12 step-by-step points for writing your first online course (part I) - WHSR (2023)

As a book author and website content editor, I started offering online writing courses through chat rooms to a handful of college students in 1996. Although virtual learning and advanced internet technology have changed a lot today, nowadays creating an online course and teaching it has not changed. quite.

This guide consists of two parts. The first part of this guide covers everything you need to know to start writing your first course, from idea to production and delivery to your students.

Issecond part of this articleHe will deepen what other people who have created courses have to say and how you can turn the online workshop into an additional source of income for your website. Learn from your mistakes and successes.

1. Choose a topic

Your first step in creating an online course is to choose a lesson topic. Ideally this should be:

1. A subject you understand well

If you want to teach other people, you need to understand the subject inside and out. Imagine you are standing in front of a room full of people and you are being asked questions about this topic. Could you easily answer these questions or would you feel lost?

It's okay if there are other people who understand the topic as well or even better than you. The most important thing at this point is that you understand well.

1 B. Better than other courses on the same subject

Once you have decided on a topic, check what other courses on the same topic are already available.

• What does the whole course include?
• Does it come with videos or bonus material?

Thoroughly study the other courses out there. Now try to find holes in these courses.

• Are there any topics that are not fully explained or left out?
• Would adding a video improve the course?
• What extras can you offer?

If you don't have anything special to add, try to think of a unique way to package the course.

For example, you can associate the topic with a popular TV show or movie. We've done this many times with articles like "How to Blog Like One of the Shark Tank Sharks" and "What The Vampire Diaries Can Teach You About Keeping Readers Committed."

By presenting the topic in a unique way, you can help students understand it better.

1 C. A topic you are passionate about

While it's important to choose a popular topic, don't decide to teach a class on how to change a tire if you think it's the stupidest thing anyone can do and you would never change your own tire . You may know a lot about the subject, but if you don't have a passion for it and don't teach others, the course will fail.

Have you ever sat in a class where you realized the teacher didn't want to be there either? It wasn't much fun, was it? Now think about the teachers you had who were passionate about sharing their knowledge with you. Chances are you got a lot out of these classes.

1d. Something people care about

It goes without saying that you should choose a topic that interests many people to learn more about it. If you choose an extremely unique topic, you may have narrowed your niche too narrowly to attract an audience. For example, you could offer a cooking class on turning eels into appetizers.

You can be sure a lot of people don't want to eat eel and you've only narrowed your audience.

On the other hand, if you offer a course about making unique appetizers and have eel as one of them, but also offer some standard options, you will appeal to a wider audience.

You can browse topicsGoogle keyword,cue tooMich, Offever SEMto get an idea of ​​what people want to know more about the most.

2. Select a delivery platform

There are many different platforms you can use – some are free and some are paid.

Own websites or third-party platforms

You can choose one that has a built-in audience, some of the most popular ones are among themUdemy,trainable, OfWizIQ. Forbes reports that the average Udemy teacherearns around $7,000 per course, but the range is wide. Some can make $60 a year and others in the six figures.

In general, those with a large following on social media who can get their own audience to buy can make six figures a year from their courses,” writes Dorie Clark, author of How to Create an Online Course to Make Money.

Or you can use free software such as B. Create an online course from scratchMoodlejHost it on your own website.

email and chat

Alternatively, if you don't want to mess with a software platform, you can offer your course through a mailing list where a new lesson is sent to the user every few days.

Another option is the old-fashioned online chat room, where you meet students online at a set day and time and introduce your class. The students then ask questions that still need to be answered.

While it's impossible to list every option, I've explored some of the most popular ones belowPart 2 of this guide. Be sure to check these out once your course is complete.

3. Write your course

Once you have decided on a platform, writing your course becomes easier since you know what format you need to create the course in.

For example, if you want to offer a video course, you need to write a script to follow the lessons and practice recording.

Content quality and depth

Some things to keep in mind when writing the course

• The person taking the course doesn't know what you know. He or she is a beginner so start over.
• Create a glossary of terms and define them. Be sure to define these in the course the first time you mention them.
• Write content that is easy to skim and absorb. Whenever possible, use headings, bullet points, and break up the content.
• Have someone read your work to help you identify and correct typos.
• Recruit a beta group to review your course and let them know if there are any information gaps that need to be filled.

Writing the course and possibly recording it is one of the most time-consuming parts of selling courses online.

However, remember that you are creating something that you can always sell in the future. Although you try hard now, you will be profitable for a long time.

4. Edit for readability

By now you've probably designed a pretty good course. This is where you should put your project aside for about a week. Then go back and look at it with new eyes and make sure everything is easy to read.

Read the entire course aloud or have a reading program read it to you. This will help you hear problems with the text and spot strange phrases or awkward typos.

Even if your prose isgrammatically correct, it is important to complete this step. Your course may be read in a way that makes it difficult for the student to understand what is going on.

5. Add extras

Now it's time to add some additional elements to your course.

Remember, you want your course to stand out from the crowd. If you've chosen a topic that others want to learn more about, chances are there are already other courses on your topic.

What will make your unique?

Why should people sign up for your course rather than others?

