Do you need an email list to launch an online course?

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:: 00:00

Remember when you were a kid and took up a new hobby and your parents wouldn't buy you the kit until they were sure. You'd stick a tip, which meant you had to go to brownies, judo, dancing, or whatever it might be in your PE kit and pencils for a few weeks. This could feel uncomfortable. That was better than having to keep doing something that you didn't enjoy just because your parents had invested in the care.

:: 00:25

Well, that's exactly the approach you should take with online courses, which means you don't need an email list to launch an online course or fancy email marketing software or online course hosting platforms. I'm Janet Murray, a content and online business strategist. And in this episode of the greatest content podcast, I share why you don't need an email list to launch an online course,

:: 00:51

plus what you need to know. If you are launching an online course with a small or non-existent email list, or even one that you haven't emailed for Obama, or maybe even never, You really don't need an email list to launch an online course or fancy email marketing software. Because as a new course, creator sales, if your costs are likely to be modest.

:: 01:16

So as long as you're compliant with data protection law, you can send all your sales emails and even deliver your digital products manually. If you need to. Yes, I literally mean cut and paste email templates that you send from your Gmail or Hotmail or whatever it is that you use. And there are tons of free and low-cost options to host your online course.

:: 01:38

I do have a podcast episode on that. I'll link to it in the show notes, which means you don't need to worry about fancy course hosting software either because your students aren't interested in where or how you've hosted your learning resources or how you deliver them. They're interested in the quality of your resources and whether they'll get the outcome. They're hoping for. That's really all they're interested in.

:: 02:01

So if you're creating your first online course or trying to increase sales of one, you already have your priority should always be to create a great learning experience, not to worry about email marketing automation, fancy software, or online course platforms, because you don't need any of that. What you do need though is realistic expectations about how many courses you might be able to sell in relation to your audience size.

:: 02:29

The average conversion rate for online sales is just one to 2%. So that should give you an idea of the kind of numbers you need on your email list to sell hundreds of online courses. So without a decent sized email list, you're probably not going to make millions or even six or seven figures. And it really isn't helpful that there is so much guff out there suggesting that that is the case.

:: 02:55

I sold 13 of my first online course, which actually average or more than average, I converted at 2%. I did have a bit of a list, but I have helped tons of clients who have very small or non-existent less. If you have a good idea for a course, something that clearly solves a problem, and you can put together an email which sells the benefits of that particular course.

:: 03:23

And you're willing to get out there and sell it. You will make sales of your course. So isn't it better just to wait, hands up in the past. I think I may have earned on the side of building your audience before you sell an online course. But I have to say my experiences over the last couple of years have changed my opinion on that one because not everybody wants to sell digital products.

:: 03:48

It's collaterized out there. And I do have a few podcasts episodes you might want to listen to on this. There's the obsession with six and seven figure businesses and how it could be harming yours. You could start generating recurring revenue today. So why aren't you doing it? Three myths about online course creation. I could give you more, but that will give you a start,

:: 04:07

but running a multi figure business, selling digital products like ID. I make most of my income from selling online courses, memberships, toolkits, PDF downloads. So I really do have a so-called passive income business, even though it really is never passive. I can tell you that, but it's not for everyone. I've shared this on previous podcasts, but it cost me about 10,000 pounds a month just to run my business and pay all the different contractors and pay for all the different services that I need to support me.

:: 04:38

I enjoy doing it. I like making a living that way, but it really isn't for everybody. And not everybody would want that kind of lifestyle or that kind of responsibility. I find it quite exciting. I Juliette, it's creative. It's fun. But until you've actually launched a one thing, like you've launched one online program, how do you know if that's what you want?

