In my observation, the high-ticket coaching/consulting space is changing before our eyes.
The two growth models that seem to be the most common are:
MODEL 1:
You have a low ticket funnel, and leverage the ascension model.
Get a buyer at the lowest possible price without losing money (sometimes losing money on the front end), in hopes they keep buying your tiered solutions.
As they ascend with your services, the lifetime value will continue to increase.
Eventually, after months, they’ll finally buy the program you wanted to sell them in the first place.
Example of this common Model:
* run ads to a freebie download
* Offer a $7 - $97 upsell or order bump
* Offer a downsell if the upsell doesn’t convert
* Nurture that lead in your email list by sending 3 “value” emails a week
* Try to enroll them into $997 course or $1497 30-day intensive
* Offer automated “countdown timers” on every email, showing scarcity and urgency, creating pressure to buy now
Goal: Get as many transactions as possible, fully knowing it’s a numbers game, and prioritize VOLUME as the holy grail.
You eventually realize that none of your FUNNELS are indeed FUN.
This strategy seems to be more common with business owners that are a bit newer (less than 3 years into their business).
The idea of selling to thousands of customers is attractive.
The goal of selling 500 people at $50/mo becomes an attractive target.
I’ve noticed the business owners playing this game are always testing low-ticket ideas (mini-course, 30 day challenges, etc) for a quick transaction, PRAYING that the ascension gameplan works out.
You make a few bucks, but not nearly enough to match your desired income goals.
You beat yourself up, and tie your self-worth to your sales, creating total destruction.
Unknowingly, you also begin to confuse the market with the 5-10 ideas you are always presenting.
You become a ‘jack of all trades’ and will say yes to anyone who can afford your product.
You get your hopes up when a $97 stripe email comes in overnight, thinking you’ve figured it out.
The problem is those emails are few and far between.
You want high-ticket revenue, but spend the majority of your time optimizing for low-ticket sales.
It’s a difficult road when you don’t see another path.
MODEL 2:
Sell only your $15,000+ offer to premium buyers looking for a result.
This includes a lot of one-on-one work, and ‘done-for-you’ type agreements.
The job here is simple: your marketing only speaks to the 3% of buyers ready to act now.
Your marketing and content only speaks to SOLUTION SEEKERS and repels INFORMATION VAMPIRES.
Example:
* run ads to an application funnel or VSL, with an invite to a 15 min or 45 min “strategy call” which is your sales call in disguise
* Prospects are typical more serious here as they have filled out an application and have shown intent
* You probably close 2-3 out of every 5 applications
You’ll make great money here, BUT it’s typically one-time revenue.
You make the sale, deliver the result, and when the engagement is over, you both go your separate ways (no matter how good the outcome was for the client, they’ll feel like they’ve got it from here).
You worked your ass off to get that client, only to have them leave 90 days later.
Every agency will tell you to “increase your ad spend”, and you’ll eventually give in (against your intuition).
The new sales will feel euphoric, followed by a nagging feeling of “shit, I wonder where my next client is gonna come from”.
You’ll wake up to automatic sales appointments in your calendar and quickly realize you don’t have time to actually live your life.
The highs are high.
But the lows really mess with your confidence.
You’ll always be testing new ads, optimizing your copy and landing pages, developing complex workflows and automated email sequences, experiment hiring setters and closers, and maybe, just maybe, one day you’ll be happy.
THE OPPORTUNITY OF A THIRD MODEL…
As buyers become more sophisticated…
As artificial intelligence becomes the norm…
As people are craving real, authentic and genuine connection…
As you begin to realize your own gifts and superpowers…
HOST
YOUR
OWN
MICRO
EVENT
The majority of expert service providers I meet tell me how much stronger and more comfortable they feel IN PERSON versus how they show up online.
For example, when they meet someone at an event, almost naturally people ask them “how can I work with you”?
Their ONline marketing feels incongruent with who they are OFFline and IN PERSON.
And I would agree that MIGHT also the case for you.
Online marketing funnels CAN NOT replicate IN PERSON energy.
When you host your own 2-3 day micro event, you immediately separate yourself from all the other people scaling offers behind a screen.
You create a moment in time for connection, transformation, and a chance for someone to feel like they matter.
You allow people to literally leave behind their physical environment.
You open up the event for the 3% who are seeking a result, but want to take you for a “test run” first.
They are premium buyers with a different mindset.
They’ve been following your content for quite some time, but have been waiting for the perfect combination of the right offer from you + the right time for them.
Chances are, they are already frequent flyers and the idea of coming to your event energizes them.
They’ll get to experience you in person, with a small group of committed individuals working toward achieving goals common goal.
You’ll provide more breakthroughs in a single weekend than they’ll be able to count.
Your event will include the right mix of content, time for integration, and experiences that make them feel alive (good luck doing this on Zoom - unless you’ve got the same budget as Tony Robbins).
Naturally, at the end of the event, a percentage of them will want to work with you for continued support.
These clients will often stay with you for years, as long as you keep providing value and expanding their vision of their own desires.
You’ll end up working with WAY LESS of the RIGHT people…earning handsomely.
…and more importantly, you may just discover the business model you’ve been trying to find forever.
—
The only “right” model is the one that is “right” for you.
Every model can work, with proper work ethic, execution, and a vision.
My only encouragement for you today is to evaluate the last 6-12 months of your business..
..and do a quick “status report” to see if you’re trending in the right direction.
If you are in the right direction, keep going.
If you are not, consider a changing your MODEL.
