Posted in   Community building, Online Courses   on  July 17, 2024 by  Himanshu

Imagine turning your passion into a thriving online business in just 30 days. Skool games claims to offer you exactly that.

I am going to analyse and review Skool games challenge that claims to change the landscape of online entrepreneurship.

Because, The Question is, is it really what it says it is...

My recent Skool games revenue - screenshot

My Skool Games Revenue last month

It's not new to see another shiny objects in digital business. Everyday, there is something that comes out of thin air claiming to make you rich. So this is my brutally honest Skool Games review.

We'll dive deep into the claims, exploring its potential, and providing you with actionable strategies if you are open for joining it.

⚡️ Funny enough: Many people on Reddit and Quora were calling Skool Games an MLM scheme or pyramid scheme. There are Reddit commentators and reviewers fighting over this topic.

Before I even dig in, I must say: It is NOT an MLM. Businesses tools helping other businesses to get more businesses is a basic foundation of B2B. Creators helping other creators to grow their business is not how ponzi scheme works. It is very easy to spread negativity and unfortunately, everyone focuses more on negatives nowadays.

But Skool Games is not for everyone. Let me explain why...

What is The Skool Games?

The Skool Games is a 30-day challenge designed to help entrepreneurs and content creators build, grow, and monetize their online communities. At its core, it's a business-building competition hosted on the Skool, a community management platform.

The brainchild of Alex Hormozi, a renowned entrepreneur and investor, The Skool Games represents a significant shift in the online business landscape.

Hormozi, known for his work with Acquisition.com and his goal of reaching a billion dollars in the creator economy, saw the potential in Skool and decided to invest heavily in the platform.

But the big question is, IS THIS FOR YOU OR NOT?

Key features of The Skool Games include:

  1. A 30-day intensive challenge to kickstart your online community
  2. Access to Alex Hormozi's exclusive course on community building and monetization
  3. A competitive leaderboard showcasing top performers
  4. Prizes for top-ranking participants, including one-on-one time with Alex Hormozi
  5. A supportive community of like-minded entrepreneurs

The challenge is designed to push participants out of their comfort zones, encouraging rapid growth and monetization. 

The Skool Platform

At the heart of The Skool Games is the Skool platform itself. Developed by Sam Ovens, a popular figure in the online business world, it offers a robust set of features tailored for community building and management.

While it is not the only way to monetize your community, it is certainly a better option than other competitors like Teachable and Nas.io.

I have discussed everything in this post but let me quickly recap everything.

Key features of the Skool platform include:

  1. Intuitive community management tools
  2. Integrated course creation and delivery system
  3. Gamification elements to boost engagement
  4. Built-in monetization options
  5. Analytics to track community growth and engagement

Compared to other community platforms like Discord or Facebook Groups, Skool stands out for its focus on monetization and business growth. While other platforms may offer more general social features, Skool is purpose-built for entrepreneurs looking to turn their communities into profitable ventures.

The benefits of using Skool for your online community are there.

1. All-in-one solution: No need to juggle multiple platforms for community, courses, and payments

2. Engagement-focused: Built-in features to keep your community active and growing

3. Monetization-ready: Easy-to-implement paid memberships and course offerings

4. SEO-friendly: Unlike closed platforms, Skool communities can be indexed by search engines, helping you attract new members organically

The Skool Games Leaderboard: Understanding the Competition

One of the most exciting aspects of The Skool Games is the leaderboard. This real-time ranking system showcases the top performers based on their Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) generated through their Skool communities.

As you can see, people are hitting big monthly numbers every month.

The leaderboard works on a monthly basis, with everyone starting from $0 at the beginning of each month. This levels the playing field, giving newcomers a chance to compete with established players.

The metric used is New MRR, which only counts revenue from new customers acquired during the month, not recurring payments from existing members.

Notable success stories from The Skool Games leaderboard include:

1. Hamza Ahmed: Generated over $88,000 in new MRR with his self-improvement group, Adonis School on Skool

2. Evelyn Weiss: Achieved over $81,000 in new MRR with her business group, The $8 Digital Offer Builders

3. Cody Dunlap: Earned over $50,000 in new MRR with his sports-betting group, Sports Content Creators

You can explore all these communities here.

Analyzing top performers' strategies reveals some common threads:

Once you get $1 MRR in your community, you unlock Harmozi's incredible programs in the Games classroom. As I did my own research I came across 4 major pointers that were shared among every successful Skool community.

1. Niche focus: Successful communities tend to cater to specific, well-defined audiences. You will notice that Hamza's target audience or Evelyn's focus is very narrow.

2. Value-first approach: Top performers prioritize delivering high-quality content and experiences before monetization

3. Engagement tactics: Utilizing Skool's gamification features to keep members active and invested. Each of these communities have tonnes of events and classroom upgrades. 

4. Tiered offerings: Many successful communities offer both free and paid tiers to maximize reach and revenue.

But the most important pointer is, THE NEW BLOOD.

