Can You Cut Costs at All?

Like I say in my podcast intro each week, sometimes there will be other people who know a lot more about a topic than I do…this is probably one of those situations. So what you’re going to read today is my opinion – don’t take it as gospel, because I’m not a financial planner or even exceptionally good at cutting costs and saving money! And you might have different ideas about what to cut and how to do it. But I’ve taken a lot of different stabs at it and I’ve got some experience with what works for me and what doesn’t…so that’s what I’m going to share. Take from it what you wish – maybe you’ll just click away, saying “What a load of crap!” or maybe you’ll find something that you haven’t thought of…whatever the situation is, remember that I’m not endorsing any particular course of action. I’m simply giving some suggestions based on my experiences. 

OK – so that was my disclaimer for this post!

Everyone is always trying to find ways to save money…it seems to be the holy grail of life… I often hear “If only I could save a bit more, I could do XYZ”. We all have lots of things to spend money on, don’t we? It seems that no matter how much or how little we make, it’s all gone at the end of the month – sometimes even before the end, if we’re not careful.

Cutting costs and saving money isn’t rocket science by any stretch. But it does take a high level of commitment and THAT is sometimes hard to swallow. Humans in general tend to shy away from anything that takes effort…and making a commitment is a sure sign that effort is required. If you’re not ready to commit to a specific course of action, the outcome you’re looking for isn’t going to be achieved. It doesn’t matter whether you’re trying to lose weight, studying for an exam, or saving money. If you aren’t willing to put in the necessary work, you won’t get the desired results.

What’s Your Standard of Living Baseline?

We’ve all got an idea about the standard of living we want to have, whether that’s where we are now or higher or lower than our current point. And to be honest, your desired standard of living is very rarely LOWER than what you’ve currently got. But to cut costs and save money, it might be that you have to cut out a few of the luxuries that you’ve been enjoying. I’m not suggesting lowering your standard of living substantially; just re-adjust what you’re doing a bit…

The first thing to consider when you’re trying to cut costs is what your baseline standard of living is – that means how low are you willing to go? This flows directly from the last couple of episodes, where I had you identify the essential and desirable elements of your current life that you’re paying for now.This is where the list of desirables comes into play. So grab that list from last week…we’re going to take a look at what’s on it and see where we can start to cut some costs. If you are willing to cut to the bare bones to save as much as possible, that’s certainly achievable. But most of us want to continue enjoying life while saving for the future. 

Entertainment is a category where people generally spend considerably more money than they really need to. Of course, it’s important to have some entertainment in your life – all work and no play makes Sammy a pretty dull guy, right? But what you choose as entertainment doesn’t necessarily have to be expensive. This category usually contains items like concerts & festivals, movies, music and books. It includes subscriptions to internet providers, cable TV, Netflix, iTunes, Audible, Amazon Prime and other platforms that have downloadable content for a monthly fee. While each of these subscriptions may not seem expensive on its own, when you add up a few of them, the monthly cost rises quickly. So this is a spot to begin your paring down of expenses. Look at the various subscription services and see which offer multiple streams for the cost – like Amazon Prime, for example, gives you access to music, movies and books as well as saving you money on shipping if you’re buying online. You may say “But I can get so much more content on Netflix” and that’s probably true…but do you spend enough time in front of the screen to warrant paying for both? If your true joy in life is Netflix, then definitely keep paying for it – and look at something else to reduce your costs.

Food is another area where most of us can probably cut back a bit . Good, healthy food isn’t cheap, for sure, but the number of coffees we purchase each week, the number of quick drive-thru meals or little snacks as we run errands all add up to a considerable amount of money at the end of the month. Cutting out one purchased coffee per day will probably save you a minimum of $25/month. That doesn’t sound like much, but an extra $25/month into your RRSP adds up, and it’s a small change to your routine that won’t be missed after the first couple of days. You can always make a coffee at home and take it with you, if you absolutely HAVE to have that cup in the morning. And taking a lunch to work instead of buying one is another way to save a bit. These are simple little changes that reap big rewards long-term without causing huge heartache in your daily life.

