[#014] - The One Thing Your Audience Actually Remembers

I've spent most of my career being known for too many things.

Website builds. Brand identity. Funnel creation. Event production. Kajabi promotion. Content strategy. Email marketing. The list got embarrassingly long. And I wore it like a badge of honour, thinking versatility made me valuable.

It didn't.

Looking back at my agency years, I was a jack of all trades and master of confusion.

Clients would ask "so what exactly do you do?" and I'd launch into a ten-minute explanation covering everything from logo design to launch strategy. Their eyes would glaze over somewhere around minute three.

Within all that noise, there were three things I never wavered on when actually working with clients. They just had to wade through the mix of messages to get there. The three things I stayed true to, regardless of what was trending or what everyone else was chasing, were…

First, digital product creation - Turning expertise into online training programmes and courses. I believed in this when everyone said you needed physical products to make real money. Seem like the world is now a believer.

Second, Kajabi as THE platform to build on - Not jumping ship every time a new tool launched with promises of better features, lower prices or a better affiliate program. While others chased the shiny objects, I stayed put.

Third, simplification. This one wasn't always public facing - Behind closed doors with clients, my message was always the same – we can do less, but better. Strip away the complexity. Focus on what actually moves the needle.

These three things haven't changed in years. And that consistency is the only reason I'm still here.

While the public message has become so much clearer in recent years and my main focus is the SIMPLIFY message, I can see how so many others are wandering around aimlessly.

The Industry That Lost Its Way

Here's what I've watched happen over the past few years in our industry.

Software platforms increasing prices. Constantly rolling out new features nobody asked for. Championing everything AI as if artificial intelligence is the answer to problems that don't exist. Adding layers of complexity and calling it "innovation."

The service provider world followed suit.

Funnel builders and marketers started promoting whatever was newest. Whatever had the freshest affiliate programme. Whatever was trending on TikTok that week.

The entire industry has become clouded. Fuzzy. Genuinely unhelpful for the consumer who just wants to build a business without needing a computer science degree.

I've watched overwhelmed business owners try to navigate this mess. They come to me having bought seventeen different tools because seventeen different "experts" recommended seventeen different solutions. None of those tools talk to each other. Half of them do the same thing. And the business owner is spending more time managing their tech stack than actually serving customers.

This is what happens when an industry loses its focus on genuinely helping people and starts chasing commissions and their own bank balance.

The Great Kajabi Exodus

In my own world of Kajabi service providers, I've watched something sad unfold over recent months.

Long-standing partners, people who built their entire businesses promoting Kajabi and serving many people to build solid businesses on the platform, they are walking away.

I am talking about people whose audiences trusted their recommendations because they'd been consistent for years.

They're jumping ship.

Some have completely flipped, drawing their communities and clients away from Kajabi and into other systems. Others are hedging their bets by promoting Kajabi alongside competing platforms. Sitting on the fence with both their feet in two camps, waiting to see which way the wind blows.

I understand the fear behind it. Kajabi increased their prices. Some wondered if their audience would still want to be part of the Kajabi ecosystem or if the other systems that promise to take your business to a “higher level” (see what I did there?) or even show you how you are just one funnel away from success (see what I did there again?).

The safe move for many seems to be about covering all bases. Promoting multiple platforms so you'd earn something regardless of what people chose.

But here's what those hedgers don't seem to understand - their audiences are watching. And confused audiences don't buy. It’s simple consumer psychology.

The comments have started appearing on public platforms. Comments on posts like  "Wait, I thought you recommended Kajabi?" or "So which platform do you actually suggest?" and "Last month you said X, now you're promoting Kajabi again?"

Trust, once cracked, is incredibly hard to repair.

The Data Behind Consistency

This isn't just my opinion. The research backs it up.

79% of consumers are more loyal to brands with consistent communication (Source: Capital One)

Think about that. Nearly 8 out of 10 people stick with brands that maintain a consistent message. Not the brands with the most features. Not the brands with the lowest prices. The consistent ones.

