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What are the income areas of Tim Ferriss ?
Hello! Thanks for your question about the income areas of Tim Ferriss. The short version is he is worth $20 million (some place it closer to $100 million) with the majority of his wealth from book sales and investing. While I didn’t find a breakdown of specific percentages, I did locate estimates from each of his major income sources that provide an indication of their value to his brand. Below you will find a deep dive of my research / findings along with all the details for how I came to this answer.
METHODOLOGY
Tim Ferriss is very forthcoming with data of his subscription base and their associated earnings. This information provided the basis for calculations for income for each venue in which he is engaged. I also located sources that provides specific figures on his revenue to estimate some percentages. I relied on publicly available sources for verified income data. I then estimated percentages as applicable based on his net worth.
INCOME STREAMS
BrainQuicken
Tim Ferriss began his lucrative journey with the creation of the brain supplement company, BrainQuicken, in 2001. This venture laid the groundwork for what would later become the inspiration for his book, “The 4-Hour Workweek.” He sold this business in 2010 for an undisclosed amount.
Investments
Ferriss actively invests his money when possible which has proven to be a profitable venture. His investments have been spot on as an early-stage technology investor/advisor to Uber, Facebook, Shopify, Duolingo, Alibaba, and over 50 other businesses. He continued actively investing until 2015 when he turned to what would be his main income sources today.
However, the investments continue to pay today. On his blog, he stated, “The majority of my finances come from early-stage startup investing, which I started in 2007 (portfolio) and stopped about six months ago.”
Books
His books provide the foundation for other income streams. Ferriss published “The 4-Hour Workweek” in 2007 which has since sold over 1.3 million total copies. He built on the “4-hour” concept to create his brand. He has since published “The 4-Hour Body” and “The 4-Hour Chef.” In 2016, he published “Tools of Titans: The Tactics, Routines, and Habits of Billionaires, Icons, and World-Class Performers,” a compilation of strategies from his podcast guests.
E-Mail Marketing, Blogging, and Podcast Earnings
These three sources are his primary sources. He has stated, “Yes. If I wanted to fully monetize the show at my current rates, I could make between $2-4M per year, depending on how many episodes (“eps”) and spots I offer." Based on his $20 million value, that means about 10 to 20 percent from this source.
His brand provides additional income as a speaker. He has stated, “Once in a blue moon, I offer a high-priced and very limited product or opportunity, such as an event with 200 seats at $7,500-$10,000 per seat. I can sell out a scarce, ultra-premium opp within 48 hours with a single blog post.”
The Observer and other media have called Tim "the Oprah of Audio" due to the influence of The Tim Ferriss Show podcast, which has exceeded 150 million downloads and has been selected for "Best of iTunes" for three years running. Ferriss has his own YouTube channel. Social Blade estimated his annual earnings at $1.1K to $17.3K. The site also provides historical data of views, subscribers, and estimated earnings. Based on his net worth, the channel isn’t a major contributor directly.
Estimates of Earnings by Venue
We can also calculate how much he probably earn on one e-mail campaign. He gives us some data of 1,000,000 subscribers, $200-250+ CPM (just for sending, without opening guarantee) (1000000/1000)*250=$250 000. So he can earn $250,000 with just one e-mail campaign.
Let's estimate a podcast with 100,000,000 downloads at $25-100 CPM. That equals (100000000/1000)*100=$10,000,000. He can earn $10 million only with a successful podcast. Now let's calculate ads on a site with 2,500,000 visits per month, CPM of $10. That equals (2500000/1000)*10=$25 000. $25,000 by a single banner per month. We should add to this his social media profiles which total over 2,000,000 subscribers. So for now he is earning from books, blog, newsletter, social media, podcast, ROI from investments. A conservative estimate is about 10 to 20 percent of his income stream.
KEYS TO SUCCESS
Ferriss’s aggressive marketing and resourcefulness. That was evident when he published “The 4-Hour Chef” during the boycott of Amazon publishing. He turned his focus to other sponsors such as Taskrabbit, Panera Bread, and BitTorrent providers. Wired Magazine named him the “Greatest Self-Promoter of All Time.”
His influence extends beyond his books. He is also a Kickboxing Chinese world record holder and an actor which gives him a greater market potential. His product recommendations through his email list have also proved to be an important source of income. The foundation is a diversity of passive income sources.
SUMMARY
A deep dive of online research revealed that Ferriss has many sources of both active and passive income. Investments, advertising earnings, and speaking fees provide the majority of his income. It was a pleasure to help you with your search. Good luck with your project! Thanks for using Wonder! Please let us know if we can help with anything else!