how to create a course to sell online

by Kayla Hahn II 9 min read

  1. Choose the right online course to create. The most important step to create a successful online course is the choose the right course to create.
  2. Build your audience. You need to have a plan for this from the beginning. ...
  3. Build your online course – in phases. Course creation is a big enough topic that I’ve actually written a separate, extensive post on how to create an online course ...
  4. Deliver your online course. While course creators often put a lot of thought into whether their course will sell and how to create, I find that delivery often gets ...
  5. Produce – and show – positive impact. Last, but far from least, the hallmark of a highly successful online course is that it actually leads to learning.

Let's recap the nine essential steps for selling your online course:
  1. Choose a subject that sells. ...
  2. Create your online course. ...
  3. Choose where to host and sell your course. ...
  4. Decide how much you will charge. ...
  5. Increase the value (and price) of your course. ...
  6. Seed launch your online course. ...
  7. Market and sell your online course.

Full Answer

How do I make an online course?

Mar 10, 2022 · How to Create an Online Course From Start to Finish (2022) 1. Get Your Mindset Right. First things first, you need to understand what you’re getting into. While creating a course has an excellent outcome, many ... 2. Decide What You Want to Teach. 3. Plan Your Online Course Creation. 4. Create Your ...

What are the best online courses?

Apr 10, 2022 · A few steps to marketing your online course through social media are to: 1. Create a Facebook page and fill it with fun and interesting posts 2. Build up your Twitter followers by following people and retweeting 3. Promote your courses on Pinterest with eye-catching graphics and share pins on other ...

How do I create an online training course?

Mar 01, 2021 · How to Create an Online Course That Sells In 6 Steps The knowledge economy is booming and offering an online course is a smart move. Edge out your competition with a …

How to design an online course?

Apr 16, 2022 · Sell online courses in a marketplace. To start selling from your own site is just one option. Another way to reach your target audience and sell online courses is to put them into a …

What are the steps to creating an online course?

How to Create an Online Course in 10 Easy Steps:Find Your Niche. ... Choose a Platform for Your Online Course. ... Select a Specific Course Topic and Direction. ... Look at Top-Performing Content. ... Find the Right Medium for Your Course Material. ... Create Content for Your Online Course. ... Set Online Course Rates. ... Market Your Online Course.More items...

How do I create an online course and get paid?

How to Create an Online CourseChoose a Course Topic. Make a list of things you know about. ... Do Market Research. ... Outline Your Course. ... Decide the Best Methods to Deliver Your Lessons. ... Create Your Lessons. ... Determine How You'll Sell Your Lesson. ... Load Your Course Online. ... Market Your Course.More items...•May 28, 2019

Is creating online courses profitable?

Are Online Courses Actually Profitable? Are online courses profitable? Yes. They're actually one of the best business models you can adopt as a digital business because they're in demand and more and more people are willing to pay top dollar for them.Aug 19, 2021

How much does it cost to create an online course?

At an estimated 80 to 280 hours required to develop a 1-hour course, you can expect to pay roughly $5,850 USD to over $15,000 USD to get a fully polished course, in addition to the cost of your Instructional Designer (ID) and SME.

Do online courses sell well?

Creating and selling online courses is a booming market internationally. The eLearning market is expected to exceed $325Billion by 2025, with a yearly growth of 5% (Global Market Insights)! Becoming an online instructor means you could be earning from a few hundred dollars per year to a six-figure income.Feb 8, 2022

Where can I sell courses online?

Have a look at Platforms for selling online coursesDigital Class – Educational Marketplace.Udemy.Skillshare.Thinkific.Teachable.Ruzuku.LearnDash.Podia.More items...

How do you name an online course?

How to Craft The Perfect Online Course TitleDescribe your audience using demographic information.Choose a Subsegment.Describe Your Audience Using Psychographic Information.Summarize Your Work.Use keyword research tools.Phrase Match.Having Same Terms.Also Rank For.More items...•Mar 28, 2018

What online courses are in demand?

Top Trending Online CoursesData Science. ... Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. ... Big Data. ... Business Intelligence. ... Cloud Computing. ... Project Management. ... Software Development. ... Full-stack development.More items...•Jan 1, 2021

Which online platform is best?

The 7 Best Online Learning Platforms of 2022Best Overall: Coursera.Best for Niche Topics: Udemy.Best for Creative Fields: Skillshare.Best for Celebrity Lessons: MasterClass.Best for STEM: EdX.Best for Career Building: Udacity.Best for Data Learning: Pluralsight.Feb 24, 2022

How much does it cost to develop an online course in 2020?

In 2021, 1 hour of learning content can take around 100 – 160 hours to create. In 2021, 1 hour of learning content can cost about $8,542 – $36,320 ($22,431 on average)....Wrapping Up.Year1 hour of eLearning content costs, $20208,150 – 36,205 (22,178 on average)20197,830 – 37,365 (22,598 on average)2 more rows•Jun 20, 2020

How many hours does it take to create an online course?

