By Shahe, Director
(Sorry for the clickbait headline but this is true.)
I've been blown away by the launch success a good friend just had (a non-marketer) and think it's an instructive case study to look at. It shows that you can DIY a great deal when it comes to online courses, and important foundations need to be in place to create the right conditions for success - the kind of foundations that can't always be outsourced.
I wanted to share this story without revealing his secret identity so we can learn what it takes to achieve this level of success marketing yourself online – or at least what it took in this case.
His self-paced (all pre-recorded) 10-hour online course went live with a 2-week launch discount period of USD $695. He had 186 registrations at that level.
= AUD $180,559 at the time of writing
A course that doesn’t come with any formal qualifications or accredited training hours.
Content production costs? Did it himself, so just time.
Marketing/advertising costs? Virtually $0 – read on…
LMS costs? He chose Thinkific, so we’re talking around under USD $1K p.a. (flat fee, no revenue share)
Now the course is up to USD $995 and the enrolments keep coming.
And the social proof is now rolling in from the first finishers: 4/4 at 5 Stars with detailed testimonials to boot so far…
How did this happen? Can you do it too?
Like so many cases of ‘overnight success’, this one was 9 years in the making. Arguably more.
Without obsessing over this for too long, I think three main factors are at play:
Lesson 1: He is a world leader in his field
His field is highly technical and he has risen to the top. Let’s just say he took uni as far as it goes and was then selected for everybody’s dream job globally where he went on to contribute to three very significant milestones three years in a row… Many of the deservedly attention-grabbing claims on his landing page bio relate to these experiences and milestones.
Now, many fields these days aren’t so strictly structured or defined and you can definitely be a world leader (or “thought leader” or “influencer” within a significant community) without having done what he did.
It's important to note that he's a world leader on technical knowledge, but not a celebrity (outside of the YouTube channel you'll hear about in the next part) - he would be known to a small circle of people in the world, but that's not what the trust in his course was built on... This is good news for us, because most people in the online learning space aren't famous, but are still deserving of attention and have value to offer because of great things they've done in their work or hobbies.
So what’s important is that when you are advertising your course, you will have legitimate claims that your audience will respond to and respect. His came largely from his formal education and career; yours may not.
Claims are very important – and so very powerful when they’re true.
Lesson 2: He built his own large audience of like-minded people
What is advertising if not buying access to an audience you haven’t built yourself? Owning your own distribution channel or audience brings down the biggest costs.
This is where 9 years (and more) of sustained effort and self-teaching comes in. As mentioned, he’s a non-marketer who self-taught videography, editing and social media management. I’m not even saying he’s a natural who is intuitive and just “gets people” – he’s not (sorry buddy!) and you don’t have to be either. He knows what his audience wants because he is literally catering to his own interests and therefore found the relatively few people worldwide who also care about his niche.
He created a YouTube channel and posted his first video 9 years ago; there have been 177 more since then. Every video is of genuine interest to him: something he just learned about or did, a how-to video so you can do the same, an experiment he wanted to run, an explanation of a question he received in the comments, an observation he’s made about his industry or recent advancements, etc. You get the idea… Honest opinions. No scripts. No marketing polish.
Weekly effort for comparatively little financial return over almost a decade until the “big score”.
His channel has 112K subscribers and 12M+ total views at the time of writing. This is actually not huge for a successful YouTube channel over a decade, but in a niche with highly loyal and engaged fans, it is.
Even if YouTube isn’t the channel you choose, genuine giving to a like-minded audience with no clear expectation of reciprocation (no “sell”) for a very long time is what seemed to work in this case. When doing this for commercial reasons, we may not have that sort of time or budget, but it’s something to reflect on.
Lesson 3: He appears friendly and accessible, with no clear business agenda
Unlike many “thought leaders” who are competing for airtime in heavily saturated industries and always “selling something” (the next retreat, course, event...) – always “giving value” and offering referral discounts or promo codes (part of what I called ‘marketing polish’ earlier) – the hero of this story is pretty much the antithesis of this.
He was just being himself. There have been three attempts at monetisation in 9 years: YouTube ads (a decent but comparatively small income), Patreon (donations from the community), and now this – a premium course for a niche audience within his niche audience. He never looked like a “sell out” to his YouTube channel by flogging products with discount codes/affiliate links or running advertorial videos. The trust and loyalty was there.
For all the ego this guy could have, his videos and treatment of fans (e.g. in comments sections) are super casual, friendly and genuine.
Now I obviously think there is a place for tasteful ‘marketing polish’ to make the most out of anything (if your goal is to increase sales and grow your audience), but it varies field to field and needs to respect the needs/expectations/norms of the actual people in your community. His unintentional and authentic approach worked for him in this case.
I also think it’s possible to fast-track this whole process of course, with a team and budget, but it takes some creative thinking and probably serious collaboration/partnership activity.
Why would you want to do this?
Do you think you have something to ‘teach’ your clients… or someone else?
Why might you do this?
New revenue streams? You could sell the courses online for recurring income
This story shows it’s possible – but with some important prerequisites!
Improve existing services? This could be a free/discounted value add
Win new and bigger business? This could set you apart from the competition
Prospect & customer retention? Impressive content can keep them ‘hooked’
Invest in people? You could create content just for training staff and affiliates
Give back to the community? You could distribute content free to key groups
The ROI here may not be immediately obvious (it’s not just revenue at all)... Also, if it is revenue, it wouldn’t need to generate anywhere near this much to be considered successful anyway as part of a suite of online/offline/blended products and services.
When might you do this?
This is not for everyone and not right away…
Suggestions for maximum effect:
Have a very clear ‘why’ and success metrics – or simply start publishing (but beware you may be embarking on a 9-year journey of exploration and experimentation)
Build a very large mailing list or audience first
Own your own distribution channel and you won’t need to pay for someone else’s!
Post regularly and contribute across a range of profiles, groups and forums – be “known” and visible
Ideally you already have a lot of content (to use or improve on) and - better yet - a range of credible claims “#1 course on,” “award-winning,” “the leading…”
Get comfortable speaking “off the cuff” (i.e. unscripted) on camera for long periods of time
Summary
I was impressed by my friend - well done, friend!
A successful course launch can be years in the making
You too can do this if you have the right foundations in place
Reflect and think about the persona you want to put out there – authenticity works
The quality of the production is not a key driver (maybe a fast-track item to invest in, but not necessary for success) – the usefulness of the content matters, as does trust in the presenter
The claims you can make matter, your reputation and story will make a big difference at launch
You (or I) may be 5 or 10 years of community building away from such a successful launch – but the more we share and reflect on the stories of others, the better we can make our first attempts!
Hope this helps in some way. I would love to hear your own experiences with online courses or successful launch stories too.