So, you’ve done the hard thing. You’ve created an online course, spiritual membership, or program. Congratulations! That’s a massive milestone, something that deserves to be celebrated and acknowledged. I’m proud of you! Take a step back and breathe after putting in all that work. You deserve it!
I have some news that may surprise you… the work is just beginning. Now, you gotta sell this thing! It’s not going to sell itself. The heartbreaking truth is that thousands of spiritual business owners every year create courses that will never see the light of day. They don’t understand what it takes to sell them, they put all their eggs in the basket of creating them, and then they feel like a failure when their soulmate clients don’t come flooding in.
I don’t want you to be one of those spiritual entrepreneurs. Instead, I want to show you what it takes and empower you to do the work so you can change your soulmate client’s lives with your course or membership.
Deciding on a Launch Strategy
Once you create your course or membership, you need to decide on a launch strategy. You have two options:
- Open close cart (your soulmate clients can join while you are launching)
- Evergreen (your soulmate clients can join whenever they want)
Both strategies work. Countless business owners have made millions and millions of dollars using one or the other. What works for you will depend on your energy.
Do you get fired up and executed about a weeklong launch? Do you love feeding off that scarcity of the cart closing and helping people say “yes” to their desires and themselves in the final moments before it goes away? If so, the open-close cart method is probably your best bet.
On the other hand, if the thought of a launch makes you want to crawl back in bed and hide, or using scarcity tactics (which are perfectly ethical to use AS LONG AS the scarcity is real) doesn’t align with you, you can choose to use an evergreen launch.
If you’ve ever been told that evergreen doesn’t work and you HAVE to choose an open-close cart launch or visa versa, that person was simply passing a limiting belief onto you (probably without meaning to). So you can release that false information and go with your gut!
Creating Your Intentional Sales Funnel
Whether you realize it or not, every client you onboard goes through your sales funnel. Therefore, the more intentional you are about your sales funnel, the more successful it will be.
Sales funnels can be super simple, someone follows you on Instagram, sees you talking about your course in your story, clicks on the link, and buys. That’s a super simple funnel that nurtures someone from follower to soulmate client.
Your intentional sales funnel can also be more elaborate. For example, when you get to the end of this blog post, I’ll offer you a free resource (an excellent one might I add). If you choose to take advantage of the free resource, you’ll give me your email.
My system will email you the resource and drop you into my “getting to know you” email sequence. If you check out Own Your Impact, my system will send you my free masterclass, The Secret to Aligned Marketing (highly recommend this one, BTW).
Finally, IF you click to view the training, you’ll be dropped into the Own Your Impact email sales sequence that tells you about the course in a series of emails over ten days (I just gave away a LOT of secrets here if you are reading carefully).
Which Intentional Sales Funnel is Right For You?
Again, it depends on your energy. It can take up to 20 touches (meaning your soulmate followers have to see your offer 20+ times) for someone to purchase. Of course, you can lower this number by getting super intentional with your messaging and market research, but 20 is average.
A simple sales funnel where you use social media posts, YouTube, or your Blog requires you to do all the work. First, you have to keep showing up consistently and talking about your offer in real-time.
This practice can be exhausting for some people (me included), and that’s why a more automated funnel works for me. Even if I go on vacation, get sick, or get buried in client work for a few weeks, my funnel nurtures my soulmate followers while I’m absent from social media.
I used the example of a direct link to purchase a course in this post, but it works the same way if people book a call or fill out an application to begin the process of working with you.
Choosing your intentional sales to funnel is so dang important. I want you to turn off any “shoulds” and tune into your energy. What does your dream funnel look like? What has worked for you in the past? At what point in other people’s funnels do you typically take the leap?
You might find Selling Mistakes That are Kicking Your Ass helpful as you noodle through this process.
Let's Build the Funnel!
Once you decide what you want your intentional sales funnel to look like, you have to build the dang thing. I KNOW you’ve done all this work creating the course, and you want to start serving your soulmate clients, but there is still work to be done.
You can get your first few sales by reaching out to past clients or people who have expressed interest, but that’s not a long-term strategy. If you want consistent enrollments, you gotta build and nurture the funnel.
I like to start with pen and paper. Then, sitting in an environment that fuels my creativity (physically and energetically cleansed), I grab whatever crystals call me, a cup of tea, and connect to my guides. Tuning in, I ask my higher self to help me list out all the elements that should be in the funnel.
