(There’s a tiny bit of lag on this video, but it shouldn’t stop you from hearing the content.)
This was the most highly anticipated podcast interview I have ever done (for me anyway) because it combines two of my all time favorite subjects -
- Making money from the Internet, and
- Tennis!
That’s right, my guest Will Hamilton is a professional college tennis player, who leveraged his knowledge and skill with the game to create a six-figures a year information publishing business, based around a model that uses a blog, videos and a premium membership site area (that model should sound familiar to you).
You can check out his site at FuzzyYellowBalls.com – that’s a tennis ball reference in case you couldn’t guess.
If you’re serious about launching your own money making membership site or selling an information product online, take my coaching program -
How Will Built His Business
Will started by creating instructional videos on how to play tennis, which he circulated via YouTube (his channel is YouTube.com/fuzzyyellowballs).
His angle was to create videos of a better standard than anyone else out there and capitalize on the YouTube traffic, bring those readers back to his website and then get them on to his email list.
A few short years later and it’s worked really well. He has several hundred videos, resulting in a million video views a month and an email list of 60,000 subscribers – one of the largest email lists in the tennis industry, and it all started as a simple two-man operation (Will and his tech partner Adam).
Once Will established traffic, he realized that his original plan of monetization via advertising wasn’t cutting the mustard, so he decided to follow the premium membership strategy, launching a $25/month a membership site, which currently boasts over 600 paying members. Do the math and that’s over $15,000 a month).
Will’s story is definitely worth a listen because it’s yet another great example of someone starting with a skill, and through consistent work, launches an online business that results in getting paid really well to talk about something you love.
It’s also a great example of the little guy rising up to challenge the large media companies. Will receives press status just like mainstream media journalists when he attends tennis events. It’s quite impressive how far a blog can take you (and yes I’m a little jealous – I’d like to hang with tennis pros too).
Watch this video interview or download the audio file and listen to the full story how of how Will created his online business.
Yaro,
Really enjoyed the video. Thanks for finding and sharing. BTW, looks like you are still in your PJs. Did you just roll out of bed?
Thanks Yaro and Will. Very good information. I particularly appreciated how, after each part of the discussion, Yaro summed up the steps to Will’s success in simple steps. Made it easy to understand the process. Thanks again.
A question for Will – that “white board” on which you do your markings/instruction… can you tell me more about that and how it links into the video?
I love the podcast case studies – thanks! This came at just the right time – I’m announcing my first membership site tomorrow, after 4 months of work, and launching it February 1.
I’m trying to keep expectations in check, but the whole idea was inspired by reading your ebook last Fall about the value you can create with a membership site.
Your Message
Great interview, Yaro, and very informative. I launched my own membership teaching site at the beginning of December, 2009. It’s been six weeks: my email list numbers 4,800, and the site has 400+ members now. You and Will are absolutely correct: video is critical to a site’s success. My site is very visual and video plays a central role in attracting and retaining members. I just opened a YouTube channel and posted a series of videos last week. I expect it will drive more traffic to the site, as it did for Will.
Keep up the good work, Yaro. You’re a Guru!
Bill
Bill
Hi Yaro and Will
from what I’ve been able to see on the video this is a great interview. I am really interested in starting a membership site down the track and would find the advice in this podcast very useful.
I’d like to be able to download the audio for future study and have tried to download it a few times but because I am on dial-up, it imes out all the time so I can’t download it. Any chance of breaking the audio up into 3 lots of 20MBs so those on dial up can download it? I’m sure all those on dial up would appreciate it.
Thanks
Linda
A great wakeup call, Yaro. Time I went back to polishing my very basic video skills, and checking out YouTube again.
Awesome video, good information on creating a teaching/membership site. I loved the information on YouTube.
what a great interview
I spent all day today looking up different internet business models for our internet site we are soon to launch.. trying to work out what to offer as free as opposed to paid.. this really helped define this:)
Thanks alot..has helped greatly
Really enjoyed that video. Lots of great information, getting me to think about how to get some friends together and have fun making videos for YouTube!
We are so used to seeing you with your old, scraggly hairdo. What a pleasant change for you! It’s nice to see your smiling face.
Great post Yaro (and thank you too Will),
I was wondering about the premium videos. Are they hosted on YouTube or are they hosted elsewhere? It’s just that I didn’t think YouTube allowed you to on-sell their content behind a membership site.
Thanks (in advance)
Marcusg
was wondering about the premium videos
Are they hosted on YouTube or are they hosted elsewhere
KIndly inform me……..
I can’t speak for Will, but mine are hosted on Amazon’s S3 service.
