If you're one of the millions of people who are spending more time at home, this article will provide a few ideas on using this time to create your Plan B. Whether you're stuck at home due to a layoff, firing, pandemic, illness or other reason it's always a great idea to have a plan B. The more options you have in situations like these, the easier it is to navigate what comes next. 

Those without a Plan B or other options are forced to roll with whatever life (your boss, health officials and the list goes on) throws your way. The direction and options they provide may or may not be the direction you want to take. 

The fallout from the Coronavirus is forcing a lot of us to think more about having a Plan B or a second source of income as more companies and organizations are laying off and closing their doors. Even companies that have opened up again, face an uncertain future as inflation, and other economic conditions are still forcing closures and restructuring. 

This health pandemic has lead to uncertainty for many people.  Employees who before the pandemic were feeling relatively secure in their jobs, are now wondering whether their job will end in the coming months.

These employees are also looking for ways to stay safe and away from crowds.  People who never dreamed they would be considered "front line workers" now have a new title, "essential worker". 

People who have been given the title of essential worker are dealing with face to face contact with the public. That includes educators, health professional and other public facing professions. 

Whether you work in a medical setting or your local retail store, the fear is real.  Go to work and expose yourself or stay home and have no income. 

Creating a Back up Plan

If you've managed to stay healthy but you've been displaced or laid off, this is also a scary time, unless you have a back up plan. If you don't have a back up plan it's never too late to create one. Actually, your back up plan could be one of the great things that could come from this.

The closures are hopefully temporary, but if you're an hourly worker who needs each and every check to make ends meet, you are looking for financial solutions. 

You should first check out the article How to Rebound If You've Lost Your Primary Source of Income for steps you can take today to get back on track. 

Then check out the suggestions in this article to create your Plan B.  It's totally possible if you have a few extra hours (1-3 per day) that's all you need to implement a plan that can create a cushion for the curb balls that life can throw your way. 

Nothing In, Nothing Out

The activities outlined in this article will not make money flow from the heavens if you don't put in the work.  But over time, they have the potential to improve your life.  

And as bad as things might look today, there are some positive things that can come out of this pandemic and the resulting changes in every day life. 

How Will You Spend Your Time at Home?

One of the positive things that can come from this has to do with the extra time you might have.  What will you do with the hours you would normally spend at work?

You could get extra sleep, catch up on the soaps or your favorite Nexflix series, catch up with friends and family, watch TV or movies, houseclean, or panic about things to come.  

These activities have their benefits, but none of them will solve the problem of helping you to pay your expenses.

You could use this time to bond with your kids and other members of your household.  You could also use this time to catch up on game night with your family.  This time can also be used teach your kids to do something you've always wanted to show them.  

While these activities won't help your finances, it's also a great way to address self care, and nurture yourself, especially if you're experiencing stress. All of these suggestions would be a very positive way to use your time.  

Basically this is a great time to do things that you normally don't have time to do while you're at work.

If improving your finances is a concern, you'll have to take actions that will lead to improving how you make a living. 

Here's a list of 15 things you can do, starting today to create your Plan B. 

1. Find a Problem to Solve

What problem can you solve for others? How big is the problem? Brainstorm any problems that are a match with your likes, hobbies, interests or favorite causes. 

Your Plan B could help you reach your financial goals by helping others solve their problems. It's all about your audience (the one that you'll create) and your service to others.

Think about the thing that the most successful companies have in common.  All of them help consumers solve their problems and daily challenges. 

The better you become at helping people their solve problems, the better you will be at creating additional streams of passive income.  Keep in mind that it's all about your audience. 

2. Create a Strategy

Next you'll want to create a strategy.  A strategy is a plan that will help you make a transformation from where you are now, to where you want to be.

Creating a strategy includes creating an end goal (where you want to be) and then mapping out all of the the steps (including resources) that will get you to that goal or end result. 

Giving thought to the remaining items on this list will help you create a strategy that you can use.

Wikipedia defines a strategy as setting goals, determining the actions needed to achieve those goals, and mobilizing the resources needed to execute the actions. 

The overall goal that we'll talk about in this article has to do with using your likes, interests and skills to help people solve their problems and get paid for doing so.

The items in this list will help you create an additional income source (or two or three) that you can work from home and enjoy. 

3. Get Organized

Getting organized can make the difference between reaching your goals or not.

For example, having all your tools in an easily accessible location, knowing how they work, creating goals and implementing a well thought out plan can help you reach your desired income level with fewer challenges.

Organizing things so they are easy to find when you need them help you get more done in less time. This will enable you to accomplish more in any given block of time. 

Action Item: Avoid frustration and burnout by using this time to organize your business (or business idea) with the right resources to make it work for you 24/7 and if applicable, your team.  

Not all resources will be a good fit, and this is a great time to try some out to see how well they work.

