The Igniter Archetype | The E-Creator Archetypes

T H E E - C R E A T O R A R C H E T Y P E S ™

Congratulations, you're an IGNITER.

OVERVIEW:

You’re in the validation phase turning your course idea into something real and seeing if people will actually buy it. You’re no longer guessing what might work; you’re testing it in real time by selling as you build, gathering feedback, and shaping your program around real demand.

This archetype is all about momentum. You’ll host your first live class, make your first sales, and refine your offer as you go. Every interaction, every student, every tweak helps you build proof and confidence. Done right, you’ll walk away with both a validated course and the certainty that it’s ready to scale.

YOUR GOALS SHOULD BE:

Write your curriculum
Sell your course before you make it in full
Host your first live class

So that begs the question, "How do I accomplish these goals?"
Learn more about your Archetype below 👇

O N T H I S P A G E :

YOUR PROBLEMS + PROBABLE SOLUTIONS

CONFIRM YOUR ARCHETYPE THROUGH A RUBRIC

WATCH THE VIDEO TRAINING: THE EMBER

Confirm Your Archetype

Before you move forward, let’s double-check if Igniter truly fits you. This quick scoring matrix helps you confirm where you are in the journey whether you’re still laying the foundation or already moving toward the next stage. Go through each statement honestly and rate how much it feels true for you. That way, you’ll know exactly what to focus on next instead of guessing or jumping ahead too soon.

Possible Problems at this Stage

Building Before Validating

You’re spending weeks creating the full course without proof that anyone will actually buy it. You need validation first through pre-selling, beta programs, or even small interest tests.

Trying to Reach Everyone

Your message is too broad, hoping to attract more buyers but connecting with none. Focus on one clear audience and test your idea with them first.

Avoiding the Sales Talk

You’re scared to sound “salesy,” so you stay quiet about your offer. But if people don’t know what you’re creating, they can’t buy it.

Mistaking Interest for Demand

People say “That sounds great!” but never pay. Compliments don’t equal conversions only real transactions confirm interest.

The Bird's Eye View

You’ve moved past the idea stage now you’re in the action zone. But this is only the second step of your journey. Ahead of you are The Rainmaker and The Oracle stages, where your systems scale, your brand expands, and your course begins bringing in sales on autopilot.

Your focus right now isn’t scaling yet it’s proof. This stage is about validating your offer, gathering real feedback, and building unstoppable momentum through sales and student results. Master this phase, and the next ones become a whole lot easier, faster, and more rewarding.

What You Can Do Next

If you’re ready to figure it out on your own:

Start selling as you build. Don’t wait until everything’s perfect test your idea with a small group, host a live session, or offer a paid beta. Every sale, question, or bit of feedback gives you proof of what’s working and what needs refining. Momentum comes from action, not planning.

If you want support and structure:

Most Igniters get stuck spinning between planning and selling unsure if they’re doing things in the right order. You don’t have to guess your way through it. Inside Paid to Build, you’ll follow a step-by-step process to validate your course idea while making real sales. You’ll learn how to pre-sell with confidence, gather feedback from paying students, and shape your course around what the market actually wants, not what you think it wants.

LEARN MORE ABOUT PAID TO BUILD

If you’re still clarifying your direction:

You’ve got a strong course idea now it’s time to prove it can sell. Inside Maia’s Igniter Package, we’ll help you validate and launch the right way, without guessing or wasting time on strategies that don’t fit.

Together, we’ll shape your idea into a market-ready offer, pre-sell it before you build, and run your first clean, confidence-boosting launch. You’ll walk away with paying students, proof of demand, and a clear model you can replicate again and again.

Watch This Video Training:

The Igniter

Start Your Toolshed Trial TODAY

Like You, They Were Stuck Too... Until We Fixed the Right Things

These course creators weren’t lacking hustle... they were just focused on the wrong fixes.
Once we dialed in the real problem, everything changed. Here’s what happened next.

Testimonial From Pia E.

0:43

🎓 Case Study #1: Heli B. — No Social Media Marketing Allowed in Market

Client: Dr. Heli B.
Role: Executive Leadership Coach, Psychologist, and Global Speaker
Challenge: Marketing a premium leadership course without using traditional social media promotions

BACKGROUND

Dr. Heli Bergström is an internationally experienced leadership coach with over 25 years of deep work in executive coaching and team transformation. When she approached me to help bring her flagship course, Coaching-Driven Leadership, to market, she had one clear non-negotiable:

❝I don’t want to market this on social media.❞

That wasn’t a suggestion. It was a boundary.

As someone who lives and breathes digital marketing and is incredibly comfortable with leveraging organic platforms like Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok, this presented a challenge.

But also—an opportunity.

THE CHALLENGE

Dr. Heli’s course was deeply impactful. But her audience?
• Busy executives.
• Corporate decision-makers.
• HR directors and leadership consultants.

