One Chart Businesses Guaranteed To Make +$1M From Day 1
17 Apr 2024 (8 months ago)
- Jeremy Gon, the first employee at Tiny, shares his insights on how to replicate Tiny's success in acquiring businesses and turning them into multi-million dollar ventures.
- Expanding one's scope and exploring new ideas is crucial for identifying business opportunities.
- Listening to podcasts, networking, and seeking diverse perspectives can help broaden one's horizons and uncover hidden opportunities.
- Jeremy Gon highlights several trends and opportunities for potential business ventures:
- Subscription-based businesses: Offering products or services on a subscription basis can provide recurring revenue and customer loyalty.
- E-commerce: The growth of online shopping presents opportunities for businesses to reach a wider audience and reduce overhead costs.
- Health and wellness: The increasing focus on health and well-being creates demand for products and services related to fitness, nutrition, and mental health.
- Education technology (EdTech): The rise of online learning and the need for upskilling and reskilling workers drives demand for EdTech solutions.
- FinTech: The financial technology sector offers opportunities for businesses to innovate and disrupt traditional financial services.
- Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning: These technologies have the potential to transform various industries and create new business opportunities.
Idea: Build businesses for people with audiences (1m23s)
- There is a significant opportunity to build successful businesses by partnering with content creators who have large, engaged audiences.
- People with large audiences currently rely on ad reads and sponsorships, which is an inefficient use of their influence.
- By identifying content creators with engaged audiences and developing products or services that align with their interests and expertise, entrepreneurs can generate substantial revenue through equity in the business.
- Successful examples include Joe Rogan's Onnit, Doug DeMuro's Cars and Bids, and Logan Paul and KSI's Prime Hydration, developed in collaboration with Congo Brands.
- This strategy capitalizes on the undervalued nature of audiences and offers a more lucrative alternative to traditional advertising-based monetization.
Idea: Wirecutter for products that won't kill you (5m48s)
- There is a need for a website or resource that provides information on safe and non-toxic products for everyday use, covering various aspects of daily life such as water filters, showerheads, shampoos, and more.
- The success of such a business would depend on careful execution, thorough research, and a genuine commitment to providing accurate and helpful information to consumers.
- People have built million-dollar businesses from ideas shared on the show, and HubSpot has created a free business idea database with over 50 ideas from the show, accessible via the link in the video description.
One chart business category: Regulation (10m30s)
- Regulation compliance is a lucrative business, with software solution providers guaranteed to make over $1 million from day one.
- It is a low-risk investment as regulation only increases and never decreases.
- Front-running regulation changes and being the first provider can give a significant market advantage.
- Focus on your area of expertise and what you enjoy doing.
- Allocating capital to passionate and deserving individuals can be a successful business strategy.
Opportunity: Become a protege (14m55s)
- The "Boy versus the Guy" concept describes the dynamic between a trusted lieutenant (the boy) and a rising superstar (the guy) in an organization.
- Billionaires often mentor and invest in young, intelligent individuals, providing them with accelerated growth, investment opportunities, and connections.
- Notable examples include Ben Cocca with Reid Hoffman, Blake Masters with Peter Thiel, and Sam Alman with Paul Graham.
- Apprenticing is a valuable and underrated way to learn skills, make money, and create successful businesses.
Philosophy students better than Business students (19m19s)
- Philosophy majors are among the highest earners in the top 10% of all majors.
- Studying philosophy encourages critical thinking and the exploration of fundamental questions, which is valuable in any field.
- Philosophy majors tend to be curious and intellectual, which can be advantageous in business.
- Businesses that focus on a single product or service and execute it exceptionally well have a higher chance of success.
- Examples of successful single-product businesses include Dollar Shave Club, Casper, and Warby Parker.
- These businesses often have a clear and compelling value proposition, a strong brand identity, and a loyal customer base.
- Clear and compelling value proposition: The product or service must solve a real problem or offer a significant benefit to customers.
- Strong brand identity: The business must create a strong brand that resonates with customers and differentiates it from competitors.
- Loyal customer base: The business must build a loyal customer base that will continue to purchase its products or services over time.
- Efficient operations: The business must have efficient operations in order to keep costs low and maintain profitability.
- Scalability: The business must be scalable in order to grow and meet increasing demand.
The myth of the holding company (22m0s)
- Bragging about owning many businesses is a contra signal of success.
- It's better to have great results from one company than owning multiple businesses.
- Holding companies are overrated.
- Most investors lack the skills to run a large operating business.
- Starting a business from scratch can be more lucrative than acquiring an existing one.
- Businesses that solve a specific problem for a specific group of people are more likely to succeed.
- The chart should show the problem, the solution, the target market, and the revenue model.
- The business should have a clear path to profitability.
- The entrepreneur should be passionate about the problem and the solution.
The pre- and post- fall (26m14s)
- The pre-fall and post-fall are terms used to describe periods in a person's life where they have been brought to their knees by a humbling experience.
