Welcome back to Behind the Business.
Today I am chatting with one of my good friends, Jonah, who is a business coach for magicians. We are at a pretty similar stage in business. You have created a lot of success and made a couple million altogether. We do things quite differently. Both work, and I think that is going to be really cool to hear. There is not just one way to run a business. You can pick and choose what resonates and implement it.
You ran a podcast since 2016 for magicians. You interviewed world famous magicians and built an audience before ever selling anything. You were always too afraid to sell. You sold a 30 dollar t-shirt that did not really sell. You sold a book that made about 1,000 dollars. Meanwhile, you were doing gigs.
During the pandemic, virtual magic shows exploded. Companies were booking Zoom experiences for employees. You and your business partner leaned into it and did really well. Because you had a platform, you followed the learn in public mentality. You documented what you were learning, the software you were using, and ran workshops. People would ask how to work with you, but you did not really have an offer.
You built a program that was heavy on one on one support. You quickly grew to around 150K a year, with months around 15K. You offered unlimited one on ones. People could book as many as they wanted. It actually balanced out. Some used it heavily, some barely used it.
You transitioned into group coaching and scaled to around 27K months. Then COVID ended. Your messaging was built around virtual shows, so people would join and leave quickly. Your revenue dropped to around 9 to 10K months. You joined a higher level program and slowly rebuilt. Growth came in jumps and plateaus.
Now you hover around 60K months with one core offer, a mastermind with 60 members. You closed all other programs. You love the simplicity of one offer, one price point. You decline a lot of people because you have a minimum revenue requirement to join. That shrinks your market, but protects the quality of the room.
The pros of having a smaller entry level program were additional revenue and easy sales. The cons were that lower level clients often did not implement. You felt your energy split and your cortisol spike on calls when people had not done the work. You closed it down to focus fully on the mastermind.
Since mid 2024, you roughly doubled your revenue from high 20K months to consistent 60K months. The growth came from a mix of in person conferences with booths, consistent emailing, word of mouth, and long term brand building. Your funnel is not linear. People may join after three days or after four years.
You shared stories of giving free advice at conferences. One teenager went from 12K a year to 30K and then joined. Another young magician implemented advice, hit 40K, and joined for years. Your philosophy is help first, then invite.
Retention is one of your biggest priorities. You operate in a very small niche. Each client matters deeply. You do not want people to churn through.
After 18 months in the mastermind, you fly out to visit clients anywhere in the world at your own expense. Flights, hotels, meals. It can cost you 2,000 dollars per trip. But it increases lifetime value and deepens the relationship. You also run an annual retreat. After 12 months in the program, you cover the full retreat cost except flights. This year, 47 out of 60 members are attending.
You focus on community. You have additional coaches supporting members. The team meets twice a month to review every client and proactively reach out. If someone needs extra help, you provide it, even if it goes beyond what is written in the offer.
You also foster peer innovation through something called a 10K Mastermind, where members teach strategies worth at least 10K in impact. Over time, the value compounds beyond just your knowledge.
You still perform full time as a magician. That gives you a live testing ground to innovate and teach what works. It is intense and requires travel, but it fits this season of your life.
Your ultimate vision is 100 members, close the doors, build a waitlist, and deepen the community.
You have nothing to sell Sofia’s audience. If they want help, they can message you and you will support them.
