The first class I've ever dropped out of (while it was happening!)

So, so bad ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ I LOVE teachers. In fact, some of the biggest breakthroughs I've ever had have been because of the teachers I've been lucky to learn from. But recently, Amanda and I attended a class so bad that we dropped out WHILE it was happening. And I seriously considered alerting Guinness World Records. Because it's possible it was the worst class in the world. I can't make this up. I want you to imagine the worst class you’ve ever taken. One that you had to stab yourself in the leg with a pencil just to stay awake. And now, imagine that times 100. That will give you a taste of what a train wreck this was. But the point of this email is not to put the teacher on blast or even just to vent. It's to show you how a little "copywriting touch" would have completely changed the experience. Because with 3 simple tweaks this class could have gone from half the people dropping out on the first day to a really cool experience for everyone involved. So let's start at the top with what the class even was? Oil painting for beginners! Yep, a few weeks ago, Amanda and I heard there were a TON of cool classes being hosted at our local community center. One that jumped out right away was oil painting. Amanda has always been great at art and I ... well ... I've always been a good sport :) [$5 if you can guess what this actual thing I drew was. LOL] $5 if you can guess what this actual thing I drew was. LOL And we both wanted to find a cool way to meet new, interesting people. And this sounded like the perfect way to do both, right? WRONG! The second we walked into the class on the first day we didn't get to meet a SINGLE one of our peers. Instead, the instructor chose to use the time reserved for greeting people for SHAMING each person who walked through the door. When I took my seat, the instructor asked me, “So ... do you draw?” I said, “Not a ton, but I’m super pumped to learn to paint!” His face tightened as he took in my response, “Oh… I’m not used to working with beginners.” I felt heat rush into my cheeks from embarrassment and shock hit me because the class was literally called “Oil Painting for Beginners.” He did the same thing with each person as they entered the class. Asked an assumptive question about their level of skill and then when it "wasn't good enough," he shamed them for it. So we were already starting things on a bad note... The Master Copywriter Edit: Imagine if you came to a car dealership and the salesperson began by saying, "So you're basically so broke you can only afford the cheapest cars on the lot?" You'd be ready to explode like an unopened soda in the hands of 5-year-old kid on a trampoline. Compare that to "What brings you in today?" How different does that feel? That's why you should never make assumptive statements about your prospect (or in this case student!). Let them tell you why they came to the class and what they're looking to get out of it. Not only will it make them feel more heard, but, if you really listen to what they say, it will actually increase their enjoyment, too. Because you can take what they say and draw their attention to specific things they'll get from the product (aka class). Simple edit. But a night and day experience for your customer. Let's keep going. Then the class began and that's when things really took a turn for the worst... He began by going around the class passing out a list of supplies. And then what would you expect to happen next? Maybe introduce himself? Tell you an overview of the class? That's what most teachers would do! But this one just began READING THE LIST OF SUPPLIES. "Okay, you're gonna need..." And the he does this for 10 minutes straight with NO BREAKS. People were looking at each other, stunned. By the time he finished, I could tell at least one person was considering bouncing. The Master Copywriter Edit: If people are taking a class, they don't give a crap about the supplies. They care about what the class is going to do for them! It's Copywriting 101. Focus on the benefits, not the features. But a lot of people forget it. So instead of listing all the supplies, a far better use of that time would be to answer things like: - What skills are we going to learn in these 6 weeks? - What will we be able to do at the end of the class? - Why should we trust you (the instructor) to get us there? The class needed to begin with these basic facts or risk losing EVERY SINGLE PERSON sitting there. (We still don't even know his name. He literally never said it!) But then the instructor made his most grave mistake yet. Once he finished going over the supplies, he said, "Okay, now time to paint something. Go to the back room and get an old painting and just paint over it." We all sat still. Remember, this was Oil Painting for BEGINNERS. We have no idea what we're doing, what kind of paint to use, nothing. He continued, "Go on. Try it out." Some brave souls slouched forward into "the backroom" and emerged with old paintings to paint over. Eventually, me and Amanda got ours. We cautiously went in for our first strokes while the instructor sat in the back of the room. Another student said, "Like this?" And he swooped in, "No, no, no!!! All wrong. Look! Hold the brush up when you paint. No, that's not it either." I grew tense, staring at the ugly blobs I'd painted. I knew he was going to RIP into me when he got close. Everyone was on eggshells. And not in the "oh wow, I'm going to learn so much from this master!" kind of way. But in the "Omg, when will this be over so this man will stop barking at me" kind of way. The Master Copywriter Edit: Give people a quick win! Especially when they're trying something for the first time. Imagine if instead of just letting us do whatever we wanted with no guidance, he showed us an easy way to paint a cloud in the sky or something. We would have felt more confident in abilities, we would have learned basic techniques like holding the brush and mixing colors, we would have felt like we were growing together, and maybe even interested in buying "Oil Painting 2.0" right away 😉. #UpsellsForTheWin. But instead, most of the class felt even more lost and confused than when we showed up! This is awful because that emotion immediately makes people want to give up. All in all, it was one of the worst classes I've ever taken. And what's sad is I think the instructor might have even been SUPER talented. But he needed to take a page out of a copywriter's book and learn a little about the "user experience" in order to translate that knowledge into the real world. Because you're always either moving people to the actions you want them to take... Or moving them away... Sell accordingly, Rob "The Dropout" Allen P.S. If you want to see an example of a "class" designed with the attendees in mind, I sure hope you got a ticket to [The State of Commerce](. We're pulling out all the stops to give you quick wins, make things fun and deliver value from the second you start watching. As an added bonus, I posted a [cool thread on how ticket sales are going here](. Are we connected on Twitter? [Follow me here!]( No longer want to receive these emails? [Unsubscribe](. Kings of Conversion PO Box 1175 Boise, ID 83701 ‌