If you're thinking about buying Income School but you want to know if it's worth it, this Income School review is for you. Is it a scam? What is Income School and can it really work?
Continue reading to find out.
Income School Review Summary:
Product Name: Income School. Course name: Project 24.
Rating: 90/100
Pros: Detailed video tutorials. Free podcast. Access to an exclusive community. And much more.
The Cons: A bit expensive. Doesn't have as many features as my No. 1 rated online business training program.
The Bottom Line:
Overall, if you want to learn how to make money from niche websites, it's worth checking out. But keep in mind it's a course, not a platform, so there is no free hosting service or website builder included.
You may want to try my top training's 10 free courses first. That way you can check things out without risking any money to see what affiliate marketing using a niche website is all about.
More...
What is Income School?
Income School is an online business course created by Jim and Ricky, two successful internet marketers. The focus of the training is on building niche websites, mainly around hobbies. Most of their websites earn over $1,000/month after a few months of work. At least, that's what they claim.
I first came across Jim and Ricky while browsing YouTube for internet business tutorials. After watching a few of their videos, I quickly became a fan, and had to check out their core product.
This video below gives new marketers some great advise that we here at Learn to Grow Wealth Online have been preaching for years. It's about when to monetize a niche website. Check it out below if you're interested...
Although the website is called Income School, their training center (the paid product) is called Project 24.
However, the website is a bit more than a landing page. It has a blog where regularly publish articles related to making money online, more information about their course, links to their podcast, and other resources.
You can also choose Private Coaching or Income School's Immersion program. The Immersion program is an in-person event, similar to a seminar or classroom. These are mainly for people who already understand the basics of internet marketing and want to take things further.
Project 24 is their online training course, which will be the focus of this Income School review.
Inside: What Will You Learn?
One of the main reasons I was attracted to Income School is because the owners are so upfront and transparent with their projects. They are one of the few online business duos who will straight up show their website's traffic and earnings stats in their YouTube videos.
Project 24 will teach you the best ways to build a successful niche website from scratch. I know that sounds like the same pitch you've heard before, so I'll breakdown some of their recommended practices.
How it Works:
The course is built on a 24-month timeline, with the foundation work being the most important. The timeline represents the amount of time it should take to build a website that consistently earns cash.
60 steps sounds like a lot. But it's broken up into bite-sized modules that make it very easy to follow and digest.
For example, how to research niche site ideas, how to set up WordPress, what hosting company to use (they recommend Blue Host, I recommend Wealthy Affiliate or SiteGround), how to monetize, and the usual basics.
There's even a section about training and hiring writers to write for your website. Creating a content strategy for your website is incredibly important, and that's a main focus of the training modules.
They have a few unique approaches to content creation and we'll cover them later in this review.
What is Included in Project 24?
Project 24 isn't a random, messy, collection of outdated internet marketing resources thrown into one place. It's a very well structured platform with plenty of features, some of which we'll talk about in this section.
There's the dashboard, which is full of video training like the ones shown below, and then there's the 60 step action plan.
1. 60-Step Action Plan - Main Course
The 60 step action plan is like a to-do list for your website. Simple tasks that you need to complete before you move on to the next one. When you complete one, you can mark the status as complete, and then move on to the next step.
Keep in mind these are the same steps Jim and Ricky follow to build their own niche websites, and you can follow their progress in their podcast series. 60 actions might seem like a lot, but most of them are fairly simple.
For example, one is signing up for a hosting account. One is getting a logo for your website. And another one is choosing a theme. Most of these can be done in a day, some can be done in a few minutes, while others will take longer.
The idea is if you follow the steps, and complete each one, at the end of the 60 steps you'll have a great foundation for your niche website. And yes, a lot of the tasks consist of writing articles.
2. Community Forum
Project 24 has a private community forum, and the owners Jim and Ricky personally reply to threads from time to time. It's quite active to, and I found myself digging through a lot of interesting threads. According to their website, they reply to threads 50 times a day.
