10 Lessons from Selling $10M of Digital Products

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10 Lessons from Selling $10M of Digital Products
Hey there!
My name is Nicolas Cole, and I have been writing on the Internet since 2007.
Today, I run a portfolio of writing businesses that does over $5,000,000 in annual revenue. My books, products, programs, and platforms are what I wish I'd had at the beginning of my writing career-back when I was 23 years old, had just graduated college with a degree in Fiction Writing, and had no idea how to make money as a writer.
My goal with this KZbin channel is to pass along everything I've learned (and am still learning) about digital writing, ghostwriting, self-publishing, and becoming a multi-millionaire digital writer with you.
So, if you want to know how to turn your passion for writing into a lucrative career, and you're looking for a digital writing mentor, maybe I can help. Everything I share on this channel is from hard-learned lessons in the trenches. I've made every mistake out there. Hopefully, you pick up a golden nugget or two that helps you on your journey. (And if I earn your trust, I hope to see you in one of our programs!)
"Nobody makes a living as a writer."
I hate that cliché-and I've proved it's not true.
Keep practicing your art. Keep learning about the business.
And most importantly, keep writing.
Cole
PS - Today's video is based on this long-form post I wrote on my personal Art & Business of Writing Substack, which you can read in-full here: artandbiz.subs...
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🔗 Other videos I think you'll enjoy:
Building A Ghostwriting Agency To $180k/mo (My Story): • Building A Ghostwritin...
Say these words & people will buy anything from you. (Irresistible Offer Script): • Say these words & peop...
Differentiate yourself & the Internet will make you RICH: • Differentiate yourself...
~~~
✍️ Want to start writing online? Download this free Ultimate Guide to get started: yt.startwritin...
🚢 Ready to build your daily writing habit and accelerate your trajectory as a Digital Writer? Join Ship 30 for 30: www.ship30for3...
👻 Want me to be your ghostwriting mentor? Apply to join our Premium Ghostwriting Academy: yt.premiumghos...
🤖 Need some help learning how to leverage AI as a writer? Check out our favorite ChatGPT prompts for writers: yt.startwritin...
💻 Want an endless supply of proven, viral-worthy digital writing templates? Check out our software platform, Typeshare: typeshare.co
🧙‍♂️Are you a fiction writer? Here's a crash course on how to turn timeless storytelling frameworks into game-changing ChatGPT prompts: yt.startfictio...
📚 For more information on my books, businesses, and other writings, visit my website: www.nicolascol...

[@EpicManhwaSaga]

00:50 Lesson 1 04:55 Lesson 2 09:08 Lesson 3 11:10 Lesson 4 19:48 Lesson 5 23:46 Lesson 6 28:09 Lesson 7 32:27 Lesson 8 35:24 Lesson 9 37:46 Lesson 10 40:00 Final Thoughts

[@LGeraceRN]

Thank you. This is helpful.

[@EpicManhwaSaga]

@@LGeraceRN Not a problem

[@priyankarao4703]

Read this post at least 3 times.. my mind was blown at the Learnings. I voice noted my friend who runs a small biz to read this substack and internalize it 😊 will still watch the video

[@nicolascole77]

That’s epic

[@beingsanchari]

Every piece of content you put out is gold! You’re breaking down the craft of writing online like no one else did before. Reading your books and consuming your content online has done more for my career than any other course I’ve ever bought before. Thanks a ton Cole!

[@nicolascole77]

That means a lot. Thank you 🙏🏼

[@thecryptotaxlawyer]

Cole - recently joined PGA (Trevor W introduced me). I’ve been pleasantly surprised (no offense) at how much VALUE you guys provide. The stigma you mention at 1:04 almost kept me from joining. My long term goal is to productize my tax and legal knowledge - PGA is providing excellent foundation (not just the ghostwriting component but the knowledge re positioning, sales (or rather relationship building), etc. Skills that traditional practice of law / accounting hasn’t taught me 👊🏻👍🏻🙏🏻

[@nicolascole77]

That’s epic, and props to you for giving us a chance!

[@zaccrowlands]

Loved the format! Took lots of notes and particularly enjoyed that last lesson on “the perfect module”. Simple, straightforward, and useful.

[@nicolascole77]

Awesome signal for me, appreciate it 🙏🏼

[@Factopcalypse]

No joke…I’ve gotten so much from your videos. Thank you Cole!

[@darshit_poriya]

Great video Cole. Want more of this type of long-form value-packed video!! Thanks for sharing this journey along with golden nuggets ❤

[@nicolascole77]

Planning on it 🎉🎉🎉

[@sorinsecara]

This format is exceptional, super helpful info, excited for the next editions!

[@hciperson]

Number 8 ties into a phrase my dad would say "listen to me now and hear me later."

[@nicolascole77]

That’s legendary

[@Thecaptain666]

Isn’t it the other way around? “Hear me now, but listen to me later” You can hear the words, but then it takes time, until later, to actively reflect on and really get the meaning of the words you heard. Hearing is passive, but listening is active and focussed on sense-making.

