Seth Williams used to have an 8-to-5 job that left him feeling unfulfilled. He tried just a few actual property ventures, however none of them labored out.
In the future he got here throughout land investing. After a profitable first deal, he realized the potential it needed to be a really worthwhile enterprise mannequin.
Desirous to share his discovery with others and present them learn how to do it, he began his weblog, REtipster. In the present day he additionally runs a YouTube channel, sells a number of programs, and hosts a podcast, and Seth is incomes as much as $60k monthly.
Maintain studying to seek out out:
- What Seth did earlier than he bought into land investing
- How land investing works
- Who impressed him at first
- The place he will get concepts for content material
- What different tasks and areas he is ventured into
- The place his revenue comes from
- Which advertising and marketing works for him
- What the remainder of his staff do for the enterprise
- His ideas on key phrase analysis and hyperlink constructing
- What sort of content material he creates
- How he grows his electronic mail listing
- The sources and instruments he makes use of probably the most
- His largest problem
- His biggest accomplishment
- His predominant mistake
- His recommendation for different entrepreneurs
Meet Seth Williams
I’m at present 40 years previous. I’m married with a spouse and two children. We stay in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and life is nice.
I’ve been an actual property investor for over 15 years and a web-based content material creator for a bit over ten years.
After I graduated school in 2006, I bought married and began my profession within the industrial banking business. It was an honest profession (so far as W2 jobs go), nevertheless it wasn’t actually my ardour.
A couple of yr into this profession, after attempting to flip homes and purchase rental properties (and failing at each pursuits), I found the land investing enterprise (a little-known actual property investing area of interest) and located it was an unbelievable alternative that required far much less danger and startup capital.
After doing my first deal and realizing how achievable and scalable it was, it modified my life eternally.
The land investing enterprise mannequin I adopted allowed me to seek out and purchase vacant parcels of land round the USA at an excessive low cost (often, anyplace from 20% – 30% of their full market worth).
This was doable as a result of I discovered the place and learn how to discover off-market properties, owned by individuals who didn’t need their land anymore, and since I discovered them and made it straightforward for them, they have been prepared to promote me their land, free-and-clear, at an enormous low cost.
In consequence, I used to be shopping for properties that have been instantly value way over I paid for them, with out me having to carry a finger to make enhancements… It was like flipping homes, however a lot simpler.
This enterprise mannequin allowed me to show round and listing these properties on the market at a better value, and they’d promote at a considerable revenue inside a matter of months, if not weeks.
Why He Created His Web site
After working as a land investor for just a few years, in 2012, I found Pat Flynn and Good Passive Earnings.
After taking note of him for some time, I acknowledged I may comply with his instance and create an analogous on-line neighborhood for actual property buyers, making epic content material instructing every part I knew.
What I preferred about Pat’s method was that he was an actual particular person and he supplied insane quantities of worth with out charging hundreds of {dollars} for the knowledge. On the identical time, he was additionally managing to make an incredible revenue, despite the fact that it by no means felt like he was promoting something.
After I began REtipster, it was purely an experiment, as a result of I knew I wanted to discover the thought of beginning a weblog.
I by no means realized how a lot I might get pleasure from writing content material till I attempted.
After writing my first weblog publish and making my first video, I noticed I liked the method. After I was writing about issues I cared about, I had a newfound ardour and appreciation for the content material creation course of.
Most of my content material concepts come from my very own experiences in the actual property enterprise.
Every time I encounter an issue that must be solved or an ingenious resolution (whether or not I considered it or another person did), I’ll clarify the answer and provides credit score the place credit score is due.
It additionally helps to concentrate to the questions, solutions, and dialogue in our neighborhood discussion board and Fb group. As our enterprise continues to alter, these are nice locations to seek out the place others are struggling and to seek out inspiration and concepts about the place others need assistance.
Being a content material creator and “influencer” of kinds has given me quite a lot of different alternatives to work with nice individuals and pursue thrilling new enterprise concepts.
In 2021, I began designing my first self-storage facility, which is now up and working.
Self-storage is a enterprise I’ve needed to pursue for years, as a result of storage amenities permit the proprietor to generate revenue from a whole bunch of items, as an alternative of 1 or two, like a single-family house or duplex.
