“I’ve read your archives and have learned a lot about making money blogging but I want to go deeper!”
“Do you offer any service that helps bloggers apply the principles that you teach on ProBlogger? – I need some more hand holding.”
“I find ‘reading’ about blogging doesn’t click with me – I like your videos because I learn better from hearing and watching”
These are just three of the comments in my inbox today from ProBlogger readers. They’re typical of what many bloggers say to me. They enjoy the free information on ProBlogger but want more.
Two years ago Andy Wibbels and I put together a 6 week course on making money from blogging called Six Figure Blogging. The course was the first of it’s kind and took participants through six hour long lessons in entrepreneurial blogging. We came up with the idea shortly after I had the realization that I’d earned over six figures in a year for the first time. We ran it as a live course for the first batch of participants (I think there were about 60 in the first ‘class’ and have since offered it as a ‘study at home at your own pace’ type deal.
Six Figure Blogging is Back
Since our first version of the course Andy and I have talked of doing another one many times and about a year ago added a ‘bonus lesson’ to update the course – but with the birth of babies (mine), new jobs (Andy) and life we never quite got around to it – until now.
Before our second child is born (due in June) Andy and I have decided to run a second live version of Six Figure Blogging.
It starts with a free preview call on 2nd April and then launches for real on 9th April. Each week will include a hour hour call (minimum, we regularly went over last time) which you can either listen into live on Wednesday nights (US time) or download later to listen to at your own convenience, a transcript of the call, class notes and the opportunity in each call to ask questions. We’re also planning on bringing in a number of ProBloggers (one per week) for short casestudies/interviews.
The Cost is $325 USD. This is an early bird rate and will be increased closer to the launch.
Some argued last time around that this was too much and asked why anyone would pay for it when they can read so much for free here at ProBlogger (and on other blogs). I argued last time that what you get in this course is a more personal interaction with myself and Andy, two expert voices instead of just one, other guest voices, interaction with other participants and a more focused experience (ProBlogger.net now has thousands of posts on it – this lasers in on what we believe are key subjects). Ultimately this course is not for everyone – it’s aimed at those who want to go deeper.
I’ll let you look over the sales page for more information. You can either enroll directly on the page or register for the free preview call on 2 April (this will be available for download for those unable to make the live call).
Wow, you’ve got to be making six figures to afford it! I guess I’ll be missing out on this one as much as I would love to have it.
Good luck to those who can afford it.
A bit too much for me, I guess, like Lori, I’ll have to skip it as well. Oh well.
Ah that’s nice, two bad i don’t have money to participate!
Yeah, too much for me too…Anyways…
WoW…must be full of great contents about make money online by blogging.
Anyways…this might not an affordable price for most of the beginners…
Wow, I dream to be 6 figure blogger soon.Hopefully it will be true.
did anyone made such amount of money?
Unfortunately, the best way for an independent blogger to make money seems to be to market “Make money blogging” schemes. I suspect it’s far more lucrative than niche blogging about a product or community — readers are more apt to pay for SEO and blogging courses because there’s the potential for a very real payback.
That said, Good luck with the course, guys. You set the gold standard in teaching people to earn money from blogging.
its a bit too much for me either.but it worth the try.
I may take part in this course, not that I need it but for review purposes.
I think this is really cheap. Companies that are getting into blogging would probably be willing to pay five times that money to get their people such an extensive training course.
You can spend hours and hours digging through free information with a low signal-to-noise ratio, or spend quality time getting the essentials presented to you very compactly, after which you can spend the saved hours by actually making money…
Having said that, I won’t enlist either, because I’m not a problogger :) (“What? What am I doing here then? Dude, stop procrastinating! Get back to work! Uh, ok…”)
Clarification: I didn’t mean companies that are in the business of blogging, but rather those that want to use it as a means of public communication.
* really getting back to work now *
The info says TUESDAY, April 2 and unless I’m off by a year or something (this is 2008, right?), then it should be TUESDAY April 1 or WEDNESDAY April 2.
I wondered what happened to this. Now I know. It was getting an update. Three and a quarter is a bit steep but I’m sure its probably worth it.
If I would earn so much in a year with blogging, I would think about. But at the moment it’s to much for me.
Is there cliff notes for this?
I’ve been doing quite alot of research on this subject and more often than not I’m led back to this tool. I may have to give it a shot.
Lets first see the first preview call and then decide whether the pricing is worth or not.. why to blah right before you experience it? :)
Do you have affiliates program with that too?
