How I make $104,511 per month as a growth operator

Summary

In this video, Ben Bader shares his journey and insights on becoming a successful growth operator. He starts by proving his financial success with bank statements, dispelling any skepticism. Ben explains the growth operator model, which involves partnering with influencers to sell products to their audience. However, he warns that this is not a beginner-friendly path due to the complexity and the need for trust from established personal brands. Instead, he suggests starting with mastering copywriting, offering value to those with an audience, and gradually expanding responsibilities to earn trust and scale up. Ben's strategy led him to work with top-tier clients, resulting in a six-figure monthly income.

Takeaways

• 😀 The speaker, Ben Bader, provides proof of earnings to counter accusations of being a scammer, showing bank statements with significant monthly earnings.
• 📈 Ben has made a substantial income using the growth operator business model, which involves partnering with online influencers to help them sell products to their audience.
• 👤 He advises against starting as a growth operator with no experience, as it's challenging to gain the trust of established influencers without a proven track record.
• 🛠 Ben's background includes working in a marketing agency, starting with local lead generation and then moving on to work with big names in basketball training.
• 💡 He emphasizes the importance of starting with one skill, such as copywriting, to build trust and gradually take on more responsibilities within a business.
• 📝 Copywriting is suggested as a good starting point because it's a skill that can be honed and demonstrated to potential clients, leading to opportunities for growth.
• 🔑 Building trust with clients by delivering excellent results in one area can lead to opportunities to manage more aspects of their business operations.
• 🚀 A successful case study from one client can significantly open up more business opportunities and increase the credibility of the growth operator.
• 💰 Ben charges clients a monthly retainer plus a percentage of the revenue generated through his efforts, which can lead to substantial earnings.
• 🔄 He suggests that starting with one skill, proving value, and gradually expanding the scope of work is a more realistic and effective approach than trying to be a full-stack growth operator from the start.
• 👍 The speaker offers a link in the description for those interested in learning copywriting as a potential first step towards becoming a growth operator.

Q & A

What is the primary purpose of the video?

The primary purpose of the video is to provide proof of the speaker's success as a growth operator and to share insights on why starting as a growth operator might not be the best business model for complete beginners.

What is a growth operator according to the speaker?

A growth operator, as described by the speaker, is someone who partners with individuals or businesses with a large online audience, helps them sell products or services to their audience, and earns a share of the profits.

Why does the speaker consider starting as a growth operator a bad idea for complete beginners?

The speaker believes starting as a growth operator is a bad idea for beginners because it requires a multitude of skills and experience to manage various aspects of a business effectively, and it is unlikely that established personal brands would trust a beginner with their business operations.

What is the speaker's name and what industry did he initially work in?

The speaker's name is Ben Bader, and he initially worked in the marketing agency space, specifically with basketball trainers, running their Facebook ads and setting up lead generation.

How did Ben Bader transition from working with basketball trainers to becoming a growth operator?

Ben Bader transitioned by leveraging his skills in copywriting, managing ads, and building funnels to work with bigger personal brands in basketball training, which led to him becoming a growth operator in that niche.

What is the speaker's view on the common business model of partnering with someone with a big audience and taking 50% of the profits?

The speaker considers this model unrealistic and overly simplistic. He believes that successful personal brands with large audiences would not agree to give away such a significant percentage of their income to someone, especially a beginner.

What is the speaker's advice for beginners who want to become growth operators?

The speaker advises beginners to start by mastering a single skill, such as copywriting, and then offer that service to established businesses or personal brands. By doing excellent work and gaining trust, they can gradually take on more responsibilities and grow into a growth operator role.

What is the significance of having a strong personal brand when working as a growth operator?

Having a strong personal brand is significant because it comes with a large and engaged audience that trusts the brand. This trust and audience engagement are crucial for selling products or services, making it more likely for a growth operator to succeed.

How does the speaker describe the process of scaling a coaching business?

The speaker describes scaling a coaching business as requiring more than just setting up a school group. It involves having substantial course content, different coaches, various offers, one-on-one coaching, and managing several moving parts.

What is the speaker's recommendation for a complete beginner to establish credibility and gain clients?

The speaker recommends that a beginner should focus on mastering one skill, such as copywriting, and use that to offer value to established businesses. By delivering excellent results and gradually taking on more responsibilities, the beginner can build credibility and gain more clients.

How does the speaker suggest using a successful case study to acquire more clients?

The speaker suggests using a successful case study as a proof of capability and results. By demonstrating that they have helped a credible person or business make more money, they can approach other clients with a stronger pitch and a higher likelihood of securing their business.

