7 Tips for Creating and Selling an Online Course

It’s no secret that the online courses market is huge — and it continues to grow every year. According to Forbes, the market reached $107 billion in 2015 and $165 billion in 2016. According to Linker estimates, the industry is expected to grow steadily by 5% per year and exceed $240 billion by 2023. In this article, we’ll look at 7 things you should know, including how to create and sell your first online course — even if you don’t have an idea yet. #1: If a course on the same topic you want to create already exists — that’s a good thing! This may sound counterintuitive, but… When you create a course that has never existed on the market before, it may seem obvious that people will be interested because it’s unique. But… You might think, “People need what I’m selling,” and maybe they will buy it. However, the internet is so vast that if people really need a certain idea or information and are willing to pay for it, there’s a high chance someone else is already offering something similar online. In fact, if your idea has no existing alternatives among online courses, I would seriously consider choosing a different topic. For now, remember this: competition is a good sign. #2: Your first interactive course won’t look as great as you’d like And that’s okay. Here’s why… When you decide to create and sell an online course, you’ll look at others who are already doing it and think: “Wow, their design is much better, their videos look professional — I can’t do that!” But here’s the problem: You’re comparing yourself now to people who have been doing this for years. That’s a mistake. You should compare yourself to where they were at the very beginning. For example, my first videos were low-quality and recorded without professional equipment. But they still generated income. Why? Because they had valuable content. The same applies to web design — some people pay thousands of dollars for it, but in the beginning, a simple layout works just fine. One experienced online teacher once said: “Everything starts with a whiteboard on a chair.” That’s exactly how he started — simple, but extremely useful. And that allowed him to build an online teaching business. #3: If you’re determined to find an idea for your online course, you will Why do people buy online courses? The short answer: they have problems — and they want solutions. Maybe they’re trying to learn complex software. Maybe they don’t fit into their favorite jeans anymore and want to lose weight. Maybe they feel overwhelmed and want to regain control of their life. In every case, people buy online courses because they want to solve a specific problem. So how do you find an idea for your course? Find a problem — and solve it with an online course. It may sound overly simple, but that’s how it works. Think about the problems people come to you with. Friends, colleagues, family members — what do they ask you about? Listen carefully. Then see if you can create a series of lessons that help people solve those problems step by step. #4: Why you shouldn’t worry about not being an expert yet For example, Joseph Michael helps writers use Scrivener — a professional writing tool — and earns $20,000–$30,000 per month through online consultations and video courses. When he started, he wasn’t an expert and had never written a novel. He studied every book he could find about Scrivener, explored each feature, and recorded short 3–5 minute videos. Over time, this turned into a complete course that people were willing to pay for. What I like about this story is simple: LEARN. And document the process. This is how you can create a course in a field that’s new to you. Just be honest with people and share what you’re learning. #5: Surprisingly, people love buying courses — even when the same information is available for free Yes, people could find the information elsewhere for free. But then they’d have to verify whether it’s accurate, up to date, and trustworthy. They’d also have to spend time searching. And time is money. You could spend days digging through articles and still have no clear answer — or you could consult an expert and get a clear solution immediately. Time is one of the most valuable resources we can never get back. Why waste it figuring things out when you can buy a ready-made course? That’s why people choose structured, paid courses — and why the online education industry continues to grow rapidly. #6: Why you should start with a small online course Many people think they need to create a large, complex course that covers everything they know. That’s a mistake — especially when you’re just starting out. My first interactive course consisted of just three short videos and a simple checklist. And that was enough to launch my business. Even better — start with mini-courses to build your audience. #7: If you want to learn everything about online video courses If you want to learn more about creating and selling online courses… I recommend checking out our blog. We offer a powerful set of tools to help you achieve these goals.

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Also published on Medium.