Today you’re going to learn how to make an online course. This is a big milestone in the Profit From Your Passion training series, as we reach part 6.
As you already know, monetizing your website properly (for the longterm) is hard and it takes time.
But when you commit to creating information products and online courses, you can reap the rewards for years to come. They are assets that continue to profit many years later.
Just a few days ago one of my older products, from 6 or 7 years ago, made a sale – without any promotion from me. In fact I’d completely forgotten about it.
So let’s get started with making your first online course.
Table of Contents:
You Don’t Need To Be An Expert
It’s important to know that when it comes to making courses you don’t have to be an expert.
A lot of people fall down at the very first hurdle but you just got to be a few steps ahead of your students.
Just show them the journey that you’ve been on and allow them to follow you further.
That’s all you have to do.
Online Course Content
And then for the actual content of your online course; remember the product creation framework?
We help your customers escape from a problem and then walk them through all the things they need to take to arrive at a solution, in the order they need to do them.
So go back to that product framework drill down into the next few steps and create content that’s based around that.
Make sure the content is ‘how-to’ and step by step.
If you are really stuck for content ideas just have a look on Udemy and other courses in your market.
Also look on forums, FAQ sections, blogs, Quora, Reddit etc and see what questions are being asked about your niche and what problems people need help with.
Online Course Format
Now when you’re actually making the course you can write a text document and convert it to PDF if you don’t want to use video.
You don’t have to write 200 pages or anything like that but it does have to have a lot of meaty content.
So we don’t want to make something that’s full of fluff.
We want to actually have highly valuable content in there that actually helps your customers to solve a problem.
While you can deliver that through PDF or a collection of PDFs, if you want to make more money then use video.
Also no matter what format you choose, you have to make sure that every module covers one particular task.
So we don’t have a video with a bunch of different topics in it.
We break it down into smaller chunks and that is so your customers can digest the information easily.
They can copy and replicate what you’re teaching them, and they’re not getting bogged down with loads of different ideas.
Online Course Pricing
And then when it comes to pricing your online course, at the low end we’d typically charge around $30 for a PDF going right up to around $500 for video content – and anywhere in between.
The pricing that you use will massively depend on your niche and the pricing structure of your competitors.
There are a few variables and ultimately you’ll have to choose a price that you are happy with.
I know that Teachable encourages you to sell a course for a minimum of $100, while Udemy suggests around $20.
It really depends on what you’re comfortable with.
Now I’m going to show you the exact gear that I use in my business, if you want to use that as inspiration.
Video Equipment
So let’s get into the equipment that you might want to use.
The first thing that we’re going to need if you’re gonna do video is a camera.
Cameras
If you don’t want to invest in a camera then you can use a smartphone. They’ve all got HD capability.
But if you want to go a bit fancier then I can recommend something like the Logitech c920.
It’s an amazing webcam. I’ve made a while bunch of courses with this and it served me really well.
And it’s probably still the best HD webcam on the market, in my opinion.
You could also use a Flip camera, they’re still really usable.
We’ve also got DSLR cameras – which I’m using at the moment.
I am using a Canon 700D and it’s a good entry-level DSLR.
Microphones
Next you’re gonna need a good microphone.
Resist the urge to buy those cheap no-brand microphones.
I spent years buying them and they break quickly and the recording quality is very poor.
One option is a lapel mic that will just clip on to your shirt.
I use an Audio Technica and it’s a very good brand. Decent sound quality, if a little low.
Of course we’ve got the king of all USB mics; the Blue Yeti.
They are very popular microphones. It’s I use when I’m on the computer. The sound quality is hard to beat.
We’ve also got something like the Zoom H4N which very good microphone and recorder. It eats batteries like there’s no tomorrow, but the sound quality is fantastic.
And then we’ve also got the Rode Video Mic Pro. These are great if you’re using a DSLR because they plug right into the external mic socket.
I can recommend all these microphones but you only need one.
Lighting
And then you’re gonna have to have some lighting.
Typically you would get these big soft boxes but you don’t actually have to have those.
It’s important to think about the position of the lights, too.
I like to have three-point lighting – so above me is a hair light and then a couple of smaller lights to the side of me.
This kind of lighting system gives good definition so I don’t blend into the background.
But you don’t have to have that set up.
You could just use an LED light box.
They are very powerful and a good option if you’re short on space or short on budget.
The brand really doesn’t matter when it comes to lighting, both soft boxes and LED lights will last for years.
So there you go, I’ve shown you the way that I create my courses and the process that I use.
Obviously I use video more than anything else because it’s more valuable and I can sell that a higher price.
Videos are also quicker to make.
But I’m doing in this process is giving you multiple options and you can just decide whichever one works best for you.
Now you know how to make an online course.