Course Building Made Simple

So, you’ve decided that a course is the right thing for your brand. Now, what? Well, course building might seem overwhelming if you're new to it. Here’s a simple, 9-step how-to guide to help you build your first course. 💪

Step 1: Define Your Course Goal🎯

Be clear. What specific outcome do you want your audience to achieve? For example:

• ❌️ Too vague: "Learn marketing."

• ✅️ Clear goal: "Create a marketing strategy that grows your audience by 20% in 3 months."

A clear goal gives your course focus and helps you attract the right audience.

Step 2: Identify Your Audience👥️

Understand who your course is for. Are you targeting small business owners, freelancers, or aspiring entrepreneurs? Get specific about their challenges and goals.

• 💡Tip: Use surveys, social media polls, or direct conversations to learn what your audience wants.

Step 3: Outline Your Course Content📝

Break down your course into bite-sized lessons. Create a roadmap🗺️ of what students need to learn to reach the goal you defined.

1. Introduction: Set expectations and build ✨️excitement✨️.

2. Core modules: Teach the main topic(s) step-by-step.

3. Conclusion: Wrap up with actionable next steps.

Keep each lesson short, practical, and actionable. Aim for content that is 5–15 minutes long to maintain attention.🤓

Step 4: Choose the Right Format💾

Decide how you want to deliver your course. Get creative!🎨 Just remember to stay true to your audience and your brand.

• 📹Videos: Great for making your content more relatable and demonstrating visual concepts.

• 📚Workbooks or templates: Useful for hands-on practice.

• ⏺️Live sessions: Allow for a personal touch and allow real-time interaction and connection with your audience.

Start simple. If you’re new to course creation, focus on what you know and are good at. You can always experiment🥼 and update your course later.

Step 5: Select a Course Platform💻

Choose a platform that fits your needs, your brand, and your audience. Here are some popular options:

• Community platforms: Platforms like Circle are designed for community building, tailored offerings, and support various integrations.

• Learning Management Systems (LMSs): Platforms like Thinkific are easy to use and have built-in course features.

• Social media: Platforms like Instagram may not seem like an obvious choice, but their reach, Q&A and polling features, and audience engagement can be perfect for courses.

Remember, if you want to monetize your course, make sure your chosen platform will let you do that. Also, go where your audience is. If you have a strong TikTok following, see if/how you can leverage it for your course.🧐

Step 6: Create Engaging Content🤯

People learn best when they’re engaged. Once you've chosen your platform, you can also better design your content to maximize the platform's functionality. Here’s how to make your content memorable:

• Draw from your experience: Your audience wants to learn from you!🫵 Use your real-life examples or stories to illustrate your points.

• Make it 😍eye-catching😍: Add visuals like gifs, images, or infographics. Branding these visuals and letting your audience share them on social media will give you additional free advertising!📣

• Get your audience to participate: Include ✏️polls, quizzes, or mini-assignments to reinforce learning.

Step 7: Price Your Course🏷

Set a price that reflects the value you’re providing.

• 🪙Low-cost - for introductory or beginner-level courses.

• 💵Medium-cost - for in-depth courses with added resources.

• 💰High-cost - for courses offering premium content and coaching.

Wherever possible, sense-check your pricing against your competitors and ask people you trust for feedback.

Step 8: Launch and Promote📢

Don’t wait for perfection—launch your course! Promote it through:

• 📱Social media: Share snippets or testimonials.

• ✉️Newsletters: Announce your course to subscribers.

• 💬Word of mouth: You're the best ad for your course. Tell your network and they'll spread the good word!

Offer a pre-launch discount or bonus to incentivize early buyers.

Step 9: Gather Feedback and Improve🏆

Ask your audience for feedback to refine your course. Use their input to fix gaps, add new content, or improve the learning experience.💯

Final Thoughts

Courses come in all shapes and sizes. As long as your audience learns something, you can design your course however you want to. Want to create a 10-part video series on TikTok? Or a 5-module course using an LMS? How about a 3-part Instagram live series? Whatever works for you!😜

The point is that building a course doesn’t have to be complicated. Start small, focus on providing value, play to your strengths, and iterate as you go.

Ready to get started?💪