[@shoaibriz]

this is too good. ur a champ

[@deanteyoung6606]

I never get enough of your teachings, Cole! This is Hall of Fame content! 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@nicolascole77]

🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼

[@dawnwebbmusic4837]

Thank you. My first coffee with Cole! Greatly appreciate your wisdom and insights. Idea for the background, something silver or stainless on the black wall that aligns with writing or creating with your brand. 🎉

[@temitopehunga4880]

Thank you, Cole! This is absolutely amazing value! Really helpful and actionable.

[@maryamrahman8344]

Hi Nicolas, can u please do a video just on copywriting? Like a 101 maybe for beginners. Your channel has a lot on ghostwriting, but for someone who is interested in the power of human persuasion, then I want to learn copywriting from the pro (you obviously 😇). Cheers!

[@nicolascole77]

On my list. Actually working on The Art & Business of Copywriting, and plan on doing a lot of copywriting-related content with that book launch.

[@beingsanchari]

@@nicolascole77Super-stoked for this!

[@WhatMakesBritainGreat]

Knowledge --workable implementable knowledge -thank you, really appreciate these talks Nicolas. :)

[@NRIOZ]

Cole, totally following your advice and looking at starting an online marketing agency. One step at a time.

[@nicolascole77]

One step at a time 💯💯💯

[@enterprising9]

So thoughtful and jam-packed with value. Thanks for sharing!

[@afasyafii7202]

Hi there, I'm a new fan of yours who recently discovered you from Ali's podcast! Just wanna say thanks for all the insights that you gave! Helped me a lot in opening my mind to some great ideas from you business wise! Love from Indonesia!

[@nicolascole77]

Welcome aboard!

[@bashsbookbreakdown]

You got a new fan and sub from me. Your content is exactly what I need right now. Thank you!

[@stefmedia]

I don't have any words other than ... brilliant! Thank you! ... Coffee with Cole. Love it :-)

[@nicolascole77]

So glad. Thanks for letting me know 🙏🏼

[@danwindler]

Had to stop halfway through and grab a pen and take notes. Loving it.

[@nicolascole77]

That’s epic

[@upper9052]

Saw you on Deep Dive and been watching a lot of your stuff! Just started my medium account thanks to you. Great video!

[@nicolascole77]

🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼 welcome to the gang

[@lauralgillespie]

I appreciate you getting real about numbers…so helpful! Could you expand on conversion metrics, like the 20 emails to convert. Percentage of email list that buys, paid ads advice, etc. thank you!

[@SyreetaMcDonald]

Excellent content. I purchased Ship 30 for 30 while on vacation and can't wait to get started.

[@JasonMcGarva]

That section on how to write a module or chapter was very valuable. Thank you. And the whole video was great as well. Looking forward to learning more from you.

[@SibonaUlea]

Passive income nicely explained.There is a lot of energy involved in creating passive energy still even after couple of years.

[@tudor-matei]

really great learnings Cole! Regarding your new studio setup, I didn't notice the echo as much as the sharp S sounds are pretty loud.

[@nicolascole77]

Good to know!

[@milanteh]

I second this, for some reason the S or top end of the audio feels obvious and a bit too much. Audio is paramount, viewers can usually withstand whatever visuals so long as the audio is good and content has valuable substances like Cole's.

[@nosedude7150]

Keep Going Maaann. this content is helpful !!!

[@dankelly]

This is a gold mine of great info. Thanks, Nicolas!

[@sarabaurista2297]

😊

[@renatagiarola6568]

This content deserves 10000x more views. So many gems. Thanks for sharing

[@nicolascole77]

Hopefully over time! 🙏🏼🙏🏼

[@dickyvarma]

i love this video and your set up studio..

[@nicolascole77]

💯💯💯

[@BHancock9598]

This is amazing!! This came at the perfect time because I’m looking to create and launch a paid digital product soon! Thanks Cole!

[@valeriebowman7433]

Hi Cole. I am a born writer, but have only written one book. I have been working on turning it into a course, so this was helpful. Since you asked about you office, talk with Karson. LOL He and Steve, my son , have been working on sound panels. Anyway... I think it looks nice, especially with the Basquiat. ???

[@biarlahhaih]

GOLD CONTENT!

[@matthewlakajev]

I disagree with monthly memberships Taki Moore took 50 business coaches to $1M a year in 12 months. He helped me take my business to 7 figures. The problem is, people don’t construct their monthly memberships in a way that consistently adds value. Agree with many of these points But this is one I disagree with from personal experience and building a business on this myself.

[@gg_ai]

So how did he structure it that made you pay for 12months?

[@salimahhaji8132]

Loved this video and all your insights and lessons. I would love a video on how would you get to 10k using different business models if you were starting over. Time frame for each model etc

[@nicolascole77]

Great idea, gonna make a video on this!

[@carolene-meli-ghostwriter]

couldn't ask for a better mentor as I follow in your footsteps Cole! P.s for the office - mood lighting :)

[@nicolascole77]

Work in progress haha

[@bringbackthefiretv495]

Would love to hear your thoughts on trying paid webinars on different topics / weight , AI, Personality Style Program … they all fit framework I can’t pick just one !!

