how to create an online course 2018

by Tressa Kub DDS 6 min read

Online courses: How to start one

  • Find your topic No matter whether you’re a grade school teacher or hobbyist, the first step to creating an online course is deciding on the topic you want to teach. ...
  • Get to know your audience Once you’ve pinned down the topic, you can start researching your audience. ...
  • Choose a video hosting platform ...
  • Build the course ...
  • Collect registrations ...
  • Manage your payments ...

Full Answer

How to make a great online course?

  • Topic. Picking a topic is the first and the most important step of creating a course. ...
  • Market Demand. What good is it if you take a course and nobody buys it? ...
  • Outlining. Once you decide on which topic you want to develop a course, it is time to outline your content. ...
  • Record. ...
  • Editing and Publishing. ...
  • Something to take away. ...

How to create a profitable online course?

Create a quality course that stands out from the competition (even in crowded niches). Pick the perfect topic and name for your course. Establish yourself as the ultimate authority on your course topic. Outsource parts of your course to conserve your energy for what you do best. Keep students interacting with (and buying from) you long after ...

How to create online course [ultimate Beginners Guide]?

Plan Your Online Course Creation

  • Decide the Type of Course to Create. The first decision you need to make is whether to create a live course vs a pre-recorded course. ...
  • Create a Detailed Course Outline. What comes after is the course outline. ...
  • Write Compelling Learning Objectives. ...
  • Choose a Catchy Name for Your Course. ...

How to create a curriculum for your online course?

Part 1 of 3: Seeing the Big Picture

  1. Define the purpose of the curriculum. Your curriculum should have clear topic and purpose. ...
  2. Choose an appropriate title. Depending on the learning objective, titling the curriculum may be a straightforward process or one that requires greater thought.
  3. Establish a timeline. ...
  4. Figure out how much you can cover in the time allotted. ...

More items...

What are the steps to creating an online course?

How to create an online courseChoose the right subject matter.Test your idea.Research the topic extensively.Write a course outline.Create the course content.Bring your course online.Sell your online course.Market your content.More items...•

How can I create and sell a course online?

In this article, you'll find an overview of the 10 major stages of online course creation:Pick the perfect course topic.Ensure your course idea has high market demand.Create Magnetic and Compelling Learning Outcomes.Select and Gather your Course Content.Structure Your Modules and Course Plan.More items...•

Can I create an online course for free?

1. Thinkific: Software to create an online course for free. Thinkific is the perfect platform for online course creators looking for a low-cost solution to easily create, market and sell their content. Best of all, it's free to create and sell your first course.

What equipment do you need to create an online course?

Best Equipment & Software For Creating Online CoursesMicrophones.Lavalier Microphones.Microphone Accessories.Headphones.Screen Recording.Video Recording.Lighting and Accessories.Audio and Video Editing.

How do I become a course creator?

Here are the multiple steps involved in starting a career as an online course creator:Step 1 - Market research.Step 2 - Understand your student.Step 3 - Create free content.Step 4 - Understand SEO.Step 5 - Create a sales funnel.Step 6 - Build a brand.Step 7 - Build a community.Step 8 - Validate your course ideas.

How much does it cost to build an online course?

It can cost anywhere from $200 to $10,000 to create an online course. The main source of expenses is the labor involved, followed by the equipment and software. If you are creating the online course yourself and not paying someone else to do it, this means that other than your time there are very few expenses involved.

How do I create a PDF course?

How to create an online course PDF checklistOpen up your free (or paid) Canva account.Type “checklist” in the search bar.Select your favourite layout.Adjust colours to your brand colours.Adjust fonts to your brand fonts.Insert your content.Click download as PDF.Upload PDF to your online school.

Which is the best online course platform?

List of the Best Online Course PlatformsThinkific.LearnWorlds.Teachable.Podia.Kajabi.LearnDash.Ruzuku.WizIQ.More items...•

How do you make a mini course?

