Ep. 049: How to Sell Your Course

Congrats! You've decided on your course and you've either built it out or you'll run a beta round and create as you deliver it. Fantastic! But how the heck do you sell the dang thing now? There are SO MANY WAYS! There's really no "right" way to do it, because so many different ways work. In this episode we talk launch vs. no-launch, cart open dates vs. evergreen, challenge vs. webinar and more.

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  Erika Tebbens: Welcome back to the Sell It, Sister Podcast. If you have been listening for this month of March, uh, if you were listening in real time and if you've caught the last couple of weeks, you know, that we have been talking this month all about when you're thinking about creating a new offer, some good questions to ask yourself.

  And then if it just so happens that, that new offer is a course, or you've been contemplating creating a course, then last week we chatted a bit about, you know, how to create it like the backend and you know, if you should, and then if you say yes, like how to go about it again, not breaking it down into every little

  bits and piece cause that would be a really long podcast episode, but just the basics of what you need to consider. If that is what you are thinking about doing for, um, for new offer for, for your people. Now, this is going to be all about selling that.

  So let's say you went through two weeks ago, you asked those questions.

  I asked you to ask yourself, you decided yep. Full steam ahead. I'm doing a course. And then you listened last week and you're like, yep. Got it. Awesome. I wrote my outline. I know where I'm hosting it. I know what the components I want in an hour and you're like, great. Now I'm I'm doing it. I'm making that minimum viable product and now I'm getting ready to sell it.

  How the hell do I do that, Erika? Well, I'm glad you're here cause we're going to talk about it.

  So first things first, just a reminder. If you've been here a while, if you're familiar with me, You already know this, but if you're new or you need a refresher, I just want to remind you that selling is serving.

  You need to have, you need to get your mindset right before you do this, right? And the crocks of selling is that you are serving. So you have to really believe in it and believe it will help and serve others, right? So if you are just creating the course, I know this isn't you, because my audience is amazing.

  But if you are, have followed that, that bro market-y thing of like create a course and you know, you just sit on the beach and make sales and you'll have that four hour work week and it will be amazing. Right? Like I know that's not you. So now if you're like, all right, I'm going to do this. I'm going to put in the work.

  I'm going to sell it. You really have to first believe that it will help people, that it's not just a vehicle for you to make more money in your sleep and now making money in your sleep is freaking awesome. But if you don't feel aligned with it, if you feel like it's just a cash grab, it's always going to be harder to sell.

  So first things first get your selling mindset, right? Know that you are being of service when you're selling. I know that you believe in what you're teaching and know that it will help others. All right. So now that, that is out of the way. There are actually two ways you can sell a course to larger ways to like categories, I should say so that you could sell a course.

  You can do it without launches or with launches. So we're going to talk no launch first. So this can be something that is just direct to client, right? So, uh, I've been mentioning in the last couple of episodes, my client, who does the Disney travel planning, and then we worked on a course together. So, she, when she is having consults with people, she does.

  She also does a lot of networking and stuff. So when she is meeting people and she's talking to people, she can say, I have these two offers either a done for you or a DIY either. I do your planning for you. If you're super busy and you don't want to do DIY, I could just do the plan for you or I have a DIY option, right?

  So she is not out there doing these big, old launches of her course. She just has it as an option as she's talking to people. So it fits in with the model of how she's doing her business already. And you can also mention it periodically. So maybe like you have this course, and then, you know, you have your email list or you have your social media and then like once a quarter or once a month or something, you just remind people, Oh, Hey, I have this thing, by the way, I have this thing, like maybe you didn't know, uh, maybe you didn't need it then here's a reminder. I have this thing. So you can just have it be something like, it can just live on your website under your work with me page. Uh, you could talk about it in sales conversations. You could talk about it, you know, on social media and your email list. Like if they're there, you don't have to do these big launches around it.

