All great questions. 

It’s safe to say you can drive yourself absolutely bonkers with all the “ifs, ands, and buts.”

Running a challenge is one of the best ways to engage your audience, establish your expertise, and get people to take action (buy!!).

But let me be really honest with you when I say—picking the right model can feel like choosing between pizza and tacos (why not both?!).

So, let’s break it down in a way that even my 5th-grade self would understand.

The Free Challenge Model

Pros:

• Maximum number of people sign up (yay, for big numbers!!!)

• Great for getting eyeballs on your offer.

• No barriers = easy entry for new folks.

• You may reach some people who wouldn’t normally purchase.

Cons:

• Lots of “freebie” seekers who 👻 after signing up. 

• Engagement? Meh. People love free stuff but don’t always take action.

• Lower show up rate

The Paid Challenge Model

Pros:

• People put money down = they show up and do the work.

• Higher chance of them buying your offer later.

• You get paid before you even pitch anything. 💰

• These are the people who are SERIOUS.

• A smaller group to go through the challenge

Cons:

• Fewer sign-ups (because, well, it costs money and they may not know you yet).

• You have to be good at selling your challenge—people have to see the value in order to make an investment.

• A smaller group to go through the challenge

What If you did… BOTH? 🤔

One of my favorite strategies is running a paid challenge but giving past participants a free ticket to join in…

Why?

• This gets more people in the “room” without making you feel like you’re giving away the farm.

• It’s been proven that people need multiple touch points before they will buy from you— and this is a fantastic strategy to keep them engaged.

• More warm bodies = more energy, which makes the challenge more fun. 🎉

Another sneaky-smart move?

Invite your entire list to the first session’s replay or reminder to join email, even if they didn’t sign up. This creates serious FOMO and bumps up last-minute registrations.

So, what’s the verdict?

It depends! (I know, I know… annoying answer.)

• Want more reach? Go free.

• Want more serious people? Go paid.

• Want a mix? Do a hybrid model.

The key is to test, tweak, and make it work for YOUR audience.

Ready to set up a challenge that actually gets results? DM me—I’d love to help!