Is Your Brand Hurting Course Sales?

By: Justin Ferriman • August 18, 2016
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person-thinkingYou want to know what is just as important as the content in the online course you sell?

Your brand.

Whether your brand is you or it is your company, having a strong brand can be a game-changer for your business. But here’s the thing: just as your brand can bring about positive results it can also have a negative impact.

Yes, having a weak brand can kill your sales. Think about a time when you were shopping to buy a product online (any product) but opted not to because you didn’t know, or trust, the brand. This happens every day in the online shopping world.

Be it the company’s website or just a simple Amazon product comparison, the brand image matters and can be a deciding purchase factor.

Since branding is so important to e-commerce I always encourage online entrepreneurs to spend as much time building their business image as they do building their course.

This is especially important at the beginning of your entrepreneurial journey but it is an ongoing process as well.

You don’t have to run out and hire a branding consultant though. There are actually some simple things you can do that will go a long way in establishing your offering as trustworthy while also giving you credibility.

First, decide whether you want to start a company brand (like Digital Marketer, Facebook, LearnDash, etc.) or if you want the brand to be you (like Tony Robbins, Michael Hyatt, Frank Kern, etc.). There is no right or wrong option here – it’s a matter of preference.

Once you have that established you should create a simple logo.

Seriously, people overthink this part way too much. You should spend maybe four hours on this at the absolute most. Here’s a tip: open up Photoshop (or Microsoft Word) and type your business name out. Then, play with the different font options to see which one matches the look & feel you want.

That’s it. The majority of successful logos are just words with a specific font anyhow.

Next focus on the colors. This handy quiz will help you determine which colors might be best for your offering. Most people spend way too much time on these two areas of their business.

Last, make sure that you apply your brand in a consistent manner. Your logo and colors should be consistent on any promotional material you use. Your font selection shouldn’t include more than two fonts (one for the headers and others for paragraph text).

When it comes to branding often “less is more” (or in this case, “less is more memorable”).

With a well structured brand for your elearning business you will find that securing sales becomes easier over time as the brand becomes more established.

That said, your course offering (product) has to be high quality as well. The brand can only take you so far, but it is (an important) half of the equation.

Justin Ferriman

Justin started LearnDash, the WordPress LMS trusted by Fortune 500 companies, major universities, training organizations, and entrepreneurs worldwide. He is currently founder & CEO of GapScout. Justin’s Homepage | GapScout | Twitter