The $1000 Test
Happy Friday! Welcome back to Jimi Filipovski’s weekly newsletter where I give you high-quality insights and reflect on learnings building a creative business.
Now let’s dive into this week’s post.
Maybe your algorithm is like mine and it’s filled with ordinary-looking people making insane amounts of money online. First off, some of them are real. Most of them are fake. Have you seen the man who drives around in a fancy car and hands a stack of $10k to people on the street who follow him on Instagram? He’s amassed nearly 5 million followers. How can he throw so much money away like Mr. Beast? It’s because the money is fake. It’s prop money, made for film and TV. Look closely at any prop dollar and you’ll see “FOR MOTION PICTURE USE ONLY” where it should say “IN GOD WE TRUST”. This is because the US Treasury Department has very strict rules on how real fake money is allowed to look. Not all fake money is for film but they still print them like that to be safe. Do a quick Google search and you’ll find prop money for sale in $10k stacks and even entire pallets (around $1M).
The ones who aren’t fakers show you everything. They put in the work. They prove that it’s not magic or special talent to succeed. Every business has a great story filled with ups and downs. The ones who make it know it’s because they kept going, tweaking, and listening to make things work. They’ve learned what people want, how to sell, and make something irresistible to that audience.
We all know by now passive money is great. Instagram and TikTok make it sound so easy to generate $10k/ month doing it. I’ve tried my hand at several passive income-generating projects from Etsy sites and print-on-demand posters to writing, referrals, and even Amazon FBA.
I’ve helped startups raise tens of millions of dollars in my career. Building products, strategizing with founders on story and pitch deck design, etc. The thing I’ve never really done however is make money for myself. Think about it, have you ever made your own money? Maybe you made lemonade and sold it as a kid. You most likely have let someone else figure it out in exchange for a paycheck. It hurt deeply to say to myself “I know how to do all these things. So why am I wasting my time making this person rich instead of myself?” I knew I had to start making my own money.
I’m not sure where I saw this (or if I made it up) but I call it the $1000 test. How quickly can you get to $1000? It’s enough money to know you’re onto something. I decided to create a product, set up a Shopify site, and see what was possible on my own. I’ve had the idea for a “BUSINESS” hat for a long time and decided to create one during the pandemic. I was working for a large agency at the time and most of my days were spent presenting on Zoom calls. So a hat (since I wasn’t getting a haircut anytime soon) was a great way to lighten the mood. And people loved them. At every single meeting someone had to say something about it.
I’m more than happy to go into detail about my entire process in another video but 2 weeks is all it took to make $1000 (net revenue). I didn’t run any ads, or anything. I wore my prototype everywhere and when people asked I told them where they could get one. I then created a few more for my colleges like “SPREADSHEETS” and “FINTECH” but these came after the initial $1000.
I was in a band in high school and I remember there was a guy slightly older than me who had started a clothing company. He’d sell his t-shirts at almost every local show and everyone was buying them. I remember walking up to him after a set and asking him how he got started. “I just printed 100 shirts of one design and started selling them.” It seemed so simple. I decided to try it out myself. We were getting new t-shirts printed for our band. I decided to spend some of my hard-earned cash to print some for my own company I’d start and sell. I bought the nice American Apparel tees with soft touch ink. They were high quality. No one bought one. I had to beg my friends to buy one just so I could break even. I wasn’t even able to give any away. I’ve never seen anyone wear it, ever. I’m pretty sure the box of them is still in the mom’s basement.
The shirts weren’t ugly but I was missing a big detail back then. I didn’t know about sales and marketing or the local market. I came to learn that the owner of the other company was well-connected in the music, BMX, and photography scene. He had popular people wearing his gear and photographer friends to create amazing content for him. I had a shirt with a name no one could pronounce printed on it. My shirt also had no reason for existing. It didn’t stand for anything or move anyone with a cause (think LIVESTRONG bracelets). It wasn’t funny, it wasn’t photographed or sold well. It wasn’t meant for this world.
The business hat happened so organically, it was amazing. When people asked I just told them where they could get one. No begging required. I was able to use a print-on-demand service to keep costs and storage down and save myself money not printing hundreds of hats just to find out no one wants them. I didn’t even consider selling them until people started asking where they could get one. That’s how you know you’re onto something.
Today the hat was taken a back seat to Shirakaba Studio. I’ve mapped out what version 2.0 looks like and it will happen later this year. Stay tuned.
I think everyone should try their hand at selling something. Sign up for a free trial on Shopify this weekend and try to make at least $30 in sales to cover your subscription costs for the next month. It’s a small but meaningful challenge. If you’re completely new to the ecommerce world I highly recommend Davie Fogarty on Youtube. It’s no bullshit, no selling, straight-to-the-point education.
Have you ever made money for yourself? What’s something you’ve always wanted to sell or make? Hit reply and let me know. I’m happy to share more tips and tricks I’ve picked up along the way.
👋 Want to work together?
Shirakaba Studio is now accepting clients. We partner with other ambitious brands to make magical things happen. If you’re looking for a website or brand, let’s chat!
Have a great weekend,
-Jimi