Mason (Cardinal Mason)
- Background and origin story
- Dropped out of college, previously earned $10/hour packing boxes with zero copywriting experience.
- Taught himself copywriting, launched freelance business with only a laptop.
- Grew freelance copywriting to $48K/month peak within months, earning a doctor’s salary early on.
- Total earnings reached $2.3 million by age 21.
- Pivotal moments and turning points
- First client: Music blog paying 1.5 cents/word ($15 per 1000 words, minimum wage equivalent).
- Landed first retainer client via cold outreach: Scrolled Instagram for ads, found founder emails, sent cold emails, secured $2.5K/month contract (equivalent to a full year of previous income), experienced imposter syndrome.
- Built relationship with copywriting influencer Chase: Sent custom onesie for his baby (printed with “email marketing is dead” crossed out, “dad email marketing is dad”), leading to ongoing client work including the “Alex in my Inbox” series where Mason writes as the “Alex” persona.
- Transitioned from freelance to email marketing agency: Leveraged experience working with dozens of clients (agencies, info product creators, e-commerce brands) over 2-3 years, agency generated multiple six figures annually.
- Launched education company Copy MBA: Generated $1 million in revenue within 96 days of launch, now primary business focus.
- Current status
- Main focus is growing Copy MBA to maximize impact on audience.
- Maintains a few freelance clients (including Chase) to stay sharp on copywriting skills.
- Day-to-day: Wakes up at 9-9:45 AM, writes daily (emails to list, Slack messages to students/team), takes morning calls, creates content (TikTok, live streams), delegates tasks to team of 4+ (Abby, Ally, Griff, Ben).
Products and Offerings
- Core products
- Freelance copywriting services: Writes marketing materials including emails, ads, blogs, social posts, and SMS copy for businesses, offered via recurring retainers or one-off gigs.
- Email marketing agency: Full-service email marketing fulfillment for clients, generated multiple six figures annually.
- Copy MBA: Education program teaching copywriting skills, launched to help others replicate his success, generated $1M in 96 days.
- Side projects
- “Alex in my Inbox” series: Collaborative email series with influencer Chase, where Mason writes as the “Alex” persona.
Metrics and Financials
- Revenue milestones
- Total earnings: $2.3 million by age 21.
- Freelance peak monthly revenue: $48K.
- First retainer client: $2.5K/month, equal to one full year of previous $10/hour packing income.
- Email marketing agency: Multiple six figures in annual revenue.
- Copy MBA: $1 million in revenue within 96 days of launch.
- Market context
- 35 million small businesses operate in the US, compared to ~45 to 5,000 freelance copywriters.
- Startup costs
- Bare minimum to launch a copywriting business: $40, covering a domain (Google Domains) and website (Card).
Strategy and Growth
- Vision and positioning
- Goal: Make as many people as possible wealthy through accessible copywriting skills.
- Positions copywriting as AI-resistant: AI is a tool to augment copywriters, not replace them, as business owners need strategic thinking and AI requires human copywriters to generate effective prompts.
- Growth engines
- Freelance client acquisition: Scrolled Instagram for business ads, identified founders, sourced emails via Hunter.io, sent cold outreach emails.
- Audience building: Regular content creation (TikTok, live streams) to engage students and grow Copy MBA.
- Key tactics
- Skill development: Immersive practice (up to 8 hours/day writing), consume copywriting content (podcasts, YouTube, editing others’ work).
- Pricing strategy: Shift from low-margin one-off gigs (e.g., $1000 for 100 product descriptions) to high-margin recurring retainers ($2-4K/month per client).
- Networking: Personalized outreach to influencers (e.g., custom gift for Chase) to secure client work and exposure.
- Scaling: Transitioned to agency model to exceed freelance income ceiling of ~$30-40K/month, hired team to handle fulfillment.
Tech Stack and Infrastructure
- Core tools
- Google Domains: Domain registration.
- Card: Website building.
- Mail Track: Tracks email opens, forwards, and client interactions.
- Hunter.io: Finds business founder email addresses for cold outreach.
- Technical decisions
- Recommends maintaining a professional website for credibility, though notes some copywriters operate without one.
Lessons and Advice
- Advice to aspiring copywriters/founders
- Master copywriting fast: Write constantly, immerse yourself in industry content, use Parkinson’s Law (set tight deadlines to increase speed).
- Freelancers should prioritize recurring retainers over one-off gigs for stable, scalable income.
- Provide consistent value to retain clients and grow referrals.
- Hard-won insights
- Don’t procrastinate, don’t fear failure: Most decisions are not irreversible, mistakes drive growth.
- Imposter syndrome is normal when landing high-paying clients early in your career.
- Freelance income has a ceiling of ~$30-40K/month; scaling requires building a team, agency, or product.
- Stay sharp by maintaining a few freelance clients even when scaling to larger businesses.
- Personal takeaways
- Would not change any past mistakes, as they led to current success.
- Adopt a long-term mindset: Mistakes will not matter in 10 years, making failures easier to handle.