Brian Clark (Rainmaker Digital) – Build Your Online Training Business the Smarter Way

If you want to cut to the chase and start selling knowledge online in the smartest way possible, then this course might be exactly what you’ve been searching for.

Because you have an opportunity right now to discover the proven principles and techniques that have been used to generate tens of millions of dollars and create dozens of successful online training courses.

And just like thousands of others, you can use these strategies to create a profitable training business. Without any hype, without high-pressure selling tactics, and without any unscrupulous activities.

In fact, if it sounds appealing to you, you can even ethically start to build an empire online while remaining completely behind the scenes.

How?

It all comes down to understanding the time-tested principles at the intersection of instructional design and digital marketing. In short, it’s about building a business, not just creating a course.

In this case, you’re both an entrepreneur and a teacher.

When you shift your mindset and fill the role of a teacher that helps learners get access to the benefits of knowledge they want and need, then every piece of your business naturally falls into place.

Thinking about your role in this way also leads to long-term customers who trust you and will come back to buy from you again and again.

Furthermore, ignoring this one simple concept will likely lead to you banging your head against a wall, trying to figure out why others succeed while you stay stuck.

Introducing a Timeless Method Proven to Work

In a recent article, Inc. Magazine reported on LinkedIn’s $1.5 billion acquisition of e-learning platform lynda.com.

The article went on to state:

Online Learning has quietly become a $107 billion industry …
In the 21st century, teaching sells.

And all we have to say about that is … well, duh.

Back in 2007, before most people had even heard of an online course, Brian Clark (Copyblogger founder and CEO of Rainmaker Digital) pioneered an effective approach to succeeding in the online education space.

With his landmark course “Teaching Sells,” Brian helped thousands of online entrepreneurs discover just how profitable online courses could be, when approached with the right mindset and strategy.

Now, in the decade since then the world has certainly changed, but the principles remain the same.

(In fact, if you look back through history, these principles have deep roots in philosophy, psychology, sales, marketing, and every other aspect of human interaction.)

And right now you have a chance to get your piece of the $107 billion e-learning market and float your boat on the rising tide.

As long as you begin in a sustainable and profitable way.

Unfortunately, many marketers miss the point.

They focus on a specific course or program. They ignore the “holy grail of marketing” that leads to a higher total lifetime value of the customer. This leads to a short-sighted approach that overlooks the importance of creating an interactive learning environment.

When you succeed in creating an interactive learning environment, instead of just selling a course, you create lifelong learners who instantly trust you and will pay more for access to knowledge through you.

Can you see why this is clearly the smarter way to build an online training business? It just makes sense.

Another side benefit is you can actually feel good about what you’re doing because you will see the results in the lives of your customers and hear amazing stories of how your course made a difference.

You can have all of this if you choose to create and market courses using instructional design as your framework.

Here’s a brief overview of those 6 modules:

Module 1:

5 Key Concepts for Online Entrepreneurs

In this module, you will build the mental foundations for creating your business the smarter way.

First you will discover exactly what traits a market must possess in order for it to qualify as a “good opportunity.” (This ensures you don’t shoot yourself in the foot before you even get started.)

Next you’ll come to understand the idea that “great teaching is great marketing.”

Now, you should know there are only a few courses that teach you to think about marketing in this way. (In fact, this might be the only one.)

Many courses focus on giving quick “flash in the pan” tactics leading to quick cash instead of strategies leading to a profitable, viable, and sustainable business.

These mental foundations are powerful because finding new customers costs a lot. (Even more so as the online training space expands.)

So, when you build a real, ongoing relationship with your market you automatically stand out from the crowd as a trustworthy and knowledgeable source of valuable knowledge.

This means you can spend more to acquire a customer because they will stick around longer. You will also build an amazing reputation over time and create a loyal tribe who respects and appreciates the work you do.

All this means you will ultimately create the lifestyle freedom and flexibility you want.

Module 2:

Designing Your Course

This is where the rubber hits the road.

Module 2 will show you how to take those key concepts from Module 1 and start to formulate a practical plan and strategy.

Here’s a little taste of what you’ll discover in Module 2:

How to take your own knowledge and package it into a product to sell online
How to use knowledge from other successful subject matter experts in your courses
A way to create a product, without ever actually creating it yourself
How to find unfulfilled needs in markets you are passionate about
Why more competition is a good thing and can make your success easier
Why “junk mail” might be some of the most valuable, helpful information you can consume
How surveys can provide meaningful data (and why most people set themselves up for failure and frustration when they use surveys)
Three questions to ask that reveal the benefits of your course
6 ways to position your course so it’s desirable and different
Why you should NOT focus on creating online courses if you want to create a profitable online training business
The principles of instructional design and how they tie marketing and education together
How to use the “empathy mapping” process to connect with customers’ core desires
Have you fallen for the “Andragogy myth?” It might stop you from being an effective teacher unless you reprogram it
The 5 critical principles of creating effective learning environments (ignore these at your peril)
Why you must always be selling, even after you have made the sale
How to find the benefits of your features
The four most powerful “ultimate benefits” you can always rely on to form a deep and powerful connection with your audience
Specific benefits: Most adult learners won’t bother learning unless you show them exactly what they will learn and how it will benefit them
And more …

Once you have a grasp on how to research your market and position your course, it’s time to decide how you will get paid.

Module 3:

Business Models

Module 3 explains 10 potential business models, with examples.