Outlines

00:00

📈 Introduction to Growth Operating and Business Model Critique

The speaker, Ben Bader, starts by presenting proof of his earnings to counter any accusations of being a scammer, showing bank statements with significant monthly earnings. He then discusses his experience as a growth operator, a role that involves partnering with online influencers to help monetize their audience. He has worked with notable figures such as Cardinal Mason and Sebastian Georgeu. Ben critiques the idea of beginners attempting to become growth operators, arguing that it's a flawed business model for those without experience. He emphasizes the complexity of the role and the unlikelihood of successful influencers partnering with inexperienced individuals.

05:00

🚀 Transitioning from Marketing Agency to Growth Operator

Ben shares his journey from running a local lead generation business to becoming a growth operator. Initially, he worked with basketball trainers, managing their Facebook ads. Gradually, he transitioned to working with larger personal brands in the basketball training space, handling various tasks such as copywriting, email management, and ad operations. This experience allowed him to develop a deep understanding of info product and coaching businesses, which he later applied across different industries. He explains that becoming a proficient growth operator requires a solid foundation in marketing and business operations, which he built over several years.

10:01

💼 The Reality of Being a Growth Operator and Scaling a Business

The speaker elaborates on the misconceptions surrounding the growth operator role, particularly the idea that one can simply partner with an audience owner, set up a school group, and earn a significant percentage of the revenue. He argues that this model is unrealistic and oversimplified, as it ignores the complexity of running a successful coaching or info product business. Ben emphasizes the importance of trust and the gradual process of earning it by starting with one aspect of the business, such as copywriting, and then expanding responsibilities as trust grows. He also discusses the importance of having a strong personal brand and being well-connected in the industry to attract high-value clients.

🛠 Building a Successful Growth Operating Business from Scratch

Ben outlines a strategy for someone starting from scratch to become a successful growth operator. He suggests beginning by mastering a single skill, such as copywriting, and then offering that service to established businesses or influencers. By providing excellent results and gradually taking on more responsibilities, one can earn the trust of clients and expand their role within the business. This approach allows for the accumulation of case studies and testimonials, which can be leveraged to attract more clients and scale the business. Ben's own success story exemplifies this strategy, having started with basketball trainers and then applying his skills to other industries, eventually working with high-earning personal brands.

Keywords

💡Growth Operator

A growth operator is an individual who partners with businesses or personal brands that have a large online audience to help them increase sales and revenue. In the video, the speaker identifies as a growth operator and discusses how they have worked with various personal brands to increase their earnings. The concept is central to the video's theme, illustrating the speaker's journey and success in the industry.

💡Info Product Businesses

Info product businesses refer to companies that sell informational products or services, such as online courses, eBooks, or coaching programs. The video emphasizes the importance of understanding the workings of these businesses for a growth operator. The speaker mentions that they have worked with info product businesses, particularly in the 'make money online' niche, to enhance their marketing and sales strategies.

💡Revenue Share

Revenue share is a business arrangement where the earnings from a project or business are divided between parties based on an agreed-upon percentage. In the context of the video, the speaker describes how they charge clients a monthly retainer plus a percentage of the revenue generated through their efforts, highlighting the growth operator's compensation model.

💡Copywriting

Copywriting is the craft of writing persuasive content, often used in advertising and marketing materials to drive sales. The speaker suggests that starting with copywriting is a practical approach for beginners aspiring to become growth operators. They mention that mastering copywriting can lead to opportunities to work with established personal brands and contribute to their success.

💡Personal Brand

A personal brand is the public image and reputation of an individual, often built around their expertise or personality. In the video, the speaker talks about working with personal brands in the basketball training and online business coaching industries. These personal brands have a strong audience and are key to the growth operator's business model, as they provide the customer base and trust needed for sales.

💡Video Sales Letter (VSL)

A video sales letter (VSL) is a marketing video designed to sell a product or service, often used on landing pages or in sales funnels. The speaker explains that as part of their growth operating services, they have scripted and built VSLs for clients to improve their sales conversions. The VSL is an example of the multifaceted skills a growth operator may need.

💡Sales Funnel

A sales funnel is a series of steps designed to guide potential customers through the purchasing process. In the video, the speaker discusses building sales funnels for clients as part of their growth operating services. The concept is integral to the video's narrative as it represents one of the many strategies used to increase a client's revenue.

💡Basketball Training

Basketball training refers to the coaching and training services provided to improve basketball skills. The speaker initially worked with basketball trainers as a growth operator, helping them to increase their client base and revenue through marketing and sales strategies. This industry serves as an example of the speaker's early work and the application of growth operating principles.

