Meet Alex Sedlak: He makes your yearly salary in a month (at just 24)

How much would you need to earn monthly to say your life has changed?

Despite having days where he can earn up to $200,000, Alex Sedlak reveals that his life actually changed when he earned his first $4000.

“I remember driving to work the next day and telling myself, I'll never have to worry about money again – with $4,000 in my bank account.”

Recently, our head of social, Austin Georgas, flew to Florida to meet with Alex, the founder of two of our biggest communities here on Whop: Media Labs and Print Money W TikTok.

Between cruising around in Alex’s G Wagon and a competitive 9-hole round of golf, Austin learns why Alex started his online business in the first place – and how he grew his empire to turn a monthly profit that rivals most yearly salaries. All by the age of 24.

Capitalizing on content

So, what exactly does Alex do?

Well, each of his communities is slightly different, with Media Labs being the more high-ticket offer. It’s a community run by Alex and his team that acts as an agency of sorts, pairing TikTok creators with brands to make promotional content.

Once creators sign up, they gain access to an in-depth course, increased commissions, instant access to businesses, direct deposits, personalized coaching, free samples, and weekly calls hosted by industry experts. Phew, that’s pretty jam-packed.

For a lesser fee of $40 a month, you can join Print Money W TikTok and get access to courses, calls, and a Discord chat – but you won’t get access to the same opportunities as Media Labs members, who are essentially joining a creator agency.

A business of this scale is pretty impressive, to say the least, especially for somebody who’s only 24. So, it comes as no surprise to learn that Alex had actually been creating online content for ten years before his success.

“I started when TikTok was Musically. It wasn't about money. I had videos from when I was like 14 or 15, just like GoPro montages. I got inspired by Jay Alvarez. I remember seeing him whip his Lamborghini. I was like, why can't that be me? I thought that at 14 years old.”

It’s an interesting point. As the first generation to grow up with computers and who were around for the launch of so many social platforms, creating content almost comes naturally to us. It’s just a matter of gaining the confidence to put yourself out there to a wider audience.

“What is something that I could do every day that I can actually see myself progress at? And that was when TikTok was a thing. I was like, if I post every day, I'll see myself gaining followers, and then something will help come of it. I don't know what it will be, but something will come of it.”

Before we get any further, let’s set one thing straight. If you’re reading this thinking, “Well, lucky for him, but I don’t have the same opportunities,” I’ll stop you there. Alex didn’t have a particularly cushy upbringing:

“My mom grew up homeless, and she created not a crazy or lavish life, but she got us all through a sound school system. She figured it out. And it really depends on how badly you want it. Some people say they want it, but then they get sucked into their phones all day, and they just lose another day.”

In his early college days, like many of us, Alex too was sucked into the spiral of drinking and partying – but he knew it wasn’t a lifestyle consistent with his goals.

After he made his first $4000 while still working as a patient transporter at a hospital, a fire was lit. It was go time, and slowing down? That wasn’t an option.

How Media Labs works

Essentially, Media Labs is an agency for TikTok creators, connecting them with businesses ready to collaborate on promotional content. When you join, you’re not just signing up for course materials; you’re joining a creator-focussed community designed to help you thrive.

“Basically, we connect brands to creators, so we're paying creators to make content for brands. We increase their commissions, but we're basically just the middleman. So it's like an affiliate; you could call it a brokerage, but it's more of an agency where we're just doing the middleman work. So, the creators pay us to get access to these brands. The businesses pay for the creators, and then we take a percentage of everything.”

At the core of Media Labs is a curriculum that Alex developed based on his own journey. The course covers everything you need to know about content creation, from the basics to more advanced strategies for landing brand deals – and it’s regularly updated to report the latest trends on TikTok.

New members undergo an onboarding process to figure out their content niche and match them with brands that fit their style and audience. By doing this, Media Labs ensures members aren’t just getting random opportunities, but that they are connected with the right brands. This sets Alex’s community apart from many similar content creation courses out there that basically leave it to you to find the right brands to work with.

“We'll launch every two months. It's like a webinar. So we'll have a free call and drive as many people to the free call as possible. We give them some free-game to provide value to everybody. Then, Media Labs will launch at the end of the call. So it's like a quarterly launch basically so that we get a large inflow of creators rather than one every day. Just get like 200, 300 all at once.”

Beyond the course, members also get access to weekly calls with Alex and other industry experts, who are happy to answer questions and give advice live. Plus, you’ll get access to a Discord community of other members where you can share ideas and successes to motivate each other.

And when it comes to being paid? Media Labs offers its creators direct deposit options from the brands they work with.

This (deliberate) focus on community with a hands-on approach is what makes Media Labs stand out. Don’t just take it from us, check out some of Alex’s reviews:

Building a six-figure business

Since joining Whop, Alex has experienced crazy growth. He’s built thriving communities of thousands of creators. And this rapid expansion is due to an increased demand for skilled content creators who can authentically engage audiences and softly sell products with user-generated content.