The art of doing: How to create a mini courseChoose a course topic. For those: ... Identify the target audience. Scoping out and identifying an audience is key to success. ... Provide a transformation. The best way to do this is to solve a real problem. ... Outline the content. ... Shrink the list. ... Repurpose content.

How do I set up an online teaching class?

How to Set Up a Virtual ClassroomGet Your At-Home Workspace Ready. Creating a designated space for work and online teaching is crucial for educators working from home. ... Test Your Tech Before the Start of Class. ... Set Classroom Expectations, Goals and Routines. ... Make Communication and Survey Tools Available.

What equipment do I need to teach on Zoom?

What Equipment Do I Need To Use Zoom?Computer. Windows or Apple computer with speakers and a microphone. (Note: Webcams are recommended but not required.)Mobile Device. iOS or Android.Phone. Mobile device, desk, or landline.

Which gadget is best for online study?

10 Best gadgets for online classes for studentsHeadphones w/ microphone.Ergonomic chair.Webcam upgrade.Orthopedic backrest.Laptop stand.Standing desk.Wireless keyboard/mouse.WiFi Booster.More items...•

How much money can you make selling online courses?

How much can you make selling courses online? You can make anywhere from $1000 to $100,000 or more per year selling online courses. Your revenue is going to depend mostly on the amount of traffic that you can bring to your courses, your conversion rate, and the price of your courses.

How do I sell a course on social media?

10 Social Media Tips to Sell Online CoursesGet Shoutouts on Instagram and TikTok.Use Twitter Polls to Build Engagement.Post Your Course to Pinterest.Don't Neglect LinkedIn.Reach Out to Build 1:1 Relationships.Share Blog Posts Related to Your Course.Make a Promo Video.Test Different Titles.More items...•

How long does it take to create an online course?

The time you will need to put a course together really depends on your specific case, however it generally takes anywhere between 25 to 500 hours to craft an online course.

How do I sell a training course?

Here's a few more ways you can market your courses:Create social media pages and post regularly with relevant hashtags.Advertise on social media.Boost your SEO with Google Ads.List your courses on a marketplace (such as findcourses.com or candlefox.com)Advertise or write content for relevant industry publications.More items...•

The 3 Must-Know Principles of Selling Online Courses

So, you want to learn how to sell online courses? Maybe they're your own courses or you're an affiliate for somebody else's courses. I'm really excited for you, because there's an incredible amount of opportunity with online courses!

The 10 Steps to Build an Amazing Online Course

Now that we’ve covered the psychology, let’s get into the nuts and bolts of creating your course! Here are the ten steps you need to follow to create an online course from scratch that people will love.

Similar posts you might also like

I’ve learned seven essential and inspiring lessons while testing and launching my first online course, Smart From Scratch, on Teachable.

Introduction

As you may already know, I’m pretty big on online courses. I started my first online course in 2001 and transitioned it to online around 2004. Over all the time I’ve run that online course, I’ve helped thousands of people reach their goal of passing an exam so that’s a pretty successful course.

Further Benefits of Offering Online Courses

Online courses fit under the category of info products (or at least that’s what we used to call them before watching videos online was even possible). Back then, you could choose from ebooks, big-box items, or live seminars.

MARKET RESEARCH

In this first section, you’re going to conduct some market research to help you with your course topic. You’ll do it from the perspective of finding the unique angle for your online course in the marketplace.

Validation

First, you need your online course idea. Then you need to validate it as best you can.

Format of Course

The next step is to figure out the format of your online course. If you spent the time researching your competition, then this will be easier to do. There are three ways to go about this.

Medium

When it comes to your medium you want to be clear on how your online course materials will be delivered. Here are some questions to ask yourself:

TOPIC RESEARCH

You may already know enough about the topic for your online course that you don’t need to do any research. If so, then that’s great. But after reviewing the boundaries of your course, you may find that you have gaps you need to fill. You may need to research specific topics.

How to make an online course more engaging?

An easy way to make online courses more engaging is to stimulate the student visually. This means pictures and videos. The simplest method of using picture and videos in an online course would be constructing your online class more like a PowerPoint presentation:

What is the most important part of creating an online course?

