Over the last several years, there’s been a lot of buzz and interest in online courses, but it’s not often that individuals list all of the advantages of producing one and explore them in-depth.
So, In this article, we’ll be asking the question: Why should I create an online course?
By creating and marketing online courses, almost anyone with information or a skill to give can earn a side income or a full-time income.
An online course can help you make a (semi) passive income by separating the amount of money you earn from the number of hours you labor. It can also aid in the development of your authority and brand.
Let’s look at some of the primary reasons why I advocate producing an online course for folks.
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Why Should I Create An Online Course?
Right now, it seems like every online marketing guru is pushing the necessity of having an online course. So, do I believe it’s a good idea for everyone to develop their own course?
No, I don’t believe that everyone should create an online course.
However, I believe that a large number of individuals would profit from it.
An online course might be very profitable for you if you have any information or skill that people would be interested in acquiring.
This is especially true if you already have an online following, such as through your own website, YouTube channel, or Instagram account. It’s also a good fit if you’re a consultant or coach who wants to move away from one-on-one work and find a means to share your skills with a larger audience.
It will be far more difficult to market your course if you don’t already have an audience or a list of clients wanting to work with you, so spend the time first building an audience and then creating an online course once you have that setup.
If you don’t already have an audience, you can use an e-learning marketplace to market your course for you.
However, as I mentioned earlier in this article, you should think carefully about where you create your online course because e-learning sites like Udemy take a large commission unless you promote it yourself.
So, assuming you do have a following interested in your area of expertise or topic, what makes creating an online course such a fantastic idea?
Other online business concepts have come and gone, so why do I believe online courses will be around for a long time? A few of my reasons are listed below.
1) You Produce a Lucrative Asset
You can sell an online course over and over again without the time constraints of normal employment. The concept of ‘passive income’ becomes a reality when you create a course, and the relationship between the number of hours you labor and the amount of money you earn is broken.
I put ‘passive income’ in parenthesis because it isn’t really passive…
You’ll still have to help your pupils, answer queries, market yourself, and so on…
However, sales can come in while you’re sleeping, and your time input isn’t directly related to the number of sales you make.
Making a fresh copy of your course is not an additional expense because it is a digital product. Most aspects of the procedure are automated and don’t require continued input from you as long as there are no technical issues.
An online course also has relatively minimal costs, with large profit margins of up to 75%.
Because it’s such a successful and scalable product, an online course (or series of courses) has the potential to fully replace your existing revenue stream or employment provided you set up a competent marketing approach.
It’s also a benefit in that it has a lengthy shelf-life — you can sell the same course for years. Sure, elements of it, or perhaps the entire thing, may need to be revised or updated every few years. However, you are creating a valuable asset that will pay off repeatedly.
2) You’ll be able to reach out to a larger number of people.
The number of people you can help when coaching or dealing with folks one on one is severely limited by the number of hours in a day.
If you work 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, you only have 160 hours a month to potentially help others.
You may perform the equivalent of hundreds of hours of work per month by filming videos or making knowledge available online without even having to do the coaching or teaching!
You essentially build a digital version of yourself and your expertise, allowing you to reach out to many more people than your real self could ever hope to.
People also have a habit of asking the same questions over and over. Rather than wasting hours of your life discussing the same topics, an online course can address all of these issues in a fraction of the time and effort.
3) Provide a Low-Cost Entry Point For Your Clients
Perhaps you want people to come to you for coaching or advising, but your hourly rate is $300. It’s difficult to persuade a new contact to pay you those types of prices, especially if they’ll need a lot of your time.
An online course can be an economical entry-level choice for providing people with some of the information they need, but if they’re more comfortable with you, they’ll come to you for the most valuable answers.
You can also use your course to promote other people’s affiliate products or to upsell or downsell your other services and products.
4) It Can Help You Establish Authority
Having your own online course establishes your credibility and authority, as well as allows you to develop a true brand. People respect and trust those that teach others, so take advantage of this!
While your course generates revenue on its own, it also serves as a springboard for other aspects of your business or any new products you want to launch in the future.
You get instant credibility by claiming to have taught ‘x’ amount of individuals all over the world, allowing you to position yourself as a top authority in your industry.
5) To Increase Your Income Diversification
Even if you currently have a thriving business, you might wish to diversify your offerings by adding an online course.
That way, your risk is spread out and you’re less reliant on one aspect of your firm, such as advising or selling real goods.
This is exactly what we’ve done at my mushroom-growing company, where education and online courses have become an important component of what we do in addition to growing mushrooms and selling mushroom-growing kits.
6) Establish Geographical Independence
You can work from anywhere in the world if you have an online course that pays you money. All you need is a laptop and an internet connection.
Unlike regular work, you are not restricted to a single location. You may continue to create and promote your courses while relaxing on a Thai beach. In fact, many individuals consider this to be one of the finest methods to make money as a digital nomad.
An online course also allows you to sell to a worldwide audience and attract students from all over the world. That’s something you’d never be able to accomplish if you exclusively taught classes in your own city.
7) Low Entry Barrier
You may build an online course for very little money and with very little equipment. For additional information, see my article on how much it costs to produce an online course.
If you can afford to spend a little money on equipment such as a good microphone, lighting, camera, and screen recording software, your course will be of greater quality.
However, it isn’t required; you could create your first course using just your laptop’s webcam and microphone, and then improve it later when you’ve made some money from it.
In contrast, a physical educational institution must purchase or rent classroom space, furnish it with desks and technology, and employ a large number of people.
Making an online course is one of the cheapest and safest enterprises you can start.
Even if your course never sells a single copy in the worst-case scenario, you won’t lose much money. Particularly when compared to other businesses such as operating a restaurant or store, where you must invest hundreds or thousands of dollars every month in rent and goods.
Because your product is entirely digital, you won’t have to worry about manufacturing, shipping expenses, delivery, or any of the other issues that traditional firms face.
Every aspect of your business, including website customization, content creation, advertising, and management, takes place online.
8) Adaptability
Creating and marketing online courses can provide you a lot of freedom with your schedule.
You can work on it from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. if you want to. If you’re seeking to build an online course empire, you can also work 70 hours a week and then retire (or semi-retire) early.
You can also adopt a more relaxed approach and work for a few hours each day or on specific days of the week, making it ideal for stay-at-home parents or anyone who wants to do something other than work!
It’s your company, and you have complete control over how you operate it. This frees up time for hobbies or perhaps a second part-time job to supplement your income while you’re getting your course up and running.
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