How to Actually Make Money Online This Year

0:00 Right now, you're either in one of two buckets.

0:02 You don't have a personal brand yet, or you do,

0:05 but it's just not making you nearly as much money as it should.

0:08 So, I'm going to help you fix both.

0:10 I've personally built a brand to over 10 million followers across all platforms,

0:14 and it's got me some cool stuff, like getting paid 100K for a single keynote,

0:18 get on some of the top podcasts in the world,

0:21 generate over 100 million in revenue for my companies, and most importantly,

0:24 the thing I'm most proud of is the chance to help

0:26 millions of people build a business they don't grow to hate.

0:28 And I want that for you, too.

0:30 So, today, I'm going to walk you through the five steps of building

0:32 a personal brand that brings every opportunity

0:35 you've ever dreamed of into your life.

0:37 But first, we need to understand what we're building in the first place.

0:41 Step one, understand what we're building.

0:44 What is a brand?

0:45 Think about it like this.

0:47 A brand is nothing more than association.

0:49 You have an object and you have association.

0:52 You have Nike and you have athletes.

0:54 You have Ferrari and you have luxury.

0:57 A personal brand adds a person into it.

1:00 So what do people think about when they hear your name?

1:03 If you think of Elon Musk, you probably think space.

1:06 You probably think rich.

1:07 You probably think controversial.

1:08 You probably think X or Twitter.

1:10 If you think Mr.

1:11 Beast, you probably think YouTube.

1:13 Most subscribers, big smile, high energy.

1:16 Just think about it.

1:17 What's the topics that you want to be associated with?

1:20 When you think of people, who do you want to be associated with?

1:24 When you think of products or hobbies, what do you want to be associated with?

1:28 So for me, it's blue shirt, it's AI, it's time.

1:32 It's the things that I talk about.

1:34 The old model was essentially you build a monetization

1:38 engine first and then you build an audience.

1:40 You figure out what you want to sell and then you go create ads.

1:43 That's gone.

1:44 That's not the world we live in.

1:45 The new model is you build audience, you build community,

1:48 you build attention, and then you monetize only if you build trust.

1:53 The audience is the asset.

1:55 It's the new oil.

1:56 That's why we're seeing this like

1:58 proliferation of people doubling down and going

2:00 pro on their personal brand because the benefit of a personal brand is massive.

2:04 Back in the day, it used to be who you know and today it's who knows you.

2:09 You being talked about in a room that you're not

2:11 even in there because you created content to help people.

2:13 That's incredible.

2:14 Mr.

2:15 Beast was offered a billion dollars for his YouTube channel like 5 years ago.

2:18 Kylie Jenner used her social media to build

2:21 a makeup brand that sold for $600 million.

2:25 When I look at the crazy things in my life,

2:27 speaking at Tony Robbins, meeting my idols like John Maxwell,

2:31 doing the top podcast like Modern Wisdom, Lewis House,

2:34 all these came on the backside of building a brand.

2:36 And brand is nothing more than the feeling

2:39 and association somebody has when they hear your name.

2:41 So don't just build a business, build a brand.

2:44 If you want to be a millionaire, you can build a business.

2:46 If you want to be a billionaire, you got to build a brand.

2:48 So now we understand the concept of a personal brand,

2:51 but how do we actually build one?

2:54 Step two, stop talking to everyone.

2:57 Okay, my friend Jen said it best the other day.

2:59 She said, "If you don't have a controversial

3:01 take or an unpopular opinion when you speak,

3:05 then you're not repelling the people you don't want,

3:07 and you're not attracting the people you do want." Think about it.

3:10 If you try to talk to everyone, you just end up talking to no one.

3:13 You sound like vanilla.

3:15 There's no spice to your communication.

3:18 And it's not about like jumping out there and screaming

3:20 at the crowd or freaking out or being Mr.

3:23 Funny Pants.

3:24 It's literally having an opinion.

3:26 It's about being you.

3:28 And if you're quiet and you're you're chill and you just want

3:31 to sit there and bake goods and record yourself doing that, do it.

