Build first or sell first? Depends on what you've already proven.
I've pre-sold over $57,000 of my own programs with a Google Doc. That means before I recorded a video, built out a portal, or designed a slide.
Most experts never get there, because they're in one of two camps.
Camp one builds everything first. Every module, every workbook, every bonus. Months go by. Sometimes years. Then they launch and find out the offer doesn't land, or the price is wrong, or nobody wanted that version of it. All that building, and nothing validated.
Camp two swings the other way. A vague idea, a promise, a price. They try to pre-sell and prospects hesitate, because there's nothing concrete to trust.
The sweet spot is in the middle. You gotta have enough substance to sell with confidence, but nothing more than that. It's not what you're doing that'll mess you up. It's when. And that's the exact thing all the generic advice on the internet leaves out.
So, let's fix that, eh?
Who it's for
- You already get paid for 1:1 work.
- You've taken at least ten people through the same result.
- You're out of hours.
- You want revenue in January. Not a course that's "almost done" in March.
If you haven't done the thing ten times yet, come anyway. You'll leave knowing what to do next.
Walk out with
- A program you can sell this month. The promise, what's in it, how long it runs, how many seats, and a founding price. We'll drop it on one page, in plain words you can say out loud on a call, like, tomorrow. This is the difference between "I'm building a course" and "I have a program, here's what it costs."
- Proof you're already ready. You've gotten this result for people more times than you've counted. You'll capture all the ways you are, in fact, ready. And if you aren't, you'll know exactly what to do about it next. Most likely you'll see the program already exists. It just isn't packaged.
- The "good enough to sell" line. It's earlier than you think: about two weeks of work, not four months. You'll leave with a short list of what to finish before you sell, and a longer list of what to leave alone until a buyer says yes.
- Your first three buyers, by name. You'll learn how to have 15-minute conversations with people who already know you about your new program. Who to ask, what to say, when and if to make the offer. No launch, no funnel, no list required. If nobody says yes, you learned it in two weeks instead of four months.
- A Q1 timeline you can keep. Plan in November and December, sell in January, deliver in February and March, build after the money is in.
Three people who sold it before they built it
Chris
Redesigned a $2,000 program as a $10,000 certification. It sold.
Alison
Taught her program live first, then fixed what the students showed her. The program got better because it was sold before it was finished.
Idalia
Turned seven to nine years of one-on-one coaching into a cohort program and sold it at $5,000 before it was built.
From the room, when I taught this in July
"Best one yet. Usable, insightful, actionable." Allison
"This is more than just course creation. It's applicable to everything." Kavita
"I appreciate the worksheet and the interactivity. Engaging." Rachel
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