One of the most important components of creating an online course is setting a learning goal for the course . However, there’s more to it. Every online course consists of various sections, and each individual section also needs to have a clear learning goal.

What does it mean to get started teaching?

Which means you need to get your knowledge together.

How to keep students engaged in a course?

One way to keep your students engaged is to provide an early return on their investment. If a student feels they’ve learned something just from the first module alone, they’re a lot more likely to stick around. Nothing gets someone down faster than them feeling stupid or unproductive, which is very easy to do in a learning environment. Give them feedback, and an ongoing sense of accomplishment, and they’ll stick around.

What is the target audience of an online course?

The target audience is the group of people to whom you are writing your course.

What do you need to teach a class?

Ideally, you should have demonstrable expertise on the subject you are teaching. That could be either by education or practical knowledge on the subject. Having real qualifications to show to your students makes a big difference in establishing trustworthiness for yourself.

Is it a waste of time to create an online course?

It’s crucial that you decide on a specific course subject in the beginning phase of creating your online course. Be as specific as possible.

Why do people fail to complete online courses?from riseapps.co

Many people fail to complete online courses because they forget to follow their timetable. A flexible scheduling system will keep e-learners productive. The LMS should allow educators to offer multiple time slots to sign up for training and mentoring meetings. This flexibility will help students get support when they really need it. Create a reminder system so that students come to class on time and teachers know when it is convenient to give students support and feedback.

How Much Does it Cost to Develop a Learning Management System?from riseapps.co

To understand how much it will cost to build your own LMS, you need to take into account the following factors:

Who needs a custom LMS from scratch?from northell.design

A custom LMS or LMS from scratch is created with a specific customer’s requirements in mind. Many benefits will push you to choose this kind of system:

How does learning management system price work?from northell.design

The learning management system price directly depends on how many functions and what complexity should be implemented in your project, how many LMS modules you would like to have, etc.

What is the demand for digital solutions for online education?from riseapps.co

Since the coronavirus pandemic, the education sector has raised the demand for digital solutions for online education. The government education system moved towards web-based learning platforms and drove the market. The corporate industry started to adopt digital transformation and raised demand on learning platforms to train their staff cyber-hygiene, data handling, and more.

What is the development stage of LMS?from cleveroad.com

When all preparations are set and done, you can proceed to the development stage. During this stage, UI/UX designers begin to create screen mockups for the future LMS based on specification and wireframes. Once the design process is finished, designers transfer all layouts to the development team. Developers use their technical expertise to turn attractive layouts into a working product. The development process consists of sprints. During each sprint, which usually lasts two weeks, developers must implement a certain part of the product's functionality.

How to create an LMS system?from cleveroad.com

One of the easiest ways to create an LMS system is to outsource the development to a professional IT company. In this case, you will receive top-level services at a reasonable price. This option does not force you to hire employees, rent an office, or incur other unnecessary expenses. Most IT companies already have the recruitment of professionals needed to get started with any project. Also, suppliers take responsibility for team management and product delivery.

1. Teachable

The most important tool in your arsenal will be an online course platform. You’ll need it to host your course and build your online school website.

2. Screencast-O-Matic

To make screencast videos for your course, you’ll need screen recording software, and the one I recommend is Screencast-O-Matic.

3. Google Docs

Google Docs is the most popular tool for writing text content for any purpose, and online courses are no exception. So you’ll be using it pretty extensively while creating your online course.

6. Canva

Canva will be one of the most important tools in your arsenal as an online course creator.

7. Unsplash

Stock photos can be an important part of your course creation process. You may want to add stock photos to your course lessons, presentation slides, course videos, or even use them to design your Canva graphics.

8. TestMoz

Although Teachable allows you to create quizzes to evaluate students, it offers only the basic features on the free plan.

9. Zoom

Creating blended learning experiences by introducing live sessions in your course is a great way to boost learner engagement.

What should the topic of an online course be?

