It’s time to address the tricky question of how much to charge for your online course.
So, how do you come up with a fair price for your online course that gives you the income you want, and provides a great deal for your audience, and that your market is willing to pay?
There are several considerations:
Firstly, how much value does your course provide? Weigh your participant’s needs, goal and income against the value you offer. That is a crucial factor, when pricing your course.
Measure the value by the weight of:
- Your course promise
- The potential result, if your participant takes action on what is being taught
What unique benefit or feature do you offer that your competitors don’t? What do your highest-priced or closest competitors offer that you don’t? Do you offer other benefits or advantages instead? More tools? More one-on-one interaction? More proof?
Secondly, a good way to price your product is to look at your competitors and see how much they’re charging. This can give you a good benchmark from which to start. Here’s a simple formula:
- Check out what your closest competitors are charging for eCourses most similar to yours
- Decide what figure, in between your competitors’ low and high end you feel comfortable charging
Now this is over-simplification BUT it is a good starting place.
Be careful not to set the price too low
Remember a higher or premium price will reflect the true value and quality of your course and attract the clients you want, whereas if you set your price too low, people may well assume this indicates low value and quality. Another reason not to set your price too low is that you’ll have uncommitted students. You want a cohort of engaged and motivated learners from your target market, but if you set your price too low you risk people buying your course on impulse and then having little or no incentive to complete it. On the other hand, when people pay a premium price for a course, they’re more likely to take it seriously.
Of course, a low price also limits your revenue potential, which in turn affects how much you can spend on marketing and advertising, and so on. (Frankly, if you want to charge $99 for what your close competitors are charging a minimum of $2997, the message that you are sending your audience is that you are “not worth” more and that you are unsure of yourself. Time to release your money blocks—stat!)
Addressing Money Blocks
If you have a high-value course and your research suggests a price that makes you feel uncomfortable you may have money blocks. For example, if your competitors are averaging between $997 and $5000 for similar eCourses and you only feel comfortable charging $75, you can pretty much bet you’ve got some serious “money block” issues going on that you need to clear first!
Wealth & Business Coach, Rachel Rodgers, has lots of practical advice (and solutions) ranging from a book, We Should All Be Millionaires , to her high-end membership WASBM.
Making the biggest impact
But what if your client genuinely can’t afford what you are planning to charge? Before you drop your eCourse price, consider alternatives such as:
- Offering a payment plan
- Removing extra components such as live one-on-one sessions and charging less
if you do decide to remove a perk like monthly one-on-one strategy sessions to charge less, make sure you keep that option open for your other, less financially-challenged clients. (This is where the “silver level, gold level, platinum level” positioning comes in.)
More Information Does not increase value
Another mistake not to make consists of throwing in too many components and bonuses! This can not only be expensive and draining for you, it can actually hurt sales.
Focus more on the value, relevance and timeliness of course resources and bonuses: Not on volume. Resources and bonuses should enhance; not distract or confuse.
If you overwhelm your participants with too much material your participants are actually less likely to complete it (or even never start it—they keep putting it off on the back burner until they have “more time”).
Remember that most wealthy clients are laser-focused. They know what they don’t have time for—and time plus promised result is their primary desire—what they look for. And for that, high value means a laser-focused eCourse.
Ready to create a mind-blowing course so amazing it practically sells itself? Watch my free-training where I walk you through step-by-step how to design, structure, outline, and create your course content.
