Your course should make people think: "I need help with this."
If potential customers look at your topic and think "I could probably figure this out myself," you're in trouble. Not because your course isn't valuable, but because people won't pay for what feels easy to achieve on their own.
The intimidation factor isn't about making your course scary or difficult. It's about choosing topics that already intimidate your target audience—problems that make them hesitate, procrastinate, or give up entirely.
What makes a topic intimidating?
The intimidation factor lives in your customer's mind. It shows up as:
Hesitation when they think about tackling the problem
Procrastination despite knowing they need to act
Complaining about how hard something is
Losing hope or steam when they try to figure it out alone
Giving up on the goal altogether
I'd pay someone to help me climb Mt. Everest, but I wouldn't spend a dime for guidance on walking up a 100-foot hill.
The difference? One feels manageable on my own, the other feels impossible without expert guidance.
Why intimidation drives sales
When I created my SAT Essay Formula program, I tapped into a topic that genuinely intimidated students. Many had grown up with teachers marking their essays with red pens. Writing seemed like luck or talent—something you either had or didn't.
These students had never been taught writing in a structured fashion and hadn't done enough writing to gain confidence. The 25-minute time pressure of the SAT essay made everything worse.
Every summer, I'd see sales spikes as students (and their parents) realized they needed help. The approaching test date amplified their intimidation, making them eager for a proven system.
But here's the key: the intimidation was already there. I didn't create it—I simply recognized it and offered a solution.
How to find intimidating course topics
Look for problems where people say:
"How do you even do that?"
"I can't figure out how to do that"
"I've tried but keep getting stuck"
"I don't know where to start"
Listen to conversations in forums, social media groups, and customer interviews. Watch for behavioral signals: people who start projects but don't finish them, who buy multiple resources but still struggle, or who avoid tackling certain goals despite wanting them badly.
The intimidation factor means they know they don't know how to succeed in your area. They need you as a guide.
Making intimidation work for you, not against you
The challenge is positioning yourself as the solution without amplifying fear so much that people feel paralyzed.
You need to show evidence that you can make the intimidating topic easier for them. This is where reverse testimonials become powerful.
Instead of typical testimonials that only share results, reverse testimonials reveal initial skepticism before describing success. When I interview people for testimonials, I ask: "What in your mind would have prevented you from buying this program?"
This question gets them to reveal their doubts and concerns. Then they explain how the program addressed those exact worries and delivered results anyway.
These testimonials work because they acknowledge the intimidation factor while proving it can be overcome with the right guidance.
The ancient pattern behind this principle
This isn't a new marketing trick. In Joseph Campbell's The Hero With A Thousand Faces, heroes consistently face extraordinary odds and meet mentors who help them overcome seemingly impossible obstacles.
This pattern has existed for thousands of years because it reflects a fundamental truth: most people instinctively know that someone with more experience can show them the ropes.
When you tap into this in your marketing, you're working with human psychology, not against it.
What this means for your next course
Before you build your next course, ask yourself:
Does this topic already intimidate my target audience?
Do people procrastinate or avoid this area despite wanting results?
Would someone say "I need help with this" when they think about the goal?
If the answer is no, you might have a hobby course on your hands—something people find interesting but not essential enough to pay for.
Remember: people ultimately buy courses to save time, avoid frustration, and get guidance through intimidating territory. If the path looks easy enough to walk alone, they'll try to do exactly that.
Find the topics that make people think "I need a guide for this," then position yourself as exactly that guide.
The intimidation factor isn't about making things harder—it's about recognizing what's already hard and showing people a clearer path through it.
Want to create a course without the usual overwhelm?
Finding the right intimidating topic is just the first step. Once you've identified what genuinely challenges your audience, you need a system to turn that insight into a focused, results-driven course—fast.
The Atomic Course Blueprint shows you how to create bite-sized courses that tackle intimidating topics without overwhelming yourself or your students. No more months of course creation or endless revisions.
See how The Atomic Course Blueprint can help you turn intimidating topics into profitable courses.
