Collaborpedia

Learn the ropes at The Micropreneur Academy
Written by: Shadeed Eleazer
Rob Walling has developed what is billed as the first online academy for software entrepreneurs entitled The Micropreneur Academy (www.Micropreneur.com).

What Is It?
The Micropreneur Academy is both parts web based community and online training program geared towards practicing and potential software entrepreneurs. Through peer-to-peer advice and courses, the objective is to transform software startups from ground floor to launch in as little as 4 months.

The creator, Rob Walling (www.SoftwareByRob.com), is a full-time Serial Micropreneur based in Fresno, California. Rob is the main force behind the Academy, but guest contributors include Bob Walsh, author of “Micro-ISV: From Vision to Reality”, and Ian Ozsvald of ProCasts.co.uk.

What will Members Learn?
Phase I begins with defining Micropreneur goals and progresses through product development followed by business development, accounting, and venture capital processes. Each module contains up to 10 individual lessons.

What Apps Have Been Developed from Micropreneur Academy members?
Products such as social photo sharing app Pixur.me, online mind mapping tool ThoughtMuse, web based proposal software BidSketch, domain name idea engine HotNameList, foreclosure listing site flip-start, and several others.

Breakdown of Modules
Module 1: Introduction to Micropreneurship
Exchanging software for cash is the revenue model most of us think of, but there are many models available for one-person companies. In this lesson we look at your options and discuss the best time to use each approach.

Module 2: Building the Right Product
Estimating demand is one thing, but watching real people visit your website and decide whether to buy is another. This lesson looks at how, for less than $100, you can test traffic, click through rates and conversions before you build your product.

Module 3: Taking the Risk Out of Buying a Product
In this lesson we’ll look at how three purchase transactions played out.

Module 4: Creating a Killer Sales Website
Privacy policies, terms of use, copyright.should you bother with any of these? How can you create the legal documents you need without forking over a month’s rent to your lawyer?

Module 5: Proven Methods for Traffic Generation
Viral marketing has arguably the highest ROI of any form of internet marketing. Add social applications to the mix and you have the potential to very quickly generate a substantial number of users for your application.

Module 6: Growing Profits through Analytics
A/B and multivariate testing are powerful, but how do you determine what to vary in these tests? This lesson takes an in-depth look at specific approaches to increasing conversion rates.

Module 7: Launch and Beyond
The day after launch you’re going to start receiving feature requests. How do you manage them, develop the product and provide support all at the same time? This lesson takes a detailed look at how to make it happen.

Module 8: Case Studies
I built and launched a product a few years ago that went viral and garnered several hundred links in a few days from high-profile sites. The success was great but I had no idea how to monetize it.

Module 9: More on Building the Right Product
It would be nice to say “Micropreneurs never give up,” but the real answer is that sometimes an idea just isn’t going to fly. This lesson looks at how and when to make that decision.

Module 10: More Proven Methods for Traffic Generation
If you choose your niche wisely you can often own many of the top search keywords through SEO alone. But often there are related keywords that don’t directly apply to your product website. That’s where Satellite websites come in.

Module 11: Your Business

Cost of Membership
The Academy is $97 per month

What is a Micropreneur?
A Micropreneur is a highly technical entrepreneur who values time, location and income independence; in other words, the ability to control when and where she works, and how much money she makes. Micropreneurs automate ruthlessly and use outsourcing extensively.

Micropreneurship is about building and marketing niche software products and web applications.
The goals of a Micropreneur are simple: retain the ability to write code (if you choose), support yourself financially with no employees, and work when and where you like.