Welcome to the Scaling Success Stories series!
If you’re new to this series, I ask online entrepreneurs questions regarding growing and scaling their business.
This is the series description:
You can get your fill of online business tips by reading the other interviews on the Scaling Success Stories page.
Interview with Aja McClanahan from Principles of Increase
It was my pleasure interviewing Aja McClanahan from Principles of Increase. Aja is a personal finance freelance writer and blogger that side hustled her way out of over $120,000 of debt. She’s written for some major media outlets and now rocks a debt-free life.
Check out what Aja had to say to my questions!
1. Why did you start an online business and how does your passion still drive your business’ growth today?
I started my blog, Principles of Increase, about two weeks after my husband and I had paid off all of our debt.
During the process of paying off debt, I’d tell everyone…
Hey, I’m working on becoming totally debt-free.
People would look at me in awe at first, then start asking me questions.
Once we announced that we made our goal of paying off over $120,000 in debt back in 2013, then questions really started coming in. I thought it would be easier to “mass mentor” people via a blog.
That’s when I got serious about my web presence.
2. At what point did you realize that your business was “taking off” and that you could really make money from it?
I remember the first affiliate launch I did.
I made about $2,600 in 10 days.
I was amazed that growing an email list could do that.
A few months after that launch, I shut down my database consulting business and decided to pursue financial blogging and writing full-time.
3. At what point did you realize you were living the life you wanted to?
I remember going to the Dominican Republic in 2016 for almost 3 weeks with my family.
While there, I wrote some articles, recorded some video and even did a podcast interview.
I even dropped $400 or so on a blogging course.
We were spending quite a bit of money to be there but I enjoyed myself so much, I knew that it was the life I was supposed to live — location independent and lucrative.
To able to pay for that vacation in cash and not bat an eye when it was time to reinvest in my business was an amazing feeling.
I haven’t stopped chasing it yet!
4. One of the biggest fears of outsourcing is trusting the people you hire to run your business the way you would. How did you overcome this and where did you find the right freelancers and employees to help you grow your business?
I’ve happily outsourced some writing and graphic design for my business and it’s made a world of difference. I realize that I am good at many things but not all things.
If my time is better spent on strategy and big-picture things, it only makes sense to outsource the rest.
Now, I’ll be honest…
Sometimes, I’ve been known to procrastinate or plan poorly so I end of having to do something I should have outsourced but I am getting better.
When you are a verified control freak it can take practice to relinquish control of some business tasks.
Editor’s note: Kara Fidd and Monica Froese are two control freaks that have learned how to outsource effectively. If they can do it, so can you!
5. A common myth is that as you grow and scale your business, you have to sell your soul to make money, especially when you venture into paid advertising. How do you debunk this myth in your business?
I’ve used paid advertising to add extra income to my site when it makes sense.
Though it’s not the main part of my revenue strategy, every little bit helps when you are trying to ramp up profits for your online business.
There are some pages on my site that I prefer to monetize with affiliate revenue.
On those pages, I turn ads off.
I think you can be strategic with ads and make a decision to use them as needed. However, if your revenue model is dependent mostly on ads, I don’t think there’s shame in that either.
Everyone’s monetization strategy is different and each person should do what works for them.
6. Why do you think most people fail to grow their businesses and what advice would you offer them to keep pushing, despite all the setbacks?
I would say that a lack of vision is the main culprit.
I’m a huge fan of vision boards — even if they seem silly, the weird part is that they work.
I’ve put some of the craziest, out of bounds goals on there only to see them come true!
From becoming debt-free to investing in real estate and even getting a book publishing deal — casting the vision for where you want to go is so important.
Once the vision is cast, then it’s time to start creating an action plan to get there.
That can be difficult if you don’t feel qualified or knowledgeable enough.
However, as one person once said, “Everything is Google-able!” We now live in an age where what you don’t know can be found out.
So, if you feel inadequate, join the club and get going on your dream anyway.
Editor’s note: Laura Pennington-Briggs is also on the bandwagon of not seeing a vision/mission through as a reason why people don’t succeed.
7. How important has niching down been (no matter how hard it hurts) to your business’ growth and profitability?
Honestly, this is still an obstacle I am still trying to tackle.
I know that it’s coming soon.
I know there will be a day of reckoning where “personal finance” will be way too broad for me. I have some ideas of where to go but I know its a direction I need to decide on in order to be more effective.
8. What do you attribute your success to and how do you explain it? Do you think the same strategies will help you reach your next monetization goals? Why or why not?
I think I’ve been successful because I haven’t quit.
I’d like to say that I have some special insight or skill but I’ve honestly just kept going. For the next stage, I’ll have to be more strategic in terms of focusing on 1-2 monetization methods as well as niching down.
9. To scale, you really need to have a systemized business. What steps have you taken to build those systems and how do you optimize them?
Right now, using Trello as a project management tool as been helpful.
It helps me create systems and workflows that I can train others on. The goal is to replace myself out of many tasks.
Creating a visual workflow has been helpful in preparing for that.
10. If you could speak face-to-face with yourself when you first started your business, what pearls of wisdom would you impart?
I would say…
Just keep going. You’ll change your strategy a few times. You’ll see others seemingly catapulting to the top, but just keep going until the vision becomes reality!
About Aja McClanahan
Aja McClanahan is a personal finance writer who has a story of getting out of over $120,000 in debt. She’s been featured in Yahoo! Finance, MarketWatch, U.S. News and World Report, Kiplinger and has written for publications like Business Insider, Credit Karma, Inc., and many others. Aja writes about personal finance and entrepreneurship for various web outlets including her own blog, Principles of Increase.
Conclusion
Thanks for participating in my series, Aja!
As you can tell, it’s NOT EASY growing and scaling an online business, but there are some things you can do to aid you in the process.
Inspired by Aja?
Now, it’s your turn!
I assembled the Scaling Blueprint to show you how to…
- Outsource Effectively
- Systemize Your Business
- Shatter Your Revenue Goals
After working with six-figure and seven-figure clients, I know the difference between how they function.
Let me help you start scaling successfully.
Cheers to future success!
