BML - Edition 20
Fractal thinking to create a hit product
Wow, last week’s edition of Billy's Monday Lightbulb got our most replies yet.
I’ve written 19 editions, and although we get a healthy number of responses each week, nothing has compared to edition #19.
Last week, I introduced the concept of Fractal Thinking. You can read edition #19 on my website right here.
(If you know someone who’d enjoy reading that edition, please send them its link.)
Why the increased number of replies?
Honestly, I’m not surprised. When I started diving into it a few years back, I had the same reaction. "This is powerful stuff." But we're always amazed when we discover what’s been hiding in plain sight.
And look, I’m only a few steps ahead of you on studying fractals, and by no means an expert.
So let’s keep exploring. What do you say?
Because man, we’ve forgotten so much ancient wisdom. That’s why I keep showing you this graphic I had Matt create:
So, thank you for your support and for acceptance of my not talking about the usual marketing topics: lead magnets, trip wires, sales funnels, going viral, etc.
Other people cover those topics. We’re different.
(If you DO want more hands-on marketing advice, dive into the content at FiveLightbulbs.com)
Now get ready because we’re diving back into fractals . . .
Today, I’ll give you an example of fractal thinking. I’ll show you how I used fractal thinking to create a hit product: The Five Lightbulbs.
I created The Five Lightbulbs by accident . . .
Tiago Forte encouraged me to launch a high-ticket program to teach people the same things I did for Tiago's business.
We launched the program and called it Keystone.
Keystone had eight modules. Modules #2 - #8 covered normal marketing topics like lead magnets, email marketing, and product launches.
But Module #1 was different. If you were to look at the curriculum, you’d see:
Module #1: The Five Lightbulbs.
The Five Lightbulbs framework was new and something I developed for the Keystone program.
At the end of Keystone, when we surveyed the participants, every single person (except one) voted The Five Lightbulbs as their favorite module.
So, I doubled down on what worked.
I took Module 1, The Five Lightbulbs, and made it into its own thing:
- I fleshed out The Five Lightbulbs content
- I began using The Five Lightbulbs in my consulting engagements
- I began using The Five Lightbulbs for clients in my copywriting
- I began teaching The Five Lightbulbs
- I even trademarked The Five Lightbulbs and got the legit "®" from the U.S. Patent Office
Over the next couple of years, I went all-in on The Five Lightbulbs.
You can see what I did visually and fractally in the image below:
It's paid off.
Since leaving my career in the energy industry, although I’m grateful for the success I've had with consulting and copywriting, I have yet to experience the success I've had with The Five Lightbulbs.
But that’s not the end of the story.
Next is where you really see the fractal thinking . . .
Remember how Keystone was eight modules and how I doubled down on one?
Well, The Five Lightbulbs has how many parts? Five, of course.
If we’re applying fractal thinking, what do we do next? We pick one and double down.
After teaching The Five Lightbulbs to 100 business owners, I noticed one Lightbulb was the most popular: Lightbulb #3.
In hindsight, this isn't too surprising since Lightbulb #3 is the one that best helps you stand out in a crowded market. And these days, isn't every market crowded?
So, I doubled down on Lightbulb #3:
- I fleshed out the content for Lightbulb #3
- I began consulting on Lightbulb #3
- I launched a high-ticket program on Lightbulb #3
Going back to what I did with Keystone, does this sound similar?
And if you read edition #19, you know that’s a special word: similar.
Self-similarity is our key characteristic of a fractal pattern.
Here’s the updated visual:
Do you see the fractal pattern?
It may be helpful to show you the Russian Doll visual from edition #19 because that visual does such a good job of demonstrating a fractal pattern:
Now, let's see the "Russian Doll effect" applied to my product creation.
Check out the visual below:
To show it as even more like the Russian Doll visual . . .
See the fractal pattern now?
You might look at these product creation visuals and say, “That’s just the 80/20 rule." And you’re correct.
The rule states that 20% of the whole will contribute 80% of the benefits.
In my case, one Keystone module (The Five Lightbulbs) contributed disproportionate benefits. And within that module, one part (Lightbulb #3) contributed disproportionate benefits.
Remember in edition #19, where I told you how fractals explain the 80/20 rule -- and so much more?
Fractals are such a better way of grasping 80/20, and I hope my teachings here in Billy's Monday Lightbulb expand our understanding of the 80/20 rule.
Finally, I want to leave you with one more thought, and this is a biggie . . .
What else do you notice about the fractal pattern? It involves sacrifice.
What did I sacrifice in creating The Five Lightbulbs? Many things:
1) The time and attention I could have devoted to other projects besides The Five Lightbulbs.
2) The money I spent to create The Five Lightbulbs (those illustrations weren't cheap)
3) Being known for something outside of The Five Lightbulbs.
(When I meet people, they say, “Oh, you’re the Lightbulb guy.” That means I sacrificed being some other guy.)
This sacrificial action makes our exploration even more interesting . . .
It means that:
1 ) Fractal thinking means doubling down on what’s working. And when you do so, you achieve disproportionate benefits because of the 80/20 rule.
2 ) Doing so involves a sacrifice.
Isn't that interesting? We'll talk about this idea more in the future.
Next week, we'll keep going with fractal thinking, applying it to revenue maximization. Fun topic, rihgt?
Rooting for you,
Billy