With a whole bunch of items, it’s straightforward to extend everybody’s hire by $3 – $5 monthly, and every particular person tenant gained’t care, despite the fact that this may have a big effect on the worldwide revenue from the property as a result of $5 multiplied by just a few hundred items makes a noticeable distinction to the property proprietor’s revenue.
Storage amenities are additionally easier to handle than a typical rental property as a result of there aren’t any individuals residing within the items, and tenants gained’t name you at 3:00 am to repair their bathroom.
My self-storage facility isn’t instantly linked to REtipster, nevertheless it offers me quite a lot of alternatives to create content material and clarify to my viewers why self-storage investing is a superb enterprise mannequin, the upsides and disadvantages of proudly owning a facility, and what it takes to construct one from the bottom up!
I used to be additionally in a position to make use of my modifying and storytelling abilities to begin a youngsters’s podcast known as Storyland, the place I write and inform quick tales, that are very immersive, with music and sound results.
It’s geared toward children between the ages of 4 and 12, and it has grown loads. Surprisingly, it’s about 10x extra fashionable than my authentic podcast (The REtipster Podcast).
It’s been attention-grabbing to see the distinction in attain between a really niche-specific podcast (like REtipster) vs. a podcast that’s related and attention-grabbing to a really giant section of individuals (Storyland).
It’s additionally attention-grabbing to notice that on the time of this writing, Storyland generates $0 in income, whereas REtipster generates 5 figures monthly, despite the fact that the sizes of every viewers would counsel the alternative.
Storyland has all the time been a ardour venture that I’ve completed simply because it’s enjoyable. A part of me is apprehensive about turning it right into a money-making enterprise, as a result of I don’t need the pressures of monetization to show it right into a job as an alternative of a life-giving pastime.
Nevertheless… I’ll be the primary to confess, with the next it has garnered, it’s onerous not to consider methods to generate income from it.
I wish to strive publishing one or two of those tales as a printed guide within the not-too-distant future. With how straightforward it’s to generate AI artwork today, I’ve already put collectively a full, illustrated model of one of many tales, and it was surprisingly straightforward to do.
Even so, with a purpose to publish a youngsters’s guide that appears official {and professional}, there are a number of extra steps I nonetheless have to take (market analysis, editorial, format, cowl and inside design, printing, and so on.), so I’m not fairly there but, however I hope to make it occur within the subsequent yr.
If for no different purpose, it is going to be attention-grabbing to check the market and see what sort of demand there may be for a guide like this.
How A lot He’s Incomes
REtipster’s revenue has fluctuated a bit through the years because the web, site visitors sources, social media, and the methods we monetize the location have modified.
Lately, our gross revenue fluctuates between $30k and $60k monthly. About 50% of this revenue is from the programs we promote, 30% is from affiliate gross sales for varied services we evaluate and suggest, 10% is from promoting income (YouTube, the podcast, and so on.), and one other 10% is from varied one-off digital merchandise we promote in our on-line retailer.
Right here’s a screenshot exhibiting the previous a number of months from our Stripe account, which collects a lot of the income from our programs.
So far as site visitors goes, we get round 40k guests monthly.
At one level, we have been getting near 200k monthly, however our site visitors took an enormous hit when Google up to date its algorithm just a few years again.
I believe it has additionally been impacted by new competitors from different content material creators who’ve entered our area. At one level, I used to be one of some individuals on the earth publishing quite a lot of good, free details about land investing, however many new voices have been added to the combo in recent times.
Curiously, although, this drop in site visitors hasn’t had a lot of a noticeable impression on income. It appears probably the most related guests who want our content material are nonetheless capable of finding it.
I don’t suppose I’ve ever spent greater than 45 hours engaged on REtipster in a single week.
A median week might be 30-35 hours per week, and I’ll spend the opposite 5-10 hours engaged on my land or self-storage enterprise.
Seth’s Principal Advertising and marketing Technique
Content material advertising and marketing is our one and solely advertising and marketing technique. We don’t pay for adverts on any platform. We tried this on a few events, however the advert businesses we employed to do it didn’t know what they have been doing and we ended up losing some huge cash.
I take some delight on this, however the reality is, it additionally leaves us susceptible to no matter modifications Google decides to make, and that may be a harmful place, too.