[@freeupworkcourse]

Love the format!

[@nicolascole77]

🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼

[@greencountryseptic5571]

Love this format and appreciate the video version following the email (Crystal M. from PGA here unintentionally in disguise).

[@nicolascole77]

Great to see you in the comments! 🙏🏼🙏🏼

[@AfzalHussein]

Read the post on this. Still gna watch the vid 💪🏽

[@nicolascole77]

Hoping different formats helps it land in different ways!

[@SciFi.Horror.Thriller.Fantasy]

Really good advice!Thank you!

[@colinkrueger2122]

Dude it's so cool watching you slowly get better and better on KZbin. I said it during this week's hot seat but love the new office look. Gotten used to working in it yet since the move?

[@nicolascole77]

Haha thanks, still learning! Haven’t gotten used to it yet, and still cleaning up a bunch of little things (like soundproofing the room next week). But getting there!

[@colinkrueger2122]

@@nicolascole77 you'll have to do an office tour once finished!

[@nicolascole77]

@@colinkrueger2122 adding to my video list :)

[@colinkrueger2122]

@@nicolascole77 ❤️

[@theawakenedyou]

Hey Cole! Question: If people are not excited about learning, instead are excited about the outcome or results of learning, then as a new digital writer, how can I structure my writing more towards the outcome when as a spiritual teacher (key word, teacher) my emphasis has always been toward the learning? Inquiring minds wants to know! lol

[@Vlad-M-T]

Hi Cole, fantastic content! Great insights on your first-hand experience. Lots of value. I have a Q: Justin Welsh launched his creators MBA this year. And it lowest tier was around 800 (600 on launch), I think. And it was "just information". So basically Tier 1 according to your classification. Was kind of going wrong direction? Or if you re JW, you can go 800 for Tier 1? Thanks.

[@nicolascole77]

Outlier. The average person isn’t Justin, and he only can do that after 3+ years of earning lots of people’s trust with lower priced products in tier 1

[@Vlad-M-T]

Understood, Cole. I checked the content of the course again. It has a bit different approach than what you discribe in Tier 1. It is not about one specific problem like JW's LI OS or Content OS. It looks like a comprehensive study and goes really broad. Thanks again for the video and your content. Keep doing it!

[@bringbackthefiretv495]

Question: Books as business cards or gateways to get business and notoriety. People are still in awe of people who have published a decent book. Do you agree?

[@raymondmurphy1094]

Feels like the outline for your 2025 book

[@nicolascole77]

might be! thanks for the signal

[@stefmedia]

Sounds like he's not going to write a lot of books anymore ;-)

[@anushasriram1259]

Hey Cole, love this! Do you think Skool membership would work if I add weekly coaching sessions into the mix along with the courses? Will this help with retention?

[@SteveLeonardo-fr1py]

Can i start as career Digital Writer, Only With Cute Smartphone and Stability Internet Connection for living???? 🙏. Thanks Cole you are really inspiring ☺️

[@Divyv520]

Hey Nicolas ! I loved this video . I work with entrepreneurs like you who have around 20k subscribers to help them to grow to 100k subscribers in under 12 months with Proven Strategies and systems including viral content ideas , High Quality engaging editing , High CTR thumbnails , etc. I actually helped Chirag to achieve 92k subscribers in under 11 months . Could I do a free audit to see if I can help you do the same ? I just think it's really important that more people see your content and want to help you on that mission

[@patrickhennessy8022]

More Buyers, Less Followers...?

[@eraserforpaper7192]

Anybody know why it's becoming popular for business-related KZbinrs to suddenly push these long-form "spill out everything I know" kinds of videos? Is it algo-related? Or are they fighting for a KZbin land grab?

[@nicolascole77]

Is it helpful? Give me something actionable to work with m8

[@eraserforpaper7192]

@@nicolascole77 Honestly, I think I'm too stupid for stuff like this to work for me. You probably have to be a 2-3 SD outlier on both intelligence and determination to make money writing online/online content game. I know this sounds rude, and I apologize (and it's not bad content, I actually enjoy it). It's just... hmm... I would love to see some normie success stories. Because they are lacking in this space.

[@nicolascole77]

@@eraserforpaper7192 I know that limiting belief well. I can't tell you how many videos I watched in my early 20s on this stuff and I just couldn't wrap my head around it. Sometimes it takes a while. But I can tell you (not a sales pitch, just sharing), we have 800+ writers in our Premium Ghostwriting Academy, most of whom are complete beginners and have never written anything for anyone, ever. And 2-3 months later, you'd never know it, and they can write way better than the average person. These aren't hard skills to learn. What's hard is getting out of your own way, allowing yourself to suck for a few months, and to trust the process of getting better. (And I know the bottleneck isn't information, it's accountability, which is why PGA isn't really about the information. It's about holding people accountable to get through the "I suck" period of time long enough for them to GET GOOD.) Whether you continue down through our ecosystem any further than this or not, doesn't matter. I just hope you find a way to work through that limiting belief, so you can find the success and fulfillment you're looking for in life.

[@dimitrishow_D]

Bla.bla