Scaling a business used to mean hiring developers, marketers, and support staff before you could grow. AI and automation have changed that equation entirely.
Today, one person can run what looks like a 10-person company. There are already 29.8 million solo businesses operating in the U.S. alone, and the number is growing because the tools finally work well enough to make it possible. Here are 5 business models that you can launch this month and scale on your own.
1. Micro-SaaS: One problem, recurring revenue
Software tools that solve 1 specific problem for a defined audience can be incredibly profitable when kept simple. Think CV builders for job seekers or scheduling tools for coaches instead of complex platforms.
These aren't exciting ideas, but they can generate consistent income because they solve real pain points people pay to fix every month. The key is keeping scope small enough that you can build and maintain everything yourself.
Why this works:
- Once you build it, each new customer costs almost nothing to serve—your margins improve with every signup
- Monthly subscriptions create predictable income that compounds instead of resetting to zero each month
- A narrow scope means you're the only decision-maker, which eliminates the coordination overhead that slows down bigger products
How to make money:
- Monthly subscriptions ($15–$50/month) for ongoing access—this is where most of your revenue comes from
- Tiered pricing (Basic/Pro/Team) lets you capture both budget-conscious users and power users willing to pay more
- Annual plans at a discount (typically 20% off) improve your cash flow and reduce churn
Tools you need:
- Stripe for payment processing and subscription management
- Email tool like Kit (formerly ConvertKit) or Loops for onboarding sequences and user communication
- Google Analytics to see which features people actually use
- Anything to build the app—it handles the frontend, backend, database, and hosting so you focus on the product, not infrastructure
7-day launch plan:
- Day 1: Interview 3–5 people in your target audience and ask what recurring problem frustrates them most
- Day 2: Write a 1-page specification of the core feature that solves this problem
- Day 3: Research existing solutions and look for what they're missing or overcomplicating
- Day 4: Build the simplest possible version that delivers the core value
- Day 5: Set up Stripe payment processing and create a basic landing page
- Day 6: Get 5 people to test your prototype and tell you what's broken or confusing
- Day 7: Launch to a small group and commit to shipping 1 improvement per week based on what you see in usage data
Build it in Anything:
- Describe your app in plain language—"I need a tool that helps job seekers track their applications and follow-ups"—and Anything builds the working version. It may take a few prompts to refine, but you'll have something functional fast.
- Anything builds user accounts and login functionality in minutes instead of days
- Connect Stripe integration for payment processing without writing complex API code yourself
- Your app works on web, iOS, and Android from the same codebase—no separate development for each platform
- Let Anything handle the infrastructure, database, and technical scaling so you can focus on serving customers, driving growth, and improving features
2. Content-to-product engine: Build an audience, then sell to it
The idea is simple: create valuable content that attracts an audience, then sell that audience digital products. You can publish productivity articles and sell Notion templates. Or create marketing videos and offer paid courses.
This model works especially well if you have more time than money to invest upfront, because the content does your marketing for you.
Why this works:
- Your content attracts an audience before you build products, which means you can validate demand before investing more time and resources
- Your audience tells you exactly what they need, which eliminates guesswork
- Once you create a digital product, it sells repeatedly with zero marginal cost: a $50 template sold to 100 people is $5,000 with no additional work.
How to make money:
- Direct sales of ebooks, templates, and guides ($20–$100 each) provide quick revenue with minimal support burden
- Online courses ($100–$500 each) work well once you've established credibility through free content
- Membership libraries ($10–$30/month) let subscribers access everything you create for predictable recurring revenue
- Paid newsletters ($5–$15/month) for premium content work especially well in finance, business, and tech niches
Tools you need:
- Substack or similar for newsletter delivery
- Gumroad for digital product sales
- Canva for professional templates and graphics
- Google Sheets or Notion for workspace templates
7-day launch plan:
- Day 1: Pick 1 specific problem you've solved that others still struggle with—your content will teach them how you did it
- Day 2: Create your first substantial piece of free content (article, video, or email) that demonstrates your expertise on this problem
- Day 3: Share this content in 3–5 communities where your target audience already gathers, like Reddit, Slack groups, Discord servers, or LinkedIn
- Day 4: Collect questions and requests from people who engage with your content to plan what to create next
- Day 5: Create a simple lead magnet (template, checklist, or mini-guide) and offer it for free in exchange for email addresses
- Day 6: Outline your first paid product based on the most common question you received, but don't overbuild—just solve 1 problem really well
- Day 7: Pre-sell this product to your email list before you finish building; if people pay, you'll know it's worth completing
3. AI-powered niche service business: Charge for strategy, automate the work
Services like ad management, SEO content creation, and lead generation used to require either a team or brutal hours of solo work. Now AI handles most of the production while you focus on client strategy and relationships. You're selling expertise and outcomes, not your time, which is how you escape the hourly billing trap.