💡Case Study

A case study is a detailed report or analysis of a specific situation, often used to demonstrate the effectiveness of a strategy or approach. The speaker mentions using successful case studies from their work with clients to attract new business. Case studies are a way to showcase the speaker's expertise and the tangible results they have achieved as a growth operator.

💡School Group

In the video, the term 'school group' likely refers to a community or group setting where knowledge is shared, such as an online course or a membership site. The speaker criticizes the simplistic idea of setting up a school group and expecting immediate success, emphasizing that a successful coaching business requires more than just a platform for content delivery.

💡Marketing Agency

A marketing agency is a business that provides marketing services to clients. The speaker mentions having been in the marketing agency space for the past three years, indicating their professional background. This context is important as it provides the foundation for the speaker's expertise and the services they offer as a growth operator.

Highlights

The speaker provides proof of earnings to counter scam accusations.

Bank statements show monthly earnings of over $100,000.

Speaker hides account numbers for privacy.

Speaker clarifies that earnings are from investments, not frivolous spending.

Introduction to the growth operator business model.

Speaker has worked with notable online personalities.

Growth operators partner with influencers to sell products to their audience.

Speaker argues that starting as a growth operator with no experience is not advisable.

Experience in a service-based business can make the growth operator model more viable.

Speaker's background includes marketing agency work and basketball training.

Speaker emphasizes the importance of trust and personal brand in the growth operator model.

Speaker's income comes from a combination of retainers and revenue shares.

Speaker charges between $10K to $15K plus 10-20% of generated revenue.

Speaker advises starting with mastering one skill, such as copywriting.

Building trust with clients by solving one problem at a time is key.

Speaker suggests using successful case studies to attract more clients.

Speaker's journey from local lead gen to high-profile clients.

Speaker's strategy for scaling a business and working with top-tier clients.

The importance of a solid product and avoiding short-lived success.

Speaker's blueprint for building a successful growth operating business.

Link in the description for learning copywriting.

Transcripts

[Music]