  Right? It can just be one of your offers. Uh, that is like the low key way kind of to do it. Or you can launch it. And when you launch it, there's lots of different things that you can do with a launch. So some ways that people launch are by doing a challenge three-day challenge five day challenge, seven day challenge, 10 day challenge, whatever.

  All different kinds of challenges. You can do a challenge. And then at the end you can pitch the course, right? So you give them a few quick wins and then you're like, Hey, the next step, if, if this was good and you want more help with this problem, this issue, this thing, whatever it is, I actually have this course.

  And like, here it is. And here's what it's going to do for you. And here's how you can buy it. And yada, yada right so challenge that leads into. Uh, course, uh, you can also have a webinar that people can watch where you are teaching. And that leads into a course. You can do a video series that again, you're teaching and that leads in to the course.

  You can do a robust, like email campaign that is, uh, driving people to either directly to the course to a training. And then that training leads to a course. There's all different ways that you can do that. It can be part of your nurture sequence when somebody gets on your list. Uh, it can be, you know, from another, maybe like a separate opt-in that you have and then it goes through and then that leads to the course.

  Uh, you can do a big launch on social media. Like you could really talk it up for a few weeks. You could teach a little bit here and there and your posts and your stories and live videos, anything like that. You can also have a Facebook group. So whether it's a one-time pop-up group or it's an ongoing group, and then periodically you watch it and there there's so many different ways that you can do it.

  And then sometimes you can do it organically. Sometimes you can do it with ads, you can do it with a combo. Like there's, there's lots and lots. And this is where it starts to feel really daunting. And there's going to be, you know, depending on who you are and, and how you like to show up and where your customers are and all of that, there can be loads of different ways to, to do this.

  Uh, before we go too much into that, I just also want to say. Two ways that you can cause if you're like, okay, well, great, there's all those different ways, but like what the hell do I even talk about? So the two most common ways that I have seen is to let let's just say that your course has like four pillars of content, right?

  Four main modules. So one of the courses I have the one for farmer's market vendors. It does, it has four pillars. So when we teach it on our main webinar, that leads into the cart being open for about a week. We teach a little bit about each pillar. So we give people some wins from each pillar, some knowledge, some understanding, some, you know, some ideas and things like that.

  Now there's no way on a webinar. We could teach all of it, like it, that we'd be on there for hours. Um, but they can take, they can have that base level understanding. And either take it and research all of those things on their own, or they can get the course and then we will walk them through it. I do the same thing for my, uh, Sell It, Sister Course, my larger sales and marketing course.

  I am not actively promoting that right now. Um, but when I was, I would talk a little bit about my framework. Uh, of the four different categories that I teach in the course. And, um, so there's, there's that way, another way is to take one of those things. So let's say it's like, The first one, um, and do a deeper dive in there and then say, you'll learn the other three in the course.

  Now there's lots of different ways. Like you could do this, so you could teach. It's not like these two ways are the absolute end, all be all. You can only do this. Like there's a lot of different ways, but just to keep it really simple. Cause you know, I'm all about simple. I want you to think in terms of, are you, uh, Are you going to teach a little bit from, from each part of your framework or are you going to teach one part of your framework and then they can buy the rest?

  Another way that, um, a lot of times is said is, uh, like teach the what or the why and sell the, how. So you can say like, this is what you need in order to be successful with XYZ. I'm gonna teach you the how inside the course. So you can research the how on your own, or you can buy my course and I will walk you through it.

  Right? So you're still giving them like the what and the why. Uh, and they could absolutely go out and Google it or, you know, go down like a YouTube rabbit hole and they can try different things or they can just get your course and it will walk them through your whole, like methodology of, of what you teach.

  Right? So, so that is what you can, you can present in your trainings. Now I'm going to give you a few examples of different things that, uh, I've done, or like clients of mine have done. So this week, actually we are relaunching that Farmer's Market Vendor course in the past, we did a challenge. So we did a three day farmer's market challenge and we did it inside of the Facebook group that is run by the, my partner that we created the course together.

