Category Archives: Case Studies

How Brett Turned $29 into $1.3 Million

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Meet Brett, an everyday guy who’s changing the game with his unique approach to online business with his company DesignJoy.

Working as a graphic designer, he realized there had to be a better way to work with clients so he set out to find it. Here’s what you need to know:

The Common Misconception: Talent is Everything, Right?

Well, not quite. Many believe they can step into an industry they know nothing about, just like Elon Musk, and revolutionize it. But that’s not the whole story. The truth is, most of the time, success is a product of consistency, not innate talent.

Learning the Ropes: What Brett Did Right

Brett didn’t wait around for credentials or permission. He didn’t need tons of capital or a massive team either. He started small, with a mere $29 landing page, and launched his idea on Product Hunt – all while still working his 9-to-5 job.

The Power of the MVP (Minimum Viable Product)

Instead of guessing what his clients wanted, Brett collected real-world data. He built his service in public, tested assumptions, and iterated based on what he learned. This approach drastically reduced guesswork and accelerated his success.

Speed to Success

In the online world, the speed of value delivery is crucial. Brett understood this and applied it to his business. While traditional design agencies took weeks or even months to deliver, he slashed the time to just 48 hours or less. It’s all about delivering value as quickly as possible.

Productizing Your Skills

Everyone wants to create the next Tesla or Apple, but that’s a tough feat. Brett took a different route. He transformed his skills and knowledge in design into a service-based business with low startup costs, low overhead, and no inventory or employees.

The result? Nearly $100k in profit per month, with just $176 in monthly expenses.

Keep It Simple, Stupid (KISS)

Brett’s tools are surprisingly simple: Trello, Airtable, Webflow, Figma, Shutterstock, and Zoom. He keeps it straightforward so that anyone, even those unfamiliar with design, can understand his process.

Remember, simplicity can be a key to success.

Meetings: Less is More

Brett made all client communication asynchronous, minimizing live meetings. This approach allowed him to focus on high-value tasks and protect his energy. While your customers may require more interaction, the principle remains: Keep live meetings to a minimum.

Positioning Beats Talent

Brett admits he’s not the best designer out there, but that’s not what sets him apart. It’s his positioning and offer. He thinks of business model as the Netflix of design, offering unlimited requests and revisions; a rarity in the industry. He’s created a unique value proposition that stands out.

Solve Your Own Problem, Then Share It

Brett packaged his knowledge into an online course filled with frameworks, mental models, and strategies. He’s part of a growing movement where successful individuals openly share their secrets to help others. It’s about providing value and helping others succeed.

Referrals: The Rocket Fuel

Brett swears by referrals as the number one growth tool for DesignJoy. His secret is having a stellar product that people can’t help but talk about. Notably, big clients like Dave Gerhardt have become advocates. Moreover, they introduced a refer-a-friend feature that brought in $1500 on its very first day.

Brett credits Rewardful for simplifying the process of setting up a legitimate referral system, allowing affiliates to start referring immediately.

Pricing for Prosperity

A recent strategic move involved raising the monthly prices for each tier by approximately 50%. While the primary goal was to manage growth and workload, the result was twofold: Increased revenue and attracting higher-quality clients.

It’s a testament to how pricing strategy can shape a business. (Is it time you raised your prices?)

Timing Is Everything

Brett’s got an amazing talent for spotting trends before they become the next big thing. Take, for instance, the rise of Webflow. Brett saw this and decided to make DesignJoy a major player in that arena. It’s impressive how having foresight and perfect timing can launch a business to new heights.

Side-Project Magic

Brett’s side project, Scribbbles on Gumroad, has turned into a goldmine of traffic for DesignJoy. This demonstrates how diversifying your entrepreneurial ventures can have a beneficial ripple effect on your primary business.

Product Hunt and Hacker News: Launchpad to Success

DesignJoy reached $5k in monthly recurring revenue thanks to a successful Product Hunt launch. Next, it also gained some attention on Hacker News, which helped boost its visibility. This goes to show the power of utilizing online platforms and communities strategically.

The Art of Hard Work

Brett openly admits to putting in an intense amount of work and genuinely enjoying the grind. This dedication is evidently paying off. However, everyone has their limits, and it seems Brett is considering bringing someone else on board soon to maintain this impressive growth trajectory.