okay real quick before I get into the

video I just want to show you some proof

so I don't have anyone in the comments

that's like oh you're no no you're a

scammer you didn't actually make that

much money um here are some Bank bank

statements real quick let me hide my

account number so nobody of you so none

of you guys can scam me cuz that would

be ironic wouldn't it um anyway

here you can see that statement there

money in what is that 104,000 the month

let's see this one a [ __ ] I'm going to

have to blur my account number and all

this other but

102 um let's see another one that's 102

that might be the same statement oops

God damn it this is going to be a pain

in the ass to blur but 99 in there um

obviously the the withdrawals part of

that's like Investments I'm not just

blowing all this money um but just so

you guys know I just wanted to show you

that so you can't call me a scammer all

right let's get into it okay so I've

made a lot of money using the business

model that you might have heard of

that's been popularized as growth

operating I've worked with people like

Cardinal Mason and Sebastian georgeu

Sebastian esua Kevin Pacman Ecom side

hustles Flips For Miles KT hustles

Benjamin Seda all of these people that

are selling information online and

basically the idea of a that you're a

growth operator means you take somebody

like that who has a big audience of

people online who want to buy something

from them who are interested in their

products who trust them they know like

can trust them and you partner up with

them and you help them sell something to

Their audience and then you get a piece

of it that's basically what I've done

but I want to consider myself a growth

operator in the way that it's been

popularized and positioned and I also

want to talk about how first how I got

here and second why I think becoming a

growth operator as a complete beginner

is probably one of the worst business

models that you can try and that you can

start when you have zero experience if

you do have some experience and you've

had a client and you're working in some

kind of service-based business it can be

a really good model but if you're a

complete beginner becoming a growth

operator is really dumb and these are

just my my two cents I'm not trying to

take a shot at anybody I'm just talking

about the way that I see the market and

the way it looks you know being on the

inside of a lot of these big info

product businesses with people that are

that are creators that are like the best

creators that you could work with as a

growth operator I've worked with those

guys and I'll tell you firsthand they're

not going to work with a complete

beginner so first if you don't know me

my name is Ben Bader I've been in the

marketing agency space for the past 3

years almost I started a local lead gen

s about 3 years ago where I was working

with basketball trainers running their

Facebook ads and setting up go high

level for them and that's how I kind of

got my feet wet in the agency world and

working with clients and then after a

while doing that I started working with

some of the bigger personal brands in

basketball training so these were guys

that had hundreds of thousands of

followers and I started doing everything

for them so I was writing all their copy

all their emails I was running their ads

I was building their funnels and that's

when I originally became a growth

operator I was working with like four or

five of the biggest names in basketball

and they were paying me a few thousand a

month to do all this stuff for him all

in I was making probably 15 20 grand a

month and this was about 2 years ago but

I was doing exactly what's kind of

described as this growth operator

business model I would go to somebody

that has a big audience and say hey I

can help you make more money from this

audience I'd partner up with them run

all of the operations run all the

marketing so all they had to do was post

more content we'd sell more of their

program and then we'd all make more

money and that was that and then after I

have just worked with the bigger

basketball trainer personal brands for a

while I learned a lot I became a really

good copywriter I knew how to build

funnels I knew how to run ads I just

knew a lot about how info product

businesses and coaching businesses

worked in general so I was like okay I

can apply this in any industry so the

most common industry that you see people

selling information in is usually how to

make money online it's the here in my

garage type ads it's the oh here's how I

made $100,000 on Airbnb it's the drop

shippers it's the guys that are teaching

High ticket sales and copyrighting and

Amazon FBA and Tik Tock shop it's that

type of person who is the majority of

the creators that you're going to be

partnering up with as a growth operator

so I started working with a lot of those

guys and I was doing the same kind of

thing for them I was writing all their

copy I was scripting their vsls building

their funnels helping manage all of the

systems and their sales team and

everything that goes in to an info

product business to a coaching business

because it's definitely not as simple as

just like oh set up a school group and

forget about it that's just not how it

[ __ ] works bro and if you do find

success like that for a little bit it's

going to be shortlived because that's

just not a good product a bunch of

little idiots running around in the

school group that's like care like

people don't want to [ __ ] deal with

that type of [ __ ] and it's just not a

solid model if you're going to really

scale a coaching business you need a lot

of course content you need different

coaches in there you need different

offers and and one-on-one coaching and

there's all of these moving pieces that

a school group can't fix so like the

general model is oh partner up with

somebody that has a big audience help

them set up a school group and take 50%

that's just not very realistic it's just

not that simple and anybody that has a

big audience that has people that I

actually want to buy from them that they

be worth working with as a growth

operator they're not going to go with a

complete beginner and they're not and

they're going to be able to see through

the oh I'll set up your community and

all you have to do is make content it's

just not that simple they understand how

valuable Their audience is and they're

going to come and work with somebody

like me or someone else who's more

experienced in the space because they

actually want to do it right they don't

want to give 50% of their income to some

little ass kid who attended a webinar

and was like I'm going to be a growth

operator again I'm not taking shots at

anybody but that's just the the reality

of it so like I said earlier I've worked

with a lot of the biggest names in the

space and now I'm in a position where

I'll usually charge them anywhere from

10 to 15K and get 10 to 20% of their of

the revenue that we generate for them

even now as like the one of the go-to

guys in this space I'm not getting

anywhere close to 50% that's just a

crazy [ __ ] number that doesn't happen

but generally we'll work with anywhere

from 5 to 10 clients at a time all of

which are paying us around 10 to even

40K a month on those rev shares so when

we have a client that makes 400 500k a

month through our efforts you know then

they usually end up paying us 40 50k a

month just from one client but again

this is me having multiple years in the

industry and having my own personal

brand and being well connected like you

know this didn't happen overnight it's

not like I woke up and I just knew a

bunch about the coaching businesses and

the info Product Industry to where I was

getting those top tier clients and most

of the time you'll have to work your way

