After a few years of successfully investing in the stock market, Stefano Somma wanted to teach others how to do so, too.
In January 2021, he created an Instagram account called 10 Bagger Stocks where he shared tips and tricks about investing in the stock market. The goal? Help people make 10x their money.
He quickly realized how many people were looking for this type of information; his Instagram audience grew to nearly 23K in just a few months. Once his audience began asking him for an online course, he decided to create one. After hearing about Thinkific from a friend, he did a free trial and loved how easy it was to use. He took two months to build out his Stock Market Masters Course — a course that includes 200 lessons covering everything people need to know about investing, such as different types of accounts and brokers, ETFs, dividends, investment strategies, technical chart analysis, and more — he launched it on Thinkific in April 2021.
When his first course launch brought in $125K in revenue, he realized his business’ potential. “Ultimately, when you’re selling something that can improve people’s lives, they’re willing to pay for it,” he says.
Since his first launch, he’s added two more Thinkific products for sale. These include the Lifetime Telegram Trading Group Access — available for pre-order only — which includes access to a group chat, a community of over 500 members, and a channel for member trade ideas, and the Gold Bundle Deal, which provides lifetime access to the Lifetime Telegram Trading Group Access and the Stock Market Masters Course at a discounted rate.
This year, he’s created a multiple six-figure business, exclusively through selling Thinkific courses. His strategy for success? Offering a reduced course price every three months and posting consistently on social media. Here, we dive deeper into how Somma created a multiple six-figure business in less than a year, and how you can, too:
The power of using a step-by-step content creation process
To reduce overwhelm, Somma broke down each step of his course creation process.
First, he laid out the different chapters that he wanted to include in the course. Then, he created what he calls ‘subchapters’ for each. “I didn’t create any content at this point, but I wrote the titles of what each section was going to be about,” he says.
From there, he went into each chapter and subchapter and began writing copy for each lesson. Once the copy was complete, he went back into each section and added visuals and graphics. Next, he recorded an audio version of each chapter so that people could listen to the course like an audiobook. Finally, he made videos that he added to each section.
Choosing the right price
Once he was done creating his course, his next step was to choose the right price.
He researched other online stock courses and realized that there were two extremes when it came to pricing: super cheap, or super expensive. “Many courses were so cheap that I didn’t even trust them,” he says. “There were also many that are over $1,000, which is a lot. I decided to charge less than the expensive ones and more than the cheap ones.”
He chose to price the course at $699 CAD and offer it for $330 CAD in his first sale. Somma figured that dropping the price this low would make it accessible for many, and get tons of students in the door.
Wanting to experiment with pricing, he priced the course between $375 and $452 CAD in his second, third, and fourth sales to see what would get him the most sales. “I’m seeing what price appeals to most people, but also doesn’t look cheap,” he says.
Using scarcity to his advantage
Somma’s sales strategy is simple: He offers a reduced price every three to four months and then jacks up the price in-between sales. “This makes people feel that it’s their only chance to buy the course at a reduced rate,” he says. “Then, I get tons of bulk sales at once.”
When it comes to promoting his course, he adds 10-15 posts on his story every day about all things related to the stock market with the purpose of keeping his audience engaged. Then, every three to four days he posts a couple of stories about his course. “I don’t say much about it, and I don’t talk about the course every day,” he explains. “I just tease the sale and say how the course is going to teach people how to get ahead in the stock market.”
He believes that this element of mystery is what creates a sense of intrigue; after his first sale, he made nearly $125K. Between sales, he creates hype about his course, which has also helped him to gain new followers. “I tell people that it’s one of the top stock market courses that you could buy, and that everything they need to know is in this course,” Somma continues. “But I don’t talk about it much.”
Growing his audience
Somma describes his audience as 80% men and 20% women. Overall, 60% are between the ages of 25 and 35, 20% are between 18 and 25, and the rest are between 25 and 45.
The one thing his demographics have in common, though, is the desire to learn about the stock market and how to make more money. He says with the influx of interest in the stock market, many people are seeking more information and understanding. Once students complete their courses, Somma says they will have strengthened their skills in both trading and investing.
Somma believes that the key to growing his audience to nearly 23K since January is in posting content every single day. “I’m always posting valuable information on my Instagram feed and story,” he says.
Plus, his audience growth has occurred through doing course giveaways, providing freebie content, and teaming up with influencers for promotions. He also puts some money into Instagram and Facebook advertising — approximately $15,000 in total so far — to sponsor his free content. “I don’t promote any paid stuff,” he says, “The idea is that people get my free information, they like it, and they continue to follow me. The goal is to get them to think that if the free stuff is this good, imagine what they could pay for.”
Once people purchase his course, they immediately gain access. “If they have questions, they can write in the discussion board or email me and I’ll answer them, but most people don’t have many questions because the course is pretty straightforward and easy to understand,” he says.
The goal: create a subscription service
So far, Soma says he hasn’t received one bad review, nor has anyone requested a refund. Pleased with his success, his next goal is to launch a subscription service that he’ll run through Thinkific. “Every week I’m going to send out reports via bulk emails that show new stocks coming out each week, the earnings calendar, top stock pics, different trade ideas, and videos,” he says.
“I’m hoping to get a thousand subscribers who pay $50 a month and make $50K a month or more,” he continues. “From there, I’ll have more capital to expand my business even further.”
He’s also planning on offering individual, one-on-one mentorships. Plus, eventually, he wants to list 10 Bagger Stocks on the stock market. “It would be the coolest thing in the world to me to have my own stock,” he says.
Advice to course creators
For those interested in launching their own Thinkific course, he recommends that people generate leads using Instagram and Facebook ads, as well as spend time building a social media presence through TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter.
He also recommends that creators tease their audience with exclusive material. “Throw in extras such as bonus content or free video and phone consultations,” he suggests. “Hype up your sales weeks or months in advance of a big sale.”
Sumo also switched over to TCommerce last year and his conversion rate increased by 58%. TCommerce is Thinkific’s suite of integrated sales and business management tools, which includes an optimized checkout, order bumps and more. “Before using TCommerce I wasn’t as happy with my checkout. People would sign up for my site but they wouldn’t purchase the course right away,” he says. “Now, the sign-up screen is the purchase screen as well, which increases the conversion rate. Plus, the new checkout and other sales tools are free and integrated into Thinkific—it’s a no brainer.”
Finally, and perhaps the most important thing, is to offer consistent, relevant information. “Give people a reason to follow you,” he says. “Offer valuable, free content.”
Feeling inspired? Check out more Thinkific Creator Stories!
