Pat Flynn - The business model secret nobody tells you
The video identifies five creator archetypes: Professor, Performer, Engineer, Detective, and Renaissance. Each archetype thrives in different business models. The Professor archetype excels in teaching and can monetize through online courses, digital products, and workshops. The Performer thrives on energy and entertainment, benefiting from brand deals, merchandise, and live events. The Engineer solves problems with systems and technology, suitable for SaaS products and technical consulting. The Detective uncovers insights, monetizing through research reports and consultations. The Renaissance creator explores multiple domains, needing to focus initially but can diversify later. Each archetype has its challenges, such as the Professor's struggle with selling knowledge or the Performer's risk of burnout. The video emphasizes understanding one's archetype to choose the right business model and encourages taking action to discover one's path.
Key Points:
- Identify your creator archetype to choose the right business model.
- Professors should focus on online courses and educational content.
- Performers can leverage brand deals and merchandise for revenue.
- Engineers should consider SaaS products and technical consulting.
- Detectives can monetize through research reports and consultations.
Details:
1. Introduction to Creator Archetypes 🌟
- Different business models suit different creator personalities, making some monetization strategies more natural and sustainable depending on the individual's personality.
- Five distinct creator archetypes have been identified, each thriving within specific business models.
- By understanding your personality, you can identify the business models that align with your creative archetype and find sustainable monetization strategies.
2. The Professor Creator 📚
- The Professor Creator thrives in environments where they can teach and simplify complex topics for others.
- Notable examples include YouTubers like Ali Abdal, Mark Rober, Sal Khan, and MKBHD who educate through various forms of content.
- Five effective business models for this type include online courses (especially cohort-based), digital products (like ebooks), membership websites, workshops/speaking engagements, and affiliate marketing.
- A significant challenge for the Professor Creator is the difficulty in monetizing knowledge without feeling 'salesy' or compromising the value of free content.
- Creating content can be time-intensive due to extensive research, which can sometimes lead to outputs that might not align perfectly with the audience's level.
- Despite challenges, Professor Creators play a crucial role in educating and inspiring others, making complex topics accessible and engaging.
3. The Performer Creator 🎭
- Performers like Mr. Beast and Lily Singh thrive on creating energetic, entertaining, and emotionally engaging content, which is naturally shareable and can rapidly grow their audience.
- Combining entertainment with education can significantly enhance reach and engagement, surpassing purely educational content in growth potential.
- Business models for performer creators include brand deals, partnerships, and merchandise sales, leveraging their large and engaged fan base.
- Successful examples include How Ridiculous selling out T-Rex merchandise instantly and the Prime drink by Logan Paul and KSI.
- Live events, though high-effort, foster fan loyalty and can attract thousands of attendees, as shown by Deep Pocket Monster's events.
- Premium content offerings, like exclusive membership videos or strategic partnerships (e.g., Mr. Beast's Beast Games on Amazon), can generate substantial revenue.
- Expanding into media ventures, as Lewis Howes did with School of Greatness, offers additional revenue streams for creators.
- A challenge is the non-evergreen nature of content, necessitating constant creation to sustain revenue and avoid burnout.
- Adapting to changing audience preferences is critical; failure to innovate can result in audience disengagement.
4. The Engineer Creator ⚙️
- Engineer creators solve problems using systems, tools, and technology, with notable examples like Bob from 'I Like to Make Stuff,' and 'Mythbusters' Adam and Jaime, who engage audiences with practical solutions and experiments.
- They can also solve problems through coding, as seen with DHH and Jason Freed of Basecamp, who share insights in books.
- Ann Laura Lumf of Nestlabs and author of 'Tiny Experiments,' creates productivity solutions.
- Platforms like YouTube are leveraged by engineer creators to effectively share impactful solutions.
- Five business models for engineer creators include: 1) SaaS - creating tools for repetitive tasks like Basecamp's software. 2) Templates - like Thomas Frank's Notion templates. 3) API services - partnerships for integrations and revenue-sharing. 4) Productized services - scalable products from custom services, seen with Brian Castle's web design. 5) Technical consulting - offering specialized expertise as a service.
5. The Detective Creator 🕵️
- Detective creators, like Tim Ferriss, deconstruct performance and productivity insights from world-class performers, as seen in his '4-Hour' series, using extensive research and analysis.
- Peter Attia's exploration of longevity in 'Outlive' exemplifies detective creators' in-depth research methods.
- Michelle Carr immerses herself in various roles, such as a 911 dispatcher or FBI agent, to gather unique insights, showcasing detective creators' commitment to firsthand experience.
- Detective creators can monetize their findings through models like research reports, curated newsletters, and consultations, offering companies valuable insights.
- Neil Patel demonstrates successful monetization by providing entrepreneurial insights through newsletters, which subscribers find valuable.
- One significant challenge for detective creators is translating research into actionable, monetizable formats that are appealing and valuable to companies, highlighting the importance of effective packaging and presentation.
6. The Renaissance Creator 🌈
- Renaissance creators are characterized by their versatility and adaptability, often exploring multiple domains with diverse talents.
- A significant challenge for Renaissance creators is gaining recognition in a world that often values specialization over generalization.
- Successful Renaissance creators, like Peter McKinnon and Matt D'Avella, illustrate the strategy of starting with a specific niche and gradually expanding into broader content areas.
- Indecision is a common hurdle for these creators, as prioritizing which interest to pursue first can be difficult.
- To overcome indecision, taking action—starting with any choice—leads to learning and discovering one's path.
- Frameworks, such as those discussed in 'Lean Learning,' are essential for managing curiosity and maintaining productivity.
- Business models for Renaissance creators should align with their current interests and energy levels, allowing flexibility to change focus when necessary.
- A practical approach involves initially choosing one area to focus on while keeping other interests as hobbies, allowing for future expansion.