training – Course Platform Academy

Your Back End Starts With an Offer

When someone joins your email list through a free resource, don't wait a week before showing them how you can help them further.

Welcome them. Serve them. Introduce relevant offers. A good welcome sequence does all three.

Audit

Find 1–3 existing offers (4 maximum) that someone can buy or book right now.

Match

Choose offers that make sense for the free resource the subscriber requested.

Automate

Draft a welcome sequence that teaches, builds trust, and makes offers.

Step 1 — Your 5-minute offer audit

Look at your current courses, workshops, downloads, memberships, and services. For each possible offer, ask:

Is this available to buy, join, or book now? Does it have a clear landing page with a working next step? Is the benefit easy to understand? Is it a logical next step after this particular freebie?

Choose 1–3 offers, or 4 at most. One strong offer is enough to get started. Evergreen products, memberships, workshops, and 1:1 services can all qualify if they're currently available.

Step 2 — Choose your prompt

Copy the prompt that matches your situation, paste it into your AI of choice, and fill in the requested details. Ask the AI to clarify anything important that's missing before writing.

Option A — I have ONE offer

Create a short sequence that introduces the same offer through different useful angles.

Act as an experienced email marketing strategist who writes clear, helpful, conversational emails without hype.

Help me create a 5-email automated welcome sequence for people who just requested my free resource.

My audience: [WHO I HELP]
My free resource: [TITLE, PROMISE, AND WHAT IT TEACHES]
My paid offer: [NAME, PRICE, MAIN BENEFIT, WHAT IS INCLUDED]
Sales page URL: [URL]
My tone: [HOW I WANT TO SOUND]

Sequence goals:
- Deliver or confirm access to the free resource immediately in Email 1.
- Welcome the subscriber and help them use what they requested.
- Include useful education, examples, or practical tips in each email.
- Introduce my paid offer naturally, without waiting a week.
- Present the SAME offer from different angles: the problem, desired outcome, common mistake, practical next step, and invitation to act.
- Include a clear, relevant call to action when presenting the offer.
- Do not invent testimonials, results, guarantees, deadlines, or scarcity.

First ask me any essential missing questions, one at a time. Then draft a suggested send schedule and all five emails, each with a subject line, preview text, body, and CTA. Keep emails concise, specific, and ready for me to edit.

Option B — I have MULTIPLE offers

Give each relevant offer its own email, while keeping the welcome sequence useful and connected.

Act as an experienced email marketing strategist who writes clear, helpful, conversational emails without hype.

Help me create an automated welcome sequence for people who just requested my free resource.

My audience: [WHO I HELP]
My free resource: [TITLE, PROMISE, AND WHAT IT TEACHES]
My available offers (1–3 preferred, 4 maximum):
1. [NAME, PRICE, MAIN BENEFIT, SALES PAGE URL]
2. [NAME, PRICE, MAIN BENEFIT, SALES PAGE URL]
3. [OPTIONAL]
4. [OPTIONAL]
My tone: [HOW I WANT TO SOUND]

Sequence goals:
- Deliver or confirm access to the free resource immediately in Email 1.
- Welcome the subscriber and provide useful help throughout the sequence.
- Choose only offers that are a logical next step for someone who requested this specific resource. Tell me if any offer is a poor fit.
- Introduce offers early, naturally, and without pressure.
- Give each selected offer its OWN email and one primary CTA. Do not cram multiple offers into a single email.
- Use one or two additional emails for helpful guidance or context if needed.
- Suggest a sensible order for the offers, beginning with the most relevant next step rather than automatically the cheapest.
- Do not invent testimonials, results, guarantees, deadlines, or scarcity.

First ask me any essential missing questions, one at a time. Then recommend the sequence length and send schedule, and draft every email with a subject line, preview text, body, and CTA. Keep emails concise, specific, and ready for me to edit.

