Tolu Michaels discusses the process by which digital entrepreneurs create and sell intangible goods online
Tolu Michaels discusses the process by which digital entrepreneurs create and sell intangible goods online
When considering the best way to serve people beyond physical borders in 2021, the internet immediately comes to mind.
Establishing a business on the internet can take two distinct forms. Your business can either sell physical products online or provide a service. The former would have a physical form, whereas the latter would have no physical form at all.
Tolu Michael chose to provide a service – a digital product – in which she instructs individuals on how to establish a personal online reputation. She is assisting them in increasing their online visibility. I had an interesting conversation with her about what it's like to create services and sell them online to tens of thousands of people from the comfort of her Lagos, Nigeria, home. But before we get started, let's take a look back at her career.
A digital entrepreneur with a background in engineering
After studying mechanical engineering in Nigeria – which she did as a result of her passion for automobiles – she took a detour into investment banking. This occurred after she interned for a time at a Toyota after-sales franchise and realized she did not want to deal with the smell of petrol and engine oil on a daily basis.
Somewhere along her career path, she married and was forced to relocate, but during the process, she lost her job, forcing her to rethink her career path. As a woman, changing jobs and starting a new family presented astounding difficulties.
Michaels' initial impediment as a newlywed woman is not unusual. Prioritizing family over work is the number one impediment to a woman's career in a majority of family situations. According to a study conducted by Harvard Business School, more than half of Gen X and Baby Boomer men expected their careers to take precedence over their relationships. According to the study, "73 percent of men and 85 percent of women agreed that the most difficult career decision women face is choosing family over work."
For Michaels, being newly married entailed a slew of "specific rejections," in which employers assumed she would get carried away with family building and neglect her job. At this point, searching for new job opportunities had proven fruitless, and she reasoned that she could experiment on her own, which happened to be digital entrepreneurship.
“At first, I wondered what I could offer people, particularly those beyond borders, because I couldn't do anything physical. Because I lacked the capital necessary to sell physical products, I needed something I could provide to people regardless of where I was,” she explains during our Google Meet call.
Taking advantage of knowledge commerce
Digital products are essentially products that can be accessed online but cannot be held, touched, or tasted. They may take the form of music, videos, ebooks, online courses, or even this article you are currently reading. They are created and delivered exclusively via electronic means.
A digital entrepreneur builds their platform through personal branding in order to generate revenue; this is especially important in order to increase visibility and influence more sales.
Michaels explains that personal branding is all about positioning. “You don't even need a large audience; all you need is to establish yourself as an authoritative expert and thought leader. This will attract the right people and opportunities to you.”
Michaels acquired new skills during the early stages of her digital career, including a degree in Disruptive Strategy from Harvard Business School. She had also aided a few friends in developing their personal brands, and it was past time to broaden her sphere of influence.
To begin, she boosted her social media presence, which she describes as a critical component of "positioning." While social media is free to use, gaining followers and reaching a larger audience requires effort. She obtained her "first-ever client who was not a friend" via Instagram. While one might assume LinkedIn would have been at the forefront of this process, she asserts that entrepreneurs selling digital products should have profiles on all social media platforms and fully utilize each platform.
From securing her first international client to establishing a personal platform that has trained over 20,000 people in over 12 countries, Michaels teaches modern entrepreneurs how to "build purposeful and profitable personal brands that enable them to stand out and sell impactful products."
Through branding, online courses, consultations, podcasting, and her book, Show Up, she accomplishes this. For her, work entails assisting individuals in developing the clarity and confidence necessary to present themselves online, communicate their values, and make a greater impact with their work. She sells primarily through referrals from previous clients.
While some digital entrepreneurs use online sales to supplement their primary income, for others like her, it is a full-time job that provides her with a living.
Michaels became an ardent digital product creator after earning her first thousand dollars simply by putting her thoughts together and selling to her audience. What is more critical to her is positioning herself as someone whose products are not just for the African market, but for an untapped global market as well.
As someone who speaks candidly about juggling motherhood, selling digital products not only enables her to make an impact while earning money, but also allows her to work primarily from home, close to her daughter.
Courses and Certification
Digital Communication Course and Certificate
Advanced Digital Marketing Course and Certificate
Social Media Course and Certificate
Social Media Marketing Course and Certificate