3:36 But if you want to like bring the energy and show your lifestyle

3:40 and be a streamer like some of these people like I show speed,

3:43 isn't it crazy that that is some of the attention you can get?

3:46 But again, association and brand.

3:47 So the whole point is to talk to a specific person.

3:50 What are their opinions on life?

3:52 What do they want to learn about?

3:53 That is your ideal audience.

3:55 And if you're trying to make money at some point,

3:58 then you should speak to people that have

4:00 the problem that you can help them with.

4:02 So if you want to figure out what you can share

4:05 to really connect with an audience that you want to attract,

4:08 you have to ask yourself these three questions.

4:10 The first one is what's the toughest

4:13 thing you've ever gone through in your life?

4:15 Because if you can share that, I will tell you the most

4:18 powerful thing you have is the most challenging thing you've gone through.

4:23 Your job is to help people avoid that pain.

4:25 That is why people communicate.

4:27 The bigger the monster, the bigger the hero.

4:29 Don't shy away from that.

4:31 The second is what's wrong with the world and how do you want to fix it?

4:36 Where is the problem?

4:37 How do you see it?

4:38 And what do you think the fix is?

4:39 My buddy Ronnie says it best.

4:41 What's a specific, observable,

4:43 and nuanced challenge that this specific customer has around this problem?

4:48 And you talk to that, your audience will feel

4:50 like you've got a hidden camera in their office.

4:52 And number three, what do you like talking about?

4:55 When I think about the perfect mix, it's what does the market want to hear?

4:59 Because there's an audience.

5:00 And then what do I love to talk about?

5:02 I just happen to love to talk about AI because I'm a technology guy.

5:06 I love to talk about buying back your time and people show up.

5:09 2.6 million people on YouTube.

5:11 That's crazy to me.

5:12 But it showed up because I chose to talk

5:14 about the things that I love to talk about.

5:16 So if you take those three questions,

5:18 the answers to those should hint as to who you want to help,

5:23 how you want to help them, the things you want to create,

5:25 the content you want to help them with.

5:26 Right?

5:27 So write down this one sentence.

5:29 I help insert type of person who is

5:32 a specific person do get the desired outcome.

5:35 What do you help them do without the pain is

5:38 whatever they're challenged with right now trying to do the thing.

5:41 The worst thing ever happened to you is your mess.

5:43 And often times your mess is the most powerful message you have.

5:47 Pain in your world is the perfect teacher.

5:49 And if you don't share that emotion, you can't get people to take motion, right?

5:53 No emotion, no motion.

5:54 And if you want people to sign up, you want people to follow,

5:56 you want people to lean in, leave a comment, they got to feel you.

6:00 If they think you're just talking to everybody

6:02 and you're very vanilla and you're playing,

6:04 don't be upset if you've got no engagement.

6:06 Now, for those who might already have a brand,

6:08 but you're struggling to create good content, I have a gift for you.

6:11 I have a full content playbook that covers everything.

6:14 I'm talking how to build your brand voice,

6:17 the frameworks to make your content go viral.

6:19 If you want it, just find me on Instagram and DM

6:21 me the words YouTube content and I'll send it over.

6:24 Okay, we've built the plan to how to find your audience who you want to serve.

6:28 But the next question is, what's the first real step to building?

6:32 Step number three, don't think.

6:35 Turn off the frontal load.

6:36 Because sometimes we convince ourselves out of doing something.

6:39 Just post.

6:41 Here's the deal.

6:42 You'll never feel ready.

6:43 So, just start.

6:44 First 100 posts will suck.

6:46 Accept it.

6:47 Just learn it.

6:47 I actually consider it the first 100 throwaways.

6:49 Why don't you just run as fast as you can to video,

6:52 post, video, post, and just ask yourself, what can I improve each time?

6:56 Slow it down.

6:57 Speed it up.

6:58 Be clear.

6:59 Is there a call to action?

7:00 Do I make this about them or do I make it for me?

7:03 It's all about the reps.

7:04 The reps.

7:05 The reps.