3. Free Podcast - Season 2
Besides their public YouTube channel, Jim and Ricky also do a podcast. Most of the episodes are public, and anyone can listen in, but the more advanced episodes are exclusive for Project 24 members only. Currently, Season 2 is exclusive to Project 24 members, the first season is free and public.
4. Access to Their Websites
As I mentioned earlier, most of their websites are public, but a few are hidden for privacy reasons.
With a Project 24 membership you'll be able to see their entire fleet of websites, which can be great for inspiration and examples. This includes websites they're currently working on, and any future projects they start.
5. Free Resources
The resources include niche site idea templates, article title swipe files, keyword spreadsheets, and many other resources. These resources make it so much easier to build the website you have in mind. You can also find a list of their recommended tools.
Overall, Project 24 is very in-depth and unique. It's also quite similar to Authority Site System, another internet marketing training course that also focuses on niche authority websites.
Project 24's Unique Approaches:
Besides what we mentioned earlier, there are quite a few things about this course that impressed me.
1. No Marketing Tricks, Casual and Transparent
Jim and Ricky keep things light, natural, and casual. There are no countdown timers, no flashing buy buttons, no exit pop up ads, and nothing intrusive or stressful. The best part: No up-sells, at all.
As someone who spent a lot of time in this industry, I'm tired of being sold to. I feel like Jim and Ricky feel the same way, so they don't push the product too hard, preferring to let people make up their own minds. I like that approach.
2. No Need for Keyword Research Tools
Interestingly, Jim and Ricky are against keyword research tools. They made it clear they don't believe keyword research tools deliver accurate data when it comes to keywords.
Instead, they use Google's autocomplete function, with competitor analysis, and a couple other tricks, to find keywords. Essentially, they tell students not worry about keywords stats because most tools don't get it right anyways.
It might seem strange to start a website without keyword research, at least without using a keyword research tool, but it seems to work out fine for them. A unique approach, that's for sure.
3. Build on Three Types of Content
This lesson is quite interesting and great for building a foundation for your website. What they recommend in Project 24 is building your website on three types of content; query posts, pillar posts, and staple posts. Let me explain.
Query posts (around 1,000 words) are regarding the autocomplete feature mentioned earlier. The purpose is to use Google to find the most commonly searched for questions around your niche, and dedicate one post to answering them as best as you can. When you do that, Google might add your article as a snippet for that question, and that can bring in a lot of traffic.
Pillar and staple posts can be either product reviews or resources. The resource guides should be over 3,000 words, full of extremely useful information. Product reviews can be shorter, around 1,500 words.
The idea is to have 35% query posts, 35% staple, and 35% resources. Very interesting content strategy.
4. No SEO Tools or Black Hat Link Building
I was quite shocked when I heard they don't use any SEO tools because I have always counted on the Yoast SEO Plugin. Well, they say there's no point in using SEO tools, although they won't hurt your site. If you want to use them, you can, but you shouldn't focus too much of your time on them.
They also don't believe in link-building practices. Links are important, but they believe if you do your best to make a useful website, other websites will naturally link to it, no need to force it. Organic growth only!
Overall, I feel like the lessons take you back to the basics, which boils down to content creation, creating useful content that answers questions and solves problems.
No need for any extra tools. These are just a handful of the unique lessons inside the Project 24 doors.
Affiliate marketing success stories!
~ real people, real work
4 - 5 figures/month online!
How Much Does it Cost?
Income School's Project 24 course costs $449 for a year, then $199 for the last year. When you break it down, that comes to about $37 a month, then $16/month, which is not much. The only problem is you have to pay the whole year in advance, there are no monthly subscription plans.
What About Refunds?
You're probably used to these kind of products having refund policies. According to Income School's refund policy, they used to think everyone deserves the chance to get a refund with no questions asked too.
However, they decided to take a different approach. They don't do refunds. On the surface, that might seem a little suspicious. But there's a good reason.
They realized offering refunds opens the course to people who are only interested in taking advantage of the product. For instance, people who steal the files and repackage it as their own.
