When to Launch a Course
A business newsletter for professional healers, spiritual practitioners, and intuitives.
"Your customers can tell you the things that are broken and how they want to be made happy. Listen to them. Make them happy. But don't rely on them to create the future road map for your product or service. That's your job." – Mark Cuban, Shark Tank
Are You Ready?
While you could launch a course wherever you’d like, there’s a moment in a spiritual business that’s best.
When is the Best Time to Launch a Course?
In 2013, I created my first online course. It was a course on how to start a blog. The format was a glorified screen share. It was basically me talking over a PowerPoint presentation. People bought it!
Since then, I’ve created more than 14 online courses, which brought in more than a million dollars in sales. Some of those courses did better than others, while others just totally tanked. Why? My business wasn’t ready.
What do I mean? The courses that performed the best came after I had proven the concept I taught in the course. Meaning, after there was a big demand for me and the topic was when customers were willing to buy what I had to teach in course form.
These are the Courses that Worked and Why
The blogging course did well because I had been teaching blogging in-person around town for months. My classes were all full and people started to ask me if I would consider teaching it online. So I did, and it worked. It worked so well that the website company Squarespace paid me $1,500 a month to sponsor it!
Next, I made Soul Seeker, my first-ever try at metaphysical content. I taught about all the nerdy woo-woo stuff I was into like spirit guides, chakras, and so on. This course did not do well for many years. Why? Because I had not proven the concept. No one was coming to me for spirit guides. I didn’t have a booked out schedule of people begging me for this work. It wasn’t until my readings took off, years later, when people started buying this course.
I then started to make dating courses, and they did okay. Not great. Not bad. The reason for this was that I was still accessible. People could still get a one-on-one session at an affordable price. You could even get coaching with me. So if I’m struggling with dating, why would I buy a course when I could get a real human? My brand was not strong enough. I was not yet in demand. And my business still depended on my sessions.
And then came the golden cash cow, Soul Teacher. I mention Soul Teacher (which is now called Soul Reading Method) here, but it’s not really a course. It’s a program, because there is community and access to live teachers. It’s a little different but the reason this program did so well is because my brand was beginning to be defined. I had completed about three years of non-stop readings so I had a strong base of customers who trusted me. Our first three rounds of Soul Teacher were all former clients. Plus, my one-on-one sessions were booking out and my pricepoint was high. Being with me in a program was the next best thing.
Here’s how to Know if it’s the Right time for You
I know, I know, we all want passive income from the courses. We all want to eventually get off the one-on-one sessions. And I know there are plenty of marketers out there that will tell you that you can make $10k with your first course.
Well, I’m not going to lie to you. A $10k course launch is not possible for most of us. I don’t mean that it’s never going to be possible. I just mean there is a time when it is and when it isn’t.
The best time for a course is when:
#1 You Feel Like an Expert - Meaning you have proven your concept, with real paying clients, for at least six months. You feel confident in what you’re talking about, because you know it works. You may have to tweak your course along the way, but you feel good enough about what you know at this point.
#2 You are in Demand - I’m sorry if this sounds depressing, but your course will work when you are in demand. Being in demand means customers have to wait to get on your schedule because you are so booked up. You can’t just squeeze them in this week. They’re waiting for at least 3 weeks to get in with you. Plus, you’re in demand for the topic that you want to talk about in your course.
So What do You do in the Meantime?
If you’re not feeling like an expert and you’re not in demand, you have two options.
#1 You can Work on Getting More Clients - This means you’re marketing your services, collaborating with others, pitching yourself, and making content. Your focus is on getting more people to know about your work, and secondly book with you.
#2 You can Create an Upsell Offering for Your Current Clients - If you’re itching to put out some digital content, consider making a smaller course that could be a good upsell for your current client. The best way I can think to describe this strategy is like when you go to your dermatologist. You’re going for the appointment, but at the end of the appointment she might sell you a face wash or cleansing pads to help with your skin. After having a one-on-one session with your client, you may see that they need a healing, a pack of journal prompts, or a series of meditations to shift their mindset. Create these smaller digital products and sell them to your clients who need them.
Patience, my friend. It’s all happening.
Resource of the Week
Teachable
Why we Love It: We have tried almost every course platform on the market. We’ve tried to run courses on our Squarespace site. We really tried to like Kajabi. And we were hoping Mighty Networks would work for us. But we always went back to good ‘ole Teachable. It’s easy, pays us out quickly, and our students really enjoy the app. The customer service is amazing and always there to help us really quickly. If you’re thinking of creating a course, a program, or some digital products, look no further than Teachable. We’ve tried all the platforms so you don’t have to. Use our affiliate link and get 10% off your first year of the “Pro” plan with code MAGIC10.
Looking Ahead
Next week, we’ll discuss how to price your offerings.