This is not a stupid get-rich-quick article.
The “make $10k a month online” narrative is overplayed.
It’s unrealistic for most people.
I’ve been creating content for the last 10 years. I’ve sold a million $ in online courses. And I built a new online course business from scratch in 2020.
So I won’t waste your time.
Give me 4 minutes, and I’ll show you what $10,000 a month with online courses really looks like.
The secret to making money with content
You heard about it already. But let me say it again: it’s consistency.
I didn’t want to write that. But it’s the truth.
The longer you make content, the better you get. The better you get, the more people pay attention. The more people pay attention, the more you can potentially earn.
It’s 1 + 1 = 2. The math isn’t complicated. But it’s difficult to do because we live in a society that loves instant results.
The best content creators I know have been at it for 5+ years.
Most people can’t stick it out that long. They get bored. They find a new shiny thing to do. So they quit after 3 months.
That’s good for you.
How to hack the internet
To be consistent, you only need three things:
- A niche
- A content format
- A platform to get started
If you can’t figure these out, it’s easy to get distracted and lost.
A niche is a problem you want to solve for one specific audience. Ditch the stupid “be nicheless” narrative. Those who preach it all started with a niche.
Second, you need clarity on the type of content. It’s more about your preference:
- Text
- Video
- Or audio
Then, you need to find a platform that aligns with the type of content you want to create. I won’t enumerate the platforms because you already know them.
This is the hardest part.
It took me years to understand the type of content I love creating (long-form text). As a result, I was dabbling around with other formats that I didn’t really enjoy, like daily YouTube videos.
I burned out and quit. I hated my life.
You identify what you’re good at and what you enjoy by simply going on 90-day sprints. Back in 2020, I published six videos a week on my YouTube channel. After doing this for three months, I understood that I never wanted to do daily videos again.
You learn more from doing than from thinking.
You can’t escape the audience problem
I see so many people thinking about what they could sell, build it, and make $0.
The old “build it and they will come” approach is dead.
You need an audience to make money from online courses and content. The best time to start building it was yesterday. The second-best time is today.
Start with one platform and go all-in on it.
If you think you can get away with not building an audience, you’ll fail.
Building an audience sucks
I hate to break it to you.
Building an audience is the hardest part of the whole equation.
It takes time and patience. But it’s the unfair advantage of online courses and content. The longer you do it, the easier it becomes.
The first 6–12 months are the hardest. The growth is slow. You’ll feel invisible. You’ll feel like a loser.
But then it happens. You get a few hundred followers and get some traction.
Once you get the first few hundred, you can get the first few thousand, and boom. You don’t need more than that. And it’s all about building momentum.
The best way to build momentum is to simply do something you enjoy doing.
Get clear on the offer and do the damn math
Now that you have an audience, you can start thinking product.
Most people who follow me want to copy and paste my business model.
I sell online courses. It’s not the fastest way to get rich but it’s so damn sexy on paper. Build it once, and make money while you sleep. (Just writing this out makes me excited!)
Now, you can’t just say, “I’ll sell an online course.”
That’s too vague. You need to get specific.
How much will the course cost?
- $50?
- $1,000?
- or $2,000?
Now, how many students will you need to hit your $10k a month goal?
Use the following formula:
$10k monthly goal ÷ course price = number of students needed.
- If your course is $1k, then you’ll need 10 students a month.
- If your course is $2k, then you’ll need 5 students.
- If your course is $50, then you’ll need 200 students.
Got it?
Most people never do this math. That’s why they’re stuck selling $20 Gumroad PDFs and wonder why it’s so hard to hit $1,000 a month.
Great marketing can’t fix bad math.
Here’s the stuff you don’t want to read
People love to rush the process.
They want to make $10k a month with an online course in 30 days. They want to go from zero to $10k a month in 90 days. It’s a great headline. But it’s a damn lie.
The truth is building a relationship with people on the internet takes time. You do this one piece of content at a time.
That’s why I’m bold on publishing daily content on the internet.
It’s the best way to get where you want faster.
Daily content gives your audience more touchpoints to know you better and embrace your philosophy. This isn’t easy. But it’s the best way to win the content game.
People buy from people. When they’re buying a course, they’re buying you.
Frequency builds trust.
Just like you can’t get to know someone in a day, you can’t earn someone’s trust in a day. This is why content is a long game. It’s a game of trust.
The more someone consumes your work, the more they get to know you. The more they get to know you, the more they want to do business with you.
It’s just how the human brain works.
Let’s finish with this cool number
You want the number. I know. So let me give you two numbers: 2 & 5.
Now, add another word to it: years.
There are gazillion ways to make money faster. But I found that setting low expectations with consistent work is what gives the most joy and is the most sustainable long term.
Cheers.
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