The massive benefit of being 100% natural is that REtipster generates income with out requiring any advert spend, and it appears to return in by itself.
This enables us to spend our time making extra nice content material, as an alternative of attempting to “promote” individuals on why they should purchase our stuff. It permits us to be genuine and useful, and other people in our viewers can resolve for themselves in the event that they need to pay for what we’re providing. Loads of them do, they usually see exceptional outcomes from it.
I do that with the assistance of my staff. I Have one full-time worker and a number of other contracted workers who deal with sure duties on a part-time foundation:
- Full-time editor based mostly within the Philippines (the entire written textual content revealed on REtipster and associated channels)
- Graphic designer within the US (weblog photos, infographics, PDFs, and extra)
- Podcast editor within the US (the entire audio-only content material for our podcast)
- Video editor in Pakistan (the entire long-form movies on our YouTube channel)
- One other video editor in Nepal (the entire shorts, reels, and movies on TikTok)
- Thumbnail designer in Jap Europe (the entire thumbnail photos on our YouTube channel)
His Ideas on search engine optimization
It’s essential, however I can’t fake I’m an search engine optimization skilled. I do know sufficient to be harmful, however there are many issues I don’t perceive and don’t implement.
Our focus has all the time been on offering one of the best content material—info so priceless, it’s value paying for… nevertheless it’s free—and that has been very efficient at attracting a lot of consideration and respect.
Granted, if I spent extra time attempting to grasp and implement search engine optimization, it might most likely make a distinction, however with my restricted time and psychological vitality, I’ve to watch out about the place I spend it, and I often decide to place it into creating extra useful, related, relevant content material moderately than attempting to maintain monitor of Google’s ever-changing qualification requirements.
Key phrase Analysis
On some events, I’ll verify Google Tendencies, and I’ll often do just a few completely different searches for the subject I’m considering of writing about to see what sort of competitors exists and the way a lot demand there appears to be, together with another associated key phrases.
At one level, I used to be subscribed to each Ahrefs and SEMrush, and I spent quite a lot of time attempting to determine learn how to make it work, nevertheless it felt like a endless labyrinth the place I may spend all day with out making a lot progress.
There was a time once I geeked out on search engine optimization instruments, and it was useful to grasp them… however I discovered that once I spent quite a lot of time with these instruments, they overwhelmed me and drained my vitality.
I wasn’t capable of spend my vitality deciphering these instruments and taking the required motion to make a distinction. I understood how they labored and what points they have been stating, however I don’t rely closely on these to run my enterprise.
They’re a secondary focus, not the very first thing I take into consideration when deciding what content material to create.
Hyperlink Constructing
This issues to some extent, nevertheless it issues much less right this moment than it used to years in the past.
After I began REtipster, no person knew about it; and it was essential to leverage different platforms to let the world know that our website existed.
Over time, as we’ve created an unlimited library of top-notch content material that ranks nicely, individuals can now discover us within the common course of their searches, and inbound hyperlinks are created naturally as a result of we’re an vital useful resource that issues to individuals.
There may be nonetheless worth in having hyperlinks on different web sites, and I’ll take these alternatives after they naturally current themselves in the midst of our day-to-day enterprise, nevertheless it’s not one thing I’ll bend over backward to attempt to get today.
The Content material Creation Course of
We now have 570 weblog posts and 485 phrases articles stay on the location. The 2 kinds of content material are a bit completely different in how they’re written, why they’re written, and who they’re for.
Weblog posts are extra of a personally written message with the aim of instructing a lesson, much like what you’d discover in a course. They embrace video content material, and they’re additionally used as “present notes” for our podcast episodes. They’re written in a extra casual, conversational tone.
Phrases articles take extra of a tutorial method, and every article on this part of the location is written to assist readers develop a complete understanding of what a phrase or a “time period” means. It’s an analogous idea to the Dictionary of phrases from Investopedia, however we focus solely on phrases associated to actual property investing and the actual property business.
These don’t embrace a lot private commentary or opinion, it’s only a black-and-white reporting of the details, supported by proof from different sources across the web.
We began the Phrases Library as an search engine optimization play, in an try and rank for varied phrases. It has labored fairly nicely, nevertheless it hasn’t been an enormous game-changer.
