Welcome to Money Making Story,

Today, we’re thrilled to share the story of Colin, who built SheetsRes.com to help job seekers and turned it into a $250,000/year business while working 10 hours a week.

In this discussion, we’ll discuss his:

• Top Advice

• The Entrepreneur Behind SheetsRes.com

• Identifying the Opportunity: Turning Expertise Into a Business

• From Reddit Hobby to AI-Powered Business

• The Launch of SheetsRes.com

• 15 AI Tools to Make Money

• How to Build a Business Like SheetsRes.com

• Marketing That Works: Colin’s Playbook

• From Zero to $20,000: The Growth Blueprint

• What Makes AI Businesses So Powerful Right Now

• Lessons for Aspiring Entrepreneurs

• A Story Worth Reading

Top Advice:

"AI allows you to scale yourself. What once took hours now takes seconds, enabling you to help more people without sacrificing quality."

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The Entrepreneur Behind SheetsRes.com

Colin McIntosh, founder of SheetsRes.com, turned his expertise in resume building into a $20,000/month business in just two months—all as a side project. By leveraging AI and a lifetime of career experience, Colin created a tool that helps people land jobs while maintaining an astonishing 90% profit margin. Here’s how he did it and how you can follow in his footsteps.

Identifying the Opportunity: Turning Expertise Into a Business

Colin's journey began with a realization: while most people struggle to craft effective resumes, he had a knack for it. After years of recruiting, he identified a gap in the market. Many job seekers lacked access to affordable, high-quality resume feedback. Colin began by offering free advice on Reddit, where his posts gained massive traction. Over six years, he answered over 20,000 questions, solidifying his authority and understanding of the pain points job seekers face.

This is the first takeaway: find something you do better than anyone else and use it to solve a problem. For Colin, it was resumes. For you, it could be anything you’re passionate about and skilled at.

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From Reddit Hobby to AI-Powered Business

Colin’s journey began in 2018 with a viral Reddit post. He shared tips on improving resumes, which received over 500 upvotes and sparked a flood of requests for help. Recognizing a universal need for better resumes, Colin began offering personalized reviews for a few hundred dollars.

However, as demand grew, he realized this manual approach wasn’t scalable. Enter AI.

The Launch of SheetsRes.com

In early 2023, Colin partnered with his former recruiting colleague, Nate, now a software engineer. Together, they built an AI resume builder capable of scaling Colin’s expertise. The product launched in August 2023 and hit $1,000 in daily sales within its first week.

• Pricing Strategy:

  • $99 for lifetime access

  • $29 for a one-week subscription

• Initial Strategy: Free usage for the first week to drive word of mouth and collect user feedback.

15 AI Tools to Make Money

How to Build a Business Like SheetsRes.com

Colin shared a step-by-step blueprint for launching a profitable AI business:

1. Identify Your Niche and Expertise

Ask yourself: What do I do better than anyone else?
Colin identified a common pain point (poor resumes) and leveraged his recruiting experience to solve it.

2. Validate the Idea

• Start by solving the problem manually, even if it’s time-intensive.

• Build credibility by helping people for free or at a low cost to prove demand.

3. Create a Brand Identity Map

• Define your target audience, value propositions, and brand tone.

• TechStars offers a free brand identity map template to guide this process.

4. Build the Product

• Colin partnered with Nate to create a product using OpenAI and PHP frameworks.

• If you’re not technical, Colin suggests networking with like-minded individuals or hiring on platforms like Upwork.

Marketing That Works: Colin’s Playbook

1. Leverage Existing Platforms

• Colin’s original Reddit post continues to drive organic traffic.

• He piggybacks on Reddit’s SEO by creating helpful, evergreen content that links back to SheetsRes.com.

2. Word of Mouth

• Focus on delivering value so users naturally recommend your product.

• For SheetsRes.com, this included offering the service for free at launch to build trust and excitement.

3. Paid Advertising

• Colin uses Google Ads to train Google’s algorithms, ensuring more effective campaigns over time.

4. Affiliate Marketing

• Partnering with an affiliate agency has allowed SheetsRes.com to scale its reach without requiring Colin’s direct involvement.

From Zero to $20,000: The Growth Blueprint

Here’s how Colin built his business from scratch:

1. Start by Testing the Idea for Free:
   Before charging users, Colin offered the tool for free to validate demand. Thousands of resumes were created in the first week alone, proving there was a market for the product.

2. Introduce Affordable Pricing:
   After validating the idea, Colin introduced a simple pricing model: $99 for lifetime access and $29 for a one-week pass. This pricing was designed to be affordable while providing immense value.

3. Focus on Organic Growth and SEO:
   Colin leveraged his existing Reddit presence to promote the tool. Posts like his original resume advice guide drove traffic to the site. He also tapped into Reddit’s strong SEO by creating valuable content that linked back to his product.

4. Word of Mouth and Affiliates:
   Colin prioritized helping users, which naturally led to glowing reviews and referrals. He recently partnered with an affiliate marketing agency to scale this further.

5. Keep Costs Low with AI:
   By using AI and a lean tech stack (OpenAI, PHP Laravel, AWS, and Stripe), Colin kept expenses minimal. The result? Nearly 90% profit margins.What’s Next?

What Makes AI Businesses So Powerful Right Now

Colin credits the current AI landscape for making his success possible. OpenAI credits are still affordable, allowing startups to experiment and scale at a low cost. However, he cautions that this window of opportunity won’t last forever, as costs are likely to rise as the technology matures.

For aspiring entrepreneurs, Colin’s advice is clear: act now. Whether you want to build a resume tool, a chatbot, or something entirely different, the current AI environment is ideal for launching innovative solutions.

Lessons for Aspiring Entrepreneurs

Colin shared his step-by-step process for starting a business:

1. Validate Your Idea: Offer your service for free or in a way that doesn’t scale to test demand.

2. Build a Brand Identity: Create a clear vision of your brand’s voice, target audience, and value propositions.

3. Develop a Simple Business Plan: Outline your idea, how it’s different from competitors, and your key differentiators.

4. Find the Right Team: If you’re not technical, focus on building relationships with potential co-founders or developers. Colin’s co-founders came from years of networking and collaboration.

5. Launch and Iterate: Start small, get feedback, and improve as you grow.

Learn More About Colin McIntosh

Colin believes that we’re at the golden moment for AI entrepreneurship. Tools are inexpensive, demand is high, and automation allows for unprecedented scalability.

Colin’s story proves that you don’t need a huge budget, extensive technical skills, or a full-time commitment to build a successful business. By combining his expertise with AI, he turned a side project into a $250,000/year revenue stream in just two months.

A Story Worth Reading

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