How I Transitioned from 1:1 Services to Online Courses

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Here's my story of how I went from 1:1 services to full-time online course creator 🙌

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Video transcript:

 In today's video, I thought it'd be fun to sit down for a coffee and share with you how I transitioned from being a one-on-one service provider  to an online course creator.

I know that a lot of you want to make this transition as well,  so I hope that hearing this story and a few of my best tips will really help!

Quick backstory:

I started this online business fully intending to create an online course business.  I had seen people talking about it and the incredible potential with this type of business model,  and I was like, yes! That is absolutely what I want to do.

 At the time though, I didn't exactly have an expertise that I could turn into an online course, so I started out as a tech virtual assistant.

 This just meant that I was helping other business owners in the back end of their business, whether that was admin or marketing, and using my tech skills that way.

So this was amazing. And because I was working from my laptop, I could work anywhere in the world, which was just incredible.

 Now, luckily, a lot of those clients ended up needing help with Squarespace, specifically (the website builder).

So this was great because as I worked with each client, I started to become a  Squarespace expert.  At the same time, I was seeing everyone suggest building your website with WordPress, and I knew that for new entrepreneurs there was a  much easier way.

 So as you can see, my first online course started to take shape.

 This would become my very first online course, which funnily enough, I called Build a Better Website at first, which now has become Website the Wows, which is a much better name, I think.

 So there wasn't some big moment  where I like quit all of my client work  and then decided to build an online course. I did it gradually, which is actually what I would recommend for you as well. It was just my side project and I built it alongside of my client work, which meant I still had income coming in from my client work.

I'm really glad that I did it this way because that meant that my income was sorted  and I didn't put myself in a super stressful position.

Now, obviously this was hard because building an online course is a lot of work, so admittedly I was working a lot, but I knew that in the end it would be worth it.

 Now here's the problem. While I had a good course idea, I did not know what I was doing in terms of actually marketing or selling an online course. I had an idea, but I was definitely missing out on a few key elements.

A big part of the reason for this actually was that I was following successful entrepreneurs on Instagram. I would see them posting about these huge successes, but I wasn't understanding what was really happening behind the scenes, which are things that I like to share on this channel.

I just thought that people were posting on Instagram and then sharing their course and then getting hundreds and hundreds of sales. Little did I know there was a bit more to the story. 

So then I decided to launch my online course for the first time. I was so excited and I got… zero sales.  I'm okay about this now, but at the time I was devastated! I was so upset, and of course like self-doubt really kicked in. I think that I've wasted all this time on this online course, it's not gonna work and it's never gonna be successful.

 But again, I was just lacking that marketing and sales know how. The good news is those are all things you can learn.

Spoiler alert:  I went on to sell hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of that same online course.

So the point is, it takes time to build this type of business and make that transition.

A lot of times it's not even the course itself, it's simply how you're talking about it (your messaging) and if you're actually marketing it properly - do you have people in your audience that you can sell to and are you really showing up and making the case for your course?

That first launch that I did, I'm pretty sure I sent two emails, which probably weren't that compelling, so that's why it didn't work out.

So this is when I started to work with mentors and get help in these areas.

So again, I was working with my one-on-one clients while also working on developing my online course side. And it started to work. Finally, I started to see results. They weren't massive at first or anything, but it was slow and steady and each new thing I learned, I could apply it and see better results.  I think this is how it works for a lot of people. Yes, there are some overnight success stories, but I think they're more so the exception than the rule.

So if it's taken a bit of time or been a rocky start, know that that is normal, especially if you're doing this all alone.

So at this time I was primarily selling through a sales funnel. And so this is basically just using tech and systems to your advantage. It's setting it up so that the sales process in your business is happening 24/7.

And this is when I experienced for the very first time being out for dinner, or being on the beach and getting a sales notification, and it was like the coolest feeling ever 🎉  And I was like, okay, I really want to grow this side of my business. I really want this to be where I'm putting all of my energy.

So slowly but surely, as my sales became more consistent and my revenue became more reliable, I was able to phase out some of those clients freeing up more and more time for the online course side.

So then we get to the point where I had one client left who I absolutely loved, and I knew that I probably needed to let this client go, but I was really hesitant to do so.

Then my coach said something to me that was really impactful. The question was, “so you're holding on to this client because of the security and consistency that that client gives. And you're giving up 10 hours per week of your time for that. What would it look like if you spent those 10 hours per week marketing and selling your online course? Don't you think that in those 10 hours you could replace the income that you're earning from that one-on-one client?”

Once she said that, it was like light bulbs went off  and I was like, “oh yeah, probably.” I probably need to be a bit brave at this point, trust that I can do this, trust that I can go all in on the online course side of my business.

 And I did 💪

 And then from there I was able to become a full-time online course creator and really build that business that I had originally dreamed about.

Okay, so what are the main takeaways for you?

 
takeaway #1

Just get started. It doesn't need to be perfect. And the first version that you launch of your online course is just that. It's version one, and it will be improved upon over time.

 
takeaway #2

Don't give up. If you don't get any sales, it probably just means that something in your marketing messaging is a little bit off, or you haven't simply built the right audience yet, which takes time.

takeaway #1

A lot of resistance is going to come up as you make this transition. You're going to worry whether you're expert enough to create an online course and whether it's already been done before. But there's like 5 billion people online. I really do feel there is room for all of us, and there's always a unique way of doing things and a unique angle that you can find.

But even with all of that said, it's totally worth it,  and I do believe it is one of the best ways to have a more leveraged, scalable online business.

So that is my story. I hope that this helps and encourages you today to move forward with your online course.

Coming up real soon. If you're watching this in real time, I'm hosting a FREE 4-day challenge  to help you bring your online course to life 🎉

I would love to help you with this. Thank you so much for watching. If you like this video, let me know by giving it a thumbs up, and I'll see you real soon with another video.

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