Not surprisingly, it’s been troublesome to rank for the phrases with probably the most search quantity, however after we cowl a time period that hasn’t been defined in lots of different locations on the web, we will often rank fairly nicely for that time period.
His E mail Record
We now have created a variety of lead magnets through the years, the place we clarify learn how to use a device that we’ve developed (e.g. a spreadsheet, calculator, PDF, or one thing related) after which give individuals free entry to it in the event that they join our electronic mail listing.
A couple of examples are:
The Surprisingly Easy Math to Retiring on Actual Property: This can be a retirement calculator that we spent quite a lot of time creating, and it’s an attention-grabbing approach to have a look at what it takes to plan out your retirement utilizing solely income-producing actual property.
The Quickest Solution to Analysis Any Property in the USA: This can be a analysis spreadsheet I exploit in my land enterprise, and I made a decision to provide it away to our viewers in the event that they join our electronic mail listing. I included a great explainer video within the weblog publish, so individuals perceive learn how to use it and why it’s useful. So, even when individuals by no means join, they’ll nonetheless stroll away with quite a lot of worth.
My Self-Storage Facility Due Diligence Guidelines: I spent quite a lot of time attempting to determine what info was completely essential to make a well-educated resolution about shopping for an current self-storage facility. Since I had already completed all of the work, I made a decision to make a weblog publish out of it, and I allowed individuals to obtain a PDF of my guidelines in the event that they signed up for our electronic mail listing.
We now have loads of different opt-in kinds all through our website, and other people may also join by these (you’ll discover a large one instantly on our homepage at REtipster).
All of them work to some extent, however the ones that actually give an individual a compelling purpose to enroll work one of the best.
Seth’s Favourite Sources
For video creation and inspiration, I’m at present getting loads out of FilmBooth. I additionally comply with quite a lot of different YouTubers who’re in completely unrelated niches, however I get quite a lot of concepts and inspiration from how they current themselves and their info.
There are numerous nice examples I’ve been capable of observe after which put my very own spin on what they did to make my very own model of the identical sort of video.
For instance, I as soon as discovered an attention-grabbing video from Wired, the place astronaut Chris Hadfield defined some myths about outer area.
This has completely nothing to do with my area of interest, however I believed the idea was nice. I noticed it had quite a lot of views and likes, so I made a decision to give you my very own model of that video for land buyers, which was quite a lot of enjoyable to make, and it ended up performing very nicely.
I might additionally suggest attending a convention or two in your area of interest yearly, the place you’ll be able to meet different key individuals. I attend FinCon most years, and I’ve been capable of join with quite a lot of different content material creators who speak about cash, investing, actual property, and different related issues.
His Go-To Instruments
ChatGPT: If in case you have a adequate creativeness and thought course of to give you the precise prompts and clarify precisely what you’re searching for, ChatGPT has limitless functions.
I exploit it to get enterprise recommendation (arising with concepts I by no means would’ve considered alone) and learn how to implement it.
I additionally use it to give you headlines (a massively vital and in any other case time-consuming job), and once I’m attempting to write down emails that require quite a lot of thought, and I do know what I need to say however I’m not fairly positive learn how to phrase the message successfully.
I nearly by no means do precisely what ChatGPT says (I by no means click on copy, paste, ship), however it could possibly do 80% of the heavy lifting for me, after which I’ll put my very own voice and taste into the content material to make it my very own and make modifications the place wanted.
Slack: That is one other important device I exploit every single day to speak with my staff and different key those that assist REtipster run easily. It will possibly do every part I would like it to do and extra. If Slack abruptly ceased to exist, it might be way more troublesome to run my enterprise.
Canva: As somebody who isn’t a graphic designer and doesn’t have entry to (or perceive learn how to use) most picture modifying software program, Canva is an important device that I exploit every single day.
Whether or not I’m making a video thumbnail, weblog publish header picture, infographic, PDF, or another visible asset, Canva can do absolutely anything I would like. I even have a graphic designer who can do the super-complex issues that Canva can’t deal with, however for 95% of what I would like, Canva has me lined.
His Greatest Problem
Many of the largest challenges I’ve confronted have been in my very own mind.