Why this works:
- AI handles the repetitive production work (writing drafts, generating reports, scheduling posts) while you handle the strategy clients actually pay for
- Clients pay for outcomes—more leads, better rankings, higher conversions—so a $2,000/month retainer that takes you 10 hours is $200/hour
- Your costs stay mostly fixed (AI tools, software subscriptions) while revenue scales with each new client
How to make money:
- Monthly retainers ($1,000–$3,000/month) for ongoing work provide predictable recurring revenue
- Project fees ($500–$5,000 flat rates) for defined deliverables with clear scope and timeline
- Performance bonuses tied to measurable results align your incentives with clients and can significantly increase total revenue
- Upselling additional services to satisfied clients: once you've delivered results, they'll pay more for expanded scope
Tools you need:
- GoHighLevel or HubSpot for CRM, email automation, and client management
- ChatGPT Plus or Claude for AI-powered content production and client deliverables
- Zapier or Make to connect tools and automate workflows
- Anything to build custom client dashboards, reporting tools, or automation systems that differentiate your service
7-day launch plan:
- Day 1: Pick 1 specific service (SEO content, ad management, or lead generation) for 1 specific industry; specializing early allows you to avoid competing with hundreds of other businesses
- Day 2: Build 3 sample deliverables using your AI-powered workflow to act as your proof of quality
- Day 3: Document your exact process so you can replicate results consistently and scale without burning out
- Day 4: Create a simple service menu with clear pricing—no hourly rates, just outcomes and deliverables
- Day 5: Reach out to 10 businesses in your target industry with your sample work, and personalize each message with 1 specific observation about their current marketing
- Day 6: Offer 1 discounted pilot project to validate your workflow and get a case study
- Day 7: Set up your automation backend and client communication templates before taking on additional clients
4. Paid membership or community: Recurring revenue from exclusive access
A paid community generates recurring revenue from exclusive access to content, discussion, and expertise. The math works in your favor: 174 members paying $48/month gets you to 6 figures annually. No constant hustle for new clients, no one-off purchases that reset your income each month.
Why this works:
- Monthly or annual payments create stable, predictable income, meaning you're not starting from zero each month
- Members help each other, which multiplies the value you provide without multiplying your workload
- Direct conversations with members tell you exactly what they need—no surveys or market research required
How to make money:
- Base tier ($20–$50/month) providing core access to content and community discussions
- Annual memberships at 15–20% discount improve cash flow and lock in members longer
- Tiered pricing (Basic/Premium/VIP) lets you capture different willingness-to-pay levels; VIP tiers at $100+/month can significantly boost average revenue
- Add-on coaching or done-for-you services ($200–$500+) for members who want more hands-on help
Tools you need:
- Anything to build a custom membership portal with user authentication
- Stripe for subscription billing and payment management
- Email platform for member communication and automated sequences
- Video hosting for your content library
7-day launch plan:
- Day 1: Identify a specific group struggling with a problem you've solved, but stay narrow—"freelance designers who want to raise their rates" is better than "designers"
- Day 2: Create 3–5 pieces of core content addressing their most urgent problems as your launch library
- Day 3: Build a simple membership platform with basic content gating
- Day 4: Launch a founding member offer at 50% off for the first 20 people—founding members become your evangelists and case studies
- Day 5: Set up your first member-only discussion thread or live Q&A session
- Day 6: Deliver your first live training or coaching call, and record it to use as content for future members
- Day 7: Ask founding members what additional content or features would make membership more valuable to plan out your roadmap
Build it in Anything:
- Describe your community—"I need a membership site for freelance designers with a resource library, discussion forums, and monthly live sessions"—and Anything builds the portal
- Anything sets up user authentication and payment gates that protect your premium content so you don't have to write a single line of security code
- Member-only discussion spaces work across web and mobile, so your community engages wherever they are
- Stripe integration handles recurring billing, failed payment recovery, and tier upgrades without manual intervention
- Your content library organizes videos, guides, and resources while tracking what members actually use so you know what to create more of
5. Template and tool marketplace: Create once, sell forever
Templates, calculators, and design kits solve the "blank page problem" that stops most projects before they start. People will gladly pay $30 to avoid 3 hours of setup work.
You just create the template once, then sell it indefinitely with zero additional production cost. That's true passive income.
Why this works:
- People pay to skip the setup work, even when they could technically do it themselves, because time savings have real value
- You create the template once, and after that, every sale is pure profit
- Established marketplaces like Gumroad, Etsy, and Notion's template gallery bring you customers without paid advertising
How to make money:
- Individual templates ($20–$50 each) provide standalone solutions—start here to validate demand
- Template bundles ($100–$200 each) package related templates together for higher average order value
- Custom template work ($200–$500+) serves clients who want personalized versions—this is where you learn what features matter most
- Subscription access ($10–$25/month) to your entire library works once you have 10+ templates
Tools you need:
- Canva to create design templates and visual products
- Notion to build workspace and productivity templates
- Google Sheets for calculators, trackers, and data tools
- Gumroad or Etsy to sell your templates
7-day launch plan:
- Day 1: Find 5 online discussions where people ask "how do I set up…" or "is there a template for…" questions in your area of expertise
- Day 2: Build 1 template solving the most commonly asked problem
- Day 3: Create simple documentation showing exactly how to use your template to reduce support requests and refunds
- Day 4: Take 3–5 screenshots or create a 2-minute demo video showing the template in action to convert browsers into buyers
- Day 5: Write a product description that focuses on the time saved and problem solved—lead with the outcome, not the features
- Day 6: List your template on Gumroad or Etsy with accessible pricing ($20–$50 each)
- Day 7: Share your template in the communities where you found the original questions, framing your post as solving their problem, not spamming
Start building now
Each of these models can generate real income within weeks, not months. The tools exist, the playbooks are proven, and the only variable is whether you start.
If you want to build your product without hiring developers or learning to code, Anything handles the infrastructure so you can focus on customers. Describe what you need in plain language, and you'll have a working app with payments, user accounts, and hosting, ready to launch within days, not weeks.
