How to Make Your First $1 Online (With Only Free Tools & An Email List)

Dear friend,

The other day, I talked to a creator with huge plans. Let’s call him John.

John had huge plans to build a 6-figure creator business.

He had pages and pages of diagrams, funnels, and complex sequences sprawled throughout his notebook.

And to be honest, they were impressive.

The problem?

He struggled to put his plans into action.

And when I listened to him talk, I understood why.

Because truthfully, I was once like John too.

I thought I had to have every single detail planned out before I started a project.

But here’s the truth:

The only way to make $1M is to make your first $1.

Why is $1 special?

Because when you make your first $1 online, you understand that you can make $1M.

So here’s how to make your first $1 online with just free tools and an email list:

Step 1: Talk with your existing audience

Most people think they need to wait until they reach 10,000+ followers to build their business.

But in reality, that’s just plain not true.

This is what just 500 people look like in real life:

Are you catchin’ what I’m throwin’?

As a creative entrepreneur, your business is built off the depth of your relationships, not the width.

So it’s important to take the time to truly understand who they are, what they care about, and what obstacles are in their way.

Now there are many ways to go about doing this. But my favorite is to simply talk, face to face, with people.

To start: block time on your calendar and chat with 10 people from your audience.

Here are a few questions I like to ask:

Step 2: Grow your email list

The problem with social media is it’s unreliable.

At any time, you could be banned or your reach could plummet just like Facebook did in 2014.

Entrepreneur and founder Sam Parr once said, “Building your business on social media is like having a store in a building where the landlord jacks up the rent every 18 months.”

In short, having an email list where you can reliably reach your audience is insurance in case anything bad happens.

It also allows you to have a more intimate relationship with your audience (like we’re having right now 😉).

A really simple way to grow your list is to give away your digital products for free as lead magnets. (but more on this later)

Step 3: Build a micro digital product

Many people overcomplicate digital product creation.

They usually make 2 big mistakes:

#1: They think they have to dump everything they know into a single product.

But building products this way results in:

• Lower course completions (because your audience gets bored or confused)

• And harder time building a second product (because you shared everything you knew in one course)

Instead, think of your products as solving niche, micro problems.

ONE problem → ONE product

Got it?

#2: They spend too much on tools

Unlike starting a dropshipping store or starting a clothing brand, you don’t need to invest huge amounts of money to start making money.

You don’t need to invest in:

• Inventory
• A location
• A fancy website

You can use free tools to start.

Here are the 4 tools I recommend starting with:

#1: Notion

I used Notion to build and host my content multiplication system.

Notion is a great no-code tool for building out your digital products.

#2: Canva

I used Canva to design the course slides for the content multiplication video course.

I also use Canva to design the visuals you often see in this newsletter.

#3: Loom

I used Loom to record the content multiplication video course.

Loom is great to screen record and have your face on the screen.

#4: Gumroad

I used Gumroad to receive payments and host my sales page.

Although Gumroad has high fees, it’s the most practical platform to go from $0 to $1 online.

(Remember, when you’re just starting out, build lean & fast.)

Step 4: Give it away for free

It seems counterintuitive, but giving away your first products for free is far more beneficial than simply charging for them.

Why?

Because reputation compounds faster than revenue.

And the longer you can wait to get paid, the faster your reputation will compound.

I know, I know, this whole newsletter was about how to make your first $1 online - but the truth is, it’s more important to lay the foundation of your business first.

Instead, give your product away as a lead magnet in exchange for their email (remember what I said before about the importance of email lists?)

Once you overdeliver for them with your product and have their email, then you can work on monetization.

Step 5: Upsell your main offer or service

Repeat the same 4 steps from above, but this time charge $ for your product.

Or upsell your freelance or coaching offer.

The options are infinite.

Bottom line: your $1M/yr business isn’t nearly as far away as you might think.

Final Thoughts

To recap:

#1: Talk with your audience
#2: Grow your email list
#3: Build micro products
#4: Give them away for free
#5: Upsell your core offer

I know that was a lot of words all for just $1…

But laying stable foundations is important.

Not just to make $1, but for the $1M more after it.

That’s all for this week.

See you next Sunday,

Jay “Stop planning, start executing” Yang

New here? Wanna build a profitable creator business? Gently caress that big button below to join us: