You Can’t Outwork Bad Messaging: The Sales Shift That Changed Everything for Ashton Tate
- Alvin Onyemere
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Introduction:
You’ve called 100 schools.You’ve personalized the emails.You’re putting in the work—and still not seeing traction.
Sound familiar?
That’s exactly where Ashton Tate was before things finally started clicking.
The founder of The Form Curriculum wasn’t short on effort.He was doing what most EdTech founders do: pushing, grinding, trying to outwork the silence.But even after 500 cold calls, Ashton found himself asking the same question:
“Why isn’t any of this working?”
What changed wasn’t more effort.It was the moment he realized:
“I didn’t have a sales system. I had a hustle.”
In this blog, we’ll break down how Ashton rewired his sales approach inside the EdSales Elevation Experience—and why your next breakthrough probably isn’t about doing more.
It’s about saying less—but saying it right.
The Grind Trap – Why “Doing More” Wasn’t Working
Ashton wasn’t sitting on his hands.
He had the platform. He had the mission. And he was doing the work:
500 cold calls.
Automated email sequences.
DMs. Follow-ups. More follow-ups.
But nothing was really landing.
And when it did land?It took forever. The right schools didn’t get it. The wrong ones took the call—and still said no.
“I’d rather just keep doing outreach than sit down and figure out my messaging.”
That was Ashton’s mindset.
And honestly? That’s most founders.
Because in EdTech, the grind is glorified.Founders think that if they just keep showing up, it’ll break through eventually.
But effort doesn’t scale what isn’t working.
And what Ashton realized was this:
You can’t outwork messaging that doesn’t speak to your buyer.
Until that changed—he was just building momentum with no direction.
The Messaging Wake-Up – What Changed in the Elevation Experience
Ashton didn’t need a new funnel.He needed a new foundation.
Inside the Elevation Experience, the first thing we had him do was stop.Stop automating.Stop pitching to everyone.Stop hiding behind “activity.”
Instead, he got clear on three things:
Who exactly is this for? (Answer: faith-based schools, not everyone with a syllabus)
What’s the clear, one-slide solution? (Not a feature list—an outcome buyers feel)
How do we say it in their words—not ours?
And this part? It was painful.
“Josh would rip apart everything I wrote. And honestly, I hated him for it. But it always worked.”
That’s the Elevation Experience difference.
It’s not about telling founders what sounds good.It’s about helping them say what actually gets heard.
Once Ashton dialed in:
A tight signature solution
Language that reflected real school priorities
A simplified offer that hit on first contact
Everything started to move.
Because when your message finally lands?Your calendar does too.
The Results – What Happened When It Finally Clicked
Once the messaging landed, Ashton didn’t just get compliments.He got calls. Early ones.
The schools he had spent months chasing were suddenly responding—and converting.
Here’s what changed:
Deals closed earlier in the cycle—no more 12-month stalls.
Email sequences that finally worked—because the words did.
Consistent traction with his ideal buyer—not just “anyone who replies.”
So many leads he had to hire an EA to manage the flow.
“I was swamped. I had to slow down just to keep up.”
And no—it wasn’t a fancy tool or a new lead gen hack.
It was messaging that finally made sense to the buyer.Messaging that said, we understand your school—not look how great we are.
That’s the difference between trying to scale activity—and scaling trust.
Why Most Education Founders Miss This (And How to Fix It)
Here’s the hard truth:
Most education founders aren’t lazy.They’re just aiming at the wrong target.
They focus on:
Building the product
Launching the website
Polishing the deck
Hiring a sales rep
But they skip the one piece that actually drives sales:
Messaging that speaks to education buyers.
Why?
Because it’s uncomfortable. It forces you to slow down.It makes you answer questions like:
Who exactly is this for?
Why would a school leader open this email?
What’s the first thing they need to hear—not the fifth?
Ashton resisted that work—until he couldn’t anymore.
And once he did it?Everything changed.
So here’s how you fix it:
Narrow your buyer.
Build a signature solution that solves their #1 pain.
Say it in their language.
Test it in real conversations.
Automate after it converts.
You don’t need a new funnel.You need to stop guessing—and start saying what actually gets heard.
Hear how Ashton made the leap:
🎧 Listen to the full episode:
Let’s stop grinding. Let’s start converting.
– Josh
