The Game-Changing Power of Ads in Course Creation

Imagine doubling your business growth overnight through effective advertising. This episode of Quantum Course Creator is a gold mine for course creators like you, pulling back the curtain on the power of ads and how they can revolutionize your business. I, Jess, unpack how ads have evolved over time and debunk the misconceptions surrounding them. We dive headfirst into the significance of having a crystal clear message that resonates with your target audience, exploring the importance of speaking their language, and understanding their pain points to demonstrate how your course solves their problems. 

The conversation doesn't stop there. We delve into the necessity of a strategic funnel system in running ads, making a strong case for having an immediate or near-future offer for your new leads. Remember, a potential client is most likely to invest at the point they opt in, so we discuss the power of capitalizing on this golden opportunity. Running ads isn't a passive strategy; it's about fostering an experimental mindset and being actively involved in the process. Whether you choose to educate yourself through available courses or engage an ad strategist, this episode is your guide to harnessing the full potential of ads to take your business to new heights. Don't miss out on this game-changing insight!

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Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Are you thinking about running ads in your business? On today's episode, I am going to help you figure out if you are ready to use ads and give you some tips on how to run them effectively. So let's get started. What change becomes possible when 100,000 people are impacted by your work? This question came to me one day and I have been working to find the answer ever since.

Speaker 1: 0:23

Hi, I'm Jess and I help online course creators amplify their influence and create a movement with their message, and on this podcast, I am sharing the simple strategies and systems to help you impact more people with your programs so you can create quantum growth in your industry. You are listening to the Quantum Course Creator podcast. Hey there, and welcome back to the podcast, jess, here with the Quantum Course Creator podcast. I'm so excited that you are here, and today I am talking about one of my favorite topics, which is using ads in your business. Now I have to say that I am not one of those people that says that you should only run ads at the end of your funnel. I think that ads can be an effective strategy at any point in your business, and I actually started running ads in my business fairly early. I was putting money into my messaging and getting it out there to really test things and see what was working, and so if you have the ability or the desire to do that, I don't think that's a bad strategy. But before I get ahead of myself, I wanted to talk about Facebook ads today, or meta ads or whatever we're calling them these days, because I think that there is a lot of misconceptions around ads and if you are ready to use ads. So one of the biggest things I want to talk about is that ads have changed, and this is something if you've been in the game for a minute, you probably know this. Ads used to be a lot easier to run, a lot cheaper to run, and things have just gotten harder and harder and harder, and that's probably a good thing. It means that there's more regulation. It means that there's more things going on. I don't even know what Facebook is doing these days, but it is harder to just jump into ads manager and start running ads.

Speaker 1: 2:11

So on today's episode, I'm going to talk about how to really do that effectively and so that you don't get into a situation where you end up spending thousands and thousands of dollars without meaning to. So the ad strategies that are working today are different than what used to work. The old strategies are just not as effective as they were back in the day, but ads do still work and it is still possible to get good lead costs and get high quality leads that are really going to convert in your business. So if you're considering using ads and you're considering getting started with that, this is what I want to talk about today.

Speaker 1: 2:54

So there's a few different things that I run my clients through and myself through before I decide to run ads in my business, and the first thing that I ask is do you have a clear messaging? This is really important because if you don't have clear messaging, ads will just not convert, and at the end of the day, if you want to test if your messaging is clear, ads are a good way to do that, because if it's not converting, then it isn't clear. And so what I mean by clear messaging is that the problem that you are solving is clear and pressing, that people who are brand new to you know what you do, what problem you solve, and they know why they need to take action on that right now. This is especially important when it comes to running ads, because the people who are seeing your messaging are new to you. They are not your raving fans, they are not the people who've been following you forever. They are brand new to seeing you and your expertise and your funnel and they need to know what you do and why. That's important to them to take action right now, and so one of the things that I recommend doing in your messaging to make it more clear is to use the kind of language that your ideal client is using to talk about the problem in the words that they are talking about it with, so that it becomes really apparent that you know what you're talking about and they are crystal clear that you understand the problem that they have and that you are the person to solve it. And this is something that I think we can kind of get into our own way about, especially with our messaging, is, if you've been in the industry for a while, you're probably using terms that are industry, terms that your ideal client may not actually be aware of or be using. And so really getting back into the head of your ideal client, even doing some market research, talking to them and making sure that you are using the language that they're using, talking about the problem that is the most pressing for them, even if it is a boring problem for you, and really making sure that your messaging is clear about why you understand the problem that they solve and why your offer whether it's a free offer or a paid one is going to be the thing that solves their problem. So that's the first thing is make sure that you have clear messaging, because if your messaging isn't clear, your ads won't convert. The second piece of this is that you have a funnel to put them into.

Speaker 1: 5:18

Running ads just to run ads and for your list is really not the most effective strategy, especially if you have any hopes of an ROI on the back end. You really need to have a funnel to put them into to make the most of that. So just growing your list with no intention or no outcome is not the most effective strategy to running ads, because you're not only not going to get an ROI, but those people are going to likely go cold before you ever make an offer to them, and I think that there's a lot of misconceptions around this, but your leads are actually the most ready to buy when they opt in. There's so many messages out there about how you need to nurture leads and how people need to get to know and like and trust you before they're ready to buy. But I think all of that is crap and that people are most ready to buy when they opt in, so it is not a good idea to let them go cold.

