Toward the end of 2020, a consultant got in touch with me. She’d been referred to me by a colleague. Let’s call her Janelle. Janelle’s email is the sole reason for this post: 3 reasons to launch your course in 2021. So, here it is:
Dear Natalie
HELP! I’ve just spent around six months creating my course, and I went out to launch it and…crickets. Literally nothing. I worked so hard on trying to make it perfect. What have I done wrong? How do I fix it? What are my reasons for launching my course in 2021 anyway?
Janelle is EXPERIENCED, mmmkay? She’s helped people make the transition back into the workforce after time off for 10 years, and specialises in helping Mums to return to their corporate careers and get their dream jobs.
This stuff makes her blood pump faster. She’s run her own business for two years (which is very successful) and she’s a full-on powerhouse with a booked-out client schedule. But, when she tried to launch her course, so that she could reduce her 1-1 consulting, and help more women, this happened.
Not only did she spend months creating a whole course (losing precious time), she also lost out on revenue from new clients she didn’t accept during that time so she could create her damn course. Zero ROI, and even worse, her confidence took a real knock.
Obviously I got in touch with her straight away! This lady needed help. Correction. She needed HELP.
And I’m going to tell you what I told her. In fact…this is what I wrote back. Word for word.
Hi Janelle
Firstly, breathe. It is going to be OK. I promise.
I want to help. Help is at hand. We’re going to sort you out.
Launching a course is intense. And there are a TON of variables. I have launched over 30 courses over the last 10 years, and I know these variables well.
So, let’s start at the very beginning (a very good place to start…in the words of Maria von Trapp). But keep this at the top of your mind as your read: There are 3 reasons to launch your course in 2021.
Why launch an online course and why now?
Fun fact: According to research from Forbes the e-learning market is expected to reach a value of 325 billion by 2025.
That’s triple the growth from 2015. Triple! What the WHAT, I hear you say.
What’s even more astounding is that online courses made $46 billion in 2019, according to Len Markidan from Podia, a creator’s dream platform for online courses, digital products and memberships.
In short, people are spending more and more to learn online, and online courses are THE way to build a lucrative income stream into your business, side hustle or freelancing career.
Yes. Everyone and their parakeet is launching an online course right now. How will yours stand out? What do you have that they don’t?
You. What you have, that no one else has, is YOU.
There’s no better time to be getting paid to teach people what you know, things that they want to learn, through your own online course.
Remember 2020? The year EVERYTHING went online. That’s why. There has been a major shift to the online space, partly out of necessity, and partly since it was well overdue.
You see, people have been learning online for decades; it’s just become that much more popular in the last 5 or so years, thanks to YouTube, mobile devices and the internet, which have all made online learning accessible from just about anywhere.
Remember too, that in order to succeed or just stay afloat in the future of work, the need to reskill, upskill and keep learning is more critical than ever.
That’s why I’ve been so intent on covering off on how to do this on my podcast and blog. Check out How to tap into the future of work and Why the future of work is learning.
The thing is, a lot of people get put off by not knowing where to start, or thinking they don’t have anything to teach or offer, or getting overwhelmed by the tech side…and the list goes on.
That’s where I come in.
IMAGINE…
Imagine being able to scale you and your revenue without scaling the amount of work you do? Yes. Correct. Make MORE money, without working more hours. Without working harder.
That, my lovely, is the power of being able to launch your online course. You get to teach what you know and love, and make an impact in the lives of other people. Just like Oprah. Or Adriene. You are the BOMB, just like them…and your course, if structured and launched correctly, will make money.
The proof of the pudding…
In 2010 I was almost broke after 6 months focused on building up my blog and credibility but having nothing to offer to actually earn income.
I finally pulled together my first paid in-person workshop called The Social Media Bootcamp for Entrepreneurs, held over two days with just ten people.
I ended up putting on three workshops due to demand and selling out since it was such a hot topic. By the end of the month I’d made $15K and couldn’t believe it.
I then decided to market it to my tribe with a free webinar. I had 100 people sign up, which blew me away, 30 people attend live and ONE person buy my course for US$297.
