How Yu-kai Chou built an email funnel that drove >$25K for a membership site
- Jun Loayza
- May 15
- 4 min read
Yu-kai Chou is a world renowned Gamification expert that has worked with companies such as Google, Tesla, and HTC through his company The Octalysis Group. Though his consulting business continues to grow, he wanted to make a larger impact on the world by reaching directly to end users and teaching them how to use Gamification to improve their personal and professional lives.
And thus, Octalysis Prime was born.
The gamified platform that teaches applied Gamification
Octalysis Prime has taught thousands of people from around the world how to improve their lives through Gamification. While Yu-kai initially drove members through SEO (from his blog) and email marketing (through Mailchimp), he wanted to greatly increase the number of members on the platform.
The challenge
A gamified platform to learn is a novel idea -- platforms like Udemy and Coursera exist, but even those are traditional in the sense of learning consumption and progression: watch or read content, go on to the next section, rinse and repeat.
In contrast, Octalysis Prime is more akin to a video game than a classroom -- there are collectibles, rankings, points, badges, and of course, the deep integration of the Octalysis Framework (the Gamification framework that Yu-kai created).
Because Octalysis Prime was so unique, it was difficult to get people to commit the time and energy to try it out.
The solution
In order to drive more member adoption, Yu-kai utilized an email course funnel that lead to a time-bound deal, which drove >$25,000 in incremental revenue.
The email funnel
Yu-kai, in partnership with me (Jun Loayza), created the 14-day Gamification Course, an incredibly engaging email funnel that was fun and interactive for subscribers.
The metrics:
What made this course great
The course was great because it utilized the Octalysis Framework to drive user participation and action:
Predictability and progress (CD2): the 14-day Gamification Course was delivered in 14 consecutive business days, giving subscribers the predictability of knowing when the next email would be delivered, while giving subscribers a break on the weekends to feel like they're never too far behind or overwhelmed with emails.
Action items with a social group (CD5): each email includes an action item to perform in the Octalysis Explorers Facebook Group. This created an element of camaraderie, like when a cohort goes through a program together. For example:
Look around you. What do you see that is function-focused? How can it be improved by focusing on solving the need of the human as oppose to the need to complete a task?
Use the hashtag #Day2 to post your answer on the Octalysis Explorers Facebook Group.
A scavenger hunt with a special surprise for completing it (CD4 + CD6): Each email would also include a scavenger hunt with the goal of collecting secret codes everyday, with the goal of unlocking a secret prize at the end. These secret codes are scattered across the internet, in Yu-kai's Amazon page, X profile, LinkedIn page and more. These had two benefits:
It of course drove up retention because subscribers wanted to collect all of the secret codes
More importantly, it drove subscribers to Yu-kai's websites, teaching them more about Yu-kai Chou and priming them for the pitch at the end of the course -- to subscribe to Octalysis Prime
The time-bound deal
From the Octalysis Framework, we know that Black Hat Core Drives, like Core Drive 6: Scarcity & Impatience and Core Drive 8: Loss & Avoidance, can drive immediate action -- this is why time bound, special deals can get a lead to take action.
How we get people that completed the 14-day Gamification Course to take action: When a subscriber completes the course, they get a special, time bound deal: sign up to Octalysis Prime for $1 for the first month.
Why this works:
Successful completion (CD2): the email contact feels great because they've completed the course -- and have hopefully learned something too. CD2 is a White Hat Core Drive, which means they feel good and positive.
Time bound promotion (CD4 + CD6 + CD8): the email works because after completing the objective, the email contact receives an offer (CD4), which they now feel like they own because they worked hard to get it. The offer, which is a big discount to Octalysis Prime, is only offered to those that complete the course (CD6) and will expire within a few days (CD8). Because the offer will expire, a Black Hat technique, a lead is likelier to take an action in order to not lose it.
Foot in the door technique (CD2 + CD4 + CD8): once the user has taken the low-effort, commitment action of paying $1 for the first month, they are likelier to pay the full $50/month price moving forward because they've been getting value from the platform and don't want to lose their progress.
Drive more leads and revenue for your membership site utilizing a course funnel
If you have a membership site, then you can greatly increase the number of leads and drive conversions by creating your own multi-day email course.