A classic example of why you want to do this is Facebook's change of policy on business pages. Previously if people "liked" your busi-ness' Facebook page, you could reach this entire audience for free. So, businesses spent a lot of time, money and effort getting people to "like" them on their Facebook page. Now, Facebook requires you to pay them each time you want to send a message to your entire audience. Otherwise, it only allows you to reach a small percentage. For those who spent huge resources on building up a Facebook audience only to have the rug pulled out from under them, this came as a huge blow.

Vilfredo Pareto 80/20 Rule: The 80/20 rule holds true for more than just land ownership in Italy. It holds true for almost anything you care to think of. Some examples: • 80% of a company's profits come from 20% of its customers. • 80% of road traffic accidents are caused by 20% of drivers. • 80% of software usage is by 20% of users. • 80% of a company's complaints come from 20% of its customers. • 80% of wealth is owned by 20% of people. • Woody Allen even noted that 80% of success is showing up.

An important reason for some entrepreneurs failing to implement: Paralysis by analysis: they keep trying to learn more or get stuck chasing the latest bright shiny object in the hope that they'll get everything perfect the first time around. You'll never get everything perfect the first time. You only truly learn by doing. Don't let perfectionism become a source of procrastination to you. Remember 80% out the door is better than 100% in the drawer. Successful entrepreneurs have a bias for action, implement quickly and course correct along the way. As one of my early mentors would say, "Money loves speed."

Here are a few methods to monetize your existing customer base in this way: 4- Become an affiliate referral partner: this is similar to the model of selling leads, except that instead of being paid per lead, you get paid a commission on sales made by the third party you're referring to. This can be extremely profitable, especially for scenarios in which you get a trailing commission on all future sales. Refer once and get paid forever (or at least a long time). Many people in industries such as insurance, telecommunications and finance have built highly profitable businesses based on this model.

Here are a few methods to monetize your existing customer base in this way: 3- Resell complementary products and services: you could buy complementary products and services on a wholesale or white label basis and resell these to your customer base. The benefit of this model is that you maintain full control of the relationship and never hand over your customer details to a third party.

Here are a few methods to monetize your existing customer base in this way: 2- Exchange the leads: if you don't want to, or if it's not appropriate to accept payment for leads, you could set up a two-way lead exchange program with someone else in a complementary busi-ness. They send you their customers and you send them yours. Again the same caveat as selling leads applies. Never give out your customers' confidential details without their permission.