Interviews and news

How to Upsell Your New Courses to Your Existing Learners

Sep 6, 2024

Reader Disclosure

Leading WordPress expert Syed Balkhi shares tools and practical tips for increasing course revenue by upselling to current students.

WHAT'S INSIDE          Toggle

You've put your heart and soul into creating stunning online courses to your existing learners. The students have told you that they enjoy the content you provide, but now you're ready to take your offerings up a notch with brand new and exciting material.

The challenge is to get your learners to take part in your most recent lesson. If you have to track an entirely new market every time you create your course, you'll have to devote a lot of extra time and effort on marketing.

On the other hand, people who've already bought your course recognize you and trust your site, and are more likely to buy from your site and again.

The most important factor in making this happen is upselling. This strategy is a powerful one that can aid in increasing revenue, and give greater value to your committed students.

You'll be surprised by the results it's simpler than you think to use this technique and still not come across as overly aggressive or insincere.

We'll present to you some successful techniques and tricks that you can employ to sell your course to the existing learners.

By the end of this post, you'll have all the info you need for you to revisit your website and make meaningful modifications to your approach.

Let's get started!

Learn More About Your Target Public

Before you begin selling, you need to really get to know who you're communicating with.

Find out which courses they're taking, which subjects seem to generate most interest, and what topics they would like to explore next.

Screenshot of Monster Insights WordPress Google Analytics Plugin

It is also a good idea to ask your students direct questions about what they want to learn more about in the future.

Make use of the course survey, feedback forms by email and support chats as ways to gain insight into your target audience and what they expect from your content.

The key is to ask targeted questions that result in actionable answers.

This information can help you make educated decisions as you select a few possibilities or decide which audience would benefit most from your course.

Structure Marketing for Learners who are already in the classroom

Once you understand your audience, it's the time to design marketing strategies that align with their interests objectives, aspirations, and pain points.

The strategies below will assist you showcase your new courses and create excitement using methods that are resonant with existing learners.

Leverage Email Marketing

You'll want to segment before you start sending out messages. The term "segmenting" basically means splitting the people you are reaching out to into groups according to specific aspects that pertain to your business.

In this instance it is recommended to segment your list based on courses that you have taken, the rate of completion, as well as engagement levels.

This method lets you design targeted ads that cater directly to each group's needs This means that they're more likely to result in conversion.

This is a great opportunity to personalize the offers you're sending to users.

Making compelling subject lines as well as personalized content that highlights the ways your course will build upon what students have already learned is sure to increase participation and more the sale.

For context, using personalized subject lines can increase the open rate of your business by 22%.

RELATED >> What You Need to Consider Segmenting Your Lists of Email >

Special Previews and Beta Access

Everybody loves to feel special. The ability to give your audience a sneak peek at your forthcoming course prior to it going live could entice them and lead to them taking actions.

We've found that giving a limited number of users exclusive access created anticipation and increase day-one sales.

This could be a great way to convert existing students into paying customers. Consider offering a limited number of beta slots at a reduced price on a first-come one-time basis.

For the sake of giving students the opportunity to pay less, you can ask for more detailed feedback so that you can enhance your course before it goes live.

This approach not only assists you refine the course but also creates an ethos of belonging among those who were the first to take on your program.

Implement a Loyalty Program

It is possible to offer points in exchange to customers who have completed their courses or previous purchases, which can be redeemed for discounts for new purchases. This type of sales loop will encourage people to continue buying from your site.

As an example, after purchasing three courses, a learner may move from bronze level to the silver tier, which is more savings on the next lessons.

Offering exclusive benefits for the higher levels of service, like one-on-one training sessions, as well as access to bonus courses, can be a guaranteed way to get people interested in an upsell.

Harness the Power of Social Proof

There is nothing that sells better than success stories. Sharing testimonials of students who have benefited from your previous courses will help you sell to people who are new, but it's also a efficient way of grabbing the attention of other current clients.

This is known as social proof. Social proof simply means that people are more likely to be able to trust your company and its products in the event that they can see the other individuals and companies also are able to trust you.

If a person really liked the baking class but aren't convinced to take the expert-level cooking course included in the upsell few good reviews could easily influence their decision.

It's easy to see how others who were not so experienced, or perhaps novices, also found an educational value and believe that they'll, too.

