Please note that although PBNs still work, Google has started to target them. Meaning they are likely not the safest option moving forward. Which is why we currently focus on creating online businesses that don’t only depend on SEO traffic. Click here to see what we are currently working on.
I figured it’d be a good idea to look back at 2013 and share what was accomplished as well as what projects I’m still working on. So for all those that say I don’t post enough, this is why!
Q1
Partnered with Scott to add my sites to lower grade link brokers
This was kind of a failed project as Google started hammering down on link brokers in Q3. It’s still making a low 4 figure income though.
Built the Crawler with Han
We went over 10 billion ways to monetize it and decided on simply not selling it. I will however be holding a competition soon and giving access to it away… stay tuned!
Bought a TON of expired domains
This was the build-out period for my private network.
Q2
Did the V3 Internship
Great internship. Ended up partnering with 4 or 5 people after the internship was done.
Started selling to SEO agencies with Phil
Nearly 5 figure recurring in 3 months, and is now our main focus.
Partnered with Greg in development of Australian Niche Sites
As the recent post illustrated, this is going quite well.
Partnered with an intern in development of an Italian PBN
We built about 50 PBN sites, and some money sites. We’ve found a good financial niche and are earning 4 figures and hope to hit 5 soon. Playing with some Amazon now too.
Partnered with an intern in development of a German PBN
The v3 intern I partnered with lost interest, then the project stagnated a bit, but a newer German intern took it over in December . We’re 2nd page right now on a term that we know is a high 4 figure/mo earner, and we have about 20 sites in the PBN (looking for more).
Formed NoHatMedia
Read here for more info on NHM. We decided to focus solely on link sales to agencies until the end of April.
Q3
Built the Oracle
The Bottom’s-up keyword research tool. It’s got millions of keywords in the database now. It is currently for interns only and I have no plans on selling, but have plans on evolving this into another tool.
Traveled to the South Pacific
Ok, this wasn’t work-related but it was cool that I could basically take 6 weeks off and the business kept going. Thanks Phil, Scott and Han!
4 Internships run by NHM
Craziness. So many Skype calls! Met lots of interesting characters.
Built a Spanish PBN
I hired and trained someone in Mexico to build this out, and the 50 site PBN is currently just sitting there.
Built a French PBN
We actually did this in response to some clients wanting french links. Then we built out a single money site which is 2nd page right now for some very strong terms. I believe this will earn well, but still looking for the right partner here.
First foray into finance affiliate niche
I worked with my Italian partner here and expanded globally in the niche we were working on. This has been quite successful and I think could grow to 50k/mo+, but it’s a somewhat volatile niche.
Q4
Built RankHero
This was a huge win for automating all our systems so that we can scale. The public networks were more of a test and I consider them a success as lots of users are reporting great results.
2 internships run by NHM
Good groups – I partnered with more people here than any previous internship.
Started doing PMD Shares with 8 different people from the Q4 internships.
Still waiting on results here, lots of 2nd page rankings. The sandbox period for new sites is 2-4 months it seems.
Rebuilt the entire private network using Link Injections and RankHero
This was a huge task, but we leaned heavily on interns and trading links for labor. It paid off!
Started licensing our network to others interested in selling.
5 licensees thus far (all from the Q4 internships)- they just started marketing this month. I’ll leave updates, but 3/5 are already at 4 figures/mo in month 1 (and the other 2 haven’t started marketing yet).
NHM met for the first time!
Phil, Han, Scott and I plus all our families went down to the beach in Mexico for 2 weeks. We had a blast! It’s hard to believe we created a business and worked for 6 months together without actually physically meeting (I had met each partner but none of them had met each other).
Goals for Q1 2014
I can’t see much further ahead then this, so I’m only making goals for these first 3 months:
- Help 10 people quit their day jobs by replacing their income online.
- Blog at least 4 times a month!
- Start a new blog that covers more than just SEO
- Launch a new SEO SAAS product
- Hit our NHM financial goals
- Make decision re: continuing all other projects
- Adjust my residential status so I can legally pay no taxes.
There are two more goals I have for this summer which I’ll include because they are huge, and also to force myself to be accountable:
- Launch a new Project in which ROI is measured in doing good, not money.
- Do a 2 month test run of homeschooling my kids.
- Work 4 hours a day.
Questions about any of the projects or goals above? Leave a comment!
Greg Nunan says:
You’ve got to be the guy with the most diverse income streams online by a mile. Heck of a year! Looking forward the new blog.
Jim says:
I’ve read every page here twice or more, and have a site based on your THIRST principles, as well as a small 18 site PBN.
I’d just like to say thanks a lot for your “pay it forward” outlook! I have already learned so much.
Emailed Greg, really looking forward to a chance at being one of the next interns!
Hayden says:
You’re welcome Jim, glad it’s been helpful!
Ken Savage says:
What an exciting story and timeline to read about a successful company doing it their way.
Let’s face it, in this industry of ours you don’t go to school for SEO or internet marketing. You have to learn by doing and follow people online that hopefully aren’t full of shit. Over my 10 years of learning and testing I’ve found only a handful of people with 2 traits I look for: Willingness to teach and results to backup their teachings.