Depending on the duration and detail of the program, it can take anywhere between 25 – 500 hours to formulate an online course. A mini-course with just 4 or 5 videos you could develop it in a couple of days. An in-depth flagship course with numerous modules and assignments could take eight weeks or more to accomplish.Feb 8, 2021

Is it easy to create an online course?

Creating an online course is easier than ever—and that's not hyperbole. Thanks to the advent of new course platforms and user-friendly technology, you can develop a brand-new online course in less time than it takes to get through your email inbox.Jan 2, 2022

Who can create online courses?

Anyone with knowledge in a particular area can create online courses. You don’t need a formal qualification or a degree to teach an online course....

How much money can you make selling online courses?

While some course creators make $50k+ month, most successful ones make between $1k-$10k per month. However, your actual course revenue depends on v...

How long does it take to create an online course?

As you might expect, there is no set-in-stone amount of time to create an online course. Generally speaking, it can take anywhere between 20 and 50...

What is the cost of creating an online course?

Generally speaking, it can cost you anywhere between $140 and $10,770 to create your own online course. But, of course, it could even be more, as m...

Can I create an online course for free?

Yes, it is possible to create an online course for free, but for that, you’ll need to do all the work yourself. Plus, you should use your smartphon...

How long should an online course be?

An online course should be as long or short as it needs to deliver value to your target audience and cover the information thoroughly. Overall, it...

What technical skills do I need to create an online course?

In most cases, you don’t need any technical skills. You’ll have to learn about a few things, such as video creation and setting up your course webs...

Where can I host my online course?

There are several options for hosting your online course, but the two best platforms are Thinkific and Kajabi. These platforms allow you to build y...

How much should you charge for your online course?

There is no definite answer to this, and you need to evaluate your competition, the value your course provides to students, and the niche you’re in...

Why do people invest in online courses?

Investing in education and lifelong learning is an emerging trend among both old and young, and online courses come to fill the gaps of knowledge. People tend to prefer the comfort and flexibility of their own homes, avoiding the complexities of commuting to physical classes.

Why is offering a free course important?

Offering a free course can work for your benefit as it can generate leads for expensive courses or a way to showcase your expertise. Don’t forget, it is the first point of contact to create rapport. We all love good communication, creating relationships and this sense of familiarity is what will help you sell more courses.

What is the difference between learning goals and learning outcomes?

Whereas, ‘learning objectives’ or ‘learning outcomes’ tend to be more specific and more measurable in terms of what you expect your students to learn and be able to do once they complete the course.

How much will the elearning market be in 2025?

The elearning market is expected to exceed $325Billion by 2025 (see above), with a yearly growth of 5% (Global Market Insights)! Becoming an online instructor means you could be earning from a few hundred dollars per year to a six-figure income.

Where do testimonials come from?

Your testimonials can really come from anywhere — emails, tweets, Instagram posts or comments, blog posts, etc.

Who is Nick Malekos?

Nick Malekos is a Senior Digital Marketer in LearnWorlds. He is a results based and well-rounded Digital Marketer with years of experience in the education industry, writer and digital literacy trainer.

Why is pricing important?

Pricing an online course is incredibly important and for a good reason. It communicates your value, it affects the profitability of your course, your customers and the quality of your work. Pricing it too high may result in people not buying from you. Pricing it too low and you won’t be making a profit.

1. Find a profitable course idea and validate it

Before you get into the creation mode, make sure your idea is actually profitable and people would pay you for it. Most course creators skip this very crucial step because they are really excited about their idea — and they should be excited. However, they should not ignore data and actual market trends.

2. Create a rough course outline

You have a feel for the topic, you've done your research, and you know people may be interested in taking your course. Now it's time to create the course outline. Don't create the entire course yet. Just start with the transformation in mind and work backward from there.

3. Sell your course before you create it

This is the second biggest mistake most course creators make. After (hopefully) validating their idea, they jump right in and create video lesson after video lesson without having sold a single copy of their course. They work really hard for a few weeks or even months only to find out that they have created a product nobody wants to buy.

4. Run your beta round, create content as you go and refine it immediately

Once you have sold a few copies, it is time to create your online course. You can either teach your lesson live to your new beta students or you can create it week by week.

5. Create one core piece of content

The next step after you have found your profitable idea, validated it, sold your course, ran your first beta round and created your course content is to decide on one core piece of content to which you keep driving traffic.

6. Decide on your evergreen, long-term traffic strategy

You should also produce evergreen content that keeps driving traffic to those opt-in pages. This will be a long-term game, so work smarter, not harder. That automatically excludes social media platforms. Think about podcasting, blogging, maybe creating YouTube videos.

