Making Money While you Sleep" vs Reality | Ep. 68

We all know courses don’t sell themselves.

And we all know YouTube works 24/7, even when we’re not at our desks.

So how can you actually wake up to sales without falling for the passive income hype?

In this episode, I’ll share with you the real system I use to make money while I sleep…

and what it takes to set it up so it actually works.

I’ll break down how to create binge-worthy videos, set up your Backstage Pass funnel, and use email automation to build a peaceful, profitable business.

Ready to learn how it really works?

VIDEO: Making Money While you Sleep” vs Reality | Ep. 68

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The Reality of Passive Income in Online Business

My Journey to Finding What Works

Back when I started my YouTube channel in 2014, I was deep in blogging and keyword research. Even then, I knew that “instant passive income” was too good to be true. Sure, the idea of sipping margaritas on the beach while money rolls in sounds appealing—but building a real, sustainable business takes time and effort.

In the beginning, I chased multiple income streams: ad revenue, affiliate commissions, brand partnerships, online courses, and a membership program. For a while, it worked—until it didn’t. Some affiliate programs slashed their payouts, my ad revenue dropped to zero due to a YouTube glitch, and several income streams dried up overnight.

That’s when I made a big decision: I stopped chasing everything and focused on my own courses and membership programs. That shift changed everything. It wasn’t “passive” by any means—but it was scalable, stable, and, eventually, profitable.

I centered my efforts on creating value through digital education, and I reached my first six figures. But let’s be honest — that growth wasn’t automatic. It came from intentional planning, consistent testing, and developing a system that allowed YouTube to do the heavy lifting even when I wasn’t online.

The Reality Behind “Passive” Sales

Let’s be real: creating a digital product is not effortless. You can’t just upload a course and expect people to buy it.

From outlining lessons and filming videos to designing pages and writing emails—it’s work. Even small courses require creating outlines, recording and editing videos, writing summaries, uploading captions, and designing featured images. I use Kajabi for my courses, and while it streamlines the process, it still takes hours of setup.

Beyond that, there’s the ongoing process of testing what works:

Why aren’t people clicking my emails?
Why aren’t they buying on the sales page?
What part of the funnel is underperforming?

This kind of analysis never ends. That’s why calling it “passive” is misleading. It’s more accurate to call it strategic automation—systems doing the heavy lifting after you’ve put in the hard work to build them.

The Truth About Course Creation

Creating a course or membership program isn’t just about recording a few lessons and hitting “publish.” It’s a full-blown project that demands creativity, strategy, and persistence. Every successful program requires:

Crafting detailed outlines that guide learners
Recording and editing high-quality video lessons
Designing eye-catching thumbnails and visuals
Writing compelling lesson descriptions
Managing technical details like closed captions
Building strong marketing materials and email campaigns
Continuously optimizing sales pages and conversion funnels

That’s a lot of moving parts — and that’s exactly why a YouTube sales funnel can make the process much more efficient and scalable.

How to Create a System That Sells for You

So how do you actually make money while you sleep—without the gimmicks?

For me, the answer came when I blended YouTube’s evergreen visibility with the structure of a funnel. I used to run live webinars and five-day challenges to promote my programs. They worked—but they were exhausting.

Then I realized: YouTube is already doing the “live” part for me. My videos are available 24/7, and they attract new viewers every day. What if I could connect that constant visibility to an automated funnel that converts those viewers into students or clients?

That’s when I created what I now call the Backstage Pass YouTube Funnel—a strategy that combines YouTube content with a simple sales system that runs quietly in the background.

The YouTube Funnel System: A Better Way to Sell

What Makes This System Different

Over the years, I developed what I call the “Backstage Pass” Funnel, a YouTube-based system that blends the strengths of live launching with the power of evergreen content. Instead of relying on one-time webinars or seasonal launches, this funnel keeps working in the background — attracting leads, nurturing them, and converting them into paying customers day and night.

This method is particularly effective for standalone courses and digital products, where your audience is constantly searching for solutions to their problems on YouTube.

The Five Essential Components

1. A Solid Offer

It all starts with having something valuable to sell—whether it’s a course, membership, digital product, or service. Your offer isn’t just the product itself. It’s the complete package: pricing, bonuses, delivery, and how you position it as the solution to your audience’s problem.

Most of my offers range between $100–$300, which is a sweet spot for online programs. But the key isn’t the price—it’s how clearly you communicate the transformation your audience will get.

2. An Active YouTube Channel

YouTube isn’t just a video platform — it’s a search engine with over 2.5 billion monthly users. That means your videos can continue attracting traffic for years after upload.

The key isn’t to post endlessly or chase every trend; it’s to find your niche and speak directly to your ideal audience. By consistently publishing content that aligns with your offer, you build authority and trust — two non-negotiables for converting viewers into customers.

