Dr. Jamie Wilkey
What if you could make an extra $230,000 sharing your knowledge with others from the comfort of your own home? Sounds incredible, right? Well, that’s exactly what pharmacogenomics expert Dr. Jamie Wilkey did with the help of Kajabi, an all-in-one platform for knowledge entrepreneurs to share their experience and expertise.
For Dr. Wilkey, the first months of the pandemic were a time of deep reflection. As the world grappled with COVID-19, she started to evaluate the impact that it would have on the rapidly evolving pharmacy market and her future. And that’s when she decided to leave her career as a retail pharmacist and launch a consulting practice based on personalized medicine.
People were eager to learn about personalized medicine
“I did something somewhat revolutionary during the pandemic,” explained Dr. Wilkey. “I left the retail setting and I created a consulting practice that specializes in pharmacogenomics, or more broadly personalized medicine. Not many pharmacists are doing anything like that, so I naturally received many questions from peers and colleagues. Once I explained what my practice was all about, they were amazed and wanted me to teach them how to do what I was doing.”
For those unfamiliar with pharmacogenomics, it’s a branch of genetics that’s concerned with how an individual’s DNA affects how their body responds to medications. Some believe it’s fundamental to personalized medicine in that it holds the promise of revolutionizing drug therapy by tailoring it to an individual’s genotypes. This is particularly important for the treatment of mental health conditions (which have become more prevalent during the pandemic) because patients respond to medications differently. In addition, the prescribing of incorrect medications is the 5th leading cause of death in the U.S.
The field of pharmacogenomics is also a revolutionary field for pharmacists because it brings them out from behind the counter and onto the frontlines of treatment and patient management. And it’s breathing new life into a field that’s shrinking due to consolidation and automation. And that’s a big reason why it didn’t take long for Dr. Wilkey to attract more than 130 eager pharmacists who wanted to learn about what she was doing and how they too could do it. But her full-time consulting practice didn’t leave much room on her calendar for one-on-one lessons.
How Kajabi helped Dr. Wilkey join the knowledge economy
“There just wasn’t enough time in the day to give individual lessons on what I was doing and how other pharmacists could do it too,” added Dr. Wilkey. “I needed a solution where I could turn all of my knowledge into a course that could be accessed at any time by as many people as possible.”
A chance encounter with a friend led to an introduction for Dr. Wilkey to a course-creating instructor, who was using Kajabi. On the instructor’s recommendation, Dr. Wilkey signed up with Kajabi during its idea to Income Challenge.
“The Idea to Income Challenge is part of several initiatives we take to make it easier for knowledge creators and entrepreneurs to quickly transform their knowledge into consistent income on their own terms, all in one platform,” said Kajabi CEO Ahad Khan.
With the first month free, there was little downside for Dr. Wilkey taking the technology for a test drive.
“Once I got onto the platform I saw that it’s so much more than just a course platform,” said Dr. Wilkey. “It can be your CRM, your email marketing system, run your group coaching, and you can produce podcasts and create newsletters. It was just what I needed.”
That was just the medicine Dr. Wilkey needed to create her first course on helping pharmacists use personalized medicine and pharmacogenomics to change the trajectory of their careers. At the end of January 2021, Dr. Wilkey launched the beta version of her course: PGx Consulting Confidence Academy. The course was an instant success and she continued building and polishing her course from there.
“Dr. Wilkey’s knowledge and enthusiasm were the keys to her success,” added Khan. “We provided the tools and support, but her dedication and hard work are what helped her to be so successful.”
It didn’t take any advertising to get there
To net the kind of return on investment that Dr. WIlkey achieved, most digital businesses have to make a significant investment in marketing, but not her. “I promote my program through LinkedIn posts and live webinars. Both have been extremely successful for me, and I haven’t yet had to pay for advertising. All of my growth has been 100% organic.”
In addition to being inexpensive, Dr. Wilkey’s journey into the knowledge economy was somewhat seamless.
“There was a small learning curve for me,” said Dr. Wilkey. “I had no online or business experience, I’d never created a course before, and I wasn’t familiar with how to build an email list or create a marketing cadence. But I watched a lot of tutorial videos, made good use of the Kajabi help desk and just played around with the platform until I got it all to work smoothly.”
In addition to the extra $230,000 Dr. Wilkey earned last year, she was also able to grow her LinkedIn following to more than 14,000 professionals. And she was also voted to the ‘Top 50 Most Influential Leaders in Pharmacy’ thanks to her online academy.
The sky is the limit for Dr. Wilkey
“I’m extremely proud of my achievements,” remarked Dr. Wilkey. “I’m a fledgling female solopreneur who only recently launched her first business and first course. And now I’m a pharmacist who gets to come out from behind the counter and have a bigger impact on the world. It doesn’t get any better!”
After successfully launching her first course, Dr. Wilkey already has plans for more courses, new coaching methods and retreats using the Kajabi platform.
“I plan to keep growing,” said Dr. Wilkey. “While I did have a blockbuster first year, my emphasis in 2022 is going to continue to be on growth. I plan at least to double my 2021 income from my current course and start a new course for a different demographic.”
You can do it too
When asked what she would prescribe for others who might be contemplating a move to the knowledge economy, Dr. Wilkey advised, “Just do it. If you have an idea, go for it. If I can do it, I’m positive anyone can.”
There’s only truth in what Dr. Wilkey advises. No matter what someone’s knowledge and talents are, there is always someone in the world looking to learn from it. Now is the best time to start, and to make it easier, Kajabi has extended its 2022 Idea to Income promotion for another 45 days.
“Besides a special extended 45-day free trial, participants get a Step-by-step video training to walk them through building their business from the ground up, exclusive bonus content with strategy and insights from successful Kajabi Heroes, Webinar check-ins with our team and a peer group of entrepreneurs building their business right alongside you,” said Khan.
Now is the perfect time to follow Dr. Wilkey’s lead and join the other successful knowledge economy creators. Last year’s participants have collectively generated over $7,000,000 in sales, with some individuals hitting the $10K or even $50K mark in a matter of weeks. You can get started here.