I think people want to know more then title of “Making six figure blogging” (just personal opinion)
Considering what you could earn with this info the price is actually quite low.
But having the info is insufficient; action is required. Just like with most things it’s lack of action that kills you.
Let me address a few of the questions and concerns people have:
Price – no it’s not free and I do understand for some it is not ‘cheap’. There are many arguments that we could throw up both for and against charging for information but for me it’s about attempting to put a price on it that is fair for all. Let me make a few comments on price:
Only ‘make money blogging’ bloggers make money blogging – this is a criticism that I’ve heard many times and I understand why people would say it – but it’s not true for a number of reasons.
1. There are hundreds (actually it’s probably thousands) of ‘make money blogging’ blogs out there. The vast majority of them don’t make much money blogging. I’ve long wondered why someone would start a blog on the topic if they don’t already have some experience on the topic – but they do.
2. The ‘Make money blogging’ topic isn’t that profitable – I make more money from other blogs than ProBlogger. The majority of my six figure income per year doesn’t come from this blog.
3. Yes there are a handful of bloggers out there who make good money from blogs on this topic. They obviously talk pretty loudly about their earnings as a way of promoting their sites – but those making big money from the topic are in the minority. I think the real potential to earn income from blogging comes from other, less crowded and more lucrative niches.
Affiliate Program – yes we have one. Head to AndyWibbels.com and he has an affiliate program there that will let you promote SFB.
MR – ‘cliff notes’ – sorry, but that’s not a term I’m familiar with… we provide notes each week to participant to help them follow through what we’re teaching – is that what you mean?
This sounds like a great tool except the price is too pricy. Have you ever considered doing a lottery for 25 people to “win” this product? Whenever you give something away just for the giving, it always comes back 10 fold.
All of Darren’s points are true. Especially the part that most probloggers are making money from ‘real’ niches – that is non-problogging blogs. Bloggers who blog about blogging is a very narrow niche when you look at the huge variety and diversity of niches just waiting to be tapped through blogging.
This is a comprehensive course covering the entire spectrum of stategies used to monetize and build a blog. $325 is not that much to spend to learn the craft of problogging and techniques that could bring you thousands of dollars a month in extra income. If this knowledge was brought into a corporation we would have to charge thousands of dollars – this pricing and approach is geared to individual probloggers.
You are getting direct access to expertise for six hours of live calls, recordings, pages and pages of transcripts (including the archived recordings and transcripts from the original run of the course). Last time we had participants marveling at the volume and strength of content, tools and techniques they could put to use immediately – along with the resources they could come back to time and again as their blogs and blogging evolved.
These aren’t abbreviated outlines. These are complete transcripts of the previous calls and materials which will be the foundation for this new run of the course. You can come to every call completely prepared to get the most value for you. We want you to learn the way you learn best.
The price can also be measured against the expanded profile that Darren has built over the past two years as a globally recognized expert in problogging combined with my visibility in magazines, media and the book Blogwild. You have exclusive access to both of us with this course.
Affiliate program signup is http://andywibbels.com/affiliates/
Miss Debra Rae – Darren’s given copies of this away (version 1) many times over before, and by the very nature of spending more than a few minutes on this site, anyone can see that he is an extremely generous man.
To be honest, people could learn a lot from his generosity, above and beyond the dozens of hours a week he puts into this site giving away completely free information.
If you (by “you” I mean anyone) can’t afford it, then you can’t afford it. Save up for it. Borrow the money from a friend or family member. I know first hand that the information inside is worth five, if not ten times what the selling price is, as long as you put it into action.
For what it’s worth, I’ve had clients happily pay me five or ten times this amount to do just consulting, and much more for the work I do for them, so $325 is a STEAL for the stuff inside this package.
For all those who are interested, I was in the first class of the six figure bloggers and learned a ton of information.
Now blogging is a large part of how I pay my mortgage. The lessons I learned also jump started my education in affiliate marketing and have led me to a close to six figure income.
What is even more amazing is that the original project I was involved in when we started I sold off. The sites that we came up with while taking the course (and inspired by) now contribute the majority of my income.
Thanks again Andy and Darren for helping me on the road to self sufficiency.
Tom
Most of the people that say it’s ‘too expensive’ or ‘I wish I could make six figures from blogging’ are the kind of people that never do end up making any real money online.
Never settle for a halfway house. Either give up the online world and go back to your jobs, or start being serious about your approach to online publishing. Having a rotten attitude to money does you no good. If you can afford a computer and an internet connection, then you most probably can afford to invest money in something which I’m sure will be of some use to you.
