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Johnny's Income Report - July 2014
https://www.johnnyfd.com/2014/07/johnnys-income-report-july-2014.html
A lot of people ask me what the heck my business actually is and how much money I make per month from what. So I figured, why not write out an income report since it's almost the end of July.
I've honestly had no idea what I made from what these past six months as my entire plan was to just make a lot of money while spending very little, and it's worked so far, but sitting down looking through it all actually makes a lot of sense. So here you go!
You can see the book at 12WeeksinThailand.com
Adsense/Other: $1 55.33
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As soon as I started becoming successful with my drop shipping store, I started giving advice to others just starting out. It was a lot easier to do in person and the advice I gave them always seems to increase their sales conversion rate. That's when Anton suggested I make a video training course on what I do behind the scenes. I have never spend a single penny advertising it, but whenever people sign up for Anton's course and start making sales, they almost always purchase OLAB to learn how to increase their profits.
To find out more go to: OptimizeLikeaBoss.com
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I've honestly had no idea what I made from what these past six months as my entire plan was to just make a lot of money while spending very little, and it's worked so far, but sitting down looking through it all actually makes a lot of sense. So here you go!
Book sales:
Sales from Amazon Kindle: $153.77
Direct Sales from Paypal: $39.96 -$5 fee
Profit from Paperback books: $10.11
Total Gross Profit from All Sales: $198.84
About a year ago I wrote a book called 12 Weeks in Thailand: The Good Life on the Cheap which still makes money today pretty much passively.
You can see the book at 12WeeksinThailand.com
Affiliate Links:
From Shopify: $75.08
Trust Guard: $24.48
Amazon Affiliate: $31.58
Total Gross Profit: $282.47
Anytime someone uses a link on my recommended resources page, I get credit for referring the sale. I update the page about once with a month with whatever I personally use and would recommend anyways. Not everything on there has an affiliate program but whenever they do, I use an affiliate link so I can get credit for referring my friends.
To find out more visit my recommended resources page.
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eCommerce Training:
Total Gross Profit: $837.33
As soon as I started becoming successful with my drop shipping store, I started giving advice to others just starting out. It was a lot easier to do in person and the advice I gave them always seems to increase their sales conversion rate. That's when Anton suggested I make a video training course on what I do behind the scenes. I have never spend a single penny advertising it, but whenever people sign up for Anton's course and start making sales, they almost always purchase OLAB to learn how to increase their profits.
To find out more go to: OptimizeLikeaBoss.com
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Services/Coaching:
Phone Coaching: $110
Logo Design: $80
Web Design: $650
Total Profit from Services: $840
Making logos, designing websites, or even coaching has never been my main focus and I do zero advertising to find clients. But often when someone needs something made, I get a facebook inbox message saying, hey you make websites right? The little bit of extra work on top of my own businesses ends up being a nice extra sum of money every month, while being able to provide people which great service through the extension of my friends that are graphic designers, programmers and developers.
If you want webdesign services you can see my services here.
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eCommerce/Drop Shipping:
Gross Sales: $32,579.82
Credit card fees: -$814.49
Advertising fees: -$982.40
Phone Support: -$110.00
Shopify Fee: -$79.00
Misc Fees: $100.00
Cost of Products: Varies
Total Profit from Dropshipping: ~$5,540.00
I haven't actually done my accounting yet for July as the month isn't over, but my profit margins all vary from 25%-37% and I cap my advertising budget at $1,000 a month in order to never go over it. For those who are wondering what the heck I actually sell, it's not really that interesting they are just expensive business items that range from $200 - $1,500.
My parents, sister, cousins, girlfriend, and close friends all know what I sell, I just don't like spreading it all over the internet as I don't want to get stalkers for my business. It's kind of the same reason why I would never put up personal information about my niece or nephew on the internet. But if you want info on the course I took to learn how to set up my online store, you can find it at AntonMethod.com.
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Total Expenses/Costs of Living:
Rent: $203.13 a month
Utilities: $15.62 a month
Internet/Phone: $16.85 a month
Co-Working Office: $109.38 a month
Gym Membership: $39.06 a month
Food: $468.75 a month
Misc: $187.50 a month
Total Monthly Expenses: $1,040.29
I used to spend around $600 a month when I was on a tight budget, then I started splurging and living it up and still only spend $1,500 a month. Now I'm at a really happy place. I still eat out 7 nights a week, have steak, avocados, great coffee, dark chocolate, get weekly massages, go to the cinema, and go to a nice gym. The cost of living in Chiang Mai really is just that cheap.
