Content Academy

How a 21-Year-Old Grew a Content Academy to $20K+/Month in 12 Months

March 13th, 2025

Founded By

Mino Lee

Monthly Revenue

$20.3K

Founders

Profitable

Yes

Year Started

2023

Customer

B2C

Founded By
Mino Lee: Monthly Revenue
$20.3K

Founders
1: Profitable
Yes

Year Started
2023: Customer
B2C

Who is Mino Lee?

Mino Lee is a 21-year-old entrepreneur from New York City who dropped out of college to pursue his passion for building Content Academy; despite initial skepticism from his parents, he now earns over $20,000 per month.

What problem does Content Academy solve?

Content Academy helps aspiring creators grow their social media presence and make money, offering genuine mentorship and strategies to turn online influence into income.

Content Academy Homepage

How did Mino come up with the idea for Content Academy?

Mino Lee came up with Content Academy from personal experiences and the realization of an opportunity in content creation and online coaching. After dropping out of college, he observed the disconnection between traditional education and the rapidly evolving digital economy. He had firsthand experience with building a significant following on social media and noticed that many creators struggled with the same challenges.

Mino validated his idea by trying various business models and ultimately found one that resonated with him and his audience. He initially attempted different ventures, like high-ticket coaching and dropshipping, but found more satisfaction in helping people grow their social media presence. The turning point was understanding that transparent, real-life content could naturally engage and attract people without the hard sell, thus creating a demand for a community like Content Academy.

Throughout his journey, Mino faced skepticism from his family and significant challenges in connecting with his intended audience. However, these experiences taught him the importance of empathy and authenticity, which he incorporated into refining his business model. By understanding the importance of trust and genuine connection, Mino tailored Content Academy to focus on nurturing long-term relationships and providing real value without the high-pressure sales tactics prevalent in the industry.

How did Mino Lee build the initial version of Content Academy?

Mino Lee built Content Academy by leveraging digital tools and platforms to create an online mentorship and course community focused on growing social media presence and monetization. He primarily utilized the Whop platform to host his course offerings and manage memberships, which allowed seamless integration of payment systems and community interaction. The initial version of Content Academy likely started on a smaller scale, iterating quickly based on member feedback and market demand. Mino used tools like Zapier for automation and to streamline processes, effectively reducing manual tasks. Building the first version was challenging, especially without external support, but his ability to empathize with his audience and adapt the program based on real-time feedback played a crucial role in refining and enhancing the product over time.

What was the growth strategy for Content Academy and how did they scale?

TikTok and Instagram

Content Academy, led by Mino Lee, successfully leveraged TikTok and Instagram as primary growth channels by creating engaging and authentic content. Mino used these platforms not just to sell courses or promote a community blatantly but to document his journey as a young entrepreneur. His content resonated with a large audience, earning him over 1.4 million followers. By showing his personal growth and business challenges, he built trust and curiosity among viewers, leading them to explore Content Academy further.

Why it worked: This approach of storytelling and transparency effectively built a connection with the audience. Instead of a hard sell, his content provided value and inspiration, which naturally directed interested followers to his business, resulting in organic growth and customer acquisition.

Email Marketing

Email marketing played a crucial role in monetizing Content Academy's community. Mino used email effectively by automatically adding every user who joined through Whop into his email list, whether they were free or paid members. This segmented approach allowed targeted communication, ensuring the right message reached the right people. When launching high-ticket offers, a single email to existing members could book multiple calls, demonstrating how potent and efficient this channel was for conversions.

Why it worked: By capturing emails at the point of entry into his products and services, Mino ensured he could maintain direct communication with his audience. This channel allowed him to nurture relationships, provide updates, and promote offers directly, leading to higher engagement and conversion rates compared to other methods.

Community Engagement

Mino Lee significantly improved customer retention by focusing on community engagement and reducing churn. His commitment to continually enhancing the program and showing genuine interest in the personal and professional growth of his mentees effectively halved the churn rate from 40% to 21%. This emphasis on long-term value and relationship-building within the community fostered loyalty and ongoing revenue.

Why it worked: By keeping the community dynamic and responsive to member needs, he created a sense of belonging and ongoing support, which encouraged members to stay. This approach resulted in a more sustainable business model with members who were less likely to cancel their subscriptions.

Public Transparency

Mino's approach included being openly transparent about his business's successes and failures, regularly sharing his earnings and business challenges with his followers. This transparency demystified the entrepreneurial process for his audience and built a trustworthy brand image.

Why it worked: People are more inclined to engage with and purchase from businesses that they perceive as honest and relatable. Publicly sharing his journey in an honest manner not only attracted a wider audience but also positioned Mino as a credible and authentic figure in the online coaching space, leading to increased interest and growth in his business.

What's the pricing strategy for Content Academy?

Content Academy offers a free access tier with a community chat and content course, while the paid plan, priced at $97/month, includes enhanced features like a content bootcamp, business bootcamp, and weekly group coaching calls.

Content Academy Pricing

What were the biggest lessons learned from building Content Academy?

Embrace Authenticity: Mino found success by being real and open. Instead of hard selling, he showed his journey, which helped build trust and a loyal audience.
Focus on Long-Term Value: Reducing churn by half showed that prioritizing long-term customer relationships over quick sales leads to sustained success.
Resilience is Key: Dropping out against his parents' wishes wasn't easy, but Mino used it as motivation to prove himself and succeed.
Leverage Feedback and Pivot: By taking community feedback seriously, Mino continually improved Content Academy, which helped keep members engaged.
Balance and Mental Well-being Matter: Mino emphasizes the importance of mental health and work-life balance, including regular exercise to maintain focus and productivity.

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