In this 2nd installation I would like to pick a local newspaper publication here in Singapore as an example and watch how they make money by giving away free stuff and how we can implement it in our internet business. I am not sure if the US or any other countries give out free newspaper daily but for those who live in Singapore should have heard of a famous newspaper publication called TODAY. Basically they give out free newspaper everyday in the most crowded places you can find like train stations and shopping malls.
How would you like to own your daily newspaper and earn lots of money by selling advertising space in it? The higher circulation you get, the more you can charge your advertisers. This is highly related to our blogs getting a good number of followers and subscribers and our advertising costs are affected by it. As much as we would like to start a newspaper business, most of us can’t because of the huge investment. But since the interception of something called Internet, it came along with something called Newsletter or now widely known as E-zine. Does it ring a bell now? I wrote an article on what you actually need to start an e-zine and you may check it out.
Publishing A Newsletter Yourself
Publishing a newsletter daily is easier than you think – as long as you use the Internet as you use the internet as your medium to deliver it to your subscribers. And if you follow the right strategy, you don’t even have to write any content and your subscribers won’t even mind. The following case study shows you an example of what I mean and I am pretty sure you may not have noticed this as much previously.

Case Study: The “JokeADay” Model
Ray Owens of www.jokeaday.com is an absolute genius when it comes to making money online with the least amount of effort. He publishes jokes on a daily basis (Monday – Friday) and sends it out to his 400,000 subscribers from around the world. He started off his website as a hobby by compiling jokes that he thought were funny, and sending jokes to his subscribers via e-mail if they want to receive jokes from him everyday.
He sources for the funniest jokes on the internet where there are millions of them. Jokes are not time-sensitive materials, so he can compile them months in advance and send them out whenever he chooses to. NOTE: Non time-sensitive material, big hint here! This way your subscribers won’t die off and it just keeps building.
Jokes are not copyrighted and Ray was free to grab anything on the net and use it as his own newsletter. Later in time, he asked his subscribers to submit jokes to him and up till date he has not written a single word himself. He gets his full content daily from jokes found online and those submitted by his subscribers. He then allocates two spaces for advertisements for his joke newsletter which was sold for US$250 and $350 respectively, DAILY! Now thats US$18,000 for doing nothing but sending out jokes he didn’t even have to write.
Can you do the same thing? Of coz we can and I must admit this is my main goal in 2009. In the next series, I will touch on how you can plan your business and start to market them effectively. These will be the exact same thing that I will be doing myself and I hope to see good results this year.
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Good stuff, Ben!
I can totally relate to this model as I owned a real estate investment magazine. Our magazine did have a mailing subscription if you wanted, but if you were at the right place at the right time we passed them out for free. The subscription was to ENSURE you got a copy as they were limited.
The ironic thing was, I rarely wrote any of the content and didn’t pay any writers for it. Amazing, right? Well, not really because there are an abundance of people out there willing to share their knowledge and experience with the world for free. All you have to do is approach them correctly and present the opportunity in a win-win perspective.
Anyway, I shut down the magazine mid last year as rising print cost and shrinking advertising pool pretty much forced me out of business. However, I moved the business online in a blog and have been learning the ropes, ready to break out in 2009.
I love the Joke of the Day example as I have been searching for a way to incorporate one of my other passions into my online efforts. This may be the model I was looking for, so thanks for the info. That is awesome.
Keep up the great work and consider changing that Yellow font after the article where it says, “You may also be interested in:” — Very difficult to read.
Peace!
Freddie Taylor’s last blog post..Everyday is a Reality Check
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Thanks Freddie. I hope your new business can take flight in 2009! Its a mixed feeling reading your experience but nevertheless we should only be positive about it and take it as a lesson for you.
By the way, is it in yellow? I see it as black on my screen. Anyone else has the same problem?
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Hi Ben,
I see it Black too, dont know about any Yellows.
But I were not able to see the http://www.jokeaday.com site, looks like a parked domain, dont know if you can get in.
Marketing Business Review’s last blog post..Happy New Year and My Gift For You
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I am using Google Chrome and it is in yellow. Just checked FF and it is black. Guess it is just a heads up.
Freddie Taylor’s last blog post..Quote of the Week: Genius & the Spelling Bee Champion
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Hiya Ben! Been enjoying your blog today, and I just saw this post popping up, dated the 4th of January already. What time zone are you one? I’m on Central African Time GMT+2.
