I’m Andrew Kamphey. Sure I’m the resident Google Sheets Wizard behind Higher Sheets. Higher Sheets is a collection of Instruments, Templates, and Tutorials for Google Sheets customers.
The enterprise generated complete income of $200,000 within the first three years. It is vitally spiky income month to month however often averages round $5k and may peak round $10k for months like Black Friday and after I increase the LTD worth.
Just lately I added a $9 a month membership after testing out another worth factors. And my LTD worth is now over $200 so I wished a greater entry level into the Higher Sheets universe along with the free movies on YouTube, Tiktok, and paid programs on Udemy.
What’s your backstory, and the way did you provide you with the concept?
After 5 years managing Google Sheets into an enormous inside database and power equipment at a startup, I went off alone. However what did I do?
I began a e-newsletter concerning the Influencer Advertising business. After which offered that. After which tried to start out constructing a SaaS. Had a technical cofounder however we simply by no means acquired it to a sustainable worthwhile place.
Not all about Google Sheet is it? Under no circumstances. I by no means thought I’d be a Google Sheets Guru. I nonetheless don’t assume I’m. However folks stored mentioning how my google sheets planners had been completely distinctive. I may do issues in Google Sheets folks may solely dream of.
In April 2020, in the course of the top of covid lockdown I vowed to myself that I’d launch one thing, something. And in 24 hours I gave myself a deadline. Launch One thing!
The completely first concept of Higher Sheets was a Dribbble for Google Sheets. I wished to make a set of nice Google Sheets. However I couldn’t discover any.
So then I used to be like properly possibly I can present folks find out how to make nice Google Sheets and finally there can be sufficient to showcase. I made 8 tutorial movies in 1 day. Put 4 up at no cost, and 4 behind a paywall. That was the primary model of BetterSheets.
Launched on a Saturday. Made the primary sale on Monday. The 2nd sale took one other 2 weeks.
At first I set it up as a aspect venture. The launch in and of itself was a hit. I began it on the time as a one-time cost and to at the present time there’s nonetheless a lifetime cost possibility. It’s only a bit greater worth now, than after I had solely 8 movies complete.
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Describe the method of launching and rising the enterprise.
The launch within the first 24 hours is quite boring. I simply made the movies. Put up a Gumroad gross sales web page and a Carrd website. That’s about it. I’m wanting again and pondering “wow did that really take me a whole day?”
I believe that as a result of I could make a brand new carrd website in about 10 minutes now. Yeah I suppose the writing, the hand-wringing, and the overall insecurity of not doing this specific factor ever earlier than can take lots of hours of the day.
Today I open a google doc, begin writing, and I even launched a Google Doc as a website inside the final week. SellingSpreadsheets.com was out there and matches the identify of the my subsequent course I’m making. So I simply redirect the area to the Google Doc that explains the course. The functionally of that took about 3-4 minutes. However yeah the writing has taken weeks and the expertise I wanted has taken years.
Inside the previous 12 months I made an enormous change, or adjustment. I began making extra instruments for Google Sheets customers.
Initially I created Higher Sheets as a library of tutorials, that occur to have some construction. Structured round Programs that you must watch the movies in a specific order, and Matters the place you may watch movies in no specific order.
I had been making instruments in sheets that weren’t for Google Sheets customers however quite for customers of different issues. Like Higher Letters is a collection of sheets to assist run a curated e-newsletter. 100 Twitter Templates is a sheet that will help you tweet.
However beginning 2022 I’ve constructed Google Sheet Add-ons, and net based mostly instruments. Thus far I’ve 6 Google Sheet Add-ons printed to the Google Workspace Market. Ones like Sheet Types and Tiny Sheets have carried out properly with hundreds of downloads. They’re all free.
In mid 2022 I began created net based mostly instruments to assist do extra issues with Sheets like make a duplicate url and a PDF Export url.
Additionally I’ve created System Mills you may simply clarify your situation and it’ll create a formulation. Some are particular to REGEXMATCH or Conditional Formatting, but additionally a basic Google Sheets formulation generator which you could ask it something.
What has labored to draw new prospects?
The primary factor that draws new buyer is being listed on AppSumo Market. As soon as I acquired listed on there I’ve had tons and tons of shoppers. 80% of my prospects come through AppSumo Market. And I make 85% of my income through AppSumo Market.
They’ve been superb for me and to me. Helped me construct high quality hyperlinks to my work and distribute my work. I supplied a bundle of 19 Google Sheets Templates on AppSumo and that’s been downloaded greater than 40,000 instances. They’ve featured Higher Sheets in blogs and movies.
On {the marketplace} they’re taking round 30% of the income however they generate practically 100% of the purchasers. Honest deal in my e book.