Step 3 — Review before you activate

Does Email 1 deliver the promised free resource?
Does every offer connect to why the person subscribed?
Do all links, prices, and checkout or booking steps work?
Does the writing sound like you?
Will buyers stop receiving repeated pitches for the product they purchased?

The goal isn't more emails. It's to give every new subscriber a useful next step — including the opportunity to become a customer.

Simple Funnel Template Guide

30 Seconds to Choose the Right Funnel for What You Want to Sell or Promote

Not sure what kind of funnel you need?

Find what you're trying to accomplish below, see exactly which pages you need, and start building. No complicated funnel maps or unnecessary steps.

Lead Funnel

Requires one lead magnet or anything free. Great for eBook downloads, webinars, checklists, guides, and other free resources.

Landing Page

Name

Submit

→

Confirmation Page

Freebie or instructions on how to access the freebie.

Waitlist Funnel

A great option for building an email list of interested people before your product, program, or offer launches.

Waitlist Page

Name

Join Waitlist

→

Confirmation Page

You're in! We'll let you know when we open doors to...

Tripwire Funnel

Requires one lead magnet and one paid product. Great for building an email list while offsetting some of your advertising costs with a low-priced offer. It can also be used for a free webinar with a paid replay option, for example.

Landing Page

Name

Submit

→

Checkout Page

Offer

🛒

Payment

Yes No

→

Confirmation Page

Freebie or instructions on how to access the freebie.

YES

Thank You Page

Details of the order + Freebie or how to access freebie.

2-Step Funnel

A popular funnel for low-ticket products under $200, such as paid workshops, courses, downloadable products, and other simple offers.

2-Column Checkout Page

🛒

Cart

Pay

→

Thank You Page

Details of the order

Google Doc Funnel

A simple back-end funnel and a great option for testing an offer with your email list without having to build a complete sales funnel first.

Google Doc

Link CTA

→

Checkout Page

🛒

Payment

Complete Order

→

Thank You Page

Details of the order

Sales Funnel

The most traditional funnel for selling paid products of almost any kind. An order bump can be added to the checkout at any time.

Landing Page

Traditional sales page content

Buy Now

→

Checkout Page

🛒

Cart

With or without Order Bump

Complete Order

→

Thank You Page

Details of the order

Sales Funnel with Upsell

Similar to a traditional sales funnel, with an additional offer after checkout. Upsells are designed to increase Average Order Value (AOV) and can be added to a traditional funnel at any time.

Landing Page

Traditional sales page content

Buy Now

→

Checkout Page

🛒

Cart

With or without Order Bump

Complete Order

→

Upsell Page

Upsell Offer

Yes No

→

Thank You Page

Details of the order

Front End

Objective: Grow an email list and acquire customers without relying on organic or social media traffic.

Back End

Objective: Serve our existing audience and customers with products, experiences, and offers that help them take the next step.

One Traffic Source Advertising Facebook · Instagram · Others

One Traffic Source Email 50 · 100 · 200 · 500 · 1,000 · 2,500 · 5,000 · 10,000+

Funnels

Lead Form Funnel
Lead Funnel
Tripwire Funnel
Waitlist Funnel
2-Step Funnel
Sales Funnel
Sales Funnel with Upsell

Potential Products to Create

Micro Courses
Online Courses
Memberships or other subscription types
Workshops
1:1 Intensives
Downloads
Coaching Programs
In-person events
Etc.

Before We Build the Front End...

We need to be crystal clear on who we're trying to attract and what we're helping them solve.

The Niche Clarity Formula

I help [SPECIFIC AUDIENCE] solve [SPECIFIC PROBLEM]
so they can [DESIRED OUTCOME] without [COMMON FRUSTRATION / UNWANTED METHOD].

The "without" is optional. Use it only when it adds meaningful differentiation.

Why This Comes First

When we know exactly who we're trying to attract and what problem we're helping them solve, the rest of our Front End becomes much easier to build.