Gifts

Gifting is a category where many of us go overboard. When special occasions arise, we want to give our family and friends gifts that are meaningful and that will be appreciated and useful. Somehow that always equates to costly in our minds, but it doesn’t have to be. Most people are much more moved by and appreciative of gifts that show thought and effort…both of which were free to give, the last time I checked! A wonderful Christmas morning, for example, doesn’t need to mean tons of gifts under the tree. It could be getting up together and having breakfast and then going to serve at a food kitchen, or visiting a nursing home or hospital where the residents don’t get to go home to family.

Vacations is a category where many of us could probably find savings. The majority of people save up some money for a vacation but then once they’re on the vacation, they splurge and put a bunch of extra expenses on a credit card because they’re living in the moment. To this, I say simply be cognizant of what you’re spending…take a look at that souvenir before you fork out what’s probably at least 2 or 3 times its actual worth. Is it something you’re going to use after the vacation or is it something that’s going to sit on a shelf or in a box because it’s really got nothing to offer? If it’s the latter, take a picture of it instead of buying it! 

I don’t suggest that you try cutting down in all areas of your life at once. That’s pretty much a recipe for failure unless you’re very determined and committed to saving money. I suggest maybe trying one cut-back for a month, to see how that goes. Once you’re satisfied that the world hasn’t collapsed in on you, you can cut back on something else. Slowly but surely, expenses will decrease and you probably won’t even notice the change in lifestyle. But if all is done correctly, you should notice either an increase in your disposable income or an increase in your savings account, if you have taken the action of redirecting the extra money that way from the start.

I’d love to hear what you do to cut costs. What are your money-saving tips that you can share with others? Drop a comment below! 

The post Cutting Costs appeared first on Beyond Retirement.

1. WHAT INCOME DO YOU HAVE?

What amount of money is going to be coming into your life each month? The first step to sorting out what you can afford as you start down the road beyond retirement…is to get comfortable with what income you’re going to have. This is the basis for all your decisions, because as soon as the money is used up, you have to start using your imagination, and if that happens too early in the month, you’re going to run out of ideas for fun free stuff to do!

So, what income do you have? Generally, when we think of retirement, we anticipate stepping out of the workforce, at least in the general sense of having a job and getting paid regularly for it. That means the regular pay cheque is going to disappear. Do you have a pension from whatever job or profession you’ve been spending your time at up to now? 

2. DO YOU HAVE ANY SAVINGS TO TAP INTO?

Have you paid into RRSPs throughout your life? Is this the time when you want to start dipping into that source of funds? Do you have part-time jobs, or side gigs, that can supplement your income? Put all those sources together and come up with a total monthly income AFTER taxes. This is your starting point.

3. FIGURING OUT YOUR BASIC $$ NEEDS

The next step is figuring out your basic money needs for the month. How you decide what your priorities are obviously determines how you live your life. Deciding what you can afford is sort of a nebulous concept…some people are quite happy to go into debt to take a wonderful vacation each year, while others save up for many years and then take a vacation with the money they’ve saved. Priorities are important and what you choose as your priorities will determine where you end up.

We’ve talked about this a bit in an earlier episode…when I suggested making a list of all the things you spend money on. Do you still have your list? If you do, pull it out and take a look at what you’re paying for. If you don’t have a list, hit pause right now and take a few minutes to make a list of everything you spend money on in a month, from the coffee at the drive-thru to your mortgage.

OK, now that we’ve all got our lists, take a close look at each item on it. You’re going to group them into “WANT” and “NEED”. This is an important exercise because although you might think some of the items on your list fall into the “need” category, they might not necessarily be necessities in the purest form.

Let’s take a look at what the necessities are. First of all, you need to be able to pay for survival items – shelter, protection, and food.

Shelter costs cover mortgage/rent, utilities, BASIC phone service (keeping in mind that a cell phone is supposed to be for making/receiving phone calls, it’s possible that some of the features you’re paying for are “nice to have” rather than “necessity” – but I’m just suggesting to look at it; your needs aren’t the same as mine.)

Protection covers the things you can’t really afford to be without, like various types of insurance, such as homeowners’ or tenants’ packages, and auto insurance if you have a vehicle. It also includes health care (like prescription drug costs) and childcare.

Food covers your basic groceries only – this does not include dining out or snacks you pick up at the gas station when you’re paying for your fill up.

