I have an acquaintance who is really short on money due to a lay off so we  were brainstorming how she could add to her coffers.   She has the basic understanding of IM but doesn't want to go full campaign as she is looking for a job in her field (technical sales management) and really doesn't want to do this full time.

So here is what I came up with and the results.  I recommended she contact the owners of 50 local businesses/entrepreneurs who have websites and unique offerings.  We put together a quick brochure and business proposition and pricing offering her writing services to write articles on their unique offerings and building backlinks to their website.  There are no affiliate codes, cloaking, domain forward, etc.  She writes for them and points to their website.

She offers bundles of articles at a fix rate for a certain number of articles with different keyword strategies based on client selection of keywords and her keyword research.   She has a limited guarantee.  The guarantee is if they are not indexed in Google she will get them indexed with additional articles and keywords or give them their money back.  She does not promise Page position or ranking. The clients approve the articles and keywords.  She gets an article launch schedule/sites approval.   She was able to secure 3 clients within 3 weeks. They are all indexed in Google and delighted with her work.  It took some library research, a little elbow grease, phone calls and emails and follow up work.  She is a force of nature anyway, but once we laid out the strategy she plowed into it and feels she can supplement her unemployment income by several hundred a month without breaking a sweat until the next sales management gig comes up.

I promised her I wouldn't go into great detail, her location, pricing details, type of clients, etc., but I wanted to share a piece of this that shows you can make money online a gazillion different ways.  If you look at all the angles of marketing on the internet, break it apart, reinvent an old idea, look around you for clues, there is money to be made for any skill level and desire.

 When I sat down and broke this apart, looked at her skills and looked around I saw a perfect opportunity for her to not only make some cash, but build her network for a new job.  This was a natural fit for her.  She is selling the service of article writing and back linking to local niche businesses that want to drive their internet business.  She is participating in forums with like products and services and has now developed a link building strategy.

Look around.  You will be amazed at what you can do.  My next goal is to write an ebook with off the beaten path IM strategies detailed!

Good Marketing,

Judy

One other thing...it took her only a little more than one week to get a commitment for her first $100 check.  I can't even say that.