4 Proven Strategies to Leverage Your Expertise Into Multiple Streams of Income

Putting all of your eggs into one basket in your business is never a good idea. Diversity is key, which means that your revenue should come from a number of clients (not just two or three) and preferably should come from multiple sources other than your primary service. These multiple sources of income are called multiple streams of income.

I've often been asked if your income sources should relate to your primary line of business, or if they can be varied and unrelated, like a writer who does copy editing and ghostwriting for a living but also owns rental property and scouts garage sales for gently worn children's clothing and sells it on eBay. You can do whatever best fits your personality, but I think it will keep you saner to corral your multiple streams of income under your primary business umbrella.

How can you create multiple streams of income in your business? You can:

1. Sell your core expertise. This is where you're selling your core expertise as an accountant, attorney, web designer, security system installer, carpet cleaner, etc.

2. Teach others your core expertise. Assuming you've had success in your area of core expertise, you then develop ways to teach others your specialized knowledge or guide others in how to enter your industry.

3. Teach general skills. In the process of running your business, you probably developed a set of business management skills that have led to your success. You can package that info into a system to pass that learning along to others in your industry.

4. Sell other people's products. You have in your arsenal a listing of both tried-and-true products you've used in your field of expertise, as well as a database of loyal customers. Why not introduce your clients (and potential clients) to these wonderful products?

Think of multiple streams of income in this way: You own a great business and are phenomenal at what you do and everyone who needs your service should have access to your expertise. However, if you're in a time-based business where you're exchanging time for money, as many service business professionals are, there are only so many hours in the day that you have to work with clients. There are two ways to change this: to hire more staff or to replicate yourself.

Hiring more staff (or even independent contractors) typically pushes up your overhead costs and will probably only increase your profit margin slightly. Replicating yourself is much easier, and I'm not referring to some Star Trek-like device. By replication, I mean having products available that will either bring clients into your marketing funnel and introduce you to them in a lower-cost, non-threatening manner, or better serve your existing clients without necessarily needing you to personally attend to the client.

The primary method of delivering products to your clients 24/7 and selling in your sleep is via a web site. Technology exists that permit visitors to come to your web site, read about what you do and how you do it, purchase any number of products from you, and have that all happen automatically. Electronic products are wonderful, as the delivery of that type of product can be 100% automated. A physical product that has to be shipped does require some human intervention, but that doesn't mean it has to be you! There are a number of fulfillment companies that have spring up over the years that you can pay to do your product fulfillment for you.

So, what kinds of information products could you offer via your web site? Here are ten ideas:

1. Subscription membership or other continuity program
2. ebooks or PDF special reports
3. Video/audio training
4. Private label rights products to which you have purchased a reseller's license
5. Series of expert interviews and transcripts
6. Teleclasses or webinars
7. Home study programs (either electronic or physical)
8. Fixed term e-course
9. Licensing your content, program, or training to others
10. Selling other people's products (affiliate marketing)

Creating multiple streams of income for your business won't happen overnight. It's a gradual process that occurs over a period of time. Take a look at your business and determine how you can repurpose your core business into information products at various price points so that you can serve your prospects at a price point they can afford.