- This could be a death, breakup, health scare, bankruptcy, or any other life-changing event.
- Post-fall individuals have a different perspective on life and are not easily shaken by challenges.
- Entrepreneurs often experience their fall while building their businesses.
- Being pre-fall can be a liability in partnerships or collaborations because these individuals may not have the resilience to handle setbacks.
- Businesses that focus on a single chart, or a specific niche, are more likely to succeed and make over $1 million from day one.
- A single chart business has a clear target audience and can tailor its products or services to meet their specific needs and desires.
- By focusing on a niche, businesses can become experts in their field and build a strong reputation.
- Single chart businesses can also more easily create a sense of community and loyalty among their customers.
Idea: “Special situations" I.e. Distressed Venture (28m17s)
- Distressed venture businesses have raised too much money, especially in 2020 and 2021.
- Founders are unlikely to make money due to high preference stack.
- Venture investors are also unlikely to make significant returns.
- These businesses are essentially worthless assets.
- Tiny has done deals like this before and is interested in doing more.
- Founders and venture investors can benefit from restructuring the cap table.
- This is a specific opportunity that Tiny specializes in.
- Take a business with a broken cap table and turn it into a profitable one.
- Founders can own a larger percentage (e.g. 30% instead of 10%) and run the business profitably.
- Venture investors can reduce their involvement and focus on companies that will drive returns.
- This situation arises because venture returns have been so high that there is waste in the system.
- These companies are not inherently broken, but their cap tables and misaligned incentives make them undervalued.
Working hard vs working winning while lazy (32m15s)
- Laziness can be a form of cleverness, allowing individuals like Monish Pabrai to achieve success with minimal effort.
- Hard work is valuable but should not be pursued for its own sake.
- Laziness does not mean avoiding all work but being selective about what tasks to invest effort in.
- Different individuals have different "play styles" and preferences for work and leisure.
- There are different types of people who achieve success in different ways, such as Isaiah Photo, who grinds and works hard, and Monish Pabrai, who takes a more relaxed approach.
- Both approaches can be successful, but the lifestyle and values associated with each are very different.
- Ultimately, it's important to choose a path that aligns with your own personality and values.
Hanging around the hoop (40m19s)
- Andrew moves very quickly when excited about an opportunity.
- Andrew is persistent in following up on opportunities, even emailing founders continuously for months or years.
- It's important to be persistent and follow up with potential business opportunities, even if they initially say no.
- The most successful people in the world respond to emails instantly.
- Responding quickly to emails can create a sense of urgency and increase the chances of getting a positive response.
- Andrew is very fast-paced and energetic, and he often sends introductory emails to potential contacts before finishing a conversation.
- Movement creates information, and taking action can lead to learning and progress.
Be Dennis the Menace (43m55s)
- Be persistent and willing to follow up, even if it might seem annoying.
- Most people won't be bothered by follow-ups and may even appreciate the persistence.
- Sending a lot of follow-ups will result in mostly positive or neutral responses, with only a few negative ones.
MrBeast shouldn’t be selling chocolate (45m15s)
- The most valuable businesses created by content creators are often not very good businesses, such as selling chocolate bars or merchandise.
- These businesses have low margins, are not repeat purchases, and are not essential products.
- In contrast, businesses like home insurance, property insurance, or financial services are better businesses because they are essential, have higher margins, and have repeat customers.
- The enduring enterprise value of a business without the creator is lower for businesses like MrBeast's chocolate bars compared to businesses like banks or financial services.
- It is impressive that creators can make successful businesses out of low-quality products, but it would be even more impressive if they created successful businesses out of high-quality products.
Billionaire is a state of mind (47m53s)
- Net worth is a silly metric because it's not always an accurate representation of someone's wealth.
- It's more of a class marker than anything else.
- Billionaires often don't have a lot of cash on hand.
- Cash flow is a better metric of wealth than net worth.
- Businesses that can generate $1 million in revenue from day 1 are rare but possible.
- These businesses typically have a few things in common:
- They solve a real problem for their customers.
- They have a clear and concise value proposition.
- They have a strong marketing plan.
- They are able to scale quickly.
- Solves a real problem for customers.
- Clear and concise value proposition.
- Strong marketing plan.
- Ability to scale quickly.
Silicon Valley guys envy hedge fund guys (51m5s)
- Silicon Valley entrepreneurs envy the liquidity of New York hedge fund managers.
- Hedge fund managers can make significantly more money than Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, with some earning over a billion dollars in annual compensation.
- Even successful entrepreneurs who sell their businesses and have a large net worth may feel broke if they don't have a steady cash flow.
- There's a difference in the vibes between entrepreneurs with a high net worth and those with a steady cash flow.
- Entrepreneurs who rely on cash flow feel freer and more secure than those who rely on net worth.
- Net worth doesn't always translate into cash, and having a steady cash flow can be more important than having a high net worth.