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Summary:
That actually took a lot longer to write than I planned for but it was a great way for me to see the big picture myself. The things I left out are the projects I'm currently working on that still like my other drop shipping stores I'm running with partners, and the new business with my girlfriend.
My biggest source of income is from my drop shipping stores, and everything else I make, I put into a rainy day fund. This time last year I actually wrote a goal to make $1,000 a month. It's crazy how fast life changes as I'm making 7x that amount now. The best thing is, making $92k a year back in the US would be great, but after taxes, rent/mortgage, car payments, gas, bills, etc, you would be lucky if you saved up a few hundred dollars a month.
Now that I'm living in Chiang Mai, I'm able to save over $6,000 a month while living an even better life than I did when I was back in California. It's crazy to think about it, but I am so incredibly grateful for the friends I've met, mentors who have guided me, and for having such a loving girlfriend.
I would love for everyone who I care about, my friends, family and anyone who takes the time to follow my blog and my journey to experience this life for themselves. Keep in touch and I wish you all happiness and success as well.
P.S. Don't expect income reports every month as this took FOREVER to write!
Edit: I just want to remind everyone, as fun as it is to see how others are doing, at the end of the day, it doesn't matter what I do, how success I am with what. All the matters is what YOU do. This is a post I wrote months ago for my friends and family, start here and become your own success.
Warm Regards,
Johnny
Thanks for taking the time to write this post Johnny. It's always interesting to see the numbers behind successful people such as yourself. I can't wait to crush it in Chiang Mai. Only 8 weeks to go!
ReplyDeleteHey Nick, happy to share it. Looking forward to meeting you and your Osprey Porter 46 out in Chiang Mai! Best of luck with your travel!
DeleteAwesome Johnny, looks like it was a good month. Don't you also make an affiliate commission on Dropshiplifestyle?
ReplyDeleteHey Adam, it's been a great month thanks! As for DSL I never count the course as income, only what I actually make from my own drop shipping stores.
DeleteThis is awesome, man! I I love getting an inside look. Inspiring stuff.
ReplyDeleteI've noticed more of your ads (it looks like retargeting?) for OLAB (I did join). Are you seeing your ads improving sales? Have you tried running ads for Antons Method?
Hey Quinton, glad to hear that the OLAB ads are working and thanks for being a member! I'm still playing around with them so we'll see what happens next.
DeleteHi Johnny,
ReplyDeleteFor your dropshipping site I find it interesting that you cap your advertising spend at $1000 a month. What advertising method do you use?
The great thing about advertising online, using most paid methods, is that you get a very accurate ROI. If $1000 of advertising is bringing in $33k of sales then in theory $2000 of advertising should bring in $66k of sales. If your advertising is working and is profitable then presumably you'd want to spend as much as possible, rather than add a cap.
What's your reason for the cap?
Hey Ian. The reason for the cap is without it it's easy for things like expensive Google Ads and Amazon ads to get out of control. By having a $1,000 cap, it forces me to keep my costs per click reasonable, optimize for costs per conversion, and explore other methods of getting customers aside from paid ads, which is ultimately what I want to ween off of for my stores.
DeleteI know the cap is there to stop spending getting out of control, but you are hitting your cap, which you don't want to do.
DeleteWhen you start running a campaign you need a cap in place while you test, optimise and get your campaign profitable. Once it is profitable you should keep increasing your cap. Your should get to an average daily spend, then set your cap 20% above that. It protects you from any major overspend but doesn't limit your profit which will be happening if you are reaching your cap - which you seem to be doing.
Your cap doesn't have anything to do with the cost per click or cost per conversion.
Hey Ian, definitely makes sense, great advice! This is the first month I actually hit the cap so it's time to scale it up soon. But let me enjoy Europe and I'll put it on the to do when I get back =)
Deletethanks for sharing Johnny!!!! im on my way to living a mobile lifestyle like yours! keep inspiring everyone!!!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome, and best of luck with your own journey.
DeleteThis is awesome for two reasons:
ReplyDeleteFirst, your future neighbors and students will avoid pitfalls by planning accordingly and accurately. Thank you!
Second, this is the most taboo subject in the world: how much money do you make? It takes vulnerability and courage to hang it out there. Well done!
What leadership! Thank you!
See you at the retreat!
Hey JP thanks so much for the comment. It was hard to share this as you're right, it really does open me right up, but someone's gotta do it =) Looking forward to meeting you at the retreat.