  So he created this group. It is for farmers and we did the challenge rate in there. So he also ran some ads and stuff that got people into the challenge, and he also emailed his list to get people into the challenge. So if they're going to take part in the challenge, we really encourage them to get into the Facebook group because that's where we, we run all the trainings and everything.

  So we did it in there this time around, we decided to do it a little different instead of doing a challenge, especially because as I'm recording this it's winter. So a lot of people are not at market. We instead are doing a three-part mini series. So tonight actually we are teaching part one. Uh, so we are teaching more about like, sort of like the first part of our framework a little bit, um, not, not a hundred percent, but like, like a little, a little bit.

  Then two nights from now we're teaching part two, which is a little bit from the second pillar. And then on Sunday we are teaching. So we're doing Wednesday, Friday, Sunday, and then Sunday night we were doing a longer form webinar.

  So we're recapping parts one and two, and then we're touching on parts three and four. And then we are opening the cart for the course before it was three-day challenge, then a webinar. And then going into the course now, sometimes people will have just the challenge and then it opens to the course, and there's no webinar in between.

  Sometimes people just go right to the webinar and then into the course. Um, and sometimes it's, you know, there's, again, there's all different ways. Like, uh, sometimes people will do, um, You know, like they'll have a whole, uh, like a pop-up group that is just for the offer. And so they'll either do a challenge or like a training series just in the pop-up group.

  And then the cart will be open for a bit and the cart will close and then that pop-up group goes away. So there's so many different ways you can do this, but really. What you want to be doing is sort of educating them, giving people some quick wins, showing them, uh, what they are going to be getting with the course, how it's going to change, whatever the thing is that they want changed in their life or their business.

  And then you have that card open for a period of days. Maybe you do some early bird specials or anything like that. There's like a lot of tech components that I'm not, I'm not going to get into on this episode. Um, but then they can, they can get in and then they get to go through the course. And maybe that is.

  That they, uh, get dripped out the content over a series of weeks. Maybe they get full access to the whole thing, like right off the bat that is up to you to decide, um, And there's there's courses that I've been in and I've gotten into them in different ways, whether it's via a webinar or even just like a personal recommendation from somebody, uh, and all different course communities that I've been in.

  So I've kind of seen it done several different ways. And I will say there's no like a hundred percent foolproof right way or wrong way. The last thing I want to mention is, uh, to think about, you know, a lot of times we hear. Are you launching or is it evergreen? So what that means is, uh, evergreen, that means that something is available all the time. So it's just there, like it lives on your website or lives in an email sequence or something, and people can just buy it whenever they want to buy it. And then other times there's a cart open and close and you can only get in during those times. So there might be a wait list in between maybe you only open the doors twice a year.

  Um, kind of like, like B school, right? So B school launch is actually going on right now. So I forget how long their cart is open for, but it's only open, I think, like once a year. So the rest of the time, like you, I don't think you can get B school. Right? I know this it's this way. Um, with like Denise Duffield thomas' money bootcamp, and, and some other ones where, uh, you, they only allow new students in during certain times.

  Now sometimes there's a hybrid where you could technically buy it all the time. And let's say there's like a Facebook group or community group for it somewhere. So you can buy it anytime and you can get access to the course materials and the group, the community group, and all of that, but maybe a few times a year, if there's a live launch, which means that, you know, it's.

  It's a big, there's a big push to get new students enrolled. And then the course creator maybe, uh, teaches part of it like every week or is available for Q and A calls or something like that that really incentivizes people to get in now because they are going to get more access to the course creator right now.

  So again, all sorts of ways to think about doing it. So lastly, I just want to end with some good things to think about because your brain is probably swirling and you're like, Oh my God, like I thought creating the course would be hard now I have to sell it. And it sounds like a nightmare. There's so many option options.

