How a simple recipe blog turned into a thriving side business — all from one email.
Challenge
Amanda M. and her husband ran a small content-marketing agency from their home in western Massachusetts. She loved her work — but outside client projects, her true passion was cooking. Because she followed a ketogenic diet, she spent hours experimenting with low-carb meals that actually tasted good. At first, she only wanted a place to keep her recipes organized online. What began as a casual side project soon drew unexpected attention.
Action
With her marketing background, Amanda couldn’t resist adding a few simple features to the free recipe site she built — including an email sign-up form. She didn’t think much of it until she noticed thousands of subscribers joining the list without any promotion. When the number hit six thousand, she decided to test an idea: an eBook compiling her most-loved keto recipes. She wrote a friendly email announcing the upcoming book and invited readers to pre-order if they were interested.
Result
Within twenty-four hours, Amanda earned more than $1,000 from those early supporters. Instead of refund requests, her inbox filled with gratitude. Readers thanked her for helping them stick to their diet and were eager to support her new venture. Encouraged, she released the finished eBook using Gumroad, a simple digital-product platform. Word spread quickly, and her growing audience caught the attention of a traditional publisher, who offered her a print-book deal. Between online and print sales, Amanda began earning around $2,000 a month — all from what had started as a personal hobby.
Lesson
Amanda’s success shows that when you share genuine value with a community that needs it, a business can grow naturally. Specialized audiences — like people following specific diets — are passionate, loyal, and eager to support authentic creators who understand their world. By combining personal experience with small, consistent action, she turned a passion project into a profitable brand.
Takeaway: Sometimes the best business ideas are the ones you create for yourself first — because if it helps you, it’s probably helping someone else too.
Inspired by a true story originally featured on Side Hustle School by Chris Guillebeau. This rewritten version is independently produced and fully original.