Innovative Pricing and Packaging Pricing and Packaging

In the case of selling, the way you price and package your digital course will have an enormous effect on your performance. Here are a few methods to keep at hand if you wish to be successful in this area of your upsell plan for current learners:

  • Design a Cross-Sell Plan Create a Cross-Sell Strategy At the end of the course, you can suggest a next lesson as a great way to continue learning. Make it clear how the new program builds on what students have learned to ensure current users can appreciate the benefits.

Make Your Upsells More Effective

We'll now look at some practical ways to optimize your upsell flow and convert even more learners to customers who are already in your database.

The timing is crucial in the world of upselling. If you can reach an individual at the right time, say when they have completed an online course, you'll have a much better likelihood of getting an increase in sales.

If the pupil found value in the first course, and is eager to know more, they'll agree to your upsell offer nearly immediately.

This offer can be presented by email, or even on the final page of the course.

We suggest making sure that the message is automated and is triggered when they complete the course to ensure there's no big gap between them wrapping up the last lesson and receiving the message.

It's been our experience that seasonal events are a good occasion to promote new items particularly if they're packaged together with other items and are heavily discounted.

If you're in a position where you need reviews for your brand new course, this technique can help immensely. People are more likely to give you favorable feedback if the course provides value and they get it for lower than what it would cost.

You can also consider asking students to add your class to their carts when they are in the middle of shopping for something that's been available for a long time.

In essence, Order Bumps let you request visitors to like to add a specific item to their cart before they pay - and it is a great tool for course creators and membership sites.

Accentuate Your Value Proposition

So, paint a vivid illustration that illustrates the tangible benefits customers can experience if they buy your new program.

Can it aid them in securing a promotion? Start a successful side hustle? Develop something new? Gain confidence in social settings? Make sure you highlight these positive effects so that your intended public has the motivation to act.

What sounds better: a robotic list of modules, ETA and costs or an in-depth and engaging post that explains how you, the learner will see positive results from each module? Most people would choose either option.

We also suggest addressing the most common concerns head-on. For instance, if time is a concern, make sure to highlight the way in which the course can fit to hectic schedules.

If the issue is money-related, emphasize the return on investment, or the value of the knowledge you're imparting. Your job is to show that the advantages outweigh these diverse concerns.

And remember, your existing learners are already trusting you.

Make your most out of this partnership by being honest and describing why you have created this program and the way it meets their needs and will help you achieve your target or get over a hurdle.

Enhance and measure

You can't improve what you can't measure. When it comes to upselling monitoring the appropriate measures is essential to know the factors that work and which don't.

Start by keeping track of your conversion rate and the proportion of existing students who purchase your class. This will help you determine the extent to which people actually accept the upsell offer.

It is also recommended to keep in mind your average order value (AOV). If existing customers are coming back and buying multiple new classes, then your plan could be paying dividends.

The aim is to boost the amount people spend in a small amount and still offer them value to make it worthwhile.

Also, be aware of your average customer lifetime value (CLV) that is how much a person spends on your site over the course of the course of.

Successful upselling should increase how your student interacts with you throughout the year. If your CLV is going up, you're on the right path!

Conduct A/B Testing

In addition to analyzing your outcomes You should also think about methods to enhance your results with Testing A/B. A/B testing is the process of testing two variations of a campaign, offer or another type of marketing material to see what version yields the most results.

For example, you could change the headline of the page that promotes upsells for a portion of your visitors and see if your new version outperforms your original choice.

Similarly, you can try upselling to customers in two distinct times, once as soon as they complete a course, then the second group will get an email in the early morning.

The goal is to find the best strategy that connects with your students and inspires users to continue engaging with your site.

Remember that improving can be a continual process. The goal is to continue with A/B testing even once you've found something that works well.

If you're not experimenting then you're not utilizing the chances to connect with your target audience. In this regard, make sure you review your data, review the results of your tests, and then be prepared to implement changes based upon the information you gather.

Final Thoughts

The process of selling to learners already on your site is about building rapport increasing revenue and making sure people will always find something new and valuable when they browse your site.

The strategies and best practices that we have shared today have helped us to increase our sales throughout the years We are certain that these strategies will aid your business, too.

It requires patience, time and determination to succeed at selling, however we're confident that you now have all the necessary information to get started or move your plan to the next step.

Got any tips on upselling your course online to current clients? Share them with the community in the comment section below.

And don't forget to subscribe to our newsletter to get more tips on increasing the revenue of your membership or online course website.

Syed Balkhi       Syed Balkhi is the founder of WPBeginner, the largest free WordPress website for resources. With more than 10 years' expertise, he's the most renowned WordPress specialist in the field. You can learn more about Syed and his portfolio of companies by being a part of his social media channels.