Next we have to look at other costs that aren’t exactly survival needs but are still essential for today’s society. Clothing (figure out what you really need, not “do I have all the latest fashion accessories?”); basic hygiene both personal and general: toothpaste, shower supplies, laundry detergent, TP; vehicle costs: gas & maintenance money for the automobile, any loan/lease payments on it and parking fees for work; and any legal requirements you might have: real estate and property taxes (this could probably go under shelter if you want); child support/alimony; loans & other debts.

Once you’ve marked all the essential costs, you can go back through the list to identify the “desirables” …the things that make life more comfortable, but without which you’ll still get by quite well. This list has items like home renovations (not required maintenance), utilities such as long-distance phone calls, high-speed internet, cable/satellite tv, dining out, extra clothing and the entertainment part of your life: vacations, books, magazines, club memberships. It also includes pampering…anything beyond the basic hair cuts and maintenance. The monthly mani/pedi really is NOT a necessity!

It’s often quite a shock when you actually write down what you’re spending your hard-earned money on…

Now that you’ve divided up the list, you may need to rewrite it so it makes sense. You want to be able to add up all the necessities and the desirables separately, so you can see how they gobble up your monthly net income.

So, write down your net income, then subtract the necessities total. Hopefully there’s still a good chunk of money left…now subtract the desirables, if you can. If you end up in the negative range, you’ll have to start looking at those desirables to see which of them you can put by the wayside, at least temporarily.

The post Intro to Affordability appeared first on Beyond Retirement.

There is a plethora of affiliate marketing strategies and tactics employed by many successful affiliate marketers to ramp up their sales and commissions. While some strategies may seem advanced, they are still usually based on the fundamentals of affiliate marketing.

You need content. You need traffic…and you need to position the right offer in front of the right audience. The goal is to help and also gently guide the reader towards a purchase. As an affiliate marketer, your job is to be a ‘conduit’ that takes an interested visitor to the sales page which will go on to sell the product.

That’s really all there is to it. All other intricacies can be boiled down to this goal. Let’s look at a few highly effective strategies employed by thousands of affiliate marketers all over the world.

1.  Niche sites

This is without a doubt the most popular strategy. To promote a variety of products you need a niche site. The content that’s interspersed with your affiliate links will make you sales if you do it right.

You’ll need to learn the basics of setting up a site, optimizing it, creating content that converts and a few other things. Once you get a grasp of the fundamentals, the sky is the limit. 

As long as you grow your site, your earnings will increase exponentially. Some of the large authority sites make 5 to 6 figures a month in affiliate commissions. That’s how powerful this method is.

2. Facebook groups/Pinterest boards

Everyone is on social media these days. Having Facebook groups and Pinterest boards dedicated to your niche will allow you to tap into existing hotbeds of traffic while targeting and audience that is interested in your niche. 

Through the links in your posts and pictures, traffic will trickle to your site and you’ll get sales. Some affiliates prefer to direct link the pictures in Pinterest to the affiliate products. That’s fine too. What matters is that you hang out where your audience hangs out.

3. YouTube channels

If you’re shy to be on camera, you can still do unboxing videos or PowerPoint presentations with a voiceover. YouTube is an excellent source of free traffic. You just need to invest your time in creating interesting videos that are optimized to rank well.

Links in your video descriptions can either go to a landing page or to your website. While some affiliates prefer to directly link to the product, it’s wiser to try and capture the lead.

4. Email lists

As mentioned earlier, always strive to build your list. Have a pop-up on your site with a freebie that encourages the visitor to opt-in. Have your links in your social media sites pointing to your landing pages. Do whatever you can to build your list. Check out a FREE List-Building training below.

Click here

Once you have a list and you build a relationship with the people on it, you can promote products that will be well-received. A list will be your greatest asset.

5. Paid ads

Many marketers stay away from paid advertising because it’s almost inevitable that you lose money during the testing phase. However, you should give it a try when your budget allows for it. You’re not losing money – you’re buying data.

Once you make this mindset shift, you’ll be encouraged to keep trying till you find a few winning ad campaigns. A winning campaign can restore your losses within days and yield you an attractive profit. Such is the power of paid advertising.

So, give these 5 strategies a try and watch your affiliate commissions soar. They will take you some time to do, but if you’re consistent and stick to the plan, your future self will thank you for it. These strategies will work wonders for your affiliate marketing.

Until next time….

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