Well, you did it. You finally stopped launching your course and started selling it on autopilot, but your excitement is starting to dwindle and so is your revenue.
You know something needs to be fixed, but you’re not sure what. You see other people with high-converting evergreen funnels on every topic imaginable: pilates, guitar playing, cake baking, finance, and more – so it feels incredibly frustrating that yours isn’t converting the way it should.
I’ve helped thousands of course creators stop launching and start selling their courses on autopilot and over the years I noticed that many of them are making the same three mistakes that I did when I first started.
In today’s episode I’m sharing three of the most common mistakes I see course creators make when it comes to selling their course on autopilot so you can get things moving in the right direction.
My name is Caitlin Bacher, CEO of Scale With Success®, and I’m on a mission to help course creators all over the world grow their business in a way that is profitable and scalable. I’m sharing revealing insights about what it really takes to scale an online course business to millions of dollars per year. Join me here to discover the tough decisions I’ve had to make, the biggest failures I’ve had to bounce back from, and the learnings that emerged every step of the way. I’m so grateful that I have the chance to tell you everything right here on Scale With Success®: The Podcast. Let’s get started.
Today I’m sharing 3 mistakes that every course creator makes selling their course on autopilot. Let’s get into it.
Mistake #1: Trying to do more of the same.
When I first started selling my course on autopilot, I wasn’t making any revenue and couldn’t figure out what I was doing wrong.
I didn’t know that simply squeezing all my live launch content into an automated funnel and then crossing my fingers and hoping someone would buy – wasn’t the best strategy.
I literally thought I could take a recording of my live webinar, upload it into some kind of automated funnel – and call it a day.
I did sell a few courses when I first turned it on, but those profits dried up FAST and I was left with a funnel that did NOT convert.
I thought maybe this meant that maybe evergreen wouldn’t work for me and that my audience would ONLY buy if I did a big, fancy launch.
Hindsight is 20/20 and NOW I understand that evergreen wasn’t the problem, it was the STRATEGY I was using that was the problem. If you think about it, it makes sense because the buyer’s journey is SO DIFFERENT in an automated funnel vs. a launch.
It’s like fitting a square peg in a round hole – and that’s not going to cut it if you’re looking to generate 5 or even 6-figure months from your automated webinar each month.
It wasn’t until I threw all my launch content out the window and created content that was able to form a deep connection with my audience – even in an automated funnel.
I get DMs from people everyday who tell me they are stuck in the launch model and they’re SO frustrated. They’ve tried evergreen in the past by attempting to repurpose their live webinar into an automated funnel and have learned the hard way – that process doesn’t work.
Simply put, what works live will not convert well in automation.
Mistake #2: You’re solving the wrong problems.
If I had a nickel for every time I’ve ever heard a course creator tell me everything would be fine if they could “just get more traffic”, I’d have enough money to buy Disneyland.
When I first started getting traction selling my course on autopilot, I was EXCITED – but, I was also a little nervous.
My sales conversion rate was low and this meant I needed WAY more traffic to meet my revenue goals – but, the PROBLEM is that getting WAY MORE traffic was expensive – and at the time I didn’t have money to spend on ads.
It took me a long time to figure out that the reason my course wasn’t selling had nothing to do with traffic and EVERYTHING to do with being able to effectively communicate the value of my course.
Once I was able to describe the problems my audience was experiencing better than they could, clearly explain what was causing their problems, and highlight exactly what made my approach to solving their problems different from anything they’ve tried before I saw a rapid increase in revenue.
If you also want to generate SUSTAINABLE profits from the small amount of traffic you are getting, then you need to fix your funnel FIRST – and that includes EVERYTHING from what you’re saying on social media, your webinar, your emails – the whole thing.
Take a balanced approach to scaling your business – without obsessing over traffic alone – so you can increase your revenue while increasing your profitability.
It breaks my heart when I look at a course creator’s funnel, see LOADS of glaring mistakes that if FIXED would result in an immediate increase in new customers, but they’ve convinced themselves they have a traffic problem, not a sales problem.
If your funnel isn’t converting, the LAST thing you need is more traffic.
Yet, they’re spend all their time jumping from traffic tactic to tactic, thinking if only they had the right traffic strategy everything would fall into place. But, the whole time they are sending all that traffic to a leaky funnel and all their profits are going right down the drain.
Mistake #3: You’re letting uncertainty get the best of you.
When it comes to starting, growing, and scaling your business – nothing is guaranteed and uncertainty is everywhere.
I want you to know that the sooner you lean into courage – and forget about confidence – the more successful you’ll be.
When I first started growing my business, things were moving at a snail’s pace – including my revenue BECAUSE I would overanalyze everything.
Should I buy this? Should I do that? What if it doesn’t work?
As young women, we were taught that mistakes were to be avoided at all costs. We were told if we DID make a mistake or something didn’t work out perfectly the very first time we tried – it meant that we didn’t have what it takes.
But, when we looked around, we saw our male counterparts being praised for their bravery to act in the midst of uncertainty, to make mistakes, to bounce back, and to do it all again.
It is possible to deconstruct and rebuild your belief structure from something that values perfection to something that values courage, resilience, and growth over time.
Show me someone who makes 10x the revenue you do and I’ll show you someone who has made 10x the mistakes that you have. Someone that’s taken 10x the risks – EVEN IF they feel scared, uncomfortable, or overwhelmed.
It’s a beautiful day when you realize you don’t have to put your dreams on hold until you “feel confident” because you already have the courage to take action even when it seems impossible, scary, or unclear.
Having the courage to move forward and learn how to overcome unexpected challenges makes you stronger, more capable and THAT leads to more confidence – not the other way around.
I appreciate you being here today and tune in next time for another episode of Scale With Success® The Podcast.
Are you sick and tired of launching and looking for a proven method to generate consistent revenue from your online course on autopilot?
Sign up for my free masterclass, “How To Generate Launch-Sized Revenue Without Launching” and I’ll show you how our clients are making MORE money in LESS time than they ever did while launching.
If making sales everyday in a way that is completely automated and doesn’t require paid advertising sounds good to you, then click the link around this episode and sign up for my free masterclass today.
Today’s episode is brought to you by Scale With Success® Accelerator — an online course designed to help you generate launch-sized revenue without lanching. If you want to learn MORE about our proven method for success, click here to watch my free masterclass. See you in there!