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I am at GMT+8. Kinda ahead of you huh?
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A goodly six hours! The internet makes the world such a small place doesn’t it! I also “chat” to loads of people in the United States, who are way behind again. I love it! Penpals of old are no more, blogging is definitely the way to go.
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I think blogs that solely rely on RSS feeds as a source for gaining contact with their subscribers are missing out on the power of having a newsletter. Having a newsletter allows you to get your readers name and email, which allows you to keep in constant contact with them as long as the stay subscribed.
Donny Gamble’s last blog post..Linkersblog Turbo Charged in 09′
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I think a opt-in list and having an autoresponder does the job much better..
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Good post Pei.
Ray Owens went for something that wasn’t done and took it to another level. He obviously must’ve been planning that move for a bit. Getting jokes online and then having subscribers send in jokes to get it published on his site and sent out in newsletters is genius..wish i thought of that!
I cant wait to see what you got going Pei. always a pleasure to read the material on your blog.
Pheak
Pheak Tol’s last blog post..Internet Marketing Strategy Part I
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Yeah he was smart but if we were to do the same thing now, we probably won’t do as well. Try to come up with something special..
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We have 2 papers that are sent out weekly that are free, there is a little content in there but most of it is full of ads. I don’t read either paper because of this, so maybe this doesn’t work all the time althou giving stuff away on the internet is a great way to gain trust and subscribers.
As for earning 18k a week for my newletter, i little away yet…
Jason
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Lol we are looking at big success stories and its actually an ultimate aim.. so just take a step at a time..
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Hi Ben,
That’s a very good case study. Many ways to make money online and the best way to get content is from other people! I love the JokeADay model – it’s ingenious
Asher
Asher’s last blog post..7 Ways To Effectively Improve Your Online Articles
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Thanks Asher, nice to see you around =)
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Hi Ben,
Nice one! Giving free stuff can be quite a powerful concept and you can use that in your most creative ways possible. Wishing you success on your 2009 goal.
Oh BTW did you receive my email to you on my invite…want to feature your post on my next but need your response by tomorrow or will give your slot away.
Peter Lee
work from home business blog’s last blog post..Who Else Wants Free Backlinks To Their Home Business Blogs
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Yes Peter sure I will be interested in that. I have been rather busy with my home renovation so I take a little longer to reply. Will be in soon =)
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I’m definitely envious of Joke-a-Day after reading this article – wow!!! GOod for him – its great little ideas like that which are the money makers, but like with anything, they take time to develop etc!!!
Taris Janitens’s last blog post..Borrowing to Invest vs Saving to Invest
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Ya really an envy here…
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Hi Ben,
Coming to think about it Ben, how come you don’t have squeeze page or list building on your blog? Money is in the List, Right? I mean you might not have anything to sell at present but you can always promote affiliate program via newsletters etc. http://www.getresponse.com or Alvin just got new software out at http://www.gathersuccess.com about list building etc. I think you should really look into it.
Till the Next time…Success Together…!
Mayur Sangani
http://www.monsterblog.info ( Re-launching as http://www.eternalblogging.com on 14th Jan 2009) Have a sneak peak at it now and let me know what you think…thanks.
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of coz I do.. by the way Mayur, I would appreciate if you don’t add in the urls in your comments next time. Just mention the name will do.
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Hi Ben,
My apologies for leaving url’s on the comment. Just a question to clear,can my signature have URL of my blog?
Regards
Mayur Sangani
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Most companies like Aweber have software that can basically automate the whole process. All you have to do is take 1-2 hours to set it up and your good for life.
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Hey.. Ya thats totally right! I believe thats what he used.
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We have several of the free papers, but I think they are on the way out.
Dennis Edell’s last blog post..UPDATE: Changes Made To The Permanent BackLink Page
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hey ben… how are you m back after weekend and going through the 2nd part of the series. its written good as you are writing as usual. thanx a lot for sharing. waiting for next one… sky
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Sure. Glad you like it =)
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wow very cool that guy sure is lucky is he still averaging around that much money on a month to month basis because thats something i would definitely consider doing myself than
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thx for the share ben, will keep the tips in mind a+
free stuff’s last blog post..Free Personalised Teddy Bear
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Very interesting article – makes you think if it can really be done .
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