Newsletter #3: How AI Is Creating The Biggest Opportunity For Information Entrepreneurs In Decades

"But I'm not an expert! Who would buy knowledge from me?"

I constantly hear this question from aspiring marketers who want to build a profitable information business or earn a side hustle income.

What if I told you that in today's market, having less expertise might be an advantage when starting out?

It sounds counterintuitive, but I've seen it happen repeatedly: entrepreneurs with moderate knowledge outperforming recognized experts in the same field. All because they understood something the experts missed.

In today's newsletter, I'll show you exactly why selling information products is the perfect business model for creating true freedom, even if you're not the world's foremost expert—and how modern tools have completely changed the rules of the game.

But here's something important to understand right away: Monetizing information products doesn't mean you have to create your own products from scratch.

You can profit from information products in two ways:

1. Create and sell your own information products

2. Promote someone else's products as an affiliate marketer

For those unfamiliar with affiliate marketing, it's a business model where you earn commissions by promoting other people's products. The concept is simple:

1. You find a product you believe in (preferably one you've used yourself)

2. You get a special tracking link from the product owner

3. You promote that product through your content, emails, social media or ads

4. When someone buys through your link, you earn a commission

The beauty of affiliate marketing is that you can start earning income immediately without creating your own products. The product owner handles all the product creation, customer service, and fulfillment— you simply focus on promotion.

In The International Player, I shared how I got started: I began by promoting other people's products before creating my own.

Whether you create your own products or promote others', the strategies I'm about to share will help you succeed. Let me show you why information products matter so much and how you can take advantage of this opportunity immediately.

What Is a Knowledge-Based Product?

Knowledge-based products deliver information, education, or expertise rather than physical goods.

These include:

• Videos

• Ebooks

• Books

• Seminars

• Workshops

• Coaching

• Online courses

• Masterminds

• Memberships

• Software (in many cases)

The end product of each is knowledge of something that helps the customer learn, improve, or solve a problem.

Why Knowledge-Based Products Create True Freedom

There are four key advantages that make knowledge products ideal for creating a lifestyle of freedom:

1. Highly Lucrative

Knowledge products offer extraordinary profit margins because they cost virtually nothing to deliver. Once created, each additional sale adds almost pure profit to your bottom line.

Let's look at the math:

• Physical product selling for $50 might have a $25 cost (50% margin)

• Knowledge product selling for $50 might have a $1 cost

This dramatic margin difference gives you tremendous flexibility in how you market and sell your products.

For affiliates, the margins are also impressive. Many information product creators offer 50-75% commission rates because their delivery costs are so low. That means you can earn $25-$37.50 on a $50 product you didn't even have to create!

2. Subjective Pricing

Perhaps the most powerful benefit of knowledge products is that their price isn't determined by commodity pricing.

Because when selling an information product, the price is subjective.

The price is determined by the transformation you provide, not by manufacturing costs or competitor pricing.

For example, if your course helps someone save $10,000 on real estate costs, charging $997 is a bargain for the customer and highly profitable to you.

3. Emotionally Rewarding

Beyond just making money, selling knowledge products creates a deep sense of fulfillment. There's nothing quite like receiving messages from customers whose lives you've impacted.

This emotional reward creates sustainability in your business, keeping you motivated and engaged even when challenges arise.

Even as an affiliate, you can experience this reward when you connect people with solutions that genuinely help them.

4. Automated Fulfillment

With knowledge products, delivery can be completely automated. Customers pay and immediately receive access to your digital content, without any manual intervention required.

This automation allows your business to operate 24/7 without requiring constant oversight.

For affiliates, this means you never have to worry about product delivery, customer service, or refunds - the product owner handles all of that while you focus on promotion.

The Four Types of Knowledge Products You Can Create

Four types of knowledge products work exceptionally well in today's market:

1. Compilation Products

These products compile valuable information in an organized format. Examples include:

• "10 Ways to Build 6-Pack Abs in 30 Days"

• "7 Secrets of How to Become a Millionaire"

• "21 Trading Strategies for Beginners"

A classic example of this would be the Chicken Soup for The Soul book series. It's a compilation of many motivational and inspiration stories by two authors, Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen. You can still look this up in Amazon, again, very old classic.