up to the point where you can work with

those people who have that strong

audience like you're looking for because

that's the biggest variable you could

have somebody who has the best offer in

the world and and you could be the best

growth operator in the world you can be

the best copywriter in the world and

write them a banger vssl on a great

really good sales page and really good

email marketing but none of it matters

if they don't have traffic and they

don't have people that already know they

can trust them that want to buy from

them and again the people that are in

that position with that really strong

audience they understand how valuable

that is and they want to work with

somebody who is going to be able to

bring more value to the table and not

just kind of eat off of their plate so

my first biggest growth operator win my

the way that I really got to those six

figure months was from one client I had

probably seven clients six or seven

clients at the time but one client made

up about half of my income plus the

results I was getting with them I was

talking about that on Twitter so that

was bringing me more and more business

so I was making like 40K a month from

this one client and then another 60 or

70 from business that I was BAS

basically getting as a result of the

results we are getting from that one

client so like once you get that first

Banger case study then a world of

opportunity unlocks but that's really

hard to do as a beginner growth operator

and I think there's an easier way to get

to that point rather than just trying to

start out as like a full stack growth

operator and that's what I wanted to

talk about next which is what would I do

if I was completely just first starting

out and I wanted to end up back in the

position that I'm in now I wouldn't

start as a growth operator because

there's just too many things to learn

there's too many different skills and

there's too many moving pieces in a

coaching business and it's not as simple

as just going in and setting up a school

so I would start with one thing which is

copywriting because let's say you go and

you take a month or two to get

proficient at the skill of copywriting

you study other people's emails you

subscribe to their list or reading sales

pages and you're practicing on your own

maybe you buy a course or you you figure

out a way to start to get good you read

books and whatever and then you go to

somebody who has a big audience online

and they're selling coaching and you

realize that their emails are kind of

shitty and you you start you subscribe

to their list you're reading their

emails and you start sending them a

pitch in their DMS it's like hey I've

been reading your emails I I read this

one and I noticed this one thing that I

think you could do better you take the

time to actually pull out a Google doc

and write a sample email for them or a

couple and you do this with a bunch of

people until you finally get a client

and this can be somebody who already has

that big strong personal brand and

they're already making multiple six

figures a month by selling coaching but

you get in there because you're just

solving one problem for them you're just

solving email copyrighting and then once

you get get in there that's when the

world of opportunity unlocks to you

because that's a much easier pitch than

hey I'll take over your entire business

because think about it if somebody

already has a strong personal brand and

maybe they're making money selling

coaching already maybe they're not but

either way you going in there as a

complete stranger to them and trying to

take over their entire business trying

to tell them hey I'm going to redo all

of your landing pages and I'm going to

build you a new community and I'm going

to write all of your emails and do all

that kind of stuff that's just a lot

even for us it's hard for me to go and

into somebody's business and completely

take over everything right away you want

to kind of slowly earn their trust and

starting with one thing like email

marketing or like writing short form

scripts for them or like writing a vssl

just starting with one thing and then

building that trust with them and then

saying hey I've been writing your emails

now for 3 months I noticed that you need

a new sales page as well or you need a

new funnel or you need a new vssl or

your sales team needs more management

then you have the trust because you've

been working with them for a little bit

and you can start to to solve all these

other gaps in their business and so

let's say you take that first client

that you got that you're writing emails

for and then you start doing those other

things for them and they start paying

you a little bit more maybe eventually

you get on a REV share and now they're

paying you $66,000 a month retainer plus

10% of the revenue that you're

generating through email and through the

new funnel vssl that you built them and

by the way vssl just stands for video

sales letter that's like whenever you go

to somebody's funnel or somebody's

website and there's a video at the top

that's trying to sell you on booking a

call or buying a product that's what a

video sales letter is but now you are

directly contributing to more Revenue so

they're paying you a percentage and

let's say you make them $50,000 through

your efforts plus that $6,000 month

retainer now you're making 11k just from

one client plus you're getting a really

really good case study because you are

making somebody more money you're

learning more about the info product

space and how coaching businesses work

as a whole and now you can go to other

clients or other prospects and be like

hey I'm working with this guy who's a

credible person who's making a lot of

money and I'm helping them make more

money money can I do the same thing for

you and they're going to be way more

likely to say yes now versus again if

you were just a complete beginner and

you're like hey can I take over your

entire business I want to be your growth

operator so if I was a complete beginner

that's exactly what I would do I would

learn copyrighting go try to get

copyrighting clients then once I get a

client do everything I can for them to

get the best results possible and I try

to go above and beyond and fix other

things in their business so that they

trust me more and they allow me to take

over more pieces of their business then

I become a growth operator and then I

can use that case study to go and get

more clients and then next thing you

know I'm making a gazillion dollars a

month and that's basically what I've

done to end up in the position that I'm

in now I was working with the online

basketball trainers as their growth

operator and I started stacking more

skills and offering more services to

them and then I took that and applied it

to a different industry and the people

in that industry were making more money

and I got one or two really really good

clients so I was able to scale with them

that gave me case study they were also

paying me a lot of money and boom that's

how I ended up in a position where I'm

making $100,000 a month inside of my own

business and I've been able to scale

while working with some of the coolest

people and the biggest personal Brands

online that's the blueprint I followed

and if I was starting all over again

that's what I would do so long story

short there you have it that's how I've

built my $100,000 month growth growth

operating business don't love that term

but anyway if you want to learn

copyrighting and again where I would

start if I was trying to eventually

become a growth operator like myself hit

the link in the description and you can

watch the video that I have in there

anyway thanks for watching guys love you

like subscribe comment share this with

your grandma peace