MBA2664 Why I Hate Selling My Program But Still Do

Omar’s not shy about it—he hates selling The $100 MBA program. But he does it anyway. Why? In this thought-provoking episode, he shares what makes selling feel so uncomfortable… and why he does it anyway, again and again. The reason? It's deeper than dollars. It’s about how value is perceived, and how paid offerings can reshape the way audiences engage with everything—even the free stuff. If you’ve ever felt conflicted about selling your work, or wondered why paying for a course seems to change everything… this lesson will give you a fresh perspective. Hit play at the top of the page. The “why” is waiting for you. The $100 MBA ProgramWatch the episodes on YouTube: https://lm.fm/GgRPPHiSUBSCRIBEYouTube | Apple Podcast | Spotify | Podcast Feed

• 0:00Speaker 00

  Small business owners, listen up. You started your business, but you can't do it alone. And that means you have to hire people to help. That's where Just Works comes in. Just Works is the payroll, benefits, and global hiring platform to unburden your brain from all the complicated small business stuff. They handle the things you can't afford to get wrong, so you don't have to worry. So you can focus on the parts of running a business that you enjoy, knowing everything else is running smoothly. You don't have to worry when it just works. Ever invest in something that seemed incredible at first, but didn't live up to the hype? For example, I really wanted to love the show Mad Men. I really tried to watch it and love it, but it just didn't do anything for me. As a marketer and business person, the show was a little bit of a disappointment.

• 0:45Speaker 00

  Marketers know that feeling. They optimize for the numbers that look great, like impressions. But then we don't see revenue. LinkedIn has a word for that: bull spend. Instead, you can get the highest ROAS of major ad networks with LinkedIn ads. Cut the bull spend, advertise on LinkedIn. Spend $250 and get a $250 credit. Go to LinkedIn.com/MBAShow. Terms apply. You know what? I honestly hate selling my program. If I can give everything away for free, I would. And for the most part, I do. You're listening to this podcast, which has over 2,600 business lessons, 2,600 episodes, completely free. I don't hold back. I give everything I know here on the podcast. And that model works.

• 1:28Speaker 00

  It brings in leads, it builds trust, I grow my brand, and it's monetized through sponsorship, which makes the podcast a seven-figure business alone. But when it comes to the $100 MBA program, I charge for it. And I do it very intentionally. Not because I love selling. The truth is, I would prefer to just create content, but because not charging for that program would hurt the people it's meant to help. Let me explain why.

• 1:58Speaker 00

  Welcome back to the $100 MBA Show. I'm your host Omar Zenhome, where I deliver practical business lessons three times a week, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, to help you start, grow, and scale your business.

• 2:11Speaker 00

  Free feels good, but it doesn't actually work all the time. We all love free, and free has a place, right? Free samples, free YouTube videos, free newsletters, all great for learning something new and exploring an idea. But when it comes to making a real change in your life, in your business, free doesn't cut it. Let me hit you with some real numbers. A report from Harvard and MIT found that an average completion rate for free online courses is between 3% and 6%. Meanwhile, paid courses consistently see completion rates between 30% and 60%, depending on the price point and the structure. A study from the Journal of Marketing Research found that even a dollar price tag on something

• 2:55Speaker 00

  increases the perceived value of the actual usage by over 80%. So if someone asks, "Why don't you just give your full program away?" My answer is because then you probably won't finish it. This is why I only charge $100 a month and not thousands of dollars, because I need my students to have enough skin in the game to get the most out of it. And this is not theory. This is proven through time. When I first launched the $100 MBA program over a decade ago, I gave away 10 free scholarships. I handpicked a few people that were really ambitious, dreamers, people who just needed a break. And you know how many of those 10 people logged in? Two. Two out of the 10 people that were desperate for this program.

• 3:39Speaker 00

  You know how many people finished the program? Zero. Meanwhile, paying students who invested in the program were logged in, showing up, completing the lessons, asking questions, taking action, right? That was a wake-up call for me. It taught me what every experienced entrepreneur eventually learns. People who pay, pay attention. They value what they pay for. And you don't just want attention, you want commitment. And a commitment And often requires a transaction, something that allows you to have, like I said, skin in the game, allows you to feel invested in this experience. I wish it was in this way, but that's just the facts. Here's another experience we had backed with real data. In

• 4:21Speaker 00

  the first few years of the $100 MBA, we launched a free mini version. People absolutely loved. We had thousands of signups, but very few people actually completed the lessons and implemented what they learned. In fact, less than 6% of the people completed the free mini course. They most likely bookmarked the page and said, I'll come back later. Spoiler alert, later never came. After the experiment, we canned the free course, charged $100 for the program, which was the original price when we launched it, and suddenly people paid attention. They completed the course. Actually, 61% of the people that took the course completed it. They asked questions, they took action, and in fact, one of our students emailed me and said,