I don’t exactly make my money online from blogging, but I read ProBlogger (along with CopyBlogger) because it offers valuable information on writing and using content. If you read this blog, find the posts useful, and like Darrens writing style, and actually want to make money from blogging, give the product a try.
I’m fortunate to not share the same attitude as the people behind the first five comments posted. ‘I would love to have it. Good luck to those who can afford it’ and ‘A bit too much for me, I guess, like Lori, I’ll have to skip it as well. Oh well.’ to name a few, are NOT the right kind of attitudes to have. If you can’t afford it now, you never will.
Go Guys! Great idea. Seems well worth the cash. There is a ton of free stuff here and Darren, you almost seem apologetic about charging for your knowledge, don’t be, it is gold!
Exactly what im looking for. Ill be listening into the sample call on the 2nd of April, and hopefully if its what you say it is, ill sign up for the full course too.
Nice one Darren!
@Amin
Let me clarify something. I never said that it wasn’t worth the money because I think it is and I don’t feel like my attitude was rotten in any way. I actually wished the others luck! I hope they succeed and I’m a bit envious that I can’t afford it.
I have 3 kids and live on a cowboy’s wages (which isn’t much) so I can’t afford to spend that kind of money. Would I if I had it? Of course I would, but it’s just not possible and I suspect there are many in my situation that are unable to afford it.
I can afford a computer because I pay it out monthly. My Internet bill is also paid out monthly so if Darren wants to offer me monthly payments, then you bet I’ll buy it but a huge chunk of us don’t have the money to dish out at once unless we’re charging it on a credit card and that’s a big no-no in my opinion.
I have been blogging for over a year and have increased my earnings every month since I’ve started so I DO make money online, only I choose to pay off debts with it.
WHEN I make more money, you can bet Darren, that I’ll buy the program but until then, I’ll just have to learn what I can a free way.
Darren & Andy,
What are the differences between version 1.0 and version 2.0?
Thanks
“An investment in knowledge always pays the best dividends.” – Benjamin Franklin
I can understand that some people don’t have a lot of extra money laying around. But, $325 seems like a pretty fair investment to learn from someone who is as successful and experienced as Darren.
I have made a lot of mistakes and wasted a lot of time trying to do everything on my own. To avoid the learning curve and increase my future income seems well worth it.
I also thing the price is a bit high for a newbie but it sounds like it’s well worth the price for the information you learn. This website alone is great and if the creators of this blog are behind it, I’m in!
The course looks extremely comprehensive and useful, but I think six figure blogging is a pipe dream at the moment for me.
I wiill be interested to hear the feedback from the new course.
Three – hundred – twenty – five – dollars?! You’ve gotta be kidding me Darren. When I saw the headline in my feed reader – to begin with – my first thought was “oh no, Darren’s gone the way of 5 page sales letters!”. The sad part of that is, I was RIGHT.
Yes one of the fundamental keys to making a living online is in fact to build and sell a product, and yes you really should put a decently high price tag on it for the psychological effect it has on value perception – but this is just too much.
Darren – remember your audience – your customers. By your own “profiling”:
“…I need some more hand holding.”
That doesn’t say to me they have a good grasp of making a living online. That says to me they CAN’T AFFORD $325, even if it does mean earning six figures that much quicker.
Here’s a better idea. Make it a membership site with quality over quantity, constantly updated, but not necessarily with anything “new” but moreso just “better.” You add, you remove, get it?
Charge $100 up front with payment plan options, and something minimal per month – say $5 – so if they want to always have only the very best tips, they can get ’em as they become available.
Even better – do like I am and publish a monthly PDF with only the very best content and some exclusive top notch material for $2.
You and Andy are having another baby? Congratulations! :)
The difference between 1.0 and 2.0 is the new version is refreshing the old content and adding in updated tactics and techniques that have developed over the last couple years. Plus, several of the previous veterans of the course will be returning and will probably have great insights to share on how the course has shaped their businesses.
Membership sites and monthly fees increase overall administrative costs and backend. Darren and I have measured several possibilities in this vein but haven’t yet come up with a solution that we like. I find more people want a limited six-week commitment rather than an open run.
