Teaching Mastery Academy for Digital Course Creators

Ready to turn your course into a premium offer that attracts eager buyers and commands top dollar?

• Francesca Hudson: Teaching Mastery Academy • Season 1 • Episode 9

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If you’ve ever wondered what makes some courses worth $1,000 or more while others struggle to sell at $97, this episode is for you. Inside Teaching Mastery Academy, we’re breaking down the exact strategies you need to elevate your course from standard to standout.

I’m sharing how to craft a transformation promise that cuts through the noise, speaks directly to your audience’s biggest pain points, and delivers the kind of results they’ll happily pay a premium for. We’ll also dive into creating a signature framework that positions your course as uniquely yours—complete with branded names and cohesive structure that sets you apart from everyone else in your niche.

But that’s not all. We’ll talk about the game-changing impact of offering exclusive, personalized support and why it’s the secret sauce to creating an unforgettable learning experience. Plus, I’ll walk you through how to price your course strategically using pricing psychology, gather social proof that does the selling for you, and overcome the self-doubt that might be holding you back from charging what you’re really worth.

This episode is packed with actionable tips and fresh insights to help you confidently charge more, deliver an incredible experience, and create a course your students will rave about. Grab your coffee, your notebook, and let’s get to work!

Think of your course (or your course idea,) like a luxury car. People won’t pay top dollar unless it’s high quality, delivers an incredible experience, and meets their needs perfectly. Teaching Mastery Academy teaches course creators like you how to ‘build’ that luxury-level course—one that students trust, complete, and rave about, justifying premium pricing every time. Ready to take your expertise and ensure your digital course stands out from the crowd? Premium courses (and premium returns) start with the core teaching fundamentals that all the best course creators instinctively do, but now I'm showing you how! Join the VIP waitlist for Teaching Mastery Academy now! Click here to learn more.

Speaker 1:

Hey there and welcome back to Teaching Mastery Academy. If you've ever wondered how some entrepreneurs seem to effortlessly charge $997, $1497 or even $5000 for their courses, while you're stuck feeling like $197 is as high as you can go, today's episode is going to blow your mind. Here's the truth. The difference between a standard course and a premium course isn't just the price tag. It's the experience, the results and the perceived value. And spoiler alert, my friend, turning your course into a premium offer doesn't mean working yourself into the ground or piling on hours of extra content. It's about being strategic. Strategic with the transformation you deliver, strategic on how you position your course and the way you create a mixed level experience for your students. So by the end of this episode, you'll know exactly how to elevate your course, hopefully charge premium prices and attract buyers who are eager to pay what your experience is worth. I'm going to walk you through the actionable steps some unique strategies I've never shared before and a little mindset work to help you level up. So grab your coffee, your notebook and get ready to take some notes, my friend, because this is going to be good.

Speaker 1:

Let's start with the foundation of every premium course the transformation you promise your students. Here's where a lot of course creators go wrong. They try to teach everything they know instead of focusing on the one big result that their students are desperate for. If you want to charge premium prices, your transformation promise needs to feel like a game changer. It can't be vague or nice to have. It's got to solve a specific high-stakes problem. Ask yourself what is the urgent pain point your audience is experiencing right now, and it's got to be urgent. Your audience has got to be in so much pain with this pain point that they are desperate for a solution. Much pain with this pain point that they are desperate for a solution. You also need to ask yourself what's the high value result they're willing to pay a premium price for. In other words, it's got to have value in their eyes. It's not good enough for you to think it's valuable. You have to convince your audience that they think it's premium. So, for example, let's say you have a course on social media marketing. A standard course might promise learn how to grow your social media following. Well, that's fine, but it's not premium. A premium transformation promise might sound something like this by the end of this program, you'll build a profitable Instagram strategy that brings in $10,000 a month in sales without spending a dime on ads. Can you hear the difference? The premium promise is specific, it's measurable and it taps into a desire for financial success which your audience sees as worth paying for. So when you are thinking about how to elevate your existing course, or you're looking for your next course idea for your online digital presence, then remember that your transformation statement needs to be super, super, super specific.

Speaker 1:

Now, premium courses aren't just about the result. They're about how you deliver it. If you want to charge more, you need to position yourself as an expert with a very unique approach to your niche, and this is where your signature framework comes in. Now, a signature framework is your step-by-step process for delivering the transformation. It's what sets you apart from every other course out there, and here's how to create yours. I've got three steps that I use for my own Teaching Mastery Academy students and for my own course creation as well.

Speaker 1:

So step one is break down your process. So map out the steps that your students need to follow to achieve the transformation. Really, really plan it out. Micro plan. Look at those steps, make sure that they are clear and they are relevant to your transformation promise. Step two is to name each step, so give each part of your framework a unique branded name. For example, instead of step one, set your goals. You call it the vision alignment methods. Can you see? We're beginning to bring in language that's going to be unique to your brand. That's going to be unique to your brand. That's going to be unique to your course. People will relate that with expertise and confidence that you have in your attention ability.

