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It might sound incredible, but it’s possible to create a $500,000 a year digital media business by working less than 10 hours a week. Lenny Rachitsky, the creator of a popular business podcast and newsletter, is doing just that. He now has over 600,000 subscribers. This critical mass has enabled him to create a very profitable business model.
While some readers and listeners subscribe for free, of course, there are many paying $15 per month or $150 per year for access to the premium content he is creating. Here’s a closer look at some of the core steps in the master plan for building a successful digital media business.
Step #1: Find the right product niche
One key to Lenny Rachitsky’s success has been his ability to focus on a very defined demographic niche: business professionals trying to grow and scale their businesses. This could be just about anyone – from the product manager of a team to the CEO of a company. What these people want is actionable takeaways and insights, and that’s just what he delivers.
He started with an online newsletter, but he seems to have really hit his stride with a regular podcast series. This is the perfect content to listen to on a busy commute to and from the office. In the past, his podcast guests have included top names from Netflix, OpenAI, and Facebook, so these are high achievers sharing some incredibly good information.
Step #2: Start small and scale larger
As noted above, Lenny started with a newsletter and now has a podcast. He says he spends just a few hours per week on both, so this is easily a template that anyone can follow, especially if you don’t want to quit your day job. Instead, this is something that you could start during nights or weekends, and work your way up to a greater time commitment.
Step #3: Find the right business model
Like any digital media business, Lenny’s Newsletter is very much a subscription-based model that is complemented with ad sponsorships. There are several tiers of subscriptions, ranging from the basic monthly plan to an annual plan, including what he calls “yes, I can expense it!” option. With each tier, Lenny offers access to better and better content. If you follow Lenny’s example, it’s just up to you to find the right mix of incentives and pricing to get people to convert from free to paid subscribers.
Step #4: Iterate quickly in response to demand
As Lenny points out, he decided on a twice-weekly podcast series in response to consumer demand. Two podcasts is just enough content to keep people coming back from more, without making it feel like they are drowning in content. The podcast appears on a regular basis, enabling it to become a content offering you come back to again and again.
Conclusion
In general, Lenny Rachitsky is creating exactly the type of business model that many social media influencers are already using. Find the right product niche, start small and scale bigger, and then find ways to monetize all the content that you are creating. So if you are thinking about starting a million-dollar business, it might be worth looking into what insights you can borrow not just from Lenny’s podcasts, but from his overall business model online.
