How to create a “bridge program” to help prospects self-qualify into your bigger programs
Before we move forward…watch this video. I couldn’t have said it better. Yuri Elkaim nails it.
Let’s look at it from a “product” perspective
If you attract “broke” prospects that waste your time and energy, what do you do?
Do you refine your message to have the phrase “6- and 7-figure entrepreneurs?” so you know you’re getting prequalified prospects?
No.
You know why? Because even 6- and 7-figure earners can still say they don’t have the money for your program.
Here’s the bottom line.
Everyone will find a way to afford your program if it will fix their problem.
The reason they use the “I’m broke” story (or similar excuse) is because you haven’t made a strong enough value proposition.
If someone complains they’re broke, but their car breaks down and they can’t get to work, they’ll come up with the $500 to get it fixed.
If their kid needs something to improve their health or fitness, they’ll come up with the cash somehow.
Why?
Because in their mind they’ve made the “value argument.” The solution to the problem is more important than them being “lack minded” with their cash.
A colleague once told me, “Broke people always make bail.”
You may have worked on your mindset, your energy, your worthiness so you project the energy that attracts people who have the desire and budget to pay for your program. Self-examination is crucial to creating the experience you want—always be deliberate about your thinking and beliefs.
However, I have a different way to look at this business challenge, and it all started with a prospect I engaged on LinkedIn. Let’s call him Dan.
Dan and I got on a call together and he was prospecting me as much as I was prospecting him (which can be pretty fun). I asked Dan, “What seems to be the biggest challenge you’re having with your lead generation and prospecting?”
Dan replied, “I keep getting on consult calls with people who are broke or not at the level where they can pay for or even benefit from the program I am selling.”
We explored the topic and as I listened, he was bemoaning the wasted time and frustration around why his marketing was bringing him these people. What was it about his message? What was it about his content marketing? What was it about his website?
I always seek opportunity and ways to be innovative in business. So I gave him some free consulting.
I suggested that he create an entry level, affordable product, that bridged the gap between “starters” and prospects who were ideal for his larger program. (Pulled it straight from my KISS Marketing Map strategic process). I said, “Dan, why don’t you create a way for these people to qualify themselves into your larger program by selling them something that suits where they are now? They’ll get to know you and build the trust factor so they become very warm leads for graduating into your larger program. They’ll have drunk enough of your Kool-Aide that they are much easier to work with and embrace your program approach and philosophy. Plus, they’ll become staunch advocates of your work and refer you to others, especially if you truly help them.”
There was silence on the other end of the line. I don’t think Dan had even considered helping these people with the problem they had at that point in their progression into his work.
Dan finally spoke. “That’s an incredible idea, Terry.”
We spoke a bit further, and I helped him by explaining how I would structure the program so it naturally fit into his bigger program. How it could make them more successful in his bigger program, and address some of the “early speed bumps” that newbies in his bigger program experienced.
He was grateful, a little preoccupied with the execution of it, but feeling very excited about the potential of doing this “bridge” program to capture more leads.
A few months later, I was tagged in one of his LinkedIn post’s. He publicly acknowledged our conversation, the idea, and that he’d implemented it. At that point he was realizing an additional $5K a month in revenue from this “bridge” program, and tagged me in the post with thanks.
This video is a download of a Facebook live training I did for Denise B. Povernick's Invincible CEO group.
The “bridge program” concept
The idea behind a “bridge program” is to “bridge” the gap between a prospect who is not quite able to jump into your main program with an easier, more affordable program that empowers them to afford and complete your main program. Instead of turning them away because they’re using the excuse that they’re broke, give them a pathway to success and the financial ability to invest with you because they see the value.
No longer will they be able to use the excuse that they are broke because they’ve not only been able to sample your value, but you helped them overcome an early stage barrier that kept them from their transformation.
To give this a try, here’s what to do.