Speaker 1:

Now step three is to brand your framework. So package your process under one cohesive name, like the Profitable Instagram Blueprint or the Confidence to Lead System or the confidence to lead system. Get creative with branding. Get creative with coming up with a title for your framework that really stands out in a crowded marketplace. Use language that people might not necessarily use all the time, because people are getting really tired of the generic, overused terms and phrases that we always see. If you can come up with a signature framework, it will position you as an authority with a proven system, and people are willing to pay far more for something that feels exclusive and tested and unique to you, unique to your brand voice.

Speaker 1:

We are in an age of AI now and people are getting a lot more discerning online when it comes to purchasing digital courses, as to what's just simply information that's being chewed up and spat out and what's actual knowledge your knowledge that you are imparting that nobody else has that unique approach with. It's really important to start fine-tuning that and creating a signature framework around that. It's something that we teach in Teaching Mastery Academy, because Teaching Mastery Academy is all about creating premium courses and premium course experiences for a market, because the more premium and the more quality your course is, obviously then you can command a higher price point for it, because people appreciate quality. And once again, in a crowded marketplace where the quality of online courses is relatively untested and there are so many people at different price points contributing to the digital course creation economy, you really need to start looking at how you can elevate your courses and have a premium offering. Okay, and now we need to look at premium level support.

Speaker 1:

So, when it comes to transforming your course into a premium offer so that you can charge more, there's a big misconception around that. To charge premium prices, you to add more content, but content isn't the answer. Better support is. So when students invest in a premium course, they're paying for access to you and your expertise. They want to feel guided, they want to feel supported and they want to feel taken care of. Now, that's not always necessary in a, an evergreen course or a course where you are not teaching it live.

Speaker 1:

So some ways you can add premium level support in most scenarios is you can look at group coaching calls so you can offer Q&A sessions where students can get direct feedback from you, but they might submit their questions ahead of time and then you can go through and prepare so that you're only answering the same question once. You can look at a private community so you can create an exclusive Facebook group or a Slack channel where students can connect with you and they can also connect with each other. They can support each other. That mentoring that goes on in private communities is so valuable because people help each other out. So you might not necessarily have to contribute at all to the day-to-day running and advice of it if you have a good network of course creators within your group that are there to inspire and help each other. On the community the power never underestimate the power of community. And then, obviously, for true VIP service, you can look at the one-to-one access. You could include limited one-on-one coaching or feedback sessions if this is a really high priced point course. But even if you don't want to offer live coaching, you can create a feedback loop by including assignments and inviting your students who are taking your course to submit their work for a review, for example. Personalized feedback can make your course feel more high touch without requiring hours of your time, and every course platform has that opportunity. I use Kajabi, and Kajabi has that feedback loop built in, and I know all the other main ones will have some sort of option as well.

Speaker 1:

Now, talking of premium pricing, remember that it is all about perceived value, and one of the easiest ways to elevate your digital course is by upgrading the overall experience. So think about it like this when you walk into a luxury hotel, for example, everything from the scent in the lobby to the thread counts of the sheets feels intentional and they feel high quality. Now your course should feel the same way, and here are some ways to level up your course experience. I'll give you three examples. Look at your professional branding. What is your branding like? So invest in a polished design for your slides, for your PDFs and your course platform. Keep all your colors consistent, choose two or three fonts and use those same fonts throughout your materials. And this is where Canva comes into play. Canva templates are great, but remember that premium students expect something next level. So do look at things like having a logo, having a consistent feel across your pages and across your presentations and your courses and your workbooks. So everything needs to feel polished and it needs to feel consistent.

Speaker 1:

Also, think about high quality videos. You don't need a professional studio, but do look at upgrading your lighting, your audio and editing, because this can go a long way. And if you are relying on your iPhone which is totally fine make sure you've got some good lighting around it. Buy a ring light or buy some sort of a light that can go with an iPhone or can sit on a tripod, and really make sure that the editing software that you're using for your videos and for your courses has got good editing software in it, it's got studio sound or it's got the ability to transform, take out all the echoes in the room, that kind of thing. And then, finally, think about a welcome package. So consider sending your students a physical welcome kit with branded materials. It is a small gesture that makes a big impact and if physical is too difficult, then you can look at a virtual or a digital one. Once again, we go through all of this in Teaching Mastery Academy with lots and lots and lots of ideas and inspiration for you to get started with your own courses. And don't forget to include some surprise bonuses that students don't know about when they enroll. I love this one. I do this all the time at Teaching Mastery Academy, so, whether it's a bonus module or a special life training, these little extras make your students feel like they are getting far more than what they pay for.

Speaker 1:

Now let's talk about pricing psychology, seeing as we are on the topic of premium pricing. And when you position your course as a premium offer, the price itself becomes part of the value. This is the magic with it. Here's what I mean. Becomes part of the value. This is the magic with it. Here's what I mean. A $97 course feels like a beginner's course at that price point. When you're paying for that, that's what your expectations are like. Now a $997 course feels like a serious, results-driven investment. So the higher the price, the more your audience assumes they'll get a higher quality experience.

