Ionut started a blog on finances after finding success with a number of specialty blogs. He discusses the beginnings and development of FinMasters in this interview.
I am 34 years old and have a background in software engineering. I am now working on FinMasters, a website that aims to impart objective financial knowledge to users independent of trends or sponsorship deals. I established my first content-focused website more than 12 years ago and used Themeisle and CodeinWP to success. I had some time off work at the beginning of 2020 and started reading financial books to educate myself about money and investments. I saw plenty of smart people pushing questionable ICO and crypto ideas.
What is your background and what are you concentrating on right now?
I was born in Romania, and I am 34 years old.
I have a background in software engineering, and ever since I started my profession, I’ve been interested in developing recurring revenue streams. I started off by learning content production, SEO, and specialized website construction utilizing all of my freelance revenue.
I’m now working on FinMasters, a website that aims to impart objective financial knowledge to users independent of trends or sponsorship deals.
I’m one of the project’s major investors right now, and I’m trying to hasten its expansion.
What is your background, and how did you come up with this idea?
I established my first content-focused website more than 12 years ago, and I’ve utilized Themeisle and CodeinWP to success. This gave me the idea to think about how I might use the same approach to different sectors in different businesses.
I also had some time off work at the beginning of 2020. I started reading several financial books at that time and started to educate myself about money and investments. I then had the thought to start a finance-related business.
The year between 2020 and 2021 was similarly turbulent for financial advice. I saw plenty of smart people pushing questionable ICO and crypto ideas. This made me wonder whether I might differentiate myself from the competitors by offering better information.
The fact that I got an application from a candidate with expertise managing content websites who was eager to start a finance-related project while looking for a lead WordPress developer for another project served as the second reason that assisted me in solidifying the notion.
How were the FinMasters built?
Milica, our project manager, was in charge of almost everything. She was able to find an appropriate expired domain, put together a writing team, and reuse and alter certain themes thanks to her skills in programming and design.
The project’s initial goal was to launch a working website, 20 articles, and a small crew of freelancers within three months of its launch in November 2020.
This cost us somewhere about $50,000. A history of the project’s costs is provided here as well:
The project was just discussed in a few pieces that were posted on our other websites; there was no launch.
What marketing techniques did you use to grow your company?
In a sector where there were already a lot of trustworthy websites and important news websites, it was very difficult to create a content website. More information on it may be found here.
We have tried a number of approaches to grow the site, including:
To build a strong reputation for the material we generated, we invested about $40,000 on its promotion across a range of platforms.
We hired the most well-known freelancers we could locate for a few pieces of material.
We carried out HARO roundups, submitted the website to several directories and gallery websites, sponsored other projects, and produced link bait content to get backlinks.
We bought five related websites and pointed them to our own domain in an effort to speed up the Google ranking procedure.
With these efforts, the monthly income has grown over time and is currently at $6000. The expenses did, however, rise higher as we persisted in pursuing faster expansion.
What are your long-term goals?
One of my long-term goals is to publish major new research. Original content that is also useful.
In order to enhance our human analysis, I would also like to incorporate more software components to the project.
We anticipate that, discounting administrative and advertising expenditures, our revenue will cover the costs of the team and the content within a year. Profit is not now a problem for us, but it will certainly become one whenever we run out of growth strategies or have an urgent need for it.
What were the biggest challenges you faced, and how did you get beyond them?
The biggest challenge so far has been the inability to get results as quickly as expected. It would have been a major setback if we hadn’t been able to wait, step up our game, and keep working.
What actions would you do differently if you had the chance?
I is unable to envision how my conduct might alter significantly in the same macroenvironment.
We could have started the project more seriously, but we didn’t know enough about how complicated it would be. We used prudence while yet allowing for learning.
What educational tools would you suggest for entrepreneurs who are just starting out?
While there is value in finding sources of inspiration, starting a project and finishing it are the most important steps. Attempt to get unpaid people to access your tools or material, then solicit their feedback. After that, make changes to your product in response to customer feedback and try to persuade one person to buy your application.
When I first started out, the only thing I understood was “bankroll management,” which I acquired through gambling on sports and playing poker and which teaches you the value of not losing your money.
The idea is that even while you are taking chances, none of them should cause you to start over or, even worse, pile up a lot of debt.
However, if the initial setup fees are modest and you have a skill that is in high demand, this might not be as difficult. As I did, you may always lose money and make it up through other freelancing projects.
For further information
As previously said, I have written more on both my own experience as well as the blogging journey here. You may contact me at @hackinglife7 on Twitter.
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