Hey there, solopreneur!

Two months ago in Berlin, I organized a simple founder hike through Berlin's Grunewald forest. Nothing fancy - just wanted to meet some interesting builders and get away from screens for a few hours.

Among the people I invited was this guy from a DeFi protocol.

Very chill and easy to talk to.

I had no idea that our conversation on those rainy trails would make me question everything about where I've been building my business.

We got talking about growth strategies, the usual founder stuff. He mentioned some of the challenges they were facing with their marketing.

A week later, he reached out: "Hey, would you be interested in advising our company for marketing?"

I figured, why not? I'd just apply the same playbooks I'd been running for myself and The AI Solopreneur. Same strategies that got me to 260k total followers and a successful newsletter.

How hard could it be?

Turns out, that casual 'sure, I'll help out' decision revealed something that can 10x your income:

We had a deal pretty fast. I put a number out there that felt very high to me but they agreed immediately.

That was the first sign I was onto something, but more to this later.

So I started doing what I always do - founder-led marketing, authentic storytelling, proper copywriting fundamentals.

You know, the stuff that works everywhere else.

But first, I wanted to get a reading on the market. I reached out to a few crypto CMOs I loosely knew and asked them what tactics were working for them. What were people hesitant about? What was the vibe in the space?

The CMO Calls

Here's what I discovered from those conversations:

• They totally agreed that founder-led content was the new way to go

• But they were struggling to get their founders to accept this reality

• Many projects still ran faceless company accounts and botted their engagement (crazy bad and dangerous practice..)

• Most crypto founders still think shit posting is the only way to build a brand (hint: they are wrong)

• The industry feels stuck in 2020 and wonders why no one takes them seriously

I realized something:

I'd been way further ahead on the content and marketing innovation curve than I thought.

My Basic Playbook that killed it

So we implemented the most basic but effective founder-led strategy you can imagine:

• Authentic CEO content instead of corporate speak

• Proper storytelling fundamentals

• Personality injections wherever possible

• Outreach method for the CEO to close new partnerships

• Clear definition of our enemies in our messaging

• Focus on data-insights when deciding which formats to double-down on

Nothing groundbreaking.

Just solid personal brand basics that worked for me in SaaS and indie hacker spaces.

Nothing speaks louder than results

The results told a clear story.

10 million impressions in the first month. All metrics going through the roof from week 1.

The CEO started getting invited on major podcasts. People in the industry called what we were doing "a breath of fresh air” and people started copying us.

I'm sitting there thinking:

This is just standard stuff I've been doing for years...

The Lightbulb Moment

That’t when I realized:

I wasn't some marketing genius who'd just cracked the crypto code. I was simply applying tactics from a more mature industry to one that was way behind the curve when it comes to marketing.

And if you've ever felt like you're grinding way too hard for the money you're making, this might be exactly why.

To test this theory, I started talking to crypto marketing agencies - you know, the "professionals" who were supposed to be doing what I was advising on.

Holy shit. They felt like amateurs.

These agencies were charging serious money but were completely behind on what actually works on X, LinkedIn, and email. They were stuck using formats from 2019.

That's when I understood something crucial:

this market wasn't as mature as the markets I'd been competing in. Which meant my skills were way MORE monetizable here.

Like literary 10-100x more.

If mediocre work can survive and even thrive in an industry with this much capital, imagine what happens when you bring extraordinary quality. The sky becomes the limit for you.

Talking to other companies in the space confirmed it - I could charge A LOT more in this industry and it still feels cheap to people.

The Pattern You Need to Recognize

Looking back at my career, a pattern became crystal clear - and you should look for this in your own journey:

• I've added a significant amount of income doing the same thing now, but in a different industry. My earning potential just on the advising side has reached 10x.

• All of my big wins happened in a market that was rapidly expanding (usually combined with a huge wave of venture capital)

• This is true for AI as well, but for crypto I think it's even more - companies are usually even worse with marketing and also well-funded

You might be 1 single industry change away from completely turning your life around (not even joking).

Breaking Out of the Identity Prison

I had to stop thinking of myself as "the AI solopreneur guy" and start seeing myself as someone who understands growth, period.

The skills are transferable - copywriting is copywriting whether it's for a $27 course or a billion-dollar protocol.

I realized I was limiting myself by tying my identity to one niche instead of my core competencies.

Build Close to Capital

I started digging into how these crypto companies actually operate. The numbers were insane.

I looked at protocol treasuries on platforms like DefiLlama - billions just sitting there, waiting to be deployed.

These companies HAVE to spend money to grow their ecosystems. Capital IS their product. DeFi protocols need to attract billions just to function.

In crypto, saying "we need a $300K marketing budget" gets nods, not shocked faces.

Compare this to my previous world:

• Solopreneurs agonizing over $97 course purchases

• Bootstrapped founders counting every marketing dollar

Versus:

• Protocols with billion-dollar treasuries

• Companies where marketing spend grows their ecosystem value

This completely shifted how I think about my next startup. Why struggle to get solopreneurs to pay $97 when I could build solutions for companies with billion-dollar war chests?

The Broader Principle

Crypto just opened my eyes to something bigger. This same dynamic exists everywhere there's abundant capital:

• AI companies with massive VC rounds

• Biotech firms with billion-dollar R&D budgets

• Fintech startups flush with investor money

• Any industry where capital flows freely

The lesson here is about capital proximity - building where the money actually exists instead of trying to squeeze it from broke markets.

You Might Be Playing in the Wrong Arena

If you're grinding hard but not seeing the money you think you deserve, your skills probably aren't the issue. You might just be applying them in the wrong field.

I kind of knew this intellectually, but seeing firsthand how easily these companies can spend money was still mind-blowing. Companies casually discussing 7-figure budgets like I used to talk about buying coffee.

Don't Get Stuck in Your First Industry

Most people fall into this trap (me included)

they get good at something in one industry and never leave. They assume that's just "what they do" and miss massive opportunities elsewhere.

it always feels safer to stay the same (even though the real risk is never reaching your potential)

How to Find Your Own Industry Arbitrage

The 2-Step Reality Check:

Step 1: Test Your Knowledge Against Industry Players

• Find 2-3 professionals who do what you do in your target industry

• Present your approach/solution to a problem in that space

• Ask for their take on your method

• If they're impressed by your "standard" approach = massive opportunity

Step 2: Evaluate the Competition

• Research service providers (agencies etc) in that industry who offer what you do

• If their work feels amateur compared to your standards = goldmine

What Signals High Opportunity:

Capital Abundance:

• Heavy VC funding

• Companies where capital IS the product

• Large budgets for your type of service/solution

Low Skill Maturity:

• Outdated approaches to what you do

• Poor execution of industry standards

• Basic mistakes you learned to avoid years ago

Your Permission to Pivot

Your skills are transferable. Stop limiting yourself to one industry just because that's where you started. This is a HUGE trap.

If you were waiting to pivot, this is your signal.

This was the first advisory role I'd taken in a while. Best education I could have gotten on where I should actually be building my next startup (hint: it won’t be a solopreneur product…)

I'm not looking to become a consultant - but this experience completely shifted how I think about industry selection.

It was eye opening to me so I thought I want to share this with you and it might help someone to think about if they are selling to the wrong customer.

Because there’s a high chance your price is not too high, your customer is just too broke.

See you next week (pic from the sunset in Paphos)

P.S. I released the Newsjacker 3000, a plug-n-play AI content news automation (stop doomscrolling, let the AI find interesting content angles based on the latest news).
Watch a short demo video here. Ready to use it? Grab it here