EPISODE 11~ TOP TIP: Pyramid Schemes: Businesses That Are Doomed By Their Own Math
Hi, I’M ELISABETH LEAMY. AND HERE it IS, MY TOP TIP: You know that pyramid schemes are scams where people are paid for recruiting more people, rather than for doing or selling something real. And yet new pyramids pop up every year and fleece people for millions. So here’s an explanation you can share with friends and family that will finally make the con crystal clear: Pyramid-shaped business plans are mathematically doomed to failure. Let’s take a “two by two” scheme in which very rep has to recruit two more reps, who have to recruit two more, and so on. Get this: After just 33 levels of recruitment, they will have used up the entire population of the planet earth! There won’t be anybody left to recruit! Still in doubt? Pyramids are illegal and many multi-level marketing businesses are actually pyramid schemes in disguise. By participating, you could be prosecuted, even though you’re a victim. If you want more information to dissuade someone you know from falling for a multilevel marketing business that is really a pyramid scheme, Pyramid Scheme Alert is thepremier website that explains the scam.
EPISODE 11 ~ MAKE MORE: Voice Over Jobs: Turn Your Natural Talents Into A Full-Time Career
What if you could make money using the voice you were born with? Do you have a sexy, sultry voice? Are you good at all kinds of accents? Voiceover work could be your vehicle. Redd Horrocks transitioned into voiceover work a few years ago and wait till you hear how well she’s doing at it.
I’ve just introduced you as a voiceover artist, but first you ran away with the circus right?
I am a former circus-production pro, a Stage manager and technician for the circus. What caused you to drop the circus act and pursue voice work?
I had capped out at the top of my career, so I started doing voice overs. I’d always done them – more as favors for friends. It was the first thing I ever did in college. A friend was doing video game creation for his final project. He asked me to come in and do narration on the main character. He had me do this action role —what it sounded like when someone fell off of a building and did all this action. It was so much fun.
You also needed the extra income, right? Necessity is the mother of invention —or reinvention in this case!
In my 20s I was in a huge amount of debt. I needed extra income and I started narrating audiobooks. I worked in theater and had a friend who was an actress and she had been approached by a company that needed someone with a British accent. I am from the southeast of England and am British. So I did two audio books. Back then I spoke exclusively in a British accent.
You can now speak in either a British OR American accent. Please tell me —in an AMERICAN accent— how you learned to do that and how it has helped your voiceover career! I generally work in an American or British accent so that’s double the clients I can attract.
So you moved into voiceover work full-time in 2014. How many projects have you done and what are they like?
I have done a total of 35,000 projects. I do 300 a week. My range is six words to 10,000 and $5 to $500. Generally just narration. I do a lot of corporate work. I record voice mails, explainer videos, educational and instructional messages, app games, elevator messages. Everything you can think of I have done. It’s very
broad.
You mentioned $5. That’s because you do most of your voiceover work over Fiverr, the freelance marketplace where many services start at $5.
How can you make a living charging so little?
The reason why this system works for me is volume. I can do a lot of work in a short period of time. Something for $5 will take me less than a minute because I’ve really figured out how to do it. I am a really good cold reader. I can read anything accurately the first time. If I can do one of those a minute and 30 in an hour. That’s a significant amount of money. My stuff is all about volume and repeat clients. A client may pay $5 for this job and that may lead to a $200 project.
So if volume is the key, how much do you work?
I am usually in studio for 4-5 hours a day. And an hour to hour and a half of administrative work. But clients are global so have to be available around the clock. I am connected. I don’t take days off. Christmas was my last day since August. Important to me to be accessible to my clients. How I make income I have. Being constantly available means I make more money. I don’t have sick days or paid time off. So I work a lot. It’s a terribly rude question, but I ask it every time: how much money are you making as a voiceover artist?
I make over six figures. It is a very good income. I have had growth every year. First year I didn’t make six figures but maintained growth rate of 20-30% per year. How meaningful has this nice living been for you?
We bought a home. Paid for our wedding in cash. My husband is able to now be a full time student – he wanted to go back to college to be an engineer. The opportunities have been massive. We have the kind of life we never thought we could have and are pursuing what we want to do. You’ve also been able to take some nice vacations. Tell us how you funded your trip to Napa.
I paid for an entire trip to Napa for a weekend once on 78 different public service announcements on herpes. Maybe not super glamorous but lucrative.
I want to share some of your advice for people interested in getting into voiceover work. First, you say client care is crucial. Explain.
The most important thing I tell people is client care, customer care is key. You have to look after your clients. They are your number one priority. If you look at it like that and strive to do better, there’s no reason someone can’t take their skill all the way. It’s about tenacity. What sort of equipment and software do people need to get started?
You don’t have to spend big money on products to get started. I had a really barebones studio when I started. I was recording in my closet. Clothes were my dampening sound! My microphone was used from Ebay. Really good mics aren’t expensive.