Solo Founder Strategy

Managing DesignJoy as a solo founder might sound intimidating, but Brett’s approach is straightforward (albeit a little scary). He prioritizes output over client communication, admin work, and emails.

While this approach does result in some churn, Brett believes it’s a worthwhile trade-off. Additionally, there’s a zero-tolerance policy for clients who slow down the process.

However, it’s crucial to note that impeccable output is non-negotiable for this strategy to succeed. Not everyone can do this.

Key Takeaways

Brett’s journey teaches us that being consistent and dedicated can lead to success. He began with small steps, didn’t make things too complicated, and made sure to provide something special.

His story tells us that success often comes from doing regular things well for a long time. So, if you want to succeed like Brett, start small, don’t guess too much, keep it simple, and focus on the important stuff.

 

 

 

 

How to Sell 10,000 Products on eBay

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Imagine you can sell 10,000 different products on eBay, and the best part is, you don’t need to create, store, or ship any of them. Sounds intriguing, right?

I’d heard of this idea before, but never on this scale.

Here’s how it came across my radar this time: I was looking for a book, and when I Googled it, I found it listed on eBay. So, I made the purchase. Two days later, the book arrived in the mail, but guess what? The return address was not some random eBay seller but Amazon. That got me curious.

I dug deeper into the eBay seller’s profile and here’s what I found: They have more than 10,000 products listed, and every single one seems to be an Amazon item, priced $5 or more above what you’d pay on Amazon.

You know this person is making a lot of money because who in their right mind would find and list 10,000 items if they weren’t making serious bank?

Even if they just clear a buck from each listing per month, that’s $10,000 profit per month, just for listing and selling. Who knows, they might clear $1 per listing weekly, or even daily. The point is, they are clearly making money.

Now, let’s explore how this Amazon reverse arbitrage thing might work:

  • Finding Products: Start by looking for simple products on Amazon, like books.
  • Listing on eBay: List those products on eBay at a price higher than what you’d pay on Amazon, ensuring you make a profit.
  • Making a Sale: When someone buys the product on eBay, you can then purchase it on Amazon and have it shipped directly to the eBay customer.
  • No Financial Risk: Here’s the cool part – you don’t have to order the product from Amazon until someone buys it on eBay. This means no upfront costs or financial risk.
  • Shipping Covered: You won’t have to worry about packaging or shipping costs because Amazon takes care of that for you.
  • Handling Returns: If someone returns an item to you on eBay, you can simply return it to Amazon for a refund.

It’s like running your own online store without ever having to touch the products. It’s an interesting way to make money online with minimal risk. If you’re interested, give it a try and see what happens.

How One Man Built a Fortune with Free Reports

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This is the story of George (not his real name) who earns a high five figure per month income with free reports. George is allowing me tell you how he does it so long as I don’t reveal too many specifics.

Ready? I think you’re going to enjoy this.

How George Got Started

When George retired from his career nearly 20 years ago, he was bored and underfunded. He knew he wanted to do something to make more money for his retirement years but he had no idea what. He scouted around for a few months until he happened on a free report that told how to make money with free reports. Oh, the irony, right?

He took this report to heart and quickly wrote his own report. Not knowing much about internet marketing, he cobbled together a report titled, “The Ultimate Guide to Building Your Own 6-Figure Internet Business in Your Spare Time.”

$1,000 a Month with No Experience

He’s a little embarrassed that internet marketing was his first topic, since he really didn’t know what he was talking about yet. He had no experience in the niche and had to rely on what he read on internet marketing websites.

Still, the first edition of that report garnered him a list of over 4000 people in six months and a monthly income of over a thousand dollars. Despite not knowing what he was doing, he was doing just fine.

More Reports, More Money

Since then, he has gone on to create reports in many, many different niches. Odds are you’ve downloaded at least one of his reports at one time or another. He no longer writes his own reports, but instead hires someone familiar with the niche to write the “Ultimate Guide” on the chosen topic.

His reports are always free, and he gives them away through social media, as bonuses to other people’s products and through a few other venues.

He’s building a list in each one of these niches, and when someone joins his list, they receive an autoresponder sequence that mails 4 times per week for 3 years. He also sends out special offers to his lists. Most of this writing is done by outsourcers because he spends his time on the golf course.

