Solo Founder Pyramid: Creating a Profitable Brand

Online business has changed a lot over the years. I remember when lead magnets like ebooks could get you thousands of subscribers in just a few days. There was a time when very few people sold digital products or courses. Each industry has evolved and I personally love it.

With these changes and all of this evolution, we have to change our approach to how we are entrepreneurs.

I started my journey of entrepreneurship in middle school. I remember doing homework for money, selling burned CDs from Limewire, and I sold candy out of my gym bag too.

The Format

First, you have to understand that business today is about serving one market on several different levels. Instead of having multiple companies and several different avatars, you’d do better by having one main avatar that you create all your solutions to serve.

And part of these changes is altering the problems you solve. Something like “helping brands increase visibility on social media” just isn’t powerful anymore. You need to be solving a problem that people actually care about. If the problem isn’t burning, then your solution of water won’t be a no-brainer.

Level 1: Done for You

The best way to create a profitable business is to start profitable. I know it sounds crazy but hear me out. In the beginning, it’s easy to create an insane offer and sell to your prospects. Starting at the top means you can throw together high levels of value. Worry about delivering on the value after you start to get yesses. If I were doing social media marketing, I’d offer all the value within my reach to get my first batch of clients.

To create an incredible service, literally sit down and make a list of all the solutions you can offer your clients. Get to 20 services. Then go and talk to a few customers and they’ll help you create an even better plan. (Customers are the best to speak to about creating products and services for your business.)

Starting business at this level makes your brand extremely valuable. You can always add more solutions at lower price points later. It’s much harder to scale from the bottom tier than starting from the top.

Level 2: Done w/ You

Doing projects with your clients is where things get interesting. Completing services with your clients means you hold their hand so they get the results faster and easier. The best part is you could possibly use group programs at this level.

I’ll give you a few examples so you can understand this concept. Instead of having a service where I launch a podcast for someone or selling them a course, I could host a co-hort with ten different founders and help them launch podcasts. We’d work together for two months and do personal check-ins on the third month.

Done with you requires a certain level of experience. Understand the main problems and pitfalls your clients will experience so you have solutions ready to go!

Level 3: Digital Products and SaaS

This level doesn’t require much of your time and attention. SaaS products, automations, and other digital products work at this level. The challenge on this level is selecting the correct products to create for your audience. Courses work very well for some markets. In other markets, you might have to focus on short workshops and digital products.

SaaS is a different level of digital product. I believe it’s a lot easier for everyone to access now that we have NoCode options. You could have a product idea today and have the solution built within the week! And there are even options available for you to hire NoCode developers to help polish your product before you go to market.

Getting Started!

1. Figure out your service. Focus on a service that you know will be the most valuable and profitable for your market.

2. Talk to 25 customers about our service so you can develop tier 2 of your pyramid.

3. Develop a digital product that serves your market.

We’ll be covering each tier in depth over the next few months. I have a ton of experts lined up to work with us. (Not it just won’t be me!)

Make sure you follow the Solo Founder Collective Podcast for even more content!