To become an expert at webinars, Amy Porterfield performed hundreds of them for affiliates. By committing to 3-4 presentations a week for anyone who said 'yes,' she accumulated the practical experience necessary for mastery. True skill development requires putting in the repetitions.
Porterfield had two successful courses: one on creating courses, another on selling with webinars. She realized customers needed both to succeed. Despite the initial overwhelm, she merged them into a single, high-value flagship program (Digital Course Academy) that solved the entire customer journey.
An early product failure can be a catalyst for growth. Porterfield's first course flopped, teaching her to only teach from direct results. This pivot led to a more authentic product, which attracted a key partnership with Lewis Howes that generated over a million dollars in revenue.
Expertise for teaching doesn't require decades of experience. You only need to be about 10% ahead of your students. This proximity is an advantage, as you can more clearly remember the struggles and steps your audience is currently facing, making your guidance more relatable and effective.
To stay competitive, digital products must offer more than just static content. Porterfield evolved her course to include personalized feedback from human coaches on key marketing assets and a custom AI assistant ('Porter') trained on her proprietary knowledge to provide scalable, 24/7 support.
Your audience will dictate your product roadmap if you listen. Porterfield's evolution was a direct response to customer feedback. They finished her webinar course and asked what to sell. They finished her product course and asked how to market it. The path to her flagship product was paved with their questions.
The journey to a flagship product is a marathon, not a sprint. Porterfield was profitable for eight years, launching multiple successful courses and making millions. However, she admits she didn't feel fully aligned in her 'zone of genius' until creating Digital Course Academy, her signature program.
To maintain authenticity, you must teach from current, hands-on experience. Porterfield created an entire course on Facebook ads but never launched it because she had outsourced the work to an agency. Feeling like an imposter, she abandoned the project, demonstrating the importance of integrity over sunk costs.