The Graham Cochrane Show

Fun fact: I'm not the only online business owner in my house. My wife (a multi six figure CEO) has been running a version of her photography business ever since we got married 15 years ago this week. And I've learned a lot about business just by observing her. So to celebrate 15 years of marriage to this amazing woman I decided to share 15 powerful and practical lessons on business that I've picked up from her over the years in the hopes that even just one of them will encourage and inspire you today in your business!

Let's play a little game of True or False when it comes to online courses. TRUE: Anyone can build and launch an online course today. FALSE: Everyone who launches an online course will make hundreds of thousands of dollars. So what is the difference maker between just launching and actually making good money with online courses? Turns out there a FEW difference makers and today I want to share them with you. I want to unpack the 3 biggest online course myths I see floating around on the Internet so you can avoid them and get to making money!

I recently surveyed over 10,000 of my students asking what their biggest goal was this year. Do you know what most people said?   To launch their first online course.   And do you know how much money most of them wanted to earn from their course specifically? $1000 per month.   Seems like a reasonable goal to me. But they haven't achieved it yet.   I then asked in the survey what is their biggest frustration, holding them back from achieving that goal. And what stood out to me was a clear thread of 4 distinct reasons why my students hadn't launched yet.   Today I want to share those 4 reasons with you in the hopes that we can break down those obstacles and help you launch an online course this year!

If you're trying to make money on YouTube or become a YouTuber then I'm here to tell you "Stop!"   If you actually want to reach your financial goals there is a much better vehicle than trying to make money on YouTube - selling online courses!   Today I'm going to break down the pros and cons of running a YouTube based business and an online course based business, give you some real numbers, and help you figure out which business model makes sense for you!

Which is better for your online business, a membership site or a Facebook group?   Are they basically the same thing? If not, how different are they? And should they be free or paid?   Today I'm going to break down the pros and cons of both a membership site and a Facebook group (including a hybrid of both) and share with you what I think is the BEST route for you to actually make more money in your online business.

I launched my first membership site way back in 2012.   And while that became a multi-six figure a year product for many years, I made a ton of newbie mistakes along the way that held it back in the early years.   In fact there are 3 critical mistakes I made that I don't want YOU to make with your first (or 5th) membership site. If you can avoid these, you can not only grow bigger but grow faster.   I've since launched two more six figure membership sites and you better believe I do things a bit differently today.   Let's jump in and make sure you are launching (or growing) your membership site the right way.

What would an extra $500 to $1,000 a month do for your world?   For most of us, that is game changing money.   You could pay off debt faster, save for your kids’ college, give more to your church, or even replace a car with cash within a year!   Or maybe you’ve got all those financial goals covered but you’d just love to LIVE a bit more in the here and now. Maybe take a much needed vacation or have money for a regular date night (babysitters ain’t cheap these days!)   Whatever the reason - having a side business that could generate extra income like that might be a dream for you.   But for many of us it remains only that, a dream.   That’s because in order to have a business that makes $500, $1000, or even $4000 a month requires time - and that is unfortunately in short supply for the majority of us!   Work, school, kids, marriage, church, friends, community, exercise, eating, sleeping - it all takes time!   So today I want to break down the task of starting an online business into 3 simple steps you can follow - even if you only have 30 minutes a day!

For the first four years of my business I did absolutely everything myself. And it worked.   That was the problem. It worked a little too well.   While my income grew so did my audience and my customer base. It got harder and harder to keep up with all of the email inquiries (both good and bad) that I found myself spending 3+ hours a day in my inbox.   After a frustrating moment on vacation (laptop in hand) I broke down and made my first hire. Today I want to share the details of that story AND give you a step by step plan to make your first hire so that you can get out of your own way and grow your business.

A couple of years ago a team conducted the largest study of millionaires ever.   They surveyed over 10,000 millionaires (people who have a net worth of at least $1M) to see what the hard data showed these successful people had in common. Or IF they had anything in common.   The survey results, put together in the book Everyday Millionaires by Chris Hogan, are fascinating. And encouraging!   What I found most intriguing were 6 habits that the majority of millionaires have that are so insanely simple that you can I can copy them right now - and today I want to share those with you!