A survey from EnTribe revealed that 77% of shoppers were more likely to buy a product they found through UGC. And according to TikTok stats, user-generated content is 22% more effective than any brand's creative video. So, it makes sense that Alex focuses solely on TikTok and TikTok Shop.

Plus, with adults between the ages of 18 and 24 being 3.2 times more likely to buy something on TikTok Shop, Alex’s communities offer aspiring Gen-Z creators lucrative opportunities to tap into this market. Alex routinely pursues partnerships with larger brands for Media Labs, aiming to provide even more exclusive opportunities for members.

If you’re wondering how Alex manages all of this alone, he doesn’t. As his communities grew, he hit a pivotal point and realized there was something he would need to do to keep scaling: delegate.

“95% of business is delegating. You can't do everything by yourself. I'm good at getting attention and driving people to things, and then I just need people to do the backend systems. Once we do that, we're good. If I'm doing it by myself. I can make 30, 40, 50K a month. But ever since I’ve had a big team, that's when we started pushing big six-figure months.”

Alex invites Austin into his office to examine the backend of his Whop dashboard — and the numbers don’t lie.

“The last three months for Media Labs, we've done close to 600K. We're number seven on Whop, as a whole. We were number one for two or three weeks. As you can see, this was our first webinar. We did 200K in a day.”

Austin laughs, “You just said 200 to 300K like it was like chump change!”

“It's crazy because money's all just perspective. It's like once you do 200K a day, you're like, okay, well, what's next?”

Austin asks Alex what many of us are thinking. Does he ever take a step back and think, "Wow, I used to dream about this?"

“A hundred percent. Yeah. And it's cool, but also I'll only allow myself to do it for a couple of minutes, just a little bit, but then I got to snap back.”

For Alex, gratitude is important – but it’s no reason to become complacent. If you want your business to keep growing, you have to keep growing, too.

“People will be like, “You made it, bro!” But I'm like, I could go buy one car and be poor.”

For Alex, it's about more than money

For most of us, money is the goal. And there’s nothing wrong with that – money affords us so much in life. But when you take a look at the most successful people in the online space, they have something in common. It’s not just about money – it’s also about giving something to others.

“Are you a big journaler?” Austin asks.

“Oh yeah. It's part of the process, for sure. I've done it forever. You need to be able to keep track of where you are in order to know where you need to go.”

During their drive to Alex’s office (a 3-bedroom Florida apartment just off the Intracoastal Waterway), Austin asks whether he ever thought posting on social media would lead to driving a $200,000 G Wagon.

“I want to say no, but part of me always knew. If you build a following, people really like you, they want to support you. And if you can build something that not only you gain from, but everyone wins, then it's foolproof. It's like if you want it, you can do it.”

And that’s part of the reason Alex is so successful. While other courses leave you much to figure out on your own, he makes the process as simple as possible for his mentees. Over 50,000 new members have signed up to his communities in the last 12 months, to learn how to passively make income on TikTok.

“That's real impact, though,” Austin says. “Money is cool, but changing other people's lives is actually how you make an impact.”

“Exactly, yeah. So hopefully, in a month or so, we'll be number one and two on Whop.”

Why online courses and communities are so profitable

While you can sell anything digital here on Whop, our most successful creators run courses and communities. There’s something these business models share: profitability.

In 12 months, Alex turned over $1.1 million – and 90% of that is net profit.

“There are no other businesses with profit margins like online programs or courses,” Austin laughs.

“Oh yeah, no, I mean it's an info product. There's no cost to fulfill it whatsoever. Nothing else can do that for you other than a personal brand.”

That’s the thing about courses. There are minimal start-up costs, and once you create the course material, it essentially becomes a passive income.

And when it comes to course popularity, data from Semrush shows that those teaching digital marketing skills are by far the most popular.

Even more eye-opening, 81% of people who changed career paths attribute the pivot to an online course. Content creation, affiliate marketing, Amazon FBA, reselling, podcasting – all of these side hustles require digital marketing skills to succeed.

That’s the best thing about courses – anyone with specific skills can monetize their knowledge with the right strategy, no matter how niche. People are willing to pay for advice from those who have what they want and are where they want to be.

“Many people struggle to figure out how to make money from their content, I wanted to provide a clear path that others could follow.”

We’d say there’s never been a better time to build a course. The e-learning industry was worth around $312 billion in 2023, but it's projected to grow to $661 billion by 2032, demonstrating how lucrative these business models can be.

What's next for Alex?

While Alex has no plans to slow down with either of his communities, he has begun to venture into other areas. After learning how profitable TikTok Shop can be, Alex decided to manufacture and sell his own product.

“Obviously you have online businesses, but you also have, I think you have a glasses business?” Austin asks.

“That's like a passion project that I was just like, you know what? I want to sell something on [TikTok] Shop because it's such a lucrative opportunity. What is something I use daily that I could just rebrand better?”

