Strategies to make the Great Online Course Sales Funnel in 2023
When you've been in a conversation regarding internet marketing, there's a good chance you've come across the word "funnel." There's more and more chatter regarding funnels and and more brands promising to help you build your perfect funnel.
People are using funnels to market things such as high-ticket training or memberships. It stands to reason that funnels are an excellent idea to sell an online course. And they can be!
In this post, we'll talk about the subject of funnels in general. What it is that can make a funnel effective? What should you avoid? And we'll give you three ways to create your own funnel for your online courses.
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In this article...
What is an online course's sales funnel?
What is an online course sales funnel IS NOT
What are the factors that make an online course sales funnel work?
Truths about online course funnels
How to make an online course sales funnel
How do you fill in the funnel of your online course
How do you create an online course with
What exactly is an online course sales funnel?
An online course sales funnel is a way of selling that starts with an abundance of prospective buyers and guides them step by step toward the ultimate course purchase. Most often, the journey of a customer through an online course starts with a free or low-cost offer, like a webinar, a gift (opt-in) or a community membership and qualified buyers proceed through the funnel to - eventually - buy the course!
Course funnels could have upsells at one end too, often course creators will include items like 1:1 coaching, a private group, an additional course or an event that is live.
Along the journey as the customer's potential client realizes (by investing a little money or time) you're the perfect person to help them, and they get psychologically ready to buy the program. And that's awesome!
The success of a funnel depends on the high success rate of leads to sales - and a recognition that not all buyers will purchase. That's okay. What's important to create a sustainable business model for online classes is getting enough people in your funnel to ensure that they reach the end of the process - although it's important that you tweak your funnel to make it more efficient. Then we'll go over everything!
Value ladder and the universal marketing truth
We at Mighty, we really like using the term value ladder to refer to a funnel. Since when your ideal student invest a little time or cash (in exchange for some of value) then they will trust your. As they trust you and trust you, they'll invest more time or dollars to gain higher value.
It's awesome math!
What is an online course sales funnel IS NOT
- High-pressure sales tactics. Since, let's face it that we've all experienced it. If you're not certain that the product is right or that the seller can aid you, but you're PRESSURED to buy it - it's the worst!
- A "Buy it now" button. The whole point of a funnel should be nurturing and giving value. A funnel needs to have at least a couple actions on the value-adding journey.
- One offer. In essence it is a funnel that has more than one offer. It doesn't mean they're all PAID. Your funnel could have 3 free things and then one offering to purchase a course. However, there must be several options that offer the same value.
- Universal. There's no one-size funnel that works for all. There are definitely most effective practices, and ClickFunnels has developed a solid reputation around repeatable components of funnels. However, a funnel that works for someone else might not be suitable for your particular audience. It is important to test it.
- A bait and switch. You want to build an effective funnel? You must ensure that you are providing value at each step. Anyone who requests their readers to download a poor, worthless PDF and then expects them to into a $ 215 course sale, needs to be rethinking their strategy.
What is it that makes the sales funnel for online courses work?
Trust
The power of the funnel is the trust. Feel it. Be aware of the force from the channel. (IS this an original Yoda quote? This should be!).
The ENTIRE purpose of the value ladder is earning people's trust. They need to trust that:
- It's not a problem.
- You're the person to resolve it.
- Your worth is worth the price.
Many people work for money. Most of us do not like throwing it around - particularly in the current economic climate.
What is the best way to gain trust from people?
It's easy. Offer value. Prior to asking the money. If you are able to provide more value to your Ideal Student than the money they'll need to get it, they'll stick around.
Once they've put in a bit of time or money on your items, and can see that it was worth it and they'll want to go on the next level!
The Ideal for Students
To get an online course to work, you need an ideal student. This is the specific image of the individual that will be paying for the course. The person should face a challenge that they need help with... Hence the course.
How do you find your Ideal students?
The first step is to be specific. "People who love dogs" isn't a great description of an Ideal Student. In all seriousness, who doesn't like dogs?
So, we need to limit it down. "People trying to crate train the puppy of their first year" could be an ideal Best Student.
When you're planning your course or course funnel, go and meet with people that could be Ideal Students! Learn about their issues and challenges, and especially would they be willing to invest in solutions.
You can then develop what we refer to as the Big Purpose statement for your course. It looks like this:
Offering Value
We've talked about the importance of value over. However, once you've found an idea of your Ideal student then the next task is to present them with all the information they need - and give the value they deserve upfront. If you're planning a great top-of-funnel treat to show that you're TOTALLY the right person to help you, think about: What do they need to be aware of?
If you have a brand new puppy, maybe it's an e-book with an example dog training schedule. Perhaps it's a webcast with some tips for training.
Value can only be provided once you know who the Ideal Student will be. You know what's awesome? If you provide value to your customers the people are more inclined to trust you. Amazing stuff.
Software
Last but certainly not least, the majority of funnels require software. What are you looking for? It depends on the type of funnel you create. But in general the case of an online course funnel, it will require software to generate leads, software for nurturing leads and provide the course.
