The AI Automation Marketplace is dead.

The AI Automation Marketplace is dead.

I killed it. On purpose.

(Don’t worry – this story has a happy ending…especially if you’re an existing member)

Sometimes the best business decisions feel like the hardest ones.

You spend months building something, pour your heart into it, tell everyone about your big vision… and then realize you need to pivot.

That’s exactly what happened with BigMoves.

TL;DR

• We’re evolving from marketplace to high-impact AI consulting & implementation
• All existing products and memberships stay exactly the same (actually, they’re getting better!)
• Massive upgrades coming to the Massive Moves Membership (with grandfathered pricing for existing members 🎉)

Why Everything Had to Change

Look, I started this newsletter to document the journey…even the brutal failures.

So here’s the truth: Even well-thought-out ideas sometimes fail. And that’s okay.

The real failure would be stubbornly sticking to a plan that isn’t serving our mission…or ourselves.

The Support Squeeze That Changed Everything

Marketplace businesses are the holy grail business model.

It looked amazing on paper. “We’ll create templates, people buy them, everyone wins!”

Except reality had other plans. 🎭

Here’s what actually happened:

• Every single template we launched needed a full video training series. Not just quick demos – we’re talking step-by-step, click-by-click instructions. Super comprehensive, not at all scalable!
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• We started attracting tons of non-technical folks. Amazing people, eager to learn, ready to embrace AI automation. That was actually awesome!
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• But here’s where it gets tricky… These wonderful people needed more help. More guidance. More support. Which makes total sense – they’re learning something completely new.
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• Our one-time payment model? Yeah, not ideal. We’re talking a tiny one time payment to support potentially unlimited customer service needs. The math ain’t mathing. 🤔

This problem was actually a good sign. It means we’re reaching beyond the tech bubble. We’re reaching business owners who want to level up and build differently.

But if we scaled this model it’d never work out.

Marketplaces will only work when the post purchase process is simple.

But that’s not all…

The Quality Curse (Or Why Good Enough Isn’t Good Enough)

You know that feeling when you’re at a fancy restaurant and the chef is obsessing over every tiny detail of the plate?

Yeah, that’s me with AI automations. 😅

And turns out… that’s both a blessing and a curse.

Here’s why:

• Most AI automations out there are built to look flashy. To demo well. To make you go “oooh” and “aaah” in the sales pitch. But in reality…they fall apart when you actually try to run your business on them.
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• Me? I’m obsessed (maybe too obsessed) with building stuff that actually works for real businesses making real money. The kind of automations that take manual processes done by humans and not only automating it, but improving the quality at the same time.
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• Every time we looked at a new template idea from others, I’d spend ages thinking “but does this really solve the right problem” or “is this based on a need or simply to look cool”.

The marketplace model forces you to build one-size-fits-all solutions. It forces you to let anyone build anything.

And quality can quickly decline. Just look at the ridiculous stuff you can buy on Etsy.

My intention with our existing Content Automation OS product was to give people a starting point to then customize it themselves.

A few people did that. And they did it well.

Transforming their workflows overnight and their minds blown at what’s really possible.

But most people don’t want to do that. At least, not themselves.

We needed more control over the whole process. To work directly with businesses.

To obsess over their specific needs and build solutions that actually transform their operations.

You might call it perfectionism. I call it giving a damn about real results. 🎯

The Hard Truth About Hard Business Models

If a marketplace is going to succeed these days, you need capital.

I’m not talking about a few grand in savings or a small business loan. I’m talking proper venture capital.

The days of launching a few products and going viral like Appsumo once did is over! That ship has sailed, waved goodbye, and is a thing of the past.

Even the “successful” marketplaces you see? Most of them are losing money. They’re playing the long game, hoping to figure out profitability… someday.

And here’s the thing – I’m just not interested in that game.

Plus it’s a big bet.

There’s the possibility that in 1-3 years when AI agents are great, AI Automation won’t even be a thing anymore.

What will always be a thing? Helping business owners, who don’t have time to learn about the latest tech innovations, implement tech into their businesses.

That will never disappear. So it’s where we are focusing.

What’s Next for BigMoves?

Let me tell you what’s got me bouncing off the walls excited… 🚀

First up, the Massive Moves Membership is about to get a serious glow-up:

• Tons of new features dropping in the next few weeks
• Better training and resources
• More automation blueprint examples

And the best part? If you’re already a member, you’re locked in at current rates. Forever. (My way of saying thanks for believing in us early!)

Plus we’ll provide a training video to show you what we did.

But wait, there’s more…

We’re still launching premium products this year – just differently:

• Working with a small group of elite contractors
• This will give us full control over quality
• And we’ll solve 1 workflow at a time in much more detail than our current products

Plus we’ll add some Done For You installation services for these products.

We’ve already added in a high-touch customer service layer. If you have any problems with our templates you can give us access to your account and we’ll solve the issues for you.

And the big one? We’re rolling out AI Implementation Services:

• Focusing on what matters most; marketing and sales solutions
• Working with bigger brands to reduce human touchpoints on their existing workflows.

Here’s the thing – and I really want you to hear this…

If you’re already using our products, nothing bad is changing.

Actually, everything’s getting better.

We’re just shifting from “here’s a template, good luck!” to “let us help you crush it with AI automation.”

Sometimes the best opportunities come from admitting something isn’t working and choosing a better path.

That’s not failing. That’s evolving.

See you next week!

Mitch

P.S. Got questions about these changes? Hit reply.

P.P.S. Current Massive Moves members – watch your inbox. Some pretty sweet announcements coming your way soon… 🎁