In the “End Of Days” business model you will discover the one trait your target market must possess for a recurring revenue business model to work for you.
With the “Affiliate Marketing Squared” business model you will hear how you can sell a lot of products without ever creating a product. (In fact, if you do choose to create a product, this business model can allow you to give away 100% of the purchase price to affiliates and still make money.)
The “Ghost Teaching” business model will allow you to sell expert advice in a niche you know nearly nothing about (in a totally ethical, intelligent fashion).
Would you like to be paid for your advice? The “Generation A” business model gives you the enhanced authority you need to create a lucrative business based on coaching, consulting, and workshops.
What if you could get paid a hefty bonus in advance for creating a product? The “Take The Summer Off” business model is a super easy way you can do that by teaching a live course, recording it, then selling it later.
If you decide to use the “Lead a Horse to Water Strategy” you can leave the lion’s share of the work to someone else and get paid referral fees just for allowing other professionals to “drink from your stream.”
Many times you can create a larger impact (and more income) through hosting live events, and if done right, you can even give away online training solely to generate leads for your live events. The “Business Model Formerly Known As Prince” will explain this strategy in depth.
Want to make money by going on a vacation to a tropical location? The “Velvet Rope” business model will allow you to do that by forming a high-ticket mastermind group.
The “Free Prize Inside” business model creates differentiation in the minds of your market because you pair up education with a “primary product” and the two work together to create a more valuable customer experience (this even works when selling primary products in extremely price sensitive “commoditized” markets).
Finally, you can combine the best of both worlds with a live online event that promotes a course or recurring membership. The “Virtual Reality Strategy” is probably the fastest way to catapult yourself to having a “cult-like following” and instantly establishing yourself as an influencer worth paying attention to. (Side benefit, it’s tons of fun to organize and execute!)

The reason we give you 10 different, unique business models to choose from is because they are all effective.

At different points in building your business you will want to use different models. So instead of having to purchase a new course, or scrounge around online for guidance, you will have a guide on how to develop every different model in one place. This means you can save time and money down the road, which ultimately means you are more likely to succeed.

Naturally, you will need to focus on one at first, and after going through this module you will have a deep understanding of which business model is right for you.

When you have that understanding, you can move on to creating your Minimum Viable Product and testing it.

Which, of course, is what our next module teaches you to do.

Module 4:

Test Your “MVP” Course

This module teaches you the best way to avoid failure.

In fact, 90% of people who fail at creating an online training business do so because they don’t understand how to test the viability of a course before creating it.

(If you have ever tried to create an online course before and gotten stuck along the way … or launched to crickets… then you probably never learned this simple concept. Which is okay as long as you get it now.)

Naturally, you want to ensure your course will produce profit before you invest a ton of time creating the content.

This module will show you how to do that.

You’ll discover how the information about the information establishes demand for the product itself.

Once you have established the demand, you can test your minimum viable course and ultimately create something great while getting paid to do it.

Of course you’re probably wondering how you attract your first batch of learners. We’ll show you 3 no-cost or low-cost ways you can find your initial customers.

The first method works if you have already put in some work and built your own audience.

The second method explains a way you could potentially spend $1 and make back $10. This will also build your list and help jump-start your audience.

The third method involves connecting with others who have access to your audience. (Note: This method will only work if you set your course up in a specific way. Otherwise, influencers will be hesitant to partner with you.)

Finally, you will also learn the art of pricing your course properly for the MVP stage. As you will see, you choose the price completely differently than you would for the actual launch.

After you have your MVP launched, you can move on to Module 5.

Module 5:

Developing Content

Once you have money in your pocket from preselling your course, it’s time to create the content.

The good news is, you already did most of the research in Module 2, so this won’t take you long at all.

However, you do want to make sure to really nail this part of the experience for your customers. Because this is what the core of instructional design is all about. When you actually educate people (and engage their whole brains in the process) you build lifelong trust and this means you get more back-end and subscription revenue.

That’s why we crammed a lot of knowledge into this module. It includes a whopping 47-minute presentation entirely about the art of instructional presentation. (Which will also help you be a better public speaker and teacher in every aspect of your life.)

After this module, you will feel confident in your ability to deliver exceptional training to everyone who buys your courses.

Then all you need to do is find a bunch of buyers.

Which is what you learn in Module 6.

Module 6:

Launch and Marketing

So now you have a product with proven demand and it’s time to start marketing and scaling.

Once again, we will let your customers needs and wants determine your launch and marketing strategy.

Clearly there are dozens of ways you could launch a course online.

But learning all of them would be a huge mistake and a waste of your time.

Instead, this module will give you the simple, effective steps you need to take. The videos will empower you to create a truly irresistible offer that makes your learners feel they are getting the better end of the deal while also prompting them to act now.

(Keep in mind that at this point you have already validated the idea with the MVP, so you can begin to scale and start to drive some serious revenue.)

You’ll also learn the keys to effective copywriting, so you can write more persuasively and prompt more readers to take action.

Finally, you will discover how to build and leverage relationships with other marketers so you can tap into their lists and grow your business without having to spend a ton of money on advertising. (This is probably the fastest way to scale a business on the planet and you’ll see just how easy it can be when you approach it with the right foundation and the right mindset.)

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Brian Clark (Rainmaker Digital) – Build Your Online Training Business the Smarter Way: Videos, PDF´s