Now Here’s The Trick

You’ve probably noticed we said that all of his reports are the “Ultimate Guide” to whatever the topic is.

Each report is written by a pen name who is also the author of the emails sent as well as social media posts. Initially it was just him but now he has virtual assistants who handle the social media posting, customer service and act as the pen name authors for him.

If you’re getting the idea that George has set this up in such a way that he does very little work, you’re right.

These ultimate guides teach how to do something valuable. Remember his first report was on how to start an internet business? Inside the report he tells how to set up a website, which webhost to use (affiliate link) which autoresponder he’s found is the best (affiliate link) and so forth. He gives these reports in PDF but also posts these reports online for subscribers. People click the links and sign up for the services.

Recurring and High Paying

Notice that hosting and autoresponders are billed monthly. 85% of the products George promotes through the reports are monthly recurring products and the other 15% are high paying products such as a $997 live course paying 50% commission.

He’s getting dozens of streams of monthly income from dozens of different sources along with some big one-time commissions.

Start with The Affiliate Program

The way George picks a new niche or topic is he finds something with monthly billing and an affiliate program that converts well, and then has the report written in such a way that it’s simply a no brainer to sign up for that program through his affiliate link.

His autoresponder messages are good information, usually from the reports, along with evergreen offers. The messages reemphasize the importance of getting the programs promoted in the report, too. The more times someone reads something, the more likely they are to take action on it.

And he sends out special offers to each niche every week or two.

He is actively working two of the pen names, and ironically one of them is a woman. His wife helps him write those emails.

All the rest of the pen names – one for each niche – are worked by half a dozen virtual assistants who post on social media. Each virtual assistant is assigned 5 to 10 pen names, depending on what they can handle and also their areas of knowledge. Every pen name has its own social media account. This could get confusing if you’re not organized.

He Does Little Work but Makes Great Pay

He outsources the writing of the autoresponder sequences, special emails and new reports.

And when I say he’s earning a high five figure income per month, that is after he pays all expenses, including virtual assistants and writers.

Each report has its own blog where the report can be found by subscribers along with other articles and product recommendations. And his reports are updated as needed.

Things to Consider

George has been doing this for 20 years. He wasn’t an overnight success, but he stuck with it, and it has really paid off for him. At the end of six months, he was earning $1000 a month, and in today’s money that would be more like $1663. The point is, it might not take long to see some income, but don’t expect to get rich overnight.

Choose your product first – it should convert well and pay well – and then write your report in such a way that it naturally converts into a sale of the product(s). The reports are NOT sales letters, but rather very good step by step instructional reports that George could easily charge $47 or more for.

You might want to start with a niche that you know something about since that will make it easier. Don’t take on a virtual assistant until you know what you’re doing and how to do it. Then you can create a system for the VA to follow.

I couldn’t tell you all the places where George gets his traffic since he wouldn’t let me, but I can tell you that you just need to keep your eyes open when you’re on the net and you’ll likely discover these places yourself as well as others.

Here’s How You Can Improve on George’s System

One thing George isn’t doing that I think would boost his income into the stratosphere is short videos on YouTube and TikTok. You might consider adding those to this plan if you decide to move forward with it.

Also consider using small influencers to create user generated content such as video on TikTok to drive traffic to your landing pages.

I think that about wraps it up.

Imagine earning 6 figures per year simply by giving away free reports. It sounds crazy but I can tell you for a fact that George is one of many who are doing this right now.

And if they can do it, so can you.

 

 

Major $$$ Opportunity: Podcast Memberships

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The problem with many podcasts is they have small audiences, making them difficult to monetize. But what if you could earn a six-figure income by charging people to be able to listen to your podcasts? Then you wouldn’t need a ton of listeners to become profitable.

That would never work, right? Actually, it’s already working, as proven by at least several podcasters who are doing exactly that.

For example, Farnam Street is a “Like-minded community of high achievers committed to better thinking, wiser decision making and more focused growth.” Memberships sell for $149 annually or $25 per month. Members receive access to premium podcasts, hand-edited transcripts, ask me anything sessions, book summaries, bonus articles, free courses, membership in the community and more.