Each of these people are good with traffic generation that brings new blood in the community or in other words, consistent traffic.

Now if you are wondering how do you make money with Skool games, here are the top ideas for you.

8 Proven Ways to Make Money in The Skool Games

Alex Hormozi himself has outlined eight effective strategies for monetizing your Skool community:

1. "Swap to Save" Paid to Paid: Migrate existing paid communities from other platforms to Skool, instantly saving 20% on fees.

2. "Free only" model: Focus on building a large, engaged free community and monetize through external products or services.

3. "Free THEN Paid" strategy: Start with a free community, build value, then transition to a paid model while grandfathering early members.

4. "Free AND Paid" approach: Maintain both free and paid tiers, using the free community as a funnel for your premium offering.

5. "Influencer Partners" into paid: Partner with influencers to drive traffic, sharing revenue for a win-win collaboration.

6. "Outside Experts" into paid: Bring in external experts to add value to your community, attracting members willing to pay for exclusive access.

7. "Zero to hero" into paid: Document your own journey in-depth, allowing members to learn alongside you or vicariously experience your growth.

8. "Curate" into paid: Aggregate and organize the best free resources on a topic, selling the convenience and time-saving aspect to members.

I understand that there can be more ways. But these are some of the ideas I collected from top creators in the Skool games community. They include Andrew Kirby, Alex Harmozi and Same ovens directly who are the main faces of the Skool Games.

The Skool Games Course: Alex Hormozi's Blueprint for Success

Central to The Skool Games is Alex Hormozi's exclusive course, designed to guide participants through the process of building and monetizing their communities. You can look at the program one image above.

The course consists of seven core modules:

1. How to play: An introduction to The Skool Games and its rules

2. Make it fun: Strategies for creating an engaging community experience

3. Designing your business: How to create a valuable group, even without prior expertise

4. Seeding your group: Techniques for attracting your first "10 true regulars"

5. Monetizing your group: Four monetization methods and the math behind reaching $10,000/month

Key takeaways from the course include:

1. The importance of community engagement and "making it fun"

2. How to create value even if you're not an established expert

3. The power of starting small and focusing on quality over quantity

4. Different monetization strategies and how to implement them

5. Growth tactics that go beyond traditional marketing

To maximize your learning from the course:

1. Take action on each module immediately

2. Participate in The Skool Games community to share insights and learn from peers

3. Review and revisit modules as you progress in your community-building journey

Building Your Skool Community: A Step-by-Step Guide

We have discussed the exact funnel (Community Funnel) inside our community. But let me quickly share the main pointers:

Define your niche and target audience:

- Identify a specific problem or desire your community will address

- Research your target audience's demographics, interests, and pain points

- Create detailed buyer personas to guide your content and community strategy

Create engaging content for your community:

- Develop a content calendar that balances educational, inspirational, and interactive posts

- Use a mix of formats: text posts, videos, live streams, polls, and challenges

- Consistently deliver high-quality, valuable content that addresses your audience's needs

Foster interaction and build relationships:

- Encourage member introductions and create opportunities for networking

- Respond promptly to comments and questions

- Host regular live events or Q&A sessions to build personal connections

- Create themed days or weekly traditions to establish community rituals

Implement gamification strategies:

- Utilize Skool's built-in gamification features like levels and badges

- Create challenges or competitions to boost engagement

- Reward active members with special roles or privileges

- Use progress bars or milestone celebrations to motivate long-term engagement

Monetization Strategies for Your Skool Community

You can monetize your Skool group in many ways, including coaching, affiliates and one to one services. Let's look at them:

1. Paid memberships and subscription models:

- Offer tiered membership levels with increasing value and exclusivity

- Create a clear value proposition for each tier

- Consider annual payment options for better cash flow and member retention

2. One-time courses and digital products:

- Develop in-depth courses on specific topics within your niche

- Create downloadable resources like eBooks, templates, or toolkits

- Offer personalized coaching or consulting packages

3. Affiliate marketing opportunities:

- Partner with relevant brands or products that align with your community's interests

- Create honest, value-driven product reviews and recommendations

- Negotiate exclusive discounts or bonuses for your community members

4. Sponsorships and partnerships:

- Collaborate with brands for sponsored content or events

- Develop co-created products or services with complementary businesses

- Host paid webinars or workshops featuring industry experts

The Power of Free Group Funnel Gameplan

A Free Group Funnel is a strategy where you create a free community to attract potential customers, nurture relationships, and eventually convert members into paying customers.

Let me tell you what Alex Harmozi talks about the purpose of a free group. This is the recent post he created on the topic.

So you see, the purpose is to build the base for your business.

Start a Free Skool Group

Now, if you want to dig deeper into the process, here are 4 steps:

1. Start your Free Group Funnel:

  • Choose a specific niche or problem to focus on
  • Create valuable, actionable content for your free community
  • Develop a clear onboarding process for new members

2. Fill your Free Group Funnel:

  • Promote your free group on social media and relevant online communities
  • Create lead magnets to attract potential members
  • Encourage existing members to invite others through referral programs

Unfortunately, there is no referral program for your own community members on Skool but this is the work in progress as I discussed with the managers.

