How Dickie Bush's Writing Challenge Grew to a 10,000 Member Community
Who is Dickie Bush?
Dickie Bush, the founder of Ship 30 for 30, initially worked as a portfolio analyst after graduating from college as a former athlete. He began writing online as a hobby in 2020 and turned his personal writing journey into a community-driven course, focusing on building a daily writing habit.
What problem does Ship 30 for 30 solve?
Ship 30 for 30 tackles the challenge of consistent online writing by creating a structured and supportive community that transforms writing from an isolated task into an engaging, collaborative journey, which helps participants build a lasting habit and connect meaningfully with others. This approach alleviates the common struggles of writer's block and lack of accountability, making it highly attractive to aspiring writers who seek growth and feedback in a communal setting.
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Founder-Market Fit
Skills
What skills did Dickie Bush have that led to their success?
How did Dickie come up with the idea for Ship 30 for 30?
Dickie Bush initially explored writing as a side project while working a full-time job on Wall Street. Realizing his initial efforts to build an audience through a personal blog weren't taking off, he decided to leverage the community aspect of Twitter by committing to writing daily Twitter threads for a month. Towards the end of this challenge, a thread unexpectedly went viral, thanks to shares by notable figures like Naval Ravikant. The rapid growth in followers and engagement sparked the idea for Ship 30 for 30.
Faced with the solitude and accountability challenges of writing alone, Dickie identified the value in community support for aspiring writers. He tapped into this insight by creating an accountability group where participants wrote and published content every day for 30 days. The response was overwhelmingly positive, indicating a significant demand for such a supportive writing environment. As he refined the program, Dickie partnered with Nicholas Cole to deepen and expand the educational aspect of Ship 30 for 30, structuring it into a more organized, content-rich course. Over time, they iterated based on participant feedback and success stories, continuously enhancing the course's effectiveness and capacity to nurture budding digital writers.
How did Dickie Bush build the initial version of Ship 30 for 30?
Ship 30 for 30, co-founded by Dickie Bush, was initially built as a cohort-based online writing course designed to help individuals develop consistent writing habits. The development process was straightforward; it began with Bush's personal challenge of writing daily Twitter threads for 30 days to build an audience, which led to him inviting others to join in this disciplined writing practice. The course was structured around writing and publishing an atomic essay each day, leveraging platforms like Twitter for distribution and community engagement. Initially, the product was built using basic tools such as Typeform for initial interest validation, Notion for landing pages, and Slack for community interaction, costing almost nothing in setup. Over time, the experience has been streamlined and enriched with proprietary software, TypeShare, and extensive course content, though it was initially more manual and reliant on personal iterations to improve based on feedback.
What were the initial startup costs for Ship 30 for 30?
- Initial Cohort: The first cohort of Ship 30 for 30 required participants to pay $50, which they could earn back if they completed the 30-day writing challenge.
- Early Pricing: After the first cohort, the course was priced at $99 for subsequent groups.
- Attorney Fees: Dickie Bush spent $230 on attorney fees to set up the business.
How did Dickie launch Ship 30 for 30 and get initial traction?
The program launched by promoting cohort challenges where participants committed to writing daily for 30 days, supported by a community primarily on Twitter and Circle. Early launch involved strategic uses of hashtags and community engagement, encouraging people to publish and share their writing publicly to build momentum, rather than relying on traditional marketing platforms.
What was the growth strategy for Ship 30 for 30 and how did they scale?
Dickie Bush founded Ship 30 for 30 and significantly grew his audience using Twitter. Initially, he had only a small following, but quickly expanded it by engaging with others and sharing valuable content. He started by summarizing podcast insights and tweeting them, which caught the attention of well-known personalities in the tech and self-improvement space, leading to retweets and a boost in his visibility. This step-by-step approach involved consistent tweeting and interacting with people, which helped him to expand his reach to hundreds of thousands of followers.
Why it worked: Twitter's retweet feature allows anyone to share content if it adds value, making it an effective platform for reaching a larger audience with good content. By offering valuable insights consistently, Bush drew attention from major figures, leading to organic growth.
Community Building
Bush emphasized the importance of community in the growth of Ship 30 for 30. He turned writing from a solitary activity into a communal one, creating a space for writers to engage with each other. This sense of community was vital, as members felt accountable and were motivated to write and publish regularly.
Why it worked: The shared experience and accountability of a community encourage participants to engage and commit. It helps prevent the loneliness often associated with writing and replaces it with support and camaraderie, essential for retaining members and fostering continuous engagement.
Partnerships
After Ship 30 for 30 began, Bush partnered with Nicholas Cole, who had extensive experience in online writing. This partnership helped enhance the course with a robust curriculum, combining Bush's community-building skills and Cole's expertise in writing, to create a more comprehensive learning experience.
Why it worked: Collaborating with an expert allowed Ship 30 for 30 to offer more value through structured learning and professional insights. It provided credibility and enriched the program's content, making it more attractive to enrollees seeking not just community but also skills development.
Product Development and SaaS Integration
The development of TypeShare, a software tool for writers, helped Ship 30 for 30 expand its offerings beyond education to include digital tools. TypeShare serves as a publishing platform, simplifying the process of sharing content across multiple channels.
Why it worked: Providing a tool that complements the education component of Ship 30 for 30 added an additional layer of value for users. It helped streamline the process of writing and sharing, removing barriers and encouraging more regular output from members.
What's the pricing strategy for Ship 30 for 30?
Ship 30 for 30 charges $499-$799 for a cohort-based online writing course, emphasizing a structured 30-day writing challenge with social accountability; it initially started with a $50 refundable fee.
What were the biggest lessons learned from building Ship 30 for 30?
- Leverage Social Accountability: Ship 30 for 30 grew by transforming writing from a solo activity to a communal one, using social accountability within cohorts to help participants stick to their writing goals and develop habits.
- Embrace Quick Feedback Loops: Dickie emphasized the importance of writing online as a way to get immediate feedback, test ideas quickly, and iterate based on audience reactions, which aids in refining both content and strategy.
- Value Iterative Improvement: The course evolved from a simple accountability group into a structured program by consistently iterating on the curriculum and participant experience based on feedback and outcomes.
- Start with a Cohort Model: The cohort-based approach to learning and community building allows for pacing and structured progress, which is critical for novice writers to develop consistency and combat isolation.
- Expand Thoughtfully: While Ship 30 began with a focus on helping writers build habits, Dickie and his team expanded into software (TypeShare) and other products to support and monetize their community, showcasing a strategic diversification in business offerings.
What platform/tools does Ship 30 for 30 use?
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More about Ship 30 for 30:
Who is the owner of Ship 30 for 30?
Dickie Bush is the founder of Ship 30 for 30.
When did Dickie Bush start Ship 30 for 30?
2020
What is Dickie Bush's net worth?
Dickie Bush's business makes an average of $/month.
How much money has Dickie Bush made from Ship 30 for 30?
Dickie Bush started the business in 2020, and currently makes an average of .
