- A Better Lemonade Stand
- Posts
- A Better Lemonade Stand #262
A Better Lemonade Stand #262
Insights, trends & tools to build a better online business.
Richard Lazazzera
September 20, 2023
Hey,
Richard again from A Better Lemonade Stand.
Every week, I write an email filled with the most intriguing insights, trends, tools, and opportunities that can empower you to create profitable digital products and businesses.
This week:
🎙️ Extra-Ordinary: A new true crime podcast starring an AI deepfake of a dead guy.
🧱 Building Apps with Airtable: 6 platforms to build (almost) anything on top of AIrtable.
🔥 Opportunity Report: How action creates asymmetric opportunities.
🦸‍♀️ How Zoe Became A Full-Time Entrepreneur: A masterclass in starting small and scaling smartly.
If you’re interested in learning more about who I am and my entrepreneurial journey, check that out here; otherwise, let’s explore this week’s opportunities for building a better online business.
Reply to this email to let me know what you think of this issue or to say 👋🏼 and introduce yourself.
🎙️ Extra-Ordinary: A Deep Fake Dead Guy Podcast
The Ordinary, a skincare brand that disrupted the beauty industry with its transparent pricing and ingredient-focused products, has been in the spotlight for more than just its revolutionary approach to cosmetics.
The drama and downfall surrounding its late founder, who was based right here in my home city of Toronto, adds another layer to the brand's complex narrative.
But here's where it gets even more intriguing: A new podcast called Out of the Ordinary, covering the life and death of the founder, is leveraging AI in a groundbreaking way.
Using ElevenLabs' technology, the podcast host trained an AI voice model using samples of the founder's voice from online videos.
The result?
The AI reads the founder's own written words—extracted from social media posts—to create an immersive storytelling experience that feels eerily authentic.
It's as if the founder is narrating parts of his own life story from beyond the grave.
This innovative use of AI in storytelling isn't just a gimmick; it's a glimpse into the future of content creation.
It shows how AI can be used to enhance emotional engagement and bring a unique dimension to digital narratives.
Ready to start playing around with voice cloning? ElevenLabs has a generous free plan, and paid plans start at $5/month.
Sidenote: The podcast itself is pretty good. I have one episode left.
🧱 Building Apps with Airtable
“The fastest way to build apps”
I’ve talked about Airtable in my previous emails and will definitely be talking about them more since it’s such a useful and versatile tool for any entreprneuer.
But the real magic happens when you integrate Airtable with no-code builders to build apps or tools on top of your information in AIrtable.
Suddenly, you're not just managing data; you're creating dashboards, membership sites, niche directories, and mobile apps.
Below is my shortlist of no-code platforms to get you started building your first app with on top of Airtable:
What You Can Build: Custom Dashboards, Web Portals, Forms
Description: Airtable Interfaces lets you design custom interfaces over your Airtable data. Ideal for solopreneurs who want to monetize data-driven dashboards, web portals, or forms. No coding skills needed, just drag-and-drop functionality. Turn your Airtable base into a sellable digital asset.
Difficulty: Easy
What You Can Build: Landing Pages, Web Apps, Directories, Membership Sites
Description: Softr is a no-code platform perfect for creators who want to quickly launch landing pages, web apps, or membership sites. With a variety of templates and integrations, you can start monetizing your digital presence in no time.
Difficulty: Easy-Moderate
What You Can Build: iOS Apps, Android Apps, Web Apps
Description: Glide turns Airtables and Google Sheets into apps. If you're a solopreneur looking to monetize mobile or web apps without coding, this is your tool. Create apps for both iOS and Android platforms.
Difficulty: Easy-Moderate
What You Can Build: iOS Apps, Android Apps, Web Apps
Description: FlutterFlow is for those who want to build apps but don't want to code. Ideal for creators looking to monetize fully functional apps with Airtable or Firebase integration. Export code or deploy directly to app stores.