He landed on blue light glasses, which he already used but knew he could improve.

“I was like, all of these blue light glasses have clear lenses, I want to make 'em actually work. So, orange lens. I made my own, and we sold out 5,000 pairs.

I never wanted to make a product I don't use myself personally. I use those every single night.”

There’s something to be learned here. Having content creation and digital selling skills in your toolbelt opens you up to a world of online opportunities, and experience in one area often sets you up for better success in another. These skills are highly transferable and worthwhile to learn if you want to make money online (by whichever means).

“You know what you're good at,” says Austin.

“Exactly. Yeah. I'm good at getting attention and driving people to things, and then I just need people to do the backend systems. Once we do that, we're good.”

So, you want to make money on TikTok?

Look, I’d be surprised if we’d gotten this far and the thought of making money with TikTok hadn’t crossed your mind yet.

Whether you want to eventually go full-time in content creation or you’re just looking for a side hustle to make some extra cash, you can achieve it with TikTok. And while there’s a whole lot more detail we could go into, for the purposes of this blog, we’re going to break it down as simply as possible.

The first step to making money on TikTok is identifying your niche. What are you passionate about? What do you enjoy creating content around? Finding your niche helps you build a loyal audience that resonates with your content. Whether it's cooking, fashion, travel, beauty, tech, or lifestyle, focus on a specific area that showcases your personality and expertise. Remember that your niche will affect the brands that want to work with you, so be clear about who you are and your interests.

Analyze the competition

Once you identify your niche, analyze existing and successful content creators in that space.

Consider the type of videos that are performing well, and think about how you can bring your unique touch to trending content. Understanding your competition allows you to position yourself effectively and create a space where you can stand out.

Create the right content

After pinpointing your niche, it’s time to start creating content.

While you don’t need the latest tech to start, having a decent phone camera and microphone makes a difference in how your content is perceived. But remember, TikTok content doesn’t have to be perfect. Authenticity makes content good, so be real and create content from the heart.

Engage with your audience

To monetize, you need an audience. And to build an audience? You need to be engaging.

TikTok attention spans are short (after just 20 minutes on TikTok, users experience a significant decrease in attention span), so you’ve gotta capture attention effectively before users scroll on.

Having a hook and text on screen can help stop viewers in their tracks and keep watching your video. Another way to ensure your engagement grows is by posting regularly – so aim to share content at least a few times a week to keep your audience engaged and attract new followers.

Responding to comments, answering questions, and interacting through live streams helps build a community around your content and your personal brand, making followers feel valued and brands more likely to collaborate with you.

Invest in learning

Now that we’ve covered the basics, you should consider investing in learning. TikTok competition is stiff, but you can shortcut your way to success by learning from those who have already figured it out.

Alex Sedlak’s communities, Media Labs, and Print Money W TikTok are perfect for aspiring creators. Joining these communities gives you access to the right resources to fast-track your financial growth. Both offer in-depth courses covering content creation, monetization strategies, and proven techniques that have worked for Alex and thousands of other creators.

Something really valuable about these communities is the personalized coaching and support from experienced mentors who are there to help you refine your strategies and improve your engagement rates. And no, there are no requirements to join, such as follower count. In fact, Media Labs teaches you how to grow to 5k followers – and fast.

Monetize your content

When it comes to monetizing TikTok content, there are several avenues you can explore. Alex’s communities focus heavily on TikTok Shop and affiliate marketing, but they aren’t your only options. Sponsored posts are another method, and so are brand partnerships.

But wait, there’s more. You can also earn directly from TikTok or use your personal brand to build sales funnels for digital products, your own course, tutorials, livestreams, and private communities - all of which you can do with Whop.

Be patient

Lastly? Know that TikTok isn’t an overnight cash machine. It can take time to build a following and create a personal brand that sticks – but the more work you put in, the faster you’ll get there. While Alex’s story is insanely inspiring, it’s worth noting that there were years when he hadn’t yet seen the fruits of his labor.

“That's the problem, people see the lifestyle, and they're like, “Well, I just need that dude.””

Alex recounts that while he was still getting his own business off the ground, it wasn’t all smooth sailing. He went from his mom's basement to a “tiny ass” (his words, not mine) apartment for $400 a month, then back to his mom's basement.

“Not luxury living by any means,” he laughs. “Then I moved to Boca in an apartment that's actually on this road up here. That was $3000 a month. And then, I moved to Ohio and got a house for $3,400 a month. Now I'm here.”

Two things seem certain: good things take time, and nothing good comes easy. One could argue, though, that the grind of building your own business is far superior to that of grinding for somebody else’s dream.

Start making money on TikTok with Whop

Okay, okay, I hear you! You’re ready to start making money with TikTok, and you’ve come to the right place.

Head to Whop to browse courses and communities built to help creators just like you make their first dollar on TikTok.