DeleteHi Johnny
ReplyDeleteYour book sales look good still, how many copies have your sold in total?
also can you do a blog post on how you published your book, eg how easy it is to publish to kindle and who did you get to print your physical copies and a cost break down on the physical copies?
that would be awesome if you could
cheers
Mattt
Hey Matt, I'll be happy to write up a blog post about the book sales when I get a chance, especially since I'm getting ready to to publish Life Changes Quick, the 2nd book in the "series." aka life.
DeleteI lost close to $20k today due to market shift. That might seem a lot but it's not. I guess it's all relative.
ReplyDeleteHi Johnny,
ReplyDeleteI'm another Chiang Mai Expat, great to see you are doing so well. I've been following your blog for a while. Drop shipping is certainly something I am thinking about exploring and the retreat in October is certainly pushing me to do something...it would seem a wasted opportunity with it being on my door step!
Hey Steve, I'm sure you're loving life in Chiang Mai, I'm actually in Berlin now but will be back before the retreat for sure. It's definitely good timing that it's going to be in your city.
DeleteEnjoy Berlin Johnny last time I was there was May 1989 a few months before the wall came down. I'll look out for your blog posts to see how you are finding it.
ReplyDeleteBest
Steve
Nice man. Going the Smart Passive Income route I see. Great numbers for your dropshipping. Reminds me to get my ass in gear.
ReplyDeleteHey glad it could be a kick start to get your own stores up and running.
DeleteHey Johnny, As of today, you can now send/receive money with no fees via Gmail from a debit card using Google Wallet. This may be a way to avoid transaction fees on some of your consulting / mastermind type businesses.
ReplyDeleteHey Maxwell, thanks for the heads up on Google Wallet! I'll definitely sign up for that. Google is truly taking over the internet.
DeleteI've tested the free Gmail money transfer at it works great. The caveat is you have to transfer to/from a USA debit card. You can even send money & request repayment. Great for helping a friend out in a pinch. My friend & I both have established Gmail accounts but it didn't mention anything about requiring the recipient to have Gmail, just a Google Wallet account.
Deletehi. i bought your book for travel reasons but i actually decided since you have done well with dropshipping i would try it this month after hearing about it for over a year now i think. do you think storecoach.com or any cheaper alternatives are available because i can't get over the the increase to five hundred. don't have that much extra right now but just wanted to get started into it now anyway. thanks
ReplyDeleteHey Chuck, glad you enjoyed the book and have been following along with the journey. I haven't used Storecoach.com or any other free or cheaper alternatives, but I've learned that in this life, we really do get what we pay for and nothing worth having is truly free. I know for me personally I've made back 100x what I spent on the course at AntonMethod.com and I know it works. My suggestion would be if you are serious, just do it the right way and don't waste your time with a cheap alternative.
DeleteYou are killing it! Congrats man, you are a real inspiration to all of us. I check this site daily to see your progress; you are a real inspiration to all of us trying to bootstrap a business. One quick question - are you still driving most of your traffic/sales through Google product ads or have you found success in other methods (e.g. organic search, word of mouth)? Appreciate the reply, hope you are enjoying Europe!
ReplyDeleteWow thanks so checking the site that often! I'm glad I could inspire you to bootstrap your own business. I still get a lot of sales from paid ads, mostly through google ads, but thankfully I'm getting more and more sales from other sources now. I'm focusing a lot on repeat customers, word of mouth, facebook retargeting, organic, etc. I'd say more than 1/3 of my traffic now comes from non-paid, which is great.
DeleteHey Johnny. I'm considering coming to Chiang Mai for the DSL Retreat in October and then a couple of months after that. Is that possible btw? How do you guys get your visas renewed? I was in Bangkok earlier this year and I forgetfully overstayed my visa by 2 days and had to pay a 2000 Baht fine.
ReplyDeleteHey definitely come out, and enjoy Thailand after the retreat, sign up at www.AntonMethod.com to become a member, and then you'll have access to sign up for the retreat itself. Before you come get yourself a double entry tourist visa from your home country and it'll be good for 4 months
Deletewhy do you not have your affiliate income for Clickbank promoting Dropship LIfestyle with your affiliate link?
ReplyDeleteHey Wes, I only count profit I make from my actual dropshipping stores and not anything I make from the course.
ReplyDeleteHey Adam, I only count the actual profit I make from my dropshipping stores and not the program itself.
ReplyDeleteI understand, but you count your other affiliate income, and the income from your own course. So why not the $250 per sale of Dropship Lifestyle you earn in commission for everyone you refer to your affiliate domain?
ReplyDelete