2. Step-by-Step Guides

These products provide sequential instructions to achieve a specific outcome. Examples include:

• "Guide to Launching Your Facebook Ad Campaign"

• "How to Detox Your Body in 2 Weeks"

• "5 Steps to Raise Fund for Charity"

The secret to success with these products is making the action steps crystal clear after each section.

However, with AI, this opportunity becomes a two headed sword - it’s easy to create by using AI but at the same time, it means the information becoming less valuable.

3. Enhanced Products

These products take existing concepts but combine or present them superiorly. I explained in The International Player:

"When the late Steve Jobs presented the iPhone, he showed two things: the internet and email. And then he showed the iPhone. The iPhone represents these elements combined. It's not a new thing on its own because there were already smart phones in the market at that time. But it's an 'enhanced product' to the world."

Enhanced information products follow the same principle - combining existing knowledge in ways that make it more valuable or accessible.

4. New Discovery Products

These products focus on sharing emerging trends, technologies, or approaches.

Also, shared in the The International Player book:

"Here's how the Discovery Product approach works... First, you find a new discovery. Something that's new in your industry... You'll test out this new [approach] and try to make a success out of it. Crack the code. Discover how it works. MAKE IT WORK. Then, turn your result into a case study... into an info-product and sell it to the market."

The Truth: You Don't Need to Be the World's Top Expert

One of the most common objections I hear is: "But I'm not an expert! Who would buy knowledge from me?"

The reality is that you don't need to be the #1 expert in your field. You simply need to be a few steps ahead of your customers.

Think about it this way: if someone is at level 1 in a skill, and you're at level 5, you have valuable knowledge to share - even if others are at level 10.

And if you're an affiliate marketer, you don't even need to be the expert at all - you just need to be good at connecting people with the right experts for their needs.

The AI Content Revolution Has Changed Everything

Today's reality is even more encouraging for aspiring knowledge entrepreneurs. With the rise of AI tools like ChatGPT, Jasper, and others, you can create high-quality content even faster.

We have even built an AI book writer to help our customers. You can see it at https://composechapter.com.

AI tools can help you:

• Research topics thoroughly

• Outline your knowledge products

• Draft initial content

• Edit and refine your material

• Generate ideas for examples and case studies

This means the barrier to entry for creating knowledge products has dropped dramatically. You no longer need to be a gifted writer or spend months drafting content. With the right tools, prompts and direction, AI can help you produce professional-quality material in a fraction of the time! 🤩 

The Big Question: If Everyone Can Create Content With AI, How Do You Compete?

This brings us to a critical question. If AI makes content creation accessible to everyone, won't the market become saturated with knowledge products?

How can you possibly stand out?

It's a valid concern. But here's the truth: democratizing content creation through AI doesn't eliminate the opportunity - it just shifts where the competitive advantage lies.

The Secret: Brand and Database Are Everything

The real secret to success lies in just two things:

"Build your database and build your brand."

Here’s a recording from my seminar when I spoke about this:

This is more true now than ever before!

With AI making content creation accessible to everyone, your competitive advantage doesn't come from the content itself - it comes from:

1. Your personal brand - Who you are and why people trust you

2. Your database - The audience you've built that trusts you

Let me show you why these two elements are so powerful in the age of AI content:

1. Brand: Your Ultimate Competitive Advantage

Your brand is more than just a logo or how you look like - it's how people perceive you and your business. It's about creating trust.

I often share this powerful example:

Do you know this Ronnie Chieng?

This guy is one of my favorite comedians, and you can watch him for free. That’s okay because, like any influencer or celebrity, he needs to focus on building his brand.

Today, according to the agency websites, if you want Ronny Chieng to appear in your event, his speaking fee is $100,000 and for the virtual event, it is $50,000.

The same principle applies to your knowledge business. When you have a strong personal brand:

• You don't need to convince people with fancy sales tactics

• You can command premium prices for your products

• People will choose your products over competitors, even if the content is similar

• You'll get opportunities that aren't available to unknown creators

2. Database: Your Money-On-Demand Asset

Your database— whether an email list, social media following, or subscriber base is your most valuable business asset.