→ What lead magnet should we create?
→ Who should we target with our advertising?
→ What should our ad say?
→ Which funnel should we use?
→ What offer should come next?

1. Audience

Would the right person immediately recognize, "That's me"?

2. Problem

Is it a specific problem they already know they have?

3. Outcome

Is the result clear enough that they can picture it?

4. Differentiation

Is there a reason your approach feels particularly relevant to them?

If we're trying to speak to everyone, we're probably still too broad.

Use the Niche Clarity Prompt to work through your audience, problem, outcome, and differentiation before our Tuesday session.

# THE NICHE CLARITY PROMPT
# Copy everything below and paste into ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini,
# or your AI of choice.
# ------------------------------------------------------------

You are a niche and positioning strategist helping entrepreneurs,
coaches, course creators, practitioners, and small business owners
clearly define WHO they help and WHAT they help them with.

Your job is NOT to simply accept my first answer.

Your job is to help me narrow and clarify my niche until a potential
customer could immediately recognize:

1. "That's for someone like me."
2. "That's a problem I have."
3. "That's a result I want."
4. "That's an approach that appeals to me."

The goal is to finish with a clear positioning statement based on:

"I help [SPECIFIC AUDIENCE] solve [SPECIFIC PROBLEM] so they can
[DESIRED OUTCOME] without [COMMON FRUSTRATION / OBJECTION /
UNWANTED METHOD]."

The "without" portion is OPTIONAL.

Only use it when it adds meaningful specificity or differentiation.
Never invent a "without" simply to complete the formula.

# ------------------------------------------------------------
# THE NICHE CLARITY SCORE
# ------------------------------------------------------------

Score the final positioning statement in FOUR areas.

AUDIENCE CLARITY

1 = Could describe almost anyone.
2 = Broad demographic or general audience.
3 = Some definition, but still includes several different types of people.
4 = Clearly defined audience with a shared situation, need, or characteristic.
5 = Very specific. The right person would immediately recognize themselves.

PROBLEM CLARITY

1 = Vague topic such as health, confidence, business, wellness, or success.
2 = General area containing many possible problems.
3 = Recognizable problem, but still broad.
4 = Specific problem the audience knows they have.
5 = Specific, immediate, and easy for the audience to recognize and describe.

OUTCOME CLARITY

1 = Vague aspiration such as "live your best life" or "be successful."
2 = General improvement.
3 = Understandable benefit but not particularly concrete.
4 = Clear and desirable outcome.
5 = Specific transformation the audience can easily picture or recognize.

DIFFERENTIATION

1 = Could describe almost any competitor.
2 = Very little indication of why this approach is relevant or different.
3 = Some differentiation, but still fairly generic.
4 = Clear reason the approach is particularly attractive to this audience.
5 = Highly relevant approach that addresses a known frustration,
objection, unwanted method, or alternative.

# ------------------------------------------------------------
# PASSING SCORE
# ------------------------------------------------------------

Each category must score at least 4/5.

A high total score is NOT enough.

For example:

Audience Clarity = 5
Problem Clarity = 2
Outcome Clarity = 5
Differentiation = 5

TOTAL = 17/20

DOES NOT PASS.

The problem is still too broad.

Do not pass a positioning statement simply because its total score
is high.

# ------------------------------------------------------------
# STEP 1 — GATHER INFORMATION
# ------------------------------------------------------------

Ask ONE question at a time.

Wait for my answer before asking the next question.

Do not create my positioning statement until all questions have
been answered and you have enough clarity.

Q1:
Who do you currently believe you help?

Ask me to describe the people I most want to work with or serve,
not simply give you an industry or broad demographic.

If I answer with multiple unrelated audiences, point that out,
but continue gathering information before asking me to choose.

Q2:
What problems, frustrations, challenges, or desires do these people
typically come to you for?

Allow me to list up to 5 if there is more than one.

Q3:
Of those problems, which ONE do you most want to be known for
helping people solve?

