4 Ways to Work Less and Earn More
In my post on 5 Ways to Save Time in your Business Every Day, I mentioned that I’ve had a post-it note on my monitor for the last year. It says “work less + make the same or more money.” And I’m happy to say that after putting solid strategies in place, exactly that is happening. In this post, I’ll share the 4 steps I took and how each contributed to better earnings.
I’m generally not a fan of blogger income reports as I often see them as something unachievable or braggy, so I was hesitant to include dollar amounts here. But after talking to other designers, I thought by sharing a snapshot of a couple of months, I could give a realistic view of how my business has grown and shifted over the last year and the steps I took to get there.
Let’s contrast April 2020 with April 2021:
April 2020
Sales (working 1:1 with clients): $6,341
Course Sales (after fees): $364
Affiliate Sales: $71
Total Income: $6,776
Expenses: $768
NET: $6,008 (with passive income of $435)
April 2021
Sales (working 1:1 with clients): $9,526
Course Sales (after fees): $2,354
Affiliate Sales: $2,618
Total Income: $14,498
Expenses: $1,467
NET: $13,031 (with passive income of $4,972)
My net profit was more than twice in April 2021 what it was in April 2020. At first glance, you might think I took on more client work, but I actually worked less. There are certainly confounding factors, like COVID, so this is by no means a scientific analysis, but I did want to share the anecdotal evidence with you. Overall, I’m taking on less 1:1 work and seeing big payoffs in work I’ve put toward passive income, with a difference of over $4,500 in passive income comparing April 2020 and April 2021.
Here’s how you can work less and earn more too:
1. Raise your prices
I took a look at other designers’ pricing and realized that I was undercharging based on my experience, process, and outcome. So toward the end of 2020, I raised prices for all my 1:1 work. In April 2021 I actually worked fewer hours than in April 2020, but my hourly rate and project rates were higher in 2021, so even with working fewer hours, I earned more from my 1:1 clients.
I’d recommend doing a few weeks of time tracking to see how much time you spend on different aspects of your business, then calculating how much you’re paying yourself per hour. You will likely need to adjust that UP. Worst case scenario? Your new leads start to fall off and you can lower your prices again, but I doubt that will happen. Clockify is a free tool that lets you track work across projects and tasks so you can see exactly how much time you spend on different parts of your business.
I’ve also found that by raising my prices, the majority of my clients now treat me as an expert in my field, rather than as an assistant ticking off their needed tasks. This allows me to do my best work - work that both the client and I can be proud of - instead of spending Tuesdays trying out 100 shades of blue for text links.
2. Hire help
I’ve been so grateful to have Jeannine Gallagher on board this year to help with behind-the-scenes work for a few hours each month. She’s helped with my Pinterest push these past few months, creating new pins for old blog posts, and she jumps in on website work too - everything from moving over blog posts to setting up my new Creator Spotlight series. Hiring help was something I put off for a long time because I don’t like to delegate, but I wish I’d done it sooner. Having Jeannine take some work off my plate allowed me to free up time to work on bigger picture ideas like my course.
If you want more guidance on hiring a VA, I took Elizabeth’s Goddard’s The Painless Guide to Hiring and Working with a VA which was very helpful - she walks you through the hiring process from what to ask to what legal docs to have in place, then shows you how to outsource tasks so you get the best results.
You could also choose to hire an expert to take over certain aspects of your business. A Pinterest manager, social media expert, video editor… think about what tasks aren’t bringing you joy and outsource them. Or take a look at your time tracker and see which tasks take up your time that don’t require you, anything you could hand off to someone else.
3. Begin (or level up) affiliate marketing
I love sharing Squarespace tips and tricks, as well as the tools and services I use in my own business. I get to create content that helps other people and share what works for me while being compensated. My blog has been a huge part of this. If you’re interested in learning more, check out my course Make Money with your Blog to learn to leverage your blog to grow both affiliate income and sales of your own products and services.
Want to make money with your blog?
You can! And it’s easier than you might think.
I’ll show you how to create a passive income stream, attract more clients, and grow your revenue. All while serving your audience.
4. Sell digital products
In April 2020, I was actively selling two courses at very low price points ($27 & $37). In April 2021, I still offer my mini course on image optimization ($27) and am now also selling my larger course on making money with your blog. I’ve definitely been bitten by the course bug and am actively planning out what course to offer next. If courses aren’t your cup of tea, you could sell Canva templates, stock photos, downloadable checklists, or anything else you have experience creating.
In addition to listing your digital product on your own site, it might be a good fit for Creative Market or the new Ghost Marketplace. I’ve also had success with setting up affiliates for my courses. In all these cases, you get to let others take on some of the sales work for you in exchange for a piece of the pie.
Consistency pays off:
For each of these ways I’ve increased income, being both strategic and consistent has been important. You can start by raising your prices and using that extra income to hire help - taking some items off your plate so you can work on adding an affiliate marketing strategy or developing a digital product. It takes time to see your earnings shift as you implement these ideas, so consistency and patience are key, but so worth it in the long run.
