A Better Lemonade Stand #297

 📈 Trends

🤖 Automations Are Taking Over Your Uncle’s Offline Business

As business automation capabilities advance, there is a massive opportunity to target integrating automation in offline and old-school business models that don’t traditionally know much about the advancing online world. Think plumbers, locksmiths, roofers etc.

Why?

• Cost Efficiency: Using automation tools can reduce operational costs by 30-50%, making businesses more efficient and productive. This cost reduction is particularly valuable for small and offline businesses streamlining operations.​ (Source)

• Productivity: Automation increases business productivity by up to 40%. This increase is due to the ability of tools like Zapier or Make to automate repetitive tasks. (Source)

Where Do I Start?

• Check out GoHighLevel, this is a platform that allows you to create SMS, email automation, etc.

• Learn how to create effective ChatGPT prompts for chatbots.

• Take courses on Make (a cheaper alternative to Zapier).

• Start practicing on your own website using the examples below.

  

  (All of these can be made in GoHighLevel)

Here are 3 ways you use this trend to profit from offline businesses:

1/ Service: Manage a local business’s automation.

• Competitor Example
  
  Pavlo owns a lead generation automation business that makes over $20k/mo, selling to local construction companies in the US.
  
  He has a whole playlist here dedicated to live sales calls for local business automation on how to close these deals without too much information overwhelming the business owner.

• How to Sell
  
  Do a discovery call with a local business in your niche to pick out their pain points. Figure out which automation can help streamline operations. For example, they could reduce manual tasks and enhance efficiency with AI web chatbots, SMS, and email automation sequences.
  
  Example: Pavlo noticed that this client was experiencing periods of high demand in the call, where managing customer interactions and bookings became overwhelming, using half her day. So Pavlo shared live how she could use his custom-made 24/7 chatbot and convinced her immediately to secure a $500/m deal on the call.

2/ SWAS: Manage their automation + integrate your CRM.

• Now Integrate your customized GoHighLevel software into their business as a CRM, so their team can manage everything in one place (social media, emails, SMSs, etc). If you build their whole team around this CRM, the chances are they will be paying you long-term and not churn earlier than if you were just offering a service.
  

• Provide ongoing support and updates to their automation and CRM. Stay updated with them to figure out their pain points and see if you can upsell to solve more of their problems.

Upsell:

• FB Ads: If they are making enough money, you can upsell by managing their local paid ads to generate more leads for them. According to Pavlo, effective campaigns typically require around a $1500/mo ad budget for local ads.

• Brand Reputation: If they have a lot of > 3-star reviews / no reviews / low down on Google Map Pack, then you can solve an another pain point by boosting positive reviews by offering discounts/deals to their existing database in return for reviews using an enhanced review system mentioned in the table I shared above.

3/ SWAS + Educate:

• Build a Community
  

  Create a dedicated Skool where members can learn about automation and access your automation templates..

  
  Hamza Baig creates automations for offline businesses. His Skool community is blowing up with over 8.1k active members learning automation, and his Instagram reels are getting 15k+ views a post.
  

  I also came across AI Automations by Jack, which follows a similar approach,  He started a few months ago and already has 1300 people in his community learning automation, in theory, paying $50/month. ($50k MRR)
  

• Free Content
  
  Produce and distribute automation content, such as Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts, to showcase real examples of implementing automation and driving engagement in your community.

  Embed your YouTube videos inside the Skool community’s free resources next to a paid resources section.
  

• Paid Resources
  
  Develop online courses and host webinars to educate your audience about automation techniques, share pre-made automation, and put them in your paid resource section.

🔗 Learn How to Sell Automation as a Service

 💡 Insights

🤝 How to Recruit Fast for Your Online Business

Simon Høiberg shares his "Hire Fast, Fire Fast" strategy for bootstrapped startups, emphasizing the need for quick, efficient hiring and onboarding processes that differ from traditional methods used by larger companies.

• Efficient Hiring: Skip lengthy screenings and use platforms like Upwork. Use tests, like a keyword in the job description, to ensure candidates pay attention to detail.

• Fast Firing: Evaluate new hires within the first two weeks. Use tools like Notion for onboarding and provide granular system access based on performance.

• Thoughts: Preparing strong systems and SOPs is essential to enable average talent to perform effectively and clearly.

🔗 Learn More About Simon's Strategy

📰 How Alex Llull Built a 6k+ Subscriber Newsletter

Alex Llull shares his journey of growing ‘The Steal Club’ newsletter audience and monetizing effectively. (A popular feature in our past newsletters)

• Growth Strategies: Alex leveraged word-of-mouth and community sharing to build his subscriber base, utilizing relevant tools and platforms to increase engagement.

• Monetization Journey: He started with sponsorships for 1,000 subscribers using classified ads and discounts to attract advertisers, creating an early revenue stream.

• Thoughts: This highlights the importance of community engagement and consistent content repurposing.

