The best teachers are the best sellers (They Just Don't Know It Yet)
Teachers often find selling to be unpleasant and unnatural. But there's a way to market in a more organic and sustainable manner through teaching.
I interact with creators on a daily basis. I've conducted research on several hundred (maybe hundreds?) of creators on nearly any scale. Every creator is different. But if there's one big benefit of getting to know the creators of our world, it's this:
Creators are uncomfortable selling (and think they're terrible in selling).
Offering hampers for sale "course imagination and enthusiasm," one told me. "It's not something we're used to or good at," another says. "I realize how vital [marketing] can be, however do I know how to implement an effective strategy? I'm not sure." These kinds of comments appear in conversations within the group on Facebook.
My goal is to make selling natural for those people. My goal is to create a natural selling experience for those who want to teach.
One huge component of that? changing the way we think about "selling" means. Yes, it can involve the creation of marketing funnels, paid advertisements, or email blasts. But that stuff is the last thing that creators are looking to improve as it saps their enthusiasm for teaching.
But here's the surprising thing that I wish every creator had known. It's a powerful and simple knowledge that is often overlooked by people. Everyone has the most effective tool available to sell. This happens to be their forte, and the thing they love doing most in instructing. To increase their sales, creatives have to be teaching more.
Transformational funnels >>> marketing funnels
It's been my experience to consider teaching as an instrument for guiding change. Consider it. Any time you've ever learned something, a transformation happened. Before and after. Perhaps someone changed from "I could not juggle anything at all" in to "I can juggle 3 balls." It's quite a change! Then, after a couple lessons, another transformation happens -- "I am able to hold FOUR balls!" Soon they begin to see things they can play with everywhere they move. It's one of the most possibilities to juggle. That's transformation.
Reminisce back to an instance when you really learned something. It was a satisfying and building experience. There was probably a sequence of changes that built on the other until you could not believe that you once didn't know what to do. Then it must have felt incredible, right?
Marketing funnels for creators need to begin with that initial change. It's the reason I consider them to be an alternative: transformational funnels. When your marketing funnel takes students through a change and then make money through the teaching.
It is a long time before you really dive deep and understand the subject matter. Mastery and knowledge are gradually built. And almost always, there's a natural sequence of points and milestones to be achieved through mastering. (For example, you probably cannot juggle chainsaws until first learn to juggle three balls, and then four, then two chainsaws and so on.) And creators who give this first lesson to their fans for free grow the fastest.
The best part? The transformative funnel is the exact design of a funnel for marketing. Without any strategizing or administrative work, an intuitive and expertise-based funnel (a transformational one!) is already inside the brain of the designer.
How to sell as a top-selling teacher
Let's take a look at an illustration of how this funnel transformation appears to be. Let's take a look at Brandon, from Thrive Training Institute. Brandon is a teacher who teaches one of the most powerful and essential thing is how parents can protect their children in the event of an emergency. He has recently posted an Instagram posting which highlighted the crucial matter that choking is the most common reason for children's deaths. In the final paragraph of his blog post, he advised people to read his complimentary guide on the subject.
It's a typical lead-generating tactic, right? Introduce a problem, and then offer a solution. What happened? The post went viral. 17 likes, no comments. Why? Brandon thought like marketer. He made a commercial. The commercial presents a challenge, but no solution. The student isn't able to move along their journey of transformation.
Contrast that post with another one that is more recent. Brandon has a completely unique approach with this one: he instructs parents what they should do should your child has a choking issue. So much value! So, what happened? The post received 153 views as of the writing time -- 10x more than the original posting, and a ton of comments. By teaching a solution to the issue, Brandon provides a transformation. It's an easy "a ha!" moment that prompts an audience to go on a trip. Teaching is powerful!
One thing to keep in mind is that Brandon offers really excellent content away for free. Perhaps that's a bit dangerous. Why would his audience purchase his course if they can just get it for free on Instagram? Of course, 60 minutes isn't long enough to study everything you'll need to know in order to help children during an emergency! Now that they've started learning the skills then they'll finish through his training. And because his audience are thrilled with the change They're also sharing the article with others, too. (Think of the last time you discovered something that was new to you, and you were thrilled to tell someone about it.)
He's building his audience and is offering a significant (and absolutely free!) transformation -- and developing a lead funnel that is powerful for his business. Brandon is selling through training. He's marketing in a way that's natural and authentic. Simple, effective and is easy for Brandon as well as his followers Everyone benefits.
The value of selling authentically
The most vibrant (and profitable!) firms are founded on genuine intention and action. It's the same in teaching. The most effective and impactful teachers possess a strong feeling of authenticity and the purpose behind their teaching. Consider the top teachers in your life. Take a pencil and paper or open your notepad, and before reading on, write out some words that explain them.
The most powerful and influential instructors were in deep, profound connection with their authentic. (Thank you Bob as well as Irfhan!) They were captivating, inspirational and interesting. It was because they were authentic.
In making selling easy and easy, we're able to unleash this potential in every creator who lives to teach. My aim is to enable creators everywhere to teach and live in complete in their authenticity. Consider, even for a moment about that impact. A rapidly growing category of people who are able to be authentic and teach dedicating their whole selves to sharing transformational experiences across the globe. When I imagine and think about that possibility it is when I can see one amazing thing that is a new world.