With a responsive database:

• You can launch new products with immediate sales

• You don't have to spend as much on advertising

• You create a barrier to entry that AI alone cannot overcome

Gary Vee's $90 Million Example

To drive this point home, I often share a powerful example about Gary Vaynerchuk:

Let me tell you about Gary Vaynerchuk. Before NFTs existed, he literally had nothing to sell to you (except for his books, which are his brand builders too). You could watch his videos for free on YouTube, follow him for free on Facebook—everywhere his content was free.

For 10 years, Gary hustled without selling anything, even though he could have made substantial money. He refused to sell. He just continued to build, build, build, and build his following until NFTs came along. That's when he launched V-Friends.

As of October 2022, the VeeFriends collection had generated nearly 79,000 ETH (over $240 million) in sales volume via OpenSea.

When when VeeFriends was initially launched in May 2021, Gary Vaynerchuk raised about $20 million from the initial drop.

Why could he command such massive sales in such a short time? Because of two critical assets: his brand equity (that's how important a brand is) and his database of followers.

This example perfectly illustrates why brand and database matter more than the content itself. Gary didn't succeed because his NFTs had better content or features than competitors, right?

How This Applies To You Right Now

No matter where you are in your journey, the path forward is clear:

1. Focus on building your personal brand - This means creating consistent content that demonstrates your expertise, sharing your unique perspective, and being visible in your market.

2. Systematically build your database - Concentrate on growing an email list, YouTube subscriber base, or podcast audience that you own and can reach directly.

3. Use AI as a tool, not a strategy - Leverage AI to create better content faster, but remember that the AI itself isn't your competitive advantage.

By following this approach, you'll build a knowledge business that is resilient against AI competition and positioned for long-term success without requiring constant effort.

Remember: If you have a database and a brand, you don't have to work so hard anymore. This is the ultimate freedom that a well-structured information business provides.

Action Steps: Getting Started With Your Knowledge Product Today

Here are four specific action steps you can take immediately:

Action Step 1: Choose Your Knowledge Product Type

Based on your experience and interests, decide which type of knowledge product you'll create:

• Compilation

• Step-by-Step Guide

• Enhanced Product

• New Discovery

If you're starting as an affiliate, decide which type of product you want to promote.

Action Step 2: Define Your Transformation

What specific change or improvement will your knowledge product help people achieve? Be as concrete as possible.

For example:

• "Help busy professionals lose 10 pounds in 30 days without lengthy workouts"

• "Guide non-technical entrepreneurs to set up their first profitable sales funnel"

• "Show new investors how to analyze stocks using three simple criteria or AI"

Action Step 3: Outline Your Content

Using the 4-step formula:

1. List out everything you want to share

2. Write everything you can think of for each item

3. Organize your thoughts in logical order

4. Edit and segment the sections

Or, simply put your information to AI and ask it to help you complete the 4-step formula.

Action Step 4: Choose Your Format

Decide whether your knowledge product will be:

• Written (ebook, report, book)

• Audio (podcast, audio course)

• Video (course, tutorials)

• Mixed media (combination of formats)

• Live (webinar, workshop, seminar)

For beginners, I often recommend starting with written content, then expanding to other formats as you grow.

Real-World Success: Untold Story

Let me share a quick case study from my own experience:

My first “famous” knowledge-based product was a DVD set of videos, which was recorded from a seminar stage.

I was speaking at a seminar, I believe, back in 2004. Or 2003. I could not remember; it was two decades ago.

I filmed my presentation and started selling it. Interestingly, I could sell to customers from around the world then!

However, the most critical part is this: You don't need it to be perfect to launch. I wasn't a good presenter then; my English is not well-spoken, the video quality wasn't good, and I'm not even sure the DVD is playable in all countries.

It's not too late to monetize your experience, expertise, or knowledge. The knowledge-based industry will continue to grow in 2025.

To your success,

Patric Chan

P.S: I’ve shared about the International Player Book in this issue. After you’ve subscribed to the Operation Zero Employees Newsletter for free, you can simply claim a copy of this best-selling book by just sharing it.