Don’t use massively expensive software. You can edit on Audacity. It’s free, easy and fabulous and all I need. With voiceovers it’s all about the enclosure and the mic. There can’t be any ambient noise. And finally, what about being savvy about your fees and earnings? Put the correct value on yourself and ask for more money. You want to make everyone happy but you can’t overwork yourself for a low amount. If you accept that you have value and pursue people recognizing that value you can do so much better than settling.
I think anyone these days has to be money savvy. One of the hardest things about freelancing is budgeting but if you live within your means you are fine.
EPISODE 11 ~ SAVE MORE: Diminished Value On Your Vehicle: Get Compensated For Car Accident Damages
Here’s something I wish I had known about when another driver plowed into my five-month- old car: it’s called diminished value. The other driver’s insurance company paid to fix my vehicle, but just the fact that it had been in an accident diminished its value and I—and you—should be compensated for that loss.
After all, your car is no longer as sound. One former car dealer says he used to automatically offer thirty percent less for a trade-in if it had frame damage.
Many people don’t think about the new, lower value of their vehicle in the aftermath of an accident. Instead, we just worry about how long it’s going to take for the body shop to fix the car so we can get back to our lives.
If you have a newer vehicle or an expensive one, you must ask to be compensated for diminished value. The other driver’s insurance company won’t offer. It’s important to pursue a diminished value claim right away, because most states have a statute of limitations on property damage claims, often three years.
If the other driver’s company resists, consider small claims court to collect diminished value. It should be a fairly easy case to prove: What was your car worth before the crash? How much less is it worth now because it was in an accident? You can also find a bunch of law firms online that specialize in getting people paid for diminished value.
Some of those firms estimate that the average value lost when a vehicle is in an accident is 33 percent. So let’s say you owned a car that was worth just 15-thousand dollars. If you were able to win a 33% diminished value claim, you’d get a check for $5 grand. That’s real money. And, more importantly, it’s money you deserve to put toward your next car.
EPISODE 11~ FIND YOURS: Life Insurance Policies: How To Find Unclaimed Life Insurance Policies Left By Loved Ones
What happens when a loved one dies without telling anybody in the family that they had a life insurance policy? It becomes an unclaimed life insurance policy.
One estimate is that a billion dollars in life insurance money goes unclaimed every year. Life insurance companies are not required to monitor death records or search for beneficiaries, although some do. And often those beneficiaries have no idea there’s a policy out there. So, side tip: it’s a good idea to make a list of all of your financial accounts, including life insurance, for your heirs to reference if you die. But back to the treasure hunt:
Number 1: The classic way to sleuth out lost life insurance policies is old fashioned detective work and following the paper trail. Call the insurance agent who sold your loved one car or homeowner’s insurance because often they sell life insurance too. Talk to their former employers and/or unions to see if there was a work-related life insurance policy. Look at canceled checks, bank statements, and tax returns to see if you can spot an insurance company name based on payments they made or dividends they received.
Number 2: You can sometimes find lost life insurance policies through the same two free websites that I always recommend, MissingMoney.com and unclaimed.org, (remember .org!) And those are the first 2 places you
should check.
Number 3: But there is also a specific site just for inquiring about lost lifeinsurance policies. It’s run by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. If you’re not sure your loved one had life insurance, and you’re just fishing, this is where I suggest you search because it’s free. You have to be the executor or legal representative of someone who has died, to make an inquiry through the NAIC site. The NAIC forwards your inquiry
to all participating insurance companies. They then research and see if they do, indeed, have a life insurance policy under the name you searched. Number 4: If you are fairly certain a deceased friend or family member had a life insurance policy, and the NAIC search doesn’t turn it up, it may be worth it to pay for a search. PolicyLocator.com charges $75 to search and
see if the individual in question ever applied for life insurance with its 420 member companies. If they did, you will receive contact information to inquire further with the insurance company. There you go. 4 ways to search for lost life insurance policies.
EPISODE 11~ GUEST BLOG: Make More: How to Turn Your Side Hustle Into Your Main Gig —Without Risking it All
By Redd Horrocks, Voiceover Artist
Working a side gig can be great. You get to stretch out, be your own boss, and call the shots…at least for a little bit of your day. But when you’re thinking about making the full time switch, how do you make sure you are ready? Here are five tricks to help you make the leap.
Make a Realistic Budget.
Take the time to go through all your expenses. Make sure you include absolutely everything and make a realistic assessment of where your money goes. Then look at trimming that. What could
you give up if you had to? Can you live without that monthly massage? What about going on vacation? Do the honest numbers of what you’d like to spend money on, and what you have to spend money, and make sure your income hits your bare minimum with room left over.