:: 05:01

And that's why it really makes me sad. When I see people spending months or years, even talking about launching an online course or creating a massive multi-module online course with zillions of modules. Because not only is that delaying bringing recurring revenue into your business, but you're also not giving yourself a chance just to find out if this is for you. I have had clients who have come through my programs,

:: 05:28

who their biggest win has been finding out that they don't want to make income this way they actually wanted. One is better. Had one example. I think I shared it in a previous podcast. It was a podcast on whether you should join my 90 day launch sprint. And I had one client who created an online masterclass, only sold one, but learn that actually she could charge you loads more for her,

:: 05:50

one to one done for you service. She could streamline, she could optimize so she could reduce the number of hours. It took her and actually a more money in less time. Plus they have so much to learn about launching an online course. You have to create a ton of content. You have to work out what order to do things in which means if you don't have much experience with that,

:: 06:11

you're probably not going to be brilliant at it to start with, you're going to need to ask a lot of questions. You're going to get stuck. So why not create your online course, but stick to something really simple, a one module online course. And like I say, in my podcast episode, you could be generating recurring income in your business today.

:: 06:28

Why aren't you? I do talk about that in much more detail, but why not just get stuck in and sell something and stop worrying about things like email lists and email automation and online course Hasting platforms. Just give it a try. So one thing, see how it goes. Get that experience of running a launch. There's a lot of moving parts.

:: 06:47

Gather those testimonials that you will need to sell a bigger online program. That way, if you decide that this is for you and you want to go down this route, then not only have you got the experience, you've also got the social proof. You've helped people get wins through your digital products. And in the meantime, you can be building that audience and actually bringing recurring revenue into your business.

:: 07:12

The other thing that's worth adding here is that not everyone wants to make recurring revenue, the center of their business. It might just be that you want to create a digital product that brings in a few extra hundred pounds a month, or that you can give to clients who don't have the budget for your one-to-one or even your one-to-many something I find as someone who runs a membership is that not everyone wants to be in a membership and that's fine.

:: 07:36

So having an alternative way for people to access your resources, that's a valuable thing to have. And it's a better way of serving people because you're giving them what they want and need rather than what you think they need. So I hope that this has reassured you, that you do not need an email list to launch an online course. All you need to do is to be realistic about your expectations of sales.

:: 08:01

And I personally believe it's absolutely worth getting stuck in. If you sell 10, someone said to me the other day, I'd just love to sell 20 of my resource kit. You will feel like a million dollars if you do that. And you'll also take the pressure off yourself because you're not launching something that you're expecting to pay off your mortgage, your launching,

:: 08:23

something that's likely to bring in a bit of revenue that crucially it's going to get you experience and testimony was that you will need to sell bigger programs. If that's what you decide to do. If this has reassured you, you may be just in time to join my 90 day course launch sprint it's happening between April and June. That's 2022. So if you're listening later than that,

:: 08:45

you might've missed it, but don't worry. I'll put a link in the show notes. You can always add yourself to the wait list. If you're listening around the time, this episode goes out, their deadline for involvements is March 27th. I will literally walk you step by step through the process of launching your online course. We'll keep it simple with a one module.

:: 09:02

Online course, we will keep it no or low tax aid, no fancy email automation needed. If you've had it great, you can use it. If not, don't worry. And we also won't be using any fancy online course Hasting platforms. I will show you how to create and sell your course without any of that. And I'll also give you a strategy to follow and tell you what to do in what order.

:: 09:25

And I will also give you the most important thing that you can have as a course creator. I will tell you whether I think your course will sell or not. I have seen so many heartbreaking posts where people have spent months, years, sometimes creating multi-module online courses, which don't sell because they're not really solving a problem for anyone. Sometimes they've paid thousands of pounds to be in programs with people where they haven't had that personalized feedback and have a couple of options for what the sprint you can either be part of the group programs that will be a bigger group,

:: 09:56

or there is an option. I've got a couple of spots for one-to-one, which includes some one-to-one sessions. Even if you're part of the group, I will be able to tell you whether I think your course will work or not. If you work with me, one-to-one, if you take the VIP option, then I will be able to look at your email marketing copy of your sales page and give you much more personalized feedback.

:: 10:15

But the crucial thing for me is always getting the topic rights and getting some decent sales copy together, and I have templates for everything. So if this episode has inspired, you I'd love you to join me on my 90 day course launch sprint, and I will put a link in the show notes.