• 5:05Speaker 00

  "The fact I paid for this made me carve out the time every night to go through it, and now I've got my first paying client." That's the power of skin in the game, of investing in yourself. Here's some research to back this up. A study from the Journal of Economic Psychology showed that people value a product more when they pay for it, even if it's the same product they could have gotten for free. Think about that for a moment. People value something more because they gave up something, they gave up their money for it, versus having it without giving up anything. Dan O'Reilly, author of Predictably Irrational, writes about the zero price effect and how people perceive free items as less valuable, even if they're incredibly

• 5:48Speaker 00

  useful. The example that comes to mind when I hear this is Google Maps. Google Maps is absolutely free, but if they charged $10 a month, I would pay gladly and actually would value it more. I'm kind of taking it for granted right now. So yes, I could go fully free and monetize the podcast through ads and partnerships and sponsorships alone and just focus on that. And honestly, that model might even be easier. But again, I believe in results, and we've learned over and over through all these studies and examples that results don't come from free stuff. Today's episode is supported by Cash App. When it comes to Bitcoin, you may be surprised to learn that it was invented way back in 2008. But you still haven't made the jump to Bitcoin yet?

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• 7:10Speaker 00

  Incorporated brand. For additional information, see the Bitcoin disclosures at cash.app/legal/podcast.

• 7:19Speaker 01

  It's JCPenney's biggest sale of the season, and 97% of the store is on sale. Yes, really. From November 5th through 11th, you'll find deals in every department. Yes, JCPenney. Season refers to the most items on sale, 8/3/26-11/19/26.

• 7:35Speaker 00

  Here's the thing, I'm not one of those always be closing guys who absolutely love sales. I don't mind it, I don't hate it. I've learned to start to enjoy the sales process, but if I could choose not to sell, I would choose not to sell. I was a teacher before I was an entrepreneur. I love teaching. That's why I started this podcast, to allow me to teach business lessons three days a week. That's why I built the $100 MBA program. But I still sell that program, because it's the only way I can ensure that we're maximizing the potential for our students to get results. You have to actually complete the program, you have to learn what's in there so that you can implement. Can't implement what you don't know. When you pay, you show up. When

• 8:19Speaker 00

  you show up, you do the work. And when you do the work, things change. And that's what I care about.

• 8:26Speaker 00

  The truth is, is that I make enough money with the podcasts and sponsorships, but I need results, right? I need to prove that what I am teaching actually works. And that's why we have the program because it allows people to be invested in their progress, invested in starting their business. And they apply the things they learn and then tell us, hey, thanks, this actually works. And let's be real, giving away free content is better for me. It grows my brand, it builds my trust with my audience, it lets me help a lot of people at scale. But if all I did is give away content, I wouldn't be doing right by the people who really want to change their lives and build a business. Because to really help somebody, they need to be invested, like I mentioned, you know?

• 9:10Speaker 00

  They need to be financially, emotionally, mentally invested. And that's where pay programs come in. My pay program, the $100 MBA, is a full business training program to help people start, grow, and scale their business profitably, from scratch, without fluff or theory, even if you're starting out with no money. It's more than just tools, it's more than just video lessons, it's practical templates, it's a workbook that tells you what to do next, so you're building your business as you're watching the videos. It also has some really robust AI tools that allows you to ask questions and validate ideas and make sure that you're on the right path. It's the culmination of everything I've learned along the way as an entrepreneur in a structure that allows you to start and grow your business as fast as possible.

• 9:54Speaker 00

  And yes, I charge for it. I don't charge thousands of dollars a month, I charge a hundred dollars a month. And that price point came about because we found that that is enough money for people to feel like they need to log in every month and do the work. So yeah, I would prefer to give away everything for free, but I still don't because I know that charging works, not for me, but for my students. But honestly, for me too, because I need case studies to show that what I'm teaching actually works. And the only way I can get that is if people actually do the work that is required to get the results. When you pay for something, it forces you to take it seriously, to commit, to finish, to actually execute on what you're learning. And when that Happens, your business and your life will change forever.

• 10:38Speaker 00

  So if you're ever wondering why somebody like me who loves free education still has a paid program? Well, now you know. And the honest truth is, is that like the money that we make from the program is so insignificant compared to what we make with the podcast with free content. So it's not about the money, it's about the results. Thank you so much for joining me here on the $100 MBA Show. Every single episode, I'm going to give everything I can to help you grow as an entrepreneur, build that business of your dreams and live the life that you want. If you found today's episode helpful and you want more practical business lessons to help you start, grow and scale your business, the best thing you could do is subscribe to this podcast.

• 11:18Speaker 00

  Hit subscribe or follow on your favorite podcast app, the one that you're using right now, whether it's Apple or Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. By hitting subscribe, you get our next episode automatically and it's the best way to support the show. It's absolutely free and it's a way for you to commit to growing your business. And now that you've subscribed, I'll check you in the next episode.

• 11:45Speaker 01

  It's JCPenney's biggest sale of the season and 97% of the store is on sale. Yes, really. From November 5th through 11th, you'll find deals in every department. Yes, JCPenney. Season refers to the most items on sale, 8/3/26 through 11/19/26.