Speaker 1: 6:11

So if you are running ads without an offer to make to them, you're probably not in the most effective time period to run those ads, and so really having an offer to make to them immediately or in the very near future is going to be really key and making sure that you have a process for them to go through. Now I don't mean that you have to necessarily sell to them immediately. I know I did just say that like that's one way to do it. But having some kind of process whether it's a scaffolded or offer or you're getting ready to launch is a really good idea, because people are looking to buy when they are opting in. You don't have to have somebody on your list for six weeks or six months before they will buy from you. In fact, most people are not shopping for a solution that far in advance, and so when people join your list is when they are most likely to be interested to buy something and when they most have the problem that you are trying to solve that they entered your list for. So when you are running ads, make sure that you have some kind of process on the back end to put them into so that they are more likely to follow through on that and get you that return on the investment. And, of course, it is important to email your list and to have like good list manners and things like that. But you don't have to put people through this big, long, complicated funnel before they're going to be ready to buy from you, especially if your messaging is clear, the problem that you solve is pressing and you are attracting people who are ready to solve that problem now.

Speaker 1: 7:44

So the third piece of this, and quite possibly the most important one, is that you are in the mindset to experiment. Facebook ads, meta ads, whatever we're calling them, are an experiment. They are not a set it and forget it strategy. This is something that I think is so important to understanding ads and to growing your business using ads is to understand that they are something that you are going to have to have a pretty active role in managing Now if you are trying to run ads by yourself. I don't recommend just jumping into ads manager and trying to figure it out. There are tons of courses out there that will teach you ad strategy and the backend of ads, or even more so. I recommend working with an ad strategist or an ads manager, because they are up to date on the most recent updates in ads manager. And trying to do it yourself without any knowledge would be like trying to fix your car without ever knowing anything about how to fix a car. You wouldn't just jump into your car engine and start taking things apart without knowing what you're doing. The same thing is true with ads manager and so making sure that you are at least educated in the process or using somebody that is.

Speaker 1: 8:57

But you need to have the mindset to experiment and understand that this is not a strategy that you can just put money in and you'll get money out. That's some really bad messaging that a lot of people have used to try to get you to use ads. But it isn't necessarily how it works, especially not in the beginning. It's something that you have to have the time and the energy to tweak and test and really perfect, and then it can start to have a really clear and present ROI for you. And so, if you are worried about the money, if you are worried you're gonna lose money. If you're worried you're not gonna make that money back, don't run ads, because that's gonna make you freaked out. It's gonna make you watching ads manager like a hawk. It's gonna make it so that you don't actually give it the time and energy it needs. To see that return on investment it really should be something that you have money set aside, that this is an investment that you're making in understanding and growing your business and that if you don't see an immediate return on that investment, it's not going to make or break you. And so really keep that in mind when you are going into running ads. That, like the ROI, may not be immediate and you should give it some time to understand, to learn them, to learn your audience and to really refine your targeting and your messaging and what's really working for you and the people that you are trying to get in front of. So be ready and willing to spend the time and energy to tweak them.

Speaker 1: 10:22

Now, if you are ready to run ads, there are a few different ways that you can do it that will optimize your return on investment. For example, one of those things is called a tripwire, and so a tripwire is after a free opt-in, you give people something to purchase that solves an immediate problem for them, and there's a ton of different strategies out there with running ads to something paid and something free, and there's been so many different things that have worked for different people all the time, and since Facebook ads are always changing, it's best to kind of see what's going to work the best for you, but I've always had the best success not running ads to something paid immediately, even if it's a low ticket item, but rather running ads to something free with a tripwire. And so what this is is it gets somebody to opt into something for free and then immediately presents an offer to them on the back end as a way to not only deepen your relationship with that person, but to give them a more complete solution to the problem that they're looking for which should absolutely be related to the freebie that you just got them in on but also give you an opportunity to make back some of that ad spend and see a return on that investment. Now, there are so many different strategies here that you could then lead that tripwire with an upsell and that would be more of like a self-liquidating offer style. But there are so many different ways that you could do it, but just having a tripwire on the back end is likely going to improve your return on investment. They'll making sure that that tripwire is something that's aligned to the problem that you're solving with the freebie and that attracts the right person who's going to ultimately purchase your bigger offer. So don't like cut yourself off at the knees with a tripwire that isn't aligned to your greater offer in the back end. But that's a good way to start getting back some of that initial investment is by having some kind of back end offer or tripwire to do so.

Speaker 1: 12:15

Another thing that I recommend is being crystal clear in your ad copy and creative, so that you're attracting the people who you know are your ideal clients. Facebook targeting used to be a lot more specific, but nowadays, like you're really doing hyper targeting with your copy and creative, so using words that only your ideal client would be interested in, or things that you know that your ideal client wants to click on, so that you're getting the most qualified leads into your funnel rather than just attracting just anybody. Those are two quick tips for, if you're running ads, how to get better quality leads and start making some of that return on your investment. So, if you are looking to run ads, I hope that you found this helpful and if you're not quite there yet, I hope I gave you some things that you can start to work on so that you know if you want to start running ads in the future. And I hope, as always, that this was helpful and I will see you in my next episode.