Conduct the right research
You want to thoroughly understand two things before creating a bridge program:
Examine your alignment with your ideal client. Is your energy and focus dialed into who this person is? Have you done the work to clarify and fall in love with your ideal client? If not, take the time to do so. Everything starts and ends with YOU.
Make notes about your “broke” prospects. What characteristics do they have? What makes them prospects without money? If they had the money to invest, would they be a good client? Why? What are the complaints they use to avoid working with you? Are they looking for a deal? Is the timing just not right? Is the way you packaged your big program not suitable for them? How flexible are you being or not being?
The more you know about yourself and this class of prospects, the more equipped you’ll be to create the perfect “bridge” program.
Design your bridge program
Once you have a good grasp of what your prospect needs to be ready for your program, it’s time to design your bridge program. Consider the following:
Financial considerations aside, what does your prospect need to learn to be more prepared for your program?
What is a small (or big) win that you can help them achieve that will better prepare their confidence, capability or skill set to succeed?
What additional insight can you help them achieve to make them better prepared to take responsibility and own the value of their transformation?
Some of you may call this a “down sell” which is where you have a lesser cost program that is typically delivered digitally without your involvement allowing you to get some sort of investment from a prospect when they balk at your main program’s price. However, this is NOT a down sell and don’t look at it that way. This is you EMPOWERING a potentially good prospect who just needs a leg up into your bigger program.
Consider your bridge program like a paid primer. This primer “bridges” the gap between where they are and your paid program. The only similarity it may have with the down sell approach is when you present it to your prospect.
Let’s say you’re on a consult call and you are qualifying your prospect. Depending on the prior engagement they’ve had with you, such as if they’re getting to you as a result of a webinar or opt-in, they will have some degree of exposure to you and what you’re about. So your qualifying call presents your main program and the prospect says they can’t afford it. After a little exploration into that conversation (which I won’t go into here), you can gauge their ability to be a good future client if they could get some education and confidence to be better prepared for your main program.
That is the time for you to help them see that they may need a “primer” to be a good fit. So you take the focus off of the money being the barrier and put the focus on the information/education gap. If you offer them a pathway to your program that enables them to have more confidence in you as well as their ability to accomplish and succeed in your bigger program, you have a much higher chance of converting them into a lifelong client and advocate.
Because you empowered them and worked with them to be successful, they will appreciate that you had the commitment and provided them the opportunity to engage you and invest in themselves. THAT is what drives advocacy and referrals, even if they don’t move into your bigger program.
The final steps in creating your bridge program fall into the category of branding and marketing. You want to package it up so it has a nice sound and is simple to understand so when you present it to your prospect it seems like the next logical step for them if they really want to work with you.
As you roll this out, be open to adjusting it to make sure it’s a true bridge program that helps your prospects succeed and become better qualified for your bigger program. Collect feedback from those prospects who buy your bridge program to make sure it is working and make your bridge program a star in your program lineup.
Recap:
Make sure your “inner work” is healthy so it’s not why you’re attracting broke people (watch Yuri’s video above)
Research your prospect and understand their journey to uncover the gaps
Assess your main program and what your prospect would need (aside from the money to buy it) to be successful in it
Design a primer to empower your prospect to see the value and connect that value to their desired transformation
Adjust your sales process to incorporate the primer at the appropriate time to capture prospects you would normally turn away because they couldn’t afford your program
Get them into and through your primer and incentivize them to graduate into your main program by reimbursing their investment or providing some other incentive to get them to continue working with you
That’s it! Test and try, and don’t hesitate to explore more with your prospects. You can learn a lot about the receptivity of your main program as well as the readiness of your target market. Just because you think it’s needed doesn’t necessarily mean your target prospect sees the need the way you do.
NOTE: If your bridge program helps people earn more income, it’s a slam dunk because you’re helping them earn the money to buy your bigger program. If your bridge program sells more of an intangible, such as health and wellness or similar self-improvement, it may be more of a challenge to communicate the value proposition, but it is totally doable, especially if your bridge program provides a tangible result.