Difficulty: Advanced
What You Can Build: Web Portals, Membership Websites, Internal Tools
Description: Pory is a multi-purpose no-code platform. It's great for solopreneurs who want to create and monetize web portals, membership websites, or internal tools. Connect it with Airtable or Notion and you're good to go.
Difficulty: Moderate
What You Can Build: Complex Workflows, Web Apps
Description: Aeropage is for those who need more control over their no-code projects. Ideal for monetizing complex, controlled workflows connected to Airtable or Notion. Get the power of full-stack development without the code.
Difficulty: Advanced
🔥 Opportunity Report: Action Creates Opportunity
Sam Altman of OpenAI recently tweeted, "give yourself many shots to get lucky":
“give yourself a lot of shots to get lucky” is even better advice than it appears on the surface.
luck isn’t an independent variable but increases super-linearly with more surface area—you meet more people, make more connections between new ideas, learn patterns, etc.
— Sam Altman (@sama)
12:30 PM • Aug 27, 2023
This sentiment underscores the exponential impact of building online, sharing your journey with others, and simply taking action.
Think of it as enlarging your "luck surface area."
This concept mirrors a past article of mine, Start Something, where I explored how action inevitably generates opportunity.
Action Creates Opportunity
The relationship between action and opportunity can't be overstated.
While it's easy to get stuck in the planning phase, action is what propels you forward.
Each move—launching a product, writing a blog, or even automating a process—creates valuable data and engagement.
Action Triggers both momentum and unexpected, often asymmetric, opportunities.
Asymmetric Gains: Big Wins, Small Risks
Naval Ravikant, founder of AngelList, advocates for exploiting asymmetric opportunities—situations where potential gains dwarf the risks involved.
Examples:
Software Development: High leverage, low cost
Content Creation: Global reach, minimal input
Digital Products: Build once, sell repeatedly
Investing: High returns, capped losses
Networking: One connection can change everything
Automation: Do more with less effort
Conclusion
The digital renaissance is teeming with opportunities.
By stepping beyond the planning stage to actually launch products, write content, implement automation, or build apps and tools, you not only generate valuable insights but also widen your luck surface area, creating new asymmetric opportunities that will compound over time.
🦸‍♀️ How Zoe Became A Full-Time Entrepreneur
To cap off this newsletter, I wanted to share Zoe's roadmap for becoming a full-time entrepreneur.
Zeo is a marketer, builder, and entrepreneur whom I’ve followed for a while, and always look forward to reading her content. She started as a freelancer, built her expertise, found her niche, and then productized her skills.
Her journey is a masterclass in starting small and scaling smartly.
Her journey also includes creating products from her expertise, sharing them with an expanding audience, and validating business ideas through small experiments.
Her bonus advice underscores being self-driven, testing ideas, diversifying knowledge, and learning from the market and so-called "failures."
Ok, that’s it for this week.
Your feedback fuels this journey, so hit reply and share your thoughts, or just say 👋🏼.
Until the next newsletter, stay adventurous.
Richard
Like my work and want to show support?
(Good) Reply to this email, say hi, and introduce yourself. Tell me what you like best about the newsletter.
(Better) Leave a testimonial. Then shoot me an email and introduce yourself.
(Best) Leave a testimonial, share my newsletter with your friends and followers, and make sure to send me an email to introduce yourself.
Need help as an entrepreneur, brand, or company?
Here are some of the ways I can help:
Consulting Calls: Book a 45-minute call for personalized guidance on AI, product selection, and marketing. Book a call
Advertising: Reach 30k entrepreneurs for $250 per newsletter. Passionate audience guaranteed. Learn more
Long-Term Sponsorships: Let's make a big impact with sponsorship and collaboration. Learn more
This communication is not intended as business counsel. It serves as a weekly briefing on entrepreneurship and my initiatives, designed for informational and entertainment purposes. Revenue may be generated through sponsorships, affiliate links, and digital product sales.