Hi Yaro,
I have taken many of your ideas and applied them to my youtube channel “wavesdvdcom” with real content much like your fuzzyyellowball tennis pro. I have, however, found my own ‘secrets’ that have exploded my youtube views and my Relaxation Nature Video business on ebay, amazon, and my own website.
I have gone from from 200 views a day at 5/10/09 to 6500 views a day in 1/29/10 and over 4000 views a day on itunes with my podcasts. Please email me directly, I would like to share some ideas with you and maybe we could do some business.
I’m sure your readers would love to see a new youtuber grow his business now that youtube is so much more competitive than when Will started.
Thanks for the information, Yaro. I want to get into videos, but really am clueless as to where to start. It would be awesome if you put together a post or a series of posts on getting started with video.
Amazon S3 services is great to use for hosting videos. Great Service and free. Can’t ask for more than that.
It’s great,I am always wiating for the case studies deliver by you.
Who knows that which one will inspire me to do something notable
in the field of blogging.
Really you are helping me with each and every mail !!
Thanks Yaro.
Brilliant! Thanks very much for sharing. Very interesting interview!!
This is exactly what I’m going to do for Snowboarding.
This video has inspired me no end. Just need to get it off the ground now.
It takes a lot of work and this is a fine example of some hard work that has paid off.
Hello, Thanks for the video, I can see how much video marketing is so effective. I think it is time for me to create videos for my business entities.
Great stuff.
Thanks, Dave…
I really enjoyed this video! Will has great experience and he leverages the internet into his favor with the use of youtube. I love the example he makes when he was talking about having the technical difficulties with the videos on the site, and discovered that he got about 200 new sign-ups to his emailing list. Sometimes the best techniques are discovered through trial and error.
Great interview, Yaro. Thanks for sharing!!
I’m a big fan of FYB, both as a tennis player and as an aspiring entrepeneur in music. I found Will’s testimony to resound quite a bit of the advice given on http://www.paulgraham.com. Paul’s essays are a must read for aspiring entrepeneurs. His focus area is software engineering, but his essays extend to various aspects of entrepeneurship and life. In particular, Will’s testimony reminds me to:
- launch fast
- search feedback
- iterate
As Paul never ceases to emphasize, the “days out there in the wilderness” are inevitable. You start making something you think people need, or something you are passionate about, or both, but may end up doing something entirely different. The only way to figure out what people are prepared to pay for, is getting your stuff out. Contrary to what Will says, it is probably pointless figuring out upfront how you’re going to make money. He may think with retrospect he could have avoided the waste of time doing stuff that did not pay off, but I think it was just a necessary evil.
Wow!That shows how one can use your own skills for benefit.Smart of him on choosing sports,thats where all the money is if you are in business like me.I have surely learnt something.Thanks.Best of luck!
Many thanks for sharing this video !
I just got an idea from it…
Yaro Mate!
What a great christmas gift. Don’t you DARE ever take this down my friend. haha
Love it, watched it twice, bookmarked it, and plan to watch it again.
Yaro,
Thanks for the great interview. I shared this with my husband as he LOVES tennis.
Very inspiring and shows that you can do what you love to do and make a great income as well.
Blessings,
Karen
interesting article. his youtube page shows 24mil video views which is great but there are plenty of comedians/artists with 100mil views and they dont make anything near 15K a month… the smart thing to do is to start selling something useful under a reasonable price.
great post.
Curious if anyone’s been on the site. My computer is blocking it because it has a red warning.
Great interview! I love the real life-ness of Will and his business approach! Doesn’t seam over-salesy or too pushy.
Yaro, a quick question:
Regarding content, Will mentioned blocks or modules for learning. When setting something like this up on your own membership site, do you make “FAKE BLOCKS” for content you havent even created yet? That way you can drip feed the content a few times a month to new members, but they also get a preview of whats coming (even though it’s not created!)?
Thanks, looking forward to your comments and GREAT POST!
That’s not a bad strategy Jason, if your membership site software can do it and you are sure of what modules are coming up next.
Yaro, Links for your Membership Site Mastermind coaching are all pointing to your Blog Mastermind program. FYI.
Howard
That’s because MSM is now closed Howard.
What I’m *fuzzy* about (Pun intended:) is how a membership site that covers A to Z in 6 months can really, really grab someone and get them to subscribe when maybe they just want to learn K to Z. Do these people ever say, “Well, I’ll just pay for the first three months even though I don’t really want that material.” ??
Does that make sense?
Great video Yaro. Very inspiring.
I hope to take some of the information for my own opportunities here in Canberra at our local basketball club.
Awesome interview and it gave me a lot of inspiration for what I want to create this year. I only wish you’d open up the membership site mastermind again! I’d sign up in a hearbeat!
Very interestin case study, I know also a tennis website from my country that does similar incomes every month from a 11 million total population