  How do I choose? I'm just, I want you to think about really like, uh, you know, who, who is it for? How do, like, how was your, your thing? How is your course going to help them? What will their life look like after, um, what are the logistics? And then like, what is the call to action going to be? And so by thinking about it this way, like, like where are they, right.

  Are they moms who hang out on like Facebook all day? Right? Is it, is that where you're, is that where your people are? So like, if it is then having a Facebook challenge in a Facebook pop-up group might be really awesome. And then you can think like, okay, what is it, what is it going to help them with? What is your course going to help them with, what do they need to know before?

  Like what are some quick wins they can get before that will lead them into wanting that bigger solution? Right? So maybe you do a five day challenge and. You are going to do this challenge just for moms going to be in a Facebook group. And maybe you're, you know, I don't know, like you help them keep their kids rooms like tight or you, you help them like organize their whole home.

  Right. And their moms. So it's like the, the toys are everywhere. So you do like a five day, like toy decluttering. Challenge and you give them some quick wins. You do the pop-up group. You have like really quick emails, you know, little emails every day with short, easy things that they can, that they can do so they can feel accomplished.

  And then you're like, yeah, you know, at the end of the week, here's this other thing. Now that you've tackled, like the playroom or the bedrooms, we're going to do the whole house. And then you really show them like, What is it going to help them with, what will their life look like after? What are the logistics, you know, is it a four week course?

  Is it an eight week course? How is it delivered? Like all of the nitty gritty and then you give that call to action. Okay. I want you to go, you know, click this button right here and buy or you can either do one payment of 1.97 or two payments of blahbity blah. Uh, and you really say like, if this is for you, if this is the after picture you want, if, uh, if you feel like this is the thing that's gonna get you there, here's some social proof of people just like you, that it's worked for before then your next step is to click this button and to purchase.

  So, again, that's a very big, big, big overview of selling the course, uh, as always reach out to me, if you have questions, if you're not sure, or you think you have an idea or whatever, I'm on Instagram @erikatebbensconsulting. I love it when people. Say hi, and I can get to know them and get to know what they're working on.

  So please reach out because again, your brain might be swirling now, but I just want you to know, I don't want to overwhelm you. I just want you to know, because if you know, you can make better decisions, you can be more strategic. If you just think this is great, I'm going to spend the next month creating this course.

  And then I'm just going to like post about it once on my social and I'll have this flood of, of, you know, new students and revenue and everything. It really is more than that. Like to give you an idea of the backend of, since I'm in launch week this week, like there's, there's a lot, like it's. It's me and my partner and a team and, and like he's doing Facebook ads and, uh, you know, we have to carve out time for these live trainings that we have to have email sequences and, and I don't want to dissuade you from it because it, our, I know our course helps people. So it's worth it. Like when we are in the midst of the launch, I'm like, Oh my gosh, like, this feels like a lot, but I know that people get results. I know that people need this information. I can suck it up for a couple of weeks if it means that we are going to be positively impacting more people with this course.

  But, you know, I just to be frank like this, isn't something I want to do all the time. And there, there also like people who teach how to get stuff on evergreen. Like there's a lot of people out there who can teach you how to not have to be live launching all the time. And, and honestly, our goal really is to move our course to evergreen with two live launches a year.

  So we're doing it now in the, in the winter and we're going to do it in the, um, like end of the summer. And then in the interim, we will just be running. Uh, some ads to like a lead magnet. And then from there it will go into an email sequence that will go to the course. And I honestly, I'm not sure yet if it's going to go right directly like to the core sales page, if it will lead into like, or prerecorded training, like a pre recording of that webinar that sells people into the course.

  I don't know yet. We haven't decided, um, But this is not something I want to be doing like month after month, right? So it's just, it's important to take all of these things into consideration so that you. Aren't expecting one thing and then you get really defeated, um, in the end, but again, as always reach out, find me, um, on, on Insta Erika Tebbens Consulting, say hi, ask me questions.

  Gimme a virtual internet, high five. And as always happy selling.