How Amy Lang Made $113,000 Helping Parents Teach Sexual Health
Amy Lang assumed that once she was a mother that she'd be able to know precisely what to talk about' with the son she had.
As a self-employed instructor of sexuality and parenting for the past 17 years she was accustomed to talking about sex everyday. However, she wasn't aware of how awkward -- and ignorantthe feeling would make her feel once it was time to talk about sex and her child. "I was ashamed to be having "the conversation" with my son. I'm a sex educator," she says.
Determined to learn how to be a trustworthy source for her child, she began doing more studies. She turned to her education in applied behavior science and dove into learning more about how to speak to children about sexual issues -- a conversation which, according to her, is crucial, but often neglected. "We are all aware that children need to have physical, emotional, and social well-being, yet we don't speak about sexual health since it's taboo," she says. "We don't have enough details about healthy sexuality and the development of sexuality in children."
With her studies her findings, she was able expand her toolbox and was inspired to continue helping parents in this arena and this time via online classes. The year 2017 was the time she created her first course, Birds and Bees Solution Centre for Parents. In the following year, she has launched a second course, Preschoolers: Private Parts & Playmates. "My conviction is that knowing can be empowering," explains Lang. "The more information you have to hand, the better in a position to help your children's ."
Her online courses make up half of her income; since launching her first online course in 2017 the course has generated over $113,000 in income. The most impressive part? She relies almost entirely on her email list and word-of-mouth for promoting the courses. "I don't have to work to do it," she laughs.
"I'm earning money while I wash the dishes."
Even as her successes grew in the natural course of things, she was deliberate about the actions she took. Here are a few examples:
Skip ahead:
- She makes use of
- She creates an email database
- She uses social media to market and not for selling
- She designs a member course
- She creates a bonus course
- She designs content via trial and error
- She determines her audience's needs and wants.
She makes use of
Lang had been established in her business for over a decade prior to launching her very first online class. She's passionate about her instructing in person, and attends many live events, online courses felt as a natural progression within her career.
In addition to an opportunity to connect with many parents and others who work with kids, she also wanted people to be able to learn from home; discussing sexuality may be uncomfortable for many, and online courses offer students an intimate environment in which to study.
She decided to host her course over other e-learning platforms. "It was the friendliest and easy to use to use, and it was also the most affordable" she shares.
She constructs an email-list
When Lang began her online course Lang had built up a massive email list, which currently has more than 17,000 users.
How she created the bulk of her mailing lists was easy. When giving live lessons, she would give out a QR code that led participants to her sign-up for newsletter page. She would also pass an iPad around the room so that they were able to manually input their email addresses. The way she did this was to request people's emails in the middle of her classes, right when the students became captivated and interested in learning more.
Now, she continues to collect emails through live events as well as her website. In her navigation bar it has a button that reads "free tips. If users hit the button the button, they're taken to a page where they can input your email address to receive an offer: Seven Tips to Have Amazing Birds and Bees Talks. This freebie comes by email. It will also direct people to her school.
Even though she's got an extensive mailing list, she reminds online course creators that it didn't happen in a flash. "I've been in this business for 17 years," she says. "That's more than 1,000 students a year. I'm not new at this. It can take a long time to create a course that is successful if you don't have an enormous foundation."
She leverages social media for marketing, not selling
Although she has a YouTube channel that has close to 850 users, an Instagram page that has nearly 4,000 subscribers and a Facebook page with 10,000 members, and a Q&A style podcast, she claims that her email provides the highest level of conversion. Actually, she doesn't use social media for selling the courses she offers, but rather her email list. "It's much more intimate receiving an email. This is the way it works," explains Lang. "Social media are primarily for marketing -- not for sales in my personal universe ."
While Lang does not rely on social media for the sale of the courses she offers, she does find these platforms useful to market her courses. In order to make things easier, she shares the same content on all of her social media platforms every week, and plans the content in advance. Each article includes an appeal to action. she encourages people to sign-up for her newsletter, have a one-on-one call with her in her witty name of"a "Quickie Consult,"- purchase one of her courses online, or hire her to teach in-person.