Every time I encounter a perceived menace or when a “unhealthy factor” occurs to our enterprise, I ultimately understand it wasn’t a menace in any respect, nor was it a foul factor, I used to be simply fascinated by it the incorrect approach.
For instance, when now we have a month the place income is down, one response is to panic and scream that the sky is falling.
A extra productive response is to step again and have a look at what isn’t working, and begin the enjoyable artistic technique of ideation: considering of recent methods to earn cash from new sources, or to alter course in a approach that makes the perceived menace irrelevant.
Admittedly, considering otherwise takes a little bit of effort and psychological vitality, nevertheless it in the end brings us to a a lot stronger and more healthy place after we can take care of these challenges in a approach that creates a extra sustainable enterprise.
His Best Accomplishment
The truth that I can arrive to work late and depart early, every time I would like, and be accessible as a father to play with my children and serve them within the methods they want and deserve, is one thing I’m most happy with.
I’m additionally grateful for the additional margin my enterprise has given me, permitting me to pursue enjoyable tasks like Storyland, begin new companies and sources of revenue like my self-storage facility, and join with numerous different wonderful individuals…
It’s given me a life that far exceeded my expectations, and I don’t see how this existence would have been doable if I used to be nonetheless working an 8 to five job.
What He Needs He Knew When He Began
It’s doable (possible, even) to spend an insane quantity of effort and time creating one thing no person needs or cares about. Simply since you suppose it’s nice, and put your blood, sweat, and tears into one thing doesn’t imply it should matter to anybody moreover your self.
This can be a onerous actuality that content material creators should acknowledge. After investing absurd quantities of effort into tasks that flopped, I noticed the significance of researching the wants of my viewers earlier than I begin engaged on one thing.
It’s vital to do some homework to confirm there may be enough curiosity in what you’re doing. In case your aim is to earn cash from what you’re creating, attempt to confirm that it’s one thing individuals need sufficient to pay for.
Relying on what you’re attempting to construct, I believe there are some instances while you merely can’t be 100% positive of this earlier than you begin, however you need to nonetheless do some quantity of homework to grasp the state of affairs.
Don’t simply begin working in direction of your dream with out spending a while to grasp and confirm the quantity of demand for what you’re attempting to construct.
Seth’s Principal Mistake
My largest mistake is attempting to chase after too many issues without delay. And to be trustworthy, I proceed to make this error right this moment (though I’m getting higher at it).
When REtipster began gaining momentum, I began getting inundated with requests from firms and individuals who needed to “work with me, “which is code for, “we would like you to advertise and promote our stuff, and also you most likely gained’t make something from it”.
For probably the most half, you’ll be able to assume that everybody is out to serve their very own pursuits first. Their pursuits could align with yours, however additionally they may not.
Years in the past, I wasn’t superb at discerning this. I might say “sure” to everybody, and I ended up losing quite a lot of time on issues that went nowhere.
Lately, I’ve a great set of standards I exploit to gauge whether or not these alternatives and pursuits make sense for REtipster.
Typically, the reply is “sure” as a result of we will generate income from it, however generally, the reply is “sure” as a result of it should merely assist our viewers.
You must clearly perceive what sort of profit you’re searching for (whether or not it’s a money-making profit or not) after which get laser-focused on pursuing these alternatives whereas ignoring the remainder.
His Recommendation for Different Entrepreneurs
Get began! Make errors, study from them, have enjoyable, and benefit from the journey!
I completely love what I get to do. That doesn’t imply there aren’t onerous days.
There are many duties I’ve to do this are monotonous, troublesome, or just aren’t enjoyable… however I’m nonetheless completely happy to do these jobs as a result of they’re a small a part of a a lot bigger complete. I’m extraordinarily lucky to have a profession that I like doing and discover a substantial amount of satisfaction in.
I used to stay on the opposite aspect of the fence. I’m intimately conversant in having a job that doesn’t pay in addition to I’d like, with the data that it’s not main anyplace I need to go. This was my life for years, and it took a toll on my psychological well being and private satisfaction.
For the longest time, I may solely dream of the life I get to stay now. Now that I do know it’s actual, I would like everybody else to know it could possibly occur for them too… however no person goes to provide it to you.
It takes quite a lot of intent and a concerted effort to get there, but when I may do it, you’ll be able to too!
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