Chapter 34 Exercises

Exercise 1 — Platform Vulnerability Assessment (Individual, 30 minutes)

This exercise maps your current exposure to platform risk.

Part A — Inventory your current audience relationships. Create a table with five columns: Platform/Channel, Follower/Subscriber Count, Can You Export Contact Info? (yes/no), Revenue Generated in Last 30 Days, What Happens If It Disappears Tomorrow?

Fill in every platform and channel where you have an audience: TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, email list, podcast, website, etc.

Part B — Calculate your vulnerability score. For each row where "Can You Export Contact Info?" is "no," that income stream is at risk. Sum the revenue attached to platforms you cannot own. What percentage of your current (or projected) revenue is at risk from a single platform disruption?

Part C — Write a brief risk narrative. In 150–200 words, describe the specific scenario that would most damage your creator business. What platform shutting down or changing would hurt you most, and why? What would you do in the immediate 30 days after that happened?

Exercise 2 — Design a Lead Magnet (Individual or Pairs, 45–60 minutes)

Design a complete, ready-to-build lead magnet for your creator niche.

Part A — Identify the problem. List three problems your audience consistently asks about. Rank them by: (1) urgency (how painful is the problem?), (2) specificity (can you solve it in a single resource?), and (3) fit with your expertise. Choose the top-ranked problem.

Part B — Choose a format. Given the problem, which format is most appropriate: PDF guide, checklist, template, mini-course email sequence, challenge, or webinar? Justify your choice.

Part C — Design the resource. Create an outline of the lead magnet with at least 5 specific, actionable components. Every section should deliver a concrete tool, step, or resource — no vague advice.

Part D — Write the title. Write three candidate titles using the specificity principle. Each title should include: the audience, the problem, and the solution format. Choose the strongest.

Bonus: Actually build the lead magnet. Even a rough version. The exercise of building reveals gaps in your knowledge that planning alone does not.

Exercise 3 — Write a Welcome Sequence (Individual, 90 minutes)

Draft a complete 5-email welcome sequence for your email list.

For each email, specify: - Send timing (immediate / Day 2 / Day 5 / etc.) - Subject line (include a test A/B variant) - Opening line (the first sentence — the most important real estate in the email) - Core content (what does this email contain?) - Call to action (what do you want the reader to do after reading?)

Email 1: Lead magnet delivery + introduction Email 2: Your best content, no ask Email 3: Your story and credibility Email 4: Resources and community Email 5: Soft introduction of your core offer

Reflection: After drafting all five, read them in sequence as if you were a new subscriber. Does the relationship build naturally? Does the progression from value to offer feel earned? What feels forced or premature?

Exercise 4 — ESP Comparison and Setup (Individual, 45 minutes)

Part A — Research. Create a comparison table for ConvertKit/Kit, Beehiiv, Mailerlite, and one other ESP of your choice. Compare: free tier limits, paid tier pricing at 1,000/5,000/10,000 subscribers, automation capabilities, landing page builder, native commerce features, and newsletter design quality.

Part B — Decision. Based on your research, choose the ESP best suited to where you are now and where you plan to be in 12 months. Write a 100-word justification for your choice.

Part C — Setup. Sign up for the free tier of your chosen ESP. Complete the following setup steps: 1. Create an account and confirm your sending domain 2. Create a landing page for your lead magnet from Exercise 2 3. Create a form that can be embedded in your website 4. Set up the first two emails of your welcome sequence from Exercise 3 5. Test the opt-in flow from the perspective of a new subscriber

Subscribe to five newsletters in your niche or an adjacent niche. Read at least 3 issues of each.

Analyze each newsletter across five dimensions: 1. Format (curated roundup, essay, tutorial, behind-the-scenes, other) 2. Value delivery (is each issue worth reading independently of the creator relationship?) 3. Monetization (ads, product promotion, paid tier, none visible) 4. Personal voice (does it feel personal or generic?) 5. Call to action (what does the newsletter ask you to do, if anything?)

Synthesis: Based on your analysis, write a one-page newsletter strategy for your own creator business. Include: format choice and justification, posting frequency, tone and voice, monetization approach, and how it connects to your larger product ecosystem.

Exercise 6 — Content Upgrade Design (Intermediate, 45 minutes)

A content upgrade is a resource that extends a specific piece of content, offered behind an email opt-in. This exercise creates one.

Choose a piece of content you have already created or could create: a blog post, YouTube video, TikTok, or social post on a topic relevant to your audience.

Design the content upgrade: - What is the primary value of the original content? - What is the obvious "next step" or "deeper dive" after consuming it? - What resource would deliver that next step? (Template, checklist, guide, deeper analysis, companion worksheet) - Write the upgrade resource (or detailed outline if building it in full is not feasible) - Write the in-content call-to-action: the exact sentence or two you would say/show in the content to direct people to the upgrade

Test if possible: Post the content with the content upgrade offer. How many email subscribers do you gain from a single content upgrade?

Exercise 7 — Website Audit and Improvement Plan (Individual, 60 minutes)

If you have a website, audit it. If you do not, this exercise focuses on planning your website strategy.

For existing websites — complete a seven-point audit: 1. Domain: Are you on a custom domain (yourname.com), or a platform subdomain? 2. Email opt-in: Is there a visible, compelling email opt-in above the fold on your homepage? 3. Lead magnet landing page: Is there a dedicated page for your primary lead magnet? 4. Mobile optimization: Test your site on mobile. Is it usable without zooming? 5. Loading speed: Run Google PageSpeed Insights. Is it under 3 seconds? 6. About page: Is there a clear, audience-focused about page (not just your biography)? 7. Analytics: Is Google Analytics 4 or equivalent installed?

For each failed item, write a specific, scheduled plan to fix it.

For new websites — write a site architecture plan: - What pages does your initial site need? (Homepage, About, Lead Magnet Landing Page, Contact) - What platform will you use and why? (Squarespace, WordPress, Shopify, ConvertKit landing page) - What is your one-sentence elevator pitch for the homepage headline? - What lead magnet will be the primary email conversion tool?