7:06 I sucked at being on camera when I first started.

7:08 You see Dan today, but you didn't see Dan 11 years ago.

7:12 I was nervous.

7:13 I couldn't talk to the camera.

7:15 I got red in the face.

7:17 But I just knew that if I could learn how to communicate

7:20 in front of a camera and not make it a big deal,

7:22 not because there's a recording little red bleeping thing.

7:24 It's just show up and talk that over time I would get better.

7:28 And I got to a place where I can shoot any video, one take.

7:32 I know I can stop and think a little bit and that's okay.

7:34 I can breathe and just keep going.

7:37 And the actions compound.

7:39 Zigg Ziggler said it best.

7:41 He says, "You don't have to be great to start,

7:43 but you do have to start to be great." So, here's what we need to do today.

7:47 Number one, pick a platform.

7:49 One platform.

7:49 If you're asking for my suggestion, go all in on Instagram.

7:53 Publish twice a day on a reel and just start and post.

7:56 Start and post.

7:57 Start and post.

7:57 Don't worry about your feed.

7:59 Second thing, we have to decide on a posting schedule.

8:01 As I mentioned, if you're asking me what does a pro do, twice a day.

8:04 But if you could just do one a day, oh my gosh, that would be beautiful.

8:08 But all you have to do is pick a schedule that makes you slightly uncomfortable.

8:12 That feels like a bit of a stretch.

8:14 And just make sure that you're consistent for a long period of time.

8:18 I like to think in years, not in months, not in weeks.

8:22 The third, now pull out your phone, hit record right now.

8:25 Do it while you're watching this and just start yapping being like,

8:28 "Man, I'm watching a video.

8:29 Dan just said I got to hit record and publish

8:31 this thing and I don't know what I'm supposed to be saying,

8:33 but that's okay." He said, "Just shoot.

8:34 Now I'm going to post it.

8:36 And if you feel compelled by this video,

8:38 you should shoot a video and post it too.

8:39 So now the trick is just publish.

8:41 That's 80% of the problem.

8:42 Just publish.

8:43 Fourth is learn.

8:45 Study the content.

8:46 What worked in the past?

8:48 Hit it again.

8:49 What didn't?

8:50 Stop doing that.

8:50 Go find out what other people are doing it.

8:52 Learn from them.

8:53 Look at what my videos are doing.

8:54 Learn from me.

8:56 So here's where I'm going to go next level.

8:58 And I'm going to challenge you.

9:00 My friend Jen does it every day.

9:02 She did it for four years straight.

9:03 I'm going to challenge you to go live.

9:05 And I want you to go live on whatever platform you want.

9:07 It could be Facebook or Instagram or Tik Tok for 30 days.

9:10 I want you to turn your phone on, hit live, and just talk.

9:13 The cool part is is that you can delete the live as soon as you're done.

9:15 Okay?

9:16 But record yourself on your phone talking to the people sharing an idea.

9:21 You never know what's going to work.

9:23 You just have to commit to the time.

9:25 So for the next 30 days, go live every day.

9:28 Talk to your audience, even if there's two people there,

9:31 and just practice, practice, practice.

9:34 So now you understand the personal brand side.

9:36 You know how to find your ideal audience and you've started posting, right?

9:40 Right.

9:41 yeah.

9:42 That's awesome.

9:42 Cool.

9:43 Posting isn't enough.

9:45 This next part is where a lot of people screw up everything.

9:48 Step number four, don't be a sellout.

9:51 A lot of people will post and then they get a little bit

9:55 of views and they want to squeeze every penny out of their community.

9:58 Okay, that's being a sellout.

10:00 That's being somebody that's like NASCAR.

10:02 just like trying to monetize the out of everything you've ever done.

10:05 I see people do this.

10:06 They're selling stuff that they don't even use themselves.

10:09 They prioritize making money over building the trust with the audience.

10:13 Then once you lose that trust with the people,

10:16 nobody's going to pay you to get in front of them.

10:18 If you have the trust,

10:19 people will literally line up begging you to pay you to get in front of them.