And here's something that should make every fence-sitter reconsider their strategy…

More than two-thirds of loyal customers say they would stick with their favourite brands even if prices increased. They're willing to pay, on average, 25% more to stay with brands they trust (Source: User Testing)

Your audience will pay more and stay longer when they trust you. When they know exactly what you stand for. When your recommendations don't shift with the wind.

Consumers need to trust a brand to consider buying from it. Trust isn't a nice-to-have. It's the foundation everything else is built on. And trust comes from consistency over time. Not from promoting whatever pays the highest commission this month.

My Own Confession

I know this because I made the mistake myself.

Years ago, I promoted competing products to my email list. Different automation tools. Different course platforms. Different solutions that did essentially the same thing. I told myself I was "giving people options." Being helpful by showing them the full landscape of what was available.

What I was actually doing was confusing them. Every mixed message eroded their confidence in my recommendations. If I couldn't decide which tool was best, how were they supposed to trust my judgement on anything?

The moment I stopped hedging and committed to one platform, one message, one clear recommendation... everything changed.

Sales went up. Not because I was pushing harder. Because people finally knew what I stood for. They could point to me and say "Ant recommends Kajabi" without any qualifiers or confusion.

Trust deepened. Even to the point that they thought I worked for the company many timed. On a recent call with an ex-employee that I was on a Zoom with, as he’s working on a project that he wanted my input on, he even thought I worked for the company at one point to.

This level of clarity helped clients to stop asking "but what about this other tool?" because they knew my answer before they asked. They came to me specifically because they wanted my perspective, not a menu of options.

My content became clearer. Instead of dancing around multiple platforms trying not to offend any affiliate partners, I could speak directly about what I actually believed in.

Whilst still not perfect like any other software vendor, Kajabi is still, and will remain my no.1 recommendation for clients to use to grow their online business.

Simplicity in my message created simplicity in my business. Who would have thought?

The Conflict of Interest Problem

Let me be direct about what bothering me right now though.

When you advocate for a system or platform to earn affiliate commissions, you've got to do this with real integrity and loyalty. Not because loyalty is morally superior. Because mixed messages reveal your true motivation.

If you're promoting three competing platforms, your audience knows what you're really doing. You're not trying to help them find the best solution. You're trying to earn a commission regardless of what they choose. You become a salesperson, not a trusted advisor.

Having multiple affiliate partnerships isn't wrong. Let me be clear about that. If you recommend a course platform, an email tool, and a design service, those complement each other. Your audience may need all three, and your recommendations help them build a complete system.

But when you promote things that directly compete with each other? When you tell your audience "Kajabi is great, but also check out this competitor, and here's another option too"? You're not serving them. You're just trying to hedge your bets with their wallets.

The people I've watched leave the Kajabi partner programme aren't doing it because they found something better for their audience. They're doing it because they're scared. Scared the price increase and changed announced in the Kajabi Evolved event will reduce their affiliate income and they are scared of putting all their eggs in one basket. It’s a fear of committing, and fear makes for terrible business strategy.

Why I'm Staying Put

Yes, Kajabi increased their prices – for existing users this will hit them in January 2025. Yes, some new features were released early and need more work. Yes, there were bumps along the way and there will be in the future. I won't pretend otherwise.

But here's what I also know.

Kenny Rueter, Founder of Kajabi, and JCron, the former President, returned as co-CEOs after the Kajabi Evolved event in September 2025. If you've followed the company's history, you understand what that means. The people who built Kajabi from the ground up, who understood its original vision, are back at the helm.

Their recent manifesto reads like a return to core values. A return to why the business was started in the first place. After a few years of what felt like drift, chasing features and influencer customers and partner, everything else, I feel that they're refocusing on the knowledge creators who made the platform successful.

