Quick tips/hacks for launching an online course?
I'm working on launching an online course for product management, including practice exercises, lessons, etc. displayed in a dynamic format (with hints, etc.). Would love to connect with or learn from others here on some tips given that we're three weeks from launch?
What are some of the most impactful additions pre-launch? Focus on content? Grow our listserv? Any suggestions on methodology?
Thanks so much!
Hey Stephen! If this is your first time launching, congratulations. You're going to learn a lot!
My first recommendation is to focus on building trust with your audience. Whether that's one-on-one calls, free webinars, or just some quality blog posts that you can provide for free, any little bit helps.
You can also grow your email list. Create a high quality PDF answering your target audience's biggest questions, put it behind an email signup wall, and run traffic to it with Facebook ads.
If you haven't already, incorporate some form of urgency into your launch. For instance, many courses keep registrations open for one week, twice per year. During this week, they offer an "early bird" discount on day 1, and let people know they're running out of time to purchase towards the end. (The first time I launched a course, I ignored urgency – I thought it made me look cheesy – and the launch went subpar. A few months later, I relaunched for a week and my earnings tripled. Nothing was different – my list had barely grown – but this time there was a reason to buy rather than wait.)
Finally, take this time to add tracking to your site to see the popularity of each lesson. Google Analytics should do. What people say they're looking for and what they're actually interested in are sometimes different. Knowing this can help you market the course in the future.
And as a bonus tip – be a parrot. Pay attention to how your potential customers talk about their problems. If they tend to use certain words or phrases, use those in your marketing! If you talk like the customer, they'll be more likely to buy from you. (For instance, take a look at Basecamp's landing page. They use phrases like "on the same page" and "get off the ground faster", which are much different than "organized" and "start quickly").
Let me know if you have any more questions. Good luck. :)
This is very good advice Mark. Thank you. I'm planning on putting out a course as well, but unsure if I should go with Udemy or launch on my own. I'm aware of the pros and cons in terms of the magnitude of traffic. However, the potential revenue per course is higher independently.
I'm not sure if this is still true, but I heard Udemy splits your profits 50/50 and controls your price during promotions. So you'd sometimes be making $2.50/sale.
I'd also think that Udemy users have come to expect heavy discounts, so they won't buy anything at full price.
I think that self-hosting, on the other hand, can be perceived as higher value (once you get the design and messaging right). It also gives you the ability to add custom features to the course and do your own SEO.
I'd say the ideal scenario is (1) build a big audience, (2) self-host a course.
If you don't have an audience, take your pick.
I'm interested in this as well.
Hey Louis! I responded to this above, you might be interested. :)
Thanks, great advice!