How I’ve (Nearly) Doubled Sales From My Email Courses
My oldest son (who’s five as I write this) is kind of a strange kid sometimes.
For example:
He’ll eat broccoli all day, but he doesn’t like pizza. Or grilled cheese. (“There’s too much cheese, and Daddy why is it so melty?”)
I’m a little old school, and I believe that kids should learn to eat stuff they’re not crazy about.
As you can imagine, this leads to some odd dinnertime “discussions”:
“Yes, you can have more broccoli, but only AFTER you eat your pizza.”
Sometimes though he’ll just sit there and nibble that little slice of pizza all evening.
When that happens, I have to bring out the big guns…
I set a timer, and he has 10 minutes to eat that pizza OR ELSE…
Invariably, he always seems to choke down that last bite as the clock counts down 10… 9… 8…
Deadlines are amazing that way.
In any group of people, you’ll find that a third to half will ONLY make a move when they know there’s a time bomb ticking.
The “scarcity” that deadlines naturally introduce to your offer is a major reason why product launches work so well—and the lack of it is why making sales AFTER the launch feels like pulling teeth.
That’s why I use deadline scarcity in every email course I create, and I find it increases my sales by 70-90%.
Here’s how I set this up:
The course takes a laid-back approach to start.
First I’ll mention the once or twice by name (usually highlighted with a link).
Then I start dripping them with the major benefits the product has to offer, and showing them where they can go for more detail (the sales page).
Typically the course does NOT include a “hard sell”—though they’ll get that on the sales page if they choose to click through.
My objective by the end of the email course is to have them know about the product and what it can do for them—and ideally at least *consider* making a purchase.
What I find is that up to half of my customers will buy from this easy-going, non-pushy approach.
And those customers never see a “hard pitch” at all.
But there’s a second group of customers that really needs a good reason why they should buy NOW.
So after the course ends, I drop anyone who hasn’t yet purchased into a “flash sale” email sequence that lasts 2-4 days.
This email sequence kicks off with a hard pitch for the product—and an offer for a limited-time discount. (Usually 24-48 hours.)
Then I’ll send 2-3 more emails with additional detail about the product—and wrap things up with a “last chance” email as the deadline is about to expire.
Now all this can be a little complicated to set up.
You need an email service that supports this kind of automation, and you have to get your shopping cart system to talk to your email software (which you should do anyway).
But the result is totally worth it.
When you have all this working, you’re effectively running a mini “private launch” to every new subscriber who joins your list.
Your email course gives you the time and space to make the best case possible for your product.
Your flash sale injects the urgency you need to nudge cautious “think it overs” off the fence and onto your customer list.
And once you have it running, it happens on autopilot—leaving you free to focus on growing your list and building more products.
Do you see why I love email courses so much?
They’re like little profit-generating diesel engines that just chug away in the background 24/7.
And as long as you keep “topping off the tank” with new subscribers, your course will produce a steady stream of income, month after month. (One of these courses consistently generates $4-5K a month for one of my businesses, with no involvement from me.)
SO….
We’ve covered a LOT of ground over the past 10 days, but I’ve really only had a chance to scratch the surface.
I’m sure you have questions about all of this—so here’s your chance to get some answers.
Hit up my contact form and let me know what questions you have, and where you want me to dig in deeper.
This is gonna be fun.