The One Surprising Change We Made to Our Signature Program That Dramatically Changed Students’ Results
Episode 534: Show Notes
Quarantine gave Abagail every excuse to drop any kind of consistency around movement, and now, a full year later, she is trying to get back at it. She has walked three days in a row, and just yesterday Emylee did her first Peloton bike ride in months. After eight minutes in, she felt like she couldn’t do it, but she kept going. But this isn’t what we are going to be talking about today. We are super excited because it’s been a while since we have done an episode like this, where we share a small tweak we made inside our signature program that was uber effective.
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It actually kind of blew us away just how much of a difference it made. It's been almost a year since we made this two-phased change. We want to talk to you about it today because if you are offering services or packages and there are deliverables inside those packages that don’t cost you any money but do cost you time, those are sometimes the easiest things to add into a package to add value. There are also instances where you need to re-evaluate what those deliverables are and whether that thing is actually effective, not only for you but your clients as well.
You Are Allowed to Change Your Offerings
Sometimes when we make these shifts, it can feel like we are taking things away from our clients, but in fact, we are just providing them with the urgency they need. A classic example is the change we made inside our program that had a stronger call to action. Sometimes we feel married to our offerings, and we believe we can’t change them. But we, as service providers, cannot dictate what works and what does not. We have to listen to those who are using the service and cater to what they want. Results are not attached to your worth, but it is hard to disconnect those two things. We realized that when we let go of these expectations, we actually saw the best results, even better than we could have imagined. It is so important to be aware of your limiting beliefs in these instances because you cast judgments onto what you and your students are capable of. So, how did we get to a point, where, after running a package for almost three years, we decided to shake things up? We get this question all the time, so we need to unpack it. Of course, change is not easy, but guess what? You don’t have to justify these changes to anyone. Yes, you have to communicate with them, but that is it!
How We Tweaked Strategy Academy
So, the thing we wanted to change was our Strategy Academy, which we launched in 2017. The program is designed to take you through the first two years of your business, helping you scale and get to six figures within these early years. An important component of the program is a monthly group coaching session. We are big believers in the power of coaching, so we wanted to offer it to others. Our first change was giving the coaching element for a year rather than the initial lifetime offering. Of course, we drew inspiration from others in our industry, but we still made a unique package. Gauging what clients in your industry want is vital so that you can meet their needs, and it is something we have always been aware of. You cannot offer your audience what they think they want; offer them what they need. We saw that after a year, there was a dramatic drop in participation in the coaching sessions. We tried several things to improve it. But, in all honesty, we started to resent it because it wasn’t benefiting us or our students. This is when Emylee came up with the idea to cap the coaching offering at a year. After testing this out for eight months, we realized that this wasn’t enough of a change because we were still on the path to burnout. So, we decided that we would only offer 90 days of intentional, focused coaching going forward. Most of the questions and breakthroughs happen in the first three modules anyway, so having this kind of engagement at this juncture would help us and the students most. Because this was such a drastic change, we had to communicate this decision to the community. We also changed the Zoom webinar to a Zoom meeting, where there is more two-way engagement rather than passive consumption. This helps us connect with our clients better, and we can give them tailored input.
What Shifted When We Shifted?
We didn’t only change the offering; we also knew we had to change the way we communicate, and we now let students know details in as many ways as possible. Having those consistent, built-in reminders helps people take time away from their schedules and gets them excited for the engagement. Since we have done this, we have seen a crazy uptick in engagement. We love group coaching because it offers a space where people can get answers to questions they didn’t even know they had. We also know that for students to get results, they have to take action right away, and by structuring the calls in the way that we do, you have to jump in, not just for yourself, but for the community. If students use Strategy Academy to the best of their ability, it becomes a reference tool for them as they continue to grow and scale. Most other programs are just tools that get you through a specific time, but Strategy Academy can be there for you in whatever stage of business you find yourself in. We love taking someone who has been on our program for a while and giving them a tool that will help them where they are.
Changing Nothing Changes Everything
When we made the changes, it wasn’t only the students’ participation and engagement that changed; it was our attitudes as well. We went from dreading the coaching calls to feeling like we were adding value again. Part of our job is to find out how to structure programs in a way that is effective for our people. Our content has foundationally stayed the same because we believe in consistency, but growth strategies will vary as businesses scale. We have also incorporated all of our learnings over the past four years into the program. Do you want to know a secret? You can still get lifetime calls! This illustrates how framing your offering in a way that resonates with your customers is vital, even more so than the product itself. Fundamentally, nothing we offer is different. What has changed is the marketing and how we connect. Because we have rebooted our program, we are so much more attached to our students seeing as we have been there with them every step of the way. Yes, some programs work by making themselves obsolete to their clients, but we didn’t want this.
Make Time to Reflect What Has to Change for You
If you are feeling disconnected from your offering, you need to ask yourself why. Is it because you are not getting feedback, or is it because you are not serving your customers’ needs? As a business owner, you have to learn constantly and keep up with the shifts in your industry so you can cater to your clients properly. We decided to put our ear to the ground and make these tweaks, and we can now serve our customers better, which we are so proud of. If we just shouted from the rooftops that we offered coaching for life, we would not create a sense of urgency that would actually benefit our customers. It might sound harsh, but by not kicking them in the butt, you might be holding your people back from getting the results they need. As with any relationship, you must communicate your needs and expectations to your coach so you are not set up for disappointment. Of course, it would be great if people read our minds, but this is not how things work. We are excited to see what tweaks you make that help you love your product more and connect with your audience better.
Quote This
Don’t offer what your people think they want. You need to offer what you know they need.
Highlights
You Are Allowed to Change Your Offerings. [0:04:16.1]
How We Tweaked Strategy Academy. [0:10:17.1]
What Shifted When We Shifted? [0:23:12.1]
Changing Nothing Changes Everything. [0:32:19.1]
Make Time to Reflect What Has to Change for You. [0:40:12.1]
ON TODAY’S SHOW
Abagail & Emylee
The Strategy Hour Podcast
We help overwhelmed and creative entrepreneurs break down their Oprah-sized dreams to create a functioning command center to tame the chaos of their business. Basically, we think you’re totally bomb diggity, we’re about to uplevel the shiz out of your business.
KEY TOPICS
Services, Deliverables, Program, Tweak, Pivot, Coaching, Empowerment, Burnout, Change
