This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
[Music]
Here's an interesting story today. Well, it's a listener question, but they have a scenario that I think is worth considering. They've got a YouTube channel about quitting smoking. So they're helping people to quit this addiction, live better, et cetera. I think it's a very noble effort.
It's also a big target market. Like there's a lot of people, you know, who want to quit smoking or quit some other habit or improve some habit. And they have wisely decided to focus on this one slice of that. But they want to earn commissions by referring viewers to therapists. So when you have this kind of advocacy project and you want to monetize it, how does that work?
And what are the ethical and practical concerns of this idea? This was the first I had come across this particular topic. And I think I've got an answer that's gonna be helpful to this person. So if you're out there just trying to figure out what your next hustle is or trying to grow, improve an existing one, maybe this will be interesting to you as well. Lots of different case studies and models we look at here on the podcast.
And we'll just kind of keep it going. Action oriented as always, the detail question and my answer, we're gonna hear from Alicia. All that is coming right up. Stay tuned. [Music]
Hi Chris, this is Alicia.
And I'm starting a YouTube series to help people stop smoking by creating powerful habits. That's just my entry point since I used to be a smoker and many people struggle to quit. Eventually, I hope to turn this into a whole business with the online course and membership program. Until then, however, I like to earn commission from referring viewers to programs I believe in and to qualified professionals. It's the second part I'm wondering about.
What are the ethics of referring people to therapists or counselors? I wanna make sure I'm doing it the right way, but I don't wanna give up on my idea since I think it's powerful. What do you think? [Music]
Well, I guess first things first, this is the kind of thing where it's important to look up your local laws like wherever you are operating from. I understand you're doing YouTube and reaching people everywhere, but it kind of matters where your business is based.
But secondly, the most important thing is disclosure like noting to viewers that you might have a relationship or a financial interest in any referral that you're making, make sure that any therapist you're referring to are aware of exactly what you're doing just to make sure there's no surprise or confusion. But I also think like in this case, it's a great example of something like BetterHelp or TalkSpace or one of these other networks that does a lot of sponsorship through podcasts and YouTube and elsewhere. This might be the perfect referral source because they are used to the online world. They have worked in lots of different jurisdictions. They've covered their bases in that way and they are doing exactly what you're hoping to do.
They're helping people get help and they're paying commissions, often good amounts of commissions to the people who are referring clients to them. So that might be the direction to go in. You can reach out to the brands directly. They all have partnership directors. You can find those contacts and emails on LinkedIn.
You can also just send them a direct message on Instagram. Sometimes that works. And they also tend to work through agencies. So you can both go direct and/or work with an agency, basically start pitching them. And if your channel is getting enough attention and you're clearly reaching an ideal target market, then it might be an ideal fit.
Good luck, let us know how it goes. Listeners, thanks for being out there, sidehustleschool.com for the complete archives of the show, download or stream. New episodes wherever you get your podcasts, subscribe or follow. Much more is on the way. My name is Chris Guillebeau.
This is Side Hustle School. [Music]
From the Onward Project.
