Friday, September 25, 2026
True story:
I did a consulting call earlier this week with a tarot expert who’s great at what she does but is struggling to make money from her email list.
She’s got a variety of low ticket products…
And a flagship mentorship program that’s priced at $1,500.
Which, for context, is right in line with the biggest name in her niche.
(some well-known psychic studies institution that's been around forever)
In other words, she's competing at the top of her market.
Yet there was still some tension between typical online business guru advice and the realities on the ground in her niche.
Here's what she said to me on the call:
"I know everyone says you need a $5,000 offer… and I just don't know anybody who pays five grand for a tarot course… maybe that's just me thinking small, though. I don’t know."
I get it.
Truth is, pricing is tricky business.
What’s more:
She's not thinking small.
She's thinking clearly IMO.
Because the "go high ticket" advice that gets thrown around all the time works beautifully in certain niches….
Like health, business opportunity, personal finance, etc etc…
Where the ROI is measurable and the buyer has the budget.
But this person’s offer is a mentorship and certification program.
Not a biz opp course…
So the laws of business physics are going to apply differently.
And while anything is *technically* possible…
The reality is:
No amount of "premium positioning" or "value stacking" is likely to convince someone to pay $5,000 for a tarot certification when the most respected institution in the industry charges $1,500.
The advice isn't wrong in a vacuum.
It's just being applied to markets where it has no business being applied.
The dangerous part is when good advice for one market, offer, or business gets preached as gospel for everyone.
Because what happens is…
Well-intentioned people get stuck trying to engineer a $5k offer that nobody is willing to pay for…
Instead of focusing on selling more of what already works at the price the market happily pays.
Volume at the right price beats a premium offer nobody buys.
Some food for thought :)
Jim Hamilton
Learn how to build a profitable daily newsletter with Email Storyselling. Read by 5,000+ subscribers.