Consider adding the following:

• worksheets
• video clips
• Interviews with other experts.
• Additional material on a related topic
• List of questions and answers from past courses or workshops
• Links to additional resources such as books or websites that the user will find useful.

However, be careful when linking elsewhere in your course. You don't want the user to start reading another website and never come back to yours.

Be very selective and only share what your material truly values. If it's something you can write yourself and offer to readers, you're better off creating the content yourself and keeping the traffic at bay.

6. Market your course

You can create the best course that no one has ever written, but if nobody writes the course, it won't be of much use. Marketing your course online is absolutely essential.

Ways to market your online course

• create a websiteexplains what your course offers potential students.
• Start a blogand publish blog posts that relate to your course but do not disclose course content.
• Share/promote your content on social mediaand build connections with your target audience.
• List your course in directories such asCourseIndex.com.
• Build an email list andCollect email address.

They also want to think outside the box.

For example, can you offer a guest post on a site that doesn't compete with yours but has a similar audience? Another idea is to attend conferences where you can interact with potential students.

7. Interact with students

After you've sold your first students a course, you want to give them the best experience they've ever had with an online course. This will encourage them to tell their family and friends about your course. Plus, you'll have a captivating audience when you write another course in the future.

• Set up autoresponders so that when the student registers for the course, they receive information about when it will start and how to access it.
• Set reminders along the way so the student doesn't get distracted and forget to complete the course.
• Unless you have thousands of students you probably won't start with, get to a personal level and make sure the student enjoys the course. It's a good idea to check back in after completing the first part of the course, midway through, and at the end of the course to request an assessment.
• Encourage students to sign up for your email list so you can keep in touch after the course is complete. This can also give you the opportunity for future additional sales. For example, if you offer a business start-up course, you can add personal training as a supplement. We'll talk more about adding additional services to increase your sales below.

Remember to be polite, professional, and outgoing to make a lasting impression on your students.

8. Find new topics in questions

You can also develop shorter courses that complement your original topic. One of the best ways to find these topics is to look at the questions your students are asking and answer them in detail.

For example, if your class is about painting a room and your students keep asking what's the best way to paint the ceiling, you might want to add a separate follow-up class on painting ceilings.

Sometimes a question leads to something so profound that you can add an entire course and have a second course for your students. In most cases, however, the questions result in short additions to your initial course. These bonus materials can keep you going with monies you might not have received otherwise.

9. The power of residual income

You've probably heardresidual incomeBefore. This is basically when you get the job done once but keep making money. If you for examplewrite a book, list it for sale and receive royalties on this book if you list it for sale.

Online courses are somewhat similar. Once you create the course, it will continue to make money over time.

Remember, residual income requires you to keep marketing your website and products. Otherwise, potential customers will have a hard time finding you and your sales will stagnate over time.

Passive income is vital to the strength of your business. You can only write courses so quickly, but since a course makes money long after you've finished writing it, you can increase your income exponentially by writing a second course while the first is being offered, and then a third course and a fourth and successive.

Over time, you should be able to generate a steady stream of income without having to do much extra work.

10. Other ways to monetize your courses

You should also look for other ways to monetize your courses. I mentioned earlier that you can offer plugins and derivative courses. You can also offer personal advice. This would allow private training for students to help them really understand a concept.

For example, it used to offer writing and English classes to homeschooled students. I offer online and face-to-face courses. At first I just taught the courses, but then I started offering some additional ancillary services such as tutoring, assisting with college admissions essays, and mentoring students in writing novels.

Think about how you can add value to your courses. Coaching is the most obvious choice, but think outside the box and see what else you can think of.

11. Ask for feedback

If you want your online course to really shine, you need to ask for feedback. Send a survey to your students once they complete the course. If you let them take the survey anonymously, you'll usually get more honest feedback.

Really pay attention to complaints. You can easily troubleshoot issues in your course by addressing any issues raised by students. Maybe there's too much work outside of the classroom, the video lectures aren't loading quickly, or parts of the course are cluttered. Whatever the problem, feedback from your students is invaluable.

Ideally, you'll write your course, but keep refining it until you think it's perfect. This is the best way to ensure your content is better than everyone else's.

12. Ask for help

Promoting your course online will not be easy or quick. It's a good idea to ask for help. Word of mouth is one of the best and cheapest forms of advertising.

• Ask family and friends to tell others about your classes.
• Post on social media and ask your followers to share information about your course.
• Create a street team to help you promote your course. Offer them a free class when they speak.
• Exchange ideas with other instructors (not competitors) and talk about their courses while they're talking about yours.
• Ask social media influencers if they would try your course and recommend it if they like it (make sure you build a relationship with them first).

You'd be surprised how many people are willing to help you if you just ask for help.

Impact on online courses

Writing an online course is not difficult, but writing an online course that resonates with people is a challenge. By paying attention to all the elements that make a great lesson, you can build a reputation as a good instructor. Not only will your students love you, they will recommend you to others.

As you build your reputation, you'll sell more and more courses, creating the residual income we talked about earlier. In the second part of this article, we look at some tips from others who have created successful online courses. You will learn as much from your mistakes as you do from your successes.

Read part 2 of this guide:Monetize and deliver your course.