From the website: Our goal at Farnam Street is to help you go to bed every night smarter than you were when you woke up. Every day, thousands of people turn to us for the kind of multidisciplinary education you can’t get anywhere else. The Farnam Street Membership is for those who want to go a step further and make intentional learning a daily way of life.

The join page is especially interesting because people can choose to pay the $149 or they can pay more, if they choose. This community has grown to more than 9,000 members and is home to CEOs, investors, GMs and high-achievers in all walks of life, making it a great place to find new contacts within the community. In fact, the testimonial at the top of the membership page is from the former GM of the Cleveland Browns. https://fs.blog/membership/

Have you done the math yet? 9,000 members times $149 isn’t exactly chicken feed.

If you’re starting your own podcast, you might want to map out a value ladder first.

For example, your bottom rung is going to be free, whether that’s a free newsletter, free excepts from your podcasts or whatever you choose.

The next rung is going to have a low entry price. Maybe you charge $10 a month for the podcast transcripts or summaries of the podcast episodes.

Next you might offer your annual membership at $99 or $199. This includes all podcasts, written materials and community.

Finally, you have a $1000 offer that could be an annual retreat, one-on-one coaching or whatever your subscribers would like.

Another paid podcast example is The Anfield Wrap, https://www.theanfieldwrap.com/ a Liverpool-based podcast company, with 10,000 paid subscribers as of 4 years ago (the latest info I could find) at £7 – £10 per month each. Take note of their pricing:

  • £7/mo audio only
  • £7/mo video only
  • £10/mo both

I’ll bet you pounds to donuts that most subscribers choose £10 per month because, “It’s only £3 more.”

I love the low price per month model because it’s a low barrier to entry AND most people won’t miss £7 or £10 leaving their bank account each month.

It’s worth noting that some attempts at using a subscription based podcasting model have failed. For example, it didn’t work for Tim Ferriss. But in his case, he didn’t make his content exclusive. He offered benefits such as Q and A’s for the paid members, but everyone could access the podcast content. It seems that it’s more effective to place your best stuff behind the paywall and then entice free subscribers to upgrade for access to the insider info.

I think at this time the best method might be to offer free and paid memberships, with 90% of the benefits going to the paid members. The only purpose of the free membership is to build your list of prospects.

Once you have a prospect on your list, you can repeatedly give them a ‘taste’ of what paid members get and then entice them to join your other smart members and get insider access to the full buffet of goodies you offer.

$2.5 Million Tiny Business in 2-3 Hours a Day

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Justin Welsh helped build two companies past a $1B valuation and raise over $300M in venture capital.

Then in 2019, he burned out. That’s when he and his wife quit their high-paying jobs and completely redesigned their lives. Justin now runs a one-person business that teaches creators how to identify, develop and monetize skills they already have, on the internet.

That’s right – he essentially teaches online marketing.

And he’s also an angel investor and a mentor to entrepreneurs.

Justin built his business by writing a few short posts on LinkedIn every day. He’s not interested in fame, in being an influencer, in making hundreds of millions of dollars a year, in taking selfies or in driving a Lambo.

All he wants to do is build a tiny online business that he can create his lifestyle around, optimizing his day for freedom rather than status or being rich. He automizes everything possible, keeps his appointments to a minimum, and focuses on meeting cool people instead of people who can do something for him.

Justin avoids politics, doesn’t watch the news, doesn’t have cable TV and avoids anger. When someone tries to debate him in the comment section of posts, he walks away. He hates hype, clickbait, big egos and drama.

He does something he enjoys for a few hours a week so that the rest of his time he can do whatever he wants. He’s not into alarm clocks, hustle or success habits.

He’s one chill dude doing business and living life on his terms.

The other day in his newsletter he shared his, “8 Questions to Transform Your Week.” These are the questions he asks himself when he conducts his weekly preview.

1: What can I remove from my calendar?

2: What’s on my calendar that can be automated?

3: What’s something that should be delegated but isn’t?

4: Is there anything on my calendar that isn’t urgent and important?

5: Can any important meetings be 50% shorter?

6: How can I get off the computer more?

7: How can I maximize fun time?

8: Is there anything missing?

To read more on each of these, just follow this link. And if you’re interested, I encourage you to subscribe to his weekly newsletter, too.

https://www.justinwelsh.me/blog/how-to-do-a-weekly-preview