic about all this – you really can be a superheroic version of your best self…as long as it’s for someone else. 

Once again, it takes me back to one of BOS Media’s favorite quotes, from Coach Jimmy Valvano: “Every single day, in every walk of life, ordinary people do extraordinary things.” But your ultimate extraordinary power will only be truly unleashed when it’s for others.

In the crowded locker room, 30 minutes before entering a sold-out stadium in front of thousands of roaring fans, he starts his routine. First, some calisthenics…like a seasoned prizefighter, hopping from side to side. Next, wide circles with his arms, then some stretching and grip work. He’s got to make sure his blood is flowing, his joints are loose and his muscles are warmed up. All are signals that his body is ready. 

Now, he’s focusing on his mind…it’s still racing, he’s got to get into the right headspace. He’s taking deep breaths and trying to cultivate a specific psychological state…let’s call it “the zone.”

He finally enters the arena, the lights dim…the crowd continues to roar. With a flash of light, the air fills with the sound of over 50,000 fans screaming.

His name is Matt Billingslea. He’s the drummer for Taylor Swift. The show starts and they both ride this wave of energy – one of the ultimate examples for our current series on Peak Performance.

Do you have a routine? I was forced to have one all my life. And I dreaded it. The same thing everyday over and over again. I couldn’t wait to run my own business and be my own boss someday so I could wake up whenever I wanted, and work on my projects any time of the day and create my own schedule depending on how I felt, with the flexibility to accommodate whatever I had going on. 

Interesting thing is, once I became my own boss and got that freedom with my time, I naturally fell into a rhythm. The routine made me feel productive and efficient. It made me focus and allowed me to operate at a higher level. So strange, I had to find out why. And this is what I’ve learned during my research.

Having a routine is imperative to reaching peak performance because it provides structure, consistency, and optimization of time and resources. Here are several reasons I found why having a routine is important:

1. Efficient use of time: Having a routine helps you allocate time effectively and prioritize tasks. When you have a set schedule, you are less likely to waste time on unproductive activities or get overwhelmed by decision fatigue.
2. Consistency and discipline: A routine instills a rhythm in your daily life. By following a consistent pattern, you develop good habits and reduce the likelihood of procrastination or distraction.
3. Reduced stress and increased focus: Knowing what to expect and having a plan in place reduces stress and anxiety. When you have a routine, you can focus more on the task at hand, as your brain doesn’t need to spend as much energy on figuring out what to do next.
4. Enhanced mental and physical well-being: A routine that includes healthy habits, such as regular exercise, sufficient sleep, and balanced meals, promotes both mental and physical well-being. When you take care of your body and mind, you are better equipped to perform at your best.

HOWEVER, one final note before we go – there’s definitely a difference between a routine and a rut. Routine is about healthy habits that provide the structure to support growth; a rut is when the routine becomes stale and actually inhibits growth.

If you feel like you’re in a rut, take Taylor Swift’s advice: Shake It Off, and get back to the Love Story with a fresh routine. Are you Ready For It?