It used to be that the wealthy would flaunt their status by spending copious amounts of money on things like fancy purses, expensive cars, and massive mansions.   But have we as a culture become so sick and twisted that we now try and flaunt how hard we work as the new status symbol of choice?   Today I'm pulling back the curtain on a pervasive shift in what we take pride in as Americans, starting with three of the world's top CEOs - and then bringing it all the way down to you and me.

Have you ever felt stuck in your online business journey, unable to reach a consistent amount of income every month?   That's what one of my students, Stephen, told me in my Six Figure Coaching Community just the other day. He's been teaching guitar for 10 years and creating content online for a long time - and yet he's unable to reach $1000 a month in revenue.   He expressed discouragement that some people seem to make money easily online while others (like himself) struggle.   My response to him was straightforward. Making $1000 a month (or any amount) consistently and reliably comes down to two simple things. Today I want to break them down for you and do a case study on how Stephen (and you) can pull it off.

Oh Internet Marketers, what are we going to do with you guys?!   Today I've gotta rant about what I'm seeing as the worst Internet Marketing strategy right now and why you should do the opposite of what they tell you.   And it's not just the sleaze bags in this industry - some of the good guys and gals do this and it just drives me bonkers!   After I share what the strategy is and why I don't like (or use) it, I'll give you four reasons why doing the opposite of what they preach actually will help you grow your business faster!

I know I'm the guy always telling you to start an online business, build passive income, and launch a digital product, but I honestly don't want you to start down that path until you've heard what I'm about to say.   As much as everyone makes running an online business look glamorous, it has a dark side.   Actually, it has three dark sides. And today I want to share with you those three biggest negatives to online business. But that's not all.   I want to share with you three ways you can redeem those negatives and turn them into positives so you can start or run an online business that thrives!

Why would someone buy your course if there is so much information available for free?   This is probably the number one question I get from students. And it’s a logical one given how much amazingly helpful information is out there for free with just a single Google search.   It’s an even bigger question when you start to regularly give away a ton of your own great content for free. It’s almost as if your own free stuff is competing with your paid stuff.   But that’s simply not true.   Today I'm breaking down the 3 key reasons why people will happily pay for your premium online course or membership, even with the proliferation of solid free content.

If you are slowly building an audience through a blog, podcast, or YouTube channel but have yet to make good money from it, you might not be monetizing the right way (or at all).   While there are a lot of ways to make a living online, I find that most bloggers, podcasters, and YouTubers who make a full time living use one (or all) of 6 core monetization models.   That's right - there are 6 ways to make money with your online audience and today I want to break down all them so you can decide which one(s) is right for you!

I believe the single most underutilized piece of real estate on your website is the "thank you" page that your people see when they opt in to your email list.   If you think about it, that page is the only thing 100% of your email subscribers see.   I hope a lightbulb just went off.   Because if it did, then you my friend are waking up to possible one of the simplest and easiest ways to increase revenue in your business right now.   It's something I call the Thank You Page Strategy and today I'd like to show you a few ways to make it work in your favor.

Have you ever felt icky about selling?   Has it been hard for you to form your thoughts clearly and have it come across as genuine and not too much like marketing speak?   Or maybe you're asking yourself these questions:   Does long form sales copy still work?   Do you need to be using it in your sales pages?   Today I'm going to give you my answer and speak to the 3 critical truths about sales copy - no matter what you're selling.

I always thought there was one defining quality of a successful entrepreneur - a high risk tolerance. To me, every successful business owner I had known or read about did something risky and seemingly was unafraid the whole time. So a scaredy-cat like me wasn't going to make it in business. I didn't like the unstable nature of freelance work when I tried it early on so I figured entrepreneurship wasn't for me. I couldn't have been more wrong. Turns out a high risk tolerance isn't necessary for being successful. And in fact, there are OTHER more important qualities that DO lead to success. Three to be exact. Today I'd like to share all three with you. And the good news? You can learn these qualities even if they don't come naturally.