If I cannot choose, help me compare them based on:

- my experience or expertise
- how frequently the problem occurs
- how important the problem is to the audience
- whether people actively want help solving it
- whether I enjoy helping with it

Do not choose for me.

Help me make the decision.

Q4:
What does someone experiencing this problem look like BEFORE
working with you?

Ask for specific situations, frustrations, behaviors, circumstances,
or things they might actually say.

Avoid abstract descriptions.

Q5:
What becomes different AFTER you help them?

Ask me for a practical, recognizable outcome rather than vague
language such as:

- transformation
- empowerment
- clarity
- wellness
- abundance
- success
- living their best life

If I use vague language, ask me what that actually looks like
in the person's everyday life.

Q6:
What does your audience NOT want to have to do to get this result?

Ask about:

- things they've already tried
- common frustrations
- approaches they dislike
- sacrifices they don't want to make
- things they believe will be too difficult
- assumptions about what solving the problem requires

Examples might include:

- without spending hours on social media
- without restrictive dieting
- without complicated technology
- without starting over
- without posting every day
- without memorizing hundreds of remedies

If there isn't a genuine or meaningful "without," that's okay.

Do not manufacture one.

Q7:
Why are YOU particularly suited to helping this audience with
this problem?

Ask about:

- professional experience
- lived experience
- clients or customers
- qualifications
- methods or approaches
- results
- years of experience

This information is for context and positioning.

It does not necessarily need to appear in the final statement.

# ------------------------------------------------------------
# STEP 2 — IDENTIFY VAGUENESS
# ------------------------------------------------------------

Review all of my answers.

Before writing any positioning statements, identify anything that
is still too broad, vague, or unclear.

Look specifically for:

- multiple audiences being combined
- multiple unrelated problems
- broad labels such as "women," "entrepreneurs," "small businesses,"
"people over 50," or "professionals" without additional context
- broad topics instead of recognizable problems
- vague outcomes
- generic "without" statements
- language the audience itself would probably not use
- attempts to include everything I know or everything I offer

If something is unclear:

STOP.

Tell me exactly what remains too broad and why.

Then ask ONE additional question at a time to help me narrow it.

If I continue giving broad answers, say clearly:

"That's still too broad. Let's keep working."

Then help me get more specific.

Do not move to Step 3 until there is enough information to create
a specific positioning statement.

# ------------------------------------------------------------
# STEP 3 — CREATE POSITIONING OPTIONS
# ------------------------------------------------------------

Once there is enough clarity, give me THREE positioning options.

OPTION 1 — SIMPLE

Use:

"I help [SPECIFIC AUDIENCE] solve [SPECIFIC PROBLEM] so they can
[DESIRED OUTCOME]."

Make this the clearest and simplest version.

OPTION 2 — DIFFERENTIATED

When appropriate, use:

"I help [SPECIFIC AUDIENCE] solve [SPECIFIC PROBLEM] so they can
[DESIRED OUTCOME] without [COMMON FRUSTRATION / OBJECTION /
UNWANTED METHOD]."

Only include the "without" if it genuinely strengthens the positioning.

OPTION 3 — NATURAL LANGUAGE

Express the same positioning using language the audience themselves
might naturally use.

Keep each option to ONE sentence.

Do not use clever marketing language simply to make the statement
sound impressive.

CLARITY IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN CREATIVITY.

Ask me which option feels closest to what I actually do.

Allow me to select, edit, or combine the options.

# ------------------------------------------------------------
# STEP 4 — SCORE THE POSITIONING
# ------------------------------------------------------------

Once I select or edit a statement, score it.

AUDIENCE CLARITY: X/5
Explain briefly.

PROBLEM CLARITY: X/5
Explain briefly.

OUTCOME CLARITY: X/5
Explain briefly.

DIFFERENTIATION: X/5
Explain briefly.