4. Create a Business Platform

Creating an online platform for whatever you decide to do is my number one recommendation for creating your Plan B. Blogging is my first choice, even if you decide to use other platforms like YouTube and podcasting for a number of reasons. The biggest benefit of having a blog is that it will provide a home base that will help you grow trust and credibility with your audience.

A blog is a home base that serves the same purpose in the online world as a brick and mortar location in the offline world.  

It gives you the ability to build an email list (audience), promote products and services, showcase your knowledge, skills and abilities all of which will enable you to earn income.  

Blogging also helps potential sponsors see what your business is about and whether it's a good fit for their goals.  Most affiliate sponsors will take a look at your blog (or adverting platform) before approving  your application. 

You will benefit from a blog, no matter what niche or business model you choose.  Read my post on selecting an online platform for more information. 

5. Create Six Months of Evergreen Content

Once you have a platform and a niche, it's time to create evergreen content your audience can use to reach their goals. Evergreen content is content that is always relevant to your niche.  It never goes out of style. 

Take the extra time in your day to create a large block of evergreen content for your blog, YouTube channel and Podcast. 

You can cover the same content over all three platforms if they apply to your business. This is a strategy that makes your content go even further.

6. Set Goals

Establish goals, giving each one measure objectives and a deadline. 

Wikipedia says a goal is an idea of the future or desired result that a person or a group of people envision, plan and commit to achieve.  

Purchase our goal setting guide that walks you through how to set business goals that are SMART.

7. Learn a New Skill

One of the biggest reasons people don't succeed in their business is because they are not trained and they have no experience in running a successful business.

Whether it's sales and marketing or bookeeping and accounting, you need the skills to run a business yourself or you need the ability to hire someone to run it for you.

Especially in the area of MLM and direct sales, people are sometimes given methods that don't work for everyone. In this case training is necessary, for yourself and your team if you want to have a thriving business. 

You can also read my post about selecting a business model for more information. 

8. Start a YouTube Channel

The YouTube platform is a great way to start a business and earn passive income especially if you pair it with affiliate marketing.

Making as few as one video per week even can become a very lucrative way to earn online. It's not even necessary to be in front of the camera to earn using this method.  Just choose a product, and a niche and get started.

There are several hacks you can use to make it easier to build your audience and earn money. 

9. Create Images and Worksheets

If you have a blog or YouTube channel, take this time to create attention grabbing, scroll stopping images, freebies and worksheets that will help your audience solve a problem. 

For example, we have a planner created for bloggers to help them plan their day. If you're a blogger check it out to help organize and plan your content, as well as your day. 

What kinds of content (information and tips) are they looking for? What images will grab their attention and get them to take a look at your content? What kinds of images will help you make a connection with your audience on a daily basis?

What information will they need to monitor and review on a regular basis in order to be successful? Can you create a worksheet that will make it easy to track much needed data? 

In addition to creating images and worksheets for your business, you can also create these items (digital products) that you can sell to earn money. 

Canva is a great resource for creating images, signs, worksheets, banners and other graphic images for your business.

Your job as a business owner is to find information, tools and resources to help you as well as your audience reach their goals. 

10. Create a Video Series

Is there something you can you teach your audience? Is there a service, tool, topic or product that would benefit from a live review or demonstration?

Can you do a video series consisting of three or more videos that will solve a problem for your audience?

Here are some great reasons to use video in your business:

A series of videos can stand alone as a playlist or be turned into a course that you can sell or provide for free to your audience.  

Is there some information or insight your audience needs that they can't get from conventional methods, that you could provide in a YouTube video series?

Creating a video series helps your audience learn more about you and how you can help them with a problem.

Build the know, like and trust factor with your audience by providing a valuable resource for your viewers. 

Adding a video to your blog posts can help your readers absorb your information quickly and easily while they are on the go. 

11. Start a Podcast

Create a podcast for people who are on the go.  A podcast is an audio program that you subscribe to on your smartphone or device of choice. Your audience can listen to it whenever they like.

People absorb information in a lot of different ways, make it as easy as possible for people to engage with your content. 

Putting your content in as many formats as possible will create multiple traffic sources for your blog and give your readers a different format from which to obtain your information and share it with others. 

12. Improve Your Productivity

Being productive means doing more in less time. For example if you have a blog, you'll want to automate tasks like lead generation, follow up, and scheduling your content on social media. This activity will give you the ability to do more activities while you focus on other things, in less time.  This is every business owner's dream.

Using automation tools like email marketing software like aWeber, and social media automation tools like Tailwind, Post Planner and Hootsuite you can always reach out to new users through social media. Doing this on auto pilot will allow you to focus on other aspects of your business. 

With Thrive Architect, a visual editor that enables you to create lead generation and sales pages that will continually bring in new leads and sales on auto-pilot.  

With automation tools, there is no need for hiring additional staff to post for you.

13. Create Multiple Ways to Generate Leads

Generating leads is a critical business task that happens when you create an email list.