Though she doesn't have any community that her children can join however, she does create an environment of friendship through her social media accounts- especially through a series she does known as "Help Another Parent. The series, Lang posts questions from parents, while allowing the community to give helpful tips. "I regularly play with my friends with me, and the majority of these folks do a great job in their suggestions," she says.
Lang suggests that course designers cater their social media content according to their users' needs. Also taking marketing into consideration with the right mindset is vital.
"Believe that the information you're providing can be beneficial."
Aside from social media and her email list, her audience has been growing organically via word-of-mouth. numerous people who have attended to her live sessions or taken her online courses spread the word to other parents and teachers.
She designs a member course
She serves two primary audiences: parents of kids between the ages of 5-12, and professionals who are mostly early childhood educators.
Her course for parents, Birds & Bees Solution Center for Parents, runs as a member-only site that costs $89 USD per year. The price was a bit iffy until she landed at this price; she wanted it to be as affordable as it could be. "I don't want there to be a lot of thinking about the cost," she says. "I prefer it to be a simple"yes ."
Lang describes this class as the term "library," which refers to a collection of information including videos, handouts, audio recordings, topic-specific webinars, other resources and weekly sessions called 'Hump Day Half Hours. The sessions consist of an hour of instruction followed by the group coaches. "These sessions are among my top things to do, since they're live, and I'm able to connect with my students," adds Lang.
Her course was set using a library format, as oftentimes, parents have just one query. Instead of having hours and hours of content that students must wade through to get their one inquiry solved, the library lets students pick and choose the content they want to learn. "With libraries, there's no need to be concerned about content being age-appropriate or research-based, because it already is," adds Lang. "People say to me often, "Thank you, this just made everything so much easier .'"
The content is developed and added to the course on a regular basis. "I have this opportunity to assist so many parents without having to show up, in the sense of having to show up," she says. "It's only one benefit of having a site that offers membership ."
She creates the bonus course
As well as working with parents she also collaborates with experts -- mainly early childhood educators in order to assist with sexual assault prevention.
Her second course, Preschoolers, Private Parts, and Playmates specifically targets the children in this age group. Here, she teaches about sexual behavior in young children, including the typical and what isn't typical, in addition to how to determine the need for assistance.
Additionally, the course offers organisations with an affordable option to employ her. "Some companies aren't able to hire me," she says.
After students have completed her classes, she does not sell them anything. However, her goal in 2023 is to place more effort into upselling a 'Quickie Consult or a copy of her book Sex Talks with Tweens and Teens: What To Say & What To Tell it.
She creates content using trial and error
It took her a while to get the hang of creating content for her online course- and the process involved a ton of trial and error. In fact, when Lang looks back on her online course creation journey it is clear that the toughest part was figuring out the ideal length of the video, how many handouts to include (and whether they would be useful), and what kind of content resonated best with her target audience.
In retrospection of Lang's development, she would like she did an audit after the first year of creation to determine what was being watched and made adjustments according to the comments. Though she's modified her contents since then, she believes that feedback is paramount in helping your development as a writer.
In the beginning, she was producing videos of hours long for her classes before deciding it was way too long. Then, she cuts them much shorter and more approachable as her viewers are composed of busy parents who don't have much extra time to spare. "I would like to create something accessible and simple," she says.
Her family doesn't can help her create content. Rather, she says she is a book reader, stays up with research, and let parents' queries inspire her to create fresh content. She also has colleagues whom she talks to who can help her flesh out ideas and provide her with help.
She determines her audience's wants and needs
In the event of deciding to start an online-based course She suggests that the creators consider the reasons they would like to create an online course. It will enable them to create a targeted goal in which they can begin by tackling small steps.
Lang insists on that it is crucial to determine what an audience wants and needs. "What you believe they would like and require isn't always what they actually want and need," she explains.
To determine the wants and desires of your potential client, Lang advises that creators ask their customers to take a survey and then use the responses to help guide the process of creating online courses. "Be patient and remember that it's not about the course creator. It's all about the people you serve," she says.
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