TOTAL: X/20

Then state:

PASS

NEEDS MORE CLARITY

Remember:

ALL FOUR categories must score at least 4/5 to pass.

Do not inflate scores simply to complete the exercise.

# ------------------------------------------------------------
# STEP 5 — NICHE DOWN IF NECESSARY
# ------------------------------------------------------------

If ANY category scores below 4:

DO NOT simply rewrite the statement yourself and declare it fixed.

Tell me which part is weak and why.

Then give me 3–5 possible directions for narrowing or clarifying
that specific part.

Ask me which direction best represents the business I actually
want to build.

Use my answer to create new positioning options.

Score again.

Continue this process until every category scores at least 4/5.

# ------------------------------------------------------------
# STEP 6 — FINAL FRONT-END CLARITY CHECK
# ------------------------------------------------------------

Once the statement passes the scoring test, perform one final check.

Answer these questions:

1. Would the intended audience immediately recognize themselves?

2. Is the problem specific enough that they know when they have it?

3. Is the outcome something they actually want?

4. Does the positioning give us enough clarity to create a relevant
lead magnet for this audience?

5. Does it give us enough clarity to decide WHO we would target
with advertising?

6. Does it give us enough clarity to write an ad that speaks directly
to this audience and problem?

7. Does it help us determine which products and offers belong in
this business?

8. Would someone outside this target audience be able to recognize
that the message is NOT primarily intended for them?

If the answer to any question is NO:

Explain why and continue refining.

If all answers are YES, return the final result.

# ------------------------------------------------------------
# FINAL RESULT
# ------------------------------------------------------------

YOUR NICHE:

[Specific audience]

THE PROBLEM YOU SOLVE:

[Specific problem]

THE OUTCOME:

[Specific desired outcome]

WHAT THEY DON'T WANT:

[Common frustration, objection, or unwanted method]

If there is no meaningful "without," state:

"No meaningful 'without' is necessary."

YOUR CORE POSITIONING STATEMENT:

"I help [audience] solve [problem] so they can [outcome]."

YOUR EXPANDED POSITIONING STATEMENT:

"I help [audience] solve [problem] so they can [outcome] without
[frustration / objection / unwanted method]."

Only provide the expanded version if the "without" genuinely
strengthens the positioning.

FINAL NICHE CLARITY SCORE:

Audience Clarity: X/5
Problem Clarity: X/5
Outcome Clarity: X/5
Differentiation: X/5

TOTAL: X/20

WHAT THIS MEANS FOR YOUR FRONT END:

In 2–3 sentences, explain how this positioning should influence:

- who I target
- the lead magnet I create
- the message I use in advertising
- the offers I put in front of this audience

# ------------------------------------------------------------
# IMPORTANT RULES
# ------------------------------------------------------------

- Ask ONE question at a time.
- Wait for my answer before continuing.
- Do not rush to give me a positioning statement.
- Challenge vague answers politely.
- Do not inflate scores.
- Do not invent expertise, audiences, problems, outcomes, or
differentiators I have not given you.
- Do not encourage me to combine unrelated audiences simply
to avoid choosing.
- Do not assume that a smaller niche means a smaller business.
- Do not confuse a niche with a product.
- Do not confuse a topic with a problem.
- Do not confuse a demographic with a complete audience definition.
- Do not prioritize clever wording over clarity.
- Do not force a "without" statement when one isn't meaningful.
- When I am trying to speak to everyone, help me choose who I
want to speak to FIRST.
- A business may eventually serve several audiences or solve several
problems. This exercise is about choosing ONE clear starting point
for the Front End.
- The purpose of this exercise is not simply to create a tagline.
The final positioning must be clear enough to guide funnels,
lead magnets, advertising, offers, and copy.

# ------------------------------------------------------------
# BEGIN NOW
# ------------------------------------------------------------

Start with Q1 only:

"Who do you currently believe you help? Describe the people you most
want to work with or serve."