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your opinion on this idea

by tradtke
19 replies
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Hopefully this is the appropriate forum to ask this suggestion, but I'm trying to start a website with a paid newsletter site. I'm read that it is good to have free material, which I plan to have. I was told it's good to have a free section and a members only paid section.
To give you some background:
The reason for my endeavor is not expecting to make thousands over night with no work, as so many scams promote. I'm looking for success long term. I thought of this idea to supplement my retirement if it every comes, but that would be something like 15-20 years down the line; so I have lots of time to perfect this. It seems that with today's economy everyone retirement fund is in jeopardy.
I was also told to write about topics you are passionate and knowledgeable about. For me, that's law. I'm not a lawyer, but I love learning about it.
I was thinking about a paid newsletter to be put out once a month and charge 1-3 dollars on a recurring month basis. The topics would be current case law that is being challenged or changed. Then for a little comedy and fun reading I thought about including all the dumbass things people do that lands them in jail and the ridicules things people are suing for.

What do you think? would this idea be worth pursuing? Would you pay for it?
  • Profile picture of the author LarryC
    To be honest, this newsletter might be interesting but I wouldn't pay for it. I think with all the free information available on the internet today you really need specialized or expert level info to make it worth paying for. Since you said you aren't a lawyer, this would be more of a fun type newsletter. Nothing wrong with that, but I don't see why people would pay for it.
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    • Profile picture of the author pinkgink
      I agree with Larry C I wouldn't pay for it either. You might want to think about instead of having a membership site you could sell advertising space in your newsletter. If you have enough subscribers I sure you could find plenty of businesses that would pay you.
      Just a thought.
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  • Profile picture of the author seasoned
    tradtke,

    Unless you are AT LEAST a certified paralegal with knowledge on a certain subject, you should stay away from law. Maybe do what you are suggesting to AUGMENT the letter, NOT for the letter itself.

    But yeah, people don't want to pay for jokes, etc...

    Steve
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    • Profile picture of the author tradtke
      Thanks for the suggestions, I'm still brainstorming. I got the idea from reading a post of a guy who sends out a newsletter about all the gossip in the Wresting World. I thought I could write about the drama in the legal world. I was thinking of having the comedy aspect as a way of attracting people as free content because right, who would pay for that when there is Youtube.
      As far as the legal aspect I was not going to attempt interpreting the law or giving my opinion, but rather as an update to current debates or pending cases such as how a case has been proceeding; (daily activity) that has taken place. It would read as a drama sitcom where you would want to come back to see what happens next. I consider myself good at interpreting law and with rational opinions, but nothing I would put out on the Internet unless a simple debate topic with other people.
      For Example, even though I'm sure people are sick of hearing about it: the Lance Armstrong drama. I know this would be a bad topic since it's so easy to find information, but the concept would be to monitor the case and generate what has happened, simply facts. Then every month have an update. Maybe I could have a celebrity section since there is never a short of legal drama there.
      I know all this information is on the Internet, but sometimes its time consuming to actually find it. This would be a nice compilation of all that's going on without the searching. If I did an opinion section It would be free and of coarse market with a "this is my opinion of a person who is not a lawyer" type of line. I'm not a lawyer, but I am involved in law enforcment so I do know my way around a statute book and I do have experiencing enforcing and researching it.

      if anyone has suggestions or twists of my idea that would make it interesting let me know. i appretiate all your help.
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  • Profile picture of the author lcombs
    Definitely stay away from even the implication of legal advice.
    But, what you could do is simply report documented legal information, (being sure to include the source).
    Make it a free membership/subscription to build a list.
    You can include links in the newsletter to paid products.
    For example, if Legal Zoom has an affiliate program join it and include your affiliate link
    in the signature of the article.
    You can also email paid product pitches to your list.
    You can sell advertising on your site and in your letter.

    Just a little food for thought.
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  • Profile picture of the author travlinguy
    Just because a few people here say they wouldn't pay for it doesn't mean a thing. They're simply not your target audience.

    Start slowly by blogging about your topic. Make the content great so you'll attract people interested in what you're offering. I'd assume there are many. Keep feeding them great stuff. Make it so good they'll want to tell their like-minded friends. Once you've built a community (which might take some time) you can start thinking of offering your membership deal. If you've done a great job in providing stuff your visitors like, and if you present and promote your paid gig in the right way, you should get some takers.

    Nowhere in your post did I see you mention giving legal advice. Keeping folks abreast of what's new in case law isn't advice, it's news. No big deal. If you're concerned that you might have some sort of liability then consult with a shark. I think you might be on to something. And you realize it's not going to happen overnight. That's half the game. Good luck.
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  • Profile picture of the author BethHewitt
    Whilst we aren't your target audience. I do know that hardly anyone pays for newsletters how ever valuable they are. People do however subscribe to magazines and if you maybe did something on a bigger scale you could create something. However, I am not in your niche, so you would need to check if there are other magazines out there offering what you are thinking about.
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    • Profile picture of the author tradtke
      Thanks for all the help. I'm definitely thinking more of the news aspect of things, not advice. Especially in these days it approaches stupidity to give legal advice without some type in insurance. I was thinking about using Ezinearticles.com once I have a decent website built up. I've written several articles for them in the past, but nothing much materialized because I think I didn't have much of a good topic to advertise. I do have a relatively good reputation in my account so at least I’ve built that up.
      What do you mean by magazine though "on a bigger scale". Obviously I'm going to start out small, and build up. I think affiliate marketing is definitely a good idea and I’m not greedy so if I have to give all my information for free in order to make money somehow else such as advertising I'm more than willing to do that. What is some other good places to write content to advertise my site in my signature?
      Again, thanks all.
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  • Profile picture of the author seasoned
    Originally Posted by Ken_Caudill View Post

    Travelinguy is right. There's an ass for every car seat. Thousands of people are successful with paid newsletters.
    YEP! Even YUGO sold some cars! WOW, it was bought by FIAT! NO WONDER why fiat is as it is!

