If your audience isn’t buying your offer, the answer is never to blame your audience for not buying your offer.

Seems like it should go without saying, doesn’t it?

But I recently came across an Instagram post from a coach who was doing just that. She was nearing the end of her launch window, and apparently sales were not what she’d hoped they would be.

I wish I could remember the exact words she used. But all I remember is what the tone of her message said: “I clearly know better than you, and you should listen to me. So why aren’t you buying my offer?”

Yikes, am I right?

It’s disappointing when a launch flops and sales aren’t what you hoped for. But blaming your audience for it just another way for you to avoid the discomfort and hard work of evaluating what went wrong. Not to mention—it’s a big turnoff.

The real CEO ladies still feel the disappointment, but then they look at the data and they get busy.

Start by asking yourself these six questions:

Has my ideal client evolved or changed?

Take a hard look at your audience because if you’re aiming at the wrong target (or if what your target needs most has changed), then the rest of your launch strategy won’t matter.

If you’re not sure, ask these questions:

Has my ideal client’s primary problem or pain point shifted?
Have their priorities changed?
Where might I be making assumptions about my ideal client?

Economic changes, cultural shifts, life circumstances, and even trends all have an impact on your audience’s primary pain points, values, and priorities. If it’s been awhile since you reviewed your ideal client profile, there’s a chance your audience may have shifted without you noticing.

2. Does my messaging reflect how my audience talks about their problem?

Once you’re sure you know exactly who you’re talking to, the next step is to make sure you’re speaking their language—literally.

If you’re not talking about the problem the way your audience does, two things can happen:

They don’t notice your offer because they don’t even realize it’s relevant to them.
They dismiss you because they don’t feel like you “get” them.

This is why I always conduct voice-of-customer interviews before writing a single line of launch copy. It’s the secret sauce to creating messaging that captures attention and builds connection.

3. Is my offer positioned with crystal clarity?

Even if you deeply understand your audience and their challenges, you’ll still lose them if your offer feels fuzzy or confusing.

Your launch should clearly communicate:

Who your offer is (and isn’t) for
The transformation you’re promising
How you’re different from or better than your competition
Why you’re the right person to help them
Exactly what they’ll get when they buy

If content was king, clarity has always been queen. Don’t make your people think too hard or jump through hoops just to buy from you — because they won’t (unless your name is Taylor Swift).

4. Does my ideal client trust me enough to buy from me?

Even the clearest offer won’t convert if your people don’t trust you yet.

The trust recession you keep hearing about is real. As online business owners, we’re operating in an environment where people are more skeptical, require more proof, and take more time to buy than ever before.

The antidote is to prioritize trust-building with your people. Every single interaction someone has with you is an opportunity for you to build trust.

Take a step back and look at your customer journey. How are you taking advantage of each step along the way to plant seeds of trust?

This should start before you even begin selling. Which is why your welcome sequence is one of the most strategic points for you give your people reason to trust you.

Too many business owners are sitting on an outdated or underdeveloped welcome flow instead of leveraging it to build trust with interested leads. I created a free tool to help you audit your welcome sequence and make sure it’s building trust for you (not eroding it).

5. How healthy is my email list?

One of the biggest predictors of launch performance is the health of your email list.

It might seem like all the cool kids are focused on growing their social media following, but I’m telling you — the smart, successful business owners are focusing on growing an engaged email list.

So ask yourself:

Do I have enough subscribers to reach my launch goals?
Is my list used to hearing from me regularly, or have I ghosted them?
How are my open and click rates?
Is my list made up of the right audience for this offer?

Social media has its place, but it will never outperform a strong, engaged email list.

6. Do I have enough data to know where my funnel underperformed?

Once you’ve checked your audience, your offer, your trust levels, and your list health, it’s time to step back and look at your entire launch funnel. Where are people dropping off? Do your analytics show a weak link in the process?

Maybe you had low signups for your conversion event. Try a new topic or different angle.
Maybe your webinar had a low live conversion rate. Consider revising your pitch.
Maybe engagement was strong throughout your open cart window, but ultimately people didn’t buy. Might be time to evaluate ways to optimize your sales page.

The truth is that there’s a number of factors working in tandem to affect your launch performance, but evaluating the data can help you uncover them. Working with a launch strategist (like me!) can also help you identify gaps and optimize your funnel performance.

BONUS: Have I asked my audience why they didn’t buy?

Instead of making your best guess, just go straight to the source! Your audience can tell you exactly what’s holding them back, and the insights might surprise you.

You might discover:

They didn’t fully understand what you were selling
The timing wasn’t right for them
They didn’t feel ready (skill-wise, mindset-wise, or financially)
They wanted something slightly different

You can gather this feedback through a quick email survey, a poll in your community, or a handful of short 1:1 conversations with warm leads who didn’t purchase.

Ask from a place of curiosity, not defensiveness (like the coach in our earlier example).

Something as simple as:

“I’m always looking to improve my offers and better support my community. If you considered joining but decided against it this time, would you be willing to share what made you hesitate?”

Then simply listen to what they have to say. Thank them. And apply what you learn to your next launch.

Pivot, test, and try again

If your launch didn’t go as planned, first and foremost — do not panic. Remember, a launch performance does not say anything about your worth as a person or your capabilities as a coach.

Instead, treat this like the learning opportunity it is.

Try to pinpoint the main issue, adjust, test, and try again.

If you’re ready to leave your DIY days behind and get serious about fine tuning your launches, I’d love to help. Fill out this form to get started and come to your discovery call ready to give me an inside glimpse at your launch funnel so we can rebuild and refine your strategy going forward.