You’re sitting in the grind of 9-5 and you have a dream. You know that you were meant for more. If you’re ambitious and feel unfulfilled at work and find your mind wandering off to dreams of what could be, it may be time to give those dreams a go.
Online courses are having a BIG moment thanks to the pandemic and our increased ability and desire to learn. The industry’s revenue is expected to hit $240 billion this year. If there’s one thing that the pandemic has shown us, it’s that a lot can be done online. The online education market has exploded as people are looking to learn new things.
You can create an online course by packaging up your expertise to help other people. Thriving online courses can be anything, from the traditional such as business marketing, to the obscure like how to be a clown. Professionals and hobbyists alike are using the internet to help teach their skills to students across the globe.
You have so much expertise locked away in your own head. The knowledge that you’ve gained through your life can help to shortcut someone else’s success as they get the benefit of your experience. Packaging what you know into a digital online course allows you to create an income stream from what you know, while helping other people. Whether you’re looking to ditch your job for good or to make some money on the side, an online course is a simple way to make a saleable product from what you know.
5 steps to turn what you know into a saleable product:
1. Define your idea
The simplest way to begin is to start with something simple like a 30 day or 6 week course that there may be people asking you for already. So, you’re a florist who can make those gorgeous flower arches that everyone wants to know how to create – start there.
It doesn’t have to be complicated, start with something simple and clear.
2. Define your audience
Before you actually start creating your course, you want to be crystal clear on who it’s for and who it’s not for. Being a generalist doesn’t generally work (see what I did there :)) Being a specialist and an expert will win every time. Instead of being ok for everyone, be perfect for your perfect customer. Always focus on your customer and make service a priority. The way you’re successful is by making others successful.
3. Create the course
I’m a big fan of starting simply. You can begin with a full blown professional website and recorded course, but unless you have bucketloads of startup cash then there are easier ways. That phone you have in your pocket has everything you need to film your first course. Then, when you get more cash coming in, you can continually improve the quality. Online education is very different to what we’re used to from our classroom experience. There’s zero room for waffle. Teach what you’ve promised and get your customer the result in the quickest and easiest way.
4. Start your marketing
There’s no use being the world’s best kept secret. Once you’ve created your first course, you then have to talk about it – to everyone! Spread the word and do some valuable content marketing to show people that you know what you’re talking about.
5. Launch it into the world
If you really want to take online courses seriously, invest in yourself and get expert support. You’ll need a basic website to get started (I recommend something user-friendly like Kajabi), a sales page, a way to take payments and somewhere for people to view your courses.
The thing that often holds people back the most is that they feel like they need more confidence or to be more qualified. If you’ve read this far, I know you have that desire within you and I know that you have enough knowledge to share with the world. We only have one life; so go do it.
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