In an ever growing ocean of content online, what is going to make yours stand out?   How can you ensure people not only checkout your videos, articles, or podcasts but also love them, engage with them, and more importantly take the next step of diving deeper in the relationship with you and your brand?   Well it's all in how you structure things.   Today I'm sharing with you my 5 part formula for crafting the piece of content that has served me well for over a decade.

It’s been almost 90 days since the official designation of this global pandemic.   Back in early March I had NO CLUE what was going to happen to my businesses in light of COVID-19. Now I do.   Specifically I see 4 key takeaways from this situation that have proven true in my businesses and I think can apply to yours.   My hope is that this episode will encourage you and give you wisdom as to how to navigate your business in the wake of our current economic climate.

It's been an intense week here in the US.   In the wake of the brutal killing of an unarmed black man, George Floyd, in Minneapolis there has been a nationwide outpouring of anger and desperation in the form of protests. Including in my city, Tampa Florida.   I had some content pre-recorded for today but I felt the need to pause and address this horrific situation - and really the systemic racism that has been a part of my country for over 400 years.   Specifically I have 3 thoughts on the situation and I hope you'll take a few minutes to listen in.

I'm sick and tired of all the "gurus" online talking about passive income in front of a Ferrari. It just makes me feel icky and uncomfortable.   And I teach people how to build passive income too!   Today I want to cut through the hype and just give it to you straight. Passive income is a beautiful reality and there are 3 core ways to create it online.   I'm going to give you the truth about all 3 ways including pros and cons for each and I'll start by sharing two huge prefaces about passive income that you have to understand.   I hope you enjoy!

I'm a huge fan of passive income. Virtually 90% of my businesses are automated.   So you can imagine how I felt when a troll on YouTube recently left me this comment: "Living on passive income is immoral and does nothing to advance society."   Is he right?   Not by a long shot! Time to bust some myths and faulty assumptions !

So many online business owners are obsessed with getting that magical "k" at the end of their Instagram follower count.   Or hitting 10k and getting the all elusive "swipe up" feature!   The reason? They want to grow their business.   But does having a larger following/presence on Instagram really help you make more money?   Not really.   What most entrepreneurs should be focused on is putting out strategic YouTube videos instead. And in today's video I break down not only WHY YouTube is a better platform than Instagram if you actually want to make more money but HOW to do it right.

One of the best things you can do in life is to commit to creating more than you consume.   I know the economists want to label all of us humans as "consumers" and in some senses it's true - consuming doesn't have to define us.   But in reality it does.   Most people consume TV, video games, YouTube videos, and social media content FAR more than they create anything.   If you want to have a successful business, heck if you just want to have a happier and more fulfilling LIFE than you need to create MORE than you consume.   Today I breakdown four reasons why.

If it seems like a lot of work to build an online business, you're right.   But that doesn't mean that you HAVE to wait until you've built up a big list and finished a massive flagship online course or membership to be able to sell something.   In fact you could build, launch, and sell a simple mini course in the next few weeks pretty effortlessly if need money quickly.   In today's video I break down what the difference is between a mini course and a full fledged online course, and step by step how to build, price, and sell your own!

Have you ever been scared to put yourself out there and start sharing content with the world?   Scared that people will criticize what you say or question your credibility?   Afraid that you'll make a mistake and say something foolish?   Afraid that none of what you do will actually work and create the income you really need?   Welcome to the club.   I've been scared since Day 1 of my business, and today I'm here to tell you that's OK.   In fact I want to walk you down memory lane and open up about every moment I've been scared to death in my business, including recently.   I hope you find this encouraging.

Now is the time to be creating as much content for your brand as possible.   And while that can seem like a daunting task, I personally can attest to the fact that live video is practically the easiest and fastest way to do that.   Not only is it easy, it can help you grow your audience (and business) faster than just about any other method!   In today's video I reveal the 3 ways live video can help you grow fast + I break down how to best structure your live videos so maximize growth and minimize awkwardness :-)

Right now it's looking like we are heading for some kind of global recession. And what's fascinating to me is some of the world's most profitable companies were started in the throws of a recession (think Apple, Microsoft, and Disney) In facts recessions and economic downturns create more millionaires than almost any other time. So my question for you is: why shouldn't YOU become one? Today I want to break down 3 things you should be doing right now to benefit from this down season and position yourself to build wealth long term.

