1,500 Potential Leads... now what?
So I created two free video training courses recently.
The first is on Terraform. It's a tool for automating the implementation of infrastructure, like AWS/Google/Azure, using code. This has generated about 600 leads in a week.
The second is on Ansible, a similar (and more mature) tool like Terraform, which is about configuring servers and beyond as code. This has attracted about 900 leads in less than 24 hours. It's been much more successful than the Terraform one, but this makes sense to me.
So I'm sitting on 1,500 email leads, but with a few caveats...
- Some of the email addresses are clearly fake. Podia, the platform I'm hosting on, allows people to "purchase" a free course without confirming their email address
- Most people sign up, take a look around, and leave again. Very few complete the course(s)
I have a simple formula I use to determine what the true number of people is that might purchase something. I call it, "the 10% of the 10%".
1500 * .10 * .10 = 15.
I'm new to this and I'm looking for guidance on moving forward.
I've got some drip campaigns up that thank people fo signing up, one that asks for feedback, etc. I've got a small Discord community going too. And I've added a few paid membership options (and someone bought one of them at $20/month!), but other than that, I'm thinking I just keep adding content?
My store front can be found here: https://www.thecloud.coach/
Keep adding value. If that looks like content, which I think it probably does, keep doing that. It's awesome that you have this audience. Keep serving them! Think about why you made the courses in the first place and double down on that.
I endorse follow the Why.
How soon do you want/need to monetize?
What do you want at the end of it all?
How can that be defined as a long term purpose/goal?
What's the strategy to accomplish that and the tactics to implement it?
"When values are clear, decisions are easy. " - Roy Disney
I'm replying to you and @BryceV here...
I agree: keep adding value. So far I've had some constructive feed back and comments and I have acted on that (or I'm in the process of acting on it.)
I made the course because I wanted to create a learning experience for those who want a curated, direct learning experience, not just loads of random videos all over the web/YouTube. I want to create a degree of quality and trust and then provide that as a commodity.
And you're right (again): adding value is adding more content, for sure.
I don't have any urgency to monetize. I'm self-funded through contract work (very lucrative) and can dedicated 14-16 hours per week to this, easily.
What do I want at the end of it all? An independent school for teaching people about Cloud technologies and automation. One with a name for quality and trust.
Also: if you haven't chatted with @Merott, I suggest you two connect. He's looking to specifically help online course creators like you.
Love this. You're on your way.
Here are some of my thoughts on growth:
On the website, it looks like you are focusing on the coach, mentor, consultant piece which communicates a 1:1 relationship. This means growth looks like charging more for your time. A good strategy would be to continue creating free courses and providing excellent value to the larger audience and be very selective and continue to move the pricing needle for the 1:1 bit (although, to be honest, I'm not sure what the Mentorship package entails from the website. Is it 1x1?).
It also might be helpful to learn about the difference between coaching, mentorship, and training since all three are very different.
Exciting times for you - thanks for letting us in on the journey!
It takes time to build an audience and a reputation, and the only way to get there is to keep adding value by sharing your knowledge.
Definitely check out this IH podcast with @adamwathan: https://www.indiehackers.com/podcast/098-adam-wathan-of-refactoring-ui
Haha isn’t 10% of 10% just 1%
Let me expand on my idea and why I don't just say, "1%".
I have 1,500 email leads (1,835 since I posted this actually) and people watching and reading/consuming my content. But what does that mean?
Just saying, "Well 1% might pay me money" isn't enough and is too simple a way of looking at things. Instead I use my formula to say:
So yes, technically I'm saying "1% will buy something", but what about the first 10% (183 people in my case) who MIGHT buy something with a bit more work? Should I ignore those?
That's why I say: 10% (true fans) of the 10% (potential true fans) of these leads are something I can work with -- there's two things there, not just the 1%.
Definitely keep adding content, that many leads for 2 courses in such a short time is amazing. Be aware they will be online for years!
It's now at nearly 1,900. I'll have to do another push at some point.
Many years! If I keep it up to date and fresh, it'll be up there for many, many years.