I think it also important to frame that this is for people that either have gotten their feet wet and want to jump in the pool or those that want a complete blueprint from the get-go. 6 hours of time with two sought-after consultants comes out to $27 an hour each – which remains a bargain. I’ve offered blogging courses at all price levels for several years so participants can find the format and the price that best fits their needs. I remain a membersite skeptic – though I keep re-investigating it from time to time (checkout Brian’s Teaching Sells stuff – fantastic!).
In summary I guess, the course is the course. We’ve taught it before. People loved it and thought it was a huge value. We’re teaching it again. I hope you’ll join us. Learn more during the preview call on April 2nd http://sixfigureblogging.com/
I know Darren is traveling the next few days – I’ll try to answer questions people have here. Thnx everyone for your thoughtful feedback.
You gotta be nuts to pay this much money for this. You have to be really really nuts. There is absolutely nothing that darren and other probloggers can give in this “interview” style teaching, that you can’t find for free in other not-so-popular problogger sites, who talks about “real” niches and how to use them in your favor.
If you are goind to pay that much for this crap, atleast use that money for a decent site design for your blog that many doesnt have.
I like darren, and I understand that he has to make money, but this is riddiculous.
Do some research of your own from google, I can gurantee you will better more in-depth information for free.
Don’t waste your money.
Sorry Darren, this is simply ripping people off.
bye.
Miss Debra Rae – we’ve run a variety of promotions previously and I’m sure we will again. If we do those who’ve already signed up will be eligible for a refund if they win anything.
Tom – thanks for the feedback. Great to have that testimonial and to know one of our alumni have taken the information to such heights!
Amin – I agree with some of your sentiments but not all. I know SFB will simply be too expensive for some as a result of their own financial situation. I do believe in investing in your own education and knowledge – but I know of many who have over-invested to the point of being information product junkies. I see some falling into the trap of buying every product that comes along and ending up doing very little with it – so I think people are wise to consider the cost and benefits before making up their mind. If the costs are too high for them in their circumstances then that’s fine by me. I believe in the product but it won’t be for everyone at every stage of their development and that’s fine by me.
Frank – thanks, I do sometimes find it difficult to sell myself on this type of thing. As I say above I’m proud of the product – last time around it was one of the most satisfying things I’ve ever done in my blogging career – however there’s this ‘free’ thing that many bloggers find it hard to get over (myself included). I totally believe that selling a product or service is legit – but it’s a bit of a mind shift to actually do it :-)
Lori – appreciate your comments and well wishes. I do hope that you’ll be able to afford it at some point in the future and hope that other projects that I’m working on will be of some interest to you in the coming months. I’ve been working on something that I think might interest you – not the same but perhaps useful.
Lee – I guess the main difference will be that it’s more up to date. A lot has happened since last time we ran it in the ‘make money blogging’ space. Some will be the same but we’ll explore newer options available to bloggers. Of course Andy and I have also learned a lot since last time. b5media has taught me a lot (we’d only just started it when we ran SFB last time) so I’m keen to share some of those lessons and I’ve also started new blogs since then too. Lastly – we’ll be bringing in a few guest presenters to add their voices. I can’t reveal names yet as we’re still securing them but I’m keen to feature the experience and case studies of others too.
Bret – great quote
Michelle – great to have you on board! Looking forward to getting to know you more!
Trisha – I think I’ve answered the price thing in my comments above.
Pavs – all I can really say is that of the hundreds of people who did version 1 I only heard 1-2 of them with any real negative comments. The majority of those we surveyed at the end of us got a lot from it and the most common ‘complaint’ was that we presented so much information that it was difficult to digest on the first listen and that they used the recordings of our calls numerous times later to glean more from it. That being said – if you don’t want to participate you’re more than welcome not to. I do appreciate your feedback (and everyone else’s) but I’m not going to do any more ‘defending’ of it now as I feel like I’ve presented it fairly and now people are welcome to sign up, leave it or signup for the preview call to get a taster before making up their mind.
@Darren and/or Andy
I haven’t taken a call on this yet.. but I was wonderin whether the last part.. week 6 is about building a blog network.. like at least on the lines of b5 or perhaps federated media, if not exactly the same..and was also curious about resources for designers and other geeks thing.. among all the chapters the last ones’ what am really keen on to be honest… is there anyway one can get just that part for a (heavy) discount.. :)
ahem..perhaps the next time..
@ **’it is too expensive for me readers’**
Its my opinion that getting a chance to network with people like Darren and Andy, and other biggies that they can line up for this program itself is a big plus which can pay off over a period of time.. that is if you put in a position to make use of it later.. if one can’t do that then it becomes obvious that this product is not for us .. this of course keeping aside the actual objective of the program..
