Peterson Academy (Peterson Academy) — a Direct-to-product funnel teardown

ProductInfo-product
TypeDirect-to-product
CategoryEducation
Peterson Academy — “The West’s Founding Document”

Peterson Academy is an online university: 110-plus eight-hour courses from Jordan Peterson and professors he has recruited, sold as one membership at $500 a year. It is the biggest spender among his companies on Facebook: around 550 of the ads found under his name point at petersonacademy.com.

The ads are written course by course: a sermon, a phrase from scripture, Marxism, Nietzsche. Each lands on a page built for its subject (a listicle, a sales letter about the Bible, a Soviet-poster page for two history courses, a page of student reviews), and every one of those pages ends at the same checkout, with each button tagged so the Academy can see which page produced the sale. There is no trial and no free tier. The only email capture is a popup about professor livestreams that are “coming soon”.

The ad copy also records how the catalogue grew, with the same template running at “53+”, “60+”, “80+” and “100+ courses”. The student count isn’t consistent: newer ads claim 80,000 or 90,000 students, while the landing pages and checkout show 64,023 or 64,029.

What was not captured: the emails the popup sign-up receives, anything after payment, and the other side of the pricing test.

Funnel canvas — drag to pan, scroll or use the buttons to zoom. Each node links to that step's page.

Attract

“The West’s Founding Document”Peterson Academy — “The West’s Founding Document”
“You are the salt of the earth.”Peterson Academy — “You are the salt of the earth.”
1“Real Marxism has never been tried.”Peterson Academy — “Real Marxism has never been tried.”

Professors rent the Academy their audiences

Many of the ads don’t run from Peterson’s page. They are partnership ads from the professors’ own pages (Bishop Robert Barron, Paul Kengor, Michael Malice) and from a comedian, each speaking to followers who may never have heard of the Academy.

1“Peterson Academy exists to offend you.”Peterson Academy — “Peterson Academy exists to offend you.”

Capture

2“Professor Seminar Livestreams – coming soon”Peterson Academy — “Professor Seminar Livestreams – coming soon”

The email is a side door

Nothing free is offered on the way to the price. The one email capture is a popup about livestreams “coming soon”, and its confirmation says the visitor has joined the Academy’s general mailing list.

Nurture

3TODO: the mailing list’s emailsPeterson Academy — TODO: the mailing list’s emails

An email from someone not ready to pay

The popup catches visitors partway down a sales page who haven’t clicked through to the checkout. What the mailing list sends them, and whether it pitches the $500 membership again, is still to be captured.

Sell

4“5 Reasons Why 64,029 Students Have Already Joined”Peterson Academy — “5 Reasons Why 64,029 Students Have Already Joined”
4“Every serious thinker had to confront this book.”Peterson Academy — “Every serious thinker had to confront this book.”
4“Real Marxism has never been tried.”Peterson Academy — “Real Marxism has never been tried.”
4“Why 64,023 People Decided Their Mind Was Worth Investing In”Peterson Academy — “Why 64,023 People Decided Their Mind Was Worth Investing In”
45“Complete your enrollment”Peterson Academy — “Complete your enrollment”

A page for every argument, one checkout for all of them

The Bible ad gets a sales letter about Nietzsche and Jung; the Marxism ad gets a Soviet-poster page; the comedian’s ad gets a page of reviews. Every button on every page goes to the same /signup, tagged with the page and the button (from=bible-offer, from=communism-footer, from=listicle-hero), so the Academy can see which argument sells.

The lifetime plan is sold by its buyers

$500, $900 or $5,000, side by side. The row above them counts 3,679 lifetime students, so the most expensive plan comes with proof that people buy it. There is no trial and no free tier, only the 7-day refund.

Retain

Made for a big screen

See all 11 steps as one map

On a computer this funnel opens as a canvas: every page at full length, side by side, with the arrows between them and the moves that make it work. A phone screen can't hold it, so here it's a list.

  1. Peterson Academy — “The West’s Founding Document”Ad“The West’s Founding Document”
  2. Peterson Academy — “You are the salt of the earth.”Ad“You are the salt of the earth.”
  3. Peterson Academy — “Real Marxism has never been tried.”Ad“Real Marxism has never been tried.”
  4. Peterson Academy — “Peterson Academy exists to offend you.”Ad“Peterson Academy exists to offend you.”

    Professors rent the Academy their audiences

    Many of the ads don’t run from Peterson’s page. They are partnership ads from the professors’ own pages (Bishop Robert Barron, Paul Kengor, Michael Malice) and from a comedian, each speaking to followers who may never have heard of the Academy.

  5. Peterson Academy — “Professor Seminar Livestreams – coming soon”Popup/exit-intent“Professor Seminar Livestreams – coming soon”

    The email is a side door

    Nothing free is offered on the way to the price. The one email capture is a popup about livestreams “coming soon”, and its confirmation says the visitor has joined the Academy’s general mailing list.

  6. Peterson Academy — TODO: the mailing list’s emailsEmailTODO: the mailing list’s emails

    An email from someone not ready to pay

    The popup catches visitors partway down a sales page who haven’t clicked through to the checkout. What the mailing list sends them, and whether it pitches the $500 membership again, is still to be captured.

  7. Peterson Academy — “5 Reasons Why 64,029 Students Have Already Joined”Landing page“5 Reasons Why 64,029 Students Have Already Joined”
  8. Peterson Academy — “Every serious thinker had to confront this book.”Sales page“Every serious thinker had to confront this book.”
  9. Peterson Academy — “Real Marxism has never been tried.”Sales page“Real Marxism has never been tried.”
  10. Peterson Academy — “Why 64,023 People Decided Their Mind Was Worth Investing In”Sales page“Why 64,023 People Decided Their Mind Was Worth Investing In”
  11. Peterson Academy — “Complete your enrollment”Checkout/order form“Complete your enrollment”

    A page for every argument, one checkout for all of them

    The Bible ad gets a sales letter about Nietzsche and Jung; the Marxism ad gets a Soviet-poster page; the comedian’s ad gets a page of reviews. Every button on every page goes to the same /signup, tagged with the page and the button (from=bible-offer, from=communism-footer, from=listicle-hero), so the Academy can see which argument sells.

    The lifetime plan is sold by its buyers

    $500, $900 or $5,000, side by side. The row above them counts 3,679 lifetime students, so the most expensive plan comes with proof that people buy it. There is no trial and no free tier, only the 7-day refund.

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