FastBitcoins to sponsor "Bitcoin With Jake"
How did I reach this important 'product-market-fit' milestone with my podcast?
Hi Friends!
How are you?
What a rollercoaster life is hey…?! A fine balancing act between family, friends, and work commitments. Fun, stressful, tiring, and so much more… I literally wouldn’t want it any other way!
Read on to learn about the achievement of an important milestone for my podcast.
The What?
As of 1 September 2022 FastBitcoins.com will partner with Bitcoin With Jake by sponsoring the podcast.
The How?
We have agreed a two tiered approach: 1) I will receive a fixed fee per episode released & 2) I will receive a commission on successful customer referrals.
The Why?
We expect this to be a synergistic relationship, helping on-board people to Bitcoin with high quality education, and market leading technology.
Who are FastBitcoins?
FastBitcoins was founded by Danny Brewster, who is the CEO of the business, based in the Isle of Man. Listen in to Danny’s story to learn about the genesis of his startup:
I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Danny, am very impressed by his entrepreneurial exploits, he represents just the kind of talent that is willing and able to push Bitcoin forward; I look forward to helping him grow his business.
Meantime, it’s important to mention how we were introduced, which was via my friend here in Melbourne Nathan Smith. Nathan and I connected on Bitcoin Twitter during the lockdowns, with our first meet ‘in real life’ a camaraderie boosting protest, whilst subsequently joining birthday celebrations and the Bitcoin Bush Bash.
Nathan is is the Chief Compliance Officer of FastBitcoins, with another fascinating story en route to Bitcoin, which you can listen to here:
How did I get to this point?
As with all ideas, they are nothing without execution, which more often than not spells an end to what was a seemingly promising concept. “Bitcoin With Jake” a year ago was nothing more than just that, a few ideas, beginning as a newsletter, augmented with a YouTube channel, ultimately becoming my podcast.
A huge shout out to my friends Jigs and Matty, as together we stepped up, and started talking about Bitcoin in public. We started our YouTube channel We’re So Bloody Early together, which was a hugely valuable experience, discussing our respective journeys to Bitcoin and interviewing guests in the space.
They inspired me to “be the Robbie Williams”, as Daniel Prince joked in our upcoming episode, and go solo with a Bitcoin-only 1-1 interview format. I felt that being able to really dive down into people’s stories, was much easier to do with the 1-1 conversations, and is a very effective way to translate to people the importance of Bitcoin.
Whist the newsletter I wrote here on substack, although a useful format to force me to articulate difficult concepts and form my own opinion, became hard to maintain. So I asked for feedback from the small community I had started building, who helped make it clear that focusing on speaking over writing, was the path forward for now (shout-out in particular to Daz).
In summary, it has been a typical iterative process, with many ups and downs. However, the fact that FastBitcoins are now a sponsor, gives me great confidence that this project has a future. The hunt for product-market-fit is a perilous path, but make no mistake, when someone starts paying you then you’re heading in the right direction…
How does the deal work?
In the name of being as transparent as possible, so people can see the incentive structure for themselves, here are the finer details on the agreement:
I get paid a fixed fee per episode to mention FastBitcoins
$1000 aud per month for 4 episodes
$250 aud for any extra episodes
I get a commission on customers referred to FastBitcoins
20% of fees generated from my custom referral link (work in progress)
Eg $100,000 aud exchanged at a 1% fee to FB = $200 to me
Importantly I retain full control on who I interview, and what content is produced, with a flexible exit possible for both parties if necessary. Lastly, and definitely not least, this will be paid in Bitcoin.
What must everyone remember?
As this article draws to a close there is one important reminder I have to make:
DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH….
As much as I believe the people building FastBitcoins are trustworthy, having done my own due diligence, it’s extremely important that you “Do Your Own Research”. Find out who the people are behind a project, contact other customers for references, and get familiar with the technology slowly but surely over time.
Even though I will do my best to always be affiliated with hard-working, honest, and principled people, I can never guarantee the behaviour of others. So please proceed with a realistic dose of caution, into what is a nascent industry, rampant with scams. Focus on Bitcoin only, learn to self-custody, and block out noise from the wider “Crypto” market.
How can you help?
Listen, rate, share, and subscribe to the podcast
If you’re a Bitcoin-only company reach out as I am open to additional sponsors
Lastly, if you haven’t already, please subscribe for future updates
Thank you!
Best,
Jake