073: Thomas Frank - How I Make Six Figures per Month as a Creator

January 9, 2023

68 min episode · 2 min read

Thomas Frank

Episode

68 min

Read time

2 min

AI-Generated Summary

Published Dec 25, 2025

Key Takeaways

✓Notion Template Revenue: Frank's two Notion templates (Ultimate Brain and Creator's Companion) generate approximately $100,000 monthly, with Ultimate Brain alone producing $600,000-$700,000 since launching in April 2022. The bundle strategy eliminated standalone sales of Creator's Companion while maximizing total revenue across both products.
✓YouTube CPM Optimization: Productivity and business software content commands CPMs of $29 on Frank's Notion channel versus $15 on his main channel, compared to the industry average of $0.50-$4. Niche-specific audiences (like pool owners watching maintenance videos) command premium sponsor rates regardless of total view counts.
✓Platform Growth Strategy: YouTube offers superior discovery compared to ten years ago due to larger audiences enabling micro-niche combinations and smarter algorithms. Frank grew a secondary Notion channel to 118,000 subscribers without promoting to his main audience, proving organic growth potential through algorithmic distribution alone.
✓Creator Pivot Methodology: Frank transitioned from College Info Geek branding to personal brand over one year by gradually removing logos and changing headers without announcements. This understated approach maintained audience continuity on the same email list using ConvertKit segments, avoiding the disruption of hard pivots or new channel launches.
✓Network Building Framework: The show up and have something to show principle combines attending conferences and meetings with maintaining visible portfolio work. Building genuine friendships with other creators organically leads to business opportunities like podcast appearances and collaborations, rather than cold pitching or transactional networking approaches.

What It Covers

Thomas Frank explains how he generates six figures monthly selling Notion templates, grew his YouTube channel to 3 million subscribers through strategic pivoting, and why starting on YouTube today is easier than ever before.

Key Questions Answered

•Notion Template Revenue: Frank's two Notion templates (Ultimate Brain and Creator's Companion) generate approximately $100,000 monthly, with Ultimate Brain alone producing $600,000-$700,000 since launching in April 2022. The bundle strategy eliminated standalone sales of Creator's Companion while maximizing total revenue across both products.
•YouTube CPM Optimization: Productivity and business software content commands CPMs of $29 on Frank's Notion channel versus $15 on his main channel, compared to the industry average of $0.50-$4. Niche-specific audiences (like pool owners watching maintenance videos) command premium sponsor rates regardless of total view counts.
•Platform Growth Strategy: YouTube offers superior discovery compared to ten years ago due to larger audiences enabling micro-niche combinations and smarter algorithms. Frank grew a secondary Notion channel to 118,000 subscribers without promoting to his main audience, proving organic growth potential through algorithmic distribution alone.
•Creator Pivot Methodology: Frank transitioned from College Info Geek branding to personal brand over one year by gradually removing logos and changing headers without announcements. This understated approach maintained audience continuity on the same email list using ConvertKit segments, avoiding the disruption of hard pivots or new channel launches.
•Network Building Framework: The show up and have something to show principle combines attending conferences and meetings with maintaining visible portfolio work. Building genuine friendships with other creators organically leads to business opportunities like podcast appearances and collaborations, rather than cold pitching or transactional networking approaches.

Notable Moment

Frank revealed his first viral blog post about a hanging desk design gained 4,000 visits in one day (from 50 daily) after building friendships with editors who initially rejected him, demonstrating how relationship-building creates engineered luck when combined with quality content.

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