Tiny Course Empire Podcast

Feeling a little confused about the upcoming Google and Yahoo! email changes? Hearing lots of scary-sounding acronyms and wondering what the heck they even mean?

You’re not alone.

A few months ago both Google (Gmail) and Yahoo! announced that beginning in 2024, they will impose new requirements on senders of bulk email—in other words, email marketers like us—and i...

One of my favorite podcasters, Mike Schmitz, has a rule for his kids: “Create more than you consume.”

This is great advice not just for kids, but for all of us—maybe especially for online business owners.

With a never-ending supply of webinars, courses, blog posts, TikToks, YouTube, books, and more, it’s easy to find yourself consuming more than you produce. That’...

I’m talking a lot about content lately. It’s the first stop on the Online Business Roadmap, and for a good reason: It’s one of the pillars of your marketing plan.

The only question is, what’s your content style? Will you be all business? Will you let your personality determine the direction you take? Or will you approach your content like a scientist, and follow the keyword data to find...

The first time I realized that not everyone could easily break big projects into easily finished, bite-sized tasks was when I implemented (what I assumed was) a simple worksheet for tracking and completing a large project.

My client—the beneficiary of the project worksheet—was so impressed he shared it with the rest of the team, and asked me to create more workflows for other ongoing pr...

Congratulations on completing that brand-new course! Everything is ready to go—the videos are edited, the worksheets are beautiful, the transcripts are done, and you’re even proud of the sales page.

There’s just one thing missing… testimonials.

And that’s the sticky bit, isn’t it? I mean, how are you supposed to get testimonials when you haven’t sold anything yet?...

As online business owners, we’re no stranger to digital tools. We build websites, edit video, create graphics, develop courses, take payments, host video calls, and even sometimes use pen and paper to organize our thoughts.

Always in the back of our minds lurks the question, is this the best tool? Is there something else out there I should be using instead? Is there something better?

According to Side Hustle Nation, 39% of employed Americans have a side hustle? And that 30% of those people hope to turn their side hustle into a full-time gig?

If you’re building a business along side a more traditional jobby-job, you’re in good company. It’s how lots of small business owners (including yours truly) got their start.

That doesn’t mean juggling a b...

Two and a half years ago I sat down to record the very first episode of this podcast. I’d been a podcast listener for years—right now I’m subscribed to about 25 different shows, and I listen to dozens more on an episode-by-episode basis.

So when I decided it was time to really embrace content marketing as a tool in my business, podcasting was my first choice. I knew a few things going i...

There are two ways to make more money in your business: You can either sell more products, or you can increase the price of the products you sell.

In this episode, we’re going to talk about how simple improvements in your product offers can result in both more sales and in higher revenue. In many cases, you can even make these improvements without adding a bunch of extra work for ...

One of the biggest lessons I learned in business is that I don’t have to work harder to make more money. I just have to improve what’s already working.

It’s all about turning up the dial in a few strategic places so that you can build your list faster, generate more opens, and get more eyes on your offers.

Prefer a transcript? Here you go!

Running an online business is a continuous cycle of improvements. That’s how small startups become thriving businesses. That’s what phase two of the online business roadmap series is all about.

In this week’s episode of the Tiny Course Empire podcast, we’re going to focus on some small improvements you can make to your opt-in offer so that it begins to turn new subscribers into buyers.

Congratulations! If you’ve been following along with the last few episodes of this podcast, then you have made it through phase one building an online business from scratch.

So far you’ve established a content publishing routine, created your first opt-in offer, build a newsletter habit, released a paid product, and written a sales page for it. Well done!

With tha...

If you find that asking people to buy what you’ve created feels a little icky, you’re not alone.

Many of us have negative feelings about sales, and the people who make their living at it. After all, who hasn’t bumped into a pushy appliance salesman who just would not take no for an answer?

Those unpleasant experiences often lead to discomfort when we’re on the oth...

If I could offer you one piece of advice about starting an online business, it would be this:

Don’t wait to create your first digital product.

Sure, there are loads of ways you can make money from an online business. You can be a coach, or a freelance writer, or an affiliate marketer, or build websites or publish a Substack or write a blog.

...

If I’m being honest, building your mailing list is the easy part. Staying in touch with those subscribers is much more difficult. Not in the tactical sense, but in the week-after-week practicality of it.

It’s oh-so-easy to let another week slide by without sending an email to your list. Before you know it, they haven’t heard from you in months, or maybe even years. Believe me, I know. I...