10:24 My inbox is full of companies that want to pay me to promote them.

10:29 Guess what?

10:29 Not doing it for me.

10:31 It's not what I do.

10:32 Trust is the currency that you're trading when you build an audience.

10:36 Think Apple.

10:37 What Apple has in the market is the world trust.

10:39 And because of that, it's a trillion dollar company.

10:41 When people honor you with a follow or your content shows up in their feed,

10:46 the best thing you could do is honor that trust.

10:48 Show up and give.

10:50 Don't try to monetize too quick.

10:52 Don't try to sell stuff too quick.

10:53 Honestly, just keep giving.

10:55 A guy know asked me, he's like, "Hey, man.

10:57 I know a way that I can monetize my audience even more." And I'm like, bro,

11:01 do you understand the whole point of leaving money

11:04 on the table is to leave the money on the table?

11:06 If you're the person that sells something

11:08 to every potential audience every time you talk

11:10 or open your mouth or post a video that you're just trying to sell something,

11:14 I'm just curious how long you can go giving

11:16 and giving and giving and giving without ever asking for anything.

11:20 So, here are three rules to not be a sellout.

11:23 Okay.

11:23 One, reply to at least five comments every single post.

11:27 You in there, somebody comments, reply, reply.

11:29 do anything.

11:30 Support them.

11:31 Add value.

11:32 Answer their questions.

11:33 But always reply to the comments.

11:35 Don't think you're too cool to reply to comments.

11:38 Two, reply to every single DM.

11:40 If somebody follows you and they send you a direct message,

11:42 always say something.

11:43 I appreciate you saying hi.

11:44 The person who showed me the way for this is Gary Vee.

11:48 Gary has replied to every DM, every email, every SMS.

11:51 Honestly, I don't know when he sleeps.

11:53 He's been doing this for years.

11:54 He might not be able to still do this, but if he could, he would.

11:57 And I've just always tried to honor that.

11:59 Third, give 10 times more free value than you ever asked for.

12:04 I dare you to give away your best stuff.

12:06 The thing that you get paid the most money to do for somebody,

12:10 unpack how you do that and give it away.

12:12 Give it away.

12:13 Give it away.

12:13 My whole philosophy around content is to die empty.

12:16 I sit in my office and I go do things that make me tens of millions of dollars.

12:20 Then I come in here and I go, "Okay, let's unpack it.

12:23 Let's show it." Just like this video and every other video on my channel.

12:26 I want to die empty.

12:28 I have no reason to keep it inside.

12:30 I give it all to everybody that wants it.

12:33 The whole playbook's there.

12:34 Everything I've ever done.

12:35 I don't hold back.

12:36 I don't gatekeep.

12:37 If you do this every day, you will build an audience that actually trusts you.

12:42 They show up to support you.

12:44 If you have a book come out, they will buy it.

12:46 It'll become a bestseller because you've poured

12:48 into them for years without ever asking for anything.

12:51 Now, everything we've done so far will help

12:53 you build an audience that literally trusts you

12:56 and will start to beg you to take

12:58 their money because they trust you to solve problems,

13:01 but only then do you get to this next step.

13:03 Step number five, monetize.

13:06 The cool part is is you don't need millions of followers to make money.

13:10 Many people in my life that I've taught

13:12 this to can monetize with less than 10,000 followers.

13:16 My buddy Mike Brown had 7,800, I think, when he came to me.

13:19 and I showed him the simple strategy

13:21 of just messaging the new followers, talking to them.

13:25 In the first year, he did a million in revenue off of his Instagram alone.

13:29 He doesn't have a massive audience, but he talked to them.

13:33 See, the importance is knowing the ways to make money

13:36 from your brand and not coming across as a sellout.

13:38 Monetizing the best way is essentially just solving a bigger problem

13:42 some of your audience has for people who already trust you.

13:46 Have you ever just followed somebody and they just every

13:48 time they talk they just drop bombs and they're just

13:50 like so helpful and you buy their book or you

13:52 read their blog post or their newsletter and you're like,

13:54 "Oh my gosh, I have a problem today that I know he would have an answer for.

