Are you interested in launching a course but unsure where to start? Maybe you already have a course, but sales are sluggish?
Believe it or not, selling a course can be one of the best ways to create sales. They can create a lead magnet to upsell other services or products you offer. Some just create multiple courses, and that is their business model.
Courses attract attention because people seek knowledge to enhance skills or achieve personal growth.
Articles around the web tell you that selling high-ticket courses will make you tens of thousands of dollars per month.
Could this be true?
While there are people who can succeed in these high-ticket sales, if you’re thinking of creating and selling your first course don’t go out of the gate with expensive courses.
Here’s Why
The cost of course creation.
Implementing the lead page and using the necessary software comes with a price tag. The planning, content creation, and editing process can be quite overwhelming.
Course development can range from 3K to 25K depending on the complexity of the project.
If you lack experience in writing and editing, you will need to engage the services of a ghostwriter. Furthermore, you will need to invest time and money in promoting the course. Keep in mind that in order to expand your reach, you will require automation tools for marketing.
Before creating any course evaluate your skills and credentials. What makes you credible to start charging hundreds and up for one course? What’s your social media following? Do you have enough contacts from past and present to market too?
Why should people buy your course?
If you have decades of experience and credentials, use it to your advantage as a marketing tool. But that alone is not enough to sell anything.
If you don’t have a timeline of hefty credentials, like most people starting out in business, offer a free mini course or eBook to educate and build an audience to help capture testimonials.
Start a Facebook group to gain followers and build a sense of community which helps you build visibility. This will help pre-sell clients and create a level of exclusivity. Wait lists are a wonderful way to gauge interest.
Courses that sell for thousands of dollars will have lofty expectations from buyers.
One key aspect of sales psychology is the belief that purchasers perceive they are receiving unparalleled value and outcomes associated with a premium cost.
Setting a price that is too high for your product without being genuinely knowledgeable about it will lead to disappointment for the audience and give off a superficial impression. It is essential to avoid pricing yourself out of the market. If you can show a certain value, buyers may have the power to influence pricing.
"Customer information can be used to make sure the prices will be attractive to them.
Competitive information can determine prices in terms of market positioning.
Pricing decisions are the big culmination of a long process of research and analysis, but remember, it’s also somewhat forgiving: If the business misses the right price by a little bit, it can usually change it promptly."
Source: Oracle Netsuite
Avoid overstating your skills and pretending to be someone you're not.
Authenticity is the truest form of trust in a world filled with noise.
Even high-ticket course sellers grapple with selling issues. Understanding how to sell to premium buyers is just as important as the course itself.
Can you identify the central figure in course selling? Here's a clue: It's not you!
Premium course creators stay in the lane of the premium buyer. This principle applies to more affordable courses as well. Tailor your marketing strategies to the audience you are targeting and understand their specific needs.
Don't oversell and underdeliver.
For a beginning course creator- consider this.
Search for the audience that has the potential to become high-value customers. Appreciate your audience just as much as they appreciate you.
Here is where your course will shine, and your business will grow because it was your course that got them there. You'll get referrals from course takers who found value.
Even premium course sellers can fail when they don’t do their homework on course marketing.
Having high end credentials alone doesn't make a great course.
Simply having high-end credentials does not inherently create a great course. This misconception arises from following widespread industry marketing strategies that often target individuals unlikely to make a purchase.
If your marketing points out mistakes without explaining the underlying reasons, it tends to attract beginners who don’t appreciate the value of a high-ticket offer or can't afford it.
Consequently, you’re not selling the worth and people won’t be motivated to invest in your future courses or other premium services.
Your offers are too vague or do not address a significant issue, making it hard to justify the high-ticket price you want to charge.
This is valuable advice even for beginners and advanced course creators. Decide the value proposition for your client: What will they save by buying, and what will it cost them if they don't?
For individuals interested in entering the business of selling courses, here's some advice.
Understand the competition you're facing; other course creators are already in your market. How can you differentiate yourself?
A successful course creator combines deep subject matter ability with a student-centric approach, ensuring the content addresses learners' needs.
Create engaging and high-quality materials that captivate and motivate students.
Effective marketing skills are essential to promote the course and reach the target audience.
Continuous improvement, based on feedback, keeps the course relevant and valuable.
Lastly, building credibility with testimonials sets up trust and authority in the field.
For example, successful creators have track records with proven outcomes from students.
Think of Ted Talk speakers. Speaking engagements are a wonderful way to build an audience before a course launches and gain followers after a launch.
Now you may not be at that level yet, but you can start by hosting a Zoom event on a regular basis to attract loyal followers.
Make your course easily accessible for everyone to take on their own time.
You can produce an interactive course where you congratulate people at each chapter and use quizzes when progress is made. This helps people want to finish to the end.
Give them stars after each quiz to be used as virtual coins for discounts on future courses. This approach keeps people motivated and engaged within your marketing funnel.
A course is an investment in your future. Make sure you work with a ghostwriter who understands your goals and can help you with how to market it to your audience with pre-course marketing material. Even if you have a course and need to have it reviewed, repurposed or edited- Get in touch with AZ Publishers today about course creation and editing here.
If your selling a course or thinking of selling one check out Notion- You can blend much of your workflow into an all-in-one workspace. Want a task list? A product roadmap? A design repository? They are now all in one place. You can even customize your own workspace from dozens of LEGO-style building blocks.
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