Thread by @EXM7777

how to make money with n8n:

you all think it's about building complex automations and you're wrong

the money you make has nothing to do with your technical skills...

it's about your ability to understand business owners' pain and sell solutions to it

but before we get into the real stuff...

check out these free resources:
- my weekly newsletter: aifirstbrain.com
- my telegram for the SAUCE: t.me/aifirstbrain
- my 7-day prompt engineering program: whop.com/machines-lab

now let's get into it

see, business owners don't care about your webhook skills

they care about:
- getting more customers
- saving time on repetitive tasks
- reducing human errors
- scaling without hiring more people

learn to speak their language, not n8n's language

but first, you need some foundations to build n8n workflows...

and here's the thing about learning:
- watching YouTube tutorials -> 10% retention
- building actual workflows -> 90% retention

your brain learns by doing, not by consuming

get your hands dirty and go connect some nodes

here's a solid n8n learning roadmap that cuts the bullshit:

week 1: basic triggers and actions
week 2: data transformation and mapping
week 3: error handling and conditional logic
week 4: API integrations and webhooks

and if you want to be ultra efficient... learn by building workflows you'll actually use

practice workflows that teach you fundamentals:

1. email automation when you get a new follower
2. slack notification for new website visitors
3. google sheets update from form submissions
4. social media post scheduler
5. automated lead scoring system

each one teaches different n8n concepts while solving real problems

workflow #1 teaches you triggers and actions...
workflow #2 teaches you webhooks and real-time data...
workflow #3 teaches you conditional routing...

by week 4 you'll understand n8n better than people who've watched 50 tutorials

here's what most n8n gurus miss...

they try to build automations for everyone

but the real money is in specialization

there are 3 niches where businesses are desperate for automations:
- SaaS companies
- ecommerce stores
- small businesses

why these 3 niches?

SaaS = high-volume, repetitive processes that break at scale
ecommerce = inventory and order chaos that costs money daily
small businesses = everything done manually because they can't afford teams

each has enterprise-level pain with startup budgets

SaaS companies desperately need:

trial user onboarding sequences, churn prediction workflows, feature usage tracking, customer health scoring, support ticket routing

they'll pay $5-15k for systems that reduce churn by even 2%

why? because customer acquisition costs are insane

ecommerce stores are drowning in:

inventory management across platforms, order fulfillment tracking, customer service automation, review management, abandoned cart sequences, generating ads

every hour saved is a direct profit increase

especially painful during peak seasons when manual work breaks down

small businesses are manually doing:

lead qualification and follow-up, appointment scheduling and reminders, invoice creation and payment tracking, social media posting, data entry tasks

they'll pay premium for getting their life back

owners working 80-hour weeks will pay anything for 20 hours of freedom

but here's what you should be doing...

instead of trying to serve all 3 niches, pick ONE

go deep, understand their specific pain points, master their automation needs

become the "n8n expert for specific industry"

that's how you can charge premium prices

let's take ecommerce as an example...

one automation that's pure gold right now:
automated ad creative generation using veo3 and nano banana

imagine this workflow:
product data -> AI generates video ads -> automatically uploads to ad platforms

the workflow architecture looks like this:

trigger: new product added to shopify
-> extract product images and descriptions
-> send to veo3 for video generation
-> enhance with nano banana for realistic visuals
-> automatically upload to facebook ads, google ads, tiktok
-> setup performance tracking and optimization loops

but before you build this...

you need to deeply understand your target's actual needs

> most people guess what businesses want
> smart people systematically research what businesses are desperately asking for

here's how to research like a detective:

step 1: build a research prompt that mines reddit and forums

"analyze the following ecommerce discussions and identify:
- top 3 recurring pain points mentioned
- specific language they use to describe problems
- solutions they've tried that failed
- budget indicators for solutions"

feed it real forum posts, get systematic insights

reddit goldmines for ecommerce research:

r/ecommerce for general pain points
r/shopify for platform-specific struggles
r/dropshipping for scaling challenges
r/entrepreneur for growth bottlenecks
r/PPC for advertising frustrations

spend 2 hours collecting posts, 30 minutes analyzing with AI

what you're looking for in discussions:

"i'm spending 6 hours daily on manual task"
"can't afford to hire someone for specific process"
"losing money because automation opportunity"
"tried competitor solution but it doesn't specific need"

these phrases reveal expensive problems you can solve

step 2: create detailed persona profiles

not generic demographics...
specific psychographics:

"sarah, 34, runs $200k/year shopify store selling home decor, spends 12 hours daily on manual tasks, frustrated with current tools, budget: $2-5k for solutions saving 20+ hours weekly"

get VERY specific

here's the persona template that converts:

name + age: specific person, not generic archetype
business details: revenue, products, team size
daily struggles: exact tasks taking too much time
current tools: what they're using and why it sucks
budget signals: "would pay $X for Y outcome"
buying triggers: what makes them purchase immediately

step 3: craft outreach sequences using your research

generic approach:
"hi, i build automations"

researched approach:
"saw your post about spending 6 hours daily on product videos... built automation reducing this to 15 minutes"

reference their exact pain points in their exact language

use this outreach sequence:

message 1: reference specific pain from research
message 2: share relevant case study or demo
message 3: offer free audit of current process
message 4: detailed proposal with clear ROI calculation
message 5: scarcity closer with social proof

each message builds on the previous response

here's where most people fail at outreach...

they send the same template to everyone

but when you've done proper research, every message feels personal because it IS personal

you're addressing their actual documented frustrations

pro tip: build your own outreach automation

use n8n to:
- scrape platforms for ecommerce store owners
- research their business automatically
- personalize messages based on their industry
- schedule follow-ups based on engagement

you'll learn n8n while generating leads

now for the closing process...

start with small wins, prove value, expand from there

first project: $500-2k automation saving 10+ hours weekly
second project: $2-5k system increasing revenue
third project: monthly retainer for ongoing optimization

the progression that builds trust:

week 1: free audit showing exact time/money being wasted
week 2: propose small automation with guaranteed ROI
week 3: deliver results exceeding expectations
week 4: discuss larger automation opportunities
week 5: monthly retainer proposal

trust = bigger projects, bigger budgets

the mistake everyone makes:

selling the automation instead of selling the outcome

wrong: "i'll build you a 47-node workflow with webhooks"
right: "i'll save you 20 hours weekly so you can focus on growing your business"

they buy outcomes, not features

when you follow this system:

1: master n8n through building practice workflows
2: deep research one specific niche
3: build outreach system and land first client
4: deliver exceptional results and get referrals
5: predictable monthly recurring revenue

you just can't miss

warning: most people will try to skip the research phase

they want to jump straight to building and selling

but research is what separates $500 projects from $5,000 projects

understanding business pain is your edge

your action plan for the next 30 days:

week 1: build 5 practice workflows for your own business
week 2: research your chosen niche extensively using reddit mining
week 3: create target persona and craft outreach messages
week 4: send 50 personalized outreach messages

remember this thread when you land your first $5k automation project...

the money was never in learning n8n

the money was in learning business, then using n8n to solve problems

n8n is just the tool... understanding pain is the skill