How come so many businesses are being forced to shut down during this economic crisis when they just finished a decade of incredible prosperity?! Where did all that money go? And more importantly what should YOU being doing right now to ensure your future prosperity? Today I break down three critical lessons that this crisis just taught us.

I don't know where you stand on social media use - whether you love it, hate it, or fall somewhere in between.   But I am about to quit social media (Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter) for a full year.   And in this video I'm going to share with you the 5 reasons why.

Do you struggle with that tension of wanting to promote your online course or membership to your audience but without feeling sleazy, pushy, or like your constantly selling?   We all know that guru, or business you follow that seems to be launching something new every single week and flooding our inboxes with promotional emails.   We definitely don't want to be THAT guy (or girl).   Well today I want to share with you my framework for how I sell, on the regular, without burning out my audience.

Have you ever launched a product that got zero sales?   Or sold so few that you feel like giving up?   Welcome to the club.   But the question in your mind might be "Is there something that I'm missing?"   Or, "Am I just not cut out for this online business thing?!"   Today I want to share with you my method for creating products that are virtually guaranteed to sell.

Did you know there are two primary ways business owners see the world?   You either have an abundance mentality or mindset OR you have a scarcity mindset.   The difference between the two can be life or death for your business, no matter what your current circumstances are.   In today's episode I break down the difference between these two opposing mindsets and then share with you what I call The Abundance Formula!   (And yes I made that up - but it's still game changing!)

Sometimes I think we make marketing and selling way too complicated.   I was reminded of this just the other day when my 10 year old daughter Chloe explained to me how she sold a bunch of product in this business simulation event she participated in.   She went from selling hardly anything all morning, to clearing out her entire store inventory in the afternoon - all by making two simple changes to her approach!   Let's break them down today...

There's a reason why I make fun of Facebook Ads so much in my content.   Simply put, there is a MUCH better way to grow your business than running ads.   There is a marketing strategy that no one seems to want to talk about, and yet it works day and night for me and my businesses.   Today I want to share that strategy with you and give you 5 reasons why it is truly the best and most effective way to market your products!

Everybody wants to be "the best" at what they do in career and business.   Instead, I believe you should focus on simply being good enough.   When you focus on trying to be the best there are 4 key consequences that people fail to realize.   But when you focus instead on just being good enough to make a living there are 3 key benefits that follow.   Sound crazy? Let's discuss!

Are you afraid to start a business because you feel that the topic or niche you're serving is an oversaturated market?   Are you stuck in a business that you've already started and think it's because of market saturation?   What if I told you that market saturation is actually a good thing?   That might sound a bit crazy but trust me it's true.   Today I want to help change your mindset on market saturation plus give you three tips to start (or grow) your business even if the market is saturated!

There’s this “motivational” video on YouTube that’s a compilation of Elon Musk interviews (billionaire founder of Tesla and Space X) called WORK EVERY WAKING HOUR.   In it Musk actually shares some fascinating thoughts that I found very inspiring indeed - but I was intrigued to hear what this “work every waking hour” thing was really about.   About half way through the video it cuts to an interview where Musk says the following:    “When my brother and I were starting our first company, instead of renting an apartment we rented a small office and slept on the couch and we showered at the YMCA.   We had one computer, so the website was up during the day and I was coding at night. 7 days a week. All the time. I briefly had a girlfriend at that time and in order to be with me she had to sleep at the office.   Work hard. Every waking hour. That’s the thing I would say, particularly if you’re starting a company”   Wow! We have a lot to discuss...

In a world of powerful data and analytics tools at our fingertips, could looking at the numbers actually be hurting our business and growth potential?   I mean, the quote goes: "What gets measured, gets managed" right?! Maybe.   Today I want to uncover the darker side of our insatiable appetite for analytics and make the case that there's a better way to grow your business than looking at the numbers.

