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 Holly and Greg Johnson of Club Thrifty and Earn More Writing
It was my pleasure interviewing Greg and Holly Johnson of Club Thrifty and Earn More Writing. Together, they run a Plutus award-winning, popular travel and personal finance blog, Club Thrifty, all after working in a mortuary. Their motto is simple: “Stop Spending. Start Living.” Holly also makes over $250,000 per year as a freelance writer and created the course Earn More Writing to teach others how to do the same.
Check out what Holly, on behalf of the couple, 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?
We started our online business in 2012, but it was actually more of a hobby at the time.
As we were working on paying off debt and growing our wealth, we decided to document our journey online.
We figured other people were blogging about money, so why not us?
It actually took us a while to realize we could make real money online, whether through blogging or freelance writing. Eventually, though, we were able to put all the pieces together and learn to use our online platform to earn a real income.
Even though our financial situation is much different than it was when we started our website in 2012, I am still very passionate about personal finance and how it can change people’s lives for the better.
There are many areas of our lives that we cannot change, but our attitude about money and saving for the future is one area where we have all the control if we choose to take the reins.
2. At what point did you realize that your business was “taking off” and that you could really make money from it?
I actually quit my job to write full-time in 2013 after a full year of blogging on the side.
We weren’t making a real income with our blog yet, but I had been able to replace my full-time salary at my job just with freelance writing on the side.
This was actually a huge relief to me since I had been suffering from chronic back pain for years. I was desperate to get out of my 9-5 job and all it entailed, even if it meant earning less money sometimes.
Fortunately, I have only earned more and more the longer I worked at home and for myself.
3. At what point did you realize you were living the life you wanted to?
We started living a life that’s closer to what we wanted when I was able to quit my job to write full-time in 2013.
However, we didn’t really start living our “dream life” until my husband was able to quit his job to blog full-time in February 2015.
I would say I actually realized I was living my dream life this year when I realized I have four months of travel planned, mostly in Europe and mostly with our kids.
We have the money and freedom to do exactly what we want now, and we take advantage of it whenever we can.
Life is too short not to.
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?
We outsource some tasks that are easy to farm out to other people, but we are actually careful not to outsource too much.
Over the years, we’ve seen many bloggers outsource too much with disastrous results.
Personally, I think you need a hand in most of your business is you want to keep quality high.
That’s been our strategy and it has worked so far.
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?
We never do anything we feel bad about and feel very strongly that you don’t have to sell your soul to make money. We rarely do sponsored posts, for example, and we don’t have any affiliates we feel even remotely conflicted about.
The reality about blogging is that you’ll have more luck promoting products and services you use and love. That’s how it has been for us, and we will never change.
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 think far too many people have unrealistic expectations about how long it will take to earn real money online. Another chunk of people just don’t have the inherent talent required to make it work. I hate saying that, but not everyone can write really good content and stay on top of everything required for an online business to be successful.
On the flip side, it’s hard to know for sure where you stand.
I’ve seen a ton of very talented people give up too soon because they didn’t achieve the results they wanted quickly enough.
The bottom line: Don’t give up too soon but also know your limitations. I do think everyone can earn some money online, but I also believe that you need real talent to rise to the top.
7. How important has niching down been (no matter how hard it hurts) to your business’ growth and profitability?
I actually don’t believe there’s a hard and fast rule here.
I know bloggers who are wildly successful in a very narrow niche and I also know others who find success all over the map.
I think there are many ways to make an online business work, but you have to find what works for you and stop trying to follow a path other people have already taken before you.
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?
Our success is the result of hard work and some luck along the way.
We’ve always taken our side hustle (and now full-time work) very seriously, which I think you have to do if you want to find any success in self-employment. Just because you can take the day off, doesn’t mean you should always make that choice.
We have always been focused on what we want as well as willing to do whatever it takes to get it.
In terms of our monetization goals, we’re pretty good about taking the time to learn new things.
Sometimes we learn by taking part in third-party education and other times we learn by doing and by making our own mistakes. For the most part, we have the attitude that we need to be constantly learning and adapting our strategies to the online world we operate in.
What works now may not work five years ago, and that’s okay.
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?
I’m going to skip this question. I don’t agree with the premise.
Editor’s note: Ben Robinson thought this was a shooted question, as well.
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 tell myself that my own success is all in my own hands and that my hard work would pay off one day. I think I knew that deep down though, even in 2012, so I’m not sure a pep talk would be needed.
I’m a very motivated individual.
About Greg and Holly Johnson
Holly Porter Johnson is an award-winning writer who focuses on frugality, budgeting, and credit as the cornerstones of her career. Greg Johnson is an entrepreneur who turned his love of budgeting and digital media into an online empire. Together, the power couple blogs about money at ClubThrifty.com, travels the world, and enjoys the good life with their two kids.
Interested in Learning From Holly and Greg?
Holly’s flagship course, Earn More Writing, teaches you how to earn more money as a freelance writer with the proven strategies she’s used to make over $250,000 freelance writing in one year.
It’s designed for people who want to…
- Get their writing career off the ground
- Discover what clients actually want
- Learn from a full-time freelance writer, not course creator
- Start booking clients and get paid well
If this sounds like you, then Earn More Writing might be the course you’re looking for!
The best part of this course is the private support Facebook group.
That’s right…
Holly is in the group nearly every single day, posting what her schedule, workload, and daily earnings look like and shares real-life client stories and how she handles them.
All you have to do is listen to her expert advice and implement it.
It really is possible to make money as a freelance writer. I’ve made over $2,000 this year freelance writing and the extra revenue has helped me pay off my car and start paying off my student loans.
Enroll in Earn More Writing today!
Conclusion
Thanks for participating in my series, Holly and Greg!
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 Holly and Greg Johnson?
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!
I like every article on the internet that spread the ideas of making money online and living your home business.
Bye the way I found your content such helpful.
Keep up the good work.
Thank you, Ghani! I’m glad the article helped you 🙂
Thanks for your suggestion. keep sharing with us.
Will do! Thanks for reading!