And I was THRILLED.
I went on to make over $10K on that course, $100K on digital products and over $300K with one course through multiple launches.
And deep down, I know you are completely capable of replicating my results too – if you want it enough.
Want me to show you how?
First off grab my awesome online course creation kit for free here
(or click the giant image below)!
Three key reasons to launch your online course in 2021
I truly believe that everyone has something to teach, and that online courses and experiences are one of the best ways to impart that knowledge.
Here are three facts that I know to be true about you, that you know yourself! They’re also the 3 reasons to launch your course in 2021. And now, I give them to you. You’re welcome, beautiful.
Reason #1. You have an unfair advantage
Oh yeah what’s that Natalie? Well, my friend, it happens to be your life experiences, skills and knowledge that makes you uniquely YOU.
Have you ever heard people say to you, “How do you know how to do that? Can you teach me?”
Those are usually some fairly clear signs that you’re so good at something, or so used to it coming naturally to you, that you really ought to share what you know.
Or you’ve simply worked hard at something for some time and have built up quite a reservoir of knowledge that you simply didn’t realise other people really valued.
Either way, you need to leverage that sweet spot of yours – the intersection between what you’re good at, what you enjoy doing and what people will pay you for, and launch your damn course!
Reason #2. Resonance
How you think, who you are, how you make people feel and how you show up in this world is what is going to make you resonate with other people and stand out in a sea of sameness.
You already do this without knowing it – it’s how you tell stories, your quirks and opinions, the values you uphold and your own unique point of view.
That’s the bit that people really want to see. Every time I share a screw up, or failure, an experience or adventure or some real moment in my life and business I get a massive increase in engagement.
That’s because the more YOU that you share, the more people can resonate with you, see a little bit of themselves in you and relate to you, which means you become more human and personal to your potential customers – and that’s gold.
That’s connection, which builds trust and we are far more likely to buy from people we know, like and trust.
So what happens is as you infuse your content, videos, messages and work with what makes you uniquely you, you begin to stand out from the rest and become THE choice and person to turn to.
Reason #3 You’re a Leading Learner
Yes, you really are. That means that you’re not an expert. You’re not a guru; you’re just a couple of steps ahead of the person that you need to teach, my friend.
As you learn, you lead those by sharing everything you know, real-time in a way they can relate to and resonate with, rather than from some ivory tower of ‘I’ve been doing this for 20 years and my it’s my way or the highway kiddo’.
No-one wants to learn from a know-it-all. They want to learn from somebody who’s living and breathing it right now, and getting results, and is able to share what they know in a way that makes it easy for them to learn.
These are the people who are willing to pay you to learn what you already know and get up to speed in less time and for less money than you spent and invested, to get to where you are today…. no matter where that is.
Because the simple fact is you will always be further ahead than some people, and those are the people who will likely be the prime candidates to benefit from what you will teach in your online course.
Ready to launch your online course?
These 3 reasons to launch your course in 2021 are going to make you an outstanding online course creator, ready to share your knowledge and gifts with the very people who are prepared to pay you what you’re worth, and make an impact in their lives and on their journey.
Love Nat.
The Final Word: Your reasons to launch your course in 2021
Janelle got back to me after a couple of days. She said that she fully got what I was saying, and she agreed. And she wanted to give it another crack. How?
I’m going to tell you what I told her. Your course isn’t selling because you’re stuck on these things:
- What your unique value offering really is and why they want it;
- Who your dream target market is and how to find them;
- How to price your course so you make some serious moollah and your students get amazing value.
This is all in addition to the nitty-gritties: The ‘how’ of launching – which platforms, video or audio or webinar…..and what about landing pages, copywriting, marketing and advertising.
Yeah, it can all get very overwhelming when you overthink it. Luckily for you, my teaching superpower is the art of simplification and minimal viable product with maximum potential.
So, I’m going to cover all of these questions in a series of blogs over the next little while. I’m going to tell you exactly what I told Janelle. This is ON!
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