You might be wondering what a lead is.  A lead is an individual or organization that has an interest in what you are selling or promoting.

A lead requests more information by sharing contact information, like an email address, a phone number, or even a social media handle.

Generating an email list is accomplished by placing forms like the one shown below in your content, making it easy for interested readers to leave their contact information so that you can follow up.  

Creating a platform like a blog that has lead generation forms is the first step in setting the stage for building a relationship with a potential customer. 

Giving your readers the option to contact you for more information. An email list allows you to provide useful information for your readers without being salesy, pushy or annoying.

if managed well, your email list becomes an asset that can help to grow your traffic,  generate even more leads and improve the number of products and services you're selling.  

If you have a business, how are you staying in touch with visitors to your business? If you're thinking of starting a business, how would you create a relationship with your audience?  

When I started out, I was keeping contact information in notebooks, on pieces of paper in my purse, and I was also collecting business cards like crazy.

Today, I use an email marketing system that keeps track of the people who are interested in my business. This system enables me to regularly communicate with my audience on auto-pilot.

I can inform, entertain and educate my readers with information they can use to solve their problems.  I can sell them products and services because I've created the know, like and trust factor that helps me sell more to my followers.

14. Update Your Follow up System

Once someone becomes a lead, following up is the next step. Following up with leads is another critical business activity.  

If you've ever heard the phrase, "the fortune is in the follow up," please know that it's true! Following up using email and other community building tools is the way to build a relationship with your audience.  

Once you have a relationship with your audience they will trust you as a trusted resource. That relationship will help your audience buy from you over and over again.

The best way to stay in touch is through regular communication (email, text, or messaging) and building a community (Facebook groups or Pinterest group boards) for those who want more information about your business.

To ensure that your follow up is effective and recognizable by your audience, it should be immediate, as soon as someone buys a product, interacts with your posts or when they download your content.  Provide an immediate welcome message that is branded with your logo and/or a picture that tell your audience what they should expect going forward.

The welcome communication should deliver whatever was promised in the lead generation form and provide any information on next steps.

Follow up messages can be educational, make announcements (like sales, discounts and upcoming training) and inform readers about company and industry news.  You can conduct surveys, polls and talk about any number of activities and events related to your business.  

Create tutorials, recipes, worksheets, checklists, demonstrations and introduce helpful resources and tools to your audience to help them reach their goals.

There should also be a way for readers to have their questions answered. A Q&A FAQ (frequently asked questions) is a great way to do this as well as Facebook Lives where your audience can interact with you in real time. 

Follow up can also be accomplished through your blog,  Facebook groups, regular Zoom meetings, and YouTube channels. You can also contribute links to your content to Pinterest boards.

Your follow up system should communicate with your readers about your products and services without being pushy and salesy. 

The goal is to provide the information your new subscribers will need to determine whether they want to do business with you.

What system (group of tools) will you use to follow up?

15. Use Events to Generate Buzz

Are there events that you can create or participate in, that will help get the word out about your business? 

If you're stumped for ideas, what about live games, virtual concerts, self care events, virtual online roundtables, virtual demonstration classes, trivia night, hashtag donation challenge, social media challenges, video game challenges, and more.

Events like webinars, workshops, Facebook lives, local events, giveaways, challenges and online collaboration can attract more business to your establishment.

Don't forget about the SWAG... include virtual products that can be packaged in virtual bags and given to attendees. Talk about creative! 

If you have a large audience for your event, consider monetizing your stream with banner, audio shout outs and other types of ads. Use ads in moderation, of course. 

Next Steps

If you would like to create a Plan B, here are a few questions you might want to consider with links to additional resources. 

1. How much time do you have to devote to an online business? Learn how to create a business that is not only profitable, but one you'll love running here. 
2. Who would you want to help with your business? Learn about market research and selecting a niche here. 
3. Would you have a blog, podcast or YouTube channel as your online platform? Learn how to select a platform for your online business here. 
4. If so, what strategy will you use to build an audience and traffic to your your platform?  Learn about attracting an audience to your business and building traffic here. 
5. How many units of product XYZ will you need to sell to earn the amount of money you need to reach your financial goals? 
6. What strategy will you use and how will you accomplish your income goals? Learn about setting SMART goals for your business here. 
7. If you decide to provide a service, how many consultations (services) will you have to sell to reach your income goals?
8. When do you want to accomplish these goals? 
9. Do you want to create passive income or would you earn on a product by product basis? Learn about active, passive and residual income here. 

These are ideas and steps you can take today, to create a better tomorrow. 

Once you decide on what you want to do, creating and implementing your marketing plan can take as little as an hour or two each day with little or no upfront investment.

Implementing one or more of these ideas can help you continue to earn even after you go back to work (if you decide to go back to the 9 to 5) and well into the future.  

We will also continue to provide ideas you can use to start and grow your business.