How We Sold A Copywriting Course | Messaging Case Study

The story behind the "Proof Sells" copywriting course and and why most copywriters miss the same opportunity

Welcome back to the second half of Behind the Message, our summer series about my favorite marketing projects.

You've read how my marketing journey began with an attempt to sell my beer brewing courses, and expanded into helping other business owners.

Get caught up on the first half of the series on the series main page.

In 2017, I finally sold my beer website. It served its purpose in helping me leave my career in the energy industry, but now I was passionate about a larger mission.

You see, marketing my product was way harder than I expected, and I realized I wasn't alone. By 2017, I’d worked with fitness experts, computer programmers, leadership coaches, and technology consultants.

All of them had the same problem: they suffered from the "smart person" syndrome of overthinking everything. And when it comes to marketing, overthinking is a recipe for disaster.

You've got to keep it simple and focus on the one thing that matters most: your message. That's why I decided to specialize in messaging. Without a clear core message, nothing else matters.

By the time I sold my beer website, I'd begun to internalize these messaging principles and felt confident teaching them. So, in addition to my one-on-one consulting with entrepreneurs, I began leading group programs.

One story stands out because it captures exactly why I believe messaging is the highest-leverage part of your business.

That brings us to our next case study: Tamsin Henderson of CopyKooks.

When Tamsin joined the group, she was facing a challenge I see all the time: What happens when you’ve built something successful, but you don’t really own it?

Tamsin built a thriving business on Udemy, an online course marketplace, but she was entirely dependent on their platform.

Udemy revenue isn’t reliable. You’re at the mercy of their algorithm, their pricing decisions, and their platform changes.

Tamsin wanted to sell her copywriting training on her own platform, but there was a catch: Udemy’s terms prohibited her from competing with her own courses. She couldn’t just copy what was working and move it over.

She needed a fresh angle. In the world of the Five Lightbulbs, we call this Lightbulb 3—your unique approach.

Before we enroll someone into our programs, I speak with them to set a vision for their messaging. On Tamsin's call, she mentioned something interesting about her freelance work. She’d niched down and now specialized in writing case studies for clients.

“Case studies are incredibly useful for selling,” she explained. “But they’re difficult and time-consuming to write. Most businesses either skip them entirely or do them poorly.”

That’s when it hit me.

"What if you taught other copywriters to specialize in case studies? It’s an overlooked goldmine."

She was intrigued but wasn't sure how to position it.

We were trying to figure out what to call her new training. As we talked, I kept coming back to what case studies really are:

"Case studies aren't just copy," I told her. "They're social proof. And social proof is one of the most powerful forms of persuasion."

That's when the name hit me: "Let's call it 'Proof Sells.'"

Tamsin loved the name and ran with it:

The positioning worked because it elevated case studies from a copywriting technique to a strategic business tool.

Instead of "Learn to write case studies," it became "Learn to create proof that sells." Instead of competing with generic copywriting courses, she could carve out her own specialty.

Tamsin launched "Proof Sells" and, to her shock, enrolled over 100 people in her pilot program. 

The response blew her away.

As demand grew and she refined the program, the price rose to nearly $1,000. She's now run it 11 times and trained 494 people, and counting. The program has covered all her expenses for the past six years.

Looking back through the Five Lightbulbs lens, this worked because we found the right Lightbulb 3—her unique approach.

Most copywriting courses focus on writing techniques: headlines, bullets, calls to action.

But Tamsin took a different tack, zeroing in on one type of persuasive writing businesses desperately need, yet almost always neglect.

Here's what struck me: even copywriters, people who understand messaging better than almost anyone, can struggle to see their own brilliance.

When you're inside the bottle, it's tough to read the label.

That's why I love what I do, which is not so much finding a new angle for clients, but uncovering the gold they already possess.

Tamsin didn't have to fake anything or feel icky about her marketing. Because "Proof Sells" came from her real expertise, selling it felt natural instead of forced.

Next up, another great Lightbulb 3

I'll share a story about helping a client create a bedroom rule that saved his business.

Rooting for you,

Billy