I find the above discussion hilarious.
This is a blog about making money from blogging but every time Darren tries to make money from his blog a handful of vocal imbeciles complain. I’ve seen it a number of times in the last couple of months:
1. almost every time Darren has a post with an affiliate link in it someone complains that he’s just writing the post to make money
2. almost every time he write a post announcing new sponsors people complain that there’s too much advertising or that it’s too expensive or that….
3. now he launches a product and out come the complainers
Everyone’s more than happy for Darren to teach them about affiliate marketing, advertising and adding products to your blog, but when HE does it he’s slammed by short sited fools.
People, I’ve got two pieces of advice for you
First, we all have a choice to exercise our right of refusal. We don’t want to let Darren earn money from affiliate programs – don’t click em. We don’t want to pay $325 for a product and think we can get the info for free – don’t buy it and spend the rest of your life searching google for information. We don’t want to see advertising – get an adblocker, read the blog in RSS or piss off and don’t read the blog.
Secondly, this is a blog about making money. If you’re offended by the idea of someone making money from blogging you’re in the wrong space. Darren is one of the more subtle, less obnoxious and far less greedy bloggers on this topic. Take a look at blogs like John Chow and you’ll see almost every post riddled with self serving money grabbing techniques. Darren is a gentleman and has helped thousands of people make money from blogging, for free. Step off people, watch and learn, even in the launch of this product there’s lots we all could learn from him.
Great comment Grant, could not have ever dreamed of saying it better than that!
Ok, I have to step out of the shadows and step on my soapbox to say that I also agree with Grant. If this were in my budget, I would sign up in a heartbeat. Darren and Andy are experts when it comes to making money through blogging and SEO and it would be an awesome opportunity for anyone who can afford it. Nice work Darren and guys …Stepping off my soapbox now. :)
Guys keep in mind that End of Financial is coming up in Australia and if you have a business with intentions of using this knowledge for business purposes, it’s a great tax deduction!
Hi Darren,
Maybe you could offer a package with your course and a 1-hour review of our blogs. Adding some personal comments for a little additionnal fee would be really nice.
I understand that Problogger is about making money blogging and Darren has to do the same.
“Live and let live” as they say….
Though to be honest Darren, as much as I want it, I can’t afford it. I’ll just read and support Problogger :)
Grant – Eloquently blunt! I love it.
Not many can carry that off as well as you did. :)
I’m so glad this course is back–this is probably my favorite online course I’ve ever taken.
I took Six Figure Blogging last time not really knowing what to expect as I was new to blogging at the time. I had an intense desire to learn as much as I could, and even as a beginner the course helped me immensely.
Not sure if this was pointed out, but the price actually includes a lifetime membership to the course–when you sign up you are automatically enrolled in all future runs of the course and you don’t have to pay anything more. (So, all the people who paid to take it last time get to take it again for free this time :-) )
I took this course as a newbie and loved it, but generally speaking it is not for your casual or beginning blogger. One of the things I learned from taking the class is that there is *serious* work involved in making money from blogging. If you were hoping to have a magic way of making money from blogging without having to work hard at it for an extended period of time, then don’t bother, cuz it will just be a waste of your time and money.
But, if you are one of those folks who is committed to working over the long term to build money making blogs, then the cost of the course is an investment that will pay for itself.
I learned a bunch just from the free preview call, so even if you don’t end up enrolling, you can still learn stuff just from listening to the call.
What I love most about your community, Darren, is that they are passionate. You have people passionately missing the point, and then you have passionate supporters who are making your point on your behalf (and we all know about 3rd party referrals). That’s amazing.
I think the price is spot on. I think it’s VERY cost effective for someone to buy out of their own pocket, and I’ll tell you right now, that if I were holding this for a corporate client and were selling by the seat, the same content would cost you $2000.
The cost is related to the value and related to what the market will bear. $300-something is a perfect price point, and honestly, it’s less than some other “how to do X” sessions out there done by people farrrrrrrr less knowledgeable than Darren and Andy.
This is cool!
I would like to participate in this, however Im a bit wary.
Can you assure me this isn’t just another “link to ClickBank and make money” program?
Thanks Lara, you can probably tell I’ve participated in products before, and they all end up on the last chapter saying the same thing: “Next, go to clickbank and find a product…”
Ive had zero success with clickbank and would really like to take my blogs to the next level without simply joining affiliate programs.
Thank you for taking the time to respond. :)
Troy