Prior to now 12 months I’m additionally pushing my programs on to course platforms like Udemy. It’s been very good to have the ability to entry a market of people who find themselves actively looking to get higher. As a substitute of spending cash on PPC advertisements, or influencer advertising and marketing, or paid advertising and marketing, or doing earned advertising and marketing on podcasts and newsletters, I’m getting basically free site visitors.
And at instances you may make the declare they’re paying me to seek out new prospects for me. As a result of everybody who takes any of my Google Sheets programs on Udemy have a excessive share probability to need to get a software to do one thing higher, or be taught extra to get higher, or purchase a template to avoid wasting time.
What are your plans for the long run, and what are you at the moment engaged on?
Proper in the meanwhile I’m constructing my course Promoting Spreadsheets. Making an attempt to distill my very own expertise of promoting spreadsheets for the previous 3 years. Whereas additionally incorporating different sellers’ views and determining what’s essentially the most important steps for an individual who’s first beginning to promote vs somebody who’s trying to promote extra.
I need to cowl each paths they usually can each profit from some fundamentals. However wholly they’ll each profit from simply pondering in an abundance mindset. There are simply not sufficient “spreadsheet sellers” lately.
Everybody ought to be promoting spreadsheets. You ought to be promoting spreadsheets.
It’s so easy to do and may also help folks in such a pleasant method.
For many years we’ve needed to share Excel recordsdata like they’re some bodily product. And now Google Sheets are so collaborative, and on-line, cloud based mostly. For a $6 a month software like Google Workspace, it’s a LOT of worth to everybody.
However the one factor that stays the identical is everybody needs to hoard their sheets.
Share your sheets extra. Study from one another. Let’s make spreadsheets superior! Not boring.
And I’m constructing increasingly more instruments across the recommendation I give. If I give some piece of recommendation so much and make a tutorial about it, I now take into consideration how I could make the end result attainable with one click on.
I’ve made add-ons like Button Types that make cool button-like cells in sheets. And constructed a Coupon Code Maker that generates 1,000 Gumroad Coupons in 1 click on. That is particularly for sellers to supply their merchandise on extra marketplaces.
I’m searching for increasingly more alternatives to construct instruments lately
What instruments do you employ for your enterprise?
Google Sheets – to do all the pieces
Google Workspace – to internally arrange
Gmail – to electronic mail
Loom – to document movies
Gumroad – to promote Instruments
AppSumo Market – to promote LTD
Descript – to edit movies
Do you might have any recommendation for different entrepreneurs who’re simply beginning out or need to get began?
Discover an accountability group. That could possibly be a single particular person or heck, a rubber duck. It’s not about discovering the people who find themselves accountable to you or that maintain you accountable, however quite discovering the appropriate folks you need to be held accountable to. It could possibly be a writing group, or a advertising and marketing group, or a hacking group.
Meet them at the least as soon as every week and make one thing. Inform one another what you’re engaged on. Then go make it. Then present it to 1 one other. That’s it.
I’ve that group. A bunch referred to as Hackagu and I believe the format is infinitely helpful. It’s helpful for those who’re launching. It’s helpful for those who’re doing advertising and marketing. It’s helpful for those who’re constructing options or new enterprise fashions.
Simply get collectively as soon as every week and say what you’ll do and do it. That’s it.
Having the ability to present another person the work you do does two issues. It makes you do the factor but additionally it will get you very used to public critique. Exhibiting somebody one thing is usually a very daunting activity for somebody simply beginning out.
By getting used to on a weekly foundation for saying what you’ll do and doing what you mentioned you’ll do, it primes the pump of accountability.
You’ll have a greater understanding of what you may say you’ll do and truly do. You’ll even be freer to place extra of your self out on the earth.
If it’s tweet you need to do extra of, then host a weekly tweeters group at an area espresso store.
If it’s writing weblog posts, host a weekly bloggers group.
9:30 AM Introduce your self, what you’re engaged on, and what you’ll do at present. Ought to take about 2 minutes per particular person.
Have lunch collectively and a break.
4:00 PM Demos. Present what you made/wrote/labored on. In any kind it’s.
By doing this each week you’ll get within the behavior of determining what to do, what you are able to do. Specializing in that factor. Doing it. And sharing it.
All the course of is essential.
You possibly can see many of the instruments that I’ve constructed over the previous 12 months have been constructed this fashion. I had a query or a considered “oh I’d like to make that” after which shared it at 9:30 am and Had it carried out by 4pm that day. Confirmed it. Then launched it to Higher Sheets members.
If you happen to can’t discover even one different particular person then make it a weekly behavior with your self. If anybody feels alone and they’re studying this. Do it in the future after which electronic mail me what you made. I’m comfortable to learn any emails.
I believe this may be carried out on-line and can be comfortable to see it carried out remotely however there’s completely one thing magical about sitting down and doing the work, with others, in the identical room.