So Jim and Ricky decided to make it clear they won't be giving refunds. To counter the backlash, they do their best to provide as much information about the course as possible on their website and videos, and make it as useful as possible, so there's no excuse for not knowing what you're getting into.
The Cons with Income School:
Although Income School is a great course, there are a few downsides:
1. Expensive, No Payment Plans:
I felt they could use more payment options. At the moment you have to pay the full year upfront ($449) and you can't choose to pay in installments. The price might be too much for some people, especially beginners.
2. Doesn't Include Websites:
Income School only provides training material, it's not a hosting platform like my favorite online training course. Project 24 doesn't include hosting or a website builder, either. They recommend Blue Host and a simple WordPress theme.
3. No Refunds:
Although they have good reasons to not allow refunds, I felt at least some refund options should be available. There's no much in way of official support, either. If you have a problem you can post in the forum.
Is Income School a Scam?
Income School is not a scam. They are a legitimate business, and their Project 24 course is full of incredibly useful training videos. Jim and Ricky are one of the most transparent Internet marketers I came across, they even gave their phone number out in one of the videos for taking questions. I doubt scam artists would do that.
Do I Recommend Income School?
As a matter of fact, I do recommend Income School. I think it's a great course and if you stick to it for the two years you can definitely have a nice little online business.
But:
I feel like my favorite online training course has more features included, with more flexible payment plans.
For instance, with Wealthy Affiliate you can create two free websites, host your website, use their keyword research tool, participate in the community, watch webinars, and much more.
Although I felt the Project 24 training has some unique ideas when it comes to niche websites, when it comes to features, Wealthy Affiliate wins. They both cater to beginners, so it really boils down to what features you need.
With Income School you'll need to buy hosting separate, but Wealthy Affiliate includes hosting in their subscription fee. In other words, Wealthy Affiliate is a bit cheaper.
I think both products are great, and each one caters to a different crowd. You can decide which one you think is best for your situation and needs. It's up to you.
Thanks for taking the time to read this Income School review. Leave a comment below if you have any questions.
Sounds interesting, this is my first time hearing about Income School, although had I come across it in the past, I wouldn’t have joined because of the up-front price. Living at home with a disability, on a fixed income, I need training that is affordable on a month-to-month basis, that can help me become financially independent. Wealthy Affiliate is perfect for me, because it allows me to cover my training, web-hosting fees, research tools (which I believe in), publishing tools, technical support, AND community help, all in one convenient place, at an affordable monthly price that I can afford right now. I know that yearly payments are also an option that saves money in the long run, but that would prevent me from getting started. Good post.
Hi Elaine,
Thanks for your kind feedback on our Income School review. you make some really good points and I would agree that wealthy affiliate has got their system down so that anybody can start building their own Niche website for very little money.
The cool thing that WA has down it is they’ve got a credit system that allows you to earn money by providing feedback and comments on other people’s websites. So if you’re in a jam with money and you need to buy a domain name for $15, that’s easy, you can provide 30 comments on people’s websites and have your domain name paid for.
Another cool thing about wealthy affiliate is that, like you said, they’ve got everything in one place so you don’t need to go buy any other tools or support systems. All you need to do is buy your domain name and start taking the educational program – that’s all the risk involved. So without a doubt, wealthy affiliate will be the better option compared to income School if your on a tight budget.
All in all, both are really good programs that I think you’ll do well with regardless of experience level.
Thanks,
Todd
First of all the name sounds a little off to me. Income school doesn’t sound like a training course for marketing or business. Wealthy Affiliate on the other hand makes sense and is the way to go. Your will not go wrong picking them. They have what it take to take your niche to the next level. Really enjoyed reading your page.
Thanks Claudia,
Sounds like you are taking Wealthy Affiliates program and loving every minute of it. That’s awesome. Income School is great program too. But if you are building your Niche website and enjoying the wealthy affiliate program, there’s no reason to change. You’ve got all the resources you need to build a successful online business. At the same time, not every training program is perfect for everyone. So it’s nice to have income School as an alternative.