Hayden and the crew are the real deal. The tools and direction they provided the latest internship I was a part of was benefitual. Learn a little, prove what you can do and take that and go off and prosper. I put in my work and was granted access to the Oracle that showed me something in selecting a niche I didn’t think about previously.
I was able to take my very consistent $2k/month Adsense network to $4k/month now with what I learned in the last internship. Selecting the right KWs and niches made that possible. No more 5cent clicks on older sites I have. Now I know how to build out sites with higher revenue per visitor and build traffic around keywords that have buying/click intentions.
Thx again guys and hope to work together in the future.
Hayden says:
Thanks for the kind words Ken. You and others have made the internship a lot more valuable for the entire group by sharing all your experiences.
Luke says:
I second that Ken Savage and Greg Nunan, Keep up the good work, and looking forward to the year.Its gonna be a killer!
Alex says:
You’ve done in 1 year what most do in 5 ! And more remarkably the results are impressive, really awesome, congrats ! Can’t wait to see 2014.
I’ve send you a mail about your french PBN. ;)
Raul says:
Are you gonna open new intership during this year? I want to join!!!
Regards from Spain :))
Hayden says:
Yup, should have one in February that Greg runs. Send him an email [email protected]
Thomas says:
Inspiring post. By the way, how can I change my residency and pay no taxes?
Roman says:
Cannot wait until the PMD program starts up :)
Thanks Hayden for all the knowledge imparted so far. I look forward to learning more and continuing to work with you guys.
Alex says:
2013 looked great, curious how 2014 will unfold for you :) By the way I didn’t get an email notification for your last 2 blogposts. Tried opting-in again but getting an error message that I’m already subscribed?
Would love to become an intern and help with that german PBN but right now $500 is a bit out of my range, unfortunately :( Hopefully in the future.
Adam Finan says:
Serious job dude. You’re killing it with all your hustles!
aaron says:
What a huge 2013 year for you Hayden, I followed Nohatseo blog since July 2012 and seeing it gone quiet for a while. Now i know the reason why, Nohatseo has been expanding to so many aspects of SEO network . What an inspiring post, this makes me excited in getting back to work on my websites again.
Cesar - Q2 intern says:
Hello Hayden.
Great to hear that you are doing well! Yes, its been awhile since I’ve heard from you.
I was an intern for Q2 (worked with Phil, Jeff Park, Rhythm, and the rest of that group)….I am sorry to say it didnt turn out the way I expected… more to do with Google changing there algorithms toward adsense thin page sites during that period.
After reading all these post I feel a strong push to get back in the game.
Hayden please due contact me as I would love to see of how we can work together and strive toward my goal of finally quitting my day job. (dont we all?)
Thanks,
Cesar
Q2 Intern
Hayden says:
Hey Cesar,
Yes that was very bad timing with the EMD update during that period. Hope you’re well.
Almog says:
Great taking part in your internship and chatting Hayden. You’re one sharp guy, and you’re helping people by and through growing your business which is just wonderful. All the best in 2014, I always have partnership opportunities with you in the back of my mind :)
Cheers
Hayden says:
Thanks Almog, you too.
stuart says:
Its worth looking into being a resident of Dubai, UAE.
You pay no taxes period! The only criteria is that you need to visit Dubai once every 180 days to get your passport stamped. I’m living in Spain and benefit from this.
Hayden says:
Interesting. Do you mind if I send you an email to ask for some more details? I’ve also looked into Panama and Belize a bit.
Spencer Haws says:
Wow, Hayden…hearing about all your projects makes me feel like a slacker! Best of luck in 2014
Hayden says:
Thanks Spencer! I feel the same (but the other way around). You’re always a big motivation for me to get off my ass!
Richard says:
Sorry I found this post about a month late. For what it is worth, your information helped me quit my “day job” in 2013 and work online full-time now. I don’t know if you can count that toward your 2014 number or not, but THANK YOU!
Also, I’m glad to see you are going to give homeschooling a try. My wife and I decided to homeschool our kids and the experience has been incredible in every way. The kids seem to be learning very well/fast and above grade level, they are very happy and we have unlimited flexibility. We’ve been able to spend a lot of time traveling, which we could not have done if the kids were in a public school. Their lives – and ours – have been enriched beyond our wildest dreams.
Best,
Richard
Hayden says:
Thanks Richard, great to hear others have had success homeschooling. Freedom of place is the greatest advantage to this line of work!
Jack says:
If you are US citizen it doesn’t matter where you live, you allways have to pay taxes to Uncle Sam. Only way to escape this is to renounce your US citizenship.
Hayden says:
I’m not a US citizen, though do know if you live 10.5+ months out of the country you have nearly 100k tax-free each year.
Ron says:
I lived in Europe for 4 years and found that being an American citizen meant that the I.R.S. will want to tax your income no matter where i comes from, however if you choose to pay taxes to another country you reside in than you won’t be required to pay United States taxes. This doesn’t affect you as you said you are not an American citizen though. I have been looking at some of these issues as well. Not that I am making enough money to even be taxed at this sad point lol… Help please ;-)