3. Maintain your Free Group Funnel:

  • Consistently engage with members and foster discussions
  • Host regular live events or Q&A sessions
  • Continuously provide value through content and community interactions

4. Monetize your Free Group Funnel:

  • Introduce paid offerings that solve deeper problems for your members
  • Use direct messages and targeted posts to promote your paid offerings
  • Create a natural ascension path from free to paid memberships

Leveraging YouTube for Skool Success

YouTube can be a powerful tool for driving growth and engagement in your Skool community. Here's how to leverage it effectively:

1. Create value-packed content that addresses your target audience's pain points

2. Use your YouTube channel to drive traffic to your Skool community

3. Repurpose Skool community content into YouTube videos for cross-promotion

4. Host live streams on YouTube and invite viewers to join your Skool community for more in-depth discussions

5. Create YouTube-exclusive content that teases the value of your Skool community

Common Challenges and How to Overcome Them

Building a community comes with own challenges. It is a human work as I even mentioned in my last Nas.io review and my article on Forbes.

Let me cover some obvious and 'not-so-obvious' things that will come your way as you will build your business:

1. Building initial momentum:

Challenge: Attracting your first members and generating engagement.

Solution: Start with a core group of engaged individuals, even if they're friends or colleagues. Create a "founding members" program to incentivize early adopters.

2. Maintaining engagement:

Challenge: Keeping members active and preventing community stagnation.

Solution: Implement a content calendar, use gamification features, and regularly introduce new topics or challenges to keep things fresh.

3. Scaling your community:

Challenge: Growing your community while maintaining quality and engagement.

Solution: Develop a solid onboarding process, train community moderators, and use automation tools to manage repetitive tasks.

4. Dealing with competition:

Challenge: Standing out in a crowded market of online communities.

Solution: Focus on your unique value proposition, build strong relationships with members, and continuously innovate your offerings.

Is Skool Games Right for You?

Allow me to disappoint die hard fans here by saying, Skool Games isn't for everyone. Let me quickly walk you through who is the right fit for it. You can check and cross based on where you are right now and what are you aiming from your business and life:

Ideal Candidate Profile:

  • You've got an existing online presence or expertise
  • You're passionate about a specific topic and can create content around it
  • You're ready to put in consistent effort over time
  • You understand that community building is a long-term game

Skills and Resources Needed:

  • Content creation chops (writing, video, audio, etc.)
  • Basic grasp of online marketing
  • Time to engage with your community regularly
  • Patience and persistence

If you're just starting out, don't sweat it. Consider building your audience on free platforms first, or focus on creating solid content before diving into community building. You can also join the Hub and get the Community Funnels Blueprint.

Time and Resource Commitment:

  • Expect to dedicate 20-30 hours per week during the challenge
  • Be ready to invest in content creation tools and possibly advertising
  • Think long-term – managing an active community is an ongoing commitment

Realistic Expectations:

  • Skool Games can boost your growth, but it's not a golden ticket
  • Success demands consistent effort and value creation
  • Results vary – some see quick wins, others take longer to gain traction

And now once you have it, I can talk about some critical topics.

Dos and Don'ts:

Do:

  • Define your niche and target audience clearly
  • Deliver consistent, quality content
  • Engage actively with members
  • Test different monetization strategies

Don't:

  • Try to please everyone
  • Neglect engagement for growth
  • Rush into monetization before providing value
  • Ignore member feedback

Long-term Growth Strategies: 

  1. Develop a clear brand identity
  2. Build partnerships with other creators or businesses
  3. Keep learning about community management and online business trends
  4. Diversify your community revenue streams

Future Trends:

  1. Focus on niche, highly-engaged communities
  2. Growing importance of authenticity
  3. Rise of micro-communities
  4. AI integration in community management

Staying Ahead:

  1. Experiment with new features and strategies
  2. Stay informed about Skool Games updates
  3. Network with successful community builders
  4. Develop skills in emerging areas like AI and data analytics

Conclusion

The Skool Games can be an opportunity to fast-track your journey in building and monetizing an online community. I shared the pros, cons and my personal experience in this review.

Note that it may or may not be for you. But it is worth giving a try.

I saw many people asking on Reddit if Skool games is a scam or not. Someone even wrote a full medium post on the topic. I must say, Skool games is not a scam.

Are you ready to take on the challenge? Join The Skool Games today and start building the community of your dreams. The future of online business is community-driven, and your opportunity to lead in this space starts now.

About Himanshu

Himanshu is a recovering shiny object seeker and computer science engineer turned into an internet entrepreneur.

He bootstrapped Afleet.io from 0-$200k and has helped tens of companies grow from scratch with the help of building online communities.

He helps coaches and entrepreneurs grow their business through content and communities.

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