I’ve always heard the average millionaire has 7 or more streams of income. Meaning they earn income from 7 different sources.   As compared to say the average worker in America which has exactly one stream of income - their job.   Over the years I've slowly built up to 10 streams of income myself (not including my wife's business) and in today's episode I break down exactly what they are and give you 6 ways you can begin adding some more streams of income to your life!

Things ain't what they used to be when it comes to online business.   If you are running or building your business and presence online in 2020 like many of us did in the past 5 years you probably won't hit your income goals this year.   Or worse, you'll have to shut your online business down entirely.   Today I want to kick off the new year by sharing with you 3 huge mistakes I see online business owners making in today's landscape that will hold your business back in 2020.   Let's discuss!

As the New Year rolls in and everyone is excited about making resolutions and becoming a better person, I feel like there is a huge missed opportunity.   Instead of announcing bold new goals to the world for 2020 that have no basis in reality, there is something more strategic you and I can do.   In fact it's a simple question that you should ask yourself (and your spouse if you're married).   It's a question my wife and I ask each year as we wind down and look ahead to the next 12 months.   And it's a question that has so much potential to change your life.

We all are in the business of selling something and a transaction must take place in order to pay our bills - but are you too focused on selling your thing that you get the order of things backwards?   Instead of selling and then giving our customers the thing they bought (and hopefully good service) what if we gave BEFORE we ever sold anything?   Today I want to share with you not only WHY this is so powerful for your business (i.e. it will help you sell more) but 6 practical ways to actually implement this giving strategy in real life.  

Which would you rather have: a $1 Million product or a $1 Million launch?   It's kind of a trick question as million dollar launches are virtually impossible for most people to pull off and can create a TON of stress and pressure if the revenue is necessary for your survival.   Plus, even if you DO someone hit a $1M launch there's no guarantee you can repeat yourself.   Having a product sell $1M over a few years time nice and consistently with virtually no work is much more appealing - and realistic!   I'm a big fan of slow and reliable growth. It’s the tortoise vs the hare approach.   What does this look like practically? Building an evergreen model of online business verses a launch model. Let's break down the differences.

How often do we get tripped up in business (and life) because we are trying to run someone else's race and not our own?   How often does comparison and jealousy lead down the path of wasted time and discontentment?   What would it look like in 2020 if you simply ran your OWN race in business?   How much more joy and freedom would you have? How much more could you get DONE?!   The question becomes then: what does it take to practice "selective ignorance" and run your own race?   Today I have three things for you that will help you do just that!

In a sea of ever growing content and media it’s getting harder and harder to stand out. Safe, predictable, expected content won’t cut it. And I’d argue it never did. One of your power tools to growing your audience and consequently your income is to create polarizing content - content that divides. Sound scary? Welcome to the club. But you know what is scarier? Having nobody listen to what you have to say.

Can I go on a rant for a minute? If you're looking to start a business, you will never have everything lined up or figured out perfectly before you launch. Never. And this is true for one simple reason: things change. Constantly! The secret then to creating a lasting profitable brand is to two fold: start now and evolve later. Both verbs (start and evolve) are crucial. Let me give you some examples that will drive this home.

Want some "low hanging fruit" type easy ways to increase revenue in your business? Then it's time to realize an important truth in business: there is no “one price fits all” scenario. If you have only one tier/option for your product at one price you’re making a mistake. Some people will be glad to spend more with you if you only offered more value.  Your job is simple: give people the option to give you more money! That's what tiered pricing is all about and exactly what we're talking about in today's episode!

There's nothing really special about me or my business that allows me to run it in under 5 hours a week.   I've simply followed a 4 step process over the past 10 years that have allowed me to reduce my work hours little by little, each year.   And the good news is you can follow that same 4 step process.   Maybe your goal isn't 5 hours like me. Maybe it's just 20 hours a week but with a six figure business. That would be sweet.   Let me show you how!