Because competition is a real factor here, I’m not allowed to reveal the exact niche for this case study. Luckily, this method will work in any niche where you can save people money on something they’re already buying. And it will work in a lot of other niches, too, but for now let’s talk about the whole money saving deal.
For purposes of discussion, I’m going to change the niche to air travel, and we’ll assume it’s not during a pandemic.
This person – we’ll call him Vinnie – set up an information email list giving away free info on cheap flights. Again, I’ve changed the niche, but let’s roll with it. When airlines get cancellations, make mistakes and so forth, they sometimes offer crazy good deals just to get the seats filled. Vinnie keeps tabs of these offers and sends his list info that can save them a lot of money on their airline tickets.
But here’s where it gets good: While anyone can subscribe for free, he also has a paid version. The cost is low, about $40 for 3 months or $90 for a year. The savings on just one deal alone can be several hundred dollars, making it an easy sale to air travelers.
The difference between free and paid subscriptions is the free subscribers only get about one third of the deals in their inbox.
Paid subscribers get ALL the deals.
Here’s what’s great about this business model:
• The content writes itself. All you would be doing is passing along the info that your readers want. Essentially it might sound something like, “Delta is offering 2 for 1 discounts for the next 24 hours for transatlantic flights. Here’s the link to their site.”
• Readers can easily afford the subscription price. If they have the money for plane tickets, they can afford a $90 subscription.
• Getting just one deal a year more than pays for the subscription. People who continue to fly do not unsubscribe.
• Paid members get an ego bump because they have ‘inside knowledge’ they can brag about to others. “My guy saved me $400 on my ticket.”
• It’s easy to get new subscribers. Since he has a free version and because people want to save money, his conversion rate on his squeeze page is extremely high.
• Once free subscribers see how valuable the info is and realize they are missing two-thirds of it, upgrading is an easy sell.
He made $140,000 in just the first six months alone. He wouldn’t tell me how much he’s made since, but I do know he bought an expensive new house and he’s hired 3 people to handle most of the business for him.
One more thing: Once he realized how big this was going to become (and please remember, I have not revealed his true niche) he decided to bring on affiliates with a referral program. This made things explode and kept his competition to a minimum.
Here’s what you can do: Be on the lookout for any niche where people need quick, up to date info on something. It might not just be about saving money on a particular item. Maybe they need the latest news or methods in their niche such as investing and so forth.
When you find a good possibility, verify that people are paying money in the niche. Obviously, people pay for airline tickets so that would be easy. And some niches will surprise you. I’ve heard of a guy who is making a killing writing a monthly newsletter about collecting arrowheads. He works maybe 5 to 10 hours a month and pulls in $10,000 in monthly subscriptions in his one man operation.
Create a free version of your newsletter, find where your audience hangs out and get them signed up. Show them why it’s to their benefit to become an insider and upgrade to the paid version.
Learn your numbers and start advertising to scale the entire operation up. Vinnie advertises online and in publications.
Remember to sell your readers other stuff, too. If your niche is golf tips, sell them golf equipment and golf packages. If your niche is dog training, sell them high end dog food and so forth.
This is so simple, you can get started almost immediately, just as soon as you choose your profitable niche.
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