    Yugo: Worst Car in World History? Author Vuic's Defense - TIME

    Steve
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  • Profile picture of the author Sue McDonald
    It is certainly not a newsletter that I would be willing to pay for. If you have had no legal training you could be opening up a bag of worms.

    People are prepared to pay for a newsletter if it is full of knowledge on a subject they want to know about. I don't think many would want to read your interpretation of legal cases. My advice wold be to pick another topic.
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  • Profile picture of the author seasoned
    WOW! It wasn't listed as worse in the decade either!

    1995 Ford Explorer - The 50 Worst Cars of All Time - TIME

    Steve
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  • Profile picture of the author Josh MacDonald
    You are planning to use this website idea in 15-20 years? You can't plan for that far ahead. Who even know what we'll have for computers. In the 2000s, we used PCs. In 2010s, we use mobile devices. In 2020s... who knows!
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  • Profile picture of the author tradtke
    not using it in 15 or 20 years, I guess I was trying to say that I don't have the get rich overnight with no work attitude. I figure this is something that I can start now, with expectations (or hope) that it will become profitable in years to come. I've read that it takes years to grow a truly established website. And to answer the doubts of my knowledge of the law. I'm not a lawyer, but I do have knowledge of the law beyond the normal person. I am involved in law enforcement and if I had to estimate how much training/book work I’ve had in the past 5 years it would be about 1,000 hours. And yes, I do keep track in order to keep all my certifications up to date. I have no plans in interpreting the law. I was thinking of having an "opinion" section, but clearly labeled as "this is my opinion and is not meant as a law reference or interpretation of law". I'm good at interpreting the law for my own purposes, but in no means would I ever publish it. My goal is to simply report and update certain cases. I can do that without interpretation. My problem in finding a Niche is that I've dedicated the last 5 years almost completely to law enforcement. It’s hard for me to think of anything else to write about where I can come up with continues quality content. I do like the idea of giving away all this for free and then once I have the audience find another way for my site to earn money.
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  • Profile picture of the author socialentry
    If you include a lot of free info on the side and people see you're sharp as a tack, they'll be curious about the rest.

    Sure why not.

    Since you're a cop, I would deff. write an article about how internal politics within the PD and the prosecutors' office affects the application of laws.

    It's something I've always been curious about, I know that some laws in my city are simply not enforced except as an excuse to bust shady characters.

    but have never had the time to really explore the question. The devil is in the details.
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  • Profile picture of the author tradtke
    OK, took a break to sink in everyone's thoughts. I decided as much as I really love researching case law maybe it would be a good idea to stay away from that.
    I'm came up with a new idea that maybe is better, let me know what you think of this. The content is designed more like a colomn or opinion article. I figure this probrably will be easier since i'm a pretty opinionated person. and maybe I could get people to read my thoughts on a daily basis. As far as having a site that earns money All content would be free and I would concentrate more on links and things like adsense, but without loading my site up with ads. I put together the landing page and wanted it to be plane and simple, no flashy graphics or announcments. I'm going to add a blog and a forum, but for now all i'd like to know is what people think of the home page and the site name.
    I appretiate suggestions to make it better, but please don't be the type of person who says "its the crappiest thing i've ever seen" but give no offers for improvement because that never helps. I included the address if you want to look all that I have put together is the home page.
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  • Profile picture of the author saxatwork
    Tradtke, I sent you a PM...

    IMHO, your site is a start, but it could do a lot better in terms of content and a little bit of re-org. Many of such ventures fail because even though you succeed at getting your client to your website, they get second thoughts when they look at the website. If you can invest in a domain (.coms at $10 approximately) and hosting, that would be the best way to go through.

    Here is another discussion on the WarriorForum about someone making it good with a Newsletter business - http://www.warriorforum.com/offline-...o-today-4.html

    Not exactly your niche, but maybe it will help you in some way too. But the whole point is, this IS a do-able business with a little bit of effort.
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    • Profile picture of the author Paul Myers
      But yeah, people don't want to pay for jokes, etc...
      They do if they're topical, come with a theme, and are well written.

      If you were to post insightful commentary on case law, with the regular reminder that "I'm not a lawyer, but this is how it looks to me. Do the law and I see eye to eye?" ... That could get some serious conversation going.


      Paul
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  • Profile picture of the author tradtke
    I did some changes to hopefully come up with a better idea that will be more interesting. I attached my new site. Let me know what you think. I'm finding it hard to come up with some good ideas and the best way for me to figure out if it will work or not is to just do it. So far I have no figured it out so thats the reason for so many changes. I hope I figured it out now.
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