I do feel that Kajabi lost its way a little over the past few years. I can say that because I've been watching closely. But this feels like a course correction. A return to what matters.

The competition might have more bells and whistles. More complexity. More ways to build out elaborate systems that will take you months to configure. They might be moving faster in some areas, shipping features at a pace that makes headlines.

But more features isn't the same as better outcomes.

I've watched businesses drown in those features on those other platforms in a bid to move away from Kajabi only to ask for my help in bringing them back. Spending more time configuring your tech stack in a brand-new system rather than creating content or serving just a few more customers to pay for the increase – this is all about lining the pockets of service providers acting as affiliates that want you to pay them to switch over.

I believe the investment Kajabi is putting in behind the scenes is going to make this the strongest platform in the market. Not because it has the most features. Because it focuses on what actually matters for knowledge entrepreneurs who want to build sustainable businesses. That is how it was built in the first place.

Here a prediction? Those walking away now will come back. When they've exhausted themselves promoting three different platforms to three confused audience segments, when they've spread their expertise too thin to be credible on any of them, they'll remember why consistency worked.

Being Beige is a Problem

Here's what happens when you sit on the fence. When you're neither for nor against something. When you hedge every recommendation with "but it depends" and "there are other options."

You become beige.

Not exciting. Not memorable. Not someone your audience thinks of when they need help with a specific problem.

People don't remember the person who gave them five options. They remember the person who said "this is what I recommend, and here's why."

They remember 1) Confidence 2) Clarity and 3) Conviction.

When we start wavering on our message, our audience feels it. They might not be able to articulate it, but they sense something has shifted. The trust that took years to build starts eroding.

Your audience doesn't need more options. They're drowning in options. They need someone who's already done the research, tested the tools, made the mistakes, and can tell them clearly – “Use this.”

That's what you're supposed to be for them. The person who's gone ahead and figured it out. Not another voice adding to the noise.

Your Challenge For This Week

Look at your own business this week. Really look at it.

Are you hedging? Promoting too many offers, services or affiliate products, because you're afraid of missing out on a sale or commission? Are you sitting on fences because commitment feels risky?

STEP 1 | Audit Your Recommendations

Write down everything you currently promote in your own business and recommend in terms of other offers. Every product. Every service. Every tool. Every platform. Every programme. Then ask… “Do any of them compete?” If you have multiple solutions for the same problem, then it’s time to be honest about why they're all on the list and maybe take some of them off.

STEP 2 | Pick One

In each category of your business offers, choose one offer and commit to it. With recommended products that compete, choose one and champion it. Don’t pick the one that has the highest margin or pays the highest commission. Choose the ones you genuinely believe serve your audience best.

STEP 3 | Communicate It Clearly

Stop hedging in your content. One message. One clear next step to work with you. And when someone asks what you recommend, answer without qualifiers. "I use Kajabi and I recommend it above all other platforms" …not… "well, Kajabi is good but there are other options depending on your needs." Give them clarity. That's what they're paying you for.

Here's what I want you to remember…

For brands, consistency means delivering the same level of service every time a consumer interacts with them, whether through product performance, customer support or marketing message.

The same applies to you. Every piece of content. Every recommendation. Every interaction with your audience. Consistency isn't boring. Consistency is how trust gets built.

Consistency and relevance across platforms build the kind of trust that sustains loyalty over time.

Stake your claim. Mark out your territory. Raise your flag so people know exactly what you stand for.

Because trying to be everything to everyone is the fastest path to becoming nothing to no one.

Are you taking up this week’s challenge?

Pick one thing you've been hedging on and make a clear decision. Then tell your audience what you've decided.

Let me know what you chose. Just comment below. 

If you're still on the fence about your tech stack, wondering whether to jump ship from whatever platform you're using... maybe the problem isn't the platform. Maybe it's trying to run six different tools when one would do the job better. Complexity is expensive. Simplicity is profitable. Choose accordingly.

Keep it simple,

Ant 🐜