3. A Binge-Worthy Content Library

Your YouTube channel should serve as a free education hub — a place where viewers can dive deep into your content and keep watching. Your goal is to build a collection of long-form videos (10–20 minutes) around the problems your audience is trying to solve.

Each video should position you as a trusted guide who genuinely understands your audience’s challenges. When people binge your content, they start to trust you — they’re primed to learn more from you through your paid offers.

Building a library of binge-worthy videos, or a spider web, as I like to teach inside of Video Brand Academy, is the fastest way to grow your audience on YouTube. Especially if you have a business, and especially if you’re not just trying to grow your audience and go viral, but you’re trying to attract actual buyers for your thing.

Think of this library as your 24/7 salesperson—it builds connection, credibility, and authority even while you sleep.

4. The Billboard Video

This is the top video on your YouTube channel that acts as a magnet for the right viewers. Its goal is to bring in leads, convert curious watchers into qualified leads—people who opt into your email list in exchange for something valuable.

Think of your Billboard Video as your channel’s main advertisement — the video you want new visitors to see first. Its goal is to:

Capture attention immediately
Communicate your main message
Point viewers toward your next step (like a freebie, email list, or product page)

This video acts as the “top” of your YouTube sales funnel, setting the tone for how viewers experience your brand.

This could be a free guide, resource, or—in my case—a special Backstage Pass video.

5. The Backstage Pass Video

This is the heart of the funnel. The Backstage Pass video is where you invite viewers behind the scenes of how your program works and how it helps them achieve results.

Unlike traditional webinars that feel overly scripted or salesy, the Backstage Pass Video is a natural, authentic piece of content that educates first and sells second. It’s a value-packed video that naturally leads to your offer. Because your audience already knows you from YouTube, it feels like an authentic continuation of your content—not a sales pitch.

It delivers real value while showing viewers how they can achieve their goals faster through your paid offer. It’s conversational, genuine, and focused on connection rather than pressure — which is exactly why it converts so well.

Unlaunching: A Softer Way to Sell

Another strategy I love is what I call “unlaunching.”

Traditional launches require big, stressful events like webinars or multi-part video series. Instead, with an unlaunch, I use my YouTube content to build my email list continuously, then send out a simple promotion when it’s time to invite people into my membership or course.

During that promotional window, I offer a small bonus or incentive to join—no stress, no high-pressure tactics. This approach allows me to keep my business running smoothly, even when I’m not actively launching.

Making the System Work

The Power of Email Strategy

If there’s one statistic that has stayed consistent in my business, it’s this: 92% of my sales come from email clicks.

That means your YouTube funnel doesn’t stop at video — it continues through your email list. An effective email strategy includes:

Automated welcome and nurture sequences
Well-timed promotional messages
Authentic storytelling that builds trust
Strategic follow-up for people who didn’t purchase

Email is where relationships deepen and sales happen. It’s the bridge between “interested viewer” and “paying customer.”

Why Traditional Webinars Often Fail

Webinars used to be the gold standard for online course sales, but today’s audience has changed. Most viewers don’t have the attention span or patience for hour-long pitches.

Here’s why traditional webinars struggle:

They often feel like high-pressure sales events
The pacing doesn’t match modern viewer habits
Content isn’t always aligned with audience expectations

The YouTube sales funnel fixes this by delivering valuable, evergreen content that earns trust first — before ever making an offer.

Setting Yourself Up for Success

Key Implementation Steps

To bring this system to life, start with these steps:

Develop valuable, consistent YouTube content
Optimize your channel to attract the right viewers
Build out your funnel elements — offer, billboard, and backstage videos
Automate your emails and lead capture process
Continuously monitor performance and make adjustments

This process isn’t about perfection; it’s about momentum. Each upload, each email, and each funnel tweak moves you closer to the kind of business that runs around the clock.

Avoiding Common Pitfalls

From experience, here are a few mistakes to avoid:

Expecting immediate success (this takes time)
Posting inconsistently or without a strategy
Focusing on quantity instead of value
Ignoring analytics and feedback

Stay patient, stay consistent, and remember that every video you publish adds another layer of growth to your funnel.

Conclusion: The Truth About Making Money While You Sleep

Making money while you sleep isn’t a myth—but it’s not effortless either. It’s the reward for building systems that work when you’re not online.

When you have: a clear offer that solves real problems, a YouTube channel that builds trust and visibility, a funnel that connects your content to conversions —then yes, you can wake up to sales notifications with peace of mind.

The key is consistency. Keep refining your content, test your funnel, and always serve your audience with value. When all those pieces align, your YouTube channel becomes more than a platform—it becomes your most powerful 24/7 business partner.

If you have an online business with a course, program, or any other kind of offer, and you’re not currently generating consistent sales on autopilot, I’d like to introduce you to the hands off youtube funnel that has made me over $20k on a $147 course! That way, you too can make consistent sales of your offer, with the beauty and simplicity of organic, evergreen traffic from YouTube! Start here with my free “AIT Method” training.