The topic for your online course should be either a subject that you’re already knowledgeable about or are willing to invest in learning thoroughly. Either way, you need to be passionate about the subject.

How to develop a curriculum for online classes?

Now is the time to develop the curriculum for your online course. On a piece of paper, write down a list of the different lessons you plan on teaching online. Within each lesson, break it down to the main topics you want to cover. Go in a logical order and try to make your ideas evolve naturally from one to the other , to ensure a smooth and frictionless learning process.

What does competition mean in online courses?

Having competition means that people find the topic relevant and helpful for them. It’s also a good idea to create content that can comfortably fit into an existing, tried-and-tested space.

What to do if you already have professional experience with your course topic?

If you already have professional experience with your course topic, it’s likely that you’ve put together content about it in the past. Have you ever written a blog post or created a webinar about the subject? Maybe you host a podcast or run a YouTube channel for your business in which you’ve discussed similar themes? If so, go back to these materials. Repurposing existing content into your online course will help get you started and save a lot of valuable time.

How to get your audience to work on a topic?

Ask a group of friends, as well as your existing audience, what they think of the subject you had in mind. Test it out by sharing polls or online forms for your audience to fill out. You can make a short tutorial first, and monitor its performance. Then, follow up on the tutorial on social media or via email marketing campaigns, asking your audience if this type of material is something they’re interested in seeing more of.

How to test your idea?

In order to test your idea, use a landing page builder to create a page for your upcoming online course. Although you haven’t created the course just yet, you already know what it’s going to be about. Include a concise description of the course explaining what people can expect to learn and add eye-catching imagery to further reflect the concept. Check out these fully customizable landing page templates to use as a starting point.

How to determine competitor price?

Competitor prices: Start by doing a quick audit to determine the average course price on your topic. While the prices can fluctuate depending on how much of an expert the course instructor is, try to get a sense of what the going market rate is for reference.

How to make an online course more engaging?from e-student.org

An easy way to make online courses more engaging is to stimulate the student visually. This means pictures and videos. The simplest method of using picture and videos in an online course would be constructing your online class more like a PowerPoint presentation:

What is the most important part of creating an online course?from e-student.org

One of the most important components of creating an online course is setting a learning goal for the course . However, there’s more to it. Every online course consists of various sections, and each individual section also needs to have a clear learning goal.

What does competition mean in online courses?from wix.com

Having competition means that people find the topic relevant and helpful for them. It’s also a good idea to create content that can comfortably fit into an existing, tried-and-tested space.

What should the topic of an online course be?from wix.com

The topic for your online course should be either a subject that you’re already knowledgeable about or are willing to invest in learning thoroughly. Either way, you need to be passionate about the subject.

What to do if you already have professional experience with your course topic?from wix.com

If you already have professional experience with your course topic, it’s likely that you’ve put together content about it in the past. Have you ever written a blog post or created a webinar about the subject? Maybe you host a podcast or run a YouTube channel for your business in which you’ve discussed similar themes? If so, go back to these materials. Repurposing existing content into your online course will help get you started and save a lot of valuable time.

How to get your audience to work on a topic?from wix.com

Ask a group of friends, as well as your existing audience, what they think of the subject you had in mind. Test it out by sharing polls or online forms for your audience to fill out. You can make a short tutorial first, and monitor its performance. Then, follow up on the tutorial on social media or via email marketing campaigns, asking your audience if this type of material is something they’re interested in seeing more of.

How to test your idea?from wix.com

In order to test your idea, use a landing page builder to create a page for your upcoming online course. Although you haven’t created the course just yet, you already know what it’s going to be about. Include a concise description of the course explaining what people can expect to learn and add eye-catching imagery to further reflect the concept. Check out these fully customizable landing page templates to use as a starting point.

Why am I going to create online courses?

There are plenty of reasons to create an online course. But typically, we see three reasons more often than not:

Why are people motivated to take online courses?