Bank Your Paycheck
If you’re getting close to the switch, stop spending your paycheck from your regular job. Put it into a specific savings account to use as a buffer for if your new business falls on hard times. Make
sure your new income can legitimately support you for at least three months. If you need to dip into your paycheck during the third month, you’re not ready for your new gig to support you.
Analyze Your Time Will having more time to spend on your side gig help it grow? Are you going at a pace you can’t handle right now? How do you want to spend your time? If you are spending all your free time on
your side gig, it’s generating solid revenue, and you have no time for yourself, then it’s definitely time to think about flying the nest and being on your own
Get Your House in Order
Do the research on health insurance, think about setting up an IRA, look into the benefits of forming an LLC or S-corp for tax purposes. Set up a business bank account and a business savings account. Research estimated taxes. Make sure you know how to move your money into all the right places, so you aren’t
hit with an unexpected tax bill, medical expense, or adding zero to your retirement fund.
Find Your Joy Do you love your side hustle? If it fulfills you and makes you happy, then you’re good to go. If you find it stressful or boring, it might not be the right call to switch all your income to being selfperpetuating. Be honest with yourself and do what honestly will make you happy. When you’re setting up your new schedule, think about the things you can do for you, and consider how
you’ll keep up interactions with actual people. Take a lunch break.
Go for a coffee. Join a Facebook group of like-minded people. Set up your support network. Love your life.
About Redd Horrocks, Voiceover Artist Redd Horrocks is a Freelance Voiceover Artist. Her career started in 2003 with a chance encounter with a video game developer, and has continued to grow ever since. She has worked with a plethora of clients from more than 100 countries, completing over 50,000 different projects for anything you can think of, and some things she can’t forget. She is originally from West Sussex, England, but currently resides in America. She makes a dynamite cup of tea, and really loves her job.You can find her online at www.reddhorrocks.com and www.instantvoicemails.com Contact Redd Horrocks, Voiceover Artist
www.reddhorrocks.com/
fiverr.com/reddhorrocks
www.InstantVoicemails.com
EPISODE 10~ EASY MONEY PODCAST
EPISODE 10 ~ TOP TIP: Why Going Out of Business Sales Run By Liquidators Are NOT a Bargain
Most going out of business sales are not bargains! They are run by professional liquidators who raise the store’s prices up before they mark them down. That means you’re often paying as much or more as when the store was still in business. I did an undercover investigation for Good Morning America and store clerks confirmed, on hidden camera, that the liquidators made them put new higher price tags over the old price tags. Liquidators even bring in outside merchandise that the chain never sold, to take advantage of the hype. So never assume a price is a steal just because it’s at a going out of business sale.
Instead, shop and compare, as always.
EPISODE 10 ~ MAKE MORE: Sell Stock Photos: Pictures You’ve Already Taken Could Bring In Extra Income
How would you like to make money —good money— as a photographer? It’s totally doable. Shooting stock photos is our “make more” idea for this episode. Thanks to websites that post people’s photos for sale online, selling stock photos is a way to make some extra, passive income OR transition into photography full-time, like Blake Bronstad.
Blake, you’re a professional photographer now, but you weren’t always. Tell us what you were doing just a few years ago and how photography fit into that.
I was working at a tech start-up for three or four years and photography was a hobby. While I was at that company I started doing more paid photography gigs on the side. I generally got them from friends. But during that time Snapwi.re started up. I knew one guy from Instagram who was involved in the launch and he asked me if I wanted to beta test the service before they released it. I agreed to do so. They are based in Santa Barbara, where I live, so it was easy to do.
For someone like me, not yet a professional photographer, it was a way to find little paid jobs, make a few bucks here and there before I was ready to commit to photography full time. In the beginning I didn’t get paid as much. Maybe $100 here. $75 there. Lifestyle stuff.
For those who don’t know, explain what SnapWi.re is.
Snapwi.re puts dollar amounts on photos based on the credibility of the photographer. You get points, and as I rose through the ranks of the app, my photos became more valuable.
First let’s talk about how you had all sorts of photos already on your hard drive that you uploaded to Snapwire. How did that go?
I had a large amount of photos on my computer with nowhere to put it. —Someone blowing birthday cake candles
—a table of food.
—Palm trees.
For me I shoot a lot of Southern California summery warm vibe stuff. For a number of years I just shot my friends whenever I was at a birthday party, pool, beach or traveling. Snapwi.re started to get the ball rolling. I sold a few things and realized I made a few hundred bucks with fairly little effort. I realized if I uploaded a bunch of images to the Snapwi.re platform. It created a pool of stock images that I had and then those started getting the attention of buyers.
Snapwi.re would choose the ones they thought were top shelf and put a higher
price on those. They take 50% if it’s a stock image in your portfolio or archive – low compared to other stock services. Existing images I have, I could get up to $500 for one photo.
Snapwire also does something unique, giving customers the ability to
request images they need. How is that good for you and other
photographers?
