How Writing Online Will Make You A Millionaire - Nathan Barry (Founder of Convertkit)
Dec 14, 2023
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Nathan Barry, Founder and CEO of ConvertKit, shares his journey from a modest background to leading a $100 million software company. He discusses the vital skill of earning money through entrepreneurship versus traditional jobs. Nathan emphasizes the power of consistent writing, advocating for a daily goal of 1,000 words to foster clarity and connection with audiences. He explains 'ladders of wealth' for transitioning to scalable businesses and highlights the importance of documenting challenges as fuel for growth. Tune in for insights on balancing personal and commercial blogging!
Writing 1000 words a day can drastically change your life, sparking new ideas and consistent content creation.
Find a balance between commercial and personal blog posts, engaging with a broad audience while staying true to your core interests.
Sharing personal thoughts and experiences on your blog allows for a deeper connection with your audience.
Segmenting your audience and creating niche content can lead to a more engaged community that values your unique perspective.
Understand the four ladders of wealth creation: time for money, your own services, business, and selling products.
Leverage attention as a creator to build successful businesses and explore high-ROI activities.
Deep dives
Building iOS apps as a side hustle
While working a day job, the speaker learned iOS app development and built several apps as a side hustle. The apps generated around $3,000 per month, allowing the speaker to travel and work on passion projects.
Inspiration from Chris Guillebeau and self-publishing
The speaker discovered Chris Guillebeau's work and was inspired by his self-publishing journey and audience building strategies. Chris's ebooks on world domination and blogging success motivated the speaker to write and self-publish their own book on designing iOS apps.
Launching the self-published book
With an email waitlist of 798 people, the speaker launched their book, expecting to make around $10,000 in revenue. However, they ended up selling $12,000 worth of the book in the first day. This success shifted the speaker's focus from freelance design work to self-publishing and marketing.
Obsession with self-publishing and email marketing
The speaker became obsessed with the world of self-publishing and email marketing. They realized the power of email to drive conversions and learned from veteran internet marketers in Boise. This newfound love for self-publishing and marketing fueled their passion for building an audience and growing their self-published works.
The Power of Writing 1000 Words a Day
Writing 1000 words a day can drastically change your life, even though it's a simple concept, it is not easy to implement consistently. One tip is to switch up your sources of information to spark new ideas for writing. Additionally, having consistent prompts for your writing can lead to interesting thoughts and topics to explore. It's important to set a publishing frequency that works for you and stick to it, whether it's a weekly newsletter or essays. Remember to capture your ideas as they come and have a way to organize and structure them. Lastly, consider segmenting your audience and creating content that speaks to specific niches or topics of interest.
Balancing Personal and Commercial Content
When it comes to creating personal content on your blog, it's important to find a balance between what appeals to the mainstream audience and what resonates with your core interests and values. While commercial content may attract more views and traffic, personal blog posts allow you to delve deeper into topics that genuinely interest you and provide a more authentic connection with your audience. Consider segmenting your content and having sections or newsletters dedicated to specific topics or niches. This way, you can maintain a personal touch while also catering to the needs and interests of your readers.
The Value of Personal Blogs and Behind-the-Scenes Content
Personal blogs offer a unique and intimate perspective that is often missing from the internet. Sharing personal thoughts, experiences, and behind-the-scenes content allows your audience to connect with you on a deeper level. While certain mainstream topics may attract more traffic, it's the personal and niche content that truly resonates with the right audience. Consider focusing on writing what genuinely interests you, exploring topics that you are passionate about, and sharing unique stories and experiences. Remember that some of your most valuable readers and followers will be those who appreciate and connect with the personal side of your content.
Creating a Segmented Audience and Paid Newsletters
Segmenting your audience and creating niche content can be a powerful way to engage with the right people. Consider offering a paid newsletter or exclusive section on your blog that caters to a specific audience or topic. This allows you to write about niche interests without worrying about alienating a broader audience. By creating a separate space, you can share your personal insights, experiences, and even controversial ideas without compromise. This can lead to a more engaged and passionate community that values your unique perspective and supports your work. Remember to focus on building a loyal and dedicated community rather than solely chasing views or traffic.
The Four Ladders of Wealth Creation
The podcast discusses the four ladders of wealth creation: time for money, your own services, business, and selling products. Each ladder requires different skills and offers different levels of leverage. The goal is to climb higher on each ladder, building on previous successes.
The Power of Flywheels
The podcast explores the concept of flywheels and their importance in business. Flywheels are continuous loops of actions that flow smoothly into the next, get easier with each rotation, and produce more results. Examples of flywheels include building an email list, creating content based on audience questions, and monetizing through sponsorships and paid acquisition.
The Billion Dollar Creator
The podcast discusses how creators can leverage their attention to build businesses worth hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars. Examples include building a product-based company related to the creator's niche, partnering with other businesses, and directing attention towards high-ROI activities.
Committing to Daily Writing
The podcast encourages the practice of daily writing and its impact on creativity, content creation, and idea generation. Committing to writing a thousand words a day can lead to increased output, more ideas for content, and the ability to share thoughts in a variety of formats, such as Instagram captions or Twitter long-form posts.
There are loads of people out there who want to be become online creators, but they’re not sure how to get going, or if their business will be a success. It can be a super confusing world to navigate - but once you unlock it you can find financial freedom and a fulfilling career. Today’s guest is Nathan Barry, an online writer and software developer who created Convertkit, a product that helps people with online newsletters reach new audiences. We’re going to be talking all about how to build an online creator business, how to make writing a habit, and you’ll see exactly how Nathan built his ebook empire.
Sponsored by Huel - go to https://www.huel.com/deepdive and with your first order you’ll get a free t-shirt and shaker.
Sponsored by Trading 212 - download the Trading 212 app https://trading212.com/promocodes/ALI and use the promo code "ALI" after signing up and depositing to receive a random free share worth up to £100. This is not financial advice. Investments can fall and rise. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Other fees may apply*. Capital is at risk.
📚Check out my New York Times Bestselling book Feel-Good Productivity! Amazon Website
Season 7 Episode 11 00:00 Intro 02:05 Making money is a skill 10:20 Having a job vs. having a business 17:58 You set the pace 25:39 Do you need to level up your skills? 32:57 Setting big goals 41:55 Nathan's first apps 46:43 Getting into ebooks 58:30 Writing 1000 words a day 1:07:18 Working in public 1:15:56 How to make writing a habit 1:26:17 Publishing and managing your projects 1:31:06 Running a personal blog 1:44:15 Being honest about yourself online 1:58:19 The ladders of wealth 2:11:16 The billion-dollar creator 2:22:54 The three laws of flywheels 2:36:28 Final words of advice
Visit the website for the transcript and highlights from the conversation - https://aliabdaal.com/podcast/
🎙 ABOUT THE PODCAST
Deep Dive is the podcast that delves into the minds of entrepreneurs, creators and other inspiring people to uncover the philosophies, strategies and tools that help us live happier, healthier and more productive lives.
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