12 Biggest Lessons I Learned from Launching a Course
Launch strategy is something that I've grown very invested in. After launching my own program 15 times, I have a lot of launch lessons learned. Now it's time to show you how to launch an online course minus the launch mistakes. In this video, we're digging into the mistakes I'd skip in your course launch strategy.
00:00 Intro
02:50 Not Planning Ahead
04:30 Not Batching
06:50 No Clear Calendar
08:30 No Hype Content
08:57 Not Saving Assets
10:05 No Payment Plans
11:14 Not Intentional Bonuses
12:23 No Personal Outreach
13:44 Not Showing Your Course
14:24 Not Onboarding
15:35 No Shareable Content
16:40 No Downsell
Not Planning Ahead
A launch isn't something you can just throw together and get out in a week or two. It takes a lot of planning and you have to set dates to when you are going to launch. You have to know when all the pieces need to be done. Yes, launching is a lot of work but if you are planning in advance, you'll know exactly how much time needs to be dedicated to what and when.
Not Batching
There's a lot of content that you're going to need to create in order to have a successful launch. Sales pages, social posts, emails... you name it, you're going to have to make a lot of it. Don't make the mistake that I made when I first started launching. There were times when I was writing emails moments before they went out! Instead, looking at your plan, block off time to batch create content. If you have to send out 7-15 emails, plan a time to write those emails all in one sitting!
No Clear Calendar
This definitely plays into planning. You have to have a clear calendar of what is happening during your launch. Know what is going to be posted and when. Know what actions are happening. Are bonuses expiring a certain day? Are prices changing? Keep all of that info on your calendar.
While launching is overwhelming, you can save yourself some stress by knowing what you need to focus on each day!
No Hype Content
Here's the deal. People aren't going to just buy your product or course or service. You have to hype them up about it. Create hype content and share share share. This means even creating videos about it. Share testimonials. Get people excited about what you have to offer!
Not Saving Assets
Save EVERYTHING you create... you can re-use this whether you decide to turn your launch on evergreen OR you do another live launch a few months later. You can use the same emails and copy. You can just take a look at the data from your last launch to see if there are little tweaks you might need to make. This also includes any stories you are using to promote your launch. Save them and reuse them! People aren't going to notice months later that you repurposed )unless you are always changing your hair....)
Not Having multiple payment plans
You probably know that payment plans are important and I've noticed when I can add a payment plan that is below $100 I can get more sales or people are more willing to purchase. However, you have to account for the additional fees that will be processed on these accounts and try to reward those who can pay in full.
So that's why if you see on a sales page that when you pay in full you save X amount of money... that's because typically we are adding about 20% to the payment plan to account for more processing fees and the likelihood hood people won't complete their payment plans.
Not Having Intentional Bonuses
Bonuses need to be intentional and not just Oprah style, you get a car! These need to be bonuses that are going to help get results with your program. They need to assist in making THAT course more valuable. For example, you have an Instagram course, you probably don't need to add an email marketing sequence as a bonus BUT you could add 3 carousel templates... which makes the bonus more enticing and more likely people will want it!
No Personal Outreach
Just because you have automated emails going out and you are selling a course doesn't mean you shouldn't have some personal outreach. So I use Loom and I have a quick script that I use when I make these. In each morning of my launch, I will check to see who clicked on the sales page but didn't buy yet. Yep, I can see that! Then I will send them a quick minute loom video using their name and ask them what's missing from the program that they need to get over the fence. Yes, it's work but this isn't passive income, this is work!
Not Showing Your Program
People are worried about the unknown so literally, show them the inside of your program. Walk them through what they will see when they purchase. What will they get? Share worksheets or other parts of the program! You can do this in the form of videos or even screenshots!
Not Onboarding
When people join your program, you want to welcome them! Give them a warm welcome and help them learn where to start! You have to remember that diving into a new program can be a little overwhelming so give them a place to dive in and equip them for success!
No Shareable Content
One of the best ways to get more sales is through word of mouth. You want to make sure your students are able to share that they are part of your program easily. This means providing shareable content. Give them templates that they can share on the social media or their website!
No Downsell
Sometimes people just cannot afford your program yet. They aren’t in a place to make that purchase. So after they don’t, offer them a downsell. They may not be able to afford your big program yet so have a smaller-priced option for them in your back pocket at the end of the launch... this can be a huge cash cow for you!