That can get a bit intimidating, and it's is a fantastic online learning platform as does the majority of these things to help the students.
Here's what you might need software for:
Attracting Potential Customers |
Delivering Value |
Selling the Course |
|---|---|---|
|
Paid Ads |
Webinar Platform |
Point of sale |
|
|
PDF Downloader |
LMS, streaming platform or even a live stream |
|
Social Media |
Community platform |
Chat and messaging |
|
A site (SEO) |
Email software |
Community |
|
A podcast |
Event platform |
Analytics |
The type of funnel that you're creating will determine the program, but we'll go into it.
Facts about online courses funnels
- Just a small portion of your customers are likely to buy your product - this is called the "conversion" rate. Nobody creating a funnel ever hopes for 100% of the people to be willing to spend money on the item. Expect anywhere from 1-10% max.
- Funnels need tests. It's possible your first funnel can lead you to success However, it's highly very unlikely. You'll likely need to work out how. Yet, as the founder of ClickFunnels Russel Brunson said, you're just one funnel away!
- A funnel that is effective will earn you millionaires. Have an optimistic outlook, but be aware that course designers often take people through funnels over and over until they have found one that's effective.
- The funnels should be worth more than what they cost. Marketing is a process where the cost of acquisition is one of the most important numbers. If you are aware that every time you spend $10 in Facebook advertisements, you will receive $30 back in course revenue, you may simply keep feeding the funnel!
How to create an online course sales funnel
There's not one single way to design a funnel for sales for an online course. You must decide what fits your style and your audience. We'll show you few, including the one we've been secretly thinking is the best. You can mix and match the.
Sequences of Email
This online course sales funnel is as old as internet. It's happened to you before. You came across a website and were offered an "Cool pdf" as well as "Free Training." You gave out your email address and started getting some emails from their.
When it works when it does, an email sequence gains more and more trust. We can imagine your Ideal Students eagerly waiting for your next emailand being glued to every word that you say. So that when that invitation to buy the online course comes around, they'll be saying "Gee Golly, gosh yeah!" !"
It's the most ideal-case scenario.
You know the way email functions. There's a good chance that people have joined 39 other email lists and your brilliant missives end up in their junk mail folders once in a while.
You're now required to determine if the email you send out is appropriate for your audience. And psst, it can surely be component of a funnel. If you have a small email list (e.g. 100 individuals), getting the 2% you need to purchase won't make a difference. If you have 100,000, 2% of people buying is a lot of money!
Webinar
This one is familiar to you. It's where you sign up to receive an "Free Training" - usually via ads in Facebook, Youtube, or LinkedIn. The link you receive will allow you to watch the video whether recorded live or pre-recorded. (Or it's recorded but they pretend it's live. Those sneaky sneakers. )
It is a movie that you watch, and then they offer some benefit Then, afterward, they give you the chance to buy coupons, or a special offer to keep your attention.
The thing that makes webinars more effective than email is the fact that they can create trust much faster. There's something about video that is extremely effective. You can take a look at the person's eye, get a few inquiries addressed (maybe), and determine if they're best fit to meet your needs.
Then, if you're willing to buy it, then you'll purchase!
Community Funnel
The best marketing funnels for on-line classes
Therefore, the last value ladder that we'll be discussing is one of community. At Mighty, we really love wonderful communities.
In reality, a community is able to do all that an traditional funnel for sales does as well. People can learn about the community. They can join (either on a free basis or at an agreed-upon fee). Signing up is simple and lets members join in a conversation that's already happening between you and other members.
You fill your community with engaging content, questions and answers webcasts, webinars, live streams, live events, or everything else you want. You deliver a ton of value on a large scale.
Then, when the time is right to market your course online, you've got an existing group of people who know that they trust, love, and like your business. They are confident that you're the only one that can assist them and they'll pull out their wallets to pay for the course!
If you can get your Ideal Students and Big Purpose right, it's easy to create value and trust within a community. It's not even a task at all yourself, other members will be able to contribute value because of the effect of network. It's the top online funnel for online courses.
How do you fill in the online course funnel
There are many different ways of bringing people into your funnel. Here are a few ideas!
- Paid advertisements
- Social media posts
- Posts on social media groups
- sharing with friends
- Posting on your website (SEO)
- Based on an existing email list
- Making partnerships with other like-minded creators (get in front of their fans)
- Podcast appearances
- Guest post
How can you make an online course with
If you're ready to build your online course funnel, here's a quick outline of how courses function within Mighty.
Ready to get started?
Did this guide get you ready to build your personal funnel? In reality, nothing beats an excellent funnel to help ensure that your online course is sold. So if you have something to share and you're ready to begin creating that funnel!
If you're looking for a community funnel (or webinar - let's be honest - you can do both) Come and try Mighty! We're a software for culture that let's you bring together classes, communities content, as well as commerce. And our flexible Spaces let you combine features like an LMS, live streaming and discussion forums as well as chat and messaging. Q&As, member profiles, and many more!
And it's really possible to offer your course in 135 different currencies and even make money using token-gating. And your students can access the course on a great app for every device.