Doug Cunnington – Member Spotlight

by Miles Anthony Smith

Welcome to the latest edition of our Member Spotlight feature for the AmaLinks Pro® Million Dollar Challenge! We are pleased to welcome Doug Cunnington. Doug is a long-time friend of both co-founders for AmaLinks Pro®. Let’s get straight to the questions! Here we go…

As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases

Tell us about you (and your family).

I’m Doug Cunnington. My wife and I have a 7-year-old Border Collie — No human kids.

Where do you live?

We live in Longmont, CO in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. We’re from the Atlanta, GA area originally, but decided to move in 2015. We took a detour for four years in Bozeman, MT, which is a great town and area overall.

What is your education level?

I have a computer engineering degree from Georgia Tech. I rarely use any of my education directly and really didn’t in my corporate gig. I don’t have any advanced degrees, no MBA.

How did you get started with internet marketing (making money online)?

I accidentally found Smart Passive Income in March/April of 2013. I binged the full catalog and jumped off to other podcasts and blogs, like Tropical MBA and Niche Pursuits.

I launched my first site in April which totally flopped. Then, one of my sites took off with Amazon Associates so by December 2013, I made about $6200. But like all good internet marketing stories, the bottom fell out in January of 2014 when my site received a manual penalty for using private blog network links.

I eventually found my footing and stopped using backlinking methods that are risky.

How much did you earn online last month?

I don’t share my income anymore. But my students and followers are making hundreds and thousands individually — many of them are making a full-time income from their online projects.

Have you taken any online courses or training?

I’ve taken over 10 significant courses, most of them cost between $1000 to $4000.

All of the courses were valuable, but some of the first courses I took were cheap and low quality. I later learned that high-end courses are better in quality. But even more important, you can network with other people that are serious about whatever it is you’re working on.

Most of my internet marketing chops related to affiliate marketing are self-taught or via free resources.

I’ve taken courses on:

  1. Email Marketing
  2. Creating Courses
  3. Copywriting
  4. Writing
  5. Funnel Design
  6. Public Speaking
  7. YouTube Video Creation

I budget for taking high-end courses. They are often excellent when the timing is right. For example, when I bought the course about course creation, it was exactly when I was interested in improving my course.

Do you produce other types of content?

I have a podcast and YouTube channel. And of course, I blog at Niche Site Project.

Are you big on social media?

No, not really. I have an Instagram account, but it’s personal and usually has beer or food pics.

Have you had anything go viral?

I’ve had a couple of posts go wild on Pinterest. Traffic jumped and worked out really well.

What are some of your personal hobbies or passions?

I love beer and homebrewing beer. I’m a National Level BJCP beer judge, so I can really nerd out on beer.

I enjoy being outside and hiking. Really anything away from the laptop is a great time!

What is your big goal with your internet marketing ventures?

That’s an ongoing question to answer. The goal post moves.

Originally, I wanted to make enough to work for myself, roughly $10k per month. I got laid off in 2015 from my project management job and hit my stride within 6 months or so.

Then, I wanted to hit financial independence. (Look up FIRE if you’re unfamiliar.) FIRE has different definitions for different people and some people get worked up. I’m not rigid with my definition personally, but the point is if you’re FI you have options with your time.

My general goal is to work for myself and be able to take a lot of time off whenever I want. In 2019, I took off about 3 months for a couple of long road trips and spending time with family.

What keeps you motivated to continue growing your internet income?

It’s fun. I like that you can build something from scratch and know that you’re responsible for the results. You can easily measure your results with the revenue you make (or the impact that you’re aiming for).

What is your favorite book that you’ve read?

Essentialism is a great book to help with productivity, getting shit done, and setting priorities.

Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less

 

CLICK on book image above to learn more about it

 

What is your favorite thing that you’ve purchased online recently?

I’m a camera geek – photography and video – so I bought a Canon RP with a 35mm f1.8 RF lens. It’s a fantastic set up and great for travel, road trips, and vlogging.

Similar Camera Featured Below…

Canon EOS RP Mirrorless Camera with EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Prime Lens + 256GB Memory + Extension Grip + Photo Editing Software + Accessory Bundle (27pcs)
  • This Paging Zone Camera Bundle comes with Manufacturer Supplied Accessories and One Year Seller Warranty. And Includes Deluxe Camera Gadget Bag, 49mm 3Pc Filter Kit , 57 inch Monopod, Spider Flexible Tripod , 2X Transcend 128GB Class 10 Memory Cards , 49mm Threaded Tulip Lens Hood ,Canon EG-E1 Extension Grip , RF Mount Adapter and a 5 Piece Camera Starter Kit
  • Canon EOS RP Mirrorless Digital Camera -26.2MP Full-Frame CMOS Sensor ,DIGIC 8 Image Processor,UHD 4K and Full HD 1080 Video,2.36m-Dot OLED Electronic Viewfinder ,Impressively small despite having a large full-frame sensor, flexible imaging capabilities along with a portable form factor. Featuring a high-resolution 26.2MP full-frame CMOS sensor along with a DIGIC 8 image processor, both stills and UHD 4K video can be recorded using a broad sensitivity range, from ISO 100-40000
  • RF lens mount, which support Canons line of RF-mount lenses. This mount is characterized by its wide 54mm diameter and short 20mm flange-back distance, which promotes the ability to design lenses that are both faster and smaller than their SLR equivalents. 12-pin electronic contact system for more sophisticated autofocus and image stabilization capabilities. This mount design also lends full compatibility to existing EF and EF-S-mount lenses via an optional EF-EOS R Mount Adapter
  • Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens- EF-Mount Lens/Full-Frame Format,Aperture Range: f/1.8 to f/22, Super Spectra Coating,STM Stepping AF Motor,Rounded 7-Blade Diaphragm, compact, normal-length prime well-suited to everyday shooting. The bright f/1.8 maximum aperture benefits working in difficult lighting conditions and also affords increased control over depth of field for isolating subject matter.
  • Movavi Professional Video & Photo Editing Software Kit - Compatible with Windows and Mac Operating systems this 5 software package comes with premium softwares to fulfill your Photo/Video/Vlogging Editing needs.
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Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:

Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.

Anything else you would like to share?

If you like reading, check out Niche Site Project.

If you like podcasts, check out Affiliate Marketing & Side Hustles with Doug Show.

If you like YouTube, check out my channel.

Join the Challenge!

If you’re not already a member, what are you waiting for? Join others who have stories to tell, just like this one. We’re all working together to cumulatively build up over $1 Million in Amazon affiliate income! We’d love to have you on board – just click the button below to sign up right now.

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Miles Anthony Smith

Miles is a loving father of 3 adults, devoted husband of 24+ years, chief affiliate marketer at AmaLinks Pro®, author, entrepreneur, SEO consultant, keynote speaker, investor, & owner of businesses that generate affiliate + ad income (Loop King Laces, Why Stuff Sucks, & Kompelling Kars). He’s spent the past 3 decades growing revenues for other’s businesses as well as his own. Miles has an MBA from Oklahoma State and has been featured in Entrepreneur, the Brookings Institution, Wikipedia, GoDaddy, Search Engine Watch, Advertising Week, & Neil Patel.

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