Gaijin Crew

I'm Jamie and I run my own minimalist travel blog called Gaijin Crew (guy-gin). If you want to check out some of my stuff, click <a href="https://gaijincrew.com/" target="_blank">here</a>, but remember to come back here and become a patron! I started Gaijin Crew back in July, 2017 with the goal of it eventually providing me with a full-time income, allowing me to travel, all while inspiring and informing other people how to do the same. Since I'm the only full-time "employee" and I don't need a fancy office or anything, I was able to start and run the blog by just living as minimally and as simply as possible, relying on my own savings. I have developed a real passion - not only for travel - but for writing and creating travel content. As a result, I want Gaijin Crew to continue in the long run but my own frugality, simple living and personal savings can only get me so far. There are a few ways for me to start generating some income from Gaijin Crew, none of which are ads (and I want to avoid using ads if at all possible). No one likes ads, right? So I don't want to "pollute" my posts and pages with ads that are just going to take readers' attention away from what's really important; the content. This has left me with a few options: 1. Affiliate marketing. This is me promoting and providing links to other companies/products. As a result of this, I get a small commission every time someone makes a purchase through one of these links. I only promote relevant products that I know about/use myself. However, the earning potential from affiliate marketing, alone, is pretty small. 2. Create my own product. This could be an ebook, a course or even some tshirts. This income source has the most potential and is probably the most sustainable. But, in order to make and sell my own products, I need to invest even more time, effort and money into them. 3. Donations. This is where you guys come in! By becoming a patron of Gaijin Crew and providing $1 (or more) per month, you are joining our awesome travel community and are doing your bit to make sure that Gaijin Crew keeps going and remains ad-free. What the Money Will Go Towards The money Gaijin Crew receives from its patrons, will go towards keeping the site going without any ads. Some of the costs of running Gaijin Crew: <ul><li>Web Hosting: I use Bluehost and this costs a few dollars per month.</li><li>Email marketing: One of my main goals is to grow the Gaijin Crew email newsletter and eventually switch from MailChimp to ConvertKit, which will provide a better sevice.</li><li>Web Development: I'm a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to the design and layout of the website.</li><li>Marketing: Expanding reach on social media is one of the best tools when it comes to growing Gaijin Crew's audience.</li></ul>Other costs to further enhance Gaijin Crew (with the help of our patrons, Gaijin Crew can reach new heights): <ul><li>Me: I'm always wanting to learn and get better. With this, I'll be able to buy courses and invest in learning so I can make this travel blog the best that it can possibly be.</li><li>Hire help: It's a lot of work, being the only "employee". Being able to hire help - like an editor, for example - will allow me to focus only on the aspects that I excel at and are the most enjoyable to me. It will mean I can start creating my own products as well!</li></ul>So that pretty much covers it! With these areas covered, Gaijin Crew can survive and thrive in the long run! The Ultimate Goal The ultimate long term goal is to take Gaijin Crew to the next level and make it the ultimate travel resource on the web! This can be done by: <ul><li>Starting a YouTube channel and creating travel films and video content?</li><li>Hiring even more help?</li><li>Starting a podcast?</li><li>Creating a course?</li><li>Countless other opportunities</li></ul>This would be incredible if we managed to reach these goals, but being funded purely by the generosity of people is an ultimate goal in itself! Thank you for being one of these people! Thank you for being a patron!

Free

You are officially a member! Just think, when Gaijin Crew is the number one travel resource out there and I've become famous, you get to say "I helped make that happen!" But, seriously, you'll get access to our Patreon "community page" where I'll share what's going on. I might even reveal some upcoming plans for the blog before they're made public!

Welcome To The Crew!

For the price of a cup of coffee, you are helping lay the foundation of something LEGENDARY! Starbucks definitely don't need any more money!

PREMIUM Crew Member!

$10 per month is incredible. There are lots of monthly expenses that cost $10 so thank you for making this one of them!

I'm Sending You a Virtual Hug!

You're a legit superstar genius human being and I love you! Respect!

YOU Are My Hero!

I would never expect anyone to be this "over-the-top" generous but if you do decide to donate, just know that there are no words to describe how awesome you are!

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