Online Courses are all the rage right now. People are looking for resources to upskill, to start an online business, to learn investment, to create income, and so on. Content creators all over the world are coming to the rescue of such people. Whether through a free online course, or a paid one, content creators are trying their best to help with their expertise.
If you manage to create a remarkable course, it can turn into a passive income stream. If you are also wondering how to create an online course from scratch, this article is for you:
Ask Yourself If You Are Qualified To Sell A Paid Course
Never create a course with an intention of generating cash. Your sole motivation should be to add value to the lives of others. Money is simply a pleasing consequence. Be honest to yourself about your merit. If you are not qualified enough to create a paid course, you should develop the skills first. Creating a substandard product will never take you anywhere. Not only is it ethically wrong, but it also harms your reputation. This can thwart your long-term goals.
Create
Evergreen Content
Arguably, when you create an online course, it should be relevant 5 years down the line. If you want a passive income from your course, your aim should be to create evergreen content. When we say relevant, we mean the subject matter of the course, not the information. Information can become outdated and has to be updated regularly. Suppose you have created a couple of online courses to help in UPSC exam preparation. It is an evergreen subject, but some parts of the syllabus and exam pattern will change with time. You can easily revise the contents of your course periodically and enjoy the earnings.
There’s nothing wrong with creating content on trendy hot topics. But,
they are short-lived; their popularity wears off in some time. They will not
become a passive income source.
Set A
Budget And Invest Mindfully
To create an income, you need to invest first. Before beginning to put
effort into creating a course, decide your budget, and spend accordingly. You
will need to spend on recording equipment, management tools, and online
softwares. Do not spend lavishly, thinking that you will get high returns in
the future. Stick to what you can afford.
Vigorously Research
Your Target Audience’s Needs
A vital portion of your time
will go into researching what your target audience needs. You cannot sweat
blood creating the course only to realize no one really needs it. Observe what
kind of people are there in your target audience. Take some lessons in human
psychology to understand what they like.
Also, observing your
competitors, who are already selling online courses,
is equally important. Try to include new information that they have not talked
about. Employ different teaching methods to cater to everyone’s learning style.
Offer A
Freebie
Imagine your course is to be sold at INR 8,999. How will you convince
the audience to loosen their purse strings? Even if they are in dire need of
your course, they won’t let go of their hard-earned money without a second
thought. So, you have to create a short free online course on the same topic. In your free course, you will shed light on
some important things related to the topic, without going in-depth.
Then you have to promote it actively. More often than not, people do
enroll in free courses being offered to them. As you gather an audience for
your free online course, you blow
their minds with your knowledge. People will be awed, but also directionless.
This is when you make them realize that they need your paid course. Offer them
a discount for a limited period to create urgency.
Build A
Strong Online Presence
Remember, passive income is not possible until you have made active income. People will only buy from you if they regard you as a professional in their field. For instance, if you have created a course on freelancing business, you have to have excelled in the same business yourself. Having a strong personal brand on social media helps gain trust among the target audience.
If you are willing to sell the course on one of the online learning
platforms like EdX or Udemy, then you can ignore this suggestion. However,
selling your course from your own website is considered the best practice. To
generate a huge amount of money while sleeping, it is better to have full
control over the ownership and usage rights of your product.
Parting Note
When we say
“passive earning”, it doesn’t mean that you create a product once and leave it
on its own. It only means that you have to work half as hard after creating the
product, as you did in the beginning.
Also Checkout - Future of Cybersecurity: 5 Trends That Need Close Monitoring!