People are motivated by transformation and they are willing to pay for it when it comes in the form of an online course (delivered by the right instructor, as you’ll see in the next point). Therefore, it’s not just the topic or content of your online course that matters. It’s how that topic or content attracts the most motivated people to it.

Why do you need a community component in an online course?

That’s a huge missed opportunity: Establishing a community component alongside your online course gives your course members the opportunity to build relationships with each other, navigate challenges together, and get that much closer to your goals. And in the end, it spurs the growth of your business too, since your course graduates won’t be able to stop raving about their experience to everyone who will listen.

Can you learn by watching videos?

While this may not feel like much of a difference—aren’t teaching and learning opposite sides of the same coin?—people don’t actually learn by just watching your beautifully produced videos or reading your articles or posts. That might be what you teach, but it’s not necessarily how someone learns.

Do you need to be an expert to create online courses?

That’s right. You don’t need to be an expert to create online learning courses.

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Validation

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The first step in creating online courses is to come up with your course idea. Then you need to validate that idea as best you can. I created a guide for you on finding a profitable online course idea, where I talk about validation in detail if you need more information. Validation is critical.Creating an online course usually takes weeks o…
See more on coursemethod.com

Format of Course

  • The next step is to figure out the format of your online course. If you spent the time researching your competition, then this will be easier to do. There are three ways to go about this. 1. See what others offer and offer something similar or try to find a gap in the marketplace to fill it. For instance, if several businesses in your market offer one-on-one coaching at a high price, then yo…
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Medium

  • When it comes to your medium you want to be clear on how your online course materials will be delivered. Here are some questions to ask yourself: 1. Will you create videos or a text-based course? 2. Will you drip-feed it? 3. Will you produce videos? 4. How will they look? 5. Are you going to stand there and talk, or will there be diagrams? 6. How long will your videos be? 7. Are you goi…
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Boundaries of The Online Course

  • What will your course cover? What won’t it cover? There may be things you don’t plan to cover in your course content. And that’s what you need to figure out now. If you’re creating a blogging course, do you need to go through how to install WordPress? You might.But you also don’t want your SEO blogging course to turn into a how-to-use WordPress course. So decide what to includ…
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Sources

  • When researching your topic or a section that you’re not as familiar with you need to figure out which resources you’ll use. For starters, you might need to read some books. You can become an expert on a topic by reading five or so books on it. Take notes and organize the material. An essential part of all this is that you pick the right books. You may need help with this, so researc…
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Ideas For Where to Find The Subject Matter Experts

  • If you’re looking for a subject matter expert (or SME) to help you with the online course creation process, then know that many people are waiting to help you for the right price. I’ve needed help from time to time because often online courses need to be updated. I didn’t always have time to review the updates and make the changes. So I do have experience finding SME’s to help me. In …
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Goals and Objectives

  • Successful online courses all have concise goals and objectives. I have a guide dedicated to goals and learning objectivesif you want more information. Briefly, you need to figure out what the end goal of the learner is. What is the transformation? If they are starting at baseline, what will taking your course add to their life? Is it to lose 10 pounds? Can you make this more precise, like to los…
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Outline Your Course

  • I have a great guide oncreating a course outlineall put together for you. But I’ll sum up my online course outline process for you here. Start by figuring out the steps needed to get to the transformation or the end goal. Work backward from that end goal. What is the action they need to take right before it? And before that? And so on until you get to the starting point. From there, …
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Script Creation

  • At this point, you have a very detailed outline. Now in many cases, it’s going to make the most sense to fill in the blanks with the online course outline and possibly even have a full script ready to go. It’s really up to you and whatever your preference is. While an outline is enough for some, others need an entire script. A script will keep you from constantly saying Ummmand pausing w…
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Visuals & Diagrams

  • Now start thinking about the visuals you will need to make your lessons come alive. If you’re showing people how to exercise, you need visuals, whether you or a subject matter expert show them how to do the moves or you use diagrams. If you’re developing text-based lessons, then your learners will appreciate images and even diagrams. Some topics don’t lend well to visuals, or it’…
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