They don’t live on Instagram reels.

And Dr. Heli preferred credibility-based outreach over vanity-based visibility.

I had to build a marketing foundation that honored her brand’s tone—quiet confidence, high-trust, high-ticket—and deliver results without using the typical playbook of viral videos, influencer-style content, or daily social media grind.

THE STRATEGY

Instead of trying to convince Dr. Heli to “go viral,” I listened.

Together, we aligned on a strategy rooted in precision and positioning:

✅ Built a full LinkedIn SOP for team outreach targeting corporate L&D leads, coaches, and HR managers
✅ Crafted a personalized outreach funnel with 3 types of offers: affiliate, licensing, and direct enrollment
✅ Created collateral that positions Dr. Heli as an authority—without needing her to post daily or "go live"
✅ Developed lead search criteria + Boolean strings for non-social platforms like Google, company websites, and LinkedIn Sales Navigator
✅ Implemented a VA-led outreach system using carefully worded emails and connection scripts aligned with her voice

All of this was built to scale—without compromising her values.

THE OUTCOME

In just a few weeks, we had:

⭐ A professional, brand-aligned outreach system that didn’t rely on Dr. Heli creating content herself
⭐ A scalable foundation for affiliate partnerships and licensing conversations
⭐ A confident shift from “I don’t want to be visible” to “I can lead quietly—and still win”

THE TAKEAWAY

Not every expert wants to dance on TikTok.

And not every course creator needs to be loud to be profitable.

This project reminded me that true marketing isn’t about imposing your preferred method—it’s about listening, adapting, and building strategies that work for them.

And that’s what we did.

🎓 Case Study #2: Rebekah M. — From Unclear Vision to 9 Sales Before Her Launch

Rebekah had been in my world for years — she bought all 9 of my courses (yup, all of them). She knew she wanted to teach online, but like many multi-passionate entrepreneurs, she didn’t have a clear direction. Her previous attempts at launching felt heavy, inconsistent, and misaligned with her deeper purpose.

Inside Maia, we gave her direction — and clarity that stuck.

The Starting Point:

No clear niche or transformation
Confused about what to teach (productivity, project management, or faith-based topics?)
Afraid her ideas were “too different”
Burned out from trying to figure it out alone

What We Did Together:

✅ Clarified her transformation: Helping Christian VAs get their first client — something she’d already done herself successfully

✅ Designed a 3-Day Live Workshop as a low-ticket offer to validate her niche and build proof

✅ Mapped out a long-term value ladder: Workshop → Community → Membership

✅ Created a messaging strategy that matched her values, voice, and vision

✅ Built confidence through visibility planning and a soft, story-driven launch

The Launch Plan: We didn’t start with building a course. We started by building demand.

A simple sales page
Two weeks of consistent value posts on IG and FB
Zero ad spend
No full curriculum created yet

The Results:

✅ 9 sales BEFORE the course even started

✅ A proven niche she can now own

✅ A community of Christians who resonate deeply with her work

✅ A clear path toward scaling into a faith-driven brand

The Transformation: Before Maia, Rebekah was stuck in analysis. After Maia, she was clear, confident, and in motion — with sales to show for it.

And the best part? She now has a replicable model she can run again and again — aligned with her mission, grounded in clarity, and built to grow.

"And all I can say if you’re new to her learning space, I just wanna encourage you and let you know that you just found your way to someone who I believe is in the top 1% of the coaching/e-learning industry with all her top tier quality lessons.

From the actual content to the delivery and quality of materials, always an overkill."

- Rebekah M.

🎓 Case Study #3: Victoria L. P. — From Stuck, Scared, and Overwhelmed to 5 Sales Before Launch

HOP IN THE TOOLSHED

If this is the first time we are meeting, hello! 👋

I’m Demi Bernice, I run Maia, and I'm your new marketing strategist.

I’ve been in the online education space since 2019. Since then, I’ve:

▫️ Spent over $250,000 on Facebook ads (I test what I teach)
▫️ Built and launched 9 profitable online courses
▫️ Taught 7,000+ students through my programs
▫️ Personally helped 100+ course creators fix their offers, validate their ideas, and sell smarter
▫️ Built an audience of 167,000+ followers across social platforms

I do nothing else but this--online education business. In this field, I am hyperfocused.

I’m not here to hype strategies that “sound good.”
I’m here to help your client sell the damn thing.

Because nothing in business moves if sales aren’t coming in.

I despise marketing that wastes time.
I won’t feed “just post more” advice.
And I’m not the coach who’ll teach the same surface-level thing 50 different ways.

I look forward to working with you!

_{^{© 2025 Strive for Excellence by Demi Bernice. All rights reserved.}}
_{^{The E-Creator Archetype™ Test and related materials are the intellectual property of Strive for Excellence by Demi Bernice.
No part of this content may be copied, reproduced, or distributed without prior written permission.}}