🔗 Discover Alex Llull's Full Strategies 

🤳 The 2024 State of the Creator Economy

The 2024 ConvertKit report highlights insights from 1,000 creators about their income streams, economic impacts, and growth plans.

• Diversified Income Streams: 61% of creators use 2-5 income sources to enhance financial stability.

• Rapid Earnings Growth: 38% of new creators started earning within the first 6 months.

• Thoughts: These stats can help you tap into the creator economy for new opportunities. If you want to generate quick liquidity, you're more likely to get it by offering a service.

🔗 Get Insights into Creator’s Journey's

🌐 Use This Profit Machine Playbook

Greg Isenberg shares his playbook from reviewing over 1000 internet businesses on the critical "machines" you must master to build a top-tier profit machine, from content to community.

• Search Machine: Focus on AI-assisted SEO to attract organic traffic without paying for ads. Companies like Mailchimp thrive due to high search rankings.

• Innovation Machine: Continuously experiment and iterate, moving into adjacent categories to stay ahead of the competition.

• Thoughts: This method is pivotal for entrepreneurs aiming to reach profitability by connecting innovation with proven strategic systems.

🔗 Unveil the Top 0.01% Business Secrets

🏷️ For Sale

📚 Why This Directory Could Be a Smart Acquisition

This popular no-code-built newsletter and directory by Jaisal Rathee shares cool tools, websites, and apps. It is now currently on the market for sale.

• Asking Price: $40,000

• Strong Subscriber Base: With over 19,000 engaged subscribers, the newsletter has a solid audience for monetization.

• Proven Revenue: Generating $18,000 in the trailing twelve months through sponsorships and premium listings.

Niche: Focuses on curating and sharing niche digital tools, appealing to tech enthusiasts and productivity seekers.

Thoughts: This is a great opportunity for entrepreneurs with a simple no-code business to take over. Jaisal Rathee is a trusted serial founder with 9x successful exits, as I’ve mentioned here before.

🔗 Contact Seller for More Details

🧰 Apps & Tools

🗺️ FlowMapp: A Visual platform for website planning and UX design. Create sitemaps, user flows, and hi-fi prototypes easily.

👕 Recraft Mockup Generator: A Free AI mockup generator for your designs. Quickly display graphics on t-shirts and devices with this new Recraft tool.

🖇️ LinkBot: This is an AI-powered internal linking automation tool. Use this to enhance your SEO by automating internal links and improving site navigation.

🎬 Underlord: An AI-powered editing assistant that simplifies video and podcast editing with smart tools for clarity and studio sound.

🌐 Hatch: Hatch is a Drag-and-drop web design platform that lets you create interactive, customized sites without code.

🤖 Product Updates

🐝 Lifetime Subscriptions and Native Audio Unleashed

Beehiiv updates subscriptions for one-time payments and native audio embeds to enrich the reader experience.

• Subscription Flexibility: You can now offer lifetime access to readers with a single payment.

• Enhanced Reader Engagement: Integrate audio files directly into newsletters.

• Thoughts: These updates provide you with new ways to monetize content and engage with their audience.

🔗 Explore Beehiiv's New Feature

🎼 Udio Enhances Music Creation

Udio introduces significant updates, including audio uploads, WAV downloads, and improved mobile interfaces, which enhance users' music creation experience.

• Audio Uploads: Users on Standard and Pro plans can upload audio to guide the tempo and mood of their tracks, creating songs up to 15 minutes long.

• Enhanced Usability: The platform now features improved tag and song search, including tag autocomplete and updated mobile interfaces for a smoother user experience.

• Thoughts: Entrepreneurs in the music industry can leverage these powerful tools to innovate and streamline their creative processes.

🔗 Transform Your Music Creation Process 

📲 Wix’s AI Tool Generates Apps from Plain English

Wix introduces a generative AI feature to create and edit iOS and Android apps through simple text descriptions, enhancing its app builder tool.

• Customization and Integration: The AI-powered app builder allows extensive customization, integrating various widgets and third-party services for a tailored app experience.

• Ease of Use: Designed to simplify app creation, users interact through a chatbot-like interface that captures the app’s goals, intent, and aesthetic preferences.

• Thoughts: Use this tool to quickly bring app ideas to market, potentially gaining a competitive edge by focusing on creative and strategic aspects rather than technical details.

🔗 Learn About Wix’s AI App Builder

🖇️ Everything Else

🔁 The Repeat Founder Cycle: Olly's burnout and need for a break reflects a common cycle many founders experience. (🔗 Insights)

💹 Grow My Newsletter: Get 56 free methods to grow your newsletter, including over 100 examples for different types and stages. (🔗 Insights)

👩 The ‘Miss AI’ Pageant: Check out these AI models that competed for a $5k prize. Judging criteria include use of AI, social media engagement, and beauty. (🔗 Insights)