Thanks,
Todd
This is a refreshing and honest review about a subject with which I am familiar. The Income School would certainly tick some boxes for a lot of people, the price would bother me compared to at least one other product on the market, also there are some elements missing which was pointed out.
Felt that whilst I had not heard of this product before it would be ideal for those who had the extra money to splash out, but I still prefer as you do Wealthy Affiliate.
Stuart
Thanks Stuart for your kind feedback on my income School review. You make some great points and although Income School does have the yearly payment up front, that actually could be a good thing for many new students.
The reason why I say this is because when you commit to a year of something and pay that money up front, it makes one feel like they should use that service. So in that sense, I think a lot of people will actually complete all the training at Income School versus at wealthy affiliate, I think people get frustrated if they don’t see any financial success within a month or two and so they give up.
And as I’m sure you know by now, a niche website does not become profitable within a month or two. Especially if you’re a complete new internet marketer.
So from that perspective, I think it’s good that income School charges their money up front. From their perspective, it makes sense as well because they’re putting out a lot of quality information and don’t want somebody to join the program and then leave right away.
As well, wealthy affiliate has a yearly membership it comes out to $359 per year or less than $1 per day.
Either way, both programs are pretty awesome and beneficial to new affiliate marketers.
Finally! One less product to worry about in an ocean of crappy ‘make money online’ products!
Income School looks incredibly unique in its methodology of delivering training and content. But I was wondering since I started at the ‘make money’ niche, can Income School help me find my ideal niche? Or do I have to know my niche already prior to purchasing this course?
Too bad, I have to think it over very carefully before I make the commitment to this program. It’s laid out on a 24-month plan which means I’m in it for the long haul. No turning back once I get in.
Exactly Dominic, I’d encourage you to nail down your niche before you spend any money.
But if you don’t like your niche, you can change it and still apply the training from Income School to whatever niche you end up going with.
The same goes for any niche website. The concepts of driving traffic and converting sales are pretty much the same.
Thanks
Hi Todd
A really awesome review and I have to say it looks good if people can afford the yearly fee however I also checked out your other recommendation at Wealthy Affiliate and for me this is where I want to go to get started on my online biz growing journey as I will need support, I can only pay monthly right now and I want to become an Affiliate marketer so I am off to join for free and see what its all about – Thank you Todd
Hey Vicki,
Good move. I like the fact that people need to commit. It makes someone really put in the full effort because they know they’re paying the whole year upfront.
As a matter of fact, I did the same thing at WA. I took 4 months of classes, saw the results and know that if I bought their yearly membership, I’d be committed to work at it.
So good choice, both ways (monthly vs. yearly) have their pros and cons but I like the options.
Thank you for your insight into Project 24. I am always looking for information regarding affiliate marketing, just to see what is out there and how to improve on my sites. It is interesting in how Project 24 differs from so many others out there by being transparent and willing to help instead of selling you an opportunity for $1497 that needs to be paid up front. It sounds like the value of the community and training would be worth the $400+, but it’s interesting they don’t offer refunds. I think I will stick to Wealthy Affiliate at this point, but I will listen to their available podcast. Thanks for the information!
Good call Kelly, I think you’ll do great with Wealthy Affiliate or Income School. Both are great programs that pack a lot of valuable information for internet marketers.
But regardless of whichever one you like, you’ve got to put in the effort. It’s just great to know that you have the support and training available to do it.
Wow. Todd, this is a fantastic review! Not only did I learn something new – I’m going to start using the content pillars/staples/reviews idea – but also I felt like I could make the decision about income school just by clicking over and reading the site for a few minutes. I appreciate the honesty about the refunds and cost, and the honest review of the proprieters. I hate when I feel like I’m being sold to, and it’s nice to see honest people trying to help others make an ethical living. Thanks for this!
That’s awesome feedback Hilary on our Income School Review, thank you. I agree, it’s not fun to feel like you’re being sold. Instead, I think of affiliate marketing like giving a referral. You just present the information to the people and let them make the best decision. But it’s your job to present the pros and cons of each product/program.