Creating an online school or academy is not only about creating an online course, but also finding the people who will pay for it. Here, you will find five vital points where you can deliver a killer sales page and make all the difference.
Many entrepreneurs fall into the trap of spending months creating their content and forget to do any marketing. Most importantly, when you are planning your lessons for online audiences, you need to also prepare your marketing plan and have a solid strategy on how to achieve results.
First impressions count, and your Sales Page is your perfect opportunity! Are you ready to go through the details of a successful sales page?
Your Title is your Sales Pitch
The very first thing that catches anyone’s eyes is a sweet title. Get the right title in front of the right person and you got them reading through the rest of your page. Your title has to introduce the course, but most importantly reflect your students’ needs, wants and what they are going to get out of it.
Remember to include “signal” words in your titles that give out the meaning effectively and prompt a potential student into action, such as:
- Learn
- Certification
- Step by Step
- How to
Below are examples of strong titles for selling your online courses that promise to deliver results:
“Your seven steps to entrepreneurial success”
“How to write a book in 60 days”
“From scribbles to amazing drawings”
If you would like to read more on how to write a good title, check out Christopher Pappas’ article for attention grabbing titles.
Subtitles, a Chance to Give More Information
Having a subtitle is your second chance to get more information in front of your audience. It has to answer the following questions for your course:
- Who is this online course for?
- Who can benefit from it?
- What is the return on my investment?
Especially when you are trying to sell a premium course, your potential students will be looking for as much information about the course as possible before making a decision. Include a promise of value such as “70% of our students have gained a promotion after the course”. Enticing them with a value-added subtitle will keep them reading through the rest of the page and make the decision easier for them.
Your Online Course needs a Description
There are two type of readers on the web. Those that quickly scan the text and those who read the whole website from header to footer. A strong course description should start with giving as much information in one short paragraph and go on expanding on the benefits of the rest of the text. Long descriptions are especially important for premium priced courses, the more someone pays, the more they need to be convinced why they pay.
Relate to your audience’s needs. Find out what kind of credibility is suitable for their needs. Are they looking for an expert on the topic, a leader in the field or a certified individual to deliver it? Then illustrate the course plan and set up their expectations and prepare them for success!
Have in mind, you are not selling a product but a service. Meaning that you will need to prove that your online course is worthy of the price and make the reward seem ten times greater than what someone is are paying. Also, show them that you will be with them along the way, you are offering a premium educational experience along with it. Make your students feel important and connected.
Extra tip: Using words such as “because” and “you” will help create a connection.
The Power of Testimonials and Social Proof
Nothing convinces customers to open their wallets more than other satisfied customers.
Imagine having to choose between two very similar restaurants side by side. Would you choose the one full of customers or the one full of empty chairs?
Collect real testimonials from your previous clients, people who have worked with you and enjoyed it or people who had success stories because of you and are happy to share them with others. Those are your badges of honour and we all love to read stories, that’s how we connect and that’s how you will connect with them too!
Choose a few different testimonials, addressing different concerns of your potential students:
“Is this online course the right one for me?”
“Did someone go the benefit promised by it?”
“Is it something that people like me or people I would look up to are interested in?”
You do not need to have made a sale to gather testimonials for an online course. People that have worked with you in the past can be a great source of testimonials. An email, a tweet, a comment on your Facebook wall, everything can be a testimonial, just remember to reach out and ask for permission!
Sell your Course with a Call to Action (CTA)
Now, it is time for the sale. After all, that is the whole point of a Sales Page. All you need is a CTA, a short piece of text, that will inspire the “final push” towards buying your course. There are many ways to go with it, but the most important aspect to remember is “who your audience is”. Who you are talking to makes all the difference. And depending on the kind of language you used to the rest of your page you can use different wordings towards the desirable effect.
If you have done it right, now it’s the part of your “magic button”. Most platforms for selling online courses offer one or more sales button(s) for you. Choose a simple design that leads your potential client to easily understand how to sign up and buy your course. Simple designs with colours that make it easy for the eyes to see and understand what they are doing are the best. If you need some inspiration for Call to Actions, head to Hubspot for some examples.
Here is a list of actionable words you can use to complement your message:
- Join
- Get
- You(r)
- Save $$$
- Try
Your Sales Page has to tell a coherent, complete, story, beginning with its title and finishing with a happy ending at your Call to Action. Implementing the above is only part of your marketing strategy to sell your courses. There is a lot of work involved in marketing your courses, but a beautiful sales page can make the difference between a profitable online course and a wasted opportunity.
You should track your conversions through an analytics software (e.g. Google Analytics) or your platform’s native analytics to see if your potential customers are converting or not. If your sales pages’ visitors are not converting to paid customers you might need to rethink one or more of the above.
I would love to know what works for you and if there is something that I should have mentioned in the article. Let’s take the conversation into the comments 🙂
