Why I’m Raising My Course Price to $5K

A lot of people in the online education space are doing the same thing right now. They are lowering prices, adding discounts, and trying to outcompete one another by being cheaper. I am doing the opposite. I am raising my course price to $5K, and I want to be clear that this decision has nothing to do with greed and everything to do with results.

This change is about transformation, commitment, and respect for the people (like you) that I serve. After years of building, selling, refining, and teaching online courses, I have learned something that is uncomfortable but undeniable. Price shapes behavior. Price shapes perception. And price determines outcomes far more than most course creators are willing to admit.

This post (and the YouTube video linked here and podcast episode linked here) explains exactly why I am raising my course price, how it benefits my learners, and why pricing based on value and return on investment is the only sustainable path forward for serious educators and business owners.

Price communicates value before your content ever does

The first thing price does is signal value. Long before someone watches your videos or opens your curriculum, the price tells them a story. When a course is cheap, people assume it is incomplete, generic, or interchangeable. Even if the content is strong, the pricing undermines the promise.

We see this behavior everywhere outside of online courses. If you were facing a serious medical issue, you would not search for the cheapest specialist available. You would look for the best care you could reasonably afford. When the stakes are high, people equate price with competence, confidence, and trust.

I experienced this firsthand during a health scare that temporarily cost me vision in one eye. I did not look for the cheapest doctor. I looked for the best specialists I could access, even if it meant traveling across the country. That decision was driven by value, not cost. Your learners think the same way when the problem you solve actually matters to them.

Higher prices create stronger commitment and better outcomes

One of the hardest truths in education is that free and cheap resources are rarely taken seriously. People may download them, bookmark them, or say they plan to return later, but most never do. When learners pay more, they show up differently.

I have seen this pattern repeatedly across my own products. Higher priced programs consistently have higher completion rates, more engagement, and better results. Learners who invest more are more focused, more accountable, and more willing to implement what they learn.

This is not about exclusion or elitism. It is about alignment. When someone invests at a higher level, they are signaling readiness. They are saying they are willing to change behavior, not just consume information. That shift is where real transformation begins.

Pricing should be based on ROI, not competitors

Most course creators price their work by scanning the market and matching what others charge. This approach feels safe, but it is fundamentally flawed. Competitor pricing has nothing to do with the value you create or the outcomes you deliver.

The only pricing question that matters is this. What is the return on investment for the learner? If your course helps someone save money, make money, avoid costly mistakes, or reclaim time, that value should anchor the price.

In my work with organizations, we routinely save partners six figures or more each year by fixing broken learning systems. When I package that same framework into a course, selling it for a few hundred dollars makes no sense. Even at $5K, the learner can still see a return that is many times their investment (get my system I implement with enterprises to save them multiple 6-figures per year here).

If your course creates measurable change, pricing it cheaply does not make it more ethical. It makes it less effective.

Low prices often prevent implementation

There is a common belief that lowering prices makes learning more accessible. In practice, it often does the opposite. Low prices reduce urgency, lower accountability, and delay action. When the financial risk feels insignificant, so does the need to follow through.

I have sold different versions of the same course at different price points over the years. The higher-priced versions consistently outperform lower-priced ones in terms of implementation and completion. Learners who pay more move faster because they want results.

Raising my course price is not about making it harder to buy. It is about making it harder to ignore. Implementation is the bridge between information and transformation, and price is one of the strongest forces that pushes people across that bridge.

Higher margins create healthier businesses and better learning experiences

Another reason I am raising my course price to $5K is sustainability. Healthy margins allow me to reinvest in better content, better support, and better learning design. They also allow me to stay in business long enough to continue serving learners over time.

When businesses operate in survival mode, everything becomes reactive. Support suffers. Innovation slows. The experience degrades. Higher margins create stability, and stability creates space for excellence.

A healthier business also benefits learners indirectly. It allows for deeper engagement, improved resources, and more thoughtful iteration. When I raise prices, I am not extracting more value from learners. I am reinvesting it into the experience they receive.

Higher prices reduce refunds and improve the learner experience

Refunds are often treated as a customer satisfaction issue, but they are more accurately a pricing issue. Low-priced products attract casual buyers who are unclear about what they are committing to. That confusion leads to refunds, complaints, and an unnecessary support burden.

Higher-priced programs attract intentional buyers. These learners know why they are enrolling and what they expect to gain. As a result, refunds decrease, and conversations become more meaningful.

This shift also allows me to spend less time handling administrative issues and more time creating value. The goal is not to reduce support. The goal is to elevate it. Higher prices make that possible.

Raising prices is an act of leadership

One of the most overlooked aspects of pricing is its psychological impact on the creator. When you underprice your work, you send yourself a message that your experience, insight, and outcomes are not worth much. Over time, that belief erodes confidence and clarity.

Raising my course price to $5K is an act of alignment. It reflects the results my work creates and the seriousness of the problems it solves. It also sets a standard for how I expect learners to show up.

Leadership is not about pleasing everyone. It is about making decisions that support long-term transformation, even when they feel uncomfortable in the short term.

Who this pricing is for and who it is not for

This course is not for casual browsers or people looking for shortcuts. It is for builders, leaders, and educators who want measurable outcomes. It is for people who are willing to invest in systems, not hacks.

If someone is not ready to commit time, focus, and effort, a lower price will not help them succeed. A higher price may actually be the signal they need to wait until they are ready.

That is not exclusion. It is honesty.

Final thoughts on why I’m raising my course price to $5K

Raising my course price is not a marketing tactic. It is a values decision. It reflects what I believe about learning, commitment, and results.

I want my learners to win. I want them to implement. I want them to see returns that far exceed what they paid. Pricing at $5K makes that more likely, not less.

That is also why eLearning Simplified Academy™, the enterprise-proven system behind $100K+ annual savings used with S&P 500 organizations like CoStar Group, is now available as a self-implemented program for teams ready to eliminate waste and generate real ROI.

If you are a course creator, educator, or business owner wrestling with pricing, I encourage you to stop asking what others charge and start asking what transformation you deliver. Your price should tell the truth about that answer.