Speaker 1:

But you need to be strategic, and here's how Anchor your price. Always mention the true value of your course. First, for example, if your course is based at 997, say, you could say, for example, this program is easily worth $5,000 based on the transformation you'll achieve. So this sets a mental anchor for your audience and you can also offer tiered pricing. So if you create multiple tiers for your audience and you can also offer tiered pricing, so if you create multiple tiers for your course, such as a self-paced version for the 997 and then a VIP version with coaching for 1497, then this gives students options while still emphasizing the value of your premium package. And thirdly, you can also use payment plans. So breaking down the cost into smaller monthly payments makes a higher price point feel far more accessible. But remember, premium pricing isn't just about the number, it's about communicating the value to your students. It's about communicating the value that your students are getting in return. The price becomes irrelevant if you have defined and explained and conveyed the value to your students accurately.

Speaker 1:

Now, if you want to charge premium prices, your audience needs to believe in the results your course is going to be delivering, and this is where social proof comes in. Here's what to include or what to think about when you are bringing in social proof. You can look at testimonials. Obviously, that's the most obvious one so you could share success stories from past students, especially ones that highlight the measurable results. But you can also look at before and after examples so you can show how your course transformed someone's life or someone's business. And you can also look at case studies, so walk your audience through a detailed example of how your course delivered results. Now, remember, a lot of people in this position of wanting to create a premium course might not already have those testimonials. Don't worry, if you're launching a premium course for the first time, consider running a beta round at a lower price in exchange for some detailed feedback and testimonials, because these testimonials will be invaluable for your premium launch. And if you can't, if you're not even at that stage, then I suggest that you ask some contacts that you might know in the industry, or some friends that are willing to give you some objective feedback about how they found taking your course if it's something that you think that they would find valuable and getting those testimonials that way, and then you can slowly build on it from there.

Speaker 1:

Now, when it comes to premium pricing, there's a little bit of an elephant in the room, and it's this. The biggest obstacle to charging premium prices is usually you, and I'll tell you why. If you're feeling nervous about raising your prices, I want you to think about this when someone invests more in your course, they're more likely to show up, they're more likely to put in the work and they're more likely to achieve the transformation you're promising, which means more testimonials for you. So premium pricing isn't just about what you're earning. It's about the value you're creating for your students. We've got to flip that on its head. It's not about what our turnover is as course creators or how much we're making.

Speaker 1:

We really need to be looking at how we can serve our community. So ask yourself are you holding back from charging what you're worth because of your own doubts or fears? Is that getting in the way and do you believe in the transformation that you're offering? Because if you're struggling with this, remind yourself you're not just selling a course. You're selling a life-changing transformation and that's priceless. And I know as, as entrepreneurs, we get this imposter syndrome in our head. It's a mental battle between what we want to offer and help our community with versus. Is it going to be good enough or they like it? And I think we just need to be confident and start small, test out the ideas, slowly build on it with the feedback that we get from our community until we know that what we're offering is really valuable. Okay, so we've covered quite a bit quite quickly, so let's do a quick recap.

Speaker 1:

To turn your course into a premium offer, we've covered seven steps. So step one was to redefine your transformation promise to focus on high value results. Step two was to create a signature framework that positions you, my friend, as an expert, because you are one in your niche. You know you are. You wouldn't be listening to this podcast if you didn't have an expertise where you weren't good at something, but you were considering turning into a digital course expertise where you're good at something, but you are considering turning into a digital course. So we need to create a framework, a signature framework, around you as an expert. Step three is to add premium level support to elevate the experience. So think about ways that we can really start to VIP this course idea of yours.

Speaker 1:

Step four is to level up the design and delivery to increase perceived value. Everything needs to look polished and slick, and remember that when we're in the idea testing phase, obviously you're not going to have everything slick and polished because you won't have built it yet. But once you get an idea that people are willing to pay for and you start creating the course, make sure that at some point along that path, at some point along that journey, you keep everything slick, polished and uniform. So step five is use pricing psychology to confidently charge more. It's all about the perceived value of what you're offering. And step six was to show proof of transformation through testimonials and your case studies. And step six was to show proof of transformation through testimonials and your case studies. And remember, if you haven't gotten there yet, then start small, start local. And then step seven is to shift your mindset and own the value of what you're offering. Be confident, stand proud in your product, in your offer, because it's valuable and you are making a contribution to your community for the better.

Speaker 1:

Courses are helping people to improve their circumstance or their situation. They have come to you for help. Remember that here's the thing turning your course into a premium offer isn't about working harder. It's about working smarter and being intentional with every element of your course. Now, if this episode got your wheels turning, don't stop here. Take one step today to start elevating your course and if you're ready to go deeper check out Teaching Mastery Academy, where I help entrepreneurs just like you, my friend build premium courses that sell and serve. So everything we've covered today we go into in so much more detail and more with TMA Teaching Mastery Academy. I'll put the link to the waitlist in the show notes because it's currently closed at the moment, but if you are interested in getting on the VIP waitlist, then I will link it in the show notes. So until next time, my friend, keep creating, keep serving and remember you have the power to transform lives and your course should reflect that. Bye for now.

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Francesca Hudson

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