This includes:
- A free resource, masterclass, or webinar (these can also be sold for under $100 if the final sale is high ticket)
- Social Media Posts
- Emails
- Landing Pages
- Contact Forms
- Long-Form Content (blog posts, YouTube Videos or Podcast Episodes)
Your list may include some, all, or none of these items (if it includes none, I probably have some questions, but maybe you downloaded something beautiful and unique!)
Once I have a clear list of items I turn to my magnetic messaging strategy and my market research documents. If you don’t have these things, you need them. I help you create both in Own Your Impact.
Market research is how you discover what your soulmate clients need from you. A magnetic messaging strategy uses your market research to develop your brand voice.
I refer to those resources as I create the assets of my funnel, ensuring everything speaks to my soulmate clients and no one else.
Tech Time
When your content is compmlete, it’s time to bring it to life. That’s where your tech comes in. I use Ontraport for my email marketing. It’s also a CRM, payment system, and hosts my course material. A freaking all-in-one powerhouse.
If you aren’t ready for an extensive system like that, check out email marketing software that integrates with your course platform (Kajabi, Teachable, etc.). If you need free email software MailerLite is your best bet.
Make sure you give yourself time to test your funnel once it’s in place. You will probably make a few mistakes as you set it up, but if you are the first person to go through it you’ll be able to fix everything before it goes public.
The tech for a simple sales funnel that doesn’t include email will be simple (I HIGHLY recommend you have an email list, but you can sell via social media only if you wish). Creator Studio is the only content scheduler you should use for Instagram and Facebook. If you are on LinkedIn, you can use Later.
Canva is the best tool for graphics and memes, videos, and whatnot.
Turn It On
Okay, your funnel is on – guiding your people from soulmate follower to soulmate client… you still aren’t done.
If you choose a cart open/close launch, you need to plan said launch.
- How will you get people’s attention? (webinar, online challenge, workshop, guest experts, etc.)
- How long will the launch be?
- How will you show up differently when in launch mode vs. not launch mode?
If you choose an evergreen launch, you’ll need to decide how to drive consistent traffic to your funnel.
- Long-Form Content (blogs, Podcast, YouTube)
- Organic Social Media Engagement and Invites
- Social Media, Google, or YouTube Ads
- Being a Guest Expert In Big Communities
- A Combination of These Things
Can’t You Just Run Ads to Your Course?
Yes and no. If you have a tried and true ads strategy in place (meaning it worked for YOUR soulmate clients, not someone else’s), ads can help you try, fail, and adjust faster by driving traffic to your funnel. However, you will likely lose a few thousand dollars before it starts to pay off.
I highly recommend an in-depth ads course or hiring an ads manager if you choose to go this route (some spiritual entrepreneurs are happy to lose a few thousand dollars in exchange for the data it gives them). Just creating an ad on your own without any knowledge of Facebook Audiences or the Business Manager platform is like putting money down the garbage disposal.
If you have a funnel with a free resource at the front, you can use ads to grow your email list while testing your funnel. This way, you at least have more soulmate clients on your list at the end of the day, even if they didn’t purchase (assuming your ad was targeting the right people).
Think of ads as a super blaster. They are going to make whatever is happening in your funnel happen faster. Meaning, if your funnel is working well and getting sales, a good ads strategy will make those sales happen faster.
However, if your funnel isn’t working yet because you haven’t tested it and refined it enough, ads will make it fail faster by putting more soulmate clients through a funnel that isn’t resonating with them.
You Have to Show the F Up
Whether it’s showing up heavy during your two-week launch (and being willing to launch again and again until it works) or showing up consistently for an evergreen course model, you have to show up. You have to do the thing. Put the content out into the world again and again until it starts gaining momentum.
Then you have to get honest with yourself about what’s working and what isn’t. Refine your messaging and your content over and over again until it clicks and your soulmate clients go wild for your course.
Countless spiritual entrepreneurs do all the work to create the course, and a few even build the funnel, but only a select few show the F up, and that’s what separates success from failure.
If your spiritual coaching course or membership isn’t selling, please don’t think it’s becuase your program is no good. Nine times out of ten it’s your marketing, NOT your offer.
I hope you found value in this post, and it clarified what it takes to launch and sell an online course or membership. If you need help establishing an intentional sales funnel, my team and I are standing by.
Before You Go....
Grab the list of market research questions. It’s totally free and will guide you as you sit down with your soulmate clients and ask them what they truly want to see from you.
