Course Lab
Interview with Mel Stanley
Personal Branding Strategist & Founder, FirstWoman
Interview Summary
Mel Stanley, a personal branding strategist with 25 years in marketing at London agencies and FTSE companies, pivoted to online courses when the pandemic killed her in-person workshop business. She used 20-minute "speed coaching" sessions to simultaneously research her market, generate course content, and fill her pilot — then built a coaching-heavy course called Brand for Success best described as a "transformative learning journey."
Speed Coaching: Market Research That Fills Your Pilot
When UK lockdowns canceled Mel Stanley's in-person workshops overnight in March 2020, she pivoted to online coaching. But rather than guessing what her course should cover, she offered 20-minute free "speed coaching" sessions with a simple value exchange: bring one problem that's getting in the way of your career progression, and I'll help you solve it. In return, she got deep insight into the problems women face in the workplace. She posted the offer to her email list and LinkedIn profile, and 22 women in her target group signed up within a month. "Speed coaching was just the door opener to everything," Mel says, "because it made the content relevant. It made the language and the vernacular relevant. And it also confirmed that the problem was there and that I was talking to the right audience." She recorded every session on Zoom, distilled the conversations into four or five major themes, then put those themes to a LinkedIn poll. Confidence and self-promotion accounted for 60-70% of the votes. That clarity drove the course design — and eight of the 10 pilot participants came directly from speed coaching.
Speed coaching was just the door opener to everything, because it made the content relevant. It made the language and the vernacular relevant. And it confirmed that the problem was there and that I was talking to the right audience.
Coaching Over Content: What Students Actually Wanted
Mel's pilot course, Brand for Success, ran as four group sessions with 30-minute one-on-one coaching calls between each session. Ten women signed up. The first surprise: students wanted less presentation content and more interaction time with each other. "I thought I was doing everybody a favor by making it shorter. In fact, what they wanted was longer so they could have more chats," Mel recalls. She had initially offered a Facebook group or Slack channel for between-session discussion, but nobody wanted it before the course started. Midway through, demand for peer connection grew organically, and she created a LinkedIn messaging group that became a vibrant support network. Members continued cheering each other on through new businesses and new jobs long after the course ended. The lesson underscores a broader theme: what Mel built was not a traditional course — it was a "transformative learning journey" driven by coaching, not content delivery.
I thought I was doing everybody a favor by making it shorter. In fact, what they wanted was longer so they could have more chats.
The Playbook and Managing Expectations
Before her pilot launched, Mel created a four-page PDF she calls the "playbook" — a nicely designed document with the lesson structure, inspirational quotes, and a clear aspirational message about what the course could help women achieve. It served two purposes: managing expectations by showing exactly what the course would cover, and sealing the deal for women who were considering joining. "It was very aspirational. It was nicely designed. Come on this and you can transform your life if you want to. And that kind of sealed the deal for everybody," Mel explains. "And it helped me manage expectations going forward, because the lesson plans were pretty much what was in that PDF." The playbook worked because Mel had already validated the content through speed coaching. She wasn't guessing — she was pushing an open door. The entire process, from speed coaching to LinkedIn polls to playbook to pilot, demonstrates a tightly integrated approach where every step feeds the next: research becomes content, content becomes sales tool, sales converts into a filled pilot.
It was very aspirational. It was nicely designed. Come on this and you can transform your life if you want to. And that kind of sealed the deal for everybody. And it helped me manage expectations going forward.
Mel's Action Steps
Mel recommends these 3 steps to improve your course planning:
Offer free speed coaching as a research and sales tool
Offer 20-minute free sessions with a clear value exchange: you help them solve one problem, they give you insight into their challenges. Record every session. Distill themes into course modules. Many of these same people will become your first paying students.
Validate with a poll before building content
After identifying your top themes from research conversations, put them to your audience as a simple poll (LinkedIn works well). Let your audience tell you which problem to solve first. Mel's poll confirmed that confidence and self-promotion were the top priorities by a wide margin.
Create a playbook PDF to set expectations and close sales
Before your pilot, create a short, aspirational PDF that shows the lesson structure and the promise of transformation. It manages expectations, builds excitement, and serves as a lightweight sales document — especially effective when you've already validated the content through direct conversations.
About Mel Stanley
Personal Branding Strategist & Founder, FirstWoman
Mel Stanley is a personal branding and marketing strategist, former CMO and Board Director, and founder of FirstWoman — a consulting and coaching firm helping ambitious professional women achieve success and recognition. With 25 years in marketing and brand strategy at London agencies and UK corporates, she works exclusively with aspiring women who want to be successful on their terms without compromising their values. She believes the world needs more senior females around the board table when decisions are being made.
Listen to the full episode
From Course Lab with Abe Crystal & Ari Iny on Mirasee FM