Pre-Selling Your Online Course: A Proven 3-Step Strategy

The Challenge of Selling Before Creating

One of the most perplexing questions for new online course creators is how to sell something before it's actually created. While this may seem counterintuitive, pre-selling is a time-tested strategy used successfully across many industries. It's particularly valuable for online course businesses, as it allows you to validate your offer and generate cash flow before investing significant time and resources into course development.

This article will explore a proven 3-step strategy for pre-selling your online course, focusing on building confidence in your offer, generating cash flow, and delivering client results. By following this approach, you can create a strong foundation for a sustainable and scalable online course business.

The Three C's of a Strong Business Foundation

The strategy for pre-selling your online course revolves around three key elements, which we'll call the "Three C's":

1. Confidence in your offer
2. Cash flow to fund your business
3. Client results to validate your course

Let's dive into each of these elements in detail.

1. Building Confidence in Your Offer

Confidence is crucial when selling any product or service. If you don't believe in what you're offering, it will be nearly impossible to convince others of its value. But how do you build confidence in something you haven't yet created? The answer lies in a method called the Profitable Offer Prototype (POP) approach.

The POP Approach

The POP approach is designed to help you create the first iteration of your offer while positioning you as an authority in your niche. Here's how it works:

1. Identify Your Expertise: Start by examining your own story, experience, and skillset. What unique knowledge do you possess that can help others?

2. Conduct Market Research: Investigate where your ideal clients hang out online. Look at Amazon book reviews, Facebook groups, influential blogs, and other relevant platforms. Pay attention to the content that resonates with your target audience and the existing solutions in the market.

3. Conduct Interviews: This step is crucial and often overlooked. Find people who match your ideal client profile and interview them. Ask about their challenges, desires, fears, and what they're looking for in a solution. This process not only builds your confidence but also provides invaluable insights for creating your course curriculum.

4. Create a Curriculum Outline: Based on your expertise and the insights gained from your research and interviews, create an efficient curriculum outline. Focus on taking clients from their current state (the "zero" state) to their desired outcome (the "hero" state).

5. Craft Your Transformation Statement: Develop a clear statement that articulates who you help, what transformation you provide, and the ultimate benefit to your clients. For example: "I help [ideal client] go from [zero state] to [hero state] so that they can [desired outcome]."

6. Determine Your Pricing: Consider the cost to your ideal clients of not having your solution. This includes not just financial costs, but also time, energy, and emotional costs. Use this information to price your program appropriately.

By following these steps, you validate your offer and build confidence in its value before you even begin selling.

2. Generating Cash Flow

Cash flow is essential for any business, and an online course business is no exception. While it's a relatively low-cost business to start, you still need funds to sustain and grow your operations. The pre-selling strategy allows you to become your own investor, generating the cash needed to build and scale your business.

The Pre-Selling Process

1. Leverage Your Interview Contacts: Return to the people you interviewed during your research phase. Let them know you're working on a solution that addresses their needs and ask if they'd like to hear more when it's ready.

2. Follow Up: Once you have your curriculum outline and transformation statement, reach out to these contacts again. Explain how your program can help them achieve their desired outcome.

3. Keep It Simple: At this stage, you don't need complex sales funnels or webinars. Focus on one-on-one conversations with potential clients who already understand the value of what you're offering.

4. Make the Offer: If there's a good fit, invite them to become your first clients. Many will be excited to work with you because you've taken the time to truly understand and address their needs.

This approach allows you to generate cash flow quickly, without the need for a large audience or complex marketing strategies. It also provides a solid foundation for future growth, as you'll always have the skills to find and connect with potential clients.

3. Delivering Client Results

The final piece of the pre-selling puzzle is delivering results for your clients. This is crucial for building a sustainable, long-term business that creates real impact.

Live Delivery of Your Program

1. Start with a Live Version: Instead of pre-recording your entire course, deliver the first round live to your initial group of clients. This typically takes about 6-8 weeks.

2. Gather Real-Time Feedback: Live delivery allows you to get immediate feedback from your clients. You can see what's working, what needs improvement, and how to make your program even more effective.

3. Focus on Quick Wins: During the live delivery, concentrate on helping your clients achieve tangible results as quickly as possible. These early successes will become powerful testimonials for future marketing.

4. Refine and Package: After the live delivery, use the feedback and insights you've gained to refine your curriculum and package it into a pre-recorded course that can be sold at scale.

The Flywheel Effect

As you deliver results for your first clients, you'll start to create what's known as a flywheel effect:

1. You enroll clients into your program
2. You create transformations for these clients
3. Satisfied clients become raving fans and ambassadors
4. Their testimonials and referrals lead to more enrollments
5. The cycle repeats, gaining momentum over time

This flywheel becomes the engine that drives your business forward, allowing it to grow and thrive with less direct effort from you over time.

Conclusion: The Power of Pre-Selling

Pre-selling your online course might seem daunting at first, but it's a powerful strategy that can set you up for long-term success. By focusing on building confidence in your offer, generating early cash flow, and delivering real results for your first clients, you create a solid foundation for a scalable and impactful online course business.

Remember, the goal isn't perfection from the start. Just like the evolution of the iPhone, your course will improve and refine over time based on real-world feedback and results. The key is to get started, validate your offer, and begin creating value for your clients as soon as possible.

By following this pre-selling strategy, you can minimize risk, accelerate your learning curve, and build a business that truly serves your ideal clients. So don't let fear or perfectionism hold you back – take the first steps towards pre-selling your online course today, and watch as your business and impact grow.

Article created from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4K1kYdC4FfM