If a buyer creates a request with a specific photo need, that request can be open to the public for any photographer on the app or can be a private request. I get to keep between 70% and 80%. I’ve had jobs that pay up to $1000 an image for
specialized requests. If you have the right client it is very easy. The amount of time spent for what it pays generally is easier than other photography work I do.
At this point you started actually shooting photos just for Snapwi.re, right?
And had some pretty funny experiences?
It was pretty funny. At one point I had to put up a Craigslist ad for models and I ended up taking pictures of people I never met in weird settings – like holding up fruit or climbing on each other’s shoulders, doing cartwheels in a yard. I had someone sit on one of those toys in front of a grocery store and that picture sold.
Of course, stock photographers are always asking their friends and family to pose. How does your wife react?
My wife sometimes says…stop taking my picture. When we first started dating she would happily pose, but now I have to prove to her that it is worth it for an important client!
In 2015 you quit the start up job and became a full-time photographer. How does shooting stock photos for Snapwi.re play into that?
It’s not the largest stream of revenue for me but a large motivator. I’m a full time photographer. Snapwi.re is one of many ways I make money. Majority of income is typical photo shoots with brands. But Snapwi.re is what motivated me and pushed me into the professional realm. Gave me some momentum and a confidence boost and a little bit of income that helped me with what I had saved.
Snapwi.re has helped me become savvier. They’ve put me in touch with a couple other photo shoots in town. I’ve done corporate headshots and that’s been very helpful. Snapwi/re elped me jump ship and do what I really wanted to do full time.
How much money has you made on Snapwi.re and what kind of difference has it made in your life?
Probably about $15,000 since I started. My life is a lot better. The 9 to 5 thing is not for me. I don’t drive a Lamborghini and haven’t bought a house yet. But I am very comfortable. Live in nice city. I am married. My schedule is so flexible. Flexibility is invaluable to me. Being able to take dog to beach whenever I want.
Going on trips with friends.
You’ve got advice for aspiring stock photographers. First, you say take
lots of photos everywhere you go. Why?
Over time you realize what sells. Could be your sister or your dog. Scenes on a sailboat with friends. You start picking up what is commercially viable and sure enough these random pictures will start to make money.
I’ve heard stock photos can’t show brand names and you have to get releases from any people or properties in them. How do you handle that?
You only have to worry about legal things if the shot is of recognizable personal property at someone’s house for example. I started carrying around release forms for models and if I get a picture I think will sell, I will ask if they are willing to sign it for me. I offer to throw them a few bucks or a free headshot if it gets bought.
And finally, you point out that there is a possible tax benefit to shooting
stock photos.
Technically you can write off trips if you shoot stock photos on those trips and they get bought. I do it as much as my accountant recommends. I know my deal is sweet so don’t want to push too far but you can do that.
Interested in shooting and selling stock photos like Blake? Snapwi.re is his preferred stock photo site.
EPISODE 10 ~ SAVE MORE: When To Refinance: Learn the Refinancing Rule of Thumb That Can Save You Six Figures
Refinancing to get a lower interest rate is one of the rare times that you
can save 5 or even 6 figures! But people always ask me how to know if the time is right. Should they refinance now? Or wait? Or… refinance all over again?
That’s why I created something that I call the “Refinancing Rule of 5’s.” It helps answer this question simply and finally. Here it is: You should refinance IF:
1. Your new interest rate will be at least .5 percent —half a percent— lower
than your current rate.
2. You will add 5 years or less to the length of your loan. Reducing the years would be even better.
3. You will be able to recover your closing costs in 5 years or less — preferably much less. Now let me quickly repeat and explain each part of the rule.
First, Your new interest rate will be at least .5 percent lower than your current rate. People used to say you should only refinance if you could snag an interest rate that was at least 1 percentage point lower. But since rates have been hovering at such low numbers for years now, a half a percent is actually a big deal and a good minimum goal.
Second, You will add 5 years or less to the length of your loan. Reducing
the years would be even better. Often when people refinance, they focus
solely on getting a great new rate and leave everything else the same. If they originally went with a 30-year fixed rate mortgage, they do so again out of habit.
Depending how many years there are left on your loan that can defeat the entire purpose because even if you get a lower interest rate, stretching out those interest payments over additional years will eventually cost more.
Third, You will be able to recover your closing costs in 5 years or less —
preferably much less. Closing costs are the fees you have to pay to get
the new loan, like the appraisal and title fees and so on. Most of all you
should make sure you will be in this house long enough to recoup the closing
costs required to refinance. To figure this out, all you do is divide the cost of closing by your monthly savings to see how long it’s going to take for the new loan to pay for itself. Let’s say your closing costs were $1300 dollars and your monthly savings from refinancing was $132. $1300 divided by $132 is 10 months. That is far less than 5 years, so you’re good to go.