Written By

Tina Dahmen helps entrepreneurs gain more influence in their space and scale their businesses and online presences. She teaches them how to build digital products including online courses, masterminds, membership sites, coaching programs and more.

Is selling courses online really worth it?

As already noted, there is a huge global market for e-learning and online courses. While that sounds promising, it also means that the market has become massively more competitive in recent years.

Are online courses profitable?

If you are still reading, then you have probably decided that to sell courses online is worth it for your business, but you may still be wondering “Are online courses profitable?”

How do you create a successful online course?

Now, let’s continue on from looking at profitability to considering what it takes to create a successful online course. After all, when the aim is to sell courses online, a profitable course implies a successful course and vice versa.

Where can I sell my courses online?

Okay, so you have decided online courses are worth it. You’ve done the homework to map a path to profitability. And you’re clear on how to create a successful online course.

So, Ready to Sell Courses Online?

Just like not everyone is cut out to be an entrepreneur, not everyone is cut out to become an edupreneur and sell online courses. Hopefully this article has helped you understand whether it is the right opportunity for you.

How to make a successful online course?

The first step to creating a wildly successful online course is to pick the perfect course topic. It doesn’t matter how good your online course is. If no one cares about the topic, or if people aren’t willing to pay for it, you won’t make any money.

What is an online course marketplace?

Online marketplaces are platforms that are designed to bring together students and online course creators. You can think of them as the Amazon of online courses.

What is asking a course?

Asking is one of the simplest ways of finding out what your target audience is interested in. It is also one of the best ways of finding out if they will purchase your course once you create it and make it live.

What is text in a course?

Text is one of the simplest ways of delivering your course content. This is because all you need to do is to simply type your content into a word processor and upload it to your online course platform.

How to come up with a good topic for an online course?

One of the best ways of coming up with a good topic for your online course is to go directly to the audience you are targeting and ask them. This way, you will be certain that your audience is interested in whatever you want to teach.

Is the average attention span of an adult human shorter than that of a goldfish?

Another major mistake I see with most novice course creators is filming video lessons that are too long. The problem is that at just 8 seconds, the average attention span of an adult human today is even shorter than that of a goldfish.

What software do I need to edit audio?

For instance, you might want to get rid of some ambient noise. Some of the best software to use for audio editing are Adobe Audition, Audacity, and Logic Pro X.

How to generate the best results?

To generate the best possible results, you’ll need to track your success. Most online course platforms include analytics tools that help identify where your traffic comes from, how much traffic you get, and how much of it converts into sales . While these are valuable insights, add a layer of data to what your platform offers.

What is sales page?

Sales pages are meant to be highly effective tools for converting visitors into paying customers. To generate sales, your sales page has to be able to sell ideas, do away with fear, uncertainty, and doubt, and have a call to action that closes the sale.

Why do we need personas?

Personas also help you establish how much information your ideal customer typically has when in the market for a solution like yours.

What is funnel in marketing?

A funnel is a mechanism for attracting, educating, and converting strangers into customers. Funnels include various components such as traffic sources, sales or landing pages, order-taking tools (payment gateways), and communication devices (email for nurturing).

Why is social proof important?

Social proof is a powerful psychological trigger. Today, people spend a lot of time researching products and learning how they’ve helped others. When people see favorable reviews, they are more likely to invest in a product or service. You can leverage testimonials to generate the same positive outcome.

Why is traffic important?

Of all sources, paid ads generate traffic fastest. This is because they position your brand and course in front of ideal customers faster than organic content can.

What is a big idea?

A big idea is a positive, life-changing outcome learners will experience after taking your course. Big ideas are work because they challenge readers to imagine a new reality filled with possibility.

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The a,d, and Die Approach For Online Course Creation

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After the past couple of years of people flocking to online learning, expectations in online course marketplacesare higher than ever. The days are gone when you can just talk over some slides or point a video camera at yourself and expect that to result in a high-selling, profitable online course. So, what does it take to turn you…
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a,d, and Die with An Example

  • Now let’s look at these steps in more detail. As we do this, I’m going to reference an online course I am currently designing as an example. The course topic and working title for the course is “How to Select the Right Platform for Selling Your Online Courses.”
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Platforms and Tools For Creating Online Courses

  • As suggested above, I am an advocate of keeping it simple when you pilot an online course. As you move beyond the pilot phase, however, you will like want to consider course production and delivery options beyond a webinar platform. In case it is not clear already, the options you consider should be driven by the design decisions you made during the process outlined above. …
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Course Creation Final Thoughts

  • We live in a time when the opportunity for online course creatorsis huge. That doesn’t seem likely to change anytime soon. In fact, the opportunity is likely to grow significantly in the coming years. That said, the days when you could just throw a few narrated PowerPoint slides online and call them a course are long gone. Competition has increased and learner expectation have increase…
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