13:58 I really wish he had a product or a place

14:00 or a workshop or a seminar or something that I could go spend time to get

14:04 clarity around my problem." Those are the best scenarios.

14:07 I created content for almost a decade before I ever sold my first book.

14:12 And when it launched in 2023, it sold 20,000 copies in its first two weeks,

14:17 becoming a number two behind Atomic Habits,

14:19 Wall Street Journal bestselling book.

14:21 It only sold because of the trust I built.

14:24 Almost a decade of content,

14:26 the value I poured into my audience without ever asking for anything.

14:30 I always prioritize trust first.

14:32 I think it like this, okay?

14:34 You give away your information, as much as you can,

14:37 your best stuff, and then people pay you for implementation.

14:41 And there's only three ways to make money from your personal brand.

14:44 The first one is ad revenue.

14:45 Okay, the platform pays you for views.

14:47 Like YouTube, for example, now it's a slow build and it's unreliable,

14:51 but over time the YouTube revenue can cover the cost of your production,

14:55 your editors, your videos.

14:56 It's a wild thing to watch.

14:58 And that's just ad dollars that come in because when you publish on a platform,

15:02 they need to make money to cover their cost.

15:04 And then all of a sudden, if you do it for long enough and it grows,

15:06 you can make a lot of money from it.

15:07 You essentially get a portion of the ads that people

15:10 spend to run ads on top of your videos.

15:13 Two is brand deals.

15:14 And this is where most people make their money where

15:17 they get paid by a brand to create content to collaborate.

15:20 Now, it can be wild money.

15:22 It can be good money, but you do need to align with the right partners.

15:26 Okay?

15:26 Most creators do this.

15:28 The ones that suck at it align with partners

15:30 and they're willing to sell their soul for anybody's money.

15:33 And the third, and it's one of my favorite,

15:35 is you own the product or service that you talk about in your content.

15:39 It's got the highest upside because one, you built the product.

15:42 You're aligned with the product.

15:44 You know how the product's going to get delivered, the audience trusts you,

15:47 and it's something that you can invest in over and over and over again.

15:52 Think about Mr.

15:53 Beast with Feastables.

15:54 You think about, you know, Ryan Trey with Joyide,

15:57 Neelk Boys and Happy Dad, or Logan and Prime.

15:59 And there's a ton of them.

16:00 Now, that is an advanced move.

16:02 Most content creators are not business operators.

16:05 So, that one's tougher to do.

16:06 All I would say is pick one.

16:08 If it's ads or brand deals or your own products, but go hard.

16:13 Go all in.

16:14 Choose one strategy to monetize.

16:16 Build the trust with your audience.

16:17 Introduce that and don't try to build them all at once.

16:21 Master one and win.

16:23 Now, those are the five steps to build a brand, to build trust, to monetize.

16:28 That's it.

16:29 See, most people will watch this and they won't do anything with it.

16:32 But not you.

16:32 You're here because you're like, you know what?

16:35 I resonate with this and I know that I need to grow my business.

16:38 I got to create content.

16:39 I got to build my personal brand.

16:40 I have to do it in a way that gets the right ideal customers and builds trust.

16:45 So, I need you to make a commitment below and let me know,

16:47 are you going to go live for 30 days in a row?

16:50 Not a lot of people are going to do it,

16:51 but if you are, type the comment 30 below and let me know.

16:55 Pick the platform.

16:56 Is it Facebook, Instagram, or other?

16:58 maybe even X.

16:59 Go live for 30 days.

17:01 Practice talking to the camera.

17:02 Practice talking to your audience.

17:04 Practice creating value.

17:06 And comment below and let me know.

17:07 Now, don't forget if you want my exact

17:09 content playbook to help you create viral content,

17:12 just find me on Instagram, Dan Martell,

17:14 and DM me the word YouTube content, and I'll send it over.

17:17 Now, if you want to learn how I build a company from 0 to 1 million,

17:20 just click here and I'll see you on the other